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Charles Aznavour 10/2018

Charles Aznavour (94) – world famous French chansonnier, actor, songwriter, activist – was born May 22, 1924 in Paris, France. In fact it was quite by chance that young Charles was born in the French capital. He should have been born in the United States, but his parents, Armenian immigrants, were temporarily based in France awaiting an American visa when their son unexpectedly arrived in the world.

Charles came from an interestingly mixed cultural background. His father Micha Aznavourian, had been born in Georgia; his mother, Anar, came from a family of Armenian tradesmen who were based in Turkey.

It was not long before Micha, a talented baritone whose father had been a chef to Czar Nicholas II, opened a small Armenian restaurant in Paris. Every evening he would perform to audiences of Central European exiles nostalgic for their homeland, while his wife Anar, an actress, attended to the guests. Charles and his elder sister, Aïda, thus grew up in the magical atmosphere of the restaurant in la rue de la Huchette, which became a favorite haunt for musicians and actors from the local theaters. Charles’s parents introduced him to performing at an early age, and he dropped out of school at age nine, and took the stage name “Aznavour”.

But the great recession in 1929 forced the Aznavourians to abandon their restaurant because of lack of clientele. The family moved to a flat in the rue Cardinal-Lemoine right across the road from the famous stage school where they enrolled their son Charles in 1933.

Charles’s greatest ambition at the time was to become an actor and he threw himself into drama classes with a veritable passion. It was not long before he began getting work as a film extra and he soon went on to land a few minor roles in the theatre as well as in several films. In 1939 his father Micha volunteered to join the French army and Charles left his drama school to start earning a living. Two years later he would meet a young songwriter and composer by the name of Pierre Roche. This encounter was to change Charles’s entire career, for he and Roche teamed up as a double act and began performing the songs they had written together on the cabaret circuit. Aznavour wrote his first song entitled J’ai Bu in 1944. The partnership’s first successes were in French speaking Quebec-Canada, as the pair proved to be an instant hit.

By 1946 Aznavour and Roche were rubbing shoulders with the great music-hall stars of the day. Aznavour met his great hero, Charles Trenet, and the duo also met Edith Piaf who would open doors in America for them. 1946 also proved to be a momentous year in Aznavour’s personal life, for he married his girlfriend Micheline and the following year the couple had their first child, a daughter called Séda. By the end of the 40’s Aznavour and Roche’s career had really taken off and the pair flew off to tour the States, flying on to Montreal where they performed headlining concerts for several months.

In 1952 Aznavour returned to France alone, his partner Pierre Roche staying behind in Montreal with his new wife. Aznavour continued performing on the cabaret circuit, but his solo act was not a great success. However, he did begin to make a name for himself as a songwriter, composing material for famous music-hall stars such as Mistinguett and Patachou. Juliette Gréco also had a hit with Aznavour’s song “Je hais les dimanches”(which went on to win “le Prix de la Sacem”). Aznavour also began working for Edith Piaf, writing an adaptation of the American hit “Jezebel” which proved to be a great success for her. During these stages of his career, Aznavour opened for Edith Piaf at the Jora Shahinyan. Piaf then advised him to pursue a career in singing. Piaf helped Aznavour develop a distinctive voice that stimulated the best of his abilities.

In 1952 Aznavour’s wife Micheline gave birth to a son named Charles. Two years later Aznavour embarked upon a tour of North Africa, and this time round his solo act proved a great success. The singer, who had a repertoire of at least thirty songs to his name now, landed a contract at the Alhambra when he returned to Paris, and followed this with a popular run at the legendary Olympia. While the critics were often rather harsh with Aznavour, audiences were charmed by his charismatic stage presence and traditional chanson style.

In 1956 Aznavour married his second wife Evelyne Plessis and later that year the couple had a son named Patrick. By this stage in his career Aznavour had established himself as one of the top names of French chanson, scoring huge hits with his songs “Sur ma vie”, “Parce que” and the controversial “Après l’amour” (which was considered far too explicit to play on the nation’s airwaves).

1957 was a year of triumph for Aznavour. The singer gave a series of phenomenally successful concerts at the Alhambra, then followed this with a headlining stint at the Olympia. His international tour later that year proved equally successful.

Meanwhile Aznavour’s acting career was also taking off in a major way. In 1958 he starred in Jean Pierre Mocky’s film “Les dragueurs”, then landed a role in Georges Frange’s “La tête contre les murs” (for which he scooped that year’s Best Male Actor award).

