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Andy Williams
Howard Andrew "Andy" Williams (born December 3, 1927) is an American pop singer. Andy Williams has recorded 18 Gold and three Platinum certified albums. He had his own TV variety show from 1962–71 in which he performed with Michael Jackson, Bobby Darin, Ray Charles, Elton John, Ella Fitzgerald, Simon & Garfunkel, Mama Cass, Shirley Bassey, Bing Crosby, The Osmonds, Dusty Springfield, Perry Como, Frank Sinatra, Aretha Franklin, The Carpenters, Jack Benny, Bette Davis, Dean Martin, Bob Hope, Ronald Reagan and many other superstars. He also owns his own theater, the Moon River Theatre in Branson, Missouri.
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Babyface (musician)
Kenneth Brian "Babyface" Edmonds (born April 10, 1958) is an American R&B; and pop singer, songwriter, guitarist, keyboardist, record producer, film producer, and entrepreneur.
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Barbra Streisand
Barbra Streisand ( ; born Barbara Joan Streisand, April 24, 1942) is an American singer, actress, director, and songwriter. She has won two Academy Awards, eight Grammy Awards, four Emmy Awards, a Special Tony Award, an American Film Institute award, and a Peabody Award.
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Bessie Smith
Bessie Smith (April 15, 1894 – September 26, 1937) was an American blues singer.
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Billie Holiday
Billie Holiday (born Eleanora Fagan April 7, 1915 – July 17, 1959) was an American jazz singer and songwriter. Nicknamed "Lady Day" by her friend and musical partner Lester Young, Holiday was a seminal influence on jazz and pop singing. Her vocal style, strongly inspired by jazz instrumentalists, pioneered a new way of manipulating phrasing and tempo. Above all, she was admired worldwide for her deeply personal, intimate approach to singing.
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Billy Joel
William Martin "Billy" Joel (born May 9, 1949) is an American musician and pianist, singer-songwriter, and classical composer. Since releasing his first hit song, "Piano Man", in 1973, Joel has become the sixth best-selling recording artist and the third best-selling solo artist in the United States, according to the RIAA.
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Bing Crosby
Harry Lillis "Bing" Crosby (May 3, 1903 – October 14, 1977) was an American singer and actor. His career stretched more than half a century from 1926 until his death in 1977. Crosby's unique bass-baritone voice made him the best-selling recording artist until well into the rock era, with over half a billion records in circulation.
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Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan (born Robert Allen Zimmerman; May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter and musician who has been a major figure in music for six decades. Much of his most celebrated work dates from the 1960s when he was at first an informal chronicler, and later an apparently reluctant figurehead of social unrest. A number of his songs such as "Blowin' in the Wind" and "The Times They Are a-Changin'" became anthems for the American civil rights and anti-war movements. His early lyrics incorporated a variety of political, social and philosophical, as well as literary influences. They defied existing pop music conventions and appealed hugely to the then burgeoning counterculture. Initially inspired by the songs of Woody Guthrie, Robert Johnson, Hank Williams, and the performance style of Little Richard, Dylan has both amplified and personalized musical genres, exploring numerous distinct traditions in American song—from folk, blues and country to gospel, rock and roll, and rockabilly, to English, Scottish, and Irish folk music, embracing even jazz and swing.
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Britney Spears
Britney Jean Spears (born December 2, 1981) is an American recording artist and entertainer. Born in McComb, Mississippi and raised in Kentwood, Louisiana, Spears began performing as a child, landing acting roles in stage productions and television shows. She signed with Jive Records in 1997 and released her debut album in 1999. During her first decade within the music industry, she became a prominent figure in mainstream popular music and popular culture, followed by a much-publicized personal life. Her first two albums established her as a pop icon and broke sales records, while title tracks "...Baby One More Time" and "Oops!... I Did It Again" became international number-one hits. Spears was credited with influencing the revival of teen pop during the late 1990s.
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Bruce Springsteen
Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen (born September 23, 1949), nicknamed "The Boss", is an American singer-songwriter who records and tours with the E Street Band. Springsteen is widely known for his brand of Heartland rock infused with pop hooks, poetic lyrics, and Americana sentiments centered on his native New Jersey.
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Celine Dion
Céline Marie Claudette Dion CC, OQ (; born March 30, 1968) is a Canadian pop singer, songwriter, actress, and entrepreneur. Born to a large, impoverished family in Charlemagne, Quebec, Dion emerged as a teen star in the French-speaking world after her manager and future husband René Angélil mortgaged his home to finance her first record. In 1990, she released the anglophone album Unison, establishing herself as a viable pop artist in North America and other English-speaking areas of the world.
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Charles Mingus
Charles Mingus Jr. (April 22, 1922 – January 5, 1979) was an American jazz musician, composer, bandleader, and civil rights activist.
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Chet Atkins
Chester Burton Atkins (June 20, 1924 – June 30, 2001), better known as Chet Atkins, was an American guitarist and record producer who created, along with Owen Bradley, the smoother country music style known as the Nashville sound, which expanded country's appeal to adult pop music fans as well.
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Cyndi Lauper
Cynthia Ann Stephanie "Cyndi" Lauper (born June 22, 1953) is an American singer-songwriter and actress. She achieved success in the mid-1980s with the release of the album ''She's So Unusual'' and became the first female singer to have four top-five singles released from one album. Lauper has released 11 albums and over 40 singles, and as of 2008 had sold more than 30 million records worldwide.
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Dan Fogelberg
Daniel Grayling Fogelberg (August 13, 1951 – December 16, 2007) was an American singer-songwriter, composer, and multi-instrumentalist, whose music was inspired by sources as diverse as folk, pop, rock, classical, jazz, and bluegrass music.
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Dave Brubeck
David Warren "Dave" Brubeck (born December 6, 1920) is an American jazz pianist. He has written a number of jazz standards, including "In Your Own Sweet Way" and "The Duke". Brubeck's style ranges from refined to bombastic, reflecting his mother's attempts at classical training and his improvisational skills. His music is known for employing unusual time signatures, and superimposing contrasting rhythms, meters, and tonalities.
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David Cassidy
David Bruce Cassidy (born April 12, 1950) is an American actor, singer, songwriter and guitarist. He is best known for his role as the character of Keith Partridge in the 1970s musical/sitcom The Partridge Family. He was one of pop culture's most celebrated teen idols, enjoying a successful pop career in the 1970s, and still performs today.
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Delta Goodrem
Delta Lea Goodrem (born 9 November 1984) is an Australian singer-songwriter, pianist, and actress. Signed to Sony at the age of 15, Goodrem rose to prominence in 2002, starring in the popular Australian soap Neighbours as Nina Tucker, and this assisted her establishing an international music career. Goodrem has achieved eight #1 singles in her home country including all three of her studio albums reaching #1. She currently holds the record for the highest selling album of the last decade and the most #1 singles from any debut album, with all five of her singles from her debut album Innocent Eyes reaching #1 on the ARIA charts. Her repertoire falls under the pop and adult contemporary styles, and heavily features the piano, which she usually plays barefoot while performing live.
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Dolly Parton
Dolly Rebecca Parton (born January 19, 1946) is an American singer-songwriter, author, multi-instrumentalist, actress and philanthropist, best-known for her work in country music.
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Donovan
Donovan (Donovan Philips Leitch, born 10 May 1946, in Maryhill, Glasgow), is a British singer-songwriter and guitarist. Emerging from the British folk scene, he developed an eclectic and distinctive style that blended folk, jazz, pop, psychedelia, and world music.
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Duke Ellington
Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington (April 29, 1899 – May 24, 1974) was a composer, pianist, and big band leader.
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Eddie Money
Eddie Money (born Edward Joseph Mahoney, March 21, 1949 in New York City, New York) is an American rock guitarist, saxophonist and singer-songwriter who found success in the 1970s and 1980s with a string of Top 40 hits and platinum albums. Rock impresario Bill Graham said of Money "Eddie Money has it all...Not only can he sing, write and play, but he is a natural performer."
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Elvis Presley
Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977) was one of the most popular American singers of the 20th century. A cultural icon, he is widely known by the single name Elvis. He is often referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll" or simply "the King".
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Frank Sinatra
Francis Albert "Frank" Sinatra (; December 12, 1915 – May 14, 1998) was an American singer and actor.
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Fred Astaire
Fred Astaire (May 10, 1899 – June 22, 1987), born Frederick Austerlitz, was an American film and Broadway stage dancer, choreographer, singer and actor. His stage and subsequent film career spanned a total of 76 years, during which he made 31 musical films. He was named the fifth Greatest Male Star of All Time by the American Film Institute. He is particularly associated with Ginger Rogers, with whom he made ten films.
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George Gershwin
George Gershwin (September 26, 1898 – July 11, 1937) was an American composer and pianist. Gershwin's compositions spanned both popular and classical genres, and his most popular melodies are widely known.
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Glenn Miller
Alton Glenn Miller (March 1, 1904 – missing December 15, 1944) was an American jazz musician (trombone), arranger, composer, and bandleader in the swing era. He was one of the best-selling recording artists from 1939 to 1943, leading one of the best known "Big bands". Miller's signature recordings include In the Mood, American Patrol, Chattanooga Choo Choo, String of Pearls, Tuxedo Junction, Moonlight Serenade, Little Brown Jug and Pennsylvania 6-5000. While traveling to entertain U.S. troops in France during World War II, Miller's plane disappeared in bad weather over the English Channel. His body has never been found.
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Harry Nilsson
Harry Edward Nilsson III (June 15, 1941 – January 15, 1994), who sometimes went by the stage name Nilsson, was an American songwriter who achieved the peak of his commercial success as a singer in the mid 1970s. On all but his earliest recordings, he is credited as 'Nilsson' and is known for the hit singles "Without You", "I Guess the Lord Must Be in New York City", "Everybody's Talkin'," "Coconut" and "Jump into the Fire". Nilsson's songs 'One' and 'Cuddly Toy' have been covered by artists including the Monkees, Three Dog Night and Aimee Mann. He was awarded Grammy Awards for two of his recordings.
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Janis Joplin
Janis Lyn Joplin (January 19, 1943 - October 4, 1970) was an American singer, songwriter and music arranger. She rose to prominence in the late 1960s as the lead singer of Big Brother and the Holding Company and later as a solo artist. Rolling Stone magazine ranked Joplin number 46 on its list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time in 2004, and number 28 on its 2008 list of 100 Greatest Singers of All Time.
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Jessica Simpson
Jessica Ann Simpson (born July 10, 1980) is an American singer, actress, television personality and fashion designer who rose to fame in 1999. She has achieved seven Billboard Top 40 hits, and five studio albums of which four have been positioned in the top 10 on Billboard 200 and besides that have been certified by the RIAA, three gold and two Multi- Platinum. Simpson starred with her then-husband Nick Lachey in the MTV reality show . She ventured into the country music market in 2008 and released Do You Know. She has sold 20 million records worldwide. Simpson has a total of records sales in Australia of more than 426,000 copies and was ranked in the # 113 on the 1000 artists chart of ARIA Music Decade Charts (1980–2010). In 2009, Billboard named Simpson as the 95th overall best Artists of the Decade. Also was ranked at number 86 on Billboard 200 Artists, solely based on album sales.
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Jimi Hendrix
James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix, November 27, 1942 – September 18, 1970) was an American guitarist and singer-songwriter. He is often considered to be the greatest electric guitarist in the history of rock music by other musicians and commentators in the industry, and one of the most important and influential musicians of his era across a range of genres. After initial success in Europe, he achieved fame in the United States following his 1967 performance at the Monterey Pop Festival. Later, Hendrix headlined the iconic 1969 Woodstock Festival and the 1970 Isle of Wight Festival.
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Joe Satriani
Joseph "Joe" Satriani (born July 15, 1956 in Westbury, New York) is an Italian American multi-instrumentalist, known primarily for his work as an instrumental rock guitarist, with multiple Grammy Award nominations. Early in his career, Satriani worked as a guitar instructor, and some of his former students have achieved fame with their guitar skills (Steve Vai, Larry LaLonde, Kirk Hammett, Andy Timmons, Charlie Hunter, Kevin Cadogan, Alex Skolnick). Satriani has been a driving force in the music credited to other musicians throughout his career, as a founder of the ever-changing touring trio, G3, as well as performing in various positions with other musicians.
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John Denver
John Denver (December 31, 1943 – October 12, 1997), born Henry John Deutschendorf, Jr., was an American singer-songwriter, actor, activist, and poet. One of the most popular acoustic artists of the 1970s in terms of record sales, Denver recorded and released around 300 songs, about 200 of which he composed. He was named Poet Laureate of Colorado in 1977. Songs such as "Leaving on a Jet Plane", "Take Me Home, Country Roads", "Rocky Mountain High", "Sunshine on My Shoulders", "Thank God I'm a Country Boy", "Annie's Song" and "Calypso" attained worldwide popularity.
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Johnny Cash
John R. "Johnny" Cash (February 26, 1932 – September 12, 2003), born J. R. Cash, was an American singer-songwriter, actor, and author, who has been called one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century. Although he is primarily remembered as a country music artist, his songs and sound spanned many other genres including rockabilly and rock and roll—especially early in his career—as well as blues, folk, and gospel. Late in his career, Cash covered songs by several rock artists, among them the industrial rock band Nine Inch Nails and the synthpop band Depeche Mode.
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Kate Bush
Kate Bush (born Catherine Bush 30 July 1958) is an English singer-songwriter, musician and record producer. Her eclectic musical style and idiosyncratic vocal style have made her one of the United Kingdom's most successful solo female performers of the past 30 years. Bush was signed by EMI at the age of 16 after being recommended by Pink Floyd's David Gilmour. In 1978, at age 19, she topped the UK Singles Chart for four weeks with her debut single "Wuthering Heights", becoming the first woman to have a UK number-one with a self-written song. She was also the most photographed woman in the United Kingdom that year.
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Kenny Loggins
Kenneth Clark "Kenny" Loggins (born January 7, 1948) is an American singer and songwriter known best for "soft rock" and "adult contemporary" music beginning during the 1970s. Originally a part of the duo Loggins and Messina, he became a solo artist and has written songs for other artists.
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Leonard Cohen
Leonard Norman Cohen, CC, GOQ (born 21 September 1934) is a Canadian singer-songwriter, musician, poet and novelist. Cohen published his first book of poetry in Montreal in 1956 and his first novel in 1963. His work often deals with the exploration of religion, isolation, sexuality and interpersonal relationships. Famously reclusive, having once spent several years in a Zen Buddhist monastery, and possessing a persona frequently associated with mystique, he is extremely well-regarded by critics for his literary accomplishments, for the richness of his lyrics, and for producing an output of work of high artistic quality over a five-decade career.
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Louis Armstrong
Louis Daniel Armstrong (August 4, 1901 – July 6, 1971), nicknamed Satchmo or Pops, was an American jazz trumpeter and singer from New Orleans, Louisiana.
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Luther Vandross
Luther Vandross (April 20, 1951 – July 1, 2005) was an American R&B; and soul singer-songwriter, and record producer. During his career, Vandross sold over twenty-five million albums and won eight Grammy Awards including Best Male R&B; Vocal Performance four times. He won four Grammy Awards in 2004 including the Grammy Award for Song of the Year for the track "Dance with My Father", co-written with Richard Marx.
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Mariah Carey
Mariah Carey (born March 27, 1970) is an American R&B; singer-songwriter, record producer and actress. She made her recording debut, in 1990, under the guidance of Columbia Records executive Tommy Mottola and became the first recording artist to have her first five singles top the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart. Following her marriage to Mottola, in 1993, a series of hit records established her position as Columbia's highest-selling act. In 1998, Carey received the World Music Awards for becoming the "World's Best Selling Recording Artist of the 1990's" as well as the award for "World's Best Selling R&B; Artist."
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Marvin Gaye
Marvin Pentz Gaye, Jr. (April 2, 1939April 1, 1984), better known by his stage name Marvin Gaye, was an American singer-songwriter and instrumentalist with a three-octave vocal range. Starting as a member of the doo-wop group The Moonglows in the late fifties, he ventured into a solo career after the group disbanded in 1960 signing with the Tamla subsidiary of Motown Records. After starting off as a session drummer, Gaye ranked as the label's top-selling solo artist during the sixties.
