Stars & Hank Forever | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | October 21, 1986 | |||
Recorded | 1986 | |||
Length | 42:58 | |||
Label | Ralph | |||
Producer | The Cryptic Corporation | |||
The Residents chronology | ||||
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Singles from Stars & Hank Forever | ||||
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Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
Allmusic | [1] |
Stars & Hank Forever is an album by American art rock group the Residents. Released in 1986, it is the second and last album in the American Composer series before its cancellation due to increasing difficulties in maintaining the project. [2]
The track "Kaw-Liga", later issued as a single, samples the rhythm and bassline of Michael Jackson's "Billie Jean" (a reference to country singer Billie Jean Horton, who was married to Williams before his death) and did well in the emerging European club scene, spawning several remixes; it is as close as the Residents ever got to a bona fide commercial hit. [3]
The "Sousaside" features sound effects recorded by Philip Perkins to create the effect of a marching band on a happy occasion; a mix of "Stars and Stripes Forever" without sound effects was released as a B-side to the "Kaw-Liga" single.
Stars & Hank Forever is also the last studio album to feature guitarist Snakefinger, before his early death in July 1987. The Williams song "Six More Miles" has since become a sort of ceremonial number for the Residents, being performed in tribute to Snakefinger in 1987, and recently as an encore in 2018 in tribute to the death of Hardy Fox, one of the founding members of the group.
Fox described Sousa as, "one of the most solid, totally American composers there is. He was a true original. He virtually invented American patriotic music, and during his lifetime he was the Beatles. He's like the counterpart to Stravinsky. At that time marching bands were where it was at and he had the hottest one. But the music, if you listen to it, is very intricate, very baroque." [4]
All tracks are written by Hank Williams, except "Kaw-Liga" by Williams and Fred Rose
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
1. | "Hey Good Lookin'" | 2:47 |
2. | "Six More Miles (To the Graveyard)" | 4:15 |
3. | "Kaw-Liga" | 4:52 |
4. | "Ramblin' Man" | 3:13 |
5. | "Jambalaya" | 4:43 |
Total length: | 19:50 |
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
6. | "Sousaside
| 23:10 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
7. | "Kaw-Liga (Prairie mix)" | Williams / Rose | 9:28 |
Total length: | 52:28 |
The Residents are an American art collective and art rock band best known for their avant-garde music and multimedia works. Since their first official release, Meet the Residents (1974), they have released over 60 albums, numerous music videos and short films, three CD-ROM projects, and ten DVDs over the course of over half a century. They have undertaken seven major world tours and scored multiple films. Pioneers in exploring the potential of CD-ROM and similar technologies, the Residents have won several awards for their multimedia projects. They founded Ralph Records, a record label focusing on avant-garde music, in 1972.
HiramKing "Hank" Williams was an American singer-songwriter. He is regarded as one of the most significant and influential American singers and songwriters of the 20th century. Williams recorded 55 singles that reached the top 10 of the Billboard Country & Western Best Sellers chart, five of which were released posthumously, and 12 of which reached No.1.
Philip Charles Lithman, who performed under the stage name Snakefinger, was an English musician, singer and songwriter. A multi-instrumentalist, he was best known for his guitar and violin work and his collaborations with The Residents.
"Billie Jean" is a song by the American singer Michael Jackson, released by Epic Records on January 3, 1983, as the second single from his sixth studio album, Thriller (1982). It was written and composed by Jackson and produced by Quincy Jones and co-produced by Jackson. "Billie Jean" blends post-disco, R&B, funk, and dance-pop. The lyrics describe a woman, Billie Jean, who claims that the narrator is the father of her newborn son, which he denies. Jackson said the lyrics were based on groupies' claims about his older brothers when he toured with them as the Jackson 5.
Henry Mobley was an American tenor saxophonist and composer. Mobley was described by Leonard Feather as the "middleweight champion of the tenor saxophone", a metaphor used to describe his tone, that was neither as aggressive as John Coltrane nor as mellow as Lester Young, and his style that was laid-back, subtle and melodic, especially in contrast with players such as Coltrane and Sonny Rollins. The critic Stacia Proefrock claimed him "one of the most underrated musicians of the bop era." Mobley's compositions include "Double Exposure", "Soul Station", and "Dig Dis".
Ralph Records was an independent record label active between 1972 and 1989, best known for being initially run by avant-garde art collective, The Residents. The name arose from the slang phrase for vomiting, "calling Ralph on the porcelain telephone".
Hank Brian Marvin is an English multi-instrumentalist, vocalist, and songwriter. He is known as the lead guitarist for the Shadows.
The Third Reich 'n Roll is the second studio album by the American art rock group the Residents, released on Ralph Records in 1976. The album consists of two side-long suites of "'semi-phonetic' interpretations of Top 40 rock and roll from the Sixties."
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"Your Cheatin' Heart" is a song written and recorded by country music singer-songwriter Hank Williams in 1952. It is regarded as one of country's most important standards. Williams was inspired to write the song while driving with his fiancée from Nashville, Tennessee, to Shreveport, Louisiana. After describing his first wife Audrey Sheppard as a "cheatin' heart", in minutes he dictated the lyrics to Billie Jean Jones. Produced by Fred Rose, Williams recorded the song at his last session at Castle Studio in Nashville, Tennessee, on September 23.
Motown 25: Yesterday, Today, Forever is a 1983 television special, produced by Suzanne de Passe for Motown, to commemorate its 25th anniversary. The program was taped before a live audience at the Pasadena Civic Auditorium in Pasadena, California on March 25, 1983, and broadcast on NBC on May 16. Among its highlights were Michael Jackson's performance of "Billie Jean", Smokey Robinson's reunion with the Miracles, a Temptations / Four Tops "battle of the bands", Marvin Gaye's inspired speech about black music history and his memorable performance of "What's Going On", a Jackson 5 reunion, and an abbreviated reunion of Diana Ross & the Supremes, who performed their final #1 hit, "Someday We'll Be Together" from 1969. The show was written by Buz Kohan, Ruth Robinson, and de Passe. The broadcast was watched by over 47 million viewers.
Hank Williams: The Roy Orbison Way is the fourteenth album recorded by Roy Orbison, and the eighth for MGM Records, released in August 1970. It is a tribute album to the songs of Country Music Hall of Fame honky tonk singer Hank Williams, whom Orbison listed among his influences. The album was a critical failure and it sold poorly—Fred Foster said it was "an exercise in futility." It remained relatively unknown to Orbison fans until it was repackaged on Compact Disc in 2009 along with the popular 1967 Don Gibson tribute album Roy Orbison Sings Don Gibson.
Tribute to My Father is an album by American country music artist Hank Williams Jr. It was released on September 21, 1993 by Curb Records.
"Kaw-Liga" is a country music song written by Hank Williams and Fred Rose.
Anthony Marinelli is an American musician, composer, synth programmer, record producer and conductor. In his early career, he composed and performed accompaniment on the synthesizer for albums including Michael Jackson's Thriller (1982). Marinelli has also recorded with Lionel Richie, Kenny Loggins, Herb Alpert, Supertramp, The Crystal Method, Billy Childs and James Brown.
Six More Miles (To the Graveyard) is a song written by Hank Williams for MGM Records. It appeared as the B-side to "I Saw the Light" in 1948.
"I Could Never Be Ashamed of You" is a song written and recorded by Hank Williams. It was released as the B-side of "I'll Never Get Out of This World Alive" on MGM Records in November 1952.
"The Love that Faded" is a song by Bob Dylan. It contains lyrics by Hank Williams to which Dylan composed music and appears on the 2011 LP The Lost Notebooks of Hank Williams.