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.
September 13, 2025 ~ Avant-garde jazz, forró keyboardist, accordionist, flutist, saxophonist, guitarist, songwriter Hermeto Pascoal passed away in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil ~ Leader and sideman. Important figure in Brazilian music since the mid 1960s. Worked with Edu Lobo, Elis Regina, Cesar Camargo Mariano, Airto Moreira, Humberto Clayber, and the Quarteto Novo. Internationally best known for appearing on the pivotal Miles Davis album Live/Evil released in 1971 ~ Pascoal was born in 1946
September 13, 2024 ~ Country, folk singer, guitarist Tommy Cash passed away ~ Served as a DJ for the Armed Forces Radio network while enlisted. Following his stint in the US Army, Cash would work with Hank Williams Jr and eventually land a record deal with Musicor Records in the mid 1960s. Best known for his 1969 Billboard Country No.4 hit Six White Horses, dedicated to the memory of John F Kennedy, Robert F Kennedy, and Martin Luther King. Following the success of the single, Cash would score a handful of top 20 hits on the same chart through the mid 1970s. In 1970, Cash would be the first to record the Carl Perkins-penned Rise And Shine, notably covered by Kitty Wells later the same year. Other well known songs include One Song Away, So This Is Love, I Recall A Gypsy Woman, and She Met A Stranger (I Met A Train). Despite being a passionate, versatile singer in his own right, Cash never achieved near the same stature as his elder brother Johnny Cash. Cash continued to perform and record well into the 2010s ~ Cash was born in 1940
September 13, 2023 ~ Folk, pop, schlager singer, guitarist, songwriter Roger Whittaker, full name Roger Henry Brough Whittaker, passed away in Toulouse, France ~ To American audiences best known for his 1975 Billboard Hot 100 top 20 hit The Last Farewell, which became a signature song and sold an estimated 11 million copies globally. Besides his warm baritone singing voice Whittaker is also noted for his whistling, specifically on songs such as Mexican Whistler. Other well known songs include Durham Town (The Leavin'), A New World In The Morning, and I Don't Believe In 'If' Anymore. Whittaker would enjoy popularity especially in Germany during the 1970s and 1980s, recording some two dozen albums in German though he did not speak the language ~ Whittaker was born in 1936
September 13, 2022 ~ Rock singer Bern Elliott passed away in Margate, UK ~ Fronted 1960s UK outfit Bern Elliott & the Fenmen, known for their 1963 UK top 20 single Money (That's What I Want) and its follow-up New Orleans. The band also included keyboardist Jon Povey and guitarist Wally Waller who would later join the Pretty Things ~ Elliott was born in 1942
September 13, 2022 ~ R&B, soul, blues singer Jesse Powell passed away in Los Angeles, California, USA ~ Brother of singers Trina Powell and Tamara Powell. Discovered by producer Louil Silas Jr. Best known for You co-written with producer Carl Roland, taken of his 1998 'Bout It sophomore album. The single would reach top 10 on both the Billboard R&B and the all-genre Billboard Hot 100 charts. Other charting singles included All I Need, I Wasn't With It and If I ~ Powell was born in 1971September 13, 2021 ~ Jazz promoter, producer George Wein passed away in New York, New York, USA ~ One of the most famous impresarios in jazz history. Co-founded the Newport Folk Festival with Pete Seeger and Theodore Bikel. Founded the Newport Jazz Festival. Instrumental in founding the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival ~ Wein was born in 1925
September 13, 2019 ~ Edward Joseph Mahoney, commonly known as pop, rock singer, songwriter Eddie Money, passed away in Los Angeles, California, USA ~ Initially aimed to become a police officer, following in his father's footsteps, but dropped out of the training to pursue a career in music. At the time, the era marked by student protests and a general resentment among the younger generation against the authorities, Money was a member of the Grapes of Wrath, but would eventually be fired from the band as his bandmates “didn't want a ‘pig’ in the group”. Has recorded about a dozen albums, starting with the eponymous Eddie Money released in 1977. Well known songs include Baby Hold On, Two Tickets To Paradise, Maybe I'm A Fool, Think I'm In Love, and Shakin'. Money's biggest hits, Take Me Home Tonight and Walk On Water, the former notably featuring Ronnie Spector, both reached top 10 Billboard Hot 100, peaking respectively at No.4 and No.9 ~ Mahoney was born in 1949
