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The chamber ensemble earned two Grammy nominations for its 2009 album, which rearranged classic tunes by the jazz composer Dave Brubeck. On the eve of the Grammy Awards, the string quartet visited NPR to play songs like "Blue Rondo a la Turk."

Loueke is a jazz guitarist and vocalist. But if you've never heard him, his music sounds nothing like the work of the crooning strummer that description conjures. Hear his new album of spare yet intimate duos and trios, Mwaliko, in its entirety prior to its commercial release on Feb. 9.

At the Kennedy Center Jazz Club bandstand, Harris' vibes run parallel to the edge of the stage and perpendicular to his marimba. Like a boxer in the ring, he works the corner where the keys meet. Hear Harris and his band Blackout pound on OutKast and Jackie McLean in two sets.

Pianist Cedar Walton was a guest on the very first season of Piano Jazz, and he returns as part of the program's continuing 30th-anniversary celebration. Walton joins guest host Bill Charlap to talk about his early attempts at composition, and to play his tunes "Midnight Waltz" and "Braymon's Blues."

The veteran punk rocker John Doe embraced his inner mountain man on Country Club, an album of classic country covers he recorded with The Sadies. The Canadian rockers and the former X frontman joined Terry Gross in the Fresh Air studio for an interview and an intimate performance. (Rebroadcast from April 2009.)

Though you may not know him by name, you certainly know his work: Mitchell produced a string of hits by Al Green in the early to mid-1970s.

Smith had three albums out this past fall — two reissues and a new set of live concert recordings by two of his bands.

A new Johnny Cash album, American Recordings VI: Ain't No Grave was released this week to coincide with what would have been Cash's 78th birthday. We remember the singer, songwriter and guitarist, who wrote more than 1,500 songs — and performed from the 1950s until just before his death in 2003.

JazzSet host Dee Dee Bridgewater pays tribute to Billie Holiday on her new CD, Eleanora Fagan (1915-1959): To Billie With Love From Dee Dee. She and Farah Jasmine Griffin talk about Lady Day's mystery and grace.

The singer-songwriter has released his first album, Way Out Here, and rock critic Ken Tucker says it's one of the best country music debuts in a long while.