Download Free Music Samplers for Newport Folk and Jazz Festivals

The Newport Folk Festival and Newport Jazz Festivals are among the biggest celebrations of these music genres, and the folks at NPR Music are offering a free MP3 sampler of 12 songs for each of them. This is a good way to get up to speed on some of the musicians who are playing at this year's festivals and hear some of their tunes for free.

You can download the free Newport Folk Festival and Newport Jazz Festival samplers at this site, and see what tunes are included in each collection. Among the songs in the Folk Festival sampler:

• "I and Love and You" by The Avett Brothers from I and Love and You
  
• "I Keep Faith" by Billy Bragg from Mr. Love & Justice
  
• "Easy" by Deer Tick from Born on Flag Day
  
• "Chains, Chains, Chains" by Elvis Perkins in Dearland from Elvis Perkins in Dearland
  
• "Mykonos" by Fleet Foxes from the Sun Giant EP
  
• "Look at Miss Ohio" by Gillian Welch from Soul Journey
  
• "Belated Promise Ring" by Iron & Wine from Around the Well
  
• "God Is God" by Joan Baez from Day After Tomorrow

As usual, NPR Music will be covering the Newport Folk Festival (which is celebrating 50 years) with live broadcasts and Webcasts, and will also be checking on on the Newport Jazz Festival. Check these sites for details and schedules.

Also, check out FolkAlley's list of the 100 most essential folk songs, and stream them on your computer.

Podcast Review: Radio Deluxe with John Pizzarelli

Along with being a top-notch jazz guitarist who has recorded about 40 albums and yet is only in his forties, John Pizzarelli is also a podcaster. Radio Deluxe with John Pizzarelli (apparently it's also a terrestrial radio program) has been around for about a year, but I've only just heard of it.

A quote on the podcast's Web page from the Los Angeles Times sums up the show pretty well: "...a syndicated radio show that combines the retro feel of a 1940s living room broadcast with a boomer's passion for the Great American Songbook..."

I don't know if the show is or isn't recorded in the living room, but co-hosts Pizzarelli and his wife, singer Jessica Molaskey, share songs and stories while talking with guest musicians. So it does have a nice informal, at-home vibe to it, like these musicians are just sitting around at home jamming and shooting the breeze, and you're sitting there with them in a comfy chair.

The New Year's edition of Radio Deluxe is a good example of the broad range of music heard on the program, with songs from Mel Torme, Patti Austin, Tierney Sutton, Tony Bennett, Judy Collins, and of course Mr. Pizzarelli himself.

As far as I can tell Radio Deluxe with John Pizzarelli is not available through iTunes, but you can download it or stream it from the show's Web site above. It's definitely worth checking out.

Learn About Jazz Legend John Coltrane in "Traneumentary"

Podcasts have evolved from entertainment to education, but that goes far beyond university lectures and language courses. Now you can learn all about legendary saxophonist John Coltrane, and hear his music, at the "Traneumentary" Web site.

Yes, it's an awkward name, combining "Coltrane" and "documentary," but the idea is a great one and the execution is involving and high-quality. The Web site features informative blog entries, and the companion podcast features exclusive interviews as well as excerpts of Coltrane's music. Episodes feature commentary from figures such as Jimmy Cobb, McCoy Tyner, Sonny Rollins, Terence Blanchard, and many others.

In one episode, legendary drummer Jimmy Cobb talks of his experiences playing and recording with Coltrane. In another, singer Karrin Allyson talks about her first experience with Coltrane. Producers also talk about working with "Trane" and his impact, and offer insights into cuts such as the classic tune "Blue Train."

Traneumentary is a thoughtful and well-produced introduction to one of the giants of jazz. It's especially good to have since Coltrane's widow Alice, who managed the Coltrane archive and managed his estate, passes about just a couple of months ago. Alice Coltrane played piano in her husband’s group, and was highly regarded in her own right as a composer and multi-instrumentalist.