Music Venues In Maine
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The state of Maine is located in the New England region of the northeastern United States. Its musical traditions extend back thousands of years to the music of the first peoples of Maine, the
Penobscot The Penobscot (Abenaki: ''Pαnawάhpskewi'') are an Indigenous people in North America from the Northeastern Woodlands region. They are organized as a federally recognized tribe in Maine and as a First Nations band government in the Atlantic pr ...
Passamaquoddy The Passamaquoddy ( Maliseet-Passamaquoddy: ''Peskotomuhkati'') are a Native American/First Nations people who live in northeastern North America. Their traditional homeland, Peskotomuhkatik'','' straddles the Canadian province of New Brunswick ...
, Wabanaki and other related Indigenous cultures.


Indigenous music


Classical music

In the colonial era, the talented composer, singer and compiler of tune books, Supply Belcher (1751–1836), a Maine resident, was known in his time as "the Handel of Maine". Belcher organized the first
choir A choir ( ; also known as a chorale or chorus) is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform. Choirs may perform music from the classical music repertoire, which ...
in Maine. Neoclassical composer
Walter Piston Walter Hamor Piston, Jr. (January 20, 1894 – November 12, 1976), was an American composer of classical music, music theorist, and professor of music at Harvard University. Life Piston was born in Rockland, Maine at 15 Ocean Street to Walter Ha ...
(1894–1976) was born and raised in Rockland before moving to Boston at the age of ten.


Popular music

Maine is home to many talented singers, songwriters, band leaders and composers. Composers from Maine include
Charles Whitney Coombs Charles Whitney Coombs (1859, Bucksport, Maine – 1940, Montclair, New Jersey) was an American composer and organist. He was prolific in both sacred Sacred describes something that is dedicated or set apart for the service or worship of a de ...
, John Knowles Paine,
Frank Churchill Frank Edwin Churchill (October 20, 1901 – May 14, 1942) was an American film composer and songwriter. He wrote most of the music for films directed by Walt Disney, such as ''Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs'', ''Dumbo'', ''Bambi'', '' The Adve ...
, Aaron Robinson, Claude Demetrius, Peter Garland, and
Harold J. Crosby Harold Josiah Crosby (February 11, 1886 – January 18, 1920) was a composer and arranger of band and orchestra music best known for his marches. Crosby was born in Dexter, Maine and studied at Colby College, the University of Maine, and the New Eng ...
. Rudy Vallée grew up in Westbrook. His career started as a saxophone player and singer, later becoming a band leader. He also helped
Alice Faye Alice Faye (born Alice Jeanne Leppert; May 5, 1915 – May 9, 1998) was an American actress and singer. A musical star of 20th Century-Fox in the 1930s and 1940s, Faye starred in such films as ''On the Avenue'' (1937) and ''Alexander's Ragtime B ...
and
Frances Langford Julia Frances Newbern-Langford (April 4, 1913 – July 11, 2005) was an American singer and actress who was popular during the Golden Age of Radio and made film and television appearances for over two decades. She was known as the "GI Nighting ...
start their careers and appeared on Broadway for a time. Vallée was a graduate of the
University of Maine The University of Maine (UMaine or UMO) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Orono, Maine. It was established in 1865 as the land-grant college of Maine and is the Flagship universities, flagshi ...
. Born in
Fort Fairfield Fort Fairfield is a town in Aroostook County, eastern Maine, United States, located along the Canada–US border. The population was 3,322 at the 2020 census. History Fort Fairfield is named for John Fairfield, 13th and 16th governor of Main ...
, country music legend
Dick Curless Richard William Curless (March 17, 1932 – May 25, 1995) was an American country music singer. He usually wore a patch over his right eye. Biography Curless was born in Fort Fairfield, Maine, United States, and moved with his family to Ma ...
was a singer, songwriter and guitarist. His biggest hit, "
A Tombstone Every Mile "A Tombstone Every Mile" is a song written by Dan Fulkerson and recorded by American country music artist Dick Curless. It was released in January 1965 as the lead single from the album of the same name. The song stayed at number five for two weeks ...
", was a song about a stretch of road in Northern Maine. He was an inaugural member of the Maine Country Music Hall Of Fame, located in Mechanic Falls. The Dick Curless Memorial Scholarship Fund has been established to support young Maine musicians. Donald Doane Sr. is another member of the Maine Country Music Hall of Fame, born in
Kennebunk Kennebunk is a town in York County, Maine, United States. The population was 11,536 at the 2020 census (The population does not include Kennebunkport, a separate town). Kennebunk is home to several beaches, the Rachel Carson National Wildlife R ...
in 1907. His band, the Kahtadin Mountaineers, was formed in the early 1950s and still performs regularly today at county fairs, fiddle contests and for many charities. The Windham Community Church was built from charity proceeds. The group has also played with singer
Kate Smith Kathryn Elizabeth Smith (May 1, 1907 – June 17, 1986) was an American contralto. Referred to as The First Lady of Radio, Smith is well known for her renditions of Irving Berlin's "God Bless America" & "When The Moon Comes Over The Mountain". ...
, best known for her rendition of "
God Bless America "God Bless America" is an American patriotic song written by Irving Berlin during World War I in 1918 and revised by him in the run up to World War II in 1938. The later version was notably recorded by Kate Smith, becoming her signature s ...
" (written by Irving Berlin).
Howie Day Howard Kern Day is an American singer-songwriter. Beginning his career as a solo artist in the late 1990s, Day became known for his extensive touring and in-concert use of samplers and effects pedals to accompany himself. He self-financed and s ...
, from Bangor, had a hit with his song " Collide" in 2004.


