Showing 1 - 25 of 29
Artist: Lewd
Artist: Lewd Buddha
Artist: George Michael
Georgios Kyriacos Panayiotou (George Michael) achieved fame in the duo Wham! in his native U.K. in 1982. Through 1986, he and his partner, Andrew Ridgeley, scored hit after hit in a variety of styles from rap to up-tempo pop to slow ballads. As songwriter and lead singer, Michael gradually overshadowed the group, and by the time they split, he... [+] Read More
Artist: Jim Hancock
Looks being "f*cking important" on the rap scene, graphic designer and photographer Jim Hancock should get a "sh*tload of credit" for polishing the visual look of productions such as Sammy Sam's perpetually lurching Still Intoxicated. Despite the lewd appeal of these so-called Dirty South sides, Hancock's talents remain within expected... [+] Read More
Artist: The Reatards
Memphis punks the Reatards began in 1997 as the solo project of teen malcontent Jay Reatard; after debuting with the EP Get Real Stupid, he recruited bassist Steve Albundy Reatard and drummer Elvis Wong Reatard to record the full-length follow-up, 1998's aptly-titled Teenage Hate. The single "Your So Lewd" followed a year later, as did the LP... [+] Read More
Artist: Peaches
Peaches (Merrill Nisker) burst into transcontinental favor with her very particular brand of cock-sure rapping and spurting groovebox beats. Indeed, this vulgar Canadian temptress may have come from an underground womb of acoustic folk (Mermaid Café), avant jazz (Fancypants Hoodlum), and deconstructed noise swarms (the Shit), but it wasn't... [+] Read More
Artist: Dwayne Cornelius
Since first becoming involved in the music industry at the age of 15, Dwayne Cornelius has played drums in Natalie Cole's touring band, worked with members of Earth, Wind & Fire, and became a part of the Parliament-Funkadelic universe. Professionally known as DCat, Cornelius lives and works in Los Angeles, CA, but spent five years in Denmark and... [+] Read More
Artist: Felicia Michaels
Over the course of the '90s, comedian Felicia Michaels shifted her standup persona from a dumb-blonde stereotype to a foul-mouthed but soft-spoken provocateur with an unrepentantly blue sense of humor. Michaels moved to Hollywood from Colorado Springs in 1983 at age 19 and began honing her craft. During the early '90s, Michaels appeared on a... [+] Read More
Artist: The Insaints
Punk band the Insaints were perhaps more notorious for their controversial live shows -- which brought them to the attention of both the mainstream San Francisco Bay Area press and legal authorities -- than for their music. The controversy was largely the work of lead singer Marian Anderson, who performed and oversaw sexual acts on-stage. This... [+] Read More
Artist: Charles Bukowski
As a poet, writer, screenwriter, and spoken-word performer, Charles Bukowski plumbed such depraved aspects of human nature as wanton drunkenness, sexuality, and brawling. In the meantime, he cultivated a reputation for -- you guessed it -- such depraved behavior as wanton drunkenness, lewdness, and brawling. The result was international fame,... [+] Read More
Artist: The Vaselines
Conventional wisdom dictates that the Vaselines might have been relegated to footnote status were it not for Nirvana's Kurt Cobain, who regularly cited the little-known Scottish quartet's influence in interviews with the music press. Cobain's gospel-spreading no doubt accelerated their rise to cult sainthood, but truth be told, the Vaselines... [+] Read More
Artist: Buddy Hackett
One of the most beloved stand-up comics of his day, Buddy Hackett was also, ironically, one of the raunchiest; his popularity hinged on his rare ability to be simultaneously lovable and dirty, his duck-squawk delivery and baby-faced countenance making even the most off-color joke seem somehow palatable. Born Leonard Hacker on August 31, 1924 in... [+] Read More
Artist: Meech Wells
Being the son of Motown legend Mary Wells may have helped jumpstart Meech Wells' career, but the West Coast rap producer quickly proved his talent and eventually aligned himself with Snoop Dogg, another relationship that definitely didn't hurt his career. Before being Snoop's producer of choice during the late '90s and early 2000s, Wells began... [+] Read More
Artist: Paula Poundstone
Comedian Paula Poundstone was one of several talented female comics to rise to prominence in the late '80s (Roseanne Barr, Ellen DeGeneres, Judy Tenuta, Rita Rudner, etc.), and while her career continued to flourish with TV work throughout the '90s, a shocking allegation threatened to derail her career in 2001.
