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.
March 18, 1947 ~ Barrie James Wilson, commonly known as baroque pop, rock, progressive rock drummer BJ Wilson, born in Edmonton, UK ~ Member of the Paramounts, known for their 1963 single Poison Ivy. Declined an offer by Jimmy Page and Robert Plant to join Led Zeppelin. Best known as longtime drummer for Procol Harum, joining the band in 1967 right after the succes of their A Whiter Shade Of Pale debut single and present on all subsequent recordings through 1977 ~ Wilson passed away in 1990March 18, 1946 ~ Country, folk singer, songwriter Merle Travis records No Vacancy at Radio Recorders, Los Angeles, California ~ Written by Merle Travis and Cliffie Stone. Reportedly, No Vacancy got Travis his first major solo recording contract. Stone brought the idea, a tale of a World War II veteran returning to find nowhere to live, to Travis who recorded it. Lee Gillette would be enamored and sign Travis to Capitol Records. The single, b/w Cincinnati Lou, would reach top 5 Billboard Country
March 18, 1945 ~ Roberto Satti, commonly known as pop singer, actor Bobby Solo, born in Rome, Italy ~ Disqualified from the 1964 edition of the Sanremo Music Festival for lip-syncing due to suffering from laryngitis, yet his entry of Una Lacrima Sul Viso would become a hit and actually the first record to sell over a million copies in Italy. Other well known songs include Se Piangi Se Ridi which was picked as Italy's 1965 Eurovision Songfestival entry reaching 5th place, and his 1969 No.1 hit Zingara
March 18, 1945 ~ Charles Edward Weiss, commonly known as singer, songwriter, actor Chuck E Weiss, born in Denver, Colorado, USA ~ Played blues, beat poetry, rock & roll. got his start in music as touring drummer for Lightnin' Hopkins. To mainstream audiences perhaps best known as the subject of Rickie Lee Jones' 1979 Chuck E's In Love hit single. Released his eponymous Chuck E Weiss debut album in 1981. Had Tony Gilkyson and Tom Waits guest on his 1999 Extremely Cool album, with Waits also signing on as co-producer ~ Weiss passed away in 2021March 18, 1945 ~ Singer, songwriter, keyboardist, artist manager Eric Woolfson born in Charing Cross, UK ~ Best known for his close association with Alan Parsons, practically being co-creator and only other key member of the Alan Parsons Project. Previously worked as a songwriter for artists including Marianne Faithfull, Frank Ifield, Joe Dassin, the Tremeloes, Marmalade, Dave Berry, and Peter Noone. Turned to music management, his first two signings being Carl Douglas and Parsons ~ Woolfson passed away in 20095
March 18, 1943 ~ Songwriter Dennis Linde born in Abilene, Texas, USA ~ Songwriter best known for penning Elvis Presley's 1972 hit Burning Love. Others who have recorded his songs include Roy Drusky (Long Long Texas Road), Roger Miller, Gary Morris, the Oak Ridge Boys, Tanya Tucker, Don Williams (Walkin' A Broken Heart), Eddy Raven, Mark Chesnutt, Aaron Tippin, Garth Brooks (Callin' Baton Rouge), Delbert McClinton (Love Rustler), Blackhawk, Joe Diffie (John Deere Green), the Judds, BJ Thomas, the Dixie Chicks (Goodbye Earl), the Everly Brothers, Chris LeDoux, Shenandoah, Ricky Van Shelton, Joy Lynn White, the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Jo-El Sonnier, Sherrié Austin, and Confederate Railroad ~ Linde passed away in 2006
March 18, 1943 ~ Soul singer Lowrell Simon born in Chicago, Illinois, USA ~ Member of the Vondells. Member of Lost Generation. Wrote Dance Master for Willie Henderson. Wrote All About The Paper for Loleatta Holloway. As a solo artist best known for Mellow Mellow Right, a modest hit in 1979 and sampled by numerous artists including Massive Attack, Imagination and Common ~ Simon passed away in 2018March 18, 1942 ~ Singer Al Dexter records Rosalita at CBS Columbia Square Studio, California, USA ~ Written by Al Dexter. Backed by Frank Marvin, Johnny Bond, Dick Reinhart. Released in March 1943 as the flip side of Pistol Packin' Mama. During the same session Dexter also recorded So Long Pal and Too Late To Worry
