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The Great Pretender
"The Great Pretender" is a popular song recorded by The Platters, with Tony Williams on lead vocals, and released as a single in November 1955. The words and music were written by Buck Ram, the Platters' manager and producer who was a successful songwriter before moving into producing and management. The song reached No. 1 on ''Billboard''s Top 100, and No. 5 on the UK charts. The song has been covered by a number of singers, most notably by Freddie Mercury, whose version reached No. 4 on the UK charts. Sam Cooke's cover of the song is believed to have inspired Chrissie Hynde to name her band The Pretenders. Platters' original Buck Ram, the manager of The Platters said that he wrote the song in about 20 minutes in the washroom of the Flamingo Hotel in order to have a follow up to the success of "Only You (And You Alone)". Ram had boasted to Bob Shad that he had an even better song than "Only You", and when pressed by Shad on the name of the song, and Ram quickly replied "The Gr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Platters
The Platters was an American vocal group formed in 1952. They are one of the most successful vocal groups of the early rock and roll era. Their distinctive sound bridges the pre-rock Tin Pan Alley tradition and the new burgeoning genre. The act has gone through multiple line-ups over the years, earning it the branding tag "Many Voices One Name", with the most successful incarnation comprising lead tenor Tony Williams (singer), Tony Williams, David Lynch, Paul Robi, founder and naming member Herb Reed, and Zola Taylor. The group had 40 charting singles on the Billboard Hot 100, '' Billboard'' Hot 100 between 1955 and 1967, including four number-one hits. In 1990, the Platters were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. The Platters continue to perform around the world with Herb Reed Enterprises (an LLC set up by Reed in response to numerous fake Platters groups) owning the rights and trademark to the name. Band formation and early years The Platters formed in Los Angeles ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The 500 Greatest Songs Of All Time
"The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time" is a recurring survey compiled by the American magazine ''Rolling Stone''. It is based on weighted votes from selected musicians, critics, and industry figures. The first list was published in December 2004 in a special issue of the magazine, issue number 963, a year after the magazine published its list of "The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time". In 2010, ''Rolling Stone'' published a revised edition, drawing on the original and a later survey of songs released up until the early 2000s. Another updated edition of the list was published in 2021, with more than half the entries not having appeared on either of the two previous editions; it was based on a new survey and does not factor in the surveys that were conducted for the previous lists. The 2021 list was based on a poll of more than 250 artists, musicians, producers, critics, journalists and industry figures. They each sent in a ranked list of their top 50 songs, and ''Rolling Stone'' tabula ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rudi Dolezal
Rudi Dolezal ( sl, Doležal, born 5 February 1958) is an Austrian film producer and film director best known for his music videos. He has directed and produced videos for artists such as Tom Waits, the Rolling Stones, Frank Zappa, David Bowie, Michael Jackson, Bruce Springsteen, Sandra Cretu and Whitney Houston. For his work in the music industry, he was nominated for two Grammy Awards. He is the recipient of three Romy Awards and two Rose d'Ors. Among his best known works are the documentary ''Freddie Mercury – The Untold Story'' (2000), which earned him his second Grammy Award nomination, the documentary TV series '' Weltberühmt in Österreich – 50 Jahre Austropop'' (2006), and '' Whitney: Can I Be Me'' (2017), a documentary film co-directed by Dolezal and created from more than one hundred hours of footage filmed by Dolezal in 1999. Early life Dolezal was born in Vienna on 5 February 1958. He grew up in Vienna's 19th district. He was trained in classical music, but a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-selling Single (music), singles in the United Kingdom, based upon physical sales, paid-for downloads and music streaming, streaming. The Official Chart, broadcast on BBC Radio 1 and MTV (Official UK Top 40), is the UK music industry's recognised official measure of singles and albums popularity because it is the most comprehensive research panel of its kind, today surveying over 15,000 retailers and digital services daily, capturing 99.9% of all singles consumed in Britain across the week, and over 98% of albums. To be eligible for the chart, a Single (music), single is currently defined by the Official Charts Company (OCC) as either a 'single bundle' having no more than four tracks and not lasting longer than 25 minutes or one digital audio ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Queen (band)
