Dorothy Donegan was a classically trained American jazz pianist and occasional vocalist, primarily known for performing stride and boogie-woogie, as well as bebop, swing, and classical. Donegan was born and raised in Chicago, Illinois, and began studying piano in 1928. She took her first lessons from Alfred N. Simms, a West Indian pianist who also […]
Dave Stewart
Dave Stewart is an English musician, songwriter and record producer. Born in Sunderland he began recording whilst still in his teens. After leaving Wearside Stewart spent several years living in squats in London. In late 1976, he was introduced to Annie Lennox by Paul Jacobs. Soon, Stewart and Lennox became romantically involved. By 1977, the […]
Ólafur Arnalds
Ólafur Arnalds is an Icelandic multi-instrumentalist and producer from Mosfellsbaer, Iceland. He mixes strings and piano with loops and beats, a sound ranging from ambient/electronic to atmospheric pop. He is also the former drummer for Hardcore punk and metal bands Fighting Shit, Celestine, and others. In October 2007, Ólafur’s first solo album Eulogy for Evolution […]
Swing Girls
Swing Girls is a Japanese 2004 teen comedy film directed and co-written by Shinobu Yaguchi. The plot follows a group of inept high school girls who form a big band. The cast includes Juri Ueno, Yuta Hiraoka, Shihori Kanjiya, Yuika Motokariya and Yukari Toyashima. The film ranked 8th at the Japanese box office in 2004, […]
Jane Birkin
Jane Mallory Birkin OBE who died yesterday was a British and French singer and actress. She attained international fame and notability for her decade-long musical and romantic partnership with Serge Gainsbourg. She also had a prolific career as an actress, mostly in French cinema. A native of London, Birkin began her career as an actress, […]
Harlem Nocturne
“Harlem Nocturne” is a jazz standard written by Earle Hagen (music) and Dick Rogers (lyrics) in 1939 for the Ray Noble orchestra, of which they were members. It was released by Noble and His Orchestra featuring Jack Dumont on Alto Sax. In its musical sojourn, “Harlem Nocturne” became one of those classic and timeless instrumentals […]
Brigitte Bardot
Brigitte Bardot often referred to by her initials B.B., is a French animal rights activist and former actress, singer, and model. Famous for portraying sexually emancipated characters, often with hedonistic lifestyles, she was one of the best known sex symbols of the 1950s and 1960s. She had acted in 47 films, performed in several musicals, […]
Charles Laughton
I few days ago I was re-watching one of my very favourite old movies ‘Hobson’s Choice’ starring Charles Laughton. Laughton originally a Yorshireman born in Scarborough made an impressive career in Hollywood in a number of well regarded movies such as Mutiny on the Bounty and Witness for the Prosecution. He was married to another […]
Caterina Valente
Caterina Valente is a born Italian, naturalized French multilingual singer, guitarist and dancer. She speaks six languages and sings in eleven. Her brother—Italian musician, singer and film actor Silvio Francesco – performed with her, sang many duets, danced, and played the clarinet in the shadow of his famous sister. While she is best known as […]
The 1960’s Dance Crazes 2
The Watusi is a solo dance that enjoyed brief popularity during the early 1960s. It was one of the most popular dance crazes of the 1960s in the United States. “Watusi” is a former name for the Tutsi people of Africa, whose traditions include spectacular dances. The naming of the American dance may have been […]