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Michael Jackson
Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American recording artist, entertainer, and philanthropist. Referred to as the King of Pop, Jackson is recognized as the most successful entertainer of all time by Guinness World Records. His contribution to music, dance and fashion, along with a much-publicized personal life, made him a global figure in popular culture for over four decades. The eighth child of the Jackson family, he debuted on the professional music scene along with his brothers as a member of The Jackson 5 in the mid-1960s, and began his solo career in 1971.
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Miles Davis
Miles Dewey Davis III (May 26, 1926 – September 28, 1991) was an American trumpeter, bandleader, and composer.
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Ozzy Osbourne
John Michael "Ozzy" Osbourne (born 3 December 1948) is an English singer-songwriter whose career has spanned over 40 years.
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P-Funk All-Stars
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Patti Smith
Patricia Lee "Patti" Smith (born December 30, 1946) is an American singer-songwriter, poet and visual artist, who became a highly influential component of the New York City punk rock movement with her 1975 debut album Horses. Called the "Godmother of Punk", she integrated the beat poetry performance style with three-chord rock. Smith's most widely known song is "Because the Night", which was co-written with Bruce Springsteen and reached number 13 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in 1978. In 2005, Patti Smith was named a Commander of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres by the French Minister of Culture, and in 2007, she was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
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Paul Simon
Paul Frederic Simon (born October 13, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter.
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Perez Prado
Pérez Prado (b. December 11, 1916, Cuba - d. September 14, 1989, Mexico City, Mexico) was a Cuban bandleader, musician (singer, organist and pianist), and composer. He is commonly referred to as the "King of the Mambo".
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Pete Seeger
Peter "Pete" Seeger (born May 3, 1919) is an American folk singer and an iconic figure in the mid-twentieth century American folk music revival:See Richard Silverstein,
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Peter Tosh
Peter Tosh, born Winston Hubert McIntosh (19 October 1944 – 11 September 1987) was a reggae musician who was a core member of The Wailers who then went on to have a successful solo career as well as being a trailblazer for the Rastafari movement.
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Roy Orbison
Roy Kelton Orbison (April 23, 1936 – December 6, 1988) was an American singer-songwriter and musician, well known for his distinctive, powerful voice, complex compositions, and dark emotional ballads. Orbison grew up in Texas and began singing in a rockabilly / country & western band in high school until he was signed by Sun Records in Memphis. His greatest success came with Monument Records in the early to mid 1960s when 22 of his songs placed on the US Billboard Top Forty, including "Only the Lonely", "Crying", "In Dreams", and "Oh, Pretty Woman". His career stagnated through the 1970s, but several covers of his songs and the use of one in a film by David Lynch revived his career in the 1980s. In 1988, he joined the supergroup The Traveling Wilburys with George Harrison, Bob Dylan, Tom Petty, and Jeff Lynne and also released a new solo album. He died of a heart attack in December that year, at the zenith of his resurgence. His life was marred with tragedy, including the death of his first wife and two of his children in separate accidents.
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Simon & Garfunkel
Simon & Garfunkel are an American singer-songwriter duo consisting of Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel. They formed the group Tom & Jerry in 1957, and had their first taste of success with the minor hit "Hey, Schoolgirl". As Simon & Garfunkel, the duo rose to fame in 1965, backed by the hit single "The Sounds of Silence". Their music was featured in the landmark film The Graduate, propelling them further into the public consciousness.
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Taj Mahal (musician)
Henry Saint Clair Fredericks (born May 17, 1942), who uses the stage name Taj Mahal, is an internationally recognized blues musician with two Grammy Awards to date who folds various forms of world music into his offerings. A self-taught singer-songwriter and film composer who plays the guitar, banjo and harmonica (among many other instruments), Mahal has done much to reshape the definition and scope of blues music over the course of his almost 50 year career by fusing it with nontraditional forms, including sounds from the Caribbean, Africa and the South Pacific.
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Tammy Wynette
Virginia Wynette Pugh, known professionally as Tammy Wynette (May 5, 1942 – April 6, 1998), was an American country music singer-songwriter and one of country music's best-known artists and biggest-selling female vocalists.
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Teddy Pendergrass
Theodore DeReese "Teddy" Pendergrass (March 26, 1950 – January 13, 2010) was an American R&B;/soul singer and songwriter. Pendergrass first rose to fame as lead singer of Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes in the 1970s before a successful solo career at the end of the decade. In 1982, he was severely injured in an auto accident in Philadelphia, resulting in his being paralyzed from the waist down. After his injury, the affable entertainer founded the Teddy Pendergrass Alliance, a foundation that helps those with spinal cord injuries. Pendergrass commemorated 25 years of living after his spinal cord injury with star filled event, Teddy 25 - A Celebration of Life at Philadelphia's Kimmel Center. His last performance was on a PBS special at Atlantic City's Borgata Casino in November 2008.
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Teena Marie
Teena Marie (born Mary Christine Brockert on March 5, 1956) is an American Grammy Award-nominated singer–songwriter–producer. Marie, nicknamed Lady Tee, (sometimes spelled Lady T), is a protegée of late funk legend Rick James, and is notable as one of the few successful white performers of R&B.; She sings R&B; with strong, robust vocals and plays rhythm guitar, keyboards and congas. She also has written, produced, sung and arranged virtually all of her songs since her 1980 release Irons in the Fire. She has said this is her favorite album. She has a daughter named Alia Rose who, as of 2009, sings under the name Rose Le Beau.
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Thelonious Monk
Thelonious Sphere Monk (October 10, 1917 – February 17, 1982) was an American jazz pianist and composer considered "one of the giants of American music". Monk had a unique improvisational style and made numerous contributions to the standard jazz repertoire, including "Epistrophy", "'Round Midnight", "Blue Monk", "Straight, No Chaser" and "Well, You Needn't". Monk is the second most recorded jazz composer after Duke Ellington, which is particularly remarkable as Ellington composed over 1,000 songs while Monk wrote about 70.
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Tony Bennett
Tony Bennett (born Anthony Dominick Benedetto; August 3, 1926) is an American singer of popular music, standards, show tunes, and jazz.
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Toto (band)
Toto is an American rock band founded in 1977 by some of the most popular and experienced session musicians of the era. The band enjoyed great commercial success in the late 1970's and 1980s, beginning with the band's self-titled debut released in 1978. With the release of 1982's critically acclaimed and commercially successful Toto IV, Toto became one of the best-selling music groups of their era. They are best known for the Top 5 hits "Hold the Line," "Rosanna," and "Africa." Although their popularity in the United States diminished in the 1990s and 2000s, they continued to sell out arenas constantly internationally, only playing minimal shows in the USA.
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Vanessa L. Williams
Vanessa Lynn Williams (born March 18, 1963) is an American singer and actress. In 1983, she became the first woman of African American descent to be crowned Miss America, but a scandal caused her to relinquish her title early. Williams rebounded by launching a career as an entertainer, earning Grammy, Emmy, and Tony Award nominations.
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Waylon Jennings
Waylon Arnold Jennings (June 15, 1937 – February 13, 2002) was an American country music singer, writer and musician. A self-taught guitar player, he rose to prominence as a bass player for Buddy Holly following the break-up of The Crickets. Jennings escaped death in the February 3, 1959, plane crash that took the lives of Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and J. P. "The Big Bopper" Richardson when he gave up his seat to Richardson who had been sick with the flu. Urban legend and Hollywood folklore have it that Jennings and The Big Bopper flipped a coin for the last seat on the plane, with Jennings losing. It was, in fact, Tommy Allsup who flipped the coin for the fated plane trip, losing his seat to Ritchie Valens.
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Whitney Houston
Whitney Elizabeth Houston (born August 9, 1963) is an American R&B;/Pop singer, actress, and former fashion model. A relative of several soul singers, including her mother Cissy Houston, cousins Dionne Warwick and Dee Dee Warwick, and close family friend Aretha Franklin, Houston began singing at her New Jersey church as a member of a junior gospel choir at age eleven. After she began performing alongside her mother at night clubs in the New York City area, she was discovered by Arista Records label head Clive Davis. Houston has released studio albums and movie soundtrack albums throughout her career, all of which have had diamond, multi-platinum, platinum, or gold certification.
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Willie Nelson
Willie Hugh Nelson (born April 30, 1933) is an American country singer-songwriter, author, poet, actor and activist. He reached his greatest fame during the outlaw country movement of the 1970s, and remains iconic, especially in American popular culture.
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Yo-Yo Ma
Yo-Yo Ma (; born October 7, 1955) is an American cellist, virtuoso, orchestral composer and winner of multiple Grammy Awards. He is one of the most famous cellists of the modern age.
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United States
The United States of America (also referred to as the United States, the U.S., the USA, or America) is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district. The country is situated mostly in central North America, where its forty-eight contiguous states and Washington, D.C., the capital district, lie between the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans, bordered by Canada to the north and Mexico to the south. The state of Alaska is in the northwest of the continent, with Canada to the east and Russia to the west across the Bering Strait. The state of Hawaii is an archipelago in the mid-Pacific. The country also possesses several territories in the Caribbean and Pacific.
http://wn.com/United_States
- AC/DC
- Adam Ant
- Adema
- Andy Williams
- Arista Records
- Babyface (musician)
- Backstreet Boys
- Barbra Streisand
- Bessie Smith
- Billie Holiday
- Billy Joel
- Bing Crosby
- Blue Öyster Cult
- Bob Dylan
- Britney Spears
- Bruce Springsteen
- Buddah Records
- Celine Dion
- Charles Mingus
- Cheap Trick
- Chet Atkins
- Columbia Records
- Cyndi Lauper
- Dan Fogelberg
- Dave Brubeck
- David Cassidy
- David Gilmour
- Delta Goodrem
- Dionne Warwick
- Dolly Parton
- Donovan
- Duke Ellington
- Earth Wind & Fire
- Eddie Money
- Elvis Presley
- Epic Records
- Fishbone
- Frank Sinatra
- Fred Astaire
- George Gershwin
- Glenn Miller
- Hall & Oates
- Harry Nilsson
- Iggy & The Stooges
- Iron Maiden
- J Records
- Janis Joplin
- Jeff Buckley
- Jefferson Airplane
- Jessica Simpson
- Jimi Hendrix
- Joe Satriani
- John Denver
- Johnny Cash
- Johnny Mathis
- Journey (band)
- Kansas (band)
- Kate Bush
- Kenny G
- Kenny Loggins
- Kris Kristofferson
- Leonard Cohen
- Lou Rawls
- Louis Armstrong
- Luther Vandross
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![Diana Ross - The Iconic Legacy - The Look Of Love [ edition 2011 ]](http://web.archive.org./web/20120307051822im_/http://i.ytimg.com/vi/2mpj1gfeuog/0.jpg "Diana Ross - The Iconic Legacy - The Look Of Love [ edition 2011 ]")
Diana Ross - The Iconic Legacy - The Look Of Love [ edition 2011 ]
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 5:45
- Published: 23 Oct 2011
- Uploaded: 23 Feb 2012
- Author: dianarossvideo
Celebrating Diana Ross Artistic Achievement - The Iconic Legacy - A Diana Ross' Fan'Site - Giacom'Oz Music from ©2006 EMI Records ©2006 Manhattan/Angel
http://wn.com/Diana_Ross__The_Iconic_Legacy__The_Look_Of_Love_ _edition_2011_
Wake Up Everybody - Harold Melvin's Blue Notes
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 5:25
- Published: 19 Sep 2008
- Uploaded: 21 Feb 2012
- Author: LegacyRecordings
A clip from the upcoming PBS Special, Love Train, coming December 2008. Love Train: The Sound of Philadelphia Box Set hits stores October 21, 2008
http://wn.com/Wake_Up_Everybody__Harold_Melvin's_Blue_Notes
Paul Simon - The Boy In The Bubble
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 4:01
- Published: 21 Jun 2011
- Uploaded: 21 Feb 2012
- Author: PaulSimonVEVO
Music video by Paul Simon performing The Boy In The Bubble. (C) 2011 Paul Simon under exclusive license to Sony Music Entertainment
http://wn.com/Paul_Simon__The_Boy_In_The_Bubble
The Clark Sisters - The Life & Legacy
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 10:23
- Published: 17 Jun 2008
- Uploaded: 21 Feb 2012
- Author: TheClarkSistersTV
The Clark Sisters were born and raised in Detroit, Michigan. They each began singing at an early age and by the late 1960s they were all performing together in church services, usually singing songs written and arranged by their mother. A few years later, Dr. Mattie Moss Clark turned over control of the group to Twinkie, who would then go on to write, arrange, conduct and produce all of the Clark Sisters recordings. In 1973, the sisters recorded their first album, Jesus Has A Lot to Give, on their uncle's local label Billmo Records. The following year, Dr. Mattie Moss Clark Presents The Clark Sisters was released, and people around Detroit began to take notice of the group. The Clark Sisters signed to Sound of Gospel Records in 1974. Under this association, the group released albums such as Unworthy, Count It All Joy, and He Gave Me Nothing to Lose. It was not until the early 1980s that The Clark Sisters began to become the phenomenon that they are now. Their popularity soared with the release of the live recording Is My Living In Vain. The album topped the Bilboard gospel charts for more than a year and yielded now famous songs such as the title track and "Expect Your Miracle." Their next release You Brought the Sunshine would prove to be a monster hit as the title track, reminiscent of Stevie Wonder's "Master Blaster (Jammin')," became a hit in church houses and on dance floors. "Sunshine" was picked up from its original independent gospel record label Sounds of Gospel <b>...</b>
http://wn.com/The_Clark_Sisters__The_Life_Legacy
Paul Simon - Diamonds On The Soles Of Her Shoes
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 5:48
- Published: 15 Jun 2011
- Uploaded: 22 Feb 2012
- Author: PaulSimonVEVO
Music video by Paul Simon performing Diamonds On The Soles Of Her Shoes. (C) 2011 Paul Simon under exclusive license to Sony Music Entertainment
http://wn.com/Paul_Simon__Diamonds_On_The_Soles_Of_Her_Shoes
Paul Simon - You Can Call Me Al
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 4:36
- Published: 15 Jun 2011
- Uploaded: 23 Feb 2012
- Author: PaulSimonVEVO
Music video by Paul Simon performing You Can Call Me Al. (P) 2011 Paul Simon under exclusive license to Sony Music Entertainment
http://wn.com/Paul_Simon__You_Can_Call_Me_Al
Jeff Buckley - Grace (BBC Late Show)
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 6:21
- Published: 03 Oct 2009
- Uploaded: 22 Feb 2012
- Author: jeffbuckleyVEVO
Music video by Jeff Buckley performing Grace (BBC Late Show). (C) 2009 Sony Music Entertainment
http://wn.com/Jeff_Buckley__Grace_BBC_Late_Show
Paul Simon - Obvious Child
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 4:30
- Published: 15 Jun 2011
- Uploaded: 21 Feb 2012
- Author: PaulSimonVEVO
Music video by Paul Simon performing Obvious Child. (C) 2011 Paul Simon under exclusive license to Sony Music Entertainment
http://wn.com/Paul_Simon__Obvious_Child
I'd Rather Be Blind, Crippled And Crazy (Live)
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 6:22
- Published: 25 Oct 2009
- Uploaded: 22 Feb 2012
- Author: derektrucksbandVEVO
Music video by The Derek Trucks Band performing I'd Rather Be Blind, Crippled And Crazy. (C) 2006 SONY BMG MUSIC ENTERTAINMENT
http://wn.com/I'd_Rather_Be_Blind,_Crippled_And_Crazy_Live
Take Five - The Dave Brubeck Quartet (1959)
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 5:20
- Published: 15 Aug 2010
- Uploaded: 21 Feb 2012
- Author: djbuddylovecooljazz
"Take Five" is a jazz piece written by Paul Desmond and performed by The Dave Brubeck Quartet on their 1959 album "Time Out". Recorded at Columbia's 30th Street Studios in New York City on June 25, July 1, and August 18, 1959, this piece became one of the group's best-known records, famous for its distinctive, catchy saxophone melody and use of the unusual quintuple (5/4) time, from which its name is derived. While "Take Five" was not the first jazz composition to use this meter, it was one of the first in the United States to achieve mainstream significance, reaching number five on Billboard's Adult Contemporary Singles chart. "Take Five" was re-recorded and performed live multiple times by The Dave Brubeck Quartet throughout the group's career. In addition, there have been various covers of the piece. "Take Five" has also been included in countless movies and television soundtracks, and still receives significant radio play. Upon his death in 1977, Desmond left the rights to royalties for his performances and compositions, including "Take Five", to the American Red Cross, which has since received combined royalties of approximately $100000 per year. "Time Out" is a 1959 album by The Dave Brubeck Quartet, based upon the use of time signatures that were unusual for jazz (mainly waltz or double-waltz time, but also 9/8, and most famously 5/4). Although the album was intended as an experiment and received negative reviews by critics upon its release, it became one of the <b>...</b>
http://wn.com/Take_Five__The_Dave_Brubeck_Quartet_1959
The Derek Trucks Band - Crow Jane (Live)
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 5:57
- Published: 25 Oct 2009
- Uploaded: 21 Feb 2012
- Author: derektrucksbandVEVO
Music video by The Derek Trucks Band performing Crow Jane. (C) 2006 SONY BMG MUSIC ENTERTAINMENT
http://wn.com/The_Derek_Trucks_Band__Crow_Jane_Live
Paul Simon - Me And Julio Down By The Schoolyard
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 3:10
- Published: 15 Jun 2011
- Uploaded: 22 Feb 2012
- Author: PaulSimonVEVO
Music video by Paul Simon performing Me And Julio Down By The Schoolyard. (C) 2011 Paul Simon under exclusive license to Sony Music Entertainment
http://wn.com/Paul_Simon__Me_And_Julio_Down_By_The_Schoolyard
Jimi Hendrix - Valleys Of Neptune
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 4:05
- Published: 23 Feb 2010
- Uploaded: 21 Feb 2012
- Author: JimiHendrixVEVO
Music video by Jimi Hendrix performing Valleys Of Neptune. (C) 2009 Experience Hendrix LLC, under exclusive license to Sony Music Entertainment
http://wn.com/Jimi_Hendrix__Valleys_Of_Neptune
"Imperfectly Perfect !!"---- Sam Phillips and Sun Records
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 8:59
- Published: 01 Sep 2007
- Uploaded: 21 Feb 2012
- Author: RichardContact1962
The incomparable, VERY colorful and VERY animated Sam Phillips describing his unique method of recording by achieving perfection through imperfection and his amusing reflections regarding Elvis Presley. Phillips can be so insightful and a comedian at the same time....he is greatly missed. Very intriguing. From the Good Rockin' Tonight Legacy of Sun Records tribute.
