MOSE ALLISON - Mose Allison was born on November 11, 1927 on his grandfather's 80-acre farm on an island in the middle of a bayou in Tippo, a small town in the Mississippi Delta. As a boy, Mose plowed behind mules, cut and chopped cotton, hauled hay, and listened to jazz records on a wind-up Victrola.

Mose began piano lessons at age 5, which he took to immediately, continued his musical education through high school, and later traveled to Memphis to hear the musicians inhabiting the Beale Street Auditorium and the city's clubs. After a stint in the military and graduation from Louisiana State University, Mose got married and moved to New York in 1956. He got his first record deal in 1957 after recording an album with Al Cohn and Bobby Brookmeyer. He also played with Zoot Sims, but his big break came when he worked with Stan Getz. He moved his young family to Long Island in 1963, where he continues to reside.

Mose developed a distinctive boogie-woogie/ be-bop influenced piano style which does not fit neatly into either blues or jazz categories. Allison has a lengthy discography, spanning nearly fifty years and over 46 albums not counting compilations and appearances on albums by others, and he has been a Grammy nominee three times. His compositions have been covered by dozens of artists, including John Mayall, the Who, Johnny Winter, the Clash, Eric Clapton, The Yardbirds, Elvis Costello, Bill Wyman, Maria Muldaur, John Hammond, Bonnie Raitt and Van Morrison with Georgie Fame, who released 'Tell Me Something, Songs of Mose Allison' in 1996. Mose is certainly the most popular and influential jazz artist in the UK, and is the subject of a 2005 BBC documentary. Mose Allison is widely regarded as one of the finest songwriters of 20th century blues and jazz.
Performances on YouTube Here and Here.
www.moseallison.com

The early 1920s saw Armstrong's popularity explode with a move to Chicago to play with "King" Oliver. After a stint in New York with the Fletcher Henderson Orchestra, Louis returned to Chicago in 1926. Now a headliner on records and radio, he wowed audiences in clubs with the fearlessness and freedom of his groundbreaking trumpet solos. His "scat" singing transformed vocal tradition; Armstrong used his horn like a singer's voice, and his voice like a musical instrument.

In 1929, Armstrong took up residence in Queens, and began performing regularly in Harlem and on Broadway. During this period he recorded his first nationwide hits. Louis' nickname Satchmo also came about around this time as an abbreviation of "satchelmouth", a playful dig on the size of the mouth he used to masterfully play his instrument. Jazz was now becoming a worldwide phenomenon and Armstrong was its leader.

In the late 40s and 50s "Ambassador Satch" spread good will for America around the globe. He was especially well-received in the newly independent nations of Africa, marked by such events as a 1956 concert celebrating Ghana's independence, attended by more than 100,000 Louis Armstrong fans.

By the 1950s, Armstrong was an established international celebrity--an icon to musicians and lovers of jazz--and a genial, infectiously optimistic presence wherever he appeared. Armstrong rarely made public statements, but in 1957 he publicly condemned the violence that swept Little Rock over school integration and how it was handled. "Do you dig me when I say, 'I have a right to blow my top over injustice?'" he said. His comment made headlines.

His death on July 6, 1971, was front-page news around the world, and more than 25,000 mourners filed past his coffin as he lay in state at the New York National Guard Armory.

Armstrong summarized his philosophy in the spoken introduction to his 1970 recording It's A Wonderful World. "And all I'm saying is, see what a wonderful world it would be if only we would give it a chance. Love, baby, love. That's the secret. Yeah."

Louis Armstrong - http://www.satchmo.net/ and http://louis-armstrong.net/ and http://www.pbs.org/jazz/biography/artist_id_armstrong_louis.htm

Louis Armstrong Performances on Video Here.
http://video.yahoo.com/video/play?vid=1093725386&fr=yfp-t-501 and
http://www.vodpod.com/pod/show_video/65730 and
http://www.vodpod.com/pod/show_video/37251 and
here.

SAM ASH, SR.

