We remember the late Dolly Parton, who joined us in this archival interview from 2000, to talk about her musical and family roots in the Smoky Mountains of Tennessee, where she first broke into song, performed on the radio, and admired the fashion of the local trollop. There's music from across the American spectrum, including Parton's "Coat of Many Colors." Also, we'll talk with the late historian Charles Wolfe about the ballads and songs of the Appalachian South.

This summer season, American Routes is riding the airwaves to exotic destinations, swinging and surfing to all manner of beachside rhythms from the Beach Boys, Toots and the Maytals, Wilco, and the Kinks. We also stay home to bask in the sultry heat of “Summertime,” composed by George Gershwin and novelist Dubose Heyward in 1934 for the opera Porgy and Bess. It’s one of the most covered tunes in the American songbook with over thirty thousand renditions. We’ll hear takes from Janis Joplin, Billie Holiday, Duke Ellington, Sam Cooke, and the Zombies.

It's back to the Golden Age of doo wop and classic songs of the era from Black and white groups. A conversation with Dion DiMucci, the Bronx born and raised singer who made his name first with his neighborhood group the Belmonts. We talk about his Italian American roots and his love of the blues, plus his life in music. Then, we explore the roads to doowop from gospel quartets, R&B and jazz including songs by Sam Cooke, The Mills Brothers and Jimmy Reed.  

Get out your Crayolas and sketch pads, as we fill in the spectrum of musical colors... from red hot jazz to cool blues. What do we see when we hear music? We dig back into the archives for our epic interview with the late, blind New Orleans piano professor Henry Butler about his eclectic musical visions. Then, self-taught visual artist Lonnie Holley expands his cosmic imagery into words and music to heal society on what he calls "the mothership”-- Earth. Plus, word jazz maestro Ken Nordine narrates the paint palette; Nina Simone plays "Mood Indigo"; George Jones sings "Color of the Blues";  and Los Lobos describe the power of the Lavender Moon.