On June 16th, 1971, pop culture icon, hip hop legend, rapper, actor, poet, multi-label recording artist, socially conscious activist, central figure in the 90's East Coast/West Coast Beef, and the son of former Black Panther Party member Afeni Shakur-Tupac Amaru Shakur (2Pac) was born in East Harlem, New York. TOV covered the artist’s death in the September 13th post, as well as numerous others. Please refer to them for further information. From a musical standpoint it’s hard to mention Tupac-and not mention Biggie-as they are directly linked to one another due to rivalry, and their eventual murders. Tupac was a talented child, who attended performing arts schools in Baltimore with Jada Pinkett. The two shared a special friendship, that flourished as they rose to fame, and beyond. He even appeared on episodes of A Different World, when Jada was a cast member, and they were originally supposed to have worked together on Menace II Society. But that's another story...
Interesting Fact:
Pac was a member of The Young Communist League USA in Baltimore, during his high school years. He moved to California, and became a roadie/dancer for Digital Underground in 1989. His popularity soared after he was featured on their 1990 single Same Song, and he went on to release his debut 2Pacalypse Now in 1991 (Interscope Records). A year later he appeared in the film Juice, playing the role of Bishop. His releases continued to sell, and in 1993, he appeared in Poetic Justice as Lucky, (co-starring with Janet Jackson). Things had began to heat up for 2Pac, and it never seemed to stop. The public wasn’t ready for his unapologetic demeanor and music. And as controversial as he could have been at times, he matched it with loving tributes to Black Women-and our struggle overall. Before he died, he was working on the album One Nation-which was aimed at unifying all of hip hop under one common cause. Tupac Shakur was killed when he was 25. His murder remains unsolved, and that album was never released...
Pac was a member of The Young Communist League USA in Baltimore, during his high school years. He moved to California, and became a roadie/dancer for Digital Underground in 1989. His popularity soared after he was featured on their 1990 single Same Song, and he went on to release his debut 2Pacalypse Now in 1991 (Interscope Records). A year later he appeared in the film Juice, playing the role of Bishop. His releases continued to sell, and in 1993, he appeared in Poetic Justice as Lucky, (co-starring with Janet Jackson). Things had began to heat up for 2Pac, and it never seemed to stop. The public wasn’t ready for his unapologetic demeanor and music. And as controversial as he could have been at times, he matched it with loving tributes to Black Women-and our struggle overall. Before he died, he was working on the album One Nation-which was aimed at unifying all of hip hop under one common cause. Tupac Shakur was killed when he was 25. His murder remains unsolved, and that album was never released...
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On June 16th, 1941, seminal producer, multi-instrumentalist composer, arranger, solo recording artist, member of the Holland-Dozier-Holland production team (with Brian & David Holland), and Soul/R&B innovator Lamont Dozier was born in Detroit, Michigan. Lamont is most known for his production work during the 1960's, 1970's, and 1980's. He produced songs for Freda Payne, The Supremes, 100 Proof Aged In Soul, The Isley Brothers, Honey Cone, Phil Collins, The Four Tops, Martha And The Vandellas, Regina Belle, Chairmen Of The Board, and so many others. He also was a pioneering Deep Disco/Deep House singer, penning the classic Going Back To My Roots in 1977. Lamont got his start as an R&B singer during the late 1950's in Detroit. His singles sold moderately well, but when Motown came about, Dozier, Brian & Eddie Holland were hired as in-house producers, writers and arrangers (1962).
In 1963 they saw success with their first collective hits, with Martha And The Vandellas & Heatwave. In 1964, they produced Where Did Our Love Go for The Supremes. Towards the end of the 60's, they left Motown and moved to Invictus-then Hot Wax Records-producing multiple acts throughout the 70's. Dozier released his solo debut Out Here On My Own in 1973 (ABC Records), and eight more solo LPs during a ten-year stretch from 1973 to 1983. All of them are worthy of buying-be it for sampling or listening. Some of his best solo work was on the ABC and Warner Brothers imprint (1973 to 1979). Don’t sleep on his early 80's work though. Lamont Dozier is 78 today.
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On June 16th, 2010, we lost a seminal funk musician, psychedelic soul innovator, rock 'n' roll pioneer, guitarist, singer, session musician, co-founder of United Soul (with Cordell Boogie Mosson), and former member of The Parliament-Funkadelic Collective-Gary Shider (Garry Marshall Shider). TOV covered the artist’s birthday in the July 24th post. Please refer to it for more information. If you’ve ever seen photos or stage performances of Parliament-Funkadelic, then you’ve seen Shider. He stands out as one of the most noticeable members onstage-even with over a dozen others dressed in extravagant fashion. Shider was the one in the diaper, which earned him the nicknames 'Diaper Man' & 'Starchild.' He used to take the bed sheet from the hotels they stayed at while on tour, and tied them up like a diaper.
