On This Day in 1976: Stevie Wonder releases “Songs In The Key of Life”
September 28, 1976 – Stevie Wonder releases Songs In The Key of Life Now matter how you configure the Mount Rushmore of soul music, he is there. Stevie Wonder is virtually without peer in the history and development of music over the past half century. And in his Imperial Period of the 1970s, he issued some of the greatest […]
On This Day in 1972: Billy Paul released the iconic “Me and Mrs. Jones”
September 13, 1972 – Billy Paul releases “Me and Mrs. Jones” Billy Paul had quite a career as a jazz and soul singer in his 81 years of life, but nothing defined his place in soul music history quite like his incredible performance on this day in 1972, when he released the quintessential adult soul […]
On This Day in 1981: Rick James hits #1 with “Super Freak”
September 12, 1981 – Rick James hits #1 with “Super Freak” Rick James had been a big time hitmaker for several years, but his star status hit a new peak on this date in 1981, when his punk-funk opus, “Super Freak” hit #1. Co-written with James and Alonzo Miller, the song was the first single […]
On This Day in 1995: Michael Jackson’s “You Are Not Alone” becomes first song ever to debut at #1
September 2, 1995 – Michael Jackson’s “You Are Not Alone” becomes first song ever to debut at #1 In the 1980s it seemed that Michael Jackson could do no wrong. His three album collaborations with Quincy Jones (Off The Wall, Thriller, and Bad) were both critically acclaimed and were among the biggest selling albums of their […]
On This Day in 1963: A pre-teen Stevie Wonder breaks all the records
August 24, 1963 – Stevie Wonder breaks all the records A prolific musical genius who has created a “Mt. Rushmore” career, Stevie Wonder was just a kid when he was signed by Motown, a talent too good to pass up, even if the Motown brass didn’t really know how to market him. Those doubts came […]
On This Day in 1961: Motown released its first #1 song
August 21, 1961 – Motown released its first #1 hit Motown records certainly became a juggernaut in the music world, but its future wasn’t so certain on August 21, 1961. It was on that day that its Tamla imprint released “Please Mr. Postman,” the debut single by The Marvelettes. The song absolutely took off, becoming […]
Today in Music History: The Supremes land their first #1 hit (August 16, 1964))
August 16, 1964 – The Supremes land their first #1 hit Formed in modest fashion by a group of teenage girls from Detroit’s Brewster housing project, the Supremes went on to become Motown’s biggest act of the 60s and the most successful “girl group” of an era. But it wasn’t a sure thing in 1964, […]
On This Day in 1964: The Supremes land their first #1 hit
August 16, 1964 – The Supremes land their first #1 hit Formed in modest fashion by a group of teenage girls from Detroit’s Brewster housing project, the Supremes went on to become Motown’s biggest act of the 60s and the most successful “girl group” of an era. But it wasn’t a sure thing in 1964, […]
On This Day in 1962: The soul group The Manhattans was formed
August 15, 1962 – The soul group The Manhattans was formed On this day in 1962, one of the all-time great vocal groups became a reality: The Manhattans were formed in the early 60s in New Jersey as a quintet led by writer/bass vocalist Winfred “Blue” Lovett and emotive lead singer George Smith, along with Edward […]
On This Day in 1977: The Floaters climb to #1 hit with “Float On”
August 13, 1977 – The Floaters hit #1 with the single “Float On” The talented quartet from Detroit known as The Floaters unfortunately became synonymous with the term “One Hit Wonder,” but that one hit took the country by storm, hitting #1 on this day in 1977, and staying there for a whopping six weeks. The […]
