Artists Biographies

Damien Rice

2010-03-19T18:32:00.000-07:00

Active years: 90s, 00s
Genres: Alternative Pop/Rock, Alternative/Indie Rock, Contemporary Singer/Songwriter, Folk, Pop/Rock, Contemporary Folk, Singer/Songwriter, Alternative Folk, Adult Alternative Pop/Rock, Alternative Singer/Songwriter
Top hits: 9 Crimes, The Blower's Daughter, Cannonball, Rootless Tree, Delicate - Live from Union Chapel

Damien Rice
Irish singer/songwriter Damien Rice launched his music career in the late-'90s with the hard-hitting indie rock outfit Juniper. The group signed to Polygram in 1997 and released two singles, "The World Is Dead" and "Weathermen," which did moderately well on Irish radio, but when it came time to record a full-length album, contractual rules from the label prevented Juniper from doing so, and Rice split. After a brief respite in Europe, Rice returned to Dublin to focus on music once again, scrounging up enough money to record a demo. He sent it to producer/film composer David Arnold (Björk, Nina Persson, Paul Oakenfold), and luckily for him, Arnold loved it and set Rice up in his very own mobile studio to make a record. His first single, "The Blower's Daughter," was an instant Top 20 hit when it appeared in fall 2001. Shared gigs with McAlmont and Butler and folkie Kathryn Williams followed in summer 2002 when Rice released O in the U.K. The album hit the States in 2003, which earned the Irishman a dedicated group of American fans in addition to his European ones, and after satiating all of them with a collection of B-sides in 2005, Rice released his sophomore record, 9. - MacKenzie Wilson, All Music Guide

Joshua Radin

2010-03-19T18:30:00.000-07:00

Active years: 00s
Genres: Alternative Pop/Rock, Alternative/Indie Rock, Pop/Rock, Adult Alternative Pop/Rock
Top hits: Winter, Only You, Closer, Everything'll Be Alright (Will's Lullaby), Today

Joshua Radin
Though Joshua Radin enjoyed singing during his childhood, the Cleveland native never intended to be a professional musician. Instead, he studied drawing and painting at Northwestern University, following his college years with stints as an art teacher, screenwriter, and art gallery employee. Eventually, Radin took a stab at songwriting and played one of his earliest compositions, "Winter," for his friend Zach Braff. The burgeoning actor/director took an immediate liking to the song, and "Winter" soon found its way onto Braff's hit television show Scrubs in early 2004. After fans began to request more of his music, Radin decided to pursue a songwriting career and signed with Columbia Records, which issued his debut album, We Were Here, in 2006. Radin relocated to Los Angeles and aligned himself with the Hotel Cafe, a unique Hollywood venue specializing in performances by singer/songwriters. He soon found himself playing national tour dates with a number of Hotel Cafe regulars, including Ingrid Michaelson, Sara Bareilles, and Meiko. Meanwhile, he issued a pair of digital EPs (via iTunes) while readying the release of his sophomore album, Simple Times, which arrived in late 2008. - Marisa Brown and Andrew Leahey, All Music Guide

Jack Johnson

2010-03-19T18:28:00.000-07:00

Active years: 90s, 00s
Genres: Stage and Screen, Film Music, Alternative Pop/Rock, College Rock, Alternative/Indie Rock, Pop/Rock, Contemporary Pop/Rock, Adult Alternative Pop/Rock, Soundtracks
Top hits: Imagine, Better Together, Breakdown, Flake, Mama You've Been On My Mind / A Fraction of Last Thoughts On Woody Guthrie

Jack Johnson
Before Jack Johnson became the 21st century kingpin of beachside pop/rock, he was a champion surfer on the professional route. The sport was second nature to the Hawaiian native, who began chasing waves as a toddler and, by the age of 17, had become an outstanding athlete on the Banzai Pipeline. However, Johnson was also testing other creative outlets specifically film and music and a serious surfing accident convinced him to devote more time to those landlocked hobbies. After studying cinematography in college, he turned his full attention to music, writing breezy pop songs punctuated by an unassuming voice and mellow, beach-bum demeanor. The combination proved to be particularly commercial, as Johnson's first five major-label albums all climbed to platinum status.

While studying film at the University of California in Santa Barbara, Johnson partnered with friends Chris Malloy and Emmett Malloy to produced a surfing documentary entitled Thicker Than Water. Although the project spotlighted Johnson's talent as a director, it also showcased his flair for songwriting, and the accompanying soundtrack featured several of his own tunes. Thicker Than Water was deemed 2000's Video of the Year by Surfer magazine and paved the way for a second surf flick, The September Sessions. Meanwhile, Johnson began receiving similar notice for his songs, one of which was covered by G. Love and Special Sauce on the band's 1999 album, Philadelphonic. Shortly thereafter, Johnson's demo material piqued the interest of J.P. Plunier, a French producer who had helped launch Ben Harper's career several years prior.

With Plunier's help, Johnson recorded and released Brushfire Fairytales in 2001. The debut album featured a cameo by Ben Harper, thus sparking a friendship between the two musicians. Moreover, its casually spun folk songs attracted an audience that stretched far beyond Johnson's own surfing community, and Brushfire Fairytales went platinum as a result. After touring throughout the early half of 2002, he returned to the studio and issued On and On one year later. Despite its musical similarity to Brushfire Fairytales, On and On found Johnson delving into social commentary, resulting in a number of songs that paired worldly, insightful lyrics with a sunny surf vibe.

Jack Johnson toured heavily in support of his growing catalog, taking frequent breaks to surf and spend time with his family. When it came time to return to the studio, he resumed his partnership with Mario Caldato, the same producer who had helmed On and On, and decamped to the Mango Trees Studio in Hawaii. In Between Dreams was released in 2005, sporting a mango tree on the album's cover (in tribute to the studio) while offering a familiar mix of tropical songwriting and conscious commentary. The album peaked at number two, Johnson's highest position to date in America, and sold more than two million copies stateside.

Oddly enough, it was Johnson's next project, the kids-oriented Sing-A-Longs and Lullabies for the Film Curious George, that finally sent him to the top of the charts. The soundtrack debuted at number one in February 2006, selling 149,000 copies during its first week and making Curious George the first animated film since Pocahontas to have a chart-topping soundtrack. Like the four albums before it, it climbed to platinum status. Despite such continued success, however, Johnson was dealt a sharp blow in 2007, when his cousin Danny Riley succumbed to brain cancer. That death, coupled with the decision to record outside of Hawaii's familiar environment, lent a moody ambience to Johnson's next record, 2008's Sleep Through the Static. Nonetheless, the bulk of the album retained a warm, sand-scrubbed feel, and Sleep Through the Static went platinum within five weeks. Johnson traveled throughout Europe that summer, playing some of his largest shows to date, and the resulting footage was captured for the 2009 CD/DVD release En Concert. - Andrew Leahey, All Music Guide

The Kooks

2010-03-19T18:26:00.000-07:00

Active years: 2005-
Genres: Indie Rock, Alternative Pop/Rock, Alternative/Indie Rock, Pop/Rock
Top hits: Naive, Seaside, She Moves In Her Own Way, Ooh La, See The World

The Kooks
Luke Pritchard (vocals/guitar), Hugh Harris (guitar), Max Rafferty (bass), and Paul Garred (drums) generate the rubbishy garage rock sounds of the Kooks. Named after the song on David Bowie's Hunky Dory, the Kooks met while attending Brighton Music College in the mid-2000s. Each shared a liking for the Police, the Strokes, the Everly Brothers, and Funkadelic, and the bandmates began funneling such influences into their own sweet and precocious sound in 2005. Before the year's end, the British foursome was releasing singles for Virgin UK. "Eddie's Gun" and "Sofa Song" did moderately well on the U.K. singles chart; however, the romantic playfulness of "You Don't Love Me" eventually gave the band its first ever Top 20 hit.

The Kooks' debut full-length, Inside In/Inside Out, arrived in January 2006. The band's fifth single, "Naive," landed at number five by spring. Hot on the heels of their international success, the Kooks made their American performance debut at the annual South by Southwest conference in Austin, TX, in March, and the U.S. version of Inside In/Inside Out arrived on Astralwerks in October 2006. Two years later, the Kooks returned with Konk, an album they hoped had a "bigger" sound than their debut. The album's arrival coincided with the announcement that Rafferty had left the band and was replaced by former Cat the Dog bassist Dan Logan. - MacKenzie Wilson, All Music Guide

Mando Diao

2010-03-19T18:22:00.000-07:00

Active years: 1999-
Genres: Indie Rock, Swedish Pop/Rock, Alternative Pop/Rock, Alternative/Indie Rock, Pop/Rock, Garage Punk, Euro-Pop
Top hits: Mr Moon, God Knows, Sheepdog, The Band, Dance With Somebody

Mando Diao
Mixing garage rock sneer and Britpop sass along with a truckload of other influences Borlange, Sweden's Mando Diao formed when its members were all still in their teens. The band's germination dates back to 1995, when singer/songwriter/keyboardist Daniel Häglund and singer/songwriter/guitarist Björn Dixgärd were in a band called Butler. Even after that group broke up, the pair continued playing and writing together, eventually bringing bassist Fredrik Nilsson, guitarist Gustaf Noren, and drummer Anton Grahnstrom into their fold; Nilsson and Grahnstrom were replaced by Carl Johan Fogelklou and Samuel Giers. By 1999, they were known as Mando Diao, having taken their name from one of Dixgärd's dreams.

The group continued to hone their sound, blending pop, mod, soul, RandB, and Britpop elements into a style that was quirky yet timeless. In 2002 they released their first EP, Motown Blood, through the Majesty and Capitol imprints; the acclaim for the EP and the similarities in their sound to the Strokes and the Hives raised Mando Diao's profile considerably, and the band went on tours of Sweden with the Hellacopters and Kent. Later that year the band released the singles Mr. Moon and The Band to stoke anticipation for their full-length debut album, Bring 'Em In, which was largely recorded in their basement practice space. The following year, Mute Records released Bring 'Em In in the United States. The sophomore effort Hurricane Bar was released in the band's native Sweden in 2004; a stateside release followed in 2005, and Ode to Ochrasy was issued the next year. While touring in support of the album, Mando Diao found time to record their fourth studio effort, Never Seen the Light of Day. The album was released internationally in late 2007, coinciding a solo tour by Björn Dixgärd. - Heather Phares, All Music Guide

The Sounds

2010-03-19T18:18:00.000-07:00

Active years: 90s, 00s
Genres: Indie Rock, Alternative Pop/Rock, Alternative/Indie Rock, Pop/Rock, New Wave/Post-Punk Revival
Top hits: Living In America, Hit Me demo, Tony The Beat, Rock n Roll, Seven Days A Week

The Sounds
The Sounds a Swedish group whose poppy, synthesizer-heavy music is unapologetically indebted to Blondie and Missing Persons feature the co-ed talents of vocalist Maja Ivarsson, keyboardist Jesper Anderberg, bassist Johan Bengtsson, drummer Fredrik Nilsson, and guitarist Felix Rodriguez. The new wave throwbacks first banded together in 1999 in Stockholm, where they recorded much of the debut album Living in America. The record charted at number four the week after its Swedish release in 2002, and an American release followed in May 2003. Dying to Say This to You appeared three years later, featuring a polished blend of anthemic, '80s-inspired rock and sex-craved new wave that widened the band's audience abroad.

Touring obligations kept the Sounds busy until October 2007, at which time they returned to the studio with a string of producers, including Mark Saunders (who had recently worked with the Sounds' touring mates, Shiny Toy Guns), Fountains of Wayne founder Adam Schlesinger, and former Smashing Pumpkins guitarist James Iha. The Sounds also extricated themselves from their previous record contract, preferring to blaze their own path instead. Recording sessions for the group's third studio effort, Crossing the Rubicon, took place in Sweden, Los Angeles, and New York, and the resulting album was released in June 2009. - Andy Kellman and Andrew Leahey, All Music Guide

Kent Band Music

2010-03-19T18:10:00.000-07:00

Active years: 1990-
Genres: Swedish Pop/Rock, Alternative Pop/Rock, Alternative/Indie Rock, Post-Grunge, Pop/Rock, Euro-Pop
Top hits: Ingenting, Sverige, Hjärta, Utan dina andetag, Taxmannen

Kent Band Music
With indie pop growing all over Sweden in the mid-'90s, Kent became one of the biggest Swedish bands during that decade. Kent was formed in Eskilstuna in 1990, when singer/songwriter Joakim Berg and lead guitarist Sami Sirvio met at school. They formed a band and were soon joined by drummer Markus Mustonen, bassist Martin Skold, and guitarist Martin Roos. In the beginning they changed their name a couple of times, and after a short period as Havsanglar (Seaangels), they decided to call themselves Kent, which is a Swedish male surname. They recorded some demos and at last they signed with BMG Sweden and their sublabel RCA. In 1994 debut single "Nar Dert Blaser Pa Manen" was released, and no one noticed. In April 1995 their eponymous debut album hit the shelves, and it didn't sell that well in the beginning. Three more singles were released from that album, with the last one, "Frank," being the closest thing to a hit. The band toured heavily in 1995, and after the tour Martin Roos decided to leave the band. Instead they contacted their old friend Harri Manty, who took Roos' place. A year after the release of the debut album, the follow-up, Verkligen, was released, and now things started to happen. As a pre-album single, "Kram (Sa Nara Far Ingen Ga)" was issued and became an instant hit, a hit that helped Verkligen to be a massive success. For the second album, Kent changed their musical direction a bit. Where the debut album was distorted, Verkligen had some melancholic songs, sounding very much like Radiohead. This was a path they were going to follow when recording their third album, Isola, in 1997. After the release of Verkligen, the band once again toured heavily, but the difference was that this time around the venues were all sold out. They also got to play the main stage at Hultsfredsfestivalen, Sweden's biggest rock festival. Kent didn't keep with the tradition in releasing an album in April, and spent much of spring 1997 in Belgium recording their eagerly awaited fourth album. In February 1997 they also won a couple of Grammy Awards, among them for best video, "Gravitation," made by Adam Berg, Joakim's younger brother. In September 1997, the single "Om Du Var Har" was released and became a huge success in Sweden, so when the album Isola was available in the shops, it went straight to number one on the Swedish album chart. Another sellout followed, and what many journalists in Sweden had asked Kent about was about to come true: an English version of Isola. It was first released in Sweden in April 1998, and in autumn 1998 it was issued in England. It wasn't meant to be released in Sweden at all, but the public demand was too big for BMG to handle. In 1998 Joakim Berg also released an album with a project called Paus consisting of him and Cardigans guitarist Peter Svensson. While spending time on the road, Kent main man Joakim Berg continued writing songs. Their fourth album, Hagnesta Hill, appeared in 2000. Vapen and Ammunition, which sold 500,000 copies in Scandinavia alone, followed two years later. After some time off, the band returned to the studio to record Du and Jag Döden, which was released in 2005. Winter 2006/2007 was bittersweet for Kent; while the group announced that it would begin recording Tillbaka Till Samtiden, they would do so without guitarist Harri Mänty, who had decided to leave the group. Tillbaka Till Samtiden was released in October 2007. - Tommy Gunnarsson, All Music Guide

Placebo

2010-03-19T18:04:00.000-07:00

Active years: 1994-
Genres: Punk Revival, Neo-Glam, Alternative Pop/Rock, Punk-Pop, Alternative/Indie Rock, Pop/Rock, Britpop
Top hits: Running Up That Hill, Every You Every Me, The Bitter End, Pure Morning (Album Version), Infra-Red

Placebo
Due to their penchant for androgynous attire/makeup and raw guitar riffs, Placebo has been described by some as a glam version of Nirvana. The multi-national band was formed by singer/guitarist Brian Molko (part Scottish and American, but raised in Britain) and bassist Stefan Olsdal (originally from Sweden). Earlier, both had attended the same school in Luxembourg, but didn't cross paths properly until 1994 in London, England. Briefly called Ashtray Heart and influenced by the likes of Sonic Youth, the Pixies, the Smashing Pumpkins, and the aforementioned Nirvana, Placebo's drum slot was filled alternately early on by Robert Schultzberg and Steve Hewitt (the latter being the group's only member of British origin). Although Molko and Olsdal preferred Hewitt as their main man (it was this lineup that recorded several early demos), Hewitt opted to return to his other band at the time, Breed. With Schultzberg back on board, Placebo signed a recording contract with Caroline Records, which had issued the trio's self-titled debut in 1996. The album was a surprise hit in the U.K., where such singles as "Nancy Boy" and "Bruise Pristine" became hits, as the group became the toast of the British music weeklies and supported their debut with opening for such outfits as a the reunited Sex Pistols, U2, and Weezer.

Despite their success right off the bat, Schultzberg wasn't seeing eye to eye with the other bandmembers, who by this point were able to convince Hewitt to come back onboard full-time, prompting Schultzberg's exit from the band. One of Hewitt's first performances with Placebo upon returning proved to be a big one, as major fan David Bowie personally invited the trio to play at his 50th birthday bash at New York's Madison Square Garden in 1997. The following year, Placebo switched over to the major-label division of Caroline, Virgin Records, and issued Without You I'm Nothing in November. The album was another large seller in England and initially appeared to be the group's breakthrough in the U.S., where MTV embraced the album's leadoff single, "Pure Morning," but subsequent singles/videos failed to match the success of its predecessor. Around the same time, Placebo also recorded a cover version of T. Rex's classic "20th Century Boy" for the movie Velvet Goldmine, in which the trio appeared performing the song as well.

The relationship between Placebo and Bowie continued to blossom, as Bowie made a special appearance on-stage with the band during a tour stop in New York, in addition to both parties uniting for a re-recording of the title track from Without You I'm Nothing (issued as a single in 1999). Placebo's third release, Black Market Music added hip-hop and disco elements to the band's tense rock sound. The U.K. saw a release date in early 2000; stateside fans were treated to a resequenced version that fall. The U.S. version featured a slightly different track listing, adding the aforementioned Bowie version of "Without You I'm Nothing" and the band's cover of Depeche Mode's "I Feel You." The recording spawned additional U.K. hits such as "Taste in Men" and "Slave to the Wage."

In spring 2003, Placebo showcased a harder edge with the release of their fourth album, Sleeping with Ghosts. The album went Top Ten in the U.K. and sold 1.4 million copies worldwide. Australian tour dates with Elbow and U.K. shows with Har Mar Superstar followed in 2004. Placebo's singles collection, Once More with Feeling: Singles 1996-2004, was released before the year's end. The 19-song compilation included their biggest U.K. hits and the new track "Twenty Years." Frenchman Dimitri Tikovoi (Goldfrapp, the Cranes), who mixed select songs on Once More with Feeling, produced Placebo's fifth effort, 2006's Meds. In 2007, after scheduling to tour with Linkin Park and My Chemical Romance on the Projekt Revolution tour, Virgin released the Extended Play '07 EP as a simple introduction for new fans to the band's past decade of music. - Greg Prato, All Music Guide

Smashing Pumpkins

2010-03-19T17:59:00.000-07:00

Active years: 1988-
Genres: Electronic, Alternative Pop/Rock, Noise Pop, Post-Grunge, Alternative/Indie Rock, Contemporary Christian, CCM, Gospel, Grunge, Christian Rock, Electronica, Indie Pop, Indie Rock, Dream Pop, Pop/Rock, Alternative CCM, Religious
Top hits: 1979, Tonight, Tonight, Disarm, Bullet With Butterfly Wings, Today

Smashing Pumpkins
Of all the major alternative rock bands of the early '90s, Smashing Pumpkins were the group least influenced by traditional underground rock. Lead guitarist/songwriter Billy Corgan fashioned an amalgam of progressive rock, heavy metal, goth rock, psychedelia, and dream pop, creating a layered, powerful sound driven by swirling, distorted guitars. Corgan was wise enough to exploit his angst-ridden lyrics, yet he never shied away from rock star posturing, even if he did cloak it in allegedly ironic gestures. In fact, Smashing Pumpkins became the model for alternative rock success. Nirvana was too destructive and Pearl Jam shunned success. The Pumpkins, on the other hand, knew how to play the game, signing to a major-subsidized indie for underground credibility and moving to the major in time to make the group a multi-platinum act. And when the group did achieve mass success with 1993's Siamese Dream, they went a long way to legitimize heavy metal and orchestrated prog rock, helping move alternative rock even closer to '70s AOR, especially in the eyes of radio programmers and mainstream audiences. Unlike many of their contemporaries, the Pumpkins were able to withstand many internal problems and keep selling records, emerging as the longest-lasting and most successful alternative band of the early '90s.

The son of a jazz guitarist, Billy Corgan grew up in a Chicago suburb, leaving home at the age of 19 to move to Florida with his fledgling goth metal band, the Marked. After the band failed down South, he returned to Chicago around 1988, where he began working at a used-record store. At the shop he met James Iha (guitar), a graphic arts student at Loyola University, and the two began collaborating, performing and recording songs with a drum machine. Corgan met D'Arcy Wretzky at a club show; after arguing about the merits of the Dan Reed Network, the two became friends and she joined the group as a bassist. Soon, the band, who named themselves Smashing Pumpkins, had gained a dedicated local following, including the head of a local club who booked them to open for Jane's Addiction. Before the pivotal concert, the band hired Jimmy Chamberlin, a former jazz musician, as their full-time drummer.

In 1990, Smashing Pumpkins released their debut single, "I Am One," on the local Chicago label Limited Potential. The single quickly sold out, and in December the band released "Tristessa" on Sub Pop. By this point, Smashing Pumpkins had become the subject of a hot bidding war, and the group latched on to a clever way to move to a major label without losing indie credibility. They signed to Virgin Records, yet it was decided that the group's debut would be released on the Virgin subsidiary Caroline, then the band would move to the majors. The strategy worked; Gish, a majestic mix of Black Sabbath and dream pop produced by Butch Vig, became a huge college and modern rock hit upon its spring 1991 release. While it earned a large audience, many indie rock fans began to snipe at Smashing Pumpkins, accusing them of being careerists. Such criticism did the band no harm and they embarked on an extensive supporting tour for Gish, which lasted over a year and included opening slots for Red Hot Chili Peppers and Pearl Jam. During the Gish tour, tensions between bandmembers began to escalate, as Iha and D'Arcy, who had been lovers, went through a messy breakup, Chamberlin became addicted to drugs and alcohol, and Corgan entered a heavy depression. These tensions hadn't been resolved by the time the group entered the studio with Vig to record their second album.

Toward the beginning of the sessions, the Pumpkins were given significant exposure through the inclusion of "Drown" on the Singles soundtrack in the summer of 1992. As the sessions progressed, Corgan relieved himself of his depression by working heavily not only did he write a surplus of songs, he played nearly all of the guitars and bass on each recording, which meant that its release was delayed several times. The resulting album, Siamese Dream, was an immaculate production owing much to Queen, yet it was embraced by critics upon its July 1993 release. Siamese Dream became a blockbuster, debuting at number ten on the charts and establishing the group as stars. "Cherub Rock," the first single, was a modern rock hit, yet it was "Today" and the acoustic "Disarm" that sent the album into the stratosphere, as well as the group's relentless touring. Smashing Pumpkins became the headliners of Lollapalooza 1994, and following the tour's completion, the band went back into the studio to record a new album that Corgan had already claimed would be a double-disc set. To tide fans over until the new album, the Pumpkins released the B-sides and rarities album Pisces Iscariot in October 1994.

Working with producers Flood and Alan Moulder, Smashing Pumpkins recorded as a full band for their third album, which turned out to be, as Corgan predicted, a double-disc set called Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness. Although many observers were skeptical about whether a double-disc set, especially one so ridiculously named, would be a commercial success, Mellon Collie became an even bigger hit than Siamese Dream, debuting at number one on the charts. On the strength of the singles "Bullet with Butterfly Wings," "1979," "Zero," and "Tonight, Tonight," it sold over four million copies in the U.S., eventually being certified platinum over eight times (each disc in the set counted separately toward certification). The Pumpkins had graduated to stadium shows for the Mellon Collie tour, and the band was at the peak of their popularity when things began to go wrong again. On July 12, prior to two shows at Madison Square Garden, the group's touring keyboardist, Jonathan Melvoin, died from a heroin overdose; he was with Jimmy Chamberlin, who survived his overdose. In the wake of the tragedy, the remaining Pumpkins fired Chamberlin and spent two months on hiatus as they recovered and searched for a new drummer. Early in August, they announced that Filter member Matt Walker would be their touring drummer, and Dennis Flemion, a member of the Frogs, would be their touring keyboardist for the remainder of the year. They returned to the stage at the end of August and spent the next five months on tour. During this time, Corgan contributed some music to Ron Howard's Ransom.

Early in 1997, once the Pumpkins left the road, Iha and D'Arcy launched Scratchie Records, a subsidiary of Mercury Records. In the spring, Smashing Pumpkins recorded two songs for the soundtrack for Batman and Robin. Iha's solo debut, Let It Come Down, appeared in early 1998; Adore, the new Smashing Pumpkins LP, followed a few months later to disappointing sales and reviews. Chamberlin returned to the group and D'Arcy exited prior to the early-2000 release of MACHINA: The Machines of God. Several months later, Corgan announced his intentions to dissolve the band before the year was out. With former Hole bassist Melissa auf der Maur replacing D'Arcy, the band launched their farewell tour in 2000. Fans of the band received one last treat when Corgan and company worked feverishly to finish off tracks that were left over from the MACHINA sessions. Surprisingly, Virgin Records balked at the idea of releasing the 25-track set so close in time to their previous album, so the band put the entire album (going by the official title of Machina II: The Friends and Enemies of Modern Music) on the Internet for fans to download for free. On December 2 of the same year, the Pumpkins played a mammoth final show at Chicago's Metro (also the venue at which the group played their first show back in 1988) before officially calling it quits.

But the former members of the band didn't wait long before carrying on with other projects Corgan spent the summer of 2001 playing guitar with New Order on select concert dates, and later in the year unveiled his new band, Zwan, including Chamberlin on drums (as well as former Chavez guitarist Matt Sweeney and bassist Skullfisher). The other two former Pumpkins, Iha and auf der Maur, began putting together an alt-rock supergroup dubbed the Virgins. The same year, a pair of postmortem Pumpkins collections were issued for the holiday season a double-disc collection and a DVD both called Greatest Hits. Corgan released his first solo album, The Future Embrace, in 2005, and on the day it came out, he took out a full-page ad in the Chicago Tribune to announce that Smashing Pumpkins were reuniting. He hadn't informed any of his past bandmates, and only Chamberlin went along. Zeitgeist, a heavier album than any past Pumpkins album, was released in 2007. - Stephen Thomas Erlewine and Greg Prato, All Music Guide

Radiohead

2010-03-19T17:58:00.000-07:00

Active years: 1989-
Genres: Indie Pop, Indie Rock, Dream Pop, Alternative Pop/Rock, Indie Electronic, Alternative/Indie Rock, Pop/Rock, Experimental Rock, Britpop
Top hits: Creep, Karma Police, Everything In Its Right Place, No Surprises, High And Dry

Radiohead
Radiohead was one of the few alternative bands of the early '90s to draw heavily from the grandiose arena rock that characterized U2's early albums. But the band internalized that epic sweep, turning it inside out to tell tortured, twisted tales of angst and alienation. Vocalist Thom Yorke's pained lyrics were brought to life by the group's three-guitar attack, which relied on texture borrowing as much from My Bloody Valentine and Pink Floyd as R.E.M. and Pixies instead of virtuosity. It took Radiohead awhile to formulate their signature sound. Their 1993 debut, Pablo Honey, only suggested their potential, and one of its songs, "Creep," became an unexpected international hit, its angst-ridden lyrics making it an alternative rock anthem. Many observers pigeonholed Radiohead as a one-hit wonder, but the group's second album, The Bends, was released to terrific reviews in the band's native Britain in early 1995, helping build a more stable fan base. Having demonstrated unexpected staying power, as well as increasing ambition, Radiohead next released OK Computer, a progressive, electronic-tinged masterpiece that became one of the most acclaimed albums of the '90s.

Thom Yorke (vocals, guitar), Ed O'Brien (guitar, vocals), Jonny Greenwood (guitar), Colin Greenwood (bass), and Phil Selway (drums) formed Radiohead as students at Oxford University in 1988. Initially called On a Friday, the band began pursuing a musical career in earnest in the early '90s, releasing the Drill EP in 1992. Shortly afterward, the group signed to EMI/Capitol and released the single "Creep," a fusion of R.E.M. and Nirvana highlighted by a noisy burst of feedback prior to the chorus. "Creep" was a moderate hit, and their next two singles, "Anyone Can Play Guitar" and "Pop Is Dead," built a small following, even as the British music press ignored the group.

Pablo Honey, Radiohead's debut album, was released to mixed reviews in the spring of 1993. As the band launched a European supporting tour, "Creep" became a sudden smash hit in America, earning heavy airplay on modern rock radio and MTV. On the back of the single's success, Radiohead toured the U.S. extensively, opening for Belly and Tears for Fears. All the exposure helped Pablo Honey go gold, and "Creep" was re-released in the U.K. at the end of 1993. This time, the single became a Top Ten hit, and the band spent the following summer touring the world.

Although "Creep" made Radiohead a success, it also led many observers to peg the band as a one-hit wonder. Conscious of such thinking, the group entered the studio with producer John Leckie to record their second album, The Bends. Upon its spring 1995 release, The Bends was greeted with overwhelmingly enthusiastic reviews, all of which praised the group's deeper, more mature sound. However, positive reviews didn't sell albums, as Radiohead struggled to be heard during the U.K.'s summer of Britpop and as American radio programmers and MTV ignored the record. The band continued to tour as the opening act on R.E.M.'s prestigious Monster tour. By the end of the year, The Bends began to catch on, thanks not only to the band's constant touring but also to the stark, startling video for "Just." The album made many year-end best-of lists in the U.K., and early in 1996 the record re-entered the British Top Ten and climbed to gold status in the U.S., helped in the latter by the video for "Fake Plastic Trees."

During the first half of 1996, Radiohead continued to tour before re-entering the studio that fall to record their third album, OK Computer, which was released in the summer of 1997. A devoted following of fans and a handful of enthusiastic critical supporters immediately embraced the album's majestic blend of unfettered prog rock, post-punk angst, eerie electronic textures, and assured songwriting. Since it skillfully teetered between rock classicism and futurism, it earned near-unanimous critical and popular support over the course of the year, which turned into unrestrained adoration in the final two years of the decade, even though its sales still hadn't climbed above gold status.

Expectations for Radiohead's fourth album were stratospheric, which placed additional pressure on the already perfectionist band, and led to several stumbling blocks along the way. An intense buzz of excitement among the band's still-growing following greeted the prerelease appearance of most of the album's tracks on the Internet in MP3 form; they displayed an all-out fascination with challenging, often minimalist electronica. Titled Kid A, the album was finally released in October 2000 and astonished many observers by debuting at number one on the U.S. album charts. While the band didn't release any singles or embark on a formal tour, the album met with a mixed critical response as the group was accused of creating a distant and radio-unfriendly record; however, it did remain a fan favorite.

