Dionne Warwick, the #93 Artist of the Rock Era

"The power of beautiful music."

"Mrs. Warwick's voice is so beautiful.  It is a voice that touches your soul.  She developed her natural talent  to its fullest potential!"

"Dionne's music has been a treasure."

"Warwick is easily beheld as one of 'the voices' of the Sixties, second perhaps only to Aretha."

"The strange osmosis when music and singer and production blend and create something new and unique within us. She delivers the goods every time."

"Dionne Warwick is timeless."

"Awesome and classy."

"Cannot sing her praises enough."

"Her beautiful songs will always live on."




Part of an amazing partnership with songwriters Hal David and Burt Bacharach, this amazing talent was one of the top acts of the 1960's.  But she extended her career by continuing to find songwriters she could work with, carrying her music into a new generation.

Marie Warrick was born December 12, 1940 in East Orange, New Jersey.  Dionne began singing gospel at age six while at the New Hope Baptist Church in Newark, New Jersey.  Many of Warrick's family were members of the Drinkard Singers, a recording group managed by her mother which performed throughout the New York area.   Dionne formed the Gospelaires with sister Dee Dee, cousin Cissy Houston and friend Doris Troy and landed some work singing backing vocals for recording sessions in New York City for artists such as the Drifters, Ben E. King, Dinah Washington, Solomon Burke and others.  

After finishing high school in 1959, Warwick pursued her passion at the Hartt College of Music in Hartford, Connecticut while continuing to record backing vocals at a New York studio.  During one session for the Drifters, composer Burt Bacharach noticed Warrick's talent and later, while Dionne as on break from college, she contacted Burt, who was now writing with lyricist Hal David.  Bacharach invited her to sing on demos that he and David were making of some of their songs for the purpose of promoting them to record labels.  One of the songs Dionne recorded, "It's Love That Really Counts", attracted the attention of Florence Greenberg, President of Sceptor Records.  Greenberg told Bacharach, "Forget the song, get the girl!"

Warwick signed a contract with Bacharach's and David's production company, which in turn signed a recording contract with Scepter.  In 1962, Warwick released her first single, "Don't Make Me Over", the title coming from a phrase that Dionne yelled to Bacharach and David in anger.  Dionne's last name was misspelled as Warwick on the 45, but she decided to keep it as a stage name.  Although it stalled at #21, the song remains as a fan favorite.  She released her debut album, Presenting Dionne Warwick, in 1963.

After the success of "Don't Make Me Over", Warwick left school and toured France, where critics called her "Paris' Black Pearl".  French critic Jean Monteaux, writing in the magazine Arts, noted, "The play of this voice makes you think of an eel, of a storm, of a cradle, a knot of seaweed, a dagger.  It is not so much a voice as an organ.  You could write fugues for Warwick's voice." 

Warwick returned to the United States to find equal praise, signing at nightclubs and on popular television shows.

Dionne enjoyed her first career Top 10 hit with the title song from her 1964 album Anyone Who Had A Heart, a #2 smash of three weeks on the Adult chart.

 

She followed that up with the album Make Way for Dionne Warwick and one of her best-known songs, "Walk On By", which reached #6 overall and #7 on the Easy Listening chart.  Dionne's star was spreading across the globe, and "Walk On By" became her U.K. breakthrough at #9.  

In Cash Box's 1964 poll, Warwick was named Best-Selling Female Vocalist, and she was named Top Female Vocalist by Cash Box in 1969, 1970 and 1971.  

While on tour in Glasgow, Scotland, Warwick was injured in an auto accident, forcing her to cancel several dates.  When she recovered, she recorded the album The Sensitive Sound Of Dionne Warwick at Pye Studios in London and also released the album Here I Am in 1965.

 

In 1966, Dionne released the single "Message To Michael", a gender-switched remake of Bacharach and David's hit by both Lou Johnson and Adam Faith as "A Message To Martha".  Warwick's version rose to #8.

Dionne began a four-month European tour in January of 1967, helping her album Here, Where There Is Love become her first Gold LP.

Warwick released the album On Stage and In the Movies and found herself among the heavyweights at the two-day Fantasy Fair and Magic Mountain Music Fest in California.  Billed alongside the Doors, Jefferson Airplane and the Miracles, Dionne sang before 15,000.

Warwick released the single "The Beginning Of Loneliness", with "Alfie", a solid track on the album as the "B" side.  Disc jockeys flipped the 45 over and made "Alfie" the bigger hit at #16.  Dionne was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance.

 

Later in the year, Dionne released the album The Windows of the World.  Warwick scored her first Gold record for "I Say A Little Prayer", a #4 smash in 1967.  She was nominated for Best Contemporary Female Solo Vocal Performance at the Grammy Awards.

Now an established star, Warwick released the compilation album Dionne Warwick's Golden Hits, Part One, which gave her a Top 10 U.S. album.

Dionne's follow-up hit, "(Theme From) Valley Of The Dolls", was one of few songs early in her career that weren't written by Bacharach and David.  While the movie was being filmed, actress Barbara Parkins suggested that Dionne sing the movie's theme song.  Judy Garland was tabbed instead but subsequently fired, and producers turned to Warwick at that time.  When the movie became successful in 1968, DJ's flipped the single over and made the single one of The Top Double-Sided 45's of the Rock Era*. "Valley Of The Dolls" hit #2 for four weeks on both the Popular and Easy Listening charts, quite an achievement. 

