DAFT PUNK (1993 - 2021)

Thomas Bangalter and Guy-Manuel de Homen-Christo, who together are known to the world as the disguised EDM duo, Daft Punk, have officially announced the end of their musical partnership on February 22nd. This innovative band lead the movement that successfully brought dance music to the pop charts. Although it had been since 2013 that the French musicians had released their worldwide breakthrough fourth album, "Random Access Memories" which went on to receive five Grammy Awards including Album of the Year, the news is still unexpected and quite surprising.

The two became friends while attending the Lycée Carnot school in Paris. They recorded demos and later formed a rock band with Bangalter playing bass and de Homen-Christo on guitar. After abandoning the band, the duo moved towards experimenting with synthesisers and drum machines. This lead them to create an instrumental, acid house track called, "Da Funk" in 1995, receiving attention from Virgin Records who signed them to the label with Daft Punk being born.

At first, the duo made live appearances without costumes while touring for their debut album, "Homework". But the men were not interested in fame or being photographed. They started to wear face masks while performing and doing publicity. With their success, Daft Punk eventually moved to more elaborate costumes, with them wearing robotic suits and helmets.

With their follow-up album, "Discovery" in 2001, Daft Punk's music moved towards a slicker electro-pop sound, utilizing autotune and vocoded vocals on their songs. And the album was an incredible success on the dance charts across the globe with the singles, "One More Time", "Digital Love", "Face to Face" and "Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger" (which would later be sampled by Kanye West for his 2007 hit song "Stronger").

The announcement of their end came inventively with an eight minute video clip. In the film directed by Warren Fu, the pair appear wearing their robot personas walking in the desert. One stops moving suddenly, then the other returns to flip a timer-switch on him that causes his destruction.



And to pay tribute to Daft Punk and their influential sound, here is a highlight of some of my favorite tracks from the band:

TAPESTRY: 50TH ANNIVERSARY

It was fifty years ago this month that "Tapestry", the groundbreaking album by Carole King, was released. This record, filled with intimate stories involving love, friendship and acceptance, became an instant success, staying on the top spot of the Billboard 200 Album chart for fifteen consecutive weeks and remaining on this chart for almost five years. "Tapestry" swept the major categories of the Grammy Awards that year winning Best Female Pop Vocal Performance, Record of The Year, Song of The Year and Album of The Year. And this enduring album has sold an incredible twenty-five million copies worldwide.

After ending her marriage to Gerry Goffin, who was also her long-time songwriting partner, a team responsible for such pop classics as "Will You Love Me Tomorrow", "The Loco-Motion", "One Fine Day" and "(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman", King decided to leave New York with their two young daughters and headed West. She had arrived in 1968, settling in the Laurel Canyon area, at the time when many rock musicians had gathered in LA to live and create. 

King was encouraged to begin performing her own songs and released her debut album, "Writer" in 1970. With a cover of her hit, "Up on the Roof" (originally recorded by the Drifters in 1962) featured on the collection, the record received critical acclaim but not much commercial attention. Around this time, King met James Taylor and they would inspire each other musically.

With Lou Adler, the man behind the records of The Mamas & the Papas and The Grass Roots, on board as producer, King went to work on her follow-up album. "Tapestry" features the now classic number one songs, "I Feel The Earth Move", which expresses sexual tension over the excitement of being around her lover and "It's Too Late" that looks at dealing with the end of a relationship in a civil manner. King would find chart success with "You've Got a Friend" but so did James Taylor, reaching number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart that year. They had both recorded their versions at the same time, using the same musicians including Joni Mitchell on backing vocals. "Where You Lead" would later be recorded by Barbra Streisand and reached the top-forty on the pop chart that year. King reworked a couple of her popular tunes she had written with Goffin; "Will You Love Me Tomorrow?", the number one 1960 hit by the Shirelles and "A Natural Woman" which Aretha Franklin had made famous in 1967 and would become the Queen of Soul's signature song. My favorite from the album is "So Far Away" (which features Taylor playing guitar), a melancholy ballad about longing to see a loved one that is out of reach. And "Beautiful", a powerful statement on optimism and self-esteem, would be used for the title of the 2014 Broadway musical based on her life. 

"Tapestry" would help usher in the singer/songwriter movement in pop, changing the way how albums were created and how ideas were expressed musically. And even though the now-seventy-eight year old artist has recorded seventeen studio albums to date, "Tapestry" has remained her defining moment with the recording still finding it's way on numerous Best Album of All-Time charts. Here are some highlights from "Tapestry" including a live version of "So Far Away" with James Taylor on guitar:

MARY WILSON (1944 - 2021)

Mary Wilson, an original member of The Supremes, the Motown act that became one of the most successful female singing groups of all time, passed away unexpectedly on February 8th. The singer, who remained with the group until 1977 yet would continue as a promoter of their legacy, died in her sleep at the age of seventy-six from unknown causes.

Wilson co-founded the singing group as a teenager with friends from the Brewster-Douglass housing project in Detroit, Florence Ballard, Diana Ross and Betty McGlown. They called themselves The Primettes and relentlessly urged Motown founder, Berry Gordy to sign them to his record label. He finally agreed in 1961 and their name was changed to "The Supremes". McGlown would leave the group the following year, becoming a trio, and struggled for a few years to achieve a successful single before their breakthrough, "When the Lovelight Starts Shining Through His Eyes" in 1963, peaking at number 23 on the pop chart.

But it would be the following year when The Supremes would have their first number one hit, "Where Did Our Love Go" which began a string of chart-topping successes which includes "Baby Love", "Stop! In The Name of Love", "You Can't Hurry Love" and "You Keep Me Hangin' On". The Supremes (who would go on to have twelve number one US singles), became international sensations who brought glamour and style to pop music. But Gordy's focus on Ross as lead singer, with the other two made essentially her back-up singers, created some serious tension within the group with Ballard eventually leaving the now-named, Diana Ross & The Supremes in 1967 (replaced by Cindy Birdsong) and Ross moving on for a solo career three years later.

Wilson maintained her place in the group (with Jean Terrell replacing Ross) and The Supremes would have a few more hits with "Up the Ladder to the Roof", "Stoned Love" and "Nathan Jones" but their glory days were behind them. 

After The Supremes ended, Wilson briefly stayed with Motown, recording one self-titled solo album in 1979 before being dropped from the label. She would go on to appear in stage musicals, was a contestant on "Dancing With The Stars" in 2019 and made regular appearances performing in Las Vegas casinos. Wilson wrote about her experiences as a member of one of the most successful pop music acts of all-time with two best selling memoirs; "Dreamgirl: My Life as a Supreme" in 1986 and "Supreme Faith: Someday We'll Be Together" four years later.

Here are a few highlights from the legendary career of Mary Wilson including her singing lead with The Supremes on a 1965 cover of "Our Day Will Come":

CARDI B: UP

After teaming up with Megan Thee Stallion on "WAP", one of the biggest (and raunchiest) hits of last year, Cardi B has returned with more new music. "Up" finds the Bronx rapper returning back to the streets with a more gritty yet slick sound. 

It's been almost three years since Cardi released her debut album, "Invasion of Privacy" and has only made a few guest appearances on other musician's tracks since then. While this might be a preview of her follow-up album, she has made it clear that she's not rushing to release a new record until she's ready.

The video for "Up" (directed by Tanu Muino) is filled with the colorful, sexy looks, innovative dance moves and outrageous imagery that Cardi B loves.