February 3

 

The music died today in 1959 when Buddy Holly, The Big Bopper, and Ritchie Valens perished in a plane crash shortly after takeoff from Clear Lake, Iowa, the tragedy immortalized in Don McLean's "American Pie" as the day that killed rock and roll's innocence…

 

We remember blues guitar's most flamboyant showman Johnny "Guitar" Watson on his birthday today in 1935, the Houston guitarist whose pimp persona and funky playing influenced Frank Zappa and Stevie Ray Vaughan before his fatal heart attack onstage in 1996…

 

The Kinks' power chord pioneer Dave Davies was born today in 1947, the younger Davies brother whose fuzzy riff on "You Really Got Me" essentially invented heavy metal while his volatile relationship with Ray created both brilliant music and endless dysfunction…

 

We honor folk's trembling voice Melanie Safka on her birthday today in 1947, the Woodstock veteran whose "Brand New Key" and "Lay Down (Candles in the Rain)" captured hippie innocence before her death in 2024 ended six decades of distinctive vibrato-filled performances…

 

Artist independence was born today in 1960 when Frank Sinatra launched Reprise Records, the first label owned exclusively by artists, the Chairman of the Board proving that performers could control their own destiny and revolutionizing the music business…

 

The Beatles' end accelerated on this day in 1969 when John Lennon, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr hired Allen Klein to manage the band over Paul McCartney's objections, the decision creating an irreparable rift that would lead to their breakup…

 

Singer-songwriter intimacy found its gentle voice today in 1970 with the release of James Taylor's 'Sweet Baby James,' the album featuring "Fire and Rain" that established the confessional style and made the troubled troubadour a superstar despite his heroin addiction.