In June of 2001, Radiohead quickly released an album under the name Amnesiac that consisted of material that was recorded during the Kid A sessions. The band made it very clear, though, that it was not to be considered an outtakes album; rather, they insisted that the two albums were of clear and separate concept. Regardless, Amnesiac debuted at number one in the U.K. and number two on the U.S. chart (behind then-stronghold Staind), while outselling Kid A in week one by 25,000 copies. The singles Pyramid Song and Knives Out were culled from Amnesiac with a subsequent world tour. While planning "I Might Be Wrong" for a third single, the idea expanded into a live "mini-album," titled after the track, that was released in November of 2001. Hail to the Thief, the proper follow-up to Amnesiac, was relatively direct in structure and peaked at number three on the U.S. chart. Sporadic recording sessions resumed in early 2005, but a projected release date for the band's seventh studio album remained 2007 as Yorke prepared a solo album, The Eraser, which was issued in July 2006.

On October 1, 2007, the band announced that they had finished their seventh album, In Rainbows, and that it would be "out" in a matter of ten days. Giving fans the option to pay whatever they'd like for the album as a zip file of MP3s, Radiohead also devised a pre-order system for the physical version of the album a "discbox" containing a double-vinyl version, a CD copy with an enhanced six-track bonus disc, a lyric book, and photos which they planned on shipping by early December. This was done without the involvement of a record label. - Stephen Thomas Erlewine and Andy Kellman, All Music Guide

Manic Street Preachers

2010-03-19T17:56:00.000-07:00

Active years: 1991-
Genres: Alternative Pop/Rock, Contemporary Singer/Songwriter, Alternative/Indie Rock, Folk, Pop/Rock, Singer/Songwriter, Contemporary Folk, Hard Rock, Britpop
Top hits: Motorcycle Emptiness, If You Tolerate This Your Children Will Be Next, A Design For Life, Peeled Apples, Jackie Collins Existential Question Time

Manic Street Preachers
Dressed in glam clothing, wearing heavy eyeliner, and shouting political rhetoric, the Manic Street Preachers emerged in 1991 from their hometown of Blackwood, Wales, as self-styled "Generation Terrorists." Fashioning themselves after the Clash and the Sex Pistols, the Manics were on a mission, intending to restore revolution to rock and roll at a time when Britain was dominated by trancey shoegazers and faceless, trippy acid house. Their self-consciously dangerous image, leftist leanings, crunching hard rock, and outsider status made them favorites of the British music press and helped them build a rabidly dedicated following.

For much of the band's early career, it was impossible to separate the rhetoric from the music and even from the members themselves the group's image was forever associated with lyricist/guitarist Richey James carving the words "4 Real" into his arm during an early interview. As the British pop music climate shifted toward Brit-pop in the wake of Suede, the Manics didn't achieve fame, but they did have notoriety. Legions of followers emerged, including many bands that formed the core of the short-lived "new wave of new wave" movement.

But as the group climbed toward stardom, the story didn't get simpler it got weirder. James' behavior became increasingly bizarre, culminating on the group's harrowing 1994 album The Holy Bible. Early in 1995, James disappeared, leaving no trace of his whereabouts. The remaining trio carried on with 1996's Everything Must Go, the album that established them as superstars in England, yet that came at the expense of the arrogant, renegade gender-bending and revolutionary rhetoric that had earned them their initial fan base. It was a bizarre, unpredictable journey for a group that once proclaimed that all bands should break up after releasing one album.

James Dean Bradfield (vocals, guitar), Nicky Wire (born Nick Jones; bass), Sean Moore (drums), and Flicker (rhythm guitar) formed Betty Blue in 1986. Within two years' time, Flicker had left the band and the group had changed its name to the Manic Street Preachers. In the summer of 1988, a fellow student at Swansea University, Richey James (born Richey Edwards), who had previously been the group's driver, joined the band as rhythm guitarist. They began recording demos, eventually releasing the single "Suicide Alley" in August. "Suicide Alley" boasted a cover replicating that of the Clash's first album, which indicated the sound of the group at the time equal parts punk and hard rock. A year after the single's release, the NME gave it an enthusiastic review, citing James' press release "We are as far away from anything in the '80s as possible."

Indeed, the Manics were one of the key bands of the early '90s, and their career didn't get rolling until 1991. The New Art Riot EP appeared in the summer of 1990, followed by a pair of defining singles "Motown Junk" and "You Love Us" in early 1991 on Heavenly Records. The singles and the Manics' incendiary live shows, where they wrote slogans on their shirts, created a strong buzz in the music press, which only escalated in May. James gave an interview with Steve Lamaq for the NME in which Lamaq questioned the group's authenticity; after an argument, James responded by carving the words "4 Real" on his arm. The incident became a sensation, attracting numerous magazine articles, as well as a major-label contract with Sony. Many observers interpreted the action as a simple stunt, but over the next few years it became clear that the self-mutilation was the first indication of James' mental instability.

"Stay Beautiful" was the Manics' first release for Sony, and it climbed into the British Top 40 late in the summer of 1991, followed early in 1992 by a re-recorded "You Love Us," which peaked in the Top 20. By the time they released their much-hyped debut album, Generation Terrorists, in February 1992 a record the band claimed would outsell Guns N' Roses' Appetite for Destruction they had already cultivated a large and devoted following, many of whom emulated their glammy appearance and read the same novels and philosophers the group name-dropped. The Manics had been claiming that they would disband following the release of their debut, yet it became clear by the fall, when a non-LP cover of "Suicide Is Painless (Theme from M*A*S*H)" became their first Top Ten hit, that they would continue performing. Nicky Wire and Richey James had become notorious for their banter throughout the British music press, and while it earned them countless articles, it also painted the group into a corner. Comparatively polished and mainstream compared to its predecessor, Gold Against the Soul, the group's second album, appeared in the summer of 1993 to mixed reviews.

Shortly after the release of Gold Against the Soul, the Manics' support began to slide as the group began to splinter amidst internal tensions, many of them stemming from James. Nicky Wire ran into trouble over on-stage remarks about R.E.M.'s Michael Stipe dying of AIDS, but Richey James was in genuine trouble. Suffering from deepening alcoholism and anorexia, James entered prolonged bouts of depression, highlighted by incidents of self-mutilation most notoriously at a concert in Thailand, when he appeared with his chest slashed open by knives a fan gave him. Early in 1994, he entered a private clinic, and the band had to perform a number of concerts as a trio. James' mental illness surfaced on the group's third album, The Holy Bible. Reportedly recorded in a red-light district in Wales, The Holy Bible was a bleak, disillusioned record that earned considerable critical acclaim upon its late-summer release in 1994.

Although the Manics' critical reputation was restored and James was playing with the band, even giving numerous interviews with the press, all was not well. Prior to the American release of The Holy Bible and the band's ensuing tour, James checked out of his London hotel on February 1, 1995, drove to his Cardiff apartment, and disappeared, leaving behind his passport and credit cards. Within the week he was reported missing and his abandoned car was found on the Severen Bridge outside of Bristol, a spot notorious for suicides. By the summer, the police had presumed he was dead. Broken, but not beaten, the remaining Manics decided to carry on as a trio, working the remaining lyrics James left behind into songs.

The Manic Street Preachers returned in December 1995 opening for the Stone Roses. In May 1996, they released Everything Must Go, which was preceded by the number two single "A Design for Life." Their most direct and mature record to date, Everything Must Go was greeted with enthusiastic reviews, and the Manics became major stars in England. Throughout 1996, the band toured constantly, and most U.K. music publications named Everything Must Go Album of the Year. Despite their growing success, several older fans expressed distress at the group's increasingly conservative image, yet that didn't prevent the album from going multi-platinum.

Everything Must Go didn't just go multi-platinum it established the Manics as superstars throughout the world. Everywhere except America, that is. The album received a belated release in the U.S., appearing in August of 1996, and the group attempted an American tour, opening for Oasis. It should have led to increased exposure, but a blowup between the Gallaghers led to Oasis canceling the entire tour, leaving the Manics at square one. They returned to the U.K. and toured, receiving a number of awards at the end of the year. They didn't deliver their much-anticipated follow-up, This Is My Truth Tell Me Yours, until August of 1998. The album was another blockbuster success in the U.K., Europe, and Asia, but it didn't receive a release in America, since the Manics were in the process of leaving Epic in the U.S.

For a while, there was simply no interest in the Manics by American labels, but another multi-platinum album and numerous awards in Britain revived interest. The band signed with Virgin, which released This Is My Truth Tell Me Yours in June 1999 nearly a year after its initial release. Know Your Enemy followed in 2001, although it was not well received, and the band moved to Sony for British distribution of 2004's Lifeblood. Both vocalist/guitarist James Dean Bradfield and bassist Nicky Wire followed this release with solo albums, and then reconvened in 2007 to record the edgier, punk-influenced Send Away the Tigers with producer Dave Eringa. After its release, the band quickly set to work on another album, using Richey James' abandoned lyrics as inspiration. "All 13 songs on the new record feature lyrics left to us by Richey," the Manics wrote on their website in early 2009. "The brilliance and intelligence of the lyrics dictated that we had to finally use them." Titled Journal for Plague Lovers, the album was recorded on analog tape by veteran producer Steve Albini and released that May. - Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide

Morrissey

2010-03-19T17:53:00.000-07:00

Active years: 80s, 90s, 00s
Genres: Alternative Pop/Rock, College Rock, Alternative/Indie Rock, Dance-Rock, Pop/Rock, Adult Alternative Pop/Rock
Top hits: Everyday Is Like Sunday, Suedehead, The Last Of The Famous International Playboys, First Of The Gang To Die, The More You Ignore Me The Closer I Get

Morrissey
As the lead singer of the Smiths, arguably the most important indie band in Britain during the '80s, Morrissey's theatrical crooning and literate, poetic lyrics filled with romantic angst, social alienation, and cutting wit connected powerfully with a legion of similarly sensitive, disaffected youth. These fans turned The Smiths into stars in Britain, exerting tremendous pull over much of the country's guitar-based music for many years after their breakup, and even if the group remained underground cult artists in the States, they had a fanbase that slowly, steadily grew larger over the years. Indeed, a few years after The Smiths's breakup in 1987, Morrissey's American cult had grown to the point where he became more popular in the U.S. than in his homeland, where he neverthless was never far from the music press headlines. After a quiet period around the turn of the millennium, Morrissey launched a comeback in 2004 with You Are the Quarry, an album whose success proved that he remained one of the most beloved figures in alternative rock.

Stephen Patrick Morrissey was born May 22, 1959, in Manchester, England; not surprisingly a shy, awkward youth, he became obsessed with music and film as a teenager and devoted his writing talents to penning a New York Dolls fanzine (he was the president of their U.K. fan club), as well as a tribute to James Dean and numerous opinionated letters to the weekly music paper Melody Maker. During the explosion of punk in the late '70s, Morrissey unsuccessfully auditioned for Slaughter and the Dogs and sang for a brief period with a band called the Nosebleeds. He met guitarist Johnny Marr in 1982 and the two began writing songs together, forging one of the most productive partnerships British pop had seen in quite some time. The Smiths' 1983 debut single, "Hand in Glove," a love song filled with oblique references to homosexuality, made them an underground sensation in the U.K. and as Morrissey attracted more attention, he demonstrated a flair for manipulating the media. His interviews were filled with blunt, unpredictable opinions and intentionally outrageous statements and his notoriety wasn't hurt by his stage presence (he performed wearing a hearing aid with flowers sticking out of his back pockets) or his self-proclaimed celibacy in the wake of much speculation about his sexuality.

Possessed of a darkly cynical bent as a lyricist, he was often misinterpreted as advocating some of the more disturbing things he sang about, which only added to the furor surrounding the band. The Smiths' eponymous 1984 debut was a smash in the U.K. and in its wake, Morrissey began promoting his political views, heavily criticizing Margaret Thatcher, and advocating vegetarianism (hence the title of the follow-up LP, Meat Is Murder). The Queen Is Dead (1986) was acclaimed as a masterpiece, but friction between Morrissey and Marr was growing. Marr departed after 1987's Strangeways, Here We Come and Morrissey broke up the rest of the band to begin a solo career.

Feeling betrayed by Marr's defection, Morrissey channeled his frustration into creating new material with producer Stephen Street. His first two solo singles, "Suedehead" and the gorgeous "Everyday Is Like Sunday," were significant British hits in 1988 and his first album, Viva Hate (its title a reference to the Smiths' breakup), was commercially and critically well received. He released several more high-quality singles, including "The Last of the International Playboys" and "Interesting Drug," but spent an inordinate amount of time laboring on the follow-up album, issuing the stopgap compilation Bona Drag in 1990. In the meantime, the Madchester fad was sweeping British indie music and when the lackluster Kill Uncle was finally released in 1991, it only magnified the disappointment. U.K. reviewers took Morrissey to task, suggesting that the record marked the end of his glory days and that he would never be able to match the songs he'd written in tandem with Marr.

A misperceived flirtation with British nationalism (not helped by a couple of seemingly racial caricatures in recent songs) tarnished his image even more in the U.K. press during 1992, this coming amid even more frequent reports of feuds with his managers, business associates, and ex-bandmates. All the controversy overshadowed the fact that 1992's Mick Ronson-produced Your Arsenal was a smashing return to form; Morrissey used his new guitar tandem of Alain Whyte (who co-wrote much of the material) and Boz Boorer (formerly of rockabilly revivalists the Polecats) to full advantage in crafting a crunchy, glammed-up record. It easily ranked as the hardest-rocking of his career. Meanwhile, over in the U.S., tickets for his upcoming tour were selling like hotcakes and he managed to sell out L.A.'s Hollywood Bowl even faster than the Beatles had.

His confidence renewed by his American success (to the point where he permanently moved to Los Angeles), Morrissey delivered an equally strong follow-up in 1994's calmer Vauxhall and I, which even got him his first Top 50 singles chart entry in the U.S. with the MTV-supported "The More You Ignore Me, the Closer I Get." A hit-and-miss compilation, The World of Morrissey, followed in 1995, after which he switched labels (from Sire to RCA) for the first time since the Smiths' debut album. Also issued in 1995 was the prog rock-informed Southpaw Grammar, which confounded many and perhaps prevented him from expanding his American audience past a now-sizable group of longtime listeners. In 1996, he moved to another new label, this time Island, and released Maladjusted the following year. It failed to sell well outside of his most fanatical followers and his relationship with Island ended in 1998.

In the years that followed, Morrissey remained a massively popular touring attraction on the strength of his singular identity, despite the fact that he had yet to land another record deal. Finally, he signed his Attack label to Sanctuary, and released his first studio album in seven years, 2004's You Are the Quarry featuring production by Jerry Finn (blink-182, Sum 41, and Green Day). The album's lead-off single "Irish Blood, English Heart" garnered considerable press attention, radio and music television attention and helped establish a comeback-of-sorts for Morrissey. The concert recording Live at Earls Court followed one year later as did the DVD concert Who Put the "M" in Manchester? which even saw a brief theatrical release. His second full-length for Sanctuary, Ringleader of the Tormentors was produced by Tony Visconti (T. Rex, David Bowie) and released in spring 2006. Recorded in Rome, the album also featured some orchestration by famed composer Ennio Morricone. Around this time, Morrissey's longtime guitarist and writing partner Alain Whyte left the band. Although Whyte continued to contribute songs for Morrissey he was largely replaced on album and in live shows by guitarist Jesse Tobias. In 2009, Morrissey released Years of Refusal his third album with the Attack imprint and his first under Decca after label changes found Sanctuary being absorbed into the Universal Music Group (which owned Decca). Produced by Quarry's Finn and once again showcasing guitarist Tobias, Years of Refusal found Morrissey going for a more stripped down, back-to-basics rock approach. Sadly, Finn suffered a cerebral hemorrhage just after wrapping production on Years of Refusal. He fell into a coma and died just over a month later on August 21, 2008. Although a tragic way to prepare for an album launch, Years of Refusal was largely hailed as Morrissey's best album in years. - Steve Huey, All Music Guide

Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds

2010-03-19T17:44:00.002-07:00

Active years: 80s, 90s, 00s
Genres: Alternative Pop/Rock, Alternative/Indie Rock, Garage Rock, Experimental Rock, Psychedelic, Alternative Singer/Songwriter, Poetry, Pop/Rock, Rock and Roll, Comedy/Spoken, Adult Alternative Pop/Rock, Punk/New Wave, Spoken Word, Post-Punk
Top hits: Where The Wild Roses Grow, Into My Arms, The Ship Song, Dig, Lazarus, Dig!!!, The Weeping Song

Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds
After goth pioneers the Birthday Party called it quits in 1983, singer/songwriter Nick Cave assembled the Bad Seeds, a post-punk supergroup featuring former Birthday Party guitarist Mick Harvey on drums, ex-Magazine bassist Barry Adamson, and Einstürzende Neubauten guitarist Blixa Bargeld. With the Bad Seeds, Cave continued to explore his obsessions with religion, death, love, America, and violence with a bizarre, sometimes self-consciously eclectic hybrid of blues, gospel, rock, and arty post-punk, although in a more subdued fashion than his work with the Birthday Party. Cave also allowed his literary aspirations to come to the forefront; the lyrics are narrative prose, heavy on literary allusions and myth-making, and take some inspiration from Leonard Cohen. Cave's gloomy lyrics, dark musical arrangements, and deep baritone voice recall the albums of Scott Walker, who also obsessed over death and love with a frightening passion. However, Cave brings a hefty amount of post-punk experimentalism to Walker's epic dark pop.

Cave released his first album with the Bad Seeds, From Her to Eternity, in 1984, which contained a noteworthy cover of Elvis Presley's "In the Ghetto," foreshadowing much of Cave's style and subject matter on the follow-up The Firstborn Is Dead. Kicking Against the Pricks, an all-covers album, broke the band in England with the help of "The Singer," which hit number one on the U.K. independent charts. The album also strengthened Cave's reputation as an original interpreter and a vocal stylist of note. Following 1986's Your Funeral...My Trial, Cave took a two-year hiatus from recording, partially to appear in Wim Wenders' 1987 film Wings of Desire, and then returned with Tender Prey, which featured Cramps guitarist Kid Congo Powers and Cave's strongest vocal performance up to that point.

Cave's productivity picked up immensely over the next two years after he kicked a heroin habit. He had two books (1988's King Ink, a collection of lyrics, plays, and prose, and 1989's And the Ass Saw the Angel, a novel) published; appeared in the 1989 Australian film Ghosts...of the Civil Dead as a prisoner; recorded a soundtrack to the film with Harvey and Bargeld; and released 1990's The Good Son, his most relaxed, quiet album. Cave received his due as one of the leading figures in alternative rock when he was invited to perform on the 1994 edition of the Lollapalooza tour to promote his Let Love In album. Early in 1996, he released Murder Ballads, a collection of songs about murder. Murder Ballads became Cave's most commercially successful album to date, and, with typical perversity, he followed it with the introspective and personal The Boatman's Call in early 1997. A spoken word release, Secret Life of the Love Song, followed in 1999.

Two years later, a rejuvenated Cave teamed up with the Bad Seeds once again for the piano-laden No More Shall We Part. Nocturama was released in 2003, and the double-album Abattoir Blues/The Lyre of Orpheus followed by the end of 2004. After touring in support of the album throughout 2005, Cave embarked on a new project called Grinderman with Bad Seeds members Warren Ellis, Martyn Casey, and Jim Sclavunos. The group's self-titled debut was released in 2007, the same year Cave was inducted into Australia's ARIA Hall of Fame. In 2008, Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds released Dig!!! Lazarus Dig!!! - Stephen Thomas Erlewine and Steve Huey, All Music Guide

Leonard Cohen

2010-03-19T17:44:00.001-07:00

Active years: 60s, 70s, 80s, 90s, 00s
Genres: Folk-Rock, Early Pop/Rock, Folk-Pop, Pop/Rock, Folk, Progressive Country, Contemporary Folk, Singer/Songwriter, Contemporary Pop/Rock, Psychedelic, AM Pop, Country
Top hits: Hallelujah, Suzanne, Famous Blue Raincoat, So Long, Marianne, The Partisan

Leonard Cohen
One of the most fascinating and enigmatic if not the most successful singer/songwriters of the late '60s, Leonard Cohen has retained an audience across four decades of music-making interrupted by various digressions into personal and creative exploration, all of which have only added to the mystique surrounding him. Second only to Bob Dylan (and perhaps Paul Simon), he commands the attention of critics and younger musicians more firmly than any other musical figure from the 1960s who is still working at the outset of the 21st century, which is all the more remarkable an achievement for someone who didn't even aspire to a musical career until he was in his thirties.

Cohen was born in 1934, a year before Elvis Presley or Ronnie Hawkins, and his background personal, social, and intellectual couldn't have been more different from those of any rock stars of any generation; nor can he be easily compared even with any members of the generation of folksingers who came of age in the 1960s. Though he knew some country music and played it a bit as a boy, he didn't start performing on even a semi-regular basis, much less recording, until after he had already written several books and as an established novelist and poet, his literary accomplishments far exceed those of Bob Dylan or most anyone else who one cares to mention in music, at least this side of operatic librettists such as Hugo Von Hoffmanstahl or Stefan Zweig, figures from another musical and cultural world.

He was born Leonard Norman Cohen into a middle-class Jewish family in the Montreal suburb of Westmount. His father, a clothing merchant (who also held a degree in engineering), died in 1943, when Cohen was nine years old. It was his mother who encouraged Cohen as a writer, especially of poetry, during his childhood. This fit in with the progressive intellectual environment in which he was raised, which allowed him free inquiry into a vast range of pursuits. His relationship to music was more tentative he took up the guitar at age 13, initially as a way to impress a girl, but was good enough to play country and western songs at local cafes, and he subsequently formed a group called the Buckskin Boys. At 17, he enrolled in McGill University as an English major by this time, he was writing poetry in earnest and became part of the university's tiny underground "bohemian" community. Cohen only earned average grades, but was a good enough writer to earn the McNaughton Prize in creative writing by the time he graduated in 1955 a year later, the ink barely dry on his degree, he published his first book of poetry, Let Us Compare Mythologies (1956), which got great reviews but didn't sell especially well.

He was already beyond the age that rock and roll was aimed at Bob Dylan, by contrast, was still Robert Zimmerman, still in his teens, and young enough to become a devotee of Buddy Holly when the latter emerged. In 1961, Cohen published his second book of poetry, The Spice Box of Earth, which became an international success critically and commercially, and established Cohen as a major new literary figure. Meanwhile, he tried to join the family business and spent some time at Columbia University in New York, writing all the time. Between the modest royalties from sales of his second book, literary grants from the Canadian government, and a family legacy, he was able to live comfortably and travel around the world, partake of much of what it had to offer including some use of LSD when it was still legal and ultimately settling for an extended period in Greece, on the isle of Hydra in the Aegean Sea. He continued to publish, issuing a pair of novels, The Favorite Game (1963) and Beautiful Losers (1966), with a pair of poetry collections, Flowers for Hitler (1964) and Parasites of Heaven (1966) around them. The Favorite Game was a very personal work about his early life in Montreal, but it was Beautiful Losers that proved another breakthrough, earning the kind of reviews that authors dare not even hope for Cohen found himself compared to James Joyce in the pages of The Boston Globe, and across four decades the book has enjoyed sales totaling well into six figures.

It was around this time that he also started writing music again, songs being a natural extension of his poetry. His relative isolation on Hydra, coupled with his highly mobile lifestyle when he left the island, his own natural iconoclastic nature, and the fact that he'd avoided being overwhelmed (or even touched too seriously) by the currents running through popular music since the 1940s, combined to give Cohen a unique voice as a composer. Though he did settle in Nashville for a short time in the mid-'60s, he didn't write quite like anyone else in music, in the country music mecca or anywhere else. This might have been an impediment but for the intervention of Judy Collins, a folksinger who had just moved to the front rank of that field, and who had a voice just special enough to move her beyond the relatively emaciated ranks of remaining popular folk performers after Dylan shifted to electric music she was still getting heard, and not just by the purists left behind in Dylan's wake. She added Cohen's "Suzanne" to her repertory and put it onto her album In My Life, a record that was controversial enough in folk circles because of her cover of the Beatles song that gave the LP its title that it pulled in a lot of listeners and got a wide airing. "Suzanne" received a considerable amount of radio airplay from the LP, and Cohen was also represented on the album by "Dress Rehearsal Rag."

It was Collins who persuaded Cohen to return to performing for the first time since his teens. He made his debut during the summer of 1967 at the Newport Folk Festival, followed by a pair of sold-out concerts in New York City and an appearance singing his songs and reciting his poems on the CBS network television show Camera Three, in a show entitled Ladies and Gentlemen, Mr. Leonard Cohen. It was around the same time that actor/singer Noel Harrison brought "Suzanne" onto the pop charts with a recording of his own. One of those who saw Cohen perform at Newport was John Hammond, Sr., the legendary producer whose career went back to the 1930s and the likes of Billie Holiday, Benny Goodman, and Count Basie, and extended up through Bob Dylan and, ultimately, to Bruce Springsteen. Hammond got Cohen signed to Columbia Records and he created The Songs of Leonard Cohen, which was released just before Christmas of 1967. Producer John Simon was able to find a restrained yet appealing approach to recording Cohen's voice, which might have been described as an appealingly sensitive near-monotone; yet that voice was perfectly suited to the material at hand, all of which, written in a very personal language, seemed drenched in downbeat images and a spirit of discovery as a path to unsettling revelation.

Despite its spare production and melancholy subject matter or, very possibly because of it the album was an immediate hit by the standards of the folk music world and the budding singer/songwriter community. In an era in which millions of listeners hung on the next albums of Bob Dylan and Simon and Garfunkel whose own latest album had ended with a minor-key rendition of "Silent Night" set against a radio news account of the death of Lenny Bruce Cohen's music quickly found a small but dedicated following. College students by the thousands bought it; in its second year of release, the record sold over 100,000 copies. The Songs of Leonard Cohen was as close as Cohen ever got to mass audience success.

Amid all of this sudden musical activity, he hardly neglected his other writing in 1968, Cohen released a new volume, Selected Poems: 1956-1968, which included both old and newly published work, and earned him the Governor-General's Award, Canada's highest literary honor, which he proceeded to decline. By this time, he was actually almost more a part of the rock scene, residing for a time in New York's Chelsea Hotel, where his neighbors included Janis Joplin and other performing luminaries, some of whom influenced his songs very directly.

His next album, Songs from a Room (1969), was characterized by an even greater spirit of melancholy even the relatively spirited "A Bunch of Lonesome Heroes" was steeped in such depressing sensibilities, and the one song not written by Cohen, "The Partisan," was a grim narrative about the reasons for and consequences of resistance to tyranny that included lines like "She died without a whisper" and included images of wind blowing past graves. Joan Baez subsequently recorded the song, and in her hands it was a bit more upbeat and inspiring to the listener; Cohen's rendition made it much more difficult to get past the costs presented by the singer's persona. On the other hand, "Seems So Long Ago, Nancy," although as downbeat as anything else here, did present Cohen in his most expressive and commercial voice, a nasal but affecting and finely nuanced performance.

Still, in all, Songs from a Room was less well received commercially and critically Bob Johnston's restrained, almost minimalist production made it less overtly appealing than the subtly commercial trappings of his debut, though the album did have a pair of tracks, "Bird on the Wire" and "The Story of Isaac," that became standards rivaling "Suzanne" "The Story of Isaac," a musical parable woven around biblical imagery about Vietnam (which is also relevant to the Iraq War), was one of the most savage and piercing songs to come out of the antiwar movement, and showed a level of sophistication in its music and lyrics that put it in a whole separate realm of composition; it received an even better airing on the Live Songs album, in a performance recorded in Berlin during 1972.

Cohen may not have been a widely popular performer or recording artist, but his unique voice and sound, and the power of his writing and its influence, helped give him entrée to rock's front-ranked performers, an odd status for the then 35-year-old author/composer. He appeared at the 1970 Isle of Wight festival in England, a post-Woodstock gathering of stars and superstars, including late appearances by such soon-to-die-or-disband legends as Jimi Hendrix and the Doors; looking nearly as awkward as his fellow Canadian Joni Mitchell, Cohen strummed his acoustic guitar backed by a pair of female singers in front of an audience of 600,000 ("It's a large nation, but still weak"), comprised in equal portions of fans, freaks, and belligerent gatecrashers, but the mere fact that he was there sandwiched somewhere between Miles Davis and Emerson, Lake and Palmer was a clear statement of the status (if not the popular success) he'd achieved. One portion of his set, "Tonight Will Be Fine," was released on a subsequent live album, while his performance of "Suzanne" was one of the highlights of Murray Lerner's long-delayed, 1996-issued documentary Message to Love: The Isle of Wight Festival.

Already, he had carved out a unique place for himself in music, as much author as performer and recording artist, letting his songs develop and evolve across years his distinctly noncommercial voice became part of his appeal to the audience he found, giving him a unique corner of the music audience, made of listeners descended from the same people who had embraced Bob Dylan's early work before he'd become a mass-media phenomenon in 1964. In a sense, Cohen embodied a phenomenon vaguely similar to what Dylan enjoyed before his early-'70s tour with the Band people bought his albums by the tens and, occasionally, hundreds of thousands, but seemed to hear him in uniquely personal terms. He earned his audience seemingly one listener at a time, by word of mouth more than by the radio which, in any case (especially on the AM dial), was mostly friendly to covers of Cohen's songs by other artists.

Cohen's third album, Songs of Love and Hate (1971), was his most powerful body of work to date, brimming with piercing lyrics and music as poignantly affecting as it was minimalist in its approach arranger Paul Buckmaster's work on strings was peculiarly muted, and the children's chorus that showed up on "Last Year's Man" was spare in its presence; balancing them was Cohen's most effective vocalizing to date, brilliantly expressive around such acclaimed songs as "Joan of Arc," "Dress Rehearsal Rag" (which had been recorded by Judy Collins five years before), and "Famous Blue Raincoat." The bleakness of the tone and subject matter ensured that he would never become a "pop" performer; even the beat-driven "Diamonds in the Mine," with its catchy children's chorus accompaniment and all, and with a twangy electric guitar accompaniment to boot, was as dark and venomous-toned a song as Columbia Records put out in 1971. And the most compelling moments among an embarrassment of riches came on lyrics like "Now the flames they followed Joan of Arc/As she came riding through the dark/No Moon to keep her armor bright/No man to get her through this night...."; indeed, hearing Cohen's lyrics 25 years on, one could almost find a burlesque of Cohen's music in the songs of Lisa Kudrow's Phoebe Buffay on Friends who, even money bet probably grew up on Songs of Love and Hate in her fictional bio and lyrics like "They found their bodies the third day...."

