91.3fm WYEP: Discumentary

Probably best known for their soundtrack work for the Ritchie Valens biopic “La Bamba”, Los Lobos created some of their most acclaimed work after their #1 hit. For “Kiko” the group experiments with their sound on songs that range in topics from homelessness to hopefulness.

The Band’s second album is considered a masterpiece. Recorded in a pool house rented from Sammy Davis Jr., this album features songs like “The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down” (which was a hit for Joan Baez) and “Up On Cripple Creek”.

Although it was not his most popular album, Springsteen released this one just as he was winding down from the success of “Born to Run”. With more than 30 unused songs written, he picked these 10, each tell stories of life in working class America.

Lucinda Williams took 6 years to complete "Car Wheels On a Gravel Road" but the album won the Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Folk Album and has made many top 100 albums lists. Williams writes sparse, unsparingly honest and often painful stories of ordinary lives.

Following the success of "The Graduate", Simon and Garfunkel put together a well crafted folk album featuring Simon’s poignant lyrics and Garfunkel’s elusive vocals. The album featured a completed and re-arranged version of Mrs. Robinson, the hit song America, and a recording of old people simply called "Voices of Old People".

Described as “Cosmic American Music” by Parsons himself, “Grievous Angel” was his second solo album. Parsons would never get to see the album’s release, due to his death from a drug overdose. Linda Ronstadt is featured on the song, “In My Hour of Darkness”.

After a constant tour schedule, Neko Case recorded “Blacklisted” in Arizona, giving her a new view of her music. The album features John Convertino and Joey Burns of Calexico and covers of songs by Aretha Franklin and Sarah Vaughn.

With the release of “It Still Moves,” My Morning Jacket had arrived. The album featured epic tales laid out over an arrangement of sparse chords, echoing reverb and Jim Jones’ high lonesome vocals and lead some critics to call the band’s sound “Southern Psych.”

Amherst College English majors Jonatha Brooke and Jennifer Kimball performed in various Boston venues and coffeehouses during their school days. They went their separate ways after graduating in the 1980s, but reunited to record as The Story. The album was released on Green Linnet and produced by Brooke’s then-husband Alain Mallet.

On their third release, British punk-rock legends The Clash made it even more apparent of their political stances on various tracks. Criticizing the likes of Margaret Thatcher and American consumerism. This is consider by many to be one of the greatest albums ever recorded.