duminică, 30 septembrie 2018
sâmbătă, 29 septembrie 2018
Gentle Giant( B14 )
John Weathers went on to drum for Man (an association that lasted until 1996) and most recently was spotted playing drums for Glenn Cornick's Wild Turkey again (2006). Gary Green (having settled in America, near Chicago) went on to play with various Illinois bands (including Blind Dates, The Elvis Brothers, Big Hello, and Mother Tongue) and guest on recordings and at concerts by Eddie Jobson and Divae. Kerry Minnear returned to the UK and settled in Cornwall, spending many years working in gospel music He now runs Alucard Music, the organization supervising the legal and royalty issues regarding Gentle Giant's music.
Phil Shulman retired entirely from the music business following his time in Gentle Giant. He subsequently worked as a teacher, in retail, and ran a gift shop in Gosport, Hampshire, UK before his retirement. He was briefly in a band with his son Damon Shulman and recorded several pieces with him. Several of these (under the collective title of Then) were spoken-word pieces in which he reminisced about his upbringing in the Glasgow slums. One of these pieces - "Rats" - appeared on Damon Shulman's solo album In Pieces (2003) and can be heard as an audio stream on Damon Shulman's homepage and MySpace page (made available in April 2008).
Original Gentle Giant drummer Martin Smith settled in Southampton and drummed with various bands there - he died on 2 March 1997. Second Gentle Giant drummer Malcolm Mortimore has continued to work as a successful sessions drummer in the rock, jazz, and theatre fields.
Reunions
Despite having seen many of their progressive rock contemporaries reunite for moneyspinning tours, Gentle Giant are notable for having consistently refused to reunite as a full band. In 1997, the Gentle Giant fanbase unsuccessfully attempted to persuade the members to perform a reunion concert. Reasons cited by members for their rejection include busy schedules, health problems, lack of practice on instruments, and other personal reasons.
vineri, 28 septembrie 2018
David Coverdale ( b6 )
Later years
Return of Whitesnake (1994, 1997–1998)
In 1994 Coverdale assembled a new line-up of Whitesnake (with the exception of Coverdale's musical partner, guitarist Adrian Vandenberg and bassist Rudy Sarzo, both of whom had been in Whitesnake since 1987) to tour for the release of Whitesnake's Greatest Hits album. The band again broke up after the tour. After this Coverdale once again retreated from the music business, for three years. In 1997 Coverdale returned and released Restless Heart (with Vandenberg on guitar). The album was originally supposed to be Coverdale's solo album, but the record company forced it to be released under the moniker "David Coverdale & Whitesnake". The tour was billed as Whitesnake's farewell tour, during which Coverdale and Vandenberg played two unplugged shows, one in Japan and the other for VH1. The first of the two shows was released the next year under the title Starkers in Tokyo. After the Restless Heart-tour ended, Coverdale once again folded Whitesnake and took another short break from music.
Back to solo (1999–2002)
In 2000 Coverdale released his first solo album in 22 years, titled Into The Light. Even though the album was not a hit, it did return Coverdale to the music business.
In December 2002, Coverdale re-reformed Whitesnake for an American and European tour, with Tommy Aldridge on drums, Marco Mendoza (bass), Doug Aldrich (guitar), Reb Beach (Ex-WINGER guitarrist) and keyboardist Timothy Drury. 2004–2005 saw Whitesnake embark on a tour of the United States, South America and Europe. A live DVD, shot during the 2004 tour at the legendary Hammersmith Apollo was released in February 2006. In June 2006, Coverdale signed a new record deal with Steamhammer Records. The first release under the new contract was the double live album Live: In the Shadow of the Blues(released 27 November 2006); the album also contained 4 brand new studio tracks written by Coverdale and Aldrich.
joi, 27 septembrie 2018
Ringo Starr ( b28 )
Starr played the Pope in Ken Russell's Lisztomania (1975), and a fictionalised version of himself in McCartney's Give My Regards to Broad Street in 1984. Starr appeared as himself and a downtrodden alter-ego Ognir Rrats in Ringo (1978), an American-made television comedy film based loosely on The Prince and the Pauper. For the 1979 documentary film on the Who, The Kids Are Alright, Starr appeared in interview segments with fellow drummer Keith Moon.
Discography
Since the breakup of the Beatles, Starr has released 19 solo studio albums:
- Sentimental Journey (1970)
- Beaucoups of Blues (1970)
- Ringo (1973)
- Goodnight Vienna (1974)
- Ringo's Rotogravure (1976)
- Ringo the 4th (1977)
- Bad Boy (1978)
- Stop and Smell the Roses (1981)
- Old Wave (1983)
- Time Takes Time (1992)
- Vertical Man (1998)
- I Wanna Be Santa Claus (1999)
- Ringo Rama (2003)
- Choose Love (2005)
- Liverpool 8 (2008)
- Y Not (2010)
- Ringo 2012 (2012)
- Postcards from Paradise (2015)
- Give More Love (2017)
Books
- Postcards From the Boys (2004)
- Octopus's Garden (2014)
- Photograph (2015)
miercuri, 26 septembrie 2018
Manfred Mann's Earth Band - California Coastline ( L1 )
Took off in San Francisco
Hitching up 101
Ended up on a flat bed Chevy
Breaking at the setting sun
Slept all night in a (coal hole?)