http://wn.com/Imperfectly_Perfect_!!---_Sam_Phillips_and_Sun_Records
The Legacy of Prophet Ibrahim (alayhi salaam) - Nouman Ali Khan
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 75:07
- Published: 28 Jul 2009
- Uploaded: 20 Feb 2012
- Author: khalifahklothing
A powerful presentation by Br. Nouman Ali Khan. It deals with the all important issue of responsibility of parents, their vision, and their aim for Muslim youth. Masjid At-Taqwa, Synott, Houston, Texas on April 18, 2009. Nouman is the founder and CEO of Bayyinah, as well as the lead instructor for a number of Bayyinah courses including the 'Fundamentals of Classical Arabic' and 'Divine Speech'. His first exposure to Arabic study was in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia where he completed his elementary education. He continued Arabic grammar study in Pakistan, where he received a scholarship for ranking among the top 10 scores in the national Arabic studies board examinations in 1993. But his serious training in Arabic began in the United States in 1999 under Dr. Abdus-Samie, founder and formal principal of Quran College, Faisalabad, Pakistan who happened to be touring the US for intensive lectures in Tafsir and Arabic studies. Under Dr. Abdus-Samie, Nouman developed a keen methodical understanding of Arabic grammar. He further benefited from Dr. Abdus-Samie by internalizing his unique teaching methods and later translating his work into English for the benefit of his own students. Nouman served as professor of Arabic at Nassau Community College until '06 and has taught Modern Standard and Classical Arabic at various venues for nearly 7 years with over 10000 students nationwide. Currently he has dedicated himself to a seven-year-long project, of conducting a linguistic & literary focus <b>...</b>
http://wn.com/The_Legacy_of_Prophet_Ibrahim_alayhi_salaam__Nouman_Ali_Khan
Grupo Encanto - En La Granja De Pepito
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 1:28
- Published: 03 Jun 2011
- Uploaded: 13 Feb 2012
- Author: CantaJuegoVEVO
Music video by Grupo Encanto performing En La Granja De Pepito. (C)2011 Sony Music Entertainment España, SL/Pas Eventos Y Producciones SL
http://wn.com/Grupo_Encanto__En_La_Granja_De_Pepito
Qué Hace Una Chica Como Tú En Un Sitio Como Este
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 4:04
- Published: 08 Jul 2011
- Uploaded: 21 Feb 2012
- Author: alejostivelVEVO
Music video by Alejo Stivel Con Pereza performing Qué Hace Una Chica Como Tú En Un Sitio Como Este. (C)2011 Salad Music, SL. Editado Y Distribuido Bajo Licencia Exclusiva Por Sony Music Entertainment España.
http://wn.com/Qué_Hace_Una_Chica_Como_Tú_En_Un_Sitio_Como_Este
Grupo Encanto - Abuelito Dime Tu
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 2:41
- Published: 16 Jun 2011
- Uploaded: 20 Feb 2012
- Author: CantaJuegoVEVO
Music video by Grupo Encanto performing Abuelito Dime Tu. (C)2011 Sony Music Entertainment España, SL/Pas Eventos Y Producciones SL
http://wn.com/Grupo_Encanto__Abuelito_Dime_Tu
Grupo Encanto - Hace Lo Mismo Que Yo
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 2:46
- Published: 16 Jun 2011
- Uploaded: 20 Feb 2012
- Author: CantaJuegoVEVO
Music video by Grupo Encanto performing Hace Lo Mismo Que Yo. (C)2011 Sony Music Entertainment España, SL/Pas Eventos Y Producciones SL
http://wn.com/Grupo_Encanto__Hace_Lo_Mismo_Que_Yo
Grupo Encanto - Tengo Una Vaca Lechera
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 2:43
- Published: 27 May 2011
- Uploaded: 20 Feb 2012
- Author: CantaJuegoVEVO
Music video by Grupo Encanto performing Tengo Una Vaca Lechera. (C)2011 Sony Music Entertaiment España, SL/Pas Eventos Y Producciones SL
http://wn.com/Grupo_Encanto__Tengo_Una_Vaca_Lechera
Grupo Encanto - El Twist De Los Alimentos
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 2:14
- Published: 27 May 2011
- Uploaded: 22 Feb 2012
- Author: CantaJuegoVEVO
Music video by Grupo Encanto performing El Twist De Los Alimentos. (C)2011 Sony Music Entertainment España, SL/Pas Eventos Y Producciones SL
http://wn.com/Grupo_Encanto__El_Twist_De_Los_Alimentos
Grupo Encanto - El Baile De Los Pajaritos
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 2:56
- Published: 16 Jun 2011
- Uploaded: 23 Feb 2012
- Author: CantaJuegoVEVO
Music video by Grupo Encanto performing El Baile De Los Pajaritos. (C)2011 Sony Music Entertainment España, SL/Pas Eventos Y Producciones SL
http://wn.com/Grupo_Encanto__El_Baile_De_Los_Pajaritos
Hombres G - Lo Noto ft. Miguel Bose
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 4:16
- Published: 30 Nov 2011
- Uploaded: 22 Feb 2012
- Author: HombresGVEVO
Music video by Hombres G Con Miguel Bose performing Lo Noto. (C)2011 Sony Music Entertainment España, SL/La Calabaza Amarilla, SL
http://wn.com/Hombres_G__Lo_Noto_ft_Miguel_Bose
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Legacy Recordings is Sony Music Entertainment's catalog division. It was founded in 1990 by CBS Records (renamed Sony Music in 1991) under the leadership of Jerry Shulman, Richard Bauer, Gary Pacheco and Amy Herot (than the Marketing Development Department) to handle reissues of recordings from the vast catalogues of Columbia Records, Epic Records and associated labels. The division now additionally handles the archives of Sony Music's RCA, J Records, Windham Hill, RCA Victor, Arista, Buddah Records, Philadelphia International Records, as well as Sony BMG Nashville.
This is not to be confused with the defunct British independent label Legacy Records.
List of notable artists
Notable Legacy Recordings artists include, but are not limited to:
See also
References
External links
Category:American record labels Category:Jazz record labels Category:Reissue record labels Category:Pop record labels Category:Record labels established in 1990 Category:Rock record labels Category:Sony subsidiaries Category:Sony Music Entertainment
cs:Legacy Recordings da:Legacy Recordings fr:Legacy Recordings nl:Sony Music The Legacy ja:レガシー・レコーディングス pt:Legacy Recordings fi:Legacy Recordings tr:Legacy RecordingsThis text is licensed under the Creative Commons CC-BY-SA License. This text was originally published on Wikipedia and was developed by the Wikipedia community.
| Coordinates | 24°6′″N97°12′″N |
|---|---|
| background | solo_singer |
| birth name | Diana Ernestine Earle Ross |
| born | March 26, 1944 |
| origin | Detroit, Michigan, U.S. |
| genre | R&B;, soul, disco, jazz, pop |
| occupation | Singer, record producer, actress |
| years active | 1959–present |
| label | Lu Pine, Motown, RCA, EMI |
| associated acts | The Supremes, Lionel Richie, Marvin Gaye, The Jackson 5, Michael Jackson, CHIC, The Temptations, Ashford & Simpson |
| website | www.dianaross.com }} |
In 1976, ''Billboard'' magazine named her the "Female Entertainer of the Century." In 1993, the ''Guinness Book of World Records'' declared Diana Ross the most successful female music artist in history due to her success in the United States and United Kingdom for having more hits than any female artist in the charts with a career total of 18 number one records in the United States. Diana Ross has sold more than 100 million records worldwide.
Ross is one of the few recording artists to have two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame—one as a solo artist and the other as a member of The Supremes. In December 2007, she received a John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts Honors Award.
Early life
Diana Ross, the daughter of Ernestine (née Moten) (January 27, 1916October 9, 1984), a schoolteacher, and Fred Ross, Sr. (July 4, 1920November 21, 2007), a former United States Army soldier, was born at Hutzel Women's Hospital in Detroit, Michigan. Ross said she didn't see her father until he returned from serving in World War II. Much has been made of whether her first name ends in an "a" or an "e". According to Ross, her mother actually named her "Diane" but a clerical error resulted in her name being recorded as "Diana" on her birth certificate. She always went by "Diane" at home and at school. Her high school yearbook listed her as "Diana" and as early as 1963, when The Supremes released their first album, she was listed in the liner notes as "Diana". At The Supremes' first Copacabana engagement in 1965, she introduced herself to the audience as "Diane", but later that year she started introducing herself as "Diana". Her intimates still call her "Diane".After living on Belmont Road in Detroit's North End for several years, Ross's family settled on St. Antoine Street in the Brewster-Douglass housing projects on Diana's fourteenth birthday in 1958. Ross aspired to be a fashion designer, and studied design, millinery, pattern-making and seamstress skills while attending Cass Technical High School, a four-year college preparatory magnet school, in downtown Detroit. In her late teens, Ross worked at Hudson's Department Store where, it was claimed in biographies, that she was the first black employee "allowed outside the kitchen". Ross graduated in January 1962, one semester earlier than her classmates. Ross' parents had a difficult marriage and separated when Ross was still in her teens.
Career
The Supremes: 1959–1970
In 1959, Ross was brought to the attention of Milton Jenkins, the manager of the local doo-wop group The Primes, by Mary Wilson. Primes member Paul Williams convinced Jenkins to enlist Ross in the sister group The Primettes, which included Wilson, Florence Ballard and Betty McGlown. Ross, Wilson and Ballard each sang lead during live performances. In 1960, Lu Pine Records signed the group and issued the Ross-led single "Tears of Sorrow" backed with the Wilson-led "Pretty Baby".Soon after winning a singing contest in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Ross approached former neighbor William "Smokey" Robinson, Jr. for an audition at the label with which he recorded, Motown Records. The group garnered the audition and impressed Motown's CEO, Berry Gordy, Jr. (who arrived at the audition during the group's performance), but declined to work with the group due to their being underaged. Undeterred, the group would stand outside the label's Hitsville USA studios hoping to grab attention, eventually providing backing vocals & hand claps for many of Motown's more established artists. Meanwhile during the group's struggling early years Ross earned pay in the day as Berry Gordy's secretary. She also served at the group's main hair stylist, make-up artist, seamstress & costume designer during this period.
In 1961, having already replaced McGlown with Barbara Martin, the quartet signed with Motown Records under their new moniker, ''The Supremes'', chosen by Florence Ballard, who was the only member to be present when the group was offered a name change. Both Ross and Wilson initially disliked the name, afraid they would be mistaken for a men's group (Ruby & The Romantics' original name was The Supremes) but the name stuck regardless.
Following Martin's exit in 1962, the group remained a trio. In 1963, Ross became the group's lead singer, as Berry Gordy felt the group could "cross over" to the pop charts with Ross' unique vocal quality, and the Ross-led "When the Lovelight Starts Shining Through His Eyes" became the group's first Billboard Top 20 Pop single. The Supremes hit number one with "Where Did Our Love Go", a song rejected by The Marvelettes, and then achieved unprecedented success: between August 1964 and May 1967, Ross, Wilson and Ballard sang on ten number-one hit singles, all of which also made the United Kingdom Top 40.
Gordy removed Florence Ballard from the group in July 1967 and chose Cindy Birdsong, a member of Patti LaBelle and the Bluebelles, as her replacement. Shortly thereafter, he changed the group's name to Diana Ross & the Supremes.
Motown initially conceived of a solo career for Diana Ross in 1966, but did not act on it until 1968. Television specials such as ''TCB'' (1968) and ''G.I.T. on Broadway'' (1969) were designed to spotlight her as a star in her own right, and much of the later Ross-led Supremes material was recorded by Ross with session singers The Andantes, not Wilson and Birdsong, on backing vocals. By the summer of 1969, Ross began her first solo recordings. In November of the same year, three years after it was first rumored, ''Billboard'' magazine confirmed Ross's departure from the group to begin her solo career. That same year, Ross introduced Motown's newest act, The Jackson 5, to national audiences on the Hollywood Palace television variety program.
Ross recorded her initial solo sessions with a number of producers, including Bones Howe and Johnny Bristol. Her first track with Bristol, "Someday We'll Be Together", was tagged as a potential solo single, but it instead was issued as the final Diana Ross & the Supremes release. "Someday We'll Be Together" was the 12th and final number-one hit for the Supremes and the last American number-one hit of the 1960s. Ross made her final appearance with the Supremes at the Frontier Hotel in Las Vegas on January 14, 1970.
Early solo career: 1970–1981
After a half-year of recording material with various producers, Ross settled with the production team of Nickolas Ashford and Valerie Simpson, the creative force behind Marvin Gaye's and Tammi Terrell's hit duets and Diana Ross & the Supremes' "Some Things You Never Get Used To". Ashford and Simpson helmed most of Ross's first album, ''Diana Ross'', and continued to write and produce for her for the next decade.In May 1970, ''Diana Ross'' was released on Motown. The first single, the gospel-influenced waltz, "Reach Out and Touch (Somebody's Hand)", peaked at number 20 on the Billboard Hot 100. The album's second single, a fully rearranged cover of Gaye's and Terrell's 1967 hit, and another Ashford and Simpson composition, "Ain't No Mountain High Enough", was an international hit, and gave Ross her first #1 pop single and gold record award as a solo artist. "Ain't No Mountain High Enough" received a Grammy nomination for Best Pop Vocal Performance, Female. In 1971, Motown released Ross's second album ''Everything Is Everything'', which produced Ross's first UK number-one solo single, "I'm Still Waiting". Several months later, Ross released ''Surrender'', which included the top-20 pop hit, "Remember Me". That year, she hosted her first solo television special, ''Diana!'', featuring guest appearances by The Jackson 5, Bill Cosby and Danny Thomas.
