Happy 88th Birthday Carol Channing

I hope I live to 88.

Carol Elaine Channing (b. January 31, 1921, Seattle, Washington) is an American singer and actress. The recipient of three Tony Awards (including one for lifetime achievement), a Golden Globe and an Oscar nomination, Channing is best remembered for her role Lorelei Lee in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, and as Dolly Gallagher Levi in Hello, Dolly!.

She is world renowned for her reedy voice, her wide eyes and smile, and her star presence. Her distinctive voice and persona are frequently parodied.







Don't forget, if you search hard enough, you can score one of these fierce Carol Channing Ventriloquist's Dolls....

Happy 60th Birthday to Robert Plant

Robert Anthony Plant (born August 20, 1948, West Bromwich, England), is an English rock singer and songwriter, famous for his membership in the English rock band Led Zeppelin as the lead vocalist, as well as for his successful solo career. He recently released a folk based album with folk singer Alison Krauss.

http://www.robertplant.com/

Some Non-Led Zeppelin Robert Plant tracks/classics ...

Robert Plant & Alison Krauss
"Gone Gone Gone (Done Moved On)" (2007)


Robert Plant
"Big Log" (1983)


Honeydrippers
"Sea Of Love" (1984)


Rockpile wtih Robert Plant
"Little Sister" (1979)


Robert Plant
"Burning Down One Side" (1982)

Happy Birthday to the Compact Disc (if anyone even cares)

On August 17, 1982, Sony and Philips Consumer Electronics released the first CDs to the German public, forever changing the way music would be distributed, marketed, consumed and appreciated.

CDs were smaller, faster and digital, the perfect product for a new era of hyperconsumption and hyperspeed. But that era has come to an end, now that digital music is around and that vinyl sales are increasing.

Standard CDs have a diameter of 120 mm and can hold up to 80 minutes of audio. There is also the Mini CD, with diameters ranging from 60 to 80 mm; they are sometimes used for CD singles, storing up to 24 minutes of audio.

The compact disc is a successful spin-off of the much less successful Laserdisc technology. In 1979, Sony and Philips Consumer Electronics set up a joint task force of engineers to design a new digital audio disc. The task force, led by prominent members Kees Schouhamer Immink and Toshitada Doi (土井利忠), progressed the research into laser technology and optical discs that had been started by Philips in 1977.

After a year of experimentation and discussion, the taskforce produced the Red Book, the Compact Disc standard. Philips contributed the general manufacturing process, based on video Laserdisc technology. Philips also contributed Eight-to-Fourteen Modulation (EFM), which offers both a long playing time and a high resilience against disc defects such as scratches and fingerprints, while Sony contributed the error-correction method, CIRC. The Compact Disc Story, told by a former member of the taskforce, gives background information on the many technical decisions made, including the choice of the sampling frequency, playing time, and disc diameter. According to Philips, the Compact Disc was thus "invented collectively by a large group of people working as a team."

The first CD that was pressed in Hanover was a recording of Herbert von Karajan conducting the Alpine Symphony by Richard Strauss. In August 1982 the real pressing was ready to begin in the new factory, not far from the place where Emil Berliner had produced his first gramophone record 93 years earlier. (Deutsche Grammophon, Berliner’s company, had by now become a part of PolyGram.) CDs and Sony's CD player CDP-101 reached the market on October 1, 1982 in Japan, and early the following year in the United States and other markets. This event is often seen as the "Big Bang" of the digital audio revolution. The new audio disc was enthusiastically received, especially in the early-adopting classical music and audiophile communities and its handling quality received particular praise. As the price of players sank rapidly, the CD began to gain popularity in the larger popular and rock music markets. The first artist to sell a million copies on CD was Dire Straits, with their 1985 album Brothers in Arms. In 1986 Queen became the first artist to have their entire catalogue converted to the format.

The CD was originally thought of as an evolution of the gramophone record, rather than primarily as a data storage medium. Only later did the concept of an "audio file" arise, and the generalising of this to any data file. From its origins as a music format, Compact Disc has grown to encompass other applications. In June 1985, the CD-ROM (read-only memory) and, in 1990, CD-Recordable were introduced, also developed by Sony and Philips.

50 Fascinating Facts About Madonna

Happy birthday MADONNA! The Material Girl has hit the big 5-0 and we thought we'd celebrate by searching through cyberspace, books and articles to find 50 fascinating facts you may or may not know about Mrs. Ritchie.

From her personal statistics, Italian roots and early successes to her all-conquering pop landmarks and the crazy things that have been named after her, feast your eyes on this treasure of trivia:

- MADONNA once drummed for New York pop group the BREAKFAST CLUB. A later member of the band was AMERICAN IDOL judge RANDY JACKSON. Ex-boyfriends DAN GILROY and STEPHEN BRAY were also members of the Breakfast Club.

- MADONNA beat out acting greats GLENN CLOSE, FRANCES MCDORMAND, DEBBIE REYNOLDS and BARBRA STREISAND to grab a Best Actress Golden Globe Award in 1997 for her role in EVITA.

- MADONNA has acted in 22 films.

