Remembering Dr. John; What Was The First Disco Song?
Plus, watch the Tiny Desk concert from Contest winner Quinn Christopherson.
Andy Sheppard/Getty Images
Beloved New Orleans fixture Malcolm John Rebennack – better known as Dr. John – died Thursday at the age of 77. Rebennack started out in New Orleans as a teenage guitar slinger in the '50s and absorbed the Dr. John character – hoodoo mystery and cool – which was originally developed for his old bandmate Ronnie Barron. Over his six decade career, the guitarist, piano man and psychedelic godfather made connections between the deep and broad heritage of New Orleans and the electric progress of rock and funk. His catalogue includes psychedelic funk performed as Night Tripper, Mardi Gras Indian music, jazz standards and show tunes.
Dr. John won six Grammy Awards and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2011. As Alison Fensterstock wrote in her obituary, “Dr. John was one of the last players standing of a New Orleans generation that witnessed rock and roll taking on form — and indeed, carved it into a shape of his own.”
While we mourn his passing, we think he'd want us to have fun with this music – so we’ve also put together a playlist of songs to honor his sprawling musical legacy.
“Down in New Orleans,” Marissa Lorusso and Lyndsey McKenna
New Music
May gave us a ridiculous roster of new releases ahead of summer’s arrival – to recap, we once again rounded up our favorite songs and albums of the month. We had a hard time narrowing down the best albums of the month, so we gave you 15 need-to-hear-now picks: from the neo-soul of Ari Lennox to the electro-acoustic compositions of Daniel Wohl to crucial hip-hop releases by DUCKWRTH, Injury Reserve and Tyler, The Creator. Our favorite songs of the month playlist includes a shimmering track from Carly Rae Jepsen’s new album, a slow-burning duet between Juanes and Alessia Cara, a cry of hope from Rhiannon Giddens and more.
On this week’s All Songs ConsideredNew Music Friday, we’re spinning the explosive music of roots-rock duo Ida Mae, new gospel from disco legend Gloria Gaynor, an empathetic new album from Palehound, plus an ode to the African diaspora from Santana.
To your newsletter editors, the glimmer of summer days ahead means one thing: roséwave, our one-word Twitter joke turned full-on lifestyle. We're following two seasons of sommelier-level playlist curation with another round of roséwave playlists to juice up your summer.
Each month, NPR Member stations put together a list of their favorite new songs. This month’s playlist includes the low-key grooves of Drangus, a hooky track from Toronto band Fast Romantics, arty, atmospheric music from Kelsey Lu and more.
Featuring
Pavarotti, the new documentary about the beloved tenor by director Ron Howard, was an opportunity to tell the story of a tectonic shift not only for opera and its visibility, but also for the business of classical music. But ultimately, our colleague Tom Huizenga writes, the film does little to bolster the magical, complicated art called opera.
25-year-old singer Raveena has gained a following of fellow millennial South Asian Americans who, like her, feel themselves at a crossroads of identity, culture and time. Her new, self-released debut album, Lucid, mashes up contemporary R&B with traditions from the diaspora.
What was the first disco song? And is that question even answerable? One writer tried to find out.
For nearly two decades, Jim DeRogatis has been searching for justice on behalf of the women who have accused singer R. Kelly of sexual and physical abuse. His new book, Soulless, is an account of those years.
Tiny Desk
Claire Harbage/NPR
When we welcome the winner of the Tiny Desk Contest to NPR HQ, it’s always an exciting and emotional day. This year, winner Quinn Christopherson’s performance was no exception. Quinn is a gifted storyteller and songwriter with a powerful voice and unique perspective. At the Tiny Desk, he and musical partner Nick Carpenter were at times playful, at times reverent and always captivating.
Incoming
Coming next week: a very sunny day at the Tiny Desk.
One More Thing
In February 1995, Nashville-based country singer Ty Herndon released "What Mattered Most," a love song about a woman. Herndon came out as gay in 2014 and this year, to coincide with Pride Month, he is re-releasing his hit with updated lyrics to fit his true identity.
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