Loading...

'Women Who Rock' Bands // p 5 of 7

Darren's favorite bands for his Song Of The Day filtered by Women Who Rock
502 Bands
Mazzy Star

Mazzy Star

Mazzy Star is an American alternative rock band formed in Santa Monica, California, in 1989 from remnants of the group Opal. Founding member David Roback's friend Hope Sandoval became the group's vocalist when Kendra Smith left Opal.

Mazzy Star is best known for the song "Fade into You" which brought the band some success in the mid-1990s and was the group's biggest mainstream hit, earning extensive exposure on MTV, VH1, and radio airplay. Roback and Sandoval are the creative center of the band, with Sandoval as lyricist and Roback as composer of the majority of the band's material.

The band's most recent studio album, Seasons of Your Day, was released in 2013, followed by the EP Still in 2018.

History

Opal and Paisley Underground (1981–1987)
Mazzy Star has deep roots within the Californian Paisley Underground movement of the early 1980s. David Roback, along with his brother Steven, was one of the main architects of leading Los Angeles psychedelic revival band the Rain Parade. Leaving that band after their first LP, he founded Clay Allison in 1983 with then-girlfriend, ex-Dream Syndicate bassist Kendra Smith. Soon after the publication of their sole release, the 1983 double A-sided single "Fell From the Sun"/"All Souls", Clay Allison renamed themselves Opal and released the LP Happy Nightmare Baby on SST on December 14, 1987. With Roback as its musical catalyst, Opal were a direct precursor to Mazzy Star musically—often featuring the same psychedelic guitar drones and similar hints of blues and folk that would later appear on Mazzy Star recordings. Meanwhile, Sandoval—who was in high school at the time—formed the folk music duo Going Home in the early 1980s with fellow student Sylvia Gomez, and played gigs with Sonic Youth and Minutemen. Both were devoted followers of the Rain Parade, and after a 1983 concert by the band in the Los Angeles area, Gomez entered the backstage area of the venue and gave Roback a copy of Going Home's demo tape, featuring Sandoval on vocals and Gomez on guitar. Upon hearing the tape, Roback offered to produce a still-unreleased album by the pair.

When Smith left Opal under cloudy circumstances in the middle of a tour supporting the Jesus & Mary Chain, Sandoval was tapped as her replacement.

Formation and Rough Trade (1988–1990)
Despite Smith's departure, Rough Trade retained Roback's original record deal, contractually obligating him to supply a follow-up to Opal's debut LP. As a result, Roback and Sandoval continued to tour under the Opal alias for the next two years, during which time they completed production on Opal's planned second album, titled Ghost Highway. Composed mainly of songs written by Roback and Smith, Sandoval stated that she was unhappy with the material, and expressed an interest in wanting to "start something completely new". The pair quickly composed and recorded seven new tracks in Hyde Street Studios in San Francisco, and renamed the band Mazzy Star. Written over a year before Mazzy Star's inception, the track "Ghost Highway" is the duo's only original song to not feature a writing credit from Sandoval, while another song, "Give You My Lovin'", was written by Going Home guitarist Sylvia Gomez and first recorded by Sandoval and Gomez in the mid-1980s.

She Hangs Brightly was released in April 1990 on Rough Trade and, although it was not an immediate commercial success, the album established the duo as a recurrent fixture on alternative rock radio, with lead single "Blue Flower" – a cover of the Slapp Happy track – peaking at No. 29 on Billboard's Modern Rock Tracks chart. The album would go on to sell over 70,000 copies in the UK.

Capitol (1990–1997)
The American branch of Rough Trade folded in late 1990, briefly leaving Mazzy Star without a record label. Within weeks, the duo's contract was picked up by Capitol, who re-released She Hangs Brightly on November 4, 1990, and released their follow-up, So Tonight That I Might See on September 27, 1993. A year after its release, the album yielded an unexpected hit single. "Fade into You" peaked at No. 44 to become their first Billboard Hot 100 single, while also reaching a career-high peak of No. 3 on the Modern Rock Tracks chart. On April 19, 1995, the album was certified platinum by the RIAA for shipments in excess of 1 million units. The album also peaked at No. 68 in the UK, and was certified silver by the BPI on July 22, 2013 for sales of over 60,000 copies. Following the success of "Fade into You", She Hangs Brightly album opener "Halah" began to receive heavy airplay in the US a

nd peaked at No. 19 on Billboard's Modern Rock Tracks chart, a chart based solely on airplay. In 1995, She Hangs Brightly was awarded a gold certification from the RIAA for shipments in excess of 500,000 units.

