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Jon Stone (April 13, 1931 – April 7, 1997) is best known for writing and producing Sesame Street, and is credited with helping develop characters such as Big Bird, Cookie Monster and Oscar the Grouch.^[1] He is regarded by many as one of the best children's television writers.

Born in New Haven, Connecticut, Stone graduated from Williams College in 1952. He received a master's degree from the Yale University School of Drama in 1955, at which time he joined a CBS training program. It was then that Stone began his work in children's television, as a writer for Captain Kangaroo before moving onto Sesame Street as writer and executive producer. He also worked on several other Muppet projects before and during his time on Sesame Street, and was the author of several children's books, particularly The Monster at the End of This Book, published by Random House as a Little Golden Book.

Stone was married to former actress Beverley Owen, who was best remembered as the original 'Marilyn' on The Munsters first 13-episode 1964 season. During production, Owen was distraught over the separation-by-distance of her then-boyfriend, who was living on the east coast. Because of this, by late 1964 Owen was released from her contract, and left her Hollywood TV career to join and eventually marry Stone in New York The couple later had two daughters, Polly and Kate, before divorcing a decade later in 1974.

Stone's earliest association with Jim Henson came in 1965, working on fairy tale projects, along with writer Tom Whedon, such as a proposed Snow White series. This was turned into a Cinderella pilot, which was shot in October of that year but never aired, and eventually became Hey, Cinderella!. Stone also appeared in Henson's 1967 short film Ripples, as an introspective architect.

In 1968, Stone brought Henson and Joe Raposo (who also worked on Hey, Cinderella!) to the attention of Children's Television Workshop president Joan Ganz Cooney when she started putting together Sesame Street. He wrote the pilot script, and was one of the three original producers of the program; he later served as an executive producer for many years.

Stone eventually became Sesame Street director from 1969 until 1994. He also directed the 1995 Christmas special Mr. Willowby's Christmas Tree. Stone died in New York, on March 13, 1997 of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Posthumously, a memorial bench on the Literary Walk in Central Park was dedicated to Stone. The bench is located directly to the right of the bench dedicated to Jim Henson. In his New York Times obituary, Joan Ganz Cooney describes Stone as "probably the most brilliant writer of children's television material in America.”

References[link]

1. ^ Obituary: Jon Stone, Helmore, Edward, The Independent. April 22, 1997.

External links[link]

• Jon Stone at the Internet Movie Database

Lee Brice (born June 10, 1979) is an American country music singer signed to Curb Records. His highest-charting single is "A Woman Like You", which reached #1 in April 2012. He also had Billboard's Top Country Song of 2010 with "Love Like Crazy", the title track to his 2010 debut album; the song spent 56 weeks on the Hot Country Songs chart, peaking at #3 and setting a record for the longest run in the chart's history.

Besides his own material, he has co-written singles for Garth Brooks, Adam Gregory, and Tim McGraw.

Biography[link]

Lee Brice was born June 10, 1979 in Sumter, South Carolina.^[1] As a child, he learned to play the piano in addition to singing in church and writing his own songs.^[2] He entered and won three different talent contests in high school.

He attended Clemson University on a football scholarship. He played special teams as the long snapper, but, after an arm injury, he decided to focus on a country music career.

Musical career[link]

By 2007, Lee Brice had begun working as a songwriter, with cuts by Jason Aldean, Keith Gattis, and Cowboy Crush.^[2] Along with Billy Montana and Kyle Jacobs, he co-wrote Garth Brooks' 2007 single "More Than a Memory",^[2] which became the first single in the history of the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart to debut at #1.^[3]

Also in 2007, he signed to Curb Records, releasing his debut single "She Ain't Right", which peaked #29 on the country chart.^[4] It was followed by "Happy Endings" and "Upper Middle Class White Trash" at #32 and #44, respectively.^[4] All three songs were to have been included on an album entitled Picture of Me,^[2] which was never released. He continued to write songs for others, including Canadian singer Adam Gregory's singles "Crazy Days" and "What It Takes". He appeared on Cledus T. Judd's 2007 album Boogity, Boogity - A Tribute to the Comedic Genius of Ray Stevens, singing duet vocals on a rendition of the Albert E. Brumley gospel song "Turn Your Radio On".

