Full of Surprises
Walking on Planet C
Full of Surprises
Eddie Murphy and me Nightclubbing in the 80's after we'd finished Coming to America
Life is always Full of Surprises. Last week I received a mysterious letter when I was in London doing interviews for my memoir Le Freak, and today I got an email from that same person. Both made me smile. They were from John Landis, the director of Michael Jackson's "Thriller" video and Eddie Murphy's "Coming to America" film. The latter being my first big orchestral film score. I was really happy to hear from him. The story of scoring Coming to America is detailed in my book.
My recording studio on the Paramount lot was the place to be. On any given day James Earl Jones, Oprah Winfrey, Apollonia, Paula Abdul and any number of artists could drop by, but the heartbeat of that studio was the musicians and the music. Thanks John for giving me that opportunity, and thanks for writing me - both times. Life is always Full of Surprises.
Director John Landis giving me directions to revise the score of the edited African Dance Scene, which I'd pre composed in order for Paula Abdul to choreograph before filming and this locked edit
Here's the finished scene with the revised score
Le Freak:
An Upside Down Story of Family, Disco, and Destiny
Written by Nile Rodgers
Category: Biography & Autobiography - Personal Memoirs; Biography & Autobiography - Composers & Musicians; Music - Popular
Format: eBook, 336 pages
On Sale: October 2011
Price: $ 12.99
ISBN: 978-0-679-64403-3 (0-679-64403-2)
Available as a hardcover and eBook.
You will hear a Nile Rodgers song today. It will make you happy.
Today's pop music—genre-crossing, gender-bending, racially mixed, visually stylish, and dominated by dance music with global appeal—is the world that Nile Rodgers created. In the 1970s and 1980s, he wrote and produced the songs that defined that era and everything that came after: "Le Freak," "Good Times," "We Are Family," "Like a Virgin," "Modern Love," "I'm Coming Out," "The Reflex," "Rapper's Delight." Aside from his own band, Chic, he worked with everyone from Diana Ross and Madonna to David Bowie and Duran Duran (not to mention Mick Jagger, Debbie Harry, Bob Dylan, Eric Clapton, Michael Jackson, Prince, Rod Stewart, Robert Plant, Depeche Mode, Paul Simon, Peter Gabriel, Grace Jones, Bryan Ferry, INXS, and the B-52's), transforming their music, selling millions of records, and redefining what a pop song could be.
Read more about order the memoir here:
"Le Freak: An Upside Down Story of Family, Disco, and Destiny"
