This week on Rob Reinhart’s Essential Music Mac Saturn return, plus more Detroit tunes from Dames Brown, The Detroit Emeralds and Inner City!

Also this week, a couple advance performances from The Leon Loft (for Acoustic Cafe), classics from The Bar-Kays and ELO, plus forthcoming coolness from Kelela!

See the playlist below and listen to the episode for two weeks after it airs using the media player above.

Rob Reinhart’s Essential Music Playlist for May 16, 2026

HOUR ONE:

• “Holy Ghost” – The Bar-Kays
• “Cold April” – Allison Russell
• “Takes Time” – Mac Saturn
• “Can’t Be Wrong” – Low Cut Connie
• “Eastside Girls” – MUNA
• “Need Your Love” – Inner City feat. Steffanie Christi’an
• “Fifty Mission Cap” – The Tragically Hip
• “Crawl Space” – Art Farmer
• “Moonflower” – Devon Gilfillian
• “Kiss That Frog” – Peter Gabriel

HOUR TWO:

• “Idea 1” – Kelela
• “When The Love Is New” – Shaky Graves
• “You Want It, You Got It” – The Detroit Emeralds
• “Why You Got Me Crazy” – Dames Brown
• “Poker” – E.L.O.
• “Blessings” – Chance The Rapper
• “Charlie Sheen Reaches Out to the Feds” – Mountain Goats
• “No Invite” – Tank & The Bangas
• “In Your Ocean” – Iron & Wine (at The Leon Loft)
• “Good News” – ROZZI (at The Leon Loft)
• “Sunlight To My Soul” – Angelique Kidjo
• “What Is Left To Say” – Thundercat
• “Lost In My Mind” – The Head & The Heart

Listen to Rob Reinhart’s Essential Music every Saturday from 2-4 p.m. ET on Detroit Public Radio 101.9 WDET and streaming on-demand at wdet.org

This week on Rob Reinhart’s Essential Music we introduce you to Detroit artists Ayla Ottenbreit, plus a new cover from Detroit favorite Jill Jack!

Also this week, new work released from The Womack Sisters, The Rolling Stones, Taj Mahal and Ziggy Marley… And there’s the (just announced) Sonic Lunch series coming to Ann Arbor this summer, and a fun Yacht Rock event on the Detroit River June 7!

See the playlist below and listen to the episode for two weeks after it airs using the media player above.

Rob Reinhart’s Essential Music Playlist for May 9, 2026

HOUR ONE:

• “Chauffeur” – The Womack Sisters
• “You’re The Man” – Brother Wallace
• “Lie” – ROZZI
• “In The Stars” – The Rolling Stones
• “Slow Learning” – Aylah Ottenbreit
• “It’s A Shame” – Aaron Frazer
• “It’s A Shame” – The (Detroit) Spinners
• “It’s A Shame” – First Aid Kit
• “Show You The Way” – Thundercat
• “Nightshift” – The Commodores
• “Freaking Out” – Michigander (Sonic Lunch 2026)
• “Ready Set Go” – Grace Potter (Sonic Lunch 2026)
• “Chicago” – Mavis Staples (Sonic Lunch 2026)

HOUR TWO:

• “Soulshine” – Jill Jack
• “Senses” – Arlo Parks ft. Sampha
• “Spirit 2.0” – Sampha
• “Doom Mood” – Pearl & The Oysters
• “Yell Fire” – Michael Franti
• “Are You One Of Us” – Rodney Crowell ft. Guy Clark
• “Talkin’ Blues” – Taj Mahal ft. Ziggy Marley
• “Big Stick” – MUNA
• “The Payoff” – Father John Misty
• “Only You Do” – GoldFord
• “Darwin Derby” – Vulfpeck

Listen to Rob Reinhart’s Essential Music every Saturday from 2-4 p.m. ET on Detroit Public Radio 101.9 WDET and streaming on-demand at wdet.org

This week on Rob Reinhart’s Essential Music we’ll note some classic album anniversaries from May of 1966 – 2006… also lots of new tunes from Canadian Cat Clyde, a third album from Arlo Parks, the final “balloon” from Tank & The Bangas, a quiet folk record from Michigan’s Ryan Racine and much more!

See the playlist below and listen to the episode for two weeks after it airs using the media player above.

