Happy Birthday ENYA (video)

#enya #rockfile

Enya (born Eithne Ní Bhraonáin; 17 May 1961) is an Irish singer, instrumentalist, and songwriter.

Enya began her musical career in 1980, when she briefly joined her family band Clannad before leaving to perform solo. She gained wider recognition for her music in the 1986 BBC series The Celts. Shortly afterwards, her 1988 album Watermark propelled her to further international fame and she became known for her distinctive sound, characterised by voice-layering, folk melodies, synthesised backdrops and ethereal reverberations. She has performed in 10 languages.

Enya continued to enjoy steady success during the 1990s and 2000s; her 2000 album A Day Without Rain sold 15 million copies, and became the top selling new age album of the 2000s in the US, according to Nielsen SoundScan. She received the world's best-selling female award at the 2001 World Music Awards. She is Ireland's best-selling solo musician. Her record sales stand at more than 75 million worldwide, including over 26.5 million in album sales in the US, making her one of the world's best-selling artists of all time. Her work has earned her four Grammy Awards and an Academy Award nomination.

source: wikipedia

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Happy Birthday BRIAN ENO (video)

#brianeno #rockfile

Brian Peter George St. John le Baptiste de la Salle Eno, RDI (born 15 May 1948 and originally christened Brian Peter George Eno), professionally known as Brian Eno or simply Eno, is an English musician, composer, record producer, singer, and visual artist, known as one of the principal innovators of ambient music.

Eno was a student of Roy Ascott on his Groundcourse at Ipswich Civic College. He then studied at Colchester Institute art school in Essex, England, taking inspiration from minimalist painting. During his time on the art course at the Institute, he also gained experience in playing and making music through teaching sessions held in the adjacent music school. He joined the band Roxy Music as synthesiser player in the early 1970s. Roxy Music's success in the glam rock scene came quickly, but Eno soon became tired of touring and of conflicts with lead singer Bryan Ferry.

Eno's solo music has explored more experimental musical styles and ambient music. It has also been immensely influential, pioneering ambient and generative music, innovating production techniques, and emphasising "theory over practice". He also introduced the concept of chance music to popular audiences, partially through collaborations with other musicians. Eno has also worked as an influential music and album producer. By the end of the 1970s, Eno had worked with Robert Fripp on the LPs No Pussyfooting and Evening Star, David Bowie on the seminal "Berlin Trilogy" and helped popularise the American band Devo and the punk-influenced "No Wave" genre. He produced and performed on three albums by Talking Heads, including Remain in Light (1980), and produced seven albums for U2, including The Joshua Tree (1987). Eno has also worked on records by James, Laurie Anderson, Coldplay, Paul Simon, Grace Jones, James Blake and Slowdive, among others.

Eno pursues multimedia ventures in parallel to his music career, including art installations, a regular column on society and innovation in Prospect magazine, and "Oblique Strategies" (written with Peter Schmidt), a deck of cards in which cryptic remarks or random insights are intended to resolve dilemmas. Eno continues to collaborate with other musicians, produce records, release his own music, and write.

source: wikipedia

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Happy Birthday STEVIE WONDER (video)

#steviewonder #rockfile

Stevland Hardaway Morris (born May 13, 1950, as Stevland Hardaway Judkins), known by his stage name Stevie Wonder, is an American musician, singer, songwriter, record producer, and multi-instrumentalist. A child prodigy, he became one of the most creative and loved musical performers of the late 20th century. Wonder signed with Motown's Tamla label at the age of 11 and has continued to perform and record for Motown as of the early 2010s. He has been blind since shortly after birth.

Among Wonder's works are singles such as "Superstition", "Sir Duke", "You Are the Sunshine of My Life" and "I Just Called to Say I Love You"; and albums such as Talking Book, Innervisions and Songs in the Key of Life. He has recorded more than 30 U.S. top ten hits and received 25 Grammy Awards, the most ever awarded to a male solo artist, and has sold over 100 million albums and singles, making him one of the top 60 best-selling music artists. Wonder is also noted for his work as an activist for political causes, including his 1980 campaign to make Martin Luther King, Jr.'s birthday a holiday in the United States. In 2009, Wonder was named a United Nations Messenger of Peace. In 2013, Billboard magazine released a list of the Hot 100 All-Time Top Artists to celebrate the U.S. singles chart's 55th anniversary, with Wonder at number six.

source: wikipedia

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Happy Birthday IAN MCCULLOCH (video)

#ianmcculloch #echoandthebunnymen #rockfile

Ian Stephen McCulloch (born 5 May 1959) is an English musician and singer-songwriter, born in Liverpool and best known as the frontman for the rock group Echo & the Bunnymen.

In October 1978 McCulloch founded Echo & the Bunnymen with Will Sergeant (guitar), Les Pattinson (bass), and a drum machine (allegedly named Echo), making their live début at Eric's in November that year. In October 1979 the Bunnymen exchanged the drum machine for Pete de Freitas on drums. With their line up solidified, the Bunnymen played in the late 1970s and early 1980s, culminating with the release of Ocean Rain in 1984. Shortly before the album was released, McCulloch described "Ocean Rain" as "the greatest album ever made". McCulloch later said: "When I sing 'The Killing Moon' I know there isn't a band in the world who's got a song anywhere near that."

In 1988, McCulloch left the group to pursue a solo career under the impression the Bunnymen would be laid to rest, if only temporarily. When the remaining Bunnymen continued using the name with new singer Noel Burke, the split became permanent with McCulloch referring to the band as "Echo & the Bogusmen".

In 1997, Echo & the Bunnymen reformed and released the album Evergreen to positive reviews and chart success. Evergreen made the Top 10 of the UK Albums Chart and the single Nothing Lasts Forever reached No. 8 on the UK Singles Chart. The reformed Bunnymen have since released four further albums, the most recent being The Fountain which was released in late 2009.

source: wikipedia

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Remembering J.R.R. TOLKIEN on his birthday (links)

 

John Ronald Reuel Tolkien, CBE (3 January 1892 – 2 September 1973) was an English writer, poet, philologist, and university professor, best known as the author of the classic high fantasy works The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, and The Silmarillion.

One of the most influential writers ever, I still have my complete Lord Of The Rings/Hobbit book set from 35+ years ago.  Do yourself a favor and read about this fascinating man: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/J._R._R._Tolkien

source: wikipedia

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