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Gwen Guthrie
Gwendolyn Guthrie (July 9, 1950 – February 3, 1999) was an American singer-songwriter and pianist who also sang backing vocals for Aretha Franklin, Billy Joel, Stevie Wonder, Peter Tosh, and Madonna, among others, and who wrote songs made famous by Ben E. King, Angela Bofill and Roberta Flack. Guthrie is well known for her 1986 anthem "Ain't Nothin' Goin' on But the Rent," and for her 1986 cover of the song " (They Long to Be) Close to You." Life and career Guthrie was born and raised in Newark, New Jersey. In school, she studied classical music, and her father began teaching her piano when she was eight years old. By the early 1970s, she had joined vocal groups such as the Ebonettes and the Matchmakers, while working as an elementary school teacher. She was a backup singer on Aretha Franklin's 1974 single " I'm in Love". Guthrie soon began moonlighting as a singer of commercial jingles, sometimes with her friend Valerie Simpson of Ashford & Simpson fame. A song-writing part ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gwyneth Guthrie
Gwyneth (sometimes Gweneth) is a Welsh feminine given name which derives from the kingdom of Gwynedd. Notable people: * Gwyneth Boodoo, an American psychologist and expert on educational measurement *Gwyneth Cravens, an American novelist and journalist *Gwyneth Dunwoody (1930–2008), a Member of Parliament in the United Kingdom *Gwyneth Glyn (born 1979), a Welsh language poet and musician *Gwyneth Herbert (born 1981), a British singer-songwriter and composer * Gwyneth Ho (born 1990), a Hong Kong social activist and former journalist *Gwyneth Hughes, British screenwriter and documentary director *Mabel Gweneth Humphreys, mathematician *Gwyneth Johnstone (1915–2010), English landscape painter *Gwyneth Jones (novelist) (born 1952), a British science fiction and fantasy writer and critic *Dame Gwyneth Jones (soprano) DBE (born 1936), a Welsh soprano *Gwyneth Lewis (born 1959), a Welsh poet, and the first National Poet for Wales * Gweneth Lilly (1920–2004), Welsh writer and t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ben E
Ben is frequently used as a shortened version of the given names Benjamin (name), Benjamin, Benedict (given name), Benedict, Bennett (name), Bennett or Benson (given name), Benson, and is also a given name in its own right. Ben (Hebrew), Ben (in he, בֶּן, ''son of'') forms part of Hebrew surnames, e.g. Abraham ben Abraham ( he, אברהם בן אברהם). Bar (Aramaic)#Aramaic, Bar-, "son of" in Aramaic language, Aramaic, is also seen, e.g. Simon bar Kokhba ( he, שמעון בר כוכבא). Ben meaning "son of" is also found in Arabic as ''Ben'' (dialectal Arabic) or ''bin'' (بن), ''Ibn''/''ebn'' (ابن). People with the given name * Ben Adams (born 1981), member of the British boy band A1 * Ben Affleck (born 1972), American Academy Award-winning actor and screenwriter * Ben Ashkenazy (born 1968/69), American billionaire real estate developer * Ben Askren (born 1984), American sport wrestler and mixed martial artist * Ben Banogu (born 1996), American football player ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sister Sledge
Sister Sledge is an American musical vocal group from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Formed in 1971, the group consisted of sisters Debbie, Joni, Kim, and Kathy Sledge. The siblings achieved international success at the height of the disco era. In 1979, they released their breakthrough album '' We Are Family'', which peaked at number three on the ''Billboard'' 200 and included the 1979 US top-10 singles "He's the Greatest Dancer" and " We Are Family". A third single, " Lost in Music", reached the US top 40. "We Are Family" earned a Grammy Award nomination for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal. Their other US singles include a 1982 remake of Mary Wells' 1964 hit "My Guy", "Mama Never Told Me" (1973), and " Thinking of You" (1984), before reaching number one on the UK Singles Chart with the song "Frankie" in 1985. Remixed versions of three of their singles in 1993 returned them to the UK Top 20. Although Kathy undertook a solo career in 1989, she continued to tour ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
This Time I'll Be Sweeter