- The Recording Industry Association of America has named MADONNA the best-selling female rock artist of the 20th century. She's also the second top-selling female artist in the United States with 63 million certified albums.

- The Guinness World Records list MADONNA as the world's most successful female recording artist of all time; she has sold over 200 million records worldwide.

- MADONNA is one of six children born to SILVIO CICCONE and MADONNA LOUISE CICCONE (nee FORTIN). She was named after her mother.

- She also has a stepbrother and stepsister from her father's second marriage to his former housekeeper JOAN GUSTAFSON.

- Born in Bay City, Michigan, MADONNA's roots stretch back to Pacentro in Italy, where her grandparents came from. In 1988, town officials in Pacentro began to construct a 13-foot (4 meter) statue of Madonna.

- MADONNA was a member of the cheerleading team at Rochester Adams High School.

- MADONNA worked in a New York City Dunkin' Donuts while she was struggling to make it as a dancer in the Big Apple. She was reportedly fired after squirting jam in a customer's face.

- MADONNA's first single, EVERYBODY, was released on 24 April, 1982.

- MADONNA's hit album LIKE A VIRGIN is among the Definitive 200 Albums of All Time, according to the Rock + Roll Hall of Fame, which inducted the pop star earlier this year (08).

- As well as starring alongside SEAN PENN in SHANGHAI SURPRISE, MADONNA also joined her then-husband onstage in her theatrical debut GOOSE + TOM TOM in 1986.

- MADONNA and SEAN PENN separated on New Year's Eve (31Dec) 1988.

- MADONNA's Confessions Tour is the highest grossing concert tour by a female artist.

- MADONNA is the most successful female in her adopted U.K.'s pop charts and has more number one singles than any other female solo artist.

- MADONNA has a new species of tardigrade named after her. The anthropod-type animals, also known as water bears, are often found living on mosses. They can survive in extreme conditions that would kill most other living species.

- MADONNA'S father, TONY CICCONE, recently decided to advance his winery business by releasing Madonna Wine, which is available in five varieties: Pinot Grigio, Pinot Noir, Gewurztraminer, Cabernet Franc and Chardonnay. Prices range from $25 (GBP12.50) to $40 (GBP20) per bottle.

- Celebrity Cellars also produced a line of collectible wine, called Madonna - Confessions on a Dance Floor.

- MADONNA made her London West End stage debut in 2002 in Up for Grabs.

- MADONNA'S first children's book, The English Roses, was published in 2003 and she has since published a total of 10 books.

- MADONNA was among the inaugural UK Music Hall of Fame inductees in 2004.

- MADONNA has released a total of 68 official singles to date, according to the singer's own website.

- MADONNA was among People Magazine's '50 Most Beautiful People of 1991' and '25 Most Intriguing People of 2001'.

- In March 2007, MADONNA created a clothing line for the retailer H+M.

- MADONNA is good friends with STING and his actress wife TRUDIE STYLER, who introduced her to director GUY RITCHIE. The couple fell in love and are now husband and wife.

- STING is godfather to MADONNA and GUY RITCHIE's son ROCCO.

- MADONNA is the only artist who performed at the benefit concerts Live Aid (1985), Live 8 (2005), and Live Earth (2007).

- MADONNA suffers from brontophobia - a fear of thunder.

- MADONNA was considered for the role of CATWOMAN/SELINA KYLE in the 1992 film BATMAN RETURNS. She turned the part down and the role went to MICHELLE PFEIFFER. She also fought for the role of GINGER in CASINO, but lost out to SHARON STONE.

- MADONNA turned down leading roles in SHOWGIRLS and THE FABULOUS BAKER BOYS.

- MADONNA is 5 feet, 4 inches (1.64 metres) tall. Her measurements are 34C-23-33.

- MADONNA does not have a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. She was selected for the honour in 1990 but she showed no interest and the invitation has now expired. Walk of Fame spokeswoman Ana Martinez-Holler states that, in order to receive a star, Madonna would have to be "resubmitted for a nomination," adding, "since she is not interested, I highly doubt that she will give a nominator the permission to do so."

- MADONNA was paid $5 million (GBP2.5 million) by Pepsi to film a commercial that never even aired. Pepsi bosses pulled the controversial ad, which was related to her Like A Prayer video and full of religious overtones.

- MADONNA has won nine Razzie Awards: Worst Actress for Shanghai Surprise in 1987, Worst Actress for Who's that Girl in 1988, Worst Actress for Body of Evidence in 1994, Worst Supporting Actress for Four Rooms in 1996, Worst Actress of the Century in 2000, Worst Actress for The Next Best Thing in 2001, Worst Actress and Worst Screen Couple for Swept Away in 2003, and Worst Supporting Actress for Die Another Day in 2003.

- GWEN STEFANI, CELINE DION and MARK WAHLBERG are distant relatives of MADONNA, according to a recent ancestry study.

- MADONNA auditioned for the part of KEVIN COSTNER's high-maintenance love interest in THE BODYGUARD. WHITNEY HOUSTON landed the role.

