Talk To Me Music The Business

November 14, 2024

Conversation with the Great Brenda Russell

Brenda Russell (née Gordon; born April 8, 1949) is an American singer-songwriter, producer, and keyboardist. Russell has a diverse musical range that encompasses R&B, pop, soul, dance, and jazz. She has received five Grammy nominations.   1960s to 1970s When Russell was 14 years old she met the group the Soul Searchers. She would later open for them during live performances.[6] In her late teens, she joined the Toronto production of Hair, during which time she had begun to play the piano. In the early 1970s, she married musician Brian Russell when they were both in the band Dr. Music.  The couple went on to produce Rufus's "Please Pardon Me" (on their album Rufusized) and they contributed backing vocals to Neil Sedaka's "Laughter in the Rain". The Russells performed as backing vocalists for Elton John's concert at Wembley Stadium on June 21, 1975. Credited as Brian & Brenda, they released two albums on John's Rocket label: Word Called Love in 1976 and Supersonic Lover in 1977. The duo also performed on two tracks from Robert Palmer's breakout soul-pop album Double Fun. Their daughter, Lindsay, was born in 1977. The couple divorced, and Brenda set out on a solo career from her base in Los Angeles. In 1979, Russell's self-titled debut album was released by A&M Records. The album rose to number 20 on the Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart.[3][7] A track from the LP called "So Good So Right" also hit number 8 on the Billboard Adult Contemporary Songs chart, number 15 on the Billboard Hot Soul Songs and number 30 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart 1980s to 1990 Russell co-wrote two tracks for Earth, Wind & Fire's 1980 album Faces (including the hit single "You"), and also co-wrote the hit single "I've Had Enough" from their 1981 album Raise! She released her second solo album Love Life in 1981 on A&M. She also co-wrote the track "Breakout" for Patrice Rushen's 1982 album Straight From The Heart, and performed backing vocals on the song. Also in 1982, Russell was one of the "All Star Choir" on Donna Summer's hit single "State of Independence", which also included Michael Jackson, Lionel Richie, Dionne Warwick, Kenny Loggins, Michael McDonald and Stevie Wonder among others. In 1983, she released her third album, Two Eyes, on Warner Bros. Records. Russell relocated to Sweden for a brief time and began writing songs for her next album.[11] Returning to A&M Records, Russell's fourth album, Get Here, was released in 1988. It became her greatest commercial success, spawning her biggest hit "Piano in the Dark", a US Top 10 and UK Top 30 hit which featured Joe Esposito. The song garnered three Grammy Award nominations.[4] The album became Russell's first charting album in the UK where it peaked at number 77. The title track "Get Here", which was penned by Russell, was later covered by American singer Oleta Adams for her 1990 album Circle of One, and became a transatlantic hit for Adams in 1991. Russell issued her fifth album, Kiss Me with the Wind, in 1990. The album included Russell's own version of the song "Dinner With Gershwin", which she wrote some years earlier and had been a hit for Donna Summer in 1987 (Russell also co-produced and appeared on Summer's version). Russell wrote and produced the track "Forever" for Phil Perry's 1991 album The Heart of the Man. Russell also featured on the 1991 charity single "Voices That Care", which reached number 11 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number 6 on the Billboard Adult Contemporary Songs chart.[12][13] She also appeared on Joni Mitchell's 1991 album Night Ride Home as well as on the Yellowjackets' 1992 album Live Wires. In 1992, A&M Records released Russell's first Greatest Hits album. After this, Russell released her sixth studio album Soul Talkin' in 1993 on EMI Records. Russell co-wrote and produced the track "Let Somebody Know" for Diana Ross on the US version of her 1995 album Take Me Higher (Russell would record her own version of th

November 8, 2024

Conversation with Joyce Cooling

Joyce Cooling is an American jazz guitarist, vocalist, and songwriter.  Music career Joyce Cooling was born into a musical family. Her mother, a music teacher, was a classical music aficionado. After moving to California from New York in the early 1980s, Cooling began sitting in on the percussion classes of Ghanaian drummer C. K. Ladzekpo.Integrating the polyrhythms of West African music with her passion for melody and harmony, Cooling focused her attention on guitar and taught herself to play by ear.

October 26, 2024

Talk To Me Interview with Vaughn Thomas