Grand River Crossings
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Grand River Crossings
''Grand River Crossings'' (subtitled ''Motown & Motor City Inspirations'') is an album of songs associated with or inspired by Detroit and Motown by pianist Geri Allen recorded in 2012 and released on the Motéma Music, Motéma label in 2013.Motéma Music catalog
accessed June 30, 2014


Reception

Allmusic awarded the album 4½ stars, stating, "Of her 19 offerings, ''Grand River Crossings'' is certainly her most personal. It's also among her very best".Jurek, T.
Allmusic Review
accessed June 30, 2014
''The Guardian'' review by John Fordham awarded the album 3 stars, noting, "There's a ...
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Geri Allen
Geri Antoinette Allen (June 12, 1957 – June 27, 2017) was an American jazz pianist, composer, and educator. In addition to her career as a performer and bandleader, Allen was also an associate professor of music at the University of Pittsburgh and the director of the university's Jazz Studies program. Early life and education Allen was born in Pontiac, Michigan, on June 12, 1957, and grew up in Detroit. "Her father, Mount Allen Jr, was a school principal, her mother, Barbara, a government administrator in the defence industry." Allen was educated in Detroit Public Schools. She started playing the piano at the age of seven, and settled on becoming a jazz pianist in her early teens. Allen graduated from Howard University's jazz studies program in 1979. She then continued her studies: with pianist Kenny Barron in New York; and at the University of Pittsburgh, where she completed a master's degree in ethnomusicology in 1982. After this, she returned to New York. Later life and ca ...
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That Girl (Stevie Wonder Song)
"That Girl" is a song by American R&B singer and songwriter Stevie Wonder. It was the leading single from Wonder's album-era 1982 greatest-hits compilation, '' Stevie Wonder's Original Musiquarium I'', as one of four newer songs from the collection. The song spent nine weeks at number one on the '' Billboard'' R&B singles chart – the longest time a Stevie Wonder single spent at the top spot – and reached number four on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. Charts Weekly charts Year-end charts Influence * Jade - " Don't Walk Away" *Tupac Shakur - " So Many Tears" *Queen Latifah - "Let Her Live" See also * List of number-one R&B singles of 1982 (U.S.) *List of Cash Box Top 100 number-one singles of 1982 This is the list of singles that reached number one on the '' Cash Box'' Top 100 Singles chart in 1982, presented in chronological order. See also * 1982 in music * List of Hot 100 number-one singles of 1982 (U.S.) References *http://members ... References External ...
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Marvin Gaye
Marvin Pentz Gay Jr., who also spelled his surname as Gaye (April 2, 1939 – April 1, 1984), was an American singer and songwriter. He helped to shape the sound of Motown in the 1960s, first as an in-house session player and later as a solo artist with a string of successes, earning him the nicknames "Prince of Motown" and "Prince of Soul". Gaye's Motown songs include "Ain't That Peculiar", "How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved By You)", and "I Heard It Through the Grapevine". Gaye also recorded duets with Mary Wells, Kim Weston, Tammi Terrell, and Diana Ross. During the 1970s, Gaye recorded the albums '' What's Going On'' and ''Let's Get It On'' and became one of the first artists in Motown to break away from the reins of a production company. His later recordings influenced several contemporary R&B subgenres, such as quiet storm and neo soul. "Sexual Healing", released in 1982 on the album ''Midnight Love'', won him his first two Grammy Awards. Gaye's last televised appearances we ...
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Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler)
"Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler)", often shortened to "Inner City Blues", is a song by Marvin Gaye, released as the third and final single, and the climactic song from his 1971 landmark album, '' What's Going On''. Written by Gaye and James Nyx Jr., the song depicts the ghettos and bleak economic situations of inner-city America, and the emotional effects these have on inhabitants. Composition and lyrics In 1998, co-writer James Nyx Jr. recalled, "Marvin had a good tune, sort of blues-like, but didn't have any words for it. We started putting some stuff in there about how rough things were around town. We laughed about putting lyrics in about high taxes, 'cause both of us owed a lot. And we talked about how the government would send guys to the moon, but not help folks in the ghetto. But we still didn't have a name, or really a good idea of the song. Then, I was home reading the paper one morning, and saw a headline that said something about the 'inner city' of Detroit. ...
