Gerry Beckley
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Gerry Beckley
Gerald Linford Beckley (born September 12, 1952), better known as Gerry Beckley, is an American singer, songwriter, and musician, and a founding member of the band America. Early life Beckley was born to an American father and an English mother. He began playing the piano at the age of three and the guitar a few years later. By 1962, Beckley was playing guitar in The Vanguards, an instrumental surf music band in Virginia. He spent every summer in England and soon discovered British invasion music. Career In 1967, Beckley's father became the commander at the United States Air Force base at West Ruislip, near London. Gerry attended London Central High School in Bushey Hall in north west London, where he played in various school bands and met his soon-to-be bandmates, Dewey Bunnell and Dan Peek. Originally, the group played on Friday nights at the local American teen club, mostly doing acoustic covers of Crosby, Stills, and Nash tunes. The original drummer was a classmate, Dav ...
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Fort Worth, Texas
Fort Worth is the fifth-largest city in the U.S. state of Texas and the 13th-largest city in the United States. It is the county seat of Tarrant County, covering nearly into four other counties: Denton, Johnson, Parker, and Wise. According to a 2022 United States census estimate, Fort Worth's population was 958,692. Fort Worth is the city in the Dallas–Fort Worth–Arlington metropolitan area, which is the fourth most populous metropolitan area in the United States. The city of Fort Worth was established in 1849 as an army outpost on a bluff overlooking the Trinity River. Fort Worth has historically been a center of the Texas Longhorn cattle trade. It still embraces its Western heritage and traditional architecture and design. is the first ship of the United States Navy named after the city. Nearby Dallas has held a population majority as long as records have been kept, yet Fort Worth has become one of the fastest-growing cities in the United States at the beginning ...
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London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a major settlement for two millennia. The City of London, its ancient core and financial centre, was founded by the Romans as '' Londinium'' and retains its medieval boundaries.See also: Independent city § National capitals The City of Westminster, to the west of the City of London, has for centuries hosted the national government and parliament. Since the 19th century, the name "London" has also referred to the metropolis around this core, historically split between the counties of Middlesex, Essex, Surrey, Kent, and Hertfordshire, which largely comprises Greater London, governed by the Greater London Authority.The Greater London Authority consists of the Mayor of London and the London Assembly. The London Mayor is distinguished fr ...
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The Beach Boys
The Beach Boys are an American Rock music, rock band that formed in Hawthorne, California, in 1961. The group's original lineup consisted of brothers Brian Wilson, Brian, Dennis Wilson, Dennis, and Carl Wilson, their cousin Mike Love, and friend Al Jardine. Distinguished by their vocal harmony, vocal harmonies, adolescent-themed lyrics, and musical ingenuity, they are one of the most influential acts of the rock era. They drew on the music of traditional pop, older pop vocal groups, 1950s rock and roll, and black R&B to create their unique sound. Under Brian's direction, they often incorporated classical music, classical or jazz elements and Recording studio as an instrument, unconventional recording techniques in innovative ways. The Beach Boys began as a garage band, managed by the Wilsons' father Murry Wilson, Murry, with Brian serving as composer, arranger, producer, and ''de facto'' leader. In 1963, they enjoyed their first national hit with "Surfin' U.S.A.", beginning a ...
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Carl Wilson
Carl Dean Wilson (December 21, 1946 – February 6, 1998) was an American musician, singer, and songwriter who co-founded the Beach Boys. He was their lead guitarist, the youngest sibling of bandmates Brian and Dennis, and the group's ''de facto'' leader in the early to mid-1970s. He was also the band's musical director on stage from 1965 until his death. Influenced by the guitar playing of Chuck Berry and the Ventures, Wilson's initial role in the group was that of lead guitarist and backing vocals, but he performed lead vocals on several of their later hits, including "God Only Knows" (1966), "Good Vibrations" (1966), "I Can Hear Music" (1969), and " Kokomo" (1988). Unlike other members of the band, he often played alongside the studio musicians employed during the group's critical and commercial peak in the mid-1960s. After Brian's reduced involvement with the group, Carl produced the bulk of their albums between ''20/20'' (1969) and ''Holland'' (1973). Concurrently, he ...
