Tag: James Brown

Feature Artist

Friday, May 3, 2024: 12pm ET: Feature Artist: James Brown

James Joseph Brown (May 3, 1933 – December 25, 2006) was an American singer, dancer and musician. The central progenitor of funk music and a major figure of 20th-century music, he is referred to by various nicknames, among them “the Hardest-Working Man in Show Business”, “Godfather of Soul”, “Mr. Dynamite”, and “Soul Brother No. 1”. In a career that lasted more than 50 years, he influenced the development of several music genres. Brown was one of the first 10 inductees into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame on January 23, 1986.

Brown recorded and released 17 singles that reached No. 1 on the Billboard R&B charts. He also holds the record for the most singles listed on the Billboard Hot 100 chart that did not reach No. 1. Brown was posthumously inducted into the first class of the Rhythm & Blues Music Hall of Fame in 2013 as an artist and then in 2017 as a songwriter. He received honors from several other institutions, including inductions into the Black Music & Entertainment Walk of Fame and the Songwriters Hall of Fame. In Joel Whitburn’s analysis of the Billboard R&B charts from 1942 to 2010, Brown is ranked No. 1 in the Top 500 Artists. He is ranked seventh on Rolling Stone’s list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time and at No. 44 on their list of the 200 Greatest Singers of All Time.

Feature LP

Thursday 3/16/23 11pm ET: Feature LP: James Brown – Gravity (1986)

Gravity is the 53rd studio album by American musician James Brown. The album was released on September 15, 1986, by Scotti Bros. Records. It was largely written and produced by Dan Hartman and Charlie Midnight, the authors of the album’s previously released hit single “Living in America”, which had reached #4 on the Billboard Hot 100 and was prominently featured in the film Rocky IV. It was Brown’s first album for the Scotti Brothers record label.

The album’s title track became a minor hit on both the pop and R&B charts, while the tango-based slow jam “How Do You Stop” cracked the R&B top ten. The album track “Turn Me Loose, I’m Dr. Feelgood” was used as the theme song for the Australian TV sketch comedy series The Late Show (1992–93) and is often played by Major League Baseball’s Philadelphia Phillies when one of their batters hits a home run at Citizens Bank Park.

  1. “Gravity” 5:58
  2. “Let’s Get Personal” 4:29
  3. “How Do You Stop” 4:49
  4. “Turn Me Loose, I’m Dr. Feelgood” 3:09
  5. “Living in America” 5:57
  6. “Goliath” 6:14
  7. “Repeat the Beat (Faith)” 4:20
  8. “Return to Me” 4:39

James Brown – all main vocals, organ solo on track 8
Steve Winwood – synthesizers (listed in liner notes as “lead & backing synthesizer”) on track 3
Dan Hartman – guitars, keyboards, programming, backing vocals, Fairlight programming (listed as “Eddie Fairlight III”), all instruments except drums & horns on track 7 “Repeat the Beat (Faith)”
Stevie Ray Vaughan – guitars on track 5
T. M. Stevens – bass (on all tracks except 7), backing vocals
Ray Marchica, Art Wood, George Recile – drums, percussion
Trazi Williams – congas
The Uptown Horns (Arno Hecht, Bob Funk, Crispin Cioe, “Hollywood” Paul Litteral) – all brass instruments
Maceo Parker – alto saxophone
Alison Moyet – ad-libs/vocal trade-offs, backing vocals
Charlie Midnight, Gail Boggs – backing vocals

1970s A to Z

Monday 1/3/22 2pm ET: RadioMaxMusic Special: The Music of 1973 A to Z – Part 5

This RadioMax special features our Library of music from 1973 A2Z.

We continue with land complete letter E into G and feature music from: Ohio Players, Doobie Brothers, Merle Haggard, Chicago, Freda Payne, Hues Corporation, Elvia Presley, Genesis, T.Rex, Chairmen of The Board, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Queen and many more.