Rob Reinhart’s Essential Music Playlist for May 2, 2026

HOUR ONE:

• “Invisible Ink” – King Tuff
• “Beams” – Arlo Parks
• “Acid Tongue” – Swamp Dogg
• “Puppy And A Truck” – Jenny Lewis
• “I Wish” – Stevie Wonder (1 of 30 NYT Best Living Songwriters)
  
• “Steady As She Goes” – The Raconteurs (May 2006)
  
• “Ahead By A Century” – The Tragically Hip (May 1996)
• “Cherry Bomb” – The Runaways (May 1976)
• “Love Song 43” – Ryan Racine
• “Hold My Hand” – Cat Clyde
• “Panic In Detroit” – Steven Brown
• “All The Disaster” – Sarah McLachlan
• “Big Time” – Peter Gabriel (May 1986)
• “Little Darling (I Need You)” – Marvin Gaye (May 1966)

• “Riptides” – Death Cab For Cutie
• “Oyaya” – Angelique Kidjo
• “6th Ward” – Trombone Shorty
• “I Did This To Myself” – Thundercat
• “Whole Lot Of Shakin’ In My Heart” – Smokey Robinson (1 of 30 NYT Best Living Songwriters)
• “6th Avenue Heartache” – The Wallflowers (May 1996)
• “All Night” – Chance The Rapper (May 2016)
• “Carmelita” – Warren Zevon (May 1976)
• “Move” – Tank & The Bangas
  
• “Heart Stop” – The Revivalists
  
• “IRL” – Devon Gilfillian
• “New York State Of Mind” – Billy Joel (May 1976)
• “Uptight (Everything’s Alright)” – Stevie Wonder (May 1966)

Listen to Rob Reinhart’s Essential Music every Saturday from 2-4 p.m. ET on Detroit Public Radio 101.9 WDET and streaming on-demand at wdet.org

This week on Rob Reinhart’s Essential Music we’re celebrating Record Store Day by doing the show live in a record store! It’s an all-vinyl show, featuring vintage and brand new discs, live from Third Man Records in the Cass Corridor!

See the playlist below and listen to the episode for two weeks after it airs using the media player above.

Rob Reinhart’s Essential Music Playlist for April 18, 2026

HOUR ONE:

• “Dead Leaves & The Dirty Ground” – The White Stripes (live at WDET 1999)
• “Papa’s Got A Brand New Bag” – James Brown
• “1999” – Charli XCX
• “Little Plastic Castles” – Ani Difranco
• “In The Stone” – Earth Wind & Fire
  
• “Some Other Guy” – The Hentchmen (Third Man Records customer purchase)
  
• “Get On The Right Track Baby” – Ray Charles
• “George Clinton Got In My Car” – The Howling Diablos
• “Can You Get To That” – Funkadelic
• “Looking At You” – MC5
• “Make You Better” – The Decemberists
• “If You Want Me” – The Womack Sisters
• “Let’s Rock” – Barrett Strong
  

• “Atlantic City” – The City Lines
• “On The Northline” – Frontier Ruckus
• “Hurtin’ On The Bottle” – Margo Price
• “Long Gone Lonesome Blues” – Sheryl Crow
• “Talk To Me Nice” – Tinashe
• “Tribute To Mississippi Fred McDowell” – Bonnie Raitt
• “Paint This Town” – Old Crow Medicine Show (Third Man Records customer purchase)
• “Lizzie” – Starcrawler (Third Man Records customer purchase)
• “Rock You Up” – The Romantics
• “Paradise” – Sade
• “Lookin’ Back” – Bob Seger
  
• “I Ain’t Gonna Stand For It” – Stevie Wonder
  

Listen to Rob Reinhart’s Essential Music every Saturday from 2-4 p.m. ET on Detroit Public Radio 101.9 WDET and streaming on-demand at wdet.org

On October 24, 2025, Ann Delisi was invited by her friend and collaborator, Chef James Rigato, to interview 4-time Grammy Award-winning musician, songwriter and producer Tony Rich in the intimate setting of Chef Rigato’s award-winning restaurant, Mabel Gray.

Celebrating the 30th Anniversary of his album “Words”, Rich came to Mabel Gray to perform songs from the album and talk with Ann about the importance of his relationship with his father, living in Detroit and fascinating stories about his life in the music business.