- MADONNA played a lesbian witch in the 1996 movie FOUR ROOMS.

- MADONNA originally dreamed of becoming a ballet dancer.

- The BEASTIE BOYS supported MADONNA on her very first solo tour.

- MADONNA was ranked Number 1 on VH1's '100 Sexiest Artists' in 2002.

- MADONNA has been nominated for a total of 18 Grammy Awards; she has won five.

- MADONNA has been a vegetarian since she was 15.

- MADONNA hates the colour orange.

- MADONNA was named one of People magazine's worst-dressed, in 1999.

- MADONNA's controversial SEX book, which featured naked photos of the Material Girl, was so popular that a re-print had to be ordered within 48 hours.

- MADONNA dedicated her album TRUE BLUE to then-husband SEAN PENN, who she called "the coolest guy in the universe".

- GWYNETH PALTROW was Maid of Honour at MADONNA's Scottish wedding in 2000.

- FIGHT CLUB director DAVID FINCHER was the man behind the camera on four of MADONNA's videos.

- MADONNA's WHAT IT FEELS LIKE FOR A GIRL and JUSTIFY MY LOVE were banned from MTV.

[Contact Music]

recently leaked unreleased mp3 ...

Madonna - Like An Angel Passing Through My Room
Unreleased ABBA cover - produced by William Orbit during their Ray of Light sessions

Happy 32nd Birthday Stiff Records

August 14, 1976, funded by a £400 loan 'So It Goes' by Nick Lowe became the first record released on Stiff Records. Lowe played all the instruments the single cost £45 to record.

In the mid-1970s, Lowe began playing in Rockpile with Dave Edmunds. In August 1976, Lowe released "So It Goes" b/w "Heart of the City", the first single on the Stiff Records label where he was in-house producer.

Stiff Records is a record label created in London in 1976 by entrepreneurs Dave Robinson and Andrew Jakeman (aka Jake Riviera), and active until 1985.

Established at the outset of the punk rock boom, Stiff Records signed pub rock acts and marketed them as Punk and New Wave, including Nick Lowe, Elvis Costello, Ian Dury. The label's marketing and advertising was often provocative and witty. Stiff billed itself as "The World's Most Flexible Record Label". Other slogans were "We came. We saw. We left.", "If It Ain't Stiff, It Ain't Worth a Fuck", and "When You Kill Time, You Murder Success" (printed on promotional wall clocks). On the label of Stiff's sampler compilation Heroes & Cowards was printed: "In '78 everyone born in '45 will be 33-1/3". A very early Stiff sampler album, A Bunch of Stiff Records, introduced the slogan, "If they're dead, we'll sign them" and "Undertakers to the Industry".

Stiff also produced eccentric but highly effective promotional campaigns, such as the two package tours in 1977 and 1978, Stiffs Live, featuring most of the label's roster of artists performing at alternating times each night; Elvis Costello's "busking outside CBS Records" arrest and the 12 different wallpaper sleeves printed for Ian Dury's second album, Do It Yourself, with associated unscheduled makeovers of unsuspecting record shops.

www.stiff-records.com

Some essential Stiff Records classics and some Spyder personal faves:

Nick Lowe & Rockpile - So It Goes (live 1978)
Nick Lowe: bass, vocals
Dave Edmunds: guitar, backing vocals
Billy Bremner: guitar
Terry Williams: drums


Richard Hell & The Voidoids - Blank Generation
(I got to hang out and have lunch with Richard Hell on February 18, 1986)


Elvis Costello - Alison (his 1st TV Appearance)
look how young he looks
poor quality video, but a rare gem


Ian Dury and the Blockheads - Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll (1977)


Lene Lovich - Lucky Number (1978)


Madness - One Step Beyond (extended) (1979)


Jona Lewie - You'll Always Find Me In The Kitchen At Parties (1980)
(can anyone find the proper video for this track? I know there is one, but I couldn't find it)


The Belle Stars - Sign of the Times (1982)


YELLO - I Love You (1983)


Tracey Ullman - They Don't Know (1983)


Kirsty MacCOLL - A New England (1983)
r.i.p.

Happy 27th Birthday MTV

Yesterday was MTV's 27th birthday. Hey, do you even remember that MTV actually played "music videos" at one time?

MTV (Music Television) is an American cable television network based in New York City. Launched on August 1, 1981, the original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs. Today, MTV still plays a limited selection of music videos, but the channel primarily broadcasts a variety of pop culture and reality television shows targeted at adolescents and young adults.

Since its premiere, MTV has revolutionized the music industry. Slogans such as "I want my MTV" became embedded in public thought, the concept of the VJ was popularized, the idea of a dedicated video-based outlet for music was introduced, and both artists and fans found a central location for music events, news, and promotion. MTV has also been referenced countless times in popular culture by musicians, other TV channels and shows, films and books.

On August 1, 1981, at 12:01 a.m., MTV: Music Television launched with the words "Ladies and gentlemen, rock and roll," spoken by original COO John Lack. Those words were immediately followed by the original MTV theme song, a crunching guitar riff written by Jonathan Elias and John Petersen, playing over a montage of the Apollo 11 moon landing. MTV producers Alan Goodman and Fred Seibert used this public domain footage as a conceit, associating MTV with the most famous moment in world television history. At the moment of its launch, only a few thousand people on a single cable system in northern New Jersey could see it.