March 18, 1942 ~ Folk rock, psychedelic rock, rock, blues guitarist, singer, songwriter Mike Wilhelm, full name Michael Ray Wilhelm, born in Los Angeles, California, USA ~ Mentored by iconic blues singer, guitarist Brownie McGhee. Once cited by the Grateful Dead frontman Jerry Garcia as his favorite guitarist. Co-founding member of the short-lived yet influential group the Charlatans, a band widely credited for starting the Haight-Ashbury psychedelic scene. Following the band's disbandement Wilhelm formed the trio Loose Gravel and subsequently spent over half a decade as lead guitarist for the Flamin' Groovies, including on the albums Flamin' Groovies Now and Jumpin' In The Night. Wilhelm has also recorded about half a dozen albums as a solo artist, starting with Wilhelm released in 1976 ~ Wilhelm passed away in 2019March 18, 1941 ~ Country singer Margie Bowes, full name Margie Marie Bowes, born in Roxboro, North Carolina, USA ~ Best known for her 1959 country hit Poor Old Heartsick Me. Other well known songs include My Love And Little Me and Little Miss Belong To No One. Briefly married to Doyle Wilburn of the Wilburn Brothers ~ Bowes passed away in 2020
March 18, 1941 ~ R&B, soul singer, songwriter Wilson Pickett born in Prattville, Alabama, USA ~ R&B, soul with a grittier edge than most of his contemporaries. Nicknamed “the Wicked Pickett”. Started out as a member of gospel, vocal groups such as the Violinaires and notably the Falcons, teaming up with Eddie Floyd and Mack Rice, one of the key bands that laid the groundwork for later development of soul music. Sang lead on I Found A Love, which he co-wrote. Embarked on a solo career by the early 1960s. His third single, 1965's In The Midnight Hour, sold a million copies. Also known for tracks such as 634-5789 (Soulsville USA), Mustang Sally, and Funky Broadway. Pickett wrote or co-wrote the majority of his recordings ~ Pickett passed away in 2006
March 18, 1938 ~ Singer, actor, songwriter Kenny Lynch born in Stepney, UK ~ In his day one of the few black pop singers in British pop. Known for the early 1960s top 10 hits Up On The Roof and You Can Never Stop Me Loving You. Also noted for being the first to record a cover of the Beatles, namely Misery. Also wrote or co-wrote songs for Linda Thorson, the Small Faces (Sha-la-la-la-lee), and Cilla Black (Love's Just A Broken Heart) ~ Lynch passed away in 2019March 18, 1935 ~ Ska, rocksteady, reggae percussionist Noel Simms, full name Noel Bartholomew Simms, born in Kingston, Jamaica ~ Half of the duo Bunny & Scully, the other half being Arthur Bunny Robinson. Also worked with Coxsone Dodd, Prince Buster, the Aggrovators, the Upsetters, the Revolutionaries, Roots Radics, Big Youth, Peter Tosh, Dillinger, the Heptones, Justin Hinds, Johnny Moore, and Jimmy Cliff ~ Simms passed away in 2017
March 18, 1932 ~ John Chancellor Olcott, commonly known as singer, actor, songwriter Chauncey Olcott, passed away in Monte Carlo, Monaco ~ Sang in minstrel shows and Broadway shows. As a lyricist and composer especially known for Irish musicals such as Sweet Iniscare, Garrett O'Magh and The Old Limerick Town. Olcott retired from music in 1925 for health reasons ~ Olcott was born in 1858
March 18, 1927 ~ Guitarist, singer Big Daddy Kinsey born in Pleasant Grove, Mississippi, USA ~ Best known as patriarch of two family outfits, namely Big Daddy Kinsey & his Fabulous Sons from the 1950s through the early 1970s and Big Daddy Kinsey & the Kinsey Report started in the mid-1980s ~ Kinsey passed away in 2001March 18, 1927 ~ Musical composer John Kander, full name John Harold Kander, born in Kansas City, Missouri, USA ~ Best known for his work in the musical theater, including on the acclaimed musicals Cabaret and Chicago. The duo also wrote New York New York, first recorded by their protégé Liza Minnelli and popularized by Frank Sinatra
