(Banjo, guitar, educator, 1909–94) Daniel Moses Barker carried forth the musical traditions of New Orleans, playing with a number of traditional bands in the 1920s and 1930s before marrying Louise Dupont (a.k.a. Blue Lu Barker) in 1930. They recorded several sides together in 1938, including Barker’s own song ‘Don’t You Make Me High’, revived ...
(Vocal group, 1955–present) Originally known as The Juvenaires, this doo-wop group was formed in 1955 while members Danny Rapp, Frank Maffei, Joe Terranova and Dave White were still at high school in Philadelphia. They signed to Singular Records, owned by Artie Singer, and made the 1957 million-seller ‘At The Hop’, which topped the US singles ...
(Vocals, 1908–67) A crooner and scat singer, Billy Banks was a protégé of agency impresario Irving Mills. He headlined a handful of legendary records in 1932 by the Rhythmakers – less interesting for his vocals than for the punchy, eccentric work of the all-star band, which included Henry ‘Red’ Allen, Pee Wee Russell, Fats Waller ...
In the 1980s, trumpeter Wynton Marsalis leapt from jazz-steeped New Orleans to international artistic prominence. In 1979 he was enrolled in New York City’s Juilliard School and was jamming with Art Blakey’s Jazz Messengers, and 10 years later he had seeded what has become an unrivalled international jazz performance centre. In between, Marsalis established himself as a hot ...
Alternative-metal guitarist Adam Jones (b. 1965) was born in Park Ridge, Illinois. He learned violin in elementary school, continuing with the instrument in high school, before playing acoustic bass for three years in an orchestra and later teaching himself guitar by ear. Jones studied art and sculpture in Los Angeles before working in a Hollywood character shop sculpting ...
A founding member of the band Pentangle, Bert Jansch (b. 1943) was born in Glasgow. He was heavily influenced by the guitarist Davey Graham and folk singers such as Anne Briggs. He has recorded 25 albums and toured extensively, influencing artists like Jimmy Page, Ian Anderson, Nick Drake and Neil Young. Jansch earned a Lifetime Achievement Award ...
William John Clifton Haley was born on 6 July 1925 in Highland Park, Detroit, and raised near Chester, Pennsylvania. His parents were both musical, and he got his first proper guitar when he was 13. Even though he was blind in one eye and shy about his disability (he later tried to distract from it with his ...
(Vocal/instrumental group, 1992–2005, 2009–present) Kings of the snotty, toilet-humoured nu-punk genre, Blink-182 – Travis Barker (drums), Tom DeLonge (vocals) and Mark Hoppus (bass) – formed while at school, recording in their then-drummer Scott Raynor’s bedroom. Since then, they have grown older but not matured, with 2001’s ‘Rock Show’ a fine example of the band’s ...
(Guitar, singer-songwriter, 1938–60) Oklahoma-born Cochran was a rising star of rock’n’roll, guest-starring in 1956’s The Girl Can’t Help It, the best ever rock’n’roll movie. He wrote songs with lyrics that spoke to teenagers like 1958’s ‘Summertime Blues’ (US Top 10/UK Top 20) and 1959’s ‘C’mon Everybody’ (UK Top 10). After dying in a car crash while on ...
(Vocal/instrumental group, 1997–present) Embrace – Danny McNamara (vocals), Richard McNamara (guitar), Steven Firth (bass), Mike Heaton (drums) and Mickey Dale (keyboards) – have had numerous career resuscitations in their decade-long existence. But the band started life as press-darlings after a number of singles on the fiercely independent Fierce Panda label. It was these early, near-demo quality recordings that caught ...
(Vocal/instrumental group, 1968–present) Many fans who love Fleetwood Mac’s string of 1970s hits are unaware of their earlier blues explorations. The band came into being when guitarist Peter Green, drummer Mick Fleetwood and bassist John McVie broke away from John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers. In 1968, with Jeremy Spencer on second guitar, Fleetwood Mac debuted on Blue Horizon. A ...
(Vocal/instrumental group, 1967–95, 1997–present) Peter Green (vocals, guitar) had been a star of John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers, in which John McVie (bass) and Mick Fleetwood (drums) had toiled less visibly. In 1967, the three became ‘Peter Green’s Fleetwood Mac’ after enlisting guitarist Jeremy Spencer. Later, a third guitarist, Danny Kirwan, was added. The outfit ...
John Abercrombie (b. 1944) is a stylist who has managed to incorporate flavours of folk and rock along with world-music influences into his jazz-based repertoire. He was a highly influential fusion guitarist in the late Sixties and Seventies and has had an abundant career, working solo and with a multitude of collaborators, including Billy Cobham, Ralph Towner, ...
Johnny Hiland (b. 1975) is one of the top guitarists to emerge from the Nashville music scene in recent years. His playing combines country chicken pickin’ with elements of blues, metal and jazz. Often compared to Danny Gatton, Hiland displays an amazing vocabulary as he plays seemingly effortlessly onstage. His skill is also noteworthy because he is legally blind ...
Grunge guitarist Kim Thayil (b. 1960) was born in Seattle, Washington. He was inspired to play guitar by Kiss, subsequently backtracking to the music which inspired them – The New York Dolls, MC5, The Stooges and The Velvet Underground. He bought his first guitar, a Guild S-100, which he would use throughout his career, ...
AUTHORITATIVE
An extensive music information resource, bringing together the talents and expertise of a wide range of editors and musicologists, including Stanley Sadie, Charles Wilson, Paul Du Noyer, Tony Byworth, Bob Allen, Howard Mandel, Cliff Douse, William Schafer, John Wilson...
CURATED
Classical, Rock, Blues, Jazz, Country and more. Flame Tree has been making encyclopaedias and guides about music for over 20 years. Now Flame Tree Pro brings together a huge canon of carefully curated information on genres, styles, artists and instruments. It's a perfect tool for study, and entertaining too, a great companion to our music books.
David Bowie
Fantastic new, unofficial biography covers
his life, music, art and movies, with a
sweep of incredible photographs.