Melvin Bliss: Difference between revisions

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Browse history interactively
← Previous edit
Content deleted Content added
VisualWikitext
whoops!
Citation bot (talk | contribs)
Bots
4,910,264 edits
Add: date. | Use this bot. Report bugs. | Suggested by Abductive | Category:Musicians from Chicago | #UCB_Category 130/499
 
(38 intermediate revisions by 27 users not shown)
Line 1: Line 1:
{{Infobox musical artist <!-- See Wikipedia:WikiProject_Musicians -->
{{Infobox musical artist
| name = Melvin Bliss
| name = Melvin Bliss
| background = solo_singer
| birth_name = Melvin McClelland
| birth_name = Melvin McClelland
| birth_date = June 1, 1935<ref name="b&s"/>
| alias =
| birth_date = {{birth date|1945|06|01}}
| origin = [[Chicago]]<ref name="hiphopdx">{{cite web|url=http://www.hiphopdx.com/index/news/id.11795/title.synthetic-substitution-singer--sample-icon-melvin-bliss-dies|title="Synthetic Substitution" Singer / Sample Icon Melvin Bliss Dies|publisher=Hiphopdx.com|accessdate=Monday, 13th May 2013}}</ref>
| origin = [[Chicago]], [[Illinois]]<ref name="hiphopdx">{{cite web|url=http://www.hiphopdx.com/index/news/id.11795/title.synthetic-substitution-singer--sample-icon-melvin-bliss-dies|title="Synthetic Substitution" Singer / Sample Icon Melvin Bliss Dies|publisher=Hiphopdx.com|accessdate=13 May 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131016061801/http://www.hiphopdx.com/index/news/id.11795/title.synthetic-substitution-singer--sample-icon-melvin-bliss-dies|archive-date=16 October 2013|url-status=dead}}</ref>
⚫
| genre = [[Soul]]<ref name="b&s"/>
| death_date = {{death date and age|2010|07|07|1945|06|01}}
⚫
| years_active = {{Start date|1973}}<ref name="b&s"/>–{{end date|2010}}<ref name="themusicsover"/>
| label = [[Sunburst Records]]<ref name="b&s"/>
| genre = [[Soul music|Soul]]<ref name="b&s"/>
⚫
| years_active = {{Start date|1973}}<ref name="b&s"/>–{{end date|2010}}<ref name="theatlantic"/>
| alias =
⚫
| label = Sunburst Records<ref name="b&s"/>
| associated_acts = [[Herb Rooney]], [[Bernard Purdie]]
| associated_acts = [[Herb Rooney]], [[Bernard Purdie]]
}}
}}
'''Melvin McClelland<ref name="theguardian">{{cite web|url=http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2011/jun/23/samples-copyright-interview|title=Recycled riffs:samples of music biz justice|publisher=[[The Guardian]]|accessdate=Sunday, 12th May 2013}}</ref>''' (June 1, 1935<ref name="b&s">{{cite magazine|url=http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_EuTVo7fWMyY/TE8x_1EmucI/AAAAAAAACWk/DjsVF1xg5Xk/s1600/Melvin+Bliss+article.jpg|title=Introducing Melvin Bliss|publisher=[[Blues & Soul]]|accessdate=Saturday, 8th June 2013}}</ref>-July 26, 2010<ref name="themusicsover">{{cite web|url=http://themusicsover.com/2010/07/26/melvin-bliss/|title=Died On This Date (July 26, 2010) Melvin Bliss / Heavily Sampled '70s Soul Singer|publisher=The Music's Over|accessdate=Sunday, 12th May 2013}}</ref>) was a [[rhythm and blues]] singer known for his [[1973 in music|1973]] song "[[Reward/Synthetic Substitution]]",<ref name="wp">{{cite web|url=http://www.waxpoetics.com/features/in-memoriam/melvin-bliss|title=Melvin Bliss|publisher=[[Wax Poetics]]|accessdate=Sunday, 12 May 2013}}</ref> the [[B-Side]] of which was heavily sampled<ref name="theatlantic">[http://www.theatlantic.com/culture/archive/2010/07/melvin-bliss-rip/60457/ Melvin Bliss, R.I.P.] Hua Hsu. The Atlantic. Jul 27 2010</ref> in at least 370 [[hip hop music|hip hop]] songs such as "Real Niggaz Don't Die" and [[Alwayz into Somethin']] by [[N.W.A.]], [[O.G. Original Gangster (song)|O.G. Original Gangster]] by [[Ice-T]], [[O.P.P. (song)|O.P.P.]] by [[Naughty by Nature]] and more recently "[[My Life (50 Cent song)|My Life]]" by [[50 Cent]], [[Eminem]] and [[Adam Levine]].<ref name="whosampled">{{cite web|url=http://www.whosampled.com/sampled/Melvin%20Bliss/|title=Melvin Bliss Music Sampled by Others|publisher=Whosampled.com|accessdate=Sunday, 12th May 2013}}</ref>
'''Melvin McClelland<ref name="theguardian">{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2011/jun/23/samples-copyright-interview|title=Recycled riffs:samples of music biz justice|newspaper=[[The Guardian]]|accessdate=12 May 2013|location=London|first=Angus|last=Batey|date=23 June 2011}}</ref>''' (June 1, 1945<ref name="b&s">{{cite magazine|url=http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_EuTVo7fWMyY/TE8x_1EmucI/AAAAAAAACWk/DjsVF1xg5Xk/s1600/Melvin+Bliss+article.jpg|title=Introducing Melvin Bliss|magazine=[[Blues & Soul]]|accessdate=8 June 2013}}</ref>-July 26, 2010<ref name="theatlantic"/>) was a [[rhythm and blues]] singer known for his [[1973 in music|1973]] song "[[Reward/Synthetic Substitution]]",<ref name="wp">{{cite magazine|url=http://www.waxpoetics.com/features/in-memoriam/melvin-bliss|title=Melvin Bliss|magazine=[[Wax Poetics]]|accessdate=12 May 2013}}</ref> the [[B-side]] of which was heavily sampled<ref name="theatlantic">[https://www.theatlantic.com/culture/archive/2010/07/melvin-bliss-rip/60457/ Melvin Bliss, R.I.P.] Hua Hsu. The Atlantic. Jul 27 2010</ref> in at least 94 [[hip hop music|hip hop]] songs such as "Real Niggaz Don't Die" and "[[Alwayz into Somethin']]" by [[N.W.A]], "[[O.G. Original Gangster (song)|O.G. Original Gangster]]" by [[Ice-T]], "[[O.P.P. (song)|O.P.P.]]" by [[Naughty by Nature]] and more recently "[[My Life (50 Cent song)|My Life]]" by [[50 Cent]], [[Eminem]] and [[Adam Levine]].<ref name="paste">{{cite web|url=http://www.pastemagazine.com/articles/2010/07/rip-melvin-bliss.html|title=RIP Melvin Bliss|publisher=Pastemagazine.com|accessdate=7 July 2013}}</ref>


