Some people know Carnie Wilson as a pop singer, a progeny of one of the most famous artists of all time (Beach Boys co-founder and mastermind Brian Wilson) with her own hit-laden and Grammy Award-nominated track record with the group Wilson Phillips. Others know her as a TV personality with a resume that includes co-hosting "The View," hosting her own talk show, "Carnie!," as well as "Bottom Line's Secret F ...

Carlene Carter has always straddled the line between country and rock. Beginning her career as a rock singer in the mid-'70s, she became immersed in the new wave in the late '70s, before emerging as a new country singer in the late '80s, Throughout it all, her music has always infused roots music -- whether country or rock & roll -- with a nervy, edgy energy. Carlene is the daughter of June Carter and C ...

Along with Kathy Valentine (a future member of the Go-Go's), Carla Olson formed the Textones in the early '80s for a few singles on IRS. (Most of these tracks appear on Through the Canyon [Rhino] and Back in Time [Demon U.K.].) The band's major-label debut, Midnight Mission (A&M), included help from Don Henley, Ry Cooder, Barry Goldberg, and Gene Clark. Cedar Creek, the band's second album, appeared in ...

Born March 13, 1940, in Hanceville, AL, Candi Stanton sang with the Jewell Gospel Trio as a teenager. They toured the traditional gospel circuit in the 1950s with the Soul Stirrers, C.L. Franklin, and Mahalia Jackson. They recorded several sides for Nashboro, Apollo, and Savoy Records between 1953 and 1963. In 1968 Staton launched solo career as a Southern soul stylist, garnering 16 R&B hits for Rick Ha ...

A fixture on the female Americana landscape, Kathleen Edwards was born in Ottawa, Canada, the daughter of foreign service parents who played piano and guitar in their spare time. At five, Edwards began to study classical violin, which continued through her early teens. At that point, the Edwards family moved overseas. Removed from the influence of mainstream North American pop music, Edwards delved into her ...

Breathy R&B vocalist Bria Valente, a Minneapolis, MN native born Brenda Fuentes, had been a background dancer for Usher and Prince prior to contributing vocals to the latter's 2007 album, Planet Earth. In 2009, Prince and Valente recorded Elixer, a set of relaxed but mostly steamy R&B spurred in part by the absence of new material from Sade. Unsurprisingly, Prince's fingerprints were all over the al ...

One of the sexiest singers on the Motown label, Brenda Holloway was also one of its grittiest, with a strong gospel influence more typical of Southern soul than the company's usual polish. Best known for her ballad hit "Every Little Bit Hurts," Holloway also recorded (and co-wrote) the original version of "You've Made Me So Very Happy," which soon became a hit for jazz-rockers Blood Sweat & Tears. Hollo ...

Long a critic's darling, singer/guitarist Bonnie Raitt did not begin to win the comparable commercial success due her until the release of the aptly titled 1989 blockbuster Nick of Time; her tenth album, it rocketed her into the mainstream consciousness nearly two decades after she first committed her unique blend of blues, rock, and R&B to vinyl. Born in Burbank, CA, on November 8, 1949, she was the da ...

Texas-born actress Betty Buckley decided upon a theatrical career when, at a very early age, she was taken by her mother to a Fort Worth production of The Pajama Game. A trained singer and dancer, Ms. Buckley made her professional bow on the musical stage, reaching Broadway at age 22 as Mrs. Thomas Jefferson in the original production of 1776. Additional Broadway credits include two seasons' worth of Pippin ...

A talented artist in her own right, scoring a number of adult contemporary radio hits, Beth Nielsen Chapman rose to prominence as a successful songwriter, penning a string of songs that would earn their performers hits on both pop and country radio. Born in Harlington, TX, Chapman spent her youth moving frequently due to her father's Air Force career. Teaching herself to play guitar on an instrument that wa ...