Janis Lyn Joplin was born January 19, 1943 and died October 4, 1970. Born and raised in Port Arthur, Texas she had her artistic interests cultivated by parents Seth and Dorothy Joplin. In her high school years she listened to folk and jazz and she was especially taken with the blues. Discovering an […]

By 1968, James Brown was much more than a music star; he was also a African-American icon. He often spoke publicly about the pointlessness of rioting and in February 1968, informed the black activist H. Rap Brown, “I’m not going to tell anybody to pick up a gun.” On April 5, 1968, African Americans rioted […]

Funky Drummer is a funk song recorded by James Brown and his band featuring a drum solo performed by drummer Clyde Stubblefield. The piece is an extended jam, with individual instruments (mostly the tenor saxophones and organ) playing brief solos on top of a solid beat. Brown’s vocals are intermittent, and are focused […]

Released in May 1972, “Take It Easy” was written by Jackson Browne along with Glenn Frey, and recorded by the Eagles. It was the band’s first single, released on May 1, 1972. It also was the opening track on the band’s debut album Eagles and it has become one of their signature songs, included on […]

Premier wild man Iggy Pop has an enduring reputation for over-the-edge, into the abyss antics. His shows, particularly in the early 70s with proto-punks The Stooges, were violent, hypersexual or self-destructive, usually all at once. His lack of inhibitions and go for broke style dared audiences to up the ante. The most famous “Iggy Pop […]

Zen Arcade is the third studio album from Hüsker Dü, released in July 1984 on SST Records. Originally a double album on two vinyl LPs, Zen Arcade is a concept album about an adolescent who runs away because his home life is unfulfilling, only to find the world outside is even worse. The album incorporates […]

The sole constant of Heart has been the band’s core members, the Wilson sisters, and their shared penchant for Zeppelin-esque rock. With Ann on lead vocals and guitarist Nancy, their fledgling band had relocated to Vancouver from Washington State in 1975 when they attracted the attention of Canadian label Mushroom Records. Their debut, Dreamboat Annie, […]

Hiram “Hank” King Williams was an American singer, guitarist, songwriter and one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century. His first major country hit was “Move It On Over” which was released in 1947 and reached #4 on the Billboard Country Singles chart . The song follows a man who is forced to […]

Hall & Oates had trouble clearly defining their sound, alternating between R&B, soul, Folk rock, and pop music. None of their early albums - Whole Oats, Abandoned Luncheonette, and War Babies - were very successful and they left Atlantic Records after War Babies to go to RCA. The first album they released for RCA […]

Gnarls Barkley is a musical collaboration between DJ, multi-instrumentalist and producer Danger Mouse and rapper/vocalist Cee-Lo. Their first album, St. Elsewhere, was released by Warner Music on May 9, 2006. The album’s first single “Crazy” was the first song to become a UK number-one single based solely on online downloads. In 2007, the album won […]