Song and Singer Trivia Quiz

Answer: Spice Girls

The Spice Girls were a manufactured girl group, created by Bob and Chris Herbert, from Heart Management, in response to the popularity of boy bands at the time. Around 400 girls arrived at the initial audition, to be eventually curried to 12. Five of these girls were subsequently chosen to form a group named Touch, including Victoria Adams, Gerri Halliwell, Melanie Brown, Melanie Chisholm and Michelle Stephenson. Stephenson was replaced by Emma Bunton after a few months of practice and Halliwell came up with the name Spice based on a song they practiced with called "Sugar and Spice".
By the time their first single, "Wannabe", was released in 1996, they were known as the Spice Girls and had broken away from Heart Management. The song was an instant success and topped hit charts around the world.
They rode the crest of popularity for a while, but in 1998 Halliwell left the group and Brown and Adams both announced pregnancies. They have performed together since, in various configurations, including during the closing ceremonies of the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, England.
"Stop", from their second album "Ain't No Stoppin' Us Now", was released in March 1998 and peaked at Number 16 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Answer: Sam and Dave

Sam and Dave (Sam Moore and Dave Prater) performed together for 20 years, from 1961 to 1981. Their style was predominantly Soul, and Rhythm and Blues. They have a reputation of being one of the greatest acts of the 60s and are frequently cited as being an influence by performers such as Billy Joel, Bruce Springsteen, Phil Collins and Al Green, to name a few.
Their biggest hit and first gold record was "Soul Man" (1967) which reached Number Two on the pop charts, Number One on the Soul Charts and earned them a Grammy for Best Performance, Rhythm and Blues in 1967. It has been covered frequently, maybe most notably by Dan Aykroyd and John Belushi of "Saturday Night Live" fame.
Dave Prater died in a car accident in 1988, one month shy of his 51st birthday.

Answer: Suzy and the Red Stripes

Suzy and the Red Stripes was the name used by Linda McCartney and Wings to release her one song (written and sung by her), "Seaside Woman", in 1977 (a few years after it was written). No other song was attributed to the group. Linda explained the choice of the name as stemming from a trip to Jamaica where they drank Red Stripe Beer and she was called Suzi by Wing members.
The song was written in 1971 to settle a royalties lawsuit from Northern Music and Maclen Music because Paul had claimed co-writing credits with Linda on "Another Day" (which affected publishing royalties in the McCartneys' favour). The plaintiffs claimed that Linda had no writing abilities so she set out to prove them wrong.
When it was finally released, it was considered Reggae and charted at Number 59 in the States and Number 90 in the UK, despite the fact that Paul's voice is easily identified singing back up.

Answer: Steppenwolf

Steppenwolf included both American and Canadian musicians, which qualified their music for play under Canadian content quotas on radio stations.
The band grew out of Canadian band The Sparrows and originally consisted of lead singer Jon Kay, drummer Jerry Edmonton and keyboardist Goldy McJohn. The American contingent, bass player Rushton Moreve and guitarist Michael Monarch, were actually recruited through notices placed in record stores and musical instrument stores. The name was chosen as tribute to Herman Hesse's 1927 novel.
They were very successful from 1968 to 1972. Clashes in personalities led to various changes in band make-up over the years, leaving Jon Kay, and his distinctive voice, as the only original member that stayed with the group throughout the years.
Their most recognizable song, largely thanks to its use in the movie "Easy Rider", was 1968's "Born to Be Wild" which peaked at Number Two in Billboard Hot 100, but made it to Number One in the Canada Top Singles chart. The line from the song 'heavy metal thunder', used to describe the sound of motorcycles, is said to be the origin of the name for heavy metal music.
"Sookie, Sookie" was from their first, self-titled album and was their second single, released in February 1968. It got more radio air time after the success of "Born to Be Wild".

Answer: Simon & Garfunkel

Art Garfunkel and Paul Simon grew up three blocks away from each other in New York, and attended the same public school. They became friends when they both appeared in a school play together, in sixth grade, and bonded over their interest in music.
Under the name Tom and Jerry, they paid $25 to record "Hey Schoolgirl", which got them noticed by a promoter, who signed them to his record label and got them on "American Bandstand", all while they were still in high school.
After graduating in 1963, they attended separate universities, during which time they each sometimes performed as solo artists. They rejoined to perform as Kane and Garr at an open mic night at a club in Greenwich. One of the songs they performed that night was "The Sound of Silence", which piqued the interest of Tom Wilson from Columbia Records. This resulted in their debut album, "Wednesday Morning, 3 A.M.", which was not a huge success and the pair went their separate ways again.
"The Sound of Silence" (originally released as "The Sounds of Silence") was released September 1965, becoming Number One on the Billboard Hot 100 in January, 1966. This success brought them back together.

