Name	Tommy James
Background	solo_singer
Birth name	Thomas Gregory Jackson
Born	April 29, 1947Dayton, Ohio, United States
Instrument	Vocals, guitar
Genre	Rock
Occupation	Singer-songwriter, guitarist
Years active	1958–present
Label	St. Clair Entertainment Group
Url	The Official Site of Tommy James and the Shondells

Tommy James (born Thomas Gregory Jackson, 29 April 1947, Dayton, Ohio) is an American pop-rock musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer, best known as leader of the 1960s rock band Tommy James and the Shondells.

Early life and career

Born in Dayton, Ohio, Tommy and his family moved to Niles, Michigan; a child model at age four, he was no stranger to the stage. In 1959, at the age of twelve, James formed what would be recognized as his first official band "The Tornadoes".

In 1965, a local dance promoter, Bob Mack, started playing the song at his Pittsburgh dance clubs, having found a copy of it in a used record bin. It became number one on Pittsburgh radio stations in early 1966.

Songwriter Richie Cordell both wrote, co-wrote, and produced many of the group's hits, among them: "I Think We're Alone Now", "Mirage", and "Mony Mony". The creation of "Mony Mony" was a group effort, involving Cordell, James, Shondells band member Peter Lucia, producer Bo Gentry, and Bobby Bloom. James and Cordell set out to create a party rock single working out everything except the song's title, which eluded them even after much effort. They took a break from their creative endeavors on James' apartment terrace, when they looked up at the Mutual of New York Insurance Company's large neon sign bearing the abbreviation for the company: M-O-N-Y. Both knew instantaeously their song now had a name.

With "Mony Mony" becoming such a hit in the US and a even bigger one in the UK, James was contacted by Beatle George Harrison, who was working with a group called Grapefruit at the time. Harrison and the group had written some songs they wanted James to consider recording. Since the group came to a decision to change their musical style (and would do so with "Crimson and Clover") and the material Harrison and Grapefruit provided was in the style of "Mony Mony", James turned down their offer.

Tommy James and the Shondells also produced a "Mony Mony" video when the song was a hit, hiring a video company to produce a short film of it. While it seemed sensible to James that musical groups would naturally want to create visual versions of their music, there was no market at all for the film in the US. Television stations would not air it and it was originally shown between double features in movie theaters in Europe. The film was not seen in the US until the creation of MTV.

Music and the mob

In February 2010, an autobiography Me, The Mob, and The Music was published. James announced that deals were in hand to turn the story into both a film and a Broadway play.

What was evident when James first met Morris Levy, the head of Roulette Records, was that the company was willing to strongarm others when they felt it necessary. The signed talent was there to produce money for the company, having their needs met only when it pleased Roulette. Asking to be paid meant intimidation; those under contract to Roulette needed to find other means of generating income which did not involve the record company to survive. While an artist had great creative control when recording for the company, the lack of payment for those efforts was difficult to take.

James estimates the company owed him $30 million dollars in royalties he never received. Roulette was a front for organized crime and also functioned as a place to launder money. He did not feel comfortable writing the book until all those deeply involved with the record company had died.

Solo discography

1970 Tommy James 1971 Christian of the World 1972 ''My Head, My Bed & My Red Guitar 1976 In Touch 1977 Midnight Rider 1980 Three Times in Love 1989 Tommy James - The Solo Years 1990 Hi-Fi 1993 Discography: Deals and Demos 1996 A Night in Big City 1997 Tommy James Greatest Hits Live

2004: I Love Christmas (CD single) 2005 Sweet Cherry Wine (CD single) 2005 Isn't that the Guy (CD single) 2006 Lupe & Jo (MP3 single) 2006 Love Words (CD Single) 2006 Hold the Fire

James himself had thirteen charting solo singles, with the three highest-charting being 1971's "Draggin' the Line" (#4), 1980's "Three Times in Love" (#19), and 1971's "I'm Comin' Home" (#40).

Bibliography

The book extensively details James's relationship with Morris Levy.

