Walk Off The Earth — Videos

Posted on April 3, 2013. Filed under: Art, Blogroll, Business, Communications, Culture, Entertainment, liberty, Life, media, Music, People, Philosophy, Raves, Video, Wisdom | Tags: Art, Life, Music, Songs, Videos, Walk Off The Earth |

Walk Off The Earth

Somebody That I Used to Know – Walk off the Earth (Gotye – Cover)

BIG NEWS from Walk off the Earth!!!

CHEERS (Drink To That) by Gianni and Sarah [Walk off the Earth]

Reckoning Song (One Day) – Walk off the Earth

The Edge of Glory – [Walk off the Earth + Roomie] Lady Gaga Cover

Les Champs-Élysées – Walk off the Earth

Karma Police – Gianni and Sarah (Radiohead Loop Cover)

Love Sponge – Gianni and Sarah [Walk off the Earth]

Some Nights – Walk off the Earth + Julia Nunes

Home – Walk off the Earth + Street Pharmacy

Party Rock Anthem – [Walk off the Earth] + All About Maggie

From Me To You – Walk off the Earth (The Beatles)

Yesterday – [Walk off the Earth] Beatles Cover

BLACKBIRD – The Beatles (Cover) by Gianni and Myles

Magic – [Walk off the Earth] B.o.B. Cover

Man Down – [Walk off the Earth] Rihanna Cover

Can’t Take My Eyes Off You – Walk off the Earth (Feat. Selah Sue)

Little Boxes – Walk off the Earth

I Knew You Were Trouble – WALK OFF THE EARTH Feat. KRNFX

Gang of Rhythm – Walk off the Earth (Official Video)

RED HANDS – Walk off the Earth

Red Hands – Walk off the Earth Live on German Talk Show

Someone Like You – [Walk off the Earth] – Adele Cover

Summer Vibe – Walk off the Earth (Original)

Burn One Down – Gianni and Sarah

Corner of Queen – Walk off the Earth (Original)

Payphone – Walk off the Earth (Explicit Lyrics)

Fairytale of New York – Gianni and Sarah (Walk off the Earth)

Love The Way You Lie – [Walk off the Earth] Eminem Cover

Grenade – [Walk off the Earth] Bruno Mars Cover

Ice Cream – [Walk off the Earth]

Walk Off The Earth – Gang of Rhythm (Bing Lounge)

Walk Off The Earth – Revolutions In My Head (hometown show live @ SOM ’12)

Walk Off The Earth Live NY FULL CONCERT R.E.V.O. Tour / Town Ballroom / 12-07-12 Watch in HD!

Walk off the Earth

Walk off the Earth is a Canadian indie band that formed in 2006 in Burlington, Ontario, and has gained success around the world by making low-budget music videos of covers and originals. The band built its fan base independently with no help from record labels, booking agents, or management. In February 2012, the music industry publication Crazed Hits reported that the band had signed a recording contract with Columbia Records.^[1] The band is best known for its covers of popular music on YouTube, making use of uncommon instruments such as the ukulele and the theremin, as well as looping samples. The band’s recorded music and videos are produced by member and multi-instrumentalist, Gianni Luminati Nicassio.

Career

The band’s first success came from covering the songs of The Gregory Brothers. The video of the band’s cover of Gotye’s “Somebody That I Used to Know” became rapidly popular on YouTube in early 2012, gathering over 127 million views in four months^[2] and received positive responses from both Gotye and his co-singer on the song, Kimbra.^[3]^[4] The band has also covered “Someone Like You” by Adele, “Party Rock Anthem” by LMFAO, “Payphone” by Maroon 5, “Roll Up” by Wiz Khalifa and dozens of other tracks.^[5] In December 2012, the band released an original single titled “Gang of Rhythm”.^[6] On March 11, RollingStone magazine streamed their unreleased R.E.V.O. LP in its entirety. It received rave reviews from thousands of fans and social bloggers. The full length R.E.V.O. album was released on March 19, 2013.

Members

Sarah Blackwood and Ryan Marshall performing at Walk off the Earth’s hometown performance in Burlington.

Gianni Luminati – Bass, Guitar, Ukulele, Banjo, Kazoo, Drums, Vocals, Theremin, Beatbox, Xylophone, Cigar Box Guitar, Cigar Box Ukulele, Piano, cajon
Sarah Blackwood – Guitar, Bass, Kazoo, Ukulele, Banjo, Glockenspiel, Tambourine, Cigar Box Guitar, Xylophone, Piano, Vocals
Ryan Marshall – Guitar, Bass, Trumpet, Piano, Harmonica, Vocals
Mike “Beard Guy” Taylor – Piano, Vocals, Xylophone, Trumpet, Melodica
Joel Cassady – Drums, Cigar Box Guitar, Vocals

Touring members

Lee Bolt – Guitar, Banjo
Shameless James O’Neill – Trumpet, Percussion

Past members

Pete Kirkwood – Drums, Vocals

Personal life

On 29 January 2013, band members, Gianni and Sarah, spread the news via Youtube that they were expecting a baby together.^[7]

Popularity

The Band’s cover of Gotye’s “Somebody That I Used to Know” – with accompanying video where all five members are shown playing on one guitar – went viral in early 2012, and has so far gained over 147 million hits on YouTube.^[8]
Ellen DeGeneres featured the band on her January 23, 2012 show where they played live, again on one guitar.
The band’s cover of Taylor Swift’s “I Knew You Were Trouble” with four of the five members and guest beatboxer KRNFX using only vocals (in the style of a capella) and uploaded to YouTube on January 1 of 2013 has since gone viral.^[9]

Awards and nominations

Year	Award ceremony	Award	Result
2013	Juno Awards	Breakthrough Group of the Year	Pending
2013	Juno Awards	Video of the Year – Little Boxes	Pending

Discography

Albums

2007: Smooth Like Stone on a Beach
2010: My Rock
2012: R.E.V.O. EP
2012: “Vol.1″
2012: “Vol.2″
2013: R.E.V.O. LP

Singles

List of singles, with selected chart positions and certifications, showing year released and album name
Title	Year	Peak chart positions												Certifications	Album
Title	Year	AUT	BEL (Vl)	BEL (Wa)	CAN	DEN	FRA ^[10]	IRL	NED	SUI	SWE	US	UK	Certifications	Album
“Somebody That I Used to Know“	2012	30	30	28	13	12	80	48	9	54	45	109	80	CAN: Platinum^[11]	R.E.V.O.
“Red Hands”	2013				13										R.E.V.O.
“—” denotes releases that did not chart

Production

The band’s studio albums “My Rock” and “Smooth Like Stone on a Beach” were both recorded and produced by band member Gianni Luminati Nicassio in his private studio in Burlington, Ontario. In an interview with MTV’s Brenna Ehrlich, Sarah Blackwood mentioned that the band’s upcoming third album is being co-produced by Gianni Luminati and Tawgs Salter.

References

^ ^a ^b “Columbia signs Walk off the Earth”. Crazed Hits. Retrieved 8 February 2012.
^ Cashmere, Paul (9 January 2012). “Gotye Cover Inspires Russell Crowe To Pitch To Walk off the Earth”. Noise11. Retrieved 9 January 2012.
^ “Twitter post by Gotye”. Retrieved 8 January 2012.
^ Cashmere, Paul (8 January 2012). “Kimbra Impressed With Gotye Cover By Walk off the Earth”. Noise11. Retrieved 8 January 2012.
^ CTV Edmonton (Jan 13 2012). “Ont. band Walk Off the Earth has viral YouTube hit”. CTV News. BellMedia. Retrieved 14 January 2012.
^ “Gang of Rhythm by Walk Off The Earth”. Retrieved 9 February 2013.
^ “BIG NEWS from Walk off the Earth!!!”. Walk off the Earth. Retrieved 29 January 2013.
^ Walk off the Earth cover of “Somebody That I Used to Know”
^ “Walk Off The Earth’s “I Knew You Were Trouble” Cover Goes Viral”. Metro Lyrics. Retrieved 1 January 2013.
^ LesCharts.com French and European chart positions for Walk off the Earth’s version “Somebody That I Used to Know”
^ Canadian certification

External links

Official Walk off the Earth website

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walk_off_the_Earth

Background Articles and Videos

Philip DeFranco interviews Walk off the Earth

Walk Off The Earth’s Interview in Singapore – Imagine TV Network

WALK OFF THE EARTH – INTERVIEW (WTKGTS#100)

Gianni and Sarah – Interviewed at Lollapalooza (The Weekly Feed)

BPC Talks to Walk Off the Earth

Background Articles and Videos

ROLLING STONES Denmark 1965

DENMARK 1965,the rolling stones (2)

ROLLING STONES Sweden 1965

NORWAY 1965,the rolling stones

Keith Richards interview and Mick Jagger 1968

Brian Jones Dies

Keith Richards – Complete TV interview 1974 (Old Grey Whistle Test)

Rolling Stones – Munich interviews 1975

Background Articles and Videos

Adele wins a Grammy for Best Pop Solo Performance

Adele 21 – Track By Track Interview

Adele — Exclusive WSJ Interview

Adele – Ushi the (complete) interview

Adele – Interview (The Jonathan Ross Show – 3rd September 2011)

ADELE – Live At The Royal Albert Hall DVD (Trailer)

Adele & Amy Winehouse performing @ The BRIT Awards (2008)

Adele (singer)

“…Adele Laurie Blue Adkins^[2] (born 5 May 1988), better known mononymously as Adele, is an English recording artist and songwriter. Adele was offered a recording contract from XL Recordings after a friend posted her demonstration on Myspace in 2006. The next year she received the Brit Awards “Critics’ Choice” and won the BBC Sound of 2008. Her debut album, 19 was released in 2008 to much commercial and critical success in the UK. 19 was certified four times platinum in the UK.^[3] Her career in the US was boosted by a Saturday Night Live appearance in late 2008. At the 2009 Grammy Awards, Adele received the awards for Best New Artist and Best Female Pop Vocal Performance.^[4]^[5] She has also won a total of 8 Grammy Awards and 1 Brit Award.

Adele released her second album, 21 in early 2011.^[6]^[7] The album was well received critically and surpassed the success of her debut commercially.^[8] 21 has been certified 14 times platinum in the UK;^[3] in the US the album held the top position longer than any other album since 1993.^[9]^[10] The success of 21 earned Adele numerous mentions in the Guinness Book Of World Records. The album won the Grammy for Album of the Year. She is the first artist to sell more than 3 million copies of an album in a year in the UK.^[11] With her two albums and the first two singles from 21, “Rolling in the Deep” and “Someone Like You”, Adele became the first living artist to achieve the feat of two top five hits in both the UK Official Singles Chart and the Official Albums Chart simultaneously since the Beatles in 1964.^[12]^[13] With her third release from the album, “Set Fire to the Rain”, becoming her third number one single in the US, Adele became the first artist in history to lead the Billboard 200 concurrently with three Billboard Hot 100 number ones.^[14] 21 is the longest running number one album by a female solo artist on the UK Albums Chart^[15] and is tied for the longest cumulative stay at number one by a female solo artist as well.^[11] In 2011, Billboard named Adele artist of the year.^[16]

Adele Website

http://www.adele.tv/

Baclground Articles and Videos

Whitney Houston’s Death: 2012 Grammy Awards to Pay Tribute to Her Career

Whitney Houston – This is My Life – Part 1

Whitney Houston – This is My Life – Part 2

Whitney Houston – This Is My Life – Part 3

Whitney Houston Rolling Stone Interview 1986

Whitney Houston MTV Interview (1988)

Whitney Houston on The Arsenio Hall Show (1990)

Whitney Houston on The Arsenio Hall Show (1992) Part 1

Whitney Houston on The Arsenio Hall Show (1992) Part 2

Whitney Houston on The Arsenio Hall Show (1992) Part 3

Whitney Houston – Barbara Walters Special 1993 – Part 1

Whitney Houston – Barbara Walters Special 1993 – Part 2

…

Whitney Houston interview by Diane Sawyer

Whitney Houston UK Interview 1996 Rare

Whitney Houston Interview

Whitney Houston

“…Whitney Elizabeth Houston (August 9, 1963 – February 11, 2012) was an American recording artist, actress, producer, and model. In 2009, the Guinness World Records cited her as the most-awarded female act of all time.^[1] Her awards include two Emmy Awards, six Grammy Awards, 30 Billboard Music Awards, and 22 American Music Awards, among a total of 415 career awards in her lifetime. Houston was also one of the world’s best-selling music artists, having sold over 170 million albums, singles and videos worldwide.^[2]^[3] Inspired by prominent soul singers in her family, including her mother Cissy Houston, cousins Dionne Warwick and Dee Dee Warwick, and her godmother Aretha Franklin, Houston began singing with her New Jersey church’s junior gospel choir at age 11.^[4] After she began performing alongside her mother in night clubs in the New York City area, she was discovered by Arista Records label head Clive Davis. Houston released seven studio albums and three movie soundtrack albums, all of which have diamond, multi-platinum, platinum or gold certification.