Thought I'd nearly freeze alive
'Cause all I had was a US blanket
Dated 1945
On the California coastline
Trying to have myself a good time
On the California coastline
Trying to have myself a good time
Got loose from jail in three days
(Sheriff had locked my base?)
(Maybe) ... (for Utah?)
... the human race
And if I live to be 100
Ain't never going back again
Couldn't think of a colder place to visit
(Or an easier place to sin?)
On the California coastline
Trying to have myself a good time
On the California coastline
Trying to have myself a good time
... (out of?) nowhere
Somewhere west of everybody else
I'm ... (out of?) nowhere
Somewhere west of everybody else
Hitching up 101
Ended up on a flat bed Chevy
Breaking at the setting sun
Slept all night in a (coal hole?)
Thought I'd nearly freeze alive
'Cause all I had was a US blanket
Dated 1945
On the California coastline
Trying to have myself a good time
On the California coastline
Trying to have myself a good time
Got loose from jail in three days
(Sheriff had locked my base?)
(Maybe) ... (for Utah?)
... the human race
And if I live to be 100
Ain't never going back again
Couldn't think of a colder place to visit
(Or an easier place to sin?)
On the California coastline
Trying to have myself a good time
On the California coastline
Trying to have myself a good time
... (out of?) nowhere
Somewhere west of everybody else
I'm ... (out of?) nowhere
Somewhere west of everybody else
Deep Purple ( B23 )
- Deep Purple Debut Tour, 1968
- Shades of Deep Purple Tour, 1968
- The Book of Taliesyn Tour, 1968–1969
- Deep Purple European Tour, (pre-tour for In Rock) 1969–1970
- In Rock World Tour, 1970–1971
- Fireball World Tour, 1971–1972
- Machine Head World Tour, 1972–1973
- Deep Purple European Tour, (pre-tour for Burn) 1973–1974
- Burn World Tour, 1974
- Stormbringer World Tour, 1974–1975
- Come Taste The Band World Tour, 1975–1976
- Perfect Strangers World Tour, aka Reunion Tour 1984–1985
- The House of Blue Light World Tour, 1987–1988
- Slaves and Masters World Tour, 1991
- Deep Purple 25 Years Anniversary World Tour, aka The Battle Rages on Tour, 1993
- Deep Purple and Joe Satriani Tour, 1993–1994
- Deep Purple Secret Mexican Tour (short warm-up tour with Steve Morse), 1994
- Deep Purple Secret USA Tour, 1994–1995
- Deep Purple Asian & African Tour, 1995
- Purpendicular World Tour, 1996–1997
- A Band on World Tour, 1998–1999
- Concerto World Tour, 2000–2001
- Deep Purple World Tour, 2001–2003
- Bananas World Tour, 2003–2005
- Rapture of the Deep tour, 2006–2011
- The Songs That Built Rock Tour, 2011–2012
- Now What? World Tour, 2013–2015
- World Tour 2016, 2016
- The Long Goodbye Tour, 2017-2018
marți, 25 septembrie 2018
Gentle Giant ( B13 )
Gary Green's opinion of the split differs. In 2003 he commented: "My own personal opinion is that the band broke up because Derek really wanted a hit album, and I think Ray did too, and they were fed up. They had been musicians longer than I had, and they had tasted it pretty good when they were with Simon Dupree, at least in Britain. And they were looking for some of that in Giant too. My feeling is that we could have continued on as PFM did, or Yes, and still continue. If we had adhered to the statement we started out with, we could still be playing that, and still be earning a reasonable living. That's all water under the bridge and that's fine now. It seemed a bit silly to cut off your creativity for that kind of thing.''
Gentle Giant played their last gig at the Roxy Theatre in West Hollywood, California on 16 June 1980.
Post-split
Following the dissolution of the band, Derek Shulman went on to a highly successful career in the organisational side of the music business (initially promotion and artist development for PolyGram, followed by A&R at Mercury Records, becoming president of Atco Records, after which he became President of Roadrunner Records. He now is the owner of new music company 2Plus Music & Entertainment). Ray Shulman moved into soundtrack work for television and advertising before becoming a record producer (working with, amongst others, Echo & The Bunnymen, The Sundays, and The Sugarcubes). He has written soundtracks for computer games, as well as producing DVDs for artists such as Genesis and Queen.
luni, 24 septembrie 2018
David Coverdale ( b5 )
In 1989 Coverdale recruited Vandenberg to record a new album, Slip of the Tongue. Vandenberg co-wrote the entire album with Coverdale, but a wrist injury sidelined him from contributing the solo guitar work. Steve Vai was recruited, re-recording most of Vandenberg's existing parts and finishing the album. Upon release, it was a great commercial success in Europe and the US.
The album peaked at number 10 in the US, and has achieved platinum status. Critical response was mixed, with Allmusic critics Steve Erlwine and Greg Prato noting that despite high sales, Slip of the Tongue "was a considerable disappointment after the across-the-board success of Whitesnake". The following tour, for which Vandenberg returned to play along with Vai, cemented Whitesnake's reputation as a giant in the world of hard rock. The tour continued until the end of 1990.
