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.
October 13, 2024 ~ Elizabeth Jurist, commonly known as singer, songwriter Libby Titus, passed away ~ Though as a solo artist Titus never became a household name, she has earned universal critical acclaim, the New York Times once praising her “feeling for style, (and) appealingly sultry insouciance”. Titus has co-written songs with Carly Simon, Burt Bacharach, Dr John, and Donald Fagen, and was married to the latter since 1993. Previously, Titus was romantically involved with the Band's drummer, singer Levon Helm, with whom she has a daughter, the singer Amy Helm. As a songwriter, Titus is perhaps best known for co-penning Love Has No Pride with Eric Kaz, first recorded by Bonnie Raitt in 1972 for her Give It Up album, and since covered by dozens of artists including Linda Ronstadt, Rita Coolidge, and Lynn Anderson. Titus herself has also recorded the song for her 1977 eponymous Libby Titus sophomore album. Admired by peers, Titus is the subject of several tribute songs, including Carly Simon's Libby, and Dr John's Pretty Libby, while Wendy Waldman adresses their friendship in Long Hot Summer Nights, and Donald Fagen sings about their marriage in The Great Pagoda Of Fun. Titus also portrayed several minor roles as an actress ~ Jurist was born in 1947
October 13, 2022 ~ New wave, electronic, synth-pop singer, songwriter Christina Moser passed away in Lugano, Switzerland ~ Formed the duo Chrisma with her husband Maurizio Arcieri, perhaps best known for collaborating with producer Nico Papathanassiou and Vangelis on the singles U and Amore as well as on their 1978 Chinese Restaurant album ~ Moser was born in 1952October 13, 2022 ~ Singer, pianist, songwriter Joyce Sims, full name Joyce Elizabeth Sims, passed away in Los Angeles, California, USA ~ Best known for her 1988 self-penned hit Come Into My Life, produced by Kurtis Mantronik. The single, lifted off her debut album of the same name, would be a notable hit, reaching top 10 on the American Billboard R&B charts, as well as top 10 in Belgium, the Netherlands, Switzerland, and the UK. Especially in Europe, the song remained a staple of pop radio, popular to this day. The singer would record one more reasonably successful album in 1989, All About Love, but was unable to repeat her earlier success. Lifetime Love and Love Makes A Woman, both lifted off her debut album, had both reached top 40 Billboard R&B. Sims would do better abroad as several other singles also reached top 40 in the UK, including All And All, Walk Away, and Looking For A Love. Both Jaki Graham and Randy Crawford would cover Come Into My Life, respectively on the 1994 Real Life and the 1995 Naked And True albums ~ Sims was born in 1959
October 13, 2021 ~ Andrea Meyer, commonly known as singer, actress, model, writer Andrea Haugen, passed away in Kongsberg, Norway ~ Influenced by the Cocteau Twins, Kate Bush and Gregorian chants. Formerly married to black metal guitarist Samoth, with whom she had one daughter. Recorded under numerous monikers, most notably Nebelhexë in the 2000s. Guested on Cradle Of Filth's 1994 The Principle Of Evil Made Flesh and Satyricon's Nemesis Divina. Also known as a poet and author, writing horror and satire film script, non-fiction and social commentary published in alternative magazines and tabloids. Shot and killed alongside four others in a random spree killing ~ Meyer was born in 1969
October 13, 2010 ~ Singer, songwriter, producer General Johnson, full name General Norman Johnson, passed away in Atlanta, Georgia, USA ~ Member of the Showmen, known for a number of 1960s hits such as It Will Stand, 39-21-46 and Our Love Will Grow. Fronted the Chairmen Of The Board, scoring hits with You've Got Me Dangling On A String, Everything's Tuesday and perhaps their best known Give Me Just A Little More Time. Johnson also wrote a number of well known 1970s songs including Patches recorded by Clarence Carter and by Jerry Reed, Bring The Boys Home recorded by Freda Payne and Want-Ads, Stick-up and One Monkey Don't Stop No Show recorded by Honey Cone ~ Johnson was born in 1941
