wnyc.org / 93.9fm / am 820

On Demand

Program Schedule

Topics


Soundcheck

Tuesday, January 15, 2008
Previous Episode | Next Episode
  • film poster for John Ford's The Searchers
    film poster for John Ford's The Searchers

    How the West is Sung

    The revival of Hollywood westerns means the return of the genre's classic iconography - fearless gunslingers, ruthless outlaws, tumbleweeds. It also means some increasingly unconventional musical scores. Today, we explore the changing sound of the movie western - from the classic era of John Wayne and Clint Eastwood to revivals like "3:10 to Yuma" AND "There Will Be Blood." Also: singer-songwriter Tyler Ramsey shares his latest album "Swimming Across the Sea," and performs live in our studio.

Western Soundtracks: Back in the Saddle

Just as Hollywood's latest crop of Westerns take a revisionist view of frontier life, their musical scores sound incredibly different from those of the classics of the 50s and 60s. Today, we look at the changing sound of the Western with Jon Burlingame, a film music historian who teaches at USC and writes for Variety; and Kathryn Kalinak, author of How the West Was Sung: Music in the Westerns of John Ford.

How the West Was Sung: Music in the Westerns of John Ford
Jon Burlingame's Variety articles

Tyler Ramsey Live

Before singer and multi-instrumentalist Tyler Ramsey joined the critically lauded Band of Horses this year, he was a versatile solo artist and sideman in Asheville, N.C. We talk with Ramsey about how the slow, mournful sounds on his new CD "A Long Dream About Swimming Across the Sea" caught the attention of one of the buzziest bands in rock. And he performs live in the studio.

Tyler Ramsey's Myspace page

audience

Soundcheck Smackdown: When Contemporary Met Classical

Soundcheck

Like vegetables stuck into a delicious meal, contemporary classical music is forced on concert audiences before they are allowed to enjoy their Brahms. So says humorist, critic and author Joe Queenan. Today, Queenan and John Berry, Artistic Director with English National Opera, join us for a Soundcheck Smackdown debate on the merits of contemporary music.

musical clouds

You Are What You Hear

Soundcheck

Washington Post reporter Paul Farhi takes us through some of the most famously botched song lyrics in rock history. We’ll explore why the words we make up are usually more interesting than the real version. Then, listeners confess their favorite and most embarrassing reinvented lyrics.

Leave a comment: Give us your favorite set of misheard lyrics! Were you disappointed when you learned the actual words?

Rosanne Cash and Mark O'Connor

Soundcheck

For her, he was a father. For him, he was a boyhood hero. For the nation, he was an icon. Singer-songwriter Rosanne Cash and composer and violinist Mark O'Connor join us to talk about how Johnny Cash has inspired their musical collaboration. And they will play live.

Katy

Soundcheck's Summer Song Poll

Soundcheck

Every year, popular and critical opinion somehow converge to settle on a "summer song." In 2007, it was Rihanna's "Umbrella." The year before, it was "Crazy" by Gnarls Barkley. The practice stretches back to the very dawn of pop radio. Yet defining the essence of a "summer song" is a bit elusive. We enlist the help of Blender editor at large Lizzy Goodman -- and of our Soundcheck listeners, in an online poll.

Cast your vote: Soundcheck's Summer Song Poll 2008

Can't decide? Check out audio and video clips of the contestants here.

Our blog: John Schaefer asks what makes a good summer song,

  1. The Brian Lehrer Show: Live from the Democratic National Convention (08/25/2008)
  2. The Brian Lehrer Show: Live from the Democratic National Convention: Day 4 (08/28/2008)
  3. The Brian Lehrer Show: Live from the Democratic National Convention: Day 3 (08/27/2008)
  4. The Brian Lehrer Show: Live from the Democratic National Convention: Day 2 (08/26/2008)
  5. The Brian Lehrer Show: Business Connections (08/22/2008)
  6. The Brian Lehrer Show: Live from Denver (08/29/2008)
  7. The Leonard Lopate Show: 1-2-3 (08/26/2008)