April 14
British entertainment lost a versatile voice on this day in 1999 when Anthony Newley died at 67 from cancer, ending the career of the singer-songwriter-actor whose "What Kind of Fool Am I?" showcased his theatrical talents while his tumultuous marriage to Joan Collins kept tabloids entertained… We remember country's most defiant voice Loretta Lynn on her birthday today in 1935, the coal miner's daughter whose "The Pill" and autobiographical songs about marriage, motherhood, and poverty made her country music's most honest female voice before her death in 2022… Hard rock's most virtuosic guitar wizard Ritchie Blackmore celebrates his 81st birthday today, the Deep Purple and Rainbow founder whose classical influences and "Smoke on the Water" riff made him one of heavy metal's most technically accomplished and difficult personalities… Soul lost its most passionate pleader on this day in 2015 when Percy Sledge died at 74, ...