Appropriately, the first music video shown on MTV was "Video Killed the Radio Star" by The Buggles. The second video shown was Pat Benatar's "You Better Run". Sporadically, the screen would go black when an employee at MTV inserted a tape into a VCR.

This is a list of the first music videos aired on MTV. These music videos were played on MTV's first day, August 1, 1981.

"Video Killed the Radio Star" by The Buggles
"You Better Run" by Pat Benatar
"She Won't Dance With Me" by Rod Stewart (Contains use of the word "fuck" by Stewart)
"You Better You Bet" by The Who
"Little Suzi's on the Up" by Ph.D.
"We Don't Talk Anymore" by Cliff Richard
"Brass in Pocket" by The Pretenders
"Time Heals" by Todd Rundgren
"Take It On the Run" by REO Speedwagon
"Rockin' the Paradise" by Styx
"When Things Go Wrong" by Robin Lane and the Chartbusters
"History Never Repeats" by Split Enz
"Hold On Loosely" by 38 Special
"Just Between You and Me" by April Wine
"Sailing" by Rod Stewart
"Iron Maiden" by Iron Maiden
"Keep On Loving You" by REO Speedwagon
"Message of Love" by The Pretenders
"Mr. Briefcase" by Lee Ritenour
"Double Life" by The Cars
"In the Air Tonight" by Phil Collins
"Looking For Clues" by Robert Palmer
"Too Late" by Shoes
"Stop Draggin' My Heart Around" by Stevie Nicks and Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers
"Surface Tension" by Rupert Hine
"One Step Ahead" by Split Enz
"Baker Street" by Gerry Rafferty
"I'm Gonna Follow You" by Pat Benatar
"Savannah Nights" by Tom Johnston
"Lucille" by Rockestra
"The Best of Times" by Styx
"Vengeance" by Carly Simon
"Wrathchild" by Iron Maiden
"I Wanna Be a Lifeguard" by Blotto
"Passion" by Rod Stewart
"Oliver's Army" by Elvis Costello
"Don't Let Him Go" by REO Speedwagon
"Remote Control/Illegal" by The Silencers
"Angel of the Morning" by Juice Newton
"Little Sister" by Rockpile with Robert Plant
"Hold On to the Night" by Bootcamp
"Dreaming" by Cliff Richard
"Is it You?" by Lee Ritenour
"Tusk" by Fleetwood Mac
"He Can't Love You" by Michael Stanley Band
"Tough Guys" by REO Speedwagon
"Rapture" by Blondie
"Don't Let Go the Coat" by The Who
"Ain't Love a Bitch" by Rod Stewart
"Talk of the Town" by The Pretenders
"Can't Happen Here" by Rainbow
"Thank You for Being a Friend" by Andrew Gold
"Bring It All Home" by Gerry Rafferty
"Sign of the Gypsy Queen" by April Wine
"The Man with the Child in His Eyes" by Kate Bush
"Ashes to Ashes" by David Bowie
"Just Between You and Me" by April Wine
"Rat Race" by The Specials
"Once in a Lifetime" by Talking Heads
"Victim" by Bootcamp
"Tonight's the Night" by Rod Stewart
"Cruel to Be Kind" by Nick Lowe

Here's the first four videos aired on MTV ...

For more of the best of MTV from it's debut year of 1981, check this out ...

Happy Birthday Cheryl Lynn - bio and personal message

With an inimitable style that has equal parts sweetness & sass – oftentimes thick with rhythm, singer Cheryl Lynn (b. Lynda Cheryl Smith, March 11, 1957, Los Angeles) racked up an impressive 19 charted R&B singles in the period between 1978-1990. Known primarily for her two biggest hits – 1978’s “Got To Be Real” & 1984’s “Encore,” – both which hit the Number One position on the Billboard R&B chart, Lynn was a consistent presence on the R&B and Dance charts, usually choosing an uptempo song as her primary single from the nine lps she recorded, the bulk of which were on the Columbia label.

Despite her talent, the lady with an impressive five-octave vocal range did have other aspirations for her life’s career. Having enrolled in The University of Southern California, where she majored in Speech Pathology, Lynn was only a few credits away from completing her degree when she was lured by a boyfriend at the time to compete on a nationally syndicated t.v. show, the dubiously titled Gong Show, hosted by Chuck Barris. It was on that show that Lynn sang Billy Preston & Bruce Fisher’s “You Are So Beautiful,” easily beating the competition with a 30-point perfect score. However, it wasn’t until nearly three months later, when the show was aired for broadcast, that fate showed it had more sublime plans for the shy singer. During an interview with author Adam White, Lynn recalls: “I went down there one Thursday morning to do the show…We taped in June and the show did not air until Sept. 14th, so I had completely forgotten about it. In fact, I didn’t even see it.”

