Who is the Artist? Trivia Quiz

Answer: The Four Seasons

Born Francesco Stephen Castelluccio in Newark NJ in 1934, Frankie Valli released his first single in 1953. The Four Seasons, fronted by Valli, were formed in 1960. In later years they performed under numerous names including Johnny Halo featuring The Four Seasons, The Valli Boys and Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons.

Answer: Peter, Paul and Mary

Comprising Peter Yarrow, (Noel) Paul Stookey and Mary Travers, folk group Peter, Paul & Mary formed in 1961 and recorded numerous albums and singles throughout the 1960s. After a hiatus between 1970 and 1978, the group reformed and continued to perform together until the death of Mary Travers in 2009. Yarrow and Stookey continue to tour as a duo.

The group reached number two in the US singles chart in 1963 with both "Puff (The Magic Dragon)" and "Blowin' in the Wind". They finally topped that chart in 1969 with their last chart single, "Leaving on a Jet Plane" written by John Denver.

Answer: Manfred Mann

An English beat, rhythm and blues and pop band, Manfred Mann was named after their keyboard player (born Manfred Sepse Lubowitz in Johannesburg, South Africa in 1940). Later incarnations of the group would be named Manfred Mann Chapter Three and Manfred Mann's Earth Band.

As well as the singles mentioned in the question, the group had two major hits in the 1960s. Written by Jeff Barry and Ellie Greenwich, and originally released by The Exciters in 1963, "Do Wah Diddy-Diddy" was a number one single on both sides of the Atlantic for Manfred Mann in 1964. In 1968, the group returned to the top of both charts with their cover or a Bob Dylan song, "Mighty Quinn" (originally called "Quinn the Eskimo").

Answer: The Yardbirds

Founded in London in 1963, The Yardbirds are perhaps most famous for launching the musical careers for such legendary guitarists as Jeff Beck, Eric Clapton and Jimmy Page. The three were never members simultaneously: Beck replaced Clapton in March 1965, and Page joined in June 1966, just a few months before Beck left.

Answer: Alice Cooper

Known for elaborate, theatrical, shock rock stage shows, Alice Cooper took the stage name of their lead singer who was born Vincent Damon Furnier in Detroit MI in 1948. The group's first hit single was "I'm Eighteen", although they are probably best remembered for the 1972 UK number one single "School's Out". This was soon followed by their trans-Atlantic chart-topping album "Billion Dollar Babies".

The original five-man line-up of Alice Cooper was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2011.

Answer: Grateful Dead

Founded in Palo Alto CA in 1965 and originally called The Warlocks, the Grateful Dead are best known for their devoted fan base, known as "Deadheads", and their long, live, instrumental jams.

Although the group never topped a single album or single chart in their long career, Grateful Dead was ranked number 57 in the 'Rolling Stone' magazine poll of 'The Greatest Artists of all Time'. They were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994.

Answer: Steve Miller Band

Founded in the San Francisco region in 1966, the Steve Miller Band is named after its vocalist and guitarist, born name Steven Haworth Miller in 1943 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. It was announced in 2015 that Miller had been nominated for 2016 induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a solo artist.

Both "Rock'n Me" (in 1976) and "Abracadabra" (in 1982) topped the US singles chart (reaching number eleven and two respectively in the UK chart). The group are probably best-known for the hit single "The Joker", which reached number one in the US chart in early 1974 and then topped the UK singles chart 16 years later after being used in a Levi's commercial.

Answer: R.E.O. Speedwagon

Founded in Champaign, Illinois, in 1967, R.E.O. Speedwagon took a while to get going but were a serious international success through the 1980s. They continue to tour regularly today, playing their classic hits.

The group did not release their first studio album until 1971 and it was the best part of another decade until they produced a serious hit. They sure got one with their ninth studio album, though, with "Hi Infidelity" not only topping the US and Canadian album charts (number six in the UK), but also producing four hit singles including the band's first US billboard 100 number one, "Keep on Loving You". With sales of more than ten million worldwide, this became the best-selling rock album of 1981.

Answer: Bread

Bread were formed around singer, songwriter, keyboard, bass and guitar-player David Gates (born in Tulsa, Oklahoma, in 1940). Formed in 1968, the group played as a five-piece before losing one member in 1971. Disbanded in 1973, the four remaining original members re-united from 1976-78 and then again 1996-97. By the end of 2009, though, Gates was the only surviving member of the foursome.

Bread's most successful chart album in the US was "Baby I'm-a Want You", which reached number three in 1972. They did manage to top the UK album chart, with a compilation album, "The Sound of Bread", in 1977. "Make it with You" was the band's best-performing single, topping the US chart and reaching number five in the UK in 1970.

Answer: Badfinger

The Iveys were formed in Swansea, south Wales in 1961 and signed for Apple records in 1968. Augmented by a pair of Liverpudlians, the band changed their name to Badfinger in 1969 and immediately produced two albums that climbed into the Top 50 in the US Billboard 200 chart. Paul McCartney filled the producer's role on their first album, and George Harrison later did the same job on both later albums and their hit singles.

Badfinger's second album, "No Dice" included a track written by two members of the group, Pete Ham and Tom Evans, for which they won the British Academy's Ivor Novello Award for 'Best Song Musically and Lyrically'. When he first heard the Badfinger version of the song, Harry Nilsson thought it was a Beatles work. He duly recorded his cover version of "Without You" and topped the singles chart on both sides of the Atlantic with it. Sadly, though, both Ham and Evans subsequently committed suicide over issues involving the songwriting royalties from the song.