|
The
Rhode Island Music Hall of Fame Class of 2013
All exhibits created by Jack McKenna,
official graphic designer for the RIMHOF museum.
Click banners to enlarge.
Class of 2016 |
Class of 2015
|
Class of 2014
|
Class of 2013
|
Class of 2012
Class of 2012 - 2015
Slideshow
George M. Cohan
(1878-1942)
|
The Cowsills
|
Jimmie Crane
(1910-1998)
|
 |
Website |
Listen (YouTube) |
 |
|
 Hailing from the
Fox Point neighborhood on the East Side
of Providence, George M. Cohan burst
onto the national scene when still a
young child as a member of his family's
successful traveling variety act, The
Four Cohans. By his mid-twenties, he had
moved on to presenting his own shows
beginning in 1904 with "Little Johnny
Jones" which established him as major
player on the landscape of American
entertainment. As a composer, producer,
actor, singer, and dancer, he became a
pivotal performer in the evolution of
theatrical presentations from the
minstrel show format to the variety
offerings of vaudeville as well as a
major innovator and early star of the
modern era of Broadway stage production.
He is considered one of the most
important composers in the history of
American popular music with songs from
his productions regularly becoming
across-the-board hits on radio and on
record and sheet music sales charts. His
most famous compositions, such as "The
Yankee Doodle Boy" (a/k/a "I'm A Yankee
Doodle Dandy"), "Give My Regards To
Broadway," and "Over There" helped form
the basis of what is now called "The
Great American Songbook." |
 From Bannister’s
Wharf in Newport, The Cowsills carried
their glorious pop harmonies to the
world in the 1960s and '70s. Along the
way, they garnered three Top-10 hits –
and another nine Billboard chart entries
– making them one of the most successful
Rhode Island acts of all time. Their
early singles featured a four-piece
lineup of brothers Bill, Bob, Barry and
John. By the time they'd begun their
string of hits for MGM Records, they'd
added their mom, Barbara, to the mix and
then brought in sister Susan and brother
Paul for their second album. After
pursuing successful solo careers in the
'80s and '90s (most notably Susan with
The Continental Drifters and Bill with
The Blue Shadows on the Americana scene;
and John as the drummer-in-residence for
The Beach Boys), the group reformed in
1999 for an album under Bob's direction
and reestablished itself as a major
concert attraction. The Cowsills have
become universally recognized as
pioneers of the joyful genre of Rock 'n'
Roll now referred to as "Sunshine Pop." |
 Providence musician
Loreto Fraieli, known professionally as
Jimmie Crane, was the dean of Rhode
Island songwriters in the modern era. He
found early success in the 1930s and
'40s culminating in Glenn Miller's use
of his composition "It's Great To Be An
American" (co-written with another Rhode
Islander, Ray Muffs) as his wartime
theme song. He truly hit his stride in
the 1950s with a string of hits composed
with a new partner, Al Jacobs, which
lasted into the 1970s. Along the way, he
rang up major hits for such heavyweights
as Eddie Fisher, Doris Day, Al Martino
and Bobby Vinton. Perhaps his best-known
song is "Hurt" which was a smash in
three decades: Roy Hamilton in 1954,
Timi Yuro in 1961 and Elvis Presley in
1976. Besides being an admired
songwriter, Jimmie was beloved for his
generosity, unselfishly providing
personal, musical and financial
assistance to to dozens of young
singers, musicians and songwriters
throughout his life. |
|
Bill Flanagan
|
Paul Geremia
|
Bobby Hackett
(1915-1976)
|
 |
 |
 |
|
 Born in
Warwick, Bill began his life's work as a
dedicated music fan and record collector who
parlayed his knowledge and passion into a career
as a critic, reviewer and musicologist for all
of the major periodicals in Rhode Island in both
the "underground" and mainstream press. His
positive spin on, support for, and coverage of
Rhode Island artists helped lead the way to many
a record deal by promoting our local acts to the
national mainstream. Bill went on to become a
celebrated writer for Rolling Stone, Vanity
Fair, GQ and Esquire and was Editor In Chief of
Musician in its heyday. He is the author of
seven books (four novels based around the music
business and 3 non-fiction works on U2, The
Three Stooges, and important songwriters). He is
currently Executive Vice President and Editorial
Director of the MTV Networks where he has helped
propel music programming into the future with
such innovations as "Storytellers" and
"Crossroads." |
 Providence-born Paul Geremia is an
internationally-known musician, equally
well-regarded in the folk and blues communities.
