18 APRIL
Featured Events
2013 Public Enemy become the fourth hip-hop act inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (the others that preceded PE into the Hall were Grandmaster Flash & the Furious Five, Run-DMC, and the Beastie Boys). Other 2013 inductees are Rush, Heart (which reunites their original lineup), Albert King, Donna Summer, and Randy Newman.
2013 Storm Thorgerson, a visionary designer who did classic artwork for Led Zeppelin and Pink Floyd, dies of cancer at age 69.
2012 Pop music impresario and American Bandstand host Dick Clark dies of a heart attack at age 82. Many artists got a huge boost after appearing on Bandstand, which he hosted from 1956 to 1989.
1996 Gavin Rossdale of Bush is shirtless on the cover of Rolling Stone, but the article inside trashes the band, calling them "Nirvanawannabes."More
1988 Legendary Motown songwriters Holland/Dozier/Holland are inducted into the Songwriters' Hall of Fame.
1987 MTV finally acknowledges the existence of heavy metal with the debut of Headbangers Ball, a weekly show dedicated to the genre.
18 APRIL
In Music History
2024 Longtime Allman Brothers Band guitarist Dickey Betts dies at 80 after years of health problems. Betts wrote many of their most popular songs, including "Blue Sky," written about his girlfriend, Sandy "Bluesky" Wabegijig.
2021 The Simpsons parodies Morrissey with the character Quillougby, a British misanthrope who sings "Everyone Is Horrid Except Me (And Possibly You)" with Lisa. "I'm quite used to it," the real Morrissey replies. "I've had enough horror thrown at me that would kill off a herd of bison."
2020 Lady Gaga, Paul McCartney, Stevie Wonder and several other stars perform from their homes on the One World: Together At Home concert to support frontline workers during the coronavirus pandemic.
2014 Deon Jackson dies at age 68 from unknown causes. He was most famous for his 1966 sweet soul hit "Love Makes The World Go Round," but his output also made him a hero on both the South Carolina beach music and UK Northern Soul scenes.
2013 Cordell "Boogie" Mosson (bassist for Parliament-Funkadelic) dies at age 60 of liver failure.
2009 Sable Starr dies of brain cancer in Reno, Nevada, at the age of 51. In the 1970s she was a famous groupie, following rock stars around the venues of LA from the age of 14. At the time of her death she has retired from the rock and roll lifestyle and is working in a casino.
2008 Foxy Brown is released from Riker's Island jail after serving an eight month sentence for battery.
2003 Etta James gets a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
1997 Rock guitarist Jay Hening (of Demolition 23) dies from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
1996 Bernard Edwards (bass guitarist for Chic) dies of pneumonia at age 43 after a Chic concert at the Budokan Arena in Tokyo, Japan.
1988 The accused murderer of reggae legend Peter Tosh, Dennis "Leppo" Lobban, goes on trial in Jamaica.
1985 Liberace breaks his own record at Radio City Music Hall, pulling in two million dollars for his latest engagement.
1981 Chris Squire and Alan White of Yes begin rehearsals with Jimmy Page and Robert Plant of Led Zeppelin. It doesn't lead anywhere, and Yes gets back together to release their 1983 album 90125.
1973 The Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young documentary Journey Through The Past, directed by Neil Young, debuts at the Dallas Film Festival.
1971 The Diana Ross television musical special Diana, featuring guest stars The Jackson 5, Bill Cosby, and Danny Thomas, airs on ABC.
The Queen Of Soul Adds Another Jewel To Her Crown
1987Aretha Franklin and George Michael's duet "I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me)" hits #1 in the US, returning Franklin to the top spot for the first time since "Respect" in 1967. The feat breaks the record for the longest span between #1 hits.
The disco era was not kind to Aretha Franklin, whose sound fell out of favor for the first time since her remarkable run of hits in the mid-'60s. After a slow start to the '80s, she got her groove back when Narada Michael Walden produced her 1985 album Who's Zoomin' Who?, which got her back on pop radio with "Freeway of Love" and the title track. She teamed up again with Walden to record "I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me)," an upbeat duet with George Michael, who had recently left Wham! and was launching his solo career. It was a huge win for both singers, as Franklin got exposure from the contemporary star (and MTV favorite), while Michael earned credibility by singing with Franklin, who was one of his idols. The music video did double duty, appealing to views of MTV (thanks to Michael) and VH1 (thanks to Franklin). Michael makes a smooth transition to solo stardom with his debut album, Faith, released in October. Franklin finds herself a tribute topic, with a 1988 PBS special called Aretha Franklin: The Queen Of Soul, featuring appearances by Ray Charles, Eric Clapton and Whitney Houston. Her legend entrenched, Franklin is "respect"-fully labeled a "Diva" in the '90s, the doyenne of a group that includes Houston, Mariah Carey and Celine Dion. Photo: "I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me)" official video
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