NPR News

Detroit's emergency fiscal manager is tasked with turning around the city's troubled finances. But some residents say they've been robbed of the right to pick their own leaders. Host Michel Martin speaks with Detroit Free Press columnist Rochelle Riley, about future of the Motor City.

On this episode, Piano Jazz presents a special session with legendary vocalist Linda Ronstadt and pianist-arranger Alan Broadbent, recorded live at Mechanics Hall in Worcester, Mass.

Ronstadt was born July 15, 1946, outside Tuscon, Arizona. She recalls that her family was always singing and playing music together, though none were professional musicians.

Charles Lloyd has a way of talking that sounds a lot like the notes from his saxophone: full of youthful energy, yet packed with experiences reserved for grownups.

As a child, singer Catherine Russell bounced on the knee of Louis Armstrong. Her father, Luis Russell, held the position of musical director for Armstrong, and her mother, Carline Ray, was trained at Juilliard and the Manhattan School of Music. It was only natural that Russell would choose a musical path for her own life.

There's been a dramatic shift in the racial makeup of America's prison inmates, especially female inmates. To find out why, host Michel Martin talks with Sentencing Project Executive Director Marc Mauer, and author Patrice Gaines, who has worked with women in prison for more than 20 years. They say changes in drug crime enforcement, sentencing laws, and the economic downturn all played a role.

Transcript

MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:

I'm Michel Martin and this is TELL ME MORE from NPR News. Coming up, you might've been following the long debate over whether this country locks up too many people for too little reason and for too long. It turns out something else interesting is happening that you might not heard about - the racial breakdown of the prison population is changing. More white people, especially more white women, are getting locked up. And we'll find out more about that in a few minutes.

Host Michel Martin checks in with the Barbershop guys for a fresh cut on the week's news, including the new pope and college basketball's March Madness. Martin is joined by culture critic Jimi Izrael, attorney Arsalan Iftikhar, sports writer Pablo Torre and Reverend Leo Patalinghug.

For his uncompromising and serious music, the 2011 Newport Jazz Festival was eager to present Charles Lloyd. He could bring any group he wanted, they told him. Lloyd said yes, and that he would bring Sangam, an East-West trio with one CD and few performances on the schedule. It was a coup!