About maketodayrock.com: We celebrate musicians' birthdays, remember those we've lost, and highlight key moments in music such a release dates, chart peak dates, or anything else tied to a specific date. Pick any day from the menu in the top right. The front page shows recent obituaries.
July 21, 1988 ~ Kevin Elijah Burgess, commonly known as Christian hip-hop rapper KB, born in St Petersburg, Florida, USA ~ Discovered by Lecrae. Initially an excellent student on a path to a scholarship, Burgess would suffer from severe depression and dabble in drugs. He would, however, find faith and burst onto the Christian hip hop scene with his highly acclaimed Weight & Glory debut album in 2012 and has recorded to critical acclaim since. Well known songs include 100, Sideways, Hold Me Back, and Graves. Over the course of his career, Burgess has collaborated with some of Christian hip hop's finest, including DJ Official, Pro, Tedashii, 116 Clique, and J'son
July 21, 1984 ~ In its 10th week on the charts, Legs by ZZ Top peaks at No.8 Billboard Hot 100 ~ Aided by heavy rotation on MTV, Legs would become the band's first of two top 10 hits, its successor Sleeping Bag also peaking at No.8 the following year. Feminist groups would criticize Legs for objectifying women, although the band been releasing songs with sexually charged lyrics for years. Their first hit was Tush in 1975, which was probably more offensive but the band was less popular so it drew fewer protestsJuly 21, 1981 ~ Paloma Faith Blomfield, commonly known as singer Paloma Faith, born in London, UK ~ Released her Do You Want The Truth Or Something Beautiful debut album in 2009. The album would reach double Platinum status in the UK. Best known for songs such as Stone Cold Sober, New York, Picking Up The Pieces, Only Love Can Hurt Like This, Lullaby with Sigala. Has also collaborated with Adam Deacon, Sigma, DJ Spoony,
July 21, 1981 ~ Lawrence Leo Mosley, commonly known as jazz trombonist Snub Mosley, passed away in Harlem, New York, USA ~ Perhaps best known for inventing the slide saxophone, a horn which had both a saxophone mouthpiece and a slide, an instrument most prominently featured on Mosley's 1940 recording of The Man With The Funny Little Horn. However, Mosley was primarily a trombonist, active since his mid-teens and first gaining serious attention as a soloist with Alphonso Trent from the mid-1920 through the early 1930s. Subsequently Mosley has played with the Jeter-Pillars Orchestra, Claude Hopkins, Fats Waller, Louis Armstrong, Luis Russell, and Stuff Smith ~ Mosley was born in 1905
July 21, 1978 ~ Reggae fusion, hip hop singer, rapper Damian Marley, full name Damian Robert Nesta Marley, born in Kingston, Jamaica ~ Youngest son of reggae icon Bob Marley. Member of supergroup Superheavy alongside Mick Jagger, Joss Stone and AR Rahman. As a solo artist best known for his 2005 single Welcome To Jamrock. Featured vocalist on Jay-Z's 2017 Bam singleJuly 21, 1977 ~ Singer Linda Ronstadt joins the Rolling Stones on stage at a Tucson, Arizona, concert ~ Having just released her cover of the Stones Tumbling Dice, Linda Ronstadt joins the band at a Tucson concert to perform the song together
July 21, 1976 ~ Pop, axe, samba singer, actress, songwriter Emanuelle Araújo born in Salvador, Brazil ~ Rose to prominence as lead singer of Banda Eva from 1999 through 2002, present on hits such as Pra Lá E Pra Cá, Quem Ama and My Love. Founded samba-rock band Moinho with Lan Lan and Toni Costa in 2004. Released her O Problema E Va Velocidade solo album in 2016
July 21, 1975 ~ Nu metal, industrial metal drummer John Sankey, full name John Gerard Sankey, born in Dalby, Australia ~ Co-founding member of Divine Heresy. Co-founding member of Devil You Know, with whom he recorded the albums The Beauty Of Destruction and They Bleed Red. The band, sans Sankey, would later evolve to Light The Torch while Sankey returned to his native Australia where he joined legendary Australian nu metal group Superheist
