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Dexter Wansel
Dexter Gilman Wansel (born August 22, 1950) is an American R&B/jazz fusion singer, arranger, musician, composer, conductor, synthesist and A&R director. Early life Dexter Wansel began as an errand boy backstage at the Uptown Theater in Philadelphia from 1959 through 1963 for his step-uncle Georgie Woods. There he met many great artists who encouraged him to pursue music. During high school, he and his friend, Stanley Clarke, performed in bands together. Career In 1970 after being honourably discharged from the United States Army, Wansel quietly joined the ranks of synthesists like Wendy Carlos and Dick Hyman, where he began programming the EMS VCS 3 'Putney' and the ARP 2600 for sessions at Sigma Sound Studios both credited and uncredited. From the early to mid '70s, Wansel also played keyboards for groups such as Instant Funk, Yellow Sunshine, and MFSB. After signing with Philadelphia International Records, as in-house songwriter/producer/arranger, he established a songwritin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Digital Jukebox Records
Digital Jukebox Records began as a British hip hop record label under the name of FJ/Fatt Jointz Recordings in the early 1990s which has been an underground source for the success of some recording artists ever since. Label head Mark Duffus had very close musical links with many prominent East Coast / New York record producers and musicians. History Fatt Jointz or FJ Entertainment's name was changed to Digital Jukebox later on in 2007 under a complete rebrand when BBC Publishing (under BBC Worldwide) became their publishing partners and the music genres of the label's artists became more diverse. The first official global song release under FJ was "With Fx" which was produced by Mark Duffus (a.k.a. Sure Shot / Blak Prophetz). Over the years, the label had worked with several notable recording artists such as Ced Gee of Ultramagnetic MCs (who featured on the Blak Prophetz album ''The 2nd Coming''), Fonda Rae, Joyce Sims, Yvonne Curtis and Funk Division, among others. Documenta ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Philadelphia
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Since 1854, the city has been coextensive with Philadelphia County, the most populous county in Pennsylvania and the urban core of the Delaware Valley, the nation's seventh-largest and one of world's largest metropolitan regions, with 6.245 million residents . The city's population at the 2020 census was 1,603,797, and over 56 million people live within of Philadelphia. Philadelphia was founded in 1682 by William Penn, an English Quaker. The city served as capital of the Pennsylvania Colony during the British colonial era and went on to play a historic and vital role as the central meeting place for the nation's founding fathers whose plans and actions in Philadelphia ultimately inspired the American Revolution and the nation's inde ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
MFSB
MFSB, officially standing for "Mother Father Sister Brother", was a pool of more than 30 studio musicians based at Philadelphia's Sigma Sound Studios. They worked closely with the production team of Gamble and Huff and producer/arranger Thom Bell, and backed up Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes, The O'Jays, The Stylistics, the Spinners, Wilson Pickett, and Billy Paul. In 1972, MFSB began recording as a named act for the Philadelphia International label. "TSOP (The Sound of Philadelphia)", also known as the ''Soul Train'' theme, was their second and most successful single. Released in March 1974, it peaked at number one on the US ''Billboard'' pop and R&B charts. "TSOP" was influential in establishing the disco sound. The track sold over one million copies, and was awarded a gold disc by the RIAA in April 1974. Overview MFSB formed in 1971 and disbanded in 1985, three years after Teddy Pendergrass's car accident, which left him paralyzed. Assembled by record producers Kenneth Ga ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lil Wayne
Dwayne Michael Carter Jr. (born September 27, 1982), known professionally as Lil Wayne, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, and record executive. His career began in 1995, at the age of 12, when he was signed by rapper Birdman (rapper), Birdman, joining Cash Money Records as the youngest member of the label. From then on, Wayne was the flagship artist of Cash Money Records before ending his association with the company in June 2018. Regarded as one of the most influential hip hop artists of his generation by ''XXL (magazine), XXL'', he has often been cited as one of the greatest rappers of all time. In 1995, Wayne was put in a duo with label-mate B.G. (rapper), B.G. (at the time known as Lil Doogie) and they recorded an album, True Story (The B.G.'z album), ''True Story'', released that year, although Wayne (at the time known as Baby D) only appeared on three tracks. Wayne and B.G. soon joined the southern hip hop group Hot Boys, with Cash Money label-mates Juvenile (ra ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kanye West
Ye ( ; born Kanye Omari West ; June 8, 1977) is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer, and fashion designer. Born in Atlanta and raised in Chicago, West gained recognition as a producer for Roc-A-Fella Records in the early 2000s, producing singles for several artists and developing the "chipmunk soul" sampling style. Intent on pursuing a solo career as a rapper, he released his debut studio album, '' The College Dropout'' (2004), to critical and commercial success. He founded the record label GOOD Music later that year. West explored diverse musical elements like orchestras, synthesizers, and autotune on the albums ''Late Registration'' (2005), '' Graduation'' (2007), and ''808s & Heartbreak'' (2008). His fifth and sixth albums '' My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy'' (2010) and '' Yeezus'' (2013) were also met with critical and commercial success. West further diversified his musical styles on ''The Life of Pablo'' (2016) and '' Ye'' (2018) and explored ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Unmistakably Lou
