One

2024 Presidential Special

Donald J. Trump - 47th

Pledge - "one nation"

Are we really?

Special Edition - His & Hers Fashion

 His & Hers Fashion

His - Kole Royale

Watches

Avalon - Midnight Blue

For Him

- Specs -

Silver case

Quartz movement

Stainless steel

Tri Chronograph feature

Date/Time feature

Water Resistant feature

Taps

Veterans Day 2024

Special Set List Edition

Somewhere Over the Rainbow - The Wizard of Oz (1/8) Movie CLIP (1939) HD

November Tradition

The Wizard of Oz

On TBS

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Honors

Entered into the National Recording Registry by the Library of Congress "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant" (March 2017)

Recording Industry Association of America & National Endowment for the Arts listed "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" No. 1 on Songs of the Century 

American Film Institute - Best movie song on AFI's 100 Years...100 Songs

Towering Song Award by the Songwriters Hall of Fame

(Wikipedia)

Set List Special Edition - In Memory

Janet Thompson-Hovis

April 8, 1925 - November 9, 2021

Social, Intelligent, Explorer, European Guest

- Pop Culture in 1925 -

Jazz Age

- Louis Armstrong & Duke Ellington made first recordings

- "innovative, fun, and carefree"

- "people could dance to it"

Flapper Fashion

- "looser and lighter"

- Skirts to knee length & waistlines down to hips

Movies

- Tales of youth and sexual freedom

- The Phantom of the Opera opened in movie theaters

- Ben-Hur grossed $10,738,000 worldwide

Radio 

- A popular new device

- In 40% of homes by 1930

Other

- The Charleston

- The Great Gatsby

- "Dinah" & "Sweet Georgia Brown" hit songs

Janet was a socialite wherever she traveled.  The better majority of her life, at least in my lifetime, was spent in Southern California and Kauai, Hawaii.  She did travel mainly abroad.  She was close to the iconic fashion designer, Hubert de Givenchy and was a welcomed guest in his French mansion.  They held a lasting bond built with friendship love.  They were meant to be in each other's lives.

Janet was meant to be in mine.  Janet was my Grammy.  She married into Hovis.  I was born into Hovis.  The Hovis family fractured frequently but at the end of the day there had to be some positive light that kept us together.

She passed away in her bed, in her home, surrounded by loved ones.  For so long I was angry because my grandma passed away alone in a lonely nursing home.  Yet, the privilege Grammy knew through the whole of her life was comforting when her heart beat one last time and she took in one last breath.

Of our many opinionated differences, I still love you Grammy.  You loved.  You cared.  We talked.  We laughed.  

I will always be your love duck.

Music History - November 1929

 1929

Highlights

American Record Corporation founded in 1929 through merger of multi-record companies ... Later acquisition - Columbia Phonographic Company

Joseph Meyer (1894 - 1987) ... Lady Fingers (1929) ... ("California Here I Come" was Meyer's most well known song,  In historic Hollywood, the song was performed by "Lucy and Ricky Ricardo" & "Ethel and Fred Mertz" during their drive from New York to Los Angeles in support of "Ricky's" Hollywood opportunity.)

- History in 20th Century Film -

The Broadway Melody (1929) ... First sound film to win an Academy Award for Best Picture ... One of the early musicals to have Technicolor ... Sparked trend in color that led to screens in 1929-1930 ... Dialogue written by Norman Houston & James Gleason/Directed by Harry Beaumont/Main Cast - Charles King, Anita Page, Bessie Love ... Academy Nominations - Best Director, Best Actress (Bessie Love)

(Wikipedia)

- Highest-Grossing Films in 1929 - 

The Broadway Melody - $2,808,000

The Cock-Eyed World - $2,700,000

Gold Diggers of Broadway - $2,540,000

Sunny Side Up - $2,190,000

Rio Rita - $1,775,000

On with the Show! - $1,741,000

Say It with Songs - $1,715,000

Show Boat - $1,643,000

(I attended a stage performance in Chicago in 1998.)