At that point, Coverdale had grown uncomfortable with the entity he felt Whitesnake had become, and admitted that he got "caught up in it". In one interview, Coverdale stated:
It got louder and louder, and so did I, to the point now where I have to get dressed up like a "girly man" and tease one's questionable bangs or hair and it's all becoming a bit... boring.
In 1990 Coverdale sang and co-wrote (with Hans Zimmer and Billy Idol) the song "The Last Note of Freedom" for the Tony Scott film Days of Thunder.
On 26 September 1990, after the last show on the Slip of the Tongue tour in Tokyo, Coverdale disbanded Whitesnake indefinitely. Tired of the business in general, the rigors of touring and troubled by his separation and later divorce from Tawny Kitaen, Coverdale wanted to find other values in life and took "private time to reflect" and re-assess his career direction.Coverdale and Page (1991–1993)
In the early spring of 1991, a collaboration was set up with guitarist Jimmy Page of Led Zeppelin fame. Both parties have said that the collaboration revitalised them on many levels. This collaboration resulted in the Coverdale-Page album released in March 1993. The album was a hit all over the world reaching number 4 in the UK and number 5 in the US, and was certified Platinum in the US on 7 April 1995, but the US tour for the album had to be cancelled due to slow ticket sales. After a limited Japanese tour, Coverdale and Page parted ways. In part, the problem had been the comparison to Robert Plant who had fronted Led Zeppelin, as vocalist, with Jimmy Page. Some of their audience criticised Coverdale, feeling he was merely a Plant clone; Plant himself referred to the team-up as ‘David Cover-version’. Others felt the short-lived collaboration only served to inspire Page to once again hook up with Plant, a year later.Yes - Beyond And Before ( L1 )
Sparkling trees of Silver foam
cast shadows soft in winter's home
Swaying branches breaking sound
In lonely forests trembling ground.
Masquerading leaves of blue
Run circles round the morning dew
In patterns understood by you
Reaching out beyond and before
Time like gold dust brings mind down
To levels hidden underground
Say a few words to the wind
That's all thats left of winters friend.
Reaching the snow
In the days of the cold
Casting a Spell out of Ice
Now that your gone
the summers too long
and it seems like the end of my life
Reaching out beyond and before
Time like gold dust brings mind down
Time like gold dust brings mind down
cast shadows soft in winter's home
Swaying branches breaking sound
In lonely forests trembling ground.
Masquerading leaves of blue
Run circles round the morning dew
In patterns understood by you
Reaching out beyond and before
Time like gold dust brings mind down
To levels hidden underground
Say a few words to the wind
That's all thats left of winters friend.
Reaching the snow
In the days of the cold
Casting a Spell out of Ice
Now that your gone
the summers too long
and it seems like the end of my life
Reaching out beyond and before
Time like gold dust brings mind down
Time like gold dust brings mind down
duminică, 23 septembrie 2018
Ringo Starr ( b27 )
In 2015, twenty-three years after he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as one of the Beatles, Starr became the last Beatle to be inducted for a solo career. During the 50th Grammy Awards, Starr, George Martin and his son Giles accepted the Best Compilation Soundtrack award for Love. On 9 November 2008, Starr accepted a Diamond Award on behalf of the Beatles during the 2008 World Music Awards ceremony in Monaco. On 8 February 2010, he was honoured with the 2,401st star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame by the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce. It is located at 1750 North Vine Street, in front of the Capitol Records building, as are the stars for Lennon, McCartney and Harrison.
Starr was appointed a Knight Bachelor in the 2018 New Year Honours for services to music. He was knighted in an investiture ceremony at Buckingham Palace by Prince William, Duke of Cambridge on 20 March 2018.
Film career
Starr has received praise from critics and movie industry professionals regarding his acting; director and producer Walter Shenson called him "a superb actor, an absolute natural". By the mid-1960s, Starr had become a connoisseur of film. In addition to his roles in A Hard Day's Night (1964), Help! (1965), Magical Mystery Tour (1967) and Let It Be (1970), Starr also acted in Candy (1968), The Magic Christian (1969), Blindman (1971), Son of Dracula (1974) and Caveman (1981). In 1971, he starred as Larry the Dwarf in Frank Zappa's 200 Motels and was featured in Harry Nilsson's animated film The Point! He co-starred in That'll Be the Day (1973) as a Teddy Boy and appeared in The Last Waltz, the Martin Scorsese documentary film about the 1976 farewell concert of the Band.
