Search the Fresh Air Archive

Close Search

Getting Attached to Polka's Melodies

Artist-turned-musician Carl Finch discovered polka while working on an installation. He later started the new wave polka band Brave Combo.

09:41
Queue

Guest

Host

Related Topic

Other segments from the episode on June 30, 1987

Fresh Air with Terry Gross, June 30, 1987: Interview with Nien Cheng; Commentary on the rock band The Remains; Interview with Carl Finch; Review of the books "Sartre: A Life" by Annie Cohen-Solal and…
Queue
27:25

On "Life and Death in Shanghai"

Nien Cheng and her husband were educated abroad and lived a comfortable, bourgeois life before China's Cultural Revolution. Though Cheng faced persecution, interrogation, and imprisonment, she was mostly able to maintain her lifestyle--and her loyalty to her country. She now lives in Washington, D.C.

Interview
Queue
06:46

Exhuming the Remains

Rock historian remembers the 1960s Boston band The Remains, whose music reflected the genre's growing depth and sophistication. Despite opening for the Rolling Stones and the Beatles, the group never caught on.

Commentary
Queue
03:53

Two New Biographies on Jean-Paul Sartre

Book critic John Leonard says that Annie Cohen-Solal's examination of the philosopher's life is both thoughtful and exhaustive. Ronald Hayman, on the other hand, seeks to tear down the French writer, to unclear ends.

Review

Transcript

Transcript currently not available.

Transcripts are created on a rush deadline, and accuracy and availability may vary. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Please be aware that the authoritative record of Fresh Air interviews and reviews are the audio recordings of each segment.

You May Also like

Queue
22:12

Carl Finch Discusses Working With Tiny Tim.

Guitarist Carl Finch. His band, Brave Combo, just released "Girl" (Rounder) in conjunction with the legendary Tiny Tim. Brave Combo is a Texas world beat polka band and the members weren't sure what to expect when they began working on this project with the eccentric Tiny Tim eight years ago. The CD features many familiar tunes (including "Bye Bye Blackbird," "Hey Jude" and even "Stairway to Heaven") like they've never been performed before.

Interview
Queue
06:32

Surprising New Directions in Polka

Accordionist and composer Guy Klucevsek joins Fresh Air to perform a solo arrangement of a new work, and to play a recording of a recent musical collaboration. He's slated to perform at the Brooklyn Academy of Music's Next Wave Festival.

Commentary

Did you know you can create a shareable playlist?

Learn How
Advertisement

Recently on Fresh Air Available to Play on NPR

52:30

Daughter of Warhol star looks back on a bohemian childhood in the Chelsea Hotel

Alexandra Auder's mother, Viva, was one of Andy Warhol's muses. Growing up in Warhol's orbit meant Auder's childhood was an unusual one. For several years, Viva, Auder and Auder's younger half-sister, Gaby Hoffmann, lived in the Chelsea Hotel in Manhattan. It was was famous for having been home to Leonard Cohen, Dylan Thomas, Virgil Thomson, and Bob Dylan, among others.

Queue

Related segments from the Fresh Air Archive:

43:04

This fake 'Jury Duty' really put James Marsden's improv chops on trial

In the series Jury Duty, a solar contractor named Ronald Gladden has agreed to participate in what he believes is a documentary about the experience of being a juror--but what Ronald doesn't know is that the whole thing is fake.

Queue

Related segments from the Fresh Air Archive:

See All Recent Segments

There are more than 22,000 Fresh Air segments.

Let us help you find exactly what you want to hear.
Just play me something
Your Queue

Would you like to make a playlist based on your queue?

Generate & Share View/Edit Your Queue