Stones (Neil Diamond Album)
''Stones'' is the seventh studio album by Neil Diamond, recorded and released in 1971. It was one of the biggest hit recordings of his career. The conductors and arrangers were Lee Holdridge, Marty Paich and Larry Muhoberac. The cover photo was taken at Luxford House, Crowborough, East Sussex. The house was occupied at the time by rock music manager Tony Stratton-Smith Tony Stratton-Smith (29 October 1933 – 19 March 1987) was an English rock music manager, and entrepreneur. He founded the London-based record label Charisma Records in 1969 and managed rock groups such as the Nice, Van der Graaf Generator and .... Early copies of the LP album featured a picture label and a unique version of the cover with a grommet-string style closure on the back. The cover itself was styled as an envelope that opened from the top. This was later abandoned and replaced with a standard side-opening sleeve. Inspired by the experience of a failed screen test for a film about rebel comic ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Neil Diamond
Neil Leslie Diamond (born January 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. He has sold more than 130 million records worldwide, making him one of the best-selling musicians of all time. He has had ten No. 1 singles on the Hot 100 and Adult Contemporary charts: "Cracklin' Rosie", "Song Sung Blue", "Longfellow Serenade", "I've Been This Way Before", "If You Know What I Mean", "Desiree (song), Desirée", "You Don't Bring Me Flowers", "America (Neil Diamond song), America", "Yesterday's Songs", and "Heartlight (song), Heartlight". Thirty-eight songs by Diamond have reached the top 10 on the ''Billboard (magazine), Billboard'' Adult Contemporary (chart), Adult Contemporary charts, including "Sweet Caroline". He has also acted in films, making his screen debut in the 1980 Musical film, musical drama film ''The Jazz Singer (1980 film), The Jazz Singer''. Diamond was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1984 and into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2011, and he received ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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LP Album
The LP (from "long playing" or "long play") is an analog sound storage medium, a phonograph record format characterized by: a speed of rpm; a 12- or 10-inch (30- or 25-cm) diameter; use of the "microgroove" groove specification; and a vinyl (a copolymer of vinyl chloride acetate) composition disk. Introduced by Columbia in 1948, it was soon adopted as a new standard by the entire record industry. Apart from a few relatively minor refinements and the important later addition of stereophonic sound, it remained the standard format for record albums (during a period in popular music known as the album era) until its gradual replacement from the 1980s to the early 2000s, first by cassettes, then by compact discs, and finally by digital music distribution. Beginning in the late 2000s, the LP has experienced a resurgence in popularity. Format advantages At the time the LP was introduced, nearly all phonograph records for home use were made of an abrasive shellac compound ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Rod McKuen
Rodney Marvin McKuen (; April 29, 1933 – January 29, 2015) was an American poet, singer-songwriter, and actor. He was one of the best-selling poets in the United States during the late 1960s. Throughout his career, McKuen produced a wide range of recordings, which included popular music, spoken word poetry, film soundtracks and classical music. He earned two Academy Award nominations for his music compositions. McKuen's translations and adaptations of the songs of Jacques Brel were instrumental in bringing the Belgian songwriter to prominence in the English-speaking world. His poetry deals with themes of love, the natural world and spirituality. McKuen's songs sold over 100 million recordings worldwide, and 60 million books of his poetry were sold as well. Early years McKuen was born as Rodney Marvin Woolever on April 29, 1933, in a Salvation Army hostel in Oakland, California to Clarice Woolever. He never knew his biological father, who had left his mother. Sexually and physic ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Jacques Brel
Jacques Romain Georges Brel (, ; 8 April 1929 – 9 October 1978) was a Belgian singer and actor who composed and performed literate, thoughtful, and theatrical songs that generated a large, devoted following—initially in Belgium and France, later throughout the world. He is considered a master of the modern chanson. Although he recorded most of his songs in French and occasionally in Dutch, he became an influence on English-speaking songwriters and performers, such as Scott Walker, David Bowie, Alex Harvey, Marc Almond, Neil Hannon, and Rod McKuen. English translations of his songs were recorded by many performers, including Bowie, Walker, Ray Charles, Judy Collins, John Denver, The Kingston Trio, Nina Simone, Shirley Bassey, James Dean Bradfield, Frank Sinatra, and Andy Williams. Brel was a successful actor, appearing in 10 films. He directed two films, one of which, ''Le Far West'', was nominated for the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival in 1973. Having sold over 2 ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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If You Go Away
"If You Go Away" is an adaptation of the 1959 Jacques Brel song "Ne me quitte pas" with English lyrics by Rod McKuen. Created as part of a larger project to translate Brel's work, "If You Go Away" is considered a pop standard and has been recorded by many artists, including Greta Keller, for whom some say McKuen wrote the lyrics. The complex melody is partly derivative of classical music: the "But if you stay..." passage comes from Franz Liszt's Hungarian Rhapsody No. 6. Lyrics A sad but hopeful ballad, the lyrics are told from the perspective of someone telling their lover how much they'd be missed if they left. This is described in vivid, hyperbolic terms, such as "''there'll be nothing left in the world to trust''". If the lover stays, the narrator promises them both devotion and good times ("''I'll make you a day / Like no day has been, or will be again''"). Some lines show that the narrator is speaking to the lover as they are already leaving, or considering doing so ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Crunchy Granola Suite