sâmbătă, 22 septembrie 2018
Deep Purple ( B22 )
Former members
- Jon Lord – keyboards, backing vocals, string arrangements (1968–1976, 1984–2002; died 2012)
- Nick Simper – bass guitar, backing vocals (1968–1969)
- Ritchie Blackmore – guitar (1968–1975, 1984–1993)
- Rod Evans – lead vocals (1968–1969)
- Glenn Hughes – bass guitar, vocals (1973–1976)
- David Coverdale – lead vocals (1973–1976)
- Tommy Bolin – guitar, backing vocals (1975–1976; died 1976)
- Joe Lynn Turner – lead vocals (1989–1992)
- Joe Satriani – guitar (touring member 1993–1994)
- Nick Fyffe – bass guitar (touring member 2011)
Concert tours
Deep Purple are considered to be one of the hardest touring bands in the world. From 1968 until today (with the exception of their 1976–1984 split) they continue to tour around the world. In 2007, the band received a special award for selling more than 150,000 tickets in France, with 40 dates in the country in 2007 alone. Also in 2007, Deep Purple's Rapture of the Deep tour was voted number 6 concert tour of the year (in all music genres) by Planet Rock listeners. The Rolling Stones' A Bigger Bang tour was voted number 5 and beat Purple's tour by only 1%. Deep Purple released a new live compilation DVD box, Around the World Live, in May 2008. In February 2008, the band made their first ever appearance at the Kremlin Palace in Moscow, Russia at the personal request of Dmitry Medvedev who at the time was considered a shoo-in for the seat of the Presidency of Russia. Prior to that, Deep Purple has toured Russia several times starting as early as 1996, but has not been considered to have played such a significant venue previously. The band was part of the entertainment for the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships 2009 in Liberec, Czech Republic.
Jimmy Page - Your Time is Gonna Come ( l1 )
Lyin', cheatin', hurtin, that's all you seem to do.
Messin' around with every guy in town,
Puttin' me down for thinkin' of someone new.
Always the same, playin' your game,
Drive me insane, trouble is gonna come to you,
One of these days and it won't be long,
You'll look for me but baby, I'll be gone.
This is all I gotta say to you woman:
[Chorus]
Your Time Is Gonna Come X4
Made up my mind to break you this time,
Won't be so fine, it's my turn to cry.
Do want you want, I won't take the brunt.
It's fadin' away, can't feel you anymore.
Don't care what you say 'cause I'm goin' away to stay,
Gonna make you pay for that great big hole in my heart.
People talkin' all around,
Watch out woman, no longer
Is the joke gonna be on my heart.
You been bad to me woman,
But it's coming back home to you.
* [Chorus]
Messin' around with every guy in town,
Puttin' me down for thinkin' of someone new.
Always the same, playin' your game,
Drive me insane, trouble is gonna come to you,
One of these days and it won't be long,
You'll look for me but baby, I'll be gone.
This is all I gotta say to you woman:
[Chorus]
Your Time Is Gonna Come X4
Made up my mind to break you this time,
Won't be so fine, it's my turn to cry.
Do want you want, I won't take the brunt.
It's fadin' away, can't feel you anymore.
Don't care what you say 'cause I'm goin' away to stay,
Gonna make you pay for that great big hole in my heart.
People talkin' all around,
Watch out woman, no longer
Is the joke gonna be on my heart.
You been bad to me woman,
But it's coming back home to you.
* [Chorus]
vineri, 21 septembrie 2018
Gentle Giant ( B12 )
While Kerry Minnear would pronounce himself far more satisfied with this album and its songs, Ray Shulman would eventually state "I hated making (that) last record, I hated being involved with it." In 2005, Derek Shulman reflected "Civilian was done with less passion than some of the other albums. As it turns out we as a band were just not good at being rock or pop stars. We would have loved to be as popular as a Genesis or Rush or Yes. In hindsight, I sometimes think that Gentle Giant was wrongfully put into the progressive rock category. Much of what we did was very clever, but we certainly didn't do these long complex tunes like Yes or Genesis did."
Split
In the summer of 1980, the group quietly disbanded. In 2005, Derek Shulman recalled that "the creative juices just weren't flowing. I was living in Los Angeles at the time when we broke up. We weren't really sure what direction to take. I don't regret the decision we made to disband, and I'd do it again if we were to do the whole thing all over again.''' Ray Shulman has commented: "There was definitely the decision that the last tour would be the last tour. Once we knew that, we enjoyed ourselves. We decided to quit then rather than let it go on too long." In an interview with Mojo in 2000, Kerry Minnear asserted "(the split) wasn't because of punk, it was because we had lost our way musically."
'' We had a meeting in New York when we started the tour over here. We met in New York to get together and see it as a launch-off place. Kind of had a talk about what we were going to do. At that meeting Kerry and Derek said this was going to be the last tour and they didn't want to be on the road anymore. And you understand it; they had families. Kerry had just had a baby and Derek was just getting married. But having said that, I was married and so was John. You can change things like that; there are ways to work around that. You don't have to tour. I don't think we really toured an awful lot as Giant. I think we could have worked a lot harder at touring. We toured perhaps five or six months of the year. The rest of the year we didn't tour, which seemed a bit silly if you really want to make it or break the market. So let's go ahead and do it and capitalize on this rush we got. So it all seemed a little odd to me. It was sad.