The stores today average about 20,000 square feet and carry a full range of instruments and accessories, from vintage guitars to state-of-the-art recording equipment. The 37-store chain has a reputation for quality that attracts some the music industry's top artists. During their U.S. tours, members of the Rolling Stones have stopped in, along with Elton John and Joe Cocker. Bruce Springsteen and members of the E Street Band frequent the New Jersey and New York outlets, as do Bette Midler, Diana Ross and Stevie Wonder. In addition to providing musicians with the tools of their trade, Sam Ash supports the local music scene in its markets--and generates plenty of publicity--by teaming up with radio stations and promoters to sponsor concerts and special events.
www.samashmusic.com
http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0FNP/is_10_42/ai_102138487

WILLIAM 'COUNT' BASIE - William Basie was born on August 21, 1904 in Red Bank, New Jersey. As a child, Basie's mother and a German lady named Holloway took care of his music training. Originally, Basie wanted to play the drums. But competition at this instrument from his boyhood friend, Sonny Greer, helped him choose the piano.

In the 1920's, like many young jazz musicians of the time, Basie left New Jersey for Harlem, where jazz piano greats such as James P. Johnson, Lucky Roberts, and Willie "The Lion" Smith served as major influences. Harlem provided a perfect place to work and learn. From cabarets to theatres to saloons, there was always an opening somewhere for a person with talent to play. Basie cites his most important influence as Thomas "Fats" Waller. He first heard Waller playing the pipe organ at the Lincoln Theatre, on 135th St. Basie got to know Waller through his many visits to the theatre, and the young pianist was eventually asked to sit along side him at the console.

Around 1935, the Count Basie Band was formed. During a broadcast of one of their early shows, the announcer dubbed him "Count Basie", a clever way to put him in the league with other bandleaders such as Duke Ellington. The band began recording immediately, with Count Basie's record contract calling for twenty-four sides to be produced. No royalties were offered to Basie, and the contract bound him to the record company for three years. Basie's full payment for his efforts was seven hundred and fifty dollars; the sort of deal that was typical of the record industry's exploitation of jazz musicians at the time. The contract was eventually brought up to union standards, but Count Basie never received any royalties for such classics as "One O'clock Jump", "Swingin' the Blues" or "Jumpin' at the Woodside".

Count Basie and his band became highly acclaimed. Many current musicians consider still consider them to be the model for "ensemble rhythmic conception and tonal balance". Their lightness and precision set the tone for modern jazz accompanying style. Basie himself perfected a piano style called "comping" - his syncopated and highly precise style of playing chords. Along with the Count Basie band's contributions to the jazz style, the group also served to launch the careers of many noted jazz instrumentalists, including tenor saxophonist Lester Young, trumpeter Buck Clayton, trumpeter-composer Thad Jones, bassist Walter Page, drummer Jo Jones, and many others.

Count Basie moved to the new neighborhood of Addisleigh Park in St. Albans, Queens in 1946. In the 1950s, Basie formed a new band that incorporated the new sound of bebop along with more bluesy elements. In 1963 he enjoyed a Top Five album with Frank Sinatra, "Sinatra-Basie." He also recorded a string of Grammy winning and nominated LPs in the 1970. The world lost a one-of-kind artist and performer when Count Basie died on April 26, 1984 in Hollywood, Florida.

Count Basie - http://www.pbs.org/jazz/biography/artist_id_basie_count.htm and
http://www.countbasie.com/

Count Basie Performances on Video Here.
http://www.vodpod.com/pod/show_video/142970 and
http://www.vodpod.com/pod/show_video/115654.

WALTER BECKER - was born in Queens , New York in 1950, and part of his youth was spent growing up in Forest Hills . He is the guitarist (and sometimes bassist) half of the duo who remain at the core of the jazz-rock band Steely Dan.

Becker began his musical career playing saxophone, but he soon switched to guitar and received instruction in blues technique from neighbor Randy Wolfe who, as Randy California, was soon to found the group, Spirit.

