Public Art - Table of
Contents
Buffalo Renaissance mural
Jefferson at Woodlawn Avenues, Buffalo, NY
August 2020 Photos
Aretha
Franklin, by Ari
Moore ... Grover Washington,
by
James Cooper III ... Rick
James,
by John Baker ... Dyke and the
Blazers,
by Kobie Baber
Aretha
Franklin Aretha Franklin "Franklin was born in Memphis, Tennessee, in
1942. In 1944, she moved with her family to Western New
York. According to the Buffalo Music Hall of Fame, her father,
was pastor of Friendship Baptist Church, The Franklin family
moved to Detroit in 1948, but she and her mother soon moved back to
Buffalo after her parents split up. The Buffalo Music Hall of
Fame says Aretha was a, "regular visitor back to Buffalo, spending
summers, until her mother, who worked at Buffalo General
Hospital, died
of a heart attack." Aretha's mother is buried in Forest Lawn
Cemetery. In 1967, Franklin signed to Atlantic Records and
launched many number one songs, including a cover of Otis Redding's
'Respect,' which became her signature song." - "Aretha Franklin:
Singer's ties to WNY run deep," WKBW,
Aug 13, 2018 (online August
2020) ... Three details
below:
 Aretha Franklin - detail  Aretha Franklin - detail  Aretha
Franklin - detail ... Artist's
signature: ARI: Ari Moore
|
Grover Washington   Source: Western New York Entertainment Hall of Fame, located in Shea's Buffalo Center for the Performing Arts "Born in Buffalo, Washington was
introduced to music by his saxophone-playing father. He joined his
first band--The Four Clefs--as a teenager in 1959.
"Grover Washington Jr., the jazz saxophonist who was among the first young musicians to burst onto the jazz-funk scene. His career highlights included playing at President Clinton's 50th birthday celebration at Radio City Music Hall in 1996. After signing with Elektra, Washington put out his most successful piece. "Winelight" made it to No. 5 on U.S. record charts. The album, which featured vocals by Bill Withers on the song "Just the Two of Us," reached the No. 2 position on the nation's charts in 1981. "[died tonight] He was 56. Washington collapsed after taping a performance for CBS's "The Saturday Early Show." He played four songs that were to run on the morning program. He was pronounced dead at St. Luke's-Roosevelt Hospital, hospital officials said." - Washington Post, Dec. 18, 1999  Grover Washington - detail  Grover Washington - detail  Grover Washington - detail  Grover Washington - detail ... Artist's signature: James Cooper III |
Rick James By John Baker  "Musician and singer James
Ambrose Johnson, Jr., better known as Rick James, was born on February
1, 1948, in Buffalo, New York. The third of eight children, Rick James
was raised in a strict Catholic household by his single mother. With
music in his blood (his uncle was Melvin Franklin, bass vocalist of The
Temptations), James pursued a music career from an early age, fleeing
the U.S. Naval Reserve to Toronto, Ontario, in 1964. His biggest
hit, the Grammy-nominated "Super Freak." By the early 1990s, James'
cocaine use was spinning out of control. After being convicted of
assaulting two women, he spent two years in prison and paid $2 million
in a civil suit. After his release in 1995, he attempted a comeback but
suffered a mild stroke in 1997 that ended his career. Rick James died
after suffering pulmonary and cardiac failure at his home in Burbank,
California, on August 6, 2004." - Biography
... Three details below:
 Rick James - detail  Rick James - detail  Rick James - detail ... By John Baker See another Rick James mural |
Dyke and the Blazers  "Dyke and the Blazers was an
American funk band led by Arlester Christian (June 13, 1943 – March 13,
1971). 9). Arlester Christian, nicknamed "Dyke", was born
(according to most sources) in Buffalo, New York. He attended Burgard
High School.
"The band was formed in 1965, and recorded up until Christian's death. Among their most successful records were the original version of "Funky Broadway" (1966) and "Let a Woman Be a Woman" (1969) - Wikipedia  Dyke and the Blazers - detail ... "Dyke" Christian  Dyke and the Blazers - detail  Dyke and the Blazers - detail ... Artist's siganture: Kobie Baber |
