Portal:Rhythm and blues

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Wikipedia's Rhythm and Blues Portal

Introduction

Rhythm and blues, frequently abbreviated as R&B or R'n'B, is a genre of popular music that originated within African-American communities in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predominantly to African Americans, at a time when "rocking, jazz based music ... [with a] heavy, insistent beat" was becoming more popular. In the commercial rhythm and blues music typical of the 1950s through the 1970s, the bands usually consisted of a piano, one or two guitars, bass, drums, one or more saxophones, and sometimes background vocalists. R&B lyrical themes often encapsulate the African-American history and experience of pain and the quest for freedom and joy, as well as triumphs and failures in terms of societal racism, oppression, relationships, economics, and aspirations.

The term "rhythm and blues" has undergone a number of shifts in meaning. In the early 1950s, it was frequently applied to blues records. Starting in the mid-1950s, after this style of music had contributed to the development of rock and roll, the term "R&B" became used in a wider context. It referred to music styles that developed from and incorporated electric blues, as well as gospel and soul music. From 1960s to 70s, some British groups were referred to and promoted as being R&B bands. By the 1970s, the term "rhythm and blues" had changed once again and was used as a blanket term for soul and funk. (Full article...)

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Maxwell's Urban Hang Suite is the debut album of American R&B and neo soul musician Maxwell released April 2, 1996, on Columbia Records in the United States. Recording sessions for the album took place between 1994 and 1995 at CRC Studios in Chicago and at Electric Lady Studios, RPM, Sorcerer and Chung King Studios in New York City. The album contains elements of R&B, funk, jazz and smooth soul, as well as featuring prominent classic influences in sound and musical style. A concept album, Urban Hang Suite is composed of a song cycle that focuses on an adult romance from first encounter to its conclusion, examining the concept with balladry and slow jams. The album's themes include love, sex, marriage, monogamy and spirituality. The concept was based on Maxwell's own personal experience.

After it was presented to Columbia label executives in 1995, Maxwell's Urban Hang Suite was shelved for nearly a year, partly due to doubts of its sales potential, before being released to generally positive reviews and considerable commercial success. In spite of an initial lack of mainstream interest, the album experienced a boost in sales with the help of the single "Ascension (Don't Ever Wonder)", which sold 500,000 copies within a year. Despite some negative criticism towards its lyrical substance, music writers lauded the album's vintage overtones and Maxwell's songwriting, and it was viewed as a departure from the hip hop-oriented contemporary R&B of the time. Urban Hang Suite earned Maxwell several accolades and comparisons to soul singer Marvin Gaye, and within a year it sold one million copies in the U.S..

The album had a considerable impact on Maxwell's career. Its success helped elevate his reputation to that of a sex symbol as well as a serious performer on the music scene. Maxwell has been credited with shaping the "neo soul" movement that rose to prominence during the late 1990s. Along with D'Angelo's debut album Brown Sugar (1995), Urban Hang Suite has been recognized by writers for helping provide commercial visibility to the neo soul genre, a musical style that focuses on classic influences rather than the mainstream sound of its contemporary R&B counterpart. It has been cited as Maxwell's greatest work and remains as his best-selling release. In 2002, the album was certified double platinum in sales by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), following sales in excess of two million copies.

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Warwick in 2021

Marie Dionne Warwick (/diˈɒn ˈwɔːrwɪk/ dee-ON WOR-wik; born Warrick; December 12, 1940) is an American singer, actress, and television host.

Warwick ranks among the 40 biggest U.S. hit makers between 1955 and 1999, based on her chart history on Billboard's Hot 100 pop singles chart. She is the second-most charted female vocalist during the rock era (1955–1999). She is also one of the most-charted vocalists of all time, with 56 of her singles making the Hot 100 between 1962 and 1998 (12 of them Top Ten), and 80 singles in total – either solo or collaboratively – making the Hot 100, R&B, or adult contemporary charts. Warwick ranks number 74 on the Billboard Hot 100's "Greatest Artists of all time". (Full article...)

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The following are images from various rhythm and blues-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1The Moonglows, 1956 (from Doo-wop)
Image 2The Cleftones during their participation in the doo-wop festival celebrated in May 2010 at the Benedum Center. (from Doo-wop)
Image 3The instruments of the skiffle group the Quarrymen, who would become the Beatles (from British rhythm and blues)
Image 4Muddy Waters, a major influence on the movement, pictured in 1971 (from British rhythm and blues)
Image 5The Jimi Hendrix Experience performing on Dutch television in 1967 (from British rhythm and blues)
Image 6Led Zeppelin performing at Chicago Stadium in January 1975
Image 7Janet Jackson's Control, released in 1986, was one of the most critically acclaimed albums of the 1980s. (from New jack swing)
Image 8Usher was cited by Billboard as the no. 1 Hot 100 artist of the 2000s decade, with 7 number-one singles that accumulated 42 weeks at the top. (from Contemporary R&B)
Image 9Michael Jackson holds the record for the best-selling new jack swing album with his 1991 release, Dangerous. (from New jack swing)
Image 10The Ramones in Toronto (1976) (from Doo-wop)
Image 11Chris Barber, one of the major figures in the early popularisation of the blues in Britain, playing at the Musikhalle, Hamburg, 1972 (from British rhythm and blues)
Image 12Alternative R&B artist Frank Ocean performing at the Coachella Festival in 2012 (from Alternative R&B)
Image 13Herman Santiago, original lead singer of the Teenagers (from Doo-wop)
Image 14Peter Green of Fleetwood Mac onstage in 1970 (from British rhythm and blues)
Image 15The Jam in Newcastle-upon-Tyne in 1982 (from British rhythm and blues)
Image 16The original line up of the Kinks, 1965 (from British rhythm and blues)
Image 17Beyoncé was named by Billboard the most successful female act of the 2000s. (from Contemporary R&B)
Image 18Kathy Young with the Earth Angels performing Kathy's hit "A Thousand Stars" during the festival of this genre celebrated at the Benedum Center for the Performing Arts in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in May 2010 (from Doo-wop)
Image 19The Animals in 1964 (from British rhythm and blues)
Image 20John Lee Hooker, whose visit to England was the anticipated R&B event of 1964, shown in 1978 (from British rhythm and blues)
Image 21Alicia Keys ranked fifth on Billboard Artist of the Decade list. "No One" ranks No. 6 on the Billboard Hot 100 songs of the decade. (from Contemporary R&B)
Image 22Bill Wyman's Rhythm Kings at Middelburg in 2009 (from British rhythm and blues)
Image 23Georgie Fame, leader of one of the most widely influenced R&B groups, in 1968 (from British rhythm and blues)
Image 24Alexis Korner in Hamburg in 1972 (from British rhythm and blues)
Image 25Lead Belly's recordings would be a major part of British R&B repertoires, although he never performed in the UK (from British rhythm and blues)