Music History Today: December 21, 2021

December 21, 2002: Justin Timberlake enters the highest in Billboard's Hot 100, at Number 44, with "Cry Me a River." 

According to legend, “Cry Me a River” started with a phone call.

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As producer Timbaland tells it, Justin Timberlake had just come off the phone to his ex, Britney Spears, when he hit on an idea for a lyric during writing sessions for his debut. Britney had brought up Justin’s name at a recent concert; Timberlake, already smarting from public rumours about her infidelity, was furious. 

Read more: Dazed 

December 21, 1963: The Ronettes began their run-up Billboard's singles chart, at Number 100, with "Baby, I Love You."

"Baby, I Love You" was the follow-up to The Ronettes hugely successful debut single "Be My Baby."

The Ronettes

Like "Be My Baby," this was written by Jeff Barry and Ellie Greenwich, and produced by Phil Spector using his famous "Wall Of Sound" technique. Unfortunately, the song was released not long after the assassination of US president John F. Kennedy, which put a damper on sales of upbeat singles.

Read more: Songfacts

December 21, 1974: Harry Chapin had the new Number 1 hit in the US with "Cat's in the Cradle."

“Cat’s In The Cradle” doesn’t have all the layers of some of other Chapin’s songs. That’s fine. It sacrifices those layers for pure throat-lump effectiveness. “Cat’s In The Cradle” is a lyrics-first song, and everything exists to serve the all-pervading regret at the center. 

Read more: Stereogum

December 21, 1996: R. Kelly moved  from number 26 to his peak position at Number 2 with "I Believe I Can Fly."

"I Believe I Can Fly" by  R. Kelly is from the soundtrack to the 1996 film Space Jam.

It reached number two on the Billboard Hot 100, kept from the number one spot by Toni Braxton's "Un-Break My Heart". Although Kelly has had two number one songs on the pop chart, "I Believe I Can Fly" is his most successful single. 

Read more: Wikipedia

December 21, 2013: Pentatonix entered the US Hot 100 chart at Number 13 with "Little Drummer Boy."

Written by composer Katherine Kennicott David in 1941, first recorded by The Trapp Family a decade later and first made popular by the Harry Someone Chorale by the late 1950s, “The Little Drummer Boy” has become a holiday classic in the past 70 years with artists performing the classic. Here, we take a look at 10 renditions of “The Little Drummer Boy worth a listen. 

Read more: American Songwriter

Cry Me a River
Justin Timberlake