References

External links

Official Website

Interviews

Interview with Michael A. Ventrella (June 2010)

http://libwww.library.phila.gov/podcast/?podcastID=509

Category:1947 births Category:Living people Category:American male singers Category:People from Dayton, Ohio Category:Musicians from Michigan Category:People from Niles, Michigan

Name	Billy Idol
Background	solo_singer
Birth name	William Michael Albert Broad
Alias	Billy Idol
Born	November 30, 1955Stanmore, Middlesex, England, UK
Instrument	Vocals, guitar, bass guitar
Genre	Punk rock, post-punk, new wave, hard rock
Occupation	Musician, singer-songwriter, actor
Voice type	Baritone
Years active	1975–present
Label	Chrysalis, EMI, Sanctuary
Associated acts	Generation X
Url	BillyIdol.net

William Michael Albert Broad (born 30 November 1955), better known by his stage name Billy Idol, is an English rock musician. He first achieved fame in the punk rock era as a member of the band Generation X. He then embarked on a successful solo career, aided by a series of stylish music videos, making him one of the first MTV stars. Idol continues to tour with guitarist Steve Stevens and has a worldwide fan base.

Life and career

Early life and Generation X

Idol was born in Stanmore, Middlesex, the son of a salesman. He attended Tideway School in Newhaven, Sussex. The name Billy Idol was inspired by a schoolteacher's description of Broad as "idle".

In 1958, when Idol was two years old, his parents moved to Long Island, New York. The family returned four years later (with a younger child, Jane, who had been born in the US), settling in Dorking, Surrey. which starred Tom Hanks.

Idol released Whiplash Smile in 1986, which sold very well. The album included the hits "To Be a Lover," "Don't Need a Gun" and the country-flavoured "Sweet Sixteen". Idol filmed a video featuring "Sweet Sixteen" (which he also wrote) in Florida's Coral Castle. The song was inspired by the story of Edward Leedskalnin's former love, Agnes Scuffs, who was the main reason Leedskalnin built the structure over a period of decades, starting years after she jilted him the day before their scheduled wedding in their native Latvia. Stevens parted ways with Idol after Whiplash Smile. In 1986, Stevens appeared with Harold Faltermeyer on the Top Gun soundtrack. Their contribution was the Grammy winning instrumental, "Top Gun Anthem." Stevens decided to go solo, creating his own band, Steve Stevens and the Atomic Playboys. A remix album was released in 1987 called, Vital Idol. The album featured a live rendition of his cover of Tommy James' "Mony Mony" ; as a single it topped the US charts in 1987.

In 1989, Idol appeared on stage with The Who as Cousin Kevin as part of the live version of Tommy, which would be aired as an HBO special and released on home video and later as a DVD. In later years, Idol also stood in as a guest performer with The Who on Bell Boy, a hit from their rock opera album Quadrophenia, and provided the lead vocals that were originally sung by the band's late drummer Keith Moon. On these brief appearances, Idol would dress in a full bell boy's uniform to reflect upon Moon's eccentricity on stage.

Idol was involved in a serious motorcycle accident which nearly cost him a leg in February 1990 in Hollywood. He was hit by a car while driving home from the studio one night when he ran a stop sign, requiring a steel rod to be placed in his leg. Shortly prior to this, film director James Cameron had chosen Idol to play the T-1000 character in and had drawn storyboards to resemble him, but the accident prevented Idol from accepting.

The new release, Charmed Life, was due for release and a video for the single, "Cradle of Love" had to be shot. The song had been featured in the Andrew Dice Clay film, The Adventures of Ford Fairlane. Since Idol was unable to walk, he was shot from the waist up. The video would feature video footage of him singing in large frames throughout an apartment while Betsy Lynn George was trying to seduce a businessman. The video was a hit and was placed in heavy rotation on MTV. Idol and Betsy Lynn George recreated the opening of the video for the 1991 American Music Awards. Against his doctors' advice, he also managed to make appearances to promote Charmed Life.

Idol also had a small part in the new movie The Doors, directed by Oliver Stone. Idol played Jim Morrison's drinking buddy, Cat. Idol also performed at Roger Waters' live concert The Wall Live in Berlin in 1990.

Crisis and resurgence

In 1993, Idol released Cyberpunk, which was largely ignored. Music had changed and many of the bands that were popular in the '80s were being pushed aside. Regarded as experimental, it was recorded in a home studio using a Macintosh computer, which was a fairly new concept at the time. Idol recorded the album with Younger-Smith and producer Robin Hancock. Special editions of the album were issued with a floppy disc which contained a screensaver. The album has become something of a cult favourite today. In 1996, Idol appeared in a live version of The Who's Quadrophenia. He returned to the public eye in 1998, when he played himself in The Wedding Singer, in which "White Wedding" was also the title track. The film was a smash hit worldwide. He was also considered for the role of the villain, Jacob Kell in . Ultimately Bruce Payne was cast. Idol also released three new tracks on Internet - a move which created much concern from RIAA. He also shared the stage with the band Third Eye Blind.