In 1973 Ross returned to number-one with the single "Touch Me in the Morning". The album of the same name became her first top five charted pop release. Later that same year, Ross and fellow Motown star Marvin Gaye released a duet album, ''Diana & Marvin''. The duo scored an international hit with their cover of The Stylistics' "You Are Everything". Ross' 1974 follow-up album, ''Last Time I Saw Him'', wasn't as successful despite the success of its country-tinged title track. Two years later Ross ventured into disco with "Love Hangover", which returned her to number-one. The self-titled parent album became another top five hit and included her previous number-one, the movie theme, "Do You Know Where You're Going To (Theme from Mahogany)". Ross' subsequent follow-ups, including ''Baby It's Me'' (1977) and ''Ross'' (1978) fell off the charts soon after they appeared. Ross did have success with her first Broadway one-woman show, ''An Evening with Diana Ross''. Her performance later won her a Tony. She was featured in TV special with the same name.
In 1979 Ross hired former collaborators Ashford & Simpson, who had left Motown in 1973 due to contractual issues with Berry Gordy, to overlook the production of her next album, ''The Boss''. That album produced the hit title track and the modestly successful "It's My House". Ross' working relationship with Berry Gordy had deteriorated at that point as Gordy refused to be an executive producer of the project. In 1980, Ross hired Nile Rodgers and Bernard Edwards of the group CHIC to overlook production of her final contractual Motown album, ''diana''. That album led to major success with "Upside Down" returning Ross to number-one on the pop charts for the first time since "Love Hangover". Its follow-up, "I'm Coming Out", was as successful and both songs found major success overseas. When Upside Down hit #1 in 1980, Diana Ross became the first woman in music history to chart 6 #1 records. Combining her 12 as lead singer of The Supremes, Diana Ross' career total of number one records is 18, the most for any female recording artist in music history. Mariah Carey tied Ross' record in 2007.
In 1981, Ross decided not to renew her Motown contract only to discover that everything she thought she had owned was only leased to her by Berry Gordy. Ross accepted a $20 million deal with RCA in 1981, then the most lucrative contract in music. To complete contractual obligations to Motown, Ross recorded several songs with Lionel Richie, one of which, "Endless Love", led to the duo having an international number-one hit. The song was the theme song of the movie of the same name. Motown issued a compilation album, ''To Love Again'', to compete with Ross' RCA debut.
Film career: 1972–1999
Though Ross had previously appeared in two films while a member of The Supremes, it wasn't until the early 1970s when Berry Gordy began to focus on making Ross an actress. In late 1971, Motown announced that Diana Ross was going to portray jazz icon Billie Holiday in a Motown-produced film loosely based on Holiday's autobiography ''Lady Sings the Blues'' (1956) written by Holiday and William Dufty. The movie co-starred Billy Dee Williams as Holiday's lover, Louis McKay. The cast also included comedian Richard Pryor as the "Piano Man".Some critics ridiculed Ross's casting in the role. Ross and Holiday were considered to be "miles apart" in vocal styling and appearance. Undeterred, Ross immersed herself in Holiday's music and life story. She went to drug clinics and talked with doctors as research for the role. Ross made a crucial decision when it came to interpreting Holiday's music. Instead of imitating Billie Holiday's voice, Ross focused on Holiday's inimitable vocal phrasing.
Opening in October 1972, ''Lady Sings the Blues'' was a major success, and Ross's performance was lauded and well received. Jazz critic Leonard Feather, a friend of Billie Holiday, praised Ross for "expertly capturing the essence of Lady Day." In 1973, Ross was nominated for both a Golden Globe Award and an Academy Award for "Best Actress". Ross along with fellow nominee that year Cicely Tyson, were the second African American actresses to be nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actress after Dorothy Dandridge. Ross won the Golden Globe for Best Newcomer, but lost the Best Actress Oscar to her friend Liza Minnelli for her role in ''Cabaret''. The soundtrack album for ''Lady Sings the Blues'' reached number one on the Billboard 200 for two weeks and broke then industry records by shipping 300,000 copies during its first eight days of release. The double-pocket custom label record is one of Ross's best-selling albums of all time, with total sales to date of nearly two million copies.
In 1975, Ross again co-starred with Billy Dee Williams in the Motown film ''Mahogany''. The story of an aspiring fashion designer who becomes a runway model and the toast of the industry, ''Mahogany'' was a troubled production from its inception. The film's original director, Tony Richardson, was fired during production and Berry Gordy assumed the director's chair himself. In addition, Gordy and Ross clashed during filming, with Ross leaving the production before shooting was completed, forcing Gordy to use secretary Edna Anderson as a body double for Ross. While a box office success, the film was not well received by the critics: ''Time'' magazine's review of the film chastised Gordy for "squandering one of America's most natural resources: Diana Ross".
In 1977, Motown acquired the film rights to the Broadway play ''The Wiz'', an African-American reinterpretation of L. Frank Baum's ''The Wonderful Wizard of Oz''. Although teenage Stephanie Mills, a veteran of the play, was originally cast as Dorothy, Ross convinced Universal Pictures producer Rob Cohen to have Ross cast as Dorothy. Because of Ross' age, the script was modified to make the protagonist a school teacher rather than a schoolgirl. Among Ross's costars were Lena Horne, Michael Jackson, Richard Pryor, Nipsey Russell and Ted Ross. Upon its October 1978 release, the film adaptation of ''The Wiz'', a $24 million production, earned $21,049,053 at the box office. Though pre-release television broadcast rights had been sold to CBS for over $10 million, the film produced a net loss of $10.4 million for Motown and Universal. At the time, it was the most expensive film musical ever made. The film's failure ended Ross' short career on the big screen and contributed to the Hollywood studios' reluctance to produce the all-black film projects which had become popular during the blaxploitation era of the early-to-mid 1970s for several years. The Wiz was Ross' final film for Motown.
Ross had success with movie-themed songs. While her version of Holiday's "Good Morning Heartache" only performed modestly well in early 1973, her recording of "Theme from Mahogany (Do You Know Where You're Going To)" gave Ross her fourth number-one hit in late 1975. Three years later, Ross and Michael Jackson had a modest dance hit with their recording of "Ease on Down the Road". Their second duet, actually as part of the ensemble of ''The Wiz'', "Brand New Day", found some success overseas. Ross scored a Top 10 hit in late 1980 with the theme song to the 1980 film ''It's My Turn''. The following year, she collaborated with former Commodores singer-songwriter Lionel Richie on the theme song for the film ''Endless Love''. The Academy Award-nominated "Endless Love" single became her final hit on Motown Records, and the number one record of the year. Several years later, in 1988, Ross recorded the theme song to ''The Land Before Time''. "If We Hold On Together" became an international hit reaching number-one in Japan.
Ross would be given movie offers over the years but reportedly turned them down because of either contractual obligations or fears of being typecast. Ross had campaigned to portray pioneering entertainer Josephine Baker in a feature film even during her later years in Motown. However, in 1991, the feature film turned into a TV film with Lynn Whitfield playing Baker instead of Ross. Ross was also offered a role in an early adaptation of ''The Bodyguard'' with Ryan O'Neal. However, plans of this adaptation fell through. Years later, Whitney Houston and Kevin Costner assumed the roles of Ross and O'Neal in the 1992 film. In 1993, Ross returned to making movies with a dramatic role in the TV film, ''Out of Darkness''. Ross won acclaim for her role in the film and a well earned third Golden Globe nomination. In 1999, she and Brandy co-starred in the film, ''Double Platinum'', which was released prior to the release of Ross' album, ''Every Day Is a New Day''.
Later solo career: 1981–1999
Diana Ross's RCA Records debut, ''Why Do Fools Fall in Love'', was issued in October 1981. The album yielded three Top 10 hits including the title track "Why Do Fools Fall in Love", a remake of the 1956 Frankie Lymon & the Teenagers classic of the same name, and the single "Mirror Mirror". A third single, "Work That Body", hit the Top Ten in the UK. That success was repeated if only more modestly with the 1982 album, ''Silk Electric''. Ross' recording of Michael Jackson's "Muscles" gave Ross another top ten hit. Ross' 1983 album, ''Ross'', failed to produce any success.On July 21, 1983, Ross performed a concert in Central Park for a taped Showtime special. Proceeds of the concert would be donated to build a playground in the singer's name. Midway through the beginning of the show, a torrential downpour occurred. Ross tried to keep on performing, but the severe weather required that the show be stopped. Ross urged the large crowd to exit the venue safely, promising to perform the next day. The second concert held the very next day was without rain. The funds for the playground were to be derived from sales of different items at the concert; however, all profits earned from the first concert were spent on the second. When the mainstream media discovered the exorbitant costs of the two concerts, Diana Ross faced criticism and poor publicity. Although representatives of Diana Ross originally refused to pay anything for the proposed playground, Ross later paid the $250,000 required to build the park. The Diana Ross Playground was finally built three years later.
In 1984, Ross' career was revived modestly again with the release of ''Swept Away''. The title track became an international hit as did the ballad, "Missing You", which was a tribute to Marvin Gaye, who had died earlier that year. Her 1985 album, ''Eaten Alive'', found success overseas with the title track and "Chain Reaction", while neither of the songs found success in America. Earlier in 1985, she appeared as part of the supergroup USA for Africa on the "'We Are the World'" charity single, which sold over 20 million copies. Ross' 1987 follow up to ''Eaten Alive'', ''Red Hot Rhythm & Blues'', found less success than the prior album. In 1988, Ross chose to not renew her RCA contract.
Motown Records was being sold by Berry Gordy for $60 million. Ross advised Gordy not to make the move. Before leaving Motown, Gordy offered Ross a contract back to Motown. Ross was at first hesitant to return to the label but agreed after Gordy offered her part-ownership of the label. Despite initial promotion, Ross' next album, ''Workin' Overtime'', bombed. Subsequent follow-ups including ''The Force Behind the Power'' (1991), ''Take Me Higher'' (1995) and ''Every Day is a New Day'' (1999) produced similarly disappointing sales. Ross had more success overseas with the albums than she did in America. In 1994, Ross performed at the opening ceremony of the FIFA World Cup, hosted in the USA. Her performance has become a running joke in football circles due to her obvious miming and for missing the goal from close range. In 1999, she was named the most successful female singer in the history of the United Kingdom charts, based upon a tally of her career hits. Madonna would eventually succeed Ross as the most successful female artist in the UK.
Later that year, Ross presented at the 1999 MTV Video Music Awards in September of the year and shocked the audience by touching rapper Lil' Kim's exposed, pasty-covered breast, amazed at the young rapper's brashness.
Supremes reunions and Return to Love
In 1983, Ross reunited with former Supremes Mary Wilson and Cindy Birdsong for the television special ''Motown 25: Yesterday, Today, Forever''. The three performed their 1969 number-one hit "Someday We'll Be Together", although alleged onstage altercations between Ross and Wilson became an issue during and after the taping of the special. A four-song Supremes set was planned but Ross, suffering from influenza, declined to rehearse with "The Girls" and stated that they would have to be happy just doing "Someday We'll Be Together". Before the special was taped later that evening, Wilson allegedly planned with Birdsong to take a step forward every time Ross did the same. This appeared to frustrate Ross, causing her to push Wilson's shoulder. Later, Wilson was not aware of the script set by producer Suzanne DePasse, in which Ross was to introduce Berry Gordy. Wilson took it upon herself to do so, at which point Ross pushed down Wilson's hand-held microphone, stating "It's been taken care of." Ross, then, introduced Gordy. These incidents were excised from the final edit of the taped special, but still made their way into the news media; ''People'' magazine reported that "Ross [did] some elbowing to get Wilson out of the spotlight."
The original Supremes were inducted to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1988. Original member Florence Ballard had died twelve years earlier. Ross was performing around the time of the induction ceremony and was unable to attend; Mary Wilson accepted the award. In 1999, Ross, Wilson and Cindy Birdsong held discussions about a possible Supremes reunion tour. These negotiations failed, and Ross hired late-era Supremes members Lynda Laurence and Scherrie Payne, who were touring as the Former Ladies of the Supremes, to participate. The ''Return to Love'' tour was launched in June 2000. The tour did well in large markets, but, struggled in medium markets due to controversial press stories. Despite selling out the final evening at Madison Square Garden in New York, the tour ended abruptly after just fourteen dates.
Current work
Following successful European and American tours in 2004, Diana Ross returned to the Billboard music charts with two duets in 2005. "I've Got a Crush on You", recorded with Rod Stewart for his album ''The Great American Songbook'', reached number 19 on the Billboard Hot Adult Contemporary chart. The second, recorded with Westlife, was a remake of Ross's 1991 number-2 UK single, "When You Tell Me You Love Me", and reached number 2 in the UK, just as the original had, and number 1 in Ireland. In January, 2005, M.A.C. Cosmetics named Diana Ross its beauty icon for 2005. In June 2006, Motown released the shelved ''Blue'' album, which peaked at number 2 on Billboard's Jazz Albums chart. Ross' new studio album, ''I Love You'', was released worldwide on October 2, 2006 and January 16, 2007, in North America, on the Manhattan Records/EMI label. Since its release in 2007, EMI Inside reports that ''I Love You'' has sold more than 622,000 copies worldwide.
In January 2007, Ross appeared on a number of television shows across the U.S. to promote her new album and began touring in the spring. She appeared on ''American Idol'' as a mentor to the contestants Ross's United States "I Love You" tour garnered positive reviews, as did her European tour of the same year.
At the 2007 BET Awards, Ross was presented with a Lifetime Achievement Award by her five children and singer Alicia Keys. Stevie Wonder, Erykah Badu and Chaka Khan performed musical tributes to Ross, covering several of her most popular recordings. During her acceptance speech, Ross lambasted the declining level of professional standards among the younger generation's musicians, as well as their overabundant use of vulgarity and profanity to garner press attention and record sales. Later that year, the prestigious Kennedy Center Honors committee, which recognizes career excellence, cultural influence and contributions to American culture, named Diana Ross as one of its honorees. Past honoree and fellow Motown alumni Smokey Robinson and actor Terrence Howard spoke on her behalf at the official ceremony that December, and singers Ciara, Vanessa L. Williams, Yolanda Adams and ''American Idol'' winner Jordin Sparks performed musical tributes. In February 2008, Ross was guest speaker at the Houston-based Brilliant Lecture series at The Hobby Center, Houston.
The lectures are designed to present prolific and influential characters to speak about their life and inspirations. During her lecture Ross stated that it is "unlikely" that she would undertake any further movie projects.
In May 2008, Ross headlined at New York City's Radio City Music Hall's 'Divas with Heart' concert event, which also featured fellow performers Gladys Knight, Chaka Khan and Patti LaBelle. The following month she was a headliner at the City Stages music festival in Birmingham, AL, next to The Flaming Lips. The New York Times said about the duo, "the most incongruous headliners at an outdoor urban concert series, with the once-in-a-lifetime-at-most combination of Diana Ross and the Flaming Lips. Something for everyone, surely." She performed at two major events in the UK in July 2008: the famous Liverpool Pops Festival and the National Trust Summer Festival at Petworth House, West Sussex. On October 16–17, 2009, Diana Ross headlined the annual Dutch concert event, Symphonica in Rosso, in the 34,000-seat Gelredome Stadium, in Arnhem, The Netherlands. She was accompanied by a 40-piece orchestra. Each of the two concerts was sold-out.