 

"Do You Know The Way To San Jose?" became one of Dionne's signature songs, a worldwide smash that reached the Top 10 in the United States, the U.K., Canada, Australia, Japan, South Africa and Mexico.  It reached #4 on the Easy Listening chart.  

Later in the year, Warwick scored this hit from the musical Promises, Promises, the title song from her 1968 album.  The single was underrated at #19 overall but reached #7 among adults.  Dionne was on quite a roll with adult fans by this time.

Dionne released this female version of Herb Alpert's classic "This Guy's In Love With You" from the year before.  It reached #7 on the Popular chart in 1969 but was a #2 song for four weeks among adults.  "This Girl's In Love With You" earned Dionne another Grammy nomination for best Female Pop Vocal Performance.

Warwick won her first Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance for the smash hit.  She released the album Soulful, which was recorded with producer Chips Moman in Memphis, Tennessee.  In 1969, "The Dionne Warwick Chevy Special" aired on CBS Television and Warwick made her film debut in Slaves.  At the end of the year, Dionne released Dionne Warwick's Golden Hits, Part 2.

Warwick won the award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance for another of her most memorable songs, "I'll Never Fall In Love Again", the title song from her album in 1970.  It rose to #6 overall and gave Dionne one of her biggest career hits among adults, a #1 smash of three weeks.

 

She appeared at the Royal Albert Hall in London in April and scored another #2 Easy Listening hit later that year with "Make It Easy On Yourself" from her album Very Dionne.  The single was one of five Top 10 songs on the Adult chart in 1970 and part of an amazing string of 14 consecutive Top 10's.

By 1971, Dionne had sold an estimated 35 million singles and albums worldwide.  At that juncture, Warwick left Scepter for a $5 million offer with Warner Brothers, the biggest recording contract ever for a female artist to that time, according to Variety magazine.  Dionne began recording her first album for Warner Brothers at A&R Studios in New York City.  But due to a rift between Bacharach and David in 1972, the prominent songwriters terminated their working relationship, so Warwick had to look elsewhere for her material.

 

The Bacharach/David/Warwick partnership was pure golden, and without it, Dionne struggled from 1972-1977.  But in 1974, after the Spinners opened for her on a five-week summer tour, producer Thom Bell suggested that Dionne's voice would blend in well with the group.  Warwick and the Spinners went into the recording studio and came up with this #1 song that sold over one million copies.  Dionne and the group were nominated for Best Pop Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals and Dionne won a People's Choice award for Favorite Female Singer.  

In 1979, Dionne moved to Arista Records and also completed work on her master's degree in music.  At Arista, she received the help of labelmate Barry Manilow, who produced her first album Dionne for the label.  "I'll Never Love This Way Again" spurred her comeback, going Gold and reaching #5 on both the Popular and Adult Contemporary charts.  She captured the Grammy Award for Best Pop Vocal Performance, Female.

 

"Deja Vu" was co-written by Isaac Hayes, and gave Dionne a #15 Popular hit and another #1 AC smash.  The song earned a Grammy Award for Best R&B Vocal Performance, Female.  Warwick scored two Grammy Awards, Best Female Pop Vocal Performance (for "I'll Never Love This Way Again") and Best Female R&B Vocal Performance (for "Deja Vu"). 

In 1980, Warwick hosted the television special Solid Gold '79, which was so successful that it was adapted into a weekly show called Solid Gold, which Dionne hosted in 1980 and 1981 and again in 1985-86.

Dionne released another big hit in 1980, "No Night So Long".  Although it stopped at #23 with teenagers, it became one of the biggest Adult hits of the year, #1 for three weeks.

Warwick recorded "Friends In Love" with Johnny Mathis.  The two superstars took it to #5 on the AC chart.

In 1982, Arista head Clive Davis was attending a wedding on Orlando, Florida when he spoke with Barry Gibb of the Bee Gees.  Barry told Davis that he had always been a fan of Warwick's and after Clive set up a meeting between the two superstars, Barry was set to produce her next album.

Heartbreaker sold over three million copies worldwide and included the highly underrated title song.  With it by far being the best song on the album and the album selling three million copies, the #10 peak that Billboard placed on the song seems foolish.  That's an obvious problem when your methodology does not include album sales.  By this time, the Adult Contemporary chart was much more reflective of music tastes, since more Rock Era listeners were adults, and on that chart, "Heartbreaker" went to #1.

Warwick and Luther Vandross teamed up for this #4 Adult hit in 1983--"How Many Times Can We Say Goodbye".  

In 1984, the album Finder of Lost Loves reunited Dionne with both Barry Manilow and Bacharach, who was by now writing songs with his wife, Carole Bayer Sager.  

In 1985, Warwick contributed to the blockbuster hit "We Are The World", a #1 smash and eight-million seller in the U.S. alone. 

Dionne received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in December of 1985.  "That's What Friends Are For", written by Bacharach and Sager, was originally recorded by Rod Stewart for the great movie Night Shift.  Warwick decided to raise money for AIDS research and invited Elton John, Stevie Wonder and Gladys Knight to sing it with her.  It went to #1 for four weeks and sold over one million records and won Grammy Awards for Song of the Year and Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal.

Warwick and her friends received a Grammy Award for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal and the song was nominated for Record of the Year.  Dionne earned a Grammy nomination for the album Friends.

