January 31, 1981 - BLONDIE went to #1 all around the world, today, with their song, The Tide Is High, the group's third world hit. By now, the Manhattan quasi-punk band Blondie was a mainstream pop music phenomenon, rising from the lower east side of Manhattan, to world superstars. Always an irony for me, when this happens...rags to riches...heart'n'soul to money.
1797 - FRANZ PETER SCHUBERT, one of the world's great romantic composers, was born today near the turn of the century. The Austrian composer, who died at the early age of 31, was a prolific composer, writing around 600 Lieder, nine symphonies (including the famous Unfinished Symphony), liturgical music, operas, some incidental music, and a large body of chamber and solo piano music. Appreciation of his music during his lifetime was limited, but interest in Schubert's work increased dramatically in the decades following his death. Franz Liszt, Robert Schumann, Johannes Brahms and Felix Mendelssohn, among others, discovered and championed his works during the 19th Century. Today, Schubert is admired as one of the leading exponents of the early Romantic era in music and remains one of the most frequently performed composers. In the midst of this creative activity, his health deteriorated. The cause of his death was officially diagnosed as typhoid fever, though other theories have been proposed, including the tertiary stage of syphilis. By the late 1820s Schubert's health was failing and he confided to some friends he feared he was near death. In the late summer of 1828, the composer saw court physician Ernst Rinna, who may have confirmed Schubert's suspicions that he was ill beyond cure and likely to die soon. Some of his symptoms matched those of mercury poisoning (mercury was then a common treatment for syphilis, again suggesting that Schubert suffered from it). At the beginning of November he again fell ill, experiencing headaches, fever, swollen joints, and vomiting. He was generally unable to retain solid food and his condition worsened. Schubert died in Vienna, at 31years old, on November 19, 1828, at the apartment of his brother Ferdinand. The last musical work he had wished to hear was Beethoven's String Quartet No.14 in C sharp minor, Op. 131; his friend, violinist Karl Holz, who was present at the gathering, 5 days before Schubert's death, commented: "The King of Harmony has sent the King of Song a friendly bidding to the crossing". It was next to Beethoven, whom he had admired all his life, that Schubert was buried by his own request, in the village cemetery of Währing. So, dear reader, the following two videos are two of Schubert's best compositions, the beautifully peaceful, Serenade, and then Pavarotti sings Ave Maria, also written by Schubert. this version is from the three tenors, in 1994, both just superb pieces of music.
1953 - PERRY COMO was at #1 spot on some music charts in some countries around the world 59 years ago today, with the song, Don't Let The Stars Get In Your Eyes. It was the American singer and television personality'ss first hit. Not sure if there is a video of this song, but if there is, we haven't found it. Instead, here's another of his hits from a year later, featuring a short dance routine with the vivacious and gracious Peggy Lee.
1961 - BOBBY DARIN, the all-round entertainer, entrepreneur, musician, dancer, jazz singer, pop singer, and actor, made television history tonight when he became the youngest performer to headline his own prime-time television special event. The Bobby Darin and Friends TV special aired on NBC-TV exactly 51 years ago today, with many special guests, including comedian, Bob Hope. Darin and Hope performed a vaudeville-type comedy routine, and were joined by Joanie Sommers for a soft-shoe dance routine, then a rousing rendition of Won't You Come Home Bill Bailey. Doing a set like that for a long-time pro like Bob had to be difficult because he knew his cues and blockings but he was dealing with the other 2 youngsters, who winged a part of it. Bobby Darin remains one of the all-time great entertainers of the entertainment industry.
1963 - BEACH BOYS sure don't look like the Beach Boys at first glance, here, but if you take a second look you can see it actually is the very, very young Beach Boys, with the song they recorded this very day, almost 50 years ago. This appearance, we think, is from the syndicated American TV show, the Red Skelton Show...but we are not 100 per cent about that. Check out the three quarter length bell-bottomed pants the guys are wearing.
1970 - GRATEFUL DEAD'S song, Truckin', was written today, about events that had happened in New Orleans, when the band was busted for possession of LSD and barbituates. Here's the band in a full-frontal, honest interview explaining the reasons behind the song, and a few extra tit-bit details of touring in those pioneering days.