October 13, 2009 ~ Alfred Cini, commonly known as singer Al Martino passed away in Springfield, Pennsylvania, USA ~ Popular Italian-American pop crooner from the early 1950s through the mid 1970s. Sang in nightclubs and recorded a handful of songs for Jubilee but got his big break winning first place on Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts performing Perry Como's If. This led to a record deal and the release of his breakthrough single Here In My Heart. It would top the pop charts in America and the UK. It also attracted the attention of the maffia who bought out Cini's management contract and ordered him to pay $75,000 to safeguard their investment. Cini moved to Britain, continuing to record and perform. He would later play the role of Johnny Fontane in the movie The Godfather ~ Cini was born in 1927October 13, 2003 ~ Irené Frances Eastwood, commonly known as singer Anne Ziegler, passed away in Colwyn`Bay, UK ~ Best known for her light operatic duets with her husband Webster Booth. The pair were dubbed “the Sweethearts in Song” and ranked among the most popular British acts of the 1940s ~ Ziegler was born in 1910
October 13, 2000 ~ Jazz trombonist Britt Woodman passed away in Hawthorne, California, USA ~ Best known for his work with Duke Ellington and Charles Mingus. Also worked with Boyd Raeburn, Lionel Hampton, Ella Fitzgerald, Toshiko Akiyoshi, Gene Ammons, Ruth Brown, Benny Carter, Tadd Dameron, Miles Davis (on Blue Moods), Dizzy Gillespie, Benny Golson, Chico Hamilton, Johnny Hodges, Jimmy Hamilton, Hank Jones, Junior Mance, Zoot Sims, Clark Terry, and Jimmy Woode ~ Woodman was born in 1920
October 13, 1998 ~ Changes by Tupac Shakur is posthumously released as the lead single off his Greatest Hits compilation album ~ Drawing heavily from Bruce Hornsby's The Way It Is, originally a hit in 1986, Tupac Shakur first recorded Changes in the early 1990s, dealing with several issues related to Tupac Shakur's era of influence including police brutality, drugs and gang violence. Both retrospectively and at the time of its release, nearly two years after the artist's death, the song earned universal acclaim and over time it became to be widely regarded as one of Shakur's best. In a review of the song, Billboard has stated the rapper “masterfully talks to his disciples like a pastor delivering a motivating and positive sermon to his congregation”, further adding “this track is a must for any playlist and ironic in that its all-important message surfaces after the artist became a victim of what his song addresses”. In the last verse of the track, Shakur imagined himself being shot to death mimicking the sound of the gun with the phrase “rat-a-tat-tat-tat-tat”. Changes would reach top 10 in over a dozen countries, and earned a Grammy Award nomination for Best Rap Solo Performance, making it the only posthumous song to be nominated in this category. Surprisingly, the Vatican included the song on their playlist on MySpace Music, a list of a dozen songs which also included Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Muse, and Shirley Bassey. The Vatican has stated “the genres are very different from each other, but all these artists share the aim to reach the heart of good minded people”
October 13, 1996 ~ Rock singer, guitarist Brad Robinson, full name Bradford Leigh Robinson, passed away in Melbourne, Australia ~ Lead and rhythm guitarist for the Australian Crawl throughout the band's entire existence from 1978 through 1986. The band enjoyed popularity in their native Australia with songs such as Downhearted, Things Don't Seem, Shut Down, and perhaps their best known Reckless (Don't Be So), the latter reaching top of the charts in 1983 in Australia and top 10 in neighbouring New Zealand. Following the band's disbandement, Robinson has worked as manager for people in the entertainment and sports industries ~ Robinson was born in 1958October 13, 1988 ~ Christian Walcott Webster, commonly known as rapper Chris Webby, born in Norwalk, Connecticut, USA ~ Has been releasing mixtapes since the late 2000s, leading up to his full-length Chemically Imbalanced debut album in 2014. The latter would reach top 30 on the Billboard Hot 200 charts. Has collaborated with the likes of Talib Kweli, Trae the Truth, Justina Valentine, and Dizzy Wright
