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 3, 1986 ~ Alternative rock, post-hardcore, indie rock singer, guitarist, banjoist, bassist, keyboardist Daniel Anderson, full name Daniel Robert Anderson, born in Bellingham, Washington, USA ~ Co-founding member of alternative rock outfit Idiot Pilot and of electronic dance band Glowbug. Has also worked with the Ghost & the Grace, Ancient Lasers, and Hyro The Hero
March 3, 1986 ~ Singer David Bowie releases Absolute Beginners, recorded for the soundtrack to the film of the same name ~ Written and recorded by David Bowie for the soundtrack to the film of the same name. The film flopped, as investors lost money, yet Bowie's single would be a hit, reaching top 10 in over a dozen countries, including No.1 in Finland and Ireland. In Bowie's native UK the single reached No.2, while in America it failed to reach the top half of the Billboard Hot 100, stalling at No.53. The session musicians hired for the track, including Yes-keyboardist Rick Wakeman, were told they would be recording for an artist mysteriously called “Mr. X” only to find out it was David Bowie when they arrived at Abbey Road Studios in London. Bowie also starred in the film and recorded two more songs for its soundtrack, the self-penned That's Motivation and a cover of the Italian evergreen Volare (Nel Blu Dipinto Di Blu). Other artists who contributed songs for the soundtrack include Sade, the Style Council, Eighth Wonder, and Gil Evans
March 3, 1981 ~ Glam metal, hard rock singer, guitarist, bassist, keyboardist, drummer Tobias Forge, full name Tobias Jens Forge, born in Linköping, Sweden ~ Best known as frontman of Swedish hard rock outfit Ghost, noted for their hooky melodies, dark subject matter, and provocative stage shows. The band is especially acclaimed for their 2015 Meliora album. Although the masked band has been active since the mid 2000s Forge's identity would not be confirmed until 2017, following a lawsuit by former members over a royalty dispute. Forge has also worked with death metal band Repugnant, glam metal outfit Crashdiet, pop rock group Subvision, and alternative rock unit Magna Carta Cartel
March 3, 1980 ~ Country singer Dolly Parton releases Starting Over Again, lead single off her Dolly Dolly Dolly album ~ Written by Donna Summer and her husband Bruce Sudano about a couple divorcing after decades of marriage, the song inspired by the actual divorce of Sudano's parents. Summer performed the song on The Tonight Show when the complex arrangement for another Summer song would be too difficult for the TV show's house band. The next day, Dolly Parton's staff inquired about the song. Parton would record the song for her Dolly Dolly Dolly album. Issued as the album's lead single, it would reach No.36 on the all-genre Billboard Hot 100, and spend one week atop the Billboard Country chart. Sudano would later comment to Songfacts how he wasn't trying to reunite his parents with the song: “I was merely painting a picture of these people who had been married for 30 years, and here they are by the end of the song, two fools starting over again because basically, both of them had gone from their parents' house into this marriage”
March 3, 1977 ~ Singer Ronan Keating, full name Ronan Patrick John Keating, born in Dublin, Ireland ~ Rose to fame in the mid 1990s as member of boy band Boyzone, known for hits such as Working My Way Back To You, Love Me For A Reason, Father And Son, Words, A Different Beat, All That I Need, and No Matter What. As a solo artist especially known for his 1999 Keith Whitley-cover When You Say Nothing At All, featured in the Notting Hill film. Released his full-length solo debut album, Ronan, the following yearMarch 3, 1976 ~ Lyricist Ray Gilbert passed away in Los Angeles, California, USA ~ Perhaps best remembered for co-writing Zip-a-dee-doo-dah with Allie Wrubel, performed by James Baskett in the 1946 film Song Of The South. Others who have recorded his songs include Kay Kyser, Benny Goodman (All The Cats Join In), the Andrews Sisters, Count Basie, and Slim Whitman ~ Gilbert was born in 1912