Their final album for Capitol, Among My Swan, was released on October 29, 1996. Entering the Billboard 200 at No. 68 and, as of September 2001, selling 214,000 copies in the United States, the album was less commercially successful than its predecessors, although it produced their highest-peaking single in the United Kingdom, when "Flowers in December" entered at No. 40 to become their only top forty entry on the chart. The band promoted the album with a five-month tour of the US and Europe, after which Sandoval and Roback began work on new material. Over the course of these sessions, Sandoval reportedly "begged" Capitol to be released from her contract, later elaborating, "It seemed record companies wanted bands to be creative because they didn't know how to manufacture underground music. We could do our own thing and go at our own pace. But that changed when major labels started wanting bands that would sell 7 million records. They had a formula. And suddenly all these people wanted to come to the studio to keep track of what we were doing and make sure we were following that formula. So we got out."

Source Wikipedia

 'I've Gotta Stop'

'I've Gotta Stop'
Thursday, January 27, 2022

Music   Spotify    YouTube

Men I Trust

Men I Trust

Men I Trust is a Montreal-based band founded in 2014 by high school friends Jessy Caron and Dragos Chiriac, who reunited in the music department at Université Laval. They were later joined by Emma Proulx, a singer and guitarist. They released a self-titled EP in 2014 and later performed at the Montreal Jazz Festival, Quebec City Summer Festival, and M for Montreal. They released the album Headroom in 2015. The band toured in China, playing shows in Shenzhen, Beijing, and Shanghai. In 2017 Men I Trust released the single "I Hope To Be Around" with an accompanying music video. In 2018, they released the single "Show Me How" along with a self-directed music video. In 2018, they embarked on a North American tour. They performed at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival on April 14 and 21, 2019.

Source Wikipedia

 'Numb'

'Numb'
Monday, May 17, 2021

Music   Spotify    YouTube

 'Show Me How'

'Show Me How'
Monday, August 31, 2020

Music   Spotify    YouTube

 'Curious Fish'

'Curious Fish'
Friday, January 10, 2020

Music   Spotify    YouTube

 'Again'

'Again'
Thursday, July 18, 2019

Music   Spotify    YouTube

Metá Metá

Metá Metá

São Paulo trio Meta Meta fuse punk, jazz, samba, Afrobeat and candomblé into a compelling, visceral whole, permeated with Brazilian song, orixá chants and Yoruba roots. Guitarist Kiko Dinucci, saxophonist/flautist Thiago França and singer Juçara Nunes are on a continuing journey through the connected cultural strains of the 21st century. Their 2011 debut Metá Metá began with a smooth blend of Afro-samba, gathering in intensity until a sudden Brazilian Afrobeat finale. The following release resumed the journey, adding bass and drums and featuring pioneering Afrobeat drummer Tony Allen on two tracks. Their third album, MM3, took matters further, bringing in musical influences from a visit to Morocco and thematically taking aim at their country’s political crisis, pushing the mood from brooding Braziliana to squalling jazz-punk thrash-outs. It has to be done and Meta Meta do it with serious skill.

Source womex.com

 'Obatalá'

'Obatalá'
Thursday, August 6, 2020

Music   Spotify    YouTube

Michelle Moonshine

Michelle Moonshine

Cutting her teeth by sneaking into venues and clubs to perform starting at eighteen years old, Michelle Moonshine has spent the last seven years developing her own blend of Americana music.

Pulling from such influences as Gram Parsons, Doc Watson and Dylan, you can hear tastes of Folk, Classic Country, Bluegrass and American Roots music.

With frequent comparisons to Alison Krauss or a young Emmylou Harris, Michelle delivers a performance that feels both raw yet refined.

Declining her recruitment from NBC's The Voice, she traded bright lights for hard work and a chance to serve the song with a group of seasoned musicians who both compliment and contribute to her sound.

Michelle and company are currently finishing up their upcoming album and continue to showcase their music regionally with lush harmony and ample twang.

Touring artist Michelle Moonshine has shared the stage with the likes of Lake Street Dive, Leftover Salmon, Lukas Nelson and POTR, Mason Jennings, Charlie Parr, Los Lobos, Lil Smokies, Niki Bluhm, Dead Winter Carpenters, Amy Helm, Sam Outlaw, Luther Dickinson of North Mississippi Allstars, Judy Collins, Howie Day, Paul Thorn and is based in Salt Lake City.