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Frank Wilson (musician)
Frank Edward Wilson (December 5, 1940 – September 27, 2012) was an American songwriter, singer and record producer for Motown Records. Biography In 1965, Berry Gordy asked the producers Hal Davis and Marc Gordon to set up an office of Motown in Los Angeles. Wilson accepted an offer to join the team. In December 1965, "Stevie" by Patrice Holloway (V.I.P. 25001) was the first single released from the West Coast operation and featured Wilson in the songwriting credits. Asked by Gordy to re-locate to Detroit, Wilson went on to write and produce hit records for Brenda Holloway, Marvin Gaye, the Supremes, the Miracles, the Four Tops, the Temptations, Eddie Kendricks, and more. He became particularly important after Holland-Dozier-Holland left the company. Additionally, after leaving Motown, Wilson produced a gold disc earning album by Lenny Williams, former lead singer for Tower of Power, Marilyn McCoo & Billy Davis Jr, former members of the Fifth Dimension, Alton McClain & Desti ...
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Stoned Love
"Stoned Love" is a 1970 hit single recorded by The Supremes for the Motown label. It was the last ''Billboard'' Pop Top Ten hit for the group, peaking at number seven, and their last ''Billboard'' number-one R&B hit as well, although the trio continued to score top ten hits in the UK into 1972. In the UK, it was the post-Ross Supremes' biggest hit, reaching number 3 in the singles chart. The single spent six weeks in the UK top ten and five weeks in the US top ten. The BBC ranked "Stoned Love" at number 99 on ''The Top 100 Digital Motown Chart'', which ranks Motown releases solely on their all time UK downloads and streams. History Song information A plea for love and peace similar to those recorded by Sly & the Family Stone in the late 1960s, the lyrics of "Stoned Love" were a plea for the people of the world to end conflict and animosity between each other, specifically the Vietnam War. Writer Kenny Thomas chose the term "stone love" to define the concept of an unchanging bo ...
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Love Is Like An Itching In My Heart
"Love Is Like an Itching in My Heart" is a 1966 song recorded by the Supremes for the Motown label. Written and produced by Motown's main production team of Holland–Dozier–Holland, the song was recorded in June 1965 and not released until April 1966. It was one of the few singles written by the team for the Supremes that didn't reach number one on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 pop singles chart in the United States. Nevertheless, the song was a Top 10 hit, peaking at number nine for one week in May 1966. ''Billboard'' named the song #90 on their list of 100 Greatest Girl Group Songs of All Time. Overview One of the group's most powerful singles, this uptempo and brassy dance single was somewhat of a departure from the group's much lighter, pop-oriented sound, with a production set for an uptempo soul sound similar to that of material by fellow Motown groups Martha and the Vandellas and the Four Tops. The lyrics tell of how the narrator has been "bitten by the love bug" and no ...
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Brian Holland
Brian Holland (born February 15, 1941) is an American songwriter and record producer, best known as a member of Holland–Dozier–Holland, the songwriting and production team that was responsible for much of the Motown sound, and numerous hit records by artists such as Martha and the Vandellas, The Supremes, The Four Tops, and The Isley Brothers. Holland, along with Lamont Dozier, served as the team's musical arranger and producer. He has written or co-written 145 hits in US and 78 in the UK. Holland was born in Detroit, Michigan, United States. For a short time, he partnered with Robert Bateman, and together they were known as "Brianbert", collaborating on such hits as " Please Mr. Postman" for The Marvelettes. Holland has also had an on-and-off career as a performer. He released a solo single in 1958 under the name of "Briant Holland". He and longtime friend and future songwriting partner Freddie Gorman were in a short-lived group called the Fidalatones, and he was later ...