Ross performed a cross-country tour in the summer of 2010. The More Today Than Yesterday: The Greatest Hits Tour featured an all-new set list, stage design, and costumes galore, and was dedicated to her friend Michael Jackson who died in June 2009. The tour, which commenced on May 15, 2010, in Boston, Massachusetts, earned Ross excellent reviews in every city in which she performed, and concluded in Saratoga, California. An extended American leg of the tour began in September, 2010, and is scheduled to continue until March 2011, in Stamford, Connecticut, after which, another American leg of her tour will begin on September 11, 2011, at Temecula, CA's Pechanga Resort and Casino, & continuing throughout autumn, 2011. It is rumored that Ross will mount European & Asian legs of the tour.
Personal life
Ross' parents separated when Ross was 17. After 12 years of estrangement, the couple divorced in 1973. Ernestine Ross later married John Jordan in 1977. Fred Ross remained divorced, never remarrying. While Ross' mother was supportive of her career, her father was disappointed in her choice to be an entertainer rather than attend college like her other siblings. Biographies later stated Ross' drive was inspired by a lack of a support she felt from her father. Ross and her father's relationship repaired over the years until Fred Ross died in 2007. Ross' mother died in 1984.Ross' elder sister Barbara found success as a doctor and in 1993, was appointed as dean of the Ohio University College of Osteopathic Medicine, becoming the first black American woman to administer a medical school in the states. Rita Ross, Diana's younger sister, became a teacher. Brothers Arthur and Wilbert "Ninja" Ross followed their sister into the recording industry and entertainment business, respectively. Arthur became a songwriter for Motown writing hits for Michael Jackson, The Miracles and Marvin Gaye while Chico became a professional dancer and choreographer joining his elder sister as a choreographer on her shows during the 1970s and 1980s. He's since retired. Eldest brother Fred Ross, Jr., a Vietnam veteran, never followed his sister into show business settling for civilian life in his native Detroit. Brother Arthur and his wife, Patricia Robinson, were murdered in 1996 in Detroit. Their bodies were found bound and gagged in their basement. As of this writing, no one has been convicted of the murders. A state's witness reportedly disappeared before the case's primary suspect could be tried.
Ross married twice. Her first husband was music business manager Robert Ellis Silberstein, whom she married in January 1971. They divorced in March 1977. In January 1986, after a romantic courtship, Ross married Norwegian shipping magnate Arne Næss, Jr.. After several years of legal separation, the couple were officially divorced in 2000. Næss was later killed in a mountain climbing accident in 2004. Ross attended the funeral.
Ross is the mother of five children. Daughter Rhonda Suzanne Silberstein was born on August 13, 1971, Rhonda's biological father is Berry Gordy. She is now married; her married name is Rhonda Ross Kendrick. Ross and Silberstein had two daughters: Tracee Joy Silberstein, born October 29, 1972 (now known as Tracee Ellis Ross) and Chudney Lane Silberstein, born November 4, 1975 (now known as Chudney Ross). Ross had two sons with Næss. Their sons are Ross Arne Næss (born October 7, 1987) and Evan Olav Næss (born August 26, 1988), now known as Evan Ross). In the summer of 2009, Ross became a grandmother when her daughter, Rhonda Ross-Kendrick, gave birth to a boy on August 7, 2009 by the name of... Raif-Henok Emmanuel Kendrick.
Rhonda and Tracee graduated from Brown University, and Chudney from Georgetown University. All have followed their mother to show business. Rhonda gained success as an actress in television movies and daytime soap operas. Tracee was a co-star of the UPN sitcom ''Girlfriends''. Chudney is active in behind-the-scenes work and is also a model. Son Ross currently attends New York's Marist College, where he is a ski club member, and has not followed his siblings into show business. Youngest son Evan Ross is a successful actor, who starred in the films ''ATL'' and ''Pride'' (co-starring Terrance Howard) and the HBO film, "Life Support", co-starring Dana Owens (Queen Latifah) and his older sister, Tracee Ellis-Ross. He currently is starring in The CW's hit show "90210" playing the character named Charlie.
A month after the Lil Kim incident, authorities at London's Heathrow Airport detained Ross for "assaulting" a female security guard. The singer claimed that she had felt "violated as a woman" by the full-body search to which she was subjected while wearing a skintight bodysuit. Ross complained to airport staff, but, was ignored. In retaliation, she was alleged to have touched the female airport security guard in a similar manner. The singer was detained but later released. In December 2002, Ross was arrested in Tucson, Arizona for drunk driving. She pleaded "no contest", and later served a two-day jail sentence near her home in Greenwich, Connecticut. Following the arrest and jail sentence, Ross stayed out of the American public eye during much of the following year. She performed a well-received set at Britain's Prince Charles' Prince's Trust concert, held in London's Hyde Park, in 2002, but would not return to touring until 2004.
Ross was a close friend and longtime mentor of Michael Jackson, with whom she co-starred in the 1978 film version of the Broadway musical, The Wiz (a remake of ''The Wizard of Oz''). After Jackson's sudden death on June 25, 2009, Ross was named in his will as the custodian of his children in the event of the death of his mother, Katherine Jackson. Ross was invited to speak at the memorial held in Los Angeles on Tuesday July 7, 2009, but declined in a letter read by Smokey Robinson at the ceremony. Like Jackson's other close friends, Macaulay Culkin, Elizabeth Taylor, Quincy Jones, Liza Minnelli, and his ex-wife Lisa Marie Presley, Ross stated that she wanted to grieve in private. Ross dedicated her 2010–11 "More Today Than Yesterday-Greatest Hits" tour to Michael Jackson.
In popular culture
Solo discography
Filmography
Television
Autobiographies
(A scrapbook-style collection of photographs)
See also
References
http://sixmillionsteps.com/drupal/node/1085 – 80 minute audio mix of Diana Ross songs/interviews
(31) http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=wiz.htm
Further reading
External links
Category:1944 births Category:Actors from Michigan Category:African American actors Category:African American female singers Category:American disco musicians Category:American film actors Category:American jazz singers Category:American pop singers Category:American rhythm and blues singers Category:American soul singers Category:American stage actors Category:American television actors Category:Ballad musicians Category:Baptists from the United States Category:Kennedy Center honorees Category:Living people Category:Marvin Gaye vocalists Category:Motown artists Category:Musicians from Detroit, Michigan Category:Musicians from Michigan Category:People from Detroit, Michigan Category:The Supremes members Category:Tony Award winners Category:Women in jazz
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| Coordinates | 24°6′″N97°12′″N |
|---|---|
| Name | Paul Simon |
| Background | solo_singer |
| Origin | Newark, New Jersey, United States |
| Birth name | Paul Frederic Simon |
| Born | October 13, 1941 |
| Genre | Folk rock, folk-pop, soft rock, world fusion |
| Occupation | Singer-songwriter, musician, record producer |
| Years active | 1957–present |
| Instrument | Vocals, guitar, bass guitar, piano, percussion |
| First album | The Velvet Underground and Nico |
| Latest album | Surprise (album) |
| Label | Columbia (1964-1977, 2010-present [catalog]Warner Bros. (1978-2009)Hear Music (2010-present) |
| Associated acts | Simon & Garfunkel |
| Notable instruments | Martin OM42PS (Paul Simon) and PS2 Yamaha PS Signature Models |
| Website | }} |
Paul Frederic Simon (born October 13, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist.
Simon is best known for his success, beginning in 1965, as part of the duo Simon & Garfunkel, with musical partner Art Garfunkel. Simon wrote most of the pair's songs, including three that reached number one on the US singles charts, "The Sound of Silence", "Mrs. Robinson", and "Bridge Over Troubled Water". In 1970, at the height of their popularity, the duo split, and Simon began a successful solo career, recording three highly-acclaimed albums over the next five years. In 1986, he released ''Graceland'', an album inspired by South African township music that helped fuel the anti-apartheid movement. Besides music, Simon wrote and starred in the film ''One-Trick Pony'' in 1980 and co-wrote the Broadway musical ''The Capeman'' in 1998.
Through his solo and collaborative work, Simon has earned 13 Grammys, including the Lifetime Achievement Award. In 2001, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and in 2006 was selected as one of the "100 People Who Shaped the World" by ''Time'' magazine. Among many other honors, Simon was named the first recipient of the Library of Congress's Gershwin Prize for Popular Song in 2007.
Biography
Early years
Born in Newark, New Jersey to Jewish immigrant parents from Hungary. His father, Louis (1916–1995), was a professional musician who played the bass, while his mother, Belle (1910–2007), was an elementary school teacher. Having also been trained as a musician, she gave private music lessons in her spare time. In Hungary, his father was a first violinist on the main Budapest radio station.According to Simon's biographer, Marc Eliot, his parents immigrated to the United States in the early 1930s, during a period when Jews were being persecuted throughout Europe. After relocating in the U.S., his father took on the stage name of Lee Sims, and became a regular bassist and eventually a bandleader on several radio and primetime TV shows, including the ''Arthur Godfrey'' show and ''The Jackie Gleason Show''. In 1941 his family moved to Kew Garden Hills, Queens in New York City. Simon was named after his grandfather, Paul, a tailor in Vienna, whom he never knew.
Donald Fagen, lead singer for the rock band Steely Dan, has described Simon's childhood as that of "a certain kind of New York Jew, almost a stereotype, really, to whom music and baseball are very important. I think it has to do with the parents. The parents are either immigrants or first generation Americans who felt like outsiders, and assimilation was the key thought — they gravitated to black music and baseball looking for an alternative culture." Simon, upon hearing Fagen's description, claimed it "isn't far from the truth." Simon says about his childhood, "I was a ballplayer. I'd go on my bike, and I'd hustle kids in stickball." He adds that his father was a Yankee fan:
Simon remembers the time his father first heard him singing to himself in his room, and peeked in: "That's nice, Paul. You have a nice voice." It was a turning point for the young Simon, who, notes Eliot, "idolized his father and was proud of his connection" to the music business. "The compliment was enough to make Paul think he really might want to become a singer."
Simon's musical career began at Forest Hills High School after meeting Art Garfunkel when they were both 11. They performed in a production of Alice in Wonderland for their sixth grade graduation, and began singing together when they were 13, occasionally performing at school dances. Their idols were the Everly Brothers, whom they imitated in their use of close two-part harmony. Simon also developed an interest in jazz, folk and blues, especially musical legends Woody Guthrie and Lead Belly.
Simon's first song written for himself and Garfunkel, when he was 12 or 13, was called "The Girl for Me," and according to Simon became the "neighborhood hit." His father wrote out the words and chords on paper by hand for the boys to use. That paper became the first officially copyrighted Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel song, and is now in the Library of Congress. In 1957, still in their mid-teens, they recorded the song "Hey, Schoolgirl" under the name Tom and Jerry, given to them by their label Big Records. The single reached number forty-nine on the pop charts.
After graduating from high school, Simon majored in English at Queens College, while Garfunkel studied mathematics at Columbia University in Manhattan. Simon was a brother in the Alpha Epsilon Pi fraternity, earned a degree in English literature, and briefly attended Brooklyn Law School after graduation, but his real passion was rock and roll.
Early career
Between 1957 and 1964, Simon wrote, recorded, and released more than thirty songs, occasionally reuniting with Garfunkel as Tom & Jerry for some singles, including "Our Song" and "That's My Story". Most of the songs Simon recorded in the six years after 1957 were performed alone or with musicians other than Garfunkel. They were released on several minor record labels, such as Amy, Big, Hunt, King, Tribute, and Madison. He used several different pseudonyms for these recordings, including Jerry Landis, Paul Kane (from Orson Welles's film ''Citizen Kane'') and True Taylor. Simon enjoyed some moderate success in recording a few singles as part of a group called ''Tico and the Triumphs'', including a song called "Motorcycle" which reached No. 97 on the ''Billboard'' charts in 1962. Tico and the Triumphs released four 45s. Marty Cooper, known as Tico, sang lead on several of these releases. Bobby Susser, children's songwriter and record producer, and childhood friend of Simon's, co-produced the Tico 45s with Simon. That year, Simon reached No. 99 on the pop charts as Jerry Landis with the hit "The Lone Teen Ranger." Both chart singles were released on Amy Records.In 1965 Simon moved to England and started touring folk clubs and coffee houses. At the first club he played, the Railway Inn Folk Club in Brentwood, Essex, he met Kathy Chitty who became his girlfriend and inspiration for "Kathy's Song", "America" and others. He performed at Les Cousins in London and toured provincial folk clubs where he was exposed to a wide range of musical influences. In 1965 he recorded his solo LP ''The Paul Simon Songbook'' in England. During his time in the UK Simon co-wrote several songs with Bruce Woodley of the Australian pop group The Seekers including "I Wish You Could Be Here," "Cloudy", and "Red Rubber Ball"; Woodley's co-author credit was omitted from "Cloudy" on the ''Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme'' album. The American group The Cyrkle recorded a cover of "Red Rubber Ball", which reached number two in the US. Simon also contributed to The Seekers catalogue with "Someday One Day," which was released in March 1966, charting at around the same time as Simon and Garfunkel's Homeward Bound.
Simon & Garfunkel
In early 1964, Simon and Garfunkel got an audition with Columbia Records, whose executive Clive Davis was impressed enough to sign the duo to a contract to produce an album. Columbia decided that the two would be called simply "Simon & Garfunkel", a replacement for the group's previous name "Tom and Jerry". Simon claimed in 2003 that this renaming as "Simon & Garfunkel" was the first time that artists' ethnic names had been used in pop music.Simon and Garfunkel's first LP, ''Wednesday Morning, 3 A.M.'', was released on October 19, 1964 and consisted of twelve songs in the folk vein, five of them written by Simon. The album initially flopped, but East Coast radio stations began receiving requests for one of the tracks, Simon's "The Sounds of Silence". Their producer, Tom Wilson, overdubbed the track with electric guitar, bass, and drums, releasing it as a single that eventually went to number one on the pop charts in the USA.
Simon had gone to England in 1965 after the initial failure of ''Wednesday Morning, 3 A.M.'', pursuing a solo career. He returned to the United States, however, to reunite with Garfunkel after "The Sounds of Silence" had started to enjoy commercial success. Together they recorded four more influential albums: ''Sounds of Silence''; ''Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme''; ''Bookends''; and the hugely successful ''Bridge over Troubled Water''. Simon and Garfunkel also contributed extensively to the soundtrack of the Mike Nichols film ''The Graduate'' (1967), starring Dustin Hoffman and Anne Bancroft. While writing "Mrs. Robinson", Simon originally toyed with the title "Mrs. Roosevelt". When Garfunkel reported this indecision over the song's name to the director, Nichols replied: "Don't be ridiculous! We're making a movie here! It's Mrs. Robinson!" Simon and Garfunkel returned to England in the Fall of 1968 and did a church concert appearance at Kraft Hall, which was broadcast on the BBC, and which also featured Paul's brother Ed sitting in on a performance of the instrumental "Anji".
Simon pursued solo projects after the duo released their popular album ''Bridge over Troubled Water''. Occasionally, he and Garfunkel did reunite, such as in 1975 for their Top Ten single "My Little Town", which Simon originally wrote for Garfunkel, claiming Garfunkel's solo output was lacking "bite". The song was included on their respective solo albums: Paul Simon's ''Still Crazy After All These Years''; and Garfunkel's ''Breakaway''. Contrary to popular belief, the song is not at all autobiographical of Simon's early life in New York City. In 1981, they got together again for the famous concert in Central Park, followed by a world tour and an aborted reunion album, to have been entitled ''Think Too Much'', which was eventually released (without Garfunkel) as ''Hearts and Bones''. Together, they were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1990.
In 2003, Simon and Garfunkel reunited once again when they received a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. This reunion led to a U.S. tour—the acclaimed "Old Friends" concert series—followed by a 2004 international encore, which culminated in a free concert at the Colosseum in Rome. That final concert drew 600,000 people. In 2005, the pair sang "Bridge Over Troubled Water" with Aaron Neville in a benefit for Hurricane Katrina victims.
In 2010, the pair reunited in New Orleans for their first concert in six years, at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival.