March 3, 1975 ~ Jazz, experimental, avant-garde, indie rock saxophonist, clarinetist, hornist, flutist Colin Stetson born in Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA ~ Leader and sideman. Worked with Arcade Fire, Bon Iver, the Bell Orchestre, Ex Eye, Tom Waits, Laurie Anderson, Lou Reed, Sinéad O'Connor, the National, Animal Collective, LCD Soundsystem, Hamid Drake, David Byrne, Bill Laswell, Evan Parker, Jolie Holland, the Chemical Brothers, Shahzad Ismaily, My Brightest Diamond, Angélique Kidjo, Kevin Devine, David Gilmour, Anthony Braxton, Sarah Neufeld, Esmerine, and FeistMarch 3, 1974 ~ Todd Baechle, commonly known as indie rock singer Todd Fink, born in Omaha, Nebraska, USA ~ Member of 1990s outfit Commander Venus, present on both the band's albums Do You Feel At Home and Uneventful Vacation. Lead singer of the Faint, which also included his brother drummer Clark Baechle. Married singer Orenda Fink in 2005, whose surname he took. Has also appeared on albums by Bright Eyes, Cursive, Steve Aoki, and Felix Cartal
March 3, 1970 ~ Indie pop, power pop, psychedelic pop singer, guitarist, bassist, songwriter Tom Morgan, full name Thomas Martin Morgan, born in Maitland, Australia ~ Best known as frontman of indie pop group Smudge, acclaimed for the mid 1990s albums Tea Toast & Turmoil and Manilow. Co-wrote the Lemonheads' Being Around and Style, both of the 1992 It's A Shame About Ray breakthrough album. Has also worked with Sneeze, the Givegoods, Godstar, Tofu Kok, and Bambino Koresh. Morgan issued his Orange Syringe solo debut album in 2013, his wife singer Leticia Nischang providing backing vocals
March 3, 1966 ~ Anthony Terrell Smith, commonly known as rapper, producer, actor Tone Loc, born in Los Angeles, California, USA ~ Best known for his 1989 hit singles Wild Thing and Funky Cold Medina, both of which reached the Billboard top 10. Also appeared on We're All In The Same Gang, a collaborative single under the moniker West Coast Rap All-Stars which also included Ice-T, Dr Dre, Young MC, Eazy E, and MC HammerMarch 3, 1961 ~ Pianist, composer Paul Wittgenstein passed away in New York, New York, USA ~ Known for commissioning for the left hand alone, following the amputation of his right arm. Composers who have written pieces for Witgenstein include Benjamin Britten, Alexandre Tansman, Sergei Prokofiev, Richard Strauss and perhaps most famously Maurice Ravel, the latter writing the Piano Concerto For The Left Hand for him ~ Witgenstein was born in 1887
March 3, 1960 ~ Singer Lilian Day Jackson born in New York, New York, USA ~ Stepdaughter of iconic jazz drummer Art Blakey. Co-lead singer of early 1980s Dutch disco outfit Spargo along with keyboardist Ellert Driessen, the group known best for songs such as Head Up To The Sky, One Night Affair, Just For You, and Hip Hap Hop. The band's You & Me debut single, noted for its call and response vocals, would reach No.1 in the Netherlands and remains a radio staple to this day ~ Jackson passed away in 2023
March 3, 1959 ~ Jazz guitarist, composer Frode Alnæs born in Kristiansund, Norway ~ Has collaborated with artist such as Morten Harket, Magne Furuholmen, Arild Andersen, Jon Balke, Ole Edvard Antonsen, Ketil Bjørnstad, Henning Sommerro, Ray Charles, Dee Dee Bridgewater, Ian Hunter, Bjørn Alterhaug, Sissel Kyrkjebø, Gustav Lorentzen, and Jan Erik Vold
March 3, 1959 ~ Country singer Lefty Frizzell releases his The Long Black Veil stand-alone single, featuring When It Rains The Blues on the flip side ~ Written by Marijohn Wilkin and Danny Dill, the song has become a country standard recorded by well over an estimated 150 artists including notably the Kingston Trio, Johnny Cash, the New Riders Of The Purple Sage, Chris LeDoux, and Nick Cave. In 1969, a particularly memorable performance of the song was given by the Band at the Woodstock Music and Art Fair. Based on news reports of a murder, Wilkin and Dill came up with a fictional tale of an innocent man convicted of murder who had an alibi, spending the night with his best friend's wife, but chooses to remain silent to protect the woman's reputation. The chorus described the woman's mourning visiting his grave wearing a long black veil.Lefty Frizzell was the first to record The Long Black Veil, his 1959 Don Law-produced stand-alone single reached No.6 Billboard Country
March 3, 1957 ~ Singer Corry Brokken wins the 2nd edition of the Eurovision Songfestival held in Frankfurt, West Germany ~ Representing the Netherlands, Corry Brokken wins with the song Net Als Toen written by Guus Jansen and Willy van Hemert. Runner-ups would be France in second place, represented by Paule Desjardins with La Belle Amour, and Denmark in third, represented by the duo Birthe Wilke and Gustav Winckler with Skibet Skal Sejle I Nat