March 18, 1925 ~ Instrumentalist, composer Alessandro Alessandroni born in Rome, Italy ~ Best known for his longtime association with Ennio Morricone. Alessandroni's twangy guitar riff is central to the main theme of The Good The Bad & The Ugly. Other than performing on Morricone's film scores Allesandroni is also a noted film composer in his own right scoring films since the late 1960s ~ Allesandroni passed away in 2017
March 18, 1924 ~ Percussionist Jose Mangual Sr born in Juana Diaz, Puerto Rico ~ Father of José Mangual Jr and Luis Mangual, both renowned salsa singer. In-demand sideman during the 1940s and 1950s, credited with setting a standard for bongo playing. Has worked with the likes of Tito Puente, Charlie Parker, Count Basie, Machito, Ray Charles (The Genius of Ray Charles), Tito Puente, Miles Davis (Sketches Of Spain), Herbie Mann, Sarah Vaughan, and Cal Tjader ~ Mangual passed away in 1998March 18, 1919 ~ Michèline Care, commmonly known as singer, chansonierre Michèle Arnaud, born in Toulon, France ~ Represented Luxembourg in the 1st edition of the Eurovision Songfestival in 1956, performing the songs Ne Crois Pas and Les Amants De Minuit. Arnaud would reach the 2nd place, losing out to Lys Assia's Refrain, the contestant for Switzerland ~ Caré passed away in 1998
March 18, 1918 ~ Edward Shulman, commonly known as swing saxophonist, clarinetist, trumpeter Eddie Shu, born in New York, New York, USA ~ Worked with Tadd Dameron, George Shearing, Johnny Bothwell, Buddy Rich, Les Elgart, Lionel Hampton, Charlie Barnet, Chubby Jackson, Gene Krupa, Jackie Paris, Bobby Byrne, Mel Powell, Louis Armstrong, and Joe Bonner ~ Shulman passed away in 1986
March 18, 1893 ~ Swing, big band bandleader, drummer George Olsen, full name George Edward Olsen Sr, born in Portland, Oregon, USA ~ One of Victor Recording Company most popular bandleaders through the 1930s. Married to singer, actress Ethel Shutta from 1926 to 1939 with whom he has two children. Noted for leading the orchestra for the 1928 Broadway musical Whoopee as well as its 1930 movie version. Orchestra leader for The Jack Benny Program radio show ~ Olsen passed away in 1971March 18, 1893 ~ Jazz, dixieland pianist, bandleader Jean Goldkette, full name John Jean Goldkette, born in Valenciennes, France ~ Led the Victor Recording Orchestra during the mid- to late 1920s, which at times included Bix Beiderbecke, Hoagy Carmichael, Jimmy Dorsey, Tommy Dorsey, Eddie Lang, Chauncey Morehouse, Don Murray, and Spiegle Willcox ~ Goldkette passed away in 1962
March 18, 1884 ~ Pianist, songwriter, actor Joe Burke, full name Joseph Aloysius Burke, born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA ~ Perhaps best remembered for co-penning Tiptoe Through The Tulips With Me and Painting The Clouds With Sunshine, both major hits for Nick Lucas and the former covered by over 100 artists. Others who have recorded his songs include Edythe Wright, Ben Selvin, Gene Austin (Carolina Moon), Guy Lombardo (It Looks Like Rain In Cherry Blossom), Dean Martin, Billie Holiday (Getting Some Fun Out Of Life), Bing Crosby, Rosemary Clooney, Jim Reeves, Ray Charles, Fats Waller, Perry Como (Rambling Rose), Fats Waller, Rudy Vallée, Doris Day, Frank Sinatra, Chet Atkins, and Tiny Tim ~ Burke passed away in 1950
March 18, 1879 ~ Contralto singer Emma Carus born in Berlin, Germany ~ Vaudeville, Broadway performer. First gained attention in the cast of the original 1907 Ziegfeld Follies revue. Drew comparisons to Sophie Tucker, Fay Templeton and Eva Tanguay. Helped popularize Alexander's Ragtime Band, songwriter Irving Berlin's first major hit ~ Carus passed away in 1927