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Kent Records
Kent Records was a Los Angeles–based record label, launched in 1958 by the Bihari brothers. It was a subsidiary of Crown Records Corporation. Kent was a follow-up to Modern Records, which ceased operations in 1958. The label reissued Modern's singles, including recordings by B.B. King. By 1964, Kent had signed acts such as Ike & Tina Turner and released new material. Other acts signed to the label included Z.Z. Hill, Johnny Otis, and Lowell Fulsom. Modern Records was revived in 1964 with successful singles from the Ikettes. Initially, Kent issued only singles, but issued albums from 1964 until the early 1970s. Kent was later bought by Ace Records, England, which uses the label name to release Motown and Northern Soul music. Selected Discography Albums * 1964: B.B. King, ''Rock Me Baby...14 Great Hits'' (compilation) * 1964: B.B. King, ''Let Me Love You'' * 1964: '' Ike & Tina Turner Revue Live'' * 1965: ''Live! B.B. King on Stage'' * 1965: Lowell Fulson, ''Soul'' * 1965: ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Record Label
"Big Three" music labels A record label or record company is a brand or trademark of Sound recording and reproduction, music recordings and music videos, or the company that owns it. Sometimes, a record label is also a Music publisher, publishing company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the production, manufacturing, manufacture, distribution (marketing), distribution, marketing, promotion, and enforcement of copyright for sound recordings and music videos, while also conducting Artists and repertoire, talent scouting and development of new artists, artist financing and maintaining Recording contract, contracts with recording artists and their managers. The term "record label" derives from the circular label in the center of a vinyl record which prominently displays the manufacturer's name, along with other information. Within the mainstream music industry, recording artists have traditionally been reliant upon record labels to broaden their consumer ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Big Joe Turner
Joseph Vernon "Big Joe" Turner Jr. (May 18, 1911 – November 24, 1985) was an American blues shouter from Kansas City, Missouri. According to songwriter Doc Pomus, "Rock and roll would have never happened without him". Turner's greatest fame was due to his rock and roll recordings in the 1950s, particularly "Shake, Rattle and Roll", but his career as a performer endured from the 1920s into the 1980s. Turner was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1987, with the Hall lauding him as "the brawny voiced 'Boss of the Blues. AllMusic called Turner "the premier blues shouter of the postwar era". Life and career Early days Turner was born May 18, 1911, in Kansas City, Missouri, United States. His father was killed in a train accident when Turner was four years old. He sang in his church, and on street corners for money. He left school at age fourteen to work in Kansas City's nightclubs, first as a cook and later as a singing bartender. He became known as "The Singing B ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Big Mama Thornton
Willie Mae "Big Mama" Thornton (December 11, 1926 – July 25, 1984), was an American singer and songwriter of blues and R&B. The ''Encyclopedia of Pop, Rock and Soul'' described Thornton by saying: "Her booming voice, sometimes 200-pound frame, and exuberant stage manner had audiences stomping their feet and shouting encouragement in R&B theaters from coast to coast from the early 1950s on". Thornton was the first to record Leiber and Stoller's " Hound Dog", in 1952, which was written for her. It became Thornton's biggest hit, selling over 500,000 copies and staying seven weeks at number one on the ''Billboard'' R&B chart in 1953. According to New York University music professor Maureen Mahon, "the song is seen as an important beginning of rock-and-roll, especially in its use of the guitar as the key instrument". Thornton's other recordings include her song " Ball and Chain", made famous in the late 1960s by Janis Joplin. Though later recordings of her songs by other artis ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Please, Please, Please (James Brown Song)
"Please, Please, Please" is a rhythm and blues song performed by James Brown and the Famous Flames. Written by Brown and Johnny Terry and released as a single on Federal Records in 1956, it reached No. 6 on the R&B charts. The group's debut recording and first chart hit, it has come to be recognized as their signature song. Background In 1952, James Brown was released from a youth detention center in Toccoa, Georgia after Bobby Byrd and his family sponsored him. Brown's warden agreed to the release on the condition that Brown not return to Augusta. After his release, Brown briefly pursued a career in sports before starting his musical career as a gospel vocalist with the group the Ever-Ready Gospel Singers. When a member of Bobby Byrd's vocal group, the Avons, died in 1954, Byrd asked Brown to join his group. A year later, after performing as the Five Royals, they became the Flames, playing all over Georgia and South Carolina. According to Etta James, Brown and his group ca ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Elmore James
Elmore James ( Brooks; January 27, 1918 – May 24, 1963) was an American blues guitarist, singer, songwriter, and bandleader. Noted for his use of loud amplification and his stirring voice, James was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1992. His slide guitar technique earned him the nickname "King of the Slide Guitar". Biography Elmore James was born Elmore Brooks in Richland, Holmes County, Mississippi, the son of 15-year-old Leola Brooks, a field hand. His father was probably Joe Willie "Frost" James, who moved in with Leola, and Elmore took his surname. He began making music at the age of 12, using a simple one-string instrument ( diddley bow, or jitterbug) strung on a shack wall. As a teen he performed at dances under the names Cleanhead and Joe Willie James. James was influenced by Robert Johnson, Kokomo Arnold and Tampa Red. He recorded several of Tampa Red's songs. He also inherited from Tampa Red's band two musicians who joined his own backing band, t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dust My Broom
