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.
May 23, 2023 ~ Saxophonist, bandleader Floyd Newman passed away ~ In-demand session musician closely associated with Stax/Volt, the Mar-keys, and the Memphis Horns. As a leader known for his 1963 single Frog Stomp b/w Sassy. Present on albums by the likes of BB King, Otis Redding (Otis Blue), Wilson Pickett, Etta James (Tell Mama), Aretha Franklin (Aretha Now), and Boz Scaggs ~ Newman was born in 1931
May 23, 2023 ~ Heavy metal, doom metal bassist Mark Adams passed away ~ Best known as member of Saint Vitus from 1978 through 1996, rejoining on occasion in later years. Present on some of the band's best known including the critically acclaimed Born Too Late album released in 1986, generally considered the band's masterpiece ~ Adams was born ca.1959
May 23, 2023 ~ Isaac Holt, commonly known as jazz, soul drummer Redd Holt, passed away in Chicago, Illinois, USA ~ Perhaps best known for his association with Ramsey Lewis, including on the acclaimed The In-Crowd album which earned the trio a 1965 Grammy Award for Best Jazz Performance. In 1966 bassist Eldee Young and Holt would split from Lewis and form the Young-Holt Trio. The group would score a modest hit with Wack Wack but find their greatest success after renaming themselves to Young-Holt Unlimited, reaching Billboard Hot 100 top 10 with their instrumental single Soulful Strut. The band has been sampled hundreds of times, most often in the hip hop genre ~ Holt was born in 1932May 23, 2023 ~ R&B, funk, smooth jazz singer, guitarist Sheldon Reynolds, full name Sheldon Maurice Reynolds, full name Sheldon Maurice Reynolds, passed away ~ Toured with Millie Jackson. Member of Sun, present on the early 1980s albums Sun Over The Universe, Force Of Nature, and Let There Be Sun. Worked with the Commodores, first appearing with the band as a backing singer on the 1985 Nightshift album. Worked with Earth Wind & Fire, starting on the 1987 Touch The World album. Also present on albums by Maurice White, Philip Bailey, Debbie Allen, Club Nouveau, Jennifer Love Hewitt, Joey Lawrence, the Pointer Sisters, Take 6, Rahsaan Patterson, and the Urban Jazz Network ~ Reynolds was born in 1959
May 23, 2022 ~ Bluegrass fiddler, guitarist James Price, full name James Dean Price, passed away in Parkersburg, West Virginia, USA ~ Closely associated with Ralph Stanley, playing with Stanley's backing unit the Clinch Mountain Boys from 1995 through 2003. Rooted in old-time mountain style, known for his clarity and precision on the fiddle. Member of the Blues Busters. Member of the Goin Brothers. Toured with Jim Lauderdale and Johnny Paycheck. Has also recorded as a solo artist, most notably the album Fiddlin' The Old Time Way released in 2003 ~ Price was born in 1964
May 23, 2022 ~ Country singer, guitarist, songwriter Thom Bresh, full name Thomas Charles Bresh, passed away in Nashville, Tennessee, USA ~ Son of country singer Merle Travis. Member of rock & roll outfit the Crescents, known for their instrumental song Pink Dominos released in 1963. As a solo artist best known for his 1976 single Homemade Love, a Billboard Country top 10 hit of his full-length debut album of the same name. The follow-up, Sad Country Love Song, would reach the top 20. Bresh recorded two more albums over the next few years, generating a number of modest hits ~ Bresh was born in 1948
May 23, 2021 ~ Cristóbal Halffter Jiménez-Encina, commonly known as classical composer Cristóbal Halffter, passed away in Villafranca del Bierzo, Spain ~ Married to pianist Maria Manuela Caro. Regarded as the most important of a group of composer dubbed the Generación del 51. Best known for a number of works during the 1960s and 1970s touching on human rights, most notably the 1968 choral composition Yes Speak Out Yes. Other well known pieces include his 1954 neoclassical Piano Concerto and the 2000 opera Don Quijote ~ Jiménez was born in 1930
May 23, 2017 ~ Soul singer Chris Blue wins NBC's The Voice ~ Soul singer Chris Blue wins the 12th season of NBC's talent show The Voice, runner-up would be Lauren Duski. Since his win on the show, Blue has recorded several albums but failed to make the charts
