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No matter how you're going to spend your time by the pool, you're going to need musical accompaniment -- preferably something that steers clear of the typical Jimmy Buffett and Beach Boys mix. How about some jazz? Not the heady stuff, unless you're aiming to clear the decks. Instead, get yourself some deep '70s jazz; the kind that leaves a funk aroma and washes off easily when you take the plunge.

On Saturday, the Avetts brought their emotionally charged and frenetic live show to the Fort Stage at Folk Festival 50.

Whenever the reclusive Carlos Kleiber conducted an orchestra, it was a major event. Hear him bring out all the pent-up emotions in Brahms' final symphony, with the help of the Vienna Philharmonic.

The Decemberists' Colin Meloy favors a complex storytelling approach that often includes a vivid array of characters. Since breaking into the mainstream with 2005's The Crane Wife, the band has returned with an ambitious concept album titled The Hazards of Love.

In a session from KEXP, Au Revoir Simone's members set the record straight: Their band name is a Pee-Wee's Big Adventure reference. They are from Brooklyn, not France. With that out of the way, the all-keyboard trio performs sweet melodies from its self-released album.

Throughout Hicks' 40-year career, his eclectic persona, wily wit and quirky combination of cowboy-folk and country-swing music have endeared him to many, including legends such as as Elvis Costello and Willie Nelson. Now, after an eight-year absence, Hicks has released a new album, Tangled Tales.

Fruit Bats started out in the mid-'90s as a low-fidelity bedroom project for singer-songwriter Eric Johnson, but has grown from there. The group's most recent album, The Ruminant Band, showcases a vintage rock feel, with dusty melodies and beautiful harmonies laid out over a gravelly layer of electric guitar.

Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros is a young 10-piece indie-folk group that has already earned a fevered following in its native Los Angeles, where its live shows have become legendary. With a percussive sound, an air of good-natured affection and lots of opportunities to clap and whistle along, it's one of America's most intriguing new bands.

Hitchcock could be said to pick up where Syd Barrett left off: He's a master of slightly cracked, psychedelic pop whimsy. In a session from WFUV, he performs new material, including an as-yet-unreleased Peter Buck collaboration called "Propeller Time."

From his haunted guitar to his hobo history to his lighthearted outlook, Seasick Steve is the real deal. This episode of World Cafe offers a close look at one of America's dyed-in-the-wool bluesmen, though he prefers to be called a "song-and-dance man" instead.