James William Somerville is a Scottish pop singer and songwriter. He sang in the 1980s with the pop groups Bronski Beat and The Communards, and has also had a solo career. He is known in particular for his powerful and soulful countertenor/falsetto singing voice. He is gay; many of his songs, such as "Smalltown Boy", contain political commentary on gay-related issues.
HiM is a dub influenced post-rock group formed in 1995 by Doug Scharin, drummer for the bands Codeine, Rex and June of 44. Their first album, Egg, was their most dub-based effort. Each successive album has gone more in a quasi-world music direction. After some recording for Crooklyn Dub Consortium and Wordsound, Interpretive Belief System, HiM settled on a lineup of Scharin with Bundy K. Brown, Rob Mazurek and Jeff Parker, members or occasional members of Tortoise and Isotope 217. Their first album was the underground hit Sworn Eyes, produced by Doug Scharin. A few personnel changes followed, and the revamped lineup including members of June of 44. Golden released Our Point of Departure in 1999, which signified a very clear shift toward a more jazz-like sound, followed by a major American and European tour. In 2003, HiM released Many In High Places Are Not Well on Fat Cat Records, which was received as their most successful and fully realized release. Peoples was released in mid-2006, featuring a cleaner sound with more vocals than any of HiM's previous releases. Included in this line-up are Martin Perna and Jordan McLean from Antibalas, Griffin Rodriguez from Need New Body/Icy Demons, Adam Pierce. The latest HiM records, 1110 and ん,released in 2008 and 2009 on Afterhours in Tokyo, are collaborations between Doug Scharin, Josh Larue and the Tokyo-based group, Ultra Living.
Assorted Secrets was originally released as a cassette-only extra by the band The Residents that featured some live-in-the-studio recordings as well as a live rehearsal of the Mole Show. Following the financial disaster that was the Mole Show tour, Ralph Records needed to release product fast, and while these takes were not high enough recording quality to warrant a vinyl release, they made an enjoyable cassette release for fans of the group. Supposedly The Residents are upset that this ever got out. Originally released in 1984, this was re-released as a limited edition in 2000, featuring several bonus tracks.
"Cherry Lips", also known as "Cherry Lips " is a 2001 song written, recorded and produced by alternative rock group Garbage for their third studio album, Beautiful Garbage. It was released in early 2002 by Mushroom Records as second single from the album, with the exception of North America, where Interscope issued "Breaking Up the Girl" instead. In the years since release, "Cherry Lips" has become an enduring track for the band, an alternative rock LGBTQ anthem, and after almost two decades continues to resonate, being used as the home run song of the Milwaukee Brewers and in advertisement campaigns for Microsoft's Surface Go laptop tablets.
"Peace on Earth/Little Drummer Boy" is a Christmas song performed by English singer-songwriter David Bowie and American singer Bing Crosby. Recorded on 11 September 1977 at Elstree Studios in London for Crosby's television special Bing Crosby's Merrie Olde Christmas, the song features Crosby singing 1941 standard "The Little Drummer Boy" while Bowie sings the counterpoint tune "Peace on Earth", written by the special's musical supervisors Ian Fraser and Larry Grossman, and scriptwriter Alan Kohan, specifically for the collaboration. The duet was one of Crosby's final recordings before his death in October 1977.
"White Lines " is a song by Melle Mel, released as a 12" in 1983 on Sugar Hill Records. The song, which warns against the dangers of cocaine, addiction, and drug smuggling, is one of Melle Mel's signature tracks. The bassline is taken from a performance of the Sugar Hill house band covering "Cavern", a single by New York City band Liquid Liquid.
"Father and Son" is a popular song written and performed by English singer-songwriter Cat Stevens on his 1970 album Tea for the Tillerman. The song frames a heartbreaking exchange between a father not understanding a son's desire to break away and shape a new life, and the son who cannot really explain himself but knows that it is time for him to seek his own destiny.
"Move Closer" is a song by American singer-songwriter Phyllis Nelson, which topped the charts in the United Kingdom in April 1985.
"Lips of an Angel" is a song by American rock band Hinder produced and co-written by Brian Howes and Joseph Lombardo. It was released in July 2006 as the second single from their album Extreme Behavior. It was their breakthrough hit, charting within the top ten on several US Billboard genre charts, reaching number three on the all-genre Billboard Hot 100, and peaking at number one in Australia and New Zealand. It has sold 3.6 million copies in the US as of January 2015, making it one of the most downloaded rock songs.
Luxembourg is the fourth studio album by English rock band The Bluetones. It was released on 12 May 2003 on Superior Quality Recordings. It was re-issued on Cooking Vinyl on 15 May 2006. Its offspring singles were a "Fast Boy/Liquid Lips" double-A side and "Never Going Nowhere".
"Fast Girls" is a song by Janet Jackson and is the second and final single released from Dream Street. It peaked at #40 on the R&B charts. The song was written and produced by fellow A&M artist Jesse Johnson.
"New York City Boy" is a song by English synth-pop duo Pet Shop Boys, released on 27 September 1999 as the second single from their seventh studio album, Nightlife (1999). In the UK, the single peaked at number 14 on the UK Singles Chart. It also reached the charts in numerous European countries and peaked at number 3 in Spain. In the US, the song hit number 1 on the Hot Dance Club Play chart and number 53 on the Hot Singles Sales chart.
"Mary's Boy Child / Oh My Lord" is a 1978 Christmas single by Boney M., a cover of Harry Belafonte's 1956 hit, put in medley with the new song "Oh My Lord" (Farian/Jay).
"All or Nothing" is a song recorded by American boy band O-Town. The pop ballad was written by Wayne Hector and Steve Mac, and produced by Mac. It was released in July 2001 as the second single from their debut album O-Town. The song reached number 5 in Canada, number 3 in the United States, and number 4 in the United Kingdom.
"Race for the Prize", is a song by The Flaming Lips, released as the first single taken from their 1999 album The Soft Bulletin, and reaching #39 in the UK Singles Chart as the highest charting single from the album. In 2010 Pitchfork Media included the song at number 30 on their Top 200 Tracks of the 90s. The song is also played live frequently, and is usually featured as a set opener for many of their concerts.
"Waitin' for a Superman" is a song by The Flaming Lips, released as the second single taken from their 1999 album The Soft Bulletin, and reaching No. 73 in the UK Singles Chart.
Read My Lips is the 1989 debut solo album by Jimmy Somerville, former lead singer of the successful synthpop groups Bronski Beat and The Communards. The album was released through London Records and peaked at number 29 on the UK Albums Chart. It has been certified Gold by the British Phonographic Industry for sales in excess of 100,000 copies.
Cliff's Hit Album is Cliff Richard's first compilation album and ninth album overall. It was released in July 1963 and reached number 2 on the UK Albums Chart. The album contains 14 songs from his singles released between August 1958 and May 1962. It includes all Richard's singles in this period that made the top 3 of the UK Singles Chart.
"Liquid Dreams" is a song recorded by American boy band O-Town. It was released on December 5, 2000, as the lead single from their debut album O-Town. The song reached number one in Canada, number 10 in the United States, and number three in the United Kingdom. The song is about wet dreams filled with sexual innuendos and pop culture references, including references to Destiny's Child, Madonna, Jennifer Lopez, and Janet Jackson.
"Ode to Boy" is a song by British synthpop duo Yazoo. Originally the B-side to their 1982 hit "The Other Side of Love", it was later included on their second and final studio album You and Me Both in 1983. Where as Yazoo's version is a sparse atmospheric track with synths and percussion, vocalist Alison Moyet later recorded her own version of the song in an uptempo indie-rock style for her 1994 album Essex.
