4711 is a brand of Eau de Cologne by Mäurer & Wirtz, a subsidiary of the Dalli Group owned by the Wirtz family. It is produced in Stolberg near Aachen, Germany.

According to a legend, on 8 October 1792 a Carthusian monk made the merchant Wilhelm Muelhens (1762-1841) a wedding gift: the secret recipe of a so-called "aqua mirabilis", a "miracle water" for internal and external use. Muelhens then founded a small factory at Cologne's "Glockengasse" and established the first "Eau de Cologne" as a remedy. Allegedly, after some time even eminent personalities like Johann Wolfgang von Goethe and Richard Wagner were ranked among the users. At the outset of the 18th century, the Italian expatriate Johann Maria Farina (1685–1766) created a new fragrance and named it Eau de Cologne ("water from Cologne"), after his new residence, Cologne. Over the course of the century, the fragrance became increasingly popular.

Peter Joseph Muehlens and his son Wilhelm Muelhens had been in a dispute over the use of the name "Farina" from 1800 to 1881. The Farina family accused Mülhens, not to have the naming rights of "Farina". The firm "Johann Maria Farina gegenüber dem Jülichs-Platz" feared confusion between the products because they also produced perfumes. In 1832 Wilhelm Muelhens were deprived of the naming rights, whereupon he employed another Mr. Farina from Mortara, to continue operating under the name.

Ray Charles Robinson (September 23, 1930 – June 10, 2004), known by his shortened stage name Ray Charles, was an American musician. He was a pioneer in the genre of soul music during the 1950s by fusing rhythm and blues, gospel, and blues styles into his early recordings with Atlantic Records. He also helped racially integrate country and pop music during the 1960s with his crossover success on ABC Records, most notably with his Modern Sounds albums. While with ABC, Charles became one of the first African-American musicians to be given artistic control by a mainstream record company.Frank Sinatra called Charles “the only true genius in show business.”

The influences upon his music were mainly jazz, blues, rhythm and blues and country artists of the day such as Art Tatum, Nat King Cole, Louis Jordan, Charles Brown, Louis Armstrong. His playing reflected influences from country blues and barrelhouse, and stride piano styles.

Rolling Stone ranked Charles number ten on their list of "100 Greatest Artists of All Time" in 2004, and number two on their November 2008 list of "100 Greatest Singers of All Time". In honoring Charles, Billy Joel noted: "This may sound like sacrilege, but I think Ray Charles was more important than Elvis Presley. I don't know if Ray was the architect of rock & roll, but he was certainly the first guy to do a lot of things . . . Who the hell ever put so many styles together and made it work?"

John Robert "Joe" Cocker, OBE (born 20 May 1944) is an English rock and blues singer, who came to popularity in the 1960s, and is most known for his gritty voice, his idiosyncratic arm movements while performing, and his cover versions of popular songs, particularly those of the Beatles.

He is the recipient of several awards, including a 1983 Grammy Award for his #1 hit "Up Where We Belong", a duet he performed with Jennifer Warnes. He was ranked #97 on Rolling Stone's 100 greatest singers list.

Cocker was born on 20 May 1944 at 38 Tasker Road, Crookes, Sheffield, West Riding of Yorkshire. He is the youngest son of a civil servant, Harold Cocker, and Madge Cocker. According to differing family stories, Cocker received his nickname of Joe either from playing a childhood game called "Cowboy Joe" or from a local window cleaner named Joe.

Cocker's main musical influences growing up were Ray Charles and Lonnie Donegan. Cocker's first experience singing in public was at age 12 when his elder brother Victor invited him on stage to sing during a gig of his skiffle group. In 1960, along with three friends, Cocker formed his first group, the Cavaliers. For the group's first performance at a youth club, they were required to pay the price of admission before entering. The Cavaliers eventually broke up after a year and Cocker left school to become an apprentice gasfitter while he pursued a career in music.