"This Time I'll Be Sweeter" is a soul ballad written by Haras Fyre (professionally known as Pat Grant) and Gwen Guthrie. Early versions The first release of "This Time I'll Be Sweeter" was as the B-side of the May 1975 Arista Records single release "Love Blind" by Martha Reeves; both sides of Reeves' single were produced by Bert De Coteaux and Tony Silvester who had hired composers Gwen Guthrie and Haras Fyre (pka Patrick/Pat Grant) as staff writers for the De Coteaux/Silvester company Penumbra Music in 1973. The Martha Reeves version of "This Time I'll Be Sweeter" was included on Reeves' 1976 album release ''The Rest of My Life''. De Couteaux and Silvester also produced the version by Linda Lewis on her album '' Not a Little Girl Anymore'' released - also on Arista - in June 1975. Lewis' version - whose chorale consisted of the song's co-writer Gwen Guthrie with Deniece Williams - was released as the album's lead single in the US. It was later issued in the UK in September ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Supernatural Thing (song)
"Supernatural Thing" is a song recorded by American soul and R&B singer Ben E. King. The single, released in 1975 by Atlantic Records, was a No. 1 hit on the U.S. ''Billboard'' Hot Soul Singles chart for one week. It also reached No. 5 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. "Supernatural Thing" was written by Haras Fyre (pseudonym Patrick Grant) and Gwen Guthrie and was produced by Tony Silvester and Bert DeCoteaux. The song was included on King's 1975 album ''Supernatural''. Personnel Musicians * Al Caiola – guitar * Ben E. King – vocals * Charles McCracken – guitar * Ernie Hayes – piano * Gary Chester – drums * Lloyd Trotman – bass * Phil Kraus – percussion Production * Bert "Super Charts" De Coteaux – arranger * Tony "Champagne" Silvester – producer Cover versions *Rock band Siouxsie and the Banshees recorded it in 1981 as the B-side of their " Arabian Knights" single; it was later included on the band's 2004 ''Downside Up'' collection. *American soul duo Ch ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Haras Fyre
Haras Fyre (born January 5, 1953), also known professionally as Patrick Grant, is an American singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist. After writing songs for Sister Sledge and Ben E. King early in his career in a songwriting duo with his girlfriend Gwen Guthrie, Fyre spent some time in the backing band for The Drifters, before relocating to Switzerland to become a composer of music for corporate events. Background Born and raised in Newark, New Jersey, United States, Fyre's early musical influences included Victor Herbert and Frankie Valli. As a teenager, Fyre learned to play his brother's trombone from recordings by Chicago. He subsequently began learning bass while playing with the band Parkway North from East Orange, New Jersey, borrowing a Baldwin Bass from the band's bassist Romeo Williams. In 1971, Fyre joined a local band called the Matchmakers, where he met vocalist and pianist Gwen Guthrie. Fyre and Guthrie became romantically involved, moved in together, and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ashford & Simpson
Ashford & Simpson were an American husband-and-wife songwriting-production team and recording duo of Nickolas Ashford (May 4, 1941 – August 22, 2011) and Valerie Simpson (born August 26, 1946). Ashford was born in Fairfield, South Carolina, and Simpson in the Bronx, New York City. Afterwards, his family relocated to Ypsilanti, Michigan, where he became a member of Christ Temple Baptist Church. While there, he sang with a group called the Hammond Singers (named after the founding minister, James Hammond). Later, Nickolas attended and graduated from Willow Run High School in Ypsilanti, Michigan, before pursuing his professional career, where he would ultimately meet his wife, Valerie. They met at Harlem's White Rock Baptist Church in 1964. After having recorded unsuccessfully as a duo, they joined an aspiring solo artist and former member of the Ikettes, Joshie Jo Armstead, at the Scepter/Wand label, where their compositions were recorded by Ronnie Milsap ("Never Had It So G ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
I'm In Love (Bobby Womack Song)
"I'm in Love" is a song written by Bobby Womack. It was first recorded by Wilson Pickett in 1967, which gave him a top-ten R&B hit on ''Billboard'''s chart in 1968, peaking at number 4 as well as peaking at number 45 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. Background "I'm in Love" was written in response to some of the criticism he had been receiving after marrying the widow of the recently deceased Sam Cooke. Cover versions *Womack himself recorded his version of the song in 1968 shortly after Pickett's version was released and included it on his 1969 album, '' Fly Me to the Moon''. *The version to achieve the most success came in 1974, when Aretha Franklin released it as a single. Her version hit number 1 on Billboard's R&B chart for two weeks and also peaked at number 19 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. Wilson Pickett's version is most recently used as the back-track for Nature of the Beast's "When It's Good". *Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers covered the song in concert in the early 19 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Piano