Lynn may have missed her performance, but the recording industry didn’t. The reaction to her t.v. show appearance was swift. Among those who were struck by the singer’s talent and range was Marty Paich, father of singer David Paich of the pop group Toto. A major-label bidding war ensued, with Lynn being wooed by Warner Bros., Atlantic, CBS & ABC Dunhill, label homes to major R&B/Pop female soul singers of the day such as Candi Staton, Aretha Franklin, Roberta Flack & Chaka Khan, among others. Lynn met with the different label executives and found herself most comfortable with Bruce Lundvall & Walter Yetnikoff of CBS.

For her first recording session, Columbia chose top studio musicians to work with the fledgling singer/songwriter. Session stars such as the aforementioned Paich, as well as Harvey Mason, James Gadson, Bernard Purdie and others were hired to help Lynn create her own personal sound. Further commenting on “Got To Be Real”, she notes during White’s interview: “I would sing what I felt, and that was the basis of my first album…the melody line and the lyrics were written by me.” She later adds: “All of the vocals on that first album were the first rundown. I sang while the musicians played in the studio. So the vocals were done live.” The collaboration evidently paid off, as Lynn had a Number One R&B hit right off the bat, with “Got To Be Real” eventually climbing into the upper register of the Billboard pop top 20. Other industry publications at the time such as Cashbox and Record World had Lynn solidly in the pop top 10. Her awards were numerous, on the strength of her debut alone, scoring such prestigious honors as #1 Top Female Vocalist (singles), #1 Top Female Disco Crossover, #2 Top Female Vocalist (albums), #3 Top Black Contemporary Female Crossover and #4 Top New Female Vocalist (pop singles) – all awards bestowed by just Cashbox Magazine! Record World honored Lynn with #3 Top New Female Vocalist, #8 Top Female Vocalist and #20 Top Solo Artist, all within the competitive pop category. Additionally, at the 3rd Annual R&B Awards, telecast in June, 1980, Cheryl was presented an award for Best New Female Vocalist.

The singer’s follow-up single “Star Love,” as well as choice lp cuts, were a showcase for Lynn’s mighty and awesome multi-octave vocal range. Favorably compared to the late Minnie Riperton and Chaka Khan by several periodical reviews and fan magazines, “Star Love” was a tour-de-force example of what the singer was capable of. In the liner notes for the singer’s 1996 Columbia/Legacy Got To Be Real: The Best Of Cheryl Lynn compilation, music editor and writer A. Scott Galloway notes: “…The song opens with a slow, scene-setting intro, gallops into a disco trot (and) then takes to the stars. ‘Take me in your arms and rock with me, yeah,’ Cheryl repeats with the fervor of a Buddhist chant, then tosses words aside for something that begins like a “soo-wee” hog call and ends like a rooster runnin’ out of gas!” During Lynn’s 1976 Gong Show stint, guest panelist judge Della Reese was awestruck by the singer’s range, calling it “unbelievable”.

Cheryl Lynn continued to have success on the r&b and club charts into the late 80’s with subsequent releases “Georgy Porgy” (a song she recorded with Toto); “You Saved My Day”; “I’ve Got Faith In You”; “Keep It Hot”; “Shake It Up Tonight”; “In The Night”; “Instant Love”; “If This World Were Mine”(her duet with Luther Vandross); “Encore”; “Fidelity”; “At Last You’re Mine” (from the movie soundtrack Heavenly Bodies); “New Dress”; “If You Were Mine”; “Everytime I Try To Say Goodbye” and “Whatever It Takes” – all the while working with top musicians and producers such as Ray Parker Jr., Luther Vandross & James “Jimmy Jam” Harris & Terry Lewis to provide different dimensions of the Cheryl Lynn sound. The artist has also produced herself on several occasions, which at the time was a rarity in the business.

In 1995, Ms. Lynn signed an exclusive deal with Japan’s Avex Records and released the critically acclaimed Good Time lp, which was produced by noted artists Teddy Riley & Jazzie B of Soul II Soul and Ms. Lynn. On the lp, Cheryl revisited her 1978 chart-topper with a funky updated sound. The album also featured a great selection of uptempo and ballad cuts showing that the singer’s pipes were undiminished. In addition, noted remixer and d.j. Junior Vasquez was commissioned to mix the title cut for single release. The album sold well in the targeted Asian market, however Lynn has since severed her ties with the label and is currently working on new projects. She continues to be a presence on the West Coast in her hometown of Los Angeles, frequenting musical & charitable events. She has also performed on several tv specials, appearing on HBO’s Sinbad's Summer Soul Jam 4 (1998), hosted by comedian/actor Sinbad, and more recently on ABC’s The Disco Ball...A 30-Year Celebration, which aired in January 2003. Her latest recording, "Sweet Kind Of Life" (2004), which was also written and produced by Jam & Lewis, was featured on the film soundtrack for the animated film Shark Tale.

On September 25, 2001, “Got To Be Real” was re-certified as a platinum seller, for sales in excess of one-million copies by the RIAA.

