Bob Andrews: Bob Andrews was the keyboardist for the British bands Brinsley Schwarz and The Rumour. Brinsley Schwarz were one of the original British Pub Rock bands of the ’70s, and they were the band that gave famed British songwriter, producer, and recording artist Nick Lowe his start. When Brinsley Schwarz broke up in 1975, Shwarz and Andrews recruited some new members and formed The Rumour. The Rumour had a brief period of success on their own, but they are best known as the band that Graham Parker worked with on several of his early albums. After leaving The Rumour in 1979, Andrews has enjoyed a successful career as a session musician and producer.

Anne Murray: Canadian singer Anne Murray’s list of accomplishments is simply a list of “first woman to do” everything an artist can do. She is one of the best selling female artists of all time. Her 40-year career produced over 30 albums, and her popularity in Canada and the US paved the way for all of the female Canadian artists who came after her.

Murphy Karges: Murphy Karges was a founding member and bassist of Sugar Ray, a popular band in the late ’90s/early 2000’s.

Chino Moreno: Chino Moreno is the lead vocalist, guitarist, and a founding member of alt-metal band Deftones.

Jeordie White: Jeordie White is best known by his pseudonym Twiggy Ramirez. He was the bassist for Marilyn Manson until he was removed from the band for misconduct.

Michael Anthony: Michael Anthony was the bassist and a founding member of Van Halen. He left the band in 2006. Van Halen were sort of a big deal in the early ’80s.

Jimmie Driftwood: I’ve heard Jimmie Driftwood songs since I can remember ever hearing music, but I never heard his name until this week. Driftwood recorded and performed for over sixty years. He was a folk singer and composer who wrote over 2,000 songs, including hundreds that have been recorded by other artists. In his later life he became an environmental advocate and was the Director of the Arkansas Parks and Tourism Commission. His extensive folk music background led him to be appointed as a musicologist for the National Geographic Society. He never stopped performing free folk music concerts for school students. He died in 1998 at the age of 91.

One of the first songs I can remember hearing was one of my father’s favorites called “The Battle of New Orleans” by Johnny Horton. This version of the song was a #1 hit in 1959, but was actually written by Jimmie Driftwood in 1939 when he was a school principal trying to get his students interested in the historic event described in the song. After decades of local success as a folk singer in Arkansas, Driftwood was signed by RCA Records in 1958 and recorded an album of 12 songs, including this one. It was immediately picked up by many other artists, including Johnny Horton.

Unbelievably, “The Battle of New Orleans” isn’t Driftwood’s most recorded song. Written in 1959, “Tennessee Stud” is a folk/country music classic that has been recorded by dozens of artists. Folk legend Doc Watson claims that he has performed the song over 5,000 times. That is the definition of a classic.

John Taylor is a founding member and bassist for Duran Duran. He was also a member of the new wave super group Power Station. Duran Duran is on Ms. Faux’s short list of greatest bands, and she has loved them since their start. John Taylor may not be her favorite member, but she still has a crush on him along with the rest of the band. If anyone out there knows John Taylor, please tell him Happy Birthday for her.

I will save a serious discussion of Duran Duran for another Faux Show, so for now I will just say that they are one of three bands who leave me dumbfounded as to why they are not in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Luckily for their fans, that hasn’t stopped them from continuing to put out new music. They are the first band to use MTV as a format for stardom, so it seems appropriate to sit back and watch some videos.

Guatemala

Gaby Moreno “Quizas, Quizas, Quizas”: Gaby Moreno has released several albums over the last ten years showcasing her mastery of singing in different languages and styles. This song is from her 2012 album Postales.

France

Barbara Pravi “Voila”: This song came in second place in the 2021 Eurovision contest.

India

Eashwar Subramanian “Paradise in Blue”: Eashwar Subramanian is a producer of ambient music. This is his new single.

Singapore

Electrico “Fire in the Sky”: Electrico are an indie rock band from Singapore who have been around for 25 years. This is from their 2021 album Left of the Century.

Belgium

Wannes Van de Velde “Mijnen Auto Is Mijn Vrijheid”: Van de Velde was a Belgian folk singer who found his greatest success in the ’60s and ’70s. He sang in his local Flemish dialect.

Pailhead “Man Should Surrender”: After Minor Threat broke up and before he formed Fugazi, Ian MacKaye worked on several projects. The only one worth listening to is Pailhead, his collaboration with Ministry’s Al Jourgensen in ’87/88. They released a handful of songs and this is the best.

Skinny Puppy “Tin Omen”: Skinny Puppy are a first generation industrial band. They never had massive success, but their influence on industrial music after the ’80s is immeasurable. This song is from their 1989 album Rabies which was produced by Al Jourgensen and received a fair amount of college airplay when it was released.

Marilyn Manson “The Beautiful People”: Along with Nine Inch Nails, Marilyn Manson took the foundation of ’80s industrial music laid by Al Jourgensen, Skinny Puppy, Ministry, and other similar acts and exploded it into mainstream success. This song was written by Manson and Twiggy Ramirez and is the song that brought the band international fame.