He met his long-time musical partner, the other half of Steely Dan, Donald Fagen, while attending Bard College in Annandale-on-Hudson. After Fagen graduated in 1969, the two began writing songs in a Brooklyn apartment with the hopes of peddling them at the Brill Building . At this point in their youthful career they also did a stint with Jay and the Americans under pseudonyms, where they met fellow inductee Kenny Vance.

Walter and Donald were eventually encouraged to form their own group to serve as the vehicle for their original songs. An ad placed in a Nassau paper led them to Long Islanders Jim Hodder (drums) and Denny Dias (guitar), and they played with the musicians in various New York studio sessions, some of which were produced by Vance. They would soon form the nucleus of a group whose music - including a number of Top 40 hits - has been a staple of FM radio since the early 1970s.

Despite several personnel changes, they released seven highly successful LPs between 1973 and 1980 when 'Gaucho' yielded the radio-friendly (despite its somewhat risqué theme) hit "Hey Nineteen". Steely Dan's hiatus began in 1981, and Walter Becker moved to Hawaii. He began a career as a record producer, working with artists as diverse as Rickie Lee Jones, China Crisis and Michael Franks. He reunited with Fagen briefly to collaborate on the debut album of U.S. singer, former fashion model Rosie Vela. Their full-blown partnership resumed when they undertook a tour under the Steely Dan moniker in 1993, with Becker producing Fagen's solo album 'Kamakiriad' in that year as well. In turn, Fagen co-produced Becker's belated solo debut album, '11 Tracks of Whack' (1994).

Becker and Fagen reunited again in 2000 to release the first Steely Dan studio album in two decades, 'Two Against Nature', which won the Grammy Award for Album of the Year. 'Everything Must Go' followed in 2003. Mr. Becker is currently working on another solo album in New York.

Walter Becker - http://www.walterbecker.com/

Walter Becker Performances on Video Here.
http://www.vodpod.com/pod/show_video/25859 and
http://www.vodpod.com/pod/show_video/64801 and
http://www.ifilm.com/video/2790150 and
http://www.vodpod.com/pod/show_video/104605

.

PAT BENATAR -

Born Patricia Mae Andrzejewski in Brooklyn, NY, Pat grew up in Lindenhurst where she initially studied opera like her mother. She married Dennis Benatar in 1971, the source of the surname with which she became famous - though her actual career began after they had divorced. She was discovered at an amateur-night contest in the New York City comedy club "Catch a Rising Star" in 1977, and was signed to Chrysalis Records by its founder Terry Ellis.

The hits began with Benatar's very first single, "Heartbreaker", which was released in October 1979 and quickly climbed to #23 in the US. The follow-up LP, In the Heat of the Night reached #12, and established the Long Islander as a new force in rock. Two more hit singles followed before August 1980, when Benatar released her second LP, Crimes of Passion, featuring her signature song "Hit Me with Your Best Shot". The single was her first to break the US Top 10 and reach gold record status. The album reached #2 in early 1981, the same time the singer took the Grammy for Best Female Rock Vocal Performance of 1980. The album remained on the US album charts for 93 weeks.

Precious Time, released in August 1981, topped the charts in the U.S., and broke the Top 40 in the U.K. The album's lead single, "Fire and Ice", was another big hit, and would win Benatar her second Grammy Award, this time for Best Female Rock Performance of 1981.

In February 1982, Benatar married her lead guitarist Neil Giraldo. Later that year, Pat released the hit single "Shadows of the Night" earning her yet another Grammy, for Best Female Rock Performance of 1982. The follow-up LP, Get Nervous, released in January 1983, was also a success.

By 1983, Benatar had established a reputation for writing about 'tough' subject matter. The biggest hit of her career, "Love Is a Battlefield", released in December, kept the trend alive with great results. The single hit Top Ten in the U.S., and jumped into the UK and Australian Top 40. The song would also net Benatar her fourth consecutive Grammy Award, for Best Female Rock Performance of 1983. The live album, Live from Earth, from which "Love Is a Battlefield" was one of two studio recorded tracks, hit US #13.

