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All Songs +1: Glen Hansard Plays Our Sweet 16 Celebration

By Robin Hilton
Published January 15, 2016 at 12:40 PM EST
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1/15
The All Songs Considered Sweet 16 party, at the 9:30 Club in Washington, D.C., ended with a group photo that featured the NPR Music team, a birthday cake and a balloon drop. ()
2/15
All Songs Considered hosts Robin Hilton (left) and Bob Boilen (right), welcome singer Glen Hansard as the first surprise performer for the All Songs Sweet 16 birthday. ()
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"When I heard this party was tonight, I thought 'I'm in! Count me in,'" Hansard told the sold-out audience. ()
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Singer Sharon Van Etten was one of two artists billed for the night. The other was Dan Deacon. But her solo performance was no less surprising, and included a brand new song she'd never played live before. ()
5/15
Sharon Van Etten is one of our all-time favorite discoveries. Kyp Malone of TV On The Radio shared her music with us during a guest DJ session in 2009. ()
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Violinist, singer and looping master Kishi Bashi was among the surprise performers. ()
7/15
One of our favorite discoveries from the 2012 South by Southwest festival, Kishi Bashi signaled a new way of making music, with multiple layers of musical loops recorded on the fly. ()
8/15
Singer Laura Gibson, another surprise performer, takes a run at the stage to give NPR Music's Stephen Thompson a high five. ()
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Gibson was the first musician to ever play at Bob Boilen's desk, launching the Tiny Desk concert series in April, 2008. ()
10/15
The Houston-based soul band The Suffers was the final surprise performer for the night. ()
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All Songs Considered has always been about making new music discoveries. Host Bob Boilen told the crowd he expected The Suffers to be big in 2016. ()
12/15
Electronic musician and instant party maker Dan Deacon closed the night. ()
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Dan Deacon directs the crowd to make a circle in the middle of the club for a dance-off. ()
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All Songs host Bob Boilen joined Dan Deacon for the final song of the night. Bob played a reproduction of the Arp Odyssey synthesizer he used to play in Tiny Desk Unit, a band from the early '80s. ()
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The crowd at the 9:30 Club danced itself into a frenzy, ending a memorable, joy-filled night. ()

On Wednesday night, All Songs Considered threw a Sweet 16 party for the ages, full of performances by some of our favorite musicians from the show's history. We're still recovering, but we couldn't let the week end without sharing at least one highlight, so here's a video of the brilliant Glen Hansard singing the heck out of "When Your Mind's Made Up," a song from the Once soundtrack. Bob Boilen and I are in there too, talking about — and showing video from — the very first episode of All Songs.

We'll post more highlights from the Sweet 16 party in the coming days, including appearances by Dan Deacon, Kishi Bashi, Laura Gibson, The Suffers and Sharon Van Etten. Thanks to all the performers and fans who helped make it an unforgettable, joyful celebration.

Copyright 2021 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

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Robin Hilton
Robin Hilton is a producer and co-host of the popular NPR Music show All Songs Considered.
See stories by Robin Hilton