Quincy Jones left his indelible touch on some of the 20th century’s most iconic albums. Arnold Turner/Getty Images for Netflix
by Jose Valentino Ruiz, University...
DETROIT (AP) _ Marcus Belgrave, a jazz trumpeter who graced stages and studios with Ray Charles, Aretha Franklin, Dizzy Gillespie, Joe Cocker and Motown...
:10—Ring…Ringg…Ringgg…Hello Smitty’s Bar and Grill, you stab-em, we’ll slab-em! What ya want? Plane, what plane? Look, whoever told you we got a plane out...
This July 23, 2013 file photo shows jazz saxophonist Wayne Shorter performing at the 5 Continents Jazz Festival, in Marseille , southern France. (AP Photo/Claude Paris, File) NEW YORK (AP) — At age 80, Wayne Shorter isn't ready to rest on his reputation as one of the greatest composers in jazz history. Instead, whenever he performs the saxophonist can't resist the urge to "de-compose" his works and create something anew. "Jazz to me is something that doesn't have to sound like jazz," said Shorter, speaking by telephone from his home in the Hollywood Hills. "The word 'jazz' means I dare you. I dare you to go beyond what you are. You have to go beyond your comfort zone, to break out of the box. ... You're talking about not just music, you're talking about life."
In this Jan. 15, 1992, file photo, Bobby "Blue" Bland, left, receives his award for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame from B.B. King during induction ceremonies in New York. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan, File) by Adrian Sainz MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — Full, sweet and melodious at one moment, powerful and primal in another, the iconic singing voice of the late Bobby "Blue" Bland was remembered by fans, friends and colleagues on Monday. The Rev. Jesse Jackson told The Associated Press on Monday that he and his wife went to a Bland concert on the day they were married in 1962. Jackson called Bland a dear friend who was a "legendary, smooth balladeer."
by Dwight BrownNNPA Film Critic They can sing a joyful noise. In pitch-perfect harmony. Never missing a beat. Yet they rarely take center stage. Why? Background singers, are the unsung heroes of music. Without them, lead singers sound hollow. Now their voices are heard, in an enlightening documentary that is as illuminating as it is thoroughly entertaining. Back in the day, backup singers just sang the notes on the page. In the ‘60s, a new breed of singer evolved, and these divas sang from the heart. Hard to say who was the first, but certainly, Darlene Love is one of the godmothers of the genre. Says Love, “God gave me this talent and I intended to use it.” Love led the background group the Blossoms, who were introduced to the world on the ‘60s musical TV show Shindig. Love was the one in the center, with the puffy red hair who wailed like a gospel singer but sang rock, pop and soul music. You may not recognized her face, but you know her voice.
