January 27 Born –
Jerome Kern (1885) – Broadway composer (“Ol’ Man River”).
Harry Ruby (1895) – songwriter, film score composer (Duck Soup).
Milt Raskin (1916) – swing jazz pianist with Artie Shaw and Billie
Holiday.
Elmore James (aka Elmore Brooks, 1918) – Blues guitarist/singer/
songwriter.
Skitch Henderson (aka Lyle Henderson, 1918) – composer/conductor.
David Seville (aka Rostom Sipan "Ross" Bagdasarian, 1919) – singer/
songwriter, The Chipmunks.
Bobby "Blue" Bland (1930) – Blues/soul singer.
Bruce Tate (1937) – The Penguins.
Nick Mason (1944) – Pink Floyd.
Kevin Coyne (1944) – British blues singer/songwriter/guitarist.
Nedra Talley (1946) – The Ronettes.
Kim Gardner (1948) – British musician with The Birds, Badger and The
Creation.
Chuck "Coyote" Larson (1948) – Snuff.
Brian Downey (1951) – drummer for Thin Lizzy.
Seth Justman (1951) – keyboardist for The J. Geils Band.
Richard Young (1955) – guitarist for The Kentucky Headhunters.
Janick Gers (1957) – guitarist for Iron Maiden.
Gillian Gilbert (1961) – keyboardist/guitarist/vocalist for New Order.
Margo Timmins (1961) – Canadian singer for Cowboy Junkies.
Mike Patton (1968) – vocalist for Faith No More.
Tricky (aka Adrian Matthews-Thaws, 1968) – rapper/actor.
January 27 R.I.P. –
Mahalia Jackson (1972) – heart failure and diabetes. Age 60.
Gerald Marks (1997) – Age 96. Songwriter (“All Of Me”).
Gene McFadden (2006) – cancer. Age 57. Songwriter with John Whitehead
("Back Stabbers").
January 27 album releases –
The B-52s – Mesopotamia (1982) EP
John Lennon and Yoko Ono – Milk And Honey (1984)
Frank Zappa – Does Humor Belong In Music? (1986)
Slaughter – Stick It To Ya (1990)
Reef – Glow (1997)
The Dixie Chicks – Wide Open Spaces (1998)
The Cure – Join The Dots: B-Sides & Rarities (2004) (box set)
Bruce Springsteen – Working On A Dream (2009)
January 27 events –
1927 – The United Independent Broadcasters radio network is formed,
carrying 16 radio stations. The company will become the Columbia
Broadcasting System (CBS) in less than eight months.
1948 – The Wire Recording Corporation of America announces the first
magnetic tape recorder, called the Wireway. The machine, which
contains a built-in oscillator, sells for $149.50.
1956 – Elvis Presley releases his first single under his new RCA
contract, "Heartbreak Hotel" b/w “I Was The One.”
1958 – Due to a near-fatal plane crash while on tour in Australia in
October 1957, Little Richard enters The Oakwood Theological College,
where he will be ordained as a Seventh Day Adventist Minister.
1959 – Johnny Horton records "The Battle Of New Orleans" at Owen
Bradley's Quonset Hut studio in Nashville.
1961 – Frank Sinatra plays a benefit show at Carnegie Hall for Martin
Luther King.
1961 – Sing Along With Mitch debuts on NBC-TV, with regulars Leslie
Uggams, Diana Trask and Gloria Lambert. The show will last for three
years.
1962 – The Beatles appear at the Aintree Institute in Liverpool for
the last time. Promoter, Brian Kelly, pays the group's fee (£15
pounds) with handfuls of loose change. Brian Epstein takes this as an
insult to the group and makes sure that The Beatles never play for him
again.
1962 – Dee Dee Sharp records “Mashed Potato Time” at Cameo Parkway
Studios in Philadelphia.
1964 – The Rolling Stones appear on the BBC's Juke Box Jury as
panelists, and their impolite behavior, and referring to Elvis' latest
single as "dated," causes a furor in the British press.
1965 – Aretha Franklin, The Zombies, Glen Campbell, Duane Eddy, The
Righteous Brothers, The Serendipity Singers, Bobby Sherman, The
Blossoms, Freddie and The Dreamers and Ray Peterson all appear on
Shindig!
1968 – The Bee Gees appear in the U.S. for the first time at the
Anaheim Convention Center.
1969 – The Beatles spend the day working on “Get Back,” recording 32
takes of the song – different versions of which will end up as the
single and album track.
1970 – Country artist Marty Robbins undergoes successful heart bypass
surgery in Nashville, five months after suffering a heart attack.
1971 – David Bowie arrives in the U.S. for the first time, but isn’t
allowed to play live because of work permit restrictions. However, he
does attract publicity when he wears a dress at a promotion event.
1976 – David Bowie sues his former attorney, Michael Lippan, for $2
million for unfair business practices and withholding funds.
1977 – The Clash signs with CBS Records in the UK for £100,000.
1980 – Def Leppard plays the first of two nights at the Marquee club
in London.
1984 – Madonna makes her first appearance and television debut in the
UK, appearing on the C4 TV music program The Tube, performing
“Holiday,” broadcast live from the Hacienda Club in Manchester.
1984 – Michael Jackson's hair catches fire during the filming of a
Pepsi commercial.
1984 – Cyndi Lauper releases her single, “Time After Time” b/w “I’ll
Kiss You.”
1988 – Pink Floyd plays the first of ten nights at the Sydney
Entertainment Centre in Australia on their A Momentary Lapse Of Reason
tour.
1990 – Gainesville, Florida declares the day “Tom Petty Day.”
1991 – Whitney Houston performs “The Star Spangled Banner” at Super
Bowl XXV in Tampa, Florida. The performance, which becomes one of the
highlights of her career, is later released as a single.
1994 – Oasis makes their London live debut when they play at the Water
Rats in King’s Cross, London. The gig is by invite only.
1998 – James Brown is charged with possession of marijuana and
unlawful use of a firearm after police are called to his South
Carolina home. Brown later claims the pot was used to help his
"eyesight."
2002 – Brian Wilson plays the first of four sold-out nights at the
Royal Festival Hall in London.
2002 – Blues singer Koko Taylor collapses during a private function at
her Koko Taylor’s Celebrity club in Chicago, after failing to take her
diabetic medication.
2003 – Former S Club 7 singer Rachel Stevens signs a £1 million solo
deal with Polydor Records in the UK.
2004 – R&B singer Faith Evans and her husband are charged with
possession of cocaine and marijuana after being arrested in Atlanta,
when police pull them over for a license plate offense.
2007 – New Orleans mayor Ray Nagin proclaims it to be “Fats Domino
Day” during a ceremony at the House of Blues.
2009 – Road Chef, the Watford Gap UK Motorway services operator - a
highway rest stop and restaurant - pays £1,000 at an auction for a
collection of celebrity signatures, which were collected by a former
employee, including signatures of Paul McCartney, Mick Jagger, Keith
Richards, Brian Jones, The Eagles and Dusty Springfield.
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