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Free Life (album)
''Free Life'' is the solo debut album by Dan Wilson, the frontman of the rock band Semisonic. It was released on October 16, 2007 by American Recordings. Produced with Rick Rubin, ''Free Life'' was recorded in Minneapolis and Los Angeles and includes performances by Tracy Bonham, Sheryl Crow, Jason Lader, Gary Louris, Natalie Maines, Benmont Tench, Jonny Polonsky, and a number of Minneapolis-based musicians including multi-instrumentalist and frequent Semisonic sideman Ken Chastain, Eric Fawcett, John Hermanson, Joanna James, Mason Jennings, Steve Rhoem, Joe Savage, as well as Wilson's Semisonic bandmates John Munson and Jacob Slichter. ''Free Life'' helped establish Wilson's reputation as a songwriter, with ''The A.V. Club ''The A.V. Club'' is an American online newspaper and entertainment website featuring reviews, interviews, and other articles that examine films, music, television, books, games, and other elements of pop-culture media. ''The A.V. Club'' was cre ...'' wri ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dan Wilson (musician)
Daniel Dodd Wilson is an American musician, singer, songwriter and record producer. His songwriting résumé includes " Closing Time", which he wrote for his band, Semisonic; "Not Ready to Make Nice", co-written with The Chicks; and " Someone Like You", co-written with Adele. He earned a Grammy nomination for "Closing Time" (Best Rock Song) and won Grammys for Song of the Year ("Not Ready to Make Nice" in 2007) and Album of the Year (which he won in 2012 as one of the producers of Adele's '' 21''). In addition to being the leader of Semisonic, Wilson has released several solo recordings, including the 2017 release '' Re-Covered''. He was also a member of the Minneapolis psychedelic rock band Trip Shakespeare. Early life and education Wilson is a native of St. Louis Park, Minnesota. Wilson attended Harvard University, where he studied visual arts with a focus on printmaking and from which he graduated B.A. ''summa cum laude'' in Visual and Environmental Studies in 1983, whil ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Natalie Maines
Natalie Louise Maines (born October 14, 1974) is an American singer. She is the lead vocalist for the all-female country band The Chicks. In 1995, after leaving Berklee College of Music, Maines was recruited by the Dixie Chicks to replace their lead singer, Laura Lynch. With Maines as lead vocalist, the band earned 10 Country Music Association Awards and 13 Grammy Awards for their work between 1998 and 2007. In 2006, with Maines still acting as lead singer, the Dixie Chicks released ''Taking the Long Way''. The album subsequently won five Grammy Awards (including Album of the Year). The Chicks album '' Gaslighter'' was released on July 17, 2020. Maines released a solo album, ''Mother'', on May 7, 2013. Early life Maines was born in Lubbock, Texas, to country musician and producer Lloyd Maines and Tina May Maines. She attended Nat Williams Elementary School in Lubbock, where her second grade teacher recalls being told by Maines during a math lesson, "Teacher, I don't need ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
2007 Albums
The following is a list of albums, EPs, and mixtapes released in 2007. These albums are (1) original, i.e. excluding reissues, remasters, and compilations of previously released recordings, and (2) notable, defined as having received significant coverage from reliable sources independent of the subject. For additional information about bands formed, reformed, disbanded, or on hiatus, for deaths of musicians, and for links to musical awards, see 2007 in music. First quarter January February March Second quarter April May June Third quarter July August September Fourth quarter October November December References {{DEFAULTSORT:2007 albums Albums An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early 20th century as individual 78 rpm records coll ... 2007 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The A
''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the most frequently used word in the English language; studies and analyses of texts have found it to account for seven percent of all printed English-language words. It is derived from gendered articles in Old English which combined in Middle English and now has a single form used with pronouns of any gender. The word can be used with both singular and plural nouns, and with a noun that starts with any letter. This is different from many other languages, which have different forms of the definite article for different genders or numbers. Pronunciation In most dialects, "the" is pronounced as (with the voiced dental fricative followed by a schwa) when followed by a consonant sound, and as (homophone of pronoun ''thee'') when followed by a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jacob Slichter
Jacob Slichter (born Jacob Huber Slichter, April 5, 1961) is an American musician. He is best known for being the drummer for the rock band Semisonic. Early life Slichter, the son of physicist Charles Slichter, was born in Boston, Massachusetts. He graduated from Harvard with a degree in African American studies and history. He is the drummer for the Minneapolis based rock band, Semisonic. Career Slichter, in 2004, wrote ''So You Wanna Be a Rock & Roll Star'' (), a book that details his experiences as a member of Semisonic and their journey through the recording industry. ''Kirkus Reviews'' wrote that "few first-person memoirs of the rock biz are as smart, honest, and entertaining as this tart, incisive work." In 2006 Slichter said that payola Payola, in the music industry, is the illegal practice of paying a commercial radio station to play a song without the station disclosing the payment. Under US law, a radio station must disclose songs they were paid to pl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
John Munson
John Munson (born December 13, 1966) is an American musician who is best known as the bass player for Semisonic. He was also a member of Trip Shakespeare during the late 1980s and early 1990s. Trip Shakespeare Matt Wilson, lead vocalist of Trip Shakespeare, recalled how Munson joined that band in 1985: Semisonic When Trip Shakespeare dissolved, Munson and fellow band member Dan Wilson—Matt's brother—formed a new band called Pleasure with Jacob Slichter, which later became Semisonic. Current projects Currently Munson is working on several different projects, including working with former Trip Shakespeare mate Matt Wilson on new songs as The Flops and later The Twilight Hours, and also on the New Standards, a band that plays covers of a wide variety of music in a jazz format. Other members of the New Standards include Chan Poling (formerly of Minneapolis dance pop band The Suburbs ''The Suburbs'' is the third studio album by Canadian indie rock band Arcade Fire, r ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mason Jennings