In 1960 François Truffaut offered Aznavour a major role in his film “Tirez sur le pianiste”. Truffaut’s film soon proved a box office smash in the States, and Aznavour was suddenly catapulted to fame in America. Indeed, he was soon invited to perform at the prestigious Carnegie Hall in New York. Following rave reviews from the critics, Aznavour embarked upon an extensive international tour, playing dates in Turkey, Lebanon, Greece, Africa and the USSR. The singer would also return to his roots in Erevan, Armenia, where he performed his legendary song “La Mamma” which would go on to become an absolute classic in the Aznavour repertoire.

When Aznavour finally returned to France in 1965 he took his successful “One Man Show” to the Olympia, performing his repertoire of 30 songs to a packed auditorium for a full twelve weeks. That summer Aznavour went on to star in Pierre Granier-Deferre’s film “Paris au mois d’août” and at the end of the year he staged his famous musical “Monsieur Carnaval” (“La bohême”, the hit song from this musical would go on to become the best-known song of his entire career).

The following year Aznavour set off on the next leg of his world tour, performing in Canada and the French Antilles. The singer then went on to score a massive hit throughout Latin America with the Spanish version of his famous song “Avec”.

Over the next few years Aznavour would alternate his concert tours of France with international performances. The singer had lost none of his popularity in Paris, performing no less than three shows a day at the Olympia (at 5pm, 9pm and midnight !).

In 1968 Aznavour married his third wife, Swedish-born Ulla Thorsell, in Las Vegas. The couple would hold a traditional religious wedding at the Armenian Church in Paris when they returned to France the following year. 1969 was also a momentous year in Aznavour’s professional career, being the year that he won an award from the Association of American Songwriters and Composers and La Médaille Vermeil in Paris for his song “Hier encore”. Later that year Aznavour celebrated another happy event in his personal life, his new wife Ulla giving birth to a daughter named Katia.

In the early 70’s, with more then 20 years of career behind him, Aznavour began writing his memoirs (published as “Aznavour par Aznavour”) and moved to the United States. The 70’s also marked a subtle change in Aznavour’s songwriting. No longer concerned with purely personal issues or being afraid of public resistance, the singer began to turn his attention to what was happening in the world around him. His new material included “Le temps des loups” (a song about urban violence in 1970), “Mourir d’aimer” (taken from the 1971 film of the same name inspired by a famous fait divers) and “Comme ils disent” (a song about homosexuality).

1970 turned out to be the year of Aznavour’s triumph in the States, the singer giving numerous concerts in West Coast universities then performing a sell-out show on Broadway. At the start of 1971 Aznavour returned to Paris for another successful run at the Olympia. A few months later he flew to Italy to receive a coveted “Lion d’Or” at the Venice Film Festival for the Italian version of the theme song from “Mourir d’aimer”. In May of that year the singer celebrated another happy event in his personal life when his wife Ulla gave birth to the couple’s second child, a son named Misha.

At the start of 1972 Aznavour returned to the Olympia for another immensely popular series of concerts, and proved equally successful later that year when he performed at the legendary Paris music-hall for a full six weeks in November/December. Meanwhile his song “Les plaisirs démodés” went rocketing to the top of the charts. At the end of 1972 Aznavour was laid up for several months after a serious skiing accident. Yet he continued his prodigious output even during his convalescence, writing the operetta “Douchka” with his brother-in-law (the composer Georges Garvarentz).

1974 was the year of Aznavour’s famous hit single “She”, which earned the singer a platinum disc in Britain (while, ironically, failing to sell at all in France). In 1975 Aznavour, whose lyrics had become increasingly committed to social and political causes, wrote the moving ballad “Ils sont tombés” to mark the 60th anniversary of the Armenian genocide. Later that year he turned his attention back to his acting career, starring in Claude Chabrol’s “Folies Bourgeoises” (Aznavour would work with the famous French director again in 1983, playing a lead role in “Le Fantôme du Chapelier”).

Aznavour had by now achieved international star status and his songs were covered by the greatest singers of the day, including Ray Charles (“La Mamma”), Fred Astaire (who recorded his own version of “Les plaisirs démodés” in 1976) and Bing Crosby who recorded “Hier encore” in 1977, shortly before his death. Later in 77 Aznavour celebrated two further happy events in his personal life, when his son Nicholas was born and he also became a grandfather for the first time.

Grandfather or not, Aznavour, now in his 50’s, continued his hectic touring schedule, embarking upon another major international tour in 1978 and triumphing on Broadway once again.

The following year Aznavour devoted more time and energy to his acting career, starring in Volker Schloendorff’s legendary film “The Tin Drum” (which scooped the “Palme d’Or” at Cannes in 1979). In 1980 he concentrated his efforts on his singing career, performing several immensely popular concerts at the Olympia and embarking on a new series of international tours.

