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 23, 2026 ~ James Wesley Voight, commonly known as singer, guitarist, songwriter Chip Taylor, passed away ~ Although initialy Taylor set out to make it as a singer, he would become best known as a songwriter, enjoying popularity especially during the 1960s. Taylor is perhaps best remembered for penning Wild Thing, a hit for the Troggs, Angel Of The Morning, originally recorded by Evie Sands yet better known as a 1968 hit for Merrilee Rush and later PP Arnold, and Try (Just A Little Bit Harder) recorded by Janis Joplin. Others songs written or co-written by Taylor include He Sits At My Table (Bobby Goldsboro), Worry (Johnny Tillotson), Lonely Is As Lonely Does (the Fleetwoods), I Can't Let Go (Evie Sands, Linda Ronstadt), Make Me Belong To You (Barbara Lewis), I Can Make It With You (Jackie DeShannon, Pozo Seco Singers), You're Takin' Hold Of Me (José Feliciano), Any Way That You Want Me (Tina Mason, the Troggs, HP Lovecraft), Step Out Of Your Mind (the American Breed), A Strange Song (Harry Belafonte), and I See You (the Pretty Things). In a 2023 interview with the Independent, Taylor recalled a memory from childhood, visiting a Broadway show with his family: “We sat in the fourth row, where I could see the orchestra and when they started play? Chills! I felt them all over, like my body was on fire. I remember not wanting to talk to anybody afterwards. We got into the car at night, and I made my parents believe I was asleep so the conversation wouldn’t stop me from having that feeling. I knew right then. I knew: this, I want to do something to do with this.” Voight is the brother of actor Jon Voight and uncle of actress Angelina Jolie ~ Voight was born in 1940
March 23, 2023 ~ Songwriter, lyricist Keith Reid, full name Keith Stuart Brian Reid, passed away in London, UK ~ Best known as lyricist of most of the Procol Harum songs, including Conquistador, A Whiter Shade Of Pale, Salty Dog, and Grand Hotel. Others who recorded songs co-written by Reid include Michel Polnareff (Time Will Tell), Gary Brooker, Peter Frampton, John Farnham (You're The Voice), and the Jeff Healey Band ~ Reid was born in 1946
March 23, 2023 ~ Pop singer, songwriter, producer, label executive Peter Shelley, full name Peter Alexander Southworth, passed away in Victoria, Canada ~ Active as plugger and talent scout since the mid 1960s. Responsible for signing Amen Corner, Ten Years After, and Giles Giles & Fripp to Decca Records, the latter later evolving into King Crimson. Co-founded Magnet Records in the early 1970s, for whom he developed the persona of Alvin Stardust and signed acts such as Guys & Dolls and Chris Rea. As a singer Shelley is best known for the mid 1970s UK hits Gee Baby and Love Me Love My Dog ~ Southworth was born in 1943
March 23, 2021 ~ Violinist Corinne Chapelle passed away ~ Child prodigy. Took up violin lessons at age 2 and gave her first public performance one year later. Studied with Yehudi Menuhin who called her “one of the most promising talents of her generation.” Received numerous awards. Has worked with the Montreal Symphony Orchestra, the Pacific Symphony, the Cologne Chamber Orchestra, the Prague Chamber Orchestra, and the Kölner Symphonie ~ Chapelle was born in 1976
March 23, 2016 ~ Martin James Norman Riley, commonly known as ska, reggae, rocksteady singer Jimmy Reilly, passed away in New York, New York, USA ~ Father of singer Tarrus Riley. Co-founded the Sensations with Cornell Campbell, Buster Riley and Aaron Dego Davis, and present on mid 1960s hits such as Everyday Is Just A Holiday and Those Guys. Left the band in 1967 to join the Uniques, known for songs such as Watch This Sound and My Conversation. Would go on to record as a solo artist throughout the 1970s and 1980s, well known songs include Tell The Youths The Truth, Clean Up The Streets and perhaps his best known Sexual Healing, the latter a reggae-cover of the Marvin Gaye hit ~ Riley was born in 1947