Houston is the only artist to chart seven consecutive No. 1 Billboard Hot 100 hits (“Saving All My Love for You”, “How Will I Know”, “Greatest Love of All”, “I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)”, “Didn’t We Almost Have It All”, “So Emotional” and “Where Do Broken Hearts Go”). She is the second artist behind Elton John and the only female artist to have two number-one Billboard 200 Album awards (formerly “Top Pop Album”) on the Billboard magazine year-end charts. Houston’s 1985 debut album Whitney Houston became the best-selling debut album by a female act at the time of its release. The album was named Rolling Stone‘s best album of 1986, and was ranked at number 254 on Rolling Stone‘s list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.^[5] Her second studio album Whitney (1987) became the first album by a female artist to debut at number one on the Billboard 200 albums chart.^[5] Houston’s crossover appeal on the popular music charts as well as her prominence on MTV, starting with her video for “How Will I Know”,^[6] influenced several African-American female artists to follow in her footsteps.^[7]^[8]

Houston’s first acting role was as the star of the feature film The Bodyguard (1992). The film’s original soundtrack won the 1994 Grammy Award for Album of the Year. Its lead single “I Will Always Love You”, became the best-selling single by a female artist in music history. With the album, Houston became the first act (solo or group, male or female) to sell more than a million copies of an album within a single week period.^[5] The album makes her the only female act in the top 10 list of the best-selling albums of all time, at number four. Houston continued to star in movies and contribute to their soundtracks, including the films Waiting to Exhale (1995) and The Preacher’s Wife (1996). The Preacher’s Wife soundtrack became the best-selling gospel album in history.^[9] Three years after the release of her fourth studio album My Love Is Your Love (1998), she renewed her recording contract with Arista Records.^[9] She released her fifth studio album Just Whitney in 2002, and the Christmas-themed One Wish: The Holiday Album in 2003. In 2009, Houston released her seventh studio album I Look to You. …”

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3WH1Ma50QUk&feature=related

Background Articles and Videos

Legendary investor Jim Rogers- “Ron Paul is the only politician that has a clue”

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economy_of_the_United_States

Summary of Outlays, Revenues (Receipts), Deficits, Surpluses Fiscal Years 1980-2010(Nominal Dollars in Millions)
Fiscal Year	Outlays	Revenues (Receipts)	Deficits (-), Surpluses
1980	590,941	517,112	-73,830
1981	678,241	599,272	-78,968
1982	745,743	617,766	-127,977
1983	808,364	600,562	-207,802
1984	851,805	666,488	-185,367
1985	946,344	734,037	-212,308
1986	990,382	769,155	-221,277
1987	1,004,017	854,288	-149,730
1988	1,064,417	854,288	-155,178
1989	1,143,744	991,105	-152,639
1990	1,252,994	1,031,958	-221,036
1991	1,324,226	1,054,988	-269,238
1992	1,381,529	1,091,208	-290,321
1993	1,409,386	1,154,335	-255,051
1994	1,461,753	1,258,566	-203,186
1995	1,515,742	1,351,790	-163,392
1996	1,560,484	1,453,053	-107,431
1997	1,601,116	1,579,232	-21,884
1998	1,652,458	1,721,728	69,270
1999	1,701,842	1,827,452	125,610
2000	1,788,950	2,025,191	236,241
2001	1,862,846	1,991,082	128,236
2002	2,010,894	1,853,136	-157,758
2003	2,159,899	1,782,314	-377,585
2004	2,292,841	1,880,114	-412,727
2005	2,471,957	2,153,611	-318,346
2006	2,655,050	2,406,869	-248,181
2007	2,728,686	2,567,985	-160,701
2008	2,982,544	2,523,991	-458,553
2009	3,517,677	2,104,989	-1,412,688
2010	3,456,213	2,162,724	-1,293,489

FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT SERVICE
STAR – TREASURY FINANCIAL DATABASE
TABLE 1. SUMMARY OF RECEIPTS, OUTLAYS AND THE DEFICIT/SURPLUS BY MONTH OF THE U.S. GOVERNMENT (IN MILLIONS)

ACCOUNTING DATE: 06/11

PERIOD RECEIPTS OUTLAYS DEFICIT/SURPLUS (-)
+ ____________________________________________________________ _____________________ _____________________ _____________________
PRIOR YEAR

     OCTOBER                                                                   135,293                311,656                176,363
     NOVEMBER                                                             133,563                253,850                120,287
     DECEMBER                                                               218,919                310,329                 91,410
     JANUARY                                                                205,239                247,873                 42,634
     FEBRUARY                                                             107,520                328,429                220,909
     MARCH                                                                     153,358                218,745                 65,387
     APRIL                                                                      245,260                327,950                 82,689
     MAY                                                                         146,794                282,721                135,927
     JUNE                                                                        251,048                319,470                 68,422
     JULY                                                                        155,546                320,588                165,043
     AUGUST                                                                   163,998                254,524                 90,526
     SEPTEMBER                                                          245,207                279,813                 34,607

YEAR-TO-DATE 2,161,746 3,455,949 1,294,204

CURRENT YEAR

     OCTOBER                                                                145,951                286,384                140,432
     NOVEMBER                                                          148,970                299,364                150,394
     DECEMBER                                                           236,875                315,009                 78,134
     JANUARY                                                            226,550                276,346                 49,796
     FEBRUARY                                                          110,656                333,163                222,507
     MARCH                                                                 150,894                339,047                188,153
     APRIL                                                                    289,543                329,929                 40,387
     MAY                                                                       174,936                232,577                 57,641
     JUNE                                                                      249,658                292,738                 43,080

YEAR-TO-DATE 1,734,033 2,704,557 970,524

http://www.fms.treas.gov/mts/mts0611.txt

U.S. Federal Government Budget Receipts and Outlays
Totals Include On-Budget and Off-Budget Amounts
From Coolidge To Obama, In Billions of Dollars

President	Fiscal Year	Receipts	Outlays	Surplus orDeficits	G.D.P.	Receipts	Outlays	Surplus orDeficit
	Total Budget					Percent of G.D.P.
Calvin Coolidge	1930	4.1	3.3	0.7	97.4	4.2	3.4	.8
Herbert Hoover	1931	3.1	3.6	-0.5	83.9	3.7	4.3	-0.6
	1932	1.9	4.7	-2.7	67.6	2.8	6.9	-4.9
	1933	2.0	4.6	-2.6	57.6	3.5	8.0	-4.5
F.D.Roosevelt	1934	3.0	6.5	-3.6	61.2	4.8	10.7	-5.9
	1935	3.6	6.4	-2.8	69.6	5.2	9.2	-4.0
	1936	3.9	8.2	-4.3	78.5	5.0	10.5	-5.5
	1937	5.4	7.6	-2.2	87.8	6.1	8.6	-2.5
	1938	6.8	6.8	-0.1	89.0	7.6	7.7	-0.1
	1939	6.3	9.1	-2.8	89.1	7.1	10.3	-3.2
	1940	6.5	9.5	-2.9	96.8	6.8	9.8	-3.0
	1941	8.7	13.7	-4.9	114.1	7.6	12.0	-4.3
	1942	14.6	35.1	-20.5	144.3	10.1	24.3	-14.2
	1943	24.0	78.6	-54.6	180.3	13.3	43.6	-30.3
	1944	43.7	91.3	-47.6	209.2	20.9	43.6	-22.7
	1945	45.2	92.7	-47.6	221.4	20.4	41.9	-21.5
	1946	39.3	55.2	-15.9	222.6	17.7	24.8	-7.2
Harry S.Truman	1947	38.5	34.5	4.0	233.2	16.5	14.8	1.7
	1948	41.6	29.8	11.8	256.6	16.2	6.9	4.6
	1949	39.4	38.8	0.6	271.3	14.5	14.3	0.2
	1950	39.4	38.8	0.6	273.1	14.4	15.6	-1.1
	1951	51.6	45.5	6.1	320.2	16.1	14.2	1.9
	1952	66.2	67.7	-1.5	348.7	19.0	19.4	-0.3
	1953	60.7	70.9	-6.5	372.5	18.7	20.4	-1.7
D.D.Eisenhower	1954	69.7	70.9	-1.2	377.0	18.5	18.8	-0.3
	1955	65.5	68.4	-3.07	395.9	16.5	17.3	-.8
	1956	74.6	70.6	3.9	427.0	17.5	16.5	0.9
	1957	80.0	76.6	3.4	450.9	17.7	17.0	0.8
	1958	79.6	82.4	-2.8	460.0	17.3	17.9	-0.6
	1959	79.2	92.1	-12.8	490.2	16.2	18.8	-2.6
	1960	92.5	92.2	0.3	518.9	17.8	17.8	0.1
	1961	94.4	97.7	-3.3	529.9	17.8	18.4	-1.3
John F.Kennedy	1962	99.7	106.8	-4.8	567.8	17.6	18.8	-1.3
	1963	106.6	111.3	-4.8	599.2	17.8	18.4	-0.6
Lyndon B.Johnson	1964	112.6	118.5	-5.9	641.5	17.6	18.5	-0.9
	1965	116.8	118.2	-1.4	687.5	17.0	17.2	-0.2
	1966	130.8	134.5	-3.7	755.8	17.3	17.8	-0.5
	1967	148.8	157.5	-8.6	810.0	18.4	19.4	-1.1
	1968	153.0	178.1	-25.2	868.4	17.6	20.5	-2.9
	1969	186.9	183.6	3.2	948.1	19.7	19.4	-0.3
Richard N.Nixon	1970	192.8	195.6	-2.8	1,012.7	19.0	19.3	-0.3
	1971	187.1	210.2	-23.0	1,080.0	17.3	19.5	-2.1
	1972	207.3	230.7	-23.4	1,176.5	17.6	19.6	-2.0
	1973	230.8	245.7	-14.9	1,310.6	17.6	18.7	-1.1
	1974	263.2	269.4	-6.1	1,438.5	18.3	18.7	-0.4
Gerald R.Ford	1975	279.1	332.3	-53.2	1,560.2	17.9	21.3	-3.4
	1976	298.1	371.8	-73.7	1,738.16	17.1	21.4	-4.2
	TQ	81.2	96.0	-14.7	459.4	17.7	20.0	-3.2
	1977	355.6	409.2	-53.7	1,973.5	18.0	20.7	-2.7
Jimmy Carter	1978	399.6	458.7	-59.2	2,217.5	18.0	20.7	-2.7
	1979	463.3	504.0	-40.7	2,501.4	18.5	20.1	-1.6
	1980	517.1	590.9	-73.8	2,724.2	19.0	21.7	-2.7
	1981	599.3	678.2	-79.0	3,057.0	19.6	22.2	-2.6
Ronald Reagan	1982	617.8	745.7	-128.0	3,223.7	19.2	23.1	-4.0
	1983	600.6	808.4	-207.8	3,440.7	17.5	23.5	-6.0
	1984	666.4	851.8	-185.4	3,844.4	17.3	22.2	-4.8
	1985	734.0	946.3	-212.3	4,146.3	17.7	22.8	-5.1
Ronald Reagan	1986	769.2	990.4	-212.2	4,403.9	17.5	22.5	-4.9
	1987	854.3	1,004.0	-149.7	4,651.4	18.4	21.6	-3.2
	1988	909.2	1,064.4	-155.2	5,008.5	18.2	21.3	-3.0
	1989	991.1	1,143.7	-152.6	5,399.5	18.4	21.2	-4.9
George H.W.Bush	1990	1,032.0	1,253.0	-221.0	5,734.5	18.0	21.9	-3.9
	1991	1,055.0	1,324.2	-269.2	5,930.5	17.8	22.3	-4.5
	1992	1,091.2	1,381.5	-290.3	6,242.0	17.5	22.1	-4.7
	1993	1,154.3	1,409.4	-255.1	6,587.3	17.5	21.4	-3.9
William J. Clinton	1994	1,258.6	1,461.8	-203.2	6,976.6	2.8	6.9	-4.9
	1995	1,351.8	1,515.8	-164.0	7,341.1	18.4	20.6	-2.2
	1996	1,453.1	1,560.5	-107.4	7,718.3	18.8	20.2	-1.4
	1997	1,579.2	1,601.1	-21.9	8,211.7	19.2	19.5	-0.3
William J. Clinton	1998	1,721.7	1,652.5	69.3	67.6	19.9	19.1	0.8
	1999	1,827.5	1,701.8	125.6	9,208.4	19.8	18.5	1.4
	2000	2,025.2	1,789.0	236.2	9,821.0	20.6	18.2	2.4
	2001	1,991.1	1,862.9	128.2	10,225.3	19.5	18.2	1.3
George W.Bush	2002	1,853.1	2,010.9	-157.8	10,543.9	17.6	19.1	-1.5
	2003	1,782.3	2,159.9	-377.6	10,979.8	16.2	19.7	-3.4
	2004	1,880.1	2,292.9	-412.7	11,685.6	16.1	19.6	-3.5
	2005	2,153.6	2,472.0	-318.3	12,445.7	17.3	19.9	-2.6
George W.Bush	2006	2,406.0	2,655.1	-248.2	13,224.9	18.2	20.1	-1.9
	2007	2,568.0	2,728.7	-160.7	13,896.0	18.5	19.6	-1.2
	2008	2,524.0	2,982.6	-458.6	14,439.0	17.5	20.7	-3.2
	2009	2,105.0	3,517.7	-1,412.7	14,237.2	14.8	24.7	-9.9
Barack H.Obama	2010	2,165.1	3,720.7	-1,555.6	14,623.9	14.8	25.4	-10.6
estimates	2011	2,567.2	3,833.9	-1,266.7	15,299.0	16.8	25.1	-8.3
estimates	2012	2,926.4	3,754.9	-828.5	16,203.3	18.1	23.2	-5.1

