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Rags To Rufus
''Rags To Rufus'' is the gold-selling second studio album by funk band Rufus, released on the ABC Records label in 1974. It reached #4 on both the Pop and Black Albums charts. It is notable for the hit singles "Tell Me Something Good" (US Pop #3, US R&B #3), written by Stevie Wonder, and "You Got the Love" (US Pop #11, US R&B #1), written by lead vocalist Chaka Khan and Ray Parker Jr. In 1975 "Tell Me Something Good" earned the band its first Grammy Award for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals. History In 1973, Rufus released their first album. While Khan handled lead vocals on seven of the tracks, then-member Ron Stockert also led on a number of tracks. While "Slip & Slide", Rufus' first single, with Stockert applying lead vocals, failed to chart, two numbers from the album ("Feel Good" and "Whoever's Thrilling You is Killing Me") were led by Khan. Reaction from the Khan-led singles gave ABC Records the push to make Khan the focal point of the group, something ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rufus (band)
Rufus is an American funk band from Chicago, Illinois, best known for launching the career of lead singer Chaka Khan. They had several hits throughout their career, including "Tell Me Something Good", " Sweet Thing", "Do You Love What You Feel" and "Ain't Nobody". Rufus and Chaka Khan were one of the most popular and influential funk bands of the 1970s, with four consecutive number one R&B albums, ten top 40 pop hits and five number one R&B singles, among other accolades. Biography Origins In 1968, the American Breed ( Gary Loizzo, guitar/vocals; Al Ciner, guitar; Charles "Chuck" Colbert, bass; and Lee Graziano, drums) had a top ten hit with the classic rock single, "Bend Me, Shape Me". After much success, Colbert and Graziano (without Loizzo who pursued a successful production career) created a new group, adding later day American Breed members Kevin Murphy (keyboards) and Paulette McWilliams (vocals), plus James Stella (vocals) and Vern Pilder (guitar) from the bar band Circu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Stevie Wonder
Stevland Hardaway Morris ( Judkins; May 13, 1950), known professionally as Stevie Wonder, is an American singer-songwriter, who is credited as a pioneer and influence by musicians across a range of genres that include rhythm and blues, Pop music, pop, Soul music, soul, Gospel music, gospel, funk, and jazz. A virtual one-man band, Wonder's use of synthesizers and other electronic musical instruments during the 1970s reshaped the conventions of Contemporary R&B, R&B. He also helped drive such genres into the album era, crafting his LP record, LPs as cohesive and consistent, in addition to socially conscious statements with complex compositions. Visual impairment, Blind since shortly after his birth, Wonder was a child prodigy who signed with Motown's Tamla label at the age of 11, where he was given the professional name Little Stevie Wonder. Wonder's single "Fingertips" was a No. 1 hit on the Billboard Hot 100, ''Billboard'' Hot 100 in 1963, at the age of 13, making him the List o ... [...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] |
Kevin Murphy (musician)
Kevin Murphy (born 1947, Saint Paul, Minnesota) is an American keyboardist. He has played with The American Breed, which has a #1 US hit with "Bend Me, Shape Me" in 1968. He and fellow American Breed member Al Ciner are founding members of the band Rufus, which created the song "Ain't Nobody" that reached #22 on the Billboard charts The ''Billboard'' charts tabulate the relative weekly popularity of songs and albums in the United States and elsewhere. The results are published in '' Billboard'' magazine. ''Billboard'' biz, the online extension of the ''Billboard'' charts, p ... and #6 on the UK Music Charts in 1984. References Musicians from Chicago 1947 births Living people The American Breed members Rufus (band) members American rock keyboardists {{US-keyboardist-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jeff Barry