Gary Green reflects on the final Gentle Giant split
continuare
continuare
miercuri, 19 septembrie 2018
David Coverdale ( b4 )
Breakthrough
International success of Whitesnake (1983–1991)
Whitesnake gained significant popularity in the UK, Europe, and Asia, but North American success remained elusive. In 1984, the album Slide It In dented the US charts (reaching #40), but not enough to be considered a hit. In time for the US release of Slide It In, Coverdale made a calculated attempt at updating Whitesnake's sound and look by recruiting guitarist John Sykes from the remnants of Thin Lizzy. Sykes brought a more contemporary, aggressive guitar sound with him and had stage manners to match. The last remaining Deep Purple connections were severed when Jon Lord left after recording Slide It In to re-form Deep Purple. (Ian Paice had left Whitesnake in 1982.)
In 1985, Sykes and Coverdale started working on new songs for the next album, but Coverdale soon contracted a serious sinus infection that made recording close to impossible for much of 1986 and which had doctors thinking he might never sing again. Coverdale eventually recovered, and recordings were continued. But before their upcoming album was fully recorded and released, Coverdale had dismissed Sykes from the band. The split with Sykes was, reportedly, not amicable.
In many period interviews, Coverdale stated that the next album was a make-or-break album for Whitesnake, and if not successful he would disband Whitesnake altogether. During 1987 and 1988, North America was finally won over, with the multi-platinum self-titled Whitesnake album, co-written for the most part with now-departed Sykes, but including guitar virtuoso Adrian Vandenberg, as a session musician.
The 1987 album has sold 8 times platinum since its release, propelled by hit singles such as "Here I Go Again" and "Is This Love", and finally made Whitesnake a bona fide concert headliner in North America. Through the late 80s and early 90s, caught in the "hair-band" era, Coverdale kept Whitesnake going with great success despite changing line-ups.
marți, 18 septembrie 2018
luni, 17 septembrie 2018
Ringo Starr ( b26 )
In 2016, Starr expressed his support for the United Kingdom's withdrawal from the European Union, explaining: "I thought the European Union was a great idea, but I didn’t see it going anywhere lately." In 2017 he described his impatience for Britain to "get on with" Brexit, declaring that "to be in control of your country is a good move".
Starr is a vegetarian and meditates daily.
Awards and honours
Starr and the other members of the Beatles were appointed Members of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the 1965 Birthday Honours; they received their insignia from Queen Elizabeth II at an investiture at Buckingham Palace on 26 October. He and the other Beatles were cumulatively nominated for a BAFTA Award for Best Newcomer for their performances in the 1964 film A Hard Day's Night. In 1971, the Beatles received an Academy Award for Best Original Song Score for the film Let It Be. The minor planet 4150 Starr, discovered on 31 August 1984 by Brian A. Skiff at the Anderson Mesa Station of the Lowell Observatory, was named in Starr's honour. Starr was nominated for a 1989 Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Performer in a Children's Series for his role as Mr. Conductor in the television series Shining Time Station.
duminică, 16 septembrie 2018
Deep Purple ( B21 )
Prior to the induction ceremony, Ian Gillan announced that he was barring Hughes, Coverdale, Evans and Blackmore from playing with them onstage, as these members are not in the current "living, breathing" version of the band. Of the eight inducted members, five showed up. Blackmore didn't show; a posting on his Facebook page claimed he was honoured by the induction and had considered attending, until he received correspondence from Bruce Payne, manager from the current touring version of Deep Purple saying, "No!" In interviews at the Rock Hall, however, Gillan insisted he personally invited Blackmore to attend, but not to play onstage. Evans, who had disappeared from the music scene more than three decades prior, also didn't show, whilst because Lord had died in 2012, his wife Vickie accepted his award on his behalf. The current members of the band played "Highway Star" for the opening performance. After a brief interlude playing the Booker T. & the M.G.'s song "Green Onions" while photos of the late Jon Lord flashed on the screen behind them, the current Deep Purple members played two more songs: "Hush" and their signature tune "Smoke on the Water". Although barred from playing with Deep Purple, both David Coverdale and Glenn Hughes (as well as Roger Glover) joined fellow inductees Cheap Trick and an all-star cast to perform a cover of the Fats Domino song "Ain't That a Shame".
Band members
Current members
- Ian Paice – drums, percussion (1968–1976, 1984–present)
- Roger Glover – bass guitar (1969–1973, 1984–present)
- Ian Gillan – vocals, harmonica, percussion (1969–1973, 1984–1989, 1992–present)
- Steve Morse – guitar (1994–present)
- Don Airey – keyboards (touring member 2001–2002; 2002–present)
sâmbătă, 15 septembrie 2018
Gentle Giant ( B11 )
The Missing Piece (recorded in the Netherlands and released in 1977) was a transitional album reflecting this new approach. While the second side featured longer and more eclectic songs reminiscent of the band's earlier work, the first side featured outright examples of pop-rock, blue-eyed soul and even an attempt at punk. Three singles ("Two Weeks in Spain", "Mountain Time" and "I'm Turning Around") were released from the album, but failed to become hits: the album itself performed disappointingly in the marketplace, failing to win new fans or find favour with the band's existing fanbase.
