Genre: Jazz
Decades Active: 50s, 60s, 70s, 80s, 90s
Acker Bilk -- or Mr. Acker Bilk, as he was billed -- has won immortality on rock oldies radio for his surprise 1962 hit "Stranger on the Shore," an evocative ballad featuring his heavily quavering low-register clarinet over a bank of strings. To the jazz world, though, he has a longer-running track record as one of the biggest stars of Britain's... [+] Read More
James Galway
Genre: Celtic
Decades Active: 70s, 80s, 90s, 00s
James Galway gained fame as one of Ireland's most popular flautists in the late '70s. Over the next two decades, Galway's smooth, lightly Celtic instrumental stylings were internationally popular, selling numerous records and earning him several awards.
Galway began playing music with penny whistles and mouth-organs as a child, soon...
[+] Read More
Genre: Easy Listening
Decades Active: 50s, 60s, 70s, 80s
It may or may not be true that Lawrence Welk is the most popular easy listening artist of all time, but it's difficult to think of anyone who is more prominently associated with the genre. Welk's long-running TV variety show was a huge success in its time, and remains an enduring favorite in reruns. And while Welk recorded prolifically, his true... [+] Read More
