Today in Music History for Sept. 14:
In 1741, after working for 23 uninterrupted days, composer George Frideric Handel completed his famed "Messiah."
In 1814, the poem "Defence of Fort McHenry" (later becoming the lyrics to "The Star-Spangled Banner") was written by Francis Scott Key following the British shelling of Fort McHenry in Maryland. The morning after, Key saw the American flag still flying over the fortress and wrote his poem. It was set to the tune of an English drinking song and it was designated as the U.S. national anthem in 1916 by President Woodrow Wilson. His order was confirmed by an act of Congress in 1931.
In 1950, Paul Kossoff, guitarist with the British blues-rock band "Free," was born in London. "Free" was formed in 1969 by Kossoff, vocalist Paul Rodgers, bass guitarist Andy Fraser and drummer Simon Fraser. The band reached its commercial peak in 1970 with the album "Fire and Water" and the hit single "All Right Now." Free split up later that year, reformed in 1972, then disbanded again. Kossoff's drug abuse was apparently part of the problem. He also suffered from heart disease. On March 19, 1976, Kossoff was discovered dead on a plane heading to New York from L.A.
In 1955, at the end of a long day in the studio, Little Richard recorded his first rock 'n' roll song, "Tutti Frutti." Until then, he had recorded mainly R&B ballads and jump blues tunes like those Louis Jordan had popularized in the 1940s. But after "Tutti Frutti," Richard's music was all "banging pianos and loud screaming," in the artist's own words.
In 1968, Pete Townshend of "The Who" told Rolling Stone magazine that he planned to write a 90-minute rock opera called "Tommy," about a deaf, dumb and blind boy. The opera was released as a double LP in April 1969, and was hailed by the New York Times as the first pop masterpiece. Other critics found the work pretentious. But "Tommy" caught on, the album sold a million copies and a single from it, "Pinball Wizard," became a hit. "The Who" performed the complete opera only twice, although excerpts from it were included in their concerts. In 1972, Pete Townshend supervised a new recording of "Tommy" by the London Symphony Orchestra and an all-star cast, including Rod Stewart, Steve Winwood and Richard Harris. "Tommy" was made into a 1976 movie, directed by Ken Russell, and a 1993 Broadway version won five Tony Awards.
In 1968, "The Archies" cartoon musical series premiered on TV. Created by Don Kirshner, the man who unleashed "The Monkees" two years earlier, "The Archies" existed only in the studio. The vocals were all overdubbed by one man, Ron Dante. Despite their make-believe status, "The Archies" had the biggest-selling record of 1969, "Sugar, Sugar."
In 1978, the "Grateful Dead" performed the first of three shows at the Great Pyramids in Egypt.
In 1979, Kenny Rogers received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
In 1981, the drummer for country singer Freddy Fender was killed and another band member injured when the group's bus collided with a transport truck near New Orleans.
In 1981, legendary bluesman Walter (Furry) Lewis died in Memphis at the age of 88.
In 1981, production began on the film version of "Pink Floyd's" "The Wall." The film was mostly animation, with some live action sequences starring Bob Geldof of "The Boomtown Rats."
In 1984, the first MTV Video Music Awards were held in New York. Herbie Hancock was the big winner, winning five awards for his "Rockit" video. However, Madonna stole the show with her performance of "Like a Virgin" in which she rolled around on the stage in a wedding dress.
In 1987, American Bandstand host Dick Clark was honoured by the Guinness Book of Records with its first Supreme Achievement Award. American Bandstand was cited by the record book as being the longest-running entertainment program on television. It began on a Philadelphia station in 1952.
In 1988, "Don't Worry Be Happy" by Bobby McFerrin topped the Billboard Hot 100, making it the first a cappella song to reach No. 1 in the history of the chart.
In 1989, Sting was pummelled by the critics for his stage debut in Washington, D.C. in a revival of "The Threepenny Opera." As one review put it ... "prepare to be stung."
In 1989, Latin bandleader Perez Prado, who helped spread the mambo craze throughout the world in the early 1950s, died in Mexico City of a stroke. He was 72.
In 1993, lawyers for a 13-year-old boy filed suit in Los Angeles against Michael Jackson, claiming the entertainer seduced and sexually abused the youth. Jackson denied the allegations, and his security consultant claimed they were part of an extortion plot. The case was settled out of court.
In 1994, Gordon Lightfoot bailed out of performing at a rally to save trees at the Ontario Place concert site on Toronto's waterfront. Lightfoot’s manager denied the singer was pressured to withdraw by MCA Concerts, the music company heading the site’s redevelopment.
