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Upbeat (TV Program)
''Upbeat'' is a syndicated musical variety show produced in Cleveland, Ohio at ABC affiliate WEWS-TV 5 that aired from 1964 to 1971 (the last five years airing nationally in first run syndication). History Originally titled as ''The Big 5 Show'', the series began as a local program when it premiered in 1964, the name was a reference to WEWS Channel 5 and the 5 to 6 p.m. time slot on Saturday afternoons. When the program became syndicated nationally, the name of the show was changed to ''Upbeat'', and as stations had the option of airing the program at different times, the program's title change was necessary. The introduction of the program commenced with a studio musician shouting "hey let's go with the Upbeat show!" as the in-house band, Dave C and the Sharptones, would play the introductory theme song with the program's main title logo, slowly exploding and coming back together again in a quasi-animated frame by frame fashion as the performers were announced for that particul ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Don Webster (media Personality)
Donald George Webster (May 6, 1939 – December 13, 2018) was a Canadian-born television host, weather forecaster, and station manager who is best known as the host of the nationally syndicated music program ''Upbeat'' and the longtime weatherman for Cleveland, Ohio ABC affiliate WEWS-TV 5. Life and career Webster was born in the city of Chatham, Ontario, Canada in 1939. His father died when he was eleven years old. After graduating high school, he went to work in the radio business, working in stations in Hamilton, Ontario, and Montreal, Quebec. In the early 1960s, Webster had become host of an ''American Bandstand''-style dance show in Hamilton. In 1964 (after then WEWS general manager Don Perris just happened to see his Canadian show on TV while on vacation in Erie, Pennsylvania) Webster was brought to Cleveland to host a local music and dance program called ''The Big 5 Show''. The show was a success, doing so well that in 1966, it was syndicated nationally under the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mitch Ryder
Mitch Ryder (born William Sherille Levise, Jr.; February 26, 1945) is an American musician who has recorded more than 25 albums over more than four decades. Career Ryder formed his first band, Tempest, when he was at Warren High School, and the group gained some notice playing at a Detroit soul music club called The Village. Ryder next appeared fronting a band named Billy Lee & The Rivieras, which had limited success until they met songwriter / record producer Bob Crewe. He selected his stage name when he saw "Mitch Ryder" in the Manhattan telephone directory and renamed the group Mitch Ryder & The Detroit Wheels. They recorded several hit records for his DynoVoice Records and New Voice labels in the mid to late 1960s, most notably 1964’s "Devil with a Blue Dress On," their highest-charting single at number four, as well as "Jenny Take a Ride!," which reached number 10 in 1965, and "Sock It to Me, Baby!", a number six hit in 1967. The Detroit Wheels were John Badanjek on dru ... [...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] |
The Who
The Who are an English rock band formed in London in 1964. Their classic lineup consisted of lead singer Roger Daltrey, guitarist and singer Pete Townshend, bass guitarist and singer John Entwistle, and drummer Keith Moon. They are considered one of the most influential rock bands of the 20th century, and have sold over 100 million records worldwide. Their contributions to rock music include the development of the Marshall Stack, large PA systems, the use of the synthesizer, Entwistle and Moon's influential playing styles, Townshend's feedback and power chord guitar technique, and the development of the rock opera. They are cited as an influence by many hard rock, punk rock, power pop and mod bands, and their songs are still regularly played. The Who were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1990. The Who developed from an earlier group, the Detours, and established themselves as part of the pop art and mod movements, featuring auto-destructive art by d ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Box Tops
The Box Tops is an American rock band formed in Memphis in 1967. They are best known for the hits " The Letter", "Cry Like a Baby", "Choo Choo Train," and " Soul Deep" and are considered a major blue-eyed soul group of the period. They performed a mixture of current soul music songs by artists such as James & Bobby Purify and Clifford Curry; pop tunes such as "A Whiter Shade of Pale" by Procol Harum; and songs written by their producers, Dan Penn, Spooner Oldham, and Chips Moman. Vocalist Alex Chilton went on to front the power pop band Big Star and to launch a career as a solo artist, during which he occasionally performed songs he had sung with the Box Tops. The Box Tops' music combined elements of soul music and light pop. Their records are prime examples of the styles made popular by Moman and Penn at American Sound Studio in Memphis. Many of their lesser known Top 40 hits, including "Neon Rainbow", "I Met Her in Church", and "Sweet Cream Ladies, Forward March", are consid ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The 5th Dimension
The 5th Dimension is an American popular music vocal group, whose repertoire includes pop, R&B, soul, jazz, light opera, and Broadway. Formed as the Versatiles in late 1965, the group changed its name to "the 5th Dimension" by 1966. Between 1967 and 1973 they charted with 20 top 40 hits on ''Billboards Hot 100, two of which – " Up, Up and Away" (no. 7, 1967) and the 1969 number one " Medley: Aquarius/Let the Sunshine In (The Flesh Failures)" — won the Grammy Award for Record of the Year. Other big hits include " Stoned Soul Picnic" (no. 3), "Wedding Bell Blues" (no. 1), "One Less Bell to Answer" (no. 2), a cover of "Never My Love" (pop no. 12/Easy Listening no. 1), "(Last Night) I Didn't Get to Sleep at All" (no. 8), and "If I Could Reach You" (pop no. 10/Easy Listening no. 1). Three of their records reached the top ten of ''Billboard'''s Rhythm & Blues/Soul chart. Five of their 19 top 20 hits on the Easy Listening chart reached number one. The five original members ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jackie Wilson