Born on December 29, 1959 in... [+] Read More
Artist: Windy Austin & The Hot House Tomato Boys
If you're looking for a rock & roll band with a good amount of humor thrown in, then Windy Austin & the Hot House Tomato Boys have what you want. They have been described as lewd, foulmouthed, and funny, and front man and vocalist Windy Austin has been described as a mix of Robin Williams, Cheech Marin, and Harpo Marx. Before Windy started the... [+] Read More
Artist: K-Ci & JoJo
Cedric and Joel Hailey comprise the romantic R&B duo K-Ci & JoJo, who were one of two pairs of brothers that made up the chart-topping '90s group Jodeci. The Haileys grew up singing in church choirs in Charlotte, NC, and toured the South with their father's gospel group. When they met the DeGrate brothers, Dalvin and "DeVante Swing," they... [+] Read More
Artist: Mac Curtis
Rockabilly legend Mac Curtis was born in Fort Worth, TX, on January 16, 1939. He grew up with his grandparents and started playing the guitar in 1951 at the age of 12. A neighboring farmer taught him how to use it, and soon he was entering local talent contests. After winning 15 dollars in a contest, he realized that he not only got the price of... [+] Read More
Artist: Eugene Kelly
With his cult-favorite bands the Vaselines and Eugenius, Eugene Kelly joined compatriots like the Pastels, Teenage Fanclub, and BMX Bandits at the forefront of Scotland's indie pop renaissance. Born in Glasgow in 1965, Kelly formed the Edinburgh-based Vaselines in 1987 with fellow singer/guitarist Frances McKee, later adding Kelly's brother... [+] Read More
Artist: The Tubes
The Tubes were arch satirists of popular culture whose outrageous performance-art concepts -- which swung wildly from soft-core pornography to suit-and-tie conservatism -- frequently eclipsed their elusive musical identity. The beginnings of the group originate in Phoenix, Arizona in the late '60s, where guitarist Bill Spooner, keyboardist Vince... [+] Read More
Artist: Clarence Carter
Singer Clarence Carter exemplified the gritty, earthy sound of Muscle Shoals R&B, fusing the devastating poignancy of the blues with a wicked, lascivious wit to create deeply soulful music rooted in the American South of the past and the present. Born January 14, 1936, in Montgomery, AL, Carter was blind from birth. He immediately gravitated to... [+] Read More
Artist: Yellowman
Jamaica's first dancehall superstar, Yellowman ushered in a new era in reggae music following Bob Marley's death. His early-'80s success brought the popularity of toasting -- the reggae equivalent of rapping -- to a whole new level, and helped establish dancehall as the wave of the future. For better or for worse, he also epitomized dancehall's... [+] Read More
Artist: Andrew Dice Clay
In the late 1980s, Andrew 'Dice' Clay was the most notorious and controversial comic in the business. Foul-mouthed and abrasive, he was one in a long line of comedic performers whose material stretched the boundaries of decency and good taste to their breaking point; unlike pioneers including Lenny Bruce or George Carlin, however, Clay's... [+] Read More
Artist: Jim Morrison
As the lead singer and lyricist for the Doors, Jim Morrison is one of the most legendary and influential figures in rock & roll history. The disturbing, image-rich poeticism of Morrison's lyrics, perfectly supported by the Doors' swirling, eclectic psychedelic rock, have assured him continuing icon status, while his fondness for theatrical shock... [+] Read More
