Big Chief was an American funk rock band from Ann Arbor, Michigan. [1]
Big Chief was founded in 1989 by several veterans of the Michigan hardcore punk scene, including Barry Henssler, who had been a member of Necros. [1] They began attracting major label attention even before releasing any songs. [2] After the release of their debut seven-inch record, "Brake Torque", Sub Pop offered to put out another seven-inch single. After several more single releases, the group compiled them on Drive It Off, released on Get Hip Recordings in 1991. [1] Later that year, the group released its debut album, Face, [1] in Germany; Sub Pop issued the album for the American market in mid-1992. In 1993, Sub Pop released their sophomore album, Mack Avenue Skullgame , after which the group switched to major label Capitol Records, who released the group's third and final LP, Platinum Jive , in 1994. [1] The group disbanded in 1996, though it kept up a fanzine, called Motorbooty, until the end of the decade; Motorbooty featured illustrations by guitarist Mark Dancey. [2] Bassist Mark O'Brien became a member of Numbers; vocalist Barry Henssler worked in Chicago clubs as DJ Chamberweed; and Phil Durr played with the groups Five Horse Johnson, Giant Brain, Luder, and Variac. [2]
On January 11, 2019, Phill Durr died of a heart attack at age 53 while visiting family in Germany. [3]
The Isley Brothers are an American soul group originally from Cincinnati, Ohio, that began as a vocal trio consisting of the brothers O'Kelly Isley Jr., Rudolph Isley and Ronald Isley in the 1950s. With a career spanning over seven decades, the group has enjoyed one of the "longest, most influential, and most diverse careers in the pantheon of popular music".
RCA Records is an American record label. Since 2008, it has been owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Group Corporation.
Jive Records was a British-American independent record label founded by Clive Calder in 1981 as a subsidiary of the Zomba Group. In the US, the label had offices in New York City and Chicago. Jive was best known for its successes with hip hop, R&B, and dance acts in the 1980s and 1990s, along with teen pop and boy bands during the late 1990s and early 2000s.
Robert Clark Seger is an American retired singer, songwriter, and musician. As a locally successful Detroit-area artist, he performed and recorded with the groups Bob Seger and the Last Heard and the Bob Seger System throughout the 1960s, breaking through with his first album, Ramblin' Gamblin' Man in 1969. By the early 1970s, he had dropped the 'System' from his recordings and continued to strive for broader success with various other bands. In 1973, he put together the Silver Bullet Band, with a group of Detroit-area musicians, with whom he became most successful on the national level with the album Live Bullet (1976), recorded live with the Silver Bullet Band in 1975 at Cobo Hall in Detroit, Michigan. In 1976, he achieved a national breakout with the studio album Night Moves. On his studio albums, he also worked extensively with the Alabama-based Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section, which appeared on several of Seger's best-selling singles and albums.
Yellowjackets is an American jazz fusion band founded in 1977 in Los Angeles, California.
Necros was an early American hardcore punk band from Maumee, Ohio, although they are usually identified with the Detroit music scene. They were the first band to record for Touch and Go Records.
Kansas is the debut studio album by American progressive rock band Kansas, released in 1974 by Kirshner in the United States and Epic Records in other countries.
Little Texas is an American country music band started in Nashville, Tennessee. The band consists of Porter Howell, Del Gray (drums), Dwayne O'Brien, and Duane Propes. They, along with Tim Rushlow and Brady Seals, formed the band in 1988. Signed to Warner Bros. Records Nashville in 1991, Little Texas released its debut album First Time for Everything that year. The album's lead off single, "Some Guys Have All the Love", reached a peak of No. 8 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks charts. Little Texas charted thirteen top-40 hits between then and 1995, including the number one "My Love" in 1994. Their debut album earned a gold certification from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), while 1993's Big Time was certified double platinum and 1994's Kick a Little was certified platinum.
Yndi Halda are an English post-rock band from Kent. "Yndi Halda" is Old Norse for "Enjoy Eternal Bliss", also the name of their debut release. The band's music is characterised by expansive, cinematic pieces that have seen them compared to post-rock and modern classical genres.
Lee Mack Ritenour is an American jazz guitarist who has been active since the late 1960s.
Velocity Girl is an American indie rock band formed in 1989 in College Park, Maryland, and active in the Washington, D.C., area. The band released three albums before splitting up in 1996. The band reunited for a one-off concert in 2002 and for a few concerts in 2023 and 2024.
Main Course is the thirteenth studio album by the Bee Gees, released in 1975 by RSO Records. It was the group's last album to be released by Atlantic Records in the US under its distribution deal with Robert Stigwood. This album marked a great change for the Bee Gees as it was their first album to include mostly R&B, soul and funk-influenced songs, and created the model for their output through the rest of the 1970s. It rejuvenated the group's career and public image, particularly in the US, after the commercial disappointment of their preceding albums. Main Course was the first album to feature keyboardist Blue Weaver who had just left the Strawbs and toured with Mott the Hoople. The album cover with the band's new logo designed by US artist Drew Struzan made its first appearance here.
Sonicflood is an American contemporary worship music band from Nashville, Tennessee, that has been touted as "The Fathers of the Modern Worship Movement." The group took the name "Sonicflood", a reference to a line in the Book of Revelation, chapter 19, verse 6.
Red Guitars are an English indie rock band active from 1982 to 1986, reforming in 2022. Based in Hull, Red Guitars' first single "Good Technology" was a minor hit, selling 60,000 copies. Their singles "Marimba Jive" and "Be With Me" both reached number one on the UK Indie Chart.
Donald Gene Fleming is an American musician and producer. Besides fronting a number of his own bands, Fleming has produced Sonic Youth, Screaming Trees, Teenage Fanclub and Hole.
Red House Painters were an American rock band formed in Atlanta, Georgia in 1988, before relocating to San Francisco, California. They were one of the most prominent acts associated with the slowcore/sadcore subgenre. The band was formed by primary songwriter Mark Kozelek and drummer Anthony Koutsos. Together, the pair moved to San Francisco, California, where they were joined by bassist Jerry Vessel. Guitarists Gorden Mack and Phil Carney both performed with the band during separate six-year tenures.
2120 South Michigan Ave. is the fifteenth studio album by George Thorogood and the Destroyers. It was released on June 12, 2011 by the label Capitol Records. The album peaked at No. 2 on the Billboard Top Blues Albums chart.
Dave McMurray is an American jazz musician. His primary instrument is saxophone.
Platinum Jive is an album by the American band Big Chief, released in 1994. Subtitled "(Greatest Hits 1969-1999)", the band presented it as a greatest hits collection, although it is made up entirely of original songs. Released by Capitol Records, Platinum Jive was the band's major label debut, and also their final album.
Mack Avenue Skullgame is the second studio album, and third album overall, by American rock band Big Chief, released in September 1993 as their final release for the label Sub Pop. Produced in Detroit with Al Sutton, it departs from the grunge sound the band were known for, instead reflecting the influence of 1970s Blaxploitation films and their funk soundtracks. Considered a funk album, it was also influenced by Detroit bands like the MC5 and contains a horn section, wah-wah effects and psychedelic blues guitars. The band used primitive equipment to help them achieve an authentic sound.