Sixth-grader Jackson C. Frank was horribly burned when the boiler at his Cheektowaga, New York, elementary school
exploded March 31, 1954, killing fifteen of his classmates. While recovering from his injuries, Frank was introduced to the guitar, and the insurance settlement he received a decade later helped fund a trip to England, where he recorded his
first and only album.
[more inside]
posted by Knappster
on Aug 15, 2010 -
34 comments
From the Borough of Brooklyn comes
Dollar Van Demos: a showcase of talented musicians, rappers and comedians performing inside a dollar van with real passengers.
[more inside]
posted by Drexen
on Mar 13, 2010 -
7 comments
Broadway's original
Effie White, Jennifer Holliday, has been very open about how
haunted and
snubbed she felt during the production of the Dreamgirls movie. In particular she was hurt when, without permission, her own singing voice was used in a theatrical trailer to promote the production that had completely shut her out. Yesterday at the BET Awards she was finally given some overdue recognition and invited to join Jennifer Hudson onstage for a duet of
the song she made famous. You may have heard the song a hundred times, but try to make it 101. 'Cuz seriously, the girls can sing.
Previously.
posted by miss lynnster
on Jun 27, 2007 -
46 comments
Bollywood Dreams. Bollywood in a nutshell: Bollywood is the name given to the Bombay (Mumbai)-based Hindi-language film industry in India. Bollywood films are colorful, crammed with
singing,
dancing, loads of
costume changes. In the past there were often absurd and hilarious take-offs on Western films or superstars, such as the
Beatles,
Michael Jackson ,
Elvis,
70's music and
hair styles. Spectacular collection of
Bollywood posters and
vintage original poster art for sale and
t-shirts.
Stats and
faqs. The
history of Bollywood, brief
chronology [pdf]. The main
actors,
images. The main
actresses,
images. Some of the
renowned songs and the
singers who sang them. Bollywood
song lyrics and audio at the excellent Music India Online. [more inside]
posted by nickyskye
on Jan 27, 2007 -
74 comments
Yesterday's
post about Buddy Holly, spurred me to look deeper into the pop charts back when American Pie was in the top 40. I was fairly amazed at the list of songs
charting that week. We've got
Horse With No Name, Heart of Gold, Mother and Child Reunion with artists like Harry Chapin, Roberta Flack and Nilsson. Sure, there's some pop
pabulum, but I was blown away at the litany of performers whose very personal songs, and not very pop themes, were all be charting together. When compared to
today's chart, it makes you wonder - what happened to the pop performer as an artist? Is there room for a unique artistic voice in today's pop?
posted by pejamo
on Feb 4, 2003 -
36 comments
I Nominate Richie Havens As The Most Criminally Unappreciated Recording Artist Ever: In this recent
Guardian article, John Aizlewood asked "How on earth did this man miss the boat?" Indeed! His voice is deep and beautiful, his guitar-playing is exciting and innovative and, to my mind, he's the best and busiest no-nonsense live performer around. On his
website he generously shows us how to play guitar
in his own special way. He also
comes across as an inspiring, wonderful human being. And yet, for all his Woodstock kudos, he's more well known for his voice-overs on commercials(McDonalds and Pepsi, for example) than for his music. His new record,
Wishing Well, is just out. But
nobody seems to care. He's a hero in Europe but negligently seen as a hippy in his native land. There are a lot of other unnaccountably underrated and unknown veteran artists around. Grrrr!
Who's yours?
posted by MiguelCardoso
on Feb 17, 2002 -
105 comments
Now, I've never been a BIG fan of either
Frank Sinatra or
Robbie Williams. Sure, I've a lot of respect for the former, and the latter's a great singer and entertainer from the UK. But last nite, I was converted. Anyone see A Night With Robbie Williams on TV in the UK last night?
(more inside)
posted by wibbler
on Nov 18, 2001 -
18 comments
