November Arraign Trivia Quiz

Answer: The Beach Boys

The Beach Boys were formed around the brothers Brian, Carl and Dennis Wilson. Both Heart and Wilson Phillips can boast a pair of Wilson sisters. Heart has Ann and Nancy, whilst Wilson Phillips has Carnie and Wendy. Wilson Pickett, as a solo artist, had only his solitary self.

"Darlin'" reached number 19 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number 11 in the UK.

Answer: Maroon 5

LA's Maroon 5 released their debut album "Songs About Jane" in 2002 and it produced the huge hits, "This Love" and "She Will Be Loved". They are hardly prolific at recording. Fans had to wait five years for "It Won't Be Soon Before Long" and another three years for the third album, "Hands All Over", released in September 2010.

"Nothing Lasts Forever" was also the title of a 2009 single release from the UK's N-Trance. The band had produced a succession of dance hits through the 1990s and early 2000s but, echoing Maroon 5, "Nothing Lasts Forever" was their first single release for five years. Very aptly, it was also their first song that failed to chart.

Answer: Norwegian

Sissel is a Norwegian soprano equally at home in the worlds of pop and classical music. She was Grammy-nominated in 2008 for "Spirit of the Season", an album of Christmas music in collaboration with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. In addition to singing the Olympic hymn at the opening and closing ceremonies of the Lillehammer games, she also recorded a "worded" version of the Games' instrumental theme with Placido Domingo.

To say that Sissel is a legend in her homeland might even be an understatement. As at 2010, her 1987 release, "Glade Jul", was Norway's all-time best selling album with total sales of over 1 million. Most of these were within Norway which is quite remarkable given that it has a population of less than five million (2010). The album it deposed from the top spot was Sissel's debut offering! In 2006 she also became the youngest ever recipient of the title, Knight First Class of the Order of St. Olav, although this feat was surpassed two years later by soccer player Ole Gunnar Solskjær.

Answer: Rick Springfield

Rick played the part of Dr. Noah Drake on "General Hospital" from 1981 to 1983 and again in the late 2000s. He has also appeared as musician Eli Love. His own musical career had two parts to it. He first enjoyed success in the glam rock years when "Speak to the Sky" reached number 14 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1972. Things then went into severe decline and it took another nine years before "Jessie's Girl" topped the US charts in 1981. "Hard to Hold" provided two US top 20 hits in "Love Somebody" and "Bop 'Til You Drop".

Answer: INXS

Like the Beach Boys, INXS were also formed around the nucleus of three brothers - Andrew, Tim and Jon Farriss. They started out as the Farriss Brothers, briefly performed as the Vegetables, but finally settled on their present name. Lead singer Michael Hutchence was found dead in a Sydney hotel room in 1997.

"Long, long time" seems a fair summary of the average wait period at a Guns N' Roses concert (as personally experienced by your quizwriter!). At a 2010 concert in Dublin, one fan was so outraged when the band appeared nearly an hour late that he threw a plastic cup onto the stage. Bad move! Axl Rose stormed off and the concert concluded after just 20 minutes.

Answer: Sean Kingston

"Beautiful Girls" was taken from Sean's eponymous debut album and, in 2007, topped the charts in many countries including the US Billboard Hot 100 and the UK. His second album, "Tomorrow", was released in 2009 and contained the hit "Fire Burning". "Letting Go (Dutty Love)" featured Nicki Minaj, for whom 2010 was a busy year as she also had Billboard top 40 hits in the company of Usher, Kanye West, Jay Sean, Ludacris and Trey Songz.

Answer: The Dixie Chicks

"Sometimes I wake up crying at night
And sometimes I scream out your name
What right does she have to take your heart away
When for so long, you were mine"

The song was inspired by the break-up of Martie Maguire and Emily Robison's own parents' marriage. It reached number 34 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number one on the Country Singles chart. "Wide Open Spaces" was the album that propelled the Dixie Chicks to stardom with "There's Your Trouble" and "Wide Open Spaces" also topping the country chart.

Answer: Les Miserables

"On My Own" is one of the standout songs from the musical which is set amidst the turbulent French politics of the early nineteenth century. The song is sung by the character Eponine, and her dying words seem eerily prophetic for Mr. Rose and his "November Rain":

"Rain will make the flowers grow".

Answer: The Pussycat Dolls

"Don't cha wish your girlfriend was hot like me?
Don't cha wish your girlfriend was a freak like me?"

"Don't Cha" was the Pussycat Dolls' first foray into the charts having previously been renowned as a burlesque troupe. The song had originally been a very minor hit for Tori Alamaze and was turned down by both the Sugababes and Paris Hilton. It topped the UK charts and reached number two on the Billboard Hot 100.

Answer: Stevie Wonder

"Everybody Needs Somebody" was co-written with Stevie Wonder's Tamla Motown mentor, Clarence Paul. Paul's other songwriting credits include "Until You Come Back To Me" (Aretha Franklin); "Hitch Hike" (Marvin Gaye); and "Fingertips" (Stevie Wonder).

Strange as it might seem, Meatloaf's first album, "Meatloaf and Stoney", really was released on the Motown subsidiary label, Rare Earth. This was in 1971, six years before "Bat Out of Hell" made him a household name.