2pm to 6pm ET

1970s A to Z

Friday 12/31/21 3pm ET: RadioMaxMusic Special: The Music of 1973 A to Z – Part 4

This RadioMax special features our Library of music from 1973 A2Z.

We continue with land complete letter D with music from: BW Stevenson, Diana Ross, Aerosmith, America, Who, Shocking Blue, Bachman Turner Overdrive, Queen, Peter Frampton, Paul Kelly, James Brown, Electric Light Orchestra, Miracles and many more.

3pm to 6pm ET

Feature Artist

Friday 5pm ET: Feature Artist – James Brown

James Joseph Brown (May 3, 1933 – December 25, 2006) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, musician, record producer and bandleader. A progenitor of funk music and a major figure of 20th century music and dance, he is often referred to as the “Godfather of Soul” and “Soul Brother No. 1”. In a career that lasted over 50 years, he influenced the development of several music genres.

Brown began his career as a gospel singer in Toccoa, Georgia. He joined a rhythm and blues vocal group, the Gospel Starlighters (which later evolved into the Famous Flames) founded by Bobby Byrd, in which he was the lead singer. First coming to national public attention in the late 1950s as a member of the singing group The Famous Flames with the hit ballads “Please, Please, Please” and “Try Me”, Brown built a reputation as a tireless live performer with the Famous Flames and his backing band, sometimes known as the James Brown Band or the James Brown Orchestra. His success peaked in the 1960s with the live album Live at the Apollo and hit singles such as “Papa’s Got a Brand New Bag”, “I Got You (I Feel Good)” and “It’s a Man’s Man’s Man’s World”.

During the late 1960s, Brown moved from a continuum of blues and gospel-based forms and styles to a profoundly “Africanized” approach to music-making that influenced the development of funk music. By the early 1970s, Brown had fully established the funk sound after the formation of the J.B.s with records such as “Get Up (I Feel Like Being a) Sex Machine” and “The Payback”. He also became noted for songs of social commentary, including the 1968 hit “Say It Loud – I’m Black and I’m Proud”. Brown continued to perform and record until his death from pneumonia in 2006.

Sounds of The 60s

Tuesday 6pm: Sounds of The 60’s

This week we feature music from: Wanda Jackson, Chiffons, Neil Diamond, Elton John, Beatles, Gladys Knight and The Pips, Rolling Stones, Troggs, Bob Dylan, Grass Roots, James Brown, McCoys, Beach Boys, Janis Ian and many more . . . 

Max20th Century

Monday 6pm: Max 20th Century – 1971 (Part I)