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Lamont Dozier
Lamont Herbert Dozier (; June 16, 1941 – August 8, 2022) was an American singer, songwriter, and record producer from Detroit, Michigan. He co-wrote and produced 14 US ''Billboard'' number-one hits and four number ones in the UK. Career Dozier was a member of Holland–Dozier–Holland, the songwriting and production team responsible for much of the Motown sound and numerous hit records by artists such as Martha and the Vandellas, The Supremes, The Four Tops, and The Isley Brothers. Along with Brian Holland, Dozier served as the team's musical arranger and producer, while Eddie Holland concentrated mainly on lyrics and vocal production. Along with the Holland Brothers, Dozier followed his work for Motown Records as founder and owner of Invictus Records and Hot Wax Records, producing top-charting hits for acts Freda Payne, Honey Cone, Chairmen of the Board, and 100 Proof Aged in Soul. Early years Dozier recorded a few unsuccessful records for various Detroit labels before ...
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Eddie Holland
Edward Holland Jr. (born October 30, 1939) is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. Holland was born in Detroit, Michigan, United States. Although he was an early Motown artist who recorded minor hit singles such as "Jamie", he started working behind the scenes due to stage fright. He was a member of Holland–Dozier–Holland, the songwriting and production team responsible for much of the Motown Sound and hit records by Martha and the Vandellas, The Supremes, The Four Tops, and The Isley Brothers, among others. He has written or co-written 80 hits in the UK and 143 in the US charts. Holland served as the team's lyricist, and also worked with producer Norman Whitfield on lyrics for the songs he produced for the Marvelettes and the Temptations, like "Too Many Fish in the Sea" and "Beauty Is Only Skin Deep "Beauty Is Only Skin Deep" is a 1966 song, written by Norman Whitfield and Edward Holland, Jr., and produced by Whitfield. Norman Whitfield recorded ...
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Baby I Need Your Loving
"Baby I Need Your Loving" is a 1964 hit single recorded by the Four Tops for the Motown label. Written and produced by Motown's main production team Holland–Dozier–Holland, the song was the group's first Motown single and their first pop Top 20 hit, making it to number 11 on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and number four in Canada in the fall of 1964. It was also their first million-selling hit single. ''Cash Box'' described it as "an intriguing rock-a-cha-cha beat pleader...that he Four Topscarve out with solid sales authority." ''Rolling Stone'' ranked the Four Tops' original version of the song at No. 400 on their list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. Personnel * Lead vocals by Levi Stubbs. * Background vocals by Renaldo "Obie" Benson, Lawrence Payton, Abdul "Duke" Fakir, and the Andantes: Jackie Hicks, Marlene Barrow, and Louvain Demps. * Instrumentation by the Funk Brothers and the Detroit Symphony Orchestra (strings). **Piano by Earl Van Dyke **Bass by James Jam ...
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Paul McCartney
Sir James Paul McCartney (born 18 June 1942) is an English singer, songwriter and musician who gained worldwide fame with the Beatles, for whom he played bass guitar and shared primary songwriting and lead vocal duties with John Lennon. One of the most successful composers and performers of all time, McCartney is known for his melodic approach to bass-playing, versatile and wide tenor vocal range, and musical eclecticism, exploring styles ranging from pre–rock and roll pop to classical and electronica. His songwriting partnership with Lennon remains the most successful in history. Born in Liverpool, McCartney taught himself piano, guitar and songwriting as a teenager, having been influenced by his father, a jazz player, and rock and roll performers such as Little Richard and Buddy Holly. He began his career when he joined Lennon's skiffle group, the Quarrymen, in 1957, which evolved into the Beatles in 1960. Sometimes called "the cute Beatle", McCartney later invo ...
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