Spanish heavy metal band Extremoduro started playing in the late 80s as a threesome led by singerguitarist Roberto Iniesta In January of 1989 the band recorded its first demo tape soon playing on a TV show called Plastic and participating in a contes…

This short-lived act was one of several US acts formed by pop svengali Kim Fowley (b. 27 July 1942, Los Angeles, California, USA) as an outlet for his production/songwriting talents at Rendezvous Records. Their 1961 release, "Bumble Boogie" (featurin…

b. Eva Narcissus Boyd, 29 June 1943, Bellhaven, North Carolina, USA, d. 10 April 2003, Kinston, North Carolina, USA. Discovered by songwriters Carole King and Gerry Goffin, Little Eva shot to fame in 1962 with the international hit single "The Loco-M…

Determined to concentrate on rock 'n' roll, several leading figures in Liverpool's skiffle scene founded the Bluegenes in 1958. They were singer and lead guitarist Ray Ennis (b. 26 May 1942), rhythm guitarist Ray Ellis (b. 8 March 1942), bass player …

Gerry Marsden (b. Gerard Marsden, 24 September 1942, Liverpool, Lancashire; guitar/vocals), Freddie Marsden (b. 23 October 1940, Liverpool, Lancashire; drums) and John "Les" Chadwick (b. 11 May 1943, Liverpool, Lancashire; bass) formed the original P…

Well-known for her political stances and her fearless outspokenness against apartheid, as well as a high-profile marriage to Black Panther Stokeley Carmichael in the 1960s, Miriam Makeba has been both punished and praised for her passions. But her sh…

One of the premier beat groups from the mid-60s Merseybeat explosion, the Liverpool-based Searchers were formed in 1960 by Chris Curtis (b. Christopher Crummey, 26 August 1941, Oldham, Lancashire, England; drums), Mike Pender (b. Michael John Prender…

This Spanish vocal trio enjoyed the summer hit of 2002 with the ridiculously catchy "Aserejé" aka "The Ketchup Song (Hey Hah)". Born and raised in the southern Spanish district of Cordoba, sisters Lola, Lucía and Pilar Muñoz are the daughters of reno…

They never broke big in the States, but Glasgow, Scotland's Texas were one of the most popular band's in the U.K. and Europe during the 1990s. Though firmly rooted in the Britpop tradition, Texas maintained a distinct sound that nodded to everything …

In the wake of the crossover mania that characterized the Latin music industry at the end of the 90s Ricky Martin Shakira Paulina Rubio Thala -- all of whom released English-language albums around this time came Juanes a Latin artist so great he didn…

When Cherilyn Sarkasian reinvented herself as the more photogenic half of '60s pop duo Sonny & Cher, no one could guess it would be merely the first step in an ongoing artistic redefinition that would continue for decades. After the smash success of …

One of the most memorable '60s US pop groups, the Monkees were put together by US television producers to play members of a pop band based on the Beatles. They were critcized as a pre-fabricated outfit, but the passage of time has left behind much of…

Lou Reed is among the most literate wordsmiths in rock & roll history. His first decade of post-Velvet Underground work included some undeniable high points (BERLIN, the David Bowie-produced TRANSFORMER) but he was plagued by inconsistency. Reed came…

No other band has had quite the same impact as the four lads from Liverpool. Over the course of eight years and more than a dozen albums, the Beatles changed popular music and culture forever, spearheading the 1960s British Invasion and shaping rock …

Throughout the 1970s, the Eagles couldn't lose. Each record was bigger than the last; each single seemed to play all summer long. At the forefront of the country-rock movement, the Eagles also typified so-called soft-rock and album rock. Their master…

Admired for both their infectious surfer music and their sophisticated, multi-tracked pop productions, the Beach Boys created a lasting impression on popular music through their complex harmonies and Brian Wilson's genius for composition and arrangem…

Bruce Springsteen came out of New Jersey in the early 1970s sounding like a cross between Bob Dylan and early Tom Waits, backed by the rambunctious E Street Band. After toughening up his sound, Springsteen created his 1975 masterpiece, BORN TO RUN, w…