Source facebook.com

 'Oh So Many Days'

'Oh So Many Days'
Tuesday, March 24, 2020

Music   Spotify    YouTube

Myriam Gendron

Myriam Gendron

Ottawa-born, Myriam Gendron spent much of her youth in transition, her father being a foreign correspondent. She spent spells in Gatineau (Quebec), D.C., Paris, and Montreal, where she finally settled at age sixteen. Still in Montreal, she makes her living now as a copy-editor and book dealer, leading to her discovery of an anthology of Dorothy Parker poetry, titled Not So Deep as a Well. Parker’s poems hit just the right note and Myriam began putting them to music.

“Before even understanding the meaning of the words, I heard a song,” she says. “I flipped through the pages and it just kept happening.” A nine-track album came out of it.

Recorded and mixed in her bedroom, Myriam Gendron’s debut album started as a simple project but became more serious as she began to absorb Parker’s work. The album, also titled Not So Deep as a Well, is one of love and hate, all at once brutal, mischievous, humorous and blue.

Source mamabirdrecordingco.com

 'Not so Deep as a Well'

'Not so Deep as a Well'
Tuesday, September 6, 2022

Music   Spotify    YouTube

Nicole Canaan

Nicole Canaan

For Utah-based singer-songwriter Nicole Canaan, an avid interest in the power of music came from hearing the various synth-based orchestrations in the video games her older brothers would play. “The analog sounds in those video games when they’re telling the stories of the characters, something about those sounds scratches my brain more than anything ever has,” says Canaan. “I love combining those synths with sadder lyrics. I think it creates a really interesting balance.”

Wherever, which was released in October of 2020, was not only Canaan’s first EP, but her first time sharing her songs and all the emotions packed into them with someone else. After posting several songs on Soundcloud, Canaan’s music caught the ear of producer Isaac Elmont, who expressed interest in producing an album. “It was a lovely and very fun experience making the EP. It was also extremely nerve racking—I had never been vulnerable with someone about my music and I had to be when I started recording with Isaac,” she says.

Source slugmag.com

 'Lose Yourself'

'Lose Yourself'
Monday, December 13, 2021

Music   Spotify    YouTube

Nicole Willis

Nicole Willis

Nicole Willis (born 1963) is an American singer/songwriter/producer/director and visual artist. Ms Willis lives and works in Helsinki, Finland.

Ms Willis contributed vocals in London, United Kingdom in 1985 with Washington Week In Review. Prior to that she was a member of The Hello Strangers and Blue Period with performances at Munson Diner and Danceteria's No Entiendes, based in New York City while working at night clubs Berlin and Danceteria. In 1984, Willis performed as lead vocalist with Jenn Vix on backing vocals, Adam Horovitz on electric bass, Phil Painson on drums and David Strahan on electric guitar, called Disco Donut. Ms Willis toured with The The as a back up and lead vocalist in 1989. Nicole Willis was the lead vocalist of the nu-soul group Repercussions. Singles and albums were released on Mo' Wax, Reprise/Warner Brothers USA, Pony Canyon Japan. Producers of those records include Nicole Willis, Gary Katz, Daniel Wyatt, Genji Siraisi, and Gordon Clay. The single Promise Me Nothing from the debut album of Repercussions LP Earth and Heaven, peaked at number 6 in the Hot Dance Music, Club Play chart of Billboard magazine on 18 March 1995. Together with Curtis Mayfield, the band recorded a version of Mayfield's Let's Do It Again in which Willis sings a duet with Curtis Mayfield in 1994 released on Reprise/Warner Brothers Records. The group also released an album on Pony Canyon Japan, titled Charmed Life in 1997.

Source Wikipedia

 'If This Ain’t Love'

'If This Ain’t Love'
Thursday, September 24, 2020

Music   Spotify    YouTube

of Montreal

of Montreal

Of Montreal is an American indie pop band from Athens, Georgia. It was founded by frontperson Kevin Barnes in 1996, named after a failed romance between Barnes and a woman "of Montreal". The band is identified as part of the Elephant 6 collective. Throughout its existence, of Montreal's musical style has evolved considerably and drawn inspiration from 1960s psychedelic pop acts.

