NPR Music

Deep Sea Diver singer Jessica Dobson took a roundabout way to get where she is now. Signed to Atlantic Records at 19, Dobson moved to New York to record her first LP, which was eventually shelved; a second recording hit the same dead end. After leaving the label, she went on to play guitar in Beck's touring band, toured with Yeah Yeah Yeahs and most recently played with The Shins.

Placido Domingo is one of the most influential people in classical music. During a 50-year career, he's played more than 140 roles, conducted more than 450 operas, and won just about every award that a human being can win in opera and life.

"James Moody is the most beloved jazz musician in the world," reedman Paquito D'Rivera says.

These may be strong words, but D'Rivera is far from alone in his appreciation of the tenor saxophonist, who died in 2010. On the bandstand, Moody was universally admired for his musicality, his generosity — he gave away mouthpieces, saxophones and, once, even the coat off his back — and his ability to illuminate any room with his personal warmth.