Teenagers of the late '60s (or any era that followed) listening devotedly to Leonard Cohen might have worried their parents, but also could well have been the smartest or most sensitive kids in their class and the most well-balanced emotionally if they weren't depressed but also effectively well on their way out of being teenagers, and probably too advanced for their peers and maybe most of their teachers (except maybe the ones listening to Cohen). Songs of Love and Hate, coupled with the earlier hit versions of "Suzanne," etc., earned Cohen a large international cult following. He also found himself in demand in the world of commercial filmmaking, as director Robert Altman used his music in his 1971 feature film McCabe and Mrs. Miller, starring Warren Beatty and Julie Christie, a revisionist period film set at the turn of the 19th century that was savaged by the critics (and, by some accounts, sabotaged by its own studio) but went on to become one of the director's best-loved movies. The following year, he also published a new poetry collection, The Energy of Slaves.

As was his won't, Cohen spent years between albums, and in 1973 he seemed to take stock of himself as a performer by issuing Leonard Cohen: Live Songs. Not a conventional live album, it was a compendium of performances from various venues across several years and focused on highlights of his output from 1969 onward. It showcased his writing as much as his performing, but also gave a good account of his appeal to his most serious fans those still uncertain of where they stood in relation to his music who could get past the epic-length "Please Don't Pass Me By" knew for certain they were ready to "join" the inner circle of his legion of devotees after that, while others who only appreciated "Bird on the Wire" or "The Story of Isaac" could stay comfortably on an outer ring.

Meanwhile, in 1973, his music became the basis for a theatrical production called Sisters of Mercy, conceived by Gene Lesser and loosely based on Cohen's life, or at least a fantasy version of his life. A three-year lag ensued between Songs of Love and Hate and Cohen's next album, and most critics and fans just assumed he'd hit a dry spell with the live album covering the gap. He was busy concertizing, however, in the United States and Europe during 1971 and 1972, and extending his appearances into Israel during the 1973 Yom Kippur War. It was during this period that he also began working with pianist and arranger John Lissauer, whom he engaged as producer of his next album, New Skin for the Old Ceremony (1974). That album seemed to justify his fans' continued faith in his work, presenting Cohen in a more lavish musical environment. He proved capable of holding his own in a pop environment, even if the songs were mostly still depressing and bleak.

The following year, Columbia Records released The Best of Leonard Cohen, featuring a dozen of his best-known songs principally hits in the hands of other performers from his previous four LPs (though it left out "Dress Rehearsal Rag"). It was also during the mid-'70s that Cohen first crossed paths professionally with Jennifer Warnes, appearing on the same bill with the singer at numerous shows, which would lead to a series of key collaborations in the ensuing decade. By this time, he was a somewhat less mysterious persona, having toured extensively and gotten considerable exposure among many other attributes, Cohen became known for his uncanny attractiveness to women, which seemed to go hand in glove with the romantic subjects of most of his songs.

In 1977, Cohen reappeared with the ironically titled Death of a Ladies' Man, the most controversial album of his career, produced by Phil Spector. The notion of pairing Spector known variously as a Svengali-like presence to his female singers and artists and the most unrepentant (and often justified) over-producer in the field of pop music with Cohen must have seemed like a good one to someone at some point, but apparently Cohen himself had misgivings about many of the resulting tracks that Spector never addressed, having mixed the record completely on his own. The resulting LP suffered from the worst attributes of Cohen's and Spector's work, overly dense and self-consciously imposing in its sound, and virtually bathing the listener in Cohen's depressive persona, but showing his limited vocal abilities to disadvantage, owing to Spector's use of "scratch" (i.e., guide) vocals and his unwillingness to permit the artist to redo some of his weaker moments on those takes. For the first (and only) time in Cohen's career, his near-monotone delivery of this period wasn't a positive attribute. Cohen's unhappiness with the album was widely known among fans, who mostly bought it with that caveat in mind, so it didn't harm his reputation a year after its release, Cohen also published a new literary collection using the title Death of a Ladies' Man.

Cohen's next album, Recent Songs (1979), returned him to the spare settings of his early-'70s work and showed his singing to some of its best advantage. Working with veteran producer Henry Lewy (best known for his work with Joni Mitchell), the album showed Cohen's singing as attractive and expressive in its quiet way, and songs such as "The Guests" seeming downright pretty he still wrote about life and love, and especially relationships, in stark terms, but he almost seemed to be moving into a pop mode on numbers such as "Humbled in Love." Frank Sinatra never needed to look over his shoulder at Cohen (at least, as a singer), but he did seem to be trying for a slicker pop sound at moments on his record.

Then came 1984, and two key new works in Cohen's output the poetic/religious volume The Book of Mercy and the album Various Positions (1984). The latter, recorded with Jennifer Warnes, is arguably his most accessible album of his entire career up to that time Cohen's voice, now a peculiarly expressive baritone instrument, found a beautiful pairing with Warnes, and the songs were as fine as ever, steeped in spirituality and sexuality, with "Dance Me to the End of Love" a killer opener: a wry, doom-laden yet impassioned pop-style ballad that is impossible to forget. Those efforts overlapped with some ventures by the composer/singer into other creative realms, including an award-winning short film that he wrote, directed, and scored, entitled I Am a Hotel, and the score for the 1985 conceptual film Night Magic, which earned a Juno Award in Canada for Best Movie Score.

Sad to say, Various Positions went relatively unnoticed, and was followed by another extended sabbatical from recording, which ended with I'm Your Man (1988). But during his hiatus, Warnes had released her album of Cohen-authored material, entitled Famous Blue Raincoat, which had sold extremely well and introduced Cohen to a new generation of listeners. So when I'm Your Man did appear, with its electronic production (albeit still rather spare) and songs that added humor (albeit dark humor) to his mix of pessimistic and poetic conceits, the result was his best-selling record in more than a decade. The result, in 1991, was the release of I'm Your Fan: The Songs of Leonard Cohen, a CD of recordings of his songs by the likes of R.E.M., the Pixies, Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, and John Cale, which put Cohen as a songwriter pushing age 60 right back on center stage for the 1990s. He rose to the occasion, releasing The Future, an album that dwelt on the many threats facing mankind in the coming years and decades, a year later. Not the stuff of pop charts or MTV heavy rotation, it attracted Cohen's usual coterie of fans, and enough press interest as well as sufficient sales, to justify the release in 1994 of his second concert album, Cohen Live, derived from his two most recent tours. A year later came another tribute album, Tower of Song, featuring Cohen's songs as interpreted by Billy Joel, Willie Nelson, et al.

In the midst of all of this new activity surrounding his writing and compositions, Cohen embarked on a new phase of his life. Religious concerns were never too far from his thinking and work, even when he was making a name for himself writing songs about love, and he had focused ever more on this side of life since Various Positions. He came to spend time at the Mt. Baldy Zen Center, a Buddhist retreat in California, and eventually became a full-time resident, becoming a Buddhist monk during the late '90s. When he re-emerged in 1999, Cohen had many dozens of new compositions in hand, songs and poems alike. His new collaborations were with singer/songwriter/musician Sharon Robinson, who also ended up producing the resulting album, Ten New Songs (2001) there also emerged during this period a release called Field Commander Cohen: Tour of 1979, comprised of live recordings from his tour of 22 years before.

In 2004, the year he turned 70, Cohen released one of the most controversial albums of his career, Dear Heather. It revealed his voice anew, in this phase of his career, as a deep baritone more limited in range than on any previous recording, but it overcame this change in vocal timbre by facing it head-on, just as Cohen had done with his singing throughout his career it also contained a number of songs for which Cohen wrote music but not lyrics, a decided change of pace for a man who'd started out as a poet. And it was as personal a record as Cohen had ever issued. His return to recording was one of the more positive aspects of Cohen's resumption of his music activities. On another side, in 2005, he filed suit against his longtime business manager and his financial advisor over the alleged theft of more than five million dollars, at least some of which took place during his years at the Buddhist retreat.

Four decades after he emerged as a public literary figure and then a performer, Cohen remains one of the most compelling and enigmatic musical figures of his era, and one of the very few of that era who commands as much respect and attention, and probably as large an audience, in the 21st century as he did in the 1960s. As much as any survivor of that decade, Cohen has held onto his original audience and has seen it grow across generations, in keeping with a body of music that is truly timeless and ageless. In 2006, his enduring influence seemed to be acknowledged in Lions Gate Films' release of Leonard Cohen: I'm Your Man, director Lian Lunson's concert/portrait of Cohen and his work and career. A performance set, Live in London, was released in 2009. - Bruce Eder, All Music Guide

Ella Fitzgerald

2010-03-19T07:56:00.000-07:00

Active years: 30s, 40s, 50s, 60s, 70s, 80s, 90s
Genres: Dance Bands, Vocal, Blues, RandB, Holidays, Guitar Jazz, Country Blues, Pop-Soul, Dixieland, Jazz, Vocalese, Vocal Pop, Holiday, Classical, Piano Blues, Tin Pan Alley Pop, Jazz Instrument, Swing, Traditional Pop, Bop, Vocal Jazz, Pre-War Blues, Classic Female Blues, Christmas, American Popular Song, Pre-War Country Blues, Soul, Trad Jazz, Hard Bop, Big Band, Standards, Early Jazz, Cool
Top hits: It's Only A Paper Moon, Into Each Life Some Rain Must Fall, (I Love You) For Sentimental Reasons, Ella, Somebody Nobody Loves

Ella Fitzgerald
"The First Lady of Song," Ella Fitzgerald was arguably the finest female jazz singer of all time (although some may vote for Sarah Vaughan or Billie Holiday). Blessed with a beautiful voice and a wide range, Fitzgerald could outswing anyone, was a brilliant scat singer, and had near-perfect elocution; one could always understand the words she sang. The one fault was that, since she always sounded so happy to be singing, Fitzgerald did not always dig below the surface of the lyrics she interpreted and she even made a downbeat song such as "Love for Sale" sound joyous. However, when one evaluates her career on a whole, there is simply no one else in her class.

One could never guess from her singing that Ella Fitzgerald's early days were as grim as Billie Holiday's. Growing up in poverty, Fitzgerald was literally homeless for the year before she got her big break. In 1934, she appeared at the Apollo Theater in Harlem, winning an amateur contest by singing "Judy" in the style of her idol, Connee Boswell. After a short stint with Tiny Bradshaw, Fitzgerald was brought to the attention of Chick Webb by Benny Carter (who was in the audience at the Apollo). Webb, who was not impressed by the 17-year-old's appearance, was reluctantly persuaded to let her sing with his orchestra on a one-nighter. She went over well and soon the drummer recognized her commercial potential. Starting in 1935, Fitzgerald began recording with Webb's Orchestra, and by 1937 over half of the band's selections featured her voice. "A-Tisket, A-Tasket" became a huge hit in 1938 and "Undecided" soon followed. During this era, Fitzgerald was essentially a pop/swing singer who was best on ballads while her medium-tempo performances were generally juvenile novelties. She already had a beautiful voice but did not improvise or scat much; that would develop later.

On June 16, 1939, Chick Webb died. It was decided that Fitzgerald would front the orchestra even though she had little to do with the repertoire or hiring or firing the musicians. She retained her popularity and when she broke up the band in 1941 and went solo; it was not long before her Decca recordings contained more than their share of hits. She was teamed with the Ink Spots, Louis Jordan, and the Delta Rhythm Boys for some best-sellers, and in 1946 began working regularly for Norman Granz's Jazz at the Philharmonic. Granz became her manager although it would be nearly a decade before he could get her on his label. A major change occurred in Fitzgerald's singing around this period. She toured with Dizzy Gillespie's big band, adopted bop as part of her style, and started including exciting scat-filled romps in her set. Her recordings of "Lady Be Good," "How High the Moon," and "Flying Home" during 1945-1947 became popular and her stature as a major jazz singer rose as a result. For a time (December 10, 1947-August 28, 1953) she was married to bassist Ray Brown and used his trio as a backup group. Fitzgerald's series of duets with pianist Ellis Larkins in 1950 (a 1954 encore with Larkins was a successful follow-up) found her interpreting George Gershwin songs, predating her upcoming Songbooks series.

After appearing in the film Pete Kelly's Blues in 1955, Fitzgerald signed with Norman Granz's Verve label and over the next few years she would record extensive Songbooks of the music of Cole Porter, the Gershwins, Rodgers and Hart, Duke Ellington, Harold Arlen, Jerome Kern, and Johnny Mercer. Although (with the exception of the Ellington sets) those were not her most jazz-oriented projects (Fitzgerald stuck mostly to the melody and was generally accompanied by string orchestras), the prestigious projects did a great deal to uplift her stature. At the peak of her powers around 1960, Fitzgerald's hilarious live version of "Mack the Knife" (in which she forgot the words and made up her own) from Ella in Berlin is a classic and virtually all of her Verve recordings are worth getting.

Fitzgerald's Capitol and Reprise recordings of 1967-1970 are not on the same level as she attempted to "update" her singing by including pop songs such as "Sunny" and "I Heard It Through the Grapevine," sounding quite silly in the process. But Fitzgerald's later years were saved by Norman Granz's decision to form a new label, Pablo. Starting with a Santa Monica Civic concert in 1972 that is climaxed by Fitzgerald's incredible version of "C Jam Blues" (in which she trades off with and "battles" five classic jazzmen), Fitzgerald was showcased in jazz settings throughout the 1970s with the likes of Count Basie, Oscar Peterson, and Joe Pass, among others. Her voice began to fade during this era and by the 1980s her decline due to age was quite noticeable. Troubles with her eyes and heart knocked her out of action for periods of time, although her increasingly rare appearances found Fitzgerald still retaining her sense of swing and joyful style. By 1994, Ella Fitzgerald was in retirement and she passed away two years later, but she remains a household name and scores of her recordings are easily available on CD. - Scott Yanow, All Music Guide

Nina Simone

2010-03-19T07:52:00.000-07:00

Active years: 60s, 70s, 80s, 90s, 00s
Genres: Vocal, Traditional Pop, Vocal Jazz, R and B, Soul Jazz, Soul, Jazz, Pop/Rock, Vocal Pop, Hard Bop, Torch Songs, Standards, Cabaret
Top hits: My Baby Just Cares For Me, I Wish I Knew How It Would Feel To Be Free, Sinnerman, Mr. Bojangles - 1993 Remastered, Ain't Got No/I Got Life - 1993 Remastered

Nina Simone
Of all the major singers of the late 20th century, Nina Simone was one of the hardest to classify. She recorded extensively in the soul, jazz, and pop idioms, often over the course of the same album; she was also comfortable with blues, gospel, and Broadway. It's perhaps most accurate to label her as a "soul" singer in terms of emotion, rather than form. Like, say, Aretha Franklin, or Dusty Springfield, Simone was an eclectic who brought soulful qualities to whatever material she interpreted. These qualities were among her strongest virtues; paradoxically, they also may have kept her from attaining a truly mass audience. The same could be said of her stage persona; admired for her forthright honesty and individualism, she was also known for feisty feuding with audiences and promoters alike.

If Simone had a chip on her shoulder, it probably arose from the formidable obstacles she had to overcome to establish herself as a popular singer. Raised in a family of eight children, she originally harbored hopes of becoming a classical pianist, studying at New York's prestigious Juilliard School of Music -- a rare position for an African-American woman in the 1950s. Needing to support herself while she studied, she generated income by working as an accompanist and giving piano lessons. Auditioning for a job as a pianist in an Atlantic City nightclub, she was told she had the spot if she would sing as well as play. Almost by accident, she began to carve a reputation as a singer of secular material, though her skills at the piano would serve her well throughout her career.

In the late '50s, Simone began recording for the small Bethlehem label (a subsidiary of the vastly important early R&B/rock & roll King label). In 1959, her version of George Gershwin's "I Loves You Porgy" gave her a Top 20 hit -- which would, amazingly, prove to be the only Top 40 entry of her career. Nina wouldn't need hit singles for survival, however, establishing herself not with the rock & roll/R&B crowd, but with the adult/nightclub/album market. In the early '60s, she recorded no less than nine albums for the Candix label, about half of them live. These unveiled her as a performer of nearly unsurpassed eclecticism, encompassing everything from Ellingtonian jazz and Israeli folk songs to spirituals and movie themes.

Simone's best recorded work was issued on Philips during the mid-'60s. Here, as on Candix, she was arguably over-exposed, issuing seven albums within a three-year period. These records can be breathtakingly erratic, moving from warm ballad interpretations of Jacques Brel and Billie Holiday and instrumental piano workouts to brassy pop and angry political statements in a heartbeat. There's a great deal of fine music to be found on these, however. Simone's moody-yet-elegant vocals were like no one else's, presenting a fiercely independent soul who harbored enormous (if somewhat hard-bitten) tenderness.

Like many African-American entertainers of the mid-'60s, Simone was deeply affected by the Civil Rights Movement and burgeoning Black Pride. Some (though by no means most) of her best material from this time addressed these concerns in a fashion more forthright than almost any other singer. "Old Jim Crow" and, more particularly, the classic "Mississippi Goddam" were especially notable self-penned efforts in this vein, making one wish that Nina had written more of her own material instead of turning to outside sources for most of her repertoire.

Not that this repertoire wasn't well-chosen. Several of her covers from the mid-'60s, indeed, were classics: her revision of Weill-Brecht's "Pirate Jenny" to reflect the bitter elements of African-American experience, for instance, or her mournful interpretation of Brel's "Ne Me Quitte Pas." Other highlights were her versions of "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood," covered by the Animals for a rock hit; "I Put a Spell on You," which influenced the vocal line on the Beatles' "Michelle"; and the buzzing, jazzy "See Line Woman."

Simone was not as well-served by her tenure with RCA in the late '60s and early '70s, another prolific period which saw the release of nine albums. These explored a less eclectic range, with a considerably heavier pop-soul base to both the material and arrangements. One bona fide classic did come out of this period: "Young, Gifted & Black," written by Simone and Weldon Irvine, Jr., would be successfully covered by both Aretha Franklin and Donny Hathaway. She did have a couple of Top Five British hits in the late '60s with "Ain't Got No" (from the musical Hair) and a cover of the Bee Gees' "To Love Somebody," neither of which rank among her career highlights.

Simone fell on turbulent times in the 1970s, divorcing her husband/manager Andy Stroud, encountering serious financial problems, and becoming something of a nomad, settling at various points in Switzerland, Liberia, Barbados, France, and Britain. After leaving RCA, she recorded rarely, although she did make the critically well-received Baltimore in 1978 for the small CTI label. She had an unpredictable resurgence in 1987, when an early track, "My Baby Just Cares for Me," became a big British hit after being used in a Chanel perfume television commercial. In 1993, her record A Single Woman marked her return to an American major label, and her profile was also boosted when several of her songs were featured in the film Point of No Return. She published her biography, I Put a Spell on You, in 1991, but grew increasingly frail throughout the late '90s and had to be helped on to the stage during a 2001 Carnegie Hall performance. Nina Simone died on April 21, 2003 at her home in Carry-le-Rouet, France, where she had been spending much of her retirement. - Richie Unterberger, All Music Guide

Diana Krall

2010-03-19T07:50:00.000-07:00

Active years: 80s, 90s, 00s
Genres: Vocal, Holidays, Guitar Jazz, Jazz, Pop/Rock, Vocal Pop, Contemporary Jazz, Vocalese, Soft Rock, Torch Songs, Holiday, Neo-Bop, Adult Contemporary, Mainstream Jazz, Jazz Instrument, Modern Big Band, Traditional Pop, Bop, Vocal Jazz, Piano Jazz, Christmas, American Popular Song, Jazz-Pop, Big Band, Hard Bop, Standards
Top hits: Cry Me A River, It Could Happen To You, Isn't This A Lovely Day?, How Insensitive, Exactly Like You

Diana Krall
Singer/pianist Diana Krall got her musical education when she was growing up in Nanaimo, British Columbia, from the classical piano lessons she began at age four and in her high school jazz band, but mostly from her father, a stride piano player with an extensive record collection. "I think Dad has every recording Fats Waller ever made," she said, "and I tried to learn them all." Krall attended the Berklee College of Music on a music scholarship in the early '80s, then moved to Los Angeles, where she lived for three years before moving to Toronto. By 1990, she was based in New York, performing with a trio and singing. After releasing her first album on Justin Time Records, Krall was signed to GRP for her second, Only Trust Your Heart and transferred to its Impulse! division for her third, a Nat King Cole Trio tribute album called All for You. Love Scenes followed in 1997, and in late 1998, she issued the seasonal Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas. When I Look in Your Eyes followed in 1999. Whatever reknown Krall had earned over the years for her work exploded with this album, which became an international best-seller and earned her a Grammy for Best Jazz Vocal Performance. It also was the first jazz album to be nominated for Album of the Year in 25 years. Krall's crossover success followed her as she performed in Lilith Fair the following year ,and her songs cropped up everywhere from episodes of Sex in the City to films like Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil. In 2001 she released The Look of Love featuring charts by legendary arranger Claus Ogerman best known for working with bossa nova innovator Antonio Carlos Jobim in the '60s. The album topped the Billboard charts and went quintuple platinum in Canada, the first by a Canadian jazz artist to do so. The Look of Love also helped Krall win three Junos in 2002, taking home awards for Artist of the Year, Album of the Year, and Best Vocal Jazz Album of the Year. In 2003, Krall married iconic British rock musician Elvis Costello. A year later, she issued The Girl in the Other Room. Covering a few standards, this album also included original material some co-written by Costello for the first time in her career. Returning to the large ensemble standards approach of her previous album, Krall released From This Moment On in 2006. In 2009, she teamed once again with The Look of Love arranger Ogerman for the bossa nova-themed Quiet Nights. - William Ruhlmann, All Music Guide

Willie Nelson

2010-03-19T07:44:00.000-07:00

Active years: 50s, 60s, 70s, 80s, 90s, 00s
Genres: Vocal, Blues, Country-Folk, Country Gospel, Alternative/Indie Rock, Dub, Alt-Country, Western Swing Revival, Country-Pop, Progressive Country, Reggae-Pop, Gospel, Reggae, Holidays, Country Blues, Guitar Jazz, Contemporary Reggae, Truck Driving Country, Country-Rock, Jazz, Acoustic Blues, Folk, Pop/Rock, Soft Rock, Holiday, Children's, Western Swing, Adult Contemporary, Outlaw Country, Mainstream Jazz, Jazz Instrument, Traditional Pop, Bop, Christmas, Country, Contemporary Country, Americana, Nashville Sound/Countrypolitan, Traditional Country, Contemporary Pop/Rock, Children's Folk, Standards, Honky Tonk, Religious, Bakersfield Sound
Top hits: Baby It's Cold Outside (Feat. Norah Jones), On The Road Again, Always On My Mind, Beer For My Horses, Over The Rainbow

Willie Nelson
As a songwriter and a performer, Willie Nelson played a vital role in post-rock and roll country music. Although he didn't become a star until the mid-'70s, Nelson spent the '60s writing songs that became hits for stars like Ray Price ("Night Life"), Patsy Cline ("Crazy"), Faron Young ("Hello Walls"), and Billy Walker ("Funny How Time Slips Away") as well as releasing a series of records on Liberty and RCA that earned him a small, but devoted, cult following. During the early '70s, Willie aligned himself with Waylon Jennings and the burgeoning outlaw country movement that made him into a star in 1975. Following the crossover success of that year's The Red Headed Stranger and "Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain," Nelson was a genuine star, as recognizable in pop circles as he was to the country audience; in addition to recording, he also launched an acting career in the early '80s. Even when he was a star, Willie never played it safe musically. Instead, he borrowed from a wide variety of styles, including traditional pop, Western swing, jazz, traditional country, cowboy songs, honky tonk, rock and roll, folk, and the blues, creating a distinctive, elastic hybrid. Nelson remained at the top of the country charts until the mid-'80s, when his lifestyle which had always been close to the outlaw clichés with which his music flirted began to spiral out of control, culminating in an infamous battle with the IRS in the late '80s. During the '90s, Nelson's sales never reached the heights that he had experienced a decade earlier, but he remained a vital icon in country music, having greatly influenced the new country, new traditionalist, and alternative country movements of the '80s and '90s as well as leaving behind a legacy of classic songs and recordings.

Nelson began performing music as a child growing up in Abbott, TX. After his father died and his mother ran away, Nelson and his sister Bobbie were raised by their grandparents, who encouraged both children to play instruments. Willie picked up the guitar, and by the time he was seven, he was already writing songs. Bobbie learned to play piano, eventually meeting and later marrying fiddler Bud Fletcher, who invited both of the siblings to join his band. Nelson had already played with Raychecks' Polka Band, but with Fletcher, he acted as the group's frontman. Willie stayed with Fletcher throughout high school. Upon his graduation, he joined the Air Force but had to leave shortly afterward, when he became plagued by back problems. Following his disenrollment from the service, he began looking for full-time work. After he worked several part-time jobs, he landed a job as a country DJ at Fort Worth's KCNC in 1954. Nelson continued to sing in honky tonks as he worked as a DJ, deciding to make a stab at recording career by 1956. That year, he headed to Vancouver, WA, where he recorded Leon Payne's "Lumberjack." At that time, Payne was a DJ and he plugged "Lumberjack" on the air, which eventually resulted in sales of 3,000 a respectable figure for an independent single, but not enough to gain much attention. For the next few years, Willie continued to DJ and sing in clubs. During this time, he sold "Family Bible" to a guitar instructor for 50 dollars, and when the song became a hit for Claude Gray in 1960, Nelson decided to move to Nashville the following year to try his luck. Though his nasal voice and jazzy, off-center phrasing didn't win him many friends several demos were made and then rejected by various labels his songwriting ability didn't go unnoticed, and soon Hank Cochran helped Willie land a publishing contract at Pamper Music. Ray Price, who co-owned Pamper Music, recorded Nelson's "Night Life" and invited him to join his touring band, the Cherokee Cowboys, as a bassist.

Arriving at the beginning of 1961, Price's invitation began a watershed year for Nelson. Not only did he play with Price eventually taking members of the Cherokee Cowboys to form his own touring band but his songs also provided major hits for several other artists. Faron Young took "Hello Walls" to number one for nine weeks, Billy Walker made "Funny How Time Slips Away" into a Top 40 country smash, and Patsy Cline made "Crazy" into a Top Ten pop crossover hit. Earlier in the year, he signed a contract with Liberty Records and began releasing a series of singles that were usually drenched in strings. "Willingly," a duet with his then-wife Shirley Collie, became a Top Ten hit for Nelson early in 1962, and it was followed by another Top Ten single, "Touch Me," later that year. Both singles made it seem like Nelson was primed to become a star, but his career stalled just as quickly as it had taken off, and he was soon charting in the lower regions of the Top 40. Liberty closed its country division in 1964, the same year Roy Orbison had a hit with "Pretty Paper."

When the Monument recordings failed to become hits, Nelson moved to RCA Records in 1965, the same year he became a member of the Grand Ole Opry. Over the next seven years, Willie had a steady stream of minor hits, highlighted by the number 13 hit "Bring Me Sunshine" in 1969. Toward the end of his stint with RCA, he had grown frustrated with the label, which had continually tried to shoehorn him into the heavily produced Nashville sound. By 1972, he wasn't even able to reach the country Top 40. Discouraged by his lack of success, Nelson decided to retire from country music, moving back to Austin, TX, after a brief and disastrous sojourn into pig farming. Once he arrived in Austin, Nelson realized that many young rock fans were listening to country music along with the traditional honky tonk audience. Spotting an opportunity, Willie began performing again, scrapping his pop-oriented Nashville sound and image for a rock- and folk-influenced redneck outlaw image. Soon, he earned a contract with Atlantic Records.

Shotgun Willie (1973), Nelson's first album for Atlantic, was evidence of the shift of his musical style, and although it initially didn't sell well, it earned good reviews and cultivated a dedicated cult following. By the fall of 1973, his version of Bob Wills' "Stay All Night (Stay a Little Longer)" had cracked the country Top 40. The following year, he delivered the concept album Phases and Stages, which increased his following even more with the hit singles "Bloody Mary Morning" and "After the Fire Is Gone." But the real commercial breakthrough didn't arrive until 1975, when he severed ties with Atlantic and signed to Columbia Records, which gave him complete creative control of his records. Willie's first album for Columbia, The Red Headed Stranger, was a spare concept album about a preacher, featuring only his guitar and his sister's piano. The label was reluctant to release with such stark arrangements, but they relented and it became a huge hit, thanks to Nelson's understated cover of Roy Acuff's "Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain."

Following the breakthrough success of The Red Headed Stranger as well as Waylon Jennings' simultaneous success, outlaw country so named because it worked outside of the confines of the Nashville industry became a sensation, and RCA compiled the various-artists album Wanted: The Outlaws!, using material Nelson, Jennings, Tompall Glaser, and Jessi Colter had previously recorded for the label. The compilation boasted a number one single in the form of the newly recorded Jennings and Nelson duet "Good Hearted Woman," which was also named the Country Music Association's single of the year. For the next five years, Nelson consistently charted on both the country and pop charts, with "Remember Me," "If You've Got the Money I've Got the Time," and "Uncloudy Day" becoming Top Ten country singles in 1976; "I Love You a Thousand Ways" and the Mary Kay Place duet "Something to Brag About" were Top Ten country singles the following year.

Nelson enjoyed his most successful year to date in 1978, as he charted with two very dissimilar albums. Waylon and Willie, his first duet album with Jennings, was a major success early in the year, spawning the signature song "Mammas Don't Let Your Babies Grow Up to Be Cowboys." Later in the year, he released Stardust, a string-augmented collection of pop standards produced by Booker T. Jones. Most observers believed that the unconventional album would derail Nelson's career, but it unexpectedly became one of the most successful records in his catalog, spending almost ten years in the country charts and eventually selling over four million copies. After the success of Stardust, Willie branched out into film, appearing in the Robert Redford movie The Electric Horseman in 1979 and starring in Honeysuckle Rose the following year. The latter spawned the hit "On the Road Again," which became another one of Nelson's signature songs.

Willie continued to have hits throughout the early '80s, when he had a major crossover success in 1982 with a cover of Elvis Presley's hit "Always on My Mind." The single spent two weeks at number one and crossed over to number five on the pop charts, sending the album of the same name to number two on the pop charts as well as quadruple-platinum status. Over the next two years, he had hit duet albums with Merle Haggard (1983's Poncho and Lefty) and Jennings (1982's WWII and 1983's Take It to the Limit), while "To All the Girls I've Loved Before," a duet with Latin pop star Julio Iglesias, became another major crossover success in 1984, peaking at number five on the pop charts and number one on the country singles chart.

Following a string of number one singles in early 1985, including "Highwayman," the first single from the Highwaymen, a supergroup he formed with Jennings, Johnny Cash, and Kris Kristofferson, Nelson's popularity gradually began to erode. A new generation of artists had captured the attention of the country audience, which began to drastically cut into his own audience. For the remainder of the decade, he recorded less frequently and remained on the road; he also continued to do charity work, most notably Farm Aid, an annual concert that he founded in 1985 designed to provide aid to ailing farmers. While he career was declining, an old demon began to creep up on Willie: the IRS. In November 1990, he was given a bill for $16.7 million in back taxes. During the following year, almost all of his assets including several houses, studios, farms, and various properties were taken away, and to help pay his bill, he released the double album The IRS Tapes: Who'll Buy My Memories? Originally released as two separate albums, the records were marketed through television commercials, and all the profits were directed to the IRS. By 1993 the year he turned 60 his debts had been paid off, and he relaunched his recording career with Across the Borderline, an ambitious album produced by Don Was and featuring cameos by Bob Dylan, Bonnie Raitt, Paul Simon, Sinéad O'Connor, David Crosby, and Kris Kristofferson. The record received strong reviews and became his first solo album to appear in the pop charts since 1985.

