Kate Markowitz
Encyclopedia
Kate Markowitz is an American
singer-songwriter
. Markowitz is perhaps best known as a back-up vocalist who has recorded and performed with a number of singers, most notably James Taylor
but also Willy DeVille
, Shawn Colvin
, Mylène Farmer
, Don Henley
, Billy Joel
, k.d. lang
, Lyle Lovett
, Graham Nash
, Randy Newman
, and Warren Zevon
. She is the daughter of film and television soundtrack composer Richard Markowitz
.
in the 1990s. The single began as a Bacardi Rum
jingle
that she recorded for the Europe
an market. The jingle was so popular that she was asked to transform it into a song about "summer love" rather than rum
. She co-wrote the lyrics and recorded it (with Arnold McCuller
and Valerie Carter
on backing vocals) under the pseudonym
Kate Yanai. Called "Summer Dreaming (The Bacardi Song)," it went to Number 1 within two weeks in Germany, where it stayed for seven weeks, selling well over 500,000 copies.
In 2010 Markowitz joined the Troubadour Reunion Tour
supporting James Taylor
and Carole King
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriters are musicians who write, compose and sing their own musical material including lyrics and melodies. As opposed to contemporary popular music singers who write their own songs, the term singer-songwriter describes a distinct form of artistry, closely associated with the...
. Markowitz is perhaps best known as a back-up vocalist who has recorded and performed with a number of singers, most notably James Taylor
James Taylor
James Vernon Taylor is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. A five-time Grammy Award winner, Taylor was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2000....
but also Willy DeVille
Willy DeVille
Willy DeVille was an American singer and songwriter. During his thirty-five year career, first with his band Mink DeVille and later on his own, Deville created original songs rooted in traditional American musical styles. He worked with collaborators from across the spectrum of contemporary...
, Shawn Colvin
Shawn Colvin
Shawn Colvin is an American singer-songwriter and musician.-Childhood and early career:Colvin was born in Vermillion, South Dakota. Her formative years were spent in the town of Carbondale, Illinois, where she attended Southern Illinois University Carbondale. She learned to play guitar at the age...
, Mylène Farmer
Mylène Farmer
Mylène Farmer, , born Marie-Hélène Jeanne Gautier, , , is a French singer, songwriter, occasional actress and author....
, Don Henley
Don Henley
Donald Hugh "Don" Henley is an American singer, songwriter and drummer, best known as a founding member of the Eagles before launching a successful solo career. Henley was the drummer and lead vocalist for the Eagles from 1971–1980, when the band broke up...
, Billy Joel
Billy Joel
William Martin "Billy" Joel is an American musician and pianist, singer-songwriter, and classical composer. Since releasing his first hit song, "Piano Man", in 1973, Joel has become the sixth best-selling recording artist and the third best-selling solo artist in the United States, according to...
, k.d. lang
K.D. Lang
Kathryn Dawn Lang, OC , known by her stage name k.d. lang, is a Canadian pop and country singer-songwriter and occasional actress...
, Lyle Lovett
Lyle Lovett
Lyle Pearce Lovett is an American singer-songwriter and actor. Active since 1980, he has recorded thirteen albums and released 21 singles to date, including his highest entry, the number 10 chart hit on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Songs chart, "Cowboy Man"...
, Graham Nash
Graham Nash
Graham William Nash, OBE is an English singer-songwriter known for his light tenor vocals and for his songwriting contributions with the British pop group The Hollies, and with the folk-rock band Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young. Nash is a photography collector and a published photographer...
, Randy Newman
Randy Newman
Randall Stuart "Randy" Newman is an American singer-songwriter, arranger, composer, and pianist who is known for his mordant pop songs and for film scores....
, and Warren Zevon
Warren Zevon
Warren William Zevon was an American rock singer-songwriter and musician noted for including his sometimes sardonic opinions of life in his musical lyrics, composing songs that were sometimes humorous and often had political or historical themes.Zevon's work has often been praised by well-known...
. She is the daughter of film and television soundtrack composer Richard Markowitz
Richard Markowitz
Richard Allen Markowitz born September 3, 1926 in Santa Monica, California, died December 6, 1994 in Santa Monica, California, USA was an American film and television composer. He was the father of Kate Markowitz-Biography:...
.