In August 2009, Brice charted with his fourth single, "Love Like Crazy",^[5] a song written by Tim James and Doug Johnson. It was the first release from his debut album of the same name, on which he co-produced all but one track with Johnson.^[6] "Love Like Crazy" reached Top 10 on the country music chart in July 2010 during its forty-sixth week on the chart, setting a record for the slowest climb into the Top 10.^[7] In September 2010, the song charted for a fifty-sixth week, making it the longest-charting song in the chart's history; it broke a record set by Eddy Arnold, whose 1948 single "Bouquet of Roses" spent fifty-four weeks on the chart.^[8] The album's second single was "Beautiful Every Time" (#30). Also in 2010, Brice co-wrote labelmate Tim McGraw's single "Still".^[5]

In late 2011, Lee Brice released his sixth single, "A Woman Like You", the first release from a second album for Curb, Hard 2 Love, which was released on April 24, 2012.^[9] In April it became his first number one hit.

Discography[link]

Studio albums[link]

Extended plays[link]

Singles[link]

• ^ACurrent single.

Music videos[link]

Awards and nominations[link]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official Lee Brice Website
• Lee Brice on Myspace

Joss Stone
Stone at the 2007 MuchMusic Video Awards
Background information
Birth name	Jocelyn Eve Stoker
Born	(1987-04-11) 11 April 1987 (age 25) Dover, Kent, England, UK
Genres	Soul, R&B, blues, jazz
Occupations	Singer-songwriter, actress
Years active	2001–present
Labels	Relentless, S-Curve, Virgin, Stone'd, Surfdog
Associated acts	SuperHeavy
Website	www.jossstone.com

Jocelyn Eve Stoker^[1] (born 11 April 1987), better known by her stage name Joss Stone, is an English soul singer-songwriter and actress. Stone rose to fame in late 2003 with her multi-platinum debut album, The Soul Sessions, which made the 2004 Mercury Prize shortlist. Her second album, the equally multiplatinum Mind Body & Soul, topped the UK Albums Chart for one week and spawned the top ten hit "You Had Me", Stone's most successful single on the UK Singles Chart to date. Both album and single each received one nomination at the 2005 Grammy Awards, while Stone herself was nominated for Best New Artist, and in an annual BBC poll of music critics, Sound of 2004^[2] was ranked fifth as a predicted breakthrough act of 2004.^[2] She became the youngest British female singer to top the UK Albums Chart in history to have her first album at number one. In early 2009, she joined the eclectic supergroup SuperHeavy.

Stone's third album, Introducing Joss Stone, released in March 2007, achieved gold record status by the RIAA and yielded the second-ever highest debut for a British female solo artist on the Billboard 200, which became Stone's first Top 5 album in the United States and first non-Top 10 album in the United Kingdom. Stone released her fourth album, Colour Me Free!, on 20 October 2009, which reached the Top 10 on Billboard. Stone released her fifth album, LP1, on 22 July 2011, which reached the Top 10 on Billboard. Throughout her career, Stone has sold eleven million albums, establishing herself as one of the best-selling artists of her time, best-selling soul artists of the 2000s and best-selling British artists of her time.^[3] Her first three albums have sold over 2,722,000 copies in the United States, while her first two albums have sold over 2,000,000 copies in United Kingdom. Stone has won two BRIT Awards and one Grammy Award. She also made her film acting debut in 2006 with the fantasy adventure film Eragon, and made her television debut portraying Anne of Cleves in the Showtime series The Tudors in 2009.^[4] Stone was the youngest woman on the 2006 Sunday Times Rich List^[5][6]—an annual list of the UK's wealthiest people—with £6 million. In 2012, her fortune is estimated to be £10 million, making her the fifth richest British musician under 30.^[7]

Life and career[link]

Childhood and youth[link]

Stone was born at Buckland Hospital in Dover, Kent^[8] and spent her teenage years in Ashill, a small village near Cullompton in Devon. She is the third of four children born to Richard and Wendy Stoker.^[9] Her father owns a fruit and nut import/export business;^[10] her mother worked as Stone's manager until October 2004.^[11] Stone made her first public appearance at the Uffculme Comprehensive School—which she attended^[12]—in Uffculme, Devon, with a cover version of Jackie Wilson's 1957 song "Reet Petite".^[13] Stone blames her dyslexia for the fact that she left school at age sixteen with only three GCSE qualifications. "It wasn't that I was stupid. I'm just a little bit dyslexic and I wasn't very academic. I'm more artistic", she says.^[14]

Stone grew up listening to a wide variety of music including 1960s and 1970s American R&B and soul music performed by such artists as Dusty Springfield and Aretha Franklin. As a result, she developed a soulful style of singing like her idols. "My first CD that I owned was Aretha Franklin: Greatest Hits. And I saw the advert on TV and it was just like little clips of her songs. I had no idea who she was—I was only like 10 so. I said, 'Oh yeah, that looks really good', so I wrote it down and I said to my mum, 'Can I have that for Christmas?' So she told my friend Dennis, who always gets me good music anyway, and he got that for me. So that was one of my first albums that I loved."^[15] She would later tell MTV News: "I kind of clicked into soul music more than anything else because of the vocals. You've got to have good vocals to sing soul music and I always liked it ever since I was little."^[16]

[edit] 2001–2005: The Soul Sessions & Mind Body Soul era

Joss Stone during Mind, Body & Soul Sessions Tour.

