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All Songs Considered Robin Hilton spins new music from emerging bands and musical icons.

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Carly Simon singing into a microphone on stage.

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All Songs+

NPR Music+: "You're So Vain" by Carly Simon

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With celebrity gossip and “spilling tea” ruling the culture more than ever, it’s time to honor a landmark in confessional songwriting. In 1972, singer-songwriter Carly Simon made the undisputed template for coy songs about real people and events that never name their subjects outright, and are all the more juicy for it.  

NPR Music+: "You're So Vain" by Carly Simon

The best Sunday morning albums

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The best Sunday morning albums

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Is Sunday morning the best time for music? Whether you prefer solitude, get-togethers with family or friends, or steeling yourself for the week to come, we’ve got the perfect album to score your early hours.  

The best Sunday morning albums

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Jorja Smith

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New Music Friday

New Music Friday: The best albums out Aug. 21

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Brennan Wedl. Jorja Smith. Brandon Flowers. Host Stephen Thompson chats with Celia Gregory from WNXP in Nashville about their favorite albums out Friday, August 21. Plus, a handful of NPR Music writers and critics offer their personal picks in the lightning round.

New Music Friday: The best albums out Aug. 21

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Weezer, Colin Stetson, Jlin, Meredith Monk more

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Weezer, Colin Stetson, Jlin, Meredith Monk more

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On this week’s show, Weezer gives the people what they want, plus a breathless “dirt dance” from saxophonist Colin Stetson and bagpiper Brìghde Chaimbeul, the scruffy cello-pop of yeemz, works by composer and vocalist Meredith Monk, electronic artist Jlin and more.  

Weezer, Colin Stetson, Jlin, Meredith Monk more

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New Music Friday: The best albums out Aug. 14

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New Music Friday

New Music Friday: The best albums out Aug. 14

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Phoebe Bridgers. Jungle. Hovvdy. It's a surprisingly stacked Summer Friday this week, and you can hear all about it with New Music Friday host Stephen Thompson and guest Samantha Hval from WMNF in Tampa, Fla. Plus, a handful of NPR Music writers and critics offer their personal picks in the lightning round.

New Music Friday: The best albums out Aug. 14

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Florence Welch singing into a microphone.

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All Songs+

NPR Music+: “Dog Days Are Over” by Florence and the Machine

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When Florence and the Machine debuted this song in the winter of 2008, they and it were not an overnight sensation. Instead, the song slowly rose up the charts after a series of enigmatic live performances that showcased how rock and dance have long been connected and how, when merged together, that sound could soar. And they invited everyone to join in with them—to clap hands, to sing along, to dance.  

NPR Music+: “Dog Days Are Over” by Florence and the Machine

Cover songs that are better than the originals

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Cover songs that are better than the originals

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Sometimes a cover song is so good, so singular that it completely eclipses the original version.  Think Sinéad O'Connor doing Prince’s “Nothing Compares 2 U,” Jimmy Hendrix lighting up Bob Dylan’s “All Along the Watchtower” or, of course, Whitney Houston’s defining take on Dolly Parton’s “I Will Always Love You.”  On this week’s show, we share some of our picks for cover songs that are better than the originals, talk about why, and what, exactly, a cover song needs to become a classic.

Cover songs that are better than the originals

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New Music Friday: The best albums out Aug. 7

New Music Friday

New Music Friday: The best albums out Aug. 7

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Ravyn Lenae. Margaret Glaspy. Overmono. Host Stephen Thompson chats with Liz Warner from WDET in Detroit about their favorite albums out Friday, August 7. Plus, a handful of NPR Music writers and critics offer their personal picks in the lightning round.

New Music Friday: The best albums out Aug. 7

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King Princess covers Neil Young's "Helpless."

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Connor Cunningham

Our Show

Slayyyter, King Princess covers Neil Young, and remembering Glen Hansard

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We open this week’s show by reflecting on the loss of Glen Hansard, an artist who was critical to shaping the sound and spirit of All Songs Considered in its earliest days. We then share some of our favorite new tracks of the week, including a King Princess cover of Neil Young’s “Helpless,” cheeky pop from Coco & Clair Clair, a stunning ambient track from Adam Wiltzie and the late composer Jóhann Jóhannsson, and more.

Remembering Glen Hansard, plus Slayyyter, King Princess covers Neil Young, more

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New Music Friday: The best albums out July 31

New Music Friday

New Music Friday: The best albums out July 31

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The Durutti Column. Arca. MOLIY. Host Stephen Thompson chats with Olive Kimoto of member station KCRW in Los Angeles about their favorite albums out Friday, July 31. Plus, a handful of NPR Music writers and critics offer their personal picks in the lightning round.

New Music Friday: The best albums out July 31

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Jerry Garcia playing guitar on stage, Mickey Hart playing drums.

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Philip Gould/Corbis via Getty Images

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NPR Music+: “Touch of Grey” by Grateful Dead

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Despite having more than a dozen studio albums, thousands of live recordings you can find online and an impassioned fan culture that’s endured over six decades, the Grateful Dead have never quite been a mainstream band. But there was one song that managed to break through to become a top-40 hit. How did it happen? And why this song?  

