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Matthew Aitken
Matthew James Aitken (born 25 August 1956) is an English songwriter and record producer, brought up in Astley, Greater Manchester, best known as part of the 1980s/early-1990s songwriting/production trio Stock Aitken Waterman. Biography He began his musical career as a musician and was a member of many bands before joining Mike Stock to write and produce music for other artists. They both later teamed up with Pete Waterman, and went from small independent record labels to the major RCA Records, producing myriad hits. According to Waterman, Aitken was a noted perfectionist, particularly when it came to his guitar solos. After the partnership split up in 1991, Aitken went into a period of retirement, raising his daughters, and pursuing hobbies such as auto racing. He later returned to the music industry in 1994—partnering with Mike Stock once again and having success with acts such as Nicki French, Scooch, and Robson & Jerome Robson & Jerome were an English pop duo active i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Coventry
Coventry ( or rarely ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands county, in England, on the River Sherbourne. Coventry had been a large settlement for centuries. Founded in the early Middle Ages, its city status was formally recognised in a charter of 1345. The city is governed by Coventry City Council, and the West Midlands Combined Authority. Historic counties of England, Formerly part of Warwickshire until 1451, and again from 1842 to 1974, Coventry had a population of 345,324 at the 2021 census, making it the tenth largest city in England and the 13th largest in the United Kingdom. It is the second largest city in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, after Birmingham, from which it is separated by an area of Green belt (United Kingdom), green belt known as the Meriden Gap; it is the third largest in the wider Midlands after Birmingham and Leicester. The city is part of a larger ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hit Record
A hit song, also known as a hit record, hit single, or simply hit, is a recorded song or instrumental that becomes broadly popular or well-known. Although ''hit song'' means any widely played or big-selling song, the specific term ''hit record'' usually refers to a single that has appeared in an official music chart through repeated radio airplay audience impressions or significant streaming data and commercial sales. Prior to the dominance of recorded music, commercial sheet music sales of individual songs were similarly promoted and tracked as singles and albums are now. For example, in 1894, Edward B. Marks and Joe Stern released '' The Little Lost Child'', which sold more than a million copies nationwide, based mainly on its success as an illustrated song, analogous to what later became music videos. Chart hits In the United States and the United Kingdom, a single is usually considered a hit when it reaches the top 40 of the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 or the top 75 of the U ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Musicians From Coventry
A musician is someone who composes, conducts, or performs music. According to the United States Employment Service, "musician" is a general term used to designate a person who follows music as a profession. Musicians include songwriters, who write both music and lyrics for songs; conductors, who direct a musical performance; and performers, who perform for an audience. A music performer is generally either a singer (also known as a vocalist), who provides vocals, or an instrumentalist, who plays a musical instrument. Musicians may perform on their own or as part of a group, band or orchestra. Musicians can specialize in a musical genre, though many play a variety of different styles and blend or cross said genres, a musician's musical output depending on a variety of technical and other background influences including their culture, skillset, life experience, education, and creative preferences. A musician who records and releases music is often referred to as a recordi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Living People
Purpose: Because living persons may suffer personal harm from inappropriate information, we should watch their articles carefully. By adding an article to this category, it marks them with a notice about sources whenever someone tries to edit them, to remind them of WP:BLP (biographies of living persons) policy that these articles must maintain a neutral point of view, maintain factual accuracy, and be properly sourced. Recent changes to these articles are listed on Special:RecentChangesLinked/Living people. Organization: This category should not be sub-categorized. Entries are generally sorted by family name In many societies, a surname, family name, or last name is the mostly hereditary portion of one's personal name that indicates one's family. It is typically combined with a given name to form the full name of a person, although several give .... Maintenance: Individuals of advanced age (over 90), for whom there has been no new documentation in the last ten ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
1956 Births
Events January * January 1 – The Anglo-Egyptian Sudan, Anglo-Egyptian Condominium ends in Sudan after 57 years. * January 8 – Operation Auca: Five U.S. evangelical Christian Missionary, missionaries, Nate Saint, Roger Youderian, Ed McCully, Jim Elliot and Pete Fleming, are killed for trespassing by the Waorani people of Ecuador, shortly after making contact with them. * January 16 – Egyptian leader Gamal Abdel Nasser vows to reconquer Palestine (region), Palestine. * January 25–January 26, 26 – Finnish troops reoccupy Porkkala, after Soviet Union, Soviet troops vacate its military base. Civilians can return February 4. * January 26 – The 1956 Winter Olympics open in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy. February * February 2 – Austria and Israel establish diplomatic Austria–Israel relations, relations. * February 11 – British Espionage, spies Guy Burgess and Donald Maclean (spy), Donald Maclean resurface in the Soviet Union, after being missing for 5 years. * ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Robson & Jerome