After the release of Across the Borderline, Nelson continued to work steadily, releasing at least one album a year and touring constantly. In 1993, he was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame, but by that time, he had already become a living legend for all country music fans across the world. Signing to Island for 1996's Spirit, he resurfaced two years later with the critically acclaimed Teatro, produced by Daniel Lanois. Nelson followed up that success with the instrumental-oriented Night and Day a year later; Me and the Drummer and Milk Cow Blues followed in 2000. The Rainbow Connection, which featured an eclectic selection of old-time country favorites, appeared in spring 2001.

Amazingly prolific as a recording artist, Nelson released The Great Divide on Universal in 2002. A collection of his early-'60s publishing demos for Pamper Music called Crazy: The Demo Sessions came out on Sugar Hill in 2003. Later in 2003 Nelson released Run That by Me One More Time, which reunited him with Ray Price and kicked off a relationship with Lost Highway Records. It Always Will Be and Outlaws and Angels both appeared on Lost Highway in 2004, followed by the release of Nelson's long-delayed attempt at a country-reggae fusion, Countryman, also on Lost Highway, in 2005. You Don't Know Me: The Songs of Cindy Walker arrived the following year, along with Songbird, Nelson's collaboration with alt-country singer/songwriter Ryan Adams and his band the Cardinals. The double-disc Last of the Breed, an ambitious project that paired Nelson with Merle Haggard, Ray Price, and Asleep at the Wheel, was released by Lost Highway in 2007, followed by the Kenny Chesney/Buddy Cannon-produced Moment of Forever a year later in 2008. Also in 2008, Nelson paired with jazz trumpeter Wynton Marsalis for the live album Two Men with the Blues and with harmonica player and producer Mickey Raphael for some serious-repair remixes of vintage Nelson releases from RCA originally recorded between 1966 and 1970 called Naked Willie. Lost Highway, an album of duets with country and pop singers ranging from Shania Twain to Elvis Costello, appeared in 2009. Also appearing in 2009 was the jazz-inflected American Classic from Blue Note Records. - Stephen Thomas Erlewine and Steve Leggett, All Music Guide

Alan Jackson

2010-03-19T07:43:00.000-07:00

Active years: 80s, 90s, 00s
Genres: Neo-Traditionalist Country, New Traditionalist, Traditional Country, Country Gospel, Holiday, Gospel, Christmas, Holidays, Honky Tonk, Country, Religious, Contemporary Country
Top hits: Remember When, Little Bitty, Drive (For Daddy Gene), Chattahoochee - Extended Mix, Mercury Blues

Alan Jackson
After Garth Brooks, Alan Jackson was the most popular male country singer of the '90s. An heir to the new traditionalist movement of the '80s, Jackson's approach was rooted in classic honky tonk yet remained comfortably within the contemporary mainstream. Jackson's hallmark was consistency he wrote many of his own hits, and his way with a hook was part of the reason he never really hit a commercial dry spell, even into the new millennium. He also projected a modest, wholesome, down-to-earth image that made him one of the best-liked stars of his era even apart from his music. The total package resulted in an astounding 20 number one singles and 20 more Top Ten hits, all in the first 12 years of his career.

Jackson was born in the small town of Newnan, GA, on October 17, 1958. He grew up singing gospel music, both in church and at home with his family, and as a teenager, he performed locally as part of a country duo. He left school to work and married his high school sweetheart, Denise, who worked as an airline stewardess. During the early '80s, Jackson held down a series of odd jobs car salesman, construction worker, forklift operator at K-Mart while playing the local club circuit with his band, Dixie Steel, and working on his songwriting. He caught his big break when Denise found country-pop star Glen Campbell waiting for a flight and gave him a copy of her husband's demo tape; Campbell in turn gave her contact information for his music publishing company, and the Jacksons picked up and moved to Nashville shortly thereafter. Campbell's company suggested that Alan take a year and hone his songwriting even further, and so he worked more odd jobs including the mail room at The Nashville Network, plus some session singing before finally signing on as a staff writer. By night, he performed in Nashville clubs and recorded an updated demo with songwriter/producer Keith Stegall. In 1989, Jackson became the first artist signed to Arista's new country division.

Jackson's debut album, Here in the Real World, was issued in 1990 and became a platinum-selling hit on the strength of four Top Five hits: the title cut, "Chasin' That Neon Rainbow," "Wanted," and the first of many chart-toppers, "I'd Love You All Over Again." He shot to full-fledged superstardom with the follow-up, 1991's Don't Rock the Jukebox, whose title track was an inescapable number one smash that year. The record produced three more number ones ("Someday," "Dallas," "Love's Got a Hold on You") and also contained one of Jackson's signature songs, the Top Five "Midnight in Montgomery," which told the story of a visit to Hank Williams' grave. Also in 1991, Jackson co-wrote several songs with Randy Travis for Travis' High Lonesome album. With 1992's A Lot About Livin' (And a Little 'Bout Love), Jackson took his place as not only one of the most popular stars of his time, but also one of the best. The number one smash "Chattahoochee" became another signature tune, and Jackson also topped the charts with "She's Got the Rhythm (And I Got the Blues)," while scoring three more Top Five hits from the album which became his first to top the country LP charts.

In late 1993, Jackson released the stopgap holiday album Honky Tonk Christmas, which actually avoided standards in favor of lesser-known material. He returned in 1994 with Who I Am, his second straight number one country album, which gave him a staggering four number one singles: a cover of Eddie Cochran's "Summertime Blues," the music-biz satire "Gone Country" (a dig at executives hopping on the commercial country bandwagon), "Livin' on Love," and "I Don't Even Know Your Name." In only his fifth year on the scene, Jackson was able to issue The Greatest Hits Collection in 1995 and scored hits with three newly minted songs: a cover of George Jones' "Tall Tall Trees," "I'll Try" (both number one), and "Home." It took The Greatest Hits Collection only a year to sell over three million copies. And, of course, Jackson was far from done. 1996's Everything I Love became his fourth straight release to top the country album charts, and it gave him five Top Ten hits, including the number ones "Little Bitty" (a Tom T. Hall cover) and "There Goes." The 1998 follow-up, High Mileage, also hit number one and became Jackson's highest-charting album on the pop side, reaching number four; it contained four more Top Tens, including the chart-topping "Right on the Money."

Jackson paid tribute to his favorite country singers of the past on the easygoing 1999 covers album Under the Influence, which featured material by Jones, Merle Haggard, Charley Pride, Jimmy Buffett, Hank Williams, Jr., Don Williams (the chart-topping "It Must Be Love"), and Jim Ed Brown (the Top Ten "Pop a Top"), among others. Although Under the Influence just missed hitting number one, 2000's When Somebody Loves You returned Jackson to the top of the album charts and gave him another number one in "Where I Come From." That year, he also teamed up with George Strait for the duet "Murder on Music Row," a strident defense of traditional country in the face of a new wave of crossover stars.

The year 2001 brought an enormous hit in "Where Were You (When the World Stopped Turning)," a poignant attempt to make sense of the aftermath of September 11; rush-released after an awards-show premiere, the song rocketed to the top of the country charts and also became his first single to crack the pop Top 30. It was followed by the full-length Drive in 2002, which spawned another number one in "Drive (For Daddy Gene)," a tribute to Jackson's late father. The album was Jackson's seventh to top the country charts, and it also became his first to top the pop charts. His second greatest-hits collection appeared in 2003 and featured the crossover hit "It's Five O'Clock Somewhere," a duet with Jimmy Buffett. A year later the well-received What I Do became the purest country album from Jackson in years. Precious Memories, released in 2006, was a collection of 15 hymns originally recorded as a Christmas gift for his mother. Later that same year, Jackson released Like Red on a Rose, a mellow Alison Krauss production. Live at Texas Stadium, a concert set with George Strait and Jimmy Buffett, followed in 2007. A new studio effort, Good Time, appeared in 2008, followed by another studio outing, Freight Train, in 2010. - Steve Huey, All Music Guide

Avalon

2010-03-19T07:35:00.000-07:00

Active years: 70s, 80s, 90s, 00s
Genres: Alternative Pop/Rock, Contemporary Christian, CCM, Gospel, Holidays, Christmas, Country, Christian Rock, Contemporary Country, Contemporary Instrumental, Hymns, Holiday, Alternative CCM, New Age
Top hits: Can't Live A Day (DJ Tiesto Mix), In Christ Alone, Testify To Love, Everything To Me, Creed, The (Avalon 2004 Release Album Version)

Avalon
In the late '70s, Richie Zito was one of the most sought-after session guitarists in Los Angeles. He lent his chops to Neil Sedaka, Yvonne Elliman, Eric Carmen, Art Garfunkel, Leo Sayer, Diana Ross, and Marc Tanner. At the start of the '80s, Zito hooked up with Elton John, soon began producing and writing for the Motels, and boasts an exhaustive resume including the Cult, White Lion, Eddie Money, Heart, and Bad English. Zito's panoramic and cosmic production on Cheap Trick's Lap of Luxury brought another dimension to rock records. Lap of Luxury also shot the band back into the public consciousness and delivered Trick's only number one, "The Flame." Zito's technical skill and superb musicianship is unquestionable. Like his guru Giorgio Moroder, Zito skirts with schmaltz but has also brought out the best in some of the biggest names in the music biz. - Doug Stone, All Music Guide

Downhere

2010-03-19T07:33:00.000-07:00

Active years: 00s
Genres: Alternative Pop/Rock, Contemporary Christian, CCM, Gospel, Alternative CCM, Christian Rock
Top hits: Bleed For This Love, Here I Am, Cathedral Made Of People, My Last Amen, Hope Is Rising

Downhere
Canadian Christian rock outfit Downhere was formed in 1998 by then Bible College roommates Marc Martel and Jason Germain. After adding Tyson Manning and Jeremy Thiessen, the group released its 1999 independent eponymous debut. The album was reissued (and partially re-recorded) internationally in 2001 with new bass player Glenn Lavender on Word Records, and was followed in 2003 by So Much for Substitutes, also for Word. Downhere inked a deal with Centricity Records in 2006 for its third release, the Juno and Dove award-winning Wide-Eyed and Mystified, followed by Ending Is Beginning in 2008. - James Christopher Monger, All Music Guide

Jon Foreman

2010-03-19T03:22:00.000-07:00

Active years: 00s
Genres: Alternative Pop/Rock, Traditional Country, Contemporary Christian, CCM, Praise and Worship, Alternative CCM, Gospel, Christian Rock, Country,
Top hits: The Cure For Pain, Your Love Is Strong, Behind Your Eyes, Broken From The Start, Learning How To Die

Jon Foreman
Singer/songwriter Jon Foreman is the frontman of several bands, most notably the platinum-selling rock outfit Switchfoot. Although born in California on October 22, 1976, he moved with his family to Massachusetts and Virginia Beach during his childhood years. Foreman was back living in California by junior high school, eventually graduating from Torrey Pines High School in Carmel Valley and then briefly attended UC San Diego. With help from his brother Tim Foreman on bass and Chad Butler on drums, he formed the band Chin Up in 1996; the trio soon changed the name to Switchfoot (a surfing term).

The band recorded a debut LP, 1997's The Legend of Chin, for Charlie Peacock's re:Think imprint. The follow-up, 1999's New Way to Be Human, was a huge commercial success in Christian markets, with the title track garnering a 1999 Dove Award for Song of the Year. Released in 2000, Learning to Breathe found Switchfoot moving more toward mainstream modern rock, and its success, along with the band's inclusion on the soundtrack to the 2002 Mandy Moore film A Walk to Remember, brought Switchfoot a major-label run. The Beautiful Letdown, their first release for Columbia/RED, appeared in 2003. Thanks to the radio hits "Dare You to Move" and "Meant to Live," the album went double platinum and hit number one on Billboard's Christian Albums chart.

Switchfoot's fifth album, Nothing Is Sound, appeared in 2005 and almost immediately went gold. The album's radio hit, "Stars," included the work of additional guitarist Andrew Shirley, formerly of the CCM group All Together Separate. A sixth album, Oh! Gravity, appeared in 2006. That year saw Foreman branch out a bit as he formed an acoustic duo with Nickel Creek member Sean Watkins, the Real SeanJon, as a side project. Since some of his new songs didn't fit well within the Switchfoot formula, Foreman also began working on solo material, releasing a series of four linked EPs of six songs each called Fall, Winter, Spring, and Summer in 2008. The first two were then packaged together for a release entitled Fall and Winter that same year, and 2009 saw the Real SeanJon issuing an album under a new name, Fiction Family. - Steve Leggett, All Music Guide

David Crowder Band

2010-03-19T03:20:00.000-07:00

Active years: 00s
Genres: Bluegrass, Alternative Pop/Rock, Traditional Country, Contemporary Christian, CCM, Praise and Worship, Alternative CCM, Gospel, Christian Rock, Country, Progressive Bluegrass
Top hits: How He Loves (Radio Edit), O Praise Him (All This For A King), Alleluia, Sing, How He Loves, Remedy

David Crowder Band
Singer/guitarist David Crowder first stepped into the music industry when he realized that over half of the students at Baylor University, a Christian school that he attended in Waco, TX, were not going to church. He began to actively recruit students for worship services and started writing songs to draw more young people in. He eventually started releasing the songs, leading to his debut album, 2002's Can You Hear Us? The album was released under the name the David Crowder*Band, as Crowder was joined by guitarists Jack Parker and Jason Solley, drummer Jeremy Bush, bassist Mike Dodson, and electric violinist Mike Hogan. Their sophomore effort, Illuminate, appeared in the fall of 2003 and was followed a year later by The Lime CD, which comprised two earlier live releases (The Green CD and The Yellow CD) that had been given out to fans who had either pre-ordered prior albums or attended various CD-release parties. Sunsets and Sushi appeared in early 2005 before the band's next studio album, the bluegrass-tinged A Collision, was issued that fall. A spinoff of the latter album, entitled B Collision, came out a year later and focused even more on the group's bluegrass delvings. - Bradley Torreano, All Music Guide

Building 429

2010-03-19T03:18:00.000-07:00

Active years: 00s
Genres: Alternative Pop/Rock, Contemporary Christian, CCM, Gospel, Alternative CCM, Christian Rock
Top hits: Always, Not Gonna Let You Down, Bring Me Back, You Carried Me, Overcome

Building 429
With a name taken from Ephesians 4:29 ("Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up"), Building 429 was committed to music as much as message. Led by vocalist/guitarist Jason Roy, the band also featured bassist Scotty Beshears, guitarist Paul Bowden, and drummer Michael Anderson. In 2004 the band made an immediate impression on the CCM community, watching its debut EP, Glory Defined, and its title track single hit the top of the charts. The Space in Between Us LP was released three months later through the Warner/Curb imprint Word Entertainment, and it launched a few more hit singles. Building 429 went on to win the Dove Award for New Artist of the Year and tour with Christian music stars Jeremy Camp and Casting Crowns. - Johnny Loftus, All Music Guide

Stellar Kart

2010-03-19T03:17:00.000-07:00

Active years: 00s
Genres: Alternative Pop/Rock, Contemporary Christian, Punk-Pop, Alternative/Indie Rock, Pop/Rock, CCM, Alternative CCM, Gospel, Christian Rock, Religious
Top hits: Livin' On A Prayer, Superstar, Letters, Innocent, Me And Jesus

Stellar Kart
A Phoenix, AZ-based Christian pop-punk outfit, Stellar Kart released their first album, All Gas, No Brake, in early 2005. A few singles from the album managed to crack CCM radio, justifying the young band's recent deal with Word Records. However, Stellar Kart's breakout year would prove to be 2006, as their follow-up album (We Can't Stand Sitting Down) scored a number one single ("Me and Jesus") on the Hot Christian Songs chart, not to mention winning the band a 2007 Dove Award. This would also be the year of Stellar Kart's first headlining tour, alongside groups like Run Kid Run and Eleventyseven. In 2008, the group returned to the scene with album number three, entitled Expect the Impossible. - Chris True, All Music Guide

ZOEgirl

2010-03-19T03:15:00.000-07:00

Active years: 2000-2006
Genres: Alternative Pop/Rock, Contemporary Christian, Pop/Rock, CCM, Contemporary Pop/Rock, Gospel, Alternative CCM, Christian Rock
Top hits: Higher (It Takes Two Album Version), Jesus Freak vs. Dismissed, Scream (Room To Breathe Album Version), Who's In The House Vs Even If (Smash Ups Album Version), Different Kind Of Free

ZOEgirl
The Christian music trio ZOEgirl were highly regarded for their sweet harmonies laced with dance inflections and charismatic performances. Alisa Girard, Chrissy Conway, and Kristin Swinford came together in the late '90s, when they received buzz from the press and began playing shows with Carman. Signed to Sparrow Records, Zoegirl released an eponymous debut in 2000. The next three albums arrived on Sparrow within two-year intervals Life in 2001, Different Kind of Free in 2003, and Room to Breathe in 2005 before the group's split in 2006. - MacKenzie Wilson, All Music Guide

Jaci Velasquez

2010-03-19T03:11:00.000-07:00

Active years: 00s
Genres: Mexican Traditions, Latin CCM, Alternative Pop/Rock, Latin Pop, Alternative/Indie Rock, Contemporary Christian, CCM, Gospel, Holidays, Christmas, Indie Pop, Norteño, Latin, Pop/Rock, Tejano, Holiday, Contemporary Pop/Rock
Top hits: Llegar A Ti, On My Knees, You, Imagine Me Without You, Vaya Con Dios

Jaci Velasquez
Jacquelyn Davette Velasquez, born in the early '80s, began singing at the age of ten and performed at the White House just three years later. It's hardly surprising, then, that after several more years performing and recording with her family's worship ministry, she gained a record contract on her own. By late 1995, Jaci Velasquez signed with the Christian recording label Myrrh and found a number one hit (on the CCM charts) with her Spanish-tinged single, "If This World." Her debut album, Heavenly Place, produced by Mark Heimermann, continued the Spanish inspiration and made Top Ten on the Christian charts for several months after its May 1996 release. A self-titled follow-up appeared in 1998, and a year later Velasquez resurfaced with Llegar a Ti. Released in 2000, Crystal Clear emphasized the Latin and pop elements in her style while retaining her CCM roots, and Mi Corazon appeared in spring 2001. But she was just getting started. With 2003's Unspoken, Velasquez dropped an album that was steeped in pop texture, but still unabashedly Christian-themed. Her fifth foray into the English language market, the album also employed songwriters outside of the CCM circle (including Senator Orrin Hatch, who co-wrote the title song), featured big-name producers (Emilio Estefan), and marked Velasquez's debut as a songwriter. With Unspoken, Velasquez made it clear that she wasn't just little Jaci anymore. Then in 2005, Velasquez moved even further a field of her teen pop roots with the alternative rock influenced Beauty Has Grace - John Bush, All Music Guide

Sara Groves

2010-03-19T03:10:00.000-07:00

Active years: 00s
Genres: Alternative Pop/Rock, Contemporary Singer/Songwriter, Contemporary Christian, CCM, Contemporary Folk, Singer/Songwriter, Gospel, Christian Rock, Folk, Pop/Rock, Soft Rock, Contemporary Pop/Rock, Alternative CCM, Adult Contemporary
Top hits: Fireflies and Songs, When It Was Over, Something Changed, From This One Place, Twice As Good

Sara Groves
Sara Groves, a former high school teacher in her native Rosemont, MN, burst onto the gospel scene at the dawn of the new millennium with her fresh vocals and spiritual songwriting. She's been compared to the likes of Shawn Colvin and Rich Mullins, however, Groves defines her own musical demeanor. She cannot be limited to one exact label, for her contemporary Christian hooks also mold into delicate pop. Signed to Epic, Groves issued her debut, Conversations in early 2001, followed by a string of successful albums including All Right Here (2002), Other Side of Something (2004), Add to the Beauty (2005), Tell Me What You Know (2007), O Holy Night (2008) and Fireflies and Songs (2009). - MacKenzie Wilson, All Music Guide

Nichole Nordeman

2010-03-19T02:44:00.000-07:00

Active years: 90s, 00s
Genres: Contemporary Christian, Pop/Rock, CCM, Folk, Soft Rock, Contemporary Folk, Progressive Country, Singer/Songwriter, Contemporary Pop/Rock, Gospel, Adult Contemporary, Country
Top hits: How Deep The Father's Love For Us, Why? (Recollection Album Version), Just As I Am, I Will Believe (Narnia Album Version), Every Season

Nichole Nordeman
Contemporary Christian singer-songwriter Nichole Nordeman grew up in Colorado and was working as a waitress in Los Angeles when she entered a contest sponsored by the Gospel Music Association's Academy of Gospel Music Arts, winning with her song, "Why," in which the crucifixion is viewed by a child. This led to the release of her first album, Wide Eyed, which produced four hits on the Christian adult contemporary charts "To Know You," "Who You Are," "I Wish the Same" and the title song sold 130,000 copies, and brought her Dove nominations for Best New Artist in 1999 and Best Female Vocalist in 2000. Nordeman followed with her second album, This Mystery, in May 2000. - William Ruhlmann, All Music Guide

Lenny Leblanc

2010-03-18T14:10:00.000-07:00

Active years: 70s, 80s, 90s
Genres: Rockabilly, Alternative Pop/Rock, Pop/Rock, Rockabilly Revival, Gospel, Rock & Roll
Top hits: Here I am To Worship, There Is None Like You, Above All, We All Bow Down, This Thing Called Love

Alvin Slaughter

2010-03-18T14:07:00.000-07:00

Active years: 90s, 00s
Genres: Contemporary Gospel, Gospel
Top hits: Mighty Praise, Hallelujah, O Give Thanks, I Receive Your Love For Me - with Alvin Praying, I Call The Name

Alvin Slaughter
New York-based worship leader/vocalist Alvin Slaughter has been an influential force in gospel since his departure from the Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir in the early '90s. A Dove-nominated gospel artist, Slaughter appears on the TBN network and includes Champion of Love, God Can, Yes, and Rain Down in his discography. - Heather Phares, All Music Guide

Ron Kenoly

2010-03-18T14:05:00.000-07:00

Active years: 90s, 00s
Genres: Contemporary Christian, CCM, Gospel
Top hits: Ancient Of Days, Lift Him Up, Sing Out, Mourning Into Dancing, Be Glorified

Ron Kenoly

Ron Kenoly began singing in a Baptist church in his hometown, Coffeyville, KS, and after spending time working in the Air Force and raising a family, he became a successful charting singer in the early '70s in Los Angeles, but recommitted his life to being a Christian in 1975. Kenoly then received his master's degree in music at the College of Alameda in California, and became a voice teacher. He began to lead praise & worship services at a local Pentecostal church, and caught the eye of Integrity Records, which signed Ron Kenoly to a contract. His first album, Jesus Is Alive, was followed by the fastest-selling praise & worship album ever, Lift Him Up. Both that album and the next, God Is Able, were nominated for Dove awards. Kenoly has also released Sing out with One Voice, and in 1995 passed the one-million mark in total sales. In 1996, he released Welcome Home, his major label debut; Majesty followed two years later, and in 1999 Kenoly returned with We Offer Praises. Dwell In the House appeared in spring 2001. - John Bush, All Music Guide

Don Moen

2010-03-18T14:03:00.000-07:00

Active years: 80s, 90s
Genres: Contemporary Christian, CCM, Praise & Worship, Gospel
Top hits: Still / Be Still and Know, God Will Make A Way, Hiding Place, He Never Sleeps, Our Father

Don Moen
A songwriter and performer who gained success with a style of praise & worship song that hewed closely to the words of the Bible, Don Moen was working in the field by the early '80s. He grew up in Minnesota, then attended Oral Roberts University in Oklahoma, where his musical talents first bloomed. During the late '70s and early '80s, he was a musician for Terry Law Ministries, first playing guitar and trombone but later adding arrangement and production to his resumé.

In 1984, Moen was hired by Michael Coleman of Integrity Incorporated, authors of the praise & worship series Hosanna! Music. As worship leader, he helmed many successful volumes in the series, including Hosanna! Music: Give Thanks, which moved hundreds of thousands of copies and became the label's best-seller. Moen eventually worked on more than ten Hosanna! Music titles, and released his first album under his own name with 1992's Worship With Don Moen. His song "God Will Make a Way" was nominated for a Dove Award, and he actually won one two years later, for the musical God With Us. Moen has served Integrity as creative director, de facto A&R director, and also worked intensively with the publishing side of the label's business. A greatest-hits compilation, aptly titled God Will Make a Way: The Best of Don Moen, was released by Integrity in 2003. - John Bush, All Music Guide

Steve Green

2010-03-18T13:59:00.000-07:00

Active years: 80s, 90s
Genres: Read-Along Stories, Contemporary Christian, CCM, Contemporary Gospel, Educational, Gospel, Holidays, Christmas, Sing-Alongs, Inspirational, Holiday, Children's, New Age
Top hits: I Will Offer Up My Life, Indescribable, Grace By Which I Stand (Remembering Keith Green Album Version), In Christ Alone, Out Of Ashes

Steve Green

Gospel singer Steve Green began in the gospel industry during the mid-'70s, singing backup vocals and playing bass with Sandi Patti, White Heart and the Gaither Vocal Band. By the early '80s, he had gained a solo contract with Sparrow Records, and his self-titled debut album appeared in 1984. He averaged more than one album per year during the next dozen, with Spanish-language recordings (1987's Tienen Que Saber) and Christmas albums (1987's Joy to the World! and 1996's First Noel) in addition to his usual repertoire. Green has stayed on the Sparrow label for virtually every release, and also concentrates on videos and James Dobson's Focus on the Family as part of his musical ministry. Morning Light was released in 1999. Two years later, he and long-time friend/producer Phil Naish captured Green's personal reflection on Woven in Time. - John Bush, All Music Guide

During his childhood in Argentina with his missionary parents, Steve Green’s experience with music was simply a part of the weekly church services his father conducted. After returning to the states at age 18, he enrolled at Grand Canyon University. He intended to major in pre-law, but a professor recognized his musical talent and encouraged him to develop it.

In 1984, Steve released his first recording with Sparrow Records. He has had great success, garnering thirteen number-one radio songs, seven Dove awards, and four Grammy nominations. His latest release, “Always – Songs of Worship,” features a collection of well-known contemporary worship favorites as well as some new songs.

Cheri Keaggy

2010-03-18T13:56:00.000-07:00

Active years: 90s, 00s
Genres: Contemporary Christian, CCM, Gospel
Top hits: In Remembrance Of Me (Ultimate Collection Album Version), In Remembrance Of Me, My Faith Will Stay, Reign On Me, Make My Life An Altar

Cheri Keaggy

The niece-in-law of gospel legend Phil Keaggy, Cheri Keaggy has become a major artist in the Christian music field without using her famous relative as a crutch. She started her career as a worship leader at her church, then in mid-1993 decided to turn recording artist when Sparrow Records offered her a contract. Her debut album, 1994's Child of the Father, became quite popular on the Christian charts, leading to Keaggy's nomination for a Dove award as New Artist of the Year in 1995. Her singles "Open My Heart," "Make My Life an Altar" and "You, Oh Lord, Are My Refuge" have all done well on Christian radio, and she has toured with Point of Grace and Phillips, Craig & Dean, as well as appearing on TV shows like The 700 Club and Music City Tonight. Her second album, My Faith Will Stay, was released in 1995, and third album What Matters Most appeared two years later. Let's Fly, which was released in 2001, featured more of an edgier sound. - John Bush, All Music Guide

Adele

2010-03-14T04:58:00.000-07:00

Active years: 00s
Genres: Alternative Pop/Rock, Alternative/Indie Rock, Pop/Rock, Adult Alternative Pop/Rock
Top hits: Hometown Glory (album), Chasing Pavements, Make You Feel My Love (album), Daydreamer (album), Hometown Glory (High Contrast Remix)

Adele
When the U.K. press began dubbing Adele "the next Amy Winehouse" in late 2007, the hype didn't touch upon the heavy singer/songwriter influence found in the Londoner's music. Influenced by Suzanne Vega as much as Jill Scott, Adele first made an impression in 2006 when she toured as an opening act for Jack Penate. She had graduated to headlining status by the end of 2007, thanks to BBC Radio 1 playing her single "Daydreamer;" another song, "Hometown Glory," was also released as a single on Jamie T.'s label, Pacemaker. An appearance alongside Paul McCartney and Björk on the BBC 2 television show Later with Jools Holland came next, and a recording contract with XL Recordings was finalized soon after. Early 2008 brought similar luck as Adele found herself atop the BBC's new music talent list, which was compiled from the votes of 150 music critics. That same January, XL issued a new single, "Chasing Pavements," along with her debut album, 19. The title reflected Adele's age at the time of the album's release, and its popularity resulted in the release of several bonus editions throughout the year. - David Jeffries, All Music Guide

Amy Winehouse

2010-03-14T04:56:00.000-07:00

Active years: 00s
Genres: Soul, Jazz, Pop/Rock, Contemporary Jazz, Vocal Jazz, Neo-Soul, R and B, Crossover Jazz, Contemporary R and B
Top hits: Back To Black, You Know I'm No Good, Tears Dry On Their Own, Fuck Me Pumps, Intro / Stronger Than Me

Amy Winehouse
Much can be said about Amy Winehouse, one of the U.K.'s flagship vocalists during the 2000s. The British press and tabloids seemed to focus on her rowdy behavior and heavy consumption of alcohol, but fans and critics alike embraced her rugged charm, brash sense of humor, and distinctively soulful and jazzy vocals. Her platinum-selling breakthrough album, Frank (2003), elicited comparisons ranging from Billie Holiday and Sarah Vaughan to Macy Gray and Lauryn Hill. Interestingly enough, despite her strong cockney accent and vernacular, one can often hear aspects of each of those singers' vocal repertoire in Winehouse's own voice. Nonetheless, her allure has been her songwriting -- almost always deeply personal, but best-known for its profanity and brutal candor.

Born to a taxi-driving father and pharmacist mother, Winehouse grew up in the Southgate area of northern London. Her upbringing was surrounded by jazz. Many of the uncles on her mother's side were professional jazz musicians, and even her paternal grandmother was romantically involved with British jazz legend Ronnie Scott at one time. While at home, she listened to and absorbed her parents' selection of greats: Dinah Washington, Ella Fitzgerald, and Frank Sinatra among others. However, in her teens, she was drawn to the rebellious spirit of TLC, Salt-N-Pepa, and other American R&B and hip-hop acts of the time.

