James Brown

Neil Finn was raised on the Beatles and David Bowie. When he formed Crowded House band with his brother Tim, they wrote songs that were lyrical, melodic, and perfectly New Wave. Then formed a new band with his wife Sharon: the Pajama Club.

The World’s Alex Gallafent profiles New York-based Ghanaian rapper Blitz the Ambassador. Blitz raps in several languages and his subject matter is out of the ordinary too. One some is about the IMF.

Abraham Incorporated features the best of klezmer — clarinet virtuoso David Krakauer — and the best of funk — James Brown alum Fred Wesley — plus a wacky rapper from Montreal named “DJ So-called.” Anchor Marco Werman has the story.

For today’s Global Hit, drummer Steve Reid explains how his legendary career has taken him from Motown to Africa. Steve Reid’s latest album is called Daxaar … after the city in Senegal where he recorded the CD.

Steve Reid is a extraordinarily versatile drummer who has performed with some of the most legendary musicians of the 20th century – James Brown, Miles Davis, Sun Ra, Ornette Coleman, Fela Kuti, and Jimi Hendrix.