American Routes

American Routes from New Orleans is the weekly two-hour public radio program hosted by folklorist and producer Nick Spitzer. On-air for over two decades, and “built to last,” the program has been exclusively distributed by PRX since 2011.  American Routes presents blues and jazz, gospel and soul, old-time country and rockabilly, Cajun and zydeco, Tejano and Latin, roots rock and pop, avant-garde and classical.

Each week, Nick curates the tunes and takes listeners on a cross-country cultural journey through American songs and stories. The show uses short documentary features and artist conversations to tell those stories. Artists interviewed on American Routes include Ray Charles, Willie Nelson, Nina Simone, B.B. King, Dr. John, Allen Toussaint, Dave Brubeck, Tom Waits, Celia Cruz, Elvis Costello, Randy Newman, Joan Baez, Margo Price, Los Lobos, Drive By Truckers, Lucinda Williams, Jimmy Cliff, Sonny Rollins, Chuck Berry, Jerry Lee Lewis… and hundreds of others.  

Underwritten by the National Endowments for the Arts and Humanities, and widely acclaimed by Nightline, the NYTimes, Billboard and the Wall Street Journal, American Routes is broadcast on over 350 public radio stations. The music-to-talk ratio of a typical program is 80% music and 20% talk—giving it a music & cultural information style that appeals to many local formats as a weekend program. In addition to 52 shows per year, there are two pledge drive programs. Custom promos are available.