Influential International Rockers of Indian Origin.

On the eve of the Indian Independence Day , wud like to wish every one a Happy Independence Day . 

At this moment , we are happy to present a list which would make most of us Indians really proud bcos it’s a list of 6 most notable Rock Musicians of Indian origin who have been part of international bands that not only have grammies accredited to their name, but some of them have also received the coveted Rock n Roll Hall of Fame Honour.

f. Jason Singh
The lead vocalist of Aussie band ‘Taxiride’ owes his Indian descent and Indian classical music culture to the use of harmonized sitar sounds and pounding tabla beats in the music of Taxi Ride. He loves listening to Lata Mangeshkar and has a fondness for Bollywood flicks. Jason Singh is considered one of the better comtemporary songwriters currently in Australia and although he started off in 1997 with a more of a pop-rock sound, his music has a heavier and more distorted touch to it now.

e. Tony Kanal
At number 5 we have the energy behind No Doubt, Tony Kanal. Although No Doubt aren’t an out and out rock band and have various pop and ska-punk influences, Tony Kanal always portrayed a rock image of No Doubt through his frantic antics on stage or his zany style of bass playing and the energy that he brought to the band.  Kanal has already done it all, whether its slapping his bass guitar for No Doubt, producing albums for Reggae singers or producing songs for the soundtrack of hit movie ’50 first dates’. There is ‘No Doubt’ that the canal in Kanal’s life is gonna lead to even more accolades in the future.

d. Dave Baksh
Famously Known as ‘Brownsound’ for the band Sum 41, David Nizaam Baksh was born to parents of Indo-Guyanese origin in 1980 in Toronto. He revolutionized the modern punk sound around the world with his guitar licks and his trademark punk riffs. While most of the modern day punk bands play easy 3-4 chord songs on palm mute, Baksh changed it around with twin guitar leads in ‘Pain for Pleasure’ with Derek Whyte and with waah-waah guitar solos in his music, a sound that not too many MTV punk bands incorporate these days with their sell out style of music. Dave Baksh reached commercial success with songs such as Fat Lip that was no.1 for weeks on the U.S. Rock Charts as well as other hits such as ‘The Hell Song’, ‘Motivation’.  He quit the band in 2006 to express his true guitaring dexterities through his songwriting and formed a band with his cousin called ‘Brown Brigade’ that plays reggae influenced Heavy Metal music.

c. Prakash John
Prakash has had a wealth of experience with a lot of different bands but is most widely known as the bass player for a brief period for legendary band Alice Cooper. Alice Cooper was one of the biggest bands in the U.S. in the 70s and are said to be the first band to have a theatrical horror set up in their stage shows. Prakash John played bass with Alice on ‘Welcome To My Nightmare’ , ‘From The Inside’ and on ‘Dada’. Born in Mumbai in 1947, Prakash migrated to Toronto in 1960. He has also played with various other bands such as Bush(70s) and Lou Reed. John left mainstream rock in 1979, returning to Toronto to found his second R&B band, The Lincolns, one of the last bands now remaining which represent the now-famous Toronto Sound of the late 1960s.John was  inducted into the Rock n Roll Hall of Fame in 1997 as a member of Parliament Funkadelic.

b. Kim Thayil
The lead guitarist of the pioneers of Grunge Music, ‘Soundgarden’,  Kim Thayil.   Kim  was born in Seattle in 1960 to a couple from Kerala. Kim is regarded as one of the creators of the ‘Grunge’ genre with his heavy riffing coupled with a dirty sound. He is one of the more ingenious writers of the 90s as he would often shy away from the Standard E Tuning.  After Soundgarden broke up , Kim teamed up with Kris Novoselic (bass) of Nirvana fame performing  as the ‘No WTO Combo’ . He also cameod for ‘The Presidents of the USA’ and special appeared on Dave Grohl’s side project ‘ProBot’ . Whilst Kim has been in the shadows since the break up of Soundgarden,  with the reunion of the band in 2010 we certainly hope he comes back to produce some more original and kickass material with his chunky riffs & super unique style which will forever shred thousands of Grunge lovers’ lives.

a. Freddie Mercury
The queen of all vocalists, Freddie Mercury makes it to the list at no.1 / grade ‘A’  for making millions go ga-ga over his vocal abilities and song writing capabilities. Freddie also known as Faroukh Bulsara (5 September 1946- 24 November 1991) grew up in India and attended St.Peter’s school in Panchgani and and completed his education at St. Mary’s High School (Mazgaon). Freddie moved to England at the age of 17. In 2006, Time Asia named Mercury as one of the most influential Asians in the last 60 years. Freddie owes a lot to his musical roots in India, where he listened to a considerable amount of Indian music and was an avid fan of Lata Mangeshkar.  Freddie Mercury is said to be the most versatile singers in the last century and has an all-time record breaking range of four octaves so there is no surprise that vocalists consider him ‘GOD’ on all fronts, whether it is writing a love song, being a sheer entertainer on stage or sounding like a factory siren when it’d come to hitting high notes. And its no surprise that he’s no.1 on the list!

