Browse Items (687 total)

This RPM Chart showcases Dianne Brooks in the 85th spot for the top albums. Her album “Some Other Kind Of Soul” was her first album she had released as a solo artist, and had eventually gone on to release 2 more solo albums before becoming a backup…

This RPM Chart from 1966 showcases Jackie Shane in the 95th spot for her song “Any Other Way” 3 years after its initial release, which had been rereleased. This is the only song of hers that appears in the RPM Weekly ever. “Any Other Way” is her most…

The Mynah Bird was a popular music venue in Yorkville, Toronto, and was known for being a coffeehouse venue in the morning and hosting R&B performers at night. Many famous Canadian folk singers got their start here, such as Joni Mitchell and Neil…

A mural depicting musicians who had mad a significant impact in Toronto, such as Dianne Brooks and Jackie Shane. This is incredibly important as the mural recognizes how important Black musicians are to the history of music in Toronto.

An image depicting the inside of Club Bluenote. This image shows performers such as Kay Taylor, the vocalist, and the house band. Club Bluenote was one of the most popular blues clubs in Toronto, frequented by Dianne Brooks and Shirley Matthews, as…

An autobiography of Rick James. In the earlier chapters of his autobiography, James discusses his time in Toronto and his time in the band "The Mynah Birds"

A magazine article discussing Dianne Brooks as a musician, and touches on her rise to stardom

This is a clip of RPM Magazine featuring the top songs playing in major cities across Canada, and featured Dianne Brooks playing in two different cities. When a song was not popular enough to be in the national top 100 list but still was popular…

The album cover for the album "Back Stairs of My Life" by Dianne Brooks. This album was her most widely received album, and was one of her last releases as a solo artist before becoming a backup singer for artists such as Dusty Springfield and Anne…

Club Bluenote was a popular music venue that had opened up in the late 1950s and gained popularity during the 1960s, where performers such as Dianne Brooks and Shirley Matthews would often frequent and perform at. Kay Taylor and the Regents were the…