SEARCH RESULTS FOR: Norman Whitfield
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(Producer, songwriter, b. 1943) Whitfield joined Motown as a writer, but his willingness to experiment with other sounds and genres as a producer made him a key player in the growth of Motown beyond its early pop-soul identity. His biggest impact was with The Temptations, whose move to psychedelic soul he directed. He left Motown in 1975 ...

Source: The Definitive Illustrated Encyclopedia of Rock, general editor Michael Heatley

(Guitar, vocals, b. 1938) Blake grew up as a traditional bluegrass musician in Georgia, but in 1963 he moved to Nashville, where he joined The Johnny Cash Show and recorded with Bob Dylan and Kris Kristofferson. His combination of virtuoso skills, a traditional background and collaborations with innovators led to dozens of albums under his own ...

Source: The Definitive Illustrated Encyclopedia of Country Music, consultant editor Bob Allen

b. 1945, American Boasting one of the most magnificent voices of her generation, Norman has received praise for her operatic, concert and recital performances. A scholarship student at Howard University at the age of 16, she then studied at the Peabody Institute and received her Masters Degree at the University of Michigan. Her 1969 operatic debut as ...

Source: Definitive Opera Encyclopedia, founding editor Stanley Sadie

b. 1945 American soprano Norman made her operatic debut in 1969 in Berlin as Elisabeth in Tannhäuser, followed by Mozart’s Countess (The Marriage of Figaro), which she recorded under Colin Davis. Debuts followed in 1972 at La Scala (Aida) and Covent Garden (Berlioz’s Cassandra in The Trojans), and in 1983 she appeared at the Metropolitan Opera (Cassandra, then Dido). ...

Source: Classical Music Encyclopedia, founding editor Stanley Sadie

‘Spirit In The Sky’, 1970 A UK and US No. 1, ‘Spirit In The Sky’ was Greenbaum’s first solo hit after performing in some short-lived groups, and a number of singles from the Spirit In The Sky LP came to very little. Intended as a commentary on contemporary religious beliefs, it was to be his only hit. Further ...

Source: The Definitive Illustrated Encyclopedia of Rock, general editor Michael Heatley

(Songwriter, b. 1941) Strong was a Motown staff writer whose own 1960 hit ‘Money’ helped fund the label’s early expansion. His compositions with Norman Whitfield included ‘I Heard It Through The Grapevine’, and led Motown’s forays into more socially aware territory with hits like Edwin Starr’s ‘War’ and many of The Temptations’ psychedelic soul outings. Strong won a 1972 Grammy ...

Source: The Definitive Illustrated Encyclopedia of Rock, general editor Michael Heatley

(Vocals, 1942–2003) Starr’s early singing career was interrupted when he was drafted in 1960. He finally broke with 1965 Bond novelty ‘Agent Double-O Soul’ and its follow-up ‘Stop Her On Sight (S.O.S.)’. He had a powerful, rough voice that will be remembered for the 1970 anti-Vietnam hit ‘War’, originally a Norman Whitfield song for The Temptations. ...

Source: The Definitive Illustrated Encyclopedia of Rock, general editor Michael Heatley

(Vocals, b. 1939) Best known for her duets with Marvin Gaye, Weston was also a successful Motown solo artist. She reached R&B No. 2 with 1965’s ‘Take Me In Your Arms (Rock Me A Little While)’, later covered by The Doobie Brothers, and notoriously turned down ‘Dancing In The Streets’, only to see Martha Reeves take it to ...

Source: The Definitive Illustrated Encyclopedia of Rock, general editor Michael Heatley

(Vocal group, 1975–88) A soul/disco outfit originally formed as an all-purpose backing band comprising ex-Motown personnel Kenji Brown (guitar), Victor Nix (keyboards), Kenny Copeland and Freddie Dunn (both trumpets), Michael Moore (saxophone), Duke Jobe (bass) and Henry Garner and Terrai Santiel (both drums). Fronted by singer Gwen Dickey, they supplied the platinum-selling soundtrack to the movie Car Wash (1976) ...

Source: The Definitive Illustrated Encyclopedia of Rock, general editor Michael Heatley

(Vocal group, 1961–71) One of Motown’s first successful vocal groups comprised Gladys Horton, Georgeanna Tillman, Wanda Young, Katherine Anderson and Juanita Cowart (left 1962). Their first release, ‘Please Mr Postman’ (later covered by The Carpenters) was the label’s first US pop No. 1 in 1961. It led to a run of nearly 30 pop and R&B ...

Source: The Definitive Illustrated Encyclopedia of Rock, general editor Michael Heatley

(Vocal group, 1960–present) Formed in 1960, The Temptations were Motown’s leading male group, with smooth harmonies and crisp choreography. Their first big hit, 1965’s ‘My Girl’ was written by Smokey Robinson in reply to his earlier ‘My Guy’, penned for Mary Wells. From 1967, producer Norman Whitfield gave them a harder edge. Adding psychedelic soul to ...

Source: The Definitive Illustrated Encyclopedia of Rock, general editor Michael Heatley

Since the dawn of the jazz era, the appeal of pop music had become increasingly intertwined with the demands of the dancefloor. As 1960s rock and soul became ever tougher and more orientated towards youth and hedonism it was only a matter of time before someone would come up with the ultimate dance groove. That someone was soul’s greatest innovator ...

Source: The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Music, general editor Paul Du Noyer

This enduring British cult dance scene takes its name from the post-mod discos in the north-west of England where it developed, rather than the geographical location of the music-makers. Legendary disco venues like Manchester’s Twisted Wheel, Blackpool’s Mecca and The Wigan Casino, are still spoken about in reverential tones by soul and dance connoisseurs. The reason northern soul ...

Source: The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Music, general editor Paul Du Noyer

‘Medieval’ as a concept is very hard to define, and the period itself is just as difficult to delineate. It was a term invented by Renaissance writers who wished to make a distinction between their modernity and what had gone before. Although the onset of the Renaissance is often taken to be around the beginning of the fourteenth century, ...

Source: Classical Music Encyclopedia, founding editor Stanley Sadie

The most influential country act of 2001 was a band that didn’t even exist. The Soggy Bottom Boys were the prime attraction on O Brother, Where Art Thou ? the soundtrack album that topped the country and pop charts and sold more than four million copies. The group revived the late 1930s and early 1940s sound when old-time string-band music ...

Source: The Definitive Illustrated Encyclopedia of Country Music, consultant editor Bob Allen
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