There’s many names that easily get buried as time passes and history becomes more dense. In the music industry there’s many pillars that held it up. Musicians from prominent drummers, pianists and saxophonists worth noting their shining work on records. Of course there’s our favorite singers. We don’t do much with the legacy of prolific…
Tag: Songwriters series
Popcorn & Poetry: The Forgotten Perfection of Luther Dixon
There’s so many people that crafted and created the legacy of mid 20th Century music that, basically, I keep sustaining my ability to write and pull together such a wealth of material to share with you year after year. It’s one of the joys that I give myself, educating myself even further and then sharing…
The First Real McCoy: A Small Sampling of Songs Written by Rose Marie McCoy
The talents of many African American women in the arts has long been hidden behind the scenes as history marches on further down the line. One major mover and shaker you may have never heard of is Rose Marie McCoy. Single-handedly she’s one set of hands and one voice that is possibly more responsible for…
Never Has It Been So Good As Ashford & Simpson (and sometimes Armstead)
New York of the 1960’s brought us the power of love in the writers booth in a profound way. The Brill Building gave young Jewish Newlyweds like Goffin & King, Greenwich & Barry and Mann & Weil lots of money and respect as they churned out hits for people coast to coast and even overseas….
The Real McCoy: The All Too Real Hustle of Van McCoy
It’s really telling as I searched the wide web of inter that I couldn’t seem to find an image of a Pre-1970’s Van McCoy. Given his parity in age, and his extensive catalog of works he created, it’s a sign that he remained much the constructor behind the scenes, not really becoming of note until…
Queen Bee of The Brill: Ellie Greenwich and 35 of her cha-cha-charms
In general, the creators of popular music rarely get the credit that they deserve. Although we all have dozens of tunes that we (un)controllably hum in our heads due to the genius of composers forever having something memorable tunewise to offer, we oft deride such content as fluff. When you’re one of the rare women…
Sylvia’s Work: Sister Soul Songwriter Standing In The Shadows of Motown 1964-1975
The music industry isn’t a kind place to women. Even now, there’s more hurdles that keep women mostly out of control of their artistic output rather than giving them the full creative reign of their male counterparts. The situation is more heightened for Women of Color, especially Black women. Often, and yet still, you are…
