2 April

Pick a Day

2 APRIL

In Music History

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2011 LCD Soundsystem play their final ever gig at Madison Square Garden in New York City. The show lasts four hours and features Arcade Fire and Reggie Watts.

2009 Texas-born guitarist Freddie Everett dies at age 49 after a long battle with ALS (Lou Gehrig's disease).

2003 Soul singer Edwin Starr dies at age 61 of a heart attack while taking a bath at his home near Nottingham, England.

1998 Robert Pilatus of Milli Vanilli dies at age 32 after overdosing on a combination of drugs and alcohol.

1997 After 32 years, Joni Mitchell is reunited with her first daughter, Kilauren Gibb. Joni gave the child up for adoption at the start of her career.

1996 Blues musician Guitar Gabriel dies at age 70.

1993 Roberta Flack guest stars as herself on an episode of ABC-TV's Loving.

1991 The Rolling Stones release Flashpoint, a live album recorded throughout their Steel Wheels/Urban Jungle Tour.

1987 Jazz drummer Buddy Rich dies at age 69 of heart failure after surgery for a malignant brain tumor.

1973 The Beatles release two compilation albums: The Beatles 1962-1966 and The Beatles 1967-1970. Both will land in the Top 10 on the US and UK albums charts, with 1967-1970 hitting #1 in the US.

1970 Janis Joplin get tattoos on her wrist and heart, the one on her chest reading "One For The Boys."

1967 Steve Winwood leaves The Spencer Davis Group to form Traffic with Jim Capaldi, Chris Wood and Dave Mason.

1967 Guitarist and songwriter Greg Camp (of Smash Mouth) is born in West Covina, California.

1966 The Singing Nun, starring Debbie Reynolds, opens in theaters. The film is based on Sister Luc-Gabrielle, a Belgian nun who had a #1 US hit with the French language song "Dominique," re-written in English for the film. Luc-Gabrielle declares it "absolutely idiotic."

1965 Freddie & the Dreamers record "Do The Freddie." Inspired by a short-lived dance craze, it will become a #18 hit.

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Marvin Gaye Is Born

1939

Marvin Gaye is born Marvin Pentz Gay Jr. in Washington, DC.


As Marvin Pentz Gay Jr., he's a pastor's kid who earns favor by singing in church from the time he is four years old. The kid grows up to be a troubled teenager who escapes the abuse at home by singing in various doo-wop groups and running away to serve an ill-fated stint in the Army. He even finds mild success as a session singer and member of the vocal quartet The Marquees. But that's where the story of Marvin Pentz Gay Jr. ends and the story of Marvin Gaye begins. After being discovered by The Moonglows' Harvey Fuqua, the singer adds the 'e' to his surname, allegedly to halt questions about his sexuality but also to sever the connection to his abusive father. As Marvin Gaye, the singer helps shape the Motown sound with solo hits like "How Sweet It Is To Be Loved By You" and "I Heard It Through the Grapevine" and a string of duets with Tammi Terrell ("Ain't No Mountain High Enough," "Ain't Nothing Like The Real Thing"). Although ten albums had established his reputation as The Prince of Soul throughout the '60s, Gaye's private life is a royal mess. His marriage to Anna Gordy - Motown founder Berry Gordy's sister - is in shambles, he is addicted to cocaine, hunted by the IRS, and he watches Tammi Terrell die in his arms (of a malignant brain tumor). His dreams of becoming a professional football player for the Detroit Lions are also shattered. By 1971, he has every right to ask What's Going On? But his next album is not about his own troubles, but the troubles going on in the world through the eyes of a Vietnam veteran, such as police brutality ("What's Going On"), poverty ("Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler)") and environmental issues ("Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology)"). The landmark album, written and produced by Gaye, proves that soul music can be both sexy and socially conscious. Gaye continues to record six more albums throughout the '70s and early '80s until he is fatally shot by his father when the two fight on April 1, 1984, just one day before his 45th birthday. Gay Sr. is eventually charged with voluntary manslaughter and given a suspended six-year sentence and probation.

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