Geoffrey Downes
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Geoffrey Downes
Geoffrey Downes (born 25 August 1952) is an English keyboardist who gained fame as a member of the new wave group The Buggles with Trevor Horn, the progressive rock band Yes, and the supergroup Asia. Born in Stockport, Downes moved to London to pursue a music career. In 1977, he formed The Buggles with Horn and enjoyed success with their first album ''The Age of Plastic'' (1980) which included the worldwide hit single "Video Killed the Radio Star". In May 1980, Downes joined Yes with Horn and recorded ''Drama'' (1980). After Yes disbanded in 1981, Downes helped Trevor Horn to produce a second Buggles album, ''Adventures in Modern Recording'' (1981) although he was only primarily involved for half of it, and co-founded Asia with ex-Yes fellow musician Steve Howe. He left Asia in 1986, rejoined in 1990, and has been a part of the line-up since then; he released several solo albums and produced for several artists, including Mike Oldfield and the Thompson Twins. In 2006, Downe ...
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Stockport
Stockport is a town and borough in Greater Manchester, England, south-east of Manchester, south-west of Ashton-under-Lyne and north of Macclesfield. The River Goyt and Tame merge to create the River Mersey here. Most of the town is within the boundaries of the historic county of Cheshire, with the area north of the Mersey in the historic county of Lancashire. Stockport in the 16th century was a small town entirely on the south bank of the Mersey, known for the cultivation of hemp and manufacture of rope. In the 18th century, it had one of the first mechanised silk factories in the British Isles. Stockport's predominant industries of the 19th century were the cotton and allied industries. It was also at the centre of the country's hatting industry, which by 1884 was exporting more than six million hats a year; the last hat works in Stockport closed in 1997. Dominating the western approaches to the town is Stockport Viaduct. Built in 1840, its 27 brick arches carry the mai ...
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White (band)
White was a progressive rock band formed by Alan White in 2005. History Alan White had achieved success in his role as the drummer with Yes, as well as having worked with John Lennon, George Harrison and Joe Cocker. Between tours with Yes, Alan formed a friendship with Seattle-based band, MerKaBa. He had also got to know another local band, Treason, and guested on their eponymous 1997 debut album. Alan began playing shows with MerKaBa and through his friendship with MerKaBa bassist, Steve Boyce, began working on a new album, along with Wayo Hogan, Kevin Currie, keyboardist Ted Stockwell (of Treason), and guitarist Karl Haug. The MerKaBa identity was dropped and the band took on the new name of White. An album was completed in mid-2004 with Stockwell on keys to have been called ''New Day'' (tracks: "Fate", "The Way You See Me", "DreamAway", "New Day", "Shine", "Up", "Loyal", "Rite of Rain", "Mighty Love", "Burn All the Maps", "Waterhole (I'll Come Around)") and the band played ...
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Guinness Book Of Records
''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a reference book published annually, listing world records both of human achievements and the extremes of the natural world. The brainchild of Sir Hugh Beaver, the book was co-founded by twin brothers Norris and Ross McWhirter in Fleet Street, London, in August 1955. The first edition topped the best-seller list in the United Kingdom by Christmas 1955. The following year the book was launched internationally, and as of the 2022 edition, it is now in its 67th year of publication, published in 100 countries and 23 languages, and maintains over 53,000 records in its database. The international franchise has extended beyond print to include television series and museums. The popularity of the franchise has resulted in ''Guinness World Records'' becoming the primary international authority ...
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Thompson Twins
Thompson Twins were a British Pop music, pop band formed in 1977 in Sheffield. Initially a New wave music, new wave group, they switched to a more mainstream pop sound and achieved considerable popularity during the mid-1980s, scoring a string of hits in the United Kingdom, the United States, and around the world. In 1993, they changed their name to Babble (band), Babble, to reflect their change in music from pop to Dub music, dub-influenced Chill-out music, chill-out. They continued as Babble until 1996, at which point the group permanently broke up. The band's name was based on the two bumbling detectives Thomson and Thompson (who are close doubles not twins) in the English language version of Hergé's comic strip ''The Adventures of Tintin''. At various stages they had up to seven members, but their best known line-up was as a trio between 1982 and 1986. The band became a prominent act in the US during the Second British Invasion, and in 1985 performed at Live Aid in Philade ...
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Mike Oldfield
Mike may refer to: Animals * Mike (cat), cat and guardian of the British Museum * Mike the Headless Chicken, chicken that lived for 18 months after his head had been cut off * Mike (chimpanzee), a chimpanzee featured in several books and documentaries Arts * Mike (miniseries), a 2022 Hulu limited series based on the life of American boxer Mike Tyson * Mike (2022 film), a Malayalam film produced by John Abraham * ''Mike'' (album), an album by Mike Mohede * ''Mike'' (1926 film), an American film * MIKE (musician), American rapper, songwriter and record * ''Mike'' (novel), a 1909 novel by P. G. Wodehouse * "Mike" (song), by Elvana Gjata and Ledri Vula featuring John Shahu * Mike (''Twin Peaks''), a character from ''Twin Peaks'' * "Mike", a song by Xiu Xiu from their 2004 album ''Fabulous Muscles'' Businesses * Mike (cellular network), a defunct Canadian cellular network * Mike and Ike, a candies brand Military * MIKE Force, a unit in the Vietnam War * Ivy Mike, the first ...