February 1 – After months of feuding in the press, Ginger Baker and Elvin Jones hold a “drum battle” at The Lyceum.
February 3 – Davy Jones announces he is leaving the Monkees.
February 8 – Bob Dylan’s hour-long documentary film, Eat the Document, is premièred at New York’s Academy of Music. The film includes footage from Dylan’s 1966 UK tour.
February 16 – Alan Passaro of the Hells Angels, who was acquitted on January 19 of the stabbing death of Meredith Hunter at the Altamont Speedway in 1969, files a lawsuit against The Rolling Stones for invasion of privacy because the documentary film Gimme Shelter showed the stabbing.
March 1 – The line-up for Queen is completed when bassist John Deacon joins the band.
March 4 – The Rolling Stones open their UK tour in Newcastle upon Tyne, intended as a “farewell” to the UK prior to the band’s relocation to France as “tax exiles”.
March 5 – Ulster Hall, Belfast, Northern Ireland, sees the first live performance of Led Zeppelin’s iconic song “Stairway to Heaven”.
March 6 – The Soul to Soul concert takes place in Accra, Ghana, headlined by Wilson Pickett.
March 12–13 – The Allman Brothers Band records its live album, At Fillmore East.
March 16 – The 13th Grammy Awards, honoring musical accomplishments of 1970, are presented. The ceremonies are broadcast on live television for the first time.
April 3 – The 16th Eurovision Song Contest, held in the Gaiety Theatre, Dublin, is won by Monaco with the song “Un Banc, Un Arbre, Une Rue” sung by Séverine.
April 6 – The Rolling Stones hold a party in Cannes to officially announce their new contract with Atlantic and the launch of Rolling Stones Records.
May 12 – Mick Jagger marries Bianca de Macías in Saint-Tropez, France, in a Roman Catholic ceremony. Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, and their wives are among the wedding guests.
June – Rafael Kubelík becomes music director of the Metropolitan Opera, New York, at the invitation of Göran Gentele, the new general manager.
June 1 – Elvis Presley’s birthplace, a two-room shack in Tupelo, Mississippi, as opened to the public as a tourist attraction.
June 6 – John Lennon and Yoko Ono join Frank Zappa on stage at the Fillmore East for an encore jam. The performance would be released the following year on the Some Time in New York City album.
June 8 – Carole King gives her first live concert, at Carnegie Hall.
June 20-24 – The first Glastonbury Festival to take place at the summer solstice is held in South West England. Performers include David Bowie, Traffic, Fairport Convention, Quintessence and Hawkwind.
June 27 – Promoter Bill Graham closes the Fillmore East in New York City with a final concert featuring The Allman Brothers Band, The Beach Boys and Mountain.
July 3 – Jim Morrison is found dead in a bath tub in Paris, France, aged 27. Alain Ronay would claim, years later, that he assisted Morrison’s lover, Pamela Courson, in covering up the circumstances.
July 4 – The Fillmore West is closed in San Francisco with a final show featuring Santana, Creedence Clearwater Revival and The Grateful Dead.
July 9 – Grand Funk Railroad becomes only the second band (after The Beatles) to perform a sold-out concert at Shea Stadium breaking The Beatles record of selling out the venue.
August 1
The Concert for Bangladesh at Madison Square Garden, New York, starring George Harrison, Ravi Shankar, Ringo Starr, Bob Dylan and Leon Russell; also featuring Billy Preston, Eric Clapton, Jesse Ed Davis and Badfinger.
The Sonny and Cher Comedy Hour premieres on CBS.
August 14 – The Who release their fifth studio album Who’s Next, reaching No. 1 in the UK and No. 1 in the US.
September 11 – The Jackson 5ive, a Saturday morning cartoon series based on the popular Motown group The Jackson 5, premieres on ABC.
September 11-12 – The Avandaro rock festival takes place in Valle de Bravo (Mexico) with an estimated attendance of 300,000.
October 5 – Black Sabbath perform the first set of their Whisky a Go Go performance in all-white tuxedos.
October 29 – Allman Brothers Band guitarist Duane Allman dies in a motorcycle accident in Macon, Georgia after colliding with a truck.
November 6 – Cher earned her first solo number one hit in US (Gypsys, Tramps & Thieves) staying atop for two consecutive weeks. Eventually the song was certified gold.
November 8 – Led Zeppelin release officially untitled fourth studio album, which would become the biggest-selling album of the year (1972), the band’s biggest-selling album, and the fourth best-selling album of all time.
December 1 – Belgian singing duo Nicole & Hugo are married at Wemmel.
December 4 – The Montreux Casino in Montreux, Switzerland, catches fire and burns during a performance by Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention when a fan fires a flare gun into its rafters. Members of Deep Purple, who were due to begin recording at the casino the next day, watched the scene from their hotel across Lake Geneva, and later immortalized the events in their song, “Smoke on the Water”.
December 10 – Frank Zappa breaks his leg after being pushed off the stage by a deranged fan at The Rainbow in London.
December 31 – Bob Dylan makes a surprise appearance for the encore of The Band’s New Year’s Eve concert at the Academy of Music, joining the group for four songs including “Like a Rolling Stone”. – Wikipedia