At the end of this countdown, I think we all can maintain that India in its own indirect way has contributed vastly to Rock Music. One thing’s for certain, even though Indians are sporadically placed all over the world, they have a stern message for all the firangs out there  – We will  we will ROCK YOU!

Take a listen to this song by Queen :   

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-tJYN-eG1zk&ob=av3e

Source:  http://chordvine.com/lists/influential-rockers-of-indian-origin & You Tube.

History of the Legendary Hard Rock Café.

 As most of us know, Hard Rock Cafe is a chain of theme restaurants & also one of the places which inspired us to start CafeIdly,  but of course with South Indian food.

The first Hard Rock Cafe (HRC) opened its doors to the public on June 14, 1971, in London, England. It was founded by Peter Morton and Isaac Tigrett. Hard Rock initially had an eclectic decor but it later started to display memorabilia.. The chain began to expand worldwide in 1982 with locations in (among others) Toronto, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago, Paris, Berlin and in our very own Bangalore / ru.

In 2006, Hard Rock was sold to the Seminole tribe of Florida, and is headquartered in Orlando, Florida. The largest Hard Rock is in Orlando. Currently, there are 150 Hard Rock locations in 53 countries.

One of the most important aspects about HRC, is its collection of rock and roll memorabilia. The collection began in 1979 with the gift of an un-signed guitar (a Red Fender Lead II) from Eric Clapton, who was a regular at the first restaurant in London. This prompted Pete Townshend of The Who to give one of his guitars, also un-signed with the note "Mine's as good as his! Love, Pete." Hard Rock's archive includes over 70,000 items and it opened a Hard Rock museum named "The Vault" in Orlando, Florida in January 2003 but subsequently closed it in September 2004. The London Vault remains open, located near the original café , a must visit for all die hard rock fans.     Long Live HRC.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hard_Rock_Cafe
Photo credit: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Hard_Rock_Cafe_Bengalooru.JPG

The Motown Story

The name “Motown” comes from “Motor Town” (Detroit). The Motown record label, actually the Motown Record Company, L.P.,was founded in 1959 by Berry Gordy, Jr. in Detroit, Michigan, and became famous above all through the production and distribution of soul, pop and R&B songs.

It is over 50 years ago that Motown founder Berry Gordy first borrowed $800 with the hopes of starting his own label and founded Tamla Records, which would be incorporated as Motown in 1970 and produce its first hit a year later Motown played an important role in the integration of African-American artists in popular music. It was the first record company to sign primarily black musicians, and so the Motown sound was born: soul music with a touch of pop.

 The best-known artists signed to Motown include famous groups like The Jackson 5 as well as unrivalled solo artists such as StevieWonder, Marvin Gaye, The Supremes, Lionel Richie and Diana Ross. Together with Motown Records, they all contributed to the creation of an inimitable musical style.

The promotion and development of young artists was of enormous importance for Motown Records. In order to be accepted on the predominantly white music market, the musicians were trained to behave like royalty so as to alter the relatively undignified image which white America had of blacks at the time.

The result was the elegant style of presentation that became associated with the Motown label in the sixties. Today’s Motown continues the tradition of promoting black and African-American musicians.

January 12, 2009 marked the 50th anniversary of America’s greatest record label and global music icon---MOTOWN.With nearly 200 #1 songs worldwide, Motown’s hits continue to appear worldwide in commercials, TV shows and movies and remain an influence on today’s biggest pop and R&B stars.But Motown stands for more than just the music: it is a reflection of the hard work of dedicated individuals overcoming incredible obstacles to achieve great success.

Amy Winehouse joins “Club 27”

British singer Amy Winehouse, who died on Saturday 23,July 2011 at her North London flat at the age of 27 after a long struggle with drug and drink addiction, joins the so-called “Club 27” or “Forever 27” (read blog on club 27) named after a group of influential pop/rock music artistes who died at 27.

Latest on the tragic list, Amy WInehouse, the Grammy award-winning soul singer with her trademark beehive battled with well-documented addictions that she documented in her hit single Rehab.

Winehouse’s debut album Frank was released in 2003 and brought her wide acclaim. It went triple platinum in Britain.  The 2006 follow-up, Back to Black and its single Rehab was a worldwide smash hit, reaching number one in Britain and number two in the US charts. It went six times platinum in Britain and double platinum in the United States.

