CBS Records is a record label founded by CBS Corporation in 2006 to take advantage of music from its entertainment properties owned by CBS Television Studios. The initial label roster consisted of only three artists; rock band Señor Happy and singer/songwriters Will Dailey and P.J. Olsson.

This incarnation of the label relies primarily on digital distribution such as iTunes and on direct sales from its own website. However, it has signed a deal to distribute compact discs through RED Distribution, a subsidiary of Sony Music Entertainment which CBS Inc. formerly owned. The new CBS Records is headquartered at CBS Television City in Los Angeles.

The earlier incarnation originated in the early 1960s: Columbia Records products were released under the CBS Records label outside the US and Canada. This was necessary because EMI owned another record label by the same name, which operated in every market except North America, Spain and Japan. CBS sold the record company in 1988 to Sony Corporation of America. In 1991, the CBS Records label was officially renamed Columbia Records and the CBS Records company was renamed Sony Music Entertainment.^[1]

Current roster[link]

Artists[link]

• Will Dailey
• Keaton Simons
• Karmina
• Sharon Little
• P.J. Olsson
• Señor Happy
• The Wilshires
• You Are I Am

Soundtracks[link]

• NCIS^[2]

See also[link]

• List of record labels

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official website
• News release about the establishment of the new CBS Records
• Christman, Ed (2006-12-15). "CBS Records Relaunching With Eye On Synergy". Billboard. http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003522252. 

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Rainy Davis
Background information
Birth name	Denise Lorraine Davis
Born	Brooklyn, New York, United States
Genres	R&B, pop, hip hop
Occupations	Singer-songwriter, record producer
Years active	1986–present
Labels	Columbia
Associated acts	Mariah Carey, Jermaine Dupri

Denise Lorraine Davis (born December 24), better known by her stage name Rainy Davis, is an American R&B songwriter, singer, and record producer. Out of four Billboard charted singles, Davis is known best for her song "Sweetheart". A generation of fans adopted the song as their anthem to romantic love, giving it a permanent and powerful place in their collective psyche. The single was originally released on the New York-based independent label called Supertronics Records. However, after the song became a hit in the clubs, then on urban radio and eventually crossing over to pop radio, Columbia Records A&R Exec Joe McEwen offered Rainy Davis an attractive production / artist deal which included buying Rainy's previous contract & masters outright with Supertronics (her then current label) for worldwide distribution. Rainy Davis went on to record two albums for Columbi and has received numerous awards for her contributions to hit songs over the years.

Biography[link]

Davis was born and growed in Brooklyn, New York. Even before being famous, Davis was paying her dues. She was singing with a local band called Jamilia (with band members Keith Sweat, Charisse Davis until she joined the female singing group created and produced by Patrick Adams - Musique, who garnered the club pop hits "In The Bush" and "Keep On Jumpin".

After a few weeks of rehearsals with their new band, Musique was out on the road and Rainy Davis was a live performance member of the female trio group Musique with Becky Bell and Marisa Dejean. Rainy was now on her first tour as a member of a group with two songs that hit #1 on the Billboard Disco Action Charts and then crossing over to a pop hit record. The tour was booked throughout North America by the Norby Walters Agency.

Columbia Records dubbed Rainy Davis "America's Sweetheart" then sent Davis on a national tour to support her debut album. The tour included an appearance on Don Cornelius' TV show Soul Train and a performance at the world famous Apollo Theatre in Harlem, New York. Davis was also a presenter at the Rhythm & Blues awards at Bally's in Las Vegas. Rainy Davis remains a creative force in the music industry. Her publishing company, RainySongs, is a member of ASCAP. She holds interests as a songwriter and music publisher in recordings by Mariah Carey, Jermaine Dupri, The Cover Girls, Inner Life, Apollo 440 and Rainy Davis.

At the request of Amir Bayyan, (personal friend of the Jacksons), Rainy Davis wrote "Sweetheart" with producer Pete Warner for Janet Jackson. When the demo was finished all the songs for her 1986 album Control, had been chosen. Amir Bayyan, Christine Bayyan and Chris Lord Alge suggested to Davis that she release the song herself, and as a result it became a major hit in the dance and club scene and on urban & pop radio.