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Steve Howe (musician)
Stephen James Howe (born 8 April 1947) is an English musician, best known as the guitarist in the progressive rock band Yes across three stints since 1970. Born in Holloway, North London, Howe developed an interest in the guitar and began to learn the instrument himself at age 12. He embarked on a music career in 1964, first playing in several London-based blues, covers, and psychedelic rock bands for six years, including the Syndicats, Tomorrow, and Bodast. Upon joining Yes in 1970, Howe helped to change the band's musical direction, leading to more commercial and critical success. His blend of acoustic and electric guitar helped shape the sound of the band. Many of their best-known songs were co-written by Howe, who remained with the band until they briefly disbanded in 1981. Howe returned to the group in 1990 for two years and has remained a full-time member since 1995. After Alan White's death in 2022, he is the longest-serving member of the band currently active. Howe a ...
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Adventures In Modern Recording
''Adventures in Modern Recording'' is the second and final studio album by English new wave group the Buggles, released on 11 November 1981 by Carrere Records. Although the Buggles began as a duo of Trevor Horn and Geoff Downes, the album ended up as mostly Horn's solo effort, as Downes left to join the English rock band Asia on the day recording was originally scheduled to begin. It contains nine tracks, including a version of a track from the Buggles' collaborative album with Yes, ''Drama'' (1980); it was originally named "Into the Lens", but the Buggles rendition is titled "I Am a Camera". A stylistically and sonically varied progressive electronic album, ''Adventures in Modern Recording'' depicts Horn perfecting his skill as producer and was described by journalists as a document for how he would produce his later works. It was one of the earliest albums to use the Fairlight CMI, one of the first digital sampling synthesizers. Upon its release, ''Adventures in Modern Record ...
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Drama (Yes Album)
''Drama'' is the tenth studio album by the English progressive rock band Yes, released on 18 August 1980 by Atlantic Records. It is their only album to feature Trevor Horn on lead vocals and the first with Geoff Downes on keyboards. This followed the departures of Jon Anderson and Rick Wakeman after attempts to record a new album in Paris and London had failed. ''Drama'' was recorded hurriedly with Horn and Downes, as a tour had already been booked before the change in personnel. The album marked a development in Yes' musical direction, combining the band's progressive signature with Horn and Downes' new wave sensibilities. ''Drama'' was released to a mostly positive critical reception, with most welcoming the band's new sound. It peaked at No. 2 in the UK and No. 18 in the US, though it became their first album since 1971 not to reach gold certification by the RIAA, and their first to miss the top ten there since ''The Yes Album''. "Into the Lens" was released as the album's so ...
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Video Killed The Radio Star
"Video Killed the Radio Star" is a song written by Trevor Horn, Geoff Downes and Bruce Woolley in 1979. It was recorded concurrently by Bruce Woolley and the Camera Club (with Thomas Dolby on keyboards) for their album '' English Garden'' and by British new wave/synth-pop group the Buggles, which consisted of Horn and Downes (and initially Woolley). The Buggles' version of the track was recorded and mixed in 1979, released as their debut single on 7 September 1979 by Island Records, and included on their first album ''The Age of Plastic''. The backing track was recorded at Virgin's Town House in West London, and mixing and vocal recording was done at Sarm East Studios. The song relates to concerns about, and mixed attitudes towards 20th-century inventions and machines for the media arts. Musically, the song performs like an extended jingle and the composition plays in the key of D-flat major in common time at a tempo of 132 beats per minute. The track has been positively re ...
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The Age Of Plastic
''The Age of Plastic'' is the debut album by the English new wave duo the Buggles, released on 10 January 1980 on Island Records. It is a concept album about the possible repercussions of modern technology. The title was conceived from the group's intention of being a "plastic group" and the album was produced in the wake of the success of their debut record, "Video Killed the Radio Star" (1979), which topped the UK Singles Chart. Most of the album's other tracks were written during promotion of the single. The album was recorded on a budget of £60,000. Bassist Trevor Horn was chiefly inspired by Kraftwerk's 1978 album ''The Man-Machine'' and sought unconventional recording methods for ''The Age of Plastic''. Keyboardist Geoff Downes characterised the album as "science fiction music ... like modern psychedelic music ... very futuristic." Several tracks also featured contributions from vocalist Bruce Woolley, who left the group mid-production. The backing tracks were recorded ...
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Supergroup (music)
A supergroup is a musical group whose members are successful as solo artists or as members of other successful groups. The term became popular in the late 1960s when members of already successful rock groups recorded albums together, after which they normally disband. Charity supergroups, in which prominent musicians perform or record together in support of a particular cause, have been common since the 1980s. The term is most common context of rock and pop music, but it has occasionally been applied to other musical genres. For example, opera superstars The Three Tenors ( José Carreras, Plácido Domingo, and Luciano Pavarotti) have been called a supergroup. A supergroup sometimes forms as a side project for a single recording project or other ''ad hoc'' purposes, with no intention that the group will remain together afterwards. In other instances, the group may become the primary focus of the members' career. History ''Rolling Stone'' editor Jann Wenner credited British rock ...
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Progressive Rock
Progressive rock (shortened as prog rock or simply prog; sometimes conflated with art rock) is a broad genre of rock music that developed in the United Kingdom and United States through the mid- to late 1960s, peaking in the early 1970s. Initially termed "progressive pop", the style was an outgrowth of psychedelic bands who abandoned standard pop traditions in favour of instrumentation and compositional techniques more frequently associated with jazz, folk, or classical music. Additional elements contributed to its " progressive" label: lyrics were more poetic, technology was harnessed for new sounds, music approached the condition of "art", and the studio, rather than the stage, became the focus of musical activity, which often involved creating music for listening rather than dancing. Progressive rock is based on fusions of styles, approaches and genres, involving a continuous move between formalism and eclecticism. Due to its historical reception, the scope of progressiv ...
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