Prior to fiscal year 1977 the Federal fiscal years began on July 1 and ended on June 30. For example, John F. Kennedy assumed office on January 20, 1961, but the FY 1961 budget was prepared by the Eisenhower Administration.

In calendar year 1976 the July-September period was a separate accounting period (known as the transition quarter or TQ) to bridge the period required to shift to the new fiscal year.

The Fiscal Year begins on October 1 of the previous year. For example, Fiscal Year 2012 begins on October 1, 2011. For this reason, budget years appear to not correspond with a president’s administration. For example, Barack H. Obama took office in January 2009, but the FY 2009 budget was prepared by the Bush Administration.

http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/data/budget.php

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Bob Seger–Videos

Posted on April 30, 2011. Filed under: American History, Art, Blogroll, Communications, Culture, Entertainment, history, Language, Law, liberty, Life, Links, media, Music, People, Philosophy, Psychology, Rants, Raves, Security, Talk Radio, Technology, Video, Wealth, Wisdom | Tags: Art, Bands, Bob Seger, Communications, Life, Music, Singers, Songs, Videos |

“Every now and then you’ll nail one that’s really, really special. And that’s what you live for.

Bob Seger Live-Old Time Rock n Roll

Bob Seger Ramblin Gamblin Man

Bob Seger – Turn the Page

Bob Seger – Still The Same

Bob Seger-Her Strut live

Bob Seger – C’est La Vie

Bob Seger-Fire Down Below Live

In Your Time – Bob Seger Music Video

Night Moves

You’ll Accompany Me Live-Bob Seger

Bob Seger -Rare Against The Wind Live

Bob Seger – Rock n Roll Never Forgets Rare Live

Bob Seger- We’ve Got Tonight live

Bob Seger – Like a Rock ( Music Video )

Bob Seger – Ship of Fools

Bob Seger – Understanding

Travelin’ Man/Beautiful Loser Bob Seger 2007

Night Moves Bob Seger 2007

Bob Seger Tour 2011 – Travelin’ Man – Beautiful Loser – Toledo 3-26-2011

Bob Seger Tour 2011 – Rock & Roll Never Forgets – Toledo 3-26-2011

Bob Seger Tour 2011 – Ramblin Gamblin Man – Toledo 3-26-2011

Bob Seger Tour 2011 – Come To Pappa – Toledo 3-26-2011

Bob Seger – Downtown Train – Toledo 3/26/11

Bob Seger Tour 2011 – Main Street – Toledo 3-26-2011

Bob Seger Tour 2011 – Sunspot Baby – Toledo 3-26-2011

Bob Seger Tour 2011 – Night Moves – Toledo 3-26-2011

Bob Seger Tour 2011 – C’est La Vie – Toledo 3-26-2011

Bob Seger Tour 2011 – Katmandu – Toledo 3-26-2011

Bob Seger – Hollywood Nights – Toledo 3/26/11

Bob Seger Tour 2011 – Turn The Page – Toledo 3-26-2011

Bob Seger Tour 2011 – Against The Wind – Toledo 3-26-2011

Bob Seger Tour 2011 – Old Time Rock & Roll – Toledo 3-26-2011

Bob Seger & Kid Rock Real Mean Bottle 12/20/06 Detroit

Bob Seger Wait For Me

“I write a lot of songs people don’t hear. I really just enjoy the process. I finish ‘em all. I don’t think there’s a whole lot of difference between the bad ones and the good ones.”

Background Articles and Videos

Bob Seger accepts award Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum inductions 2004

Bob Seger Rock N Roll Hall Of Fame

Bob Seger Sunday Morning

Bob Seger on Entertainment Tonight

Bob Seger:CBS TV Interview 1996 Mystery Tour 1996

BOB SEGER – Face the Promise (his life)

Bob Seger:In Concert ABC Special interview

Bob Seger TV Interview December 1976

Bob Seger

“…Robert Clarke Seger (born May 6, 1945) is an American singer-songwriter, guitarist and pianist.

As a locally successful Detroit-area artist, he performed and recorded as The Bob Seger System throughout the 1960s. By the early 1970s, he had dropped the “System” from his recordings, and he continued to strive for national success with other various bands. In 1973 he put together “The Silver Bullet Band,” an evolving group of Detroit-area musicians, with whom he became most successful. In 1976, he achieved national fame with two albums, the live record Live Bullet, and the studio record Night Moves. On his studio albums he also worked extensively with the Alabama-based Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section, appearing on several of Seger’s best selling singles and albums.

A roots rocker with a classic raspy, shouting voice, Seger was first inspired by Little Richard and Elvis Presley, along with James Brown.^[1] He wrote and recorded songs that dealt with blue-collar themes. Seger has recorded many rock and roll hits, including “Night Moves”, “Turn the Page”, and “Like a Rock”, and also co-wrote the Eagles number one hit “Heartache Tonight”. His iconic signature song “Old Time Rock and Roll” was named one of the Songs of the Century in 2001. With a career spanning five decades, Seger continues to perform and record today.

“Old Time Rock & Roll” charted #2 as most played Jukebox Singles of all Time, second only to Patsy Cline’s “Crazy”.

Seger’s songs have been covered by many artists including Thin Lizzy and Metallica.

Seger was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2004. …”

“…Recent Works & 2011 Tour

In October 2009, Yessian Music reported on its social networking sites that Seger was re-recording his albums Smokin’ O.P.’s and Seven. On October 25, 2009 it was revealed that Seger indeed had done some re-recording of older songs for an upcoming compilation album entitled Early Seger Vol. 1,^[11] a collection of out of print songs and also previously unreleased material. The album was released on November 24, 2009, initially exclusively available for purchase at Meijer. A week later it was available for download at BobSeger.com.^[12]

Seger lives mainly at his home in Orchard Lake Village, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit. He frequents many local events including West Bloomfield High School football games to watch his son who is in the nationally-ranked marching band. Seger also has a vacation house near Good Hart, Michigan.

Seger made an announcement on 26 March during an interview with Dick Purtan on Detroit’s WOMC-FM that he plans to tour in late 2010. These concerts will be Seger’s first since 2007′s 50-stop US tour which followed the release of his last album Face the Promise.

Seger contributed piano and vocals on Kid Rock’s 2010 album Born Free. Alongside Seger, the album also featured Sheryl Crow, Zac Brown Band, and Martina Mcbride among others.

On January 25th and 26th, videos were uploaded to Seger’s official Facebook page (and later on his official website) and teased older Seger songs while lying under a blurred screen, a map of the U.S. with 5 noted states highlighted, and a message at the end saying “Stay Tuned to BobSeger.com.” On January 27th, Seger made an announcement on his official website of a 2011 Tour subjected to kick off in March 2011. In a Rolling Stone article, additional information was added saying that Seger had 20-30 dates already booked and was expected to tour again in the Fall. In other news, the same article noted that Seger had been recording non-stop since the end of the Face the Promise tour and that a new album was currently in the works, and Seger was satisfied with over half of it already. It was also stated that Seger would be sampling a few songs from the forthcoming record during the first leg of the tour in hopes of having the album released shortly before, during, or after the tour, hinting at a Summer 2011 release.

On March 2, 2011, Seger released the first single from his forthcoming album, Downtown Train, a Tom Waits cover. …”

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bob_Seger

Bob Seger Biography

“…Seger’s first new album in 11 years, titled Face the Promise, was released in 2006. In its first 45 days, the album sold more than 400,000 copies. The album has sold over 1 million copies to date and stayed on the Billboard chart for months. His supporting tour was also eagerly anticipated, with many shows selling out within minutes. Showing that Seger’s legendary appeal in Michigan had not diminished, all 15,000 tickets available for his first show at Grand Rapids’ Van Andel Arena sold out in under five minutes; three additional shows were subsequently added, each of which also sold out. …”

http://www.lyricsfreak.com/b/bob+seger/biography.html

Bob Seger- Official Web Site

http://www.bobseger.com/

The Seger File-Unofficial Web Site

http://www.segerfile.com/

Background Articles and Videos

Serendipity

“…Serendipity is a propensity for making fortunate discoveries while looking for something unrelated. The word has been voted as one of the ten English words that were hardest to translate in June 2004 by a British translation company.^[1] However, due to its sociological use, the word has been imported into many other languages.^[2]

Etymology

The first noted use of this word was by Horace Walpole (1717-92). In a letter to Mann (dated Jan. 28) he said he formed it from the Persian fairy tale “The Three Princes of Serendip,” whose heroes “were always making discoveries, by accidents and sagacity, of things they were not in quest of.” The name stems either from Serendip, an old name for Ceylon (modern Sri Lanka),or from Arabic Sarandib, or from Skt. Simhaladvipa which literally translates to “Dwelling-Place-of-Lions Island.” ^[3]

Role in science and technology

One aspect of Walpole’s original definition of serendipity that is often missed in modern discussions of the word is the “sagacity” of being able to link together apparently innocuous facts to come to a valuable conclusion. Thus, while some scientists and inventors are reluctant about reporting accidental discoveries, others openly admit its role; in fact serendipity is a major component of scientific discoveries and inventions. According to M.K. Stoskopf^[4] “it should be recognized that serendipitous discoveries are of significant value in the advancement of science and often present the foundation for important intellectual leaps of understanding”.

