Sam & Ruby

Last updated
Sam & Ruby
Origin Nashville, Tennessee,
United States
Genres Pop/Rock, Singer/Songwriter
Years active2005–2010
Labels Ryko
MembersSam Brooker and Ruby Amanfu

Sam & Ruby were an American musical duo composed of Sam Brooker and Ruby Amanfu. Sam & Ruby were based in Nashville and recorded two EPs and one full-length record.

Contents

They were signed to the Rykodisc record label. [1] Their song "Heaven's My Home" was featured on the movie and soundtrack The Secret Life of Bees. [2] They were both members of the A Capella group The Collective featured on Season 3 of NBC's The Sing-Off.

History

Early years

Brooker and Amanfu first met in 1999 in Nashville, where both were currently living at the time. [1] [3] Brooker was originally from Green Bay, Wisconsin and moved to Nashville after college to work as a genetic researcher, playing and writing music in his off time. [3] Amanfu was born in Ghana, West Africa and moved with her family to Nashville when she was 3, where she grew up. [3] [4] The two met when Brooker was performing in an in the round, which led them to become friends. [5] Brooker then moved to New York City to pursue music [6] and Amanfu went on to releasing a solo album in the UK in 2003. [7]

The two later reconnected in Nashville and began collaborating on music, writing the song "The Here and The Now" together. [1] [3] Performing together at shows, they eventually became a duo in 2005. [3] and worked on the song "Heaven's My Home" which was featured in the 2008 film The Secret Life of Bees. In 2008 they released a six-song EP entitled Sam & Ruby that was recorded in Brooker's apartment, [6] [8] which would later catch the attention of record label Rykodisc.

The Here And The Now

Rykodisc signed Sam & Ruby and later released their debut album, The Here And The Now in August, 2009. The album would later be named "Album of the Year" by the Associated Press in their top ten albums of the year list. [9]

Sam & Ruby would later go on to release a six-song EP entitled Press On in February, 2010.

Discography

Related Research Articles

My Life with the Thrill Kill Kult is an American electronic industrial rock band originally based in Chicago and founded by Groovie Mann and Buzz McCoy. They became known in the 1980s as pioneers of the industrial music genre – although by the early 1990s they had changed to a more disco-oriented sound – and as a frequent target of censorship groups, including the PMRC, which objected to the band's humorous and satirical references to Satan, Jesus and sex in their song lyrics and stage shows.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Iron & Wine</span> American musician (born 1974)

Samuel Ervin Beam, better known by his stage name Iron & Wine, is an American singer-songwriter. He has released six studio albums, several EPs and singles, as well as a few download-only releases, which include a live album. He occasionally tours with a full band.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brooks & Dunn</span> American country music duo

Brooks & Dunn is an American country music duo consisting of Kix Brooks and Ronnie Dunn, both of whom are vocalists and songwriters. The duo was founded in 1990 through the suggestion of songwriter and record producer Tim DuBois. Before their formation, both members were solo recording artists, having charted two solo singles apiece in the 1980s. Brooks also released an album for Capitol Records in 1989 and wrote hit singles for other artists.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Robyn Hitchcock</span> English singer-songwriter and guitarist

Robyn Rowan Hitchcock is an English singer-songwriter and guitarist. While primarily a vocalist and guitarist, he also plays harmonica, piano, and bass guitar. After leading the Soft Boys in the late 1970s and releasing the influential Underwater Moonlight, Hitchcock launched a prolific solo career.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chuck Prophet</span> American songwriter

Charles William Prophet is an American singer-songwriter, guitarist and record producer. A Californian, Prophet first achieved notice in the American psychedelic/desert rock group Green on Red, with whom he toured and recorded in the 1980s. He has also recorded a number of solo records, and gained prominence as a musician and songwriter.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ugly Duckling (hip hop group)</span> American hip hop group

Ugly Duckling is an American hip hop group that formed around 1993. Ugly Duckling's members include Dizzy Dustin, Young Einstein and Andy Cooper. The band decided to take the name Ugly Duckling because they felt like outcasts in the hip hop scene of the mid-1990s. According to the book How to Rap: the Art & Science of the Hip-Hop MC, it is one of the most prominent underground hip hop groups.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Josh Rouse</span> American singer-songwriter

Josh Rouse is an American folk/roots pop singer-songwriter. Originally from Nebraska, Rouse began his recording career in Nashville in 1998 and later relocated to Spain. In 2014, Rouse won a Spanish Goya Film Award in the category of Best Original Song for "Do You Really Want To Be In Love?" from the motion picture La Gran Familia Española.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Watson Twins</span>

The Watson Twins are an Americana band based in Nashville, TN formed by identical twin sisters Chandra and Leigh Watson.

Ashley Lauren Monroe is an American country music singer-songwriter.