Discography[link]

• Sweetheart (1987)

Singles[link]

External links[link]

• Official Website
• MySpace
• Rainysongs Entertainment
• Facebook
• Twitter
• Hi5

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (December 2007)

Look up Indian giving in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

Indian giver is an expression used to describe a person who gives a gift (literal or figurative) and later wants it back, or something equivalent in return.

The term "Indian gift" was first noted in 1765 by Thomas Hutchinson, and "Indian giver" was first cited in John Russell Bartlett's Dictionary of Americanisms (1860) as "Indian giver.^[1][2] When an Indian gives any thing, he expects to receive an equivalent, or to have his gift returned." Thus it was really an exchange of gifts and not a matter of selflessness.

The phrase can be considered offensive, particularly to Native Americans.^[3][4]

Etymology[link]

It is unclear exactly how the expression came to be, but the consensus is that it is based on American Indians having a distinctly different sense of property ownership than people of European ancestry.^{[citation needed]} One theory is that early European settlers in North America misinterpreted the aid and goods they received from local Indians as gifts, when in fact they were intended to be offered in trade. Many tribes operated economically by a form of barter system, or a gift economy, where reciprocal giving was practiced.^[5]

Sources[link]

	United States portal
	Language portal

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (April 2011)

Robert Lee Helms (August 15, 1933–June 19, 1997), better known as Bobby Helms, was an American country music singer who enjoyed his peak success in 1957 with his hit, "Jingle Bell Rock". He was mostly known for the Christmas song. His other hits include "Fraulein" and "My Special Angel".

Biography[link]

Born in Bloomington, Indiana into a musical family, Helms began performing as a duo with his brother, Freddie, before going on to a successful solo career in country music. In 1956, Helms made his way to Nashville, Tennessee, where he signed a recording contract with Decca Records. The following year was filled with astonishing successes. Helms' first single in 1957 titled "Fraulein" went to No. 1 on the country music chart and made it into the Top 40 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. Later that same year he released "My Special Angel", which also hit No. 1 on the country charts and entered the Top 10 on Billboard's pop music chart, peaking at No. 7.

Released just a few days before Christmas 1957, his song "Jingle Bell Rock" was a big hit. Uniquely, it also re-emerged four out of the next five years, and sold so well that it repeated each time as a top hit, and became a Christmas classic still played to this day. It took five years for this song to become a second million seller for Helms.^[1] It reached No. 6 on the Billboard Hot 100 and spent 21 weeks in the chart.^[1] The record gained gold disc status.^[1] Accounts that Helms wrote and recorded the song with Hank Garland seem to be apocryphal — ASCAP and Allmusic list the writers of the song as Joseph Beal, Joseph Carlton, James Ross and James Boothe.^[2]

Helms continued touring and recording for the next three decades. His pioneering contribution to the genre has been recognized by the Rockabilly Hall of Fame.

Helms spent most of his later years living just outside of Martinsville, Indiana until his death from emphysema and asthma at the age of 63 in 1997.^[3]

He was portrayed by actor Brad Hawkins in the 2007 film, Crazy.

Discography[link]

Singles[link]

Selected album discography[link]

• Jingle Bell Rock - (1957) - Pilz
• To My Special Angel - (1957) - Decca
• I'm the Man - (1966) - Kapp
• Sorry My Name Isn't Fred - (1966) - Kapp
• All New Just For You - (1968) - Little Darlin'
• Pop-a-Billy - (1983) - MCA

See also[link]

• Billboard Hot 100 chart achievements and milestones

References[link]

External links[link]

• Bobby Helms at the Internet Movie Database
• findagrave.com (Photo)
• Helms biography at Allmusic website

Toshinobu "Toshi" Kubota (久保田 利伸, Kubota Toshinobu^?, born 24 July 1962) is a Japanese singer, songwriter, musician, and music producer.^[1][2] Toshinobu Kubota has produced five platinum albums and thirty-three Top 40 during his career. He is currently part of Sony Music Japan. In addition, Kubota has composed and written songs for many singers including Iwasaki Hiromi, Misia, Toshinori Yonekura, Koizumi Kyoko, and many other recording artists.^[3]

Kubota's musical genre has varied throughout his career including R&B, Go go, soul, funk, blues, reggae, old skool, psychedelia, jazz, and pop. His artistic influences include Michael Jackson, Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye, Donny Hathaway, and Sly Stone.^[4] Kubota has pioneered in the sound "Japanese hip hop" and "Japanese soul", an amalgam of funk, pop, R&B and go go that has influenced many other musicians.

