Charles Jenkins | en

Ray Charles (Ray Charles Robinson, Albany, Georgia, September 23, 1930 - Beverly Hills, California, June 10, 2004), was an American singer-songwriter, musician, arranger, and band leader. As a rock and roll, rhythm & blues, soul, blues, jazz, country and pop musician he helped to shape the sound of rhythm & blues. He brought a soulful sound to everything from country music ("I Can't Stop Loving You") to rock and roll ("Mess Around"), to pop standards to a now-iconic rendition of "America the Beautiful." Frank Sinatra called him "the only genius in the business." Ray Charles was born in Albany, Georgia...

Charles Mingus (22nd April 1922 – 5th January 1979) was an American jazz bassist, composer, bandleader, and occasional pianist from Los Angeles. He was also known for his activism against racial injustice. Mingus' legacy is notable: he is ranked among the finest composers and performers in jazz, and recorded many highly regarded albums. Dozens of musicians passed through his bands and later went on to impressive careers. His songs - though melodic and distinctive - are not often recorded by later musicians, due in part to their unconventional nature. Mingus was also influential and creative as a bandleader, recruiting talented...

Charles Bradley is no stranger to hard times. Born in Gainesville, Florida in 1948 and raised in Brooklyn, New York, Charles spent the better part of his childhood living on the streets. One of the more optimistic moments of his childhood came in 1962, when his sister took him to see James Brown at The Apollo. Brown’s energy formed a lasting impression on Charles. He went home and immediately began practicing microphone tricks with a broom attached to a string, imitating the Godfather’s every move. With his newfound inspiration came an urgent desire to get off the streets and make...

Karl Jenkins (b. 17 february 1944) is a Welsh musician and composer Jenkins was born in Penclawdd, Gower, Wales. After attending the University of Wales, Cardiff, he began postgraduate studies at the Royal Academy of Music, London. It was in jazz that he initially made his mark. In the days of Jazz Polls he was a prolific poll winner, playing at Ronnie Scott’s club before co-forming Nucleus, which won first prize at the Montreux Jazz Festival. This was followed by a period with Soft Machine. Defying categorisation, the Softs played venues as diverse as the Proms, Carnegie Hall, and the...

Jon Jenkins is primarily a musician in the electronic/ambient genre. "I've always been fascinated by the ability of a good piece of music to stimulate the imagination and transport the listener to another place in their mind without ever leaving their chair. Growing up, I listened to a lot of music like Pink Floyd, Genesis, Marillion, Peter Gabriel, and Tangerine Dream because they always made albums to be experienced rather than just listened to, and they all maintained a nice balance between power and space. I couldn't get enough of that stuff, so I just started to create the music...