October 13, 1986 ~ John Derek Yancey, commonly known as hip-hop rapper, singer, producer, songwriter Illa J born in Detroit, Michigan, USA ~ Brother of hip-hop producer, rapper J Dilla. Member of Slum Village. Formed the Yancey Boys with Frank Nitt, known for their 2008 eponymous The Yancey Boys debut album. Has also collaborated with Bishop Lamont, Roc C, Jonti, and Common
October 13, 1981 ~ Rowland Kelechukwu Okereke, commonly known as indie rock, post-Britpop, art punk singer, guitarist, keyboardist Kele Okereke, born in Liverpool, UK ~ Best known for fronting Bloc Party, a band rooted in rock drawing from electronica and house. Known for songs such as So Here We Are/Positive Tension, Two More Years, The Prayer and Flux, all of which reached the UK top 10. The band's first four albums, starting with the band's 2005 Silent Alarm album, all reached the UK albums top 10. Okereke embarked on a parallel solo career, releasing his solo debut album, The Boxer, in 2010. Has also collaborated with artists such as the Chemical Brothers, Tiësto, Martin Solveig, Sander van Doorn, Sub Focus, and Claptone
October 13, 1980 ~ Ashanti Shequiya Douglas, mononymously known as singer Ashanti born in Glen Cove, New York, USA ~ First gained attention in 2002 appearing on Fat Joe's What's Luv and Always On Time, both reaching the Billboard top 10. Released her eponymous Ashanti solo debut album later the same year, spawning the hits Foolish and Happy which both also reached the top 10. Has collaborated with Irv Gotti, Fabolous, R Kelly, Lloyd, Jagged Edge, Nelly, DaBaby, and Joyner Lucas
October 13, 1978 ~ Glam rock, hard rock, pop rock outfit Queen release Bicycle Race/Fat Bottomed Girls, the double A-side lead single off their Jazz album ~ Freddie Mercury wrote Bicycle Race after watching the 18th stage of the 1978 Tour de France passing Montreux, Switzerland, near where the band were recording their Jazz album. The song references Fat Bottomed Girls, the other A-side of the same single, with the line “fat bottomed girls, they'll be riding today”, and Fat Bottomed Girls reciprocates with the line “get on your bikes and ride”
October 13, 1977 ~ Rock, punk, reggae, experimental rock drummer, percussionist, guitarist, bassist, trombonist, singer Benjamin Clapp born in Boise, Idaho, USA ~ Member of punk outfit Haggis. Founding member of the Adversives and the Mosquitones. Member of Blazed and subsequently Baptized By Fire, playing alongside Jesse Blaze Snider in both. Member of Skeleton Key. Member of Amfibian alongside Phish keyboardist Tom Marshall, present on the albums From The Ether and Skip The GoodbyesOctober 13, 1975 ~ R&B outfit the Staple Singers release Let's Do It Again, lifted off the album of the same name ~ Written and produced by Curtis Mayfield, Let's Do It Again would be the last major hit for the Staple Singers, topping both the Billboard R&B and all-genre Billboard Hot 100 charts. In later years, the song would be sampled by several artists, notably by Xscape in the remix version of Just Kickin' It, by Ice Cube in the remix version of It Was A Good Day, and by John Legend in Number One off his Get Lifted album
October 13, 1974 ~ Violinist, conductor Josef Krips, full name Josef Alois Krips, passed away in Geneva, Switzerland ~ Brother of conductor Henry Krips. Of Jewish descent, Krips fled Austria after the Anschluss with Nazi Germany. Upon his return after the war was one of the few conductors allowed to perform, since he had not worked under the Nazi regime. Krips has conducted orchestras such as the Vienna Philharmonic, the Vienna State Opera, the London Symphony Orchestra, the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra, the Montreal Symphony Orchestra, the New York Philharmonic, and notably the San Francisco Symphony, serving as the latter's music director from 1963 through 1970 ~ Krips was born in 1902
