History highlight:

Today in 1981, Brandi Carlile was born, making her 45 today. Carlile grew up in a small town near Seattle, and was inspired to learn piano after hearing the music of Elton John; at 17 years old, Carlile learned to play guitar and began her longtime musical collaboration with brothers Tim and Phil Hanseroth. Carlile released her self-titled debut album in 2005, and followed that in 2007 with The Story, the title track of which remains one of Carlile’s best-loved songs. To date, Carlile has released nine studio albums, the most recent being 2025’s Returning to Myself. Beyond her own music, Carlile is a spirited collaborator; some of her projects with others include the quartet with Amanda Shires, Maren Morris and Natalie Hemby called the Highwomen; her work on revitalizing Joni Mitchell’s career, including the Grammy-winning live album Joni Mitchell at Newport; and the 2025 collaborative album with Elton John, Who Believes in Angels? In addition to her musical output, Carlile is a published author, having published her autobiography Broken Horses: A Memoir, in 2021. Carlile is also a passionate activist who advocates for LGBTQ+ rights, racial justice, and humanitarian causes; for example, Carlile’s Be Human: A Concert for Minneapolis on Feb. 21, 2026, raised more than $600,000 for The Advocates of Human Rights to assist families in the wake of the surge of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents in Minnesota.

Also, today in:

1966 - During a 12-hour session at Abbey Road studios, the Beatles added overdubs on "Yellow Submarine," with John Lennon blowing bubbles in a bucket of water and shouting "Full speed ahead, Mister Captain!" Roadie Mal Evans played on a bass drum strapped to his chest, marching around the studio with the Beatles following in a conga line, all singing "We all live in a yellow submarine.”

1968 - Simon and Garfunkel went to No. 1 on the U.S. singles chart with "Mrs. Robinson," which was featured in the film The Graduate. The song, which contains a nod to the Beatles' "I Am the Walrus" ("coo-coo-ca-choo") and a mention of baseball great Joe DiMaggio, went on to win two Grammy Awards in 1969. It became the first rock song to win Record of the Year, and it also won the Grammy for Best Contemporary-Pop Performance, Vocal Duo or Group.

1969 - The Plastic Ono Band recorded "Give Peace a Chance" during a “bed-in” at the Hotel La Reine in Montreal. Producer Phil Spector, poet Allan Ginsberg and writer Timothy Leary all sang on the song.

1971 - The two-room shack in Tupelo, Mississippi, where Elvis Presley was born on January 8, 1935, was opened to the public as a tourist attraction.

1972 - Aretha Franklin's live album Amazing Grace, a collection of spirituals recorded at a church in January of that year, was released. Anchored by Franklin's stunning rendition of "Amazing Grace," it became her best-selling album.

1975 - The Rolling Stones kicked off their biggest-ever U.S. tour at Louisiana State University. The tour would comprise 45 shows in 26 cities. Guitarist Ron Wood joined the Stones on tour for the first time, replacing Mick Taylor.

1979 - Electric Light Orchestra released their eighth studio album, Discovery. It features "Shine a Little Love," "Don't Bring Me Down," "Last Train to London," "Confusion," and "The Diary of Horace Wimp."

1979 - Devo released their second studio album, Duty Now for the Future. It features "The Day My Baby Gave Me a Surprize" and “Secret Agent Man.”

1983 - Talking Heads released their fifth studio album, Speaking in Tongues. It features "Burning Down the House," "This Must Be the Place (Naive Melody)" and “Swamp.”

1985 - Prince and the Revolution started a three-week run at No. 1 on the U.S. album chart with Around the World in a Day.

1987 - Whitney Houston released her second studio album, Whitney. It features "I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)," "Didn't We Almost Have It All," "So Emotional," and "Where Do Broken Hearts Go."

1987 - Sonic Youth released their fourth studio album, Sister.

1988 - Patti Smith released her fifth studio album, Dream of Life, in June of 1988. It features “People Have the Power.”

1991 - American soul singer David Ruffin of the Temptations died of a drug overdose.

1992 - Sublime released their debut studio album, 40 oz. to Freedom.

1992 - Del Amitri released their third studio album, Change Everything. It features "Always the Last to Know."

1993 - Slowdive released their second studio album, Souvlaki. It features “Alison.”

1993 - Mercury Rev released their second album, Boces.

1998 - Jurassic 5 released their self-titled debut album. It features “Action Satisfaction.”

1999 - Dido released her debut album, No Angel. It features “Here With Me” and “Thank You.”

1999 - Blink-182 released their third studio album, Enema of the State. It features “All the Small Things” and “What’s My Age Again?”

2001 - The movie Moulin Rouge!, directed by Baz Luhrmann, opened in theaters. It featured covers of "Nature Boy" by David Bowie, "Diamond Dogs" by Beck, and "Lady Marmalade" by Missy Elliott, Christina Aguilera, Lil' Kim, Mya, and Pink. Kylie Minogue made an appearance in the movie as the Green Fairy.

2005 - White Stripes singer Jack White married his girlfriend, British model Karen Elson, in a canoe on the Amazon River in Brazil. The ceremony was officiated by a shaman. The couple had two kids together and divorced in 2013.

2008 - A fire at Universal Studios Hollywood destroys thousands of master tapes controlled by Universal Music Group, including recordings by Joni Mitchell, Elton John, B.B. King, Neil Diamond, Nirvana and Eminem. The extent of the loss is not revealed until years later.

2012 - Swearin’ (a Philadelphia band fronted by Allison Crutchfield, twin sister to Katie of Waxahatchee) released their self-titled debut.

2013 - Modern Vampires of the City by Vampire Weekend went to No. 1 on the U.S. album charts.

2015 - Folk singer Jean Ritchie died at the age of 92.

2017 - Thanks to the song by Eminem, the word "stan" was added to the Oxford American Dictionary, defined as "an overzealous or obsessive fan of a particular celebrity."

2018 - Father John Misty released his fourth studio album, God’s Favorite Customer. It features "Mr. Tillman."

2018 - Natalie Prass released her second studio album, The Future and the Past. It features “Short Court Style,” “Sisters,” and “Lost.”

2019 - Tyler, The Creator's offbeat album Igor debuted at No. 1 in the U.S., beating the far more traditional and trendy Father Of Asahd by DJ Khaled, the heavy favorite. Igor went on to win the Grammy Award for Best Rap Album.

Birthdays:

Music composer and arranger Nelson Riddle was born today in 1921.

Actor and singer Andy Griffith was born today in 1926.

Singer-songwriter and 1960s teen idol Pat Boone is 92.

Pop singer Linda Scott, who enjoyed a global hit in 1961 with her cover of “I’ve Told Ev’ry Star,” is 81.

Ronnie Wood of The Rolling Stones, The Faces and the Jeff Beck Group is 79.

R&B singer Charlene (full name Charlene D’Angelo) whose best-known hit is 1982’s “I’ve Never Been to Me,” is 76.

Ronnie Dunn of Brooks & Dunn is 73.

Former Depeche Mode keyboardist Alan Wilder is 67.

Simon Gallup, bassist in the Cure, is 66.

Mike Joyce, drummer for the Smiths, is 63.

Alanis Morissette is 52.

Rahim Redcar, formerly known as Christine and the Queens, is 38.

Highlights for Today in Music History are gathered from This Day in Music, Paul Shaffer's Day in Rock, Song Facts and Wikipedia.