NOTHING FOUND!
NOTHING FOUND!
Owner of a magnificent voice, Tom Petty branded a new era in Rock & Roll with his Style, straddling the divide between Classic Rock and New Wave of the 60s – 70s. Despite this, his work shows a certain variety in style showing the deviations he took in different moments of his career towards new sounds or styles, like punk, garage, MTV stardom, concept albums and even experimentalism.
Being born and raised in Florida, his music is usually signaled for having a “Southerner” Style in the US, and his musical interest was sparked after a visit of Elvis Presley to his hometown showing him the glory and impact that generates a music star.
His early years in music saw him being part of several bands like The Sundowners and Mudcrutch, until he formed the one that would accompany him for years: Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers. The heartbreakers would release several albums (the first one named as the band) like “You’re Gonna Get It”, “Damn the Torpedoes”, “Hard Promises”, “Long After Dark” and “Southern Accents”, all of them having several successful tracks and giving them a well deserved popularity.
Petty was also part of the Supergroup “The Traveling Wilburys”, alongside Bob Dylan, George Harrison, Roy Orbison and Jeff Lynne. The sound of this group, with whom he participated for some time, would became the blueprint for his first Solo Album: “Full Moon Fever”. This album ended up becoming the pinnacle of his career, reaching number 3 in US charts, going triple platinum and gaining him massive popularity with hits like “I Won’t Back Down”, “Runnin’ Down a Dream”, and the still now popular “Free Fallin'”.
After some other successes in solitaire, he reunited with The Heartbreakers in 1996 to record the soundtrack of Edward Burns film “She’s the One”, followed by several more albums like “The Last DJ” and “Highway Companion”.
He died in 2017 at his house, and his family and friends released posthumously different albums as homage to his career and included previously unknown versions of his works in “An American Treasure”, “The Best of Everything”, “And All the Rest” and “Angel Dream”.
His whole life was a reflection of the essence of Rock and Roll: Bands, Albums, Fame, Collaborations and Solo Career. A name of its own, that left its mark in Music.
Born in Kansas in 1928 but growing up in Queens, NY, Burt Bacharach started studying Cello, Drums and Piano at the age of 12 by his mother’s insistence. He used to despise playing the Piano, for his dream at that time was to become a Professional Football Player. His small frame and his musical talent took him through a different path.
As a teenager, he ended up falling in love with Jazz and forming his own High School Band with which he gained exposure playing at parties and events. Later on he delved into music studying at the Mannes School of Music in New York City; at the Berkshire Music Center; and at the New School for Social Research, where he studied under composers Bohuslav Martinu, Henry Cowell and Darius Milhaud. He was also awarded a scholarship to the Music Academy of the West in Santa Barbara, California.
After serving in the army, he worked in Nightclubs and restaurants accompanying performers like Georgia Gibbs, Ames Brothers and Polly Bergen. In 1957, he started collaborating with lyricist Hal David and together they reached success almost immediately with hits like “The Story of My Life” and “Magic Moments”.
During several decades, he worked creating, arranging or producing songs with several talents like The Drifters, Marlene Dietrich, Jackie DeShannon, Dusty Springfield, The Carpenters , lvis Costello and most specially with Dee Dee Warwick (with whom, alongside Hal David formed a formidable team).
He also participated in several Films, composing music for movies like “Casino Royale”, “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid”, the Italian film “Together” and “Arthur” and also acting in the Austin Powers movies. Several Films and Documentaries gave homage to his career along the way, as well as different Musicals like “What the World Needs Now”.
A prolific composer, producer, conductor and arranger, whose works and collaborations spawn over long decades and multitude of artists; whose awards and prizes would need a whole new page to detail. A major name in the history of Music, that left a mark in every possible area of the music and that still to this day defines and inspires musicians all over the world.
Domenico Modugno is considered the father of Italian singer-songwriters and one of the greatest European songwriters and performers of all time.
He was born on January 9, 1928 in Polignano a Mare (Bari), and inherited his passion for music from his father Cosimo. He learned to play guitar and accordion from an early age and composed his first song at the age of 15.
In 1953 he obtained his first recording contract with RCA Italiana, recording his first successes inspired by the folklore of southern Italy, such as “La Sveglietta“, “La Donna Riccia“, and the famous “Vecchio Frack“.
In 1956, he changed his record company and moved to Fonit Cetra and debuted at the Sanremo Festival with the song “Musetto“. In the same year, he published “Io, Mammeta e Tu” .
In 1958 he took part and won the Sanremo Festival with “Nel Blu Dipinto di Blu“, a song written together with Franco Migliacci. It is the consecration of Domenico Modugno among the main protagonists of the Italian and international music scene. The song soon became one of the most famous Italian songs of all time, selling over 20 million copies and reaching the top of the charts all over the world. This huge success led him to win also three Grammys Awards: “Record Of The Year“, “Song Of The Year” and “Best Artist“.
In 1959 he won again the Sanremo Festival with the song “Piove (Ciao Ciao Bambina)“, while in 1960 he reached the second position thanks to “Libero“.
After the period spent at the Fonit Cetra, in 1964 he moved to Carosello Records, recording other masterpieces such as “L’Avventura” and “Dio, Come Ti Amo“.
He acted in theathral shows and musical comedies such as “Cyrano” by Riccardo Pazzaglia and “Western Di Cose Nostre” taken from a story by Leonardo Sciascia. He also acted in movies such as “Europa di Notte” by Alessandro Blasetti, “Nel Blu Dipinto di Blu” by Piero Tellini, “Lo Scopone Scientifico” by Luigi Comencini and “Il Giudizio Universale” by De Sica.
In 1993 he recorded his last song with his son Massimo, titled “Delfini (Sai Che C’è)“.
He died on 6 August 1994 in his house in Lampedusa.
The sign that Domenico Modugno has left in the Italian music and culture is so important that today he continues to be honored and celebrated all over the world.