They talked in front of an enthusiastic audience of friends, family and fans.

This week on Rob Reinhart’s Essential Music exploring the curious trend of “Title Twins”… brand new songs, featuring previously used, sometimes iconic song titles of the past. Why? Who knows! But let’s have some fun hearing the new and old back-to-back.

See the playlist below and listen to the episode for two weeks after it airs using the media player above.

Rob Reinhart’s Essential Music Playlist for April 11, 2026

HOUR ONE:

• “For The Love Of Money” – The Black Keys
• “For The Love Of Money” – The O’Jays
• “Hotel California” – Joji
• “Hotel California” – The Gypsy Kings (cuz I can’t take the Eagles again)
• “For What It’s Worth” – Liam Gallagher
  
• “For What It’s Worth” – Buffalo Springfield
  
• “Night Moves” – Lissie
• “Night Moves” – Bob Seger & The Silver Bullet Band
• “The Look Of Love” – ABC
• “The Look Of Love” – Isaac Hayes (cuz this version is awesome)
• “Somebody That I Used To Know” – Gotye
• “Somebody That I Used To Know” – Elliott Smith
• “Rock The Boat” – Trombone Shorty
  
• “Rock The Boat” – The Hues Corporation
  

• “Who Do You Love?” – Brother Wallace
• “Who Do You Love?” – Bo Diddley
• “Nice Work If You Can Get It” – Sloan
• “Nice Work If You Can Get It” – Ella Fitzgerald
• “Real Love” – Mary J. Blige
• “Real Love” – Joan Osborne
  
• “California” – Rufus Wainwright
  
• “California” – Joni Mitchell
  
• “It Should Have Been Me” – Ray Charles
  
• “It Should Have Been Me” – Gladys Knight & The Pips
  
• “Cherry Baby” – Jenny Lewis
  
• “Cherry Baby” – Starz
• “Tired Of Being Alone” – Teenage Fanclub
  
• “Tired Of Being Alone” – Al Green
  

Listen to Rob Reinhart’s Essential Music every Saturday from 2-4 p.m. ET on Detroit Public Radio 101.9 WDET and streaming on-demand at wdet.org

This week on Rob Reinhart’s Essential Music classic April album releases from Seger, Sam & Dave, Gnarls Barkley, and Gillian Welch.

Also new Detroit tunes from Jack White and Ryan Racine, new Jill Scott, Samm Henshaw, a Prince cover from Low Cut Connie and much more!

See the playlist below and listen to the episode for two weeks after it airs using the media player above.

Rob Reinhart’s Essential Music Playlist for April 4, 2026

HOUR ONE:

• “G.O.D. And The Broken Ribs” – Jack White
• “Who Do You Love” – Bother Wallace
• “Project 10” – Satya
• “Sexistential” – Robyn
• “Don’t Bury Me” – Ryan Racine
• “Great Advice” – Courtney Barnett
• “Looking Back” – Bob Seger & The Silver Bullet Band (April 1976)
• “Too Much” – Dave Matthews Band (April 1996)
• “Hold On I’m Coming” – Sam & Dave (April 1966)
• “Money” – Foy Vance
• “Dixie Chicken” – Little Feat
• “Jump” – Inara George
  
• “Float” – Samm Henshaw
  
• “Tear My Stillhouse Down” – Gillian Welch & Dave Rawlings (April 1996)

• “ThunderWave” – Thundercat ft. WILLOW
• “Wild At Heart” – Neil Diamond
• “Little Red Corvette” – Low Cut Connie
• “Amiss” – waterbaby
• “Stuck In My Mind” – JR JR
• “Sumthin’ Sumthin'” – Maxwell (April 1996)
• “Mother’s Little Helper” – The Rolling Stones (April 1966)
• “Crazy” – Gnarls Barkley (April 2006)
• “It’s Only Love” – ROZZI
• “Sad & Beautiful World” – Mavis Staples
• “Doctrine Of Love” – Jalen Ngonda
• “Beat On The Brat” – Ramones (April 1976)
• “Freedom” – Beyonce (April 2016)

Listen to Rob Reinhart’s Essential Music every Saturday from 2-4 p.m. ET on Detroit Public Radio 101.9 WDET and streaming on-demand at wdet.org