Today in Music History for Aug. 27:
In 1877, James P. Clarke, the first musician in English-speaking Canada to have written and published a sizeable number of compositions, died in Toronto. Many of his songs, such as "The Maple Leaf," "The Trappers Song" and "A Forest Home," had a distinctly Canadian flavour.
In 1892, fire seriously damaged New York’s original Metropolitan Opera House.
In 1953, Alex Lifeson, guitarist with the Canadian rock trio "Rush," was born in Surrey, B.C. Lifeson, vocalist and bass guitarist Geddy Lee and drummer John Rutsey formed the group in Toronto in 1968. Rutsey left after the first album in 1974, and was replaced by Neil Peart. Several of their LP's, including "2112," "All the World's a Stage," "Moving Pictures" and "Signals," have sold more than one million copies each. They were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2013.
In 1965, Bob Dylan's "Highway 61 Revisited" was released.
In 1965, "The Beatles" met Elvis Presley at his Graceland mansion in Memphis. Colonel Tom Parker, Presley's manager, performed the introductions, after which a deathly silence ensued. Elvis is then reported to have said: "If you damn guys are gonna sit here and stare at me all night, I'm gonna go to bed." The meeting deteriorated further after John Lennon's suggestion that Elvis make some records like those he recorded for Sun Records at the beginning of his career. Presley is said to have felt the remark implied that his career had gone steadily downhill.
In 1967, "The Beatles'" manager Brian Epstein was found dead in his London home from an overdose of Carbitol, a sleeping pill. His death was ruled accidental. At the time, "The Beatles" were in Wales on a retreat with the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. Epstein had first seen "The Beatles" at the Cavern Club in Liverpool in 1961. Within a month, he became their manager, cleaning up their image with the now-familiar "Beatle" haircuts and Pierre Cardin suits. Epstein got them a contract with EMI Records in 1962, after they had been rejected by many other companies.
In 1971, singer Freda Payne was awarded a gold record for "Bring the Boys Home," an anti-Vietnam War song.
In 1978, two former members of "Deep Purple," vocalist David Coverdale and keyboards player Jon Lord, were reunited in the newly-formed heavy metal band "Whitesnake."
In 1983, singer-guitarist George Benson told the British magazine "Melody Maker" that AIDS was God's revenge for blood transfusions. Benson is a Jehovah's Witness, who consider transfusions sacrilegious.
In 1986, former "Credence Clearwater Revival" lead singer John Fogerty opened his first tour in 14 years in Memphis. The audience gave him six standing ovations despite the fact he refused to perform any of "CCR's" hits because of a royalties dispute.
In 1987, Charlie Smalls, the Tony Award-winning composer and lyricist of the hit musical "The Wiz," died in Belgium during surgery for a burst appendix. He was 43.
Also in 1987, Jello Biafra, lead singer of the defunct punk rock group "The Dead Kennedys," and several associates were acquitted of pornography charges in Los Angeles. The charges stemmed from a sexually explicit poster included with "The Dead Kennedys'" 1985 album "Frankenchrist."
In 1989, Izzy Stradlin, guitarist for "Guns 'N' Roses," was arrested at the Phoenix airport after urinating in a jetliner's galley on a flight from Los Angeles to Indianapolis. Stradlin was apparently angry at having to wait to use the restroom.
In 1990, Garth Brooks released his album “No Fences.” His sophomore release has sold over 20 million copies worldwide.
In 1990, Grammy-winning blues guitarist Stevie Ray Vaughan was among five people killed when their helicopter slammed into a hill at East Troy, Wis. He was 35. He had just completed a concert with Eric Clapton, Robert Cray and Buddy Guy. Vaughan and his band "Double Trouble" had a million-selling album in 1984 -- "Couldn't Stand the Weather."
In 1991, Dr. Dre of the rap group "NWA" pleaded no contest in Los Angeles to beating up Dee Barnes, host of the Fox TV show "Pump It Up." Dre, whose real name is Andre Young Jr., was fined $2,500 and placed on two years' probation. Barnes sued the rap group for $22.7 million.
In 1993, the lead singer of "Ugly Kid Joe" was charged in Columbus, Ohio, with felonious assault and inciting violence. William Crane IV allegedly encouraged the crowd at a concert to attack security guards. He later pleaded no contest to a reduced charge of disorderly conduct and was fined $100.
In 1996, the "Smashing Pumpkins" resumed their interrupted world tour with a show in Las Vegas. They had a new drummer, Matt Walker from "Filter," and a new keyboardist, Dennis Flemion from "The Frogs." The tour had halted in July after keyboardist Johnathan Melvoin died of a heroin overdose and drummer Jimmy Chamberlin was fired after being arrested for drug possession.
In 1998, "Fleetwood Mac" founder Peter Green launched a U.S. tour in Cleveland to promote "The Robert Johnson Songbook," his first studio album in nearly 20 years. Green, a much-praised blues guitarist, left "Fleetwood Mac" in 1970 after a psychological breakdown and later spent time in a mental institution.
In 1998, The New York Times refused to print an ad featuring the cover of Marilyn Manson’s "Mechanical Animals" album. Manson appeared on it looking like a naked male-female alien hybrid.
In 1999, Franz Kraemer, Canadian musician and composer, died in Toronto at the age of 85.
In 2007, celebrated arranger and keyboardist Doug Riley, considered to be a pillar of the Canadian music industry, died of a heart attack on a plane as it prepared to leave Calgary. He was 62. Riley, known as "Doctor Music," was returning home to Little Pond, P.E.I. after headlining a jazz and blues festival. During his long career, Riley collaborated with luminaries like Ray Charles, Placido Domingo, Ringo Starr, Gordon Lightfoot, Anne Murray, Sylvia Tyson, Dan Hill and Bob Seger. He also wrote more than 2,000 jingles and arranged music for several television programs in the late '60s and '70s. He was awarded the Order of Canada in 2004.
In 2011, filmmaker Sofia Coppola married "Phoenix" lead singer Thomas Mars, the father of their two young daughters, in the remote southern Italian town of Bernalda.
In 2014, "Shake It Off," country music crossover star Taylor Swift's first full venture into the world of pop music, debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 - just the 22nd song to do so in the history of the chart.
In 2019, Donnie Fritts, a Muscle Shoals songwriter, artist and actor who was a frequent collaborator with Kris Kristofferson and wrote the song "We Had It All," recorded by numerous artists including Waylon Jennings and Ray Charles, died at 76. Fritts was a well-known session player from Florence, Alabama, playing drums and keyboard. He co-wrote songs like Dusty Springfield's "Breakfast in Bed," and "Choo Choo Train" by the Box Tops. He then joined Kristofferson's band as a keyboard player for decades, which led him to be cast along with Kristofferson in films like "Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid" and "A Star is Born."
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The Canadian Press