In the run-up to her live return after her failed marriage with Blake Fielder-Civil,which ended in an divorce in 2007, Winehouse spent a week at an addiction treatment clinic in London, reportedly at the suggestion of her father, Mitch, over concerns that she was drinking too much. But she was booed at the opening performance in Belgrade, apparently too drunk to sing.

She made her final public appearance at The Roundhouse venue in Camden on Wednesday.. All that I can say is that addiction is one of the most powerful secret weapons in the Devil's arsenal of self destruction and no one can overcome it alone. May God Keep her.

Prominent members of the “Club 27” include Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, Kurt Cobain, Jim Morrison and Brian Jones.

The Great Society....legendary Shillong band

With a pretty well-deserved reputation for breeding a guitar player in ever home, Shillong is an incredible town for anyone to grow up as a musician, and it's no surprise that 'The Great Society' is still remembered as one of the first bands in India to play only original music ~ no "covers" thankyouverymuch. In fact, the whole region is such a hive of musical activity, that good guitarists go a long-long way.

Lou Majaw ( read blog on Lou) is the founder member of the legendary Shillong band. The Great Society. A superb showman, a man who has music and stage performance in his blood, Lou also possesses the humility and breadth of vision that marks him as a true musician. Lou has peroformed all over the Northeast with The Great Society, playing originals along with covers of traditional rock favourites.

The Great Society was formed in the mid '70's with Lou Majaw (vocals/rhythm guitar), ArjunSen (vocals/guitar) and Bert Cooper (drums) as the founding members. In 1980, Rudy Wallang joined the band as bass player. Soon after, Sam Shullai replaced Bert on drums. When Arjun decided to head out to Delhi, Rudy took up playing guitar and Ferdy Dkhar joined in as the bass player.

Despite a series of impressive lineup changes in the twelve years of it's existence, Keith Wallang on drums, late Babit Jyrwa on drums and bass, Danny Shullai on bass and Bob Lyngdoh on harp, The Great Society is essentially Lou, Arjun, Rudy, Sam and Ferdy. The Great Society disbanded in 1992 but do perform occasionally at reunions such as the Reggae Riddim Festival in February 2001.
True to the name of their band, these men created a society that will live long after they are gone.

Elsewhere in the country, the young sway to songs such as Kaanta lagaa and Dharak dharak. In the Northeast, they swing to live music, as bands belt out old rock classics from Jethro Tull to the Doors, or even their own compositions.

The Northeast may be beset with problems of insurgency and protests but the region has been spawning music bands by the dozens and we hope that Northeast continues to be the hive of musical society inspiring musicians who produce music just for the love of it.

Here is one their memorable compositions 'Sea of sorrow' from the album "BREAKTHROUGH"

source:youtube,retiary.org,telegraphindia.com,nagaland.faithweb.com

Changing Stages...musicians turning actors

It is becoming more and more common for musicians to make the jump from the recording industry to the world of acting. For some, their appearances were little more than cameos while others have been cast in major roles. Many of these jumps have been very successful while others, have left a lot to be desired.

Canadian musician Alanis Nadine Morissete is not only a gifted singer, she has ventured into the world of
television and movies a number of times. One of her roles was playing that of God in the 1999 film Dogma.

Cher is one of the most successful people in both the world of acting and the world of music. Cher has not only had countless number one hits on the music charts, she has also managed to achieve Hollywood’s highest honor. In 1987, Cher won the best actress Oscar for her role in the film Moonstruck. 
Keith Richards, lead guitarist for the Rolling Stones, was number 10 on Rolling Stone’s Greatest Guitarists of All Time list. In 2007 he ventured into the world of movies. Keith made a cameo appearance as Captain Teague in Pirates of the Caribbean, At World’s End.

David Bowie took on the role of the goblin king in Jim Hensen’s Labyrinth. The film which was released in 1986 and combined the talents of Bowie, Jennifer Connelly with a host of Muppets. Labyrinth, is an imaginative,learning journey for a young girl. Bowie was able to combine his acting and music talents in this fantasy musical.

Alice Cooper plays himself in the film Wayne’s World.

Legendary rocker Bon Jovi plays the part of the chief engineer aboard a submarine in this oscar-winning war movie U571. David Keith and Mathew McConaughey also star in this fast moving action film. The film debuted in 2000 and was written and directed by Jonathon Mostow.

Sting the lead singer of the Police, explored his acting talents in the cult classic Dune. Dune, was an
adaptation of the novel written by Frank Herbert. The movie was released in 1984 and was directed by David Lynch. In the film Sting plays the role of Feyd-Rautha, a nephew of the power hungry Baron.

Mick Jagger was cast in the lead role of the film Ned Kelly. Ned Kelly was an Australian bushranger and outlaw, who was eventually hanged in 1880. Mick’s portrayal of this notorious Australian was met with mixed reviews. Mick also made an appearance in the science fiction film Freejack.