May 23, 2015 ~ Pop singer Måns Zelmerlöw wins the 60th edition of the Eurovision Songfestival held in Vienna, Austria ~ Representing Sweden, Måns Zelmerlöw wins with the song Heroes written by Anton Hård af Segerstad, Joy Deb and Linnéa Deb. Runner-ups would be Russia's Polina Gagarina with A Million Voices in 2nd place and Italy's Il Volo with Grande Amore in 3rdMay 23, 2013 ~ Giuseppe Mustacchi, commonly known as singer, guitarist, songwriter Georges Moustaki, passed away in Nice, France ~ Revered songwriter, wrote an estimated 300 songs. Artists who have recorded his work include some of France's most popular singers including Edith Piaf (Milord), Françoise Hardy, Yves Montand, Serge Reggiani (Sarah), Brigitte Fontaine, Herbert Pagani, France Gall, Cindy Daniel, Juliette Gréco, Barbara (La Langue Dame Brune), Pia Colombo, and Tino Rossi ~ Mustacchi was born in 1934
May 23, 2012 ~ Singer, songwriter Phillip Phillips wins American Idol ~ Singer, songwriter Phillip Phillips wins the 11th season of talent show American Idol aired on Fox, beating singer, songwriter Jessica Sanchez. Following his win on the show, Phillips' Home became the best-selling coronation single in American Idol history. The singer would release his full-length The World From The West Side Of The Moon debut album later the same year
May 23, 2011 ~ Country singers Brad Paisley and Carrie Underwood release their Remind Me collaborative single ~ Brad Paisley and Carrie Underwood had discussed recording a duet for the former's This Is Country Music album but couldn't coordinate their schedules before the album was due to be completed. Paisley sent Underwood a demo of the song, the female part sung by Sheryl Crow, she liked it, and with the album's release date pushed back they finally recorded the song in early February 2011. The single would be released as the album's third single, and mark Paisley highest charting Billboard Hot 100 entry, peaking at No.17. Underwood would comment on the recording of the song as “the most unorganized thing she had ever been a part of”, but added that in the end “it all worked out so perfectly.”
May 23, 2007 ~ Singer, songwriter Jordin Sparks wins American Idol, aired on Fox ~ At age 17, Jordin Sparks wins the sixth season of talent show American Idol, making her the youngest winner of the franchise. Runner-up would be singer, beatboxer, songwriter Blake Lewis. Following her success on the show, Sparks released her eponymous debut album later the same year, which spawned the Billboard Hot 100 top 10 hits Tattoo and No Air. Sparks has continued to record, yet proved unable to repeat her earlier successMay 23, 2001 ~ Keyboardist Tommy Eyre passed away in Los Angeles, California, USA ~ In-demand session keyboardist. Worked with Joe Cocker (notably on With A Little Help From My Friends), John Martyn, Gary Moore, Alex Harvey, Greg Lake, BB King, John Mayall, Ian Gillan, Gerry Rafferty (Baker Street), Tracy Chapman, Mark Almond, Wham, George Michael, Zzebra, Keb' Mo, and Jake Andrews ~ Eyre was born in 1949
May 23, 2000 ~ Singer Janet Jackson releases Doesn't Really Matter, recorded for the soundtrack of Nutty Professor II (The Klumps) ~ Based on a discarded poem Janet Jackson had written years earlier, the electropop, R&B and dance track Doesn't Really Matter was recorded for the soundtrack of Nutty Professor II (The Klumps), a comedy in which Jackson also starred. The upbeat and catchy song was met with mostly positive reviews, with some such as the Village Voice going so far as to dub it Jackson's best song since Black Cat in 1990. Commercially, Doesn't Really Matter also did well as it held the top spot on the all-genre Billboard Hot 100 for three consecutive weeks before being bumped by Madonna's Music. Jackson included Doesn't Really Matter on her All For You albumMay 23, 2000 ~ Singer Marcus Hutson passed away ~ Member of R&B group the Whispers, best known for the late 1970s, early 1980s hits And The Beat Goes On and It's A Love Thing. Hutson remained with the group from its inception in 1963 until 1992, leaving the group for health reasons ~ Hutson was born in 1943