At the age of 16, after she had been expelled from London's Sylvia Young Theatre School, she caught her first break when pop singer Tyler James, a schoolmate and close friend, passed on her demo tape to his A&R, who was searching for a jazz vocalist. That opportunity led to her recording contract with Island Records. By the end of 2003, when she was 20 years old, Island had released her debut album, Frank. With contributions from hip-hop producer/keyboardist Salaam Remi, Winehouse's amalgam of jazz, pop, soul, and hip-hop received rave reviews. The album was nominated for the 2004 Mercury Music Prize as well as two Brit awards, and its lead single, "Stronger Than Me," won an Ivor Novello Award for Best Contemporary Song.

Following Winehouse's debut, the accolades and inquiring interviews appeared concurrently in the press with her tempestuous public life. Several times she showed up to her club or TV performances too drunk to sing a whole set. In 2006, her management company finally suggested that she enter rehab for alcohol abuse, but instead, she dumped the company and transcribed the ordeal into the U.K. Top Ten hit "Rehab," the lead single for her second, critically acclaimed album, Back to Black. Containing evocative productions from Salaam Remi and British DJ/multi-instrumentalist Mark Ronson, the album somewhat abandoned jazz, delving into the sounds of '50s/'60s-era girl group harmonies, rock & roll, and soul. The fanfare over the release was so great that it started to spill over onto U.S. shores; several rappers and DJs made their own remixes of various songs -- not to mention covers by Prince and the Arctic Monkeys.

One month after Winehouse won Best Female Artist at the Brit Awards in February 2007, Universal released Back to Black in the U.S. The LP charted higher than any other American debut by a British female recording artist before it, and it remained in the Top Ten for several months, selling a million copies by the end of that summer. Just as in the U.K., she became the talk of the town, landing on the covers of Rolling Stone and Spin magazines. Not long afterward, though, Winehouse canceled her North American tour. Early reports revealed that she was entering rehab for alcohol and drug addiction, but her new management denied the claims, stating it was due to severe exhaustion. Her erratic behavior kept her and her new husband, Blake Fielder-Civil, constantly in the tabloids and on and off stages on both sides of the Atlantic, but in late 2007 American fans were finally given a chance to hear Winehouse's early work, with a slightly abbreviated (two songs removed and one added) version of Frank. - Cyril Cordor, All Music Guide

Norah Jones

2010-03-14T04:54:00.000-07:00

Active years: 00s
Genres: Vocal, Traditional Pop, Blues, Alternative Pop/Rock, Contemporary Singer/Songwriter, Alternative/Indie Rock, Vocal Jazz, Contemporary Folk, Singer/Songwriter, Jazz Blues, Jazz, Folk, Contemporary Jazz, Pop/Rock, Torch Songs, Adult Alternative Pop/Rock, Piano Blues
Top hits: Come Away With Me, Sunrise, Don't Know Why, Chasing Pirates, What Am I To You?

Norah Jones
Sultry vocalist and pianist Norah Jones developed her unique blend of jazz and traditional vocal pop with hints of bluesy country and contemporary folk due in large part to her unique upbringing. Born March 30, 1979, in New York City, the daughter of Ravi Shankar quietly grew up in Texas with her mother. While she always found the music of Billie Holiday and Bill Evans both intriguing and comforting, she didn't really explore jazz until attending Dallas' Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts. During high school, Jones won the Down Beat Student Music Awards for Best Jazz Vocalist and Best Original Composition in 1996, and earned a second Best Jazz Vocalist award in 1997. Putting her vocal talents on the back burner, Jones worked toward earning a degree in jazz piano at the University of North Texas for two years before accepting a friend's offer of a summer sublet in Greenwich Village during the summer of 1999. Although she fully intended to return to college that fall, the lure of the folk coffeehouses and jazz clubs proved too strong and she soon became inspired to write her own songs. Jones appeared regularly with the trip-hop-electronica band Wax Poetic and assembled her own group around songwriters Jesse Harris (guitar) and Lee Alexander (bass), with Dan Rieser on drums.

In October of 2000, the group recorded a handful of demos for Blue Note Records and on the strength of these recordings, Jones signed to the jazz label in early 2001. Following an appearance on Charlie Hunter's Songs from the Analog Playground, Jones spent much of 2001 performing live with Hunter's group and working on material for her debut. Come Away with Me, recorded by Craig Street (Cassandra Wilson, Manhattan Transfer, k.d. lang) and legendary producer Arif Mardin (Aretha Franklin, Dusty Springfield, the Bee Gees), was released in early 2002 and garnered much public attention. The combination of her striking beauty and the fact that she was the daughter of an internationally renowned musician placed Jones in the awkward position of defending her music from those who dismissed her as another pretty face (the same argument used by those opposed to Diana Krall) and/or another riding the coattails of her musical royal heritage (see Natalie Cole, Miki Coltrane, Corey Parker). Although not by any stretch a "jazz" album (the label chose to call it "jazz-informed"), it featured jazz guitarist Bill Frisell and session drummer Brian Blade, and indicated a new direction for Blue Note combining jazz aesthetics and talent with a pop sensibility. Come Away with Me eventually went multi-platinum, selling 18 million copies worldwide and winning Jones eight Grammy awards.

In 2004, Jones released her highly anticipated follow-up album, Feels Like Home. Pairing once again with producer Arif Mardin, Jones pursued a similar approach to Come Away with Me, mixing '70s singer/songwriter-style tracks with blues, country, and her own mellow take on piano jazz. In 2003, Jones played in a group called the Little Willies along with Lee Alexander (bass), Richard Julian (guitar/vocals), Dan Rieser (drums), and Jim Campilongo (guitar), playing covers of classic American music like Hank Williams, Willie Nelson, and Kris Kristofferson. This one-off performance ultimately turned into sporadic shows at the venue whenever their individual schedules would allow, slowly incorporating original songs into their set along the way. In time, the Little Willies began considering the release of a live album, but instead wound up documenting their sound in the recording studio. Milking Bull Records issued the resultant self-titled album in March 2006. Late in the year the single "Thinking About You" announced her return to her solo career. It landed on the album Not Too Late, released in early 2007. The Fall, All Music Guide

Sheryl Crow

2010-03-14T04:52:00.000-07:00

Active years: 90s, 00s
Genres: Alternative Pop/Rock, Contemporary Singer/Songwriter, Alternative/Indie Rock, Progressive Country, Singer/Songwriter, Contemporary Folk, Country, American Trad Rock, Country-Rock, Folk, Pop/Rock, Contemporary Pop/Rock, Adult Alternative Pop/Rock

Sheryl Crow
Sheryl Crow's fresh, updated spin on classic roots rock made her one of the most popular mainstream rockers of the '90s. Her albums were loose and eclectic on the surface, yet were generally tied together by polished, professional songcraft. Crow's sunny, good-time rockers and world-weary ballads were radio staples for much of the '90s, and she was a perennial favorite at Grammy time. Although her songwriting style was firmly anchored to the rock tradition, she wasn't a slave to it -- her free-associative, reference-laden poetry could hardly have been the product of any era but the '90s. Her production not only kept pace with contemporary trends, but sometimes even pushed the envelope of what sounds could be heard on a classicist rock album, especially on her self-titled sophomore effort. All of this made Crow one of the most dependable stars of the decade, and she showed no signs of relinquishing her hard-won success in the new millennium.

Sheryl Suzanne Crow was born February 11, 1962, in Kennett, MO. Her parents had both performed in swing orchestras, her father on trumpet and her mother as a singer; her mother was also a piano teacher, and ensured that all her daughters learned the instrument starting in grade school. Crow wrote her first song at age 13, and majored in music at the University of Missouri, where she also played keyboards in a cover band called Cashmere. After graduating, she spent a couple of years in St. Louis working as a music teacher for autistic children. She sang with another cover band, P.M., by night, and also recorded local advertising jingles on the side. In 1986, Crow packed up and moved to Los Angeles to try her luck in the music business. She was able to land some more jingle-singing assignments, and got her first big break when she successfully auditioned to be a backup singer on Michael Jackson's international Bad tour. In concert, she often sang the female duet part on "I Just Can't Stop Loving You," and was inaccurately rumored by the tabloids to have been Jackson's lover. After spending two years on the road with Jackson, Crow resumed her search for a record deal, but found that record companies were only interested in making her a dance-pop singer, which was not at all to her taste.

Frustrated, Crow suffered a bout of severe depression that lasted around six months. She revived her career as a session vocalist, however, and performed with the likes of Sting, Rod Stewart, Stevie Wonder, Foreigner, Joe Cocker, Sinead O'Connor, and Don Henley, the latter of whom she toured with behind The End of the Innocence. She also developed her songwriting skills enough to have her compositions recorded by the likes of Wynonna Judd, Celine Dion, and Eric Clapton. Thanks to her session work, she made a connection with producer Hugh Padgham, who got her signed to A&M. Padgham and Crow went into the studio in 1991 to record her debut album, but Padgham's pop leanings resulted in a slick, ballad-laden record that didn't reflect the sound Crow wanted. The album was shelved, and fearing that she'd let her best opportunity slip through her fingers, Crow sank into another near-crippling depression that lingered for nearly a year and a half. However, thanks to boyfriend Kevin Gilbert, an engineer who'd attempted to remix her ill-fated album, Crow fell in with a loose group of industry pros that included Gilbert, Bill Bottrell, David Baerwald, David Ricketts, Brian MacLeod, and Dan Schwartz. Dubbed the Tuesday Night Music Club, this collective met once a week at Bottrell's Pasadena recording studio to drink, jam, and work out material. In this informal, collaborative setting, Crow was able to get her creative juices flowing again, and the group agreed to make its newest member -- the only one with a recording contract -- the focal point.

Crow and the collective worked out enough material for an album, and with Bottrell serving as producer, she recorded her new official debut, titled Tuesday Night Music Club in tribute. The record was released in August 1993 and proved slow to take off. Lead single "Run Baby Run" made little impact, and while "Leaving Las Vegas" attracted some attention through its inclusion in the acclaimed film of the same name, it reached only the lower half of the charts. A&M took one last shot by releasing "All I Wanna Do," a song partly written by poet Wyn Cooper, as a single. With its breezy, carefree outlook, "All I Wanna Do" became one of the biggest summer singles of 1994, falling just one position short of number one. Suddenly, Tuesday Night Music Club started flying out of stores, and spawned a Top Five follow-up hit in "Strong Enough" (plus another minor single in "Can't Cry Anymore"). Crow was a big winner at the Grammys in early 1995, taking home honors for Best New Artist, Best Female Rock Vocal, and Record of the Year (the latter two for "All I Wanna Do"). Her surprising sweep pushed Tuesday Night Music Club into the realm of genuine blockbuster, as its sales swept past the seven million mark. After close to a decade of dues-paying, Crow was a star.

Unfortunately, success came at a price. In 1994, Crow had been invited to perform "Leaving Las Vegas" on Late Night With David Letterman. In a brief interview segment, Letterman asked if the song was autobiographical, and Crow offhandedly agreed that it was. In actuality, the song was mostly written by David Baerwald, based on the book by his good friend John O'Brien (which had also inspired the film). Having been burned by the industry already, some of the Tuesday Night Music Club took Crow's comment as a refusal to give proper credit for their contributions. Baerwald in particular felt betrayed, and things only got worse when O'Brien committed suicide not long after Crow's Letterman appearance. Although O'Brien's family stepped forward to affirm that Crow had nothing to do with the tragedy, the rift with Baerwald was already irreparable. Some Club members bitterly charged that Crow's role in the collaborative process was rather small, and that the talent on display actually had little to do with her. Tragedy struck again in 1996 when Crow's ex-boyfriend, Kevin Gilbert, was found dead of autoerotic asphyxiation.

Stung by the charges, Crow set out to prove her legitimacy with her second album when the heavy touring for Tuesday Night Music Club finally ended. Bill Bottrell was originally slated to produce the record, but fell out with Crow very early on, and the singer ended up taking over production duties herself. However, she did bring in the noted team of Mitchell Froom and Tchad Blake as assistant producer and engineer, respectively. Froom and Blake were known for the strange sonic experimentation they brought to projects by roots rockers (the Latin Playboys) and singer/songwriters (Richard Thompson, Suzanne Vega), and they helped Crow craft a similarly non-traditional record. Released in the fall of 1996, Sheryl Crow definitely bore the stamp of the singer's personality and songwriting voice, especially in the idiosyncratic lyrics; plus, she was now writing mostly with her guitarist, Jeff Trott, proving that she could cut it without her estranged collaborators. The singles "If It Makes You Happy," "Everyday Is a Winding Road," and "A Change Would Do You Good" were all radio smashes, and "Home" also became a minor hit. Sheryl Crow went triple platinum, and Crow brought home Grammys for Best Rock Album and another Best Female Rock Vocal (for "If It Makes You Happy").

Crow toured with the Lilith Fair package during the summer of 1997 (the first of several times), and subsequently wrote and performed the title theme to the James Bond film Tomorrow Never Dies. In the fall of 1998, she returned with her third album, The Globe Sessions. A more straightforward, traditionalist rock record than Sheryl Crow, The Globe Sessions didn't dominate the airwaves in quite the same fashion, but it did become her third straight platinum-selling, Top Ten LP, and it won her another Grammy for Best Rock Album. It also spawned two mid-sized hits in the Top 20: "My Favorite Mistake" and "Anything but Down." In 1999, she contributed a Grammy-winning cover of Guns N' Roses' "Sweet Child o' Mine" to the soundtrack of the Adam Sandler comedy Big Daddy. She also performed a special free concert in New York's Central Park, with an array of guest stars including Keith Richards, Eric Clapton, Chrissie Hynde, the Dixie Chicks, Stevie Nicks, and Sarah McLachlan. The show was broadcast on Fox and later released as the album Live in Central Park, just in time for the holidays. "There Goes the Neighborhood" won her another Grammy for Best Female Rock Vocal; however, partly because of some shaky performances, the album flopped badly, not even going gold.

Hit with a case of writer's block, Crow took some time to deliver her fourth studio LP. In the meantime, she produced several tracks on Stevie Nicks' 2001 album, Trouble in Shangri-La, and also recorded a duet with Kid Rock, "Picture," for his album Cocky. Finally, in the spring of 2002, Crow released C'mon C'mon, which entered the LP charts at number two for her highest positioning yet. It quickly went platinum, and the lead single, "Soak up the Sun," was a Top 20 hit and another ubiquitous radio smash. The follow-up, "Steve McQueen," was also a lesser hit. At the beginning of 2005 it was announced that there would be two simultaneously released new albums available by the end of the year. The project was then scaled back to the single disc Wildflower which saw release at the end of September. Crow was forced to take time off from her musical career in 2006 after being diagnosed with Stage 1 breast cancer. After successful treatment, she returned in 2008 with her sixth studio album, Detours. - Steve Huey, All Music Guide

Anastacia

2010-03-14T04:49:00.000-07:00

Active years: 00s
Genres: Electronic, Club/Dance, Pop/Rock, Dance-Pop, Euro-Pop, Euro-Dance
Top hits: Left Outside Alone, Sick and Tired, Paid My Dues, Heavy On My Heart, Welcome To My Truth

Anastacia

Raised in New York City, Anastacia came from an entertainment-oriented family: her father was a singer; her mother an actress in musical theater on Broadway. Despite being diagnosed with the chronic intestinal illness Crohn's disease at age 13, she developed a career as a dancer, appearing on Club MTV and in such music videos as Salt-N-Pepa's "Everybody Get Up" and "Twist and Shout." In 1999, she was a finalist on the MTV talent contest show The Cut, which attracted the interest of record labels. She signed to the Daylight custom label of Sony Music's Epic Records and recorded her debut album, Not That Kind, which was released internationally in 2000.

The result was massive success: the album reached the Top Ten in eight European and Far East countries, selling over two million copies. At home, the single "I'm Outta Love" became a dance hit, paving the way for the release of a revised version of Not That Kind in the U.S. in March 2001. A year later, she was creating a buzz in America. She joined Mary J. Blige, Cher, Shakira, and others for VH1's fifth annual Divas Live showcase in May 2002. She made her proper American debut with Freak of Nature in June. A self-titled album followed in 2004, with the compilation Pieces of a Dream: Best Of arriving a year later. After making a successful foray into fashion with her own clothing line in 2006, Anastacia returned to music in 2007 with plans to release a new album and tour in 2008. - William Ruhlmann, All Music Guide

Jennifer Lopez

2010-03-14T04:47:00.000-07:00

Active years: 00s
Genres: Electronic, Latin Pop, Club/Dance, R&B, Urban, Soul, Latin, Pop/Rock, Soft Rock, Dance-Pop, Latin Dance, Contemporary Pop/Rock, Adult Contemporary
Top hits: Get Right, If You Had My Love, Let's Get Loud, Do It Well, I'm Gonna Be Alright

Jennifer Lopez
Actress/singer Jennifer Lopez was born in the Bronx, NY, on July 24, 1969; after starting out in musical theater as a child, at age 16 she made her film debut in the little-seen My Little Girl, but her career then stalled until she was tapped to become one of the dancing "Fly Girls" on the television sketch comedy series In Living Color. A recurring role on the TV drama Second Chances followed before Lopez was thrust into the limelight co-starring with Wesley Snipes and Woody Harrelson in the 1995 feature film Money Train; smaller roles in pictures including My Family/Mi Familia, Jack, and Blood and Wine followed before she landed the title role in 1997's Selena, portraying the slain tejano singer. Co-starring opposite George Clooney in 1998's acclaimed Out of Sight, Lopez (part of a Puerto Rican family) became the highest-paid Latina actress in Hollywood history; the following summer, she returned to her musical roots with her debut pop album, On the 6, scoring a major hit with the infectious single "If You Had My Love." Lopez didn't waste time perfecting a sophomore effort, the appropriately titled J.Lo, which was issued in early 2001. The following year Lopez released J to tha L-O!: The Remixes and This Is Me...Then, which spawned another hit single, "Jenny from the Block." Although her high-profile romance with Ben Affleck created more headlines than her recording career, her follow-up, 2005's Rebirth released just after she married singer Marc Anthony was anticipated enough to debut at number two on the Billboard 200 album chart. The Spanish-language album Como Ama una Mujer followed in 2007, peaking at number ten on the Billboard 200 chart while remaining at the top of the Latin chart for seven consecutive weeks. In October of that same year, Lopez put out a more "traditional" pop album, Brave, followed by an accompanying tour. - Jason Ankeny, All Music Guide

Craig David

2010-03-14T04:45:00.000-07:00

Active years: 00s
Genres: Electronic, Soul, Garage, Club/Dance, Pop/Rock, R&B, Contemporary R&B, Urban, 2-Step/British Garage
Top hits: 7 Days, Insomnia, Walking Away, Hot Stuff [Let's Dance], Rise & Fall - Featuring Sting

Craig David
During a period of three years, Craig David transitioned from aspiring songwriter and DJ to major U.K. pop star. When his meringue-smooth, garage-tinged R&B single “Fill Me In” reached the top of the U.K. chart during the summer of 2000, the singer, only 19 years old at the time, became the youngest British male solo artist to achieve the feat. Not only that, but he also achieved mainstream U.S. acceptance and platinum sales in 18 additional countries. Though he did not sustain that level of popularity, David released solid modern R&B albums every few years and also took a look to the past with a reverent set of Motown covers.

Prior to his breakthrough, David, a native of Southampton, was a local radio jock and later found himself spinning records at clubs, which enabled him to cross paths with some of England’s up-and-coming producers. It was during this time that he hooked up with Artful Dodger's Mark Hill, but his first real break came when he won a songwriting contest held by the group Damage, who recorded “I’m Ready,” the track he submitted, and released it as a B-side to their 1997 single “Wonderful Tonight.” Two years later, Artful Dodger produced and wrote the mellow yet rhythmically tricky “Rewind,” for which David provided the lead vocal -- the release was billed as “Artful Dodger Presents Craig David” -- and the song went to number two on the U.K. pop chart.

The release of David’s first proper solo single, “Fill Me In,” came in April 2000. A collaboration with Hill, the song went to number one and propelled sales of Born to Do It, the debut album issued four months later. A subsequent stateside deal with Atlantic also fostered worldwide sales of well over three million and helped take U.K. garage beyond a national phenomenon (if as a polished, smoothed-out product relative to the style’s beginnings). U.S. superstars Missy Elliott, Beyoncé, and Usher called themselves fans, and David won three MOBO (Music of Black Origin) awards, though he was snubbed in each of the six Brit Award categories for which he was nominated.

Slicker Than Your Average, ironically a slightly grittier album, was issued as David’s second album in November 2002. It would have been nearly impossible to trump the popularity of Born to Do It, but the album’s first four singles all reached the U.K. Top Ten. The U.S. was still paying attention; the album reached gold sales there. Nearly three years passed until the release of The Story Goes…, a set for Warner filled with polite, adult-leaning contemporary R&B. It featured a Top Five U.K. single in “All the Way,” but the album was not released in the States. The bolder, more upbeat Trust Me, led by the Top Ten, David Bowie-sampling “Hot Stuff (Let’s Dance)” and the Kano collaboration “This Is the Girl,” was his lowest-selling album to date. Following a Greatest Hits compilation, David issued Signed, Sealed, Delivered, an album of Motown covers, in 2010. ~ Andy Kellman & MacKenzie Wilson, All Music Guide

R. Kelly

2010-03-14T04:43:00.000-07:00

Active years: 80s, 90s, 00s
Genres: Soul, Rap, Pop/Rock, Soft Rock, R&B, Neo-Soul, Adult Contemporary, East Coast Rap, Contemporary R&B, Pop-Rap, Urban, New Jack Swing
Top hits: I Believe I Can Fly - Radio Edit, If I Could Turn Back The Hands Of Time - Radio Edit, Ignition - Remix, Ignition Remix, Bump N' Grind

R. Kelly
Urban R&B producer/vocalist/multi-instrumentalist/songwriter R. Kelly and his supporting band Public Announcement began recording in 1992 at the tail end of the new jack swing era, yet he was able to keep much of its sound alive while remaining commercially successful. While he created a smooth, professional mixture of hip-hop beats, soul-man crooning, and funk, the most distinctive element of Kelly's music is its explicit carnality. He was able to make songs like "Sex Me," "Bump n' Grind," "Your Body's Callin'," and "Feelin' on Yo Booty" into hits because his production was seductive enough to sell such blatant come-ons. As his crossover success broadened, Kelly also developed a flair for pop balladry that helped cement his status as one of the biggest-selling male artists of the '90s.

Kelly and Public Announcement released their debut album, Born Into the 90's, at the beginning of 1992. It was an instant R&B smash, while earning a fair amount of pop airplay; "Honey Love" and "Slow Dance (Hey Mr. DJ)" were number one R&B hits, while "Dedicated" was his biggest pop hit at number 31. 12 Play, released in the fall of 1993, established Kelly as an R&B superstar, eventually selling over five million copies. The first single, "Sex Me, Pts. I & II," went gold, and the second, "Bump n' Grind," hit number one on both the pop and R&B charts in 1994; it stayed on top of the R&B charts for an astonishing 12 weeks, while logging four weeks at number one the pop charts. The follow-up, "Your Body's Callin'," was another gold single, peaking at number 13 pop. Also in 1994, he produced Age Ain't Nothing But a Number, the hit debut album for then 15-year-old Detroit R&B singer Aaliyah. Late in the year, it was revealed that Kelly and Aaliyah had wed in August and gotten an annulment shortly thereafter. The news sparked a small storm of controversy in the media, yet it didn't hurt the careers of either singer. Kelly next wrote and co-produced "You Are Not Alone," the second single from Michael Jackson's HIStory album, which was released in the summer of 1995. Later that year, Kelly released a self-titled album which became his first to top the pop charts. R. Kelly sold four million copies and produced three platinum singles -- "You Remind Me of Something," "Down Low (Nobody Has to Know)," and "I Can't Sleep Baby (If I)" -- all of which hit number one R&B and reached the pop Top Ten.

Kelly truly consolidated his crossover success with the 1996 single "I Believe I Can Fly," which he recorded for the Michael Jordan movie Space Jam. Transcending Kelly's prior sexed-up image, the song reached number two on the pop charts and won Grammy Awards for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance, Best R&B Song, and Best Song Written Specifically for a Motion Picture or for Television. Kelly remained in the public eye in 1997 with another Top Ten soundtrack tune, Batman & Robin's "Gotham City." The ambitious two-disc R. followed in 1998, and even though it downplayed the explicit lover-man routine that had made him a star, it became Kelly's biggest-selling album yet, going platinum seven times over. Its first single, a duet with Celine Dion titled "I'm Your Angel," became Kelly's second number one pop hit with a six-week run on top. Even though subsequent singles "When a Woman's Fed Up" and "If I Could Turn Back the Hands of Time" were more successful on the R&B charts, Kelly was well on his way to landing more Top 40 hits in the '90s than any other male solo artist, and notched another with his guest appearance on Puff Daddy's R&B chart-topper "Satisfy You." Moving his blockbuster success into a new decade, Kelly returned in 2000 with TP-2.com, which spent three weeks at number one on the album charts and scaled back the ambition of R. to return to familiar lyrical themes. He scored two more R&B number ones with "I Wish" and "Fiesta" (the latter featuring guest Jay-Z), and had further hits with "Feelin' on Yo Booty" and "The World's Greatest," the latter from the soundtrack of the Will Smith film Ali.

In the wake of "Fiesta," Kelly and Jay-Z teamed up to record an entire album together. The Best of Both Worlds was heavily hyped and even more heavily bootlegged, but problems of a much more serious nature arose in February 2002, when the Chicago Sun-Times reported that it had been given a videotape showing Kelly having sex with a 14-year-old girl. When the scandal broke, other reports surfaced that Kelly had settled a civil suit in 1998 involving a sexual relationship with a then-underage girl, and that he was in the process of settling another suit brought by an Epic Records intern making similar allegations. Copies of the tape in question were sold as bootlegs and on the Internet, and while there was some question as to whether the man was really Kelly, and whether the girl really was underage, Kelly's past history seemed to lend credence to the charge. Some radio stations dropped him from their play lists, and anti-Kelly protests were staged in Chicago. Meanwhile, The Best of Both Worlds entered the charts at number two, but sold disappointingly; some blamed the scandal, others the extensive pre-release bootlegging, although the generally unfavorable reviews suggested that the record's overall quality might also have been to blame.

Following the initial sex-tape scandal, Kelly was dogged by numerous civil suits, including one from a girl who alleged that during her relationship with Kelly (which occurred while she was underage), she had become pregnant and gotten an abortion at the singer's urging. A variety of other sex videos purporting to feature Kelly appeared as bootlegs, and a onetime Kelly protégée, a singer called Sparkle, stepped forward to identify the girl on the original tape as her then-14-year-old niece. In June, Chicago police officially charged Kelly with 21 counts of child pornography-related offenses, all related to the original tape. Kelly pleaded not guilty and released a new song, "Heaven, I Need a Hug," which got extensive airplay for a brief period.

Meanwhile, work on his next album, Loveland, stalled amid more heavy bootlegging. Kelly eventually scrapped some of the most pirated tracks, recorded some new songs, and reassembled the album as Chocolate Factory (which was slated to include a bonus disc with some of the deleted material). Released in advance of the album, lead single "Ignition" shot to number one on the R&B charts in late 2002. Chocolate Factory itself was released in early 2003, and followed in 2004 by Happy People/U Saved Me. Surprisingly, despite reports of a feud with Jay-Z, later in 2004 another album was released from The Best of Both Worlds sessions. Weeks before his child pornography trial the following year, TP.3 Reloaded was released, featuring the first five chapters of his soapy "Trapped in the Closet" saga. The relatively uneventful eighth and ninth studio albums Double Up (2007) and Untitled (2009) followed. - Stephen Thomas Erlewine & Steve Huey, All Music Guide

Chris Brown

2010-03-14T04:41:00.000-07:00

Active years: 70s, 80s, 90s, 00s
Genres: Modern Composition, Soul, Free Jazz, Jazz, Avant-Garde, Avant-Garde Jazz, R&B, Classical, Contemporary R&B, Urban
Top hits: Crawl, Forever - Main Version, So Cold, With You - Main Version, For Ur Love

Chris Brown
Chris Brown began his music career as a classical pianist, but became increasingly influenced by American experimental and improvised music. These influences, combined with studies of Indonesian, Indian, and Cuban musics, led Brown further into free jazz. Since the late '70s, Brown has been building personal electronic instruments, using analog circuits to modify acoustic devices' sounds, and mixing these with concrete and synthetic sounds. He created an installation of networked rhythm machines, called Talking Drum, that made stops in San Francisco, Montreal, and Holland. Brown has received commissions from Abel-Steinberg-Winant Trio, Rova Saxophone Quartet, and the Berkeley Symphony Orchestra. He was a member of the Hub from 1986 to 1998, and of Glenn Spearman Double Trio. Brown has performed piano music by James Tenney, Henry Cowell, Luc Ferrari, and more, and recorded and performed in the free jazz tradition at venues including the San Francisco, Monterey, DuMaurier, and Victoriaville festivals. The end of the '90s found Brown working on a new series of concert pieces called "Inventions"; they are based around the results of a polyrhythm generating software. In addition to this, he has been developing the Eternal Network Music Site, which involves linking musicians in different cities during one performance, and playing in Room, a new music trio with Larry Ochs of Rova and William Winant. - Joslyn Layne, All Music Guide

Usher

2010-03-14T04:38:00.000-07:00

Active years: 90s, 00s
Genres: Electronic, Soul, Club/Dance, Pop/Rock, Soft Rock, R&B, Adult Contemporary, Contemporary R&B, Urban
Top hits: Yeah!, U Got It Bad, There Goes My Baby, U Remind Me - Radio Edit, U Make Me Wanna

Usher

After Usher Raymond was spotted by a La Face record executive at a talent show in his hometown of Atlanta, it took no time for his career to take off. The 14-year-old auditioned for La Face co-founder L.A. Reid, who signed the gospel choir boy to a recording contract. Raymond was introduced to the world simply as "Usher," and released his debut album of the same name in 1994, which featured co-executive producer Sean "Puffy" Combs. The first single, "Think of You," gained Usher wide recognition and reached gold status. From that initial exposure, Usher was approached to do other projects. In 1995, he recorded a national holiday jingle for Coca-Cola. He also joined several top male R&B vocalists to form Black Men United for the single "You Will Know," featured on the Jason's Lyric soundtrack. He also teamed with teen singing sensation Monica for a duet remake of Latimore's "Let's Straighten It Out."

After graduating from high school, Usher released his sophomore album, My Way, in 1997. In an attempt to display his maturity and songwriting abilities, Usher co-wrote six of the nine songs and enlisted the help of producers Jermaine Dupri, Babyface, and, again, Combs. The album's first single, "You Make Me Wanna," reestablished Usher as one of R&B's hottest artists, and also made him a crossover sensation; it topped the R&B charts for 11 weeks, hit number two pop, and eventually went double platinum. Both of the follow-up singles, "Nice & Slow" and "My Way," also went platinum; the former stayed at number one on the R&B charts for eight weeks and became his first number one pop single. In the meantime, Usher launched an acting career, appearing in the 1998 horror spoof The Faculty and the 1999 urban high-school drama Light It Up.