The amount of benefit contributed by serendipitous discoveries varies extensively among the several scientific disciplines. Pharmacology and chemistry are probably the fields where serendipity is more common.

Most authors who have studied scientific serendipity both in a historical, as well as in an epistemological point of view, agree that a prepared and open mind is required on the part of the scientist or inventor to detect the importance of information revealed accidentally. This is the reason why most of the related accidental discoveries occur in the field of specialization of the scientist. About this, Albert Hofmann, the Swiss chemist who discovered LSD properties by unintentionally ingesting it at his lab, wrote

It is true that my discovery of LSD was a chance discovery, but it was the outcome of planned experiments and these experiments took place in the framework of systematic pharmaceutical, chemical research. It could better be described as serendipity.

The French scientist Louis Pasteur also famously said: “In the fields of observation chance favors only the prepared mind.”^[5] This is often rendered as “Chance favors the prepared mind.” William Shakespeare expressed the same sentiment 250 years earlier in act 4 of his play Henry V: “All things are ready if our minds be so.”

History, of course, does not record accidental exposures of information which could have resulted in a new discovery, and we are justified in suspecting that they are many. There are several examples of this, however, and prejudice of preformed concepts is probably the largest obstacle. See for example ^[6] for a case where this happened (the rejection of an accidental discovery in the field of self-stimulation of the limbic system in humans).

Role in economics

M. E. Graebner describes serendipitous value in the context of the acquisition of a business as “windfalls that were not anticipated by the buyer prior to the deal”: i.e., unexpected advantages or benefits incurred due to positive synergy effects of the merger.^{[citation needed]} Ikujiro Nonaka (1991,p. 94 November-December issue of HBR) points out that the serendipitous quality of innovation is highly recognized by managers and links the success of Japanese enterprises to their ability to create knowledge not by processing information but rather by “tapping the tacit and often highly subjective insights, intuitions, and hunches of individual employees and making those insights available for testing and use by the company as a whole”.

Serendipity is a key concept in Competitive Intelligence because it is one of the tools for avoiding Blind Spots (seeBlindspots analysis)^[7]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Serendipity

Serendipity

“…Serendipity is a 2001 romantic comedy, starring John Cusack and Kate Beckinsale. It was written by Marc Klein and directed by Peter Chelsom. The original music score is composed by Alan Silvestri. …”

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Serendipity_%28film%29

Background Articles and Videos

Dusty Springfield interview (V.RARE) 60s

The Beatles interview with Dusty Springfield

Dusty Springfield interview 90s

Dusty Springfield – Interview part 1 Of 2

Dusty Springfield – Interview part 2 Of 2

Petula commentary about Dusty Springfield (part 1 of 2)

Petula commentary about Dusty Springfield (part 2 of 2)

Dusty Springfield – Interview

Dusty Springfield – BBC News March 1999

“…Dusty Springfield

Mary Isabel/Isobel Catherine Bernadette O’Brien,^{[note 1]} OBE (16 April 1939 – 2 March 1999), known professionally as Dusty Springfield, was a British singer whose career spanned from the late 1950s to the 1990s, though is best known for her work during the 1960s when she released singles such as “I Only Want To Be With You” (1963), “You Don’t Have to Say You Love Me” (1966) and “Son of a Preacher Man” (1968) and her most acclaimed album Dusty in Memphis (1969). With her distinctive sensual sound, she is an important white soul singer, and at her peak was one of the most successful British female performers, with 18 singles in the Billboard Hot 100 from 1964 to 1970.^[1] Her image, supported by a peroxide blonde beehive hairstyle, evening gowns, and heavy make-up, made her an icon of the Swinging Sixties; and she remains an enduring camp icon, especially in the gay community.^[2]

Born in North London to a dysfunctional Irish Catholic family that enjoyed music, Springfield learned to sing at home. She joined her first professional group, The Lana Sisters, in 1958, then formed the pop-folk vocal trio The Springfields in 1960 with her brother Dion. Her solo career began in 1963 with the upbeat pop hit, “I Only Want To Be With You”. Among the hits that followed were “I Just Don’t Know What to Do with Myself” (1964), “Wishin’ and Hopin’” (1964), and “You Don’t Have to Say You Love Me” (1966). By 1966 she was the best selling female singer in the world, and topped a number of popularity polls, including Melody Maker’s Best International Vocalist;^[3] and was the first British singer to top the New Musical Express readers’ poll for Female Singer.^[4]

A fan of American pop music, she was the first public figure to bring little-known soul singers to a wider British audience by creating and hosting the first British performances of the top-selling Motown artists in 1965.^[2] Her rendition of Bacharach’s “The Look of Love” was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Song. The marked changes of pop music in the mid-1960s left many female pop singers out of fashion. To boost her credibility as a soul artist, Springfield went to Memphis, Tennessee, to record an album of pop and soul music with the Atlantic Records main production team. Dusty in Memphis earned Springfield a nomination for a Grammy Award and it was awarded a spot in the Grammy Hall of Fame. International polls list the album among the greatest of all time. The track “Son of a Preacher Man” was released as a single and became an international Top 10 hit in 1969. After this album, Springfield’s success dipped for eighteen years. She returned to the Top 20 of the British and American charts in collaboration with the Pet Shop Boys on the songs “What Have I Done to Deserve This?”, “Nothing Has Been Proved” and “In Private”. In 1995, Springfield was diagnosed with breast cancer, and she died on 2 March 1999.

Interest in Springfield’s early output was revived in 1994, due to the inclusion of “Son of a Preacher Man” on the soundtrack of the movie Pulp Fiction. She is a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the U.K. Music Hall of Fame. International polls have named Springfield among the best female rock artists of all time. Her album, Dusty in Memphis, has been listed among the greatest albums of all time by Rolling Stone and VH1 artists, New Musical Express readers, and the Channel 4 viewers polls,^[5] and in 2001, received the Grammy Hall of Fame award. …”

Background Articles and Videos

Ken Roman on one of the original Mad Men

Jack Trout Tells A Story About David Ogilvy

The King of Madison Avenue

Background Articles and Videos

Neil Sedaka

“…Neil Sedaka (born March 13, 1939) is an American pop singer, pianist, and songwriter. His career has spanned over 50 years, during which time he has written many songs for himself and others, often working with lyricists Howard Greenfield and Phil Cody.

Sedaka was born in Brooklyn, New York. His father, Mac Sedaka, a taxi driver, was the son of Turkish Jewish immigrants (“Sedaka” is a variant of tzedaka — Hebrew for charity); his mother, Eleanor (Appel) Sedaka, was of Polish-Russian Jewish descent. He grew up in an apartment in Brighton Beach, Brooklyn.[1] He is the cousin of singer Eydie Gorme. [citation needed]

He demonstrated musical aptitude in his second-grade choral class, and when his teacher sent a note home suggesting he take piano lessons, his mother took a part-time job in an Abraham & Straus department store for six months to pay for a second-hand upright. He took to the instrument immediately. In 1947, he auditioned successfully for a piano scholarship to the Juilliard School of Music’s Preparatory Division for Children, which he attended on Saturdays. He also maintained an interest in popular music, and when he was 13, a neighbor heard him playing and introduced him to her 16-year-old son, Howard Greenfield, an aspiring poet and lyricist. The two began writing together.

The best-known Billboard Hot 100 hits of his early career are “The Diary” (#14, 1958), a song that he offered to Little Anthony and the Imperials; “Oh! Carol” (#9, 1959); “You Mean Everything to Me” (#17, 1960); “Calendar Girl” (#4, 1960); “Stairway to Heaven” (#9, 1960); “Run Samson Run” (top 30, 1960); “Little Devil” (#11, 1961); “Happy Birthday Sweet Sixteen” (#6, 1961); “Breaking Up Is Hard to Do” (#1, 1962); and “Next Door to an Angel” (#5, 1962). “Oh! Carol” refers to Sedaka’s Brill Building compatriot and former girlfriend Carole King. King responded with her answer song, “Oh, Neil” and, by using the same chord progression, “Will You Love Me Tomorrow”. A Scopitone exists for “Calendar Girl”.

A similar sharing came earlier with Sedaka and singer Connie Francis. As Francis explains at her concerts, she began searching for a new hit after her 1958 single “Who’s Sorry Now?”. She was introduced to Sedaka and Howard Greenfield, who played every ballad they had written for her. Francis began writing her diary while the two played the last of their songs. After they finished, Francis told them they wrote beautiful ballads but that they were too intellectual for the young generation. Sedaka suggested to Greenfield a song they had written that morning for a girl group. Greenfield protested because the song had been promised to the girl group, but Sedaka insisted on playing “Stupid Cupid”. Francis told them they had just played her new hit. Francis’ song reached #14 on the Billboard charts.

While Francis was in writing her diary, Sedaka asked her if he could read what she had written. After she refused, Sedaka was inspired to write “The Diary”, his first hit single. Sedaka and Greenfield wrote many of Connie Francis’ hits such as “Fallin’” and “Where the Boys Are”.

In 1961, Sedaka began to record some of his hits in Italian. At first he published “Esagerata” and “Un Giorno Inutile”, local versions of “Little Devil” and “I Must Be Dreaming”. Other recordings were to follow, such as “Tu Non Lo Sai” (“Breaking Up Is Hard to Do”), “Il Re Dei Pagliacci” (“King of Clowns”), “I Tuoi Capricci” (“Look Inside Your Heart”), and “La Terza Luna” (“Waiting For Never”) to name only a few. Sedaka also recorded in Spanish, German, Hebrew, Yiddish, and Japanese.

Between 1960 and 1962, Sedaka had eight Top 40 hits, but he was one of many American performers of the era whose popularity declined due to the British Invasion and the evolution of the Rock and Pop genres of music. His commercial success declined rapidly after 1964: he scored only two minor hits in 1965, and none of his 1966 singles charted. His RCA contract was not renewed when it ended in 1967, and he was left without a record label.

Although Sedaka’s stature as a recording artist was at a low ebb in the late 1960s, he was able to maintain his career through songwriting. Thanks to the fact that his publisher, Aldon Music, was acquired by Screen Gems, two of his songs were recorded by The Monkees, and other hits in this period written by Sedaka included The Cyrkle’s version of “We Had a Good Thing Goin’” and “Workin’ on a Groovy Thing”, a Top 40 R&B hit for Patti Drew in 1968 and a US Top 20 hit for The 5th Dimension in 1969. Also, “Make the Music Play” was included on Frankie Valli’s charting album Timeless.

On an episode of the quiz show I’ve Got a Secret in 1965, Sedaka’s secret was that he was to represent the United States in classical piano at the Tchaikovsky competition in Moscow, and he played “Fantasie Impromptu” on the show. Panelist Henry Morgan made a point that the Russians, at least older ones, hated rock and roll. Sedaka’s participation in the competition, which Van Cliburn had won in 1958, was canceled by the USSR because of Sedaka’s rock and roll connection.[original research?]

Sedaka also made an appearance in the 1968 movie “Playgirl Killer”, with a scene of him performing a song called “The Waterbug” …”

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neil_Sedaka

Neil Sedaka interviewed at CBS News

Neil Sedaka Plays Chopin on I’ve Got a Secret!

