February 25th

Musical birthdays today include former Vinegar Joe vocalist Elkie Brooks (74), bluegrass banjo player Pete Wernick (73), Doug Yule (72), Emitt Rhodes (69), ex-Daniel Amos lead guitarist Jerry Chamberlain (67), X frontman John Doe (65), The Alarm frontman Mike Peters (60), Bad Religion guitarist Brian Baker (54), Julio Iglesias, Jr. (45), former Cradle of Filth vocalist Sarah Jezebel Deva (42), The Used lead singer Bert McCracken (37), and Music for Dead Birds singer Danny Monaghan (31).


Shoutout to the Great Beyond for Enrico Caruso, born on this day in 1873... for Ralph Stanley, born in 1927... for former NBC Orchestra lead saxophonist Tommy Newsom, who would have been 90 today... for country singer Faron Young, who would have been 87... for George Harrison, who would have been 76... for pop songwriter Johnny Burke [best remembered for 'Pennies from Heaven' and 'Moonlight Becomes You'], who died on this date in 1964... for former Marshall Tucker Band lead guitarist Toy Caldwell, who died in 1993... for folk singer Mark Spoelstra, who passed away in 2007, and for ex-Allman Brothers Band guitarist 'Dangerous Dan' Toler, who left us today in 2013.  f


Also on February 25th: George M. Cohan's first musical The Governor's Son' opens on Broadway (1901)... Elvis has his first major US hit when his single 'I Forgot to Remember to Forget' goes to № 1 on the Billboard Country & Western chart (1956)... Buddy Holly records 'That'll Be the Day' at the Norman Petty Studio in Clovis, NM (1957)... Columbia records releases Barbra Streisand's debut LP, The Barbra Streisand Album (1963)... Back from America, the Beatles record 'Can't Buy Me Love', 'You Can't Do That' and 'I Should Have Known Better' at Abbey Road Studios (1964)... Pink Floyd appear at the Ricky Tick Club in Hounslow, greater London. The Yardbirds were filmed there the previous year for a scene in Michelangelo Antonioni's film 'Blow Up' (1967)... Led Zeppelin play their first ever gig in New Zealand at the Western Springs Stadium in Auckland. News reviews published the next day report that the band could be heard over 5 miles from the venue... Pink Moon, Nick Drakes's third and final album, is released (1972)... The Jam sign with Polydor Records for £6,000 (1977)... Christopher Cross wins the Song of the Year Grammy for 'Sailing' (1981)... Van Halen have the № 1 single in America with 'Jump' (1984)... U2 kick off their first full-scale large venue American tour at the Reunion Arena in Dallas, TX (1985)... Simple Minds go to № 1 in the UK with 'Belfast Child'. Clocking in at 6:39, it is the second-longest British no. 1 ever after 'Hey Jude' (1988)... At Radio City Music Hall, Bob Dylan is handed 3 Grammys, including Best Album for Time out of Mind'. During Dylan's performance of the song 'Not Dark Yet', background dancer Michael Portnoy rips his shirt off, takes a position next to Dylan centre stage and reveals the words 'Soy Bomb' painted on his chest (1998)... Lil' Kim says that a shooting which occurred after she left a NYC radio station had nothing to do with her. One person was wounded in the fusillade of 22 bullets outside of Hot 97. According to the New York Daily News, the incident was the result of a feud between Lil' Kim and rival rappers Capone-N-Noreaga (2001)... George Michael is found slumped over in a car in London's Hyde Park. A concerned passerby spotted the singer and called police, who, after having Michael checked by paramedics, arrested him on suspicion of possessing drugs before then releasing him on bail. Michael makes a public statement about the incident and says "I was in possession of class C drugs, which is an offense, and I have no complaints about the police who were professional throughout." He also says that the event was "my own stupid fault, as usual." (2006)... President Obama honours Stevie Wonder, his musical idol, with America's highest award for pop music, the Library of Congress' Gershwin prize at a ceremony at the White House. The president says that the Motown legend was the soundtrack to his youth, and he doubts that his wife would have married him if he hadn't been a fan. Wonder's song 'Signed, Sealed, Delivered' was the theme song during Obama's '08 presidential campaign (2009).