Starting your week off with this classic from America. Released in October 1972 it made its way to #8 on The Billboard Charts. The far-reaching influence of this song is undeniable: it has been said that the lyric “purple rain” was inspirational for some artist out of Minneapolis who later went to write a song and movie.
In recent memory, The song’s opening guitar riff and musical hook were sampled used throughout Janet Jackson’s 2001 song “Someone to Call My Lover” by the multi-Grammy Award winning production team of Jimmy “Jam” Harris and Terry Lewis (Flyte Tyme) who were influenced by America and “Ventura Highway” listening to KDWB 63 AM (Top 40) growing up in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Bunnell said the use of the sample from Ventura Highway and the production by Jimmy Jam, Terry Lewis and Janet Jackson boosted sales for America.[7]
Ivan Orr is a multi-instrumentalist, composer, performer, and writer. A native of Charlottesville, Virginia Ivan was involved with the forming and nascent days of The Music Resource Center as its first Program Director. A graduate of Virginia Commonwealth University’s Department of Music, Ivan currently resides in Richmond, VA where he maintains an active performance and production schedule while serving as the Music Editor for Grown Folks Music, a position he has held since 2010.