In 1995, Paul McCartney's hand-written lyrics for "Getting Better" were sold at a London auction for US$249,200, a world record for a Beatle song. The previous record was a mere $75,000 paid three years earlier for John Lennon's words to "A Day in the Life."
In 1996, the Hotel Vancouver's Panorama Roof closed after 57 years of music for dining and dancing. Entertainment on the final night was by Dal Richards and his Orchestra and former CBC-TV singing star Juliette, who got her start at the Roof in 1941 at the age of 13.
In 1997, Paul McCartney revealed in an authorized biography that Bob Dylan introduced him to marijuana in 1964, and he in turn did the same for Mick Jagger two years later. The former "Beatle" also claimed to have played the dominant role in his songwriting partnership with John Lennon.
In 1997, LeAnn Rimes' album "You Light Up My Life" debuted at No. 1 on three of Billboard's charts -- pop, country and contemporary Christian. She had just turned 15 years old.
In 2002, singer Gwen Stefani married singer Gavin Rossdale in London. (They divorced in 2016.)
In 2005, actress Renee Zellweger filed for annulment just four months after marrying country singer Kenny Chesney. She cited "fraud" as the reason.
In 2007, Robert Savoie, a Montreal-born opera singer considered one of Canada's finest baritones, died at age 80.
In 2009, "The Fray" songwriting duo of Joseph King and Isaac Slade filed a lawsuit against their manager over the copyrights to their songs. King and Slade, who wrote the 2005 hits “Over My Head (Cable Car)” and “How to Save a Life,” and the 2009 hit “You Found Me,” said manager Gregg Latterman’s company fraudulently obtained partial ownership of their songs when the band members signed a publishing agreement in July 2005.
In 2009, rapper Kanye West appeared on "The Jay Leno Show" and apologized again for interrupting country star Taylor Swift’s acceptance speech for Best Female Video for "You Belong to Me" at the MTV Video Music Awards the night before to argue that Beyonce's "Single Ladies (Put a Ring On It)" was more deserving.
In 2010, Bruce Springsteen's documentary "The Promise: The Making of "Darkness on the Edge of Town" made its gala premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival. Composed of black-and-white archival footage of the New Jersey rock legend captured in the studio between 1976-78 intercut with modern-day interviews, it featured an in-depth look at Springsteen navigating a crossroads in his early career.
In 2010, the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP) honoured country music star Alan Jackson with their Founder’s Award.
In 2010, singer George Michael was sentenced to eight weeks in jail and lost his licence for five years for driving under the influence of drugs when he crashed his car into a London photo shop in July. He served four weeks before being released to serve the rest on parole.
In 2010, Calvin College in Michigan rescinded its invitation for Canadian indie band "The New Pornographers" to play on Oct. 15 at its Grand Rapids campus. The Christian college said it found it too difficult to explain that the band wasn't associated with pornography.
In 2011, Canadian country music icon Paul Brandt headlined a special benefit concert at Edmonton's Winspear Centre, appropriately titled "Up From the Ashes," to help rebuild the library in Slave Lake, Alta., which was destroyed by a wildfire in May. It raised more than $150,000 and a collection of books was also donated to the library on behalf of Brandt's Priceless Gift of Hope Foundation.
In 2011, Amy Winehouse's family launched a youth charity in her name to mark what would have been the British singer's 28th birthday. The Grammy award-winner, who had long fought drug and alcohol problems, was found dead at her London home on July 23. The charity derived much of its first income from her newly-released duet with Tony Bennett, "Body and Soul."
In 2011, Katy Perry's "Last Friday Night (T.G.I.F)" fell out of the Billboard Hot 100 top-10, ending her record string of 69 consecutive weeks with a top-10 song. The run began in May 2010 with "California Gurls," then "Teenage Dream," "Fireworks," and "E.T."
In 2015, Canadian pop star Justin Beiber's comeback "What Do You Mean?" debuted atop the Billboard Hot 100 chart, replacing "Can't Feel My Face" by Canadian R&B star The Weeknd.
In 2022, a federal jury convicted R. Kelly of several child pornography and sex abuse charges in his hometown of Chicago. The 55-year-old was found guilty of three counts of child pornography and three counts of child enticement but was acquitted of a fourth pornography count. The verdict delivered another legal blow to the singer who used to be one of the biggest R&B stars in the world. The 55-year-old Kelly was sentenced in June to 30 years in prison during a separate federal trial in New York.
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The Canadian Press