1971–1976
After Simon and Garfunkel split in 1970, Simon began to write and record solo material. His eponymous album ''Paul Simon'' was released in January 1972, preceded by his first experiment with world music, the Jamaican-inspired "Mother and Child Reunion", considered one of the first examples of reggae attempted by a white musician. The single was a hit, reaching both the American and British Top 5. The album was particularly well received, with critics praising the variety of styles and the confessional lyrics, reaching No. 4 in the U.S. and No. 1 in the UK and Japan. It later spawned another Top 30 hit with "Me and Julio Down by the Schoolyard".Simon's next project was the pop-folk masterpiece, ''There Goes Rhymin' Simon'', released in May 1973. It contained some of his most popular and polished recordings - the lead single, "Kodachrome", was a No. 2 hit in America, and the follow-up, the gospel-flavored "Loves Me Like a Rock" was even bigger, topping the Cashbox charts. Other songs, like the weary "American Tune" or the melancholic "Something So Right" – a tribute to Simon's first wife, Peggy – became standards in the musician's catalogue. Critical and commercial reception for this second album were even stronger than for his debut. At the time, it was remarked how the songs were very fresh and unworried on the surface while they were exploring socially and politically conscious themes on a deeper level. The album reached No. 1 on the Cashbox album charts. As a souvenir for the tour that came next, in 1974 it was released as a live album, ''Live Rhymin''', which was moderately successful and displayed some changes in Simon's music style, adopting world and religious music.
Highly anticipated, ''Still Crazy After All These Years'' was his next album. Released in October 1975 and produced by Simon and Phil Ramone, it marked another departure. The mood of the album was darker, as he wrote and recorded it in the wake of his divorce. Preceded by the feel-good duet with Phoebe Snow, "Gone at Last" (a Top 25 hit) and the Simon & Garfunkel reunion track "My Little Town" (a No. 9 on Billboard), the album managed to be his only No. 1 on the Billboard charts to date. The 18th Grammy Awards named it the Album of the Year and Simon's performance the year's Best Male Pop Vocal. With Simon in the forefront of popular music, the third single from the album, "50 Ways to Leave Your Lover" reached the top spot of the Billboard charts, his only single to reach No. 1 on this list. Also, on May 3, 1976, Simon put together a benefit show at Madison Square Garden to raise money for the New York Public Library. Phoebe Snow, Jimmy Cliff and the Brecker Brothers also performed. The concert produced over $30,000 for the Library.
1977–1985
After three back-to-back successful studio albums, Simon became less productive during the second half of the 1970s. He dabbled in various projects, including writing music for the film ''Shampoo'' and acting (he was cast as Tony Lacey in Woody Allen's film ''Annie Hall''). He achieved another hit in this decade, with the lead single of his 1977 compilation, ''Greatest Hits, Etc.'', "Slip Slidin' Away", reaching No. 5 in the United States.In 1980 he released ''One Trick Pony'', his debut album with Warner Bros. Records and his first in almost five years. It was paired with the motion picture of the same name, which Simon wrote and starred in. Although it produced his last Top 10 hit with the upbeat "Late in the Evening" (also a No. 1 hit on the Radio & Records American charts), the album did not sell well, in a music market dominated by disco music. Simon recorded ''Hearts and Bones'', a polished and confessional album that was eventually viewed as one of his best works, but that marked a lull in his commercial popularity; both the album and the lead single, "Allergies", missed the American Top 40. ''Hearts and Bones'' included "The Late Great Johnny Ace", a song partly about Johnny Ace, an American R&B; singer, and partly about slain Beatle John Lennon. A successful US solo tour featured Simon and his guitar, with a recording of the rhythm track and horns for "Late In The Evening." In January 1985, Simon lent his talent to USA for Africa and performed on the relief fundraising single "We Are the World".
1986–1992
As he commented years later, after the disappointing commercial performance of ''Hearts and Bones,'' Simon felt he had lost his inspiration to a point of no return, and that his commercial fortunes were unlikely to change. While driving his car in late 1984 in this state of frustration, Simon listened to a cassette of the Boyoyo Boys' instrumental "Gumboots: Accordion Jive Volume II". Interested by the unusual sound, he wrote lyrics to the number which he sang over a re-recording of the song. It was the first composition of a new musical project that became the celebrated album ''Graceland'', an eclectic mixture of musical styles including pop, a cappella, isicathamiya, rock, and mbaqanga. Simon felt that he had nothing to lose. He traveled to South Africa in an attempt to embrace the culture and find the most comfortable environment for recording the album. Sessions in Johannesburg took place in February 1985. Overdubbing and additional recording was done in April, 1986, in New York. The sessions featured many South African musicians and groups, particularly Ladysmith Black Mambazo. Simon also collaborated with several artists of his own culture, singing a memorable duet with Linda Ronstadt in "Under African Skies", and playing with Los Lobos in "All Around the World or The Myth of the Fingerprints". Warner Bros. Records had serious doubts about releasing an album of this eclecticism to the mainstream, but when it did in August 1986, ''Graceland'' was praised by critics and the public and became Simon's most successful solo album. Slowly climbing the worldwide charts, it reached #1 in many countries, including the UK, Canada, Australia and New Zealand, and peaked at #3 in the U.S. It was the second-best-selling album of 1987 in the U.S., selling five million copies and eventually reaching 5x Platinum certification. Another seven million copies were sold internationally to become his best-selling album. Much of the success of the album was due to the lead single, the upbeat "You Can Call Me Al", whose lyrics describe a man experiencing an identity crisis. The track featured many memorable elements – a catchy synthesizer riff, an easy whistle solo, and an unusual bass run in which the second half was a reversed recording of the first half. "You Can Call Me Al" was accompanied with a humorous video featuring actor Chevy Chase, which introduced Simon to a new audience through MTV. In the end, the track reached UK Top 5 and the U.S. Top 25. Further singles, including the title track, "The Boy in the Bubble" and "Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes", were not commercial hits but became radio standards and were highly praised.At age 45, Simon found himself back at the forefront of popular music. He received the Grammy Award for Album of the Year in 1987 and also Grammy Award for Record of the Year for the title track one year later. He also embarked on the very successful ''Graceland Tour'', which was documented on music video. Simon found himself embracing new sounds, a fact that some critics viewed negatively – however, Simon reportedly felt it as a very natural artistic experiment, considering that "world music" was already present on much of his early work, including such Simon & Garfunkel hits as "El Condor Pasa" and his early solo recording "Mother and Child Reunion", which was recorded in Kingston, Jamaica. One way or another, Warner Bros. Records (who by this time now controlled and reissued all his previous Columbia albums) re-established Simon as one of their most successful artists. In an attempt to capitalize on his renewed success, WB Records released the album ''Negotiations and Love Songs'' in November 1988, a mixture of popular hits and personal favorites that covered Simon's entire career and became an enduring seller in his catalog.
After ''Graceland'', Simon decided to extend his roots with the Brazilian music-flavored ''The Rhythm of the Saints''. Sessions for the album began in December 1989, and took place in Rio de Janeiro and New York, featuring guitarist J. J. Cale and many Brazilian and African musicians. The tone of the album was more introspective and relatively low-key compared to the mostly upbeat numbers of ''Graceland''. Released on October 1990, the album received excellent critical reviews and achieved very respectable sales, peaking at #4 in the U.S. and No. 1 in the UK. The lead single, "The Obvious Child", featuring the Grupo Cultural Olodum, was a Top 20 hit in the UK and appeared near the bottom of the Billboard Hot 100. Although not as successful as ''Graceland'', ''The Rhythm of the Saints'' was received as a competent successor and consistent complement on Simon's attempts to explore (and popularize) world music, and also received a Grammy nomination for Album of the Year. Here are also more songs about past loves; his ex-wife Carrie Fisher says in her autobiography ''Wishful Drinking'' that the song "She Moves On" is about her. It's one of several she claims, followed by the line, "If you can get Paul Simon to write a song about you, do it. Because he is so brilliant at it."
The importance of both albums allowed Simon to stage another New York concert, and on August 15, 1991, almost a decade after his concert with Garfunkel, Simon staged another concert in Central Park with both African and South American bands. The success of the concert surpassed all expectations, and reportedly over 750,000 people attended, becoming one of the largest concert audiences in history. He later remembered the concert as the "most memorable moment in my career". The success of the show led to both a live album and an Emmy-winning TV special. In the middle, Simon embarked on the successful ''Born at the Right Time Tour'' and promoted the album with further singles, including "Proof" – accompanied with a humorous video featuring, again, Chevy Chase. On March 4, 1992 he appeared on his own MTV Unplugged, offering renditions of many of his most famous compositions. Broadcast in June, the show was a success, though it did not receive an album release.
1993–1998
After ''Unplugged'', Simon's place in the forefront of popular music dropped notably. A Simon & Garfunkel reunion took place in 1993, and in another attempt to capitalize on the occasion, Columbia released ''Paul Simon 1964/1993'' in September, a three-disc compilation that received a reduced version on the two-disc album ''The Paul Simon Anthology'' one month later. In 1995 he only made news for appearing at The Oprah Winfrey Show, where he performed the song "Ten Years", which he composed specially for the tenth anniversary of the show. Also that year, he was featured on the Annie Lennox version of his 1973 song "Something So Right", which appeared briefly on the UK Top 50 once it was released as a single in November.Since the early stages of the nineties, Simon was fully involved on ''The Capeman'', a musical that finally opened on January 29, 1998. Simon worked enthusiastically on the project for many years and described it as "a New York Puerto Rican story based on events that happened in 1959—events that I remembered." The musical tells the story of real-life Puerto Rican youth Salvador Agron, who wore a cape while committing two murders in 1959 New York, and who went on to become a writer in prison. Featuring Marc Anthony as the young Agron and Ruben Blades as the older Agron, the play received terrible reviews and very poor box office receipts from the very beginning, and ended up closing on March 28 after just 68 performances, becoming a failure from which Simon reportedly lost 11 million dollars. Simon recorded an album of songs from the show, which was released in November 1997. It was received with very mixed reviews, though many critics praised the combination of doo-wop, rockabilly and Caribbean music that the album reflected. In commercial terms, ''Songs from The Capeman'' was a failure—it found Simon missing the Top 40 of the Billboard charts for the first time in his career. The cast album was never released on CD but eventually became available online.
1999–2007
After the disaster of ''The Capeman'', Simon's career was again in an unexpected crisis. However, entering the new millennium he maintained a respectable reputation, offering critically acclaimed new material and receiving commercial attention. In 1999, Simon embarked on a North American tour with Bob Dylan where each alternated as headline act with a "middle" section where they performed together, starting on the first of June and ending September 18. The collaboration was generally well-received, with just one critic, Seth Rogovoy, from the ''Berkshire Eagle'', questioning the collaboration.In an attempt to return successfully to the music market, Simon wrote and recorded a new album very quickly, with ''You're the One'' arriving in October 2000. The album consisted mostly of folk-pop writing combined with foreign musical sounds, particularly grooves from North Africa. While not reaching the commercial heights of previous albums, it managed at least to reach both the British and American Top 20. It received favorable reviews and received a Grammy nomination for Album of the Year. He toured extensively for the album, and one performance in Paris was released to home video.
On September 21, 2001, Simon sang "Bridge Over Troubled Water" on "America: A Tribute to Heroes", a multinetwork broadcast to benefit the September 11 Telethon Fund. In 2002, he wrote and recorded "Father and Daughter", the theme song for the animated children's movie ''The Wild Thornberrys Movie'', The track was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Song. In 2003, he participed on another Simon & Garfunkel reunion. One year later, Simon's studio albums were re-released both individually and together in a limited-edition nine-CD boxed set, ''Paul Simon: The Studio Recordings 1972-2000''.
At the time, Simon was already working on a new album with Brian Eno called ''Surprise'', which was released in May 2006. Most of the album was inspired by the September 11 terrorist attacks, the Iraq invasion and the war that followed. In personal terms, Simon was also inspired by the fact of being over 60 years old, an age that he turned in 2001 and that he humorously referred already on his single "Old" from the ''You're the One''. Simon showed special care about the musical venture he traveled since 1986's ''Graceland.'' As he put it, "Once you go away for a bit, you wonder who people think you are. If they don't know what you're up to, they just go by your history. I'm so often described as this person that went to other cultures, which is true, but I never thought of it that way. I suspect people are thinking, 'What culture did you go to?' But this record is straight-ahead American." ''Surprise'' was a commercial hit, reaching #14 in the Billboard 200 and #4 in the UK. Most critics also praised the album, and many of them called it a real "comeback" for the artist. Stephen Thomas Erlewine from Allmusic paid attention to the attempts of Simon in embracing his classic folk sound with Eno's electronic textures, and wrote that "Simon doesn't achieve his comeback by reconnecting with the sound and spirit of his classic work; he has achieved it by being as restless and ambitious as he was at his popular and creative peak, which makes ''Surprise'' all the more remarkable." The album was supported with the successful ''Surprise Tour''.
On March 1, 2007, Simon made headlines again when he was announced as the first recipient of the recently-created Gershwin Prize for Popular Song. The Prize, created by the Library of Congress, was awarded to Simon during a Concert Gala featuring his music at the Warner Theatre in Washington, D.C., on the evening of May 23. The event was nationally broadcast on PBS on the evening of June 27, 2007. Performers at the concert included Shawn Colvin, Philip Glass, Alison Krauss, Jerry Douglas, Ladysmith Black Mambazo, Lyle Lovett, James Taylor, and Stevie Wonder as well as Simon's former collaborator Art Garfunkel. On June 26, Warner Bros. released the definitive Paul Simon greatest-hits collection. ''The Essential Paul Simon'' consisted of two discs that reviewed 36 songs from his ten studio albums, and was also released on a special edition featuring a DVD of music videos and memorable live performances. The album was a commercial hit, reaching #12 in the UK.
2008–2011
Paul Simon resides in New Canaan, Connecticut. He is one of a small number of performers who are named as the copyright owner on their recordings (most records have the recording company as the named owner of the recording). This noteworthy development was spearheaded by the Bee Gees after their successful $200 million lawsuit against RSO Records, which remains to this day the largest successful lawsuit against a record company by an artist or group.All of Simon's solo recordings, even the ones originally issued by Columbia Records, are currently distributed by Sony Records' Legacy Recordings unit. His recordings were issued by Warner Music until mid-2010.
In February 2009, Simon performed back-to-back shows in his native New York City at the Beacon Theatre, which had recently been renovated. Simon was reunited with Art Garfunkel at the first show as well as with the cast of ''The Capeman''; also playing in the band was ''Graceland'' bassist Bakithi Kumalo.
In May 2009, Simon toured with Art Garfunkel in Australia, New Zealand and Japan.
In October 2009, Simon appeared alongside Art Garfunkel at the 25th Anniversary of The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame concert at Madison Square Garden in New York City. The pair performed four of their most popular songs, "The Sounds of Silence", "The Boxer", "Cecilia", and "Bridge Over Troubled Water".
On April 21, 2010 it was announced that Paul Simon would be an honorary degree recipient at the Brandeis University Commencement ceremony to be held on May 23, 2010. Due to student interest expressed through Facebook, Simon performed "The Boxer" at the 59th Commencement Exercises at the University.
In mid-2010, Simon moved his catalogue of solo work from Warner Bros. Records to Sony/Columbia Records where Simon and Garfunkel's catalogue is. Simon's back catalogue of solo recordings would be marketed by Sony Music's Legacy Recordings unit.
Simon's latest album entitled ''So Beautiful or So What'', was released on the Concord Music Group label on April 12, 2011. The bluegrass-influenced album received high marks from the artist, "It's the best work I've done in 20 years." It was reported that Paul Simon attempted to have Bob Dylan guest on the album.
Simon released a new Christmas song called "Getting Ready for Christmas Day". It premiered on National Public Radio on November 16, 2010, and will be on the forthcoming SBOSW album. The song samples a 1941 sermon by the Rev. J.M. Gates, also entitled "Getting Ready for Christmas Day". Simon performed the song live on ''The Colbert Report'' on December 16, 2010. The song is available for free download or viewing with two videos at www.paulsimon.com. The first video features J.M. Gates' giving the sermon and his church in 2010 with its display board showing many of Simon's lyrics; the second video illustrates the song with cartoon images.
