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Picture it. You've just settled in for your flight, ordered yourself a glass of wine. All of a sudden, your moment of plane zen is interrupted by a guitar. As in a band, on your plane, playing music.

Help Us Stranger marks the first Raconteurs album recorded at White's studio in Nashville.

A STEREO in the studio concert and interview with singer/songwriter, guitarist RICHARD THOMPSON. He was a founding member of the band Fairport Convention in the late 1960's. He's since gone solo and is known for his dark songs which blend elements of British folk ballads, the blues, and rock n' roll. His latest album is "Mirror Blue," (Capitol). A retrospective collection of his work was released last year, "Watching the Dark: The History of Richard Thompson," (on Rykodisc.) (THIS CONCERT & INTERVIEW continues into the second half of the show, and the review segements).

Music Critic MILO MILES reviews two CD anthologies of Bobby "Blue" Bland "Turn on Your Love Light" and "Pity the Fool". Bland had a number of hits on the "Black Charts" in his peak years from 1957 to 1964 with his big band blues sound. Bland still makes records and performs.

Musician and record producer, RON LEVY. He was asked to played in B.B. King's band, when he was just out of high school. He went on to form "Ron Levy's Wild Kingdom, and recorded with the "luminaries" of the late seventies blue wave revival: Kim Wilson and Jimmie Vaughan and others. He started producing for Rounder Records and ended up working with old blues legends on Rounder's Blues label. LEVY has long championed the Hammond B-3 organ which has come back into vogue. And he has a new Wild Kingdom release, "B-3, Blues and Grooves." (Ro

1: Lead singer and songwriter for The Kinks, RAY DAVIES. He's just written his "unauthorized autobiography." The book is written in the third, nameless person, and takes place in a corporation-run future. It's called, Ray Davies: X-Ray. (The Overlook Press). RAY started The Kinks in 1964 with his brother. They are said to be the pioneers of the rowdy garage band genre of rock music. Their many hits included: "You Really Got Me," "Lola," "All Day and All of the Night," and "Tired of Waiting for you." INT. 2: More with RAY DAVIES.

From the Beach Boys, BRIAN WILSON. We feature a segment from a 1988 interview with WILSON. This ties in with the next interview:Editor in Chief of Billboard Magazine TIMOTHY WHITE. He has written a new book that traces the evolution of the "myth" of Southern California. WHITE uses the history of the Wilson family and it's migration to California in the 1920s. The Wilson family is that of Brian Wilson, one of the Beach Boys, the band the helped put Southern California on the map as the place of sun and fun. WHITE's new book is "The Nearest Faraway Place: Brian Wilson, the Beach Boys, and the Southern California Experience" (Henry

THE WASHINGTON GUITAR QUINTET, WHICH INCLUDES THE LEGENDARY CHARLIE BYRD, CELEBRATES 10 YEARS AS A GROUP. THEY PLAY AND TALK ABOUT THE UNIQUE NATURE OF BEING AN ALL CLASSICAL GUITAR BAND. 16:45 (The Washington Guitar Quintet CDs can be found in many record stores under Charlie Byrd's listings. The group has two CDs 1) CHARLIE BYRD/ THE WASHINGTON GUITAR QUINTET 2) AQUARELLE - CHARLIE BYRD WITH THE WASHINGTON GUITAR QUINTET If your local record shop does NOT have a copy call Concord Jazz Inc. 1-800-551-5299 or you can write to: Concord Jazz Inc. P.O. Box 845 Concord, CA.

Banning Eyre reports on the legacy of Nigerian bandleader and activist Fela Kuti. Kuti came from a talented and educated family. He was educated in England and spent time in America. In the 1970's, his jazz and funk-influenced music challenged the political and military leadership of Nigeria. His lifestyle reflected his sharp rejection of Western ideas. Kuti eventually died of complications from AIDS. But his life is attracting new attention here in the US as his son Femi tours with a band, and a new biography by Michael Veal details his life. (12:30) Please note, Fela: The Life & Times of an African Musical Icon, by Michael E. Veal is published by Temple University Press; ISBN# 1566397650, June 2000.

Banning Eyre reviews the CD Gem Tones, Saxophone Supreme South Indian Style, by Kadri Gopalnath. Gopalnath heard a British marching band when he was an teenager, growing up in India. He loved the sound of the saxophone so much that he began to play it. Although the sax was not part of the South Indian classical music tradition, he tried to make the instrument fit in. Now, with a few minor changes in the set up of the sax he plays, he has been able to gain wide acceptance in the tradition for his innovation. (3:45) The CD is Gem Tones: Saxophone Supreme, South Indian Style by Kadri Gopalnath. It's on Globestyle Records, #CDORBD 097. Contact: info@amc.org.uk