The Desert Song - $1,549,000

The Hollywood Revue of 1929 - $1,527,000

(Wikipedia)

21st Century Pop Culture - Taylor Swift

Taylor Alison Swift

December 13, 1989

Leading figure in popular music

Taylor Swift began her career as a country singer.  Her albums in this genre include Taylor Swift (2006) and Fearless (2008).

Taylor considered rock with the album Speak Now (2010) and electronic with the album Red (2012).  In 2014, Taylor released the synth pop album 1989.  In 2017, Taylor released the hip-hop album Reputation.

Early Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 singles include "We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together," "Shake It Off," "Blank Space," "Bad Blood," & "Look What You Made Me Do."

Taylor's most recent albums include the electropop Lover (2019), the indie folk Folklore (2020) and Evermore (2020), pop Midnights (2022) & The Tortured Poets Department (2024).

Recent No. 1 singles include "Cardigan," "Willow," "All Too Well," "Anti-Hero," "Cruel Summer," "Is It Over Now?", & "Fortnight."

Honors -

- One of the world's best-selling music artists - Record 7 albums selling over one million copies first week

- Highest grossing female touring act ($1.96 billion in ticket sales as of November 2023)

- First billionaire with music as primary income

- World's richest female musician

- Noted in Rolling Stone, Billboard, & Forbes

Forbes' 30 Under 30 in Music (2014)

No. 64 on Forbes' 100 Most Powerful Women (2015)

No. 5 on Forbes' Most Powerful Women in the world (2023)

- Person of the Year, Time (2023)

- Time's 100 Most Influential People in 2010, 2015, & 2019

- Discography is a "critically hailed songbook" (Sam Lansky, Time)

- No. 8 on Billboard's Greatest of All Time Chart

- Woman with the most Billboard 200 No. 1's (14)

- Top Ten Songs (59)

- Top 5 Songs (36)

- First woman to have an album (Fearless) and single ("Shake It Off") to certify Diamond

Awards -

14 Grammy Awards

(4 for Album of the Year - Record)

Primetime Emmy Award

40 American Music Awards (Record)  

39 Billboard Music Awards (Record)

30 MTV Video Music Awards

(5 for Video of the Year - Record)

12 Country Music Association Awards

8 Academy of Country Music Awards 

2 Brit Awards

Achievements -

Grammy Award for Album of the Year - 4 wins

MTV Video Music Award for Video of the Year - 4 wins

IFPI Global Recording Artist of the Year - 4 wins

Recognition -

Nashville Songwriters Association

Songwriters Hall of Fame

National Music Publishers' Association 

Youngest person on Rolling Stone's 100 Greatest Songwriters of All Time (2015...26 years old at the time)

Honorary Doctor in Fine Arts from New York University & Served as commencement speaker on May 18, 2022

Notes -

As of 2019, 50 million album sales & 150 million single sales as well as 114 million in sales globally.  As of 2019 in the U.S. alone, over 37.3 million in sales.

"...profound impact on the music industry, pop culture, and the economy..."

...And her story continues...

(Wikipedia)

Lonely in Your Nightmare (2001 Remaster)

2024 Presidential Special

Donald J. Trump - 47th

I am a Democrat.

Nightmare

Set List Special - Remembering Quincy Jones

Quincy Delight Jones, Jr.

March 14, 1933 - November 3, 2024

Record producer, songwriter, composer, arranger, film & television producer

Known for -

- Arranger & conductor for collaborations with Frank Sinatra & Count Basie

- Produced 3 successful albums by Michael Jackson: Off the Wall (1979), Thriller (1982), Bad (1987)

- Conducted "We Are the World" to raise funds for victims of famine in Ethiopia (1985)

- Composed such film scores as The Pawnbroker (1965), 

In the Heat of the Night (1967), In Cold Blood (1967), The Color Purple (1985), and more

Honors -

- Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Music Composition for a Series (Roots, 1977)

- Tony Award for Best Revival of a Musical (The Color Purple, 2016)

- Grammy Legend Award (1992)

- Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award (1995)

(First African-American to receive this award)

- Kennedy Center Honors (2001)

