On This Day in 1976: George Benson records the groundbreaking album “Breezin'”
January 6, 1976 – George Benson records Breezin’ In a recording career that has spanned six decades, George Benson has proven himself one of the most influential and versatile performers in popular music. But after fourteen albums that attracted almost exclusively a jazz audience, it was his January 6-8, 1976 recording of Breezin’ that turned him […]
On This Day in 1980: Earth Wind & Fire released “Faces,” and the critics are still wrong today
October 14, 1980: Earth, Wind & Fire releases Faces album Here’s a tip: At the next party you’re attending, be sure to avoid discussing religion, politics or Faces. That’s only half in jest, as fans of “The Elements” know that the 1980 double album Faces stands as the most divisive, controversial, and oddly forgotten great album […]
On This Day in 1982: Lionel Richie leaves the Commodores to go solo
October 6, 1982 – Lionel Richie goes solo with debut album He was on top of the world as the lead singer and principal songwriter for The Commodores, but on this day in 1982, Lionel Richie completed a much anticipated career move, becoming a solo artist and issuing a massive selling self-titled solo debut album. It […]
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, […]
