American Music

Thursday, January 28, 2016

I'll Never Find Another (1965) - The Seekers

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"I'll Never Find Another You"

There's a new world somewhere
They call the promised land.
And I'll be there someday
If you could hold my hand.
I still need you there beside me
No matter what I do
For I know I'll never find another you.

There is always someone
For each of us, they say.
And you'll be my someone
Forever and a day.
I could search the whole world over
Until my life is through
But I know I'll never find another you.

It's a long, long journey
So stay by my side.
When I walk through the storm
You'll be my guide, be my guide.
If they gave me a fortune
My pleasure would be small.
I could lose it all tomorrow
And never mind at all.
But if I should lose your love, dear,
I don't know what I'd do
For I know I'll never find another you.

But if I should lose your love, dear,
I don't know what I'd do.
For I know I'll never find another you.
Another you.
Another you!

Maureen McGovern - The Morning After (1972)

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Smile - Charlie Chaplin (composer)


Thursday, January 21, 2016

Meghan Trainor (1993 - )

Image result for meghan trainorMeghan Elizabeth Trainor (born December 22, 1993) is an American singer-songwriter and record producer. Born and raised in Nantucket, Massachusetts, Trainor wrote, recorded, performed and produced three independently-released albums between ages 15 and 17. In 2011, she signed a publishing deal with Big Yellow Dog Music, and pursued a career in songwriting.
Image result for meghan trainorAfter signing a record deal with Epic Records in 2014, Trainor rose to fame with the release of major-label debut studio album, Title (2015). The album debuted at number one on theBillboard 200 and produced four top 20 singles: "All About That Bass", "Lips Are Movin", "Dear Future Husband", and "Like I'm Gonna Lose You". Later certified platinum by the RIAA, the record passed one million sales domestically.
Image result for meghan trainorProminently influenced by the 1950s and 1960s eras in music, Trainor's music has been noted for its retro style aesthetic. Common themes in her lyrics include subjects of modern womanhood, body image, and empowerment. Trainor's work has been recognized with several awards and nominations, including the Music Business Association's Breakthrough Artist of the Year accolade and two Billboard Music Awards.
Image result for meghan trainorMeghan Elizabeth Trainor was born on December 22, 1993 in NantucketMassachusetts, the daughter of Kelly Anne "Kelli" (Jekanowski) and Gary Trainor, jewellery store owners. Trainor has two brothers: Ryan (born 1992) and younger brother Justin. Trainor began singing at age six, initially singing with her father at church.[7][8] She began writing music at age 11, starting with her own arrangement of the song "Heart and Soul" (1938).Trainor attributes her early start to being born into a musical family.[10] Trainor's father was a music teacher and musician, and plays organ in a Methodist church. Her great-uncle Bob LaPalm was a member of the rock band NRBQ, and Trainor's aunt and Trinidadian uncle, Lisa and Burton Toney, are soca music performers and songwriters.
Image result for meghan trainorAt age 11, Trainor told her father that she wanted to become a recording artist and began writing songs, recording them using GarageBand from her MacBook. "She did a lot by ear," her mother recalls. Her father encouraged her to explore various musical genres. At age 12, Trainor began performing as part of Island Fusion, an "all-purpose party band" which performed covers, soca music, and Trainor's compositions.  The band included her aunt, her younger brother, and her father.Trainor played piano, guitar, and bongo drum, and sang with the band for four years. By age 13, Trainor had written her first original song, "Give Me a Chance". When she was in the eighth grade, the family left Nantucket. They temporarily relocated to Orleans, Massachusetts before moving to North Eastham, Massachusetts, where the children attended Nauset Regional High School. At Nauset Regional High, Trainor studied guitar and was a substitute cheerleader.Additionally, Trainor sang and played trumpet in a jazz band for three years.
Image result for meghan trainorAs a teenager, Trainor's parents encouraged her to attend songwriting conventions, and they took her to venues where production companies were searching for new artists and songwriters. At age 15, she took guitar lessons from former NRBQ band member Johnny Spampinato. During this time, Trainor used Logic Studio to record and produce her compositions, and later worked independently from a home studio that her parents constructed for her.


Charlie Puth

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Monday, January 11, 2016

Ed Sheeran (1991 - )

A smiling Ed Sheeran



Edward Christopher "Ed" Sheeran (born 17 February 1991) is an English singer-songwriter and musician. He was born in Hebden Bridge, West Yorkshire and raised inFramlingham, Suffolk. After dropping out of school at 16, he moved to London the following year, in 2008, to pursue a career in music. In early 2011, Sheeran independently released the extended play No. 5 Collaborations Project, which caught the attention of Elton John and Jamie Foxx. After signing with Asylum Records, his debut album, + (read as "plus"), was released on 9 September 2011 and has since been certified six-times platinum in the UK. The album contains the single "The A Team", which earned him the Ivor Novello Award for Best Song Musically and Lyrically.[4] In 2012, Sheeran won the Brit Awards for Best British Male Solo Artist and British Breakthrough Act.


Sheeran's popularity abroad began in 2012. In the US, he made a guest appearance on Taylor Swift's fourth studio album, Red.[6] "The A Team" was nominated for Song of the Year at the 2013 Grammy Awards, where he performed the song with Elton John. He spent much of 2013 opening for Swift's The Red Tour in North America dates. In late 2013, he performed three sold-out shows at New York's Madison Square Garden as a headline act. He was nominated for Best New Artist at the 2014 Grammy Awards.


