Aretha Louise Franklin was an American singer, songwriter and pianist. Referred to as the "Queen of Soul", Rolling Stone twice named her as the greatest singer of all time. With global sales of over 75 million records, Franklin is one of the world's best-selling music artists.
Bertrand Russell Berns, also known as Bert Russell and (occasionally) Russell Byrd, was an American songwriter and record producer of the 1960s. His songwriting credits include "Twist and Shout", "Piece of My Heart", "Here Comes the Night", "Hang on Sloopy", "Cry to Me" and "Everybody Needs Somebody to Love", and his productions include "Baby, Please Don't Go", "Brown Eyed Girl" and "Under the Boardwalk".
Alex or Aleck Miller, known later in his career as Sonny Boy Williamson, was an American blues harmonica player, singer and songwriter. He was an early and influential blues harp stylist who recorded successfully in the 1950s and 1960s. Miller used various names, including Rice Miller and Little Boy Blue, before calling himself Sonny Boy Williamson, which was also the name of a popular Chicago blues singer and harmonica player. To distinguish the two, Miller has been referred to as Sonny Boy Williamson II.
Curtis Ousley, known professionally as King Curtis, was an American saxophonist who played rhythm and blues, jazz, and rock and roll. A bandleader, band member, and session musician, he was also a musical director and record producer. A master of the instrument, he played tenor, alto, and soprano saxophone. He played riffs and solos on hit singles such as "Respect" by Aretha Franklin (1967), and "Yakety Yak" by The Coasters (1958) and his own "Soul Twist" (1962), "Soul Serenade" (1964), and "Memphis Soul Stew" (1967).
Peacock Records was an American record label, founded in 1949 by Don Robey in Houston, Texas, United States.
Laurdine Kenneth "Pat" Patrick Jr. was an American jazz musician and composer. He played baritone saxophone, alto saxophone, and Fender bass and was known for his 40-year association with Sun Ra. His son, Deval Patrick, was formerly governor of Massachusetts.
Ramón "Mongo" Santamaría Rodríguez was a Cuban percussionist and bandleader who spent most of his career in the United States. Primarily a conga drummer, Santamaría was a leading figure in the pachanga and boogaloo dance crazes of the 1960s. His biggest hit was his rendition of Herbie Hancock's "Watermelon Man", which was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1998. From the 1970s, he recorded mainly salsa and Latin jazz, before retiring in the late 1990s.
Carolyn Ann Franklin was an American singer-songwriter. Besides her own musical success, Franklin was best known as the daughter of prominent Detroit preacher and civil rights activist C. L. Franklin and the younger sister of American singer/musician Aretha Franklin.
Seven Steps to Heaven is the eighth studio album on Columbia Records by jazz musician Miles Davis, released in 1963, catalogue CL 2051 and CS 8851 in stereo. Recorded at Columbia's 30th Street Studios in Manhattan, and at Columbia Studios in Los Angeles, in sessions recorded in April of 1963, and May of 1963. It presents the Miles Davis Quintet in transition, with the New York session introducing the rhythm section of Herbie Hancock, Ron Carter and Tony Williams, who would become Davis' regular sidemen for the next five years. Upon release, the album was Davis' most successful on the Billboard pop LPs chart up to that point, peaking at number 62.
Herman "Junior" Parker was an American blues singer and musician. He is best remembered for his voice which has been described as "honeyed" and "velvet-smooth". One music journalist noted, "For years, Junior Parker deserted down home harmonica blues for uptown blues-soul music". In 2001, he was inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame. Parker is also inducted into the Mississippi Musicians Hall of Fame.
Armando Peraza was a Cuban Latin jazz percussionist and a member of the rock band Santana. Peraza played congas, bongos, and timbales.
William Correa, better known by his stage name Willie Bobo, was an American Latin jazz percussionist of Puerto Rican descent. Bobo rejected the stereotypical expectations of Latino music and was noted for combining elements of jazz, Latin and rhythm and blues music.
"Watermelon Man" is a jazz standard written by Herbie Hancock for his debut album, Takin' Off (1962).
Afro Blue is a jazz standard composed by Mongo Santamaría.
Clarence LaVaughn Franklin was an American Baptist minister and civil rights activist. Known as the man with the "Million-Dollar Voice", Franklin served as the pastor of New Bethel Baptist Church in Detroit from 1946 until he was shot and wounded in 1979. Franklin was the father of the American singer and songwriter Aretha Franklin. He was also the father of five other children, including Vaughn Franklin, Erma Franklin, Cecil Franklin, Carolyn Franklin and Carol Ellan.
Songs of Faith is the first live album by American singer Aretha Franklin. It was released in 1965 by Checker Records. The album was recorded in 1956 by J-V-B Records at New Bethel Baptist Church in Detroit, Michigan, when Franklin was aged 14.
Samuel "Sticks" Evans was an American drummer, percussionist, music teacher, arranger and musical director. He was credited variously as Sammy "Stick" Evans, Samie Evans, Sammy Evans, Sammie Evans, Stick Evans, Sticks Evans, and Belton Evans.
Floyd Newman was an American saxophonist, session musician and bandleader. As a baritone sax player, he was long associated with Stax Records, and as a member of The Mar-Keys’ horn section and the Memphis Horns.
Joe Von Battle was an American record store owner and pioneer black record producer in Detroit, Michigan, between the 1940s and 1960s. He set up the J.V.B. and Battle record labels, was one of the first independent black record producers, the first to record Rev. C. L. Franklin and his daughter Aretha Franklin, and influential in the career of John Lee Hooker and other blues musicians.
Theodore Richard White was an American businessman, songwriter, music manager and producer from Detroit, Michigan.