“Words and Music with Lich” Interviews Neil Sedaka

Neil Sedaka Should’ve Never Let You Go (with Dara Sedaka)

Neil Sedaka & Don Kirshner – The Brill Building Days…

GUYS NAMED NEIL FROM BROOKLYN NEW YORK

Neil Sedaka sings “Yiddishe Mama” on the Chabad “To Life!” Telethon

NEIL SEDAKA Dinosaur Pet – From the new album ‘Waking Up Is Hard To Do’

Live It All Again, NEIL SEDAKA The 2009 Salsa Song

NEIL SEDAKA Looking Back at the Hits

Background Articles and Videos

George Whitefield

“…George Whitefield (pronounced /ˈhwɪtfiːld/) (December 16, 1714 – September 30, 1770), also known as George Whitfield, was an Anglican itinerant minister who helped spread the Great Awakening in Great Britain and, especially, in the British North American colonies.

Early life

Whitefield was born at the bell Inn, Southgate Street, Gloucester^[1] in England. An influential figure in the establishment of Methodism, Whitefield was famous for his preaching in British North America, which was a significant factor in an 18th-century movement of Christian revivals there sometimes called “The Great Awakening.”

Whitefield was the son of a widow who kept an inn at Gloucester. At an early age, he found that he had a passion and talent for acting in the theatre, a passion that he would carry on through the very theatrical re-enactments of Bible stories that he told during his sermons. He was educated at the Crypt School, Gloucester, and Pembroke College, Oxford. Because Whitefield came from a poor background, he did not have the means to pay for his tuition. He therefore entered Oxford as a servitor, the lowest rank of students at Oxford. In return for free tuition, he was assigned as a servant to a number of higher ranked students. His duties included waking them in the morning, polishing their shoes, carrying their books and even assisting with required written assignments.^[2] He was a part of the ‘Holy Club’ at Oxford University with the Wesley brothers, John and Charles. After reading Henry Scougal’s The Life of God in the Soul of Man he became very religious. Following a religious conversion, he became very passionate for preaching his new-found faith. The Bishop of Gloucester ordained him before the canonical age.

Travels and evangelism

“Whitefield was a celebrity in his time and is considered by many to be the founder of the evangelical movement.”^[3] Whitefield preached his first sermon in the Crypt Church in his home town of Gloucester a week after his ordination. He had earlier become the leader of the Holy Club at Oxford when the Wesley brothers departed for Georgia. He adopted the practice of Howell Harris of preaching in the open-air at Hanham Mount, near Kingswood, Bristol. In 1738, before going to America, where he became parish priest of Savannah, Georgia he invited John Wesley to preach in the open-air for the first time at Kingswood and then Blackheath, London. After a short stay in Georgia he returned home in the following year to receive priest’s orders, resuming his open-air evangelistic activities.

Whitefield accepted the Church of England doctrine of predestination but disagreed with the Wesley brothers views on slavery and of the doctrine of Arminianism. As a result the Wesley brothers pursued their own religious movement.[citation needed] Whitefield formed and was the president of the first Methodist conference. At an early date Whitefield decided to concentrate on evangelistic work and relinquished the position.

Three churches were established in England in his name: one in Bristol and two others, the “Moorfields Tabernacle” and the “Tottenham Court Road Chapel”, in London. Later the society meeting at the second Kingswood School at Kingswood, a town on the eastern edge of Bristol, was also called Whitefield’s Tabernacle. Whitefield acted as chaplain to Selina, Countess of Huntingdon and some of his followers joined the Countess of Huntingdon’s Connexion, whose chapels were paid for at her sole expense and where a form of Calvinistic Methodism similar to Whitefield’s could be spread. Many of these chapels were built in the English counties and Wales, and one was erected in London — the Spa Fields Chapel.

In 1739 Whitefield returned to England to raise funds to establish the Bethesda Orphanage, which is the oldest extant charity in North America. On returning to North America he preached a series of revivals that came to be known as the Great Awakening of 1740. He preached nearly every day for months to large crowds of sometimes several thousand people as he travelled throughout the colonies, especially New England. His journey on horseback from New York City to Charleston was the longest then undertaken in North America by a white man.

Like his contemporary and acquaintance, Jonathan Edwards, Whitefield preached with a staunchly Calvinist theology that was in line with the “moderate Calvinism” of the Thirty-nine Articles.^[4] While explicitly affirming God’s sole agency in salvation, Whitefield would freely offer the Gospel, saying near the end of most of his published sermons something like: “Come poor, lost, undone sinner, come just as you are to Christ.”^{[5] …”}

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Whitefield

J.C. Ryle – Biography of George Whitefield (1 of 10)

J.C. Ryle – Biography of George Whitefield (2 of 10)

J.C. Ryle – Biography of George Whitefield (3 of 10)

J.C. Ryle – Biography of George Whitefield (4 of 10)

J.C. Ryle – Biography of George Whitefield (5 of 10)

J.C. Ryle – Biography of George Whitefield (6 of 10)

J.C. Ryle – Biography of George Whitefield (7 of 10)

J.C. Ryle – Biography of George Whitefield (8 of 10)

J.C. Ryle – Biography of George Whitefield (9 of 10)

J.C. Ryle – Biography of George Whitefield (10 of 10)

Background Articles and Videos

The Animals

“…The Animals were an English music group of the 1960s known in the United States as part of the British Invasion. Known for their gritty, bluesy sound and deep-voiced frontman Eric Burdon, as exemplified by their signature songs “The House of the Rising Sun”, “Sky Pilot” and “We Gotta Get out of This Place”, the band balanced tough, rock-edged pop singles against rhythm and blues-oriented album material. The Animals underwent numerous personnel changes and emerged as an exponent of psychedelic rock before dissolving at the end of the decade. They had a comeback in 1983 and started a world tour. In early 1984 the band disbanded. There have been several reunions of the original group and in recent times Burdon and original drummer John Steel have been touring with new versions of the Animals as Eric Burdon & the Animals and Animals & Friends respectively. …”

“…Legacy

The original Animals were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994. Their influence can be heard in artists as varied as The Doors, The White Stripes, Joe Cocker, The Cult, Frijid Pink, The Chocolate Watchband, Bruce Springsteen, Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers, Janis Joplin, David Johansen, and Fine Young Cannibals. In 2003, the band’s version of “House of the Rising Sun” ranked number 122 on Rolling Stone magazine’s 500 Greatest Songs of All Time list. Their 1965 hit single “We Gotta Get out of This Place” was ranked number 233 on Rolling Stone’s The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time list that was compiled in 2004. Both songs are included in The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame’s 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll. …”

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Animals

Eric Burdon

http://ericburdon.ning.com/photo

Background Articles and Videos

17. The Peloponnesian War, Part I

18. The Peloponnesian War, Part I (cont.)

19. The Peloponnesian War, Part II

20. The Peloponnesian War, Part II (cont.)

Conversations with History: Victor Davis Hanson

War and Democracy in Ancient and Contemporary Middle East

Peloponnesian War

The Peloponnesian War, 431 to 404 B.C., was an ancient Greek war, fought by Athens and its empire against the Peloponnesian League, led by Sparta. Historians have traditionally divided the war into three phases. In the first phase, the Archidamian War, Sparta launched repeated invasions of Attica, while Athens took advantage of its naval supremacy to raid the coast of the Peloponnese attempting to suppress signs of unrest in its empire. This period of the war was concluded in 421 BC, with the signing of the Peace of Nicias. That treaty, however, was soon undermined by renewed fighting in the Peloponnese. In 415 BC, Athens dispatched a massive expeditionary force to attack Syracuse in Sicily; the attack failed disastrously, with the destruction of the entire force, in 413 BC. This ushered in the final phase of the war, generally referred to either as the Decelean War, or the Ionian War. In this phase, Sparta, now receiving support from Persia, supported rebellions in Athens’ subject states in the Aegean Sea and Ionia, undermining Athens’ empire, and, eventually, depriving the city of naval supremacy. The destruction of Athens’ fleet at Aegospotami effectively ended the war, and Athens surrendered in the following year.

The Peloponnesian War reshaped the Ancient Greek world. On the level of international relations, Athens, the strongest city-state in Greece prior to the war’s beginning, was reduced to a state of near-complete subjection, while Sparta became established as the leading power of Greece. The economic costs of the war were felt all across Greece; poverty became widespread in the Peloponnese, while Athens found itself completely devastated, and never regained its pre-war prosperity.^[1]^[2] The war also wrought subtler changes to Greek society; the conflict between democratic Athens and oligarchic Sparta, each of which supported friendly political factions within other states, made civil war a common occurrence in the Greek world.

Greek warfare, meanwhile, originally a limited and formalized form of conflict, was transformed into an all-out struggle between city-states, complete with atrocities on a large scale. Shattering religious and cultural taboos, devastating vast swathes of countryside, and destroying whole cities, the Peloponnesian War marked the dramatic end to the fifth-century-B.C. golden age of Greece.^[3]

^…”

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peloponnesian_War

Congressional Progressive Caucus

The Congressional Progressive Caucus (CPC) is the largest caucus within the Democratic caucus in the United States Congress with 83 declared members, and works to advance progressive issues and positions.^[1]

The CPC was founded in 1991 and currently has more than 80 members. The Caucus is co-chaired by Representatives Raúl Grijalva (D-AZ) and Lynn Woolsey (D-CA). Of the 20 standing committees of the House, 11 are chaired by members of the CPC.

The Congressional Progressive Caucus (CPC) was established in 1991 by six members of the United States House of Representatives: Representatives Ron Dellums (D-CA), Lane Evans (D-IL), Thomas Andrews (D-ME),Peter DeFazio (D-OR), Maxine Waters (D-CA), and Bernie Sanders (I-VT). Then-Representative Bernie Sanders was the convener and first. The founding members were concerned about the economic hardship imposed by the deepening recession, and the growing inequality brought about by the timidity of the Democratic Party response at the time.

Additional House representatives joined soon, including Major Owens (D-NY), Nydia Velázquez (D-NY), David Bonior (D-MI), Bob Filner (D-CA), Barney Frank (D-MA), Maurice Hinchey (D-NY), Jim McDermott (D-WA), Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), Patsy Mink (D-HI), George Miller (D-CA), Pete Stark (D-CA), John Olver (D-MA), Lynn Woolsey (D-CA), and Nancy Pelosi (D-CA).

The CPC’s founding statement of purpose states that it was “organized around the principles of social and economic justice, a non-discriminatory society, and national priorities which represent the interests of all people, not just the wealthy and powerful”. The founding members underscored that the Cold War was over, and that the nation’s budget and overall priorities should reflect that. They called for cuts in outdated and unnecessary military spending, a more progressive tax system in which wealthy taxpayers and corporations contribute their fair share, a substantial increase in federal funding for social programs designed to meet the needs of low and middle-income American families, and trade policies that increase the exports of more American products and encourage the creation of well-paying jobs and sound investment in America. They also expressed their belief that those policy goals could be achieved in concert with a commitment to long-term fiscal responsibility. …”

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Congressional_Progressive_Caucus

Congressional Progressive Caucus

Phone :202-225-5871
URL: Website

Progressive Caucus (Democratic) (PC-D)'s Visual Map

Radical caucus of nearly six-dozen members of the House of Representatives
Until 1999, worked in open partnership with Democratic Socialists of America

The Progressive Caucus is an organization of Members of Congress founded in 1991 by newly-elected House Representative Bernie Sanders (Independent-Vermont), who is a self-described socialist.

As of April 2007, the Progressive Caucus included Sanders (who became a U.S. Senator in 2006), Senator Sherrod Brown of Ohio, and 69 members of the House of Representatives, all of them leftist Democrats and almost all in districts heavily gerrymandered to guarantee the re-election of any Democratic Party incumbent, no matter how extreme.

On November 11, 1999, the Progressive Caucus drafted its Position Paper on economic inequality. It reads, in part, as follows: “Economic inequality is the result of two and a half decades of government policies and rules governing the economy being tilted in favor of large asset owners at the expense of wage earners. Tax policy, trade policy, monetary policy, government regulations and other rules have reflected this pro-investor bias. We propose the introduction or reintroduction of a package of legislative initiatives that will close America’s economic divide and address both income and wealth disparities. … The concentration of wealth is a problem because it distorts our democracy, destabilizes the economy and erodes our social and cultural fabric.”