To tide fans over, he issued a concert recording titled simply Live in 1999. Usher returned with his third proper album, All About U, toward the end of 2000. His third album, 8701 (2001), moved him from a teen pop star to a sultry R&B singer. In early 2004, Arista released the single "Yeah!" Produced by Lil Jon and guesting Ludacris, the addictive, lightly crunk cut fast became a club and radio favorite. By the time the Usher full-length Confessions dropped later that March, "Yeah!" had hit the top of the Billboard charts. The album itself was Usher's most mature work to date and won the Grammy for Best Contemporary R&B Album in 2004, while "Yeah!" took home the best rapped/sung collaboration award. He starred in the 2005 flop In the Mix and went back to music with 2008's Here I Stand, an album that was ultimately declared a flop, even though it topped the Billboard 200 and Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Albums charts. Raymond V Raymond, inspired in part by the end of his marriage, was released in 2010. - Lynda Lane, All Music Guide

Justin Bieber

2010-03-14T04:02:00.000-07:00

Active years: 09, 10
Genres: Electronic, Soul, Club/Dance, Pop/Rock, Soft Rock, R&B, Adult Contemporary, Contemporary R&B, Urban
Top hits: One Time, Love Me, Favorite Girl, One Less Lonely Girl, Down To Earth

Justin Bieber
An old soul is the last thing you would expect to find inside Justin Bieber. But all it takes is one listen to the 15 year-old soul-singing phenomenon to realize that he is light years ahead of his manufactured pop peers.

After posting dozens of homemade videos on YouTube in 2007, where the multi-talented Bieber put his impeccable spin on songs from artists like Usher, Ne-Yo and Stevie Wonder, Justin racked up over 10,000,000 views purely from word of mouth.

“I started singing about three years ago,” says the Canadian native who grew up an only child in Stratford, Ontario. “I entered a local singing competition called Stratford Idol. The other people in the competition had been taking singing lessons and had vocal coaches. I wasn’t taking it too seriously at the time, I would just sing around the house. I was only 12 and I got second place.”

In an effort to share his victory with his loved ones, Justin began posting his performance footage online. “I put my singing videos from the competition on YouTube so that my friends and family could watch them,” he says. “But it turned out that other people liked them and they started subscribing to them. That’s how my manager found me. He saw me on YouTube and contacted my family and now I’m signed!”

Seven months after Justin started posting his videos online, former So So Def marketing executive Scooter Braun flew the then 13-year old singer to Atlanta, GA to meet with his elite colleagues. As if Justin’s natural singing talent wasn’t enough to impress Scooter’s inner circle, Braun knew Bieber was also a self-taught musician who plays the drums, guitar, piano and trumpet.

“Right when we flew into Atlanta, Scooter drove us to the studio and Usher was there in the parking lot,” remembers Bieber. “That was my first time ever being out of Canada so I went up to him and was like, ‘Hey Usher, I love your songs, do you want me to sing you one?’ He was like, ‘No little buddy, just come inside, it’s cold out.’”

All it took was a short time online for Usher to realize he was in the company of a future superstar. “A week later Usher flew me back to Atlanta,” says Bieber. “I sang for him and his people and he really wanted to sign me then and there but I still had a meeting with Justin Timberlake who also wanted to sign me. It turned out Usher’s deal was way better. He had L.A. Reid backing him up and Scooter has alot of connections and is really smart. I always tease Usher now and remind him he how he blew me off the first time we met.”

In October of 2008, Justin Bieber officially signed to a joint venture between Usher and Scooter Braun's new label RBMG and Island Records. His debut album, My World is an intimate look into the mind of a budding young renaissance man. With production from star hit men like The Dream and Tricky Stewart who produced “Umbrella” for Rihanna and Beyonce’s latest smash, “Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It),” Justin has everything he needs to achieve pop supremacy.

His first single, “One Time” produced by Tricky, is about one of Justin’s favorite topics, puppy love. Usher joins Justin on “First Dance” where the two share verses on a song that Bieber describes as, “A slow groovy song that people can dance to.” On the Midi-Mafia produced “Down to Earth” Justin digs deep to talk about growing up. “Bigger” finds the teenaged singer maturing at a steady rate, while motivating his listeners to strive for their goals.

“I’m looking forward to influencing others in a positive way,” says Justin. “My message is you can do anything if you just put your mind to it. I grew up below the poverty line; I didn’t have as much as other people did. I think it made me stronger as a person it built my character. Now I have a 4.0 grade point average and I want to go to college and just become a better person.”

A virtually untapped well of natural artistic talent, Justin Bieber is primed to be a solid force in music for many years to come. “I think older people can appreciate my music because I really show my heart when I sing, and it’s not corny,” he says. “I think I can grow as an artist and my fans will grow with me.” And just think, he’s just getting started.

Ladytron

2010-03-14T03:57:00.000-07:00

Active years: 1998-
Genres: Indie Pop, Electronic, Indie Rock, Alternative Pop/Rock, Dream Pop, Club/Dance, Alternative/Indie Rock, Indie Electronic, Pop/Rock, Punk/New Wave, New Wave, Post-Punk
Top hits: Seventeen (Soulwax Remix), Destroy Everything You Touch, Playgirl - Felix Dahousecat Glitz Club Mix, Ghosts, Seventeen '05

Ladytron
Buzzy glam rock fashion plates Ladytron came together in a jet-set miracle in mid-1998. Daniel Hunt and Reuben Wu, who lurk in the background playing rhythm boxes and keyboards in the band, settled in Liverpool after a spate of DJ work in Japan and world travel, including a train trip in Bulgaria where they met vocalist Mira Aroyo. Helena Marnie, who also sings and plays keyboards for the group, also joined them and they began work on their first single, "He Took Her to a Movie," which was recorded for 50 pounds. The release brought a wave of critical attention with writers extending into jubilant metaphor to describe the band's unique sound, including one who wrote that they were "...a teasing glimpse of how Britney Spears might have sounded, had she been born in the GDR and a heroin addict."

Ladytron toured throughout the continent before beginning work on their debut EP, Commodore Rock, which was released in the summer of 2000, providing their fans another foray into the noisy world of early-'80s sound. The studio full-length 604 followed a year later, and gained many positive reviews. 2002 saw the release of Light & Magic and the mix album Softcore Jukebox. The group returned in the summer of 2005 with the Sugar single, which heralded the rock edge of Ladytron's third album, Witching Hour. Extended Play, which featured remixes of Witching Hour's singles, arrived the following spring. Ladytron moved to Nettwerk for their fourth album, Velocifero, which they produced themselves. ~ Stacia Proefrock, All Music Guide

Peaches

2010-03-14T03:54:00.000-07:00

Active years: 90s, 00s
Genres: Electronic, Indie Rock, Alternative Pop/Rock, Alternative/Indie Rock, Pop/Rock, Experimental Techno, Techno, Electro-Techno, Electronica
Top hits: Fuck The Pain Away, Talk To Me, I Feel Cream, Mommy Complex, Serpentine (I Don’t Give A..Part 2)

Peaches
Peaches (Merrill Nisker) burst into transcontinental favor with her very particular brand of cocksure rapping and groovebox beats. Indeed, this vulgar Canadian temptress may have come from an underground womb of acoustic folk (Mermaid Café), avant-garde jazz (Fancypants Hoodlum), and deconstructed noise swarms (the Shit), but it wasn't until 2000's new guise that her fearless, apolitical gender play truly raised heads. European trawls unearthed new admirers, and collaborations with the equally lewd Chilly Gonzales certainly fueled the fire for her first solo effort. By the time she signed with Berlin's Kitty-Yo label and unleashed The Teaches of Peaches, her niche had already been carved out. Peaches sounded like a Penthouse Forum together with Grandmaster Flash, Shirley Manson, and Charles Manson -- or just Justine Frischmann hitting her sexual peak. Peaches moved to XL, which reissued The Teaches of Peaches in 2002 and released Fatherfucker in 2003 and Impeach My Bush in 2006. For 2009's I Feel Cream, Peaches worked with Simian Mobile Disco and took her sound in a more electronic, eclectic direction. + Dean Carlson, All Music Guide

Lady Gaga

2010-03-14T03:52:00.000-07:00

Active years: 00s
Genres: Electronic, Soul, Club/Dance, Pop/Rock, R&B, Dance-Pop, Urban
Top hits: Bad Romance, Telephone, Fashion, Just Dance, Speechless

Lady Gaga

Lady Gaga is a theatrical dance-pop performer whose debut single, the international chart-topping hit "Just Dance," established her as an up-and-coming superstar upon its release in 2008. Born Stefani Germanotta on March 28, 1986, the Yonkers native attended Convent of the Sacred Heart, a private all-girl Catholic school in Manhattan, before proceeding to study music at New York University's Tisch School of the Arts at age 17. Influenced by flamboyant glam rockers such as David Bowie and Freddie Mercury (she would later draw her stage name from the Queen song "Radio Ga-Ga") as well as '80s dance-poppers such as Madonna and Michael Jackson, she began playing the piano at a young age and started writing original material as a teenager. In 2007, she began to make a name for herself on the downtown Manhattan club scene with a performance art show billed as Lady Gaga and the Starlight Revue (co-featuring Lady Starlight; born Colleen Martin, a DJ and makeup professional), and music industry insiders began to take note. While Lady Gaga was initially signed to Def Jam in 2007, nothing came of that association, and ultimately it was pop-rap superstar Akon who took her under his wing, signing her to his vanity label Kon Live in association with Interscope Records.

In addition to working for Interscope as an in-house songwriter, Lady Gaga began preparing the launch of her solo career. Her debut single, "Just Dance," was released to radio in April 2008, and her full-length album debut, The Fame, followed in August. Featuring fellow Akon affiliate Colby O'Donis, "Just Dance" slowly gathered momentum throughout 2008's latter half. The song debuted on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart in August, at which time it had already become a massive club hit, but it didn't reach number one until January 2009. Internationally, the song proved similarly popular, reaching the Top Ten throughout much of Western Europe and beyond. In the wake of Lady Gaga's international breakthrough success with "Just Dance," the follow-up single "Poker Face" was an even larger hit, topping singles charts across the board with its combination of pop melodicism and club-worthy production. Two additional tracks -- "LoveGame" and "Paparrazi" -- also cracked the Top Ten, and The Fame was still enjoying a spot on the Billboard Top 40 when its follow-up, The Fame Monster, appeared in November 2009. Although originally planned as a bonus disc (to be packaged alongside The Fame in a deluxe edition of Lady Gaga's debut), The Fame Monster was quickly expanded to eight tracks, thus warranting its own release. Meanwhile, the leadoff single "Bad Romance" became Gaga's fifth consecutive Top Ten single. + Jason Birchmeier, All Music Guide

Miley Cyrus

2010-03-14T03:46:00.000-07:00

Top hits: The Climb, Hoedown Throwdown, Girls Just Wanna Have Fun, 7 Things, Party In The U.S.A.

Hey guys.
I was born November 23rd 1992. It means I'm 16 years old! =]
When I was born my parents called me Destiny Hope Cyrus. Now I legally changed my name to Miley Ray Cyrus because:
1. When I was little my mom & dad always called me Smiley.
2. When I started going to school, in all the tests and practices I wrote my name as Miley Cyrus.
THAT'S WHY!
What else?
Oh, you should know me from the Disney Series 'Hannah Montana'. You should really watch it. It's a comedy.
There are 3 seasons. Yaayy! :)
My Favorites;
Sport: Cheerleading
Book: Don't Die, My Love.
Food: Chinese
Hobby: Shopping
Album: Kelly Clarkson's 'Breakaway'.

I have a book called "Miles To Go". Be sure to buy it! =)

Eek-A-Mouse

2010-02-15T16:18:00.000-08:00

Active years: 80s, 90s, 00s
Genres: Club/Dance, Ragga, Reggae, Dancehall

Top hits: Ganja Smuggling, Wa-Do-Dem (12" Version), Wa-Do-Dem, I Love Weed, Joey Joey

Eek-A-Mouse
Ludicrous, bizarre, and uniquely original, few DJs have made such a splash in the dancehall scene than Eek-A-Mouse. An artist who in any other country would have been a one-hit wonder, in Jamaica became a household name having invented a whole new vocal style, sing-jay, flooding the airwaves with his catch phrases and going on to become a respected toaster. Eek-A-Mouse didn't start out as a novelty act. He was born Ripton Hilton in 1957 in Kingston, Jamaica, and his first foray into the music world was as a cultural roots singer.

While barely out of his teens and still in college, Hilton released two singles in the mid-'70s, "My Father's Land" and "Creation," to an apathetic public. Not discouraged, the young man continued plugging away, DJing for a variety of sound systems while also releasing occasional singles, all under his real name. To his friends, however, he was known as Eek-A-Mouse. A rather cruel jab, for that was the name of the losing racehorse Hilton kept throwing his money away on; of course as so often happens, the one time he declined to bet was the sole time the obstreperous equine won. The name stuck and by 1979, the singer decided a change was in order, and placed his musical fortune on this new moniker. That year, Eek-A-Mouse went into the studio with producer Joe Gibbs and walked out with the sizeable hit "Once a Virgin." His follow-ups in 1980, "Wa-Do-Dem" and "Modelling Queen," were equally successful, while the Bubble Up Yu Hip album, produced by Linval Thompson, proved that a growing share of Jamaicans were taken by the Mouse experience.

Before the year was out, the artist had joined forces with producer Junjo Lawes and remixer Scientist. Backed by the Roots Radics, Eek cut "Virgin Girl" and "Noah's Ark," before having another go at "Wa-Do-Dem." The latter did the trick and Eek-A-Mouse had arrived with a sound so unlike any other, equal parts singing, DJing, and disconcerting Oriental-esque weirdness, that soon all of the island was raving about the rodent. He was the toast of Reggae Sunsplash in 1981, his bubbling lunacy providing a cathartic release to a festival otherwise in mourning for Bob Marley. "Biddy biddy beng" roiled out across the crowd, and the audience shouted it back as one, instantly cementing the syllables as the catchprase of the new decade. Eek saw out the year with the holiday hit, "Christmas A-Come."

1982 was the year of the Mouse, with a litter of smash singles including "Wild Like a Tiger," "For Hire and Removal," "Do You Remember," and "Ganja Smuggling," and the seminal album Wa Do Dem, rounding up most of the hits and more. With "Operation Eradication," Eek proved there was a thinking man inside the mouse costume on a single inspired by the tragic vigilante killing of close friend and fellow DJ Errol Scorcher. A rabid appearance at Reggae Sunsplash was also captured on tape and released in 1984. Skidit appeared before the year closed and although it was less hit-driven than its predecessor, was just as strong nonetheless. More smash singles followed in 1983, while Mouse and the Man proved to be another classic set. Again produced by Linval Thompson and backed by the Roots Radics, this remains one of the artist's masterpieces. The following year's Mouseketeer, produced by Junjo Lawes, included several hits, while also taking on contemporary issues and finally answering fans' number one question on "How I Got My Name."

In 1985, Eek began working with producers Anthony and Ronald Welch, for whom he recorded the Assassinator album, which was his U.S. debut. It was a rather depressing and violent affair thematically, although even the most serious subjects have a comic irony under the artist's oddball delivery. Surprisingly, or not, Eek's international audience was found amongst the rock crowd. Which explains why The King and I, also released that year, was recorded in the U.K. with producer Cliff Carnegie. But it was on 1988's wittily titled Eek-A-Nomics that the DJ began seriously courting this new audience. Bolstered by the hit single "Freak," a version of the Addams Family theme song, Eek signed to the Island label the following year and even grabbed a role in the film New Jack City. The U-Neek album was the pinnacle of cross-pollination between reggae and rock, highlighted by a cover of Led Zeppelin's own Hindenberg attempt at reggae, "D'Yer Maker." The album also spawned the hit single "You're the One I Need." Unfortunately, this was to be Eek's first and last album for Island. It wasn't until 1996 that a new full-length, Black Cowboy, appeared. ~ Jo-Ann Greene, All Music Guide

Ziggy Marley

2010-02-15T16:15:00.000-08:00

Active years: 80s, 90s, 00s
Genres: Electronic, Contemporary Reggae, Club/Dance, Pop/Rock, Reggae-Pop, Reggae
Top hits: Three Little Birds, Drive, Tomorrow People, Give A Little Love, Love Is My Religion

Ziggy Marley
The oldest son of reggae legend Bob Marley and his wife Rita, Ziggy Marley was the natural heir to the throne left vacant by his father's untimely 1981 death. Along with backing band the Melody Makers, a unit comprised of his brothers and sisters, he successfully carried on the tradition of communicating the music's message to a growing global audience, even scoring a U.S. Top 40 single in the process a claim neither of his parents could make. Born David Marley in Kingston, Jamaica on October 17, 1968, he received guitar and drum lessons from his father, and began sitting in on Wailers recording sessions at the age of ten. In 1979, Ziggy, his sister Cedelia, brother Stephen, and half-sister Sharon all joined Bob in the studio to record the single "Children Playing in the Streets." Christened the Melody Makers, the four siblings continued playing together at family events, and even performed at their father's state funeral.

Marley was not even 17 when he and the Melody Makers issued their EMI debut LP, Play the Game Right. The burdens of becoming a second-generation star weighed heavily on the youth -- who looked and sounded almost eerily like his father and he allowed the record and its 1986 follow-up, Hey World!, to veer closely towards pop music, resulting in derision from reggae purists. Poor sales, combined with EMI's public desire to market Marley as a solo act, prompted the band to jump to the Virgin label, where they entered the studio to record their masterpiece, 1988's Conscious Party. Produced by Talking Heads' Chris Frantz and Tina Weymouth, the album was both a critical and commercial smash, with the single "Tomorrow People" reaching number 39 on the pop charts. The follow-up, 1989's One Bright Day, continued the Melody Makers' artistic growth; it was also their best-selling effort to date, cracking the Top 20 and, like its predecessor, winning a Grammy.

Marley & the Melody Makers resurfaced in 1991 with Jahmekya, another assured and creative effort. It sold well, edging into the Top 20, but failed to generate much radio or video airplay. 1993's Joy and Blues barely charted, despite adding elements of contemporary dancehall (a showcase for Stephen's rapping skills). The latter record was the Melody Makers' last release for Virgin, and they moved to Elektra for 1995's Free Like We Want 2 B. Fallen Is Babylon followed in 1997, and scored a third Grammy. Like his father, Marley eventually emerged as a leading political voice, and was named a Goodwill Youth Ambassador for the United Nations; at home in Kingston, he also founded his own record label, Ghetto Youth United, created to spotlight the next generation of reggae talent. In addition to the four siblings in the Melody Makers, three other Marley children Damian, Julian, and Ky-Mani also pursued careers in music. The music continued well into the new millennium, as Marley released Ziggy Marley & the Melody Makers Live, Vol. 1 in fall 2000 and continued issuing albums during that decade.

- Jason Ankeny, All Music Guide

Peter Tosh

2010-02-15T16:12:00.000-08:00

Active years: 60s, 70s, 80s
Genres: Roots Reggae, Political Reggae, Reggae
Top hits: Legalize It, 400 Years, Johnny B Goode, Bush Doctor, Mama Africa

Peter Tosh
Singer, musician, composer, and rebel Peter Tosh cut a swathe through the Jamaican musical scene, both as a founding member of the Wailers and as a solo artist. He toured with the Rolling Stones and had an international hit with a duet with Mick Jagger, then toured again to equally rapturous world audiences as the headlining act. His words would cause an uproar at the One Peace concert, but then unlike fellow Wailer Bob Marley, Tosh always made his true feelings known. He was born Winston Hubert McIntosh on October 19, 1944, in the small rural village of Grange Hill, Jamaica. Like so many young island teens searching for a better life, he left home at 15 and headed for Kingston. Once there, he made his way to Joe Higgs' tenement yard, joining other aspiring youths eager for the vocal coaching lessons the singing star provided to local teens. Amongst these youthful wannabes were Bunny, Bob Marley, and the much younger Junior Braithwaite; the four, buttressed by backing vocalists Cherry Green and Beverley Kelso, joined forces initially as the Teenagers before eventually settling on the moniker the Wailers.

Success was immediate; the group's debut single, "Simmer Down," was an instant hit, and the band's career was off and running. Tosh's talent didn't end with his vocal skills as he was also an excellent guitarist; his playing was first showcased in 1963 on the Wailers' single "I'm Going Home." He was also a gifted songwriter, as was Bunny Livingston, which helped the band survive Marley's hiatus from the group while he went to work in the U.S. in 1966. The Wailers, by then reduced to a trio with the departure of Braithwaite, Green, and Kelso, continued on without him. During this time, the remaining duo, with Constance "Dream" Walker filling in, continued releasing singles now credited to either the Wailers, Tosh, or Livingston alone. Thus, over the next year, Tosh's dance-friendly "Hoot Nanny Hoot," "The Jerk," a cover of Sir Lancelot's calypso hit "Shame and Scandal in the Family," the R&B-fired "Making Love," and "It's Only Love," a duet with Rita Marley, all arrived from Studio One. "Rasta Shook Them Up" celebrated Haile Selassie's Jamaican visit, while Tosh also offered up the rudie-fueled "The Toughest."

With Marley's return, the Wailers departed Studio One and launched their own short-lived Wail'n'Soul'M label. With its demise, they returned to the studio circuit. Sessions with producer Bunny Lee went nowhere, but Lee and Tosh had a rapport, and between 1969 and 1970, the Wailers cut a string of instrumentals for the producer and released them under the alias Peter Touch. Tosh was now attempting to learn to play the melodica, and the singles chart his progress on the instrument. "Crimson Pirate," "Sun Valley," the almost psychedelic "Pepper Seed," "The Return of Al Capone," "Selassie Serenade" (actually a rather frenetic version of "Blue Moon") and more, were the end results.

However, in 1971, Tosh made the momentous decision to pursue a true solo career in conjunction with his work with the Wailers. His debut single, "Maga Dog," was cut with producer Joe Gibbs. The song had initially been recorded by the Wailers with Coxsone Dodd, and in its original rhythm arrangement was suspiciously similar to "Simmer Down."

Gibbs would totally re-create it, slowing the tempo down and creating a rhythm perfect for the latest dance rage, the John Crow skank. The single was a major hit and became a favorite of the DJs, with a flood of versions quickly following. The equally hard-hitting "Dem Ha Fe Get a Beating" arrived soon after. In the brief period Tosh spent with Gibbs, he recorded a clutch of seminal numbers, including "Arise Blackman," "Black Dignity," and "Here Comes the Judge." The latter track was built around the haunting rhythm from the Abyssinians' "Satta Massa Gana," but lyrically hearkened back to Prince Buster's "Judge Dread," as Tosh's magistrate tries and convicts Christopher Columbus, Sir Francis Drake, and Vasco da Gama for myriad of crimes against black people. Even on a cover of "Nobody's Business," Tosh's militancy shines through, with the line "Leave my business and mind your own," carrying a definite hint of menace in the delivery. Jumping on the current bandwagon for golden oldie medleys, the singer also delivered up a trio of rude boy hits, Desmond Dekker's "Rude Boy Train" and "007 Shanty Town," and his own, "I'm the Toughest." Tosh split with Gibbs before the end of the year, allegedly over the lack of money he'd received from "Maga Dog." The artist's retaliation was swift and the self-produced "Once Bitten" was allegedly aimed directly at the producer. That single utilized the "Maga Dog" rhythm, as did its follow-up, "Dog Teeth." Initially, Tosh was releasing his latest self-produced solo singles via the Wailers' own Tuff Gong label, but soon the artist set up his own label, Intel Diplo HIM (Intelligent Diplomat for His Imperial Majesty Haile Selassie). The label was inaugurated with "Dog Teeth," with "Ketchy Shrub" following before the end of 1971.

As the Wailers' international breakthrough began, Tosh had less and less time to devote to his solo career. However, a few singles did arrive during 1972, including "No Mercy" and "Can't Blame the Youth." More followed in 1973, among them "Mark of the Beast," "Foundation," "What You Gonna Do," and a re-recording of "Pound Get a Blow," originally a single released by the Wailers back in 1968. At the end of the Wailers' 1973 U.K. tour, Livingston announced he would no longer tour outside of Jamaica with the band. The group initially carried on without him, completing a tour of the States, then a second tour of Britain. Tensions were already high between Tosh and Marley, and the situation finally came to a head on November 30, in Northampton. It ended with a punch up and Tosh quitting the band. Although the Wailers reunited six months later for a benefit show, and again in late 1975 for another benefit concert, the group itself was now defunct, and the Wailers went their separate ways.

Tosh's first post-Wailers solo single, "Brand New Secondhand," was a new version of a song initially recorded by the Wailers for Lee Perry. However, it was Tosh's follow-up, "Legalize It," that packed the greatest punch and swiftly becoming a ganja anthem even though the single was slapped with a radio ban.

In 1975, Tosh signed to the Columbia label in the U.S., and began work on his first solo album. Sessions were held in Kingston at Treasure Isle studio, Miami, and even in Tulsa, OK. A number of the tracks were new versions of old songs, including "Burial" and "Ketchy Shuby." The resulting album, Legalize It, arrived in 1976 to acclaim both at home and abroad. With interest running high, Tosh set off on tour, accompanied by a band comprised of the Sly & Robbie rhythm section, keyboardists Earl "Wire" Lindo and Errol "Tarzan" Nelson, and guitarists Donald Kinsey and American Al Anderson. Sony/Legacy's Live & Dangerous album captured one of the band's steaming shows in Boston during this tour. Like Marley, Tosh was moving effortlessly into a hybrid style that paid homage to American rock, but was still shot through with strong Jamaican roots. However, Tosh's lyrical vision was much darker than his former bandmate's. Love always ended in tears, as on "Why Must I Cry" and the country & western-tinged "Til Your Well Runs Dry," both updated Wailers' numbers; while "Burial," ostensibly about a gangster but with pointed political overtones, was never going to endear him to the mass market. Tosh's follow-up album, Equal Rights, was even more uncompromising. Recording began just a few months after its predecessor was completed and again featured the deep dread rhythms of Sly & Robbie, Earl Lindo's atmospheric keyboards, and Anderson's funky rock guitar, amongst a host of other guest Jamaican session men. Bunny Livingston also joined his former bandmate on backing vocals; Tosh himself had guest starred on Livingston's own solo album, 1976's Black Man Heart. More focused than Legalize It, Equal Rights revolved around the themes of the plight of blacks around the world, and particularly in South Africa and Rhodesia. A new version of "Downpressor Man," the original cut coming with Lee Perry earlier in the decade, was turned into a dread classic. However, the most seminal tracks were the new songs -- the anthemic "Get Up, Stand Up," the menacing rocker "Stepping Razor," and the artist's personal manifesto, "Equal Rights." This was to be Tosh's final album for Columbia. In Jamaica, events were spinning out of control, politically inspired violence was rampant, and gang warfare had reached a level so extreme that a rogue army unit decided to put a permanent end to the combatants. In late 1977, they gunned down ten members of the Skull gang, whose members were mostly Rastafarians, killing five. This event, known as the Green Bay Massacre, so shocked the island that, for a brief moment, the gangs put aside their differences and called a truce. The One Love Peace Concert was organized to help cement this cessation of violence with a billing headed by Marley, who returned to the island for the show.

The concert was held on April 22, 1978, and Tosh was slated to appear right before his former bandmate. His performance was captured for posterity on the Live at the One Love Peace Concert released in 2001. Tosh's set comprised his most militant numbers -- "400 Years," "Stepping Razor," "Burial," "Equal Rights,""Legalize It," and "Get Up, Stand Up," and if that was not enough, between songs he spoke at length in a series of uncompromising speeches that scathingly attacked the government, the opposition, and the concept of peace itself. Although the audience appreciated his words, the government and the press did not, and the Jamaican papers the next day were filled with rabid condemnations. The singer, however, remained unrepentant. Tosh's performance had also impressed visiting British rock star Mick Jagger, who'd been backstage that night. The Jamaican now signed to the Rolling Stones' own label, and that summer toured the States opening for the band. The two singers joined forces on a cover of the Temptations "(You Gotta Walk And) Don't Look Back," a song Tosh had previously recorded with the Wailers. Tosh would also briefly unite with Marley during the latter's Burbank, CA, concert for a show-stopping "Get Up Stand Up."

Back in Jamaica that autumn, Tosh was arrested for drug possession, taken to jail, and beaten so badly he required 30 stitches to close the gaping wounds in his cracked skull. Even with these severe injuries, the artist began work on his next album, Bush Doctor, co-produced with Robbie Shakespeare. A much more "Jamaican" album than its predecessors, the record featured the exquisite Tamlins on backing vocals, and some of the island's top session men, led of course by Sly & Robbie, but boasting Keith Richards' seminal guitar on two tracks. Musically, the album may have sounded less dread, but new versions of "I'm the Toughest" and "Dem Ha Fe Get a Beaten" suggested that Tosh wasn't going soft. However, thematically Bush Doctor was less a cultural album than a religious one. Mystic Man arrived in 1979, and again featured a lighter touch, although songs like "Rumours of War" and "Jah Seh No" were as tough as anything Tosh had offered up in the past. The year also saw the release of the wittily titled "Buk-In-Hamm Palace" single and a re-recorded "Stepping Razor" for the soundtrack for the legendary film Rockers. The highlight of 1980 was a spectacular appearance at Reggae Sunsplash, and the year also brought the excellent "Bombo Klaat" single, a Jamaican-only single released on Tosh's revived Intel Diplo HIM label. A duet with Gwen Guthrie, "Nothing but Love," was offered up to the rest of the world. The slowing output was deliberate as Tosh needed the time off to continue his recovery from the beating he'd received at the hands of the police.

However, he returned with a vengeance in 1981, releasing the Wanted Dread & Alive album, which shot into the lower reaches of the U.S. chart, and toured both the U.S. and Europe. After all that activity, the artist took the next year off, returning in 1983, with a phenomenal cover of "Johnny B. Goode" which landed in the lower reaches of the U.S. Top 50. The single was a taster for his new album, Mama Africa, which also arrived that year. Another tour followed, including a concert in Swaziland and headlining appearances at the Reggae Superjam festival in Kingston. Captured Live, released the following year, was recorded during these tours. Tosh then disappeared off the musical map for the next three years, and it wasn't until 1987 that a new single, "In My Song," arrived. In September, it was joined by the album No Nuclear War.

Staying at Tosh's home during this time was an old friend of the Wailers, Dennis Lobban. However, he left in a fury after an argument with Tosh's girlfriend, Marlene Brown, returning a few days later on September 11, with a gang of friends. Lobban later claimed he had merely intended to threaten the artist, and perhaps rob him, but panicked. The end result was that Tosh and all six of his friends who were hanging out in the room were shot in the head. Tosh lay dead, as did the radio DJ Jeff "Free I" Dixon and a third friend. Marlene Brown, ex-Soul Syndicate drummer Carlton "Santa" Davis, and two other of Tosh's friends miraculously survived. Lobban was arrested and sentenced to death. Jamaica had forever lost one of its most talented artists and eloquent spokesmen. However, Tosh's legacy remains undiminished, and since his death a number of compilations have appeared to safeguard his memory. Heartbeat's The Toughest focuses exclusively on early recordings with Dodd and Lee Perry, while Trojan's Arise Black Man picks up the story with cuts for Bunny Lee, Perry, and Gibbs. Columbia remastered both Tosh's albums for release in 1999, and two years earlier compiled the Honorary Citizen three-CD box set. This boasts a disc devoted to singles released only in Jamaica, a second disc of songs recorded live, and a third of hits and favorites. Scrolls of the Prophets, released in 1999, is a compilation drawn from Tosh's major-label recordings of 1976-1987. Tosh's back catalog with the Wailers is equally well-served and his influence, even in death, remains strong.