Answer: Stevie Wonder

Little Stevie Wonder signed with Motown Records at the ripe old age of 11, in 1960. In 1963 he had a Number One hit on the Billboard Hot 100 with "Fingertips", setting a record as the youngest artist to reach the top spot.
During the mid 60s, his maturing voice made things more difficult for him and Motown considered dropping him, but dropped the Little from his name instead. As the decade progressed, Wonder had more success writing for himself and for other performers. He wrote "The Tears of a Clown" which Smokey Robinson and the Miracles took to Number One, and had a few hits himself, taking "Signed, Sealed, Delivered I'm Yours" to Number One in 1970.
It was in the 70s that he really hit stride, to the point that, upon winning the Grammy for Album of the Year in 1976, Paul Simon thanked Wonder for not releasing an album that year.
"Songs in the Key of Life" (his best album IMHO) was released in 1976. "Sir Duke", a tribute to the great Duke Ellington who had died in 1974, was on that album. Released as a single in 1977, it claimed the Number One spot on various charts. It is one of those songs that has such an incredible sound and beat that you just can't sit still while it's playing. I remember my manager at my part-time job stomping his foot in time to the song when it played on the radio, while sitting in his office.

Answer: Stealers Wheel

Former school friends from Paisley, Scotland, Joe Egan and Gerry Rafferty formed Stealers Wheel in 1972, bringing three other musicians in to join them. These three had all been replaced by the time the band signed a contract.
Their biggest hit was "Stuck in the Middle with You", released in 1972, which reached Number six on the Billboard Hot 100.
The band has had several changes in membership over the years, including Rafferty himself leaving for other endeavors and returning. They never had another hit to equal "Stuck in the Middle with You" and Rafferty passed away in 2011.

Answer: Sly and the Family Stone

Sly and the Family Stone, active between 1966 and 1983, was a racially diverse group that also included male and female performers. It was the first group to do so and their music reflected the inclusive attitude. Lead singer Sly Stone also included his brother Freddie and sister Rose among his singers and musicians.
Their first Billboard Hot 100, Number One hit was "Everyday People" (1968). The album "Stand!" was released in 1969 and included a number of great songs including the single "Stand!" which peaked at Number 14 on the U.S. Billboard R&B singles. The album, faring better, reached the Number Three spot.
The band was one of the acts appearing at Woodstock.
Some members of the group, including Sly, became heavily dependent on drugs and while they were still producing good music, it was less frequent and things eventually fell apart.
One of Sly's performing outfits is on display at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, in Cleveland, Ohio. One can only speculate on how heavy it must have been to wear, given all the leather and bead work.

Answer: Steve Miller Band

Originally The Steve Miller Blues Band, the group formed in 1965, shortening its name to The Steve Miller Band after securing a recording contract, in the hopes of capturing the interest of a wider audience. They recorded a couple of albums in England. The first did not rate well, but with the second album, "Sailor", they started to pick up some real traction. Paul McCartney, using the name Paul Ramon, played drums and sang back up on this album.
Between 1968 and 2019 they had 34 albums, including studio, live and compilation ones. Their first Number One hit was "The Joker" (1973) off the album of the same name.
The single "Swingtown" (1977) was from the album "Book of Dreams" and peaked at Number 17 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Answer: Santana

Formed in 1966 by Carlos Santana, Santana got a chance to play at the Woodstock Festival because their manager, Bill Graham, made it a condition for his helping to organise the event. This gave them the exposure they needed and their record sales took off as a result. Released after the festival, their debut album "Santana" reached Number Four on the Billboard 200 and the single "Evil Ways" hit Number Nine on the Billboard Hot 100.
The 70s and early 80s continued to be good but then things started to go sour and the band took a break.
Santana 1998 was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1998 which seemed to prompt the release of the album "Supernatural" which reached Number One on the Billboard 200. The single "Smooth" (1999) was from that album and featured Rob Thomas (from Matchbox 20) on lead vocal. "Smooth" attained the Number One spot on Billboard Hot 100.