I consider myself lucky to work with such a wide variety of music contributors who bring their picks to Weekend America. I am constantly exposed to new material from Alan Light of Tracks Magazine, Steve Smith of Time Out NY, and Tom Pryor of Global Rhythm Magazine. I'm also very pleased to welcome 2 new contributors: Jason Koransky of Downbeat Magazine and Mark Wheat of MPR's The Current in MN.

All of these music vultures are here to help you wade the multitude of musical releases that most of us don't have time to get to. I understand how difficult it can be to stay on top of all of the latest releases. Alan, Steve, Jason, Tom, Mark and myself live and breathe this stuff so you don't have to destroy your inner ears.

Some recent pick highlights for me include:

Keith Jarrett - Radiance

I was really pleased to hear Jason Koransky talking with Bill Radke last week about the new Keith Jarrett record, Radiance. I can't say that I have been a huge fan of Jarrett's work with his Standard's Trio, but this new live solo piano recording just knocked my socks off, and after hearing Jason discuss it so passionately with Bill I was even more inspired to spend hours with it.

Magnolia Electric Co. - What Comes After the Blues

I've been a fan of songwriter Jason Molina's acoustic work as "Songs: Ohia", and it was great to hear Alan Light laud the new electric direction that he has gone with his new project Magnolia Electric Co.

Warsaw Village Band - Uprooting

I think I admitted this to Tom Pryor when he told me he wanted to discuss this record -- I just have a soft spot for anything Polish. I'm not sure why that is, but "Uprooting" is just an exciting record. As Tom pointed out in his chat with Barbara, it is exciting to hear young people going back to the roots of their folk traditions - not to just recreate them verbatim, but instead to twist them slightly into something new and inspiring.

Aside from the picks, here's a few other records that have my ear at the moment that you can investigate with the spare time you might have.

The Mountain Goats - Sunset Tree

Radian - Juxtaposition

Mountains - s/t

Michael Raphael
Music Director

On Saturday May 8th on Weekend America
over KUOW from 12noon to 1:00PM there was a review of a classical piece recorded live. I only heard the very end of the piece; I'm sure it was baroque and probably Bach. The commentator was talking about the excitement of live recording vs studio
recording. As usual Barbara Belgaev neither identified the piece nor the
recording specifics at the end of the segment. PLEASE tell her to do so in the future and please tell me what the piece of music was!

Music information: J.S. Bach, composer; Sir John Eliot Gardner, conductor - Cantata No. 100, first movement | From the album, Bach Cantatas (Soli Deo Gloria)

You can find the interview at http://weekendamerica.publicradio.org/programs/index_20050507.html; 2nd item from the bottom of the page.

When was the last time you heard a double bass as the lead instrument? When was the last time you couldn't identify a bass as a bass (at first listen some savvy friends have guessed sax...appropriate, as he is to bass what Coltrane is to saxophone)? Check out Terry Plumeri's "Blue in Green" and prepare to be wowed! (You can hear some of the tunes at cdbaby.com if you require a preview.) Long considered the innovator in arco bass, he's a master at bowing. Joe LaBarbera and David Goldblatt on drums and piano round out the trio exquisitely. This is a cd that belongs in every jazz enthusiast's collection. Great playing, great selection of tunes, great mood...it's hugely satisfying on every level.