In 2001, at the age of thirteen, Stone auditioned for the BBC Television talent show Star for a Night in London singing Franklin's 1968 Goffin-King hit "(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman" and Whitney Houston's 1998 "It's Not Right but It's Okay".^[10] After passing her audition, she sang Donna Summer's 1979 "On the Radio" for the broadcast, and eventually won the contest. She also appeared on and won Steps to the Stars (a TV programme hosted by H & Claire of the group Steps).^[10] Stone then performed on a charity show, where she drew the attention of the Boilerhouse Boys, composed of London-based producers Andy Dean and Ben Wolfe, who contacted S-Curve Records founder and chief executive officer Steve Greenberg in December 2001 telling him that "they had just heard the greatest singer they'd ever heard from their country."^[17] In early 2002, Greenberg flew Stone to New York City for an audition, in which she sang to backing tracks of classic soul songs: Otis Redding's 1968 "(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay", Gladys Knight & the Pips' 1973 "Midnight Train to Georgia", and Franklin's "(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman";^[17] Greenberg instantly signed her to his label.^[10]

After being signed by S-Curve Records, her U.S. market album was released by the label S-Curve Records and in the international market her album was released by the label EMI Music. Stone flew to Miami and Philadelphia to start work on her debut album, The Soul Sessions, released on 16 September 2003. She collaborated with people with solid credentials in the Miami soul scene such as Betty Wright, Benny Latimore, Timmy Thomas and Little Beaver as well as contemporary acts Angie Stone and the Roots. The album consists of little-known soul tracks by Wright, Franklin, Laura Lee, Bettye Swann and others. Released in late 2003, it reached the top five on the UK Albums Chart as well as the top forty of the U.S. Billboard 200 chart. The lead single, "Fell in Love with a Boy", a reworking of the White Stripes' 2001 "Fell in Love with a Girl", reached the top 20 of the UK Singles Chart, as did the second single, a cover version of Sugar Billy's 1974 song "Super Duper Love (Are You Diggin' on Me)". The album eventually went triple platinum by the British Phonographic Industry in mid-April 2005^[18] and gold by the Recording Industry Association of America in late March 2004.^[19]

Stone performing live in Milan in 2005, during Mind, Body & Soul Sessions Tour.

After achieving critical acclaim with The Soul Sessions, Stone recorded her second album—this time with new material—Mind Body & Soul, released on 28 September 2004. She called the album her real debut.^[20] It proved to be an even bigger success than her previous album, as it debuted at number one in the UK (breaking the record for the youngest female ever to top the UK Albums Chart,^[21] a record previously held by Avril Lavigne) and just missed the top ten of the U.S. Billboard 200, after peaking at number 11. The lead single, "You Had Me", became her biggest hit to date when it rose to number nine in the UK. Follow-up singles "Right to Be Wrong" and "Spoiled" both made the top 40, and "Don't Cha Wanna Ride", the top 20. "Spoiled" landed just outside the top 50 of U.S. Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, peaking at number 54. In early September 2005, Mind, Body & Soul was certified triple platinum by the BPI^[22] and platinum by the RIAA.^[19] In 2004, Stone began dating Beau Dozier, with whom she co-wrote the song "Spoiled". Dozier is the son of Motown producer Lamont Dozier, who is best known as part of Holland-Dozier-Holland. The two split up in November 2005.^[23]