Jack Leroy Wilson Jr. (June 9, 1934 – January 21, 1984) was an American singer and performer of the 1950s and 60s. He was a prominent figure in the transition of rhythm and blues into soul. Nicknamed "Mr. Excitement", he was considered a master showman and one of the most dynamic singers and performers in soul, R&B, and rock and roll history. Wilson gained initial fame as a member of the R&B vocal group Billy Ward and His Dominoes. He went solo in 1957 and scored over 50 chart singles spanning the genres of R&B, pop, soul, doo-wop, and easy listening. This included 16 Top 10 R&B hits, six of which ranked as number ones. On the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, Wilson scored 14 top 20 pop hits, six of which reached the top 10. Wilson was posthumously inducted to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1987. He is also inducted into the National Rhythm & Blues Hall of Fame. Two of Wilson's recordings were inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1999. He was honored with the Rhythm and Blue ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
James Brown
James Joseph Brown (May 3, 1933 – December 25, 2006) was an American singer, dancer, musician, record producer and bandleader. The central progenitor of funk music and a major figure of 20th century music, he is often referred to by the honorific nicknames "the Hardest Working Man in Show Business", "Godfather of Soul", "Mr. Dynamite", and "Soul Brother No. 1". In a career that lasted more than 50 years, he influenced the development of several music genres. Brown was one of the first 10 inductees into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame at its inaugural induction in New York on January 23, 1986. Brown began his career as a gospel singer in Toccoa, Georgia. He first came to national public attention in the mid-1950s as the lead singer of the Famous Flames, a rhythm and blues vocal group founded by Bobby Byrd. With the hit ballads "Please, Please, Please" and " Try Me", Brown built a reputation as a dynamic live performer with the Famous Flames and his backing band, sometimes know ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
? And The Mysterians
? and the Mysterians (or Question Mark and the Mysterians) are an American garage rock band from Bay City and Saginaw in Michigan, initially active between 1962 and 1969. Much of the band's music consisted of electric organ-driven garage rock and an enigmatic image inspired by the 1957 Japanese science fiction film ''The Mysterians''. In addition, the band's sound was also marked by raw-resonating lead vocals of "?" (Question Mark, the stage name of Rudy Martínez), making Question Mark and the Mysterians one of the earliest groups whose musical style is described as punk rock. Their music and imagery were highly influential on later bands. The band signed to Pa-Go-Go Records (based in San Antonio, Texas and run by Rudy "Tee" Gonzales) in 1966 and released its first and most acclaimed single, "96 Tears", in the early part of that year. "96 Tears" became a number one hit on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and propelled the group to a 15-month period of national prominence. Their debut ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jeff Kutash
Jeff Kutash (b. 1945) is an American dancer and choreographer. Early life Jeff was born in Cleveland, Ohio. As a teen, he was a middleweight Golden Gloves boxer. Career Jeff Kutash began his entertainment career in Cleveland, Ohio, as a dancer/choreographer of the musical variety show ''Upbeat'', which was inducted into the Rock 'n Roll Hall of Fame in 2000. He has choreographed for James Brown, Otis Redding, Jackie Wilson, John Travolta, Muhammad Ali, Michael Jackson, Bette Midler, Cher and Jerry Lewis. He served as a Live Show Attraction Director for Elvis Presley, Dick Clark, Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis Jr. Samuel George Davis Jr. (December 8, 1925 – May 16, 1990) was an American singer, dancer, actor, comedian, film producer and television director. At age three, Davis began his career in vaudeville with his father Sammy Davis Sr. and the ... and Tom Jones. Kutash created Las Vegas' first water show, ''Splash'', which was a long-running hit for 20 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
O'Jays
The O'Jays are an American R&B group from Canton, Ohio, formed in 1958 and originally consisting of Eddie Levert, Walter Lee Williams, William Powell, Bobby Massey, and Bill Isles. The O'Jays made their first chart appearance with the minor hit "Lonely Drifter" in 1963, but reached their greatest level of success once Gamble & Huff, a team of producers and songwriters, signed them to their Philadelphia International label in 1972. With Gamble & Huff, the O'Jays (now a trio after the departure of Isles and Massey) emerged at the forefront of Philadelphia soul with " Back Stabbers" (1972), and topped the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100 the following year with "Love Train". Several other US R&B hits followed, and the O'Jays were inducted into the Vocal Group Hall of Fame in 2004, The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2005, and the Rhythm and Blues Music Hall of Fame in 2013. Career The group was formed in Canton, Ohio, in 1958 while its members were attending Canton McKinley High School. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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