Queen are a British rock band formed in London in 1970 by Freddie Mercury (lead vocals, piano), Brian May (guitar, vocals) and Roger Taylor (Queen drummer), Roger Taylor (drums, vocals), later joined by John Deacon (bass). Their earliest works were influenced by progressive rock, hard rock and Heavy metal music, heavy metal, but the band gradually ventured into more conventional and radio-friendly works by incorporating further styles, such as arena rock and pop rock. Before forming Queen, May and Taylor had played together in the band Smile (band), Smile. Mercury was a fan of Smile and encouraged them to experiment with more elaborate stage and recording techniques. He joined in 1970 and suggested the name "Queen". Deacon was recruited in February 1971, before the band released their Queen (Queen album), eponymous debut album in 1973. Queen first charted in the UK with their second album, ''Queen II'', in 1974. ''Sheer Heart Attack'' later that year and ''A Night at the Opera ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rock Band
A rock band or pop band is a small musical ensemble that performs rock music, pop music, or a related genre. A four-piece band is the most common configuration in rock and pop music. In the early years, the configuration was typically two guitarists (a lead guitarist and a rhythm guitarist, with one of them singing lead vocals), a bassist, and a drummer (e.g. the Beatles and KISS). Another common formation is a vocalist who does not play an instrument, electric guitarist, bass guitarist, and a drummer (e.g. the Who, the Monkees, Led Zeppelin, Queen, and U2). Instrumentally, these bands can be considered as trios. Sometimes, in addition to electric guitars, electric bass, and drums, also a keyboardist (especially a pianist) plays. Etymology The usage of band as "group of musicians" originated from 1659 to describe musicians attached to a regiment of the army and playing instruments which may be used while marching. This word also used in 1931 to describe "one man band" for peopl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Barcelona (Freddie Mercury And Montserrat Caballé Song)
"Barcelona" is a single released by Queen vocalist Freddie Mercury and operatic soprano Montserrat Caballé. A part of their collaborative album ''Barcelona'', it also appeared on Queen's '' Greatest Hits III''. The song reflects Mercury's love of opera with his high notes and Caballé's operatic vocals, backed by a full orchestra. Originally released in 1987, it was one of the biggest hits of Mercury's solo career, reaching number eight in the UK Singles Chart. After Mercury's death in 1991, it was featured at the 1992 Summer Olympics, after which the track climbed even higher, peaking at number two in the UK, the Netherlands and New Zealand. In 2004, BBC Radio 2 listed Barcelona at number 41 in its ''Sold On Song Top 100''. History Mercury had been a long-time fan of opera, and especially Montserrat Caballé. In 1986, he mentioned on Spanish television that he would like to meet her, and they met for the first time in Barcelona in February 1987. Later, when the city had been ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Time (Freddie Mercury Song)
"Time" is a 1986 song recorded by Freddie Mercury, along with " In My Defence", for Dave Clark's musical of the same name. Even though Mercury did not appear in the musical itself, both songs were included on the cast album, and "Time" was also released as a separate single, backed by an instrumental version of the song, and reached #32 on the UK Singles Chart. The song also peaked at #12 in Ireland. The single version was later included in the 2000 box set ''The Solo Collection'' and the 2006 compilation album '' Lover of Life, Singer of Songs: The Very Best of Freddie Mercury Solo''. The music video was shot at the Dominion Theatre, London, where the play had been staged since the world premiere of 9 April 1986. Since a matinée and evening performance were scheduled, the only time left for shooting was the early morning: so Mercury and Austrian producer Rudi Dolezal had to meet there at 6.00 in the morning. Remixes * "Time ( Nile Rodgers 1992 Remix)" is an edit version ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mike Moran (music Producer)