1972 - ARETHA FRANKLIN sang the gospel song, Precious Lord Take My Hand at Mahalia Jackson's funeral service, which was held exactly 40 years ago today. We can't find anything on youtube for this event, but we can find a version of Mahalia Jackson herself singing the same song in the early sixties. Was she really the greatest gospel soul singer of all time? She was an amazing, amazing singer, no denying that, and this is she, singing one of her signature songs.
1976 - ABBA knocked Queen from the British #1 position on the nation's music singles chart with Mamma Mia, today. Queen's single, Bohemian Rhapsody, had been at the top of charts for nine weeks. It's a coincidence, no doubt, that Queen's song contains the famous refrain "mamma mia, mamma mia..." etcetera.
1979 - ROCK LEGEND BO DIDLEY recently spoke about his experience as opening act for the Clash, who began their debut American tour 33 years ago today. No doubt the band chose Diddley as their support purely through respect for the blues legend, and the gesture coming from a good place. The interview took place 23 years after the tour, in November, 2002, at the Rock Nightclub in Maplewood, Minnesota - and he wasn't very happy about the Clash, was old Bo - check it out.
1986 - ONE OF THE FUNNIEST movie monologues of all time occurred in the movie Down And Out In Beverly Hills when the great, great rock'n'rolling preacher man, Little Richard had a cameo role, and had this onscreen rant, Too cool. The link? Anything for a link, which is that the movie opened 26 years ago today. Quality not the best here, dear reader, so you'll need to concentrate.
2000 - NEW YORK little darlings, the Strokes, played their first ever British show today when they appeared at The Wedgewood Rooms, Portsmouth. No footage, folks, so howzabout this little gem from the band, two years later, in Los Angeles. Will this band still be around in 30 years like their fellow Manhattanites, Blondie?
2010 - BEYONCE appears here at the 2010 Grammy Awards, where she set a Grammy record for females, winning six awards. The six awards were Song Of The Year, Best Female Pop Vocal Performance, Best Female R&B Vocal Performance, Best Traditional R&B Vocal Performance, Best R&B Song, and Best Contemporary R&B Album. This is the gal, and aint she sweet.
1797 - FRANZ PETER SCHUBERT, one of the world's great romantic composers, was born today near the turn of the century. The Austrian composer, who died at the early age of 31, was a prolific composer, writing around 600 Lieder, nine symphonies (including the famous Unfinished Symphony), liturgical music, operas, some incidental music, and a large body of chamber and solo piano music. Appreciation of his music during his lifetime was limited, but interest in Schubert's work increased dramatically in the decades following his death. Franz Liszt, Robert Schumann, Johannes Brahms and Felix Mendelssohn, among others, discovered and championed his works during the 19th Century. Today, Schubert is admired as one of the leading exponents of the early Romantic era in music and remains one of the most frequently performed composers. In the midst of this creative activity, his health deteriorated. The cause of his death was officially diagnosed as typhoid fever, though other theories have been proposed, including the tertiary stage of syphilis. By the late 1820s Schubert's health was failing and he confided to some friends he feared he was near death. In the late summer of 1828, the composer saw court physician Ernst Rinna, who may have confirmed Schubert's suspicions that he was ill beyond cure and likely to die soon. Some of his symptoms matched those of mercury poisoning (mercury was then a common treatment for syphilis, again suggesting that Schubert suffered from it). At the beginning of November he again fell ill, experiencing headaches, fever, swollen joints, and vomiting. He was generally unable to retain solid food and his condition worsened. Schubert died in Vienna, at 31years old, on November 19, 1828, at the apartment of his brother Ferdinand. The last musical work he had wished to hear was Beethoven's String Quartet No.14 in C sharp minor, Op. 131; his friend, violinist Karl Holz, who was present at the gathering, 5 days before Schubert's death, commented: "The King of Harmony has sent the King of Song a friendly bidding to the crossing". It was next to Beethoven, whom he had admired all his life, that Schubert was buried by his own request, in the village cemetery of Währing. So, dear reader, the following two videos are two of Schubert's best compositions, the beautifully peaceful, Serenade, and then Pavarotti sings Ave Maria, also written by Schubert. this version is from the three tenors, in 1994, both just superb pieces of music.
