WORDS AND MUSIC (2026)

A series of programs celebrating the art of songwriting.

American Stories 1

American singer-songwriters - including Suzanne Vega, James Taylor, Janice Ian and Shawn Colvin - recall how and when they wrote their signature songs. (38:32)

American Stories 2

Legendary and newer US singer-songwriters - including Jackson Browne, Nanci Griffith and Loudon Wainwright - perform one of their key songs and explain how they came to write it. (35:47)

Cults & Classics

Tracey MacLeod introduces a series celebrating the art of songwriting in which classic pop songs are stripped back to basics and performed by their original composers. (36:37)

• Iggy Pop - I Wanna Be Your Dog
• Richard Berry - Louie Louie
• Bee Gees - To Love Somebody Tony Joe Wright - Rainy Night in Georgia
• Sparks - This Town Ain't Big Enough for Both of Us
• Jimmy Webb - By the Time I Get to Phoenix
• Neil Finn - Don't Dream It's Over
• Debbie Harry and Chris Stein - Heart of Glass