Episode 2 of “The Roth Show,” starring Van Halen frontman David Lee Roth, takes fans into the creative process behind his memorable videos for the 1980s hits “Jump” and “California Girls.”

Neil Young invited fans to an online Q&A today on his newly launched Twitter account, covering a range of topics from the mundane to the musical. And, in the style of the micro-blogging site, he did so with very, very brief answers.

Despite having collaborated with him for years, in some ways Marc Bonilla is still that kid watching as Keith Emerson took the stage in Oakland for 1974′s Brain Salad Surgery tour with Emerson Lake and Palmer.

For Triveni II, Avishai Cohen (the trumpet player, not the bass dude), the stated intention of this record was to recreate the feeling Cohen got from listening to Billie Holiday: “a feeling that’s pure, simple and honest.”

Andrew Bird shelves the intricate alterno-pop vibe of this year’s earlier Break It Yourself for something rootsier, and more real here — delving into Celtic forms, Americana, bluegrass, country and gospel

Lately I’ve been thinking a lot about this certain Pat Metheny album from long ago. Since the first time I’ve heard it in the music listening room at my college’s student union in the early ’80s, New Chautauqua (ECM Records) has been one of those records in which I’ve sought refuge