Acclaimed genre-crossing songwriter and interpreter Madeleine Peyroux takes stock of her songwriting over the years and shares insights into the creation of her latest album.

PART ONE
Paul and Scott talk music books, the value of recording, and whether or not performers should stick to a strict or loose interpretation of a song when performing live.

PART TWO
Our in-depth conversation with Madeleine Peyroux

ABOUT MADELEINE PEYROUX
Madeleine Peyroux moved to Paris with her mother at the age of 12 and began singing with street musicians while still a teenager. She eventually joined the Lost Wandering Blues and Jazz Band, with whom she toured Europe. After being discovered by Atlantic Records she released her debut album, Dreamland, in 1996. Madeleine's commercial breakthrough came with the Gold-selling album Careless Love in 2004 and it’s single, the self-penned “Don’t Wait Too Long,” which was released by Rounder Records and topped the jazz charts. The follow-up album, Half the Perfect World, hit the Top 40 on Billboard’s US album chart. Her 2009 album, Bare Bones, was the first to feature all original material. She moved to Decca Records for the Standing on the Rooftop album in 2011 and has since released four additional studio albums. Her latest effort, Let’s Walk, features all original material and continues to showcase her masterful blending of jazz, blues, folk, pop, and more.

Three-time GRAMMY winner and musical omnivore Bruce Hornsby chats about his wide-ranging career, from pop to bluegrass to jazz!

PART ONE:
Paul and Scott talk about their Instagram, a wild Genesis fact, and more.

PART TWO:
Our in-depth conversation with Bruce Hornsby

ABOUT BRUCE HORNSBY:
Thirteen-time Grammy nominee and three-time winner Bruce Hornsby has built one of the most diverse, collaborative, and adventurous careers in contemporary music. In the early 1980s Bruce was writing songs, playing sessions as a musician, and touring as member of Ambrosia and, later, Sheena Easton’s backing band. By the middle of the decade he’d formed the group Bruce Hornsby and the Range, signed a deal with RCA Records, and released his debut album, which spawned the hit singles “The Way It Is,” “Mandolin Rain,” and “Every Little Kiss.” As a result, Bruce and the band won the Grammy Award for Best New Artist in 1987. Their sophomore album, Scenes from the Southside, spawned the hit single “The Valley Road” and included Bruce’s own version of “Jacob’s Ladder,” a song he co-wrote that became a #1 hit for Huey Lewis. In addition to his own artist career, Bruce began collaborating extensively in that era, including producing Leon Russell, co-writing Don Henley’s “The End of the Innocence,” playing piano on Bonnie Raitt’s “I Can’t Make You Love Me,” and appearing on albums by everyone from Bob Dylan to Stevie Nicks to Willie Nelson.

In the late 1980s and early 1990s Bruce increasingly began incorporating elements of bluegrass and jazz into his music. He disbanded the Range to pursue other projects, including becoming a staple of the Grateful Dead’s touring lineup. His debut solo album, Harbor Lights, was released in 1993, and he won another Grammy that year, for Best Pop Instrumental, for composing “Barcelona Mona” with Branford Marsalis for the Barcelona Olympics. He released two additional solo studio albums in the 1990s before forming a new band, The Noisemakers, which released four studio albums between 2002 and 2016.

In that same period, he collaborated with bluegrass artist Ricky Skaggs to release one studio album and one live album, and with bassist Christian McBride and drummer Jack DeJohnette to release a jazz album called Camp Meeting. Bruce's 2014 album Solo Concerts showcased a sampling of his one-man performances. In 2019 Bruce returned to releasing studio albums as a solo artist with Absolute Zero, an album included collaborations with Blake Mills, Justin Vernon of Bon Iver, and others. Among Bruce's many collaborations includes a longstanding partnership scoring films for director Spike Lee.

Earlier this year, Bruce released Deep Sea Vents, a water-themed collaborative album with the band yMusic that was released under the name Brhym.

You might know Rachel Platten for the wildly successful "Fight Song," but she's in the middle of a renaissance that's bringing her artistry into a new era.

PART ONE:
Paul and Scott give their unfiltered responses to the new-ish 4-part Stax Records documentary streaming on Max.

PART TWO:
Our in-depth conversation with Rachel Platten.

ABOUT RACHEL PLATTEN:
Emmy Award-winning singer, songwriter, musician, and children’s book author Rachel Platten is best known for “Fight Song,” an anthemic power ballad that became an international Top Ten hit in 2015, was certified six times Platinum, has been streamed over a billion times, and was even adopted as Hillary Clinton's campaign theme song in 2016.

Rachel’s music career began with a self-released album in 2003, followed by a move to New York City’s Greenwich Village. She found success licensing songs for films and television before releasing her album Be Here in 2009. The single “1000 Ships” hit number 23 on Billboard’s Adult Top 40 chart. Her third full-length album, Wildfire, was released on Columbia Records and featured the successful singles “Fight Song,” “Stand by You,” and “Better Place.” The follow-up album, Waves, featured the single “Broken Glass.”

Rachel issued the non-LP single "You Belong" in 2018, signaling a sonic shift away from her prior major label releases. Exploring new creative territory by embracing her struggles with mental health, Rachel has released recent songs such as “Girls,” “Mercy,” and “Bad Thoughts.” Poised to reassert herself as an artist focused on unflinching honesty and authenticity, she will release the album I Am Rachel Platten later this year.