 

In 1987, Warwick and Luther Vandross co-hosted the initial Soul Train Music Awards at the Hollywood Center in California.  While working on her album Reservations For Two, Dionne recorded "Love Power" with Jeffrey Osborne, taking the single to #7 on the Adult Contemporary chart and #12 on the Popular chart.

In September, Dionne and the Warwick Foundation was honored for raising $1 million for AIDS research.  In 1990, Dionne released the compilation Greatest Hits 1979-1990.

"Superwoman", Dionne's 1991 collaboration with Gladys Knight & Patti LaBelle, landed a Grammy nomination for Best R&B Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group.

Dionne has released 12 studio albums since, with her latest being Feels So Good in 2014.

Dionne received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the ASCAP Awards in 1998 and a Heroes Award in 2002.  In 1999, Warwick's hits "Walk On By" and "That's What Friends Are For" were both named as Songs of the Century by the Recording Industry Association of America.

In 2002, Dionne was nominated to be the Goodwill Ambassador of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.

In 2014, Warwick was nominated for a Grammy for Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album for Now.

Warwick has won five Grammy Awards out of 13 nominations, one American Music Award, one Billboard Music Award, one People's Choice Award and two ASCAP Awards.

Dionne is second only to Aretha Franklin as the most-charted female artist of all-time with 69 Hot 100 hits.  Of those, 13 reached the Top 10 and four rose to #1.  An incredible 29 out of 45 Adult hits landed in the Top 10, including a magical 14 in a row from 1967 to 1971, and six of those went to #1.  "Alfie", "Don't Make Me Over" and "Walk On By" have all been inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.

While Bacharach and David launched the magically melodic voice of Warwick, she proved to the world her star had staying power, continuing to thrill audiences and record beautiful music to this day.

The Four Tops, the #94 Artist of the Rock Era

"Soul magic!"

"I love this group--great singers...just fantastic."

"Shivers down my spine.  Soul shakin', what a group."

"Music to the ears, soul words we can relate to.:

"Amazingly great songs that span generations and musical preferences.

"Awessome....never can be equalled....totally magical."

"Pure talent. Class act."

"One of the great groups from an amazing time in music."

"Their music is pure bliss."

"Great for the soul!"



Led by one of the greatest lead singers in history, this group became famous with a string of smash hits and wonderful choreography!

The four members of this group formed when Levi Stubbs and Abdul Faki of Pershing High School in Detroit, Michigan performed together with Reanldo "Obie" Benson and Lawrence Payton from Northern High at a local birthday party.  Liking their sound, they named themselves the Four Aims.  Payton's cousin, Roquel Davis, was a songwriter and helped the Aims sign a recording contract with Chess Records in 1956.  To avoid people confusing them with the Ames Brothers, they renamed themselves the Four Tops.

The group recorded, unsuccessfully, at Chess, Red Top, Riverside and Columbia Records.  Nevertheless, they had an impressive stage show and continued to tour.  In 1963, Berry Gordy, Jr., who had worked with Davis as a songwriter before, talked the group into signing with Motown.

The Tops recorded jazz-based material and sang backing vocals for other Motown acts such as the Supremes ("Run, Run, Run" and Martha and the Vandellas ("My Baby Loves Me").

 

When the lead songwriting production team of Holland-Dozier-Holland wrote an instrumental track that they didn't complete, the trio decided to write the song for the Four Tops.  The group recorded it and "Baby I Need Your Loving" became their first big hit at #11 in the U.S. and #4 in Canada.  It is one of The Top Unknown/Underrated Songs of the Rock Era*.

 

In 1965, the group released their self-titled album, which generated another hit, "Ask The Lonely", another underrated popular song at #24, which was able to sneak into the R&B Top 10.

 

Later in the year, they released The Four Tops Second Album, which contained one of the all-time classics of the last 60 years, the #1 smash "I Can't Help Myself (Sugar Pie Honey Bunch)".

"It's The Same Old Song" proved to be a strong follow-up, climbing to #2 R&B and #5 overall in the United States and 33 in Canada.

The following year, the group was On Top with a new release but it failed to generate much airplay outside of R&B.

 

In 1967, the Four Tops released On Broadway and Reach Out, the latter their biggest career album at #11.  "Reach Out I'll Be There" became the group's biggest international hit, going to #1 in the U.S. and the U.K., #4 in Ireland and #6 in Canada and the Netherlands.

 

The Tops released the single "Standing In The Shadows Of Love", a #6 song in both the United States and the U.K.

"Bernadette" became another of the group's strongest songs, rising to #4 in the U.S. and #8 in the U.K.

 

The group scored two more minor hits from Reach Out.  Both were bigger hits by other artists--"Walk Away Renee" became the only big hit by the Left Banke.

 

"If I Were A Carpenter" reached #8 for Bobby Darin, #20 for this supergroup.

The group released their Greatest Hits album, which went Gold.  

But shortly after one of their biggest hits, the go-to team of Holland-Dozier-Holland left Motown and the Four Tops were forced to look elsewhere for material.  They tried Nickolas Ashford & Valerie Simpson, Norman Whitfield, Johnny Bristol and Ivory Hunter, with little success.  The group's next three albums failed to generate significant interest.

 

In 1970, the Four Tops landed a minor hit with Still Water (Love)" at #11.

 

Later in the year, two superstars combined for a great song that was underrated at #14.  The Tops joined the Supremes for "River Deep - Mountain High".