Despite this setback, the band pursued their course to its conclusion on 1978's Giant for a Day!. All progressive rock stylings were purged in favour of radio-friendly soft rock and further unsuccessful attempts at hit singles: in order to present a more straightforward group identity, Derek Shulman handled all lead vocals and the band abandoned their usual battery of string instruments, wind instruments, tuned percussion and vocal interplay in favour of a straightforward guitar/bass/keyboards/drums/lead singer arrangement. Giant for a Day! was another poor seller, later recognised by the band as a creative mistake. Derek Shulman eventually remembered it as being "real contrived'' while Kerry Minnear would confess to having felt unsure as to whether he had anything to contribute to the album (although he did make an attempt to write a commercial single, "It's Only Goodbye").
The Chrysalis years, part 3: Civilian
In 1979, Gentle Giant relocated their centre of operations to Los Angeles in order to record their eleventh album, Civilian. This was a record of short rock songs with a strong New Wave influence. While keeping the reduced instrumental approach of Giant for a Day!, the band allowed themselves far more freedom of arrangement and vocal work than they had for the previous album, and despite its relative simplicity the songwriting and execution were more reminiscent of earlier Gentle Giant work.
David Coverdale ( b3 )
In 1978 Coverdale released his second solo album Northwinds, which was received much better than the previous album. But before the album's release, he had already formed a new band.
Early Whitesnake era (1978–1982)
After recording Northwinds, Coverdale soon formed the band Whitesnake, with Bernie Marsden and Micky Moody both handling guitar duties. This was originally a touring band for Coverdale's first solo album, it soon developed into a full-time band. In early 1978, the band released the Snakebite EP, which was later repackaged as a full album (titled Snakebite, released in June 1978), with the B-side taken from Coverdale's Northwinds album. For the follow-up album, Trouble, Coverdale was joined by his former Deep Purple colleague, keyboardist Jon Lord. For Whitesnake's 1980 album, Ready an' Willing, drummer Ian Paice also joined the group. Ready an' Willing also featured the band's biggest hit up to that point, the song "Fool for Your Loving", which reached No. 13 on the British charts and No. 53 on the US Billboard Hot 100. Ready an' Willing was followed up by the even more successful Come an' Get It in 1981. During 1982 Coverdale took some time off to look after his sick daughter and decided to put Whitesnake on hold. When David Coverdale returned to music he reformed the band, which thereafter recorded the album Saints & Sinners.
In 1982, according to British heavy metal magazine Kerrang!, Coverdale was considered for the vocalist position with Black Sabbath following the departure of Ronnie James Dio. Coverdale declined.
vineri, 14 septembrie 2018
joi, 13 septembrie 2018
miercuri, 12 septembrie 2018
Ringo Starr ( b25 )
Personal life
When Starr married Maureen Cox in 1965, Beatles manager Brian Epstein was best man, with Starr's stepfather Harry Graves and fellow Beatle George Harrison as witnesses. Soon afterwards, the couple's matrimony became the subject of a US novelty song, "Treat Him Tender, Maureen", by the Chicklettes. Starr and Maureen had three children together: Zak (born 13 September 1965), Jason (born 19 August 1967) and Lee (born 11 November 1970). In 1971, Starr purchased Lennon's former home, Tittenhurst Park at Sunninghill in Berkshire, and moved his family there. Following Starr's repeated infidelities, the couple divorced in 1975. Starr later admitted to being "a drunk, a wife-beater and an absent father". Maureen died from leukaemia at age 48 in 1994.
In 1980, on the set of the film Caveman, Starr met actress Barbara Bach; they were married on 27 April 1981. In 1985, he was the first of the Beatles to become a grandfather upon the birth of Zak's daughter, Tatia Jayne Starkey. Zak is also a drummer, and during his father's regular absences, he spent time with the Who's Keith Moon. Zak has performed with his father during some All-Starr Band tours. Starr has eight grandchildren – one from Zak, four from Jason and three from Lee. In 2016, he was the first Beatle to become a great-grandfather.
Starr and Bach split their time between homes in Cranleigh, Surrey; Los Angeles; and Monte Carlo. Starr was listed at number 56 in the Sunday Times Rich List 2011, with an estimated personal wealth of £150 million. In 2012, he was estimated to be the wealthiest drummer in the world. In 2014, Starr announced that his 200-acre Surrey estate at Rydinghurst, with its Grade II-listed Jacobean house, was for sale. However, he retains a property in the London district of Chelsea off King's Road, and he and Bach continue to divide their time between London and Los Angeles.
In December 2015, Starr and Bach auctioned some of their personal and professional items to the public via Julien's Auctions in Los Angeles. The collection included Starr's first Ludwig Black Oyster Pearl drum kit; instruments given to him by Harrison, Lennon and Marc Bolan; and a first-pressing copy of the Beatles' White Album numbered "0000001". The auction raised over $9 million, a portion of which was set aside for the Lotus Foundation, a charity founded by Starr and Bach.
marți, 11 septembrie 2018
Deep Purple ( B20 )
In response to these, a Hall of Fame chief executive said, "The definition of 'rock and roll' means different things to different people, but as broad as the classifications may be, they all share a common love of the music." Roger Glover remains ambivalent about induction and got an inside word from the Hall, "One of the jurors said, 'You know, Deep Purple, they're just one-hit wonders.' How can you deal with that kind of Philistinism, you know?". Ian Gillan also commented, "I've fought all my life against being institutionalised and I think you have to actively search these things out, in other words mingle with the right people, and we don't get invited to those kind of things." On 16 October 2013 Deep Purple were again announced as nominees for inclusion to the Hall, and once again they were not inducted.