March 3, 1953 ~ Singer, songwriter Robyn Hitchcock born in London, UK ~ Influenced by Bob Dylan, John Lennon, Syd Barrett, Captain Beefheart, Bryan Ferry, Roger McGuinn. Fronted psychedelic, folk-rock band the Soft Boys, acclaimed for their 1980 Underwater Moonlight album. Debuted as a solo artist with the 1981 Black Snake Diamond Role album and has recorded to critical acclaim since, at times backed by the Egyptians or Venus 3 which also included REM's Peter Buck. Has also worked with Emma Swift, Grant Lee Buffalo, the Sadies, and Andy PartridgeMarch 3, 1951 ~ Soul, funk, R&B bassist Rustee Allen born in Monroe, Louisiana, USA ~ Best known as bassist for funk outfit Sly & the Family Stone from 1972, replacing Larry Graham, through 1975. Present on the albums Fresh and Small Talk. Allen has also worked with George Clinton, Lenny Williams, the Temptations, and Lighthouse For The Blind. Briefly led his own jazz fusion band, Second Wind, in the late 1970s
March 3, 1950 ~ R&B, jazz fusion guitarist Bruce Conte, full name Bruce Anthony Conte, born in Sanger, California, USA ~ Influenced by Albert King, Grant Green, George Benson, and Jimmy Nolen. Best known as member of Tower Of Power from 1972 through 1979, including on the band's eponymous 1973 Tower Of Power album which spawned the band's best known, the Billboard Hot 100 top 20 hit So Very Hard To Go and their signature song What Is Hip ~ Conte passed away in 2021
March 3, 1948 ~ Gary Lachlan Mack, commonly known as news anchor Byron MacGregor, born in Calgary, Canada ~ Scored a fluke hit US top 10 with Americans, a spoken version of a Toronto newspaper commentary by Gordon Sinclair set to the tune of America The Beautiful performed by the Detroit Symphony Orchestra. Sinclair also recorded a version. MacGregor scored the US hit, peaking at No.4 on the Billboard Hot 100. Sinclair's version would top the Canadian single chart ~ MacGregor passed away in 1995
March 3, 1948 ~ Donat Roy Mittoo, commonly known as keyboardist, singer, songwriter Jackie Mittoo, born in Browns Town, Jamaica ~ Musical director at Studio One Records. Best known as a member of the Skatalites. Also served as a member of the Sheiks, the Soul Brothers, the Soul Vendors, and of Sound Dimension. His song Peanie Wallie was reworked into Duppy Conqueror, made famous by Bob Marley. Co-wrote Armagideon Time, later covered by the Clash. Worked extensively with producer Bunny Lee. Also worked with Sugar Minott, and with Musical Youth ~ Mittoo was born in 1990
March 3, 1947 ~ Singer, guitarist, songwriter Tommy Blom, full name Tommy Albert Blom, born in Gothenburg, Sweden ~ Co-founding member of Tages, remaining with the band through 1968. Present on most of the band's best known including Tell Me You're Mine, I Should Be Glad, Don't Turn Your Back, The One For You, In My Dreams, Every Raindrop Means A Lot, I'm Going Out, Treat Her Like A Lady, all of which reached top 10 in the band's native Sweden ~ Blom passed away in 2014
March 3, 1947 ~ Soukous singer, songwriter Youlou Mabiala, full name Gilbert Youlou Mabiala, born in Linzolo, Congo ~ Dubbed Prince Youlou, Mabiala first gained attention as member of pivotal Congolese band TPOK Jazz from 1963 through 1972, for whom he wrote or co-wrote songs such as Celine, Asumani, and Lekwey. Following his departure Mabiala has worked with Lovy du Zaire, Somo Somo, and the Trois FrèresMarch 3, 1938 ~ Guitarist, songwriter Willie Chambers born in Flora, Mississippi, USA ~ Best known as member of psychedelic soul band the Chamber Brothers, known for incorporating elements of traditional gospel and blues, psychedelica and rock into soul, scoring a Billboard top 20 hit with the eleven-minute single Time Has Come Today in 1968
March 3, 1936 ~ Music critic, author Peter G Davis, full name Peter Graffam Davis, born in Concord, Massachusetts, USA ~ Best known as music critic for the magazine New York from 1980 through 2007. Has also worked for the New York Times, Musical America, Opera News. Authored the book The American Opera Singer, released in 1997 ~ Davis passed away in 2021
March 3, 1934 ~ James Emory Garrison, commonly known as jazz bassist Jimmy Garrison, born in Miami, Florida, USA ~ Perhaps best known for backing John Coltrane from the early 1960s until Coltrane's death in 1967, including on seminal albums such as My Favorite Things, Impressions, Live At Birdland, and A Love Supreme. Has also appeared on albums by the likes of Kenny Dorham, Philly Joe Jones, Tony Scott (Golden Moments), Lee Konitz (Live At The Half Note), JR Monterose, Eric Dolphy (Outward Bound), Cal Massey, Ted Curson, Ornette Coleman (The Art Of The Improvisers), Sonny Rollins, Alice Coltrane, Elvin Jones, Archie Shepp (Attica Blues), and Beaver Harris ~ Garrison passed away in 1976