Live In Concert From Npr's All Songs Considered

The ramshackle indie-rock band plays NPR Music's South By Southwest showcase at Stubb's in Austin, Texas, on March 17, 2010.

The charismatic power-pop band opens NPR Music's South By Southwest showcase at Stubb's in Austin, Texas, on March 17, 2010.

For some diehard Kinks fans, the idea of mixing the band's classic songs with a full choir had little appeal. One of those fans, All Songs Considered host Bob Boilen, was dubious, before he heard the results on the latest CD from Kinks frontman Ray Davies, The Kinks Choral Collection. Boilen was part of a rapt audience at a Nov. 20 performance of the songs, recorded live in New York, by Ray Davies and the Dessoff Chamber Choir. Hear that show in its entirety here.

One of Bob Boilen's favorite discoveries of the year, Watson makes imaginative pop with a cinematic bent. So NPR Music jumped at the opportunity to record his concert at The Mercury Lounge in New York City Thursday, performed as part of the CMJ Music Festival.

Moby's latest album, Wait for Me, is his best new release in a decade, full of beauty, sadness and celebration. The singer and electronic artist is currently on tour in support of the record, giving sold-out performances to packed arenas and smaller clubs throughout Europe and the U.S. For this stellar concert, recorded live in Berlin on June 26, Moby treated fans to nearly two hours of new songs and old favorites from a career spanning nearly 20 years.

When the original lineup of Dinosaur Jr. reunited in 2005, more than 20 years after the band first formed in Amherst, Mass., skeptics figured the group was looking for an excuse to recycle its back catalog. Hear Dinosaur Jr. perform selections from their latest album 'Farm' — along with an assortment of old favorites — in a full concert, recorded live at Washington, D.C.'s 9:30 Club.

The Gossip has built its reputation on its incredible live performances. The post-punk trio, based in Olympia, Wash., mixes incendiary guitar noise with funk bass lines and adrenaline-infused rhythms, while frontwoman Beth Ditto thrashes onstage, sometimes stripping down to her underwear. Fans can experience this sonic jolt firsthand in this full concert by The Gossip, recorded live from the 9:30 Club in Washington, D.C. The performance is hosted by All Songs Considered's Bob Boilen and Monitor Mix blogger Carrie Brownstein.

Hear singer, songwriter and guitarist M. Ward in a full concert, recorded live at the 9:30 Club in Washington, D.C. Ward is currently on tour in support of his latest album, Hold Time. One of the year's strongest releases, the disc features a mix of country-flavored pop songs, with finger-picked guitars, upright bass and shuffling rhythms, all tied together by Ward's achy voice.

Three years after the breakup of his widely adored space-pop group Grandaddy, singer Jason Lytle has returned with one of the year's best albums, Yours Truly, The Commuter. Lytle showcased the new songs, along with some old Grandaddy favorites, in this full concert, recorded live at the Bowery Ballroom in New York City July 11.

Just one year after her first Newport appearance, Baez released her self-titled debut and began a decades-spanning career that traversed not only American folk styles, but also a broad assortment of social issues. It would become the mark of her music that it was inextricably linked to social and political change.

The Rhode Island band's restless experimentation and ever-changing arrangements reflect the disparate interests and careers (art, Americana and technology) of its three members.

Weathered and shot through with bursts of noise, Deer Tick's tunes could be endearingly sloppy, but the band's arrangements remain thoughtful. The lyrics tend toward folks who have it hard, but don't make things any easier on themselves.

Elliott's voice — flat, tinged with sadness, with a matter-of-fact delivery — has become a template for generations of folksingers, as well as an influence on Bob Dylan. On the day he performs at Newport, he will turn 78.

Gillian Welch and David Rawlings put out Soul Journey, their last record under Welch's name, in 2003, and since then have toured under the moniker David Rawlings Machine. For most listeners, Welch may be the name in lights, but the best trick she and Rawlings play is to keep the focus shifting between their marvelously paired voices.

Son of the legendary folksinger Woody Guthrie, Arlo Guthrie was born in Brooklyn, N.Y., in 1947. The younger Guthrie has released more than two dozen albums, founded the Guthrie Center and devoted himself to numerous political causes, most recently attracting attention for his support of 2008 Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul.

Armed with an electric guitar and a sharp wit, Billy Bragg is a one-man punk band with a Woody Guthrie-sized heart. Since the mid-'80s, Bragg has tirelessly railed against injustice in his music, while remaining tethered to the intricacies of human interaction.

Neko Case and her killer live band put on an impassioned and energetic set at Newport.

Eschewing his full touring band, Iron & Wine's Sam Beam performed a beautiful solo set at Newport.

The lifelong activist and singer brought some serious soul to the Folk Festival at Newport.

Closing the day at Folk Festival 50, legendary folksinger Pete Seeger and his son, Tao Rodriguez Seeger, led a hootenanny with some of their closest friends and musicians, including members of The Decemberists and Fleet Foxes.