The Bob Edwards Show, May 21-25, 2012
Monday, May 21, 2012: Criss-crossing the continent, renowned geneticist Bryan Sykes provides a groundbreaking examination of America through its DNA. Then, Bob talks with Phil Madeira about the album he produced called Mercyland: Hymns for the Rest of Us. Phil is a member of Emmylou Harris’ band Red Dirt Boys.
Tuesday, May 22, 2012: Diana Henriques has written the definitive book on Bernie Madoff, based on unprecedented access and interviews with more than one hundred people at all levels of the crime. The Wizard of Lives: Bernie Madoff and the Death of Trust is now out in paperback. Then, for nearly fifty years, Frank Deford has been dissecting American and international sports. He has covered just about every sport, in every medium, and he touched on it all in his new memoir, Over Time: My Life as a Sportswriter.
Wednesday, May 23, 2012: Kate Bornstein’s memoir A Queer and Pleasant Danger is the story of “a nice Jewish boy who joins the Church of Scientology and leaves twelve years later to become the lovely lady she is today.” Then, singer-songwriter Joe Pug joins Bob to talk about his latest album, The Great Despiser.
Thursday, May 24, 2012: Nashville singer-songwriter Kate Campbell took up piano at age seven before switching to the guitar as a teenager during the folk-rock heyday of the 70s. Since then, over the course of thirteen albums, she has written, recorded and performed almost exclusively on the acoustic guitar. On 1000 Pound Machine Campbell returns to the instrument of her childhood and enlists Will Kimbrough to produce the eleven-song disc. Campbell joins Bob to talk about her new album and performs a few of her songs.
Friday, May 25, 2012: Doyle McManus, Washington columnist for the Los Angeles Times, joins Bob to discuss the latest political news. Next, Bob talks with banjo player Bela Fleck and the Original Flecktones, who have reunited for their latest CD called Rocket Science. Howard Levy is back on piano and harmonica, joining bandleader Fleck, bassist Victor Wooten and Futureman on percussion. The group is touring now and we sit down with them backstage at The Birchmere before their show. Then, in this week’s installment of our ongoing series This I Believe, we hear the essay of Michael Seifert. We know that powerful people influence politics. By comparison, it’s sometimes hard to believe that ordinary citizens with modest means can make a difference. But inside the voting booth, everyone is equal. Seifert is a Catholic priest from Cameron Park, Texas – the poorest place in American, according to the 2000 Census. The rate of civic participation matched the economic description. But, Father Seifert has been encouraging his neighbors to get out the vote, and their actions have resulted in more attention from local politicians, and better quality of life for the townspeople.