Stone joined Band Aid 20 on 14 November 2004 in benefit of Sudan's troubled Darfur region. The group, consisting of such luminaries as Coldplay lead singer Chris Martin and U2 lead singer Bono, re-recorded the 1984 song "Do They Know It's Christmas?", written by Band Aid organisers Bob Geldof and Midge Ure. Stone, born two years after the release of the original single, was not initially aware of who Bob Geldof was.^[24] The media gleefully reported that she repeatedly referred to him as Bob Gandalf.^[25] Despite some criticism, the single became the UK's biggest-selling single of 2004^[26] as well as the 2004 Christmas number-one single. At the 2005 BRIT Awards, Stone won for British Female Solo Artist and British Urban Act—entering the Guinness World Records as the youngest BRIT Award solo winner at age seventeen—, and was nominated for British Breakthrough Act.^[27] She also received a nomination for Best UK Act of the Year at the 2005 MOBO Awards,^[28] as well as three nominations for the 2005 Grammy Awards—Best New Artist, Best Female Pop Vocal Performance for "You Had Me", and Best Pop Vocal Album for Mind Body & Soul^[10]—, where she sang with rock performer Melissa Etheridge, in tribute to blues-rock singer Janis Joplin. Their performance of "Cry Baby/Piece of My Heart" was released as a single, and through the aid of strong digital download sales, became Stone's first single to enter the U.S. Billboard Hot 100, when it debuted and peaked at number 32 the week of 2 April 2005.^[29] That same year, she was voted the World's Sexiest Vegetarian by peta2, alongside Chris Martin.^[30]

In March 2005, Stone was named the spokesperson for the Gap clothing company, replacing the actress Sarah Jessica Parker.^[31] She appeared in a television advertisement for that store chain singing a cover of Ray Charles's 1958 song "Night Time Is the Right Time" (retitled "The Right Time").^[32] Stone also appeared in one of Gap's Fall 2005 "Favorites" commercials, singing the Beach Boys' 1966 song "God Only Knows".^[33] By that time, rumours circulated about her being dropped from the campaign because she was living with then-25-year-old songwriter and producer Beau Dozier (son of Motown producer and composer Lamont Dozier) in Los Angeles while she was only 17.^[34] However, Gap later denied the rumours, stating that they were very happy with Stone and telling BBC Radio 1 that the claims were "absolute tosh" and "a complete fabrication".^[35] On 11 April 2005, Stone performed "Spoiled", Rufus' 1974 song "Tell Me Something Good" with John Legend, Otis Redding's 1966 song "Try a Little Tenderness" with Donna Summer, and 1977's "Hot Legs" with Rod Stewart at "Save the Music: A Concert to Benefit the VH1 Save the Music Foundation", in benefit of VH1's Save the Music Foundation.^[36] Three months later, on 2 July 2005, Stone performed "Super Duper Love", "I Had a Dream", and "Some Kind of Wonderful" at the Live 8 concert at Hyde Park, London.

[edit] 2006–2008: Film debut and Introducing Joss Stone era

Stone at Pepsi On Stage, Porto Alegre, Brazil.

Stone performed a medley of "It's a Man's World" and "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag" with funk legend James Brown on BBC One's chat show Friday Night with Jonathan Ross on 1 July 2005.^[37] Stone collaborated with jazz pianist Herbie Hancock and blues singer-guitarist Jonny Lang on a cover of U2's 1988 song "When Love Comes to Town" for Hancock's 2005 album Possibilities. That same year, Stone was featured along with Sean Paul on Santana's "Cry Baby Cry", and worked with Patti LaBelle on a remake of the latter's 1985 song "Stir It Up" for the soundtrack to the Disney animated film Chicken Little.^[38] She also collaborated with Lemar in 2006 on his third studio album, The Truth About Love, on the track "Anniversary". On 5 February 2006, Stone joined Stevie Wonder, India.Arie, and John Legend during the Super Bowl XL pre-game ceremonies to perform a medley of Wonder's hits. Three days later, on 8 February, on the night of the 2006 Grammy Awards, she helped perform a medley of Sly & the Family Stone's hits alongside Legend, Ciara, Maroon 5, will.i.am, Robert Randolph, Steven Tyler and Joe Perry. Stone made her film debut in the fantasy adventure film Eragon (based on the 2003 novel of the same name by Christopher Paolini), directed by Stefen Fangmeier and released on 15 December 2006, playing the fortune teller Angela.^[39] At the 2007 Grammy Awards, Stone shared the award for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals for her collaboration with John Legend and Van Hunt on their 2005 cover of Sly & the Family Stone's 1971 chart-topper "Family Affair".^[40]

Stone at the 2007 MuchMusic Video Awards.

