Coldplay is a British Alternative Rock band, which was created in 1996 in London, England. The group is comprised of Chris Martin (lead vocals), Jonny Buckland (lead guitarist), Guy Berryman (bass guitar) and Will Champion (drums, various percussion instruments and backup vocals).

While attending the University College London in 1996, classmates Chris Martin and Jonny Buckland decided to form a band and began to recruit members. By 1997 Guy Berryman and Will Champion had joined and completed the alternative rock quartet called Coldplay. The group started recording for the first time in 1998 and by the end of the year they had signed with a small independent label called Fierce Panda. After completing final examinations in 1999, Coldplay signed a five album contract with major record label Parlophone. The record company is most recognized for signing the Beatles, and it was a major success for Coldplay.

They began recording their debut album Parachutes, and while releasing EP’s and gaining some recognition through the airplay they received on local radio stations. In March of 2000 Coldplay finally hit the top 40 singles at number 35 with a release called “Shiver”. Because of this song, they received their first airplay on the popular music television channel MTV. In June of 2000 Coldplay released their second single “Yellow” and gained instant success across the UK. After considerable success in Britain and parts of Europe, Coldplay decided to release their album Parachutes in North America in November of 2000. The band and their debut album were received well in North America, especially so in Canada. Although America did not take to the band quickly, by 2002 Coldplay was awarded Best Alternative Music Album at the Grammy Awards.

Coldplay returned to the studios to record their second album A Rush of Blood to the Head in October 2001. The album was released in August of 2002 and contained what would become immensely popular singles, “In My Place”, “Clocks” and “The Scientist”. Many of these songs also became part of the soundtracks of popular television shows as well as major films such as Peter Pan. The band toured extensively and visited five continents between 2002 and 2003 and even recorded a live CD album and DVD while performing at Sydney’s Hordern Pavilion in 2003.  Coldplay won the Best Alternative Music Album award at the 2003 Grammy Awards, and then won Best Album at the 2004 Grammy Awards.

During 2004 Coldplay took a step out of the limelight and toured lightly, while simultaneously working on their upcoming album X&Y. The quartet’s third CD X&Y was released in 2005 and became 2005’s bestselling album. This particular CD was anxiously anticipated by fans worldwide since several years had passed since the release of their second album. Despite the record sales upon the release, there were many mixed reviews, one of the most notable by New York Times critic Jon Pareles who described Coldplay as “the most insufferable band of the decade”. Coldplay continued to release singles from their album without much enthusiasm from fans.

Coldplay returned to the studios yet again to record their fourth studio album, with some attempt to reclaim the fame that they had lost on their previous CD X&Y.  Singles from the album titled Viva la Vida, or Death and All of His Friends were first released beginning in late April of 2008. Once the CD was released it achieved immense success. Coldplay has been touring since the release of Viva la Vida or Death and All of His Friends, and there is even a rumor of the band recording yet another album to be released in late 2009 or at the beginning of 2010.

The Country Music Association was founded in 1958 in Nashville, Tennessee. This was the first trade organization to promote a particular genre of music. Their Vision Statement reads:

“CMA is dedicated to bringing the poetry and emotion of Country Music to the world.”

We will continue the tradition of leadership and professionalism, promoting the music, and recognizing excellence in all its forms. Read the rest of this entry »

This is a classic Michael Jackson commercial from the post-Thriller days when he (and his brothers) made news by getting a record amount for promoting Pepsi. Even in a crowd of dancers, his charisma and unique style stand out.

By the way, if you don’t recognize the kid in the red jacket, it’s Alfonso Ribeiro who later went on to play Carlton Banks in the The Fresh Prince of Bel Air television show.

Thursday, April 16th, in Los Angeles, Bruce Springsteen helped to make a terminally ill fan’s dream come true with the assistance of the Dream Foundation. Ms. Karen Marquadt has ovarian cancer, and recently her doctor’s told her that she only has a few weeks to live.

Karen has always had a dream to attend one of Bruce Springsteen’s concerts and to meet the Boss in person.

With the assistance of the Dream Foundation – an organization that specializes in making dreams come true for adults with terminal illnesses – they were able to grant Karen her wish. She attended Bruce’s show on Thursday at the L.A. Sports Arena with her friends. To top off her special evening, she was also able to meet her idol in person and spend some quality time talking with him and taking photos.

Jazz was born in the United States in the early 20th century, but originated in the l9th century in the South. The Atlantic Slave Trade brought over half a million Africans to America and with them came musical influences from their native land. As African americans learned to play European instruments in the 19th century and developed their own styles of music, like the cakewalk. The Cakewalk is a combination of harmony and syncopation. It became very popular and caught on among white folk, and was played in minstrel shows.

Toward the end of the 19th century, a new style of music emerged called ragtime. After the abolition of slavery, opportunities to learn opened up to many African americans. However, there were not many job openings. Many talented African-americans took jobs as musicians in minstral shows, in bars and clubs. Ragtime was created in the red-light districts of New Orleans and was a modifcation of the march, characterized by polyrhythms and syncopation. It was very upbeat and perfect for dancing. Ernest Hogan was a black entertainer who first recorded ragtime on sheet music in 1895. It became very popular new music and was even adopted by white musicians in America and in Europe. The ragtime is considered the first type of jazz music.

The ragtime carried its popularity into the 20th century. Small jazz groups began to travel and eventually spread the music from coast to coast. Jazz even traveled across the seas. During World War I, the “Hellfighters” infantry band carried ragtime to Europe. By the 1920’s Jazz had become the dominant genre of music in America. Jazz was associated with parties, extravagent behavior and drinking. The peak of Jazz music in the first half of the century lasted from 1920 to 1933. Many believed it was the cause of moral decay in American society. This period was the dubbed “The Jazz Age.”
By the 1930’s, ragtime had lost its novelty. A new grand and exaggerated form of jazz was introduced, the big band swing. Big band or swing jazz was composed of a very large section of brass and reed instruments and was headed by a bandleader or an arranger. Two of the most famous bandleaders were Duke Ellington and Glenn Miller.

In the 1940’s Swing Jazz introduced a string section and vocals to the big band. Swing jazz was broadcasted over the radio and soon travled to other countries. During World War II, for example, a collection of dissenting german youth known as the swing kids adopted swing jazz and swing culture. They would dance and play swing music in defiance to Hitler. He had forbidden any Swing Jazz or swing dancing because of its ties with African Americans and Jews.

During the 1950’s a type of jazz called “cool jazz” was preferred. The 1950’s was a decade of conservatism and the jazz music of the period definitely reflected that. Cool jazz was a toned-down version of jazz, where the big band reduced in size and sound.

The 1960’s and 1970’s saw a new form of jazz with the introduction of Latin cultural influence, rock and roll and soul. In the 1960’s, Afro-cuban jazz became popular, but was soon replaced by Brazilian Jazz. Latin jazz combined traditional jazz with unconventional instruments like bongos, morracas and different types of flute. Into the 1970’s soul jazz was formed from a mixture of soul, blues and gospel music. The unique thing about soul jazz was that the solo instrument was typically an organ, which was very new to jazz music. Finally, the 1970’s saw an explosive rise in rock and roll. Jimmy Hendrix was famous for infusing jazz with rock and roll and established a form of jazz – jazz infusion. In the recent history jazz has been experimented with and a plethora of subgenres have emerged like, pop fusion or “smooth jazz,” jazz rap, nu jazz and even vocal jazz.