March 23, 2014 ~ Thrash metal, hardcore punk, punk rock, shock rock, heavy metal, comedy rock singer, guitarist, bassist Dave Brockie, full name David Murray Brockie, passed away in Richmond, Virginia, USA ~ Frontman of GWAR. The highly theatrical band has been described as thrash metal's answer to the more mainstream Spinal Tap, the band best known for its grotesque costumes and controvery-baiting live performances. They have recorded some dozen albums, and are perhaps noted most for their Scumdogs Of The Universe sophomore effort released in 1990. Brockie has also worked with Death Piggy, X-Cops, and the Dave Brockie Experience, and starred in the comedy horror TV show Holliston. Following his death at age 50 of a heroin overdose, several more famous musicians paid hommage to Brockie, including Lamb of God singer Randy Blythe and the Foo Fighters frontman Dave Grohl. Brockie was given a traditional Viking funeral ~ Brockie was born in 1963March 23, 2010 ~ Marva Maria Williams, commonly known as blues singer Marva Wright, passed away in New Orleans, Louisiana, USA ~ Sang backup for Allen Toussaint, Glen Campbell, Joe Cocker, Bobby McFerrin, Aaron Neville, Fats Domino, Lou Rawls and Marcia Ball. As a solo artist recording steadily since her 1991 Heartbreaking Woman debut album ~ Williams was born in 1948
March 23, 2006 ~ Country songwriter, singer Cindy Walker passed away in Mexia, Texas, USA ~ In 1940, accompanying her parents on a business trip to Los Angeles, Walker visited the Bing Crosby Enterprises Building on an impulse to pitch her Lone Star Trail song. Crosby's brother Larry Crosby was impressed, and arranged a demo session at Paramount Studios. It would land Walker a recording contract, while Lone Star Trail became a top 10 hit for Bing Crosby. Walker went on to become a prolific songwriter, with over an estimated 600 songs to her name. She is especially known for her association with Bob Wills, who recorded some 50 of her songs including Bubbles In My Beer, one of Walker's best known. Other songs written or co-written by Walker include Cowboy Blues (Gene Autry), I Was Just Walking Out The Door (Sue Thompson, Tommy Duncan, Wynn Stewart), I Don't Care (Webb Pierce, Kitty Wells, Ricky Skaggs), You Don't Know Me (Eddy Arnold, Ray Charles, Elvis Presley), Distant Drums (Jim Reeves, Charley Pride, Tex Ritter), Dream Baby (How Long Must I Dream) (Roy Orbison, the Marvelettes, Jerry Lee Lewis), In The Misty Moonlight (Jerry Wallace, Dean Martin, Hank Snow), and Gringo's Guitar (Perry Como, the Sons Of The Pioneers) ~ Walker was born in 1917
March 23, 2004 ~ R&B singer Usher releases Confessions, his fourth studio album ~ Usher named the album Confessions as he felt it was the most personal album, revealing more of himself than on earlier albums: “All of us have our Pandora's boxes or skeletons in our closets. I let a few of them out, you know. I've got a lot to say.” The album would be met with generally positive reviews, earned several Grammy Awards nominations, and was a major commercial success with all five of its singles reaching top 10 Billboard Hot 100, four of which reached the No.1 spot. It would also make Usher only the third artist in Billboard history, after the Beatles and the Bee Gees, to chart three singles in the Billboard Hot 100 top 10 when in June 2004 Burn topped the chart, Yeah was at No.4 and Confessions Part II reached No.9
March 23, 2002 ~ Soprano singer Eileen Farrell passed away in Park Ridge, New Jersey, USA ~ Active on the opera stage, in the musical theatre, as a concert singer with a career spanning six decades. Arguably credited for releasing the first successful opera crossover album in 1960, namely I Got A Right To Sing The Blues. Has worked with the Metropolitan Opera, the New York Philharmonic, the Philadelphia Orchestra, Mormon Tabernacle Choir, and Frank Sinatra ~ Farrell was born in 1920