Stone with BBC Radio 2 presenter Chris Evans in 2007

Stone caused controversy at the 2007 BRIT Awards ceremony on 14 February 2007 while presenting the award for British Male Solo Artist (won by James Morrison). Speaking in a fake American accent, she gave a largely incoherent speech about Robbie Williams, who had been the target of earlier jokes made by host Russell Brand. Williams had been reported as going into rehabilitation that same week. As her speech continued, she made remarks about Brand, implying that he was heading for rehabilitation himself (while singing a passage of Amy Winehouse's hit "Rehab").^[41] In response to the British media's reaction, Stone responded, "At the end of the day, I don't give a fuck if people have a problem with my accent. That's all I can say about it. The words I say do not change. If the way that it sounds is skew-wiff and you don't like it, don't listen. I'm not being a cruel person by sounding a different way. And I can't help it. I've been [in America working] since I was, like, 14."^[42] Stone, a vegetarian since birth—having been brought up as one by her parents^[43] — was photographed by Justin Borucki posing with a chicken in an advert for PETA in March 2007, whose tagline states, "I am Joss Stone and I am a vegetarian".^[44]

Stone began work on her third studio album, Introducing Joss Stone, at Compass Point Studios in Nassau, Bahamas, in May 2006.^[45] Released on 12 March 2007, the album was coordinated by A&R Chris Anokute, produced by Raphael Saadiq, and included collaborations with Lauryn Hill, Common, and Joi.^[46] Virgin Records describes the album as "an electrifying mix of warm vintage soul, 1970s-style R&B, Motown girl-group harmonies, and hip-hop grooves".^[47] Stone herself describes it as "truly me. That's why I'm calling it Introducing Joss Stone. These are my words, and this is who I am as an artist."^[47] She also revealed on The Tavis Smiley Show that her break-up with Beau Dozier was a source of inspiration while writing Introducing Joss Stone.^[48] The album debuted and peaked at number twelve on the UK Albums Chart, not managing to match the success of Stone's two previous albums. It nevertheless debuted at number two on the Billboard 200 selling 118,000 copies in its first week,^[49] becoming the highest debut for a British solo female artist on the U.S. chart, surpassing the record previously held by Amy Winehouse with Back to Black^[50] (which in turn would later be outdone by Leona Lewis, whose album Spirit debuted at number one the week of 26 April 2008).^[51]

"Tell Me 'Bout It", the album's lead single, debuted and peaked at number twenty-eight on the UK Singles Chart—where it stayed for three weeks only—, and peaked at number eighty-three on the U.S Billboard Hot 100. The second single, "Tell Me What We're Gonna Do Now", a collaboration with rapper Common, failed to chart inside the UK top seventy-five, but made the top sixty-five of the U.S. Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs. Stone and Common turned the single's music video into a Product Red, reverting 100% of the gains from copies of the video purchased from iTunes to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. Stone is the first Product Red artist to do so.^[52] "Baby Baby Baby" was released digitally in December 2007 and physically in January 2008 as the third single. In support of the album, Stone embarked on a North American tour which began on 27 April at Foxwoods Resort Casino in Ledyard, Connecticut and ended on 13 June at the Filene Center in Vienna, Virginia, visiting sixteen cities in total including Philadelphia, San Francisco, Vancouver, Chicago, Toronto, New York City and Boston.^[53] Two months later, she went on a North American late-summer tour which kicked off on 27 August at the Greek Theatre in Los Angeles, California and ended on 29 September at the Crossroads in Kansas City, Missouri, covering twelve cities—this time including Mexico City.^[54]

[edit] 2009–present: Colour Me Free!, LP1 and SuperHeavy era

Stone during festival, part of the Colour Me Free! World Tour.

Stone was photographed by Canadian singer-guitarist and photographer Bryan Adams for Phonak's Hear the World initiative, whose main goal is to raise global awareness for the topic of hearing and hearing loss. "Being able to hear means that you can enjoy all the sounds of the world", she said.^[55] On 7 July 2007, Stone performed at the South African leg of the Live Earth concerts at the Coca Cola Dome in Johannesburg, to promote awareness of global warming. She sang the Introducing Joss Stone tracks "Girl They Won't Believe It", "Headturner", "Tell Me What We're Gonna Do Now", "Music", and "Tell Me 'bout It", as well as Mind, Body & Soul's "Right to Be Wrong" and "Gimme Shelter", the latter with Angélique Kidjo. Stone covered Nat King Cole's 1965 classic "L-O-V-E" for an advertising campaign for Chanel's Coco Mademoiselle fragrance. On 29 November 2007, Stone joined Jeff Beck on a duet of the Impressions's 1965 song "People Get Ready" as part of his series of concerts at London's Ronnie Scott jazz club, documented on the DVD Performing This Week: Live at Ronnie Scott's. In order to raise the awareness of AIDS, Annie Lennox joined forces with twenty-three female acts (including Stone) and recorded the song "Sing", which was released on World AIDS Day on 1 December 2007, when Lennox performed at one of Nelson Mandela's 46664 concerts at Johannesburg's Ellis Park Stadium. In mid-December 2007, Stone was named the new Flake girl to star in a series of television adverts for the Cadbury Schweppes product in the spring of 2008. According to the company, she is the first non-model to take the role.^[56]

Stone walking at the Heart Truth charity fashion show 2008.