''Unmistakably Lou'' is an album by American R&B singer Lou Rawls, released in 1977 on the Philadelphia International Records label. It was Rawls' second PIR album and performed respectably ( 14 R&B and No. 41 pop), although its sales fell well short of his 1976 PIR debut '' All Things in Time''. Only one single, "See You When I Git There", was released from the album in the US; alongside "You'll Never Find Another Love Like Mine" and " Lady Love", it remains one of Rawls' best-known PIR songs. Like its predecessor, ''Unmistakably Lou'' is a well-regarded album for its mix of high-quality Philadelphia soul songs and other more jazz-influenced tracks (atypical and distinctive for a PIR production). Rawls won the Grammy Award for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance for the album in 1978. In 2005, ''Unmistakably Lou'' was reissued by Demon Music in the UK in a double package with ''All Things in Time''. Track listing All tracks written by Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff unless stat ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Grammy
The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the music industry worldwide. It was originally called the Gramophone Awards, as the trophy depicts a gilded gramophone. The Grammys are the first of the Big Three networks' major music awards held annually, and is considered one of the four major annual American entertainment awards, alongside the Academy Awards (for films), the Emmy Awards (for television), and the Tony Awards (for theater). The first Grammy Awards ceremony was held on May 4, 1959, to honor the musical accomplishments of performers for the year 1958. After the 2011 ceremony, the Recording Academy overhauled many Grammy Award categories for 2012. History The Grammys had their origin in the Hollywood Walk of Fame project in the 1950s. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kenneth Gamble
Kenneth Gamble (born August 11, 1943, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) and Leon A. Huff (born April 8, 1942, Camden, New Jersey) are an American songwriting and production team credited for developing the Philadelphia soul music genre (also known as Philly sound) of the 1970s. In addition to forming their own label, Philadelphia International Records, Gamble and Huff have written and produced 175 gold and platinum records, earning them an induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in the non-performer category in March 2008. History Early years Gamble's childhood in Philadelphia shaped his adult life: he recorded himself on various arcade recording machines, assisted the morning show DJs on WDAS, operated a record store, and sang with The Romeos. In 1964, before there was "Gamble & Huff" there was "Gamble & Ross". Gamble was discovered and managed by Jerry Ross when Gamble was only 17 years old and they collaborated for many years. Gamble teamed up with Leon Huff (keyboards) for ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Vinnie Barrett
Vinnie Barrett (born Gwendolyn Hines Woolfolk; 1945) is an American songwriter and musician. Career Barrett graduated from Armstrong High School in Washington, D.C. She studied music at Howard University and the University of the District of Columbia. She started the singing group ''Vinnie Barrett and the Unlimits'' in local clubs around Washington D.C., and sang with the Flowerettes, a back up group for Phil Flowers. Syreeta Wright, Valerie Simpson, Diane Warren and Carly Simon were her inspiration for becoming a songwriter. She started writing music at the age of nineteen. Barrett went to Philadelphia in 1969 where she was privileged to work with Kenny Gamble, Leon Huff and Thom Bell (Philadelphia International Records). Her first solo-written song, "Just Can't Get you Out Of My Mind", appeared on the album '' Spinners''. She wrote popular songs such as, "Just Don't Want to Be Lonely" (Ronnie Dyson); "Sideshow" and "Three Ring Circus", both performed by Blue Magic; "Love Won ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cynthia Biggs
Cynthia Biggs, lawfully known as Cynthia Biggs El, is an American songwriter, producer, publisher and vocalist who wrote music and lyrics for the Philadelphia International Records label. Her main collaborations were with composers Dexter Wansel, Bruce Hawes, and Theodore Wortham. Cynthia has more than 350 songwriting credits including Patti LaBelle's 1983 single ''If Only You Knew,'' which reached number 1 on ''Billboard'' magazine's Top 100 R&B Singles chart for four consecutive weeks in January 1984. Born near North Carolina territory, Cynthia was three when her family moved near Philadelphia territory. She joined her high school's gospel choir, continuing to write music for them after she graduated. Her original music garnered attention during the group's performances, leading to the offer to sign an exclusive songwriter's contract with Philadelphia International Records' Mighty Three Music Group in 1974. Discography Writer *MFSB - Love Has No Time Or Place (written wit ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sigma Sound Studios
Sigma Sound Studios was a recording studio in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.. It was founded in 1968 by recording engineer Joseph Tarsia. Located at 212 North 12th Street in Philadelphia, it was one of the first studios in the United States to offer 24-track recording capacity and the first anywhere to successfully employ console automation. Tarsia, formerly chief engineer at Philadelphia's Cameo-Parkway Studios, also opened Sigma Sound Studios of New York City in 1977, at the Ed Sullivan Theater building. History Recording From the beginning, Sigma Sound was strongly associated with Philadelphia soul and, in the 1970s, the sound of Gamble and Huff's Philadelphia International Records (its driving rhythm a precursor to disco music), as well as the classic, sophisticated productions of Thom Bell. Both featured large productions with strings and horns creating what became known as "The Sound of Philadelphia," or "T.S.O.P.", a term which became trademarked and was the title of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
ARP 2600
The ARP 2600 is a semi-modular analog subtractive audio synthesizer produced by ARP Instruments, Inc. History Developed by a design team headed by ARP namesake Allen R. Pearlman and engineer Dennis Colin, the ARP 2600 was introduced in 1971 as the successor to ARP's first instrument, the ARP 2500, at a retail price of US$2600. Unlike other modular systems of the time, which required modules to be purchased individually and wired by the user, the 2600 was semi-modular with a fixed selection of basic synthesizer components internally pre-wired, with clear text labels and front panel screen printed graphics indicating the function of different sections of controls, and the signal flow between them. The 2600 was thus ideal for musicians new to synthesis, due to its ability to be operated either with or without patch cords. On its initial release it was heavily marketed to high schools and universities. Features and architecture The ARP 2600 features three VCOs, a 4-pole (24 dB ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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