Kubota has a tenor and falsetto vocal range and is known for his signature songs "Dance If You Want It", "Love Rain (Rain of Love)", "You Were Mine", "Give You My Love", and "La La La Love Song", which was theme song of the television drama Long Vacation. Kubota has a total of sixteen studio albums and seven compilation albums. He has over twelve million records worldwide to date.^[5][4]

Early life[link]

Toshinobu Kubota was born in Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan. At a younge age, he came in possession of Stevie Wonder's Songs in the Key of Life album. In high school, Kubota formed a high school band. After high school, he went to Tokyo to study economics. During that time, he began performing music at night clubs.^[6]

Musical career[link]

1981-1982: Beginnings[link]

Kubota got his start in 1981 when he met Haneda Ichiro at Komazawa University where they started the band HOTTENTOTS. Then a year later, he entered the contest EASTWEST'82 and won the Best Vocalist award. By winning the contest, Kubota earned a record deal for his band to release their own music. He also started to appear as a guest vocalist for various albums for artists like Matsuoka Naoya. By the mid-80s, Kubota began to compose for various artists like Iwasaki Hiromi, Koizumi Kyoko, and Tahara Toshihiko.

1986-1989: Shake it Paradise and subsequent releases[link]

In June 1986, he finally debuted as a singer with the single "Shitsui no Downtown". The single charted at #53 on the Oricon Singles chart. In September 1986, Kubota released his first album "Shake It Paradise". The album charted #22 on the Oricon charts. The album's second single "Time" was released and charted at #35 on the Oricon Singles chart.

In February 1987, Kubota released a single "Goddess", which charted at #21 on the Oricon Singles chart. In April 1987, Kubota released his sophomore album "Groovin'", which spawned the single "Diamond Dogs". In October 1987, Kubota released a single "Cry On Your Smile", which at #8 on the Oricon Singles chart.

In February 1988, Kubota released the single "You Were Mine", which charted #3 on the Oricon Singles chart. In September 1988, Kubota released his third album "Such A Funky Thang!", which sold over a million copies. The album charted at #1 on the Oricon charts and sold over a millon copies. The album spawned the single "Dance If You Want It", which charted at #2 on the Oricon Singles chart. In May 1988, he released his video-DVD "Super Duper Vol. 1". In July 1988, he released his concert DVD "Keep On Dancing". In January 1989, the second single "Indigo Waltz" was released. The album's third single "High Roller" charted at #11 on the Oricon Singles chart.

In October 1989, Kubota released his first best-of album "The Baddest". The album charted at #1 on the Oricon chart and sold a million copies. The album's lead single "Give You My Love" charted #3 on the Oricon Singles chart.

1990-1995: Various albums and career breakthrough[link]

In July 1990, he released his fourth studio album "Bonga Wonga". In October 1990, he released the single "Be Wanabee", which charted #16 on the Oricon Singles chart. In December 1990, Kubota released a single "Our Song". In March 1991, Kubota released a duet single "Forever Yours" with Alyson Williams. The song was Kubota's first English language single. In December 1990, he released his second DVD "Super Duper Vol. 2".

In September 1991, Kubota released his fifth album "Kubojah: Parallel World", which peaked at #1 on the Oricon charts. The album spawned the singles "Honey B" and "Keep on Jammin'", which charted at #15 on the Oricon Singles chart. The album's third single "Sound of Rain" charted at #33 on the Oricon Singles chart. In July 1991, he released his concert DVD "Bonga Wonga Tour 91".

In March 1992, Kubota released his fifth video album "Super Duper Vol. 3". In July 1992, he released his sixth album "Neptune". The album charted at #3 on the Oricon Albums chart. The album featured the singles "Yume with You" and "Futari no Oruke Star".