- National Medal of the Arts (2011, Presented by Barack Obama)

- Academy Honorary Award (2024)

 Named one of the most influential jazz musicians of the 20th Century (Time)

Legacy

Academy Award Nominations -

- First African-American to be nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Song ("The Eyes of Love," 1968)

- Academy Award for Best Original Score Nomination (In Cold Blood, 1968)

- First African-American to be nominated twice in the same year

- First African-American to be the musical director and conductor of the Academy Awards (1971)

- Second most Oscar-nominated African-American w/ 7 nominations

Berklee College of Music -

Honorary Doctorate of Music (1983)

American Academy of Achievement -

Golden Plate Award (1984, Presented by Ray Charles)

Government of France -

Commander of  the Legion of Honour (2001)

BET Awards -

Humanitarian Award (2008)

Los Angeles Press Club -

Visionary Award (2014)

Royal Academy of Music, London -

Honorary Doctorate (2015)

Black Music & Entertainment Walk of Fame -

Foundational Inductee (2021)

Composer credit - 34 Films 

1965 - 2024

Composer credit - 6 Television Programs

Musical Director credit - 2 Television Programs

Executive Producer credit - 9 Television Programs

Composer for 5 Music Videos

Producer for 4 Music Videos

Composer/Producer for 2 Music Videos

Conductor/Producer for 1 Music Videos

Music Supervisor for 2 Music Videos

9 Cameo Appearance in Acting

(Wikipedia)

Discography -

16 Studio Albums

24 Soundtrack Albums

3 Live Albums

4 Compilation Albums

6 singles & 6 albums in the Top 40

No. 1 records in three consecutive decades

(1960s, 1970s, 1980s)

7 Gold Certifications (only in the U.S.)

4 Platinum Certifications (only in the U.S.)

1 Gold Certification (Britain)

1 Silver Certification (Britain)

(Wikipedia)

This Day in Musical History

November 4th

Billboard Hot 100 - 2023 ... Samples

"Thinkin' Bout Me" by Morgan Wallen...No. 1

"Last Night" No. 6

"Fast Car" No. 5

"Snooze" by SZA...No. 3

"Doja Cat" No. 2

-------------------------------------------------------------

- 2006 -

"Far Away" by Nickelback...No. 1 on Billboard Mainstream Top 40

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- 1967 Samples on Billboard Hot 100 -

"Your Precious Love" by Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell

"Never My Love" by The Association

"(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman" by Aretha Franklin

"I'm Wondering" by Stevie Wonder

"People Are Strange" by The Doors

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 Other notable events on November 4th

- Come on Over by Shania Twain...Released in 1997...Best selling country album of all time

- 21 Today by Cliff Richard...Released in 1961...Richard's first no. 1 album in the UK

- "Jailhouse Rock" by Elvis Presley...9th No. 1 hit in 1967

- Jackie Wilson solo debut with "Reet Petite" in 1957

- Bob Dylan made Carnegie Hall debut in 1961

Other sources include Rock 'n Roll History for November 4th,                     Billboard Hot 100, This Day In Music, etc.

Pop culture - Saturday Night Live, Season 23, Episode 4

November 4, 2017 ... Larry David Host/Miley Cyrus Guest

Main Title (The Wizard Of Oz)

November Tradition

The Wizard of Oz

On TBS

Clap Along

 Give thanks & Feel happy

Happy Thanksgiving

by Lauren Hovis

Sold on Amazon

Music History - November 1925

 1925

Highlights

November 28 - The weekly country music radio program, Grand Ole Opry, is first broadcast on WSM radio in Nashville.  "WSM Barn Dance"

November 1925 - "Remember" by the Isham Jones Orchestra ranked #13 in Top Popular Recordings (American bandleader, saxophonist, bassist, songwriter)

November 1925 Births to Passing

Sir Alan Charles MacLaurin Mackerras - Australian conductor 

November 17, 1925 - July 14, 2010

Gunther Alexander Schuller - American composer, conductor, French horn player, author, historian, educator, publisher, jazz musician

November 22, 1925 - June 21, 2015