Michael Moran (born 4 March 1948) is an English musician, songwriter, composer and record producer. Biography Moran studied at the Royal College of Music in London prior to becoming a session musician and a composer and arranger. His work in the latter field includes scoring music for such HandMade Films productions as ''Time Bandits'' (1981), ''The Missionary'' (1982) and ''Water'' (1985). His other film scores included ''Bloodbath at the House of Death'' (1984), ''The Turnaround'' (1995), '' A Fox's Tale'' (2008), ''Blessed'' (2008) and '' A Thousand Kisses Deep'' (2011), as well as arranging the score to ''Death Wish 3'' (1985), and his TV work includes providing music for ''Strangers'' (1978), ''Harry's Game'' (1982), ''The Bombmaker'' (2001) and '' Sherlock: Case of Evil'' (2002). He also played with the Ian Gillan Band. " Rock Bottom", which he wrote in partnership with Lynsey de Paul, was the UK entry in the Eurovision Song Contest 1977, and put him in the spotlight for ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
David Richards (record Producer)
David Richards (1956 – 20 December 2013) was an English-born Swiss-based record producer, engineer and musician. In the Mountain Studios in Montreux, owned by the rock band Queen, and in Attalens he engineered and co-produced many albums by Queen, David Bowie and other artists. Richards also played keyboards on some records. He also dealt with live music recording in such events as Montreux Jazz Festival. Richards died on 20 December 2013 after a long battle with an undisclosed illness. Selected discography Albums co-produced by David Richards: *Roger Taylor - '' Fun in Space'' (1981) *Roger Taylor - ''Strange Frontier'' (1984) *Chris Rea – ''Shamrock Diaries'' (1985) *Jimmy Nail - ''Take It or Leave It'' (1985; single: "Love Don't Live Here Anymore") *Feargal Sharkey – ''Feargal Sharkey'' (1985; single: "Loving You") *Chris Rea – '' On the Beach'' (1986) *Queen – '' A Kind of Magic'' (1986) *Iggy Pop – '' Blah-Blah-Blah'' (1986) * Magnum – ''Vigilante'' (1986) * ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pop Music
Pop music is a genre of popular music that originated in its modern form during the mid-1950s in the United States and the United Kingdom. The terms ''popular music'' and ''pop music'' are often used interchangeably, although the former describes all music that is popular and includes many disparate styles. During the 1950s and 1960s, pop music encompassed rock and roll and the youth-oriented styles it influenced. ''Rock'' and ''pop'' music remained roughly synonymous until the late 1960s, after which ''pop'' became associated with music that was more commercial, ephemeral, and accessible. Although much of the music that appears on record charts is considered to be pop music, the genre is distinguished from chart music. Identifying factors usually include repeated choruses and hooks, short to medium-length songs written in a basic format (often the verse-chorus structure), and rhythms or tempos that can be easily danced to. Much pop music also borrows elements from other styles ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Record Mirror
''Record Mirror'' was a British weekly music newspaper between 1954 and 1991 for pop fans and record collectors. Launched two years after the ''NME'', it never attained the circulation of its rival. The first UK album chart was published in ''Record Mirror'' in 1956, and during the 1980s it was the only consumer music paper to carry the official UK singles and UK albums charts used by the BBC for Radio 1 and ''Top of the Pops'', as well as the US ''Billboard'' charts. The title ceased to be a stand-alone publication in April 1991 when United Newspapers closed or sold most of their consumer magazines, including ''Record Mirror'' and its sister music magazine ''Sounds'', to concentrate on trade papers like ''Music Week''. In 2010 Giovanni di Stefano bought the name ''Record Mirror'' and relaunched it as an online music gossip website in 2011. The website became inactive in 2013 following di Stefano's jailing for fraud. Early years, 1954–1963 ''Record Mirror'' was founded by for ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