When Gordy decided to move the Motown offices from Detroit to Los Angeles to move into movies and television as well, he required his artists to move there as well.  The Four Tops were one of the groups which refused, so they signed with ABC-Dunhill Records.  At Motown, the label was beginning to focus on new acts such as the Jackson Five and Diana Ross's solo career, but at ABC, they worked with Dennis Lambert and Brian Potter.

 

With Keeper of the Castle in 1972, the Four Tops were able to regain momentum, and the title song climbed to #7 on the R&B chart and #10 overall.  

 

 

The single "Ain't No Woman (Like The One I Got)", a #4 smash, gave the group their first Gold record since "Reach Out I'll Be There".

It seemed the group was back, but they still missed the golden team of Holland-Dozier-Holland, and as a result, missed with 13 consecutive singles.  Their time at ABC was over.

 

In 1981, the Four Tops signed with Casablanca Records, which had suddenly become hot with Donna Summer and KISS.  The Tops released the album Tonight! and lead single "When She Was My Girl", which led the way on the R&B chart and made it to #11 overall.

That was the last major hit for the group, however, as five more releases at Casablanca, a return to Motown for four more singles and four with Arista Records all failed to generate interest.

The Four Tops continued to tour with their lineup intact until Payton died of liver cancer in 1997.  Former Temptation Theo Peoples took his place, and when Stubbs too found out he had cancer, Ronnie McNeir filled in.  Stubbs died in 2008.

The Tops collected 43 career hits, with seven going Top 10 and two huge #1 songs.  According to Ebony magazine, they have sold over 20 million records worldwide.

The Four Tops were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1990 and the Vocal Group Hall of Fame in 1999.  They received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1997.

The group received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Grammy Awards in 2009.  The Grammys also inducted the big hit "Reach Out I'll Be There" into their Hall of Fame.

The group sang the U.S. national anthem prior to game 5 of the 2011 American League Championship Series in Detroit.

Over their amazing career, the Four Tops scored 41 career hits, with 7 of those reaching the Top 10 and the two classics, "I Can't Help Myself" and "Reach Out (I'll Be There)" going to #1.

America, the #95 Artist of the Rock Era

"One of the best groups of all-time was also amazing in concert."

"Timeless music from a great band."

"Beautiful harmonies."

"Clean, honest music beyond all pretense."

"One of the greatest rock bands in history."

"I have always loved America for their purity, clarity, feeling and harmony."

"One of my all-time favorites groups.  Amazing."

"America's music is so relaxing.  I love them."

"Music that touches the soul."

"There's something magical about their music."

When their fathers were stationed at the United States Air Force base near London in the mid-1960's, Gerry Beckley (born September 12, 1952 in Fort Worth, Texas), Dewey Bunnell (b. January 19, 1951 in Harrogate, Yorkshire, England) and Dan Peek (b. November 1, 1950 in Panama City, Florida) went to Central High School in Watford, England (north of London) and met while they played in two different bands.

By the time they met, Gerry had already taught piano and guitar and Dan had been playing piano since age seven and the guitar by age 12.  While living in Texas, Peek and his brother formed a band and received an offer from a small label in the state.  The Peeks moved again before the recording date.  Dan thought he had missed his chance.

While at Central High, Dan's group won a battle of the bands contest, but when it broke up, Gerry asked Dan to join his group, Daze.

In 1969, Peek graduated and returned to the United States to enroll at Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Virginia as an English and Business major.  Dewey took Peek's place in Daze, but the arrangement did not work out, and the three lost touch with one another.

Peek dropped out of school and returned to England and located Bunnell.  Both found work at a snack bar and became friends again.  One day, Dewey took out his guitar and played songs he had been writing.  Peek was impressed with Dewey's songwriting ability and guitar playing.

Buckley at this time was playing in a group called Swallow The Buffalo.  Peek contacted him and played with Gerry in a few demo sessions.  But Dan was frustrated at the lack of success and got down on his knees to make a bargain with God.  "I told Him," Dan later said, "that if He would make me successful and famous in music that I would use that as a platform to tell people about God."

The three musicians gathered around a kitchen table and began working on the songs that they had written.  They often practiced those songs in the back of Dewey's car.  Soon, they met Ian Samwell, the former lead guitarist for Cliff Richard who was now working as a talent scout for Warner Brothers Records.  Samwell was making inroads in his new job, having signed Rod Stewart and the Faces.  

When someone told Samwell about a group called Swallow The Buffalo, Samwell went to hear the group's music.  He wasn't interested in the group, but Ian asked about the guitar solo in one of their songs.  The group told Samwell that the guitarist was Gerry Beckley, who was already in a group with a couple of friends.

Samwell invited Beckley, Bunnell and Peek to a house he shared with Jeff Dexter and Linda Lewis.  The trio played their songs and, while Samwell liked what he heard, he knew the group needed live experience.  Dexter agreed to become their manager and arrange some gigs in local clubs.

The trio named themselves America because they did not want anyone to think that they were British musicians trying to sound like an American group.  They played at the Roundhouse and other London locations, while Samwell arranged for America to record some demos at Warner Brothers.  The brass at Warner Brothers initially was reticent, but after Samwell offered to produce them, they agreed to sign the trio to a recording contract.  Dexter secured them a show opening for Elton John and the Who at the Roundhouse on December 20, 1970 for a charity event.  