History

2013–present

On April 25, 2013, of Montreal posted an announcement on their Facebook page stating that a new album entitled Lousy with Sylvianbriar had been completed. The post went into detail about the album's conception, including that Barnes' writing occurred while on a "self imposed isolation experiment in San Francisco" in early 2013. She was influenced by Sylvia Plath, the Grateful Dead, Neil Young, and the Flying Burrito Brothers in her writing. The album was recorded with a new lineup of musicians, including Jojo Glidewell, Nicolas Dobbratz, Bennett Lewis, and Bob Parins, with Clayton Rychlik and Kevin Barnes as the only returning members. The album and subsequent tour also featured Rebecca Cash on vocals. Lousy with Sylvianbriar was released on October 8, 2013. On July 10, 2013, the band released the first single from the album, entitled "Fugitive Air." On July 31, 2013, they announced that they would be touring their new album in October and November. This tour featured the same musicians that performed on the album, instead of longtime band members such as Bryan Poole and Dottie Alexander.

By means of a Facebook post and a Kevin Barnes interview conducted by Stereogum.com, of Montreal's album Aureate Gloom was announced. The record was influenced by "the mid-to-late 1970s music scene in New York," including bands such as Talking Heads and Led Zeppelin. The album captures Barnes' emotions borne from her separation from her wife of 11 years and its aftermath. Barnes described the album as being "all over the place musically", lending to its reflection of her mindset during the time of its creation. The album was released March 3, 2015.

In August 2016, of Montreal released Innocence Reaches, which incorporated new, EDM-inspired sounds, as well as the progressive rock sounds of the previous two albums. For the tour following the album's release, bassist Davey Pierce returned to the band, replacing Bob Parins.

On January 13, 2017, of Montreal released a new EP by surprise, entitled Rune Husk. On March 9, 2018, the album White Is Relic/Irrealis Mood was released on Polyvinyl, with singer Barnes explaining that the sound was influenced by "extended dance mixes" from the 1980s.

The band released its sixteenth studio album, UR FUN, on January 17, 2020.

Of Montreal released its seventeenth studio album, I Feel Safe with You, Trash, on March 5, 2021.

Source Wikipedia

Paul and Linda McCartney

Paul and Linda McCartney

Ram is the only album credited to the husband-and-wife music duo Paul and Linda McCartney, released in May 1971 by Apple Records. It was recorded in New York with guitarists David Spinozza and Hugh McCracken, and future Wings drummer Denny Seiwell. Three singles were issued from the album: "Uncle Albert/Admiral Halsey" (Paul's first number 1 hit in America without the Beatles), "The Back Seat of My Car" and "Eat at Home". The recording sessions also yielded the non-album single "Another Day".

The album's release coincided with a period of acrimony between McCartney and his former Beatles bandmates, and followed his legal action in the United Kingdom's High Court to dissolve the Beatles partnership. John Lennon perceived slights in the lyrics to songs such as "Too Many People". Although McCartney felt that he had addressed the criticisms he received with his 1970 solo debut, McCartney, Ram elicited a similarly unfavourable reaction from music journalists. It nonetheless topped the national albums charts in the UK, the Netherlands and Canada. Today, Ram is held in high regard by many music critics and is often ranked as one of McCartney's best solo albums. It has also been recognised as an early indie pop album.

In 1971, McCartney produced Thrillington, an instrumental interpretation of Ram that was released in 1977 under the pseudonym "Percy 'Thrills' Thrillington". In 2012, an expanded edition of Ram was reissued with over two dozen bonus tracks as part of the Paul McCartney Archive Collection. In 2020, Ram was ranked number 450 on Rolling Stone's list of the greatest albums of all time.

Source Wikipedia

 'Ram On'

'Ram On'
Thursday, March 24, 2022

Music   Spotify    YouTube

Paul McCartney and Wings

Paul McCartney and Wings

Paul McCartney and Wings (also known by their original name Wings) were a British-American rock band formed in 1971 by former Beatle Paul McCartney, his wife Linda on keyboards, session drummer Denny Seiwell, and former Moody Blues guitarist Denny Laine. Wings were noted for frequent personnel changes along with their commercial successes, going through three lead guitarists and four drummers. However, the core trio of the McCartneys and Laine remained intact throughout the group's existence.