March 23, 1999 ~ Hip hop, R&B act OutKast release Rosa Parks, lifted off their Aquemini album ~ Rosa Sparks was a black woman who was directed by the bus driver to give up her seat for a white man, but refused to comply resulting in her arrest as segregation laws were still in effect. The incident sparked a wave of protests and would prove a pivotal moment in the civil rights movement. OutKast would refer to the incident to address issues in the entertainment industry, yet other than referencing the incident in the chorus, the line “move to the back of the bus”, did not mention Sparks in the lyrics. Regardless, Sparks would sue OutKast over the song, claiming it exploited her image. The case would be settled in 2005, with the hip hop duo and their record company agreeing “to enlighten today's youth about the significant role Parks played in making America a better place for all races”. The OutKast single would be a minor hit on the all-genre Billboard Hot 100, where it reached No.55, and would make the top 20 on the Billboard R&B chart, peaking at No.19March 23, 1993 ~ Singer, songwriter JP Saxe, full name Jonathan Percy Starker Saxe, born in Toronto, Canada ~ First gained serious attention with his 2019 Grammy Award-nominated single If The World Was Ending featuring Julia Michaels, reaching top 30 in numerous countries including his native Canada, America and across Europe
March 23, 1990 ~ Jazz tenor saxophonist Al Sears, full name Albert Omega Sears, passed away in New York, New York, USA ~ Worked with Chick Webb, Elmer Snowden, Andy Kirk, Lionel Hampton, Duke Ellington, Johnny Hodges, Mildred Anderson, Al Hibbler, Budd Johnson, and Jimmy Witherspoon ~ Sears was born in 1910
March 23, 1989 ~ Michael Len Williams II, commonly known as hip-hop, R&B, pop, trap producer, songwriter, DJ, rapper Mike Will Made It, born in Marietta, Georgia, USA ~ Best known as producer. Songs produced or co-produced by Williams include Black Beatles and Powerglide for Rae Sremmurd, Pour It Up for Rihanna, Love Me for Lil Wayne, Formation for Beyoncé and Humble for Kendrick Lamar
March 23, 1985 ~ In its 10th week on the charts, Private Dancer by Tina Turner peaks at No.7 Billboard Hot 100 ~ Written by Mark Knopfler who initially intended to record the song with his own band the Dire Straits, only to realize it was a song more suited to be sung by a woman rather than a man. Tina Turner would later recall when Knopfler pitched the song, playing her the demo tape: “He recorded it but won't use it so when he put the demo on, he sang ‘I'm a private dancer, dancer for money, do what you want me to do,’ I told him, ‘I think you're right, it's not a song for a guy.’ I liked it a lot. I wasn't sure whether the girl was a hooker or a very classical private dancer but I thought I'd take it.” Knopfler wrote the song but did not play on the final take, though two other members of the Dire Straits did guest on the song, bass player John Illsley and drummer Terry Williams. Jeff Beck also performed on the song, playing the guitar
March 23, 1985 ~ John Haley Sims, commonly known as jazz saxophonist Zoot Sims, passed away in New York, New York, USA ~ Learned to play drums and clarinet at an early age. Brother of trombonist Ray Sims. Worked with Kenny Baker, Bobby Sherwood, Benny Goodman, Sid Catlett, Artie Shaw, Stan Kenton, Buddy Rich, Woody Herman, Gerry Mulligan, Al Cohn, Stan Getz, Art Blakey, John Coltrane, Hank Mobley, Jaki Byard, Count Basie, Oscar Peterson, Chet Baker, Louie Bellson, Clifford Brown, Ray Charles, Miles Davis, Kenny Dorham, Booker Ervin, Coleman Hawkins, Quincy Jones, the Manhattan Transfer, Carmen McRae, the Metronome All-Stars, Anita O'Day, Jimmy Rushing, and Joe Venuti. A saxophone-playing character on the Muppet Show would later also be named Zoot ~ Sims was born in 1925
March 23, 1983 ~ The rock trio ZZ Top release their Eliminator album ~ The band was expected to fail in the MTV era, yet with a new sound adding synthesizers and slick videos featuring cars, gorgeous women, and the three band members with their signature look, the band actually rose to international fame. Eliminator became the band's biggest-selling album, reaching top 10 in numerous countries including the UK and their native USA, and spawned the hit singles Gimme All Your Lovin', Sharp Dressed Man, TV Dinners, and Legs