1990s European success
Markowitz had a platinum-selling single in GermanyGermany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
in the 1990s. The single began as a Bacardi Rum
Bacardi
Bacardi is a family-controlled spirits company, best known as a producer of rums, including Bacardi Superior and Bacardi 151. The company sells in excess of 200 million bottles per year in nearly 100 countries...
jingle
Jingle
A jingle is a short tune used in advertising and for other commercial uses. The jingle contains one or more hooks and lyrics that explicitly promote the product being advertised, usually through the use of one or more advertising slogans. Ad buyers use jingles in radio and television...
that she recorded for the Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an market. The jingle was so popular that she was asked to transform it into a song about "summer love" rather than rum
Rum
Rum is a distilled alcoholic beverage made from sugarcane by-products such as molasses, or directly from sugarcane juice, by a process of fermentation and distillation. The distillate, a clear liquid, is then usually aged in oak barrels...
. She co-wrote the lyrics and recorded it (with Arnold McCuller
Arnold McCuller
Arnold McCuller is an American vocalist, record producer, born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio. While establishing his own career as a singer, and working as a very busy session musician, McCuller has become best known for his work as a back-up singer for famous artists with long careers, including...
and Valerie Carter
Valerie Carter
Valerie Carter to James J and Dorothy Carter, is an American singer-songwriter...
on backing vocals) under the pseudonym
Pseudonym
A pseudonym is a name that a person assumes for a particular purpose and that differs from his or her original orthonym...
Kate Yanai. Called "Summer Dreaming (The Bacardi Song)," it went to Number 1 within two weeks in Germany, where it stayed for seven weeks, selling well over 500,000 copies.
2000s activities
Markowitz continues to work with a number of artists. In 2003, however, she produced her first album, Map of the World, on which she wrote or co-wrote a number of the songs.In 2010 Markowitz joined the Troubadour Reunion Tour
Troubadour Reunion Tour
The Troubadour Reunion Tour was a 2010 international concert tour by Carole King and James Taylor. It celebrated the 40th anniversary of their first performance together at The Troubadour in November 1970, and was a continuation of their reunion at the Troubadour in November 2007.-History:The tour...
supporting James Taylor
James Taylor
James Vernon Taylor is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. A five-time Grammy Award winner, Taylor was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2000....
and Carole King
Carole King
Carole King is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. King and her former husband Gerry Goffin wrote more than two dozen chart hits for numerous artists during the 1960s, many of which have become standards. As a singer, King had an album, Tapestry, top the U.S...
.
Selected credits
- Abraham LaborielAbraham LaborielAbraham Laboriel, Sr. is a Mexican bassist of Garifuna descent who has played on over 4,000 recordings and soundtracks. Guitar Player Magazine described him as "the most widely used session bassist of our time". Laboriel is the father of drummer Abe Laboriel Jr. and of producer, songwriter, and...
— Dear Friends — (1993) - Anna VissiAnna VissiAnna Vissi , known as Anna Vishy in Cypriot Greek, is a Greek-Cypriot recording artist and actress...
— Everything I Am — (2001) - Arnold McCullerArnold McCullerArnold McCuller is an American vocalist, record producer, born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio. While establishing his own career as a singer, and working as a very busy session musician, McCuller has become best known for his work as a back-up singer for famous artists with long careers, including...
:- You Can't Go Back — (1999)
- Exception to the Rule — (2000)
- Back To Front — (2002)
- Aselin DebisonAselin DebisonAselin Debison is a Canadian pop and Celtic music singer.-Career:Debison began her singing career in 1999, when she was asked to sing at a rally of protesting miners in her hometown. Soon after this performance she began working on a Christmas album The Littlest Angel which was released in 2001...
— Sweet Is the Melody — (2002) - Bill WithersBill WithersWilliam Harrison "Bill" Withers, Jr. is an American singer-songwriter and musician who performed and recorded from 1970 until 1985. Some of his best-known songs are "Lean on Me", "Ain't No Sunshine", "Use Me", "Just the Two of Us", "Lovely Day", and "Grandma's Hands"...
— Lean on Me: The Best of Bill Withers — (1994) - Billy JoelBilly JoelWilliam Martin "Billy" Joel is an American musician and pianist, singer-songwriter, and classical composer. Since releasing his first hit song, "Piano Man", in 1973, Joel has become the sixth best-selling recording artist and the third best-selling solo artist in the United States, according to...
- Boz ScaggsBoz ScaggsWilliam Royce "Boz" Scaggs is an American singer, songwriter and guitarist. He gained fame in the 1970s with several Top 20 hit singles in the United States, along with the #2 album, Silk Degrees. Scaggs continues to write, record music and tour.-Early life and career:Scaggs was born in Canton,...
