May 9
Pop's greatest piano man Billy Joel celebrates his 77th birthday today, the Long Island singer-songwriter whose "Piano Man" and working-class anthems proved that Tin Pan Alley craftsmanship could dominate the 1970s and '80s while his early retirement from pop songwriting left fans wanting more for decades… Rock and roll lost its most flamboyant architect on this day in 2020 when Little Richard died at 87 at his brother's Tennessee home, ending the life of the "Architect of Rock and Roll" whose "Tutti Frutti" and pompadour screams established the template for every wild performer that followed across seven decades… Rock criticism created a legend today in 1974 when Rolling Stone's Jon Landau saw Bruce Springsteen at a Cambridge, Massachusetts concert and wrote "I have seen rock and roll's future and his name is Bruce Springsteen," the quote launching the Boss toward superstardom while Landau became his producer… ...