Created following the McCartneys' 1971 album Ram, the band's first two albums, Wild Life (1971) and Red Rose Speedway (1973) (the latter featuring guitarist Henry McCullough), were viewed as artistic disappointments beside Paul's work with the Beatles. After the release of the title track of the James Bond movie Live and Let Die, McCullough and Seiwell resigned from the band. The McCartneys and Laine then released 1973's Band on the Run, a commercial and critical success that spawned two top ten singles in "Jet" and the title track. Following that album, the band recruited guitarist Jimmy McCulloch and drummer Geoff Britton, only for Britton to quit shortly afterwards and be replaced by Joe English. With the new line-up, Wings released 1975's Venus and Mars, which included the US number one single "Listen to What the Man Said", and undertook a highly successful world tour over 1975–76. Intended as more of a group effort, Wings at the Speed of Sound (1976) was issued midway through the tour and featured the hit singles "Silly Love Songs" and "Let 'Em In".

In 1977, the band earned their only UK number one single, with "Mull of Kintyre", which became the then-best-selling UK single in history. Wings experienced another line-up shuffle, however, with both McCulloch and English departing before the release of the group's 1978 album London Town. The McCartneys and Laine again added new members, recruiting guitarist Laurence Juber and drummer Steve Holley. The resulting album, Back to the Egg, was a relative flop, with its singles under-performing and the critical reception negative. During the supporting tour, Paul was arrested in Japan for cannabis possession, putting the band on hold. Despite a final US number one with a live-recorded version of "Coming Up" (1979), after Laine departed from the band, Wings discontinued for good in 1981.

Source Wikipedia

 'Let 'Em In'

'Let 'Em In'
Tuesday, December 10, 2019

Music   Spotify    YouTube

Phox

Phox

PHOX was an American six-piece alternative folk / indie pop band from Baraboo, Wisconsin. PHOX's self-titled debut LP was released on June 24, 2014.

Prior to the formation of PHOX, many eventual members collaborated with Zach Johnston for his album Sonntag, which was written in California, but recorded in Wisconsin. Some time later while Matt Holmen was playing with Davey Roberts, Matt Roberts (keys), and Jason Krunnfusz (bass) in Baraboo. The group connected once again for what was originally thought to be a one-off show at the local event, Boo Bash on May 4, 2011. The group still needed songs to play and someone to sing them. Monica Martin was asked if she'd sing some tracks from Sonntag and some cover songs at the event and she agreed. Moving forward, Monica wrote lyrics and melodies, and the group arranged the songs from their first two EP's and their self-titled first record release.

The band released their EP Confetti in early 2013, for which they created a video component for each track. 2013 also saw a Daytrotter session, positive press, a spot at South by Southwest and a national tour opening for Blitzen Trapper. The band played Lollapalooza as a last-minute addition in August 2013, drawing a large crowd despite their midday spot. In September 2013 PHOX opened for The Lumineers at Apple's iTunes Festival in London. Local Wisconsin publication Isthmus praised PHOX as one of the year's greatest musical success stories. Throughout 2015, Phox supported Paolo Nutini and The Head and the Heart, while also headlining around the U.S. non-stop. They also made their debut in New Zealand and Australia during March 2015. They were also featured on NPR Music's Tiny Desk Concert. Other notable festival stops include Coachella, Bonnaroo, Firefly, Summerfest, Sasquatch, and the inaugural Eaux Claires Music and Arts Festival where they also screened their latest [mockumentary] film titled, Amor Fati, directed by member Zach Johnston. The film was uploaded publicly to YouTube on December 24, 2015. The band is currently signed to Partisan Records, and are managed by Foundations Artist Management. They recorded their first full-length, self-titled album at April Base – Justin Vernon's home studio in Eau Claire, Wisconsin.

PHOX announced an indefinite hiatus on October 17, 2016. The band played their farewell concert at the Al. Ringling Theatre in their hometown of Baraboo, WI on February 4, 2017.

Source Wikipedia

 'Raspberry Seed'

'Raspberry Seed'
Monday, August 26, 2019

Music   Spotify    YouTube

 'Satyr and the Faun'

'Satyr and the Faun'
Tuesday, February 26, 2019

Music   Spotify    YouTube

 'Laura'

'Laura'
Tuesday, November 27, 2018

Music   Spotify    YouTube

PJ Harvey

PJ Harvey

Polly Jean Harvey, MBE (born 9 October 1969) known as PJ Harvey, is an English musician, singer-songwriter, writer, poet and composer. Primarily known as a vocalist and guitarist, she is also proficient with a wide range of instruments.

