Rockwell - Somebody's Watching Me (Orso Manzoneta Remix)

"“Somebody’s Watching Me” is the debut single by R&B artist Rockwell, released on the Motown label in 1984. The song’s lyrics relate the narrator’s paranoid fear of being followed and watched. It featured former Motown artists Michael Jackson on the chorus and Jermaine Jackson on additional backing vocals. The song peaked at number two on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1984, and reached the top of the Billboard R&B singles chart, as well as reaching number six on the UK Singles Chart. It was the only major hit for Rockwell. His follow-up single Obscene Phone Caller was Rockwell’s only other Top 40 single, reaching #35 on the Billboard Hot 100. In 2009, the song was ranked #20 on VH1’s 100 Greatest One Hit Wonders of the 80s.
The single’s music video underscores the song’s paranoid tone with a haunted house-inspired theme, including imagery of floating heads, ravens, graveyards, and shower scenes referencing the film Psycho. The mailman who appears in the music video for “Somebody’s Watching Me” also stars in the video for “Obscene Phone Caller”. This was a low budget video. Music video produced by The Wolfe Company, directed by Francis Delia, cinematography by Dominic Sena, production manager: Jason Braunstein, production coordinator: Jon Leonoudakis. Leonoudakis appears in the video as the visual metaphor “watching” Rockwell through the porthole of the front door." Article source: www.last.fm.

"Born Kenneth Gordy, Rockwell is the son of Motown Records founder Berry Gordy. He changed his name so as to avoid charges of nepotism, wanting to make it in the music business on his talent alone. He signed to Motown as a solo artist without his father’s knowledge, taking his name from his high school band. His first single, the Michael Jackson-esque “Somebody’s Watching Me,” which featured backing vocals from both Michael and Jermaine Jackson, shot into the Top Ten, hit number one on the R&B charts, and went gold; only then did he reveal his true identity. This, however, was his peak of success; the follow-up single fizzled, as did his next album. A cover of “Somebody’s Watching Me”, by the dance act Beatfreakz, was released in the UK in March 2006, peaking at number three on the UK Singles Chart. A cover version of the song was also released by the band Warmen.

The Swiss 90is artist DJ Bobo’s first Hit was also a cover version of “Somebody’s Watching Me”. He turned it to “Somebody Dance With Me”." Article source: www.last.fm.

Bob McFerrin - Be Happy (Moving Elements Remix)

"Bobby McFerrin is one of the natural wonders of the music world. A ten-time Grammy Award winner, he is one of the world's best-known vocal innovators and improvisers, a world-renowned classical conductor, the creator of "Don't Worry Be Happy", one of the most popular songs of the late 20th century, and a passionate spokesman for music education. His recordings have sold over 20 million copies, and his collaborations with Yo-Yo Ma, Chick Corea, the Vienna Philharmonic, and Herbie Hancock have established him as an ambassador of both the classical and jazz worlds.With a four-octave range and a vast array of vocal techniques, McFerrin is no mere singer; he is music's last true Renaissance man, a vocal explorer who has combined jazz, folk and a multitude of world music influences - choral, a cappella, and classical music - with his own ingredients. As a conductor, Bobby is able to convey his innate musicality in an entirely different context. In addition to the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, he has worked frequently with such orchestras as the London Philharmonic, the Chicago Symphony, the Cleveland Orchestra, the New York Philharmonic, the Philadelphia Orchestra, and the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, where he held the post of Creative Chair. 

Unconventional is a good way to describe the career of Bobby McFerrin. Those familiar with McFerrin's shows, whether as a conductor or a vocalist, know that each one is a unique event that resonates with the unexpected. He is that rare artist who has the ability to reach beyond musical genres and stereotypes for a sound that is entirely his own. As one of the foremost guardians of music's rich heritage, he remains at the vanguard with his natural, beautiful and timeless music that transcends all borders and embraces all cultures.

Comprised of twelve uniquely gifted singers with broad stylistic experience ranging from jazz to R&B to Indian classical opera, Voicestra serves as a rich compositional palate for Bobby McFerrin's expeditions into the musical universe. Bobby founded Voicestra in 1986 to explore interactive group singing in his performances, and it has since evolved into a medium for deeply spiritual and powerful improvisations. Voicestra is not just a choir, but a flexible and richly textured instrument through which Bobby can experiment with and express his unique vocal style and musical stream of consciousness. The music is entirely improvised and captures everything in the performance: the day, the time, the theater, the audience. Melodies, rhythms and textures traverse from singer to singer, perpetually morphing in reaction to the moment and Bobby's instincts. For many audiences, a Voicestra performance is akin to a religious experience, providing them the rare opportunity to witness as well as participate in a musical celebration of spontaneity." Article source: www.bobbymcferrin.com.