America recorded their debut album at Trident Studios in London with Samwell and Dexter producing the project.  Samwell wanted to capture the rich acoustic sound that he first heard from them.  But Samwell later said that the group came into their first session with different ideas:



Their idea at the time was to do something more like 'Sgt. Pepper' (the Beatles famous 1967 album).  They were very creative. They had tons of ideas. I said, 'It's not a good thing for you to be doing this. You won't be able to support it on stage. I love what you're doing just the way it is. We'll enhance it a little bit with the odd thing here and there, and of course the sound quality will be good. But if you start bringing in piccolo trumpets and anything else that George Martin might have done for 'Sgt. Pepper', then you're just not going to be able to live up to it on stage. And in any case, you're magic the way it is.' Eventually they all agreed to that. I think they were a bit disappointed at the time.


 Dexter brought them to the Netherlands to hone their sound.  America released their self-titled album in 1971, and it did well in the Netherlands but little everywhere else.  The clubs in the London area loved the music but the album did not sell. 

Dexter and Samwell brought the group to Morgan Studios to record more songs to replace weaker ones on the album.  One of these was Bunnell's "Desert Song", his reminesces of his life in California, a feeling the other members shared which ultimately influenced their decision to move there.  The group debuted the song at the Harrogate Festival four days later and, when the audience loved it, America opted to include it on the refurbished album.  However, they were told that they couldn't use it as a title because it was the title of an old musical.  So, they renamed it "A Horse With No Name".  

The song was added to the album and released as a single.  Not expecting anything, the group already set upon recording a second album and hoping to achieve a sound closer to their original intentions instead of another acoustical album.  They started performing some of the songs live.  While Samwell prepared to produce the album, "A Horse With No Name" exploded into a huge hit and the project was put on the back burner.  

 

 

The single became one of The Top 500 Songs of the Rock Era*.  A million seller, "A Horse With No Name" rode to #1 for three weeks in the U.S. and also reached #1 in Canada, #2 in Australia and #3 in the United Kingdom.

The debut album was re-released on the back of the single's success.  Dexter booked the group in smaller clubs such as the Bitter End in Manhattan, New York and the Troubador in Los Angeles, so fans could see them up close and hear the music, "rather than have it blasted at them over a million watt PA," as Mark Plummer of the magazine Melody Maker explained at the time. 

An early review noted,


[These] dudes really play some pretty fine acoustic music with lotsa twelve-string and some real lush 'n tasty steel, and the amazing thing is that it doesn't sound phony or over-produced. And then there's their harmonies -- Jesus, they're downright gorgeous.

If you own an original copy of the 11-track album released in 1971 prior to the changes, it fetches a pretty hefty price.  "A Horse With No Name" helped carry the album to #1 on the Album chart for five weeks and to Platinum status.  America's sound fit perfectly with the soft sound popular during the early '70s.  "I Need You" also landed in the Top 10. 






 

 

Although never released as a single "Sandman" became one of the trio's most popular songs.   America won the Grammy Award for Best New Artist.

Music executives soon joined the public in appreciating the America sound.  Elliott Roberts and David Geffen approached the group.  By this time, Geffen had artists such as the Eagles, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young and Joni Mitchell in his stable, and the band was taken with the fact that a person of Geffen's caliber wanted them.

America did not have a formal management contract with Dexter, and they later said that in hindsight, it was an unprofessional thing for them to do.  But the band bolted to Los Angeles, where they produced their second album themselves.  An angry Dexter and Samwell flew to L.A. and hashed out the financial details of the change with Geffen.

 

 

America moved to more of a Rock sound and brought in legendary session drummer Hal Blaine and bassist Joe Osborn.  For live performances, the trio added Dave Atwood (who played on their debut album) on drums and bassist Dave Dickey.  In 1972, America released the album Homecoming, a word which reflected the feelings of returning to the United States after being away for so long.  "Ventura Highway", written in England before the group became successful, raced to #3 on the Adult chart and #8 overall in the United States and #5 in Canada.






 

 

Homecoming also went  Platinum.  Bunnell to this point had written most of America's songs, but one of Peek's songs, "Don't Cross The River", was released next.  It features the banjo playing of America's photographer, Henry Diltz, who had also played for the Doors, Joni Mitchell, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young and Buffalo Springfield.  Although it stalled at #35, "Don't Cross The River" is another solid song.

In 1973, Willie Leacox replaced Atwood and America released the album Hat Trick.  The album didn't sell as well, with "Only In Your Heart" stopping at #62.

 The album also contained "Muskrat Love", which the Captain & Tennille later took  to the Top 10 in 1976.

Looking for answers, the group turned to famous producer George Martin (second from right, above, with the group), who had earlier worked magic with the Beatles.  The trio also recruited engineer Geoff Emerick, who also played a key role in the success of that group.  Armed with this team, America recorded their next album in London and Montserrat in the Caribbean.







 

 

Martin brought in strings and bass to compliment what he saw as the best thing the group had going for them, great harmonies and an acoustic sound.  The 1974 album Holiday returned America to the forefront.  "Tin Man", loosely based on the character from the classic movie The Wizard of Oz, leaped to #4 on the Popular chart and #1 Adult.  






 

 

"Lonely People" also landed in the Top 10.

 

 

The group toured Europe and North America before releasing the album Hearts, also produced by Martin, in 1975.  "Sister Golden Hair" became another #1 smash and both Holiday and Hearts went Gold.