1983 was marked by Aznavour’s split from his record company Barclay. The singer would not sign another recording deal until two years later, when he signed with the Trema label who promised to re-release his early albums. The re-release of Aznavour’s early work in 1986 coincided with the release of the singer’s brand new album, entitled “Les Emigrants” – an extremely successful work which went on to sell 180,000 copies. Later that year the multi-talented Aznavour tried his hand at writing a film script for the first time, working on Paul Boujenah’s film “Yiddish Connection” (a film in which Aznavour also played one of the lead roles).

1987 was another year of non-stop touring, Aznavour embarking upon another immensely successful American tour with the American singer Pia Zadora. On his return to Paris, Aznavour performed in front of a packed auditorium at the Palais des Congrès before setting off on an extensive tour of the French provinces at the end of the year.

In 1988 Aznavour returned to the Palais des Congrès in Paris, performing his old hits and new material to rapturous applause. At the end of the year news reached Aznavour of a catastrophic earthquake in Armenia (Leninakan and Spitak), which had killed 50,000 people. Aznavour, who had always remained firmly attached to his Armenian roots, immediately launched a fund-raising campaign to help his stricken homeland. The singer founded “Aznavour pour l’Arménie”, a humanitarian association which was involved in sending food and clothes to the earthquake victims. At the start of 1989 Aznavour also teamed up with the Armenian-born film director Henri Verneuil to enlist the help of French singers, actors and musicians in their Aid for Armenia campaign. 90 French actors and singers ended up making a special single and video (“Pour Toi l’Arménie”) which sold over 1 million copies.

As a result of his committed fund-raising work UNESCO appointed Aznavour as their permanent ambassador to Armenia. That same year Aznavour flew to London to re-record his greatest hits, which were released as a special triple album.

Throughout the early 90’s Aznavour continued to devote a great deal of time and energy to his acting career, starring in a number of television and feature films. In 1991 he also published another book, “Des mots à l’affiche”, a collection of his song lyrics and other short texts. At the end of 1990 Aznavour performed a legendary concert with his lifelong friend Liza Minelli at the Palais des Congrès in Paris.

In 1992 Aznavour invested some of his earnings in buying the back catalogue of Raoul Breton’s music publishing company. Aznavour, who appointed himself as director of the Raoul Breton collection, thus went on to own the copyright to some of the most famous songs in French music history (including the work of some of the greatest French chanson stars such as Edith Piaf and Charles Trenet).

In 1994 Aznavour signed a new deal with EMI, authorising the re-release of his life’s recording work (i.e. over 1,000 songs, more than half of which the singer had written himself). This resulted in the ‘complete works’ of Aznavour being released as a series of 30 CDs in 1996. In October American music magazine “Billboard” paid tribute to the French star, featuring him on their cover (a rare feat for a French artist !)

In 1997 Aznavour was honored in France at the “Victoires de la Musique” awards ceremony, where record industry professionals voted him Best Male Singer of the Year. Later that year the French president Jacques Chirac paid tribute to the singer, making him an Officier de la Légion d’Honneur at an official ceremony in Paris.

Meanwhile Aznavour continued to record new material, releasing a new album entitled “Plus bleu” (named after a famous song he had written for Edith Piaf in 1951). Benefiting from the latest technology, Aznavour was even able to record a new version of the song as a ‘virtual’ duet with Piaf, mixing his vocals with original Piaf recordings.

On Saturday July 12 1997 Aznavour celebrated his 50 anniversary in the music business at the Montreux Festival in Switzerland. The singer opened the show with his legendary hit “Après l’amour”, then handed over to a number of famous jazz musicians (including Rachelle Ferrell, Bobby McFerrin and Manu Dibango) who performed cover versions of his most famous songs in French and English. Aznavour returned to the stage for the grand finale, giving a rousing performance of his classic “Emmenez-moi”.

The Farewell Concerts

Following a series of health problems and a major shake-up in a car accident, Aznavour decided to call a halt to his touring activities. Announcing his “retirement” from the live scene, the singer embarked on one last round of concerts, bidding farewell to his fans worldwide. In November 1999 Aznavour brought the house down when he bid adieu to fans in Quebec. Shortly afterwards, Aznavour announced that he would play his very final concerts in Paris in October 2000. But between Quebec and Paris the indefatigable French star is planning to squeeze in another 180 concerts! The word “retirement” did not sit well with him.

After trying his hand at operettas in the 60s, the singer has written a musical about the life of French painter Toulouse-Lautrec. “Lautrec” premiered at the Shaftesbury Theatre in London in April 2000 and, following good reviews in the UK, it may well end up on Broadway. Aznavour, who was responsible for both the words and music in “Lautrec”, claims he has discovered a new calling in life, declaring in a recent interview that he was “made to write musicals!

