SEARCH RESULTS FOR: O’Jays
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(Vocal group, 1963–present) A long-standing soul harmony group formed by Eddie Levert and Walter Williams, later adding William Powell, Bill Isles and Bobby Massey. The O’Jays first charted in 1963 but were considering quitting music when they came under the aegis of Philadelphia soul producers Gamble and Huff, immediately scoring a hit with ‘Back Stabbers’ in 1972. ...

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

(Various instruments, vocals, b. 1958) Originally recording as Tubeway Army – the name used on his first No. 1 single ‘Are “Friends” Electric ?’ – Numan’s electronic music was influenced by Berlin-era Bowie and set in a dystopian future of his own imagining. The hypnotic synthesizers and emotionless vocals earned him a second 1979 chart topper ‘Cars’, which was ...

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

The Afro wig. The mirror ball. Platform heels. A pair of lurid flares. The enduring iconography of the mass-market disco era might seem laughable now, but to reduce such a revolutionary social force, and creative musical explosion to a few items of fashion tat would be very short-sighted indeed. As has happened with many other musical forms, the ...

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

By the 1970s, the new sound of funk dominated Afro-American music. Jazzers such as Miles Davis and Herbie Hancock scored their biggest commercial successes by incorporating its hip-grinding rhythms into what became known as fusion or jazz funk, while soul acts enjoyed a second wave of popularity as funk provided the bridge between the soul and disco eras. Fuelled ...

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

Although the 1960s Golden Age established soul as the foundation of Afro-American pop, the 1970s and 1980s saw soul’s supremacy challenged and ultimately ended by, in turn, funk, disco, electro, dance-rock, hip hop and house. In hindsight, the soul music of the 1980s went into a form of stasis, waiting for a ...

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
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