February 16
Piedmont blues lost one of its last masters on this date in 1996 when Walter "Brownie" McGhee died at 80, ending the life of the guitarist whose six-decade partnership with harmonica player Sonny Terry preserved acoustic blues traditions while influencing the folk revival generation… Pop lost its most defiant teenage voice on this day in 2015 when Leslie Gore died at 68 from lung cancer, ending the career of the singer whose "It's My Party" and "You Don't Own Me" became feminist anthems despite being recorded when she was just 17 years old… We remember rock and roll's greatest ghost songwriter Otis Blackwell on his birthday today in 1932, the composer who wrote Elvis Presley's "Don't Be Cruel" and "All Shook Up" plus Jerry Lee Lewis's "Great Balls of Fire" without receiving public recognition before his death in 2002… We honor Sonny Bono on his birthday today in 1935, the entertainer w...