— Other RoadsOther RoadsOther Roads is an album by Boz Scaggs, released in 1988. After an eight-year hiatus from recording, Boz Scaggs returned in 1988 with the album Other Roads, a record aimed primarily at the adult contemporary market. The album reached #47 on the Billboard pop album chart, while the lead single “Heart...
— (1988) - Carol Weisman — Language of Love — (2003)
- CherCherCher is an American recording artist, television personality, actress, director, record producer and philanthropist. Referred to as the Goddess of Pop, she has won an Academy Award, a Grammy Award, an Emmy Award, three Golden Globes and a Cannes Film Festival Award among others for her work in...
— Love Hurts— (1991) - Clifford CarterClifford CarterClifford Carter is an American keyboardist.Carter is known for his performances with such artists as James Taylor, Michael Franks, and Herbie Mann and as a member of the groups Elements, Grace Pool, and the 24th Street Band....
— Walkin' into the Sun — (1993) - Connie KaldorConnie KaldorConnie Isabelle Kaldor, is a Canadian folk singer/songwriter. She is the recipient of three Juno awards.Born in Regina, Saskatchewan, she graduated from Campbell Collegiate in Regina in 1972 and the University of Alberta in 1976 with a BFA degree in theatre...
— Moonlight Grocery — (1984) - Dan FogelbergDan FogelbergDaniel Grayling "Dan" Fogelberg was an American singer-songwriter, composer, and multi-instrumentalist, whose music was inspired by sources as diverse as folk, pop, rock, classical, jazz, and bluegrass music...
- Diana RossDiana RossDiana Ernestine Earle Ross is an American singer, record producer, and actress. Ross was lead singer of the Motown group The Supremes during the 1960s. After leaving the group in 1970, Ross began a solo career that included successful ventures into film and Broadway...
:- Force Behind the Power — (1991)
- Gift of Love — (2000)
- Motown Anthology — (2001)
- I Love You — (2006)
- Don GrusinDon GrusinDon Grusin , is an American songwriter, producer and keyboardist. He holds a Masters Degree in Economics from the University of Colorado and for a period of his life taught at the National Autonomous University of Mexico as well as at Foothill College, California before deciding to enter the music...
:- Don Grusin — (1983)
- No Borders — (1992)
- Zephyr — (1991)
- 10k-La — (1980)
- Raven — (1990)
- Don HenleyDon HenleyDonald Hugh "Don" Henley is an American singer, songwriter and drummer, best known as a founding member of the Eagles before launching a successful solo career. Henley was the drummer and lead vocalist for the Eagles from 1971–1980, when the band broke up...
- Dori CaymmiDori CaymmiDorival Tostes Caymmi is a Brazilian singer, guitarist, songwriter, arranger, and producer who is a two-time Grammy Award winner .-Biography:...
:- Brazilian Serenata — (1988)
- Kicking Cans — (1993)
- Eddy MitchellEddy MitchellEddy Mitchell is a French singer and actor. He began his career in the late 1950s, with the group Les Chaussettes Noires , taking his name from the American expatriate tough-guy actor Eddie Constantine...
— Frenchy — (2003) - Eric BurdonEric BurdonEric Victor Burdon is an English singer-songwriter best known as a founding member and vocalist of rock band The Animals, and the funk rock band War and for his aggressive stage performance...
:- Comeback — (1982)
- Eric Burdon Unreleased — (1982)
- Wicked Man — (1988)
- Crawling King Snake — (1994)
- Misunderstood — (1995)
- Soldier of Fortune — (1997)
- Burdon Tracks — (1998)
- Ernie WattsErnie WattsErnest James "Ernie" Watts is an American jazz and rhythm and blues musician. He plays saxophone and flute. He might be best known for his work with Charlie Haden's Quartet West and his Grammy Awards as an instrumentalist...
— Sanctuary — (1986) - James TaylorJames TaylorJames Vernon Taylor is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. A five-time Grammy Award winner, Taylor was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2000....
:- New Moon ShineNew Moon Shine-Track listing:All songs by James Taylor unless otherwise noted.#"Copperline" – 4:22#"Down in the Hole" – 5:15#" Stop Thinkin' 'Bout That" -Track listing:All songs by James Taylor unless otherwise noted.#"Copperline" (Reynolds Price, J. Taylor) – 4:22#"Down in the Hole" – 5:15#"(I've Got to) Stop...
