Solo musician biography movies

British musician (born )

"Gordon Sumner" redirects here. For the Australian rules footballer, see Gordon Sumner (footballer).

Gordon Matthew Thomas Sumner (born 2 October ), known as Sting, is an English musician, activist and actor. He was the frontman, principal songwriter and bassist for new wave band the Police from until their breakup in He launched a solo career in and has included elements of rock, jazz, reggae, classical, new-age, and worldbeat in his music.

Sting has sold a combined total of more than million records as a solo artist and as a member of the Police. He has received three Brit Awards, including Best British Male Artist in and Outstanding Contribution to Music in ; a Golden Globe; an Emmy; and four Academy Award nominations. As a solo musician and as a member of the Police, Sting has received 17 Grammy Awards. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of the Police in Sting has received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame; the Ivor Novello Award for Lifetime Achievement from the British Academy of Songwriters, Composers and Authors; a CBE from Queen Elizabeth II for services to music; Kennedy Center Honors; and the Polar Music Prize. In May , he was made an Ivor Novello Fellow.

Early life

Gordon Matthew Thomas Sumner was born at Sir G B Hunter Memorial Hospital in Wallsend, Northumberland, England, on 2 October , the eldest of four children of Audrey (née Cowell), a hairdresser, and Ernest Matthew Sumner, a milkman and former fitter at an engineering works. He grew up near Wallsend's shipyards, which made an impression on him. As a child, he was inspired by the Queen Mother waving at him from a Rolls-Royce to divert from the shipyard prospect towards a more glamorous life. He helped his father deliver

Musical artist

Roberto Satti, better known as Bobby Solo (born 18 March ), is an Italian singer, musician, and film actor.

Singing career

In , Solo participated in the Sanremo Music Festival with the song "Una lacrima sul viso" ("A Tear on your Face", written by "Lunero"), but affected by laryngitis, he sang with playback, which disqualified him as that was contrary to the festival regulations. The song, however, became a global hit. It was the first record to sell over one million copies in Italy, and global sales exceeded three million. It was awarded a gold disc.

In the following year Solo won in the festival with the song "Se piangi, se ridi". He participated with the same song in the Eurovision Song Contest and finished in fifth place.

Again in Solo participated in the Sanremo Music Festival, with the song "Zingara", together with Iva Zanicchi. His last participation in the festival was in (together with Little Tony), singing "Non si cresce mai".

Film career

Solo sang and played singing performers in several Italian, French and American films, including:

Personal life

Solo was born in Rome to an Istrian mother and Friulan father. In December he married Sophie Teckel, a French ballet dancer. They had three children, son Alain (b. ) and daughters Chantal (b. ) and Muriel (b. ). The couple divorced in , after which Solo married Tracy Quade, a Korean-American hostess, and moved to the United States. Solo had a fourth child between the marriages.

References

External links

Louis Armstrong was born in New Orleans, Louisiana on August 4, He was raised by his mother Mayann in a neighborhood so dangerous it was called “The Battlefield.” He only had a fifth-grade education, dropping out of school early to go to work. An early job working for the Jewish Karnofsky family allowed Armstrong to make enough money to purchase his first cornet.

On New Year’s Eve , he was arrested and sent to the Colored Waif’s Home for Boys. There, under the tutelage of Peter Davis, he learned how to properly play the cornet, eventually becoming the leader of the Waif’s Home Brass Band. Released from the Waif’s Home in , Armstrong set his sights on becoming a professional musician. Mentored by the city’s top cornetist, Joe “King” Oliver, Armstrong soon became one of the most in-demand cornetists in town, eventually working steadily on Mississippi riverboats.

In , King Oliver sent for Armstrong to join his band in Chicago. Armstrong and Oliver became the talk of the town with their intricate two-cornet breaks and started making records together in By that point, Armstrong began dating the pianist in the band, Lillian Hardin. In , Armstrong married Hardin, who urged Armstrong to leave Oliver and try to make it on his own. A year in New York with Fletcher Henderson and His Orchestra proved unsatisfying so Armstrong returned to Chicago in and began making records under his own name for the first time.

Hotter Than That

The records by Louis Armstrong and His Five&#;and later, Hot Seven&#;are the most influential in jazz. Armstrong’s improvised solos transformed jazz from an ensemble-based music into a soloist’s art, while his expressive vocals incorporated innovative bursts of scat singing and an underlying swing feel. By the end of the decade, the popularity of the Hot Fives and Sevens was enough to send Armstrong back to New York, where he appeared in the popular Broadway revue, “Hot Chocolates.” He soon began touring and never really stopped until his death i

The musical biopic has been a profound genre of the cinema landscape that highlights the successes and challenges of famous musicians through the ages. The past decade alone has produced a number of notable films that covered a broad range of musicians from N.W.A. to Elton John. The next big biopic set to be released on June 24th is focused on none other than the King of Rock and Roll, Elvis Presley in Baz Luhrmann's Elvis. It has already received major hype and predictions of award season potential which places it nicely among the other recently brilliant biopics. In the lead up to Elvis, it seems fitting to watch some of the best films of the past decade dedicated to the real stories of celebrated performers and their music.

Related:Austin Butler on ‘Elvis’ and Why it Took Months After Filming to Find Himself Again

Bohemian Rhapsody ()

What other way to start the list than with one of the most recently acclaimed biopics Bohemian Rhapsody which followed Freddie Mercury’s life and career with Queen. Rami Malek (Mr. Robot) took on the role of the lead singer with Gwilym Lee (The Great) as guitarist Brian May, and Joe Mazzello (Jurassic Park)as bass guitarist John Deacon and Ben Hardy (The Voyeurs) as drummer Roger Taylor. The film details the band’s humble roots in the early 70s to major stardom through the 80s following their first hit “Killer Queen”. All their major hits are explored through the film leading up to their memorable Live Aid performance at Wembley Stadium.

In terms of accuracy, quite a few events were shuffled around in the timeline for creative reasons and dramatic effect such as when Mercury was diagnosed with AIDs. Altogether, the film held an engaging pace of following Queen’s discography from the movie’s iconic titular song to reenacting the music video of “I Want