by Britt Ryan | Aug 31, 2020 | Today in Music History
Sir Van Morrison — that’s what the blue-eyed soul singer from Belfast, Northern Ireland, is known as in the U.K., where in 2016 he was knighted by the Prince of Wales. Born on this day in 1945, his path to musical fame started as the lead singer for Them (or “Les...
by Britt Ryan | Aug 30, 2020 | Today in Music History
The Mamas and the Papas channeled an emerging West Coast counterculture sound when they recorded “California Dreamin’” in 1965. John Phillips, who co-wrote the song with wife Michelle Phillips, was born in Parris Island, South Carolina on this day in 1935 (he died in...
by Britt Ryan | Aug 29, 2020 | Today in Music History
Hey, guess who just turned 100. Jazz saxophone superstar Charlie Parker was born on this day in Kansas City, Kansas, in 1920. His addiction to heroin led to his premature death at age 34 in 1955, but the legacy of the bebop virtuoso known as “Bird” burns as brightly...
by Britt Ryan | Aug 28, 2020 | Today in Music History
Jack Black. Funny guy. Movie star. And … natural-born rock ‘n’ roll animal. Born in Santa Monica, California, on this day in 1969, the star of “School of Rock” is also the frontman of Tenacious D, his satiric rock power duo with Kyle Gass. Black brings a manic...
by Britt Ryan | Aug 27, 2020 | Today in Music History
Tragedy struck on this day in 1990, when Stevie Ray Vaughn and four others were killed in a helicopter crash after Vaughn played a show with Eric Clapton and Robert Cray in East Troy, Wisconsin. He was just 35 years old. Born in Dallas, Texas, he was widely considered...