— (1991) - (LIVE)(LIVE) (James Taylor)Live is singer-songwriter James Taylor's fifteenth album, and first live album. Released in 1993, this double CD presents selections from 14 shows during a November 1992 tour...
— (1993) - (Best LIVE) — (1994)
- Hourglass — (1997)
- Greatest Hits Volume 2Greatest Hits Volume 2 (James Taylor)Greatest Hits Volume 2 is singer-songwriter James Taylor's eighteenth album, released in 2000, 24 years after his first Greatest Hits album.-Track listing:All songs by James Taylor unless otherwise noted.#"Secret O' Life" – 3:35...
— (2000) - October Road — (2002)
- CoversCovers (James Taylor album)Covers is the sixteenth album and the first "covers" album by singer-songwriter James Taylor, released on September 30, 2008. The album was recorded by Taylor's regular touring band. Some of the tunes Taylor had been performing off and on in concerts for years, while others were new to his repertoire...
— (2008)
- New Moon Shine
- Johnny MathisJohnny MathisJohn Royce "Johnny" Mathis is an American singer of popular music. Starting his career with singles of standards, he became highly popular as an album artist, with several dozen of his albums achieving gold or platinum status, and 73 making the Billboard charts...
— Right from the Heart — (1985) - Julia FordhamJulia FordhamJulia Fordham is a British singer-songwriter based in California. Her professional career started in the early 1980s, under the name "Jules Fordham", as a backing singer for Mari Wilson and Kim Wilde.-Career:...
— Swept — (1991) - Julie BrownJulie BrownJulie Ann Brown is an American actress, comedienne, screen/television writer, singer-songwriter, television director. Brown is perhaps best known for her work in the 1980s, where she often played a quintessential valley girl character...
— Trapped in the Body of a White GirlTrapped in the Body of a White GirlTrapped in the Body of a White Girl is a 1987 album by Julie Brown. Brown purchased the rights to the album 15 years later and re-released it independently, available exclusively on her website...
— (1987) - k.d. langK.D. LangKathryn Dawn Lang, OC , known by her stage name k.d. lang, is a Canadian pop and country singer-songwriter and occasional actress...
— Live by RequestLive by Request (k.d. lang)Live by Request is a live album by k.d. lang, released in 2001 . The album was recorded during the taping of the television show Live by Request on the A&E Network.- Track listing :# "Summerfling" – 4:03...
— (2001) - Kenny LogginsKenny LogginsDuring the next decade, Loggins recorded so many successful songs for film soundtracks that he was referred to as, King of the Movie Soundtrack.He began with "I'm Alright" , "Mr. Night", and "Lead the Way" from Caddyshack...
- Lee RitenourLee RitenourLee Mack Ritenour is an American jazz guitarist who has recorded over 42 albums, appeared on over 3000 sessions, and has charted over 30 instrumental and vocal contemporary jazz hits since 1976. One of his most popular songs was the smash hit, “Is It You” in 1981. Ritenour is considered to be a...
:- Color Rit — (1989)
- World of Brazil — (2005)(bckgr)
- Wes Bound — (1992)
- Lyle LovettLyle LovettLyle Pearce Lovett is an American singer-songwriter and actor. Active since 1980, he has recorded thirteen albums and released 21 singles to date, including his highest entry, the number 10 chart hit on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Songs chart, "Cowboy Man"...
— Road to Ensenada — (1996) - Lynn MilesLynn MilesLynn Miles is a Canadian singer-songwriter and winner of the 2003 Juno Award.-Early life and education:Miles was born outside Montreal in the town of Sweetsburg, Quebec. Her father was a harmonica player and jazz fan while her mother listened to both opera and country music. Miles learned to...
- Mark SholtezMark SholtezMark Sholtez is an Australian singer-songwriter. His debut album, Real Street from 2006, has resulted in nominations for an ARIA Award and APRA Awards winning an APRA for 'Most Performed Jazz Work' for "Love Me for the Cool" in 2007. His follow-up album is titled The Distance Between Two...
— The Distance Between Two Truths — (2010) - Mylène FarmerMylène FarmerMylène Farmer, , born Marie-Hélène Jeanne Gautier, , , is a French singer, songwriter, occasional actress and author....
— AnamorphoséeAnamorphoséeAnamorphosée is the fourth studio album by Mylène Farmer, released on October 17, 1995. Led by the number-one single "XXL", the album was something of a departure from her previous work...
