Today in Music History for June 29:
In 1888, the first musical recording in Britain was made at the Crystal Palace in London on the occasion of the Handel Festival. The recording was made using Thomas Edison's cylinder phonograph.
In 1901, singer Nelson Eddy, whose duets with Jeanette MacDonald were great favourites in the 1930s and '40s, was born in Providence, R.I. He died on March 6, 1967.
In 1941, Polish pianist Ignace Jan Paderewski died in wartime exile in New York at 81. His brilliant playing made him the world's most popular pianist since Franz Liszt in the mid-19th century. U.S. President Franklin Roosevelt vowed Paderewski's remains would be returned to his homeland "when Poland is free." They were shipped home in 1992, three years after Communist rule ended in Poland.
In 1944, singer Little Eva was born Eva Narcissus Boyd in Belhaven, N.C. She was the babysitter for songwriters Carole King and Gerry Goffin when she recorded their song, "The Loco-Motion." It went to No. 1 in the summer of 1962. The background singers on the record were a group called "The Cookies," who had a hit of their own later in '62 with "Chains." Little Eva died in Kinston, N.C., after a long illness on April 10, 2003.
In 1955, Bill Haley's "Rock Around the Clock" reached No. 1 on the U.S. charts, staying there for seven weeks. His recording sold only moderately well when it was first released in the spring of 1954. But when it was included in the soundtrack of "Blackboard Jungle," a film about juvenile delinquents, demand for the record soared. By 1970, world sales were estimated at 16 million copies. The record was also the first to sell one million copies in Britain, and has been on the British charts seven times, most recently in 1974.
In 1963, Del Shannon hit the charts with "From Me To You," the first "Beatles" cover tune on the American charts.
In 1967, Mick Jagger and Keith Richards of "The Rolling Stones" were found guilty in London on drug possession charges resulting from arrests in February. Jagger was sentenced to three months and Richards to a year. The sentences were suspended on appeal. After the convictions, "The Rolling Stones" temporarily withdrew from public appearances.
In 1969, Jimi Hendrix performed for the last time with "The Experience" in Denver.
In 1969, Motown singer Shorty Long died in a boating accident. He was only 29. A year earlier, Long had scored a top-10 hit with his novelty recording of "Here Comes the Judge," a routine developed by comic Pigmeat Markham. Markham also made the Billboard Hot 100 with his version.
In 1973, vocalist Ian Gillan and bass guitarist Roger Glover played their last concert with "Deep Purple." After the show in Japan, Gillan left the band for a solo career while Glover opted for session and production work. Their replacements with "Deep Purple" were David Coverdale and Glenn Hughes. They have since reunited with "Deep Purple."
In 1975, folk singer Tim Buckley died of a heroin and morphine overdose in Santa Monica, Calif., at age 28. Testimony at the coroner's inquest indicated he had snorted what he thought was cocaine. The man who owned the house where Buckley died was convicted of involuntary manslaughter.
In 1978, guitarist and singer Peter Frampton suffered a broken arm, cracked ribs, and scalp lacerations after crashing his car in the Bahamas.
In 1979, Lowell George, former lead singer of the rock band "Little Feat," died of an apparent heart attack in Arlington, Va. He was 34. George had just released a solo album following the breakup of "Little Feat," and was on tour with his own band when he died. "Little Feat" was formed in Los Angeles in 1969 by George and Roy Estrada, both former members of "The Mothers of Invention." The group's mixture of southern music forms, such as blues and boogie, with mystical lyrics resulted in a gold album, the live "Waiting For Columbus," in 1978.
In 1984, Bruce Springsteen began his "Born in the U.S.A." tour in St. Paul, Minn.
In 1985, British Columbia businessman Jim Pattison paid $2.2 million for a yellow Rolls-Royce formerly owned by "The Beatles."
In 1985, Mick Jagger and David Bowie recorded a version of "Dancing in the Street" in London.
In 1986, "Bonnie Bramlett and the Unforgiven" played in suburban Los Angeles at a rally to protest the relocation of Hopi and Navajo Indians.
In 1987, singer and songwriter Elizabeth "Libba" Cotton, who wrote the classic song "Freight Train" when she was 11 years old, died in Syracuse, N.Y., at age 95. Cotton, who did not begin performing until she was 60, won a Grammy Award in 1985 for a collection of her blues and folk songs. She continued to do live shows until a month before her death.
In 1988, singer George Michael underwent an operation to remove a cyst from his vocal chords. He was forced to cancel the rest of a European tour but dates in Canada and the U.S. went ahead as scheduled two months later.
