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Struggles and hardships
examples of hardships in life
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Willie Nelson, most commonly known for his musical abilities, is one of the most influential country western artist to ever pick up a guitar. From the start of Nelson’s life he faced deep troubles, one major problem was both parents leaving him to be raised by his Grandparents. Nelson shows great talent due to his many problems in his personal life, one in which left him close to bankrupt and others putting him in jail. Despite all the obstacles, he was able to go and become one of the greatest artists alive.
Once rejected as a country music singer, he turned around to become one of the most influential songwriters to date. Willie Hugh Nelson was born on April, 30, 1933, in Abbott Texas. Raised in the midst of the Great Depression, music was one of the tools Nelson used to cope in his small town. Nelson lived with his grandparents after his parents abandoned him at an early age and was forced to work in the cotton fields.
Nelson was first introduced to music by his grandparents. Willie himself was said in an interview with Teresa Taylor Von-Frederick that they were his “true, and earlier, inspiration.” He gained his first guitar from his grandfather in which he received only one training session. This day marked the begin of the legacy, because at the age of 10 he sold his first song.
After his grandfather died it was up to Nelson to support his family. Still in the years of the Great Depression, he was forced to pick up oddball jobs until he got his first professional job in the John Raychek Band. Although his straight-laced grandmother disagreed with his working in beer joints, she couldn’t deny the fact that it was better money than cotton picking. He went in between different musical groups until his l...
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...roit Free Press that he always thought he would be long retired by the age of 50, but now 80 he continues to go strong. Even after going under surgery on his hands due to guitar related injuries he continues to tour yearly. Nelson is possibly one of those most known artists to ever pick up a guitar and one of the biggest help in many different fields including farming and animal rights. Almost everything he has done has been for the better good of others and not himself. Whether he continues to tour and do music until his death or retired this year, the Outlaw will always ride on.
Work Cited
“Artists : Willie Nelson : Willie Nelson Biography : Great American Country.” Artists : Willie Nelson : Willie Nelson Biography : Great American Country. Gactv, 2010. Web. 12 Dec. 2013
“Willie Nelson Biography.” Bio.com. A&E Networks Television, 2013. Web. 11 Dec. 2013.
There are certain musicians that come along that shift a culture, attitude, or future musicians. Another musician that went on influence future generations and considered one of the greatest guitar players in the world is Eddie Van Halen.
Joplin's talent was revealed at an early age. Encouraged by his parent's, he became extremely proficient on the banjo and gained an interest for playing the piano. After Joplin's parents purchased a piano for the family, he taught himself how to play the instrument so well that his piano playing became remarkable. Joplin soon began playing for church and local social events. By age eleven, while under the teachings of a German music teacher named Juliuss Weiss, Joplin was learning the finer points of harmony and style. As a teenager, he played well enough to be employed as a dance musician.
Steve Miller was born October 5, 1943 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Steve’s family was very involved with music. His mother was a jazz-influenced singer, and his father was a pathologist that very interested in the world of music. Dr. Miller was friends with many musicians which greatly aided in young Steve’s development in music. One of his father’s friends included Les Paul, who showed Steve some chords on a guitar at the age of five. Les Paul proved to be a very valuable mentor to Steve, and he became a good friend of the family. When Steve was seven his family moved to Dallas, where he was exposed to a different type of artists that usually did not visit Milwaukee. His father took him to see greats such as Hank Williams, Chuck Berry, and Carl Perkins. Steve was particularly drawn to T-Bone Walker, the father of Texas-style electric blues. This proved to be very influential in Steve’s life, and it is evident by the blues-sound that he exhibited in his guitar playing.
Started out as an avid fan of artists such as Michael J. Fox, Freddie and Albert King and Lightnin' Hopkins, John Mayer is known to have played songs with the guidance of his talent in guitar playing. The gifted artist has continued
Scott Joplin was know as the kings of ragtime. I will explain also explain how he grew up and what type of music he played. I will also write about why I believe he deserves the title that he has been bestowed upon him.
Willie Mays was born on May 6, 1931, in Westfield, Alabama. His mother was Ann and his father was William. Both Mr. and Mrs. Mays were athletic. Mr. Mays played baseball on the all-black teams of the south, as did his father before him. Mrs. Mays had been a champion sprinter when she was in school (Academy of Achievement).
Bill Cosby was born in Germantown, Pennsylvania on July 12, 1937 as William Henry Cosby, Jr. In the 1950’s, Bill Cosby dropped out of high school to join the Navy. He did attend college on a football scholarship at Temple University years later. He also completed his doctorate in education at the University of Massachusetts during the 1970‘s.