"Dust My Broom" is a blues song originally recorded as "I Believe I'll Dust My Broom" by American blues artist Robert Johnson in 1936. It is a solo performance in the Delta blues-style with Johnson's vocal accompanied by his acoustic guitar. As with many of his songs, it is based on earlier blues songs, the earliest of which has been identified as "I Believe I'll Make a Change", recorded by the Sparks brothers as " Pinetop and Lindberg" in 1932. Johnson's guitar work features an early use of a boogie rhythm pattern, which is seen as a major innovation, as well as a repeating triplets figure. In 1951, Elmore James recorded the song as "Dust My Broom" and "made it the classic as we know it", according to blues historian Gerard Herzhaft. James' slide guitar adaptation of Johnson's triplet figure has been identified as one of the most famous blues guitar riffs and has inspired many rock performers. The song has become a blues standard, with numerous renditions by a variety of m ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rock Me Baby (song)
"Rock Me Baby" is a blues standard that has become one of the most recorded blues songs of all time. It originated as "Rockin' and Rollin'", a 1951 song by Lil' Son Jackson, itself inspired by earlier blues. Renditions by Muddy Waters and B.B. King made the song well-known. When B.B. King's recording of "Rock Me Baby" was released in 1964, it became his first single to reach the Top 40 in ''Billboard'' magazine's Hot 100 chart. In 2022, King's recording was inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame in the 'Classics of Blues Recording – Singles' category. Earlier songs B.B. King's "Rock Me Baby" is based on the 1951 song "Rockin' and Rollin'" by Lil' Son Jackson. King's lyrics are nearly identical to Jackson's, although instrumentally the songs are different: "Rockin' and Rollin'" is a solo piece, with Jackson's vocal and guitar accompaniment, whereas "Rock Me Baby" is an ensemble piece. Muddy Waters' song "Rock Me", recorded in 1956, is also based on Jackson's song. Some of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ike Turner
Izear Luster "Ike" Turner Jr. (November 5, 1931 – December 12, 2007) was an American musician, bandleader, songwriter, record producer, and talent scout. An early pioneer of 1950s rock and roll, he is best known for his work in the 1960s and 1970s with his wife Tina Turner as the leader of the Ike & Tina Turner Revue. A native of Clarksdale, Mississippi, Turner began playing piano and guitar as a child and then formed the Kings of Rhythm as a teenager. His first recording, " Rocket 88" (credited to Jackie Brenston and his Delta Cats), is considered a contender for the distinction of first rock and roll song. During the 1950s, Turner also worked as a talent scout and producer for Sun Records and Modern Records. He was instrumental in the early careers of various blues musicians such as B.B. King, Howlin' Wolf, and Bobby "Blue" Bland. In 1954, Turner relocated to East St. Louis where his Kings of Rhythm became one of the most renowned acts in Greater St. Louis. He fo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bobby Bland
Robert Calvin Bland (born Robert Calvin Brooks; January 27, 1930 – June 23, 2013), known professionally as Bobby "Blue" Bland, was an American blues singer. Bland developed a sound that mixed gospel with the blues and R&B. He was described as "among the great storytellers of blues and soul music... hocreated tempestuous arias of love, betrayal and resignation, set against roiling, dramatic orchestrations, and left the listener drained but awed." The inspiration behind his unique style was a Detroit Preacher, CL Franklin, because Bland studied his sermons. He was sometimes referred to as the "Lion of the Blues" and as the " Sinatra of the Blues". His music was influenced by Nat King Cole. Bland was inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame in 1981, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1992, and the Memphis Music Hall of Fame in 2012. He received the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 1997. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame described him as "second in stature only to B.B. King ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Etta James
Jamesetta Hawkins (January 25, 1938 – January 20, 2012), known professionally as Etta James, was an American singer and songwriter. Starting her career in 1954, James frequently performed in Nashville's R&B clubs, collectively known as the Chitlin' Circuit, in the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s. She sang in various genres, including Gospel music, gospel, blues, jazz, Rhythm and blues, R&B, rock and roll and Soul music, soul and gained fame with hits such as "The Wallflower (Dance with Me, Henry), The Wallflower" (1955), "At Last" (1960), "Something's Got a Hold on Me" (1962), "Tell Mama (song), Tell Mama" and "I'd Rather Go Blind" (both 1967). She faced a number of personal problems, including Opioid use disorder, heroin addiction, severe physical abuse and Imprisonment, incarceration, before making a musical comeback in the late 1980s with the album ''Seven Year Itch (Etta James album), Seven Year Itch'' (1988). James's deep and earthy voice is considered to have bridged the gap betw ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Wallflower (Dance With Me, Henry)
"The Wallflower" (also known as "Roll with Me, Henry" and "Dance with Me, Henry") is a 1955 song by Etta James. It was one of several answer songs to " Work with Me, Annie" and has the same 12-bar blues form. Lyrics and release The song was written by Johnny Otis, Hank Ballard, and Etta James. Etta James recorded it for Modern Records, with uncredited vocal responses from Richard Berry. It was popularly known as "Roll with Me Henry". This original version was considered too risqué to play on pop radio stations. The song is a dialogue between "Henry" and the singer: *Hey baby, whatta I have to do to make you love me too? *You've got to roll with me Henry The context is the dance floor. The Midnighters also recorded an "answer to the answer": "Henry's Got Flat Feet (Can't Dance No More)". Under the title "The Wallflower," the single became a rhythm and blues hit, topping the US ''Billboard'' R&B chart for four weeks. On ''Billboard'''s Top R&B Records of 1955 list, it rank ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs
The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by '' Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 positions but was shortened to 50 positions in October 2012. The chart is used to track the success of popular music songs in urban, or primarily African-American, venues. Dominated over the years at various times by jazz, rhythm and blues, doo-wop, rock and roll, soul, and funk, it is today dominated by contemporary R&B and hip hop. Since its inception, the chart has changed its name many times in order to accurately reflect the industry at the time. History Beginning in 1942, ''Billboard'' published a chart of bestselling African-American music, first as the Harlem Hit Parade, then as Race Records. Then in 1949, ''Billboard'' began publishing a Rhythm and Blues chart, which entered "R&B" into mainstream lexicon. These three ch ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