In March 2008, Stone signed up for the role of a lesbian named Stephanie in the British romantic comedy Snappers. In addition to acting, she produced the film's soundtrack. The film, also starring Chloe Howman, Caroline Quentin and Bruce Jones, premiered at the English Riviera Comedy Film Festival in September 2008.^[57] Stone made her television debut portraying Henry VIII's fourth wife Anne of Cleves in the third season of Showtime's series The Tudors.^[4] She reprised the role in the show's final season in 2010,^[58] appearing in two episodes.

Stone launched a legal battle in a bid to leave her record label, EMI, and free her of her current three-album deal with the record label in April 2008.^[59] Stone performed at the 19th Annual GLAAD Media Awards at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California on 26 April 2008.^[60] She also performed "Right to Be Wrong" at the LA PRIDE 2008—produced by Christopher Street West, a non-profit organisation—in West Hollywood, California, on 7 June 2008.^[61] On 26 October 2008, Stone sang the British national anthem, God Save the Queen, before the NFL match between the San Diego Chargers and the New Orleans Saints, held at Wembley Stadium, London.^[62] On 7 December 2008, Stone performed the Who's 1965 song "My Generation" on CBS's Kennedy Center Honors TV special at the Kennedy Center, Washington, D.C., honouring Pete Townshend and Roger Daltrey.^[63] In 2010, Stone also appeared on Ringo Starr's album, Y Not on the song "Who's Your Daddy" in which she sang and co-wrote with the ex-Beatle; appeared on Jeff Beck's album, Emotion and Commotion on the songs "I Put A Spell On You" and "There's No Other Me". In late 2010, Stone's voice and likeness were used for the "Bond girl" character of Nicole Hunter, a jewellery designer and MI6 agent, in the video game James Bond 007: Blood Stone. In addition to portraying the character, she also performed the game's theme song, "I'll Take It All", which was co-written and performed with Dave Stewart.^[64]

Stone in Madrid in 2010.

Stone's fourth studio album was written and recorded in about a week in Devon in early 2008. "I kind of woke up one morning and wanted to make an album", she says. "It's very, very raw. It's a bunch of musicians, writers and myself, and we're just jamming, basically."^[65] In promotion of the album, entitled Colour Me Free!, Stone played concerts throughout the United Kingdom in February and March.^[66] Originally scheduled for release in April 2009, Colour Me Free! was finally released on 20 October 2009, after EMI delayed the album's release.^[67] Joss revealed that her record company also fought her about the original cover of her new album, calling it "offensive". It was changed to simple text and no picture of the singer on the American edition, the original cover was used on the other editions worldwide. In late August 2010, it was reported that Stone had left EMI^[68] and formed her own independent record label, Stone'd Records.^[69] EMI announced in late December that they would be releasing a greatest hits album, The Best of Joss Stone 2003–2009. The compilation was released on 30 September 2011.^[70] In 2010, She collaborated with Puerto Rican recording artist Ricky Martin for "The Best Thing About Me Is You", and peaked at number 74 on the U.S Billboard Hot 100 and which topped the Hot Latin Songs and Latin Pop Songs chart, this was Stone' first number one on all two charts, which also made her the first British of non-Hispanic origin to reach No. 1 on the Hot Latin Tracks and Latin Pop Songs chart. On 14 June 2011, police arrested two men near Stone's home in Cullompton, Mid Devon, England, for plotting to rob and murder her.^[71][72]

Stone partnered with Surfdog Records to release LP1 on 26 July 2011, through her own label Stone'd Records.^[73] The album was recorded in Nashville, Tennessee in six days, where Stone co-wrote and co-produced the album with Eurythmics co-founder, David Stewart^[74] The lead single, "Somehow", and was released on 24 June 2011.^[75] Stone also joined the supergroup SuperHeavy which was formed by Mick Jagger of Rolling Stones, together with Dave Stewart, Damian Marley – youngest son of Bob Marley, and the Indian musician and producer A.R. Rahman.^[76] The album was recorded at Jim Henson Studios in Los Angeles and will be released in 20 September 2011^{[dated info]} by A&M Records. The debut single, "Miracle Worker", was released on 19 July 2011.

Stone mentioned the upcoming release of two new albums, including one she referred to as "The Soul Sessions 2".^[77] Later, a photo of the album cover of the other album on Facebook indicating that the title of the album will be "Homemade Jam".^[78] This album, like LP1, is co-produced and co-written by Dave Stewart. The release dates for both albums were not yet announced.