July 21, 1975 ~ Shoegaze, ambient, dream pop singer, guitarist, bassist Mark Peters born in Liverpool, UK ~ Best known as co-founder, frontman of the Engineers, with whom he has recorded since the mid 2000s. The acclaimed dream pop group draws from ambient, pscyhedelic, and folk influences and is especially known for their 2014 Always Returning album. Peters is also closely associated with electronic musician Ulrich Schnauss, with whom he has recorded the collaborative albums Underrated Silence, Tomorrow Is Another Day, and Destiny Waiving. Peters has also recorded as a solo artist, noted especially for Innerland released in 2017, and guested on recordings by Elliot Ireland, Salt Rush, and Clem Leek
July 21, 1972 ~ Rock, alternative rock, post-grunge singer, guitarist, songwriter Ian Thornley born in Toronto, Canada ~ Lead singer of Big Wreck, known for songs such as The Oaf (My Luck Is Wasted), That Song and Under The Lighthouse. After the band disbanded in the early 2000s would session with artists such as Nickelback, Sarah Harmer and Stephen Fearing before forming his own Thornley band. Auditioned for supergroup Velvet Revolver yet did not feel comfortable being a lead singer without playing guitar, the position would eventually be given to Scott Weiland
July 21, 1972 ~ Country singer, songwriter Paul Brandt born in Calgary, Canada ~ Active since the mid 1990s, his first three albums all topping the Canadian country charts. All four singles of his 1996 Calm Before The Storm debut album would top the Canadian country charts, the singles My Heart Has A History and I Do would also reach top 10 on the American Billboard Country charts. Other well known songs include A Little In Love, Outside The Frame, That's The Truth, The Sycamore Tree, Didn't Even See The Dust, I'm An Open Road with Jess Moskaluke, and All About Her
July 21, 1971 ~ Singer, songwriter, actress Charlotte Gainsbourg, full name Charlotte Lucy Gainsbourg, born in London, UK ~ Daughter of actress Jane Birkin and singer Serge Gainsbourg. Best known as an actress. Released an album, 1986's Charlotte For Ever, at age 15 aided by her father. Debuted as a solo singer and songwriter in 2006 with the critically acclaimed 5:55 and has recorded from time to time sinceJuly 21, 1970 ~ Indie pop singer, keyboardist Michael Fitzpatrick, full name Michael Sean Fitzpatrick, born in Montlucan, France ~ Best known as lead singer for Fitz & the Tantrums, critically acclaimed for their 2010 Pickin' Up The Pieces debut album. Was previously a member of Band Of Merrymakers. Fitzpatrick has also recorded as a solo artist and guested on recordings by LL Cool J, Flo Rida, and Weezer
July 21, 1969 ~ Jazz pianist, bandleader Duke Ellington performs Moon Maiden on ABC ~ The day after the Apollo 11 moon landing, marking the first time men walked on the moon, Duke Ellington performs Moon Maiden on ABC covering the historic event
July 21, 1969 ~ R&B outfit Sly & the Family Stone release the stand-alone single Hot Fun In The Summertime, featuring Fun on the flip side ~ A dedication to the fun to be had during the summertime, Hot Fun In The Summertime was released only weeks prior to the band's performance at the Woodstock Music and Art Fair which greatly expanded their fanbase. Hot Fun In The Summertime reached No.2 Billboard Hot 100 held off the top spot by I Can't Get Next To You by the Temptations, making it their third top 10 hit after Dance To The Music and Everyday PeopleJuly 21, 1968 ~ Singer, guitarist, songwriter, producer Emerson Hart born in South Orange, New Jersey, USA ~ Lead singer, songwriter of alternative rock band Tonic, best known for Open Up Your Eyes, You Wanted More and perhaps their best known If You Could Only See, the latter reaching the Billboard Hot 100 top 20 in 1997. Hart released his Cigarettes & Gasoline solo debut album in 2007