In 1990, one of Canada's best-known country radio stations, CFGM in Richmond Hill, Ont., switched formats. After more than 30 years of broadcasting country music to Toronto-area listeners, CFGM became CHOG, broadcasting a mix of rock and dance music aimed at 15-to 22-year-olds. It later switched to an all-talk format.
In 1991, jazz organist Richard "Groove" Holmes died of prostate cancer at age 60. He recorded dozens of albums in the 1960s and '70s, and his 1966 recording of "Misty" made the top half of the Billboard pop singles chart.
In 1994, Barbra Streisand set a record for the largest-grossing concert stand. A series of her shows at Madison Square Garden in New York brought in US$16 million.
In 1996, Canadian Alanis Morrissette joined rock legends Eric Clapton, Ron Woods, Bob Dylan and "The Who" to perform for 150,000 people at London's Hyde Park. The all-day event raised about $1 million for Prince Charles' Prince's Trust charity. Morrissette performed eight songs from her mega-hit album "Jagged Little Pill." "The Who" gave what was billed as the "live debut" of their 1973 "Quadrophenia" album.
In 2002, Rosemary Clooney, the singer and actress who co-starred with Bing Crosby in "White Christmas," died at age 74.
In 2007, Canada Post issued the first instalment of the popular Canadian Recording Artists stamp series. Those honoured were: Anne Murray, Gordon Lightfoot, Joni Mitchell and Paul Anka.
In 2008, saxophonist LeRoi Moore of the "Dave Matthews Band" was seriously injured in an ATV accident at his farm outside Charlottesville, Va. He died of complications from those injuries on Aug. 19.
In 2010, during her visit to Canada, the Queen unveiled a life-sized, privately funded bronze statue of jazz virtuoso Oscar Peterson at the National Arts Centre. The sculpture by Ruth Abernethy of Wellesley, Ont., depicted a smiling Peterson seated casually at a grand piano. The Montreal-born musician serenaded audiences worldwide before he died in 2007, including the Royal Couple during 2002's Golden Jubilee celebrations in Toronto.
In 2011, soulful crooner Javier Colon, coached by "Maroon 5" frontman Adam Levine, was crowned the inaugural winner of "The Voice," NBC's singing contest. He received a $100,000 prize and a recording contract.
In 2011, pop star Justin Timberlake partnered with Specific Media to purchase MySpace from News Corp. for $35 million, mostly in stock, in a bid to add some cool to the social network. In 2005, News Corp. bought MySpace for $580 million, but lost its footing to other hotter social networks like Facebook and Twitter.
In 2014, the Recording Industry Association of America certified country music legend Dolly Parton for sales of 100 million albums worldwide. She was given a special plaque before her performance at the Glastonbury Festival in England.
In 2018, Drake released his new 25-track album "Scorpion.'' It went on to set a one-day worldwide streaming record on Apple Music (170 million) and Spotify (132 million), along with setting a one-week streaming record across all platforms.
In 2018, the long-lost John Coltrane album "Both Directions At Once'' was released. It was recorded on March 7, 1963, with his Classic Quartet -- McCoy Tyner, Jimmy Garrison, and Elvin Jones.
In 2019, The Rolling Stones made their only Canadian stop on a North American tour, taking the stage at Burl's Creek Event Grounds in Oro-Medonte, Ont., north of Barrie. Standing before a crowd of roughly 60,000 concertgoers, it didn't take long before Jagger wished a simple "Happy Canada Day" to the receptive crowd, who didn't seem to mind it was technically two days early. For many people in attendance, it seemed a miracle the 75-year-old Jagger was even on stage following recent heart surgery. Armed with his flamboyant swagger, Jagger zig-zagged across the massive stage - and strutted down the catwalk - for two hours, playing 20 of the band's greatest hits.
In 2020, jazz pianist, singer and composer Freddy Cole — the younger brother of singer Nat King Cole — died at 88 of complications from cardiac-related illness. Cole's signature song, the tongue-in-cheek ``I'm Not My Brother, I'm Me,'' was a fan favourite.
In 2020, Alessia Cara emerged the top winner at the Juno Awards, picking up three trophies in the virtual ceremony. The 23-year-old pop singer from Brampton, Ont., picked up both artist and songwriter of the year, as well as pop album of the year for "The Pains of Growing.'' Cara was originally supposed to host the show in Saskatoon in March, before it was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
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The Canadian Press