- Jo-Ann Greene, All Music Guide

Steel Pulse

2010-02-15T15:58:00.000-08:00

Active years: 1975-
Genres: Contemporary Reggae, Roots Reggae, Reggae-Pop, Reggae
Top hits: Chant A Psalm, Your House, Handsworth Revolution, Bad Man, Ku Klux Klan

Steel Pulse
Steel Pulse were one of Britain's greatest reggae bands, rivaled only by Aswad in terms of creative and commercial success. Generally a protest-minded Rastafarian outfit, Steel Pulse started out playing authentic roots reggae with touches of jazz and Latin music, and earned a substantial audience among white U.K. punks as well. Their 1978 debut, Handsworth Revolution, is still regarded by many critics as a landmark and a high point of British reggae. As the '80s wore on, slick synthesizers and elements of dance and urban R&B gradually crept into their sound, even as their subject matter stayed on the militant side. By the late '80s, Steel Pulse had won a Grammy and were working full-fledged crossover territory, but never reached the same degree of commercial acceptance as Aswad or Inner Circle. They subsequently returned to a tough-minded, rootsy sound that nonetheless made concessions to contemporary trends with touches of dancehall and hip-hop.

Steel Pulse were formed in 1975 in Birmingham, England, specifically the ghetto area of Handsworth. The founding members were schoolmates David Hinds (the primary songwriter as well as the lead singer and guitarist), Basil Gabbidon (guitar), and Ronnie "Stepper" McQueen (bass). All of them came from poor West Indian immigrant families, and none had much musical experience. They took some time to improve their technical proficiency, often on Rasta-slanted material by Bob Marley and Burning Spear. McQueen suggested the group name, after a racehorse, and they soon fleshed out the lineup with drummer Steve "Grizzly" Nisbett, keyboardist/vocalist Selwyn "Bumbo" Brown, percussionist/vocalist Alphonso "Fonso" Martin, and vocalist Michael Riley.

Steel Pulse initially had difficulty finding live gigs, as club owners were reluctant to give them a platform for their "subversive" Rastafarian politics. Luckily, the punk movement was opening up new avenues for music all over Britain, and also finding a spiritual kinship with protest reggae. Thus, the group wound up as an opening act for punk and new wave bands like the Clash, the Stranglers, Generation X, the Police, and XTC, and built a broad-based audience in the process. In keeping with the spirit of the times, Steel Pulse developed a theatrical stage show that leavened their social commentary with satirical humor; many of the members dressed in costumes that mocked traditional British archetypes (Riley was a vicar, McQueen a bowler-wearing aristocrat, Martin a coach footman, etc.). The band issued two singles "Kibudu, Mansetta and Abuku" and "Nyah Love" on small independent labels, then came to the attention of Island Records after opening for Burning Spear.

Steel Pulse's first single for Island was the classic "Ku Klux Klan," which happened to lend itself well to the band's highly visual, costume-heavy concerts. It appeared on their 1978 debut album, Handsworth Revolution, which was soon hailed as a classic of British reggae by many fans and critics, thanks to songs like the title track, "Macka Splaff," "Prodigal Son," and "Soldiers." Riley departed before the follow-up, 1979's Tribute to the Martyrs, which featured other key early singles in "Sound System" and "Babylon Makes the Rules," and solidified the band's reputation for uncompromising political ferocity. That reputation went out the window on 1980's Caught You, a more pop-oriented set devoted to dance tracks and lovers rock. By that point, Steel Pulse were keen on trying to crack the American market, and went on tour over Island's objections. Caught You was issued in the States as Reggae Fever, but failed to break the group, and they soon parted ways with Island.

Steel Pulse moved on to Elektra/Asylum, which released an LP version of their headlining set at the 1981 Reggae Sunsplash Festival. Their studio debut was 1982's True Democracy, a generally acclaimed set that balanced bright, accessible production with a return to social consciousness. It became their first charting LP in America, making both the pop and R&B listings. The slicker follow-up, Earth Crisis, was released in 1984 and featured producer Jimmy "Senyah" Haynes subbing on guitar and bass for founding members Gabbidon and McQueen, both of whom were gone by the end of the recording sessions. They were replaced by guitarist Carlton Bryan and bassist Alvin Ewen for 1986's Babylon the Bandit, another Haynes-produced effort that ranked as the group's most polished, synth-centered record to date. Although it featured the powerful "Not King James Version" and won a Grammy for Best Reggae Album, it sold poorly and alienated some of the band's older fans; as a result, Elektra soon dropped them.

Steel Pulse resurfaced on MCA in 1988 with State of Emergency, their most explicitly crossover-oriented album yet. They also contributed the track "Can't Stand It" to the soundtrack of Spike Lee's classic Do the Right Thing. In 1991, they released another heavily commercial album, the Grammy-nominated Victims, which featured the single "Taxi Driver." Backing up the song's views, Steel Pulse filed a class-action lawsuit against the New York City Taxi and Limousine Commission, charging that drivers discriminated against blacks and particularly Rastafarians. Founding member Fonso Martin left that year, reducing Steel Pulse to a core trio of Hinds, Nisbett, and Brown. Their backing band still featured Ewen and was elsewhere anchored by guitarist Clifford "Moonie" Pusey, keyboardist Sidney Mills, and drummer/percussionist Conrad Kelly.

The 1992 live album Rastafari Centennial marked the beginning of a return to the group's musical roots, and earned another Grammy nomination. The following year, they performed at Bill Clinton's inaugural celebration, the first reggae band to appear at such an event. 1994's studio album Vex completed Steel Pulse's re-embrace of classic roots reggae, though it also nodded to contemporary dancehall with several guest toasters and a digital-flavored production. 1997's Rage and Fury continued in a similar vein, and was nominated for a Grammy. In 1999, the group released another collection of live performances, Living Legacy.

- Steve Huey, All Music Guide

Third World

2010-02-15T15:55:00.000-08:00

Active years: 1973-
Genres: Contemporary Reggae, Reggae-Pop, Reggae
Top hits: Reggae Ambassador, 1865 (96º In The Shade), Now That We've Found Love - Single Version, Jah Glory, Tribal War

Third World
Third World is one of the longest-lived reggae bands of all time, and one of Jamaica's most consistently popular crossover acts among international audiences. While the band was long capable of authentic roots reggae, they usually preferred to mix in elements of R&B, funk, pop, and rock (and, later on, dancehall and rap). Purists often criticized their music as tame and polished, overly beholden to commercial concerns. Indeed, they were regular visitors to the American and British charts during the '80s, but the best of their output was undeniably satisfying on a creative level as well.

Third World was originally formed in 1973 by keyboardist Michael "Ibo" Cooper and guitarist/cellist Steven "Cat" Coore. Both had received formal training at music schools in Jamaica, and both had played around the Kingston reggae scene before joining the original lineup of Inner Circle around 1968. When they left to form their own band in 1973, they took Inner Circle bassist Richard Daley with them, and also recruited drummer Carl Barovier, percussionist Irvin "Carrot" Jarrett, and lead singer Milton "Prilly" Hamilton. Barovier was quickly replaced by Cornell Marshall, and the group made its live debut that year at Jamaica's independence celebration. They played around the Kingston club scene and made a name for themselves as one of the few fully self-contained bands around. Having all their own musicians on hand, Third World didn't need to rely on sound systems to play records that weren't practical to duplicate live. As a result, they found it difficult to land a label deal, since most labels in Jamaica were operated by sound systems.

Third World solved the problem by traveling to England for a tour, and subsequently signing with the internationally minded Island label. Island issued their debut single, "Railroad Track," in 1974 and sent them out on a European tour as the opening act for Bob Marley & the Wailers. Their self-titled debut album was released in 1976 and featured a successful cover of the Abyssinians' roots classic "Satta Massagana." The follow-up, 1977's 96° in the Shade, introduced new drummer Willie "Roots" Stewart and new lead singer William Clarke, aka Bunny Rugs. It was an enormous critical success in the U.K. and Europe, and spawned an all-time classic single in the title track. That set the stage for the group's commercial breakthrough album, 1978's Journey to Addis, which featured a funky, disco-flavored reggae cover of the O'Jays' "Now That We Found Love." The song hit the Top Ten on the American R&B charts in 1979, as well as the British pop Top Ten, and the LP climbed into the R&B Top 20. The follow-up single, "Cool Meditation," made the British Top 20, and Third World found themselves international stars.

The group quickly followed its breakout hit with The Story's Been Told later in 1979, and it charted in the U.S., though not as high as its predecessor. In 1980, they issued two albums, Rise in Harmony and the film soundtrack Prisoner in the Street, which marked the end of their tenure with Island. Third World next signed with CBS and debuted with 1981's Rock the World, which gave them another significant crossover hit in "Dancing on the Floor (Hooked on Love)," a British Top Ten. At the 1981 Reggae Sunsplash Festival, Stevie Wonder joined Third World on-stage to perform his tribute to Bob Marley, "Master Blaster (Jammin')"; it went well enough that Wonder wrote and produced two singles on the group's next album, 1982's You've Got the Power. The first, "Try Jah Love," was a funky dance track that became another significant crossover hit in America, nearly reaching the R&B Top 20. The second, "You're Playing Us Too Close," wasn't as commercially successful, but Wonder's efforts were enough to make You've Got the Power Third World's second album to hit the R&B Top 20.

The band's success continued on through the '80s, as 1983's All the Way Strong and 1985's Sense of Purpose both made the R&B Top 50. The latter album produced several minor crossover hits in the title track, "One on One," and "One More Time," which sported state-of-the-art, club-friendly dance beats. However, 1987's Hold on to Love didn't fare so well, and the group wound up parting ways with CBS and moving over to Mercury. Their 1989 label debut, Serious Business, restored their commercial standing with American R&B audiences, climbing into the Top 30 on the strength of a third major crossover hit, "Forbidden Love." One of the first commercially successful fusions of reggae and rap, "Forbidden Love" featured a guest appearance by Stetsasonic lead rapper Daddy O, and charted in the R&B Top 20. Serious Business also marked the departure of Irvin "Carrot" Jarrett, who was briefly replaced by "Forbidden Love" co-writer Rupert "Gypsy" Bent III.

Third World's second Mercury album was 1992's dancehall-flavored Committed, which produced a Top 30 R&B hit in the title cut. However, it proved to be their last major-label outing. Their next release, 1994's concert set Live It Up, appeared on the band's own label and marked the return of Rupert Bent, who wound up joining the band as a guitarist, keyboardist, percussionist, and occasional vocalist. In 1997, founding member Michael "Ibo" Cooper and Willie Stewart both departed, and were replaced by keyboardist Leroy "Baarbe" Romans and drummer Tony "Ruption" Williams, respectively. This lineup released Generation Coming in 1999, landing guest spots from Shaggy and Bounty Killer. Afterwards, Romans was replaced by Herbie Harris, who made his studio debut on 2003's Ain't Givin' Up. The same year the band celebrated a quarter century of playing music by rerecording their classics for 25th Anniversary. Two years later they returned with Black Gold and Green which included guests Beres Hammond, Wayne Marshall, and Blu Fox.

- Steve Huey, All Music Guide

Morgan Heritage

2010-02-15T15:54:00.000-08:00

Active years: 1991-
Genres: Electronic, Roots Reggae, Contemporary Reggae, Political Reggae, Club/Dance, Pop/Rock, Reggae-Pop, Reggae, Dancehall
Top hits: Nothing To Smile About, Run Dem Whey, Don't Haffi Dread, Give We A License, Have No Fear

Morgan Heritage
The legacy of reggae vocalist Denroy Morgan has been passed on to his sons, who have performed as Morgan Heritage since 1991. While its mellow, R&B-influenced vocals and Rastafarian lyrics have been compared to Garnett Silk, the group has continued to pave its own musical path. The band's many hits include "Let's Make Up," "People Are Fighting," "Set Yourself Free," "Mama and Papa," and "Protect Us Jah." Initially an octet featuring eight of Morgan's 29 children, Morgan Heritage began recording with their father in the early '90s. Although they attended school in Springfield, MA, they spent their weekends in their father's recording studio in Brooklyn. Their debut single, "Wonderful World," was produced by their father and released in 1991. An album, Growing Up, followed shortly afterward. The first break for Morgan Heritage came the following year when they performed at Reggae Sunsplash. Their performance was so impressive that MCA offered a recording contract almost as quickly as they were off the stage. Their first album for MCA, Miracle, released in 1994, was a major disappointment as the album clung to mass market reggae formulas. Touring the Ivory Coast in 1995, Morgan Heritage rediscovered their musical roots. Toward the end of the year, the group traveled to Jamaica to record its next album. Recording during the day with Lloyd "King Jammy" James and at night with Bobby "Digital" Dixon, the group took a major leap forward. Shortly after releasing their second album, Protect Us Jah, in 1997, Morgan Heritage were reduced to a five-piece group. In addition to Una Morgan (born 1973), the group included keyboardist/vocalists Peter Morgan (born 1977) and Roy "Gramps" Morgan (born 1975), rhythm guitarist Nakhamyah "Lukes" Morgan (born 1977), and percussionist Memmalatel "Mr. Mojo" Morgan (born 1981). Don't Haffi Dread from 1999 and More Teachings from 2001 continued to carry the roots reggae torch while Three in One from 2003 broadened their sound a bit with a guest appearance from the alt-rock band Good Charlotte. Full Circle from 2005 featured the massive Jamaican hit "Tell Me How Come" and was followed a year later by the live album Live: Another Rockaz Moment. Mission in Progress arrived in 2008 with the singles "Raid Rootz Dance" and "Love You Right." ~ Craig Harris, All Music Guide

Capleton

2010-02-15T15:51:00.000-08:00

Active years: 90s, 00s
Genres: Roots Reggae, Contemporary Reggae, Club/Dance, Smooth Reggae, Ragga, Reggae, Dancehall
Top hits: That Day Will Come, Jah Jah City, Who Dem?, High Grade, Lock Up

Capleton
Along with Buju Banton and Sizzla, Capleton spearheaded dancehall's return to reggae tradition, tackling Rastafarian spiritual themes and using classic roots reggae as a musical foundation. Capleton was born Clifton George Bailey III on April 13, 1967, in the rural town of Islington, in Jamaica's St. Mary parish. Capleton's namesake was a prominent local lawyer, and young Clifton earned that nickname as a verbally gifted youth with a similar talent for logical argument. He also loved music, counting both Bob Marley & the Wailers and dancehall DJ Papa San as early favorites, and sneaking into sound system shows at age 12. At 18, he moved to Kingston in hopes of starting a music career, and performed with several small sound systems before catching on with Stewart Brown's African Star, a combination sound system and label with connections in both Jamaica and Toronto. Visiting the latter in 1989, Capleton shared a concert bill with the hugely popular Ninjaman, and impressed enough that he was offered the chance to record with major producer Philip "Fatis" Burrell upon his return to Jamaica.

Capleton's first single was the risqué "Bumbo Red," which was banned from Jamaican radio for its sexually explicit lyrics, but became a huge word-of-mouth hit. He made a well-received appearance at the 1990 Reggae Sunsplash Festival, and issued a series of popular -- and often slack -- singles for various producers, the biggest of which were "Number One Pon the Look Good Chart" and "Lotion Man." The 1991 LP Capleton Gold gathered some of these early recordings, and he also appeared on several split albums, the most notable of which was 1992's Double Trouble, shared with General Levy. By 1992, a distinct cultural consciousness was becoming apparent in Capleton's work, starting with the landmark hit single "Alms House." An album of the same name was issued in 1993, collecting further singles in the same vein like "Matie a Dead," "Unnu No Hear," and "Make Hay," among others.

During this era, Capleton was truly coming into his own; still recording prolifically in 1993, he scored several signature hits with "Everybody Needs Somebody," "Cold Blooded Murderer," and "Buggering." Those tracks all appeared on the 1994 album Good So. By that point, Capleton's conversion to Rastafarianism was complete and now dominated his music to a greater degree than ever before. His success also earned him a shot with an American major label, Def Jam, for which he debuted with the album Prophecy in 1995. Hip-hop remixes of "Tour" and "Wings in the Morning" (the latter of which featured a guest spot from Method Man) made Capleton a significant crossover success on the rap and dance singles charts, and Prophecy sold quite respectably in the U.S. Def Jam also issued the follow-up album, 1997's I Testament, which continued in a similar vein: R&B accessibility fused with Rastafarian militancy.

Capleton subsequently returned his focus to the Jamaican market, and although his music was now rootsier than ever, he began to temper his Rasta obsessions with more romantic lyrics. 1999's One Mission gathered some of his work, but a better chronicle of his highly consistent output over 1999-2000 was More Fire, which contained all of his biggest hits of the period: the rootsy-sounding "Who Dem?," the antiviolence anthem "Jah Jah City," the female-positive "Good in Her Clothes." 2002's Still Blazin' gathered much of his best work from the next two years.

- Steve Huey, All Music Guide

Bounty Killer

2010-02-15T15:49:00.000-08:00

Active years: 90s, 00s
Genres: Contemporary Reggae, Club/Dance, Ragga, Reggae, Dancehall
Top hits: Gangster Love, Smoke The Herb, You Don't Love Me (No No No) [Reel II Reel Junglist Mix], Corrupt, People Dead (Jungle Dub)

Bounty Killer
Bounty Killer was one of the most aggressive dancehall stars of the '90s, a street-tough rude boy with an unrepentant flair for gun talk. There were many other facets to his music -- condemnations of corrupt authority, collaborations with hardcore hip-hop artists, tributes to his mother, an ongoing DJ rivalry with Beenie Man -- but his main persona was so dominant that many fans instantly associated him with his more violent material. With such seeming contradictions in his personality, his image in Jamaica was not unlike that of 2Pac in America, though of course he was a far less tragic figure. Making his name in Jamaica during the early '90s, Bounty Killer was working extensively in hip-hop crossover territory by the end of the decade, but retained his hard edge no matter what the musical context.

Bounty Killer was born Rodney Price in the Kingston ghetto of Trenchtown on June 12, 1972. One of nine children, he spent much of his childhood in another ghetto, Riverton City, which was built on the former city dump; his family later moved to the rough Seaview Gardens area. His father owned a small sound system, and he first tried his hand at DJ chatting when he was only nine years old. At age 14, he nearly fell victim to the gun violence he would later document so thoroughly in his music; while walking home from school, he was hit by a stray bullet from a gun battle between rival political factions. Fortunately, he made a full recovery, and soon began performing under the name Bounty Hunter for area sound systems like Metromedia, Bodyguard, and Stereo Two. Meanwhile, he and his friends hung around King Jammy's recording studio, hoping to catch a break. Eventually, he met Jammy's brother Uncle T, who produced his first recordings in 1990.

Still working under the name Bounty Hunter, one of his early tunes, "Dub Fi Dub," became a huge dancehall hit as a sound system dubplate. He subsequently changed his name to the fiercer and less common Bounty Killer, and accordingly ratcheted up the confrontational tone of his lyrics. He had a breakout year in 1992 with several major hit singles, the biggest of which were "Copper Shot" (also an underground hit in New York) and the anti-informant "Spy Fi Die." Other songs from this era included "Guns Out," "New Gun," "Kill Fe Fun," "Gunshot Fi Informer," and "Lodge." Many of them appeared on Bounty Killer's debut album, Jamaica's Most Wanted, which was released in 1993 and later issued internationally under the somewhat deceptive title Roots, Reality and Culture (after a socially conscious hit from 1994). Also in 1993, Bounty Killer's lyrical feud with rival Beenie Man first flared up in an on-stage DJ clash; possessed of similar vocal deliveries, each claimed the other as an imitator, and they took their battle to record on the 1994 clash album Guns Out.

With the Jamaican government starting to crack down on violent lyrics in live performances, Bounty Killer began to broaden his subject matter into streetwise social commentary, most notably on the perceptive drug-trade chronicle "Down in the Ghetto." That became the title track of his next album, issued in early 1995. Over the next year, he enjoyed one of his hottest streaks as a hitmaker in Jamaica, as he released one popular song after another: a smash duet with Sanchez called "Searching," the hip-hop-flavored chart-topper "Cellular Phone," "Smoke the Herb," the anti-censorship "Not Another Word," the maternal tributes "Mama" and "Miss Ivy Last Son," "Action Speak Louder Than Words," "Book, Book, Book," and "No Argument," the last of which was the title track of another album. By the end of 1995, in order to set a positive example, a prominent radio DJ had effected a truce between Bounty Killer and Beenie Man, although it would continue to flare up periodically at concerts and on record over the next few years.

In 1996, Bounty Killer released his defining statement, the 20-track double album My Xperience. Featuring several past hits as well as a plethora of new material, My Xperience also boasted guest spots by American hip-hop stars like the Fugees, Raekwon, Busta Rhymes, and Jeru the Damaja, as well as veteran reggae stars like Barrington Levy and Dennis Brown. The single "Hip-Hopera" made the American charts, and the album sold well amid strong reviews, reaching the Top 30 of the R&B chart and ranking as one of the best-selling reggae albums of the year in the U.S. Bounty Killer followed it with the British release Ghetto Gramma' (as in "grammar") in 1997, and spent some time recording with producer Jazzwad.

In 1998, Bounty Killer returned with a high-profile, guest-laden follow-up to My Xperience, titled Next Millennium. This time around, it was issued in America by the generally non-reggae label TVT. Next Millennium heavily featured the new generation of hardcore New York hip-hoppers, including Noreaga, Mobb Deep, Killah Priest, and the Cocoa Brovaz. "Deadly Zone" was featured on the soundtrack of Blade and made the Top Ten on the rap singles chart in America, and the album again sold respectably well among R&B audiences. The follow-up, 1999's The 5th Element, marked a return to a purer dancehall style.

In late 2001, Bounty Killer made a prominent guest appearance on No Doubt's international smash "Hey Baby," appearing in the video and performing with the group during the 2002 Super Bowl pregame show. The video inadvertently caused some embarrassment for him back in Jamaica, however: the intensely homophobic dancehall community picked up on the fact that one of its nightclub scenes showed a nude man, and his rivals had a field day. The whole episode notwithstanding, Bounty Killer returned to the sprawling ambitions of My Xperience for his next project, the two-volume Ghetto Dictionary set. Issued separately and simultaneously in early 2002, Ghetto Dictionary: The Art of War and Ghetto Dictionary: The Mystery mixed mostly new material with a few past singles, and were firmly in the raw, hardcore dancehall style that had made his name. Both sold well among reggae audiences, and The Mystery was nominated for a Grammy for Best Reggae Album. Later in 2002, Bounty Killer guested on hip-hop producer Swizz Beatz' solo debut, G.H.E.T.T.O. Stories, specifically on the single "Guilty." ~ Steve Huey, All Music Guide

David James

2010-02-15T15:47:00.000-08:00

David James Described below.

This is the other David James.

Active years: 1974-
Style: Acoustic, Folk, Rock, Indie, Ska
Top hits: Stabat Mater (Arvo Pärt), Salvator mundi (Thomas Tallis), De lamentatione [The Lamentations of Jeremiah] (Thomas Tallis), O sacrum convivium (Thomas Tallis), Absterge Domine (Thomas Tallis)

David James
The Hilliard Ensemble is a highly accomplished male vocal quartet, specializing in Medieval, Renaissance, and 20th Century avant garde music.

The group was founded in 1974, primarily to explore pre-Baroque music. As the Early Music movement spread in England in the 1970s, they came to be in demand for the purity of their voices and blends and their close attention to authenticity in performing style.

While the core group has been four male voices, they have on occasion expanded through temporary additions of other singers, especially on recordings made in the 1980s.

The group was named in honor of English miniaturist Nicholas Hilliard (c. 1537-1619) and perhaps also in oblique reference to conductor Paul Hillier, who has worked frequently with them and did much of their early program planning. In 1990 the core personnel of the Ensemble were David James (countertenor), Rogers Covey-Crump and John Potter (tenors) and Gordon Jones (baritone), a line-up that remained consistent through the decade. They are a co-operative group, planning their programs and deciding on interpretations by consensus.

While the group¹s main repertory is pre-1600 music (which mostly appears on the Hyperion Records label) they also have an association with ECM New Series records, on which they have sung music of avant garde composers such as Arvo Part, Heinz Holliger, Edward Cowie, John Tavener, Gavin Bryars, and John Casken., and collaborated with Norwegian saxophonist Jan Garbarek on a Jazz oriented release called Officium. ~ Joseph Stevenson, All Music Guide

Chanticleer

2010-02-15T15:44:00.000-08:00

Active years: 1978-
Genres: Vocal, Traditional Pop, Gospel, Christmas, Holidays, Traditional Gospel, Jazz, Hymns, Spirituals, Contemporary Jazz, Holiday, Classical, Standards, Religious
Top hits: Purcell, "Hear My Prayer, O Lord" Z15, Palestrina, Motets, Book 5, Gaude gloriosa, Palestrina, Missa pro defunctis [Requiem], II Kyrie, Purcell, "I was glad" Z19, Purcell, "Remember not, Lord, our offences" Z50

Chanticleer
Chanticleer is the only independent full-time classical vocal ensemble in the United States. Since its inception in 1978, it has developed an excellent reputation for its interpretation of music from many genres, and its bell-like sound has set a new ensemble standard.

Originally founded to sing Renaissance vocal repertoire, Chanticleer has toured world-wide and released more than twenty recordings. While most of Chanticleer's work is done a cappella, the group has collaborated on a number of unusual projects, including a fully-staged opera, recordings of jazz standards with the Don Haas Trio, and performances with Japanese dancers Eiko and Koma. Its repertoire ranges from Gregorian chants to twentieth-century pop. In 1978, founder Louis Botto, a graduate student in musicology, was disturbed by the fact that sacred Renaissance vocal music was so rarely performed. So he formed a group to sing this neglected repertoire. Trying to hold to the male-only Renaissance tradition, Botto asked friends who sang with him in the San Francisco Symphony Chorus and Grace Cathedral's Choir of Men and Boys to join the group. Rehearsals began and the ensemble arranged a debut performance in San Francisco's historic Mission Dolores.

The works chosen for the debut included compositions by Renaissance composers whose music would become staples of the group's repertoire: Byrd, Ockeghem, Morley, Dufay, and Josquin. The members settled on the name Chanticleer in honor of the "clear singing" rooster in Geoffrey Chaucer's Canterbury Tales, which Charlie Erikson, one of the baritones, was reading at the time. From 1978 to 1990 While maintaining its basic repertoire of Renaissance music, Chanticleer also began experimenting with music of other genres. During those years, the number of singers varied and eventually settled at twelve.

In 1980, the ensemble participated in the Festival of Masses in San Francisco. Robert Shaw was the Festival conductor that year, and after hearing Chanticleer's solo concert, proclaimed it to be "one of the most beautiful musical experiences" of his life. A turning point in Chanticleer's history came when Joseph Jennings, a countertenor, joined the group in 1983. Other members soon recognized his exceptional vocal and interpretive abilities and asked him to become Chanticleer's first music director. Since accepting that position, Jennings ' bell-clear vocal style and innovative arrangements have become hallmarks of the ensemble.

International early-music audiences began to find out about Chanticleer after a 1984 performance at a large scholarly conference in Belgium, and Chanticleer created its own label, Chanticleer Records, releasing a tenth-anniversary CD in 1988. Over the next six years, the ensemble released ten recordings on its private label. These CDs sold well at Chanticleer's concerts, and in 1994 Teldec Classics International signed Chanticleer to an exclusive recording contract and the group's recordings suddenly became available across North America and abroad. By 1991, Chanticleer was financially able to make all twelve of its members full-time employees, allowing the group to tour more frequently and take on a wide variety of projects. Since then the ensemble has performed and recorded with the London Studio Orchestra, jazz legend George Shearing and the New York Philharmonic. In 1994, the group presented a critically acclaimed, fully-staged performance of Benjamin Britten's opera Curlew River. In 1997 Chanticleer recorded works by Mexican Baroque composers Manuel de Zumayaand Ignacio de Jerusalem, with an orchestra of period instruments. It has commissioned works by many of the late twentieth century's foremost composers, including David Conte, Morton Gould, Bernard Rands and Chen Yi (who served as Chanticleer's composer-in-residence from 1993 to 1996). In 1999, Chanticleer released a collection of these works on its CD Colors of Love. - Corie Stanton Root, All Music Guide

Mandy Moore

2010-02-08T03:18:00.000-08:00

Active years: 00s
Genres: Club/Dance, Alternative Pop/Rock, Alternative/Indie Rock, Pop/Rock, Soft Rock, Dance-Pop, Teen Pop, Contemporary Pop/Rock, Adult Alternative Pop/Rock, Adult Contemporary
Top hits: Stupid Cupid, One Way Or Another, I Wanna Be With You, Have A Little Faith In Me, Can We Still Be Friends

Mandy Moore

Although she never reached the commercial heights of Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera, Mandy Moore proved to be one of the more resilient members of the late-'90s teen pop explosion. Making her studio debut at the age of 15, Moore initially modeled her music after her teenaged contemporaries, a formula that yielded moderate chart success but little credibility. She widened her range at an early age, however, outshining her pop peers' acting ability with a confident performance in A Walk to Remember and, beginning with the 2003 album Coverage, prizing mature songcraft above commercial dance-pop. As the 2000s progressed and numerous teen idols struggled with the transition into adulthood, Moore smoothly evolved from adolescent starlet to mature songwriter, continuing to distance herself from the scene that had launched her career one decade prior.

Amanda Leigh Moore was born in Nashua, NH, on April 10, 1984. After her family moved to the suburbs of Orlando, FL, she took an interest in theater and starred in several local productions. Moore also began performing the National Anthem at Orlando-based sporting events, thus raising her profile in a town populated by music executives and producers. Epic Records took notice and brought her aboard their roster in 1999, hoping to penetrate the teen pop scene with a superstar of their own.

Moore's debut album, So Real, arrived in December 1999, just several months after the multi-platinum releases of Britney Spears' ...Baby One More Time and Christina Aguilera's self-titled debut. Although the album spawned a Top 40 hit with "Candy" and went platinum within three months, such success was trivial compared to the overwhelming popularity of teen pop's biggest stars. Epic responded in May 2000 by releasing I Wanna Be with You, a retooled version of Moore's debut with remixed tracks and scant new material. The title track peaked at number 24 on the singles charts, giving Moore another hit but failing to gain her admittance into pop's inner circle. A proper sophomore effort, 2001's self-titled Mandy Moore, suffered a similar fate, yet Moore bounced back the following year by landing a leading role in A Walk to Remember, a popular film adaptation of Nicholas Sparks' book.