VH1 aired Billy Idol - Behind the Music on 16 April 2001. The Behind the Music series was very popular at the time, and each band or artist that was featured on that program usually gained a resurgence of interest after the show had aired. Idol and Stevens were no exceptions, taking part in a VH1 Storytellers show three days later. The reunited duo set out to play a series of acoustic/storytellers shows before recording the VH1 special. The acoustic tour was a big success, and Idol eventually started adding new material into the show. Another Greatest Hits CD was issued in 2001, with Keith Forsey's "Don't You (Forget About Me)" appearing on the compilation. Forsey had originally written it with Idol in mind, but the singer turned it down and eventually the song was given to Simple Minds, who made it a worldwide hit in 1985. The album also includes a live acoustic version of "Rebel Yell" taken from a performance at Los Angeles station KROQ's 1993 Acoustic Christmas concert. The compilation sold about 4,000,000 copies worldwide.

In 2000, Idol was invited to be a guest vocalist on Tony Iommi's album. His contribution was on the song "Into The Night", which he also co-wrote. That year he voice acted the role of Odin, a mysterious alien character, in the animated fantasy film Heavy Metal 2000. In Sydney, Idol entered the playing field on a hovercraft-type stage to the intro of White Wedding, he managed to sing only two words before a power failure ended the performance. "White Wedding" appeared on popular video game , playing on fictional Classic rock radio station, K-DST.

Devil's Playground and beyond

Devil's Playground, which came out in March 2005, was Idol's first new studio album in nearly 12 years. It reached #46 on the Billboard 200. The album included a cover of "Plastic Jesus". Idol played a handful of dates on the 2005 Vans Warped Tour and also appeared at the UK's Download Festival at Donington Park and the Voodoo Music Experience in New Orleans. In 2006, as his only UK live date, he appeared headlining the Sunday night of GuilFest. That same year he made an appearance on Viva La Bam where he helped Bam Margera succeed in "creating" a sunroof for his $250,000 Lamborghini Gallardo and performed live for April Margera for her birthday. In 2006, Idol guested on his keyboardist Derek Sherinian's solo album Blood of the Snake, covering the 1970 Mungo Jerry hit "In the Summertime". A video was made featuring Idol and guitarist Slash. In November 2006, Idol released a Christmas album called Happy Holidays.

In 2008, "Rebel Yell" appeared as a playable track on the video game Guitar Hero World Tour and "White Wedding" on Rock Band 2, the Rock Band 2 platform later gaining "Mony Mony" and "Rebel Yell" as downloadable tracks. On 24 June 2008 Idol released a new greatest hits album, . The compilation featured two previously unreleased tracks, "John Wayne" and "New Future Weapon". A third track, "Fractured", was available for download on iTunes. He embarked on a successful tour across the world, co-headlining with Def Leppard. In May 2009 Idol donated his time for Music Education in schools by playing along Steve Stevens & Stephen McGrath and the band Venice as backup band and vocals. They were accompanied by a large String & Brass section and chorale group of Santa Monica High School students. The whole event was hosted by AFTA, Artists for the Arts foundation, (aftafoundation.org). The entire event was shot by Touring Video and Post by On the WAVE Productions. Harry Rabin from "On the WAVE" produced the video, which can be seen on billyidol.net and the audio was mixed and Mastered by Steve Miles and Harry Rabin.

In July 2009, Idol performed at the Congress Theater, Chicago for the US TV series Soundstage. This performance was recorded and was released on DVD as In Super Overdrive Live, on 17 November 2009.

Recent events

On 16 February 2010, Idol was announced as one of the acts to play the Download Festival in Donington Park. He was quoted: "With all of these great heavyweight and cool bands playing Download this year, I'm going to have to come armed with my punk rock attitude, Steve Stevens, and all of my classic songs plus a couple of way out covers. Should be fun!" In March 2010, Idol added Camp Freddy guitarist Billy Morrison and drummer Jeremy Colson to his touring line-up.

Personal life

Although Billy Idol has never married, he has a son, Willem (born 1988) by former partner Perri Lister. Idol also has a daughter, Bonnie (born 1989).