"Crunchy Granola Suite" is a pop rock song written and recorded in 1971 by Neil Diamond. Release The song was released on the album ''Stones'' and included as a B-side on the single for the album's title track. The song appears on a number of Diamond's albums, including the live album ''Hot August Night'', which opens with a combination of the instrumental "The Prologue" and "Crunchy Granola Suite". Lyrical interpretation James Perone writes, "The song describes how a man who previously suffered through all sorts of hang-ups has found solace with his newfound adherence to the stereotypical California, macrobiotic, granola, health food lifestyle". The song was inspired by the healthy lifestyle Diamond was exposed to after moving to Los Angeles. In the liner notes to his 1996 compilation album ''In My Lifetime'' Diamond says he was "newly transported to California and was impressed by the health food consciousness there. I actually thought Crunchy Granola Suite might change peopl ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Joni Mitchell
Roberta Joan "Joni" Mitchell ( Anderson; born November 7, 1943) is a Canadian-American musician, producer, and painter. Among the most influential singer-songwriters to emerge from the 1960s folk music circuit, Mitchell became known for her starkly personal lyrics and unconventional compositions, which grew to incorporate pop music, pop and jazz music, jazz influences. She has received many accolades, including ten Grammy Awards and induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1997. ''Rolling Stone'' called her "one of the greatest songwriters ever", and AllMusic has stated, "When the dust settles, Joni Mitchell may stand as the most important and influential female recording artist of the late 20th century". Mitchell began singing in small nightclubs in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, and throughout western Canada, before moving on to the nightclubs of Toronto, Ontario. She moved to the United States and began touring in 1965. Some of her original songs ("Urge for Going", "Chelsea ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Chelsea Morning
"Chelsea Morning" is a song written and composed by Joni Mitchell and recorded for the singer's second album, ''Clouds'', which she released in 1969. Background The song was inspired by Mitchell's room in the Chelsea neighborhood of New York City. The inspiration for the first verse comes partly from the distinct décor of her apartment. While in Philadelphia, Mitchell and friends had made a mobile from shards of colored glass they had found in the street and wire coat hangers, which filtered the light coming into her room through the window and created the "rainbow on the wall."Hilburn, Robert: Los Angeles Times"Joni Mitchell looks at both sides now: her hits -- and misses", ''NewStandard''. 12/7/96. Retrieved June 29, 2008. During coffeehouse performances of this song in the late 1960s, Mitchell explained that the famous stained glass had been rescued from the salvaged windows of a demolished home for unwed mothers. The lyrics of this song demonstrate Mitchell's talent with image ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Roger Miller
Roger Dean Miller Sr. (January 2, 1936 – October 25, 1992) was an American singer-songwriter, widely known for his honky-tonk-influenced novelty songs and his chart-topping Country music, country and pop hits "King of the Road (song), King of the Road", "Dang Me", and "England Swings", all from the mid-1960s Nashville sound era. After growing up in Oklahoma and serving in the United States Army, Miller began his musical career as a songwriter in the late 1950s, writing such hits as "Billy Bayou" and "Home" for Jim Reeves and "Invitation to the Blues" for Ray Price (musician), Ray Price. He later began a recording career and reached the peak of his fame in the mid-1960s, continuing to record and tour into the 1990s, charting his final top 20 country hit "Old Friends (Willie Nelson album), Old Friends" with Price and Willie Nelson in 1982. He also wrote and performed several of the songs for the 1973 Disney animated film ''Robin Hood (1973 film), Robin Hood''. Later in his ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Husbands And Wives (song)
"Husbands and Wives" is a song written and first recorded by American country music singer Roger Miller. Miller's original, from his album '' Words and Music'', was released in February 1966 and was a crossover hit for him, reaching Top Ten on the U.S. country and Adult Contemporary charts, as well as Top 40 on the pop charts. Since the release of Miller's original, the song has been covered by several other artists, including The Everly Brothers, Ringo Starr, Neil Diamond, a duet between David Frizzell and Shelly West, Jules Shear, and Brooks & Dunn, whose version was a number-one country hit in 1998. Content "Husbands and Wives" is a mid-tempo waltz in the key of C major. In it, the narrator makes observations on a couple who is breaking up ("Two broken hearts, lonely, looking like houses / Where nobody lives"). He then suggests that the relationship is strained because those involved have too much pride in themselves ("It's my belief pride is the chief cause in the decline / In t ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Tom Paxton
Thomas Richard Paxton (born October 31, 1937) is an American folk singer-songwriter who has had a music career spanning more than fifty years. In 2009, Paxton received a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award.Power Of Just Plain Folk, Tom Paxton Humbly Garners Life Grammy J. Freedom du Lac, '''', February 7, 2009, p. C01 He is a music educator as well as an advocate for folk singers to combine traditional songs with new compositions. Paxton's songs have been widely recorded, including modern standards such as " [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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The Last Thing On My Mind
"The Last Thing on My Mind" is a song written by American musician and singer-songwriter Tom Paxton in the early 1960s and recorded first by Paxton in 1964. It is based on the traditional lament song "The Leaving of Liverpool". The song was released on Paxton's 1964 album '' Ramblin' Boy'', which was his first album released on Elektra Records. The song remains one of Paxton's best-known compositions. Porter Wagoner and Dolly Parton version "The Last Thing on My Mind" was covered by Porter Wagoner and Dolly Parton and released as their debut duet single on October 30, 1967, by RCA Victor. Their version peaked at number seven on the ''Billboard'' Hot Country Singles chart, the first of an almost uninterrupted string of top ten singles they would release over the next several years. Critical reception The single was well received by critics upon release. ''Billboard'' gave a positive review of the single, which said that Wagoner and Parton's "initial outing should be a giant." T ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |