Horizon (The Carpenters album)
Horizon is the sixth studio album by American musical duo Carpenters. It was recorded at A&M Studios; the Carpenters spent many hours experimenting with different sounds and effects. After five consecutive albums peaking inside the US top five, Horizon broke this run by reaching no. 13. The album has been certified Platinum by the RIAA for shipments of 1 million copies, it was successful in the United Kingdom and Japan, topping the charts and becoming one of the best-selling albums of 1975 in those countries. Horizon reached no. 3 in New Zealand, no. 4 in Canada and no. 5 in Norway. The album's first single, "Please Mr. Postman", became the album's biggest hit single and the Carpenters' biggest hit single worldwide, it reached no. 1 in the United States, New Zealand and South Africa, as well as reaching no. 2 in the UK and Ireland. This tune features Tony Peluso on guitar solo; the following single, "Only Yesterday", was a success, reaching no. 2 in Canada and France, no. 4 in the US, no. 5 in Ireland, no. 7 in the UK, no. 10 in New Zealand and was certified gold in Japan.
The song won the prestigious Grand Prix award in Japan. A third single, "Solitaire", reached no. 17 in the US and the top 40 in several other countries around the world. According to Richard, Karen never liked the song; the Carpenters' version of this song leaves out lyrics included in the original. "Desperado" was recorded by The Eagles in 1973 for the album of the same name. Several others have recorded this song including Linda Ronstadt, Bonnie Raitt, Kenny Rogers. Due to the fact that the song was well known, A&M decided not to release the song as a single. Another cover, "I Can Dream, Can't I" is an interpretation of the 1949 Andrews Sisters hit, was written in 1937. Karen and Richard hired Billy May, who has worked with artists such as Frank Sinatra and Nat King Cole, to help orchestrate the song; the song features the Billy May Orchestra. John Bahler is in the chorus of background singers. At the time of the release of Horizon, lyricist John Bettis claimed " Goodbye and I Love You" to be his and Richard's best collaboration.
Rolling Stone reviewer Stephen Holden acclaimed Horizon, calling it "the Carpenters' most musically sophisticated album to date." However, AllMusic gave the album a less enthusiastic review and cited flaws despite a good production. Karen Carpenter – vocals, drums Richard Carpenter – keyboards, vocals Joe Osborn – bass guitar Jim Gordon – drums Tony Peluso – guitar Bob Messenger – tenor saxophone Doug Strawn – baritone saxophone Earl Dumler – oboe, English horn Thad Maxwell, Red Rhodes – pedal steel guitar Tommy Morgan – harmonica Gayle Levant – harpAlthough percussion is audible on some of the songs, notably "Only Yesterday", it is not specified who the percussionist is, but this would change with the experimental album Passage, released in 1977. Engineers: Roger Young, Ray Gerhardt Assistant engineer: Dave Iveland Photography: Ed Caraeff Arranged and conducted by Richard Carpenter "I Can Dream, Can't I?" Featured guest performances by: Bass: Joe Mondragon Drums: Alvin Stoller Keyboards: Pete Jolly Vibes: Frank Flynn Guitar: Bob Bain "Please Mr. Postman" US 7" single – A&M 1646"Please Mr. Postman" "This Masquerade""Only Yesterday" US 7" single – A&M 1677"Only Yesterday" "Happy""Solitaire" US 7" single – A&M 1721"Solitaire" "Love Me for What I Am"
Diana Krall
Diana Jean Krall, OC, OBC is a Canadian jazz pianist and singer, known for her contralto vocals. She has sold more than 6 million albums over 15 million albums worldwide. On December 11, 2009, Billboard magazine named her the second Jazz Artist of the Decade, establishing her as one of the best-selling artists of her time. Krall is the only jazz singer to have had eight albums debuting at the top of the Billboard Jazz Albums. To date, she has won three Grammy Awards and eight Juno Awards, she has earned nine gold, three platinum, seven multi-platinum albums. Krall was born on November 16, 1964, in Nanaimo, British Columbia, the daughter of Adella A. an elementary school teacher, Stephen James "Jim" Krall, an accountant. Krall's only sibling, Michelle, is a former member of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. Krall's father played piano at home and her mother sang in a community choir. Krall began studying piano herself at the age of four, took exams through The Royal Conservatory of Music. In high school she was a member of a student jazz group.
Krall won a scholarship to attend the Berklee College of Music in Boston, where she studied from 1981 to 1983, before going to Los Angeles to play jazz. She returned to Canada to release her first album in 1993. Krall's mother died of multiple myeloma in 2002, within months of the deaths of Krall's mentors Ray Brown and Rosemary Clooney. Krall and British musician Elvis Costello were married on December 6, 2003, at Elton John's estate outside London, their twin sons, Dexter Henry Lorcan and Frank Harlan James, were born December 6, 2006, in New York City. In 1993, Krall released her first album, Stepping Out, which she recorded with John Clayton and Jeff Hamilton, it caught the attention of producer Tommy LiPuma, who produced her second album, Only Trust Your Heart. Her third album, All for You: A Dedication to the Nat King Cole Trio, was nominated for a Grammy and continued for 70 weeks in the Billboard jazz charts. Love Scenes became a hit record with the trio of Krall, Russell Malone and Christian McBride.
In August 2000, Krall paired with Tony Bennett for a 20-city tour. They paired again for a song on the TV series Spectacle: Elvis Costello with... Orchestral arrangements by Johnny Mandel provided the background for the album When I Look In Your Eyes; the band mix was kept, following arrangements on The Look of Love created by Claus Ogerman. The title track from the album, a cover of the Casino Royale standard popularized in the late 1960s by Dusty Springfield and Sérgio Mendes, reached number 22 on the adult contemporary chart. In September 2001, Krall began a world tour, her concert at the Paris Olympia was recorded and released as her first live record, Diana Krall – Live in Paris. The album included covers of Billy Joel's "Just The Way You Are" and Joni Mitchell's "A Case Of You"; the 2001 movie "The Score", starring Robert De Niro and Marlon Brando, featured a recording of Krall's entitled: "I'll Make It Up As I Go." This song was composed by fellow Canadian, David Foster. After marrying Costello, Krall worked with him as a lyricist and began to compose her own songs, resulting in the album The Girl in the Other Room.
The album, released in April 2004 rose to the top five in the United Kingdom and made the Australian top 40 album charts. She joined Ray Charles on his Genius Loves Company album in 2004 for the song "You Don't Know Me." In late May 2007, Krall was featured in a Lexus ad campaign. That year she sang "Dream a Little Dream of Me" with piano accompaniment by pianist Hank Jones. Quiet Nights was released on March 31, 2009. Krall produced Barbra Streisand's album Love Is the Answer, released on September 29, 2009. In 2011, Krall went on a private retreat to Sri Lanka. In September 2012, she accompanied Paul McCartney at Capitol Studios in a live performance of his album Kisses on the Bottom, shown live on the internet. On September 13, 2012, Krall performed "Fly Me to the Moon" at astronaut Neil Armstrong's memorial service in Washington, D. C. Glad Rag Doll was released on October 2, 2012. Wallflower is her 12th studio album, released on February 2015 by Verve Records; the album was produced by David Foster.
Among the composers Krall and Foster tackled were the Eagles, Elton John and Bernie Taupin, 10cc, Neil Finn, Gilbert O'Sullivan. The title track is from Bob Dylan's "Bootleg Series." And Paul McCartney gave her his blessing to record a unreleased original he'd written for his own jazz-flavored Kisses on the Bottom. On May 5, 2017, Krall released her thirteenth album, through Verve Records; the album was produced by Tommy LiPuma. The album won a Juno Award as vocal jazz album of the year in 2018. On September 14, 2018, a joint album between Krall and Tony Bennett, Love Is Here to Stay, was released; the album features the song "Fascinating Rhythm," recorded by Bennett in 1949, which earned him a Guinness World Record for the "longest time between the release of an original recording and a re-recording of the same single by the same artist" — 68 years and 342 days. Officer of the Order of Canada - 2005 Member of the Order of British Columbia - 2000 Honorary Ph. D. from the University of Victoria.
Induction into Canada's Walk of Fame. - 2004 Nanaimo Harbourfront Plaza was renamed Diana Krall Plaza. - 2008 Honorary B
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is an American entertainment media brand owned by the Billboard-Hollywood Reporter Media Group, a division of Eldridge Industries. It publishes pieces involving news, opinion, reviews and style, is known for its music charts, including the Hot 100 and Billboard 200, tracking the most popular songs and albums in different genres, it hosts events, owns a publishing firm, operates several TV shows. Billboard was founded in 1894 by William Donaldson and James Hennegan as a trade publication for bill posters. Donaldson acquired Hennegen's interest in 1900 for $500. In the early years of the 20th century, it covered the entertainment industry, such as circuses and burlesque shows, created a mail service for travelling entertainers. Billboard began focusing more on the music industry as the jukebox and radio became commonplace. Many topics it covered were spun-off into different magazines, including Amusement Business in 1961 to cover outdoor entertainment, so that it could focus on music.
After Donaldson died in 1925, Billboard was passed down to his children and Hennegan's children, until it was sold to private investors in 1985, has since been owned by various parties. The first issue of Billboard was published in Cincinnati, Ohio by William Donaldson and James Hennegan on November 1, 1894, it covered the advertising and bill posting industry, was known as Billboard Advertising. At the time, billboards and paper advertisements placed in public spaces were the primary means of advertising. Donaldson handled editorial and advertising, while Hennegan, who owned Hennegan Printing Co. managed magazine production. The first issues were just eight pages long; the paper had columns like "The Bill Room Gossip" and "The Indefatigable and Tireless Industry of the Bill Poster". A department for agricultural fairs was established in 1896; the title was changed to The Billboard in 1897. After a brief departure over editorial differences, Donaldson purchased Hennegan's interest in the business in 1900 for $500 to save it from bankruptcy.
That May, Donaldson changed it from a monthly to a weekly paper with a greater emphasis on breaking news. He improved editorial quality and opened new offices in New York, San Francisco and Paris, re-focused the magazine on outdoor entertainment such as fairs, circuses and burlesque shows. A section devoted to circuses was introduced in 1900, followed by more prominent coverage of outdoor events in 1901. Billboard covered topics including regulation, a lack of professionalism and new shows, it had a "stage gossip" column covering the private lives of entertainers, a "tent show" section covering traveling shows, a sub-section called "Freaks to order". According to The Seattle Times, Donaldson published news articles "attacking censorship, praising productions exhibiting'good taste' and fighting yellow journalism"; as railroads became more developed, Billboard set up a mail forwarding system for traveling entertainers. The location of an entertainer was tracked in the paper's Routes Ahead column Billboard would receive mail on the star's behalf and publish a notice in its "Letter-Box" column that it has mail for them.
This service was first introduced in 1904, became one of Billboard's largest sources of profit and celebrity connections. By 1914, there were 42,000 people using the service, it was used as the official address of traveling entertainers for draft letters during World War I. In the 1960s, when it was discontinued, Billboard was still processing 1,500 letters per week. In 1920, Donaldson made a controversial move by hiring African-American journalist James Albert Jackson to write a weekly column devoted to African-American performers. According to The Business of Culture: Strategic Perspectives on Entertainment and Media, the column identified discrimination against black performers and helped validate their careers. Jackson was the first black critic at a national magazine with a predominantly white audience. According to his grandson, Donaldson established a policy against identifying performers by their race. Donaldson died in 1925. Billboard's editorial changed focus as technology in recording and playback developed, covering "marvels of modern technology" such as the phonograph, record players, wireless radios.
It began covering coin-operated entertainment machines in 1899, created a dedicated section for them called "Amusement Machines" in March 1932. Billboard began covering the motion picture industry in 1907, but ended up focusing on music due to competition from Variety, it created a radio broadcasting station in the 1920s. The jukebox industry continued to grow through the Great Depression, was advertised in Billboard, which led to more editorial focus on music; the proliferation of the phonograph and radio contributed to its growing music emphasis. Billboard published the first music hit parade on January 4, 1936, introduced a "Record Buying Guide" in January 1939. In 1940, it introduced "Chart Line", which tracked the best-selling records, was followed by a chart for jukebox records in 1944 called Music Box Machine charts. By the 1940s, Billboard was more of a music industry specialist publication; the number of charts it published grew after World War II, due to a growing variety of music interests and genres.
It had eight charts by 1987, covering different genres and formats, 28 charts by 1994. By 1943, Billboard had about 100 employees; the magazine's offices moved to Brighton, Ohio in 1946 to New York City in 1948. A five-column tabloid format was adopted in November 1950 and coated paper was first used in Billboard's print issues in January 1963, allowing for photojournalis
London Philharmonic Orchestra
The London Philharmonic Orchestra is one of five permanent symphony orchestras based in London. It was founded by the conductors Sir Thomas Beecham and Malcolm Sargent in 1932 as a rival to the existing London Symphony and BBC Symphony Orchestras; the founders' ambition was to build an orchestra the equal of any American rival. Between 1932 and the Second World War the LPO was judged to have succeeded in this regard. After the outbreak of war, the orchestra's private backers withdrew and the players reconstituted the LPO as a self-governing cooperative. In the post-war years, the orchestra faced challenges from two new rivals. By the 1960s the LPO had regained its earlier standards, in 1964 it secured a valuable engagement to play in the Glyndebourne Festival opera house during the summer months. In 1993 it was appointed resident orchestra of the Royal Festival Hall on the south bank of the Thames, one of London's major concert venues. Since 1995 the residency has been jointly held with the Philharmonia.
In addition to its work at the Festival Hall and Glyndebourne, the LPO performs at the Congress Theatre and the Brighton Dome, tours nationally and internationally. Since Beecham, the orchestra has had ten principal conductors, including Sir Adrian Boult, Bernard Haitink, Sir Georg Solti, Klaus Tennstedt and Vladimir Jurowski; the orchestra has been active in recording studios since its earliest days, has played on hundreds of sets made by EMI, Decca and other companies. Since 2005 the LPO has had its own record label, issuing live recordings of concerts; the orchestra has played on numerous film soundtracks, including Lawrence of Arabia and the Lord of the Rings trilogy. In the 1920s the London Symphony Orchestra was the city's best-known concert and recording orchestra. Others were the Royal Albert Hall Orchestra, the orchestra of the Royal Philharmonic Society, the BBC's Wireless Symphony Orchestra and Sir Henry Wood's Queen's Hall Orchestra. All except the last of these were ad hoc ensembles, with little continuity of personnel, none approached the excellence of the best continental and American orchestras.
This became obvious in 1927 when the Berlin Philharmonic, under Wilhelm Furtwängler, gave two concerts at the Queen's Hall. The chief music critic of The Times commented, "the British public... was electrified when it heard the disciplined precision of the Berlin Philharmonic... This was how an orchestra could, therefore, ought to sound". After the Berliners, London heard a succession of major foreign orchestras, including the Amsterdam Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra under Willem Mengelberg and the Philharmonic-Symphony Orchestra of New York under Arturo Toscanini. Among those determined that London should have a permanent orchestra of similar excellence were Sir John Reith, director-general of the British Broadcasting Corporation, the conductor Sir Thomas Beecham. In 1928 they opened discussions about jointly setting up such an ensemble, but after 18 months of negotiations it became clear that the corporation and the conductor had irreconcilable priorities. Beecham demanded more personal control of the orchestra and repertoire than the BBC was willing to concede, his priorities were the opera house and the concert hall rather than the broadcasting studio.
The BBC went ahead without him, under its director of music, Adrian Boult, launched the BBC Symphony Orchestra in October 1930, to immense acclaim. In 1931 Beecham was approached by the rising young conductor Malcolm Sargent with a proposal to set up a permanent, salaried orchestra with a subsidy guaranteed by Sargent's patrons, the Courtauld family. Sargent and Beecham envisaged a reshuffled version of the LSO, but the orchestra, a self-governing body, balked at weeding out and replacing underperforming players. In 1932 Beecham agreed with Sargent to set up a new orchestra from scratch; the BBC having attracted a large number of the finest musicians from other orchestras, many in the musical world doubted that Beecham could find enough good players. He was fortunate in the timing of the enterprise: the depressed economy had reduced the number of freelance dates available to orchestral players. Moreover, Beecham himself was a strong attraction to many musicians: he commented, "I always get the players.
Among other considerations, they are so good they refuse to play under anybody but me." In a study of the foundation of the LPO, David Patmore writes, "The combination of steady work higher than usual rates, variety of performance and Beecham's own magnetic personality would make such an offering irresistible to many orchestral musicians."Beecham and Sargent had financial backing from leading figures in commerce, including Samuel Courtauld, Robert Mayer and Baron Frédéric d'Erlanger, secured profitable contracts to record for Columbia and play for the Royal Philharmonic Society, the Royal Choral Society, the Courtauld-Sargent Concerts, Mayer's concerts for children, the international opera season at Covent Garden. During his earlier negotiations with the BBC Beecham had proposed the title "London Philharmonic Orchestra", now adopted for the new ensemble. With the aid of the impresario Harold Holt and other influential and informed contacts he recruited 106 players, they included a few young musicians straight from music college, many established players from provincial orchestras, 17 of the LSO's leading members.
During the early years, the orchestra was led by Paul Beard and David McCallum, included leading players such as James Bradshaw, Gwydion
Record producer
A record producer or music producer oversees and manages the sound recording and production of a band or performer's music, which may range from recording one song to recording a lengthy concept album. A producer has varying roles during the recording process, they may gather musical ideas for the project, collaborate with the artists to select cover tunes or original songs by the artist/group, work with artists and help them to improve their songs, lyrics or arrangements. A producer may also: Select session musicians to play rhythm section accompaniment parts or solos Co-write Propose changes to the song arrangements Coach the singers and musicians in the studioThe producer supervises the entire process from preproduction, through to the sound recording and mixing stages, and, in some cases, all the way to the audio mastering stage; the producer may perform these roles themselves, or help select the engineer, provide suggestions to the engineer. The producer may pay session musicians and engineers and ensure that the entire project is completed within the record label's budget.
A record producer or music producer has a broad role in overseeing and managing the recording and production of a band or performer's music. A producer has many roles that may include, but are not limited to, gathering ideas for the project, composing the music for the project, selecting songs or session musicians, proposing changes to the song arrangements, coaching the artist and musicians in the studio, controlling the recording sessions, supervising the entire process through audio mixing and, in some cases, to the audio mastering stage. Producers often take on a wider entrepreneurial role, with responsibility for the budget, schedules and negotiations. Writer Chris Deville explains it, "Sometimes a producer functions like a creative consultant — someone who helps a band achieve a certain aesthetic, or who comes up with the perfect violin part to complement the vocal melody, or who insists that a chorus should be a bridge. Other times a producer will build a complete piece of music from the ground up and present the finished product to a vocalist, like Metro Boomin supplying Future with readymade beats or Jack Antonoff letting Taylor Swift add lyrics and melody to an otherwise-finished “Out Of The Woods.”The artist of an album may not be a record producer or music producer for his/her album.
While both contribute creatively, the official credit of "record producer" may depend on the record contract. Christina Aguilera, for example, did not receive record producer credits until many albums into her career. In the 2010s, the producer role is sometimes divided among up to three different individuals: executive producer, vocal producer and music producer. An executive producer oversees project finances, a vocal producers oversees the vocal production, a music producer oversees the creative process of recording and mixings; the music producer is often a competent arranger, musician or songwriter who can bring fresh ideas to a project. As well as making any songwriting and arrangement adjustments, the producer selects and/or collaborates with the mixing engineer, who takes the raw recorded tracks and edits and modifies them with hardware and software tools to create a stereo or surround sound "mix" of all the individual voices sounds and instruments, in turn given further adjustment by a mastering engineer for the various distribution media.
The producer oversees the recording engineer who concentrates on the technical aspects of recording. Noted producer Phil Ek described his role as "the person who creatively guides or directs the process of making a record", like a director would a movie. Indeed, in Bollywood music, the designation is music director; the music producer's job is to create and mold a piece of music. The scope of responsibility may be one or two songs or an artist's entire album – in which case the producer will develop an overall vision for the album and how the various songs may interrelate. At the beginning of record industry, the producer role was technically limited to record, in one shot, artists performing live; the immediate predecessors to record producers were the artists and repertoire executives of the late 1920s and 1930s who oversaw the "pop" product and led session orchestras. That was the case of Ben Selvin at Columbia Records, Nathaniel Shilkret at Victor Records and Bob Haring at Brunswick Records.
By the end of the 1930s, the first professional recording studios not owned by the major companies were established separating the roles of A&R man and producer, although it wouldn't be until the late 1940s when the term "producer" became used in the industry. The role of producers changed progressively over the 1960s due to technology; the development of multitrack recording caused a major change in the recording process. Before multitracking, all the elements of a song had to be performed simultaneously. All of these singers and musicians had to be assembled in a large studio where the performance was recorded. With multitrack recording, the "bed tracks" (rhythm section accompaniment parts such as the bassline and rhythm guitar could be recorded first, the vocals and solos could be added using as many "takes" as necessary, it was no longer necessary to get all the players in the studio at the same time. A pop band could record their backing tracks one week, a horn section could be brought in a week to add horn shots and punches, a string section could be brought in a week after that.
Multitrack recording had another pro
Bernie Leadon
Bernard Mathew Leadon III is an American musician and founding member of the Eagles. Prior to the Eagles, he was a member of three pioneering and influential country rock bands: Hearts & Flowers, Dillard & Clark, the Flying Burrito Brothers, he is a multi-instrumentalist coming from a bluegrass background. He introduced elements of this music to a mainstream audience during his tenure with the Eagles. Leadon's music career since leaving the Eagles has been low-key, resulting in two solo albums with a gap of 27 years in between. Leadon has appeared on many other artists' records as a session musician. Leadon was born in Minneapolis, one of ten siblings, to Bernard Leadon Jr. and Ann Teresa Leadon, devout Roman Catholics. His father was an aerospace engineer and nuclear physicist whose career moved the family around the U. S; the family enjoyed music and, at an early age, Bernie developed an interest in folk and bluegrass music. He mastered the 5-string banjo and acoustic guitar; as a young teen he moved with his family to San Diego, where he met fellow musicians Ed Douglas and Larry Murray of the local bluegrass outfit, the Scottsville Squirrel Barkers.
The Barkers proved a breeding ground for future California country rock talent, including shy, 18-year-old mandolin player Chris Hillman, with whom Leadon maintained a lifelong friendship. Augmented by banjo player Kenny Wertz, the Squirrel Barkers asked Leadon to join the group, upon Wertz's joining the Air Force in 1963, his stint in the Scottsville Squirrel Barkers did not last long. In late 1963, his family once again relocated to Gainesville, when his father accepted a position as Professor of Aerospace Engineering at the University of Florida. Leadon attended Gainesville High School, where he met classmate and future Eagles lead guitarist Don Felder, whose band, the Continentals, had just lost guitarist Stephen Stills. Upon Leadon's joining the group, rechristened Maundy Quintet, they gigged locally sharing the bill with future Gainesville legend Tom Petty and his early band the Epics. A call from ex-Squirrel Barker Larry Murray in 1967, to join his fledgling psychedelic country-folk group, Hearts & Flowers, was enticing enough for Leadon to return to California, where he soon became involved with the burgeoning L.
A. folk/country rock scene. Leadon recorded one album with the band, their second release Of Horses and Forgotten Women for Capitol Records; the record was a local hit but failed to make much of a dent on the national album charts. Discouraged, the group disbanded the following year. By late 1968, Leadon had befriended late of the Dillards. While staying with Dillard, informal jam sessions with prolific songwriter and ex-Byrds member Gene Clark began to take shape, morphed into what became Dillard & Clark, a seminal country-rock band who laid the groundwork for the country-rock sound that dominated the L. A. music scene for the next decade. In 1968, the group recorded their classic and influential LP, The Fantastic Expedition of Dillard & Clark; the album featured Leadon's warm and distinctive backing vocals and impressive multi-instrumental work. The album's highlights include several compositions co-written with Clark, most notably the future Eagles staple from their debut album, "Train Leaves Here This Morning."
Leadon left Dillard & Clark in 1969 reconnecting with ex-Squirrel Barker Chris Hillman, who asked him to join The Flying Burrito Brothers, a fledgling country-rock band that Hillman had formed a year earlier with fellow ex-Byrd, Gram Parsons. Leadon recorded two albums with the group: Burrito Deluxe and the post-Parsons LP, The Flying Burrito Bros. After the latter album's release in 1971, Leadon had tired of the band's lack of commercial success and decided to leave the band to pursue an opportunity to play with three musicians he had worked with while moonlighting in Linda Ronstadt's backing band that summer; the resultant project, the Eagles, found the success. Leadon was the last original member to join the Eagles, a band formed by guitarist/singer Glenn Frey, drummer/singer Don Henley, former Poco bassist/singer Randy Meisner. Leadon is credited with helping shape the band's early country-rock sound, bringing his strong sense of harmony as well as his country and acoustic sensibilities to the group.
Instruments he played during his tenure in the band were electric guitar, B-Bender, acoustic guitar, mandolin and pedal steel guitar. Upon the release of their debut album, the group met with near instantaneous success, due to the strength of their hit singles, "Take It Easy", "Peaceful Easy Feeling" and "Witchy Woman", all of which highlighted Leadon's multi-instrumental talent on electric guitar, B-Bender and harmony vocals, their follow-up, was another strong country-rock venture highlighted by the classics "Tequila Sunrise" and the title track. Leadon had a prominent role on the album, but it was met by lukewarm reviews and lackluster sales; as a result, the band attempted to distance itself from the "country rock" label for their third album On the Border. In doing so, Leadon encouraged the group to recruit his old friend, guitarist Don Felder, to the band; the result was the guitar-heavy top 40 hit "Already Gone". The album included "My Man", Leadon's touching tribute to his old bandmate and friend, Gram Parsons, who had died of a drug overdose the year prio
Miranda Lambert
Miranda Leigh Lambert is an American country music singer and songwriter. In 2003, she finished in third place of the television program Nashville Star, a singing competition which aired on the USA Network. Outside her solo career, she is a member of the Pistol Annies alongside Ashley Monroe and Angaleena Presley. Lambert has been honored by the Grammy Awards, the Academy of Country Music Awards and the Country Music Association Awards. Lambert's debut album Kerosene was certified Platinum in the United States and produced the singles "Me and Charlie Talking," "Bring Me Down," "Kerosene" and "New Strings." All four singles reached the top 40 on the Billboard Hot Country Songs. Her second album, Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, was released in early 2007. Three of its singles peaked within the top 20 on the country songs chart, with "Gunpowder & Lead" becoming her first top 10 entry in July 2008, her third album, was released in September 2009. Two of its songs – "The House That Built Me" and "Heart Like Mine" – topped the Hot Country Songs chart.2011's Four the Record, included the singles "Baggage Claim," "Over You," "Fastest Girl in Town," "Mama's Broken Heart" and "All Kinds of Kinds."
Lambert released her fifth album, Platinum, in 2014. The record won the Grammy Award for Best Country Album, the album's lead single "Automatic" reached top 5 on the Country charts, her sixth studio album, The Weight of These Wings, was released on November 18, 2016, subsequently certified Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America. Miranda Leigh Lambert was born November 10, 1983, to Rick and Bev Lambert in Longview and was raised in Lindale, Texas, she was named after Lucy Miranda. She has Luke Lambert, she has English and Native American ancestry. Her parents met while Bev was attending camp at Southern Methodist University and Rick was an on-campus undercover narcotics officer, they got together a few years later. Rick is a former Dallas police officer who played in a country-rock group called Contraband in the 1970s. Rick and Bev became private detectives and worked on the high profile case of the impeachment of President Bill Clinton. At the age of 6, Miranda began helping with some of the cases.
After the oil crisis dampened the economy in Texas, her family lost everything. After the downturn, things got better and her parents began a faith-based ministry and offered their home as a shelter for the victims of domestic violence and their children. Miranda has said that this experience fueled her music and that her song "Gunpowder & Lead" is a reflection of that. While still in high school, Lambert made her professional singing debut with "The Texas Pride Band." She fronted the house band at the Reo Palm Isle in Longview, Texas, a long-running venue that had presented legends such as Elvis Presley and Willie Nelson, the place where Brooks & Dunn started out as the house band. At 16, Lambert appeared on the Johnnie High Country Music Revue in Arlington, the same talent show that had helped launch the career of LeAnn Rimes. Lambert acquired a recording session in Nashville, but left the studio after she became frustrated with the "pop" type of music presented to her, she went back to Texas in 2000 and asked her dad to teach her how to play guitar, so she could write her own songs.
In 2002, Dusty Meador hired Lambert to perform at Tye Phelps' country music restaurant and venue Love and War in Texas. Lambert continued to perform around the Texas Music Scene opening for Cooder Graw, Kevin Fowler, Jack Ingram. In 2003, she auditioned for the talent competition Nashville Star, where she earned a third-place finish behind Buddy Jewell and John Arthur Martinez. During her 9-week stay on Nashville Star, Lambert caught the attention of the show's judge and Sony Music executive, Tracy Gershon, who convinced the label to sign her. On September 15, 2003, she signed with Epic Records, her debut single, "Me and Charlie Talking," co-written by her father and Heather Little, was released in summer of 2004 as the lead single to her debut album, titled Kerosene. The album comprised 12 songs, 11 of which she co-wrote; the album debuted at number one on the Billboard Top Country Albums charts, gained a Platinum certification by the RIAA for shipments of over one million copies, selling more than 930,000 copies up to July 2008.
Overall, the album produced four Top 40 singles on the Billboard country charts, including the title track, a Top 20 hit. Lambert toured with Keith Urban and George Strait in early 2006. In 2007, she toured with Toby Keith. Lambert's second album, Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, was released on May 9, 2007, she wrote eight of the album's 11 tracks, including its four singles. Much of the track "Gunpowder & Lead," the album's third single and her highest-charting single, was written while she was taking a concealed handgun class in her home town. Fady Joudah of The New Yorker said the album proved "she has talent and charisma on a par with Dolly Parton, another blond beauty, once underestimated."In 2005, at the 40th Annual Academy of Country Music Awards in Las Vegas, Lambert won the Cover Girl "Fresh Face of Country Music Award." She was nominated for the Country Music Association's Horizon Award in 2005. She won the Top New Female Vocalist award at the 2007 ACM Awards. At the 2008 ACM Awards, Crazy Ex-Girlfriend won Album of the Year.
Lambert released her third album, Revolution, on September 29, 2009. S