Stanley Dance discusses jazz and his the book "The World of Swing". He tells anecdotes of jazz musicians and talks about the history of different songs. The interview is interspersed with songs of the jazz/swing genre: "Stompin' at the Savoy," "Three Little Words," "Here Comes the Man with the Jive," "Where are You," "Passing it Around," "Effervescent Blues," "Who's Sorry Now," "Sleep" and "One More Once." Music has been removed from this recording for copyright reasons.

Studs Terkel comments on baseball, baseball player Sam Crawford, comedian Spike Milligan, and interviews jazz musician Sonny Rollins. Includes a voice clip of baseball player Sam Crawford.

Studs interview with Ron Modell, Associate Professor of Trumpet and Director of the Jazz program at Northwestern University, Chicago. Modell talks about his students and their work in the band. He names some of his students and speaks of their individual work. He highlights their performances, awards, and future careers of those in the band. The musical numbers are removed from this edited version of the original recording.

Renee Fleming discusses her musical upbringing, her repertoire, her relationship to performance, and more.

Red Saunders discusses jazz music and jazz musicians.

Red Norvo remembers recording some of his albums with other performers like Mildred Bailey, Dizzy Gillespie, and Benny Goodman, as well as the revival of jazz music. Recordings are played of the following: "Lover Come Back to Me" by the Red Norvo Combo, "The Weekend of a Private Secretary" sung by Mildred Bailey, "Congo Blues" by Red Norvo And His Selected Sextet, "After You've Gone" by Red Norvo feat. Benny Goodman Sextet, "Rhee! Oh! Rhee" by Red Norvo, "The Night is Blue" by Red Norvo, and "Everything I've Got Belongs to You" by Red Norvo. Songs have been removed due to copyright.

Starting at a young age, Ramsey Lewis really loved music and as he got older, he'd practice five or six hours a day. Lewis says he knew nothing about jazz until he met Wallace Burton at the age of 15. Burton hired Lewis on the spot to play in his band. Church music, Spanish music, Duke Ellington and the Beatles, says Lewis, were all great influences to him.

In Berkeley, Calif., Ralph Gleason, jazz and pop critic, and founding editor of Rolling Stone, talks with Studs about the history of jazz and jazz artists. They talk in depth about Billie Holiday, white performers who imitated the style of black jazz singers, and jazz festivals. Songs include Holiday's "Them There Eyes" and "God Bless the Child."

Terkel presents music with Susannah McCorkle

Presenting jazz with Bill Leonard and Frank Holzfeind

Polly Podewell and Johnnie McDonough evaluate jazz vocalists, musical influences, and compare music genres. Jazz music performances of Polly Podewell (from private tape) are interspersed throughout the interview as well as recordings from Mildred Bailey, Helen Ward, and Billie Holiday. Songs are removed on this file due to copyright reasons.

Studs interviews Phyl Garland about her book "Sound of Soul." They discuss various musicians that she mentions in her book and their influence on black music. Garland explains the music of young black artists and how commercialization of music gave blacks an opportunity that they would not have had otherwise. Garland talks about how Fannie Lou Hamer used music to express her message in the Civil Rights Movement and as a women's rights activist. Studs and Garland discuss various black female artists and their music.