26 JANUARY
In Music History
1943 Thom Bell, whose productions for The Stylistics, The Delfonics, and The Spinners helped define the Philadelphia Soul sound, is born in Kingston, Jamaica.
1934 R&B pianist Huey "Piano" Smith is born in New Orleans, Louisiana.
1934 Formerly home to burlesque shows, The Apollo Theater in Harlem becomes a music venue, christening their new format with a jazz variety show featuring mostly black performers, including the Benny Carter Orchestra and Mabel Scott.
1932 Country singer Claude Gray, dubbed The Tall Texan, is born in Henderson, Texas. Known for the 1960 hit "Family Bible."
1923 Broadway and film star Anne Jeffreys is born Anne Carmichael in Goldsboro, North Carolina.
1922 Pianist/vocalist Page Cavanaugh is born in Cherokee, Kansas. He notches a number of hits in the 1940s, including "Walkin' My Baby Back Home," as part of The Page Cavanaugh Trio with guitarist Al Viola and bassist Lloyd Pratt.
1913 Composer Jimmy Van Heusen, who teams with lyricist Sammy Cahn to write a number of hits, including "Come Fly With Me" for Frank Sinatra, is born Edward Chester Babcock in Syracuse, New York.
1908 Violinist Stephane Grappelli, who forms the jazz group Quintette du Hot Club de France along with guitarist Django Reinhardt, is born in Paris, France.
1790 The Mozart opera Cosi Fan Tutte opens at the Burgtheater in Vienna.
Bridge Over Troubled Water Released
1970The Simon & Garfunkel album Bridge Over Troubled Water is released, with the title track simultaneously issued as a single.
Read more26 JANUARY
Featured Events
2020 Billie Eilish, 18, wins big at the Grammys as the death of Kobe Bryant and an internal scandal cast a cloud on the ceremony.More
2006 Garth Brooks' Double Live album, released in 1998, becomes the first live album certified Double Diamond by the RIAA for sales of over 20 million in America.
1992 Presidential candidate Bill Clinton appears on the news program 60 Minutes with his wife, Hillary, who in response to a discussion about her husband's infidelity, says, "I'm not sitting here – some little woman standing by my man like Tammy Wynette."More
1991 At the second Rock in Rio festival, Norwegian pop trio a-ha draw a crowd of 198,000, breaking the world record for paid attendance at a rock concert - and is snubbed by the press.More
1988 Andrew Lloyd Webber's blockbuster musical The Phantom of the Opera debuts on Broadway at the Majestic Theatre two years after a successful run on London's West End.More
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."More
1970 John Lennon writes and records "Instant Karma" all in one day, calling in Phil Spector to produce the song.
1968 At the University of Southampton, Pink Floyd play their first gig without founding member Syd Barrett, who never returns to the band. The 22-year-old Barrett is an early acid casualty, no longer able to contribute to the group.
1955 Eddie Van Halen is born in Amsterdam. His family eventually settles in Pasadena, California, where he forms Van Halen with his brother, Alex, and quickly becomes one of the most acclaimed and influential guitarists in rock history.
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