On September 19, 2005 Cheryl’s "Got To Be Real" was inducted into the Dance Music Hall Of Fame. Here's a picture of me with Cherly Lynn at this event:

I do have to say I am a little upset that Cheryl Lynn uses a FEW of my photos from the above event on her personal MySpace page and not only do I not get any credit for the images she took from my website, but she has the nerve to try to erase me out of the above picture as well. What's up with that?? Sorry I'm not Luther or James Brown. Don't see them getting erased out in her pictures.

My original webpage which Cheryl stole my pictures from: HERE

Bio from MySpace





UPDATE:
READER RESPONSE PHOTO TO ABOVE
CHEWBACCA LYNN

Happy 80th Birthday Vincent Montana, Jr.

One of my all-time heros celebrates a birthday today. I wish Vincent Montana, Jr. the happiest and healthiest of birthdays. He's been a true inspiration to me and my passion and appreciation for music.

I just got this email from Vincent Montana, Jr.'s daughter:

Hi All
Just wanted to share VMJs Birthday Card.
We're celebrating 80
years on the 12th February, 2008.
Please feel free to pass it on.
Enjoy
and All the Best,
Eileen

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AgMZUK3P6rk

Vincent Montana Jr. (born February 12, 1928) is an American composer, arranger, and percussionist, most known as a member of MFSB and as the founder of the Salsoul Orchestra.

He is the spiritual father of the Salsoul Orchestra, the backing band for the many acts on Salsoul Records. The personnel of MFSB and the Salsoul orchestra overlapped substantially, and both groups were recorded at Philadelphia's famous Sigma Sound Studios.

In recent years Mr. Montana has worked with famed house music duo Masters at Work, which has rekindled interest in his work. Ken Cayre, founder of Salsoul Records, has praised Mr. Montana's skill at scoring strings, brass, and diverse percussion in such way that it all worked within a dance recording. As Mr. Montana was among the first with his considerable training and skill to apply such scoring technique to disco-oriented recordings, it is safe to say he is a true pioneer in the field.

You can view a decent discography on Discogs
Official Vince Montana Jr. Website At Philly Sound Works

Happy 59th Birthday Donna Summer

Donna Summer (born LaDonna Adrian Gaines on December 31, 1948) is an American singer, songwriter, and artist, best known for a string of dance hits in the late 1970s that earned her the title "Queen Of Disco" and as one of the few disco-based artists to have longevity on the charts through the late 1980s.

Though she's most notable for her disco hits, Summer's repertoire has expanded to include contemporary R&B, rock, mainstream pop, and even gospel. Donna is one of the most successful female hitmakers of the 70s and 80s, and still holds the record for having three consecutive (double) albums hit #1 on the Billboard charts. She also became the first female artist to have four number-one singles in a twelve-month period.

On September 27, 2007, Donna was nominated for induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

In 1971, Gaines released a single in Europe entitled "Sally Go 'Round The Roses", her first solo recording.

In 1972, Summer married her first husband, Helmut Sommer, and moved to Germany to play in musicals, which resulted in her learning to speak fluent German. With Sommer, she gave birth to her first child, Mimi. The couple divorced in 1976, but Donna had anglicized Sommer to Summer and begun her professional singing career in 1974 as Donna Summer. In 1978, she collaborated with the R&B Pop group the Brooklyn Dreams for the hit "Heaven Knows" (duet vocals by Joe Esposito). While at the session recording the single, she met Bruce Sudano. The duo began a romance that culminated in their July 16, 1980, marriage, and later the birth of daughters Brooklyn and Amanda. Today, Mimi and Amanda sing alongside their mother (www.johnnyswim.com), while Brooklyn has been seen acting in TV shows, including a recently canceled sitcom starring Damon Wayans. Summer is still married to Sudano, and she is a grandmother of three.

While singing back-up for groups such as Three Dog Night, she met producers Giorgio Moroder and Pete Bellotte. With these producers, Summer signed a contract in the Netherlands and issued her first album, Lady of the Night, which included the European hit, "The Hostage". The single made #1 in France and Belgium, and #2 in the Netherlands. Its follow-up, the title track of the album, also gained some degree of European success.

"Love To Love You Baby" was Summer's first big hit in America, reaching #2 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart in early 1976 and becoming her first Number-One Hot Dance Club Play chart hit. Time magazine later reported that a record 22 orgasms were simulated in the making of the song.

Summer was also a guest artist on Kiss bassist Gene Simmons's 1978 eponymous solo album.

In 1979, Summer released the landmark double-album Bad Girls. Unlike other disco albums, it mixed Rock, Funk, Blues, and Soul into electronic Disco beats. It yielded three consecutive million-selling singles: the back-to-back #1 hits "Hot Stuff" and "Bad Girls", and the #2 hit "Dim All The Lights". Bad Girls became Summer's second #1 album and the most successful one of her entire career, selling nearly three million copies in the US and an estimated ten million worldwide.

Disagreements and fractions between Summer and Casablanca Records led to her exit from the label in 1980. Summer was given a lucrative offer by David Geffen and became the first artist to be signed to his new Geffen label in 1980. At the time, Summer's record deal was said to be one of the biggest for a female artist. She also became a born again Christian during this time and used her newfound religion as a guiding force within her life.