In the premiere show of the final season of ''The Oprah Winfrey Show'' on September 10, 2010, Simon surprised Oprah and the audience with a song dedicated to Oprah and her show lasting 25 years (an update of a song he did for her show's 10th anniversary).
Rounding off his 2011 World Tour, which included U.S.A, England, the Netherlands, Switzerland and Germany, Simon appeared at Ramat Gan Stadium in Israel in July 2011, making his first concert appearance in Israel since 1983.
Projects
Music for Broadway
In the late 1990s, Simon wrote and produced a Broadway musical called ''The Capeman'', which lost $11 million during its 1998 run. In April 2008, the Brooklyn Academy of Music celebrated Paul Simon's works, and dedicated a week to ''Songs From the Capeman'' with a good portion of the show's songs performed by a cast of singers and the Spanish Harlem Orchestra. Simon himself appeared during the BAM shows, performing "Trailways Bus" and "Late In the Evening".
Film and television
Simon has also dabbled in acting. He played music producer Tony Lacey in the 1977 Woody Allen film ''Annie Hall'', and wrote and starred in 1980's ''One Trick Pony'' as Jonah Levin, a journeyman rock and roller. Simon also wrote all the songs in the film. Paul Simon also appeared on ''The Muppet Show'' (the only episode to use only the songs of one songwriter, Simon). In 1990, he played the character of—appropriately enough—Simple Simon on the Disney channel TV movie, ''Mother Goose Rock 'n' Rhyme''.Simon has also appeared on ''Saturday Night Live'' (''SNL'') either as host or musical guest for a total of 13 times. On one appearance in the late 1980s, he worked with his political namesake, Illinois Senator Paul Simon. Simon's most recent ''SNL'' appearance was on the May 14, 2011 episode hosted by Ed Helms.
In one ''SNL'' skit from 1986 (when he was promoting ''Graceland''), Simon plays himself, waiting in line with a friend to get into a movie. He amazes his friend by remembering intricate details about prior meetings with passers-by, but draws a complete blank when approached by Art Garfunkel, despite the latter's numerous memory prompts.
Simon also appeared alongside George Harrison as musical guest on the Thanksgiving Day episode of ''SNL'' (November 20, 1976). The two performed "Here Comes the Sun" and "Homeward Bound"" together, while Simon performed "50 Ways to Leave Your Lover" solo earlier in the show. On that episode, Simon opened the show performing "Still Crazy After All These Years" in a turkey outfit, since Thanksgiving was the following week. About halfway through the song, Simon tells the band to stop playing because of his embarrassment. After giving a frustrating speech to the audience, he leaves the stage, backed by applause. Lorne Michaels positively greets him backstage, but Simon is still upset, yelling at him because of the humiliating turkey outfit. This is one of ''SNL'''s most played sketches.
On September 29, 2001, Simon made a special appearance on the first ''SNL'' to air after the September 11, 2001 attacks. On that show, he performed "The Boxer" to the audience and the NYC firefighters and police officers. He is also friends with former ''SNL'' star Chevy Chase, who appeared in his video for "You Can Call Me Al" lip synching the song while Simon looks disgruntled and mimes backing vocals and the playing of various instruments beside him. He is a close friend of ''SNL'' producer Lorne Michaels, who produced the 1977 TV show ''The Paul Simon Special'', as well as the Simon and Garfunkel concert in Central Park four years later. Simon and Lorne Michaels were the subjects of a 2006 episode of the Sundance channel documentary series, ''Iconoclasts''.
He has been the subject of two films by Jeremy Marre, the first on ''Graceland'', the second on ''The Capeman''.
On November 18, 2008, Simon was a guest on ''The Colbert Report'' promoting his book ''Lyrics 1964-2008''. He did an interview with Stephen Colbert and then performed "American Tune".
Simon performed a Stevie Wonder song at the White House in 2009, at an event honoring Wonder's musical career and contributions.
In May 2009, ''The Library of Congress: Paul Simon and Friends Live Concert'' was released on DVD, via Shout! Factory. The PBS concert was recorded in 2007.
In April 2011 Simon was confirmed to appear at the Glastonbury music festival in England.
Awards and honors
Simon won 12 Grammy Awards (one of them a Lifetime Achievement Award) and five Grammy nominations, the most recent for his album ''You're the One'' in 2001. In 1998 he received a Grammy Hall of Fame Award for the Simon & Garfunkel album ''Bridge over Troubled Water''. He received an Oscar nomination for the song "Father and Daughter" in 2002. He is also a two-time inductee into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame; as a solo artist in 2001, and in 1990 as half of Simon & Garfunkel.In 2001, Simon was honored as MusiCares Person Of The Year. The following year, he was one of the five recipients of the annual Kennedy Center Honors, the nation's highest tribute to performing and cultural artists.
In 2005, Simon was saluted as a BMI Icon at the 53rd Annual BMI Pop Awards. Simon's songwriting catalog has earned 39 BMI Awards including multiple citations for "Bridge Over Troubled Water," "Mrs. Robinson," "Scarborough Fair" and "The Sound of Silence". As of 2005, he has amassed nearly 75 million broadcast airplays, according to BMI surveys.
In 2006, Simon was selected by ''Time Magazine'' as one of the "100 People Who Shaped the World."
In 2007, Simon received the first annual Library of Congress Gershwin Prize for Popular Song in 2007. Stevie Wonder and Paul McCartney were to follow in 2009 and 2010. Named in honor of George and Ira Gershwin, this newly created award recognizes the profound and positive effect of popular music on the world’s culture. Upon being notified of receiving this honor, Simon said, “I am grateful to be the recipient of the Gershwin Prize and doubly honored to be the first. I look forward to spending an evening in the company of artists I admire at the award ceremony in May. I can think of a few who have expressed my words and music far better than I. I’m excited at the prospect of that happening again. It’s a songwriter’s dream come true." Among the performers who paid tribute to Simon were Stevie Wonder, Alison Krauss, Jerry Douglas, Lyle Lovett, James Taylor, Dianne Reeves, Marc Anthony, Yolanda Adams, and Ladysmith Black Mambazo. The event was professionally filmed and broadcast and is now available as ''Paul Simon and Friends''.
In 2010, Simon received an honorary degree from Brandeis University, where he also performed "The Boxer" at the main commencement ceremony.
Personal life
When Simon moved to England in 1964 he met Kathleen Mary "Kathy" Chitty (born 1947) on 12 April 1964 at the very first English folk club he played, the Railway Inn Folk Club in Brentwood, Essex, where Chitty was working part-time selling tickets. She was 17, he was 22 and they fell in love. Later that year they visited the US together, touring around mainly by bus. Kathy returned to England on her own with Simon returning to her some weeks later. When Simon returned to the US with the growing success of "The Sound of Silence" Kathy (who was quite shy) wanted no part of the success and fame that awaited Simon and they split up. She is mentioned by name in at least two of his songs: Kathy's Song and America, and is referred to in Homeward Bound and The Late Great Johnny Ace. There is a photo of Simon and Kathy on the cover of The Paul Simon Song Book.Simon has been married three times, first to Peggy Harper in late autumn 1969. They had a son, Harper Simon, in 1972 and divorced in 1975. The song "Train in the Distance," from Simon's 1983 album, is about this relationship. Simon's 1972 song "Run That Body Down," from his debut solo album, casually mentions both himself and his then-wife ("Peg") by name.
His second marriage, from 1983 to 1984, was to actress and author Carrie Fisher to whom he proposed after a New York Yankees game. (The song "Hearts and Bones" was written about this relationship. The song "Graceland" is also thought to be about seeking solace from the end of this relationship by taking a road trip). A year after divorcing, Simon and Fisher resumed their relationship for several years.
He married folk singer Edie Brickell on May 30, 1992. They have three children together, Adrian, Lulu, and Gabriel.
Philanthropy
Simon is a proponent of music education for children. In 1970, after recording his "Bridge Over Troubled Water," at the invitation of the NYU School of the Arts, Simon held auditions for a young songwriter's workshop. Advertised in the Village Voice, the auditions brought hundreds of hopefuls to perform for Simon. Among the six teenage songwriters Simon selected for tutelage were Melissa Manchester, Tom Mandell and rock/beat poet Joe Linus, with Maggie and Terre Roche (the Roche Sisters), who later sang back-up for Simon, joining the workshop in progress through an impromptu appearance.Simon invited the six teens to experience recording at Columbia studios with engineer Roy Halee at the board. During these sessions, Bob Dylan was downstairs recording the album ''Self-Portrait'', which included a version of Simon's "The Boxer". Violinist Isaac Stern also visited the group with a CBS film crew, speaking to the young musicians about lyrics and music after Joe Linus performed his song "Circus Lion" for Stern.
Manchester later paid homage to Simon, on her recorded song, "Ode to Paul." Other younger musicians Simon has mentored include Nick Laird-Clowes, who later co-founded the band The Dream Academy. Laird-Clowes has credited Simon with helping to shape the band's biggest hit, "Life In A Northern Town".
However in 1971 Simon, as a jury-member of the Rio de Janeiro song contest, did not give any points to the 15-year-old Marianne Rosenberg, an ethnic Sinti (Gypsy) and child of an Auschwitz survivor, because she represented Germany.
In 2003, Simon signed on as an official supporter of Little Kids Rock, a nonprofit organization that provides free musical instruments and free lessons to children in public schools throughout the U.S. He sits on the organization's board of directors as an honorary member.
Simon is also a major benefactor and one of the co-founders, with Dr. Irwin Redlener, of the Children's Health Project and The Children's Health Fund which started by creating specially equipped "buses" to take medical care to children in medically underserved areas, urban and rural. Their first bus was in the impoverished South Bronx of New York City but they now operate in 12 states, including the Gulf Coast. It has expanded greatly, partnering with major hospitals, local public schools and medical schools and advocating policy for children's health and medical care.
Guitars
Gear
Discography
Number-one albums
Work on Broadway
See also
References
External links
Category:1941 births Category:American buskers Category:American composers Category:American folk guitarists Category:American acoustic guitarists Category:American pop guitarists Category:Folk rock musicians Category:American people of Hungarian-Jewish descent Category:American male singers Category:American pop singers Category:American singer-songwriters Category:Emmy Award winners Category:World music musicians Category:BRIT Award winners Category:Grammy Award winners Category:MusiCares Person of the Year Honorees Category:Jewish actors Category:Jewish American musicians Category:Jewish singers Category:Kennedy Center honorees Category:Living people Category:Musicians from New Jersey Category:People from Fairfield County, Connecticut Category:People from Newark, New Jersey Category:People from Queens Category:Queens College, City University of New York alumni Category:Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees Category:Songwriters Hall of Fame inductees Category:Jewish American composers and songwriters Category:Simon & Garfunkel members
ar:باول سيمون cs:Paul Simon da:Paul Simon de:Paul Simon es:Paul Simon fa:پل سایمون fr:Paul Frederic Simon gl:Paul Simon ko:폴 사이먼 id:Paul Simon it:Paul Simon he:פול סיימון sw:Paul Simon hu:Paul Simon nl:Paul Simon (artiest) ja:ポール・サイモン no:Paul Simon nn:Paul Simon pl:Paul Simon pt:Paul Simon ro:Paul Simon ru:Саймон, Пол simple:Paul Simon sk:Paul Simon fi:Paul Simon sv:Paul Simon th:พอล ไซมอน tr:Paul Simon uk:Пол Саймон vi:Paul Simon zh:保罗·西蒙This text is licensed under the Creative Commons CC-BY-SA License. This text was originally published on Wikipedia and was developed by the Wikipedia community.
| Coordinates | 24°6′″N97°12′″N |
|---|---|
| name | The Dave Brubeck Quartet |
| background | group_or_band |
| origin | San Francisco, California, United States |
| genre | Jazz |
| years active | 1951–present |
| website | davebrubeck.com |
| current members | Dave BrubeckBobby MilitelloMichael MooreRandy Jones |
| past members | Paul DesmondBob BatesJoe DodgeRon CrottyLloyd DavisJoe MorelloNorman BatesEugene WrightGerry MulliganJack SixAlan DawsonDarius BrubeckChris BrubeckDan Brubeck |
| notable instruments | }} |
The Dave Brubeck Quartet is an American jazz quartet, founded in 1951 by Dave Brubeck and originally featuring Paul Desmond on saxophone and Brubeck on piano. They took up a long residency at San Francisco's Blackhawk nightclub and gained great popularity touring college campuses, releasing a series of albums with such titles as ''Jazz at Oberlin'', ''Jazz Goes to College'', and ''Jazz Goes to Junior College''.
By 1958, after a handful of different drummers and bassists, the "Classic Quartet" — so-called because it remained as such virtually consistently until the group dissolved — had been assembled, consisting of Brubeck, Desmond, Joe Morello on drums, and Eugene Wright on bass. In 1959, the Dave Brubeck Quartet released ''Time Out'', an album their label was enthusiastic about but nonetheless hesitant to release. The album contained all original compositions, almost none of which were in common time. Nonetheless, on the strength of these unusual time signatures (the album included "Take Five", "Blue Rondo à la Turk", and "Pick Up Sticks"), it quickly went platinum. The quartet followed up its success with several more albums in the same vein, including ''Time Further Out'' (1961), ''Countdown: Time in Outer Space'', ''Time Changes'', and ''Time In''. These albums were also known for using contemporary paintings as cover art, featuring the work of S. Neil Fujita on ''Time Out'', Joan Miró on ''Time Further Out'', Franz Kline on ''Time in Outer Space'', and Sam Francis on ''Time Changes'' (no artist's work, however, was featured on the cover of ''Time In''). A high point for the group was their classic 1963 live album ''At Carnegie Hall'', described by critic Richard Palmer as "arguably Dave Brubeck's greatest concert".
The "classic" Dave Brubeck Quartet broke up in 1967, except for a 25th anniversary reunion in 1976. Brubeck formed a new quartet in 1968. Today, the Dave Brubeck Quartet continues to tour the world, performing hits from the classic Quartet era as well as new material.
Members
Main lineups: ; (1951–1956); (on ''Jazz at Oberlin'', 1953)
; (1956–1958) Transitional quartet – enter Joe Morello
; (1958–1967) Classic quartet – enter Eugene Wright
And after the breakup:
; (1968–1972) Quartet as "The Dave Brubeck Trio & Gerry Mulligan"
; (1972–1976) As "The Darius Brubeck Ensemble" – with three of his sons and one guest; also performed as "Two Generations of Brubeck"
; (1976) Classic quartet reunion – 25th anniversary
; (1977–1990s) As "The New Brubeck Quartet" – with three of his sons and varying guests
; (Early 2000s–present) The Dave Brubeck Quartet
(Not every temporary lineup is listed.)
Discography
References
Category:Musical groups established in 1951 Category:Cool jazz ensembles Category:Columbia Records artists Category:Fantasy Records artists Category:American jazz ensembles Category:Musical groups from California Category:Musical quartets
de:Dave Brubeck Quartet es:The Dave Brubeck Quartet fr:The Dave Brubeck Quartet it:The Dave Brubeck Quartet pl:The Dave Brubeck Quartet pt:The Dave Brubeck Quartet sv:The Dave Brubeck QuartetThis text is licensed under the Creative Commons CC-BY-SA License. This text was originally published on Wikipedia and was developed by the Wikipedia community.
| Coordinates | 24°6′″N97°12′″N |
|---|---|
| Name | Dave Brubeck |
| Background | non_vocal_instrumentalist |
| Birth name | David Warren Brubeck |
| Born | December 06, 1920Concord, California |
| Instrument | Piano |
| Genre | JazzCool jazzWest Coast jazzThird stream |
| Occupation | PianistComposerBandleader |
| Years active | 1940s–present |
| associated acts | Dave Brubeck Quartet |
| Associated artists | Paul DesmondGerry MulliganJoe MorelloEugene Wright |
| Religion | Catholicism }} |
His long-time musical partner, alto saxophonist Paul Desmond, wrote the Dave Brubeck Quartet's best remembered piece, "Take Five", which is in 5/4 time and has endured as a jazz classic on the top-selling jazz album, ''Time Out''. Brubeck experimented with time signatures throughout his career, recording "Pick Up Sticks" in 6/4, "Unsquare Dance" in 7/4, and "Blue Rondo à la Turk" in 9/8. He is also a respected composer of orchestral and sacred music, and wrote soundtracks for television such as ''Mr. Broadway'' and the animated mini-series ''This Is America, Charlie Brown''.