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David Cassidy
David Bruce Cassidy (April 12, 1950 – November 21, 2017) was an American actor, singer, songwriter, and guitarist. He was best known for his role as Keith Partridge, the son of Shirley Partridge (played by his stepmother, Shirley Jones), in the 1970s musical-sitcom ''The Partridge Family''. This role catapulted Cassidy to teen idol status as a superstar pop singer of the 1970s. Early life Cassidy was born at Flower Fifth Avenue Hospital in New York City, the son of singer and actor Jack Cassidy and actress Evelyn Ward. His father was of half Irish and half German ancestry, and his mother was descended mostly from Colonial Americans, along with having some Irish and Swiss roots. His mother's ancestors were among the founders of Newark, New Jersey. As his parents were frequently touring on the road, he spent his early years being raised by his maternal grandparents in a middle-class neighborhood in West Orange, New Jersey. In 1956, he found out from neighbors' children that hi ...
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Cry-Baby
''Cry-Baby'' is a 1990 American teen musical romantic comedy film written and directed by John Waters. It was the only film of Waters's over which studios were in a bidding war, coming off the heels of the successful ''Hairspray''. The film stars Johnny Depp as 1950s teen rebel "Cry-Baby" Wade Walker, and also features a large ensemble cast that includes Amy Locane, Polly Bergen, Susan Tyrrell, Iggy Pop, Ricki Lake and Traci Lords, with appearances by Troy Donahue, Mink Stole, Joe Dallesandro, Joey Heatherton, David Nelson, Willem Dafoe, and Patricia Hearst. The film centers on a group of delinquent youth who refer to themselves as "drapes" and their interaction with the rest of the town and its other subculture, the "squares", in 1950s Baltimore, Maryland. "Cry-Baby" Walker, a drape, and Allison, a square, disturb Baltimore society by breaking the subculture taboos and falling in love. The film shows what the young couple has to overcome to be together and how their actions ...
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You Can Do Magic (song)
"You Can Do Magic" is a song by singer-songwriter Russ Ballard that was recorded as a 1982 single by folk rock duo America from their album ''View from the Ground''. The song was one of two Ballard compositions on ''View from the Ground'', the other being "Jody". Ballard wrote both songs specifically for America at the behest of Rupert Perry, A&R vice president for Capitol Records. Ballard also produced the tracks marking a return to record production after a four-year hiatus; although Ballard had earlier hits as a songwriter, "You Can Do Magic" was his first major hit credit as a producer. "You Can Do Magic" proved a solid comeback vehicle for America whose last Top 40 hit—"Today's the Day"—had occurred in 1976; the second of two subsequent appearances on the Hot 100 was in 1979. "You Can Do Magic" returned America to the Top 40 in August 1982 with the track reaching No. 8 that October, and holding that position for five weeks. The popularity of "You Can Do Magic" was par ...
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Daisy Jane
"Daisy Jane" is a song written by Gerry Beckley of the group America included on the 1975 America album '' Hearts''. Issued as that album's second single — following up the #1 hit "Sister Golden Hair" — "Daisy Jane" reached #20 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, becoming the final Top 20 hit by the original three-member incarnation of America. On the Easy Listening chart the track reached #4. In Canada the chart peak of "Daisy Jane" was #16 on the Pop singles chart and #2 on the Adult Contemporary chart. The song's narrator indicates he's flying back to Memphis in hopes of reconnecting with the girl he left behind "to roam the city". Beckley, who wrote the song at his cottage in East Sussex, has stated: "There was no such person as Daisy Jane and I had never even been to Memphis": Beckley believes that he likely drew the idea of writing a song entitled "Daisy Jane" from the Nick Drake song "Hazey Jane". ''Cash Box'' called it "a tender rock ballad with George Martin’s brilli ...