The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keyboard, which is a row of keys (small levers) that the performer presses down or strikes with the fingers and thumbs of both hands to cause the hammers to strike the strings. It was invented in Italy by Bartolomeo Cristofori around the year 1700. Description The word "piano" is a shortened form of ''pianoforte'', the Italian term for the early 1700s versions of the instrument, which in turn derives from ''clavicembalo col piano e forte'' (key cimbalom with quiet and loud)Pollens (1995, 238) and ''fortepiano''. The Italian musical terms ''piano'' and ''forte'' indicate "soft" and "loud" respectively, in this context referring to the variations in volume (i.e., loudness) produced in response to a pianist's touch or pressure on the keys: the grea ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Classical Music
Classical music generally refers to the art music of the Western world, considered to be distinct from Western folk music or popular music traditions. It is sometimes distinguished as Western classical music, as the term "classical music" also applies to non-Western art music. Classical music is often characterized by formality and complexity in its musical form and harmonic organization, particularly with the use of polyphony. Since at least the ninth century it has been primarily a written tradition, spawning a sophisticated notational system, as well as accompanying literature in analytical, critical, historiographical, musicological and philosophical practices. A foundational component of Western Culture, classical music is frequently seen from the perspective of individual or groups of composers, whose compositions, personalities and beliefs have fundamentally shaped its history. Rooted in the patronage of churches and royal courts in Western Europe, surviving earl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
(They Long To Be) Close To You
"(They Long to Be) Close to You" is a song written by Burt Bacharach and Hal David. The best-known version is that recorded by American duo the Carpenters for their second studio album '' Close to You'' (1970) and produced by Jack Daugherty. Released on May 14, 1970, the single topped both the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and Adult Contemporary charts. It also reached the top of the Canadian and Australian charts and peaked at number six on the charts of both the UK and Ireland. The record was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) in August 1970. Early versions The song was first recorded by Richard Chamberlain and released as a single in 1963 as "They Long to Be Close to You". However, while the single's other side, "Blue Guitar", became a hit, "They Long to Be Close to You" did not. The tune was also recorded as a demo by Dionne Warwick in 1963, was re-recorded with a Burt Bacharach arrangement for her album ''Make Way for Dionne Warwick'' (1964), an ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ain't Nothin' Goin' On But The Rent
"Ain't Nothin' Goin' On but the Rent" is a song by American singer-songwriter Gwen Guthrie. It was released in 1986 as the lead single from her fourth album, '' Good to Go Lover'' (1986), on Polydor Records. It became the biggest hit of Guthrie's career, and the song's title became a semi-popular catchphrase among many women throughout the late 1980s and early 1990s. The single peaked at number five in the UK, but hit number-one in New Zealand, Zimbabwe and on the US '' Billboard'' Hot Dance Club Play. In 1993, it was remixed and again charted in the UK, peaking at number 42. In 2005, ''Blender'' listed "Ain't Nothin' Goin' On but the Rent" as number 339 on its list of "Greatest Songs Since You Were Born". Critical reception Alan Jones from ''Music Week'' gave the 1993 remix three out of five. He wrote, "A disappointing seven-inch remix by Nigel Wright is stale and one-dimensional, but the original, still sounding fresh, and a radical E-Lustrious remix are more than enough to sco ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