In April 2015, Deep Purple topped the list in a Rolling Stone readers poll of acts that should be inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2016. In October 2015, the band were nominated for induction for the third time. In December 2015, the band were announced as 2016 inductees into the Hall of Fame, with the Hall stating: "Deep Purple's non-inclusion in the Hall is a gaping hole which must now be filled", adding that along with fellow inductees Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath, the band make up "the Holy Trinity of hard rock and metal bands." The band was officially inducted on 8 April 2016. The Hall of Fame announced that the following members were included as inductees: Ian Paice, Jon Lord, Ritchie Blackmore, Roger Glover, Ian Gillan, Rod Evans, David Coverdale and Glenn Hughes. Excluded from induction were Nick Simper, Tommy Bolin, Joe Lynn Turner, Joe Satriani, Steve Morse and Don Airey.
duminică, 9 septembrie 2018
Gentle Giant ( B10 )
Gentle Giant's next release was 1976's Interview - another concept album, this time based around an imaginary interview with the band. The music pointedly poked fun at the state of the music industry and at the silly questions that rock stars are repeatedly asked in order to construct an image for marketing. Ironically, this more satirical and subversive approach ultimately proved to be a symptom of the undermining of the band's work and artistic integrity. Derek Shulman later admitted "I think Interview was the start of the erosion. I think the creative juices were starting to wane a little bit... I think Interview was the start of the slide towards the realization that this is a business now, and that's also a part of what the business had become. I was managing the band at the time and music business became a major business." Despite this approach, the album did not repeat its predecessor's American chart success, peaking at No. 137.
By this time, Gentle Giant had become a well-established live act in America and Europe, touring persistently and sharing stages with anyone from Sha Na Na to progressive rock contemporaries such as Jethro Tull and Yes. The band's notoriously virtuosic live act (featuring rapid-fire instrument swapping and equally demanding rearrangements of the already complex studio pieces) made a powerful impression on audiences, meaning that Gentle Giant could equal almost any act on the bill. One 1975 show (at Detroit's Cobo Hall) saw them steal the show from both Gary Wright (debuting his Dream Weaver album) and Rick Wakeman (headlining with the touring version of The Myths and Legends of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table). In 1976, this side of the band was captured on the live album Playing the Fool, recorded during the European tour for Interview.
The Chrysalis years, part 2: The Missing Piece and Giant for a Day!
While Gentle Giant's skill as performers remained undiminished, their creative peak was now behind them. Affected by changes in popular style (including the growth of punk rock), the band made a mutual decision to refine their writing and performance style in pursuit of a broader market, particularly in America. Over the next two years, the band gradually jettisoned many of their complicated stylings in order to attempt to write simpler pop music and attempt to create hit singles.
sâmbătă, 8 septembrie 2018
The Doors - Break On Through (To The Other Side) ( L1 )
You know the day destroys the night
Night divides the day
Tried to run
Tried to hide
Break on through to the other side
Break on through to the other side
Break on through to the other side, yeah
We chased our pleasures here
Dug our treasures there
But can you still recall
The time we cried
Break on through to the other side
Break on through to the other side
Yeah!
C'mon, yeah
Everybody loves my baby
Everybody loves my baby
She get(s high)
She get(s high)
She get(s high)
She get(s high)
I found an island in your arms
Country in your eyes
Arms that chained us
Eyes that lied
Break on through to the other side
Break on through to the other side
Break on through, oww!
Oh, yeah!
Made the scene
Week to week
Day to day
Hour to hour
The gate is straight
Deep and wide
Break on through to the other side
Break on through to the other side
Break on through
Break on through
Break on through
Break on through
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Night divides the day
Tried to run
Tried to hide
Break on through to the other side
Break on through to the other side
Break on through to the other side, yeah
We chased our pleasures here
Dug our treasures there
But can you still recall
The time we cried
Break on through to the other side
Break on through to the other side
Yeah!
C'mon, yeah
Everybody loves my baby
Everybody loves my baby
She get(s high)
She get(s high)
She get(s high)
She get(s high)
I found an island in your arms
Country in your eyes
Arms that chained us
Eyes that lied
Break on through to the other side
Break on through to the other side
Break on through, oww!
Oh, yeah!
Made the scene
Week to week
Day to day
Hour to hour
The gate is straight
Deep and wide
Break on through to the other side
Break on through to the other side
Break on through
Break on through
Break on through
Break on through
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
vineri, 7 septembrie 2018
David Coverdale ( b2 )
In February 1974, Deep Purple released their first album with Coverdale and Hughes titled Burn which was certified Gold in the US on 20 March 1974 and in the UK on 1 July. In April 1974, Coverdale and Deep Purple performed to over 200,000 fans on his first trip to the United States at California Jam.
