1968 - Jimi Hendrix Experience released their version of the Bob Dylan song 'All Along the Watchtower'. Hendrix had been given a tape of Dylan's recording by publicist Michael Goldstein. Dave Mason from Traffic and Rolling Stone Brian Jones both played on the recording. Jimi Hendrix' version had a large impact on Dylan which made him make his own version "heavier."
1976 - Tom Waits releases Small Change. A series of skid row travelogues, songs steeped in whiskey and atmosphere in which he alternately sings in his broken-beaned drunk's voice and recites jazzy poetry.
1980 - During a North American tour, Bob Marley collapsed while jogging in New York's Central Park. After hospital tests, Marley was diagnosed with cancer. Two nights later, he played his final concert at the Stanley Theater in Pittsburgh. That performance was captured on the the album. "Live Forever: the Stanley Theater."
1993 - Nirvana release In Utero. Even if the album wasn't a literal suicide note, it was certainly a conscious attempt to shed their audience -- after the glossy punk of Nevermind. Throughout it all, Cobain's songwriting is typically haunting, and its best moments rank among his finest work. In Utero remains a shattering listen, whether it's viewed as Cobain's farewell letter or self-styled audience alienation. Few other records are as willfully difficult as this.
1996 - Jack Gillis marries Meg White. He takes her last name, and the couple forms The White Stripes. Jack explained the name's origin:
Meg loves peppermints, and we were going to call ourselves the Peppermints. But since our last name was White, we decided to call it the White Stripes. It revolved around this childish idea, the ideas kids have—because they are so much better than adult ideas, right?"
They tell reporters they are brother and sister, which goes over until a reporter for the Detroit Free Press uncovers their marriage license in 2001.
2004 - Green Day release American Idiot. It's an unapologetic, unabashed rock opera, tied together with a nervy urgency and a political passion. In its musical muscle and sweeping, politically charged narrative, it's something of a masterpiece, and one of the few -- if not the only -- records of 2004 to convey what it feels like to live in the strange, bewildering America of the early 2000s. (Photo by Jo Hale/Getty Images)
2011 R.E.M. announce that they're calling it quits after more than 30 years. In a post on their website, the band members write, "To our Fans and Friends: As R.E.M., and as lifelong friends and co-conspirators, we have decided to call it a day as a band. We walk away with a great sense of gratitude, of finality, and of astonishment at all we have accomplished. To anyone who ever felt touched by our music, our deepest thanks for listening."
Birthdays:
Leonard Cohen was born today in 1934. He passed away in 2016.
Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section bassist David Hood is 78.
Don Felder of the Eagles is 74.
Phil Taylor of Motorhead was born today in 1954. He passed away in 2015.
Barenaked Ladies drummer Tyler Stewart is 54.
Liam Gallagher. Oasis is 49.
On this Day In Music History is sourced from This Day in Music, Song Facts, Allmusic, and Wikipedia.