Mason Jennings is an American folk-pop singer-songwriter. Biography Born in Hawaii, Jennings moved with his family to Pittsburgh at an early age. Jennings learned to play guitar at the age of 13, when he began writing songs. Jennings later dropped out of school and moved to Minneapolis to pursue his musical career. Jennings produced his self-titled debut album in 1997 on an analog four-track in the living room of a rented home, playing all instruments himself. In October 1998, joined by drummer Chris Stock and bassist Robert Skoro, he began a weekly gig at the 400 Bar as the Mason Jennings Band. The two-week gig ended up lasting four months. In April 1999, six months after forming, The Mason Jennings Band was voted by the 1999 "Picked to Click Poll" conducted by the Minneapolis-St. Paul newspaper, City Pages. Mason began touring nationally and expanded the depth of his sound by inviting saxophonist Chris Thomson to play with them occasionally and replacing Stock with Brazilian ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ken Chastain
Kenneth Lee Chastain (born October 15, 1964, Hanover, New Hampshire) is a musician, engineer, and producer currently living in Minneapolis, Minnesota. He is featured on percussion on Ziggy Marley's ''Love Is My Religion'' album and many other well-known artists' works. Chastain also composes, produces, engineers, and mixes for TV and film projects, most notably the movie ''Sweet Land''. History Chastain was born in New Hampshire, and lived in France and Morocco with his Peace Corps parents before moving to Minnesota. He played Suzuki cello and was a soloist in the Metropolitan Boys Choir in the Twin Cities. He went on to the University of Minnesota and the Berklee College of Music in Boston to study music, audio engineering and film scoring. He plays bass, guitar, keyboards, trumpet, harmonica, Chapman Stick, theremin, and percussion. Pixel Farm As head of audio post-production at Pixel Farm Minneapolis, and chief engineer and composer for Pixel Farm Music, Ken Chastain ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jonny Polonsky
Jonny Polonsky (born July 10, 1973) is an American rock guitarist, singer, multi-instrumentalist and record producer. Career Born in Chicago, Illinois and raised in suburban Wilmette, Illinois, Polonsky began writing, recording and self-releasing homemade cassettes as a teenager, under the name The Amazing Jonny Polonsky. Titles included Aw, Blow it Out Yer Ass!, Premium White American, and I Like Porn. Polonsky handed these tapes out to friends, and to musicians he admired. Using the 411 public phone records, Polonsky was able to reach and befriend musical heroes of his such as guitarists Marc Ribot (Tom Waits, Elvis Costello), Zander Schloss (Joe Strummer, Circle Jerks), Reeves Gabrels (David Bowie, Tin Machine), and Pixies singer Frank Black/Black Francis. Marc Ribot introduced legendary New York composer John Zorn to these early tapes, and Zorn invited Polonsky to play his New Jewish Music festival in 1992 at CBGB's Gallery. Polonsky's band featured Marc Ribot on guitar, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Benmont Tench
Benjamin Montmorency "Benmont" Tench III (born September 7, 1953) is an American musician and singer, and a founding member of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. Early years Tench was born in Gainesville, Florida, the second child of Benjamin Montmorency Tench Jr. and Mary Catherine McInnis Tench. His father was born and raised in the city of Gainesville, and served as a circuit court judge. Tench played piano from an early age. His first recital was at age six. After discovering the music of The Beatles, he ended his classical piano lessons and focused on rock and roll. At age 11, he met Tom Petty for the first time at a Gainesville music store. Petty and Tench played together as members of The Sundowners in 1964. The Tench family's garage was a frequent practice site for the band. Education He attended Phillips Exeter Academy, and subsequently Tulane University in New Orleans. While on a college break, Tench went to a concert by Mudcrutch, Petty's band, with an opening ac ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gary Louris
Gary Louris (born March 10, 1955) is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter of alternative country and pop music. He was a founding member of the Minneapolis-based band the Jayhawks and their principal songwriter and vocalist after the departure of Mark Olson. Louris is often credited with the band's subsequent move from folk-country toward a more progressive, pop sound. Biography Early life Gary Louris grew up in Toledo, Ohio, where he took piano lessons before becoming a guitarist as a teenager. He graduated from St. John's Jesuit High School in 1973. Louris received a BA in Architecture from the University of Minnesota School of Architecture in 1977. 1985–present: The Jayhawks The Jayhawks were formed in 1985 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Louris had formerly played guitar in a rockabilly band, Safety Last. On May 13, 2003, the Jayhawks appeared on the Late Show with David Letterman and performed "Save It for a Rainy Day", from their "Rainy Day Music" CD. The Jayha ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Alternative Rock
Alternative rock, or alt-rock, is a category of rock music that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1970s and became widely popular in the 1990s. "Alternative" refers to the genre's distinction from Popular culture, mainstream or commercial rock or pop music. The term's original meaning was broader, referring to musicians influenced by the musical style or independent, DIY ethic, DIY ethos of late-1970s punk rock.di Perna, Alan. "Brave Noise—The History of Alternative Rock Guitar". ''Guitar World''. December 1995. Traditionally, alternative rock varied in terms of its sound, social context, and regional roots. Throughout the 1980s, magazines and zines, college radio airplay, and word of mouth had increased the prominence and highlighted the diversity of alternative rock's distinct styles (and music scenes), such as noise pop, indie rock, grunge, and shoegaze. In September 1988, Billboard (magazine), ''Billboard'' introduced "alternative" into their charting ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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