Voice and live performances[link]

Stone performing live in 2009. She always performs barefoot.

Stone possesses a wide vocal range that has been classified as both contralto^[79] and mezzo-soprano^{[citation needed]} by reviewers, and is noted for its soulful quality. Her vocal range extends from C3 up to A5, but with falsetto and exclamations she can hit a E6. Her total vocal range spans three octaves.^[80] She is also known for her barefoot performances.^[81]

Discography[link]

• The Soul Sessions (2003)
• Mind Body & Soul (2004)
• Introducing Joss Stone (2007)
• Colour Me Free! (2009)
• LP1 (2011)

Filmography[link]

Awards[link]

Grammy Awards[link]

The Grammy Awards are awarded annually by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences. Stone has received one award from five nominations.

Other awards and nominations[link]

References[link]

External links[link]

Find more about Joss Stone on Wikipedia's sister projects:
	Images and media from Commons

• Official website
• Joss Stone on Facebook
• Joss Stone on Twitter
• Joss Stone on Myspace
• Joss Stone's channel on YouTube
• Joss Stone at Allmusic
• Joss Stone at the Internet Movie Database

Me, Myself & Irene is a 2000 American comedy film directed by the Farrelly brothers, and starring Jim Carrey and Renée Zellweger. Chris Cooper, Robert Forster, Richard Jenkins, Daniel Greene, Anthony Anderson, Jerod Mixon, and Mongo Brownlee co-star. The film is about a Rhode Island state trooper named Charlie who, after years of continuously suppressing his rage and feelings, suffers a psychotic breakdown which results in a second personality, Hank.

Plot[link]

Charlie Baileygates (Jim Carrey) is an 18-year veteran Rhode Island State Police trooper who has been taken advantage of by people throughout most of his life. Immediately after his marriage, his wife, Layla (Traylor Howard), cheats on him with a dwarf African-American limousine driver, named Shonté (Tony Cox), who, like Layla, is a member of the high IQ group Mensa. Although Charlie's friends try informing him of his wife's infidelity, he still denies the possibility. One year later, Layla abandons Charlie and runs off with Shonté; leaving Charlie to raise three biracial sons who are the products of Layla's adulterous affair with the limo driver. Charlie never sees his wife again. Charlie raises his illegitimate triplet sons using very vulgar language and spoiling them with sweets and unbalanced diets. Charlie's three sons become obese and foul-mouthed young adults, but they are also highly intelligent (like their real father) and they treat Charlie much better than anyone else. His wife's affair and abandonment leaves Charlie so emotionally damaged that he lets himself be abused and taken advantage of by others. Despite his friendliness and his being a police officer, the townspeople reject Charlie's authority with open scorn.

After many years of continuous abuse by the people around him, his anger builds up and Charlie develops a rude and violent split personality named Hank, caused by "advanced delusionary schizophrenia with involuntary narcissistic rage". As Hank, he goes around retaliating against anyone who has accosted him — and even harms those who really haven't. A psychiatrist prescribes a medicine to keep Hank suppressed.

Believing that Charlie needs a vacation, his commanding officer (Robert Forster), orders him to escort a woman named Irene Waters (Renée Zellweger) from Rhode Island to Massena, New York, because she reportedly committed a hit-and-run. Irene insists the hit-and-run accusation was created by Dickie, Irene's mob-connected ex-boyfriend, and corrupt police officers in his employ. When some hit men arrive with a contract on Irene's life, Charlie agrees to help her escape, while a United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) agent is killed by the hit men. Charlie leaves his medicine behind, causing his alter ego, Hank, to surface any time he wants.

The FBI suspects that Charlie is responsible for assassinating the EPA agent. The FBI joins Charlie's commander in pursuing Charlie and Irene. Charlie's sons pretend to work with the police to find their father, but throw the police off his trail and even steal a police helicopter to get to Charlie before the police do.

Along the way, Irene and Charlie grow close. However, Hank's random appearances both disgust and frighten Irene. Hank's aggression and resourcefulness aid in their survival, but Irene finds herself attracted to Charlie. Hank tells Irene the truth about Charlie's life, and how years of humiliation have destroyed Charlie's confidence as a man and a police officer. Hank has plastic surgery performed on Charlie's face, and uses hours of careful cunning to trick Irene into sleeping with him by posing as the good-natured Charlie. They meet a mild-mannered but mysterious young man named Whitey (who has pale skin and white-blonde hair). They continue their journey as a trio, until Whitey calmly tells Charlie the (fictional) story of how he brutally murdered his entire family. Charlie and Irene, frightened by this, sneak away in the night.