 

"Daisy Jane", although it peaked at #20 on the Popular chart, rose to #4 among Adults.

The group released the album History:  America's Greatest Hits later in the year.  The compilation has gone over four million in sales.







 

 

In 1976, America recorded the album Hideaway.  Although it was a quality album, the band's popularity began to wane.  As Martin had added for complexity in the studio for their albums, the group added Jim Calire on keyboards and sax and Tom Walsh on percussion.  "Today's The Day" climbed to #1 on the Adult chart.

America traveled to Hawai'i i to begin work on their next album Harbor, which was released in 1977.  It was the first album by the group that was not certified Gold.

Peek left in 1977 and briefly began a solo career in Christian music.  Beckley and Bunnell opted to continue America as a duo.  They covered the Mamas & the Papas classic "California Dreamin'" for the 1979 movie of the same name. 

 

America signed with Capitol Records and released the album Silent Letter in 1979.  Calire and Walsh were dropped from the live lineup, while bassist Bryan Garafalo replaced Dickey in 1980 and Bradley Palmer took over from him the next year.

The duo brought in Timothy B. Schmit of the Eagles and Steve Lukather from Toto for their next studio album Alibi, released in 1980.  America then scored a comeback with their album View from the Ground.  Beckley and Bunnell recruited Carl Wilson of the Beach Boys, Jeff Porcaro from Toto and Christopher Cross.  Guitarist Russ Ballard played all of the instruments, sang backing vocals and produced the song "You Can Do Magic", a #5 Adult Contemporary and #8 Popular hit.  

America stuck with Ballard for the album Your Move, and once again, he sang and performed most of the instruments as well as produced the album.

Hit singles were now escaping them, so America turned to live performances, appearing over 100 times a year throughout the world.  In 1994, America signed with Gramaphone Records and released their first studio album in a decade, Hourglass.  It too was not successful.  



The 2007 album Here & Now was recorded with a new generation of artists who credit the band as an influence.

In 2006, the tremendous harmonies of America were recognized when the group was inducted into the Vocal Group Hall of Fame.  Peek died in 2011, just before America received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

America enjoyed 17 career hits, with seven Top 10 songs and two #1's.  The group has sold an estimated 15 million albums.  They have scored 21 hits on the Adult chart, with nine reaching the Top 10 and two #1 songs. 

Alicia Keys, the #96 Artist of the Rock Era

"Alicia Keys has always been such a great person, it shows through her content and what she sings about. In a sea of manufactured sex appeal, Alicia shines through with her genuine and classical approach to writing."

"Her voice is so amazing."

"She is a one in a million talent."

"One of the most powerful voices I've ever heard."

"Alicia Keys is Perfection."

"She has recorded some of the best songs in music history."

"A timeless talent."

"She's so beautiful... so talented... and so relevant."

"Pure talent, one of the best to come out in years."

"A talented and strong woman with incredible lyrics and beautiful music."



When this artist debuted in 2001, it was a breath of fresh air to an industry which had taken the easy road paved with bubblegum and musicians with precious little artistic talent.  A classically-trained pianist, she didn't settle for mediocrity but instead came up with thought-provoking songs that made a difference.

Alicia Cook was born January 25, 1981 in Manhattan, New York.  Her parents separated when she was two and was raised by her mother.  At the age of four, Alicia appeared on The Cosby Show in the episode "Slumber Party" and enrolled in music and dance classes throughout her childhood.  She played compositions by Mozart, Beethoven and Chopin on the piano beginning when she turned seven.  When she was 12, Alicia enrolled in the Professional Performing Arts School and she began writing songs at age 14.  Alicia graduated as the school valedictorian at the age of 16.

In 1994, Alicia met Jeff Robinson, who became her manager and introduced her to A&R man Peter Edge at Arista Records.  Edge later described his initial impressions to HitQuarters:


I had never met a young R&B artist with that level of musicianship. So many people were just singing on top of loops and tracks, but she had the ability, not only to be part of hip-hop, but also to go way beyond that.

As Edge was about to move to Columbia Records, Alicia signed with Columbia.  Keys signed a separate deal with So So Def Recordings and co-wrote and recorded a song for the 1997 movie Men in Black.  

But after two years, Alicia's career was yet to get off the ground with Columbia, so she called Clive Davis at Arista Records, who signed her to a contract.  At this time, Alicia chose Keys as her stage name.  

Alas, Arista records folded, so Keys followed Davis to his new J Records and recorded songs for the movies Shaft in 2000 and Dr. Dolittle 2 in 2001.  Alicia released her debut album Songs in A Minor in 2001.  

 

Thanks to the hit single "Fallin'", Songs in A Minor debuted at #1, a remarkable achievement for a new artist.  "Fallin'" took the world by storm, catapulting to #1 for six weeks in the U.S., also hitting the top in New Zealand and the Netherlands, #2 in Germany and Switzerland, #3 in the U.K. and Ireland and #7 in Austria.  Alicia also won an MTV Video Music Award for Best New Artist in a Video.

 

The landmark album has now sold over six million copies in the United States and 12 million throughout the world.  Keys' second single, "A Woman's Worth", was highly underrated even at #5 in New Zealand and #7 in the United States and was nominated for Best R&B Video at the MTV Video Music Awards

Keys was the big winner at the Grammy Awards as her peers awarded Song of the Year, Best R&B Song and Best R&B Vocal Performance (all for "Fallin'"), Best New Artist and Best R&B Album to the bright new talent.  Keys was also nominated for Record of the Year for the million-seller "Fallin'".