Summer left Geffen in 1988 to sign with Atlantic Records.

In 1998, Summer was the first artist to receive a Grammy award for Best Dance Recording for her 1992 collaboration with Giorgio Moroder, "Carry On", after the song was remixed and released as a single.

On September 20, 2004, Summer was among the first artists to be inducted into the newly formed Dance Music Hall of Fame in New York City. She was inducted in two categories, Artist Inductees, alongside fellow disco legends The Bee Gees and Barry White; and Record Inductees, for her classic hit "I Feel Love".

According to her official website, www.donnasummer.com, Donna has new music coming out, a new website and she will be touring !!! Yeah. I saw her last summer down here in Orlando and she was SCRUMTRULESCENT.

Here's her controversial, early European hit, The Hostage


not one of her best songs, but a rare video that's kinda cute to watch
"Dinner With Gershwin"


Here's a bra-less Donna doing her amazing rendition on the Barry Manilow classic, "Could It Be Magic" (one of my absolute faves):


Donna's huge hit that she rarely performs live. "Love To Love You Baby" on the Mike Douglas show in 1976.


Another rarity is this short cameo appearance of Donna singing "Black Power" from a German TV show called 11Uhr20, in 1969!!


Not a proper video, but a photo montage over Donna's very first single (which flopped)
"Sally Go 'Round The Roses"


And to wrap this up, here a clip from one of my all-time favorite movies, Thank God It's Friday, with Donna forcing herself on the club with "Last Dance"

December 25 - life and death

It's interesting to note the people who were born and who have left us on this date.

This is just a brief, selected list:

BIRTHS
1642 (O.S.) - Sir Isaac Newton, English physicist and mathematician (d. 1727)
1821 - Clara Barton, founder of the American Red Cross (d. 1912)
1863 - Charles Pathé, French pioneer of film and record industries (d. 1957)
1887 - Conrad Hilton, American hotelier (d. 1979)
1890 - Robert Ripley, collector of odd facts (d. 1949)
1899 - Humphrey Bogart, American actor (d. 1957)
1907 - Cab Calloway, American bandleader (d. 1994)
1908 - Quentin Crisp, English author (d. 1999)
1918 - Anwar Sadat, President of Egypt, Nobel laureate (d. 1981)
1924 - Rod Serling, American television writer (d. 1975)
1945 - Noel Redding, English musician (d. 2003)
1946 - Jimmy Buffett, American singer and songwriter
1948 - Barbara Mandrell, American singer and actress
1949 - Sissy Spacek, American actress
1950 - Karl Rove, American presidential advisor
1954 - Annie Lennox, Scottish singer
1954 - Steve Wariner, American country music singer
1958 - Alannah Myles, Canadian singer
1971 - Dido, English singer
1972 - Josh Freese, American drummer
1976 - Armin van Buuren, Dutch DJ & Producer

DEATHS
1946 - W. C. Fields, American comedian (b. 1880)
1954 - Johnny Ace, American singer (b. 1929)
1977 - Charlie Chaplin, English actor (b. 1889)
1983 - Joan Miró, Catalan painter (b. 1893) ...one of my favorites
1989 - Billy Martin, American baseball manager (b. 1928)
1995 - Dean Martin, American singer (b. 1917)
1996 - JonBenet Ramsey, noted murder victim (b. 1990)
2006 - James Brown, American singer (b. 1933)

Source [Wikipedia]

Happy 74th Birthday Tim Conway

Happy Birthday to one of my all-time favorite comic actors, Tim Conway !!

TIM CONWAY is best known for his role on The Carol Burnett Show, an 11-year stint that garnered him five Emmy Awards, a Golden Globe, major accolades from critics, and three generations of fans. Conway played the funny guy alongside Harvey Korman's straight man, often cracking up Korman midway through scenes. The spontaneous break in character became a hallmark to watch for in every episode.

Conway's often-improvised humor, razor-sharp timing and hilarious characters have made him one of the funniest and most authentic performers to grace the stage and studio in the last forty years. In 1989, Conway received his much deserved star on Hollywood's "Walk of Fame." In 2002, he and Korman were inducted into the Academy of Television Arts, & Sciences' Hall of Fame. In 2005, the duo joined the rest of the Carol Burnett cast in receiving TV Land's Legend Award.

All told, Conway's extensive television career has spanned nearly four decades. Born in Willoughby, Ohio, Conway had a fast rise in show business, from a staff job at a Cleveland TV station to a regular gig on the Steven Allen Show. He went on to play Ensign Charles Parker on McHale's Navy in the 1960's, and eventually landed The Carol Burnett Show, first starring as a guest in 1967 and then coming a permanent fixture in 1975. In 2001, Conway and Korman starred in the 25th anniversary reunion special, The Carol Burnett: Show Stoppers. The program drew 30 million viewers and became the fourth-highest-rated TV show of the season. A testament to the show's unique multigenerational appeal, the special attracted everyone from grandparents who saw the original episodes to teenagers now enjoying re-runs on TV Land.