July 21, 1962 ~ Composer, bandleader Maceo Pinkard passed away in New York, New York, USA ~ Perhaps best remembered for co-penning Sweet Georgia Brown, a No.1 hit for Ben Bernie in 1925. The song has since become a jazz standard recorded by over an estimated 1,000 artists including Cab Calloway, Art Tatum, Charlie Parker, Anita O'Day, Nancy Sinatra, Roberta Flack, and Danny Gatton. Other songs written or co-written by Pinkard include Those Draftin' Blues (Arthur Collins, Skeets Tolbert), Pile Of Logs And Stone (Clarence Williams), Give Me A Little Kiss (Will Ya Huh) (Ed Smalle, Jean Goldkette, Louis Prima), Sugar (Ethel Waters, Alberta Hunter, Peggy Lee), I'll Be A Friend With Pleasure (Bix Beiderbecke, Eddie Condon), and Them There Eyes (Hal Kemp, Billie Holiday, Frankie Avalon) ~ Pinkard was born in 1897July 21, 1961 ~ Alternative metal, funk metal, heavy metal guitarist Jim Martin, full name James Blanco Martin, born in Hayward, California, USA ~ Best known as guitarist of Faith No More from 1983 through 1993. Also worked with Fang, Die Krupps, Metallica (Reload), Voodoocult, Primus, Flybanger, and Echobrain
July 21, 1960 ~ Pop singer Brian Hyland appears as a guest on the TV game show To Tell The Truth ~ Best known for his single Itsy Bitsy Teenie Weenie Yellow Polkadot Bikini released the previous month and eventually a Billboard Hot 100 charttopper, Brian Hyland appears as a guest on the popular TV game show
July 21, 1959 ~ Pop, jazz singer Rossana Casale born in Milan, Italy ~ First gained attention in the early 1970s as a backing singer for Albero Motore. Following musical studies in Milan, Italy, Casale set out on her own, venturing into pop, jazz, and world music fusion. Has since recorded about a dozen albums, notably Strani Frutti released in 2000. Casale has also ventured in acting for stage and film, with several of her songs also used in the accompanying soundtracks, and is an in-demand duet singer for the likes of Alberto Fortis, Zucchero, Toquinho, Giorgio Conte, Kaballà, Mario Amici, Sergio Endrigo, and Renato ZeroJuly 21, 1956 ~ Jazz drummer, bandleader, composer Franklin Kiermeyer born in Montreal, Canada ~ First gained attention in 1994 with his Solomon's Daughter album, featuring renowned saxophonist Pharoah Sanders. Has also worked with Tony Scherr, John Stubblefield, Drew Gress, John Esposito, Azar Lawrence, and Michael Cuscuna
July 21, 1955 ~ Howard Norman Epstein, commonly known as bassist, guitarist, mandolinist, singer Howie Epstein, born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA ~ Best known for his tenure with Tom Petty for some two decades starting in 1982, including on the Billboard Hot 200 top 10 albums Long After Dark, Southern Accents, Full Moon Fever, and Wildflowers. Epstein was romantically involved with singer Carlene Carter in the early 1990s, and produced Carter's I Fell In Love album, for which he also co-wrote the title track. An in-demand collaborator and session musician, Epstein has also appeared on albums by John Hiatt (Two Bit Monsters), Cher, Stevie Nicks, Bob Dylan (Empire Burlesque), the Textones, Warren Zevon, Roy Orbison, John Prine, Johnny Cash (Unchained), Carl Perkins, John Fogerty (Blue Moon Swamp), and Linda Ronstadt ~ Epstein passed away in 2003
July 21, 1953 ~ Jazz percussionist Daniel Ponce born in Havana, Cuba ~ Exiled from Cuba by the early 1980s, Ponce would emerge from the New York Latin jazz scene as a renowned sideman. To mainstream audiences perhaps best known for playing the bata drums on Herbie Hancock's 1983 Rockit hit single. Ponce has also collaborated with artists such as Paquito d'Rivera, José Fajardo, Eddie Palmieri, Celia Cruz, Laurie Anderson, Mick Jagger, and Yoko Ono ~ Ponce passed away in 2013
July 21, 1951 ~ Actress, singer Lillias White born in Brooklyn, New York, USA ~ Well known for her performances in a number of Broadway musicals, including portraying the role of Sonja in a production of Cy Coleman's The Life, which earned White both a Tony Award and a Drama Desk Award. White has been active since the early 1980s, making her Broadway debut in the musical Barnum. Other notable credits include Cats, Once On This Island, How To Succeed In Business Without Really Trying, Carrie, and the jukebox musical Fela based on music and lyrics by the Nigerian singer Fela Kuti
July 21, 1951 ~ Improv, avant-garde jazz trumpeter Pino Minafra born in Ruvo di Piagla, Italy ~ Founding member of the Italian Instabile Orchestra. Has also worked with Gianluigi Trovesi, Mario Schiano, Han Bennink, Ernst Reijseger, Willem Breuker, and Michel Godard