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My Life (Billy Joel Song)
"My Life" is a song by Billy Joel that first appeared on his 1978 album ''52nd Street''. A single version was released in the fall of 1978 and reached No. 2 on the U.S. adult contemporary chart. Early the next year, it peaked at No. 3 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. Musical structure The song begins with drums, electric bass, and a left-hand piano part, followed by a keyboard riff in the right hand. The riff is also used as a fill between verse and chorus sections and is also played at the end. The section order is intro-verse-fill-chorus-bridge-v-f-c-b-solo-c-outro. Chicago members Peter Cetera and Donnie Dacus performed the backing vocals and sang along with Joel during the bridge and in the outro ("Keep it to yourself, it's my life"). "My Life" was used as the theme song for the ABC television series ''Bosom Buddies'' (1980–82), albeit in a re-recorded version with a different vocalist. However, due to licensing issues, it does not appear on the VHS and DVD releases of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Billy Joel
William Martin Joel (born May 9, 1949) is an American singer, pianist and songwriter. Commonly nicknamed the "Piano Man (song), Piano Man" after his album and signature song of the same name, he has led a commercially successful career as a solo artist since the 1970s, having released 12 pop and rock studio albums from 1971 to 1993 as well as one studio album of classical compositions in 2001. He is one of the List of best-selling music artists, best-selling music artists of all time, as well as the seventh-best-selling recording artist and the fourth-best-selling solo artist in the United States, with over 160 million records sold worldwide. His 1985 compilation album, ''Greatest Hits (Billy Joel albums), Greatest Hits Vol. 1 & 2'', is one of the List of best-selling albums in the United States, best-selling albums in the United States. Born in The Bronx, Joel grew up on Long Island, where both places influenced his music. Growing up, he took piano lessons at his mother's insi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Donnie Dacus
James O. "Donnie" Dacus (born October 12, 1951, in Pasadena, Texas) is an American guitarist, backing vocalist, actor, songwriter, and co- producer. He has been a member of the rock bands Chicago and Badfinger. Early life Dacus grew up in Cleburne, Texas. By the age of 14, he was teaching guitar in the local music store and playing with a local band he organized called The Chantels. Eventually, the band changed its name to The Shux and won the Battle of the Bands in Dallas, Texas. Dacus was subsequently managed by the Beard Brothers out of Fort Worth, Texas. Dacus received his big break when he was discovered by the band The Yellow Payges in 1968 during a concert with Buffalo Springfield and The Beach Boys. Career Dacus has contributed to a number of artists' albums that went Gold, Platinum, and Multi-platinum as a singer, songwriter, and guitarist. Dacus’ background vocals may be heard on Billy Joel's "My Life". Dacus has worked and performed with a number of renowned m ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Clarinet
The clarinet is a musical instrument in the woodwind family. The instrument has a nearly cylindrical bore and a flared bell, and uses a single reed to produce sound. Clarinets comprise a family of instruments of differing sizes and pitches. The clarinet family is the largest such woodwind family, with more than a dozen types, ranging from the BB♭ contrabass to the E♭ soprano. The most common clarinet is the B soprano clarinet. German instrument maker Johann Christoph Denner is generally credited with inventing the clarinet sometime after 1698 by adding a register key to the chalumeau, an earlier single-reed instrument. Over time, additional keywork and the development of airtight pads were added to improve the tone and playability. Today the clarinet is used in classical music, military bands, klezmer, jazz, and other styles. It is a standard fixture of the orchestra and concert band. Etymology The word ''clarinet'' may have entered the English language via the Fr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Richie Cannata