Born in 1935<ref name="b&s"/> in [[Chicago]]<ref name="hiphopdx"/> as Melvin McClelland,<ref name="theguardian"/> his career didn't begin with music; rather, in the [[Armed Forces]].<ref name="geniusrap">{{cite web|url=http://geniusrap.com/hip-hop-samples/melvin-bliss-synthetic-substitution.html|title="Synthetic Substitution" ~ Melvin Bliss|publisher=GeniusRap.com|accessdate=Tuesday, 14th May 2013}}</ref> After spending a few years singing in Naval bands, he departed the Army in the mid-1950s. From there, he went from stage to stage until the early 1970s, when in an attempt to boost his career prospects he visited a [[Queensbridge]] concert hall intending to use it for self-promotion.<ref name="geniusrap"/> Whilst awaiting a meeting with the hall's owner, he encountered the mother of [[Herb Rooney]] and it emerged that he wanted a singer to record one of his compositions.<Ref name="geniusrap"/> After an informal discussion with Rooney himself, Bliss hit the studio to record it;<Ref name="geniusrap"/> the result was [[Reward (Melvin Bliss song)|Reward]]. That song's [[B-Side]], [[Synthetic Substitution]], became one of the most sampled songs of all time.<ref name="fleamarketfunk">{{Cite web|url=http://fleamarketfunk.com/2010/07/26/r-i-p-melvin-bliss/|title=R.I.P Melvin Bliss|publisher=Flea Market Funk|accessdate=Tuesday, 14th May 2013}}</ref> Unfortunately, Bliss' label, [[Sunburst Records]], was a sister company of [[Opal Productions]], and in 1974 it went bankrupt, taking Sunburst Records with it;<ref name="geniusrap"/> in doing so rendering Bliss a [[one-hit wonder]].
Born in 1945<ref name="b&s"/> in [[Chicago]]<ref name="hiphopdx"/> as Melvin McClelland,<ref name="theguardian"/> his career didn't begin with music; rather, in the [[Armed Forces]].<ref name="geniusrap">{{cite AV media | people=Holder, Earl | year=2011 | title=Synthetic Substitution: The Life Story of Melvin Bliss | medium=Motion picture | publisher=Peripheral Enterprises}}</ref> After spending a few years singing in Naval bands, he departed the Navy in the mid-1950s. From there, he went from stage to stage until the early 1970s, when in an attempt to boost his career prospects he visited a [[Queensbridge Houses|Queensbridge]] concert hall intending to use it for self-promotion.<ref name="geniusrap"/> Whilst awaiting a meeting with the hall's owner, he encountered the mother of [[Herb Rooney]] and it emerged that he wanted a singer to record one of his compositions.<ref name="geniusrap"/> After an informal discussion with Rooney himself, Bliss hit the studio to record it;<ref name="geniusrap"/> the result was [[Reward (Melvin Bliss song)|Reward]]. That song's [[B-side]], "[[Synthetic Substitution]]", became one of the most sampled songs of all time.<ref name="cratekings">{{Cite web|url=http://www.cratekings.com/melvin-bliss-synthetic-substitution-documentary/|title=Melvin Bliss - Synthetic Substitution (Documentary)|date=10 May 2010 |publisher=Cratekings.com|accessdate=7 July 2013}}</ref> Bliss' label, Sunburst Records, was a sister company of [[Opal Productions]], and in 1974 it went bankrupt, taking Sunburst Records with it;<ref name="geniusrap"/> in doing so rendering Bliss a [[one-hit wonder]].