In December 1974 Burn was followed-up by Stormbringer, which also ranked at Gold album status in the US and the UK. The funk and soul influences of the previous record were even more prominent here, and this was one of the reasons why guitarist Ritchie Blackmore left the band in June 1975.
Rather than disbanding, Coverdale was instrumental in persuading the band to continue with American guitarist Tommy Bolin (of Billy Cobham and The James Gang fame). As Jon Lord put it, "David Coverdale came up to me and said, 'Please keep the band together.' David played me the album that Tommy did with Billy Cobham. We liked his playing on it and invited Tommy to audition.'" The band released one studio album with Bolin, Come Taste the Band in 1975. The album was less successful than previous records, and at the end of the tour in March 1976, Coverdale reportedly walked off in tears and handed in his resignation, to which he was told there was no band left to quit. The decision to disband Deep Purple had been made some time before the last show by Lord and Ian Paice (the last remaining original members), who had not told anyone else. The break-up was finally made public in July 1976. Said Coverdale in an interview: "I was frightened to leave the band. Purple was my life, Purple gave me my break, but all the same I wanted out."
Solo (1977–1978)
After the demise of Deep Purple, Coverdale embarked on a solo career. He released his first album in February 1977, titled White Snake. All songs were written by Coverdale and guitarist Micky Moody. As his first solo effort, Coverdale later admitted: "It's very difficult to think back and talk sensibly about the first album. White Snake had been a very inward-looking, reflective and low-key affair in many ways, written and recorded as it was in the aftermath of the collapse of Deep Purple." Even though the album was not successful, its title inspired the name of Coverdale's future band.
joi, 6 septembrie 2018
Ringo Starr ( b24 )
Vocals
Starr sang lead vocals for a song on most of the Beatles' studio albums as part of an attempt to establish a vocal personality for each band member. In many cases, Lennon or McCartney wrote the lyrics and melody especially for him, as they did for "Yellow Submarine" from Revolver and "With a Little Help from My Friends" on Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band. These melodies were tailored to Starr's limited baritone vocal range. Because of his distinctive voice, Starr rarely performed backing vocals during his time with the Beatles, but they can be heard on songs such as "Maxwell's Silver Hammer" and "Carry That Weight". He is also the lead vocalist on his compositions "Don't Pass Me By" and "Octopus's Garden". In addition, he sang lead on "I Wanna Be Your Man", "Boys", "Matchbox", "Honey Don't", "Act Naturally", "Good Night" and "What Goes On".
Songwriting
Starr's idiosyncratic turns of phrase or "Ringoisms", such as "a hard day's night" and "tomorrow never knows", were used as song titles by the Beatles, particularly by Lennon. McCartney commented: "Ringo would do these little malapropisms, he would say things slightly wrong, like people do, but his were always wonderful, very lyrical ... they were sort of magic." Starr also occasionally contributed lyrics to unfinished Lennon–McCartney songs, such as the line "darning his socks in the night when there's nobody there" in "Eleanor Rigby".
Starr is credited as the sole composer of two Beatles songs: "Octopus's Garden" and "Don't Pass Me By". He is credited as a co-writer of "What Goes On", "Flying" and "Dig It". On material issued after the break-up, Starr received a writing credit for "Taking a Trip to Carolina" and received joint songwriting credits with the other Beatles for "12-Bar Original", "Los Paranoias", "Christmas Time (Is Here Again)", "Suzy Parker" from the Let It Be film, and "Jessie's Dream" from the Magical Mystery Tour film.
miercuri, 5 septembrie 2018
Deep Purple ( B19 )
There have been criticisms in the past over Deep Purple not having been inducted. Toto guitarist Steve Lukathercommented, "they put Patti Smith in there but not Deep Purple? What's the first song every kid learns how to play? ["Smoke on the Water"] ... And they're not in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame? ... the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame has lost its cool because of the glaring omissions." Guns N' Roses and Velvet Revolver guitarist Slash expressed his surprise and disagreement for the non-induction of Deep Purple; "The list of people who haven't even been nominated is mind-boggling ... [the] big one for me is Deep Purple. How could you not induct Deep Purple?". Metallica band members James Hetfield, Lars Ulrich and Kirk Hammett have also lobbied for the band's induction. In an interview with Rolling Stone in April 2014, Ulrich pleaded: "I'm not going to get into the politics or all that stuff, but I got two words to say: 'Deep Purple'. That's all I have to say: Deep Purple. Seriously, people, Deep Purple. Two simple words in the English language ... 'Deep Purple'! Did I say that already?" In 2015, Chris Jericho, WWE wrestler and current vocalist of rock band Fozzy, stated: "that Deep Purple are not in it [Hall of Fame]. It's bullshit. Obviously there's some politics against them from getting in there."
"With almost no exceptions, every hard rock band in the last 40 years, including mine, traces its lineage directly back to Black Sabbath, Led Zeppelin and Deep Purple. Where I grew up, and in the rest of the world outside of North America, all were equal in status, stature and influence. So in my heart – and I know I speak for many of my fellow musicians and millions of Purple fans when I confess that – I am somewhat bewildered that they are so late in getting in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame."
—Excerpt from Lars Ulrich's speech, inducting Deep Purple into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.
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