September 13, 2017 ~ Alternative rock, post-hardcore, hardcore punk singer, guitarist, drummer, songwriter Grant Hart, full name Grantzberg Vernon Hart, passed away in Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA ~ Drummer, co-founding member of punk rock band Hüsker Dü. As a songwriter credited with helping expand the subject matter of punk through songs such as Standing By The Sea, Diane, and Books About UFOs. After the band disbanded in 1987 Hart released his solo debut album Intolerance album before forming the trio Nova Mob, with whom he recorded the albums Last Days Of Pompeii and Nova Mob. Hart returned to recording as a solo artist in 1999 ~ Hart was born in 1961
September 13, 2016 ~ Hip hop duo Rae Sremmurd release Black Beatles featuring Gucci Mane, lifted off their Sremmlife 2 sophomore album ~ With hip hop bravado siblings Slim Jxmmi and Swae Lee, who comprise Rae Sremmurd, boast their popularity compares to the Beatles with Slim Jxmmi even claiming to be related to Paul McCartney of the hugely successful Liverpool group. Gucci Mane handles the second verse of the song, also boasting about his rock star lifestyle. The song became the go-to backing track for the Mannequin Challenge, in which people pose as mannequins while being filmed. When this became a viral thing, so did the song and Black Beatles would reach top 10 in well over a dozen countries, including the No.1 spot in their native America. It would be the first Billboard Hot 100 charttopper for both Rae Sremmurd and featured vocalist Gucci Mane as well as for producer Mike Will Made ItSeptember 13, 2015 ~ Guitarist, songwriter Gary Richrath passed away in Bloomington, Indiana, USA ~ Best known as lead guitarist and songwriter for REO Speedwagon from 1970 through 1989, including on hits such as Keep On Loving You, Keep The Fire Burning, One Lonely Night, and Can't Fight This Feeling. Formed the band Richrath when he left REO, resulting in the album Only The Strong Survive released in 1992 ~ Richrath was born in 1949
September 13, 2011 ~ Wilma Lee Leary, commonly known as bluegrass, country singer, guitarist Wilma Lee Cooper, passed away in Sweetwater, Tennessee, USA ~ Member of family gospel outfit the Leary Family. Married to fiddler, singer Stoney Cooper, with whom she also worked. Starting in the 1940s the duo would score several country hits including Big Midnight Special and There's A Big Wheel. After Stoney's passing in 1977, Wilma Lee would perform and record as a solo artist albeit it less frequently ~ Leary was born in 1921September 13, 2005 ~ Blues, country, folk, rock & roll singer, guitarist Chris Jones, full name Christopher Paul Jones, passed away in Northeim, Germany ~ Following a stint in the US Army, stationed in Germany, would spend most of his career in Europe. Influenced by Robert Johnson, James Taylor, Little Feat. Well known for his association with blues harpist Steve Baker. Has recorded about half a dozen albums as a solo artist, starting with No Looking Back released in 1983, and guested on recordings by Kieran Halpon, Reinhard Mey, Sara K, and Steve Strauss ~ Jones was born in 1958
September 13, 2003 ~ Velma Newsom, commonly known as R&B singer Chubby Newsom, passed away in Merriam, Kansas, USA ~ Best known for her 1949 hit Hip Shaking Mama. Half of Bluezettes, the other half being Alberta Adams. Also worked with artists such as Paul Gayten, Dave Bartholomew, Herbert Hardesty, Ernest McLean, Frank Fields, Earl Palmer, and Tiny Bradshaw ~ Newsom was born in 1920
September 13, 2002 ~ Gospel, R&B singer, radio DJ, concert promoter Thurman Ruth passed away ~ Professionalized gospel, including having gospel singers perform at “sinful” venues to reach a new audience, and teach them to abide by theatrical rules. Forefather of R&B. Co-founded gospel quartet the Selah Jubilee Singers, best known for their pivotal 1941 recording of Just A Closer Walk With Thee. Left the group in 1949 to pursue a more secular musical path. Original member of vocal group the Larks, known for early 1950s songs such as When I Leave These Prison Walls, Eyesight To The Blind and Little Side Car ~ Ruth was born in 1914
September 13, 1994 ~ Jazz, free jazz drummer John Stevens, full name John William Stevens, passed away in Ealing, UK ~ Considered a key figure in British free improvisation, perhaps best known for co-founding the Spontaneous Music Ensemble with Trevor Watts, The band, an influential loose collective, at one time or another included most of the UK's top experimental jazz musicians. Stevens was notably present on albums such as Karyobin, Face To Face, and Mouthpiece. Stevens has also recorded as a solo artist, noted especially for the albums For You To Share, Chemistry, Away, and SMO all released during the mid 1970s. Stevens has also worked with Amalgam, Steve Lacy, Dudu Pukwana, John Martyn (Live At Leeds), Ralph McTell, Charlie Watts, Detail, and Dick Heckstall-Smith ~ Stevens was born in 1940
