Brother Acts

Brothers Issac Donald "Don" Everly and Philip Jason "Phil" Everly toured and recorded as The Everly Brothers.  They were well-known as a duo who embraced tight harmonies and the influence of country music in their steel-string acoustic guitar style.

Brothers Brian, Dennis, and Carl Wilson, along with cousin Mike Love and friend Al Jardine, formed The Beach Boys in 1961.  Brian's substance abuse and mental health issues (speculated to have been a combination of bipolar and schizophrenia symptoms) led to a decline in his input and the band's  direct influence in the 1970's, but they spent much of the 1960's honing "The California Sound" that shaped rock throughout the 70's and 80's as well.

Eddie and Alex Van Halen were born in Amsterdam, Netherlands to parents Jan and Eugenia Van Halen who both fueled their boys' interest in music and showbusiness.  The Van Halen family moved to Pasadena, California.

In 1972, the brothers started a band which rented a sound system from a young David Lee Roth.  They ended up letting Roth join as lead vocalist in order to save money on the sound system rental although Roth's prior auditions hadn't gone well.  Roth claimed the credit for changing the band's name to "Van Halen" in 1974.

Music is Instrumental

Today's theme is music without lyrics...

Chuck Mangione's "Feels so Good" features the flugelhorn, which is an instrument very similar to a trumpet but with a warmer tone.  For its single release in 1978, the piece was edited down to just over a third of its original 9:33 running time.  The video posted here is the original, complete with all solos.

German musician Hans Hugo Harold Faltermeyer is in many ways the total package of European music.  Throughout the 70's and 80's he had at various times been a session musician, arranger, producer, and composer.  

Faltermeyer's best-known composition is probably Axel F from the movie Beverly Hills Cop.

Dutch musician Thijs Van Leer founded the group Focus at the turn of the decade in 1969-1970 and was soon joined by guitarist Jan Akkerman.  Their breakthrough came with the 1971 album Moving Waves/Focus II and its single Hocus Pocus which included Thijs Van Leer's yodelling vocals, whistling, and flute.