In a lot of ways, vasectomies couldn’t have asked for a better spokesman than Australian Clint Greagen: weightlifter, football fanatic, and stay-at-home father of four who happened to get his vas deferens cut by a man named Dr. Snip.

Her mother committed suicide when she was 12 years old, and Jane Fonda says it took fifty years and three marriages and divorces before she finally felt whole.

New York-based performance artist Lucy Sexton was never one for convention. So it shouldn’t come as a surprise that when it came to having a family, she found a way to make it happen on her own terms.

In this episode: The band Led Zeppelin is no stranger to legal problems stemming from unacknowledged songwriting credits. The latest in a string of lawsuits is over the opening strains of their magnum opus, "Stairway To Heaven." Soundcheck talks to Bloomberg News reporter Vernon Silver about allegations that the melody was stolen.

Then: Anna Sale, host of WNYC’s Death, Sex and Money shares highlights from her recent conversation with married musicians Jason Isbell and Amanda Shires. Hear about how the couple faced a big recent life change -- and some of the duo’s recent performance on Soundcheck.

And: This weekend the Sasquatch music festival kicks off in Washington state. And as fans start making the trek to the Gorge, Soundcheck is helping out those who maybe need a ride, or a travel companion to help chip in 20 bucks for gas. Hear some of our favorite Sasquatch ride-share posts from Craigslist.

Jason Isbell was a drunken, philandering country star from Alabama. Amanda Shires was the fiddler from Texas who turned his life around. But a year into their marriage, they're discovering that sobriety and success come with a new set of challenges.

In this episode: Anna Sale, the host of WNYC's new podcast Death, Sex & Money, joins Soundcheck to discuss her recent conversation with Grammy Award-winning singer Bill Withers, including Bill's thoughts on the Kardashians, his creative process and more.

Then: Animator Ralph Bakshi famously earned the first “X” rating for his 1971 debut feature, Fritz The Cat. Since then, his raunchy, unlikely takes on race, sex, religion, war, and, of course, rock ’n’ roll have made him a celebrated figure in the world of animation. Bakshi reflects on his career, why he dedicated a whole film to the history of American pop music, and a current retrospective of his work at BAM Cinema.

And: Violinist Owen Pallett started his career recording music under the name Final Fantasy; these days, Pallett releases albums under his own name – and has become a key contributor to the band Arcade Fire. Hear Pallett perform music from his newest album, In Conflict, live in the Soundcheck studio.

My boyfriend Arthur and I broke up. Then Alan Simpson intervened. And what this expert on the federal deficit taught me about love changed everything.

Heidi Reinberg lives six doors down from the mayor, on a tree-lined Brooklyn block where everyone looks out for each other. Now, after 18 years in her dream apartment, she’s getting priced out. 

Admit you’re scared. Don’t make excuses. Be interesting. The Grammy-winning songwriter and singer talks candidly about a life lived with intention and the beauty of the perfect rhyme.

Anna Sale fills in for Leonard Lopate. On today’s show: Mary Roach joins the Leonard Lopate Show Book Club to talk about her book Gulp! Thomas Piketty talks about crunching 200 years’ worth of economic data to look ahead at how wealth will be distributed in the 21st century. Cecile Richards talks about her late mother, former Texas Governor Ann Richards. James Moll discusses his documentary “Farmland,” about the lives of young farmers and ranchers. And we’ll find out why there isn’t a male contraceptive pill.

Anna Sale fills in for Leonard Lopate. On today’s show: reporter Mark Follman explains how  the popular online forum Reddit has become a gun marketplace. Isabella Rossellini talks about adapting her Sundance Channel series, “Green Porno,” for the stage. One woman shares her story of growing up as a Muslim in America. Plus, our word maven Patricia T. O’Conner takes your calls and questions about the intricacies of the English language.