26 January

Pick a Day

26 JANUARY

In Music History

Page 1
1 2 ... 4

2024 The RIAA certifies "Don't Stop Believin'" by Journey at 18x Platinum, making it the best-selling song of all time in America. It was certified at just 5x Platinum in 2013, but picked up steam as it became a streaming favorite across generations. Newer songs like Post Malone's "Sunflower" are soon certified higher, but "Don't Stop Believin'" stands as the top song from before the streaming era.

2022 Spotify complies with Neil Young's request to remove his music from the service. Young's issue is with the Spotify podcast The Joe Rogan Experience, which he feels is spreading false information about vaccines. Joni Mitchell also removes her music, but Spotify stands tall for Rogan, whose subscriber count grows considerably in wake of the controversy. Young returns to Spotify two years later.

2019 Miranda Lambert gets married for a second time, tying the knot with police officer Brendan Mcloughlin in a secret ceremony. Lambert, whose first marriage was to Blake Shelton, breaks the news on social media on February 16.

2019 Composer Michel Legrand, who won an Oscar for "The Windmills Of Your Mind," dies at 86.

2018 Fleetwood Mac perform at the Musicares benefit in Radio City Music Hall, where they are honored. It's Lindsey Buckingham's last performance with the group; three months later he is ousted, replaced by Mike Campbell and Neil Finn.

2017 Kylie Minogue successfully blocks Kylie Jenner's application to trademark the name "Kylie."

2015 Nick Jonas lands a recurring role on Scream Queens, a horror anthology series from Glee creators Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuck. The cast also includes Ariana Grande as a recurring guest star.

2015 Chris Brown postpones his Between the Sheets tour on judge's orders to stay put in California due to a probation violation earlier in the month. The rapper tells Twitter followers that he must complete his last 100 hours of community service before he can embark on the 26-city tour of the US with Kendrick Lamar.

2015 Blink-182 announce Tom DeLonge's resignation, the same day that bandmates Mark Hoppus and Travis Barker slam DeLonge in a tell-all Rolling Stone interview. They claim the vocalist/guitarist will only communicate with them via email or through his manager, and his constant flakiness has kept them from recording new music. Barker adds: "It's hard to cover for someone who's disrespectful and ungrateful."

2014 Justin Timberlake is a big winner at the Grammy Awards, winning three of his seven nominations: Best R&B Song for "Pusher Love Girl," Best Rap/Sung Collaboration for "Holy Grail," and Best Music Video for "Suit & Tie" (the latter two with Jay Z).

2013 Funk guitarist Leroy "Sugarfoot" Bonner (of The Ohio Players) dies at age 69.

2011 Gladys Horton (lead singer of The Marvelettes) dies at age 66 after a series of strokes.

2011 Wilco announce the launch of their own label, dBpm Records. The band state the label will put out all future Wilco releases "and more."

2010 Lady Antebellum release their second album, Need You Now, which goes to #1 in America, where it sells over 4 million copies. The title track becomes the first country song to make a big impact on the pop chart since "Not Ready To Make Nice" by Dixie Chicks in 2007. Both groups later change their names, becoming Lady A and The Chicks.

2008 Weezer's Rivers Cuomo takes part in the Mia Hamm and Nomar Garciaparra charity soccer match benefiting the Children's Hospital of Los Angeles and the Mia Hamm Foundation in Carson, California.

Page 1
1 2 ... 4

Elton John Releases Don't Shoot Me, I'm Only The Piano Player

1973

Elton John issues his sixth studio album, Don't Shoot Me, I'm Only The Piano Player, in America. It features two of his most popular songs: the '50s flashback "Crocodile Rock" (Elton's first #1 hit in America) and the Vietnam War-inspired "Daniel."


Recorded in France at the "Honky Château" where Elton recorded his previous album (which he named after the studio), Don't Shoot Me... is his first to hit #1 in his native UK, where it spends six weeks at the top spot and earns him superstar status. In America, it's his second #1 album, following Honky Château. According to Elton, the album title comes from something he said in an exchange with Groucho Marx. After Marx poked fun at his name, Elton replied, "Don't Shoot Me, I'm Only The Piano Player." On the cover, under the marquee, there is a poster for the Marx Brothers movie Go West in homage to Groucho. Elton's lyricist Bernie Taupin disputes this story, claiming he found the phrase on a piece of kitch at a junk shop.

Categories

Comments

send your comment
Be the first to comment...

©2024 Songfacts®, LLC