Rick Astley, "Beautiful Life" (BMG)
Rick Astley rick-rolled the world two years ago when he resurfaced with a very good album, his first new music in 23 years. The man who had become a jokey internet meme proved a master crafter of pop songs. Now he's proved that wasn't a fluke.
The soulful Englishman with the bouffant hair who sang "Never Gonna Give You Up" in the 1980s delivers again on another dozen tracks of his up-tempo, easygoing-down mix of blue-eyed soul, gospel and dance.
NEW YORK (AP) — Rick Astley exiled himself from music for a good part of the last three decades, but he never really left pop's consciousness.
For one, hits like "Never Gonna Give You Up" and "It Would Take A Strong Strong Man," derided by critics as cheesy at the time, have endured. Then there's the whole rick-rolling phenomenon — when a promised link on a web site turns out instead to be an Astley video.
Rick Astley, "50" (BMG)
No, you're not being Rick-rolled . He's back.
Rick Astley, the soulful English pop star with the bouffant hair who sang "Never Gonna Give You Up" in the 1980s, has resurfaced with a new album that's fun, modern and surprisingly strong. Turns out, the joke is on us.
NEW YORK (AP) — Donald Trump's renouncement of birtherism came with some media gamesmanship that compelled television news networks to air 20 minutes of endorsements by retired military men before the candidate briefly got to the point.
"We all got Rick-rolled," said CNN's Jake Tapper, a reference to the Internet prank of replacing an expected link with a video of singer Rick Astley's 1987 hit, "Never Gonna Give You Up."
NEW YORK (AP) — Donald Trump's renouncement of birtherism on Friday came with some media gamesmanship that compelled television news networks to air 20 minutes of endorsements by retired military men before the candidate briefly got to the point.
"We all got Rick-rolled," said CNN's Jake Tapper, a reference to the Internet prank of replacing an expected link with a video of singer Rick Astley's 1987 hit, "Never Gonna Give You Up."