Music History Today: April 21, 2023

April 21, 2016: Prince died at age 57 after overdosing on fentanyl, a highly addictive opioid. 

Music History Today: February 10, 2023

February 10, 1990: Paula Abdul's "Opposites Attract" hit Number 1 in America for the first of three weeks.

"Opposites Attract" was written by Oliver Leiber, who is the son of legendary songwriter Jerry Leiber of Leiber and Stoller fame.

Music History Today: January 6, 2023

January 6, 2017: The movie Lost & Found, featuring David Spade imitating Neil Diamond singing "Brother Love's Traveling Salvation Show," opened in theaters.

Music History Today: November 6, 2022

November 6, 1990: Madonna released the first VHS video single in the US,  "Justify My Love."

Madonna released the first VHS video single in the US, "Justify My Love." Lenny Kravitz helped Madonna write and produce "Justify My Love." 

Madonna

Music History Today: October 6, 2022

October 6, 1990: "Close to You" by Maxi Priest took over the top spot on Billboard's Hot 100 chart.

Maxi Priest had come up through the London sound-system scene of the ’80s, singing over reggae instrumentals at parties and street fairs and youth clubs.

Music History Today: April 21, 2022

April 21, 1990: "Nothing Compares 2 U," by Sinéad O'Connor, began a 4-week run at Number 1 on Billboard's Hot 100 single chart.

Music History Today: November 3, 2021

November 3, 1990: "Ice Ice Baby" by Vanilla Ice hits number 1 in the US, marking the first time a rapper has topped the chart.

It finally happened. A rap song reached #1 on the Billboard Hot 100. In 1979, the Sugarhill Gang made “Rapper’s Delight” It went top-10 in a bunch of countries and peaked at #36 on the Hot 100. 

Music History Today: October 20, 2021

 October 20, 1973: "D'yer Mak'er by Led Zeppelin enters the Billboard Hot 100 chart.

The old jokes goes:  “I’ve just taken my wife on holiday to the Caribbean.” “Jamaica?” “No, she was happy to come.” 

Music History Today: September 15, 2021

September 15, 1990: Wilson Phillips took over at Number 1 on the US music chart with "Release Me."

Written by the group, "Release Me" is about a woman who is trying to get over her ex, but he's not making it easy for her by coming around her door and asking for another chance. 

Music History Today: August 4, 2021

August 4 1973: Maureen McGovern's "The Morning After (The Song From The Poseidon Adventure)" hits Number 1 in the US for the first of two weeks.

The Poseidon Adventure was part of a wave of ’70s disaster movies. The film came two years after Airport and two years before The Towering Inferno. 

Music History Today: June 30, 2021

June 30, 2014: "All About That Bass" by Meghan Trainor is released.

The first time Kevin Kadish and Meghan Trainor wrote a song together, they came up with one of the biggest pop hits of the decade. 

Meghan Trainor

Music History Today: June 16, 2021

June 16,  1984: "Borderline" became Madonna's first Top Ten hit when it peaked at Number 10.

"Borderline" was recorded in February 1983 for Madonna's eponymous debut album. It was released on February 15, 1984, by Sire Records as the album's fifth single.

Madonna

Music History Today: June 2, 2021

June 2, 1973: "Daniel" by Elton John peaked at Number 2, kept from the top spot when My Love by Paul McCartney started a 4-week run in the top spot. 

“Daniel” is a track from Elton John, one of the world’s best-selling musical artists, and arguably one of the most well-known. Appearing in John’s 1973 album “Don’t Shoot Me I’m Only the Piano Player”, “Daniel” is the first track from the record, written by both John and his lyricist Bernie Taupin. Taupin explained the meaning of the song: 

Music History Today: April 7, 2021

April 7, 1915: Billie Holiday was born Eleanora Fagan in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Billie Holiday was one of the most influential jazz singers of all time. She had a thriving career for many years before she lost her battle with addiction.

Billie Holiday

Music History Today: February 10, 2021

February 10, 1990: Paula Abdul scored her third number 1 song,  a year and a day after her first, with "Opposites Attract."

 Back before she was best known as a judge on reality talent shows like American Idol or So You Think You Can Dance, Paula Abdul was one of the biggest pop stars of the late 1980s and early 1990s. 

Paula Abdul

Music History Today: December 17, 2020

December 17, 1971: David Bowie released his fourth album, Hunky Dory, which opens with the song "Changes."

David Bowie was already four years and four albums into his career when he issued Hunky Dory, the first record to help secure his legend. He had been inching closer to this moment with each release, but with Hunky Dory everything that followed pretty much started here.

David Bowie

Music History Today: September 8, 2020

September 8, 1990:  Jon Bon Jovi's solo hit "Blaze Of Glory" made it to number 1.

Originally released on August 7, 1990, Jon Bon Jovi’s solo debut, Blaze Of Glory, proved to be a runaway success. 

Music History Today: June 9, 2020

June 9, 1973:  The Doobie Brothers moved up the chart from number 22 to 10 with "Long Train Runnin'."

“That song was a jam for the longest time, it literally was,” Doobies singer and guitarist Tom Johnston tells UCR. “I would make up different words every night while we were playing it live, because we were in clubs and it didn’t really matter. 

Music History Today: April 21, 2020

April 21, 1990: Sinead O'Connor started a four-week run at Number 1 on the US singles chart with her version of the Prince song "Nothing Compares To You."

On April 21, 1990, Sinead O’Connor’s “Nothing Compares 2 U” hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, where it stayed for four weeks.