May 23, 2000 ~ Singer Billy Corgan announces the Smashing Pumpkins will break up at the end of the year ~ Having released five albums since the early 1990s, including the Billboard Hot 200 No.1 album Mellon Collie And The Infinite Sadness, frontman and lead singer Corgan announces the band will break up at the end of the year, saying they are tired of “fighting the good fight against the Britney Spears's of the world.” The band would reform seven years later, performing live in Paris, France, in May 2007. The single Tarantula and the album Zeitgeist would be released later the same month
May 23, 1999 ~ The 30th edition of Pinkpop takes place in Landgraaf, the Netherlands ~ Day 2 of 3. A perfect sunny and warm weekend this year's edition would draw some 61, 250 visitors in total. Included on today's, Sunday the 23rd's bill would be Underworld, DAAU, Luka Bloom, Rowwen Hèze, Soulfly, Urban Dance Squad, Presence, the Postmen, Eddy de Clerq, and Red Snapper
May 23, 1995 ~ Jazz pianist Mick Pyne passed away in London, UK ~ Younger brother of trombonist Chris Pyne. Worked with John Stevens, Phil Seamen, Tubby Hayes, Stan Getz, Rahsaan Roland Kirk, Lee Konitz, Hank Mobley, Joe Williams, Ronnie Scott, Humphrey Lyttelton, John Eardley, Cecil Payne, Georgie Fame, Adelaide Hall, Keith Smith, and Charlie Watts ~ Pyne was born in 1940
May 23, 1994 ~ Joseph Anthony Jacobi Passalacqua, commonly known as jazz guitarist Joe Pass, passed away in Los Angeles, California, USA ~ Particularly known for his technique, innovative chord inversions and walking basslines and improvisational skills. Has worked extensively with pianist Oscar Peterson and singer Ella Fitzgerald. Also worked as a sideman for artists such as Gerald Wilson, Bud Shank, Les McCann, Frank Sinatra, Sarah Vaughan, Della Reese, Johnny Mathis, Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen, Benny Carter, Milt Jackson, Herb Ellis, Zoot Sims, Duke Ellington, Dizzy Gillespie, and Count Basie ~ Passalaqua was born in 1929May 23, 1994 ~ The 25th edition of Pinkpop takes place in Landgraaf, the Netherlands ~ Day 2 of 2. In total some 64,300 visitors would show up for this year's edition. Included on today's, Monday the 23rd's bill would be the Orb, Rage Against The Machine, Björk, the Smashing Pumpkins, Crowded House, Urban Dance Squad, the Breeders, Soul Asylum, Therapy, Afghan Whigs, the Levellers, Daryl-Ann, Galliano, the Charlatans, Cracker, and the Prodigal Sons
May 23, 1992 ~ Hector Roberto Chavero Aramburu, commonly known as payada, trova singer, guitarist, songwriter Atahualpa Yupanqui, passed away in Nimes, Francecabr ~ Regarded by some as one of the most influential Argentine folk musicians. Married to pianist, songwriter Paula Nenette Pepin. Found widespread acclaim in the 1960s, his songs recorded by Facundo Cabral, Mercedes Sosa, Jorge Cafrune. Known for songs such as El Arriero, Los Hermanos, La Pobrecita ~ Aramburu was born in 1908
May 23, 1991 ~ Bluegrass, country folk, folk singer, guitarist, banjoist, songwriter Sarah Jarosz born in Austin, Texas, USA ~ Released her Song Up In Your Head album in 2009, earning a Grammy Award nomination for the song Mansinneedof. The album featured guests such as Chris Thile, Darrell Scott, Stuart Duncan and Jerry Douglas
May 23, 1988 ~ The 19th edition of Pinkpop takes place in Landgraaf, the Netherlands ~ Sunny with clear blue skies, some 36,000 visitors show up for this edition's bill which includes Joe Cocker, Sinéad O'Connor, the Christians, the Pogues, Aswad, Herman Brood, the Godfathers, the Red Hot Chili Peppers, and the Rainbirds
May 23, 1987 ~ Rock, soft rock band the Doobie Brothers reunite with original members for a one-time Vietnam veterans benefit at the Hollywood Bowl, Los Angeles ~ The band, known for a string of 1970s hits including the Billboard Hot 100 top 10 hits Long Train Running, Black Water and What A Fool Believes, reunite for a one-time Vietnam veterans benefit concert. It would lead to a series of concerts over the next few months. The band would reform in 1989