This Week's Music for Grown-Ups on Radio/TV

Your exclusive listening/watching guide… thanks to compiler Mike Ollier:


Radio For Grown-Ups

Fri BBCR6 21.00 ~ 22.00:
* Theme Time Radio Hour with Bob Dylan: More Bob. More magic.

Fri BBCR3 22.30 ~ 23.30
* Jazz Library: Jelly Roll Morton pounds those ivories

Fri BBCR3 23.30 ~ 01.00
* Jazz On Three: Mike Gibbs’ 70th Birthday Concert: to help him celebrate ~ Bill Frisell, Steve Swallow, Adam Nausbaum and Chris Hunter, live at the Birmingham CBSO Centre.


TV For Grown-Ups

NB: check listings for Dylan repeats on BBC FOUR (Wednesday - Ed), and Emmylou Harris repeats, too.

Fri BBC4 19.30 ~ 20.30
* European Roots: a third season of the 'Roots' strand featuring, as the title says, folk music from around Europe. Tonight Fado (from Portugal) is featured.

Fri BBC4 20.30 ~ 21.00
* Transatlantic Sessions 3: 5th of the 6-part series filmed in a grand Scottish Highlands hoose with Celtic musicians in session with Americana acts. Music directors are dobro-man Jerry Douglas and fiddler Aly Bain, with trusted lieutenants accordionists Phil Cunningham and guitar wiz Russ Barenburg.

Fri BBC4 21.00 ~ 22.00
Legends: Al Bowley ~ The Very Thought Of You: the crooner king from between the wars, a kind of Robbie Williams of his day. Another of BBC4’s docs on long-forgotten musicians that are always fascinating viewing. As Richard Thompson sang: "Al Bowley's in Heaven, and I'm in limbo now."

Non-musical highlights: The Sopranos (Sundays, repeats Tuesdays, E4) ratchets up the menace… no-one is safe as Tony takes action and AJ starts to repeat history. Don't forget Friday's 'HIGNFY' ~ Kirsty Young last week was, as always, excellent. On Tuesdays on BBC4 Charlie Brooker's Screenwipe is the funniest new TV for a long time. Ripping Yarns is also re-shown on Tuesdays on BBC4 and also repeats Ian Rankin's Edinburgh at 9.00pm on Wednesday, an excellent trawl through Rebus' haunts and Auld Reekie itself.

Coupled with all the great music shows, can you believe that they are thinking of closing down BBC FOUR?