I wouldn’t want to live in the past. But I still like to visit every now and then. Here are the musical birthdays we’ll be celebrating and the anniversaries we’ll be marking over the next week:
BIRTHDAYS & ANNIVERSARIES
Monday February 25
GOOD NEWS: In 1977, The Jam signed to Polydor Records for £6,000 ($10,200). Money well spent.
BAD NEWS: In 2006, George Michael was found slumped over in a car in Hyde Park, London. He was arrested on suspicion of possessing drugs and then released on bail. He said the event was “my own stupid fault, as usual.”
BIRTHDAYS: Beatles guitarist George Harrison was born in 1943.
Tuesday February 26
GOOD NEWS: In 1980, Island Records offered U2 a recording contract after a gig at Dublin’s National Boxing Stadium.
BAD NEWS: In 2014, As I Lay Dying singer Tim Lambesis pleaded guilty to attempting to hire an undercover agent to murder his estranged wife.
BIRTHDAYS: Singer-pianist Fats Domino (1928); Man in Black Johnny Cash (1932); Canned Heat singer Bob (The Bear) Hite (1945); singer Michael Bolton (1953) and vocalist and head-scarf enthusiast Erykah Badu (1971).
Wednesday February 27
BAD NEWS: In 1977, Keith Richards was arrested at Toronto’s Harbour Castle Hotel after Mounties searched his room and found an ounce of heroin. In 1968, singer Frankie Lymon died of a heroin overdose in his grandmother’s New York home at age 25.
BIRTHDAYS: Journey guitarist Neal Schon (1954) and popera singer Josh Groban (1981).
Thursday February 28
GOOD NEWS: In 1983, U2 released their third studio album War.
BAD NEWS: In 1985, Uriah Heep singer David Byron died from an epileptic fit and liver disease at age 38. In 2008, former Jimi Hendrix drummer Buddy Miles died at 60 after a long illness.
BIRTHDAYS: Rolling Stones multi-instrumentalist Brian Jones (1942) and B-52’s singer Cindy Wilson (1957).
https://youtu.be/ofkzvM7Skxg
Friday March 1
GOOD NEWS: In 1973, Pink Floyd released their eighth studio album The Dark Side of The Moon.
BAD NEWS: In 1961, Elvis Presley signed a five-year movie deal with producer Hal Wallis. In 1969, Jim Morrison of The Doors was charged with lewd and lascivious behaviour after showing his penis to the audience during a show in Miami. And in 1994, Nirvana played their final concert in Munich, Germany.
BIRTHDAYS: Big band leader Glenn Miller (1904); singer Harry Belafonte (1927); Who frontman Roger Daltrey (1944) and Justin Bieber (1994). Which is harder to believe: That Daltrey is 75 or Bieber is 25?
Saturday March 2
GOOD NEWS: In 1964, The Beatles started filming A Hard Day’s Night at Marylebone train station in London.
BAD NEWS: In 1975, a policeman who stopped a Lincoln Continental for running a red light in L.A. was surprised to find Paul McCartney at the wheel with wife Linda. The cop searched the car and found eight ounces of weed. Linda took the rap. In 1991, French singer Serge Gainsbourg died of a heart attack. In 1999, Dusty Springfield died after a long battle against cancer at age 59. And in 2008, Jeff Healey died of cancer.
BIRTHDAYS: Singer-guitarist Lou Reed (1943); Irish bluesman Rory Gallagher (1948); singer Karen Carpenter (1950); Jon Bon Jovi (1962) and Coldplay’s Chris Martin (1977).
Sunday March 3
GOOD NEWS: In 1966, Neil Young, Stephen Stills and Richie Furay formed Buffalo Springfield in Los Angeles. In 1995, Dave Grohl and Foo Fighters played their first gig in Portland.
BAD NEWS: Guitar hero Ronnie Montrose died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound in 2012. He was 64 and suffering from prostate cancer.