Gary Shider started off at the age of 10, playing as the backing guitarist for gospel acts. He and his siblings recorded with and/or played for The Mighty Clouds Of Joy, Shirley Caesar, and The Five Blind Boys. In his early teens he started playing secular music, and jammed often (with his friend Cordell 'Boogie' Mosson) at the barbershop where George Clinton & The Parliaments would sing. George took note of their abilities, and when Shider turned 16, they moved to Canada to get away from The Vietnam Draft (and the desolate state of affairs in Plainfield). They started a band called United Soul in 1969, and as a result of their popularity, Clinton signed them to Westbound in 1971. He produced and recorded some of their original songs for Funkadelic, and Shider became a member of Parliament-Funakdelic in 1972-staying with the band up to his death in 2010. Gary Shider was 56 when he passed.
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On June 16th, 1939, we lost drummer, bandleader, composer, arranger, former collaborator with Ella Fitzgerald, and founder of The Chick Webb Orchestra-Chick Webb (William Henry Webb). TOV covered the artist’s birthday in the February 10th post. Please refer to it for more information. He’s most known for his musical contributions to swing jazz and the Lindy Hop culture (the original B-Boys). If you’ve seen the movie X, by Spike Lee, the scene in which Malcolm and Shorty are dancing at The Savoy Ballroom displays the dance style called Lindy Hopping. Most likely the composition being played was a Chick Webb song, since his band was the house band for most of the 1920's 1930's.
Chick contracted tuberculosis at a young age, which inhibited his growth, and limited him to a short stature and lifespan. His doctors told him to play the drums, to loosen up his bones and help ease the symptoms of the disease. He eventually fell in love with drumming, and was playing professionally in clubs by his late teens. His band, and more specifically, his compositions-as they were covered by other bands at the time as well-served as the soundtrack for The Harlem Renaissance Movement. Like many prominent jazz musicians of the time, Webb didn’t read music. He instead composed based on memory and feeling. His band won a number of ‘Battle of the Bands’ competitions at the Savoy, where he beat others lead by Count Basie and Benny Goodman. He lost his crown to Duke Ellington in 1937. In 1938 he relinquished control of his band to Ella Fitzgerald, who was their main singer. He was deceased a year later at 34.
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HONORABLE MENTION: On June 16th, 1942, seminal soul vocalist, songwriter, composer, percussionist, pianist, Philly Soul legend, actor, dancer, father of Gerald & Sean Levert, and co-lead singer of The O’Jays-Eddie Levert (Edward Wills Levert) was born in Bessemer, AL. Eddie's vocals on O’Jay songs like For The Love Of Money, Back Stabbers, Give The People What They Want, I Love Music, Used To Be My Girl, Livin’ For The Weekend, Darlin’ Darlin’ Baby, and Message In Our Music (Gamble & Huff on production) were always magical. Eddie started singing with them in the late 1950's, when they used the name The Mascots-and then The Triumphs. And Eddie Levert continues to make magic... He’s 77 today.
On June 16th, 1969, prog rock musician, singer, songwriter, poet, saxophonist, clarinetist, oboist, harmonica player, producer, movie director, graphic artist, and author-Don Glen Vliet (Captain Beefheart) released his 3rd LP Trout Mask Replica on Straight Records. The double album is considered to be a pioneering experimental, avant-garde/free jazz classic. The majority of the LP was produced by Frank Zappa, and it's ranked #60 on Rolling Stone Magazine’s list of The 500 Greatest Albums Of All Time. Some people feel the album is genius, while others feel it’s a bunch of random noise. It’s similar to Sun Ra meets Jimi Hendrix.
On June 16th, 1999, we lost a unique & outlandish musician, shock artist, alternative politician, singer, and founder & leader of The Official Monster Raving Loony Party-Screaming Lord Sutch (David Edward Sutch, The 3rd Earl of Harrow). He committed suicide by hanging himself. Screaming Lord Sutch was most known for his horror-themed music and stage show during the 60's and 70's. He became a politician, and ran for parliament in the 80's and 90's. He was inspired by Screaming Jay Hawkins, and went on to inspire others like Alice Cooper, Ozzy Osbourne, and similar rock acts that used horror themes as their backdrop. Screaming Lord Sutch was 58 at the time of his death.
For more information on any musician or event reviewed in posts, or for additional information on The Wandering Eyes Blog overall, use the search bar and search the artist or event using keywords. It’s like a Google search for the site. A wide variety of information, covering several topics exists on this site going back to 2013 when it was created. PEACE