She scored seven American Music Award nominations and took home trophies for Favorite Female Soul/R&B Artist, Favorite New Artist, Pop/Rock and Favorite New Artist, Soul/R&B and earned an ASCAP Pop Award for Most Performed Song for "Fallin'".  

The Billboard Music Awards joined the chorus to celebrate this new amazing talent with eight nominations for Keys and two wins.  "Fallin'" was nominated for Hot 100 Single of the Year, Songs in A Minor was nominated for R&B/Hip-Hop Album of the Year and Keys was nominated for New Artist of the Year, Female Albums Artist of the Year, Female Hot 100 Singles Artist of the Year, Female R&B/Hip-Hop Artist of the Year, and won for Female Artist of the Year and New R&B/Hip-Hop Artist of the Year.

 

Alicia won Best-Selling R&B/Hip-Hop Artist at the World Music Awards.  She combined with Eve for the hit "Gangsta' Lovin'", a #2 smash on both the Popular and R&B charts in the U.S. that also reached #4 in Austria, #6 in the U.K. and Switzerland, #7 in New Zealand and #8 in the Netherlands.

Alicia co-wrote, co-produced and sang on the song "Impossible" for Christina Aguilera's album Stripped and appeared in the television series Charmed and American Dreams.

 

In 2003, Alicia followed her debut with another strong album, The Diary of Alicia Keys, which debuted at #1.  "You Don't Know My Name" led things off at #1 R&B and #3 Popular in the United States.

 

 

"If I Ain't Got You" became a #1 R&B song and #4 overall in the U.S. and also was certified Gold.  Keys also earned Best R&B Video at the MTV Video Music Awards, with the video also nominated for Best Female Video.

Keys' great work garnered 14 Billboard Music Awards, including Artist of the Year, Hot 100 Artist of the Year, Billboard 200 Album of the Year, R&B/Hip-Hop Album of the Year, R&B/Hip-Hop Artist of the Year and R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay Single of the Year (for "Diary").  She won seven trophies for Female Artist of the Year, Hot 100 Songwriter of the Year, R&B/Hip-Hop Artist of the Year, R&B/Hip-Hop Albums Artist of the Year, R&B/Hip-Hop Singles Artist of the Year, R&B/Hip-Hop Single of the Year and R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay Single of the Year for "If I Ain't Got You".  

 

Each of the first two singles earned Most Performed Song status at the ASCAP Awards.  The Diary of Alicia Keys sold another eight million copies globally.  "Diary" (with Tony! Toni! Toné!) peaked at #2 on the R&B chart and #8 Popular.

 

Keys also worked with Usher on the smash "My Boo", which rose to #1 for six weeks and reached #3 in Switzerland, #4 in Germany, #5 in the U.K., #6 in the Netherlands and #7 in Ireland.

Eight more Grammy nominations came flying in with Keys winning for Best R&B Album, Best R&B Song (for "You Don't Know My Name"), Best Female R&B Vocal Performance (for "If I Ain't Got You" and Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals (for "My Boo").  Keys won four more Grammys, Best R&B Song ("You Don't Know My Name", Best Female R&B Vocal Performance ("If I Ain't Got You", Best R&B Album and Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals ("My Boo" with Usher).  She also won the People's Choice Award for Favorite Female Musical Performer.

Alica also won Best-Selling R&B Artist at the World Music Awards.  She pulled another hit from her album with "Karma", which peaked at #20 and earned her a second successive Best R&B Video trophy at the MTV Video Music Awards, outdualing "My Boo", which was also nominated.

Alicia released a collection of unreleased poems from her journals called Tears for Water:  Songbook of Poems and Lyrics.  Keys explained that the title is the basis for her songwriting because "everything I have ever written has stemmed from my tears of joy, of pain, of sorrow, of depression, even of question".  The book was one of the best-sellers of 2005 according to the newspaper The New York Times.

 

Keys recorded her contribution to the MTV Unplugged series at the Brooklyn Academy of Music in 2005.  Unplugged debuted at #1 and has now sold over two million units worldwide.  The single "Unbreakable" climbed to #4 on the R&B chart.

"Unbreakable" earned Grammy nominations for Best R&B Song and Best Female R&B Vocal Performance.  Alicia also received nominations for Best R&B Album, Best R&B Performance (for "If This World Were Mine", a duet with Jermaine Paul) and Best Traditional R&B Vocal Performance (for "If I Was Your Woman").  Keys started her own recording studio in Manhattan called The Oven Studios, which she co-owns with Kerry Brothers, her songwriting and production partner. 

In 2006, the Songwriters Hall of Fame honored Alicia with its Starlight Award.   The following year, Keys starred in the movie Smokin' Aces and earned further accolades for her role in The Nanny Diaries.

 

In 2007, Keys released the album As I Am, which achieved another #1 debut to tie her with Britney Spears for the most consecutive #1 debuts on the Album chart by a female artist.  The big hit "No One" locked on to #1 for five weeks on the Popular chart and 10 weeks on the R&B chart and gave Alicia her biggest international hit since "Fallin'"--#1 in Switzerland, #2 in Canada and New Zealand, #3 in Germany and Austria, #4 in the Netherlands, #6 in the U.K. and #8 in Ireland.  