— (1995) - Neil DiamondNeil DiamondNeil Leslie Diamond is an American singer-songwriter with a career spanning over five decades from the 1960s until the present....
:- In My Lifetime — (1996)
- Lovescape — (1991)
- Up on the Roof: Songs from the Brill Building — (1993)
- "Christmas Album, Vol.2" — (1994)
- Oscar Castro-NevesOscar Castro-NevesOscar Castro-Neves is a Brazilian guitarist, arranger, and composer who is considered a founding figure in Bossa nova. He was born as one of triplets and formed a band with his brothers in his youth. At 16 he had a national hit with Chora Tua Tristeza. Many of the early Bossa Nova musicians began...
:- Maracuja — (1989)
- More than Yesterday — (1991)
- Tropical Heart — (1993)
- Phyllis HymanPhyllis HymanPhyllis Linda Hyman was an American soul singer and actress.-Early years:Phyllis Hyman was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and grew up in the St. Clair Village, the South Hills section of Pittsburgh...
— I Refuse to Be Lonely — (1995) - Randy NewmanRandy NewmanRandall Stuart "Randy" Newman is an American singer-songwriter, arranger, composer, and pianist who is known for his mordant pop songs and for film scores....
:- Faust — (1993)
- Guilty: 30 Years of Randy Newman — (1998)
- Bad Love — (1999)
- Best of Randy Newman — (2001)
- Raul MaloRaul MaloRaúl Francisco Martínez-Malo Jr. , known professionally as Raúl Malo, is an American singer, songwriter, guitarist and record producer. He was the lead singer of country music band The Mavericks and the co-writer of many of their singles, as well as Rick Trevino's 2003 single "In My Dreams"...
— You're Only Lonely — (2006) - Richard ElliotRichard ElliotRichard Elliot is a Scottish-born saxophone player.He was a member of the funk band Tower of Power playing tenor sax for 5 years during the 1980s. He also worked on Stacy Lattisaw's 1986 album "Take Me All The Way". His solo career took off when he remade the Percy Sledge classic "When a Man...
— Take to the Skies — (1991) - Rubén BladesRubén BladesRubén Blades Bellido de Luna is a Panamanian salsa singer, songwriter, lawyer, actor, Latin jazz musician, and politician, performing musically most often in the Afro-Cuban and Latin jazz genres...
— Nothing But the Truth — (1988) - Sarah VaughanSarah VaughanSarah Lois Vaughan was an American jazz singer, described by Scott Yanow as having "one of the most wondrous voices of the 20th century."...
with Milton NascimentoMilton Nascimento-Biography:Nascimento's mother was the maid Maria Nascimento. As a baby, Milton Nascimento was adopted by his mother's former employers: the couple Josino Brito Campos, a banker employee, mathematics teacher and electronic technician; and Lília Silva Campos, a music teacher and choir singer...
— Brazilian Romance — (1987) - Shawn ColvinShawn ColvinShawn Colvin is an American singer-songwriter and musician.-Childhood and early career:Colvin was born in Vermillion, South Dakota. Her formative years were spent in the town of Carbondale, Illinois, where she attended Southern Illinois University Carbondale. She learned to play guitar at the age...
:- A Few Small Repairs — (1996)
- Whole New You — (2001)
- Sylvie VartanSylvie VartanSylvie Vartan is a French singer. She was one of the first rock girls in France. Vartan was the most productive and active of the yé-yé style artists, considered as the toughest-sounding of those. Her performance often featured elaborate show-dance choreography. She made many appearances on French...
— Toutes les femmes ont un secret — (1996) - Tina ArenaTina ArenaFilippina Lydia "Tina" Arena is an Australian singer, songwriter and musical theatre actress. She has won several awards, most notably 6 ARIA Awards and in both 1996 and 2000 she received the World Music Award for the world's best selling Australian artist...
— Don't Ask — (1995) - Valerie CarterValerie CarterValerie Carter to James J and Dorothy Carter, is an American singer-songwriter...
— Way It Is — (1996) - Walter BeckerWalter BeckerWalter Carl Becker is an American musician, songwriter and record producer. He is best known as the co-founder, guitarist, bassist and a co-writer of Steely Dan.-Career:...
- Warren ZevonWarren ZevonWarren William Zevon was an American rock singer-songwriter and musician noted for including his sometimes sardonic opinions of life in his musical lyrics, composing songs that were sometimes humorous and often had political or historical themes.Zevon's work has often been praised by well-known...
- Y'oussor N'Dour