Aznavour returned to the forefront of the French music scene in the autumn of 2000, releasing an album entitled “Aznavour 2000” which features twelve bitter-sweet ‘chansons‘ in his usual style. Following the release of “Aznavour 2000”, the French chanson star announced he was to retire from the live scene and told reporters his current tour will be the last of his career. After playing a series of concerts in Switzerland and Belgium, Aznavour performed the first of his farewell concerts at the Palais des Congrès in Paris on October 24th, playing to a packed house. After performing at the Palais des Congrès until December 17th, Aznavour continued his farewell tour in 2001, playing a series of concerts all over France. Meanwhile, the singer was also busy in front of the cameras, playing a lead role in an Atom Egoyan film. On October 8th 2001, Aznavour received another prestigious award to add to his collection when President Jacques Chirac made him a “Commandeur de l’Ordre national du mérite” at a special ceremony at the Elysée Palace.

Aznavour continued to defend social and political causes throughout his career. In January 2001, the singer voiced his appreciation of the French government’s recognition of the Armenian genocide. In April 2002, when far-right leader Jean-Marie Le Pen made it through to the second round of the French presidential elections, Aznavour joined other celebrities in signing the “Vive la France” petition, urging members of the public to go out and “sing the ‘Marseillaise’ for the Republic” as a protest. Later that same year, “Ararat,” a film about the Armenian genocide made by Atom Egoyan (a Canadian director of Armenian origin), hit French cinema screens. Aznavour played a starring role in it. In April 2003, the singer also attended a special ceremony marking the erection of a commemorative statue in Paris in memory of the genocide victims.

In September 2003, Aznavour published his memoirs, “Le temps des avants” (Flammarion) then, three months later, went on to release a new album entitled “Je voyage.” The album, on which Aznavour’s daughter, Katia, provided guest vocals on the title track, featured a rich mix of styles, the singer salsa-ing on “Il y a des trains,” swinging on “Quelqu’un de different” and waxing fado lyrical on “Lisboa.”

After taking a short break to play a role in a TV adaptation of Balzac’s novel, “Le père Goriot” (filmed in Bucharest), Aznavour made a stage comeback in Paris. The singer celebrated his 80th birthday with a successful run at the ‘Palais des Congrès’ (16 April – 22 May 2004).

In the course of an impressively long career, spanning six decades, Aznavour wrote more than 1,000 and recorded a staggering 740 songs (including 350 in French and 150 in English, not to mention eight albums in Spanish and seven albums in German). In 1999, voters in an Internet poll organised by CNN and Time magazine nominated Aznavour as one of the top singers of the 20th century, alongside Elvis Presley and Bob Dylan. Judging by his on-going success, it looks like the French ‘chanson’ star may well triumph in 21st-century polls, as well!

The singer’s 80th birthday was marked in style with the release of a double album featuring the greatest hits of his career recorded as duets with French music stars including Florent Pagny, Line Renaud, Catherine Ringer, Nana Mouskouri, Corneille – and even American superstar Liza Minelli!

In 2005, Aznavour resurfaced on the French music scene with “Insolitement vôtre”, a studio album featuring songs from “Lautrec” (the singer’s musical based on the life of artist Toulouse-Lautrec which has never been staged in France). The album featured an impressive list of guest stars duetting with the great Charles. These included Annie Cordy, Serge Lama, Lio, the Cape Verdean singer Maria Andrade, Isabelle Boulay and his own daughter, Katia Aznavour.

Later that year, the director Edmond Bensimon paid his own cinematic tribute to the singer with “Emmenez moi”, a fictional film about the adventures of a Charles Aznavour fan. What’s more, Aznavour got to play himself in the film.

2006 was largely taken up with Aznavour’s farewell tour outside France. Even though the singer is still ridiculously sprightly for 80, the pressures of international touring were beginning to take their toll on him and he had decided to start calming things down. His international farewell tour included dates in Germany in February and concerts in North America in September (Montreal, Toronto, Washington, New York, Boston, Los Angeles, etc.).

On 30 September 2006, Aznavour performed a major concert in the Armenian capital, Yerevan, inaugurating the cultural season “Arménie mon amie” in France. The French president Jacques Chirac, who was on an official visit to Armenia at the time, and the Armenian president Robert Kotcharian were in front-row attendance. Warm-up acts at the mega-show included many of Aznavour’s closest friends such as Nana Mouskouri, Line Renaud, Danny Brillant, Isabelle Boulay, also Hélène Ségara and Michel Legrand (both of whom are themselves of Armenian origin). Aznavour has remained deeply attached to his homeland throughout his career and his compatriots have returned his love, adopting him as their national hero.