"In Heaven (Lady in the Radiator Song)" (often referred to as simply "In Heaven") is a song performed by Peter Ivers, composed by Peter Ivers, with lyrics by David Lynch. The song is featured in Lynch's 1977 film Eraserhead, and was subsequently released on its 1982 soundtrack album.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Bird and the Bee</span> American indie pop musical duo

The Bird and the Bee is an American indie pop musical duo from Los Angeles, consisting of Inara George and Greg Kurstin. Kurstin is a nine-time Grammy Award–winning producer and multi-instrumentalist who has worked with artists including Sia, Adele, Beck, Kendrick Lamar, and the Foo Fighters. George and Kurstin met while the two were working on her debut album and they decided to collaborate on a jazz-influenced electropop project. Their debut EP, Again and Again and Again and Again, was released on October 31, 2006, followed by their self-titled debut album on January 23, 2007.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dan Haseltine</span> American singer (born 1973)

Daniel Paul Haseltine is an American singer best known as lead vocalist for Christian alternative folk rock group Jars of Clay. Haseltine has performed vocals, piano, accordion, percussion and melodica, while with Jars of Clay. He has had different artistic titles, including songwriter, producer, film composer, music supervisor and art designer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thom Donovan</span> American musician, producer (born 1974)

Thom Donovan is an American guitarist, singer, songwriter, and writer. His first novel, The Twin Affair, was published by Pegasus on September 28, 2023. He has released five solo albums and was the lead vocalist and guitarist of the band Lapush. His international performance career has included concerts across the United States as well as cities around the world. Donovan has performed with Brandi Carlile, Ruby Amanfu, Will Hoge, and worked with Wyclef Jean of The Fugees on his single, Shipwreck. Donovan's music frequently appears in film and television. He had a recurring uncredited background role in the ABC musical drama series, Nashville, as a musician.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jamestown Story</span> American band

Jamestown Story is an American acoustic-based music project created by Dane Schmidt, a singer-songwriter from Minneapolis, Minnesota. Schmidt released his first album under the name And Then I Turned Seven in late 2003 and has since released 7 albums as well as singles and EP's as Jamestown Story. As an A&R, Schmidt signed songwriters Jordan Schmidt, Zach Kale, along with artists Gabby Barrett, Mitchell Tenpenny, The Band Camino, Kameron Marlowe, and Adam Doleac. He resides in Nashville, TN.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Big & Rich</span> American country music duo

Big & Rich is an American country music duo composed of Big Kenny and John Rich, both of whom are songwriters, vocalists, and guitarists. Before the duo's foundation, Rich was bass guitarist in the country band Lonestar, while Kenny was a solo artist for Hollywood Records.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ruby Amanfu</span> American singer-songwriter

Ruby Amanfu is an American recording artist based in Nashville. Amanfu has released seven studio albums and multiple singles. She is known for being one half of the duo Sam & Ruby, whose album was named Associated Press Album of the Year in 2009. Amanfu is also known for her collaborations with Jack White in his all-female band, The Peacocks, and has widely appeared on his critically acclaimed solo albums, Blunderbuss and Lazaretto. In 2020 and 2022, Amanfu was nominated for the Grammy Award for Song of the Year for co-writing "Hard Place" by H.E.R. and "A Beautiful Noise" by Alicia Keys and Brandi Carlile, and was nominated for a Soul Train Music Award for The Ashford & Simpson Songwriter's Award.

Johnnyswim is an American folk, soul, blues, and pop music duo consisting of singer-songwriters Amanda Sudano and Abner Ramirez, formed in 2005 in Nashville, Tennessee.

Daniel Ellsworth and The Great Lakes (DE+TGL) is an American indie rock band originally formed in Nashville, Tennessee, in 2010. They are now living in separate cities: Los Angeles, Boston, and Columbus. The band consists of Daniel Ellsworth, Timon Lance (guitar), and Marshall Skinner (bass). The band tours extensively around North America and has released four studio albums, including two LPs and one EP: Kid Tiger, Civilized Man,, Bemidji and Fashion. Their two EPs are from an extended body of studio recordings, "Chapter One" and "Chapter Two." The acclaimed record "Fashion" was released in 2018, followed by a flurry of digital singles. Their new album, HIGH LIFE, is due out on February 16, 2024.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anyone Who Knows What Love Is (Will Understand)</span> 1964 song

"Anyone Who Knows What Love Is (Will Understand)" is a 1964 R&B song written by Jeannie Seely, Randy Newman, Judith Arbuckle and Pat Sheeran. It was recorded by Irma Thomas and released as a single the same year, with "Time Is on My Side" as the B-side. The song is about a woman who stays in a relationship with a man despite his bad behavior.

Samuel Brinsley Ashworth is an American songwriter, producer, and recording artist. Based out of Nashville, Tennessee, he is best known for songs he composed for H.E.R., Leslie Odom Jr., and Sixpence None the Richer.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Sam & Ruby bio". Rykodisc. Archived from the original on 25 July 2011. Retrieved 28 May 2011.
  2. "Soundtrack: The Secret Life of Bees". IMDb. 2008. Retrieved 28 May 2011.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 "Sam & Ruby is a match made in sweet music". The Associated Press. 20 August 2009. Archived from the original on 1 October 2012. Retrieved 29 May 2011.
  4. Kenya N. Byrd (14 August 2009). "Sam & Ruby Are Musically Color Blind". Essence. Retrieved 28 May 2011.
  5. Craig Havighurst (7 October 2009). "WPLN News Feature Transcript". Nashville Public Radio. Retrieved 28 May 2011.
  6. 1 2 "Sam & Ruby TT Bio". Think Tank Digital. Retrieved 28 May 2011.
  7. "Smoke & Honey CD". Amazon.com. Retrieved 28 May 2011.
  8. "Sam & Ruby EP". Artist Revolution. Retrieved 29 May 2011.
  9. "AP: The 10 best albums of 2009". The Associated Press. December 2009. Archived from the original on 2012-10-01. Retrieved 29 May 2011.