Sir George Ivan "Van" MorrisonOBE is a singer-songwriter and musician from Northern Ireland whose recording career spans seven decades.
Bananarama are a British-Irish girl group formed in London in 1980. The group, originally a trio, consisted of friends Sara Dallin, Siobhan Fahey, and Keren Woodward. Fahey left the group in 1988 and was replaced by Jacquie O'Sullivan until 1991, when the trio became a duo. Their success on both pop and dance charts saw them listed in the Guinness World Records for achieving the world's highest number of chart entries by an all-female group. Between 1982 and 2009, they had 30 singles reach the Top 50 of the UK Singles Chart.
Edward Neil Anthony Hannon is a singer and songwriter from Northern Ireland. He is the founder and frontman of the chamber pop group the Divine Comedy, and is the band's only constant member since its inception in 1989. Hannon wrote the theme tunes for the television sitcoms Father Ted and The IT Crowd, as well as the original songs for the musical film Wonka (2023).
Stiff Little Fingers are an Ulster punk rock band from Belfast, Northern Ireland (UK). They formed in 1977 at the height of the Troubles, which informed much of their songwriting. They started out as a schoolboy band called Highway Star, doing rock covers, until they discovered punk. They were the first punk band in Belfast to release a record – the "Suspect Device" single came out on their own independent label, Rigid Digits. Their album Inflammable Material, released in partnership with Rough Trade, became the first independent LP to enter the UK top 20.
Herman "Junior" Parker was an American blues singer and harmonica player. 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.
The 19th Annual Australian Recording Industry Association Music Awards were held on 23 October 2005 at the Sydney SuperDome at the Sydney Olympic Park complex, thus continuing the previous year's innovation of televising the awards on Sunday evening. A varied cast of presenters included Merrick and Rosso, stand-up comic Dave Hughes, Gretel Killeen and David Hasselhoff.
"I Never Loved a Man (The Way I Love You)" is a 1967 single released by American soul singer Aretha Franklin. Released on Atlantic Records as the first big hit of her career and the lead single from her tenth studio album of the same name, it became a defining song for Franklin, peaking at number one on the rhythm and blues charts and number nine on the pop charts. The B-side was "Do Right Woman, Do Right Man". Before this Franklin had placed only two Top 40 singles on the pop chart during her modest tenure with Columbia Records.
Duke Special is a songwriter and performer based in Belfast, Northern Ireland. A piano-based songwriter with a romantic style and a warm, distinctly accented voice, he was previously known for his distinctive long dreadlocks, eyeliner and outfits he describes as "hobo chic". Nowadays, he performs mostly out of makeup and desires to be more like his true self. His live performances have a theatrical style inspired by Vaudeville and music hall, and often incorporate 78s played on an old-fashioned gramophone, or sound effects from a transistor radio. He is most often accompanied by percussionist "Temperance Society" Chip Bailey, who plays cheese graters and egg whisks, a Stumpf fiddle and a Shruti box, as well as the more typical drums and cymbals. Other musicians who perform with Wilson from time to time include Paul Pilot (guitar), Réa Curran, Ben Castle, Ben Hales, Gareth Williams, "Professor" Ger Eaton (keyboards), Dan Donnelly and Serge Archibald III.
Songs from the Deep Forest is an album by Northern Irish singer-songwriter Duke Special. In May 2006, it was released as a limited edition set of six 7" vinyl discs and then re-released as a single CD in October of the same year. It was nominated for a 2007 Meteor Music Award for best Irish album, and for the 2007 Choice Music Prize.
"I Can't Make You Love Me" is a song written by Mike Reid and Allen Shamblin and recorded by American singer Bonnie Raitt for her eleventh studio album, Luck of the Draw (1991). Released as the album's second single in 1991, "I Can't Make You Love Me" became one of Raitt's most successful singles, reaching the top-20 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and the top-10 on the Adult Contemporary chart.
"Turn On Your Love Light" is a rhythm and blues song recorded by Bobby Bland in 1961. It was an important R&B and pop chart hit for Bland and has become one of his most identifiable songs. A variety of artists have recorded it, including the Grateful Dead, who made it part of their concert repertoire.
The Taking Chances World Tour was the ninth concert tour by French Canadian singer Céline Dion, in-support of her thirteenth French-language and 22nd studio album, D'elles (2007), as well as her tenth English-language and 23rd studio album, Taking Chances (2007). The tour marked Dion’s return to performing on a global scale, after five successful years with her groundbreaking Las Vegas residency, A New Day.... It was also her first concert tour in nine years, following her Let's Talk About Love World Tour (1998/99).
Orchestral Manoeuvres in Belfast is a 2008 Duke Special live album.
In 2007 Duke Special headlined five nights at the Belfast Empire, Each night had a different theme, and each show featuring special songs and guests. Duke gave each show a title:
- August 19 – Olde Time Music Hall
- August 20 – Tales from the silver screen
- August 21 – Big band showtime
- August 22 – Voices
- August 23 – Vaudeville Extravaganza.
The Four Tops are an American vocal quartet from Detroit who helped to define the city's Motown sound of the 1960s. The group's repertoire has included soul music, R&B, disco, adult contemporary, doo-wop, jazz, and show tunes.
Children in Need 2008 was a campaign held in the United Kingdom to raise money for Children in Need. It culminated in a live broadcast on BBC One on the evening of Friday 14 November, through to the morning of Saturday 15 November. The broadcast was hosted by Terry Wogan, Fearne Cotton and Tess Daly joined by other guest presenters throughout the night, including Alesha Dixon presenting from BT Tower. The voice-over reading out running totals was Alan Dedicoat. The 2008 event broke all previous records, with a total of £20,991,216 raised by the end of the broadcast.
The Vals are a psychedelic pop band from Belfast, Northern Ireland.
Children in Need 2009 was a campaign held in the United Kingdom to raise money for Children in Need. It culminated in a live broadcast on BBC One and ITV1 which began on the evening of Friday 20 November and ran through to the morning of Saturday 21 November. The broadcast was hosted by Terry Wogan, Tess Daly and Alesha Dixon. Alan Dedicoat read out the running totals and Peter André reported from the BT Tower. The show was broadcast from BBC Television Centre in London. Dancing Pudseys were projected on to the building. The 2009 event raised £20,309,747 by the end of the broadcast, slightly under the previous year's total of £20,991,216.
Boyce Avenue is an American cover band that was formed in Sarasota, Florida by brothers Alejandro Luis Manzano, Daniel Enrique Manzano, and Fabian Rafael Manzano. Boyce Avenue releases original music as well as covers of contemporary and classic songs. The band is named after a combination of two streets the brothers lived on as children. As of August 9, 2011, they are no longer signed to Universal Republic Records and have started their own independent record label called 3 Peace Records.
Piano & I: A One Night Only Event with Alicia Keys, commonly referred to as Piano & I, was a promotional concert tour by American singer and songwriter Alicia Keys. The tour commemorated the tenth anniversary of Keys' debut album, Songs in A Minor (2001), which Keys re-released in late June 2011, with unreleased tracks, live performances, remixes and a documentary. The tour consisted of five concerts in Paris, London, New York City and Los Angeles. In addition to performing a number of songs from Songs in a Minor, Keys’ setlist included songs from all of her other studio albums as well as covers from DeBarge, Mary J. Blige and Marvin Gaye.