While Aznavour had once again, officially embarked upon his farewell tour, bidding adieu to fans outside France, the singer showed no sign of stopping his formidable recording career. Far from it, in fact. In October 2006, Aznavour flew out to Cuba to record a new album, spending an intensive ten-day period at the legendary Egrem Studio in Havana. Here, he worked with the renowned Cuban pianist and composer Jesus “Chucho” Valdès who took care of orchestration and arrangement on the album. Recording in the studio with Chucho’s quartet, the pair perfected twelve vibrant upbeat tracks alternating between cha-cha-cha, calypso, mambo and Latin jazz. Aznavour’s warm, generous vocals worked wonderfully well with this mix of Caribbean rhythms.

Aznavour’s new album, “Colore ma vie”, released in February 2007, featured a series of ‘songs with a message’. On a haunting ballad entitled “J’abdiquerai” (I’ll Abdicate), the singer railed against death, “that filthy whore”. Meanwhile, he proved he was also perfectly in touch with topical social issues, raising the subject of immigration and integration on “Moi, je vis en banlieue” (Me, I Live in the Suburbs) and the idea of accepting personal responsibility for environmental problems on “La terre meurt” (The Earth is Dying). Aznavour remained true to two of his favorite themes, evoking the three phases of love on “Avant, Pendant, Après” (Before, During and Afterwards) and paying tribute to his native Armenia on “Tendre Arménie.”

The singer paid homage to Armenia once again on 17 February 2007, taking to the stage at the Opéra Garnier in Paris for another fundraising concert on behalf of his homeland. The show, entitled “Aznavour et ses amis” (Aznavour and Friends), aimed at raising funds for “Jeunes Ambassadeurs pour l’Arménie” – an organisation which invites Armenian children studying French to spend time in France – featured appearances by a number of major music stars including Patrick Bruel, Florent Pagny, Grand Corps Malade and Bénabar.

In December 2008, Aznavour released a bumper double album of duets with international music stars. The two-volume album, “Duos” – based on an idea by the singer’s artistic advisor and personal manager, Lévon Sayan – fell neatly into two linguistic halves. Volume I featured duets of French hits while volume II revolved around songs in English, German, Spanish and Italian. A star-studded cast joined the famous French chanson crooner in the studio including Elton John, Sting, Laura Pausini, Herbert Grönemeyer, Johnny Hallyday, Paul Anka, Liza Minnelli, Nana Mouskouri, Josh Groban, Julio Iglesias, Carole King and the opera singer Placido Domingo. Aznavour also recorded three ‘virtual’ posthumous duets with Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin and Edith Piaf.

In a career as a singer and songwriter, spanning over 70 years, he recorded more than 1,200 songs interpreted in 9 languages. Moreover, he wrote or co-wrote more than 1,000 songs for himself and others. Aznavour is regarded as one of the greatest songwriters in history and an icon of 20th-century pop culture.

He wrote the words: Yesterday when I was young, I knew the words to every song, which stayed in the forefront of my mind as a singer/guitarist growing older.

Between 1974 and 2016, Aznavour received around sixty gold and platinum records around the world. According to his record company, the total sales of Aznavour’s recordings were over 180 million units.

He started his last world tour at age 90 in 2014, never being able to retire from what he loved.

On October 1, 2018 French Chansonnier Charles Aznavour passed in his bath tub from cardiorespiratory arrest.

Tributes : When Bob Dylan was asked who some of his favorite musicians are, he stated, “I like Charles Aznavour a lot. I saw him in sixty-something at Carnegie Hall, and he just blew my brains out.”

Sting has stated that “To me he [Aznavour] is an icon. Not only as a singer, but as an actor, as a personality, as a master of ‘chanson’.”[94]

Aznavour was also highly regarded by Frank Sinatra, Celine Dion, Edith Piaf, and Liza Minnelli, with whom he performed and recorded. Minnelli has said of the singer, “He changed my entire life.”

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Skip Haynes 10/2017

October 2, 2017 – Skip Haynes was born Eugene Heitlinger in Franklin Park Illinois in 1946. He graduated East Leyden High School in 1963. When it comes to rock music being the sound track to our boomer generation, there are certain songs that stand out and stay a perennial anthem such as Scott McKenzie’s San Francisco (Wear some flowers in your hair), Steve Goodman’s City of New Orleans and the song Skip Haynes wrote and performed about Chicago’s Lake Shore Drive.

Haynes was born Eugene Heitlinger, but a club manager told him early in his career there wasn’t enough room on the marquee for that. Since his grandfather called him Skippy, he decided to take the name Skip Haynes. Continue reading Skip Haynes 10/2017

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Bobby Hebb 8/2010

Booby Hebb wrote SunnyAugust 3, 2010 – Robert Von Bobby Hebb was born on July 26, 1938 in Nshville, Tennessee.

