Leon Redbone is a singer and guitarist specializing in interpretations of early 20th-century music, including jazz and blues standards and Tin Pan Alley classics.
Leon Redbone wrote:
"The blues ain't nothing but a good man feelin' bad"
Redbone's origins are shrouded in mystery. Redbone has cited his date of birth as October 29, 1929; the date was the day of the U.S. stock market crash that sparked the Great Depression. Redbone also claimed to have been born in Bombay during a monsoon to parents Niccolò Paganini (a composer and violinist who died in 1840) and Jenny Lind (a singer who died in 1887).
He first appeared on stage in Canada in the early 1970s. Redbone so impressed musician Ramblin' Jack Elliot, that when he returned to New York he told everyone he knew about Redbone's musical breadth and mysterious eccentricities. Bob Dylan sought him out at the next Mariposa Folk Festival. In a Rolling Stone interview, Dylan said that if he were ever to start a label, Redbone would be the first artist he wanted to record.
Leon sings Melancholy baby: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=onzZu-K5g7k - http://www.leonredbone.com/menu_frame.html
He acted in the offbeat feature film "Candy Mountain," with Tom Waits. He provided television theme songs to "Mr. Belvedere" and "Harry and the Hendersons," and had a memorable guest role as the quixotic, guitar-wielding guardian to Corky on ABC's critically acclaimed "Life Goes On." He also made one of the better Budweiser Beer Commercials. He's even been the subject of Far Side cartoons. "I think of these things as obstacles rather than opportunities," Leon modestly confesses, "because if they were opportunities it means I actually took the business of doing them seriously. To take myself too seriously is the gentle kiss of death."
New York choreographer Eliot Feld wrote Paper Tiger, a ballet woven around 11 of Redbone's signature songs. Apparently a conversation between Feld and Mikhail Baryshnikov included a mention of Redbone, and a phone call started the process. A few months later, a ballet was born. "Most things I get involved in usually work out that way," he explains. "Somebody makes a phone call. There's not very much in the way of initiating or soliciting from my end. It's not my forte."
Mikhail Baryshnikov has done warm up exercises and practice dances in my living room, now Canada's newest Park. All the furniture was removed and every mirror in the house and neighbouhood lined every wall. Photos.
If there is one common element to Redbone's diverse music, it's his mastery of his constant companion: the acoustic guitar. It's easy to get lost in his stage exploits, which move between vaudeville and performance art, and overlook what an accomplished player he is. Fingerpicking is delivered with a ragtime bounce, mirroring the style of Blind Blake, and chords are leaped upon with the grace of a hurler. Describing his playing, Redbone says, "I am totally absorbed in the business of learning, but I don't want to be an apprentice to the business of learning. I simply want to absorb everything I can and not be compartmentalized in my approach...I only know what sounds good to me." He has so far released a total of eleven albums.
Traveling Wilburys classic Song: Handle With Care - http://www.travelingwilburys.com/
- Yeah another huge commercial hit, but what the heck, I started this thread, so I can break the rules at least once!
- (Very short but funny Advertizement at the start.)
Memphis Blues artist Cyndi Lauper sings Time After Time with Lyrics (Yeah another huge commercial hit, but female artists seem to have to be so so much better then men in order to get a recording contract that they inevitably become such huge stars. IMHO.) - http://cyndilauper.com/
Beautiful, beautiful music here. Beautiful Voice. Country MUSIC at its very very best.
The Band Perry. Song: If I Die Young - http://www.thebandperry.com/
Sometimes the venue dwarfs the Artist, the Music, even the song. - http://www.yanni.com/
Yanni (live! at the Acropolis) - http://www.in2greece.com/english/places/historical/mainland/acropolis.htm
Yanni and the Royal Philharmonic Concert Orchestra performing the song "Nostalgia" at the Acropolis (Athens, Greece) on September 25, 1993.
I was there at a repeat performance a few years later. By far and away the most memorable day of my life.
NEW Update: Silver Lining: A magestic ode to Australian clouds and their atmospheric beauty by one of the Oz Report http://ozreport.com/15.026.1 Hang Gliders.
See: http://vimeo.com/18235468
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Australian Aboriginal Artist Neil Murray's song: My Island Home - http://www.neilmurray.com.au/pages/bio.html
- sung by Christine Anu - Who also performed it live a the Sydney 2000 Olympics Closing Ceremony.
I was there. (Man those hotel rooms were frighteningly expensive!) Nice photo clips of Ozzie scenery.
Africa Aboriginal Music Video / Tourism Advertizement. Wonderful Chill Out Music. It gets huge numbers of hits, so maybe best to download it.
Embedded Video from National Geographic, BBC, Animal Planet and Discovery Documentaries. Don't take your eyes off the screen for an instant!
Your kids will love it. But... Start saving for the next family holiday! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dJlXZKJa4Tg - An advertizement pulled by copywrite infringements? Sheesh. Have to replace this keeper. _________________ Thermaling Tips + Cross Country Coaching Manuals + RASP Wiki
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(Man those hotel rooms were frighteningly expensive!) Nice photo clips of Ozzie scenery.
