Curtis Mayfield

Mike D, Curtis Mayfield, More For Bran Van 3000 LP

31 Jan 2001 07:05:00 EST

Other contributors to Discosis include Big Daddy Kane, Momus, Eek-a-Mouse and Youssou N'Dour.
By Joe D'Angelo

Bran Van 3000's
James Disalvio & Jayne Hill
Photo: MTV News

Canadian hip-pop collective Bran Van 3000 are putting the finishing touches on their second album, Discosis, and they're far from going it alone.

Beastie Boy Mike D produced half of the forthcoming LP's 16 songs, while the remaining tracks were polished by producer/former Cars frontman Ric Ocasek, the band's publicist said. Old-school rapper Big Daddy Kane, quirky British bard Momus, eccentric dancehall toaster Eek-a-Mouse and African vocalist Youssou N'Dour round out the guest list for the follow-up to 1998's Glee, expected to surface in late spring or early summer on Grand Royal Records.

While the album is shaping up to be a star-studded affair, "Astounded," the LP's first single, features perhaps the brightest of the bunch. Curtis Mayfield's distinctive croon — of previously unreleased lyrics to his 1970 hit "Move On Up" — supplies the vocal track to the sample-laden song, which also borrows snippets of bongos and sax from the soul classic. Just weeks before his death in late 1999, the "Superfly" legend gave Bran Van leader James DiSalvio permission to use the vocals.

British two-step phenomenon MJ Cole and French house producer Demon are among those remixing "Astounded" for its single release, scheduled for April. On their official Web site, Bran Van — who scored a small hit off Glee with "Drinking in L.A." — offer a downloadable sneak peek of the song in its original and remixed forms.

A video for "Astounded" is expected to be shot in Los Angeles next week, the publicist said.

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James Brown, Curtis Mayfield For Songwriting Honors

5 May 2000 02:00:00 EDT

The Beach Boys

James Brown, the late Curtis Mayfield, and Brian Wilson are among the folks who will be honored next month for their accomplishments by the National Academy of Popular Music/Songwriters' Hall Of Fame.

Brown, a.k.a. the Godfather of Soul, will be inducted at a dinner on June 15 in New York City, as will Don Henley, Glenn Frey, James Taylor, and Wilson. Curtis Mayfield, who passed away last year (see "Soul Legend Curtis Mayfield Dead At 57"), will also be inducted posthumously.

Special recognition awards will be given to Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller, who will receive the Johnny Mercer Award; Neil Diamond, who will be honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award; and Johnny Mathis, who will take home the Hitmaker Award.

Since its formation in 1969, the Songwriters' Hall of Fame is dedicated to recognizing the work and lives of those who compose and create popular music around the world.

Over the course of 30 years, the Hall has inducted Burt Bacharach, John Lennon, Bob Dylan, Billy Joel, Cole Porter, Otis Redding, Sir Elton John, and Stevie Wonder, among others.

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Lauryn Hill, Stevie Wonder Tribute Curtis Mayfield

23 Feb 2000 04:30:00 EST

Curtis Mayfield

Lauryn Hill, Stevie Wonder, and Eric Clapton were among those paying tribute to the late soul legend Curtis Mayfield during a special memorial service at First AME Church in Los Angeles on Tuesday.

Before performing a stirring rendition of Mayfield's "Makings Of You," Hill told the audience of how she first discovered the song on an old record in her mother's basement.

Hill then introduced Stevie Wonder, who performed the Mayfield classic "Gypsy Woman." Wonder told the crowd that "the life and legacy of Curtis Mayfield is deserving of us who are here and more."

The service closed with all the participants taking the stage to perform the gospel standard "Amen," which was dedicated to the memory of Mayfield, who passed away on December 26, 1999 at his home in Atlanta (see "Soul Legend Curtis Mayfield Dead At 57").

Mayfield is best remembered for his work with the vocal group The Impressions in the late '50s and early '60s, and for his prolific solo career, highlighted by the 1972 soundtrack album "Superfly."

The acclaimed singer-songwriter was seriously injured in 1990 during an onstage accident in Brooklyn, New York that left the performer a quadriplegic. Mayfield released his last studio album, "New World Order," in 1996.