Music venues and institutions

Major music venues in Maine include the University of Southern Maine, Corthell Hall, Gorham, Maine, Portland's Merrill Auditorium, State Theatre, One Longfellow Square, Port City Music Hall, Portland House of Music and Events, Stone Mountain Arts Center in Brownfield, North Atlantic Blues Festival in Rockland, The Chocolate Church Arts Center in Bath, Bar Harbor Music Festival, American Folk Festival in Bangor, Bay Chambers Summer Music Festival in Rockport, Bowdoin International Music Festival, Kneisel Hall Chamber Music Festival, Portland Chamber Music Festival, Salt Bay Chamberfest in Damariscotta, Sebago – Long Lake Music Festival in Harrison, Saltwater Celtic Music Festival, Ossipee Valley Music Festival in South Hiram, East Benton Fiddlers Festival and Contest, Sweet Chariot Music Festival on Swan's Island, Saddleback Mountain Bluegrass Festival, Frantasia at the University of Maine at Farmington, Treat Memorial Library in Livermore Falls, American Folk Festival in Bangor, Thomas Point Beach Bluegrass Festival in Brunswick, the Gamper Festival of Contemporary Music in Bowdin and the Sebago – Long Lake Festival Players. Maine is home to several prominent professional organizations, including the Portland Symphony Orchestra, the Bangor Symphony Orchestra, the Maine Country Music Association Hall of Fame, the Down East Country Musical Association and the Maine Academy of Country Music. The
Maine State Music Theater Maine State Music Theatre (MSMT) is a professional performing arts organization based in Brunswick, Maine. MSMT presents a summer season of four fully staged musicals, a concert series, and a Theatre for Young Audiences series. The company attra ...
in Brunswick has operated since 1959 and is one of three professional music theaters in the state; the others are Northport Music Theater in Northport, which opened in 2007, and Ogunquit Playhouse in Ogunguit, which opened in 1933. Portland is also home to the Portland Choral Arts Society and the Portland String Quartet. The DaPonte String Quartet is the only other professional string quartet in Maine. The Portland Opera Repertory Theatre and Opera Maine are the main outlets for opera in the state. Outside of Portland, there are pockets of people who preserve the traditional musical styles of their ancestors, including the Swedish music of
Stockholm Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...
and
New Sweden New Sweden ( sv, Nya Sverige) was a Swedish colony along the lower reaches of the Delaware River in what is now the United States from 1638 to 1655, established during the Thirty Years' War when Sweden was a great military power. New Sweden form ...
, the French-Maine community (especially in Upper St. John Valley, home to the Acadian Festival) and the ethnic Russian music of the
Kennebec River The Kennebec River (Abenaki language, Abenaki: ''Kinəpékʷihtəkʷ'') is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map , accessed June 30, 2011 river within the U.S. state of Maine. It ri ...
community in
Richmond Richmond most often refers to: * Richmond, Virginia, the capital of Virginia, United States * Richmond, London, a part of London * Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town in England * Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada * Richmond, California, ...
. Maine's musical heritage also include the longstanding men's
a cappella ''A cappella'' (, also , ; ) music is a performance by a singer or a singing group without instrumental accompaniment, or a piece intended to be performed in this way. The term ''a cappella'' was originally intended to differentiate between Ren ...
group, the Meddiebempsters, at
Bowdoin College Bowdoin College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Brunswick, Maine. When Bowdoin was chartered in 1794, Maine was still a part of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The college offers 34 majors and 36 minors, as well as several joint eng ...
, and Bates College's all-male Manic Optimists. Original compositions about Maine and by Maine composers are stored in the Maine Collection at the
Bagaduce Music Lending Library The Bagaduce Music Lending Library is a music lending library in Blue Hill, Maine. History Established in 1983 in the garage of Mary Cheyney Gould and Marcia Chapman, the Library outgrew its original home on the Penobscot Bay near the Bagaduce Riv ...
in Blue Hill. With over 225,000 separate titles, this library houses the largest publicly available sheet-music collection in North America.


