Rodney Crowell and Emmylou Harris. (Courtesy of the artist)

Emmylou Harris And Rodney Crowell Get The Old Band Together Again

Jun 19, 2013 (World Cafe / WXPN-FM) — The country legends discuss how Nashville has changed over the years and play songs from their latest collaborative album, Old Yellow Moon.

It was 1975 when Emmylou Harris had to figure out how to make a solo album after her classic work as Gram Parsons' duet partner. Her record company told her to "get a hot band." So she got The Hot Band with James Burton on lead, as well as a newcomer, Rodney Crowell, on rhythm guitar and, more importantly, songwriting. Harris and Crowell's new album, Old Yellow Moon, doesn't necessarily re-create that first album, Pieces of the Sky, but it feels just as good.

In this installment of World Cafe, the two pop in to discuss old times, the music that moves them and Nashville past and present. They also play live and, of course, sing together beautifully.

Check out our other Sense of Place Nashville sessions, videos and interactive map here.

This installment of World Cafe was first published on April 12, 2013.

Copyright 2013 WXPN-FM. To see more, visit http://www.xpn.org/.

Set List

• "Bluebird Wine"
• "Here We Are"
• "Old Yellow Moon"
• "Bull Rider"

Rodney Crowell and Emmylou Harris. (Courtesy of the artist)

Thistle And Shamrock: Heading South

Jun 19, 2013 (WXPN-FM) — Fiona Ritchie celebrates the musical connections that captured her attention when she first traveled in the U.S. in the early 1980s by exploring the music of the Southern Mountains.

Fiona Ritchie celebrates the musical connections that captured her attention when she first traveled in the U.S. in the early 1980s by exploring the music of the Southern Mountains.

Copyright 2013 NPR. To see more, visit http://www.npr.org/.

Set List

• "Bluebird Wine"
• "Here We Are"
• "Old Yellow Moon"
• "Bull Rider"

True Widow. (Courtesy of the artist)

Viking's Choice: True Widow Wants To Make Your Summer A Bummer

Jun 19, 2013 (WXPN-FM) — True Widow's stoner-rock and shoegaze mix trudges with back-breaking heft. Turn it up on a good pair of speakers or headphones, and "Four Teeth" rattles like a heavier bummer jam from Neil Young's Zuma, complete with one-string guitar solos.

Slow and steady wins the race, but sometimes, as in life, you need a moody sidekick to get you through it. (Or maybe that's just Daria.) Over the course of three mid-tempo albums, True Widow's stoner-rock and shoegaze mix (dubbed "stonegaze," of course) trudges with back-breaking heft. It's actually perfect music for hiking — tough and determined, yet as hypnotic as the rhythmic crunch of dead leaves beneath your feet. The thudding "Four Teeth" comes from the Dallas trio's forthcoming album, Circumambulation.

My favorite True Widow tracks tend to be ones where guitarist D.H. Phillips and bassist Nicole Estill trade vocal duties — or, better yet, twirl on top of each other like smoky wisps. "Four Teeth" is mostly Estill's show, with her classic 4AD voice and distorted bass matching time with Slim TX's steady drum hand. Turn it up on a good pair of speakers or headphones, and "Four Teeth" rattles like a heavier bummer jam from Neil Young's Zuma, complete with one-string guitar solos.

Circumambulation comes out July 23 on Relapse Records.

Copyright 2013 NPR. To see more, visit http://www.npr.org/.

Set List

• "Bluebird Wine"
• "Here We Are"
• "Old Yellow Moon"
• "Bull Rider"

Slim Whitman arriving at Heathrow Airport in 1976. (Getty Images)

Country Singer Slim Whitman, Known For His Yodel, Dies

Jun 19, 2013 (WXPN-FM) — Whitman was at one point known as "America's Favorite Folksinger," but he was far more popular overseas. His music saved the Earth from aliens in the comedy Mars Attacks!

Country singer Slim Whitman, whose yodel helped sell millions of albums in the United States, died overnight on Wednesday in a Florida hospital, his family tells the BBC.

He was 90.

While Whitman was at some point known as "America's Favorite Folksinger," he was actually far more popular overseas. As the BBC explains, in 1955 his hit Rose Marie became longest reigning No. 1 single until it was knocked off the perch by a Bryan Adams hit in 1991.

The AP adds:

"Whitman's tenor falsetto and ebony mustache and sideburns became global trademarks — and an inspiration for countless jokes — thanks to the TV commercials that pitched his records.

"But he was a serious musical influence on early rock, and in the British Isles, he was known as a pioneer of country music for popularizing the style there. Whitman also encouraged a teen Elvis Presley when he was the headliner on the bill and the young singer was making his professional debut.

"Whitman recorded more than 65 albums and sold millions of records, including 4 million of "All My Best" that was marketed on TV."

Whitman was introduced to younger audiences by the film Mars Attacks! Aliens were taking over the Earth when humans discover that Whitman's yodel in Indian Love Call destroys them:

We'll leave you with one of his biggest hits, Rose Marie:

Copyright 2013 NPR. To see more, visit http://www.npr.org/.

Set List

• "Bluebird Wine"
• "Here We Are"
• "Old Yellow Moon"
• "Bull Rider"

Afghan refugee children collect items of use from a pile of garbage on the outskirts of Islamabad, Pakistan. (AP)

"Suffering On A Huge Scale": World Refugee Numbers Swell

Jun 19, 2013 (WXPN-FM) — The United Nations says more than 45 million people worldwide are refugees -- the most since 1994 -- and that nearly half are children. Fleeing Syrians are a growing concern.

The United Nations Refugee Commission says more than 45.2 million people were in "situations of displacement" around the world as of last year — the most since 1994.

A report from the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees says there were 15.4 million refugees in other countries, 937,000 people seeking political asylum and 28.8 million people forced out of their homes but still inside their own countries.

"Those are the highest numbers since 1994, when people fled genocide in Rwanda and bloodshed in former Yugoslavia," according to The Associated Press.

The U.N.'s yearly Global Trends report says most people are running away from war. "A full 55 percent of all refugees listed in UNHCR's report come from just five war-affected countries: Afghanistan, Somalia, Iraq, Syria and Sudan," it states. Millions are also on the move in Mali and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

"These truly are alarming numbers. They reflect individual suffering on a huge scale and they reflect the difficulties of the international community in preventing conflicts and promoting timely solutions for them," said António Guterres, head of UNHCR.

Nearly half of all refugees were children. The U.N. says 21,300 children who sought asylum were alone or separated from their parents — a record high.

The country producing the greatest number of refugees is Afghanistan: The agency says that "on average, one out of every four refugees worldwide is Afghan, with 95 percent located in Pakistan or Iran."

Next is Somalia, followed by Iraq and then Syria, an area of growing concern. Because the report covers only 2012, it counts 471,400 Syrian refugees — and none from this year. Syrians are now fleeing in greater numbers, prompting the U.N. to label that country's civil war "a major new factor in global displacement."

Another concern is who is hosting all these refugees. The U.N. says it is poorer countries: "In all, developing countries host 81 percent of the world's refugees compared to 70 percent a decade ago."

The U.N. also says the 28.8 million displaced people represent the highest number in more than 20 years. Again, Syria is listed as a significant new contributor to this problem, along with the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Copyright 2013 NPR. To see more, visit http://www.npr.org/.

Set List

• "Bluebird Wine"
• "Here We Are"
• "Old Yellow Moon"
• "Bull Rider"