His parents were both blind musicians. Hebb and older brother Harold performed as a song-and-dance team in Nashville beginning when Bobby was three and Harold was nine.

Hebb performed on a TV show hosted by country music record producer Owen Bradley, which earned him a place with Grand Ole Opry star Roy Acuff. Hebb played Spoons and other instruments in Acuff’s band. Harold later became a member of Johnny Bragg and the Marigolds. Bobby Hebb sang backup on Bo Diddley’s “Diddley Daddy”. Hebb played “West-coast-style” trumpet in a United States Navy jazz band, and replaced Mickey Baker in Mickey and Sylvia.

In 1960 he reached the New York Top 50 with a remake of Roy Acuff’s “Night Train To Memphis”.

On November 23, 1963, the day after John F. Kennedy’s assassination, Bobby Hebb’s brother, Harold, was killed in a knife fight outside a Nashville nightclub. Hebb was devastated by both events and sought comfort in songwriting. Though many claim that the song he wrote after both tragedies was the optimistic “Sunny”, Hebb himself stated otherwise. He immersed himself in the Gerald Wilson album, You Better Believe It!, for comfort.

“All my intentions were just to think of happier times – basically looking for a brighter day – because times were at a low tide. After I wrote it, I thought “Sunny” just might be a different approach to what Johnny Bragg was talking about in “Just Walkin’ in the Rain”.
“Sunny” was recorded in New York City after demos were made with the record producer Jerry Ross. Released as a single in 1966, “Sunny” reached No. 3 on the R&B charts, No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100, and No. 12 in the United Kingdom. When Hebb toured with The Beatles in 1966 his “Sunny” was, at the time of the tour, ranked higher than any Beatles song then on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.[citation needed] BMI rated “Sunny” number 25 in its “Top 100 songs of the century”.

In 1966 Bobby after recording “Sunny”, he toured with The Beatles.

BMI rates “Sunny” number 25 in its Top 100 songs of the century, it sold over one million copies, and was awarded a gold disc. It is also one of the most covered popular songs, with hundreds of versions released, by the likes of Cher, Boney M, Georgie Fame, Johnny Rivers, Stevie Wonder, Frank Sinatra with Duke Ellington, Ella Fitzgerald, The Four Seasons, the Four Tops, James Brown, Wilson Pickett, and Dusty Springfield.

Hebb also had lesser hits with his “A Satisfied Mind” in 1966 (No. 39 on the Billboard chart and No. 40 on the R&B chart) and “Love Me” in 1967 and wrote many other songs, including Lou Rawls’ 1971 hit “A Natural Man” (co-written with comedian Sandy Baron). Six years prior to “Sunny”, Hebb reached the New York City Top 50 with a remake of Roy Acuff’s “Night Train to Memphis”. In 1972, his single “Love Love Love” reached No. 32 on the UK charts.

In 1976, Hebb released a newly recorded disco version entitled “Sunny ’76”. The single was a minor hit reaching No. 94 on the R&B chart.

After a recording gap of thirty five years he recorded a new album; That’s All I Wanna Know was his first commercial release since Love Games in 1970. It was released in Europe in late 2005 by Tuition, a new pop indie label. New versions of “Sunny” were also issued two duets: one with Astrid North, and one with Pat Appleton. In October 2008 Bobby toured and played in Osaka and Tokyo in Japan.

On August 3, 2010 Bobby lost his battle with lung cancer at the age of 72.

Ipanema Films of Germany was involved in a biographical film which included Hebb, his biographer Joseph Tortelli, and Billy Cox.

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Lesley Duncan 3/2010

lesley_duncanMarch 12, 2010 – Lesley Duncan was born in Stockton-on-Tees in England on August 12th 1943.

She left school while only 14 years old. At 19, while working in a London coffee bar, she and her brother were placed on weekly retainers by a music publisher. Within a year Duncan had signed her first recording contract, with EMI, and appeared in the film What a Crazy World.

Her songs were often about life and its problems, “Everything Changes” and “Sing Children Sing”.

Continue reading Lesley Duncan 3/2010

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Tony Jackson 8/2003

tony jackson with the searchersAugust 18, 2003 –Anthony Paul Tony Jackson (the Searchers) was born in Dingle, Liverpool on July 16th 1938. After leaving high school he went to Walton Technical College to train as an electrician. Jackson was inspired by the skiffle sound of Lonnie Donegan, and then by Buddy Holly and other U.S. rock and rollers. He founded the skiffle group the Martinis.

