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The Pulitzer-winning composer began her career with a creative blank check, but she's spent much of the past decade moving sideways. Her latest trick: reinventing as a songwriter.

A day before the start of the Tour de France, star riders Jan Ullrich and Ivan Basso have been banned from cycling's top event over doping allegations. Other competitors are also implicated. Phil Liggett of the Outdoor Life Network details the scandal for Madeleine Brand.

Spanish artists lead the list of nominees, with Alejandro Sanz and Rosalia topping the list — though urbano artists didn't make a big impression.

Christopher O'Riley, host of NPR's From the Top, considers Elliott Smith to be one America's greatest songwriters. Smith died in 2003 before ever achieving massive fame. O'Riley's latest release, Home to Oblivion, is a classical translation of Smith's work.

The investigation, prompted by the discovery of top-secret papers found at Mar-a-Lago, is at an early stage, a source told NPR.

In 1959, jazz pianist Dave Brubeck topped the pop charts and shook up the notion of rhythm in jazz with an odd-metered song called "Take Five." On the occasion of its golden anniversary and a new reissue of Time Out, Brubeck explains why it was such a hit.

"Colors" is the buoy that floats to the top of Smith's new record: It's an up-tempo jaunt that illustrates one side of a long-distance relationship, not lamenting the isolation but instead looking fixedly to the future. Both a plea for the separation to end and a promise to remain steadfast, "Colors" is at least as much a ballad of heartfelt yearning as it is a stomp-and-swagger jam.

The Senate Banking Committee grills top regulators and several of the nation's largest lenders about problems with sub-prime mortgages — and what regulators did and did not do to address them. About 14 percent of outstanding subprime loans are now delinquent by 30 days or more.

Do your top ten lists stand the test of time? Hosts Bob Boilen and Robin Hilton are joined by NPR Music's Marissa Lorusso and Stephen Thompson to talk about why some records age better than others.

Hear McMurtry's take on the overall improvements in Top 40 music and how Beyonce's ground-breaking album Lemonade gave him partial inspiration to write a song on his latest album.