The Progressive Prosecutor

With songs like "Suzanne," "Bird on a Wire," "So Long, Marianne" and "Hey, That's No Way to Say Goodbye," singer-songwriter Leonard Cohen created his own brand of folk-rock art music. Listeners discovered Cohen's songs in the mid-'60s when Judy Collins recorded "Suzanne," and Cohen followed that by recording his own album of his songs. Cohen discusses his career with Terry Gross.

Lukas Foss is a pianist, a conductor and, perhaps most notably, a composer. Foss was born in Germany and was fifteen when his family immigrated to this country in 1937. Even before that he'd begun his prolific output as a composer and was recognized as a child prodigy on the piano.

Over the years, composer, conductor and performer Lukas Foss has been one of America's most committed champions of new music. As a composer, he's been identified with serialism, improvisation and chance processes. In an interview with Terry Gross, he discusses his life and work.

The itinerant troubadour, composer and performer of "Suzanne," "Sisters of Mercy" and "Bird on a Wire" has a growl of a singing voice that seems to simmer and grumble up through the chords, almost like an earthquake. His new album, I'm Your Man, has already sold a quarter of a million copies in Europe.

In July 1957, Buddy Holly left Texas with only one record climbing the charts. Five months later, sporting capped teeth, a sharp suit, and horn-rimmed glasses, Holly debuted live on The Ed Sullivan Show. Like Elvis Presley only a year before, Holly had made it to prime time TV.

After nearly 20 years without recording for a major U.S. label, jazz singer Abbey Lincoln has a new album, World is Falling Down.

It was 33 years ago today a light plane crashed near the Iowa-Minnesota border, killing Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and J.P. Richardson, better known as The Big Bopper. They had just finished playing the Surf Ballroom in Clear Lake, Iowa.

Blossom Dearie — that's her real name — has been a fixture on the New York nightclub scene for decades. The singer and pianist is known for her quiet voice, unusual choice of material and jazz-influenced style of singing.

New York Times Reporter CHRIS HEDGES. He's based in Cairo, Egypt where he covers the Middle East. Terry will talk with him about the rise of Islamic fundamentalism in countries like Sudan, Algeria, Egypt, and Jordan. She'll also talk with HEDGES about being held captive at the end of the Gulf War by Saddam's Republican Guard. He was held along with NPR's Neil Conan. Before HEDGES covered the MidEast for The New York Times, he was reporting out of Central America.

2: President of Spelman College, JOHNNETTA COLE. Spelman College is an all-women's college, that has historically been all-black. COLE was it's first woman president. Most recently, COLE was head of the Clinton transition team's education group, and was at one time considered as a possible secretary of education. She has a new book, "Conversations: Straight Talk with America's Sister President."