Robson & Jerome were an English pop duo active in the mid-1990s, consisting of actors Robson Green and Jerome Flynn. They rose to prominence via the British television series ''Soldier Soldier''. The duo's musical catalogue was composed entirely of covers. Their version of "Unchained Melody" stayed at number 1 for 7 weeks on the UK Chart, selling more than 1.8 million copies and becoming the best-selling single of 1995. They had two further number-one singles, produced by Mike Stock and Matt Aitken – " I Believe" (1995) and "What Becomes of the Brokenhearted" (1996) – and two number-one studio albums. A pair of compilation albums followed. Music career In a November 1994 episode of the UK television drama series ''Soldier Soldier'', Dave Tucker and Paddy Garvey, played by Robson Green and Jerome Flynn respectively, performed "Unchained Melody" as an impromptu duo "The Unrighteous Brothers" after the entertainment failed to appear at a wedding. Their performance t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Scooch
Scooch is a British pop group, comprising performers Natalie Powers, Caroline Barnes, David Ducasse and Russ Spencer. Scooch represented the United Kingdom in the Eurovision Song Contest 2007 in Helsinki with their song "Flying the Flag (For You)", finishing joint 22nd out of 24 entries after receiving 19 points in the final. The song reached number 5 in the UK Top 40 Singles Chart on 13 May 2007 after having been available for download for two months before that. Formation Auditions for an "all-singing, all-dancing pop group" were held between autumn 1997 and spring 1998 in front of the songwriters and producers Mike Stock (musician), Mike Stock and Matt Aitken and future manager Steve Crosby. Heidi Range auditioned for the group but was declined after it was revealed she was only 14 years old. The final foursome was formed in October 1998. For the first few months the group were kept low-key and spent time on their image and sound. The group's name comes from a term used to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nicki French
Nicola Sharon French (born 26 September 1964) is an English singer. She is best known for her 1995 dance cover version of "Total Eclipse of the Heart", which reached the Billboard Hot 100, US and UK Singles Chart, UK top 5, and for representing the United Kingdom in the 2000 Eurovision Song Contest in Stockholm. Life and career 1964–1993 French was born in Carlisle, Cumbria, Cumberland, England. French's first "gig" came at the age of seven, when she was chosen to sing the first verse of "O Little Town of Bethlehem" at her infants' school Christmas concert. From the age of 16, French studied music and drama at West Kent College in Tonbridge, Kent. She played the lead role of Laurey in ''Oklahoma!'' before moving to London and started auditioning for bands and theatre shows. 1980s-1993: Musical beginnings In the mid-1980s, French was part of the duo Whisky and Sofa. They released "Dirty Den" in 1986. In 1991, French was booked as the leading lady in a series of revue ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Auto Racing
Auto racing (also known as car racing, motor racing, or automobile racing) is a motorsport involving the racing of automobiles for competition. In North America, the term is commonly used to describe all forms of automobile sport including non-racing disciplines. Auto racing has existed since the invention of the automobile. Races of various types were organized, with the first recorded as early as 1867. Many of the earliest events were effectively Classic trials, reliability trials, aimed at proving these new machines were a practical mode of transport, but soon became an important way for automobile makers to demonstrate their machines. By the 1930s, specialist racing cars had developed. There are now numerous different categories, each with different rules and regulations. History The first prearranged match race of two self-powered road vehicles over a prescribed route occurred at 4:30 A.M. on August 30, 1867, between Ashton-under-Lyne and Old Trafford, England, a di ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pete Waterman
Peter Alan Waterman (born 15 January 1947) is an English record producer, songwriter, and television personality. As a member of the Stock Aitken Waterman production and songwriting team, he co-wrote and co-produced many UK hit singles. An avid railway enthusiast, Waterman is the owner of significant collections of both historic and commercial railway locomotives and rolling stock. Early life Peter Alan Waterman was born in Stoke Heath, Coventry, Warwickshire on Wednesday, 15 January 1947. He was educated at Whitley Abbey Comprehensive School until he left in 1962 to work for British Railways. He became a steam locomotive fireman based at Wolverhampton (Stafford Road) depot. In 2002 he said of his time working for British Railways, "I loved every minute of it. The squalor was unreal, but the camaraderie was phenomenal." After closure of the depot in 1963, Waterman chose to follow a career in music, being inspired by The Beatles. To supplement his income as a DJ, he became ... [...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.S. Frith, W. Straw, and J. Street, eds, ''iarchive:cambridgecompani00frit, The Cambridge Companion to Pop and Rock'' (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press), , pp. 95–105. During the 1950s and 1960s, pop music encompassed rock and roll and the youth-oriented styles it influenced. ''Rock music, Rock'' and ''pop'' music remained roughly synonymous until the late 1960s, after which ''pop'' became associated with music that was more commercial, wikt:ephemeral, ephemeral, and accessible. Identifying factors of pop music usually include repeated choruses and Hook (music), hooks, short to medium-length songs written in a basic format (often the verse–chorus form, verse–chorus structure), and rhythms or tempos that can be easily danced to. Much of pop music also borrows elements from other styles such as rock, hip hop, urban contemporary, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mike Stock (musician)
Michael Stock (born 3 December 1951) is an English songwriter, record producer, musician, and member of the songwriting and production trio Stock Aitken Waterman. He has been responsible for over a hundred top-40 hits in the UK, including 16 number ones and is recognised as one of the most successful songwriters of all time by the ''Guinness World Records''. As part of Stock Aitken Waterman in the 1980s and 90s, he holds the UK record of 11 number one records with different acts. In the UK Singles Chart he has written 54 top-ten hits including 7 number ones. Biography Stock was born in Margate, Kent, England in 1951 and grew up in Swanley, Kent. He attended White Oak primary school and Swanley comprehensive school. At Swanley school he was involved in several school variety productions. He was self-taught in playing the piano and guitar and began writing songs at the age of seven. Inspired by the Beatles, he soon became fixated with pop music and put together his first band ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