Richie Cannata (born March 3, 1949) is an American music producer, saxophonist, keyboardist and studio owner. He is most notable for playing saxophone in Billy Joel's band alongside Liberty DeVitto, Russell Javors, and Doug Stegmeyer. After leaving the band in 1981, he opened Cove City Sound Studios in Glen Cove, New York. Artists including Celine Dion, Billy Joel, Jennifer Lopez and Marc Anthony have recorded in Cannata's studio. Early life Cannata was born 3 March 1949 in Brooklyn, New York, the son of Ernest (26 March 1914 – 14 April 1993) and Anna (February 25, 1926 — 1 April 2007) Cannata. Interested in music from a very early age, Cannata was introduced by his family first to the piano at the age of four and later to clarinet and tenor saxophone at the age of eight. He also plays flute and keyboards in addition to alto, soprano and baritone sax. In 1950s his family moved to Garden City South where Cannata blossomed as a musician. He played his first gig at t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Liberty DeVitto
Liberatori "Liberty" DeVitto (born August 8, 1950) is an American rock drummer. He is best known for his work as a drummer for New York singer-songwriter Billy Joel's recording and touring band. He has also been a session drummer on recordings of other artists. He is credited as a drummer on records that have sold a combined total of 150 million units worldwide. Early life and education DeVitto was born in New York City, of Italian ancestry, where his father was a police officer at the New York Police Department. He taught himself to play the drums after seeing The Beatles on their appearance on ''The Ed Sullivan Show'' in February 1964. He was also influenced as a teenager by rock drummer Dino Danelli. Career DeVitto got his big break in the music business when he was hired to play drums for Billy Joel in the mid-1970s. In an online interview, DeVitto describes how Joel's classic late-1970s/early-1980s band first came together: Billy and I used to play the same club in Plainvie ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Doug Stegmeyer
Douglas Alan Stegmeyer (December 23, 1951 – August 25, 1995) was an American musician who was best known as the bassist and back-up vocalist for Billy Joel. Stegmeyer also performed as bassist for Debbie Gibson and Hall & Oates. Biography Stegmeyer was born on December 23, 1951, in Flushing, Queens, New York City, New York. In high school, he met Russell Javors, who at age 15 was performing songs with childhood friend Liberty DeVitto. Along with Howard Emerson, the boys formed the band Topper, which performed songs by Javors and attracted Billy Joel's attention. Joel hired Stegmeyer to play bass in his backing band on the ''Streetlife Serenade'' tour. At Stegmeyer's recommendation a year and a half later, Emerson, Javors, and DeVitto joined Joel in the studio for his ''Turnstiles'' album and for the accompanying tour. Stegmeyer became a core member of Billy Joel's band, playing bass on Joel's studio albums from ''Turnstiles'' through '' The Bridge'' and on the live albums ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Russell Javors
Russell Javors (born June 13, 1952) is an American rock guitarist. He is best known as a rhythm guitarist for Billy Joel from 1976 to 1989. Career At age 15, Javors was performing songs with his childhood friend Liberty DeVitto. He met Doug Stegmeyer in high school and along with Howard Emerson, formed the band Topper. Together they performed the songs that Javors wrote. Topper became noticed by Billy Joel. Joel found he needed a bassist on his ''Streetlife Serenade'' tour and invited Stegmeyer to join him. Javors, DeVitto, and Emerson soon followed. With the addition of multi-instrumentalist Richie Cannata, Topper became the Billy Joel Band. Javors played rhythm guitar with Joel from 1975 until 1989. On October 23, 2014, Javors, Cannata, and DeVitto (with Stegmeyer, posthumously) were inducted into the Long Island Music Hall of Fame, primarily for their work with Joel. Shortly thereafter, Javors, Cannata, and DeVitto officially formed The Lords of 52nd Street band; the band al ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Electric Grand Piano
The electric grand piano is a stringed musical instrument played using a keyboard, in which the vibration of strings struck by hammers is converted by pickups into electrical signals, analogous to the electric guitar's electrification of the traditional guitar. Since electric amplification eliminates the need for a resonant chamber, electric grand pianos are smaller and lighter (around ), and consequently more portable, than acoustic pianos. Electric amplification also bypasses the difficulty of having to mic a conventional grand piano, and thus makes an electric grand easier to set up with a sound system. History Experimental efforts to electrify the grand piano began in the late 1920s with the Neo-Bechstein. In 1939, the first commercially available model, the RCA Storytone, was introduced. These instruments featured the traditional hammered-string mechanism with pickups instead of a soundboard. In subsequent decades, other instruments now referred to as electric pianos w ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hook (music)