Harvey began her career in 1988 when she joined local band Automatic Dlamini as a vocalist, guitarist and saxophone player. The band's frontman, John Parish, would become her long-term collaborator. In 1991, she formed an eponymous trio and subsequently began her professional career. The trio released two studio albums, Dry (1992) and Rid of Me (1993) before disbanding, after which Harvey continued as a solo artist. Since 1995, she has released a further nine studio albums with collaborations from various musicians including John Parish, former bandmate Rob Ellis, Mick Harvey and Eric Drew Feldman and has also worked extensively with record producer Flood.

Among the accolades she has received are the 2001 and 2011 Mercury Prize for Stories from the City, Stories from the Sea (2000 and Let England Shake (2011), respectively—the only artist to have been awarded the prize twice—eight Brit Award nominations, seven Grammy Award nominations and two further Mercury Prize nominations. Rolling Stone awarded her 1992's Best New Artist and Best Singer Songwriter and 1995's Artist of the Year, and listed Rid of Me, To Bring You My Love (1995) and Stories from the City, Stories from the Sea on its 500 Greatest Albums of All Time list. In 2011, she was awarded for Outstanding Contribution To Music at the NME Awards. In June 2013, she was awarded an MBE for services to music.

Source Wikipedia

 'Is This Desire?'

'Is This Desire?'
Friday, August 6, 2021

Music   Spotify    YouTube

 'Passionless, Pointless'

'Passionless, Pointless'
Thursday, August 13, 2020

Music   Spotify    YouTube

 'Rid of Me'

'Rid of Me'
Saturday, January 18, 2020

Music   Spotify    YouTube

 'The Piano'

'The Piano'
Monday, March 11, 2019

Music   Spotify    YouTube

 'The Words That Maketh Murder'

'The Words That Maketh Murder'
Saturday, November 17, 2018

Music   Spotify    YouTube

 'Silence'

'Silence'
Monday, September 24, 2018

Music   Spotify    YouTube

 'On Battleship Hill'

'On Battleship Hill'
Thursday, August 9, 2018

Music   Spotify    YouTube

Portishead

Portishead

Portishead is an English band formed in 1991 in Bristol. They are often considered one of the pioneers of trip hop music. The band is named after the nearby town of the same name, eight miles west of Bristol, along the coast. Portishead consists of Beth Gibbons, Geoff Barrow and Adrian Utley, while sometimes citing a fourth member, Dave McDonald, an engineer on their first records.

Their debut album, Dummy, was met with critical acclaim in 1994, quickly becoming a landmark album in the trip hop genre. Two other studio albums have been issued: Portishead in 1997 and Third in 2008, both of which received similar acclaim. In 1998, the band released a concert album, Roseland NYC Live.

Style and influences

Portishead's music was influenced by a wide range of singers and composers. Gibbons's voice has been compared to singer Billie Holiday. Utley mentioned the spaghetti western guitar composed by Ennio Morricone; he said that "[Morricone's] The Good, the Bad and the Ugly is the sort of soundtracks that I love".

Source Wikipedia

 'Silence'

'Silence'
Monday, September 27, 2021

Music   Spotify    YouTube

 'Deep Water'

'Deep Water'
Wednesday, July 29, 2020

Music   Spotify    YouTube

 'It Could Be Sweet'

'It Could Be Sweet'
Thursday, July 26, 2018

Music   Spotify    YouTube

Ruby Friedman

Ruby Friedman

Ruby Friedman is an American singer/songwriter/composer, with roots in New Orleans, New York, and Los Angeles. She is the leader of the Ruby Friedman Orchestra.

Career

The Ruby Friedman Orchestra has been in studio in New Orleans, in New York City with Josh Valleau at The Glass Wall, with Peter Malick at OCL Studios in Calgary, and at his studio in Los Angeles. Final recording, production and mixing were done by Alex Elena and Topher Mohr at Beethoven Studios in Culver City. The band released their debut album, Gem on November 11, 2016. The first single from the album I'm Not Your Friend was released in June 2016.

Late 2019 Ruby Friedman was in the studio recording with legend Mitchell Froom for her upcoming release entitled Late Afternoon Highs. The single entitled “Teardrop Trailer” has been released and first premiered on KCSN by DJ Nic Harcourt on radio and buzzbands.la in online media.