Nicknamed Black Jake, he joined the guitar duo the Searchers, which had been formed by John McNally and Mike Pender in 1959. The band soon expanded further to a quartet with the addition of the drummer Chris Curtis. Jackson built and learned to play a customized bass guitar. Learning his new job on the four-stringed instrument proved too difficult to permit him to continue singing lead so he made way for a new singer, Johnny Sandon, in 1960. They played in Liverpool’s nightclubs and the beer bars of Hamburg, Germany. Brian Epstein considered signing them but he lost interest after seeing a drunken Jackson fall off the stage at the Cavern Club. Sandon moved on in February 1962 and the band were signed by Pye Records in mid-1963 when the Beatles’ success created demand for Liverpudlian acts.

Continue reading Tony Jackson 8/2003

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Doug Stegmeyer 8/1995

doug stegmeyer, bassist for the Billy Joel BandAugust 25, 1995 – Douglas Alan ‘Doug’ Stegmeyer was born on December 23rd 1951 in Flushing Queens, New York.

Doug along with high school friend Russell Javors, Liberty DeVitto and Howard Emerson, formed the band Topper, performing songs that Russell wrote. The band soon became noticed by Billy Joel, and when Joel found he needed a bassist on his Streetlife Serenade tour, he asked Doug. Continue reading Doug Stegmeyer 8/1995

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Harry Nilsson 1/1994

NilssonJanuary 15, 1994 – Harry Edward Nilsson III aka Nilsson was born on June 15, 1941 in Brooklyn New York. His paternal grandparents were Swedish circus performers and dancers, especially known for their “aerial ballet” (which is the title of one of Nilsson’s albums). His father, Harry Edward Nilsson Jr., abandoned the family when young Harry was three. An autobiographical reference to this is found in the opening to Nilsson’s song “1941” and “Daddy’s Song”.

Because of the poor financial situation of his family, Nilsson worked from an early age, including a job at the Paramount Theatre in Los Angeles. When the theatre closed in 1960, he applied for a job at a bank, falsely claiming he was a high school graduate on his application (he only completed ninth grade). He had an aptitude for computers however, which were beginning to be employed by banks at the time. He performed so well the bank retained him even after uncovering his deception regarding being a high school graduate. He worked on bank computers at night, and in the daytime pursued his songwriting and singing career. His uncle John, a mechanic in San Bernardino, California, helped Nilsson improve his vocal and musical abilities.

By 1958, Nilsson was intrigued by emerging forms of popular music, especially rhythm and blues artists like Ray Charles. He had made early attempts at performing while he was working at the Paramount, forming a vocal duo with his friend Jerry Smith and singing close harmonies in the style of the Everly Brothers. The manager at a favorite hangout gave Nilsson a plastic ukulele, which he learned to play, and he later learned to play the guitar and piano. In the 2006 documentary Who Is Harry Nilsson (And Why Is Everybody Talkin’ About Him?), Nilsson recalled that when he could not remember lyrics or parts of the melodies to popular songs, he created his own, which then led to writing original songs.

His uncle John’s singing lessons, along with Nilsson’s natural talent, helped when he got a job singing demos for songwriter Scott Turner in 1962. Turner paid Nilsson five dollars for each track they recorded. (When Nilsson became famous, Turner decided to release these early recordings, and contacted Nilsson to work out a fair payment. Nilsson replied that he had already been paid – five dollars a track.)

John Lennon and Harry Nilsson
Playing in the grass with John Lennon

Nilsson went on a steady track upwards to success with songwriting credits that included names like Phil Spector, Glen Campbell, Fred Astaire, the Monkees, the Shangri-Las, the Yardbirds, but did not give up his bank job until late 1966. With special admiration for his work from the Beatles and especially John Lennon, Nilsson’s name became household. (When John Lennon and Paul McCartney held a press conference in 1968 to announce the formation of Apple Corps, Lennon was asked to name his favorite American artist. He replied, “Nilsson”. McCartney was then asked to name his favorite American group. He replied, “Nilsson”.

Nilsson acquired a manager, who steered him into a handful of TV guest appearances, and a brief run of stage performances in Europe set up by RCA. He disliked the experiences he had, though, and decided to stick to the recording studio. He later admitted this was a huge mistake on his part.

Yet within a couple of years, he started making records with casual disregard for how things were done. He made albums that jumped from style to style, and from era to era. He made an album of 1940s standards long before anyone else thought of it (eat your heart out Rod Stewart!). And he was a hard-drinking artist who rarely played live.

His real breakthrough came in 1971 when he recorded Badfinger’s “Without You” with reached Billboard No.1 for 4 weeks.
Close friends with John Lennon who produced his album “Pussycats” in 1973, he also maintained an apartment in London that became a tragedy chamber with a curse as Mama Cass Elliott was found dead there in 1974 at age 32 from heart failure and the Who drummer Keith Moon four years later also at age 32 from an overdose of Clomethiazole, a prescribed anti-alcohol drug.