In order “to bring new life to the progressive voice in U.S. politics,” the Progressive Caucus has worked closely with Progressive Challenge, a project of the Institute for Policy Studies. Progressive Challenge is a coalition through which the activities and talking points of leftist groups are synchronized and harmonized with one another, producing coordinated, mutually-reinforcing propaganda from some 200 seemingly-unconnected groups.

In 2005 the Progressive Caucus crafted its “Progressive Promise” document, which advocates socialized medicine; radical environmentalism; the redistribution of wealth; higher taxes; the elimination of numerous provisions of the Patriot Act; dramatic reductions in the government’s intelligence-gathering capabilities; debt relief for poor countries; and the quick withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq. These measures, says the Progressive Caucus, would help “re-build U.S. alliances around the world, restore international respect for American power and influence, and reaffirm our nation’s constructive engagement in the United Nations and other multilateral organizations.”

Until 1999 the Progressive Caucus worked in open partnership with Democratic Socialists of America. After the press reported on this link, the connections suddenly vanished from both organizations’ websites.

As of June 2006, the following Members of Congress belonged to the Progressive Caucus: Neil Abercrombie; Tammy Baldwin; Xavier Becerra; Madeleine Z. Bordallo; Corrine Brown; Sherrod Brown; Michael Capuano; Julia Carson; Donna Christensen; William “Lacy” Clay; Emanuel Cleaver; John Conyers; Elijah Cummings; Danny Davis; Peter DeFazio; Rosa DeLauro; Lane Evans; Sam Farr; Chaka Fattah; Bob Filner; Barney Frank; Raul Grijalva; Luis Gutierrez; Maurice Hinchey; Jesse Jackson, Jr.; Sheila Jackson-Lee; Stephanie Tubbs Jones; Marcy Kaptur; Carolyn Kilpatrick; Dennis Kucinich; Tom Lantos; Barbara Lee; John Lewis; Ed Markey; Jim McDermott; James P. McGovern; Cynthia McKinney; George Miller; Gwen Moore; Jerrold Nadler; Eleanor Holmes Norton; John Olver; Major Owens; Ed Pastor; Donald Payne; Nancy Pelosi; Charles Rangel; Bobby Rush; Bernie Sanders; Jan Schakowsky; Jose Serrano; Louise Slaughter; Hilda Solis; Pete Stark; Bennie Thompson; John Tierney; Tom Udall; Nydia Velazquez; Maxine Waters; Diane Watson; Mel Watt; Henry Waxman; and Lynn Woolsey.

http://www.discoverthenetworks.org/groupProfile.asp?grpid=6497

Victor Hanson – Illegal Immigration Backlash

Flynt Leverett Debates Michael Ledeen on Iran Policy 3-3-10

Background Articles and Video

Jack Benny

“..Jack Benny (February 14, 1894 – December 26, 1974), born Benjamin Kubelsky^[1] was an American comedian, vaudevillian, and actor for radio, television, and film. Widely recognized as one of the leading American entertainers of the 20th century, Benny played the role of someone comically “tight” with his money, insisting on remaining 39 years old despite his actual age, and often playing the violin badly.

Benny was known for his comic timing and his ability to get laughs with either a pregnant pause or a single expression, such as his signature exasperated “Well!” His radio and television programs, tremendously popular in the 1930s, 1940s, 1950s, and 1960s were a foundational influence on the situation comedy. Dean Martin, on the celebrity roast for Johnny Carson in November 1973, introduced Benny as “the Satchel Paige of the world of comedy.” …”

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jack_Benny

Jack Benny

http://timvp.com/jackbeny.html

What’s My Line Jack Benny

Jack Benny Interview Part 1

Jack Benny Interview Part 2

Benny and his fan

Background Articles and Videos

Sam Kinison interview (1/9) Steve Dahl & Garry Meier

Sam Kinison interview (2/9) Steve Dahl & Garry Meier

Sam Kinison interview (3/9) Steve Dahl & Garry Meier

Sam Kinison interview (4/9) Steve Dahl & Garry Meier

Sam Kinison interview (5/9) Steve Dahl & Garry Meier

Sam Kinison interview (6/9) Steve Dahl & Garry Meier

Sam Kinison interview (7/9) Steve Dahl & Garry Meier

Sam Kinison interview (8/9) Steve Dahl & Garry Meier

Sam Kinison interview (9/9) Steve Dahl & Garry Meier

Howard Stern- Sam Kinison vs Bobcat Goldthwait 1988 Part 1

Howard Stern- Sam Kinison vs Bobcat Goldthwait 1988 Part 2

Howard Stern- Sam Kinison vs Bobcat Goldthwait 1988 Part 3

Sam Kinison’s “Accident” on Howard Stern – Part 1 of 2

Sam Kinison’s “Accident” on Howard Stern – Part 2 of 2

Sam Kinison vs Jessica Hahn (1/5)

Sam Kinison vs Jessica Hahn (2/5)

Sam Kinison vs Jessica Hahn (3/5)

Sam Kinison vs Jessica Hahn (4/5)

Sam Kinison vs Jessica Hahn (5/5)

Point of View
By Mark Evanier

“…Funny? Not really. Not at first.

As I would later learn, Sam Kinison was not one of those comics who could hop on a stage and have you laughing from the first word. He needed time, which is why those who later knew him only from his bits on Letterman or Saturday Night Live wondered what the fuss was. Six minutes of Kinison was a bore.

But half an hour…well, that was something else.

He also needed to be seen live, in a club…and not just because laundering/bleeping him for network TV obliterated half his vocabulary. No, you had to see him live for the same reason that you have to see any good death-defier live. When you see a guy juggling chain saws on TV, there’s no sense of danger: You know he’s taped, you know he’s thousands of miles away, you know they wouldn’t be running the show if the juggler had slipped and taken off his thumb. In person, when you see it live, there’s a slight tension — maybe we’re about to witness a guy kill himself, right before our eyes — that you don’t get on TV.

That’s exactly why you had to see Sam Kinison live.

And, that night, we did. Better, we saw Sam Kinison live before he made it, before his act was about his success…back when it was still about how miserable his life was. This may sound cruel but I have never laughed so hard in my life.

And it was a good laugh because it was about something: Kinison was pacing the stage, angrily telling all about the latest in a long procession of women who had taken — not necessarily in order of difficulty of replacement — his records, his money, his time and his heart. He talked about how he’d fallen for it again; how, time after time, he’d made the same, stupid mistake to think this was it, this was The One and how it had all suddenly done a Jekyll/Hyde on him and he was in hell once again, less furious at the woman who had put him there than he was at his own stupidity for falling for it the umpteenth time.

And then there was the scream…that scream that, for a time after Sam hit, every impressionist, professional or amateur, tried to duplicate without success. They tried but they couldn’t do it…because, well, to them, it was just a scream. To Sam, it was something primal, coming not from his throat but from deep down in that small part of his soul that was so empty, it gave the scream that extra echo, that extra reverb. A genuine howl of pain it was, and he used it in the most effective manner…not to make statements but simply to punctuate them. …”

http://www.povonline.com/cols/COL026.htm

Sam Kinison

http://www.samkinison.org/

Sam Kinison

“…Samuel Burl “Sam” Kinison (December 8, 1953 – April 10, 1992) was an American stand-up comedian and actor. Kinison was known for his intense, harsh humor. A former revival-style preacher, he performed stand-up routines that were most often characterized by an intense style, similar to revival preachers, punctuated by his trademark scream.

Born in Yakima, Washington, Kinison was the son of Marie and Samuel Kinison, Pentecostal preachers.[1] His father pastored several churches around the country, receiving little income. Sam later attended high school in East Peoria, Illinois. He also lived in Tulsa, Oklahoma for a while with his parents. He followed in his father’s footsteps as a Pentecostal preacher before becoming a comedian. Recordings of his sermons reveal that he used a “fire and brimstone” style, punctuated with shouts similar to the ones he would later use in his stand-up routines. He attended Pinecrest Bible Training Center in Salisbury Center, New York.[2] After he and his first wife were divorced, he abandoned preaching and took up comedy as a profession.

Sam Kinison began his career in Houston, Texas, where he performed in small clubs. It was not until his appearance on HBO’s Rodney Dangerfield’s Ninth Annual Young Comedians Special in the summer of 1984 that he became a well known comic. His appearance on the special is widely considered to be his breakthrough performance. Later, during Kinison’s appearance on Late Night with David Letterman, Letterman’s introduction of Kinison warned his audience: “Brace yourselves. I’m not kidding. Please welcome Sam Kinison.”

Kinison played on his former role as a Bible-preaching evangelist, taking satirical and sacrilegious shots at The Bible, Christianity and famous Christian evangelist scandals of his day. Kinison’s daring comedy helped shoot him to stardom. On several videos of his stand-up routines, a shot of his personalized license plate reveals the words “EX REV”.

Kinison made his big screen debut in Rodney Dangerfield’s 1986 film Back to School, playing a short-tempered professor.

Kinison was associated with the Los Angeles rock music scene and was occasionally accompanied by a touring band. He also gained a reputation as having a prodigious appetite for drugs and alcohol.[3]

In 1988, Kinison recorded a novelty version of The Troggs’ “Wild Thing”, which appeared on his album Have You Seen Me Lately? The record did not make the Billboard Hot 100, but the video was a hit on MTV, as it featured cameos of Rodney Dangerfield, as well as many well-known rock musicians, including Steven Tyler and Joe Perry from Aerosmith, Slash, Billy Idol, Steve Vai, Dweezil Zappa, Richie Sambora, and Tommy Lee, and a raunchy “roll on the mat” dance with Jessica Hahn. Also in 1988, Kinison appeared in the music video for the Bon Jovi single “Bad Medicine”.

Kinison appeared in the memorable episode “It’s a Bundyful Life: Part 2″ (1989) of Married with Children, as Al Bundy’s guardian angel, who shows him what life would be like without him born (a take-off of It’s a Wonderful Life).

During one notable Tonight Show performance, he delivered what began as a straightforward version of Elvis Presley’s “Are You Lonesome Tonight?”, which descended into angry ranting during the spoken breakdown, and then segueing back into a straightforward sung ending.

Some of Kinison’s most spontaneous moments came during his frequent appearances on The Howard Stern Show. He made an angry phone call on-air to Bobcat Goldthwait, and he embarrassed comedienne Judy Tenuta to the point of driving her off the show. His most notorious stunt resulted in an on-air feud with Stern: he made an on-air promise to bring to the show members of the band Bon Jovi, with whom Stern was feuding, but they did not show up, nor did Kinison. Stern’s reaction was swift and vindictive, and Kinison eventually apologized, but not before comedian Gilbert Gottfried and Stern savaged an emotionally charged phone call between Stern and Kinison, in which both stars used the words “man” and “dude” so often that the playback was used as a bit on the show.

Stern and Kinison eventually made up and paired on Stern’s pay-per-view special, U.S. Open Sores. In the early-1990s, Stern purchased the movie rights to Kinison’s biography ‘reported[4] that HBO would make Brother Sam with Kinison being played by Dan Fogler.

In 1991, Kinison starred in the Fox Network TV show Charlie Hoover, in which he played the inner voice of the title character, appearing as a 12″ man. The show lasted only seven episodes before being canceled.