The version of "You'll Never Leave Harlan Alive", was featured in the Season Five finale of Justified. Graham Yost, creator and Executive Producer of the series, discussed the use of the Ruby Friedman version in the show.

Her version of the song was also selected for use in the Emmy-winning Reveal documentary, The Dead Unknown, an investigative report on a 1969 cold case regarding the disappearance and murder of a young woman, in Harlan, Kentucky, in June 1969.

In late 2015, The Golden Globe Award and Emmy Award winning Amazon Studios TV show Transparent selected the arrangement featuring her vocals on the Gina Villalobos/Eric Colvin produced version of the Sly and the Family Stone hit Family Affair for use in the trailer promoting the launch of Season 2.

In 2015, Ruby Friedman performed the vocals on the song, Hunt You Down for the CLIO award-winning advertising campaign for the launch of the Sony PS4 game, Bloodborne. The song is a collaboration with The Hit House Music, and was written by Scott Miller and William Hunt. It was recorded by Wyn Davis in Los Angeles, and by Ruby Friedman at Word of Mouth Recording Studios in New Orleans. The Petrol Advertising campaign using the song won the Golden Trailer Award for best Video Game TV Spot. The song was released as a single in conjunction with availability of the game.

In March 2015, the EP, Song of the Demimonde was released, containing 7 tracks of her most-requested cover material. "House of the Rising Sun", the last song on the EP,> was recorded at Word of Mouth Recording Studios in New Orleans with New Orleans piano player Tom McDermott, and Smashing Pumpkins violinist, Ysanne Spevack.

She has also performed with McDermott, and Ysanne Spevack, in New Orleans, Emmy Award and Grammy Award-nominated TV series Treme), In both April 2015 and 2016, she performed at Buffa's and at the Lagnaippe Stage for Jazzfest with McDermott and others.

She has been retained by the estate of 20th Century Academy Award film song composer Harry Warren to re-imagine and record some of the extensive Harry Warren catalog. The catalog consists of hundreds of songs, from Academy Award winners to unfinished works in process. Several of these recordings, "Rose Tattoo", "Ungrateful Heart", and "Welcome to the Party" are included on the Song of the Demimonde EP.

In 2014, Ruby Friedman was commissioned to perform two songs, including the title track, on a tribute album, Life, honoring the life and music of Tarka Cordell, (produced by Alex Elena). Other contributing vocalists on the album include Lily Allen, Imani Coppola, and Evan Dando.

Her original songs have been selected for promotional use on NBC and have been licensed internationally for continued use in the Got Talent franchise. Her songs or vocals have also been licensed for use by Fox Sports and numerous movie and video game trailers, recently in 2017 trailers for the film Marshall and Netflix miniseries Godless. The original song, Drowned, was also featured in Season Three of the television show Sons of Anarchy. She composed extensive original score for the 2018 World Cup special Phenoms on Fox Sports. She was commissioned to compose and perform the official theme song for author Kim Michele Richardson's New York Times bestseller The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek to be used in various advertising platforms and future media. She has recently been co-writing compositions for the upcoming Wynonna Judd album. Her original music is regularly supported by KCRW as well many other independent radio stations.

Ruby Friedman Orchestra has toured with Brian Wilson and Jeff Bridges She has also provided live backup vocals for many legends as well including Donovan and Heart. When in Los Angeles, she has headlined at the House of Blues, The Troubadour, The Viper Room, Hotel Café, Los Globos, Echoplex, and Pershing Square. She has made numerous invited guest appearances, including performances with Bernard Fowler, with Grammy Award nominee Scott Healy, with the Jeff Goldblum jazz ensemble, and at many events at the Sayers Club. She performed an acoustic invitation only show, at the Turn Gallery in Soho, accompanied by Imani Coppola, Matthew Steer, Maiya Sykes, Ben Crippin Taylor, and Conor Brendan.