In 2011, a documentary about him, [[Synthetic Substitution: The Life Story of Melvin Bliss]], was released by [[Peripheral Enterprises]]. It was produced by [[Earl Holder]].<ref name="imdb">{{imdb title|tt2220000}}</ref>
In 2011, a documentary about him, [[Synthetic Substitution: The Life Story of Melvin Bliss]], was released by [[Peripheral Enterprises]]. It was produced by [[Earl Holder]].<ref name="hiphopdx"/>


==Death==
==Death==
On July 17, 2010, it was announced by Melvin Bliss, Jr. that Bliss had suffered a heart attack and had been rushed to [[NewYork–Presbyterian Hospital]].<ref name="twitter">{{cite web|url=https://twitter.com/LAMBSTAR|title=MELLE MEL (LAMBSTAR)|publisher=[[Twitter]]|accessdate=Tuesday, 14th May 2013}}</ref> Just over a week later, on July 26, 2010, it was announced that Bliss had died.<ref name="themusicsover"/>
On July 17, 2010, it was announced by Melvin Bliss, Jr. that Bliss had suffered a heart attack and had been rushed to [[NewYork–Presbyterian Hospital]].<ref name="twitter">{{cite web|url=https://twitter.com/LAMBSTAR|title=MELLE MEL (LAMBSTAR)|publisher=[[Twitter]]|accessdate=14 May 2013}}</ref> Just over a week later, on July 26, 2010, it was announced that Bliss had died.<ref name="theatlantic"/>