Folk, country, and bluegrass music

Maine has a long folk fiddling tradition, including
Mellie Dunham Mellie Dunham (July 29, 1853 - September 27, 1931) was an American fiddler during the early twentieth century. Dunham was born in Norway, Maine, the son of Alanson Mellen Dunham and Christiana Bent. He came to prominence after he was invited to p ...
, which has helped inspire many modern bluegrass musicians. Maine's bluegrass and fiddling tradition is celebrated at the Eastern Maine Music Festival. There is also a Bluegrass Music Association of Maine. Maine's contributions to bluegrass include
Clarence Clarence may refer to: Places Australia * Clarence County, New South Wales, a Cadastral division * Clarence, New South Wales, a place near Lithgow * Clarence River (New South Wales) * Clarence Strait (Northern Territory) * City of Clarence, a loca ...
and Roland White of the
Kentucky Colonels The Kentucky Colonels were a member of the American Basketball Association for all of the league's nine years. The name is derived from the historic Kentucky colonels. The Colonels won the most games and had the highest winning percentage of ...
and
Jimmy Cox James Cox (July 28, 1882 – March 3, 1925) was an American vaudeville performer, and songwriter famous for his Roaring Twenties hit, "Nobody Knows You When You're Down and Out", written in 1923. Jimmy Cox's daughter, Gertrude "Baby" Cox, sang wit ...
. Many prominent singer-songwriters grew up in Maine, including
Patty Griffin Patricia Jean Griffin (born March 16, 1964) is an American singer, songwriter, and musician.Griffin, Patrici She is a vocalist and plays guitar and piano. She is known for her stripped-down songwriting style in the folk music genre. Her songs ha ...
, Ellis Paul,
Slaid Cleaves Slaid Cleaves is an American singer-songwriter born in Washington, D.C. and raised in South Berwick, Maine and Round Pond, Maine, United States. An alumnus of Tufts University, where he majored in English and philosophy, Cleaves lives in Aust ...
,
David Mallett David Mallett (born April 21, 1951) is an American singer-songwriter best known for his authorship of the "folk standard" composition " Garden Song". He has recorded for independent record labels for most of his career. Biography A resident o ...
and
Rod Picott Rod Picott (born November 3, 1964) is a singer-songwriter whose music incorporates elements of Americana, alternative country, and folk. He was born in New Hampshire, but relocated to Nashville, Tennessee in 1994. After several years of playing ...
. Cleaves and Picott were childhood friends in South Berwick. Randy Browning of the Late Bloomer moved to South Berwick. The Freewill Folk Society at Bates College also continues the folk tradition. There are also more traditional folk acts such as
Schooner Fare Schooner Fare is a Maine-based folk band, consisting of Steve Romanoff (vocals, six and twelve-string guitar, five-string banjo), Chuck Romanoff (vocals, twelve-string guitar, tenor banjo), and formerly Tom Rowe (vocals, bass guitar, tin whist ...
, Maine's best-known folk trio-turned-duo following the death of Tom Rowe in 2004, and the Dave Rowe Trio, founded by the late Tom Rowe's son. The Maritime- and Celtic-inspired folk duo Castlebay continues these traditions by researching archives for songs and ballads sung in Maine and performing them. In addition, members Julia Lane and Fred Gosbee write and perform songs about Maine's people and history. Newer Maine-based
progressive folk Progressive folk was originally a type of American folk music that pursued a progressive political agenda. More recently, the term has also been applied to a style of contemporary folk that draws from post-Bob Dylan folk music and adds new lay ...
artists have been emerging since the 1990s, including Heather Caston and Nancy Cartonio. Maine's religious music includes the well-known church choirs of St. Luke's Episcopal Cathedral and two Bangor-area churches both named after St. John (one Catholic and one Episcopal). One Longfellow Square in Portland is a popular folk-music venue. Contra dances abound throughout the state of Maine keeping a tradition vital. Live bands often include fiddle, guitar, piano, banjo, mandolin, bass, and more. Maine's folk tradition is celebrated and kept alive in summer camps such as Maine Fiddle Camp in Montville. The Acadia School of Traditional Music and Arts (the Acadia Trad School) operates a week-long festival in June that attracts serious music and dance students of all ages from all across the US, Canada and beyond. Maine's musicians play a variety of different styles of folk music. Irish, Scottish, Quebecois, and even southern styles were influential on Maine's folk tradition. French-Canadian music is popular in Northern Maine on the border of Canada. The traditional fiddle tunes extended into Maine and became very prominent in all of New England. The only music museum east of Nashville is located in Mechanic Falls. The Maine Country Music Hall of Fame was founded in 1978 and in 2008 they opened a museum.