Additional film roles followed in 2003, as did the release of Coverage. Featuring covers of songs by Carole King, Joe Jackson, Joni Mitchell, and Carly Simon, the album represented a leap forward for the maturing singer. Sales were low, however, prompting Epic to drop Moore from their roster. To fulfill her contract, the label released several compilations during the following years; meanwhile, Moore launched a clothing line and focused on her acting career, turning in humorous performances in American Dreamz and the indie film Saved! She also made forays into television with roles in Entourage, The Simpsons, and Scrubs.

Although Moore had originally signed with Sire Records after leaving Epic's roster, no albums appeared during her two-year stint with the label. She ultimately left Sire in May 2006 and partnered with EMI, who allowed her more artistic control. For the first time in her career, Moore began writing original material, collaborating with the likes of Lori McKenna, Rachael Yamagata, the Weepies, and Chantal Kreviazuk. She then decamped to upstate New York in late 2006 to record Wild Hope, which received a warm critical reception upon its release in 2007. Subsequent tours alongside the likes of Yamagata, Ben Lee, Paula Cole, and Vanessa Hudgens helped Moore reestablish herself as an adult artist, and she returned two years later with Amanda Leigh, a reflective album that took its title from Mandy's original name. Co-written and produced by power pop powerhouse Mike Viola, the album was also informed by Moore's fondness for Todd Rundgren, Joni Mitchell, and CSNY.

- Andrew Leahey, All Music Guide

Shayne Ward

2010-02-08T03:12:00.000-08:00

Active years: 00s
Genres: Pop/Rock, Soft Rock, Contemporary Pop/Rock, Pop Idol, Adult Contemporary
Top hits: No U Hang Up, Breathless, If That's OK With You - Single Mix, No Promises, All My Life

Shayne Ward

Pop singer Shayne Ward rocketed to fame via the U.K. talent showcase The X Factor. Born October 15, 1984, in Manchester, England, Ward first surfaced in the little-known group Destiny before earning attention in another television amateur contest, Popstars: The Rivals. Eliminated from the final 30 contestants, he signed with manager Louis Walsh prior to entering competition on The X Factor in 2005. Tabbed by bookies as the favorite to win the program, Ward eked out victory over rivals Journey South and Andy Abraham by a margin of 1.2 percent of the overall viewer vote. His debut single, "That's My Goal," followed in December 2005, selling 313,000 copies in its first day of sales and topping the U.K. pop charts over the Christmas holiday. "No Promises" followed in the spring of 2006, reaching the number two spot and setting the stage for Ward's self-titled debut LP.

- Jason Ankeny, All Music Guide

Eamon

2010-02-08T03:09:00.000-08:00

Active years: 00s
Genres: Soul, Rap, R&B, East Coast Rap, Contemporary R&B, Urban
Top hits: Fuck It (I Don't Want You Back) - Dirty, I Don't Want You Back - Clean, On & On, I Want You So Bad, All Over Love

Eamon

Staten Island vocalist Eamon appeared in late 2003, when his bold single "F**k It (I Don't Want You Back)" took urban radio by storm. With its spare melody and stripped-down production not to mention its profanity-laced dismissal of a two-timing lover the song stood out immediately and blew up request lines nationwide. Jive jumped on the fervor, fast-tracking a video for "F**k It" and slating a full-length LP for January 2004. When the debut dropped, it further showcased Eamon's strident lyricism and streetwise, doo wop-inspired vocals. Vintage rapper Milk Dee guested on two tracks. The follow-up, Love & Pain, was released near the end of 2006 and favored well abroad despite failing to make an impact in the U.S.

- Johnny Loftus, All Music Guide

Phantom Planet

2010-02-08T03:05:00.000-08:00

Active years: 1994-
Genres: Indie Rock, Alternative Pop/Rock, Alternative/Indie Rock, Pop/Rock
Top hits: California - Tchad Blake Remix, Lonely Day, Do The Panic, California - Tchad Blake Mix, Just

Phantom Planet
L.A.'s Phantom Planet formed at a local Pizza Hut in 1994, years before the bandmates' association with The O.C. helped catapult their mix of power pop songcraft and indie rock guitars into the mainstream. During the band's early stages, members Jacques Brautbar (guitar), Sam Farrar (bass), Alex Greenwald (vocals/guitar), Darren Robinson (guitar), and Jason Schwartzman (drums) played around with post-grunge stylings while taking their name from a 1960s sci-fi film. The band's moniker wasn't the only thing linking them to the movies, however. Schwartzman is the nephew of Francis Ford Coppola and the son of Talia Shire, and he later made a name for himself by starring in such films as Rushmore (1998) and Slackers (2002). Greenwald spent time modeling and became a familiar face in the chic Gap commercials during the new millennium; he also played a sociopath in the black comedy flick Donnie Darko (2001). Finally, Farrar is the son of renowned singer/songwriter John Farrar, who penned "You're the One That I Want" and "Hopelessly Devoted to You" for the 1978 smash musical Grease, as well as other chart-toppers for Olivia Newton-John.
Phantom Planet began playing shows throughout the L.A. area during the mid-'90s, which helped them ink a deal with Geffen Records in 1997. The group's debut album, Phantom Planet Is Missing, arrived the following year. Critics weren't quick to champion the band's sound, but Phantom Planet still enjoyed a heightened profile, with several members landing guest spots on Sabrina, the Teenage Witch and Get Real.
In early 2001, Phantom Planet returned to the studio to work on a follow-up effort with Tchad Blake (Pearl Jam, Sheryl Crow) and Mitchell Froom (Elvis Costello, Paul McCartney). A year later, The Guest appeared on the Dreamworks label, and "California" was picked as the opening theme to the wildly popular television series The O.C. Nevertheless, Jason Schwartzman announced his departure from the band in August 2003, although he continued to release music with his own Coconut Records project. Phantom Planet's 2004 self-titled third album introduced their new drummer, Jeff Conrad, while the band moved to Fueled by Ramen for the release of 2008's Raise the Dead.

- Andrew Leahey & MacKenzie Wilson, All Music Guide

Howie Day

2010-02-08T03:01:00.000-08:00

Active years: 00s
Genres: Alternative Pop/Rock, Alternative/Indie Rock, Pop/Rock, Adult Alternative Pop/Rock
Top hits: Collide - Acoustic Version, Collide - Chris Lord-Alge Mix aka Radio Edit, Collide - Live in Las Vegas, She Says - Original Album Version, Perfect Time of Day

Howie Day

Like Patty Griffin before him, singer/songwriter Howie Day emerged from the country quietude of Bangor, Maine, and entered both Boston's coffeehouse scene and the world of folk music. Unlike Griffin, however, Day stretched the boundaries of acoustic music from the very start, often using loop pedals in concert to create lush, layered sounds with a single guitar. He later expanded that sound to include electric instruments, strings, and a full backing band, a move that resulted in such pop/rock hits as "Collide" and "She Says."
Born in 1981, Day started playing piano as a youngster and took hold of a guitar at age 14. By the next year, he had secured his first live appearance at Captain Nick's; two years later, he was touring full-time. Citing Jeff Buckley, Radiohead, and Dave Matthews among his main influences, Day focused heavily on pop-minded acoustic music, and his recognition grew as he opened for the likes of the Wallflowers, Shawn Mullins, Remy Zero, and David Gray. By 2000, Day had amassed enough original material to release an LP, Australia, which he financed himself.

The album eventually found its way into the hands of Sony Music, who put Day on the label's payroll and re-released a slightly cleaned-up Australia in June 2002. "Ghost" became a minor hit at modern rock radio, and the exposure only strengthened Day's college-age constituency. The Madrigals EP appeared in April 2003, featuring demos and live material while serving as an appetizer for Day's official Sony debut.

When Stop All the World Now appeared that October, it was a polished, richly produced record that revealed a newfound emphasis on pop/rock music. "Collide" became a Top 40 single, and Day continued to tour in support of the album through 2005. Although a handful of legal battles forced him to take some time off of the road, he still celebrated his live act by issuing the Live From... EP before the year's end.
Howie Day took a long hiatus during the decade's latter half, having essentially toured for eight consecutive years. He did continue to travel, however, hopping between cities such as New York, Bloomington, L.A., London, and Minneapolis while gathering ideas for his next record. Sound the Alarm marked his return in 2009, prefaced by the release of leadoff single "Be There."

- Andrew Leahey & Kelly McCartney, All Music Guide

A Fine Frenzy

2010-02-08T02:58:00.000-08:00

Active years: 00s
Genres: Alternative Pop/Rock, Contemporary Singer/Songwriter, Alternative/Indie Rock, Pop/Rock, Folk, Singer/Songwriter, Contemporary Folk, Adult Alternative Pop/Rock
Top hits: Almost Lover, Near To You, Blow Away (Radio Edit), Come On, Come Out, You Picked Me

A Fine Frenzy

Though she was born in Seattle, songwriter Alison Sudol spent most of her life in Los Angeles, having moved there with her mother when she was five years old. She began playing piano as a teenager, with bands like Coldplay and Keane inspiring her whimsical, pop-minded music. After recording several compositions and sending out the resulting demo, the singer received an immediate response from Capitol Record's Jason Flom, who came to Sudol's house to hear her play and soon signed her to a record contract. Following a South by Southwest appearance in March 2007 (opening for the Stooges, strangely enough), Sudol who chose the name A Fine Frenzy (taken from a line in Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream) as the moniker for her musical efforts released the full-length debut album One Cell in the Sea.

With the album hitting stores in July, Sudol widened her audience by opening shows for Rufus Wainwright that summer. Her tastes expanded while on the road, and by the time A Fine Frenzy returned home, Sudol had become intrigued by the songbooks of Johnny Cash, Bob Dylan, and the Talking Heads. Such varied influences convinced her to take more risks with her songwriting, and Sudol issued her sophomore effort, Bomb in the Birdcage, in mid-2009, embracing a wider palette of sounds in the process. A holiday-themed EP, Oh Blue Christmas, followed before the year was up.

- Marisa Brown, All Music Guide

Solange

2010-02-08T02:56:00.000-08:00

Solange Active years: 00s
Solange Genres: R&B, Contemporary R&B
Solange Top hits: I Decided - Radio Mix, Sandcastle Disco - Freemasons Club Mix, 6 O'Clock Blues, Sandcastle Disco - UK Radio Edit, Set Me Free

Solange

Solange Knowles, the younger sister of Beyoncé, studied dance and theater as a child and made her singing debut at age five at an amusement park. As her father managed her sister's emerging R&B group, Destiny's Child, she often opened for the group, and she soon began writing songs. At 13, she decided to pursue a professional singing career, but her parents at first advised her to wait. Shortly afterward, however, she was called upon to replace one of the dancers in Destiny's Child's stage act on short notice. She spent the next two years dancing in the group's performances. When she was 16, her father signed her to his company and began grooming her for a solo recording career. Her debut single, "Feelin' You, Pt. 2," was released in late 2002 and reached Billboard's R&B/hip-hop chart. Her first album, Solo Star, followed in January 2003 and debuted in the Top 50 of the Billboard 200. A second album, Sol-Angel and the Hadley St. Dreams, did not materialize until late August 2008, but it was much more unique than its predecessor, steeped in mid- to late-'60s soul (while one track made liberal use of a Boards of Canada track) with no guest rappers.

- William Ruhlmann, All Music Guide

Rooney

2010-02-08T02:54:00.000-08:00

Active years: 2000-
Genres: Alternative Pop/Rock, Alternative/Indie Rock, Pop/Rock
Top hits: When Did Your Heart Go Missing?, I'm Shakin', I Should've Been After You, Calling The World, Love Me Or Leave Me

Rooney

The retro-leaning pop/rock band Rooney are comprised of Robert Schwartzman (vocals/guitar), Taylor Locke (guitar), Matt Winter (bass), Louie Stephens (keyboards), and Ned Brower (drums). Inspired by the Beach Boys, ELO, Superdrag, and the quintet's hometown of Los Angeles, Rooney held their earliest practices in Locke's garage in 2000. From the start, however, the group enjoyed connections that most garage bands lack: Carmine was the younger brother of actor/ex-Phantom Planet drummer Jason Schwartzman (not to mention the son of actress Talia Shire, cousin of Nicolas Cage, and nephew of Francis Ford Coppola), and both he and Brower had previously enjoyed acting careers (Brower briefly starred opposite Katie Holmes in Dawson's Creek, while Schwartzman enjoyed moderate-sized roles in The Princess Diaries and The Virgin Suicides). The connections paid off, and Rooney made their live debut opening for Phantom Planet in 2002.

More live dates followed, including tours with Weezer and the Vines, and it wasn't long before Rooney enlisted the help of Keith Forsey (Billy Idol, the Psychedelic Furs, Simple Minds) to record material for their first full-length album. Spring 2003 saw the release of Rooney's sunny self-titled debut, whose sales spiked considerably when the band appeared on The O.C. (the first in a long line of indie acts to do so) in 2004. Later that year, the DVD Spit and Sweat arrived, collecting live performances, music videos, and interviews. Rooney began recording their second album late in 2004 with producer Tony Hoffer, but the album tentatively titled The Kids After Sunset was scrapped, despite several songs being posted on the band's MySpace page in 2005. More tracks from the sessions leaked onto the Internet and were dubbed The Lost Album. The band attempted to record its second album again in fall 2005 with Howard Benson in the producer's seat. The album was slated for a 2006 release but was also scrapped due to the band and label's inability to agree which songs should appear on it. In 2006, Rooney toured with Kelly Clarkson and returned to the studio with producer John Fields for a third and successful attempt at their second album. Calling the World was released by Cherrytree Records in summer 2007.

- Andrew Leahey & Heather Phares, All Music Guide

Butch Walker

2010-02-08T02:51:00.000-08:00

Active years: 90s, 00s
Genres: Alternative Pop/Rock, Alternative/Indie Rock, Pop/Rock, Contemporary Pop/Rock, Adult Alternative Pop/Rock, Alternative Singer/Songwriter, Hard Rock
Top hits: Mixtape, Here Comes The…, The Weight Of Her, Going Back/Going Home, Atl

Butch Walker

After gaining a brief taste of major-label success during the '80s and '90s particularly with Marvelous 3, whose single "Freak of the Weak" became a modern rock hit in 1999 singer/guitarist Butch Walker traded his bandmates for a solo career. Meanwhile, he also established himself as an in-demand producer by working with such marketable artists as Avril Lavigne, Katy Perry, and P!nk.

Raised in Cartersville, GA, Bradley Glenn Walker III launched his public career with the band SouthGang, who traveled to Los Angeles in 1988 and inked a contract with Virgin Records. The pop-metal group released two albums before splitting up, and Walker eventually resurfaced with Marvelous 3. The band enjoyed moderate popularity as the '90s wound to a close, but Walker grew frustrated with the band's label, Elektra Records, and Marvelous 3 splintered soon after. He then spent a year producing albums for such groups as Injected and SR-71 (whose most popular single, "Right Now," was co-written by Walker). This production work increased his reputation within the industry, and he quickly signed a solo contract with Arista. Left of Self Centered marked his solo debut in 2002; it also took a page from Marvelous 3's book by embodying the singer's nonconformist attitude and playful rock & roll swagger. Unfortunately, neither that album nor its excellent follow-up, 2004's Letters, caught on with the public.

Walker increasingly turned to production work, and he spent the following two years helming records for such big-name artists as Avril Lavigne (Under My Skin), P!nk (I'm Not Dead), and Tommy Lee (Tommyland: The Ride), as well as emerging pop stars like Lindsay Lohan (A Little More Personal [Raw]). The experience further boosted his industry profile and helped shape the sound of his next solo album, 2006's The Rise and Fall of Butch Walker and the Let's-Go-Out-Tonites. The album spun stories of drugged-out starlets, struggling wannabes, late-night adventures, and wild parties in L.A.; it was also Walker's most fully realized album to date. Ever the multi-tasker, he returned to the production booth for several additional projects most notably Katy Perry's One of the Boys, which became a smash success during the summer of 2008 before returning to his solo career that fall with Sycamore Meadows. I Liked It Better When You Had No Heart followed in 2010.

- Tim Sendra & Andrew Leahey, All Music Guide

Trespassers William

2010-02-08T02:49:00.000-08:00

Active years: 1997-
Genres: Indie Pop, Alternative Pop/Rock, Dream Pop, Alternative/Indie Rock, Pop/Rock
Top hits: Lie In The Sound, Different Stars, Vapour Trail, Alone, Anchor
Trespassers William

The dreamy indie rock sounds of Trespassers William is composed by Ross Simonini (bass/keyboards), Anna-Lynne Williams (vocals/guitar), Matt Brown (guitar/keyboards), and Jamie Williams (drums). Matt and Anna-Lynne started the band as a twosome in 1997 during the SoCal punk revival heyday. Two years later, Ross was added to the group, and the band self-released its debut album, Anchor. Shows in and around the West Coast followed, as did exposure on college radio. By 2002, Trespassers William was a full-fledged group with Jamie stepping to play drums.

Bella Union's Simon Raymonde caught wind of the band's lush soundscape. His label issued Trespassers William's second album, Different Stars, in the U.K. that same year. Shows with the Chameleons UK's Mark Burgess, Morrissey, Tim Booth, Damien Rice, and Lisa Germano followed. Spots on KCRW, KEXP, and XFM added to Trespassers William's growing popularity. Nettwerk took notice and signed the band to a proper record deal in 2003. Their music had already appeared in episodes of The O.C., Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and MTV's The Real World and Road Rules by this time. Different Stars was reissued via Nettwerk in fall 2004. Having followed two years later.

- MacKenzie Wilson, All Music Guide

The Wreckers

2010-02-08T02:46:00.000-08:00

Active years: 2004-
Genres: Alternative Pop/Rock, Traditional Country, Country-Rock, Alternative/Indie Rock, Alternative Country-Rock, Pop/Rock, Alt-Country, Country-Pop, Adult Alternative Pop/Rock, Country, Contemporary Country
Top hits: The Good Kind - Album Version One Tree Hill, Lay Me Down, Leave The Pieces, The Good Kind, Stand Still, Look Pretty

The Wreckers

In 2004, Michelle Branch took a break from her successful solo career to team with friend and touring backup singer Jessica Harp in a new project called the Wreckers. Previous to the Branch collaboration, Harp had been working as a singer/songwriter in Nashville, and those country music elements mixed with Branch's pop sensibilities to inform the Wreckers' rootsy, harmony-rich sound. The duo debuted in autumn 2004, performing "Good Kind" on the WB teen drama One Tree Hill. "Good Kind" then appeared on the show's official soundtrack issued in January 2005 as the Wreckers prepared to release their full-length debut. Its first single, "Leave the Pieces," hit country radio before the album, Stand Still, Look Pretty, appeared in March 2006 on Maverick and reached number 14 on the album charts. The concert album Way Back Home: Live from New York City followed in 2007.

- Johnny Loftus, All Music Guide

Nick Lachey

2010-02-08T02:43:00.000-08:00

Active years: 90s, 00s
Genres: Club/Dance, Pop/Rock, Soft Rock, Teen Pop, Dance-Pop, Adult Contemporary
Top hits: All In My Head - Main Version, All In My Head - Radio Mix, What's Left Of Me - Main Version, Ordinary Day, This I Swear

Nick Lachey

As the Backstreet Boys and *NSYNC redefined pop music for the masses upon the closing of the 1990s, 98° were also making girls scream and swoon with their darling good looks and delightsome harmonies. Fronting the vocal group was the svelte charmer Nick Lachey. This onetime sports medicine major was a bona fide star thanks to his sensitive performance style, thus a career in Hollywood seemed destined for Lachey.

Born Nicholas Scott Lachey on the border of Kentucky and Tennessee in fall 1973, he and his younger brother Drew excelled in sports and academics while attending Cincinnati's School for the Creative and Performing Arts. There, the Lachey brothers honed their vocal abilities, but it wasn't until Nick was a student at Miami University in Ohio that he found himself seriously considering a career in music. He and soon-to-be bandmate Jeff Timmons were invited to attend auditions for an up-and-coming vocal group in Los Angeles. Drew and pal Justin Jeffre jumped aboard shortly thereafter, and 98° was sired. The band went on to release four albums (all of which went platinum), and singles such as "My Everything," "Way You Want Me To," and "Give Me Just One Night (Una Noche)" became chart and radio favorites across North America.

Just as the boy band phenomenon began winding down somewhat, Lachey felt it was time to focus on other artistic ventures. The second tenor married his longtime girlfriend, singer Jessica Simpson, in fall 2002 and launched a solo career. He and Simpson instantly became A-list celebrities when their MTV-based reality show, Newlyweds, captured American audiences in 2003. While their show was still going strong, Lachey issued his first album for Universal, the R&B/pop-flavored album SoulO, before the year's end. In between albums, Lachey tried his hand at acting. He appeared in several episodes of the WB's Charmed in 2004 and 2005, and a small part in the Nora Ephron comedy, Bewitched. Before the year's end, Lachey and Simpson announced their separation. In the midst of a tabloid field day, Lachey resumed his music career in spring 2006 with the release of his second album, a number two hit titled What's Left of Me.

- MacKenzie Wilson, All Music Guide

Tyler Hilton

2010-02-08T02:41:00.000-08:00

Active years: 90s, 00s

Genres: Alternative Pop/Rock, Alternative/Indie Rock, Pop/Rock, Holiday, Holidays, Christmas, Adult Alternative Pop/Rock
Top hits: Missing You, Glad - Acoustic Version, You'll Ask For Me, Missing You - Acoustic Version, I Believe In You - Acoustic Version

Tyler Hilton

Singer and songwriter Tyler Hilton started in music early, the product of a musical family that kept him curious about playing guitar, singing, and performing. By seventeen he was writing his own songs, and had become an open mic fixture in his hometown of Palm Springs, California. In 2000 Hilton wrote, recorded and released an eponymous debut and began to shop it, but it was a chance opportunity that brought his talent to the record execs' attention. That same year an impromptu performance over the phone for KLOS Los Angeles morning personalities Mark and Brian landed Hilton a spot at the station's Christmas concert. The exposure helped catch Maverick Records' ear, and the label signed him soon after. As his music career was progressing, Hilton also looked into acting. He joined the cast of the WB teen drama One Tree Hill in 2004, playing a troubled singer named Chris Keller. Hilton also landed the role of Elvis Presley alongside Joaquin Phoenix' Johnny Cash in the 2005 biopic Walk the Line. One Tree Hill was a great promotional platform for Hilton's Maverick debut, which hit shelves in September 2004. Tracks of Tyler Hilton was an engaging blend of pop and mild Americana influences, led by Hilton's husky, likeable vocals. (It included the song "Glad", which he had performed as Keller on the series.) In early 2005 Hilton embarked on his first tour in support both of Tracks of and the freshly-released One Tree Hill soundtrack.

- Larry Belanger, All Music Guide

The Get Up Kids

2010-02-08T02:38:00.000-08:00

Active years: 1994-2005
Genres: Punk Revival, Indie Rock, Alternative Pop/Rock, Punk-Pop, Alternative/Indie Rock, Pop/Rock, Adult Alternative Pop/Rock, Emo
Top hits: Overdue, Campfire Kansas, Let The Reigns Go Loose, Holiday, Action & Action

The Get Up Kids

Kansas City's Get Up Kids play melodic, pop-inflected emo similar to the Promise Ring and Braid, with whom the band released a split single in 1998. The influential group vocalist/guitarist Matthew Pryor, guitarist/vocalist Jim Suptic, bassist Robert Pope, and drummer Ryan Pope (Robert's younger brother, who replaced Nathan Shay early on) debuted in 1996 with a slew of 7"s, including Shorty on the Huey Proudhon label and All Stars on Doghouse Records. Both the Woodson EP and their debut full-length, Four Minute Mile, the latter which they recorded with Shellac's Bob Weston, were released in 1997. The well-received albums started a growing buzz around the indie rock scene, even causing the band to field offers from major labels, which they ultimately turned down. In 1998, the Get Up Kids toured extensively with bands like the Promise Ring and Jimmy Eat World and released more singles, including "I'm a Loner, Dottie, a Rebel," which also appeared on their classic 1999 album, Something to Write Home About. Released through Heroes & Villains/Vagrant, Something to Write Home About featured newly added keyboardist James Dewees and focused the scrappy energy of their promising debut into a visceral and intelligent collection of highly introspective and melodic songs that would go on to influence countless bands; the album garnered high critical and fan praise and made the Get Up Kids heroes of the emocore scene.

The band resurfaced two years later, re-releasing some of its early works as the album Eudora and hitting the road with Green Day, Hot Rod Circuit, and Weezer along the way. It wasn't until 2002 that a new album, On a Wire, surfaced, featuring more sparsely arranged and somber songs different than the stirring emo-pop of before. The relatively more upbeat Guilt Show, the band's fifth album and third effort with producer Ed Rose, appeared in spring 2004. The concert album Live @ the Granada Theater surfaced a year later, marking the band's tenth anniversary together. But 2005 also marked their final set of tour dates, as the guys announced around the same time that they would be calling it quits the last Get Up Kids date was held at their hometown's Uptown Theater on July 2, 2005. The bandmembers continued on with various individual projects, including Pryor with the New Amsterdams and his kids' music project, the Terrible Twos; Dewees with Reggie and the Full Effect; Suptic with his own Blackpool Lights; and the Pope brothers with Koufax.

- Heather Phares, All Music Guide

Our Lady Peace

2010-02-08T02:37:00.000-08:00

Active years: 1992-
Genres: Alternative Pop/Rock, Alternative/Indie Rock, Post-Grunge, Pop/Rock, Adult Alternative Pop/Rock
Top hits: Somewhere Out There, Superman's Dead, Clumsy, Whatever, Starseed

Our Lady Peace

Our Lady Peace was one of the most successful Canadian bands of the post-grunge era, issuing platinum-selling album after platinum-selling album while also enjoying modest acclaim in America. The group formed at the University of Toronto in 1992, where vocalist Raine Maida and guitarist Mike Turner (a British expatriate) first banded together under the name "As If". They later recruited bassist Chris Eacrett and jazz drummer Jeremy Taggart, and the quartet changed its name to Our Lady Peace in tribute to a Mark Van Doren poem. After partnering with the Canadian branch of Sony Records, Our Lady Peace released 1995's Naveed, a strong debut album that sparked the modern rock hit "Starseed." A smaller label, Relativity, released the album in America, and Our Lady Peace built their North American audience by touring with fellow Canadian Alanis Morissette that summer.

After the band replaced Eacrett with bassist Duncan Coutts, the sophomore effort Clumsy arrived in 1997. Fueled by Raine Maida's unique vocals, which relied heavily on the singer's falsetto range, Clumsy proved to be enormously successful, going platinum in the U.S. and earning a rare diamond certification in Canada. Our Lady Peace returned two years later with Happiness Is Not a Fish That You Can Catch, a lighter album that featured the new addition of synthesizers, and Spiritual Machines followed in 2001. Shortly thereafter, founding guitarist Mike Turner left the band due to creative differences, and Michigan native Steve Mazur stepped in to replace him.

With Mazur onboard, Our Lady Peace worked alongside producer Bob Rock to carve out a commercial, mainstream-minded sound for 2002's Gravity. Maida's falsetto range was absent from the album, a change that shocked some longtime fans of the band. Nevertheless, Gravity's polished track list spawned several international singles, most notably "Somewhere Out There" and "Innocent." The band toured throughout Canada and the U.S. in support of such hits, and the jaunt was documented by a concert album (Live from Calgary and Edmonton) and a live DVD. Our Lady Peace then returned to the studio with Bob Rock, intending to reprise their fruitful partnership with another album. Recording sessions proved to be difficult this time around, however, and the group nearly disbanded in the process. Healthy in Paranoid Times was eventually released in late August 2005 and climbed to platinum status, although it failed to match the success of any previous OLP album. Raine Maida would later distance himself from the record, claiming that the band spent too much time filling the album with potential singles for American radio.

A Decade, a greatest-hits album celebrating the first ten years of Our Lady Peace's career, returned the band to the upper reaches of the charts in 2006. The compilation went platinum in America and, like 1997's Clumsy, earned a diamond certification in Canada. Two years later, Our Lady Peace received another surge in popularity, this one coming from an unlikely source: the American television show American Idol. Contestant David Cook was evidently a loyal fan of the band, and he enthusiastically promoted OLP's music during the competition. Cook eventually won the show, and Maida briefly decamped to America to collaborate with the burgeoning musician on his platinum-selling debut. Maida returned his focus to Our Lady Peace shortly thereafter, however, and the band issued its seventh studio album, Burn Burn, in 2009. ~ John Bush & Andrew Leahey, All Music Guide

Feeder

2010-02-08T02:34:00.000-08:00

Active years: 1995-
Genres: Indie Pop, Indie Rock, Heavy Metal, Alternative Pop/Rock, Alternative/Indie Rock, Post-Grunge, Pop/Rock, Alternative Metal
Top hits: Feeling A Moment, Save Us, Save Us (Live In Brussels), Save Us (Stephen Street Mix)

Feeder

British pop-metal outfit Feeder were formed in London by singer/guitarist Grant Nicholas and drummer Jon Lee, who first teamed in the Welsh band Temper Temper. Originally dubbed Reel, the new group's lineup was complete with the addition of Tokyo-born bassist Taka Hirose. After signing to Echo in 1995, Feeder issued their debut EP, Two Colours, followed by the six-track Swim; a series of well-received singles -- "Stereo World," "Tangerine," and "Cement" -- expanded Feeder's fan base further, and in mid-1997 they launched their full-length debut, Polythene. The hit "Day In, Day Out" preceded the release of the trio's sophomore effort, 1999's Yesterday Went Too Soon. Despite not catching on in America, Feeder maintained their popularity in Europe. In 2001, after touring the world relentlessly, Feeder achieved their breakthrough hit in the U.K. with "Buck Rogers." The first single from the band's third album, Echo Park, eventually hit number five on the charts. Before the year's end, the band scored another Top 20 hit with the Just a Day EP and hit the road with the Stereophonics.

Tracks for a fourth album were already in the works when tragedy struck. Founding member Jon Lee committed suicide in his Miami home in early January 2002. He was 33. Nicholas and Hirose saw it fit to continue with Feeder, and they resumed recording with former Skunk Anansie drummer Mark Richardson behind the kit. The Gil Norton-produced Comfort in Sound was released the following October. In August 2004, Feeder issued a fan-friendly B-sides collection called Picture of Perfect Youth, and Norton was again behind the boards for the Pushing the Senses LP, which followed in 2005. A year later, with tours of Japan and Europe under their belts, Feeder released The Singles in mid-2006. The career-spanning release collected 20 tracks from the band's five previous albums and a brand-new track entitled "Lost & Found." Select shows in Milan, Berlin, and London opening for the Rolling Stones followed that summer. Two years later, in June 2008, Feeder's sixth studio album, the self-produced Silent Cry, was released.~ Jason Ankeny, All Music Guide