In 1993, Kubota went to New York to work on his music. In May 1993, Kubota released the single "Dreams with You", which charted at #5 on the Oricon Singles chart. On the same day, he released another single "Orquesta of Two", which charted at #13 on the Oricon Singles chart. In September 1993, Kubota released his second best-of album "The Baddest II". The album peaked at #1 on the Oricon charts.

In November 1994, Kubota released the lead single "A Night in Afro Blue" from his upcoming seventh album. The song charted at # 5 on the Oricon Singles chart. In December 1994, he released the singles "Za-Ku-Za-Ku Digame" and "Sunshine, Moonlight". The single "Za-Ku-Za-Ku Digame charted at #17 on the Oricon Singles chart. In January 1995, he released his seventh album "Bumpin' Voyage" and his video album "Super Duper Vol. 4". The album charted at #1 on the Oricon Albums chart. In July 1995, he released a single "Grand Slam of the Rainbow", which charted at #11 on the Oricon Singles chart.

1995-1998: Transition to American music and subsequent releases[link]

Toshinobu Kubota performing during the Oyeees Tour in 1996.

In September 1995, Kubota released his eighth album "Sunshine, Moonlight", which is his first English album. The album charted at #1 on the Oricon Albums chart and sold over a half of million copies worldwide.^[4] The album's lead single "Funk It Up" was released along with the song "Nice & EZ" in the United States. The singles charted at #91 on the Oricon Singles chart. The follow-up single "Just the Two of Us", a duet with Caron Wheeler, was also released in the United States. The single charted at #30 on the Oricon Singles chart.

In May 1996, he released the single "La La La Love Song", a duet with model Naomi Campbell, which became his best selling single which sold over a million copies. In October 1996, he released the second single "Body-Cation" from his upcoming album. The single charted at #12 on the Oricon Singles chart. In December 1996, he released his concert DVD, "Super Duper Vol. 5 from New York" and his ninth album "La La La Love Thang". He also went on the "Oyeees Tour". The album charted #2 on the Oricon Albums chart.

In February 1997, Kubota released a single "Cymbals", which charted at #19 on the Oricon Singles chart. In March 1997, Kubota released his concert DVD "Toshinobu Kubota Concert Tour 96: Oyeees!". In 1998, he released another single "Ahhhhh!", which charted at #5 on the Oricon Singles chart.

1999-2000: Nothing But Your Love and As One[link]

In July 2009, Kubota released the singles "Soul Bangin'" and "The Sound of Carnival". The single charted at #25 on the Oricon Singles chart. The single "The Sound of Carnival" charted at #15 on the Oricon Singles chart. In September 1999, he released another single "Messengers' Rhyme ~ Rakushow, it's your Show!", which featured guest vocals from Naomi Shimizu. The single charted at #9 on the Oricon Singles chart.

On June 21, 2000, Kubota released lead titled single "Nothing But Your Love". The barely scraped the surface of the Oricon Singles chart, charting at #97. On June 28, 2000, he released his tenth album "Nothing But Your Love", which is his second English album. The album charted at #7 on the Oricon Albums chart. Later that year, Kubota released the second single "Masquerade".

In September 2000, he released his eleventh album "As One" and began the "Nothing But As One Tour". The album charted at #5 on the Oricon Albums chart. In November 2000, he released the single "Always Remain" to his album "As One". The single charted at #66 on the Oricon Singles chart. The album's second single "Polyrhythm" charted at #22 on the Oricon Singles chart. In October 2000, he released his ninth video album "Super Duper Vol. 6".

2001-2003: United Flow[link]

In November 2001, Kubota released the lead single "Candy Rain" from his upcoming album. The single peaked at #19 on the Oricon Singles chart. In February 2002, Kubota released the second single "Respect (This & That)", which charted at #49 on the Oricon Singles chart. In April 2002, Kubota released his album "United Flow", which charted #9 on the Oricon Albums chart. In July 2002, he released his third compilation album "The Baddest: Only for Lovers in the Mood?". In December 2002, he released his fourth compilation album "The Baddest III", which charted at #2 on the Oricon Albums chart.

