SOUNDS OF FILM with Tom Needham

On the next episode of Sounds of Film, Tom Needham speaks with director and cinematographer Paweł Chorzępa and producer Joanna Chorzępa about their award-winning documentary short, The Tuners. With multiple international festival honors and a forthcoming release on The New York Times Op-Docs, the film offers a fascinating look at the unsung artists whose extraordinary skills help shape the performances of the world’s finest pianists.Set during the prestigious International Chopin Piano Competition in Warsaw, The Tuners follows three master piano tuners representing Steinway, Kawai, and Fazioli. As the competitors prepare for career-defining performances, these highly specialized craftsmen work under intense pressure to achieve the perfect sound. Through striking cinematography, immersive sound design, and a suspenseful narrative, Chorzępa transforms the often-overlooked art of piano tuning into a compelling story of craftsmanship, ambition, rivalry, and the pursuit of musical perfection.For more than 30 years, Tom Needham has hosted The Sounds of Film, America’s longest-running film, music, and ideas-themed radio program. The SOUNDS podcast features conversations with acclaimed filmmakers, musicians, composers, authors, and other influential figures, alongside classic interviews from the show’s extensive archive. Past guests include Billy Joel, William H. Macy, Laurie Anderson, Michael Moore, Chuck D, Nile Rodgers, Howard Shore, Stephen Schwartz, Hal Hartley, and Alexandra Pelosi. Listen to Sounds of Film for insightful conversations exploring the people, creativity, and ideas behind film, music, and culture

On the next episode of Sounds of Film, Tom Needham welcomes Steven Blush, acclaimed author, music historian, journalist, and filmmaker best known for his work documenting underground music, including American Hardcore. Blush joins Needham to discuss The Song of Hiawatha, a documentary about Hiawatha Bailey whose life brings together punk rock, radical politics, and the counterculture of the 1960s and 1970s. The film was a recent Official Selection at the Long Island Music & Entertainment Hall of Fame Music Documentary Film Festival.Hiawatha Bailey was a member of Ann Arbor’s White Panther Party, a radical political organization inspired by the Black Panther Party that sought to unite political resistance with cultural expression and community action. Bailey lived in the legendary Hill Street communes, worked with the underground rock scene, and witnessed firsthand the connections between music and revolutionary politics. His experiences brought him into contact with influential figures including John Sinclair, John Lennon, Yoko Ono, the MC5, and members of the Stooges. He later founded the punk band Cult Heroes, bringing the independent, do-it-yourself spirit of political activism into his musical career. Featuring rare archival photographs and footage, along with appearances by Iggy Pop and Patti Smith, the documentary recovers a largely overlooked chapter of American underground history.In this episode, Needham and Blush explore the relationship between music and political resistance, the legacy of the White Panther Party, and the lasting influence of the punk rock ethos. Their conversation also examines the challenges of building alternative communities, the consequences of radical political engagement, and the continuing relevance of the counterculture’s ideas about independence, solidarity, and social change.Sounds of Film has featured an extraordinary range of guests from the worlds of music, cinema, politics, and culture. Past guests include Billy Joel, Laurie Anderson, Chuck D, DMC, Michael Moore, Chris Hedges, William H. Macy, Paul Williams, Nile Rodgers, Gary U.S. Bonds, Wendy & Lisa, Morris Day, Philip Glass’s music director Michael Riesman, filmmaker Jordan Peele, actor Daniel Kaluuya, filmmaker Alexandra Pelosi, director Kenneth Lonergan, and music journalist Anthony DeCurtis. These conversations reflect the show’s longstanding interest in the artists and ideas that shape popular culture and challenge conventional thinking.Hosted by Tom Needham, Sounds of Film is a long-running film, music, and ideas program that has aired for more than 30 years on WUSB and features conversations with acclaimed filmmakers, musicians, authors, and other influential cultural figures.The podcast is available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and Amazon Music.

On the next episode of Sounds of Film, Tom Needham speaks with director Andrew Morgan and musicians Zella Day and Jesse Woods about their new documentary, Bleeding Hearts. The film, which has its East Coast Premiere at the 2026 Hamptons International Film Festival, screens Thursday, October 8 at 5:30 PM and Friday, October 9 at 2:00 PM at the East Hampton Regal UA. Following the Friday screening, Zella Day and Jesse Woods will perform with their band Chaparelle at Stephen Talkhouse in Amagansett.Bleeding Hearts is a music-driven love story following real-life couple Zella Day and Jesse Woods, the Texas-based musicians behind the emerging alt-country band Chaparelle. The documentary chronicles the pair as they write and produce their debut album, Western Pleasure, while attempting to balance their romantic relationship with their creative ambitions. Shot in atmospheric black and white, the film explores love, artistic collaboration, self-doubt, the pressures of the music industry, and the uncertainty of pursuing a shared dream. At the center of the story is the question of whether the pressures surrounding their music and relationship will lead to a breakup—or a breakthrough.Sounds of Film with Tom Needham is the nation’s longest-running film, music and ideas-themed radio program, airing for more than 30 years on WUSB and reaching listeners throughout Long Island, parts of Connecticut and around the world online. The SOUNDS podcast features new interviews as well as conversations from the Sounds of Film archives. Past guests have included Laurie Anderson, DMC, Gary U.S. Bonds, Wendy & Lisa, Morris Day, Michael Moore, Alexandra Pelosi, Paul Williams, Eric B., Dave Pennebaker, Garland Jeffreys, Michael Penn, Warren Ellis and many other leading filmmakers, musicians, actors, composers and cultural figures.

Deeply saddened by the passing of legendary R&B singer Freddie Jackson.Freddie’s extraordinary voice gave us some of the most memorable songs of the 1980s, including “Rock Me Tonight (For Old Times Sake)” and “You Are My Lady.” His music became part of the soundtrack of so many lives.I had the privilege of speaking with Freddie Jackson on Sounds of Film, and in his memory, I’m sharing that interview again. It was a wonderful conversation with a remarkable artist whose music and voice will live on.Rest in peace, Freddie. 🕊️-Tom Needham

On the next episode of Sounds of Film, Tom Needham speaks with legendary musician Paquito D’Rivera about the new documentary, Paquito D’Rivera: From Carne y Frijol to Carnegie Hall. The film, directed by Juan Mandelbaum, recently received the Roots and Rhythm Award at the Long Island Music & Entertainment Hall of Fame Music Documentary Film Festival.Paquito D’Rivera: From Carne y Frijol to Carnegie Hall tells the remarkable story of the Cuban-born musical prodigy who became an internationally celebrated clarinetist, saxophonist and composer. From his early years in Havana and his time with Irakere to his departure from Cuba and extraordinary career in the United States, the film explores D’Rivera’s musical curiosity, collaborations, humor and enduring ability to cross the boundaries between Latin music, jazz and classical music.Sounds of Film is the nation’s longest-running film, music and ideas themed radio show. For more than 30 years, the program has presented interviews and music to listeners throughout Long Island, parts of Connecticut and around the world through streaming. Past guests have included Billy Joel, William H. Macy, Jimmy Webb, Thora Birch, Ernest Dickerson, Hal Hartley, Carter Burwell, Wendy & Lisa, Nile Rodgers, Chuck D, Peter Fonda, Whit Stillman, Ralph Macchio, Laurie Anderson, Morris Day, Michael Moore and Alexandra Pelosi