Blues

Blues Blues is a music genre and musical form which originated in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues incorporated spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts, chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads from the Afr ...
pianist Bob Page was from Damariscotta. Harmonica player and singer Jason Ricci is from Portland.


Jazz

The southern coastal region both in and near Portland, Maine is home to many
jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...
instrumentalists, composers, singers, songwriters and arrangers. The University of Southern Maine at Gorham campus offers many jazz concerts throughout the academic year. Lenny Breau, born in Auburn in 1941, is often considered to have been the most gifted jazz guitarist of all time. He was also a very well versed classical guitar player, known for his distinctive fingerstyle technique and ability to incorporate two-note comping, harmonics, quartal harmony and three-against-two rhythms. He was also known for blending jazz, flamenco, classical and country styles. During his lifetime, Breau recorded albums such as ''The Hallmark Sessions'', ''Swingin' on a Seven String'' and ''Guitar Sounds''. Some of his most memorable tunes are "Bouree", "The Claw" and "Emily", performed in Brunswick on August 2, 1980. Breau died in Los Angeles in 1984. Don Doane, a jazz trombonist and music teacher within the Maine school system, has played with
Woody Herman Woodrow Charles Herman (May 16, 1913 – October 29, 1987) was an American jazz clarinetist, saxophonist, singer, and big band leader. Leading groups called "The Herd", Herman came to prominence in the late 1930s and was active until his dea ...
and
Maynard Ferguson Walter Maynard Ferguson CM (May 4, 1928 – August 23, 2006) was a Canadian jazz trumpeter and bandleader. He came to prominence in Stan Kenton's orchestra before forming his own big band in 1957. He was noted for his bands, which often served ...
. Dave Bowler, a professional jazz drummer born in 1957 in Portland, helped found the jazz/rock band the Franklin Street Arterial and recorded an album called ''Blue Hills''. He has played with other well-known musicians such as
Willie Nelson Willie Hugh Nelson (born April 29, 1933) is an American country musician. The critical success of the album ''Shotgun Willie'' (1973), combined with the critical and commercial success of ''Red Headed Stranger'' (1975) and '' Stardust'' (197 ...
,
Willie Dixon William James Dixon (July 1, 1915January 29, 1992) was an American blues musician, vocalist, songwriter, arranger and record producer. He was proficient in playing both the upright bass and the guitar, and sang with a distinctive voice, but he ...
and Kilimandjaro. He also became a member of
the Ahmad Jamal Trio ''The Ahmad Jamal Trio'' is an album by American jazz pianist Ahmad Jamal. It was released on the Epic label. Pianist, arranger and composer
John Benson Brooks John Benson Brooks (February 23, 1917, Houlton, Maine – November 13, 1999, New York City) was an American jazz pianist, songwriter, arranger, and composer. Brooks worked early in his career as an arranger for Randy Brooks, Les Brown, Boyd R ...
was born in Houlton.


