Soundtracks

Jazz composer and conductor Bill Lee. He composed the scores for the films "She's Gotta Have It" and "School Daze," both written and directed by his son, Spike Lee. "School Daze," Spike Lee's most recent film, is loosely based on his experiences at Moorehead College in Atlanta, the same college Bill Lee and his father attended.

Rock critic Ken Tucker reviews the soundtrack for the movie "Less Than Zero." Though the movie was something of a flop, the soundtrack continues to produce hits.

Pianist Ran Blake. He heads the Third Stream Music Department at the New England Conservatory of Music. Third Stream music, a term coined by composer Gunther Schuller, integrates classical and jazz traditions. Blake has extended the definition to include other kinds of music. A CD of Blake's 1961 recording with singer Jeanne Lee has just been reissued by RCA.

J.J. Johnson, a pioneer of the modern jazz trombone. In 1970, he moved to Hollywood to work as a composer and arranger for television. He's toured the country recently, and a new CD of sessions he recorded in the 60s has just been reissued.

Guitarist Ry Cooder. His career consisted of one-night stands until he began writing the scores for films. His credits include "Paris, Texas" and "Crossroads." He's just come out with a solo album, his fist in six years. (INTERVIEW BY LIANE HANSEN)

Henry Mancini, who's had a long career writing scores for movies and TV. He has composed some classic songs, such as "The Pink Panther," "Moon River," "The Days of Wine and Roses," and the themes for "Peter Gunn" and "Mr. Lucky." He had just done the music for the new film version of "The Glass Menagerie."

Listeners will recognize Frankie Laine's voice from the opening sequences of Rawhide and Blazing Saddles. Laine also makes a career performing and recording pop, country and jazz tunes.

Composer John Morris is film director Mel Brooks' longtime collaborator. In addition to writing the music for comedies, Morris also scored David Lynch's The Elephant Man.

Film director David Lynch has collaborated with Alan Splet on all of his movies. Splet joins Fresh Air to discuss how he helped Lynch create an unsettling atmosphere in movies like Eraserhead and Blue Velvet.

Edward Wilkerson is a jazz musician and composer. He joins the show to discuss his work and career. His ensemble the Shadow Vignettes' most recent album is "Birth of a Notion."

Michael Ochs maintains an exhaustive collection of photographs and records documenting the history of rock music. His brother was political folk singer, Phil Ochs.

Scott B and his wife Beth B started a low-budget film company called B Movies. Their latest film -- their first shot on 16mm -- is New Wave detective movie starring punk icon Lydia Lunch.

The jazz and film critic believes that all the methods and techniques filmmakers use to tell a story were ether pioneered or refined by D.W. Griffith. Despite the pervasive racism in the director's art, Williams argues for the preservation of Griffith's legacy.

Sammy Cahn is a prolific lyricist who wrote countless classic songs, including for musicals and films. He explains how he hears words in melodies and shares anecdotes about his many collaborations over the years.

Steve Sabol, co-founder of the production company NFL Films, explains how to make engaging football movies, and how to train an award-winning staff with no prior film experience.

Jazz critic Kevin Whitehead reviews "Mickey One" (Verve) the soundtrack from the Arthur Penn film. It's been reissued and features Stan Getz.