September 13, 1993 ~ Country singer Alan Jackson releases Mercury Blues, lifted off his A Lot About Livin' (And A Little 'Bout Love) album ~ The song traces back to the late 1940s when it was recorded as Mercury Boogie by rural blues singer KC Douglas, who co-wrote this ode to the automobile brand with Bob Geddins. Prior to Alan Jackson, several have covered the song including notably Steve Miller, David Lindley, and Canned Heat. Jackson would be the first country artist to cover the song, taking the single to No.2 Billboard Country. At the end of the decade, Ford Motor Company would use a slightly altered version of the song, its lyrics changed to “crazy 'bout a Ford Truck”, sung by Jackson, for an advertisement campaignSeptember 13, 1991 ~ Conductor Robert Irving, full name Robert Augustine Irving, passed away in Winchester, UK ~ Worked with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, the Sadler's Wells Ballet, Margot Fonteyn, Michael Somes, the Philharmonia Orchestra, and the New York City Ballet ~ Irving was born in 1913
September 13, 1986 ~ In its 13th week on the charts, Take My Breath Away by Berlin hits No.1 Billboard Hot 100 ~ Giorgio Moroder, well known both for his work with Donna Summer and as a film composer, had already written the uptempo Danger Zone, sung by Kenny Loggins, for the soundtrack of Top Gun. Pleased with the result, the film's producers asked Moroder to also write a slower song for a romantic scene, which became Take My Breath Away. The song was first offered to the Motels, who recorded a demo, but eventually Berlin, a band Moroder had worked with before, would record it for the soundtrack. Take My Breath Away reached top 10 in well over a dozen countries, including the No.1 spot in Belgium, the Netherlands, Ireland, the UK, and America, and won both the Academy Award and Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song. About a decade and a half later, the Motels included their original demo version on the Anthologyland compilation albumSeptember 13, 1984 ~ Singer Titus Turner passed away in Atlanta, Georgia, USA ~ R&B, East Coast blues singer, songwriter best known for songs such as We Told You Not To Marry, Sound Off, Leave My Kitten Alone (later recorded by Johnny Preston, the Beatles, and Elvis Costello), Sticks And Stones (later recorded by Ray Charles), and Tell Me Why ~ Turner was born in 1933
September 13, 1982 ~ Avant-garde, black metal bassist, guitarist, producer Colin Marston born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA ~ As a musician has worked with acts such as Byla, Dysrhytmia, Sailors With Wax Wings, So Is The Tongue, Gorguts. Also an in-demand producer, engineer, mixer for the likes of Imperial Triumphant, Kayo Dot, Jarboe, Panopticon, Pyrrhon and Orthrelm
September 13, 1980 ~ Michelle Nolan, commonly known as indie rock, alternative rock singer, guitarist, pianist, songwriter Michelle DaRosa, born in Rockville Centre, New York, USA ~ Married to the Dropkick Murphys-bassist, singer Jeff Darosa. Best known as member of Straylight Run through 2008, departing the band to pursue a solo career. Has also sung backup for Taking Back Sunday and Coheed & Cambria
September 13, 1979 ~ Singer Geike Arnaert born in Poperinge, Belgium ~ Best known as member of Hooverphonic from 1997 through 2008, rejoining the band in 2020. Formed the duo Dorleac with Spinvis, known among others for the 2010 Adem soundtrack. Collaborated with BLØF on the 2018 hit Zoutelande
September 13, 1978 ~ Kasseem Dean, commonly known as DJ, producer Swizz Beatz, born in the Bronx, New York, USA ~ Member of the Ruff Ryders. Best known as producer, working with artists such as DMX (Party Up (Up In Here)), Eve (Gotta Man), Jay-Z, Beyoncé (Upgrade U), Styles P (Good Times), TI, Cassidy, Busta Rhymes (Touch It), and Kanye West
September 13, 1977 ~ Singer, pianist, songwriter Fiona Apple, full name Fiona Apple McAfee Maggart, born in New York, New York, USA ~ Classically trained pianist. Began writing songs at age 8. Debuted in 1996 with the album Tidal, of which the single Criminal earned her a Grammy for Best Female Rock Vocal Performance. Has been releasing records to both critical acclaim and steady fanbase since. Known for songs such as Shadowboxer, Never Is A Promise, Fast As You Can, and Everey Single Night
September 13, 1977 ~ Conductor Leopold Stokowski passed away in Nether Wallop, UK ~ English conductor of Polish/Irish descent considered one of the leading conductors of the early and mid-20th century. Best known for his long association with the Philadelphia Orchestra and his appearance in the Disney-film Fantasia ~ Stokowski was born in 1882