1953 - PERRY COMO was at #1 spot on some music charts in some countries around the world 59 years ago today, with the song, Don't Let The Stars Get In Your Eyes. It was the American singer and television personality'ss first hit. Not sure if there is a video of this song, but if there is, we haven't found it. Instead, here's another of his hits from a year later, featuring a short dance routine with the vivacious and gracious Peggy Lee.
1961 - BOBBY DARIN, the all-round entertainer, entrepreneur, musician, dancer, jazz singer, pop singer, and actor, made television history tonight when he became the youngest performer to headline his own prime-time television special event. The Bobby Darin and Friends TV special aired on NBC-TV exactly 51 years ago today, with many special guests, including comedian, Bob Hope. Darin and Hope performed a vaudeville-type comedy routine, and were joined by Joanie Sommers for a soft-shoe dance routine, then a rousing rendition of Won't You Come Home Bill Bailey. Doing a set like that for a long-time pro like Bob had to be difficult because he knew his cues and blockings but he was dealing with the other 2 youngsters, who winged a part of it. Bobby Darin remains one of the all-time great entertainers of the entertainment industry.
1963 - BEACH BOYS sure don't look like the Beach Boys at first glance, here, but if you take a second look you can see it actually is the very, very young Beach Boys, with the song they recorded this very day, almost 50 years ago. This appearance, we think, is from the syndicated American TV show, the Red Skelton Show...but we are not 100 per cent about that. Check out the three quarter length bell-bottomed pants the guys are wearing.
1970 - GRATEFUL DEAD'S song, Truckin', was written today, about events that had happened in New Orleans, when the band was busted for possession of LSD and barbituates. Here's the band in a full-frontal, honest interview explaining the reasons behind the song, and a few extra tit-bit details of touring in those pioneering days.
1972 - ARETHA FRANKLIN sang the gospel song, Precious Lord Take My Hand at Mahalia Jackson's funeral service, which was held exactly 40 years ago today. We can't find anything on youtube for this event, but we can find a version of Mahalia Jackson herself singing the same song in the early sixties. Was she really the greatest gospel soul singer of all time? She was an amazing, amazing singer, no denying that, and this is she, singing one of her signature songs.
1976 - ABBA knocked Queen from the British #1 position on the nation's music singles chart with Mamma Mia, today. Queen's single, Bohemian Rhapsody, had been at the top of charts for nine weeks. It's a coincidence, no doubt, that Queen's song contains the famous refrain "mamma mia, mamma mia..." etcetera.
1979 - ROCK LEGEND BO DIDLEY recently spoke about his experience as opening act for the Clash, who began their debut American tour 33 years ago today. No doubt the band chose Diddley as their support purely through respect for the blues legend, and the gesture coming from a good place. The interview took place 23 years after the tour, in November, 2002, at the Rock Nightclub in Maplewood, Minnesota - and he wasn't very happy about the Clash, was old Bo - check it out.
1986 - ONE OF THE FUNNIEST movie monologues of all time occurred in the movie Down And Out In Beverly Hills when the great, great rock'n'rolling preacher man, Little Richard had a cameo role, and had this onscreen rant, Too cool. The link? Anything for a link, which is that the movie opened 26 years ago today. Quality not the best here, dear reader, so you'll need to concentrate.
2000 - NEW YORK little darlings, the Strokes, played their first ever British show today when they appeared at The Wedgewood Rooms, Portsmouth. No footage, folks, so howzabout this little gem from the band, two years later, in Los Angeles. Will this band still be around in 30 years like their fellow Manhattanites, Blondie?
2010 - BEYONCE appears here at the 2010 Grammy Awards, where she set a Grammy record for females, winning six awards. The six awards were Song Of The Year, Best Female Pop Vocal Performance, Best Female R&B Vocal Performance, Best Traditional R&B Vocal Performance, Best R&B Song, and Best Contemporary R&B Album. This is the gal, and aint she sweet.