On April 10, 1992, six days after he married his girlfriend Malika Souiri, Sam Kinison was killed when his white 1989 Pontiac Turbo Trans Am was struck on U.S. Route 95, four miles (6 km) north of Interstate 40 and several miles west of Needles, California, by a pickup truck driven by a 17-year-old male who had been drinking alcohol.[5][6] His wife survived the accident. Kinison was later found to have traces of cocaine, prescription tranquilizers, and codeine in his bloodstream.[7]

Kinison is interred with family members at the Memorial Park Cemetery in Tulsa, Oklahoma. His grave marker includes an unattributed quote, “In another time and place he would have been called prophet.”[8]

…”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sam_Kinison

Curse of Atuk

Background Articles and Videos

Nat King Cole Part 1

Nat King Cole Part 2

Nat King Cole Nelson Riddle

Background Articles and Videos

All Of My Love – Led Zeppelin (Classic Orchestra)

Stairway to Heaven – Symphonic Led Zeppelin

Led Zeppelin

“…Combining the visceral power and intensity of hard rock with the finesse and delicacy of British folk music, Led Zeppelin redefined rock in the Seventies and for all time. They were as influential in that decade as the Beatles were in the prior one. Their impact extends to classic and alternative rockers alike. Then and now, Led Zeppelin looms larger than life on the rock landscape as a band for the ages with an almost mystical power to evoke primal passions. The combination of Jimmy Page’s powerful, layered guitar work, Robert Plant’s keening, upper-timbre vocals, John Paul Jones’ melodic bass playing and keyboard work, and John Bonham’s thunderous drumming made for a band whose alchemy proved enchanting and irresistible. “The motto of the group is definitely, ‘Ever onward,’” Page said in 1977, perfectly summing up Led Zeppelin’s forward-thinking philosophy.

The group formed in 1968 from the ashes of the Yardbirds, for which guitarist Jimmy Page had served as lead guitarist after Eric Clapton and Jeff Beck. Page’s stint in the Yardbirds (1966-1968) followed a period of years as one of Britain’s most in-demand session guitarists. As a generally anonymous hired gun, Page performed on mid-Sixties British Invasion records by the likes of Donovan (“Hurdy Gurdy Man”), Them (“Gloria”), the Kinks (“You Really Got Me”), the Who (“I Can’t Explain”) and hundreds of others. Page assembled a “New Yardbirds” in order to fulfill contractual obligations that, once served, allowed him to move on to his blues-based dream band, Led Zeppelin. …”

“…Meanwhile, the Led Zeppelin legend endures and grows long after their demise, much like that of the Doors and Elvis Presley. The lingering appeal of Led Zeppelin is perhaps best summed up by guitarist Page: “Passion is the word….It was a very passionate band, and that’s really what comes through.” At the dawn of the new millennium, Led Zeppelin placed second only to the Beatles in terms of record sales, having sold 84 million units. Led Zeppelin IV is the fourth best-selling album in history, having sold more than 22 million copies, and four other albums by the band – Physical Graffiti, Led Zeppelin II, Houses of the Holy and Led Zeppelin – also rank among the all-time top 100 best-sellers. Fittingly, Led Zeppelin is tied with the Beatles (five apiece) for the most albums on that esteemed list – a mark of both bands’ impact. In their ceaseless determination to move music forward, Led Zeppelin carved out an indelible place in rock history. …”

http://www.rockhall.com/inductee/led-zeppelin

Led Zeppelin

“…Led Zeppelin were an English rock band formed in 1968 by Jimmy Page (guitar), Robert Plant (vocals, harmonica), John Paul Jones (bass guitar, keyboards, mandolin), and John Bonham (drums). With their heavy, guitar-driven sound, Led Zeppelin are regularly cited as one of the progenitors of heavy metal^[1] and hard rock music.^[2]^[3] However, the band’s individualistic style drew from many sources and transcends any one genre.^[4] Led Zeppelin did not release the popular songs from their albums as singles in the UK, as they preferred to develop the concept of “album-oriented rock“.^[5]

Close to 30 years after disbanding following Bonham’s death in 1980, the band continues to be held in high regard for their artistic achievements, commercial success, and broad influence. The band has sold over 200 million albums worldwide,^[6] including 111.5 million certified units in the United States^[7] and they have had all of their original studio albums reach the top 10 of the Billboard album chart in the U.S., with six reaching the number one spot.^[8] Led Zeppelin are ranked #1 on VH1‘s 100 Greatest Artists of Hard Rock.^[9] Rolling Stone magazine has described Led Zeppelin as “the heaviest band of all time”, “the biggest band of the ’70s” and “unquestionably one of the most enduring bands in rock history.”^[1]^[10] Similarly, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame describes Led Zeppelin being “as influential in that decade (70s) as the Beatles were in the prior one.”^[11]

In 2007, the surviving members of Led Zeppelin reunited (along with deceased drummer John Bonham’s son, Jason) for the Ahmet Ertegün Tribute Concert at The O₂ Arena in London.

Background Articles and Videos

John Sebastian

John Sebastian–Woodstock-

John Sebastian – Younger Generation

John Sebastian Teaches You Didn’t Have To Be So Nice

The Lovin’ Spoonful

“…The Lovin’ Spoonful is an American pop rock band of the 1960s, named to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2000. When asked about his band, leader John Sebastian said it sounded like a combination of “Mississippi John Hurt and Chuck Berry.”

Formation and early years (1964-1965)

The band had its roots in the folk music scene based in the Greenwich Village section of lower Manhattan during the early 1960s. Sebastian, who grew up in contact with music and musicians, was the son of a much-recorded and highly technically accomplished classical harmonica player. He had reached maturity toward the end of the American folk music revival that spanned from the 1950s to the early ’60s. Sebastian was joined in the Spoonful by guitarist Zal Yanovsky from a bohemian folk group called The Mugwumps, playing local coffee houses and small clubs (two other members, Cass Elliot and Denny Doherty, would later form half of the Mamas & the Papas.)^[1] Drummer-vocalist Joe Butler and bassist Steve Boone rounded out the group.

The group first recorded four tracks for Elektra Records in early 1965, but elected to sign with Kama Sutra Records that same year. The Elektra tracks were released on the 1966 various artists compliation LP What’s Shakin’ after the band’s success on Kama Sutra.

Pop success (1965-1966)

Working with producer Erik Jacobsen, the band released their first single, the Sebastian-penned “Do You Believe in Magic, in August of 1965. Unlike many pop groups of the day (the early Beatles being a notable and influential exception), The Lovin’ Spoonful played all the instruments on their records, with the exceptions of the orchestral instruments heard on their soundtrack album You’re A Big Boy Now and some later singles. Additionally, aside from a few covers (mostly on their first album) they wrote all their own material.^[2]^[3]

“Do You Believe In Magic” became a Top Ten hit in the US, and the band followed it up with a series of hit singles and albums throughout 1965 and 1966, all produced by Jacobsen. The Lovin’ Spoonful became known for such folk-flavored pop hits as “You Didn’t Have to Be So Nice”, and “Daydream”, which went to #2 on the Billboard Hot 100.”^[2] ^[4] Arguably the most successful pop/rock group to have jug band roots, nearly half the songs on their first album were modernized versions of jug band standards. Their popularity revived interest in the form, and many subsequent jug bands cite them as an inspiration. The rest of their albums featured mostly original songs, but their jug band roots showed up again and again, particularly in their big hit “Daydream” and the lesser-known “Money”, which featured a typewriter as percussion. They even had a crossover hit, as “Nashville Cats”, a number eight pop hit, reached the country charts. Other hits were “Did You Ever Have to Make Up Your Mind” (another #2 hit), and “Younger Girl”. Their only song to reach #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart was the harder-edged “Summer in the City”, an indelible part of the soundtrack for the summer of 1966.

Early in their recording and airwave career, Lovin’ Spoonful members termed their approach “good-time music”. In the liner notes of “Do You Believe in Magic”, Zal Yanovsky said he “became a convert to Reddy Kilowatt because it’s loud, and people dance to it, and it’s loud”. Soon-to-be-members of the psychedelic rock band the Grateful Dead were part of the West Coast acoustic folk music scene when The Lovin’ Spoonful came to town while on tour. They credited The Lovin’ Spoonful concert as a fateful experience, after which they decided to leave the folk scene and “go electric.”[citation needed]

At the peak of its success the band was originally selected to perform on the television show that became “The Monkees”,[citation needed] and also gained an added bit of publicity when Butler replaced Jim Rado in the role of Claude for a sold-out four-month run with the Broadway production of the rock musical Hair. The Lovin’ Spoonful’s song “Pow!” was used as the opening theme of Woody Allen’s first feature film, What’s Up, Tiger Lily. John Sebastian composed the music for Francis Ford Coppola’s second film, You’re a Big Boy Now, and The Lovin’ Spoonful played the music for the soundtrack, which included yet another hit, “Darlin’ Be Home Soon”. Both films were released in 1966.

Personnel changes (1967)

In early 1967, the band broke with their producer Erik Jacobsen, turning to Joe Wissert to produce the single “Six O’Clock”, which would hit #18 US.

Yanovsky left the band after the soundtrack album You’re a Big Boy Now was released in May 1967, primarily due to a drug bust in San Francisco, in which he was arrested for possession of marijuana and pressured by police to name his supplier. As a Canadian citizen and fearing he would be barred from re-entering the U.S., he complied.^[5] He would later open a restaurant in Canada, the immensely popular Chez Piggy in Kingston, Ontario. The restaurant is now owned and run by his daughter.^[6]

Yanovsky’s replacement was Jerry Yester, formerly of the Modern Folk Quartet. Around this time, perhaps coincidentally, the band’s sound became more pop-oriented.

This new line up of The Lovin’ Spoonful would record two moderately successful Wissert-produced singles (“She Is Still A Mystery” and “Money”), as well as the 1967 album Everything Playing. Sebastian then left the group by early 1968 to go solo.^[5]

The final years (1968-1969)

The group was now offically a trio, and drummer Butler (who had previously sung lead on a few album tracks) became the group’s new lead vocalist. Up to this point Sebastian had written (or co-written) and sung every one of The Lovin’ Spoonful’s hits; the band now turned to outside writers for their singles, and used a variety of outside producers. The band’s last two Hot 100 entries (“Never Going Back” and “Me About You”) were sung by Butler, and written by professional songsmiths. In addition, “Never Going Back” only featured Yester and Butler’s playing — the other musical parts were played by session musicians, a first for the group.

With commercial success waning, The Lovin’ Spoonful lasted only until early 1969. They split up following the release of their album “Revelation: Revolution ’69″. …”

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Lovin’_Spoonful

John Sebastian

“…John Sebastian (born John Benson Sebastian, Jr. on March 17, 1944, in Greenwich Village, New York City) is an American songwriter and harmonica player. He is best known as a founder of The Lovin’ Spoonful, a band inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2000.^[1] His tie-dyed denim jacket is prominently displayed there.

Sebastian’s father, John Benson Sr., was a noted classical harmonica player and his mother was a radio script writer. He is the godson of Vivian Vance (Ethel Mertz of I Love Lucy). He grew up surrounded by music and musicians, including Burl Ives and Woody Guthrie and hearing such players as Leadbelly and Mississippi John Hurt in his own neighborhood.^[2]^[3]

One of his first recording gigs was playing guitar and harmonica for Billy Faier’s 1964 album The Beast of Billy Faier^[4]. He also recorded with Fred Neil on the Bleecker & MacDougal album in 1965. He came up through the Even Dozen Jug Band and The Mugwumps, which split to form the Lovin’ Spoonful and The Mamas & the Papas. Sebastian was joined by Zal Yanovsky, Steve Boone and Joe Butler in the Spoonful, which was named after a Mississippi John Hurt song. Sebastian also played autoharp on occasion.