Mayfield was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1999.

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D'Angelo To Help Launch Curtis Mayfield Scholarship Fund

21 Jan 2000 10:00:00 EST

D'Angelo

D'Angelo will travel to Atlanta on Super Bowl weekend to perform at "Hollywood Meets Politics," an event being hosted at the Capitol building by Mayor Bill Campbell.

The "Hollywood Meets Politics" affair is scheduled for Saturday, January 29 at Atlanta's City Hall, and the ceremony will also include the formal inauguration of the Curtis Mayfield Scholarship Fund.

In addition to his performance, D'Angelo plans to present $5,000 to Altheida Mayfield, Curtis Mayfield's widow, to establish an educational fund in honor of the late soul great, who passed away the day after Christmas (see "Soul Legend Curtis Mayfield Dead At 57'). The city of Atlanta recently chose Mayfield's "People Get Ready" as its anthem.

"Hollywood Meets Politics" is designed to raise awareness about various non-profit groups and organizations in Atlanta, while also bringing together politicians with the trendsetters of music, film, television, and sports.

A silent auction of items from notable figures in sports, music, film, and television will also be held during the event. Proceeds from the auction will go to the National Black College Alumni Hall of Fame and the 100 Black Men of America, Inc.

-- John Gill

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Soul Legend Curtis Mayfield Dead At 57

27 Dec 1999 07:55:00 EST

Curtis Mayfield

Soul music lost a legend over the weekend when singer, songwriter, and producer Curtis Mayfield passed away in Georgia on Sunday at the age of 57. The Associated Press reports that Mayfield passed at Roswell, Georgia's North Fulton Regional Hospital. The cause of death was not immediately known.

During a career that began during his teen years in the '50s, Mayfield penned soul classics like "People Get Ready" and "Keep On Pushing" as well as the soundtrack to the 1972 blaxploitation classic "Superfly." In addition to his songwriting successes, Mayfield also scored hits as a producer, manning the board for gems like It's "All Right" and "People Get Ready."

Mayfield was seriously injured during a 1990 New York concert in an on-stage accident that left the performer a quadriplegic. The AP reports that the condition had taken its toll on Mayfield's health in recent years, and that doctors amputated one of his legs last year after Mayfield developed diabetes.

Mayfield was first inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1991 for his early work with the gospel group the Impressions. He was later inducted into the Hall again for his solo work in 1999, but was too ill to attend the ceremony.

`"I lost my husband, the father of our children, my best friend and my soulmate,'' Mayfield's wife Altheida told the AP. "Thank God his music and his legacy will live far beyond today."

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Curtis Mayfield

Black Sabbath, Bruce Springsteen, Steely Dan, Paul McCartney, Curtis Mayfield Nominated For Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame

23 Sep 1998 02:30:00 EDT

Ozzy Osbourne

Looks like Ozzy Osbourne may be heading home ... to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.

Osbourne could make it to the Rock Hall as vocalist for Black Sabbath, one of the 15 artists who have been nominated for induction into the Hall of Fame. Other artists vying to be part of the 1998 class ushered into the Cleveland museum include Paul McCartney, Bruce Springsteen, Billy Joel, Curtis Mayfield and Steely Dan.

Rounding out this year's nominations to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame are: Ritchie Valens, Dusty Springfield, Del Shannon, the Flamingos and the Moonglows, the Staple Singers, Solomon Burke, Darlene Love and Gene Pitney.

McCartney could be the latest in a string of artists who have been honored by the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame multiple times for their body of work, as he is already included in the Hall as a member of the Beatles, who were inducted in 1988.

Other artists who have been recognized by the Hall for their accomplishments both as solo artists and as part of groups, include Neil Young -- who was inducted himself in 1995 and for his work in Buffalo Springfield just last year -- and John Lennon, who was posthumously inducted as a solo musician in 1994.

On a side note, a victory for Black Sabbath would also mean a black-tie invite to Ronnie James Dio and sundry others who were in Sabbath for various stretches of time, as every member of a band throughout its history is included when a group is inducted into the Hall of Fame.

A panel of 800 professionals from the music industry will vote on the ballots over the next several weeks, while the formal announcement of those who've been selected for the Rock Hall won't be made until November.

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