His second studio album, x (read as "multiply"), was released worldwide on 23 June 2014. It peaked at number one in the UK and the US. In 2015, x was nominated for Album of the Year at the Grammy Awards, won the Brit Award for Album of the Year, and he received the Ivor Novello Award for Songwriter of the Year. As part of his world tour, Sheeran played three sold-out concerts at London's Wembley Stadium in July 2015, his biggest solo shows to date


Sheeran was born in Hebden Bridge, a market town in Calderdale near Halifax, West Yorkshire. He moved, with his family, to Framlingham, Suffolk as a child. He has an older brother named Matthew, who was born on 17 March 1989. Matthew studied music at university and is now a classical composer. Their parents, John and Imogen, are London-born. His paternal grandparents were Irish. According to Sheeran, his father hailed from "a very large" Catholic family. His paternal grandfather, Bill, was a Protestant and his wife, Ann, was Catholic.Bill and Ann retired in Gorey, County Wexford.

John is an art curator and lecturer, and Imogen is a culture publicist-turned-jewellery designer. His parents ran Sheeran Lock, an independent art consultancy, from 1990 to 2010. Their work usually took them to London, and spent their weekends travelling with their children. These trips were regular and the Sheerans played music while travelling. Sheeran's early childhood memories include listening to the records of Bob Dylan and Eric Clapton. According to Sheeran, the album that first introduced him to music was Van Morrison's Irish Heartbeat.
Sheeran sang in a local church choir from the age of four, learned to play the guitar at a very young age, and began writing songs while at Thomas Mills High School in Framlingham. When he was eleven, he went with his father to a Damien Rice show in Ireland. In addition to Rice, he has also cited The Beatles, Dylan, Nizlopi and Eminem as his biggest musical influences. He is a patron of the Youth Music Theatre UK and of Access to Music, where he studied Artist Development course. He was accepted at the National Youth Theatre in London as a teenage
Sheeran began recording music in 2005, and released independently his first collection of work, The Orange Room, an extended play (EP). He has been friends with fellow English singer Passenger since he was 15, with the two playing on the same gig in Cambridge. He moved to London in 2008, and began playing in small venues. In 2008, he auditioned for the ITV series Britannia High. He also opened for Nizlopi in Norwich in April 2008 after being one of their guitar technicians.  He released another EP in 2009, You Need Me, just before going on tour with Just Jack. He also did a few collaborations with Essex singer Leddra Chapman, including CeeLo Green's "Fuck You". In February 2010, Sheeran posted a video through SB.TV, and rapper Example invited Sheeran to tour with him. In the same month, he also released his critically acclaimed Loose Change EP, which featured his future debut single "The A Team".
In April 2010, Sheeran bought a ticket to Los Angeles, with no contacts other than one poetry night. He played open mic nights all over the city, before he was spotted at The Foxxhole by Jamie Foxx, who was so impressed that he offered Sheeran the use of his recording studio and the bed of his Hollywood home for the rest of his stay. Throughout 2010, Sheeran began to be seen by more people over the internet through YouTube and his fan-base grew, with him also getting credit from The Independent newspaper, England football captain Rio Ferdinand and Elton John. Sheeran also self-released two other EPs in 2010, Ed Sheeran: Live at the Bedford and Songs I Wrote with Amy, which is a collection of love songs he wrote in Wales with singer Amy Wadge.
On 8 January 2011, Sheeran released another independent EP, No. 5 Collaborations Project, featuring grime artists such as Wiley, Jme, Devlin, Sway and Ghetts.[38] With this EP, Sheeran gained mainstream attention for reaching number 2 in the iTunes chart without any promotion or label, selling over 7,000 copies in its first week. Three months later, Sheeran put on a free show to fans at the Barfly in Camden Town. Over 1,000 fans turned up, so Sheeran played four different shows to ensure everyone saw a gig, including a gig outside on the street after the venue had closed. Later that month, Sheeran was signed to Asylum Records.

2011–13: + and international success

Sheeran at Academy 1, Manchester Dot to Dot Festival, June 2011
On 26 April 2011, Sheeran appeared on the TV music show Later... with Jools Holland, where he performed his debut single "The A Team". Six weeks later, "The A Team" was released as a digital download in the UK. The release served as the lead single from Sheeran's debut studio album, entitled + (read as "plus"). "The A Team" entered the UK Singles Chart at number three, selling over 58,000 copies in the first week. It was the best selling debut single and the overall eighth-best selling single of 2011, selling 801,000 copies. The lead single also became a top ten hit in Australia, Germany, Ireland, Japan, Luxembourg, New Zealand, Norway and the Netherlands. During a headline set in the BBC Introducing tent at Glastonbury Festival 2011, Sheeran announced that "You Need Me, I Don't Need You" would be released on 26 August as the second single from the album. The second single peaked at number four on the UK Singles Chart. "Lego House" was released as the third single, reaching the top ten on Australian, Irish, Scottish, New Zealand Singles Charts, Flemish Ultratop 50 and the Wallonian Ultratip. "Drunk", released on 19 February 2012, became Sheeran's fourth consecutive top ten single in the UK, peaking at number nine.



Sheeran released + on 12 September 2011. The album received generally favourable reviews from music critics. + debuted number one on the UK Albums Chart for sales of 102,000 copies. By end of 2011, sales of the album in the UK stand at 791,000; it became the second best-selling debut and the ninth biggest-selling album there. The album has been certified platinum six times by the British Phonographic Industry, denoting shipments of 1,800,000 copies. As of March 2012, the album had sold 1,021,072 copies in the UK. The album also reached the top five in Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand and the US.