For the Martin Luther King holiday, we honor his spirit and struggle with African American spirituals, protest anthems, freedom jazz, and soul power. New Orleans musician and activist Cyril Neville tells of growing up with Mardi Gras Indian rituals and street music and the importance of both to Black community life in the city. From our archives, the late jazz trumpeter Freddie Hubbard talks free form music and freedom of expression. Plus, Bob Dylan gives voice to the social unrest of the Sixties. Cellist and singer Leyla McCalla, formerly of the Carolina Chocolate Drops, reprises “The Capitalist Blues” for a new generation. And Big Mama Thornton brings a musical storm tide with her defiantly upbeat take on “Wade in the Water.” Be in that number with American Routes for MLK Day weekend!

We remember Elvis Presley on what would have been the week of his 84th birthday. Exclusive interviews with bandmates DJ Fontana, Scotty Moore, producer Sam Phillips, and biographer Peter Guralnick focus on the social and cultural interactions unique to Memphis and the Deep South that sparked Elvis’ musical explosiveness. The songwriting team of Leiber & Stoller talk about working with Elvis on their compositions “Hound Dog” and “Jailhouse Rock,” and guitarist James Burton describes the Vegas years. Memphis R&B great Rufus Thomas describes the complex relationship many black musicians had with Elvis, and rockabilly queen Wanda Jackson says the king of rock ‘n’ roll was a perfect gentleman on their dates.