Conway's other television credits include Rango, Ace Crawford Private Eye, Tim Conway's Funny America, three self-titled variety shows, and one sitcom. He's appeared on every major variety show from The Hollywood Palace, Garry Moose, Glen Campbell and Sonny and Cher to Sammy Davis, Kraft Music Hall, The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson and Jay Leno, sitcoms such as Married with Children, Cosby, Mad About You, Touched by an Angel, and Coach, for which he won an Emmy in 1997. He has guest starred on Yes Dear, and kids may recognize him as the voice of Barnacle Boy on SpongeBob SquarePants. In 2003, Conway and Korman were featured performers on CBS's 75th Anniversary Special.

Conway's film career includes They Went That Way and That Way and The Long Shot, both of which he wrote, along with The Shaggy D.A., Speed II, and Dear God. But it was his work in a long line of family films - The World's Greatest Athlete, The Apple Dumpling Gang, and The Apple Dumpling Gang Rides Again, Gus, The Billion Dollar Hobo, The Prize Fighter, and Private Eyes, that garnered him the most acclaim. Conway wrote the last three and was frequently paired with Don Knotts for a double dose of comedy highjinks.

On stage, Conway played Felix in 182 performances of The Odd Couple. He also wrote and starred in Just for Laughs: A Day with Gates and Mills, which toured for 20 weeks and 130 performances.

In the home-video market, Conway has found a welcome residence for his vertically-challenged character, Dorf, with both Dorf on Golf, and Dorf Goes Fishing reaching platinum sales status. Conway also joined forces with Korman to produce the video Tim and Harvey in the Great Outdoors. Conway is active member of several charities, including various drug abuse programs and the Spastic Children's Foundation. He is the co-founder of the Don MacBeth Memorial Jockey Fund to aid injured and disabled jockeys.

More info can be found at http://timconway.com

Happy 50th Birthday Donny Osmond (yes, 50)

Donald Clark 'Donny' Osmond (born December 9, 1957) is an American entertainer. He is a singer, musician, actor and former teen idol. He has also been a talk show and game show host, record producer, race car driver and author. He is known for being half of the brother-sister singing act Donny & Marie and a member of the "Osmond Brothers" singing group.

Osmond was born in Ogden, Utah, to Olive May Davis and George Virl Osmond. He is the brother of Alan, Jay, Jimmy, Merrill, Wayne, Marie, Tom, and Virl Osmond. Alan, Jay, Merrill, Wayne, and Donny were members of the popular singing group The Osmonds (also known as The Osmond Brothers).

After seeing the Osmond Brothers (Alan, Wayne, Merrill & Jay) perform at Disneyland as a barbershop quartet the father of Andy Williams asked the boys to audition for The Andy Williams Show. They became regulars on the show and gained popularity quickly. Donny made his debut on the show at the age of 4 singing "You Are My Sunshine". The brothers continued to perform on the show throughout the 60's along with their brother Jimmy and sister Marie.

Donny became a teen idol in the early 1970s as a solo singer, in addition to performing with his older brothers. He and David Cassidy were easily the biggest "Cover Boy" pop stars for Tiger Beat magazine in the early 70's. His solo songs "Go Away Little Girl" (1971) and "Puppy Love" (1972) vaulted him into international fame. The fame was further advanced by his appearance on the "Here's Lucy" show, where he sang "Too Young" to Lucille Ball's niece played by Eve Plumb.

In the mid '70s, he teamed up with his younger sister, Marie. After being seen co-hosting an episode of the "Mike Douglas Show", Donny & Marie were offered a show of their own, "The Donny & Marie Show." The duo recorded several albums together prior to and while starring in their own television variety series which aired on ABC between 1976 and 1979.

Donny Osmond currently hosts the British version of the game show Identity on BBC Two during the daytime. This is his second game show hosting stint in the UK; his first is Pyramid Game on Challenge starting in May 2007.

Osmond has also been tapped by CBS to host a revival of Name That Tune in 2007 or 2008.

In early 2007, Osmond released the CD Love Songs of the Seventies, featuring romantic songs from that era. Also,currently his new album Love Songs of the 70's reached the billboard charts at #27.

He also hosts a daily radio feature "Donny Osmond's 8 Track Playback"on radio stations across the country, such as KOSY/Salt Lake, CKWW/Detroit, WLQT/Dayton, WFGR/Grand Rapids, WJLT/Evansville, and many others.

Osmond married Debra Glenn on May 8 1978 at the LDS Temple in Salt Lake City, Utah. Together they have five sons: Donald Clark Osmond (b. July 31, 1979), Jeremy James Osmond (b. June 8, 1981), Brandon Michael Osmond (b. January 29, 1985), Joshua Davis Osmond (b. February 16, 1998), and Christopher Glen Osmond (b. December 12, 1990).

Donny Osmond became a first-time grandfather on August 21 2005 when his second son Jeremy married Melisa and had grandson Dylan Osmond.

Osmond, like the rest of his family, is a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormon).

www.donny.com

Puppy Love from 1972 (at age 15)