The Lovin’ Spoonful became part of the American response to the British Invasion and was noted for such folk-flavored hits as “Jug Band Music,” “Do You Believe in Magic”, “Summer in the City”, “Daydream,” “Nashville Cats,” “Did You Ever Have to Make Up Your Mind,” “Six O’Clock,” “You Didn’t Have to Be So Nice,” and “Younger Girl.”^[1] The band, however, began to implode after a 1967 marijuana bust in San Francisco involving Yanovsky, a Canadian citizen. Facing deportation, he gave up the name of his dealer, which caused a fan backlash and internal strife. Neither John Sebastian nor Joe Butler was involved in the matter; they weren’t even in San Francisco at the time. Yanovsky subsequently left the band and was replaced by Jerry Yester. ^[5]

Sebastian left the Lovin’ Spoonful in 1968 although he and the original band reunited briefly to appear in the film One Trick Pony starring Paul Simon and Blair Brown.^[1] In December of 1968, a musical he composed the music and lyrics for, Jimmy Shine, opened on Broadway with Dustin Hoffman in the title role.^[6]

He embarked on a moderately successful solo career after leaving the Lovin’ Spoonful in 1968. Sebastian was popular among the rock festival circuits. He had a memorable, albeit unscheduled appearance at Woodstock, appearing after Country Joe McDonald’s set, playing songs such as “I Had A Dream,” “Rainbows All Over Your Blues,” “Darling Be Home Soon” and “Younger Generation,” which he dedicated to a newborn baby at the festival. Documentary remarks by festival organizers revealed that Sebastian was under the influence at the time, hence his spontaneity and casual, unplanned set. Sebastian also returned for Woodstock ’94, playing harmonica for Crosby, Stills and Nash. Sebastian released his eponymous LP John B. Sebastian in 1970, which featured him accompanied by various L.A. musicians.

Sebastian played harmonica with The Doors on the song Roadhouse Blues under the pseudonym G. Puglese to avoid problems with his contract, which was featured on Morrison Hotel album.^[7] He also played on “Little Red Rooster” on the live album Alive, She Cried and on seven songs on Live In Detroit.^[8]^[9] He is also credited with playing harmonica on Crosby Stills Nash & Young’s “Déjà Vu” from the album of the same name.

In 1976, Sebastian had a number one single with, “Welcome Back”, the theme song to the Welcome Back, Kotter television show^[2], which found new life decades later when a sample from it became the hook for rapper Mase’s 2004 hit “Welcome Back”. Recently, he has played with John Sebastian and the J-Band, a jug band including Fritz Richmond from the Jim Kweskin Jug Band, Yank Rachell, an original jug-band leader, and Geoff Muldaur.

Several modern musicians cite him as a large influence, including renowned blues harmonica player, Mike Tetrault. As a songwriter, Sebastian’s songs have been covered by Elvis Costello (“The Room Nobody Lives In”), Dolly Parton, Del McCoury, Helen Reddy, Brenda Lee, Johnny Cash, Bobby Darin, Slade, Joe Cocker and Jimmy Buffett (“Stories We Could Tell”). …”

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Sebastian

Lovin’ Spoonful

“…”The good-time sounds of the Lovin’ Spoonful made the quartet a fixture during the golden age of Top Forty radio. Over a period of two years in the mid-Sixties, the New York-based group charted a string of ten Top Forty hits, seven of which placed inside the Top Ten at a time when the competition included Motown, the Beatles and countless British Invasion bands. The Lovin’ Spoonful’s tuneful, poppy singles have stood the test of time and at least one of them, “Do You Believe in Magic,” remains a defining rock and roll anthem.

The four original members–singer/guitarist John Sebastian, guitarist Zal Yanovsky, bassist Steve Boone and drummer Joe Butler–came together in Greenwich Village. The folk-music scene was in full swing, but the electrified sounds of the Beatles and the other pop bands of the day had also caught their attention. Retaining their folkie roots while exploring new directions, the Lovin’ Spoonful adapted folk-style fingerpicking to electric instruments. Their folk-rock hybrid was particularly evident in the unusual combination of autoharp and electric guitar on “Do You Believe in Magic.” What really set the Lovin’ Spoonful apart from the mid-Sixties pack of one-hit wonders was their daring eclecticism. No two singles were written in the same style. Between 1965 and 1968, they tackled jug-band music (“Good Time Music”), ragtime (“Daydream”), country (“Nashville Cats”), folk-pop (“You Didn’t Have to Be So Nice”), hard rock (“Summer in the City”) and orchestrated pop (“She Is Still a Mystery”). …”

http://www.rockhall.com/inductee/lovin-spoonful

Lovin Spoonful

“…The core of The Lovin’ Spoonful were John Sebastian, who was born on March 17th, 1944 in New York, and Zalman Yanovsky, who was born on 19th December 1944 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. They first met as guests invited to Cass Elliot’s house to watch the Beatles’ U.S. TV debut on the Ed Sullivan Show in February 1964. They played guitar together through the night and discussed the possibility of forming a rock group. At the time, Sebastian was a Greenwich Village folkie and sometime member of the Even Dozen Jug Band and Yanovsky was a guitarist with the Nova Scotia folk group, The Halifax Three. When they disbanded in June 1964, Yanovsky was briefly involved in the Mugwumps (with Denny Doherty, Cass Elliot and James Hendricks). This was a short-lived and unsuccessful venture, which soon disbanded, and, of course Doherty and Elliot went on to form one half of The Mamas and The Papas

With Yanovsky at loose ends again, the seeds for a rock group with John Sebastian were sewn in January 1965. Joe Butler (drums) and Steve Boone (bass) were recruited to fill out the ensemble. They decided on the name, “Lovin’ Spoonful”, which was taken from a phrase in Mississippi John Hurt’s song, “Coffee Blues”.

It wasn’t long until the band had won a residency at the Night Owl in Greenwich Village and their producer Erik Jacobsen got them a recording deal with the newly formed Kama Sutra Records. Playing their own brand of folk-rock/good-time music, they enjoyed immediate commercial success. Their first 45, “Do You Believe In Magic”, reached number 9 in the U.S. and their debut album of the same name peaked at number 32. The follow-up, “You Didn’t Have To Be So Nice” peaked at number 10 and “Daydream”, their lazy, laid back celebration of love on a summer’s day, was even bigger, reaching number 2 in the U.S. and UK, becoming a million seller. Their second album reached number 10 in the U.S. and number 8 in the UK. They also had four cuts included on the Elektra compilation “What’s Shakin’”, including one called “Good Time Music”.

Their next 45, “Did You Ever Have To Make Up Your Mind?” peaked at number 2, but this was soon surpassed by what was arguably their finest moment, “Summer ln The City”. Notable for its atmospheric streetnoise sound effects, the record topped the U.S. charts for three weeks and made number 8 in the UK. It became their second million seller.

The Lovin’ Spoonful went on to appear on the soundtrack of the cult movie “What’s Up Tiger Lily” (No. 126 in the US) and their third album, “Hums Of The Lovin’ Spoonful”, peaked at number 14. “Nashville Cats” would be their last U.S. Top Ten hit, peaking at number 8, while in the UK, it climbed to number 26. They followed this with the heavily orchestrated “Darlin’ Be Home Soon”, which reached number 15 in the U.S. and number 44 in the UK. It would prove to be their last UK Hit. In March 1967, a greatest hits LP called “The Best Of The Lovin’ Spoonful” climbed to number 3 on the U.S. album charts. Their follow-up, “You’re A Big Boy Now”, their second soundtrack album, was their first taste of failure, peaking at No. 160.

http://www.classicbands.com/spoonful.html

Background Articles and Videos

Don McLean – ‘Vincent’.

Don McLean – Mountains of Mourne / And I Love You So

Don McLean has a cup of tea

Don McLean on BBC Breakfast

Don McLean on TV-am – 1984

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8zwza96PGx8

Don McLean – What will the world be like

Don McLean Interview

Background Artilces and Videos

Little Richard

“…Richard Wayne Penniman (born December 5, 1932), known by the stage name Little Richard, is an American singer, songwriter, pianist and recording artist, considered key in the transition from rhythm and blues to rock and roll in the 1950s. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame web site entry on Richard states that:

“More than any other performer – save, perhaps, Elvis Presley, Little Richard blew the lid off the Fifties, laying the foundation for rock and roll with his explosive music and charismatic persona. On record, he made spine-tingling rock and roll. His frantically charged piano playing and raspy, shouted vocals on such classics as “Tutti Frutti”, “Long Tall Sally” and “Good Golly, Miss Molly” defined the dynamic sound of rock and roll.”^[1]

Richard began his recording career in 1951 by imitating the gospel-influenced style of late-1940s jump blues artist Billy Wright,^[2] but did not achieve commercial success until 1955, when, under the guidance of Robert “Bumps” Blackwell, he began recording in a style he had been performing onstage for years,^[3] featuring varied rhythm, a heavy backbeat, funky saxophone grooves, over-the-top Gospel-style singing, moans, screams, and other emotive inflections, accompanied by a combination of boogie-woogie and rhythm and blues music. This new music,^[4] which included an original injection of funk into the rock and roll beat,^[1] inspired James Brown,^[5] Elvis Presley,^[6] and generations of other rhythm & blues, rock and soul music artists.^[7] He was subsequently among the seven initial inductees into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1986 and was one of only four of these honorees (along with Ray Charles, James Brown, and Fats Domino) to also receive the Rhythm and Blues Foundation’s Pioneer Lifetime Achievement Award.

In October 1957, while at the height of stardom, Penniman abruptly quit rock and roll music and became a born-again Christian.^[8] In January 1958, he enrolled in and attended Bible college^[9] to become a preacher and evangelist and began recording and performing only gospel music for a number of years. He then moved back and forth from rock and roll to the ministry, until he was able to reconcile the two roles in later life.^[10]

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Walk Off The Earth

Somebody That I Used to Know – Walk off the Earth (Gotye – Cover)

BIG NEWS from Walk off the Earth!!!

CHEERS (Drink To That) by Gianni and Sarah [Walk off the Earth]

Reckoning Song (One Day) – Walk off the Earth

The Edge of Glory – [Walk off the Earth + Roomie] Lady Gaga Cover

Les Champs-Élysées – Walk off the Earth

Karma Police – Gianni and Sarah (Radiohead Loop Cover)

Love Sponge – Gianni and Sarah [Walk off the Earth]

Some Nights – Walk off the Earth + Julia Nunes

Home – Walk off the Earth + Street Pharmacy

Party Rock Anthem – [Walk off the Earth] + All About Maggie

From Me To You – Walk off the Earth (The Beatles)

Yesterday – [Walk off the Earth] Beatles Cover

BLACKBIRD – The Beatles (Cover) by Gianni and Myles

Magic – [Walk off the Earth] B.o.B. Cover

Man Down – [Walk off the Earth] Rihanna Cover

Can’t Take My Eyes Off You – Walk off the Earth (Feat. Selah Sue)

Little Boxes – Walk off the Earth

I Knew You Were Trouble – WALK OFF THE EARTH Feat. KRNFX

Gang of Rhythm – Walk off the Earth (Official Video)

RED HANDS – Walk off the Earth

Red Hands – Walk off the Earth Live on German Talk Show

Someone Like You – [Walk off the Earth] – Adele Cover

Summer Vibe – Walk off the Earth (Original)

Burn One Down – Gianni and Sarah

Corner of Queen – Walk off the Earth (Original)

Payphone – Walk off the Earth (Explicit Lyrics)

Fairytale of New York – Gianni and Sarah (Walk off the Earth)

Love The Way You Lie – [Walk off the Earth] Eminem Cover

Grenade – [Walk off the Earth] Bruno Mars Cover

Ice Cream – [Walk off the Earth]

Walk Off The Earth – Gang of Rhythm (Bing Lounge)

Walk Off The Earth – Revolutions In My Head (hometown show live @ SOM ’12)

Walk Off The Earth Live NY FULL CONCERT R.E.V.O. Tour / Town Ballroom / 12-07-12 Watch in HD!

Career

Members

Personal life

Popularity

Awards and nominations

Discography

Albums

Singles

Production

References

External links

Background Articles and Videos

Philip DeFranco interviews Walk off the Earth

Walk Off The Earth’s Interview in Singapore – Imagine TV Network

WALK OFF THE EARTH – INTERVIEW (WTKGTS#100)

Gianni and Sarah – Interviewed at Lollapalooza (The Weekly Feed)

BPC Talks to Walk Off the Earth

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