P-Funk Guitarist MICHAEL HAMPTON To Be Honored @ The 1st Annual CLEVELAND MUSIC AWARDS !
by TFSnewsRoom/TVT/TCIC.com
THE VILLAGE TELEVISION & TCI “CLEVELAND” MUSIC AWARDS
CEREMONY AND CELEBRATION CONCERT
2004 MUSIC AWARD RECIPIENTS:
MR. MICHAEL “KIDD FUNKADELIC” HAMPTON
Internationally acclaimed lead guitarist with Parliament Funkadelic since 1974, Michael Hampton was born in Cleveland in 1956. Hampton was introduced to bandleader George Clinton at an after-party thrown by Mr. Ed Sparks of the Electric Sparks Band, which Mike was a member of. His first gig with Parliament Funkadelic group was at the Capitol Center in Washington, DC, when he was seventeen.
Hampton made his recording debut on the P-Funk classic, One Nation Under A Groove, released in 1978. The album showcases both his ability to show restraint in long, down-and-dirty funk grooves, such
as the title track, and also his ability to wield fiery, Hendrix-inspired guitar pyrotechnics, as evinced by such cuts as “Who Says A Funk Band Can’t Play Rock?”
Around this time Hampton began performing original P-Funk guitarist Eddie Hazel’s instrumental tour-de-force, “Maggot Brain,” which quickly became his signature piece.
In 1997, Parliament Funkadelic was inducted into the Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Fame. Michael Hampton continues to tour with George Clinton and the P-Funk All-stars. His influence on funk, rock, and the funk-rock genre he helped create, endures to this day.
MR. MICHAEL STANLEY
One of the most pervasive rock figures in Cleveland history, Michael Stanley’s thirty-plus-year career
includes charted hits, record-breaking concert attendances, and years of work as a radio personality on WNCX.
Born March 25, 1948, Michael Stanley spent some years after high school playing in such groups as The
Sceptres and Silk. In the mid Seventies, at the urging of future band mates Daniel Pecchio and Jonah
Koslen, the Michael Stanley Band was formed. The group enjoyed a strong and fiercely loyal following,
and toured with some of the superstar bands of that period, including Bruce Springsteen, The Eagles,
Foreigner, and The Doobie Brothers. MSB charted several Top-20 and Top-30 hits, released over a dozen
albums, and were a constant presence in concert halls and arenas throughout the nation. Before disbanding in 1986, the group had headlined a record-breaking two night stand at Blossom Music Center, had set attendance records at the Richfield Coliseum, and performed nine “farewell” concerts at the Front Row Theater.
After the band’s breakup, Stanley served as co-host of WJW-Channel 8's “Cleveland Tonight” and “P.M. Magazine,” as a weekly featured reporter for TV8's “First Look,” and as afternoon disc jockey and on-air personality at Cleveland's WNCX 98.5. He is still active musically, performing regularly with his band, The Resonators.
ROBERTO OCASIO
Born January 9, 1955, in New York City, Roberto Ocasio moved to Cleveland at a young age, a self-taught guitar player. At the age of twelve, his musical education began in earnest, first at the Cleveland
Music Settlement, then the School of Fine Arts.
After graduation, Ocasio studied piano, theory, and harmony at the Third Street Music Settlement in New York, and received a degree in composition from Boston’s Berklee College of Music. Returning to Cleveland, he continued his studies at Cuyahoga Community College, while recording, teaching, and performing throughout the United States with various groups.
In 1997, Roberto Ocasio’s Latin Jazz Project was formed, playing local clubs, special events, festivals, and music series. Ocasio’s infectious blend of jazz and Latin music brought diverse audiences together, but was only part of the multi-instrumentalist’s many accomplishments. An educator, a social worker, as well as a musician, Ocasio also ran the family grocery, and developed his own brand of salsa which he sold at shows.
Roberto Ocasio met an untimely end in an automobile accident on I-90, driving home from a performance, on January 31, 2004. His funeral was attended by nearly five thousand people. The Roberto Ocasio Foundation was created by family and friends to continue his educational, musical, and outreach projects. It was officially launched with a concert gala held at the Odeon on July 10, 2004.
The Latin Jazz Project, led by guitarist Rolando Pazana, continues to perform, and Roberto’s salsa is
available at over thirty Heinen’s locations throughout Northeast Ohio.
2004 LIFE TIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD WINNERS:
MS JANE SCOTT
Known for years as “The World’s Oldest Teenager,” Jane Scott’s fifty-year tenure with the Cleveland Plain Dealer saw her interview virtually all major rock acts ever to pass through Cleveland.
Born in Cleveland in 1919, Jane Scott and her family moved to Lakewood when she was in the second grade. She grew up on Belle Avenue, graduated from Lakewood High, and received her Bachelor’s Degree from the University of Michigan in 1941. Returning to Cleveland, Scott brushed up on her typing and shorthand skills at the Wilcox College of Commerce.
In 1942, she joined the WAVES (Women Accepted for Voluntary Emergency Service) unit of the Navy, and was sent to Mt Holyoke and Smith College to study communications. The details of her service to the Armed Forces remain classified. Jane was demobilized in 1945 with the rank of lieutenant in Naval
Intelligence.
Jane Scott’s tenure with the Plain Dealer commenced in March of 1952, where she worked in the Society
Department and wrote the Seniors column. In 1962 she also took on the Teens Page, but, after seeing the
Beatles perform at Public Hall on September 15, 1964, Jane had seen her future. She began to shift the focus of the Teens Page toward rock and pop music.
When the Beatles returned in 1966, Jane covered their show, and, interviewing the band, kicked off her
career as pop critic for the Plain Dealer. Jane wrote about, and interviewed, acts like the Rolling Stones,
The Who, Led Zeppelin, Janis Joplin, Aretha Franklin, David Bowie, and other future Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Famers, early in their careers.
She drew national attention when she retired from the Plain Dealer on April 5, 2002.
Jane still lives in Lakewood and is in demand as a speaker. She is an avid deltiologist, or postcard collector, and her collection centers around postcards from Cleveland.
MR. BILLY BASS (Not Of P-Funk Fame !)
One of the legends of Cleveland broadcasting, Billy Bass oversaw the birth of the Progressive FM rock radio format when he became a founder and the Program Director of Cleveland’s WNCR FM Progressive Radio station. While WNCR became the number one Stereo Rock Progressive FM Radio Station in America, Billy became the first African American to program a major market station in the USA. Bass’ voice was heard on such stations as WNCR and later WMMS, where he also served as Program Director and air personality, WIXY, MAJIC 195.7, and 92.3 “The Beat.” He was instrumental in breaking new artists like David Bowie, Blondie, Huey Lewis and the News, Pat Benetar, Lou Reed, Mott the Hoople, the Kinks, and setting their careers into high gear through exposure on his shows.
Bass joined fellow DJ Denny Sanders at the fledgling WMMS in November of 1971. Making Cleveland the first major market in America to host two Progressive FM Radio Stations in a single major market, his WNCR and WMMS. He help make WMMS hip and brought a young, dedicated crew with him from WNCR. Bass has been inducted into the Ohio Broadcasters Hall of Fame, and is a Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Fame DJ. He founded The Billy Bass Run To Help, a fundraising effort that, so far, has raised over $250,000 for the Cleveland chapter of the American Red Cross. Bass also acted as manager for Luther Vandross.
After leaving radio, Bass worked for national record labels, and has established a photography business with clients that include the Cleveland Indians, the Red Orchestra, University Hospitals, and the Cuyahoga Public Library System.
Today, Bass has reinvented himself into a world class photographer with an office in his home town of Cleveland, Ohio