Early life and career
Brubeck was born in Concord, California and grew up in Ione. He is of English (maternal) and Swiss (paternal) ancestry His father, Howard "Pete" Brubeck, was a cattle rancher, and his mother, Elizabeth (née Ivey), who had studied piano in England under Myra Hess and intended to become a concert pianist, taught piano for extra money. Brubeck originally did not intend to become a musician (his two older brothers, Henry and Howard, were already on that track), but took lessons from his mother. He could not read sheet music during these early lessons, attributing this difficulty to poor eyesight, but "faked" his way through, well enough that this deficiency went mostly unnoticed.Intending to work with his father on their ranch, Brubeck entered the College of the Pacific (now the University of the Pacific) studying veterinary science, but transferred on the urging of the head of zoology, Dr Arnold, who told him "Brubeck, your mind's not here. It's across the lawn in the conservatory. Please go there. Stop wasting my time and yours." Later, Brubeck was nearly expelled when one of his professors discovered that he could not read music. Several of his professors came forward, arguing that his ability with counterpoint and harmony more than compensated. The college was still afraid that it would cause a scandal, and agreed to let Brubeck graduate only after he promised never to teach piano.
After graduating in 1942, Brubeck was drafted into the army and served overseas in George Patton's Third Army. He was spared from service in the Battle of the Bulge when he volunteered to play piano at a Red Cross show; he was such a hit he was ordered to form a band. Thus he created one of the U.S. armed forces' first racially integrated bands, "The Wolfpack". While serving, Brubeck met Paul Desmond in early 1944. He returned to college after serving nearly four years in the army, this time attending Mills College and studying under Darius Milhaud, who encouraged him to study fugue and orchestration, but not classical piano. While on active duty, he received two lessons from Arnold Schoenberg at UCLA in an attempt to connect with High Modernism theory and practice. However, the encounter did not end on good terms since Schoenberg believed that every note should be accounted for, an approach which Brubeck could not accept.
After completing his studies under Milhaud, Brubeck helped to establish Berkeley, California's Fantasy Records. He worked with an octet (the recording bears his name only because Brubeck was the best-known member at the time), and a trio including Cal Tjader and Ron Crotty. Highly experimental, the group made few recordings and got even fewer paying jobs. The trio was often joined by Paul Desmond on the bandstand, at Desmond's prodding.
Quartet era
Following a near-fatal swimming accident which incapacitated him for several months, Brubeck organized The Dave Brubeck Quartet in 1951, with Desmond on saxophone. They took up a long residency at San Francisco's Black Hawk nightclub and gained great popularity touring college campuses, recording a series of albums with such titles as ''Jazz at Oberlin'' (1953), ''Jazz at College of the Pacific'' (1953), and Brubeck's debut on Columbia Records, ''Jazz Goes to College'' (1954). In that same year, he was featured on the cover of ''Time'' magazine, the second jazz musician to be so honored (the first was Louis Armstrong on February 21, 1949).Early bassists for the group included Ron Crotty, Bob Bates, and Bob's brother Norman Bates; Lloyd Davis and Joe Dodge held the drum chair. In 1956, Brubeck hired Joe Morello, who had been working with Marian McPartland; Morello's presence made possible the rhythmic experiments that were to come. In 1958 Eugene Wright joined for the group's U.S. State Department tour of Europe and Asia; Wright would become a permanent member in 1959, making the "classic" Quartet's personnel complete.
Wright is African-American; in the late 1950s and early 1960s Brubeck canceled several concerts because the club owners or hall managers resisted the idea of an integrated band on their stages. He also canceled a television appearance when he found out that the producers intended to keep Wright off-camera.
In 1959, the Dave Brubeck Quartet recorded ''Time Out'', an album their label was enthusiastic about but nonetheless hesitant to release. Featuring the album art of S. Neil Fujita, the album contained all original compositions, almost none of which were in common time: 9/8, 5/4, 3/4, and 6/4 were used. Nonetheless, on the strength of these unusual time signatures (the album included "Take Five", "Blue Rondo à la Turk", and "Three To Get Ready"), it quickly went platinum.
''Time Out'' was followed by several albums with a similar approach, including ''Time Further Out: Miro Reflections'' (1961), using more 5/4, 6/4, and 9/8, plus the first attempt at 7/4; ''Countdown: Time in Outer Space'' (dedicated to John Glenn) (1962), featuring 11/4 and more 7/4; and ''Time Changes'' (1963), with much 3/4, 10/4 (which was really 5+5), and 13/4. These albums were also known for using contemporary paintings as cover art, featuring the work of Joan Miró on ''Time Further Out'', Franz Kline on ''Time in Outer Space'', and Sam Francis on ''Time Changes''.
A high point for the group was their 1963 live album ''At Carnegie Hall'', described by critic Richard Palmer as "arguably Dave Brubeck's greatest concert".
In the early '60s, Brubeck and his wife Iola developed a jazz musical, ''The Real Ambassadors'', based in part on experiences they and their colleagues had during foreign tours on behalf of the U.S. State Department. The soundtrack album, which featured Louis Armstrong, Lambert, Hendricks & Ross, and Carmen McRae was recorded in 1961; the musical itself was performed at the 1962 Monterey Jazz Festival.
At their peak in the early '60s, the Brubeck Quartet was releasing as many as four albums a year. Apart from the 'College' and the 'Time' series, Brubeck recorded four LPs featuring his compositions based on the group's travels, and the local music they encountered. ''Jazz Impressions of the USA'' (1956, Morello's debut with the group), ''Jazz Impressions of Eurasia'' (1958), ''Jazz Impressions of Japan'' (1964), and ''Jazz Impressions of New York'' (1964) are less well-known albums, but all are brilliant examples of the quartet's studio work, and they produced Brubeck standards such as "Summer Song," "Brandenburg Gate," "Koto Song," and "Theme From ''Mr. Broadway''." (Brubeck wrote, and the Quartet performed, the theme song for the Craig Stevens CBS drama series; the music from the series became material for the "New York" album.)
In 1961 Dave Brubeck appeared in a few scenes of the British Jazz/Beat film ''All Night Long'', which starred Patrick McGoohan and Richard Attenborough. Brubeck merely plays himself, and his piano playing includes closeups of his fingerings. Brubeck performs "It's a Raggy Waltz" from the ''Time Further Out'' album and duets briefly with bassist Charles Mingus in "Non-Sectarian Blues".
In the early 1960s Dave Brubeck was the program director of WJZZ-FM radio (now WEZN). He achieved his vision of an all jazz format radio station along with his friend and neighbor John E. Metts, one of the first African Americans in senior radio management.
The final studio album for Columbia by the Desmond/Wright/Morello quartet was ''Anything Goes'' (1966) featuring Cole Porter songs. A few concert recordings followed, and ''The Last Time We Saw Paris'' (1967) was the "Classic" Quartet's swansong.
Later career
Brubeck's disbanding of the Quartet at the end of 1967 allowed him more time to compose the longer, extended orchestral and choral works that were occupying his attention (to say nothing of Brubeck's desire to spend more time with his family). February 1968 saw the premiere of ''The Light in the Wilderness'' for baritone solo, choir, organ, the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra conducted by Erich Kunzel, and Brubeck improvising on certain themes within. The piece is an oratorio on Jesus's teachings. The next year, Brubeck produced ''The Gates of Justice'', a cantata mixing Biblical scripture with the words of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.Further works followed, including the 1971 cantata ''Truth Is Fallen'' (now re-issued on CD by Collectables Records ), written in protest of the Vietnam War, and also dedicated to the memory of the Kent State shootings and Jackson State killings of May 1970. The work was premiered in Midland, Michigan on May 1, 1971 and released on LP in 1972.
Brubeck's jazz playing did not cease. He was quickly prevailed upon by Newport Jazz Festival producer George Wein to tour with Gerry Mulligan. A Brubeck "Trio" was soon formed: Jack Six on bass, and Alan Dawson on drums. From 1968 until 1973, The Dave Brubeck Trio featuring Gerry Mulligan performed extensively, releasing several concert albums (including one with guest Desmond) and one studio album.
In 1973 Brubeck formed another group with three of his sons, Darius on keyboards, Dan on drums, and Chris on electric bass or bass trombone. This group often included Perry Robinson, clarinet, and Jerry Bergonzi, saxophone. Brubeck would record and tour with this "Two Generations of Brubeck" group until 1978.
Brubeck and Desmond recorded an album of duets in 1975, then the Classic Quartet reassembled for a 25th anniversary reunion in 1976. Desmond died in 1977.
thumb|Dave Brubeck at Blue Note Jazz Club in 2011Brubeck's Quartet has remained vital, a primary creative outlet for the pianist. Bergonzi became a member and remained with the band until 1982. This version featured Chris Brubeck, and Randy Jones on drums. Jones joined in 1979 and is still with the band after over 30 years. Replacing Bergonzi was Brubeck's old friend Bill Smith, who knew Brubeck at Mills College and was a member of Brubeck's Octet in the late 1940s; he remained in the group through the '80s and recorded with it off and on until 1995. The best recording of this Smith/Brubeck/Jones Quartet is probably their remarkable ''Moscow Night'' concert of 1987, released on Concord Records.
The Quartet currently includes alto saxophonist and flautist Bobby Militello, bassist Michael Moore (who replaced Alec Dankworth), and Randy Jones.
In 1994, Brubeck was inducted into the ''Down Beat'' Jazz Hall of Fame.
Brubeck continues to write new works, including orchestral and ballet scores. He has worked extensively with the London Symphony Orchestra and tours about 80 cities each year.
At the 49th Monterey Jazz Festival in September 2006, Brubeck debuted his commissioned work, ''Cannery Row Suite'', a jazz opera drawn from the characters in John Steinbeck's American classic writing about Monterey's roots as a sardine fishing and packing town. Iola (''née'' Whitlock), Brubeck's wife since 1942, is his personal secretary, manager and lyricist, and co-authored the Cannery Row Suite with Dave. His performance of this as well as a number of jazz standards with his current quartet was the buzz of the Festival (an event Brubeck helped launch in 1958).
Because of his advancing years, Brubeck's touring has naturally decreased in activity. He announced at the end of 2008 that he would no longer tour internationally. On April 3, 2009, Brubeck was scheduled to play the album ''Time Out'' in its entirety to commemorate its 50th anniversary at the annual Brubeck Festival, but was not able to because of being in hospital with a viral infection. His son Darius filled in on piano with the rest of his quartet. A scheduled October, 2010 concert in St. Louis, MO was canceled after Brubeck's doctors advised against traveling and performing. He had a heart problem and was experiencing fatigue and dizziness. His doctors installed a pacemaker in his heart. His surgery was doing so well that his doctors said that he could resume his concert touring in November. He performed sold out shows at the Blue Note in New York City on Thanksgiving weekend, 2010, celebrating his 90th birthday.
Personal life
Four of Brubeck's six children are professional musicians. Darius, the eldest, is an accomplished pianist, producer, educator and performer. (He was named after Dave Brubeck's mentor Darius Milhaud.) Dan is a renowned percussionist, Chris is a multi-instrumentalist and composer. Matthew, the youngest, is a versatile cellist with an impressive list of composing and performance credits. Brubeck's children often join with him in concerts and in the recording studio.Brubeck believed what he saw during World War II contradicted the Ten Commandments, and the war evoked a spiritual awakening. He became a Catholic in 1980, shortly after completing the Mass ''To Hope'' which had been commissioned by Ed Murray, editor of the national Catholic weekly ''Our Sunday Visitor''. Although he had spiritual interests before that time, he said, "I didn't convert to Catholicism, because I wasn't anything to convert from. I just joined the Catholic Church." In 1996, he received the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. In 2006, Brubeck was awarded the University of Notre Dame's Laetare Medal, the oldest and most prestigious honor given to American Catholics, during the University's commencement. He performed "Travellin' Blues" for the graduating class of 2006.
Brubeck founded the Brubeck Institute with his wife Iola at their alma mater, the University of the Pacific in 2000. What began as a special archive, consisting of the personal document collection of the Brubecks has since expanded to provide fellowships and educational opportunities in jazz for students, also leading to having one of the main streets the school resides on named in his honor, Dave Brubeck Way.
On April 8, 2008, United States Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice presented Brubeck with a "Benjamin Franklin Award for Public Diplomacy" for offering an American "vision of hope, opportunity and freedom" through his music. "As a little girl I grew up on the sounds of Dave Brubeck because my dad was your biggest fan," said Rice. The State Department said in a statement that "as a pianist, composer, cultural emissary and educator, Dave Brubeck's life's work exemplifies the best of America's cultural diplomacy." At the ceremony Brubeck played a brief recital for the audience at the State Department. "I want to thank all of you because this honor is something that I never expected. Now I am going to play a cold piano with cold hands," Brubeck stated.
California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and First Lady Maria Shriver announced on May 28, 2008 that Brubeck would be inducted into the California Hall of Fame, located at The California Museum for History, Women and the Arts. The induction ceremony occurred December 10, and he was inducted alongside eleven other legendary Californians.
In September 2009, the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts announced Brubeck as a Kennedy Center Honoree for exhibiting excellence in performance arts. The Kennedy Center Honors Gala took place on Sunday, December 6 (Brubeck's 89th birthday) and was broadcast nationwide on CBS on December 29 at 9:00 pm EST.
On September 20, 2009, at Monterey Jazz Festival, Brubeck was awarded an honorary Doctor of Music degree (D.Mus. ''honoris causa'') from Berklee College of Music.
On May 16, 2010, Brubeck was awarded an honorary Doctor of Music degree (honoris causa) from The George Washington University in Washington, DC. The ceremony took place on the National Mall.
On July 5, 2010, Brubeck was awarded the Miles-Davis Award at the Montreal International Jazz Festival.In 2010, Bruce Ricker and Clint Eastwood produced a documentary ''Dave Brubeck: In His Own Sweet Way'' about Brubeck for Turner Classic Movies (TCM) to commemorate his 90th birthday in December 2010.
Brubeck has become a supporter of the Jazz Foundation of America in their mission to save the homes and the lives of elderly jazz and blues musicians, including musicians that survived Hurricane Katrina. Brubeck supported the Jazz Foundation by performing in their annual benefit concert "A Great Night in Harlem" in 2006.
Discography
Awards
References
Bibliography
External links
Category:American jazz composers Category:American jazz pianists Category:American jazz songwriters Category:American military personnel of World War II Category:American Roman Catholics Category:Concord Records artists Category:Converts to Roman Catholicism Category:Cool jazz pianists Category:Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award winners Category:Kennedy Center honorees Category:Musicians from California Category:Musicians from the San Francisco Bay Area Category:People from Concord, California Category:United States Army soldiers Category:United States National Medal of Arts recipients Category:University of the Pacific (United States) alumni Category:West Coast jazz pianists Category:1920 births Category:Living people
be:Дэйв Брубек ca:Dave Brubeck cs:Dave Brubeck da:Dave Brubeck de:Dave Brubeck es:Dave Brubeck eo:Dave Brubeck fa:دیو بروبک fr:Dave Brubeck it:Dave Brubeck he:דייב ברובק sw:Dave Brubeck lb:Dave Brubeck hu:Dave Brubeck nl:Dave Brubeck ja:デイヴ・ブルーベック no:Dave Brubeck nn:Dave Brubeck nds:Dave Brubeck pl:Dave Brubeck pt:Dave Brubeck ru:Брубек, Дейв sk:Dave Brubeck sr:Дејв Брубек fi:Dave Brubeck sv:Dave Brubeck tr:Dave Brubeck uk:Дейв БрубекThis text is licensed under the Creative Commons CC-BY-SA License. This text was originally published on Wikipedia and was developed by the Wikipedia community.
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