Music

Legendary blues and rock pianist Johnnie Johnson died Wednesday in St. Louis. He was 80 years old. For more than 20 years, Johnson was Chuck Berry's pianist. He played on all of Berry's greatest hits, and he gained rock-and-roll immortality when Berry wrote the song "Johnny B. Goode" about him. (Originally aired July 31, 1991)

Gareth Cook covers science for The Boston Globe. Last week, he won the 2005 Pulitzer Prize for explanatory journalism for his yearlong series of stories on stem-cell research. The judges praised Cook's work for explaining "the complex scientific and ethical dimensions of stem cell research."

Music historian Ed Ward remembers the Rock and Roll Trio, from the early 1950s made up of brothers Johnny and Dorsey Burnette and electric guitarist Paul Burlison. Their recordings have been collected on the Hip-O Select label.

Lewis Black is a playwright, stand-up comic, actor, and a commentator on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. He's been described as having the mouth of a shock-jock and the heart of a liberal. His new book is entitled Nothing's Sacred.

Writer Frank Conroy died April 6, at 69. He had colon cancer. He was the longtime director of the prestigious Iowa Writers Workshop. His 1967 memoir, Stop-Time, became a classic. In 1993, he published his first and only novel, Body & Soul. His other books were a collection of short stories, Midair, and his last book, the nonfiction Time and Tide: A Walk Through Nantucket. Conroy also worked as a jazz pianist in Greenwich Village and Nantucket for many years. (Originally aired Sept. 29, 1993)

Critic Milo Miles checks out the New Orleans sound via a recent recording by the Neville Brothers, Walkin' in the Shadow of Life, as well as a new Sonny Landreth CD, Grant Street.

Rock critic Ed Ward finds a forgotten chapter of American pop history: the 1940s sound of East Los Angeles. Hear original recordings of vintage Latin music collected on the new CD Pachuco Boogie, from Arhoolie Records.

DJ Kool Herc is the father of the breakbeat, the deejay practice of isolating and repeating "breaks," the most danceable portions of songs; breakbeats make up the foundation of modern hip-hop. Herc has written the introduction to the new book Can't Stop, Won't Stop: A History of the Hip Hop Generation (St.Martins, 2005) by Jeff Chang.

In the past several months, singer Marianne Faithfull has released two CDs: a two-disc set of her hits, and Before the Poison, which includes tracks written by PJ Harvey.

Jazz critic Kevin Whitehead reviews I Have The Room Above Her by the Paul Motian/Bill Frisell/Joe Lovano trio.

Rock critic Ken Tucker reviews Mercy Now, the new album from singer-songwriter Mary Gauthier.

New York cabaret legend Bobby Short died Monday of leukemia at age 80. The singer performed at New York's Carlyle Hotel for nearly four decades. Short was born in Danville, Ill., and began his career at age 9, known as "The Miniature King of Swing." He was named a Living Landmark by New York's Landmark Conservancy and a National Living Legend by the Library of Congress.

Classical music critic Lloyd Schwartz reviews the latest project by Russian conductor Valery Gergiev — recordings of Shostakovich's Fourth, Fifth, Seventh and Ninth Symphonies.

Roky Erickson was the front man for the 13th Floor Elevators, the first band to be called psychedelic. While they never became superstars, the Texas band's influence can still be felt today. Rock historian Ed Ward has a retrospective on Erickson's career.

Film critic David Edelstein reviews The Upside of Anger starring Joan Allen and Kevin Costner.

Jazz critic Kevin Whitehead reviews two new box set releases from the mail-order house Mosaic: The Complete Argo/Mercury Art Farmer/Benny Golson/Jazztet Sessions and The Complete Roulette Dinah Washington Sessions.

In his 30-year career, musician Fred Hersch has performed in solo, duo, trio and quintet settings. In 2003 he received the prestigious Guggenheim Memorial Fellowship, which he used to work on his latest project, Leaves of Grass. For it, Hersch leads a 10-piece ensemble, which includes vocalists singing the words of Walt Whitman set to compositions by Hersch. He is touring the ensemble this month.

The RZA is one of the founding members of the kung-fu-meets-hip-hop group the Wu Tang Clan. He has also written film scores, including 'Kill Bill' and 'Ghost Dog'. Now he has turned his efforts to a new book, 'The Wu Tang Manual'.

Rock historian Ed Ward tells us the story of the pop group the Chairman of the Board.

The Great Destroyer is the new CD from Low, the trio from Duluth, Minn. With the release, Low marks their transition to the Sub Pop label -- and a more assertive sound. Rock critic Ken Tucker has a review.