NPR Music+: “Touch of Grey” by Grateful Dead

How to love the Grateful Dead

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Our Show

How to love the Grateful Dead

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Once in a while you get shown the light in the strangest places, if you look at it right. And if you get confused, just listen to the music play. This week, resident Deadheads Isabella Gomez Sarmiento and Felix Contreras help host Robin Hilton hear what he’s been missing in the music of the Grateful Dead.

How to love the Grateful Dead

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New Music Friday: The best albums out July 24

New Music Friday

New Music Friday: The best albums out July 24

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Charli xcx. Tyla. Shania Twain. Guest host Ann Powers chats with Nastia Voynovskaya of member station KQED in San Francisco about their favorite albums out Friday, July 24. Plus, some NPR Music writers and critics offer their personal picks in the lightning round.

New Music Friday: The best albums out July 24

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Sylvan Esso, Phoebe Bridgers, feeble little horse, more

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Our Show

Sylvan Esso, Phoebe Bridgers, feeble little horse, more

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We share our picks for the best new tracks out now, including the laid-back dystopia of Sylvan Esso’s “Concrete Glen,” an acoustic take on Phoebe Bridgers’ “Lost Boys,” the glitched-out chaos of feeble little horse and more.

Sylvan Esso, Phoebe Bridgers, feeble little horse, more

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New Music Friday: The best albums out July 17

New Music Friday

New Music Friday: The best albums out July 17

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Gracie Abrams. Nia Archives. Steve Lacy. On a release day full of catchy earworms, host Stephen Thompson chats with Tshego Letsoalo of KALW in San Francisco about their favorite albums out Friday, July 17. Plus, a handful of NPR Music writers and critics offer their personal picks in the lightning round.

New Music Friday: The best albums out July 17

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Frank Ocean singing on stage.

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NPR Music+: "Thinkin Bout You" by Frank Ocean

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Frank Ocean released what is for now his last full-length album, “Blonde,” 10 years ago this summer, and his initial run at stardom was only about five years. And yet, it seems like every day there’s some emerging young artist who cites him as a primary influence. How did this happen? Why has Ocean’s impact reached so far for so long, even after he’s disappeared from the spotlight?  

NPR Music+: "Thinkin Bout You" by Frank Ocean

beabadoobee, The Rolling Stones, Four Tet, more

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beabadoobee, The Rolling Stones, Four Tet, more

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On her stellar new single, “Switchblade,” beabadoobee shreds ‘90s style. The Rolling Stones have still got it on their latest album, Foreign Tongues. And Four Tet surprises us with a new “wingdings” project. We’ve got all that and more as we share our picks for the best new songs of the week.

beabadoobee, The Rolling Stones, Four Tet, more

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Suki Waterhouse

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New Music Friday

New Music Friday: The best albums out July 10

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Jack White. Baby Rose. Suki Waterhouse. Host Stephen Thompson chats with Maggie Brennan of WCBE in Ohio about their favorite albums out Friday, July 10. Plus, a handful of NPR Music writers and critics offer their personal picks in the lightning round.

New Music Friday: The best albums out July 10

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Summer’s simple pleasures: Roséwave
Lars Gotrich

Our Show

Summer’s simple pleasures: Roséwave

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Roséwave is a feeling more than a singular sound or genre. It’s the kind of sweetness and sadness that underscores the long, languid days of summer.  Long drives with old friends, watching your kids at the pool, backyard barbecues while the sun slowly sets.  On this episode we share a mix of songs that offer the perfect soundtrack for your roséwave days and nights, from Linda Ronstadt’s “How Do I Make You” and Marvin Gaye’s “Ain’t That Peculiar,” to Katie Gavin’s “Aftertaste,” Waxahatchee’s “Much Ado About Nothing” and more.

Summer’s simple pleasures: Roséwave

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The best albums of 2026 (so far)

New Music Friday

The best albums of 2026 (so far)

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On a special mid-year episode of New Music Friday, host Stephen Thompson and a lineup of NPR Music writers and critics reflect on their favorite albums of the year so far. 

The best albums of 2026 (so far)

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Ben Gibbard singing into a microphone on stage.

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All Songs+

NPR Music+: “Such Great Heights” by The Postal Service

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The origin story of The Postal Service is as simple (and twee) as they come: An electronic music producer (Jimmy Tamborello) and an indie rock singer-songwriter (Ben Gibbard) decide to collaborate on a few songs, sending each other music via snail mail. But The Postal Service’s only album, Give Up, eventually went platinum, and the band is selling out arenas decades later. It’s a record that seems to have captured how rapid advances in technology would change how we communicate and even love, bridging the distances that separate us.  

“Such Great Heights” by The Postal Service

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The year’s best songs (so far)

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Adrian Nieto

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The year’s best songs (so far)

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It's the midway point of 2026, and it's safe to say that when it comes to the best songs of the year, there's not really any consensus to be found. So we’ve assembled our personal Top 10 list of the most memorable songs to cross our paths, from the outlaw country of Charley Crockett to the glam rock of Friko, Lana Del Rey’s twisted ode to love, Vince Staples' "White Flag" and more.

The year’s best songs so far

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