 

The following year, Keys was awarded with Best Female R&B Artist, Best R&B Song and Best Female R&B Vocal Performance at the Grammy Awards and another nod for Most Performed Song at the ASCAP Pop Awards.

As I Am has sold over three million units in the U.S. and over five million around the world.  The single "Like You'll Never See Me Again" stalled at #12 overall but reached #1 for seven weeks on the R&B chart.

The album earned Best Album, Pop/Rock and Best Album, Soul/R&B at the American Music Awards--that's mass appeal at its finest that is difficult to achieve.  Keys was also nominated for AMA's for Artist of the Year, Favorite Female Artist, Pop/Rock and Favorite Female Artist, Soul/R&B.  Alicia won Best Female R&B Vocal Performance for "Superwoman" (a #12 hit on the R&B chart) at the Grammy Awards.

Alicia and Jack White recorded the theme song to the movie Quantum of Solace ("Another Way To Die"), the first duet in the history of the James Bond series, which reached #4 in Switzerland, #8 in Germany and #9 in the U.K.

Keys won a People's Choice Award for Favorite R&B Song (for "No One", and was nominated in three other categories:  Favorite Female Musical Performer, Favorite Song from a Soundtrack (for the song above) and Favorite Star 35 & Under.

 

In 2008, Alicia starred in the movie The Secret Life of Bees.  The following year she co-wrote and produced "Million Dollar Bill" for Whitney Houston and collaborated with Jay-Z on the song "Empire State Of Mind".  The duet rose to #1 on both the Popular and R&B charts in the United States, #4 in Australia, #6 in the U.K. and Switzerland, #7 in New Zealand and #8 in the Netherlands. 

Keys earned a World Music Award for Best-Selling R&B Female, Grammy Awards for Best Rap Song and Best Rap/Sung Collaboration and an MTV Video Music Award for Best Collaboration.  She also won the Golden Note Award, given to artists "who have achieved extraordinary career milestones", from the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers.

In 2009, Alicia released the album The Element of Freedom, which debuted at #2.  "Try Sleeping With A Broken Heart" was her biggest hit on the album, reaching #2 on the R&B chart and #27 overall in the U.S. and #7 in the U.K.

Alicia was nominated for Favorite Female Artist, Soul/R&B and Best Album, Soul/R&B at the American Music Awards and for Top R&B Artist and Top R&B Song (for "Un-thinkable (I'm Ready)" at the Billboard Music Awards.  She also was nominated for Best R&B Artist and Favorite Online Sensation at the People's Choice Awards.

Keys performed at the Cayman Islands Jazz Festival and at the end of the year, Billboard ranked Alicia as the #5 artist of the decade and the #1 R&B artist, while Keys was nominated for Best R&B Artist at the World Music Awards.

In 2010, Keys and Swizz Beatz were married on the island of Corsica and in October of that year, Alicia gave berth to a son.  She recorded the song "Speechless" with Eve, which is dedicated to that son.

 

The following year, J Records was disbanded and Alicia was assigned to parent label RCA.  Keys released her fifth studio album Girl on Fire in 2012, a winner at the Grammys for Best R&B Album.  The title song became another worldwide hit, #2 on the R&B chart and #11 overall in the U.S., #4 in Germany, #5 in the U.K., the Netherlands and Switzerland, #6 in Canada and #7 in New Zealand.

Keys was nominated for Favorite Female Artist at the American Music Awards and she earned three Billboard Music Award nominations for Top R&B Artist, Top R&B Album and Top R&B Song.  Alicia was nominated for Favorite R&B Artist in both 2012 and 2013 at the People's Choice Awards. 

In 2013, Alicia's VH1 Storytellers special was released on CD and DVD.  The following year, Keys released her first children's book, Blue Moon:  From the Journals of MaMa Mae and LeeLee.  She also gave birth to another son late in the year.  Alicia was nominated for World's Best Live Act at the World Music Awards.

 

In 2016, Keys became a new judge on the television show The Voice and released the song "In Common", her first single in four years.  Alicia released the single "Blended Family (What You Do For Love)" in advance of her album Here.

Here reached #2 in the Album chart, Keys' seventh Top 10 album.

Keys again was a judge on The Voice in 2017 and performed at Rock in Rio.  Alicia hosted the Grammy Awards in 2019, and her performance playing two pianos at the same time drew raves. 

Alicia released the memoir More Myself:  A Journey and hosted the Grammys again in 2020.

 

Keys released the album Alicia in 2020 which contains one of her best career songs, the million-seller "Underdog".

Alicia has charted 24 hits, with nine landing in the Top 10 and four #1 songs.  All of Alicia's studio albums have gone Gold with the exception of her newest released two months ago, and she has two Platinum and three Multi-Platinum albums.  She has three Gold, three Platinum and three Multi-Platinum singles to her credit.  

Alicia has won a Songwriter's Hall of Fame Award, 15 Grammy Awards out of a total of 29 nominations, three World Music Awards from five nominations, five American Music Awards among 16 nominations, nine Billboard Music Awards from 27 nominations, four ASCAP Pop Awards, two People's Choice Awards from nine nominations and four MTV Video Music Awards from 12 nominations.

That's considerable success for an artist around barely over 15 years.  If she can continue to record gems, she'll stay in The Top 100*.  Alicia Keys has definitely earned it to this point.