March 23, 1981 ~ Singer, songwriter Brett Young, full name Brett Charles Young, born in Anaheim, California, USA ~ Released his major-label debut album, the eeponymous Brett Young, in 2017. Best known for songs such as Sleep Without You, Like I Loved You, Mercy and Here Tonight, all of which would reach Billboard Country top 10March 23, 1980 ~ Indie pop singer, songwriter Asaf Avidan born in Jerusalem, Israel ~ Rose to fame as frontman of Asaf Avidan & the Mojos, co-founded with Ran Nir, known for their 2008 The Reckoning debut album which spawned the hits Reckoning Song and Weak
March 23, 1980 ~ Singer Jacob Miller passed away in Kingston, Jamaica ~ Fronted reggae outfit Inner Circle until his death in a car crash in 1980. Present on recordings such as You Make Me Feel Brand New and Everything Is Good. The band would initially split up following Miller's death but reform in later years and achieve top 10 success in UK and across Europe in the mid 1990s ~ Miller was born in 1952
March 23, 1979 ~ Rock band Van Halen release their Van Halen II sophomore album ~ Recorded within a week, with its lead single Dance The Night Away reaching top 20 Billboard Hot 100, while the album itself reached top 10 Billboard Hot 200. At the time of its release, the album was warmly received by critics, Rolling Stone commenting that the album contained “various Vanilla Fudge bumps and grinds, an Aerosmith-derived pseudobravado, a bit of Bad Company basement funk and even a few Humble Pie miniraveups”. The black-and-yellow guitar, nicknamed “Bumblebee”, pictured on the album's back sleeve would later be buried with Pantera guitarist Dimebag Darrell as Darrell had once told Eddie Van Halen it was his favorite guitarMarch 23, 1978 ~ Singer Bill Kenny, full name William Francis Kenny Jr, passed away in Westminster, Canada ~ Considered one of the most influential tenor singers, sometimes referred to as “the Godfather of R&B tenor singers“. Best known as longtime frontman of seminal vocal R&B outfit the Ink Spots, present on most of the band's best known including We Three (My Echo My Shadow & Me), I'm Making Believe with Ella Fitzgerald, The Gypsy, To Each His Own, You Were Only Fooling (While I Was Falling In Love), and You're Breaking My Heart. Following his split from the Ink Spots in the early 1950s, Kenny continued to perform and record as a solo artist until his death of respiratory illness at age 63. Kenny was posthumously inducted in the Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame in 1989 as a member of what is considered the classic line-up of the Ink Spots, alongside bandmates Charlie Fuqua, Deek Watson, Jerry Daniels, and Orville Jones. For some time during the late 1940s, Kenny's twin brother Herb Kenny also sang with the Ink Spots ~ Kenny was born in 1914
March 23, 1977 ~ Indie pop singer, guitarist, banjoist Ben Salter born in Townsville, Australia ~ As a solo artist especially acclaimed for the albums The Cat released in 2012 and The Stars My Destination released in 2015. Has also collaborated with acts such as the Giants Of Science, the Gin Club, the Wilson Pickers, and the Young Liberals
March 23, 1977 ~ Swing, soul, jazz trombonist Bennie Green passed away in San Diego, California, USA ~ Leader and sideman. Worked with Earl Hines, Charlie Ventura, Count Basie, George Benson, Booker Ervin, Buck Clayton, Sonny Criss, Miles Davis, Duke Ellington, Slim Gaillard, Jo Jones, Howard McGhee, Cecil Payne, Ike Quebec, Sarah Vaughan, and Randy Weston ~ Green was born in 1923March 23, 1976 ~ Alternative rock bassist James Stelfox, full name James Paul Stelfox, born in Warrington, UK ~ Influenced by Neil Young, Paul McCartney, Massive Attack. Member of Starsailor, known for a string of 2000s UK top 20 hits including Good Souls, Alcoholic and perhaps their best known Silence Is Easy