Source Wikipedia

 'Life'

'Life'
Thursday, December 24, 2020

Music   Spotify    YouTube

Ruth Brown

Ruth Brown

Ruth Alston Brown (née Weston, January 12, 1928 – November 17, 2006) was an American singer-songwriter and actress, sometimes known as the "Queen of R&B". She was noted for bringing a pop music style to R&B music in a series of hit songs for Atlantic Records in the 1950s, such as "So Long", "Teardrops from My Eyes" and "(Mama) He Treats Your Daughter Mean". For these contributions, Atlantic became known as "the house that Ruth built" (alluding to the popular nickname for the old Yankee Stadium). Brown was a 1993 inductee into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Following a resurgence that began in the mid-1970s and peaked in the 1980s, Brown used her influence to press for musicians' rights regarding royalties and contracts; these efforts led to the founding of the Rhythm and Blues Foundation. Her performances in the Broadway musical Black and Blue earned Brown a Tony Award, and the original cast recording won a Grammy Award. Brown was a recipient of the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2016. In 2017, Brown was inducted into National Rhythm & Blues Hall of Fame. She is also the aunt to legendary hip hop MC Rakim.

Early life

Born in Portsmouth, Virginia, Brown was the eldest of seven siblings. She attended I. C. Norcom High School, which was then legally segregated. Brown's father was a dockhand. He also directed the local church choir at Emmanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church, but the young Ruth showed more interest in singing at USO shows and nightclubs, rebelling against her father. She was inspired by Sarah Vaughan, Billie Holiday, and Dinah Washington.

In 1945, aged 17, Brown ran away from her home in Portsmouth along with the trumpeter Jimmy Brown, whom she soon married, to sing in bars and clubs. She then spent a month with Lucky Millinder's orchestra.

Early Career

Ruth Brown performs at the Mambo Club in Wichita, Kansas, 1957
Blanche Calloway, Cab Calloway's sister, also a bandleader, arranged a gig for Brown at the Crystal Caverns, a nightclub in Washington, D.C., and soon became her manager. Willis Conover, the future Voice of America disc jockey, caught her act with Duke Ellington and recommended her to Atlantic Records bosses Ahmet Ertegun and Herb Abramson. Brown was unable to audition as planned because of a car crash, which resulted in a nine-month stay in the hospital. She signed with Atlantic Records from her hospital bed.

In 1948, Ertegun and Abramson drove from New York City to Washington, D.C., to hear Brown sing. Her repertoire was mostly popular ballads, but Ertegun convinced her to switch to rhythm and blues.

In her first audition, in 1949, she sang "So Long", which became a hit. This was followed by "Teardrops from My Eyes" in 1950. Written by Rudy Toombs, it was the first upbeat major hit for Brown. Recorded for Atlantic Records in New York City in September 1950 and released in October, it was Billboard's R&B number one for 11 weeks. The hit earned her the nickname "Miss Rhythm", and within a few months, she became the acknowledged queen of R&B.

She followed up this hit with "I'll Wait for You" (1951), "I Know" (1951), "5-10-15 Hours" (1953), "(Mama) He Treats Your Daughter Mean" (1953), "Oh What a Dream" (1954), "Mambo Baby" (1954), and "Don't Deceive Me" (1960), some of which were credited to Ruth Brown and the Rhythm Makers. Between 1949 and 1955, her records stayed on the R&B chart for a total of 149 weeks; she would go on to score 21 Top 10 hits altogether, including five that landed at number one. Brown ranked No. 1 on The Billboard 1954 Disk Jockey Poll for Favorite R&B Artists.


Brown played many racially segregated dances in the southern states, where she toured extensively and was immensely popular. She claimed that a writer had once summed up her popularity by saying, "In the South Ruth Brown is better known than Coca-Cola."

Brown performed at the famed tenth Cavalcade of Jazz concert held at Wrigley Field in Los Angeles which was produced by Leon Hefflin, Sr. on June 20, 1954. She performed along with The Flairs, Count Basie and his Orchestra, Lamp Lighters, Louis Jordan and His Tympany Five, Christine Kittrell, and Perez Prado and his Orchestra.

Her first pop hit came with "Lucky Lips", a song written by Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller and recorded in 1957. The single reached number 6 on the R&B chart and number 25 on the U.S. pop chart. The 1958 follow-up was "This Little Girl's Gone Rockin'", written by Bobby Darin and Mann Curtis. It reached number 7 on the R&B chart and number 24 on the pop chart.

She had further hits with "I Don't Know" in 1959 and "Don't Deceive Me" in 1960, which were more successful on the R&B chart than on the pop chart. During the 1960s, Brown faded from public view and lived as a housewife and mother.

Source Wikipedia

 'I Don't Know'

'I Don't Know'
Wednesday, August 26, 2020

Music   Spotify    YouTube

Bands, p 5 of 7

FOLLOW