Pat Benatar and Neil Geraldo continue to write and tour, playing to sell-out crowds. Audiences continue to be amazed by the power in the voice of Long Island's Pat Benatar, nearly 30 since she first hit us with her best shot.

Pat Benatar - http://www.benatar.com/ and
http://www.vh1.com/artists/az/benatar_pat/artist.jhtml and http://www.benatarfanclub.com/

Pat Benatar Performances on Video Here.
http://video.yahoo.com/video/play?vid=218889&fr=yfp-t-501 and
http://video.yahoo.com/video/play?vid=218888&fr=yfp-t-501 and
http://video.yahoo.com/video/play?vid=20005&fr=yfp-t-501.

TONY BENNETT - Tony Bennett was born Anthony Dominick Benedetto in Astoria on August 3, 1926. He grew up in Queens, studied singing and painting in high school, and his singing style was influenced by his idols Bing Crosby and Nat King Cole.

During World War II, Tony sang with military bands during his Army enlistment, then studied singing at the American Theatre Wing school. He had chosen to use Joe Bari as his stage name; while performing with Pearl Bailey in 1949, he was discovered by Bob Hope, who suggested that he change his name to Tony Bennett. Bennett signed a recording contract with Columbia later that year, and he had a series of hit singles during the 1950s. During the 1960s, he performed with Count Basie, Duke Ellington and Woody Herman. In 1962, Bennett first performed his signature tune 'I Left My Heart in San Francisco' at the Fairmont Hotel on Nob Hill. Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, he recorded a number of albums featuring such jazz greats as Marian McPartland, Charlie Byrd, George Benson, Dexter Gordon and Dizzie Gillespie.

In the 1990s, he became involved in high-profile collaborations with pop and rock stars, notably with k.d. laing and Elvis Costello on MTV 'Unplugged', on CDs, in videos and television. He received a Grammy in 1994 for 'Album of the Year', cultivating a following among young people that was unequalled by anyone else of his generation. He staged a world tour in 1995, has won ten Grammy Awards including the Lifetime Achievement Award, and has sold over 50 million records world-wide. Active in humanitarian causes, Tony has raised millions of dollars for the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation which has established a research fund in his name, as well as donating a painting each year for the American Cancer Society. He is active in environmental concerns, and was bestowed an award by the Martin Luther King Center for his efforts to fight discrimination.

Tony is known as a singer's singer; no less a personage than Frank Sinatra said "Tony Bennett is the best singer in the business." Tony Bennett's career has spanned the years from the 1940s through the present day, and he is still actively performing and recording.

www.tonybennett.net

BLUE OYSTER CULT - Blue Öyster Cult came together as Soft White Underbelly in 1967 at Stony Brook College through the efforts of students (and later rock critics) Sandy Pearlman and R. Meltzer. The original line-up consisted of Andy Winters (bass), Donald "Buck Dharma" Roeser (guitar), John Wiesenthal - quickly replaced by Allen Lanier - (keyboards), and Albert Bouchard (drums), with Pearlman managing and writing songs with Meltzer. They soon added Les Braunstein on vocals.

This quintet was signed to Elektra Records, where they recorded an album that was never released. They soon dropped Braunstein and replaced him with their road manager, Eric Bloom - whom they had met at the Sam Ash Music store in Hempstead. The band's name was changed to Oaxaca and recorded a second Elektra album that went unreleased, though a single was issued under the name the Stalk-Forrest Group.