Live Band

Billy Idol's current band consists of:

Steve Stevens - lead guitar (1981–1986, 2001–present)

Stephen McGrath - bass guitar (2001–present)

Derek Sherinian - keyboards (2002–present)

Billy Morrison - rhythm guitar (2010–present)

Jeremy Colson - drums, percussion (2010–present)

Former members

Mark Younger-Smith - lead guitar (1990–1996)

Mark Schulman - drums, percussion (1993–2001)

Brian Tichy - drums, percussion (2001–2009)

Tal Bergman - drums, percussion (1990–1993)

Danny Sadownik - percussion (1993)

Zane Fix - bass guitar (1980s)

Kenny Aaronson - bass guitar (1980s)

Jennifer Blakeman - keyboards (1993)

Julie Greaux - keyboards (1993)

Discography

Don't Stop (EP) (1981)

Billy Idol (1982)

Rebel Yell (1983)

Vital Idol (1985)

Whiplash Smile (1986)

(1988)

Charmed Life (1990)

Cyberpunk (1993)

Greatest Hits (2001)

VH1 Storytellers (2002)

Devil's Playground (2005)

Happy Holidays (2006)

(2008)

List of Billy Idol awards and nominations

Grammys

|- | align="center"| ||"Rebel Yell"|| Best Male Rock Vocal Performance|| |- | align="center"| ||"Whiplash Smile" || Best Male Rock Vocal Performance || |- | align="center"| ||"Cradle of Love" || Best Male Rock Vocal Performance ||

MTV Video Music Awards

The MTV Video Music Awards is an annual awards ceremony established in 1984 by MTV.

|- | align="center"| ||"Dancing With Myself" || Best Art Direction || |- | align="center"| ||"Dancing With Myself" || Best Special Effects || |- | align="center"| ||"Eyes Without a Face" || Best Cinematography || |- | align="center"| ||"Eyes Without a Face" || Best Editing || |- | align="center"| || "Cradle of Love" || Best Video from a Film || |- | align="center"| ||"Cradle of Love" || Best Male Video || |- | align="center"| ||"Cradle of Love" || Best Special Effects || |- | align="center"| ||"Shock To The System" || Best Special Effects || |- | align="center"| ||"Shock To The System" || Best Editing || |-

BRIT Awards

The BRIT Awards are the British Phonographic Industry's annual pop music awards. |- | || Billy Idol || Best British Video || |-

See also

Coral Castle, a stone structure where Idol got his inspiration for his song "Sweet Sixteen".

Bromley Contingent

References

External links

Official Site

Billy Idol MySpace page

Interview @ Legends

Billy Idol at Rolling Stone

Category:1955 births Category:Alumni of the University of Sussex Category:English expatriates in the United States Category:English film actors Category:English male singers Category:English punk rock singers Category:English vegetarians Category:Living people Category:People from Stanmore Category:People from Dorking Category:People from Bromley

Tom Middleton (born 18 August 1971) is a prolific British recording artist, music producer, remixer and DJ.

A classically trained pianist and cellist, Middleton worked in the early 1990s with Richard D. James (with whom he shares the same birthdate), co-producing "En-Trance To Exit" on the Analogue Bubblebath EP for Exeter's influential Mighty Force Records. This was followed by his first solo outing, "My Splendid Idea", under the name Schizophrenia for the same label.

Soon after, he teamed up with Mark Pritchard. The pair recorded under a host of pseudonyms, including the popular Reload (featuring experimental techno and ambient music), Global Communication (primarily ambient), and Jedi Knights (electro funk and house music), plus lesser-known aliases Chameleon and Link & E621. Global Communication's 1994 ambient album is widely considered to be a landmark of the genre.

The pair also founded their own record label, Evolution, which is sometimes informally referenced as Evolution (Crewekerne) to differentiate it from other record labels with the same name. A compilation of early Evolution material was released jointly by Evolution and Warp Records in 1995 as The Theory of Evolution. The label name later changed to Universal Language Productions and launched a sublabel, Heard, then became E3 before finally winding down operations. The labels launched early releases from artists such as Matthew Herbert, as well as Middleton & Pritchard under their various guises.

Aside from Schizophrenia, Tom's solo projects include The Modwheel (experimental house music), Cosmos (progressive house music) and AMBA (ambient/classical). , Cosmos's "Take Me With You" was his most successful track. In Summer of 2007, Middleton abandoned the AMBA moniker, while still focusing on the ambient genre fusing classical traditions with electronica, featuring orchestral, choral and electro acoustic arrangements. A new EP, Excursions 1 was released on 10 September 2007 while the album Lifetracks was released on Big Chill Recordings on 1 October 2007 under the name Tom Middleton.