Rock and roll icons are not the only musicians to try their hand at acting. There have been numerous country
legends who have ventured into the realm of Holly wood.

Willie Nelson has appeared numerous times on both the big screen and in television movies and shows. He has played roles on Dr. Quinn Medicine Woman, Nash Bridges and Miami Vice.He played the lead in the western movie Barbarossa and was cast in the 2005 version of the Dukes of Hazzard. In this film version of  popular television show, The Dukes of Hazzard, Willie Nelson played the role of Uncle Jessie Duke.

Tim McGraw plays the part of a football father in the hit movie Friday Night Lights.

This list definitely is not a exhaustive one, its just indicative of the fact that musicians can make the sideways leap to acting. The transition should be too hard i guess,after all, actors and singers have the same challenge: to capture and project emotion believably.

source: triviachamp

Raindrops Keep Fallin' On My Head....top ten rain songs

 

 Call it cats and dogs or condensation...a deluge or a drizzle...a monsoon or a mist...sprinkles or showers... rain drops are falling! It's that liquid precipitation that falls on us all from time to time. It's the stuff that can make the flowers grow and the traffic slow.

Rain is also the topic of many a song. This blog would be virtually endless if we were to list every great rain song. Therefore I had to whittle it down to a Top Ten list based on how well each has done on the various charts

I'll say it again: If you don't see your favorite rain song, be sure to leave a comment. Who knows, your submission could be the next entry!

Let's start at the bottom (but certainly not least) and work our way up to the #1 spot.
10. Singin' In The Rain-Classic! What's else can you think of to sing in the rain but this one? Gene Kelly sang and danced this in the 1952 film Singin' In The Rain ,but it was originally published in 1929! Many years later it reached the top spot. 

9. Blue Eyes Crying In The Rain-Originally written in 1945 by Fred Rose and released by Roy Acuff, it was released 30 years later in 1975 by Willie Nelson on his concept album Red Headed Stranger. It was Nelson's first #1 country hit as a singer, and reached #21 on the pop charts. 

8. Kentucky Rain-In 1969 Elvis Presley began recording again in Memphis. The results: some of the greatest songs he ever recorded. "Kentucky Rain" is no exception. In 1970 it reached #16 in the US and #3 on the US Easy Listening chart.

7. Crying In The Rain-A real gem written in a rare collaboration by Carole King and Howard Greenfield. In 1962 the Everly Brothers reached #6 in both the US and UK with this. Tammy Wynette's version was a Top 20 country hit. 

6. I Wish It Would Rain-David Ruffin sang the soulful lead on this Temptations song. It reached #4 in the US and #1 on the US R&B chart in 1967.

5. Rhythm Of The Rain-In 1962 the Cascades recorded this classic. It features John Gummoe (who wrote the song during a thunderstorm) on lead vocals.. In 1963 it reached #3 in the US and #5 in the UK and sold over one million copies. It's also been played on the radio over six million times!

4. Raindrops-The intro of this song sounds much like the previous song, but don't be fooled! This one (sung by soul singer Dee Clark) has the street cred of having come out in 1961, a year before "Rhythm Of The Rain". It was written by Clark with guitarist Phil Upchurch . It reached #2 in the US and #3 (US R&B).

3. Who'll Stop The Rain-Ah, Creedence Clearwater Revival. (Always liked that name!) It was either this or "Have You Ever Seen The Rain?" Tough choice. Both were written by John Fogerty; both are cool songs. But I just had to go with this one. "Who'll Stop The Rain" was a US #2 hit in 1970. In 2004 Rolling Stone ranked it #188 on its list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.

2. Just Walkin' In The Rain-A big hit for the inimitable Johnnie Ray in 1956.  It was originally recorded by the Prisonaires in 1953. It was written by Johnny Bragg and Robert Riley. Both were inmates at the Tennessee State Prison. Johnny wrote the majority of the song but could not read or write. Robert wrote down the lyrics in exchange for songwriting credit. The rest is history. How cool is that?

1. Raindrops Keep Fallin' On My Head- It was a US #1 hit for four weeks. It won composers Burt Bacharach and Hal David Oscars for Best Original Song for 1969 (as the theme for Butch Cassidy And The Sundance Kid.) It sold over one million copies (a first for Bacharach and David and the third to do so for singer B.J. Thomas.) And Thomas's version was ranked #12 on Billboard's Greatest Songs Of All Time. And it rocks. Need I say more?

What a shame! So many great rain songs are getting left out. Hopefully you will pick up on this and mention your favorite.For the momonet just listen to the top listed song that will make you take a walk in the rain..

source:www..rock-the-jukebox.com & youtube