WFUV Programs:

The Whole Wide World with Rita Houston

It's funky, it's jazzy, it's old and it's new and it's not like any other radio program.

Around the city, around the globe:

Perhaps the only place on the NYC radio dial where you wouldn't be surprised to hear Nancy's Sinatra's "Bang Bang" and Manu Chao's "Bongo Bong" on the same show, The Whole Wide World kicked off in 2001 as a showcase for host Rita Houston's wide-ranging taste in music. It's MIA to Marvin Gaye, The Bird and the Bee to Elvis Presley, Bebel Gilberto to One EskimO.

Traditional "world music" it ain't. Instead, Rita spans the globe to bring you interviews with artists like Japan's ukulele-playing pop duo Petty Booka, Brazilian rap artist Lenine, Portland's Pink Martini, England's Florence and the Machine, and Swedish soul singer Nicolai Dunger. While spending the rest of her week as WFUV's Music Director and a frequent concert-goer, Rita spends her Friday nights pushing the limits of rock, dance and jazz, mixing the lesser-known with the deservedly classic.

Houston's interviews are regular highlights on the air, distilling the human story behind the music and the musician with a relaxed, unassuming tone and a dash of wit that disarms the most jaded touring pros. Guests who've enjoyed the Rita treatment over the years include David Byrne, Paul Weller, Gomez, Sigur Ros, Bebel Gilberto, Feist, Nouvelle Vague, The Brazilian Girls, Kings of Convenience, Allen Toussaint, Elvis Costello, Aimee Mann, Calexico, Sam Phillips, Daniel Lanois, Gillian Welch, Paul Simon, Phoenix and many, many others.

Longtime listeners know to expect the unexpected, and also know that Rita is that friend you trust to create the perfect night of music.

More:

Even More:

Just for fun, here's a few of the Whole Wide World interviews you can hear in the Words and Music Audio Archives:

Tori Amos, Theresa Andersson, Burt Bacharach, Bat for Lashes, Bell X1, Tony Bennett, Conor Oberst, J.J. Cale, Broken Social Scene, Brandi Carlile, Rosanne Cash, Cory Chisel, Bruce Cockburn, Shawn Colvin, Ry Cooder, Citizen Cope, Cowboy Junkies, Sheryl Crow, Brett Dennen, Ani DiFranco, The Dixie Hummingbirds, Duffy, Steve Earle, Kathleen Edwards, Alejandro Escovedo, Fanfarlo, Feist, David Gray, Ben Harper, Emmylou Harris, John Hiat, James Hunter, Indigo Girls, Iron & Wine, Chris Isaak, Jim James, Norah Jones, Rickie Lee Jones, Tom Jones, Angelique Kidjo, Ray LaMontagne, k.d. lang, Amos Lee, Shelby Lynne, Raul Malo, Ziggy Marley, Sarah McLachlan, Bette Midler, Moby, Mumford and Sons, Sinead O'Connor, Mark Olson, Joan Osborne, Robert Plant and Alison Krauss, The Pretenders, John Prine, Damien Rice, Josh Ritter, Xavier Rudd, Raphael Saadiq, Pete Seeger, Martin Sexton, She and Him, Sia, Paul Simon, Patty Smith, Ralph Stanley, Mavis Staples, Joss Stone, Suzanne Vega, The Wallflowers, M. Ward, Dan Wilson, The Wood Brothers, World Party, and Rachael Yamagata.