Author Archive: dereksmusicblog
BROTHERS AND SISTERS-DYLAN’S GOSPEL.
BROTHERS AND SISTERS-DYLAN’S GOSPEL. For too long, backing singers have been the forgotten heroes of music. That’s been the case since the sixties. Mostly, they were largely anonymous figures. Their raison d’être was to make the stars sound good. Backing singers, like session musicians, were hired guns. Every day, the found themselves working with different …
JOE TURNER-THE REAL BOSS OF THE BLUES.
JOE TURNER-THE REAL BOSS OF THE BLUES. After enjoying a renaissance in its popularity during the early sixties, blues music was in doldrums. Soul had replaced the blues in popularity. However, many of the new breed of rock bands had been inspired by the blues. This included Jimi Hendrix, Cream, The Yardbirds, The Animals and …
MAJOR HARRIS-MY WAY.
MAJOR HARRIS-MY WAY. For a member of a successful group, it’s always a risk to leave and embark upon a solo career. Often, the success they’ve enjoyed becomes a distant memory. Conversely, the success they’ve enjoyed is often surpassed upon embarking on a solo career. Everyone will have examples when an artists decision to embark …
WILSON PICKETT IN PHILADELPHIA.
WILSON PICKETT IN PHILADELPHIA. By 1970, when Wilson Pickett released Wilson Pickett In Philadelphia, his recording career was eight years old. He’d released his debut single If You Need Me in 1962, and since then, had enjoyed four number one US R&B singles. The first of these was his 1965 classic In The Midnight Hour, …
LET THE MUSIC PLAY: BLACK AMERICA DOES BACHARACH AND DAVID.
LET THE MUSIC PLAY: BLACK AMERICA DOES BACHARACH AND DAVID. It was in the Brill Building in 1957, that Burt Bacharach and Hal David first met. They were both aspiring songwriters. Burt was a twenty-nine year old music graduate from Kansas. Hal was the older of the two. He was a thirty-six year old New …
ENNIO MORRICONE-MORRICONE HIGH-THE TRIPPIER SIDE OF MORRICONE.
ENNIO MORRICONE-MORRICONE HIGH-THE TRIPPIER SIDE OF MORRICONE. Although Ennio Morricone’s name is synonymous with film soundtracks, there’s much more to his career than that. This includes over 100 classical pieces that Ennio wrote between 1946 and the late-fifties. After that, Ennio worked at RCA as an arranger. He arranged over 500 songs, and worked with …
RODRIGO AMARANTE-CAVALO.
RODRIGO AMARANTE-CAVALO. There aren’t many solo artists who can claim to have been part of one of the most successful bands of all time. Brazilian singer-songwriter Rodrigo Amarante can. His debut solo album Cavalo will be released on 5th May 2014, on Mais Um Discos. He was a member of Los Hermanos. Their four albums sold millions of …
STIAN WESTERHUS AND PALE HORSES-MAELSTROM.
STIAN WESTERHUS AND PALE HORSES-MAELSTROM. Having established a reputation as one of the finest abstract guitarists in Europe, Stian Westerhus decided to change direction. After three critically acclaimed solo albums and several collaborations, Stian decided that now was the time to go from solo artist to frontman. Not long after this, Pales Horses, an electronic rock …
SWAMP POP BY THE BAYOU.
SWAMP POP BY THE BAYOU. When the first compilation of Swamp Pop was released back in the early seventies, it was a genre without a name. So, the compilation was simply called, The Other Sound Of The South. Then Bill Millar coined the term Swamp Pop. That day, a new musical genre was born. Swamp …
PAUL MURPHY PRESENTS THE RETURN OF JAZZ CLUB.
PAUL MURPHY PRESENTS THE RETURN OF JAZZ CLUB. It was back in 1978 that Paul Murphy first DJ-ed. He hadn’t planned to DJ that night. Far from it. He was the promoter of a club night in Ilord Essex. This was no ordinary venue. Situated above a above a funeral parlour, it was notorious as …
END OF NEIL-HEADSPINNIN’
END OF NEIL-HEADSPINNIN’ Over the last couple of years, I’ve been documenting the rise and rise of End Of Neil, one of Scotland’s best up and coming singer songwriters. End Of Neil’s unique brand of acoustic folk has seen Neil Stewart continue to win friends and influence people. So, much so, that End Of Neil …
MONICA AZULL-I LIKE IT.
MONICA AZULL-I LIKE IT. I Like It. That’s not just the title of Monica Axull’s new single, but what anyone whose heard the single so far, thinks of it. Monica Azull many people believe, is a star in the waiting. She looks like she’s on the cusp of a successful career. She’s come a long …
THE SALSOUL ORCHESTRA-UP THE YELLOW BRICK ROAD.
THE SALSOUL ORCHESTRA-UP THE YELLOW BRICK ROAD. For Salsoul Records and The Salsoul Orchestra, Up The Yellow Brick Road would prove to be the end of an era. Up The Yellow Brick Road proved to be last Salsoul Orchestra arranged, produced and featuring the sound of vibes virtuoso Vince Montana Jr. It also proved to …
BLACK SABBATH-PARANOID.
BLACK SABBATH-PARANOID. Just seven months after Black Sabbath released their eponymous debut album in February 1970, they were back with the album that defined their career, Paranoid. It was released in September 1970 and features three Black Sabbath classics Paranoid, Iron Man and War Pigs. They’ve since become staples of Black Sabbath’s live performances. They’re …
ELTON JOHN-GOODBYE YELLOW BRICK ROAD.
ELTON JOHN-GOODBYE YELLOW BRICK ROAD. Although critical acclaim and commercial success were constant companions for Elton John between 1970 and 1978, one year stood out, 1973. During 1973, Elton released two of his most successful albums. The first of these two albums was Don’t Shoot Me I’m Only The Piano Player which was released in …
HAL BRADBURY-THIS IS LOVE.
HAL BRADBURY-THIS IS LOVE. During the late-seventies and early eighties, the Hawaiian music scene was thriving. A generation of artists were making a name for themselves. Many of these artists would go onto release albums. As a result, the Hawaiian music industry was thriving. Everyone from songwriters, session musicians and owners of recording studios were …
dereksmusicblog
dereksmusicblog 