Cut loose by Elektra, they changed their name again, to Blue Öyster Cult, and signed to Columbia Records in late 1971, by which time Winters had been replaced by Albert Bouchard's brother Joe. "Blue Öyster Cult", their debut album, was released in January 1972 and made the charts, followed with BÖC's second album, "Tyranny & Mutation" in 1973. Their third album, "Secret Treaties", (1974) became the first to break into the Top 100, and eventually earned a gold record. A live double album, "On Your Feet or on Your Knees", kept the momentum going in 1975. In 1976, "Agents of Fortune", yielded the hit single '(Don't Fear) The Reaper' (featured in the classic John Carpenter horror film Halloween), which became their first platinum album. "Spectres" went gold in January 1978, and was followed by the million-selling live release "Some Enchanted Evening" and the studio album "Mirrors" in 1979. A year later, BÖC released "Cultosaurus Erectus". The gold "Fire of Unknown Origin" gave the band another top 40 hit with "Burnin' for You", in 1981.

In 1994, Blue Öyster Cult released "Cult Classic", an album of re-recorded favorites, in connection with the use of their music in the TV miniseries of horror novelist Stephen King's The Stand. Numerous lineup changes ensued throughout the '90s as the band continued to tour the world, and in 1995 the band was the subject of a double disc anthology, "Workshop of the Telescopes". BÖC signed with the CMC label in 1998, resulting in their first album of all-new studio material in ten years, 1998's "Heaven Forbid", followed three years later by "The Curse of the Hidden Mirror".

The group's music reached a whole new generation of hard rock fans when Metallica covered the BÖC classic 'Astronomy' for their best-selling "Garage Inc." album in 1998. And countless fans have discovered the band as a result of the Saturday Night Live sketch "More Cowbell" a fictional account of a (fictional version) of BOC's recording of the song "(Don't Fear) The Reaper" that featured guest host Christopher Walken as music producer Bruce Dickinson and Will Ferrell as fictional cowbell player Gene Frenkle.

Blue Öyster Cult - www.blueoystercult.com

Blue Oyster Cult Performances on Video Here. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dDuYlRs9_Do&mode=related&search=
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jiHRm2DioMA&mode=related&search=
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5V7KPZtcOVQ&mode=related&search=

GARY U.S. BONDS -America's baby boomers moved into their mid teens, Gary began his professional career. For his first hit, "New Orleans", attention was brought to the record by having promotional copies sent to radio stations in sleeves inscribed "Buy U.S. Bonds" - hence at age 19, Gary Anderson became Gary U.S. Bonds. The follow-up was the now legendary 'party' record, "Quarter to Three", a number one hit with a spirit and energy that would eventually inspire and influence a generation.

Over the next three years, Bonds co-wrote and recorded hit after good-time hit: "School is Out", "School is In", "Dear Lady Twist", "Twist, Twist Senora", "Seven Day Weekend" and others. He performed throughout the world, rising to a status so high that on a 1963 tour of Europe, he headlined above a group of relative newcomers - the Beatles. A rare distinction for Gary is that he managed to transcend the decades with hits. His inspiration for Bruce Springsteen and Steven Van Zandt, who had grown up on Bonds' music led to a chance meeting in 1980. A friendship developed and, shortly after, a musical collaboration which resulted in Bonds' "Dedication" and "On the Line" LP's, with singles: "This Little Girl Is Mine," "Out of Work," "Jole Blon" and "Daddy's Come Home". Reviews noted "His gritty, soulful and powerful vocals are even better than before."While he has continued to perform, Gary also keeps active as a songwriter. His success as a songwriter even garnered him a nomination for the Country Music Association's "Songwriter of the Year". Gary is an honoree of the Rhythm & Blues Foundation, a "favorite son" of the Blues Brothers and a highly respected golfer, often invited to play at celebrity PGA events. "Quarter To Three" appears on The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll list. Bonds continues to release albums, including collaborations with Bruce Springsteen, and today is a mainstay of the nostalgia concert circuit. While Gary U.S. Bonds is mostly known for achievements within Rhythm and Blues and Rock 'n' roll, he often transcends these genres; he has been nominated for the Country Music Association's "Songwriter of the Year" distinction. He is also a honoree of the Rhythm & Blues Foundation.
Performances on YouTube Here and Here.
www.garyusbonds.com