October 13, 1973 ~ In its 9th week on the charts, Yes We Can Can by the Pointer Sisters peaks at No.11 Billboard Hot 100 ~ Issued as the sibling group's lead single off their impressive eponymous The Pointer Sisters debut album. Originally written by New Orleans stalwart Allen Toussaint and first recorded by Lee Dorsey in 1970, whose Yes We Can would be a modest hit on the Billboard R&B charts, the song would be popularized as recorded, and retitled, by the Pointer Sisters. The siblings' producer David Rubinson, who suggested the song, would later remark: “I loved almost everything Allen Toussaint ever wrote, and Yes We Can Can was one of the songs the Pointer Sisters recorded as a demo while they were seeking a label deal.” The band's follow-up single, Wang Dang Doodle, would score considerably less, stalling at No.61 Billboard Hot 100October 13, 1972 ~ Jazz drummer Phil Seamen, full name Philip Wiliam Seamen, passed away in Lambeth, UK ~ In-demand sidemen played with who's who of British jazz including Joe Harriott, Tubby Hayes, Stan Tracey, Ronnie Scott, Denny Termer, Dick Morrisey, Harold McNair, Don Rendell, Victor Feldman, Dizzy Reece, Tony Coe, Tony Lee, and George Chisholm ~ Seamen was born in 1926
October 13, 1971 ~ Pop rock sibling outfit the Bee Gees record My World at IBC Studios, London, UK ~ Written by Barry Gibb and Robin Gibb. Produced by the band and manager Robert Stigwood. Released as a non-album single, b/w On Time, the following January. Would be included on the 1973 The Best Of Bee Gees Volume 2 compilation album
October 13, 1971 ~ Michael Joseph O'Sullivan. commonly known as pianist Joe Sullivan, passed away in San Francisco, California, USA ~ Influenced by Earl Hines. Wrote and first recorded Little Rock Getaway in 1935, covered by over 50 artists including Frankie Trumbauer, Chet Atkins, Dave Brubeck, and Gerry Mulligan. Acclaimed for his 1955 Mr Piano Man album. Present on recordings by Sidney Bechet, Max Kaminsky, Bob Crosby, Billie Holiday, Marty Paich, Eddie Condon (Chicago And All That Jazz), Jack Teagarden (100 Years From Today), Les Paul, and Dill Jones ~ Sullivan was born in 1906
October 13, 1969 ~ Singer Neil Diamond releases Holly Holy, lifted off his Touching You Touching Me album ~ Peaking at No.6 Billboard Hot 100, the gospel-tinged Holly Holy would be Neil Diamond's fourth top 10 hit, preceded by Cherry Cherry, Girl You'll Be A Woman Soon, and Sweet Caroline. The love song has a spiritual focus, enhanced by backing from a gospel choir, yet it is primarily a love song. Diamond would later explain to the BBC: “What I tried to do was create a religious experience between a man and a woman, as opposed to (between) a man and a god”
October 13, 1969 ~ Country singer, songwriter Rhett Akins, full name Thomas Rhett AKins Sr, born in Valdosta, Georgia, USA ~ Father of country singer Thomas Rhett. As a singer best known for a number of 1990s albums, notably 1996's Somebody New and 1998's What's Livin' All About, the former including his only country No.1 Don't Get Me Started. Especially successful as a songwriter, often in partnership with Ben Hayslip and Dallas Davidson. Songs written or co-written by Akins were recorded by Brooks & Dunn, Jack Ingram, Joe Nichols, Blake Shelton, Jason Aldean, Josh Turner, Tyler Farr, Rodney Atkins, Justin Moore, Locash, Lee Brice, Billy Currington, Luke Bryan, Dustin Lynch, Aaron Lewis, Frankie Ballard, Brantley Gilbert, Chase Rice, and William Michael Morgan
October 13, 1968 ~ Classical crossover baritone Carlos Marin, full name Carlos Marin Menchero, born in Russelsheim, West Germany ~ Best known as member of classical crossover quartet Il Divo which also included Urs Bühler, David Miller and Sébastien Izambard. The group was created and promoted by Simon Cowell and would go on to sell over an estimated 30 million records. They have worked with numerous pop artists including Barbra Streisand, Céline Dion, Nicole Scherzinger and perhaps most notably R&B singer Toni Braxton on Time Of Our Lives, which served as the official anthem of the 2006 FIFA World Cup held in Germany ~ Marin passed away in 2021