Rock

Punk rock band
Pinkerton Thugs The Pinkerton Thugs are a punk band from Kennebunk, Maine. History The band has been together since July 1994 under a number of different names but officially became the Pinkerton Thugs in March 1996 (taking their name from the infamous Pinker ...
formed in Kennebunk.
Alternative rock Alternative rock, or alt-rock, is a category of rock music that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1970s and became widely popular in the 1990s. "Alternative" refers to the genre's distinction from Popular culture, mainstre ...
band Gouds Thumb,
As Fast As As Fast As, formerly known as Rocktopus, is an alternative rock/power pop band from Portland, Maine, USA which formed in 2001. The band was formed as Rocktopus and released two albums under that name before changing their name to As Fast As. Th ...
,
indie rock Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United States, United Kingdom and New Zealand from the 1970s to the 1980s. Originally used to describe independent record labels, the term became associated with the mu ...
bands
Rustic Overtones Rustic Overtones is an American rock band from Maine, United States, active between 1993–2002 and from 2007–present. They were the first group to perform live on XM Satellite Radio, and their 2007 album ''Light at the End'' was the fastest-s ...
, Paranoid Social Club, Phantom Buffalo,
Clay Camero Clay is a type of fine-grained natural soil material containing clay minerals (hydrous aluminium phyllosilicates, e.g. kaolin, aluminium, Al2Silicon, Si2Oxygen, O5(hydroxide, OH)4). Clays develop plasticity (physics), plasticity when wet, du ...
,
Big Blood Big Blood is an American band formed in South Portland, Maine in 2006. The band's music fuses psychedelic folk, experimental rock, and an eclectic array of other styles and influences. Big Blood originated as a husband-and-wife duo of Colleen K ...
and
hardcore punk Hardcore punk (also known as simply hardcore) is a punk rock music genre and subculture that originated in the late 1970s. It is generally faster, harder, and more aggressive than other forms of punk rock. Its roots can be traced to earlier punk ...
band Cruel Hand, rock band 6gig, Lost On Liftoff, Livid Orange, Sidecar Radio are from Portland. Portland is also home to many venues catering to the city's underground punk, indie, and experimental rock scene, including the Apohadion Theater, Sun Tiki Studios, and Geno's Rock Club. Notable contemporary bands from this scene include experimental rock groups Amiright?, FonFon Ru, and Lahnah,
noise rock Noise rock (sometimes called noise punk) is a noise music, noise-oriented style of experimental rock that spun off from punk rock in the 1980s. Drawing on movements such as minimal music, minimalism, industrial music, and New York hardcore, a ...
and
shoegaze Shoegaze (originally called shoegazing and sometimes conflated with "dream pop") is a subgenre of indie and alternative rock characterized by its ethereal mixture of obscured vocals, guitar distortion and effects, feedback, and overwhelming volu ...
bands Twisted Hellcat and Crystal Canyon, electric
folk punk Folk punk (known in its early days as rogue folk) is a fusion of folk music and punk rock. It was popularized in the early 1980s by the Pogues in England, and by Violent Femmes in the United States. Folk punk achieved some mainstream success in ...
outfit
the Bumbling Woohas ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in En ...
, and
pop punk Pop punk (or punk pop) is a rock music genre that combines elements of punk rock with power pop or pop. It is defined for its emphasis on classic pop songcraft, as well as adolescent and anti-suburbia themes, and is distinguished from other pu ...
,
emo Emo is a rock music genre characterized by emotional, often confessional lyrics. It emerged as a style of and hardcore punk from the Washington D.C. hardcore punk scene, where it was known as emotional hardcore or emocore and pioneered b ...
, and
indie punk Indie rock is a subgenre of rock music that originated in the United States, United Kingdom and New Zealand from the 1970s to the 1980s. Originally used to describe independent record labels, the term became associated with the music they produc ...
bands such as Street Sity Surf, Frankie Moon & Dave Mathewses Band, and Uncle Spudd. The most commercially successful act to come out of this scene is the
indie rock Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United States, United Kingdom and New Zealand from the 1970s to the 1980s. Originally used to describe independent record labels, the term became associated with the mu ...
band
Weakened Friends Weakened Friends is an American indie rock band formed in Portland, Maine, signed to Big Scary Monsters and best known for their 2018 song "Blue Again", from their debut full-length album ''Common Blah''. The band consists of Sonia Sturino (vocals, ...
who were named "Unsigned Artist of the Year" in 2017's Boston Music Awards and collaborated with
J Mascis Joseph Donald Mascis Jr. ( ; born December 10, 1965), better known as J Mascis, is an American musician who is the singer, guitarist and main songwriter for the alternative rock band Dinosaur Jr. He has also released several albums as a solo arti ...
of
Dinosaur Jr. Dinosaur Jr. is an American rock band formed in Amherst, Massachusetts, in 1984, originally simply called Dinosaur until legal issues forced a change in name. The band was founded by J Mascis (guitar, vocals, primary songwriter), Lou Barlow ( ...
on the track ''Hate Mail'' The DIY venue, the Squashed Warehouse, is revered among punk musicians and commonly hosts hardcore,
pop punk Pop punk (or punk pop) is a rock music genre that combines elements of punk rock with power pop or pop. It is defined for its emphasis on classic pop songcraft, as well as adolescent and anti-suburbia themes, and is distinguished from other pu ...
,
folk punk Folk punk (known in its early days as rogue folk) is a fusion of folk music and punk rock. It was popularized in the early 1980s by the Pogues in England, and by Violent Femmes in the United States. Folk punk achieved some mainstream success in ...
, and
noise rock Noise rock (sometimes called noise punk) is a noise music, noise-oriented style of experimental rock that spun off from punk rock in the 1980s. Drawing on movements such as minimal music, minimalism, industrial music, and New York hardcore, a ...
shows, having been played by national and local acts including
folk punk Folk punk (known in its early days as rogue folk) is a fusion of folk music and punk rock. It was popularized in the early 1980s by the Pogues in England, and by Violent Femmes in the United States. Folk punk achieved some mainstream success in ...
legends
Days N' Daze Days N' Daze is an American band formed in Houston, Texas performing a type of folk punk they have called 'H-Town Thrashgrass'. Promoting a strong DIY ethic, Days N' Daze independently records, produces, and promotes all their own music. Song the ...
, underground
ska-core Ska punk (also spelled ska-punk) is a fusion genre that mixes ska music and punk rock music together. (sometimes spelled skacore) is a subgenre of ska punk that mixes ska with hardcore punk. Early ska punk mixed both 2 tone and ska with hard ...
act
Grey Matter Grey matter is a major component of the central nervous system, consisting of neuronal cell bodies, neuropil (dendrites and unmyelinated axons), glial cells (astrocytes and oligodendrocytes), synapses, and capillaries. Grey matter is distingui ...
, and many of the groups mentioned above. Another DIY Venue, Project Freewill, in New Portland Maine, celebrates underground musicians in Maine. The band Oak, signed to
Mercury Mercury commonly refers to: * Mercury (planet), the nearest planet to the Sun * Mercury (element), a metallic chemical element with the symbol Hg * Mercury (mythology), a Roman god Mercury or The Mercury may also refer to: Companies * Merc ...
/
PolyGram PolyGram N.V. was a multinational entertainment company and major music record label formerly based in the Netherlands. It was founded in 1962 as the Grammophon-Philips Group by Dutch corporation Philips and German corporation Siemens, to be a ...
, had four songs that made the
Billboard Hot 100 The ''Billboard'' Hot 100 is the music industry standard record chart in the United States for songs, published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine. Chart rankings are based on sales (physical and digital), radio play, and online streaming ...
chart; the most successful was "King of the Hill", which reached No. 36 in May 1980. Oak originally consisted of Rick Pinette (vocals, piano, guitar), Dave Stone (keyboard), Danny Caron (drums), George Borden (bass) and Scott Grover Weatherspoon (guitar). John Foster replaced Borden on bass for the band's second album. Carl Crosen (guitar) and Bruce Noell (bass) played in the band during the time in which demos for the record label were recorded. Oak went on national college concert tours and played all over the Northeast and Eastern Canada. The band was known for great theatrics, high energy and excellent vocals and musicianship.


