Into It: Bob McGrath

Author and musician Bob McGrath dishes on his favorite history books, his listening habits, and why the early seasons of 'Sesame Street' were so good.

...Reading?

For many years, I seemed not to have the time to read – my life was nonstop, morning to night. That's started to change. I need catching up on a lot of history. I read The Winter Soldiers: The Battles for Trenton and Princeton, by Richard Ketchum, and Howard Zinn's A People's History of the United States, which I liked because you could jump around – 20 or 30 pages on each subject. I also read The New American Militarism, by Andrew Bacevich. He writes about why we're in the mess we're in and how to restore a sense of proportion and realism to US policy.

...Watching?

We sit down around 8 o'clock, and watch CNN news. We also watch Inside the Actor's Studio, and documentaries on the History Channel. Recently I've been watching the '74 to '79 Sesame Street. When my wife saw what I looked like 30 years ago, she jumped in my lap, and said, "You were really cute!"

...Listening to?

Natalie Cole and Ray Charles – I have that in the car. I don't listen to a whole lot of rock music. I do listen to the people I think are wonderful – Diana Krall, James Taylor. I used to always listen on vinyl and still have an up-to-date record player. I need to get myself up to speed. I started listening to music and singing at age 5 – that was the beginning of where I am today.

• Bob McGrath's new CD, "Christmas Sing Along," is in stores now. For more information, go to www.BobMcGrath.com .