An active performer and major label recording
artist for more than 40 years, Acoustic Guitar
magazine calls Geremia "One of the best country
blues finger-pickers ever." His approach has
never been simply that of a preservationist
carrying on a tradition – he has always put his
own stamp on the music by introducing his
original songs as well as material from other
genres into the style. His long string of
critically-acclaimed albums for Folkways, Sire,
Adelphi, Flying Fish and Red House has firmly
established him at the forefront of the
Americana music scene and he has been a major
player in evolving country blues music into the
modern era.
Website
|
Listen (YouTube) |
 Providence-born trumpeter and cornetist Bobby
Hackett was one of the greatest improvisers in
the history of jazz. His career spanned six
decades (1930s-1970s) and encompassed every
style from New Orleans traditional to big band
swing to the easy-listening mood music of the
1950s. Along the way he performed with dozens of
musical giants including Glenn Miller, Benny
Goodman, Frank Sinatra and Tony Bennett. His
unique and exquisite tone coupled with his
melodic improvisational style gave him an
instantly recognizable sound and made him a
household name. Louis Armstrong considered Bobby
his only equal. His releases as a leader, a
sideman, and as a featured soloist are all
equally considered to be some of the most
important recordings in the history of popular
music. |
Sissieretta
Jones
(1868-1933)
|
Steve Smith &
the Nakeds
|
Eddie Zack &
the Hayloft Jamboree
|
|
 |
Website |
Listen (YouTube) |
 |
|
 Sissieretta
Jones, of Providence, was one of the
greatest sopranos in the world at
the turn of the last century. Music
critics of the era dubbed her the
"Black Patti" as only Italian opera
great Adelina Patti was considered
her equal. She was one of the first
women to break the color barrier in
opera and was the first
African-American to perform at
Carnegie Hall. She toured the world
and was honored and decorated by
heads of state around the globe.
When mounting social pressures
forced her to rethink her future in
opera, she launched a second
successful career in popular music
when she organized a theatrical
troupe she named "The Black Patti
Troubadours" which is credited as
being the first such organization
owned and operated by
African-Americans. By presenting
variety shows with a story line for
continuity, she not only assisted in
the late-19th century transition
from minstrelsy to vaudeville, but
helped pave the way for the 20th
century Broadway theatre tradition
in the pre-"Showboat" era.
Sissieretta is the subject of a
major biography published in 2012
and the Rhode Island Black Heritage
Society dedicated a plaque in her
honor at her homestead on Pratt
Street on the East Side of
Providence on publication date.
|
 Since 1973,
Steve Smith, of Smithfield, has
spent four decades barnstorming the
country with his 10-piece horn band,
The Nakeds, playing his personal
brand of Rock 'n' Roll and Rhythm &
Blues and attracting a huge
following in the process. Originally
known as Naked Truth, the group
faced down all economic pressures to
downsize and consistently produced
and released original music in the
hope of securing a major label
record deal. Steve's determination
paid off in a big way. The majors
came knocking on his door in 2008
when the band's 1984 indie hit "I'm
Huge (And The Babes Go Wild)" was
featured by the animated hit TV
series "The Family Guy." The YouTube
video for the song has seen almost
400,000 views and the interest in
the group prompted Sony Records to
offer a distribution deal. The first
release, a "greatest hits" package
containing the best of their
independent recordings, was a best
seller; a follow-up, "Under The
Covers," was released in 2012. |
 The Zackarian
family, of Providence – Edward
(Eddie Zack), his brother Richard
(Cousin Richie), and their sisters,
Mercedes (Babs) and Marilyn (Maril)
– pioneered the Country & Western
music scene in Rhode Island and were
major players in the introduction of
the style into the Northeast. During
the 1940s and '50s, they released
dozens of successful recordings on
Decca Records and Columbia Records.
They were the stars of a
nationally-broadcast NBC radio
program originating from WJAR
studios in downtown Providence, and
they were also an established major
nightclub and concert attraction.
The success of The Hayloft Jamboree
continued on into the 1980s with a
string of successful radio and
television shows and a succession of
independent record releases.
Although Eddie and Richie have
passed away, the tradition continues
with Babs and Maril and Eddie's
daughter, Dotty Zack, leading new
generations of country musicians
into the future. |
Class of 2016 |
Class of 2015
|
Class of 2014
|
Class of 2013
|
Class of 2012
Class of 2012 - 2015
Slideshow
|
|