==References==
==References==
{{reflist}}
{{reflist}}


{{Authority control}}
{{Persondata <!-- Metadata: see [[Wikipedia:Persondata]]. -->
| NAME =Bliss, Melvin
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES =
| SHORT DESCRIPTION =
| DATE OF BIRTH =
| PLACE OF BIRTH =
| DATE OF DEATH =
| PLACE OF DEATH =
| date of death= 2010
}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bliss, Melvin}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bliss, Melvin}}
[[Category:1945 births]]
[[Category:2010 deaths]]
[[Category:2010 deaths]]
[[Category:Rhythm and blues singers]]
[[Category:American rhythm and blues singers]]
[[Category:1935 births]]
[[Category:Musicians from Chicago]]

Latest revision as of 12:51, 6 December 2023

Melvin Bliss
Birth nameMelvin McClelland
Born(1945-06-01)June 1, 1945
OriginChicago, Illinois[1]
DiedJuly 7, 2010(2010-07-07) (aged 65)
GenresSoul[2]
Years active1973 (1973)[2]–2010 (2010)[3]
LabelsSunburst Records[2]

Melvin McClelland[4] (June 1, 1945[2]-July 26, 2010[3]) was a rhythm and blues singer known for his 1973 song "Reward/Synthetic Substitution",[5] the B-side of which was heavily sampled[3] in at least 94 hip hop songs such as "Real Niggaz Don't Die" and "Alwayz into Somethin'" by N.W.A, "O.G. Original Gangster" by Ice-T, "O.P.P." by Naughty by Nature and more recently "My Life" by 50 Cent, Eminem and Adam Levine.[6]

Born in 1945[2] in Chicago[1] as Melvin McClelland,[4] his career didn't begin with music; rather, in the Armed Forces.[7] After spending a few years singing in Naval bands, he departed the Navy in the mid-1950s. From there, he went from stage to stage until the early 1970s, when in an attempt to boost his career prospects he visited a Queensbridge concert hall intending to use it for self-promotion.[7] Whilst awaiting a meeting with the hall's owner, he encountered the mother of Herb Rooney and it emerged that he wanted a singer to record one of his compositions.[7] After an informal discussion with Rooney himself, Bliss hit the studio to record it;[7] the result was Reward. That song's B-side, "Synthetic Substitution", became one of the most sampled songs of all time.[8] Bliss' label, Sunburst Records, was a sister company of Opal Productions, and in 1974 it went bankrupt, taking Sunburst Records with it;[7] in doing so rendering Bliss a one-hit wonder.

In 2011, a documentary about him, Synthetic Substitution: The Life Story of Melvin Bliss, was released by Peripheral Enterprises. It was produced by Earl Holder.[1]

Death[edit]

On July 17, 2010, it was announced by Melvin Bliss, Jr. that Bliss had suffered a heart attack and had been rushed to NewYork–Presbyterian Hospital.[9] Just over a week later, on July 26, 2010, it was announced that Bliss had died.[3]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c ""Synthetic Substitution" Singer / Sample Icon Melvin Bliss Dies". Hiphopdx.com. Archived from the original on 16 October 2013. Retrieved 13 May 2013.
  2. ^ a b c d e "Introducing Melvin Bliss". Blues & Soul. Retrieved 8 June 2013.
  3. ^ a b c d Melvin Bliss, R.I.P. Hua Hsu. The Atlantic. Jul 27 2010
  4. ^ a b Batey, Angus (23 June 2011). "Recycled riffs:samples of music biz justice". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 12 May 2013.
  5. ^ "Melvin Bliss". Wax Poetics. Retrieved 12 May 2013.
  6. ^ "RIP Melvin Bliss". Pastemagazine.com. Retrieved 7 July 2013.
  7. ^ a b c d e Holder, Earl (2011). Synthetic Substitution: The Life Story of Melvin Bliss (Motion picture). Peripheral Enterprises.
  8. ^ "Melvin Bliss - Synthetic Substitution (Documentary)". Cratekings.com. 10 May 2010. Retrieved 7 July 2013.
  9. ^ "MELLE MEL (LAMBSTAR)". Twitter. Retrieved 14 May 2013.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Melvin_Bliss&oldid=1188598519"