Hip hop

Hip hop artist
Alias Alias may refer to: * Pseudonym * Pen name * Nickname Arts and entertainment Film and television * ''Alias'' (2013 film), a 2013 Canadian documentary film * ''Alias'' (TV series), an American action thriller series 2001–2006 * ''Alias the ...
, from Hollis, formed the label
Anticon Anticon (often styled as anticon.) is an independent record label based in Los Angeles, California. It was founded in 1998 by seven musicians and manager Baillie Parker. It is now collectively owned among six musicians, co-founder Parker, and man ...
.
Spose Ryan Michael Peters (born July 1, 1985), better known by the stage name Spose, is an American rapper from Wells, Maine. Early life Peters was born in Portland, Maine. He grew up in Wells, Maine. Although he began rapping in eighth grade, he ...
was born in Portland and grew up in Wells. Portland-based Trails has won local album awards and collaborated with Kool G Rap, members of the
Wu-Tang Clan Wu-Tang Clan is an American hip hop group formed in Staten Island, New York City, in 1992. Its original members include RZA, GZA, Ol' Dirty Bastard, Method Man, Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, Inspectah Deck, U-God, and Masta Killa. Close affili ...
and others.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Music Of Maine Maine culture
Maine Maine () is a state in the New England and Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec to the northeast and north ...
Maine Maine () is a state in the New England and Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec to the northeast and north ...