Harry Belafonte was an American singer, actor, and civil rights activist who popularized calypso music with international audiences in the 1950s and 1960s. Belafonte's career breakthrough album Calypso (1956) was the first million-selling LP by a single artist.
"Unchained Melody" is a 1955 song with music by Alex North and lyrics by Hy Zaret. North wrote the music as a theme for the prison film Unchained (1955), hence the song title. Todd Duncan sang the vocals for the film soundtrack. It has since become a standard and one of the most recorded songs of the 20th century, most notably by the Righteous Brothers in 1965. According to the song's publishing administrator, over 1,500 recordings of "Unchained Melody" have been made by more than 670 artists, in multiple languages.
"That'll Be the Day" is a song written by Buddy Holly and Jerry Allison. It was first recorded by Buddy Holly and the Three Tunes in 1956 and was re-recorded in 1957 by Holly and his new band, the Crickets. The 1957 recording achieved widespread success. Holly's producer, Norman Petty, was credited as a co-writer, although he did not contribute to the composition.
"Only You (And You Alone)" (often shortened to "Only You") is a doo wop song composed by Buck Ram, the manager of the Platters, the group that made the song famous in the US, the UK and Belgium. The Platters's lead vocals are by Tony Williams.
"MacArthur Park" is a song written by American singer-songwriter Jimmy Webb that was recorded first in 1967 by Irish actor and singer Richard Harris. Harris's version peaked at number two on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and number four on the UK Singles Chart. "MacArthur Park" was subsequently covered by numerous artists, including a 1970 Grammy-winning version by country singer Waylon Jennings and a number one Billboard Hot 100 disco version by Donna Summer in 1978. Webb won the 1969 Grammy Award for Best Arrangement Accompanying Vocalist(s) for the Harris version.
Heart Like a Wheel is the fifth solo studio album by Linda Ronstadt, released in November 1974. It was Ronstadt's last album to be released by Capitol Records. At the time of its recording, Ronstadt had already moved to Asylum Records and released her first album there; due to contractual obligations, though, Heart Like a Wheel was released by Capitol.
"Tennessee Waltz" is a popular country music song with lyrics by Redd Stewart and music by Pee Wee King written in 1946 and first released in January 1948. The song became a multimillion seller via a 1950 recording – as "The Tennessee Waltz" – by Patti Page.
"Day-O " is a traditional Jamaican folk song. The song has mento influences, but it is commonly classified as an example of the better known calypso music.
"Mary's Boy Child", also known as "Mary's Little Boy Child", is a 1956 Christmas song written by Jester Hairston. It is widely performed as a Christmas carol.
Nuestro Amor is the second studio album by Mexican Latin pop group RBD. The album was released on September 22, 2005, in Mexico, selling over 127,000 units in its first seven hours of release in the country, and 160,000 in the first week, enough for it to be certified Platinum almost instantly. It was eventually certified 3× Platinum and Gold in Mexico. In the United States, the album was released on October 4, 2005, and peaked at number 88 on the Billboard 200 chart. It also spent three weeks in a row at number one on the Top Latin Albums chart, selling over 100,000 units just in its first week of release. The album was released in Spain on October 30, 2006, and has been certified 2× Platinum. The album was nominated for a Latin Grammy in the "Best Pop Album by a Duo/Group with Vocals" category at the 2006 Latin Grammy Awards.
"Smoke Gets in Your Eyes" is a show tune written by American composer Jerome Kern and lyricist Otto Harbach for the 1933 musical comedy Roberta. The song was sung in the Broadway show by Tamara Drasin. It was first recorded by Gertrude Niesen, with orchestral direction from Ray Sinatra, Frank Sinatra's second cousin, on October 13, 1933. Niesen's recording of the song was released by Victor, with in the B-side "Jealousy", a song featuring Isham Jones and his Orchestra. The line "When your heart's on fire, smoke gets in your eyes" apparently comes from a Russian proverb.
"Change the World" is a song written by Tommy Sims, Gordon Kennedy, and Wayne Kirkpatrick and recorded by country music artist Wynonna Judd. A later version was recorded by English singer Eric Clapton for the soundtrack of the 1996 film Phenomenon. Clapton's version was produced by R&B record producer Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds.