A hook is a musical idea, often a short riff, passage, or phrase, that is used in popular music to make a song appealing and to "catch the ear of the listener". The term generally applies to popular music, especially rock, R&B, hip hop, dance, and pop. In these genres, the hook is often found in, or consists of, the chorus. A hook can be either melodic or rhythmic, and often incorporates the main motif for a piece of music.Davidson, Miriam; Heartwood, Kiya (1996). ''Songwriting for Beginners'', p.7. Alfred Music Publishing. . Definitions One definition of a hook is "a musical or lyrical phrase that stands out and is easily remembered." Definitions typically include some of the following: that a hook is repetitive, attention-grabbing, memorable, easy to dance to, and has commercial potential and lyrics. A hook has been defined as a "part of a song, sometimes the title or key lyric line, that keeps recurring." Alternatively, the term has been defined as and can be something as ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cash Box
''Cashbox'', also known as ''Cash Box'', was an American music industry trade magazine, originally published weekly from July 1942 to November 1996. Ten years after its dissolution, it was revived and continues as ''Cashbox Magazine'', an online magazine with weekly charts and occasional special print issues. In addition to the music industry, the magazine covered the amusement arcade industry, including jukebox machines and arcade games. History Print edition charts (1952–1996) ''Cashbox'' was one of several magazines that published record charts in the United States. Its most prominent competitors were '' Billboard'' and '' Record World'' (known as ''Music Vendor'' prior to April 1964). Unlike ''Billboard'', ''Cashbox'' combined all currently available recordings of a song into one chart position with artist and label information shown for each version, alphabetized by label. Originally, no indication of which version was the biggest seller was given, but from October 25, 19 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Billboard (magazine)
''Billboard'' (stylized as ''billboard'') is an American music and entertainment magazine published weekly by Penske Media Corporation. The magazine provides music charts, news, video, opinion, reviews, events, and style related to the music industry. Its music charts include the Hot 100, the 200, and the Global 200, tracking the most popular albums and songs in different genres of music. It also hosts events, owns a publishing firm, and operates several TV shows. ''Billboard'' was founded in 1894 by William Donaldson and James Hennegan as a trade publication for bill posters. Donaldson later acquired Hennegan's interest in 1900 for $500. In the early years of the 20th century, it covered the entertainment industry, such as circuses, fairs, and burlesque shows, and also created a mail service for travelling entertainers. ''Billboard'' began focusing more on the music industry as the jukebox, phonograph, and radio became commonplace. Many topics it covered were spun-off ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Stephanie Mills
Stephanie Dorthea Mills (born March 22, 1957) is an American singer and songwriter. She rose to stardom as "Dorothy" in the original seven-time Tony Award winning Broadway run of the musical ''The Wiz'' from 1974 to 1979. The song " Home" from the show later became a Number 1 U.S. R&B hit and her signature song. During the 1980s, she had five Number 1 R&B hits, including " Home", " I Have Learned to Respect the Power of Love", " I Feel Good All Over", " (You're Puttin') A Rush on Me" and " Something in the Way (You Make Me Feel)". She won two Grammy Awards for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance for her song " Never Knew Love Like This Before" in 1981. Her albums '' What Cha Gonna Do with My Lovin'', '' Sweet Sensation'' and ''Stephanie'' went gold or platinum, all through 20th Century Fox Records. Biography Early life and career Born Stephanie Dorthea Mills to Joseph and Christine Mills and raised in Bedford–Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, Mills sang gospel music as a child at Brooklyn ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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