Hank Williams Jr as we know him was born Hank Randall Williams, born in small town Shreveport, Louisiana, on May 26, 1949. Hank Jr was only three when his father Hank died, but that did not stop his music dream. At just the age of 8 Hank Jr began singing his dad songs on stage. “Williams made his stage debut at the age of 8 and his first appearance at Nashville's famed Grand Ole Opry at age 11. At age 15, Williams had his first Top 5 hit on the country charts. " (http://www.biography.com/) Even though his father was gone, Hank Jr helped carry on his legacy through music. His mother being his biggest supporter, helped him along the way.
Stevie Ray Vaughan was born in Dallas, Texas on October 3, 1954 to Jim and Martha Vaughan. Stevie Ray first got interested in the guitar around the age of eleven in 1963. By then his older brother (Jimmie Vaughan born in 1951.) had already been playing for a couple years. He taught Stevie Ray a few tricks, a couple blues chords, and minor pentatonic licks, but not much though. Stevie Ray was mostly self taught, he grew accustomed to never using his pinkie. Growing up he listened to great blues legends like the famous B.B. King, the not as famous, but close, who really didn't get the recognition he deserved, Albert King. He found their music gratifying, and admired them greatly, learning all their licks by ear, on stage he could mirror any solos they threw at him. Both Albert King and B.B. King played a very influential role in the development of Stevie Rays style. By the time he was fourteen he was already playing in Dallas blues clubs with bands like Blackbird, the Shanstones, and the Epileptic Marshmallow. Stevie Ray being so involved with his music barely had time for highschool. He dropped out in 1972.
Django became interested in music at a young age. He was given his first instrument, a guitar banjo, at the age of twelve by a neighbor who kindly observed his enthusiasm for music. Without delay, he taught himself how to play by imitating and examining the fingerings of other guitarists. Soon enough, he was surprising listeners with his talent on the guitar, and right before he turned thirteen he started performing at music halls in Rue Monge with a well known accordionist by the name of Guerino. Django continued to perform with various bands and produced his earliest recordings with Jean Vaissade, another accordion player. Although it did not alter his musical talents, Django was practically illiterate ...
Born on May 26, 1949, in Shreveport, Louisiana, Hank Williams, Jr. used his natural talent for singing to follow in his father’s footsteps. By the age of 8, Hank made his stage debut and made his first appearance at Nashville’s Grand Ole Opry at age 11. Then, puberty changed him. Once his voice changed, he signed with MGM Records and subsequently recorded his father’s hit “Long Gone Lonesome Blues” in 1964 (about.com). His very first album, Songs My Father Left Me, was an instant hit.
Jimi is today acknowledged as a musical intellectual. He is highly recognized for his precision and speed while playing his music. He did not care what kind of feedback he got whether it was negative or positive, all Jimi wanted to do was play his music the way he wanted. He created his music as one of the melodic elements and people went crazy for him and his ability to play, sing and dance all at the same time. As a rock singer and guitarist, Jim Hendrix won several awards for being a major contribution to rock music during his time. It is widely agreed that he was among one of the most influential musicians in the history of rock music. As the star of the rock music during his time, Jimi did not just play music but improved the image of rock music as well. While it is the dream of every artist to make a contribution throughout his or her work and performances, not all of them were successfully able to make their dreams to come true. Through Jimi’s singing and performances, he is today acknowledged for the impact that he had on the rock music we now have today. Some of his major contributions to rock music are that he improved the styles that were used to play a guitar by flipping the music upside down as well as
...blues artists across America. In 1990, when this great legend was tragically killed in a fatal helicopter accident, those who have come to know and love Stevie for his music and his genuine kindness, mourned his passing. This is a legend that for sure will never be forgotten and will always live on in the hearts of blues artists everywhere.
Chuck Berry is one of the founders of rock and roll. He is the only one living today. He has performed for millions of people with his famous “Duck Walk.” He still has what Corliss & Bland describe as a slim, toned body, wavy hair drenched in Valvoline oil, and a sharply cut masculine chin and cheeks etched with pain and promise. Even today he only wants a Lincoln Town Car, his Fender Bassman amp, and his guitar. Chuck Berry has had for decades one of the shortest and most ironclad contracts in the music business (Jacobson 6).
He was born in 1935 to poor parents and a very small house in Tupelo, Mississippi. He had a twin brother who did not make it through birth. Ordinarily, it was only until 1946, when he received his first guitar