Belafonte at Carnegie Hall is a live double album by Harry Belafonte issued by RCA Victor. It is the first of two Belafonte Carnegie Hall albums, and was recorded on April 19 and April 20, 1959. The concerts were benefits for The New Lincoln School and Wiltwyck School, respectively. The album stayed on the charts for over three years.
Tomás Torres Carrasquillo, known professionally as Tommy Torres, is a Puerto Rican singer, songwriter, and record producer. Named "#1 Hot Latin Tracks Producer" of 2007 by Billboard magazine and Composer of the Year at 2010 ASCAP's Latin Music Awards, Torres has written and produced songs for many artists including Ricardo Arjona, Jesse & Joy, Ednita Nazario, Alejandro Sanz, Ricky Martin and Alicia Keys.
Jason Lee Epperson is an American record producer and DJ from St. Louis, Missouri. He first became known as the primary producer of hometown native Nelly's 2000 debut album Country Grammar, which received diamond certification by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Thereafter, he produced extensively for Nelly and his collaborators, and signed with his record label, Derrty Entertainment as in-house talent. He has since produced songs for other artists including Murphy Lee, St. Lunatics, Justin Timberlake, E-40, Cedric the Entertainer, Lil Wayne, Ron Isley, Three 6 Mafia, and Hilary Duff. Epperson's style is characterized by hip hop mixed with soul, R&B, and pop music. Billboard magazine, in its December 2000 issue, listed Epperson at number 16 on its "Top 100 Producers" list, as well as number 19 on its "Top 100 R&B/Hip Hop Producers of 2000" list. He has received a Grammy Award nomination.
Thaddis Laphonia "Kuk" Harrell is an American songwriter, vocal producer, arranger and engineer. He was a member of a songwriting–production team composed of himself, Christopher "Tricky" Stewart and Terius "The-Dream" Nash. In 2011, Kuk Harrell and partner Tricky Stewart joined the ranks of Fox's American Idol along with music mogul Jimmy Iovine, producing many of the songs performed on television by the contestants and released via iTunes. 2011 marked the highly anticipated return of Jennifer Lopez and her album LOVE? in which Kuk served as Album Vocal Producer. Earning his fourth Grammy for the vocal production of Rihanna's No. 1 Billboard Single "Only Girl ", Harrell is also the vocal producer and co-writer of Rihanna's Grammy-winning single "Umbrella". A composer and engineer on Beyoncé's chart topping "Single Ladies " from the album I Am... Sasha Fierce, he is also vocal producer and engineer of the Diane Warren-penned "I Was Here" from Beyoncé's 2011 album 4. He also produced the majority of the vocals on Mary J. Blige's Platinum album Growing Pains, which won the 2008 Grammy for Best Contemporary R&B Album. The first single from Growing Pains, "Just Fine", earned a Grammy nomination for best R&B vocal performance in 2007.
Irving Louis Burgie, sometimes known professionally as Lord Burgess, was an American musician and songwriter, regarded as one of the greatest composers of Caribbean music. He composed 34 songs for Harry Belafonte, including eight of the 11 songs on the Belafonte album Calypso (1956), the first album of any kind to sell one million copies. Burgie also wrote the lyrics of the National Anthem of Barbados. To date, songs penned by Irving Burgie have sold more than 100 million copies worldwide.
"O Tú o Ninguna" is a song written by Juan Carlos Calderón and produced and performed by Mexican singer Luis Miguel. The song is a bolero in which the protagonist cannot envision his life without anyone else besides his love interest. It was released as the second single from the album Amarte Es un Placer on 6 September 1999. The track topped the US Billboard Hot Latin Songs chart; and reached the top-five in Guatemala, Nicaragua and Panama.
"Daylight" is a song performed by American band Maroon 5. The song was released on November 8, 2012, as the third single from their fourth studio album Overexposed (2012). Lead singer, Adam Levine co-wrote and co-produced it with Max Martin and Mason "MdL" Levy, with additional writing from Sam Martin. The song is a soft rock ballad about realizing that one has to move on from an old relationship, but not fully wanting to leave just yet.
"Man Smart (Woman Smarter)" is a calypso song variously credited as being composed by Norman Span (King Radio), D. L. Miller, F. Kuhn, and Charles Harris. Span's authorship seems most likely since, as a popular calypso musician and songwriter, he first recorded the song in 1936, and none of the other ascribed composers are associated with calypso. Miller's music industry career began around 1950.