In May 2003, he released his tenth video album "Super Duper Vol. 7 The Baddest III on FILMs". On December 10, 2003, Kubota released his Christmas maxi-single "Our Christmas". The single charted at #10 on the Oricon Singles chart.

2004-2008: Time to Share and For Real?[link]

In September 2004, Kubota released his thirteenth album "Time To Share", which charted at #25 on the Oricon Albums chart. The album was Kubota's third and final English album. The album featured the singles "Breaking Through" and "Shadows of Your Love". In the same year, Kubota appeared on the American television show Soul Train, becoming the first Japanese singer to appear on the show.

In April 2005, Kubota released the lead single "A Love Story" from his album "For Real?", which charted at #43 on the Oricon Singles chart. In August 2005, he released the second single "Club Happiness", which charted at #40 on the Oricon Singles chart. In November 2005, he released the third single "Beside You", which charted at #25 on the Oricon Singles chart. In March 2006, he released his fourthteenth album "For Real?", which charted at #13 on the Oricon Albums chart.

Toshinobu Kubota and Kreva performing in 2007.

In July 2006, he released a duet single with SunMin called "Keep Holding U". In 2007, he released single "Magic", which featured the rapper Kreva. In August 2007, Kubota released his concert DVD "Live 2006 We For Real". In 2008, he released the single "Flying Easy Loving Crazy", which featured singer Misia. The single charted at #19 on the Oricon Singles chart.

2010: Timeless Fly and Love & Rain ~ Love Songs[link]

In January 2010, Kubota released the singles "Tomorrow Waltz" and "Star Light" from his upcoming album "Timeless Fly". The single "Tomorrow Waltz" peaked at #36 on the Oricon Singles chart. In February 2010, he released his fifthteenth album "Timeless Fly". The album peaked #9 on the Oricon Albums chart. Shortly after the release of the album, Kubota began the "Timeless Fly Tour" in Japan.

In June 2010, he released the single "Love Rain", which charted at #3 on the Oricon Singles chart. In November 2010, he released his fifth compilation album "Love & Rain ~ Love Songs", which charted at #11 on the Oricon Albums chart.

2011: Gold Skool and present[link]

In July 2011, Kubota released his single "Rain of love with shooting star". In August 2011, Kubota released his sixthteenth album, Gold Skool. The album charted at #3 on the Oricon Albums chart. In September 2011, he released the second single "Not be able to voice" from the album, which peaked at #20 on the Oricon Singles chart. In October 2011, Kubota began the "Gold Skool Tour" for twenty-dates. The final show of the tour was on December 25, 2011, where he performed at Fukuoka City Hall for the second time.

In January 2012, Kubota began his "Party Ain't A Party!" Toshinobu Kubota 25th Anniversary! Tour", which celebrates his twenty-five years in the music industry. The six-date tour only debut in Japan. Kubota is planning to release his concert DVD "Party Ain't A Party!" in May 2012.^[7]

Discography[link]

Albums

• 1986: Shake It Paradise
• 1987: Groovin'
• 1988: Such A Funky Thang!
• 1990: Bonga Wonga
• 1991: Kubojah: Parallel World
• 1992: Neptune
• 1995: Bumpin' Voyage
• 1995: Sunshine, Moonlight
• 1996: La La La Love Thang
• 2000: Nothing But Your Love
• 2000: As One
• 2002: United Flow
• 2004: Time to Share
• 2006: For Real?
• 2010: Timeless Fly
• 2011: Gold Skool

Tours[link]

• 1988: Keep On Dancing Tour
• 1989: I Need Your Funky Thang! Tour
• 1991: Bonga Wonga Tour
• 1996: Oyeees! Tour
• 2001: Nothing But As One Tour
• 2006: We For Real? Tour
• 2010: Timeless Fly Tour
• 2011: Gold Skool Tour
• 2012: 25th Anniversary Toshinobu Kubota Concert Tour 2012: Party Ain't No Party

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official website
• Toshi @ Sony Records
• Toshi Kubota at Allmusic