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Sister Golden Hair
"Sister Golden Hair" is a song by the band America from their fifth album '' Hearts'' (1975), written by Gerry Beckley. It was their second single to reach number one on the U.S. ''Billboard'' Hot 100, remaining in the top position for one week. Background Beckley says "There was no actual Sister Gold Hair." The lyrics were largely inspired by the works of Jackson Browne Clyde Jackson Browne (born October 9, 1948) is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and political activist who has sold over 18 million albums in the United States. Emerging as a precocious teenage songwriter in mid-1960s Los Angeles, he h .... Beckley commented, " ackson Brownehas a knack, an ability to put words to music, that is much more like the L.A. approach to just genuine observation as opposed to simplifying it down to its bare essentials... I find Jackson can depress me a little bit, but only through his honesty; and it was that style of his which led to a song of mine, 'Sister Golden Hair', wh ...
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I Need You (America Song)
"I Need You," released in 1972, is the second single by the band America from their eponymous debut album ''America''. The song was written by Gerry Beckley. ''Cash Box'' described it as "a gentle, 'Something'-ish ballad." It appears on the live albums ''Live'' (1977), '' In Concert'' (1985), '' In Concert (King Biscuit)'', '' Horse With No Name - Live!'' (1995), and '' The Grand Cayman Concert'' (2002). The studio version is included on the compilation albums ''Highway'' (2000) and '' The Complete Greatest Hits'' (2001). George Martin remixed the studio recording for inclusion on '' History: America's Greatest Hits'' (1975) with the pitch brought down a quarter tone and the bass guitar brought up further in volume from the original release. An alternate mix from 1971 (otherwise based on the George Martin mix) appears on the 2015 release ''Archives, Vol. 1''. Personnel (Per back cover of 1972 vinyl issue of ''America''.) * Dewey Bunnell – 6-string acoustic guitar, backing v ...
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A Horse With No Name
"A Horse with No Name" is a song by the folk rock band America, written by Dewey Bunnell. It was the band's first and most successful single, released in late 1971 in Europe and early 1972 in the United States, that topped the charts in Canada, Finland, and the United States. It was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America. Development America's self-titled debut album was released initially in Europe, without "A Horse with No Name", and achieved only moderate success. Originally called "Desert Song", "Horse" was written while the band was staying at the home of studio musician Arthur Brown, near Puddletown, Dorset, England. The first two demos were recorded there by Jeff Dexter and Dennis Elliott, which were intended to capture the sensation of the hot, dry desert that had been depicted in a Salvador Dalí painting, and in a picture by M. C. Escher which featured a horse. Writer Dewey Bunnell also says he remembered his childhood travels through the Ar ...
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Gerry Beckley Singing At The 1979 Dr
Gerry is both a surname and a masculine or feminine given name. As a given name, it is often a short form (hypocorism) of Gerard, Gerald or Geraldine. Notable people with the name include: Surname *Elbridge Gerry (1744–1814), fifth US vice president (1813–1814) after whom the term ''gerrymander'' was named **Ann Gerry (1763–1849), wife of Elbridge ***Thomas Russell Gerry (1794–1848), son of Elbridge and Ann ****Elbridge Thomas Gerry (1837–1927), American lawyer and reformer, son of Thomas *****Peter G. Gerry (1879–1957), U.S. Senator from Rhode Island, great grandson of Elbridge ****** Edith Stuyvesant Gerry (1873–1958), American philanthropist and wife of Peter ******Elbridge T. Gerry Sr. (1908–1999), American banker and polo player, great-great grandson of the vice president ****** Robert L. Gerry Jr. (1911–1979), American polo player, brother of Elbridge Sr *******Robert L. Gerry III (born 1937), American businessman, son of Robert L. Jr * Alan Gerry (born 1929) ...
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