Predominantly using the Cosmos and Modwheel monikers (and his own name) Middleton has remixed numerous artists including Kerri Chandler, Orbital, Kylie Minogue, Coldplay, Underworld, Fluke, Super Collider, Prince, Spiller, Model 500, The Beloved, Rob Dougan, Pulp, Leftfield, Ian Pooley, Dubtribe Sound System, All Saints, Goldfrapp, Lamb, Röyksopp, Gotan Project, Amp Fiddler, Mighty Dub Katz, Bebel Gilberto and Orbital.

External links

Tom Middleton licensing

Category:1971 births Category:Living people Category:Remixers Category:Ambient music Category:English dance musicians Category:English electronic musicians

Name	Austin Miller
Caption	Austin Miller
Birthname	John P. Miller
Birth date	June 07, 1976
Birth place	Alvin, TexasUnited States
Website	http://www.austinmilleronline.com

Austin Miller (born June 7, 1976) is an American actor, dancer, and singer, known for television and stage performances. He played the part of Hawk in the soap opera Days of our Lives, performed as the lead in the Hairspray musical in both a national tour and a Las Vegas production, and in 2007 was a second place finalist on the televised competition .

Biography

Miller was raised in the small town of Alvin, Texas (population 21,000), to a conservative Catholic family. Miller started performing at the age of 7, graduating from Alvin High School in 1994. He studied dance in Houston, and then briefly attended Texas's Baylor University on a vocal scholarship, where he joined Delta Tau Delta fraternity. But he dropped out to join a Las Vegas show, "Enter the Night," later performing in Starlight Express. The 19-year-old Miller then went on a national tour with the Grease musical, playing the character of Kenickie (Rizzo's boyfriend, played by Jeff Conaway in the film). He also performed in Smokey Joe's Cafe, playing the character of Michael, and the National Tour of "Victor/Victoria".

After various musical theatre roles, he moved to Los Angeles, obtaining a part as the character, Hawk, on the popular soap opera Days of our Lives, and also being cast in some small movie roles. He then auditioned for and won the role of Link Larkin in a nationally touring production of Hairspray. He also took on the same role in the short-lived Las Vegas production of Hairspray, which ran from February–June 2006 at the Luxor Hotel.

Grease

Though he had performed in the national tour of Grease, when he auditioned for the same role on Broadway, he was turned down as not "blue collar" enough. At the audition, however, he heard of and applied for the upcoming televised competition, Grease: You're the One that I Want! whose winners were to be cast in the lead roles of Danny and Sandy in the next Broadway production. Thousands of applicants were considered, with a few dozen then chosen to go to a "Grease Academy" bootcamp for one week. Miller proceeded through that step as well, and in 2007 was chosen to be one of the 12 contestants to go on to the live show, where call-in votes by the viewing audience were combined with judges' opinions to eliminate a different contestant each week. Miller had the nickname of "Hot Danny" on the show, and was often referred to as one of the veterans, since he has extensive stage experience but was competing against other contestants with much less. On both the February 11 and February 18, 2007 broadcasts one of the judges, influential producer David Ian, chose Miller as the "best Danny of the night." On March 18, 2007, Miller was named as one of the two finalists in the competition, and was told that there was only a 1% difference in voter opinion between him and the other finalist, "Slacker Danny" Max Crumm. On March 25, 2007, Crumm was declared the final winner.

In September 2007, Miller performed in the New York Musical Theatre Festival, in a show called TULLY (in no particular order). Since Grease, Austin has starred in the pre-Broadway run of "Trip of Love", and NYMF's Jerusalem Syndrome, as well as the symphony series "Elvis-from Broadway to Memphis". He also played Billy Lawlor in Goodspeed's production of "42nd Street" through July 3, 2009.

Performances

Stage

Smokey Joe's Cafe (Michael)

Grease (Kenickie)

Hairspray (Link)

Tully (In No Particular Order) (Claude Beautee)

Disney's When You Wish - Theatre Under The Stars, Houston, Texas

Trip of Love - Japan pre-Broadway run

The Jerusalem Syndrome (Mickey)

Go-Go Beach (Woody)

42nd Street (Billy)

Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat (Joseph)

Television

Days of our Lives ("Hawk," 2001-2002)

("Hot Danny," 2007)

Mad TV (numerous episodes, 2001–2003)

Film

Puerto Vallarta Squeeze (surfer) 2004

America's Sweethearts (dancer) 2001

References

External links

Official website

"Interview with Austin Miller" from TalkinBroadway.com

Official Austin Miller fan club site

Category:1976 births Category:Actors from Texas Category:American film actors Category:American musical theatre actors Category:American soap opera actors Category:American stage actors Category:American television actors Category:Baylor University alumni Category:Living people Category:People from Brazoria County, Texas Category:People from Texas