Nilsson was profoundly affected by the death of John Lennon on December 8, 1980. He joined the Coalition to Stop Gun Violence and overcame his preference for privacy to make appearances for gun control fundraising. He began to appear at Beatlefest conventions and he would get on stage with the Beatlefest house band “Liverpool” to either sing some of his own songs or “Give Peace a Chance.

After a long hiatus from the studio, Nilsson started recording sporadically once again in the mid to late 1980s. Most of these recordings were commissioned songs for movies or television shows. One notable exception was his work on a Yoko Ono Lennon tribute album, Every Man Has A Woman (1984); another was a cover of “Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah” recorded for Hal Willner’s 1988 tribute album Stay Awake: Various Interpretations of Music from Vintage Disney Films. Nilsson donated his performance royalties from the song to the Coalition to Stop Gun Violence.

His career took several turns before he passed away but it was always interesting and it rarely repeated itself.

Harry Nilsson passed away on January 15, 1994 at his California home from heart failure at age 52.

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Keith Relf 5/1976

keith-relfMay 14, 1976 – William Keith Relf was born on March 22, 1943 in Richmond, Surrey, England.

As a teenager he latched onto American rhythm and blues and became influenced by the likes of Sonny Boy Williamson and the Chicago Blues scene. Relf started playing in bands around the summer of 1956 as a singer, guitarist, and harmonica player. Despite his suffering from respiratory problems, his blues harp became a key part of the Yardbirds’ sound and success, according to many, and his vocals may have been as important a contribution to the band as the trio of worldfamous guitar players that joined the band.

When people remember the Yardbirds, as the British blues-based band that came to prominence in the mid to late 60s, what they remember most is the triumvirate of guitar players that used the group as a  step to stardom: Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck, and future Led Zeppelin founder Jimmy Page. While there is no doubt that these now world-famous guitar gods contributed greatly to the Yardbirds’ sound, another less-famous member gave the group voice, performing presence, and direction. That man was Keith Relf.

They drew their  original repertoire from the Chicago blues of Howlin’ Wolf, Muddy Waters, Bo Diddley, Sonny Boy Williamson II and Elmore James, including “Smokestack Lightning”, “Good Morning Little School Girl”, “Boom Boom”, “I Wish You Would”, “Rollin’ and Tumblin'”, and “I’m a Man”. Keith co-wrote many of the original Yardbirds songs “Shapes of Things”, “I Ain’t Done Wrong”, “Over Under Sideways Down” and “Happenings Ten Years Time Ago”. He also sang an early version of “Dazed and Confused” in live Yardbirds concerts, a song later recorded by the band’s successor group Led Zeppelin.

A record contract followed, and soon the band, guided by the restless and substance-friendly Relf, drifted away from R&B. Subsequent hit songs suggested beatniks with harpsichords (“For Your Love”), melancholy monks (“Still I’m Sad”), and acid-soaked Romany (“Over Under Sideways Down”). Clapton left the band, and Jeff Beck and Jimmy Page joined, pushing the group deeper into psychedelic byways of fuzztone and distortion. Although Relf persevered, his attitude towards the high-powered guitar music that defined the group began to change. Exhausted from extensive touring and suffering from asthma, Relf wanted to sing gentler, more thoughtful music. By 1968, the Yardbirds’ end was at hand.

That year Relf dissolved the group, became a record producer and sideman, and began a new stage of his musical career just before his early death.

Keith Relf’s first post-Yardbirds group was Together, an acoustic duo with fellow ex-Yardbird Jim McCarty. Their Simon and Garfunkel-inspired music failed to catch on, however, and Relf formed a new band with his sister Jane called Renaissance. The group was indeed a renaissance for Relf, allowing him to explore his psychedelic and acoustic leanings freely over the course of two albums with much singing by his beautiful sister Jane. But difficult and unrewarding touring wore them down, and Relf dissolved the first incarnation in 1970. (Led by vocalist Annie Haslam, the group’s second, more progressive incarnation became a fixture of the 70s music scene.) Relf stayed active in the early 70s as a producer and occasional player. He produced tracks for bands such as the acoustic, world music, group Amber, Saturnalia and Medicine Head, with whom he played bass guitar.

In 1975 he founded a heavy metal group called Armageddon. Energized by the group into delivering some of his best vocals on record, Relf looked poised for new success. Sadly, this was not to be. Dogged by ill health, Relf broke up the group and went home to recuperate. Instead, he met an ironic end. The man “who left the Yardbirds largely because of electric guitars” died on May 14, 1976, from being fatally electrocuted by an improperly grounded electric guitar, while rehearsing new material for the formation of his new band Illusion. He was only 33 years old.

Keith Relf was posthumously inducted into Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1992 with the Yardbirds. He was represented by his widow April, and son Danny.