Meanwhile, Dickie orders corrupt agents to kill both Charlie and Irene. After they fail, Dickie decides to settle the matter himself. During the confrontation with Dickie, Charlie finally manages to eliminate the alternate personality and regain the courage to rescue Irene. Eventually, he manages to stop Dickie, but only after Dickie shoots off one of Charlie's thumbs. Charlie is also aided in the fight by Whitey, who reappears to throw a lawn dart into Dickie's back. With Hank gone, and Dickie's crew dead or behind bars, Irene is finally free to return to her old life. However, just after she drives away from Charlie's house, the Rhode Island State Police fakes an arrest on her and gives Charlie a chance to propose to her.

Cast[link]

• Jim Carrey as Charlie Baileygates/Hank Evans
• Renée Zellweger as Irene P. Waters
• Chris Cooper as Lt. Gerke
• Robert Forster as Colonel Partington
• Richard Jenkins as Agent Boshane
• Zen Gesner as Agent Peterson
• Michael Bowman as Casper/Whitey/Milky
• Daniel Greene as Dickie Thurman
• Anthony Anderson as Jamal Baileygates
• Mongo Brownlee as Lee Harvey Baileygates
• Jerod Mixon as Shonté Jr. Baileygates
• Tony Cox as Shonté Jackson
• Steve Tyler as Delivery Room Doctor
• Traylor Howard as Layla Baileygates
• Richard Tyson as Gun shop owner
• Cam Neely as Trooper Sea Bass
• Ezra Buzzington as Disabled guy
• Lin Shaye (deleted scenes) as Mrs. Caleron
• Lina Teal as Bikini girl
• Richard Pryor and Chris Rock (archive footage, uncredited) as Stand-up comedians on TV
• Anna Kournikova and Cam Neely appear in cameo roles

[edit] Music

The film's original score was written by Pete Yorn, while the movie's soundtrack contains several covers of Steely Dan songs performed by other bands. Examples are Smash Mouth's cover of "Do It Again", Ben Folds Five's cover of "Barrytown", and Marvelous 3's cover of "Reelin' in the Years". Other songs include "Breakout" by Foo Fighters, "Totalimmortal", originally by AFI but covered by The Offspring, "The World Ain't Slowin' Down" by Ellis Paul, and "Strange Condition" by Pete Yorn.

1. "Breakout" - Foo Fighters
2. "Do It Again"+ - Smash Mouth
3. "Deep Inside of You" - Third Eye Blind
4. "Totalimmortal" - The Offspring
5. "The World Ain't Slowin' Down" - Ellis Paul
6. "Any Major Dude Will Tell You"+ - Wilco
7. "Only A Fool Would Say That"+ - Ivy
8. "Can't Find The Time To Tell You" - Hootie & The Blowfish
9. "Bodhisattva"+ - Brian Setzer Orchestra
10. "Bad Sneakers"+ - The Push Stars
11. "Reelin' In The Years"+ - Marvelous 3
12. "Strange Condition" - Pete Yorn
13. "Barrytown"+ - Ben Folds Five
14. "Razor Boy"+ - Billy Goodrum
15. "Where He Can Hide" - Tom Wolfe

+Steely Dan cover

"Motherfucker" by The Dwarves, "Fire Like This" by Hardknox, "Don't Say You Don't Remember" by Beverly Bremers, "The Perpetrator" by Hipster Daddy-O and the Handgrenades, and "Hem of Your Garment" by Cake were included in the movie but not on the soundtrack. Pete Yorn's, Just Another can also be heard it the background, during the scene where they discuss Hank's Idea. Other songs, that appeared in the film are not included on the soundtrack album.

Reception[link]

Box office[link]

The film had the biggest opening on the weekend of June 23, 2000 making US$24.2 million in its opening weekend. The film earned $90,570,999 in the United States, and a further $58,700,000 internationally for a worldwide total of $149,270,999.

[edit] Critical response

The film received generally mixed reviews. Review website Rotten Tomatoes gave the film a score of 48%, based on 96 reviews, and an average rating of 5.3/10, with the consensus that "The Farrellys manage to produce some laughs with Irene, but the jokes have become tired." ^[1]

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Me, Myself & Irene

• Me, Myself & Irene at the Internet Movie Database
• Me, Myself & Irene at AllRovi
• Me, Myself & Irene at Box Office Mojo
• Me, Myself & Irene at Rotten Tomatoes