Jeff Barry (born Joel Adelberg; April 3, 1938) is an American pop music songwriter, singer, and record producer. Among the most successful songs that he has co-written in his career are " Do Wah Diddy Diddy", " Da Doo Ron Ron", " Then He Kissed Me", " Be My Baby", " Chapel of Love", and "River Deep - Mountain High" (all written with his then-wife Ellie Greenwich and Phil Spector); " Leader of the Pack" (written with Greenwich and Shadow Morton); " Sugar, Sugar" (written with Andy Kim); "Without Us" (written with Tom Scott). Early career Barry was born in Brooklyn to a Jewish family. His parents divorced when he was seven, and his mother moved him and his sister to Plainfield, New Jersey, where they resided for several years before returning to New York. After graduating from Erasmus Hall High School, Barry served in the Army, then returned to New York where he attended City College. Although he leaned toward a degree in engineering, his main aspiration was to become a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Al Ciner
Alan Ciner (born May 14, 1947) is an American guitarist best known for playing guitar for The American Breed from 1966 to 1969. Career He was also the guitarist for Gary & the Knight Lites. He briefly played for Rufus (band), Rufus and is heard on one of the band's best-known hits, "Tell Me Something Good". He later replaced James "Smitty" Smith (who had in turn replaced Michael Allsup) in Three Dog Night in 1975; and remained with them until they initially disbanded in 1976. In the late 1970s, he played on three songs, "Trying to Get to You", "Give Me One More Chance" and "I’m Carrying" which eventually surfaced on the ''From the Heart & Soul'' album by Dianne Brooks which was released by the Panda Digital label in 2021.Toronto Cultural Media Network, ''That Canadian Magazine'', October 21, 2021 Dianne Brooks: From the Heart & Soul By Raul Da Gama/ref> References 1947 births Living people American rock guitarists American male guitarists Three Dog Night member ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
RIAA
The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/or distribute approximately 85% of all legally sold recorded music in the United States". RIAA is headquartered in Washington, D.C. RIAA was formed in 1952. Its original mission was to administer recording copyright fees and problems, work with trade unions, and do research relating to the record industry and government regulations. Early RIAA standards included the RIAA equalization curve, the format of the stereophonic record groove and the dimensions of 33 1/3, 45, and 78 rpm records. RIAA says its current mission includes: #to protect intellectual property rights and the First Amendment rights of artists #to perform research about the music industry #to monitor and review relevant laws, regulations, and policies Between 2001 and 202 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
You Got The Love
"You Got the Love" is a song by British songwriting team The Source featuring American singer-songwriter Candi Staton. Originally released in 1986, the song was remixed and re-released in 1991, 1997, and 2006. It reached number three on the UK Singles Chart, number two on the UK Dance Singles Chart and number one on the UK Club Chart. The song has been covered by other artists, including a version by English indie rock band Florence and the Machine in 2009, which reached number five on the UK chart. The Now Voyager Remix of the song was used for the theme tune of live Football League coverage on Sky Sports until the start of the 2014–15 season. Background and release The original version is a soul/disco/gospel track, written by Anthony B. Stephens, Arnecia Michelle Harris and John Bellamy. British DJ Simon Harris was the first person to discover and license the song in 1986 when he was looking for tracks to release on his newly formed Music of Life label with DJ Froggy, Har ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Syreeta
Syreeta Wright (February 28, 1946 – July 6, 2004), who recorded professionally under the single name Syreeta, was an American singer-songwriter, best known for her music during the early 1970s through the early 1980s. Wright's career heights were songs in collaboration with her ex-husband Stevie Wonder and musical artist Billy Preston. Biography Early life and career Wright was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States, in 1946, and started singing at the age of four. Her father served in the Korean War and Wright and her sister Kim were raised by their mother Essie and their grandmother. The Wrights moved back and forth from Detroit to South Carolina, before finally settling in Detroit just as Wright entered high school. Money problems kept Wright from pursuing a career in ballet, so she focused her attention on a music career joining several singing groups, before landing a job as a receptionist for Motown in 1965. Within a year, she became a secretary for Mickey ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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