History highlight:

Today in 1994, Atlanta hip-hop duo OutKast released their debut album, Southerplayalisticadillacmuzik. The first of many legendary collaborations between rappers Andre 3000 (then known as Dre) and Big Boi, the album created a new vision for hip-hop with a Southern perspective. Instead of heavily relying on samples, the live instrumentation brings soul to the tracks. It features the title track, “Player’s Ball,” “Ain’t No Thang,” and “Funky Ride.”

Also, today in:

1942 - Early rock and roll teen idol Bobby Rydell was born in Philadelphia. His most well-known songs include "Wildwood Days," "Wild One" and "Volare,” and in 1963, he appeared in the musical film Bye Bye Birdie. Rydell continued to tour up until his death in April 2022.

1969 - "Oh Happy Day" by the Edwin Hawkins Singers entered the Hot 100 at No. 72, becoming the first gospel song to make that chart.

1977 - New York's legendary disco and party central, Studio 54, opened up for business.

1978 - Ringo Starr's TV special, Ringo, a musical version of The Prince And The Pauper, was shown on American TV. Ringo portrayed both characters, with former bandmate George Harrison narrating.

1978 - The Last Waltz, director Martin Scorsese's acclaimed documentary of the Band's star-studded last concert, opened in theaters. The film featured performances by Neil Young, Eric Clapton, Joni Mitchell, Van Morrison, Neil Diamond, The Staple Singers and Dr. John.

1983 - “Weird Al" Yankovic released his self-titled debut album. Fueled by the underground success of the singles "My Bologna" and "Another One Rides the Bus", the album charted at No. 139 on the Billboard 200. Critically, the album received a lukewarm reception, with many reviewers feeling that Yankovic was a throw-away act who would not be able to overcome the stigma of a novelty record.

1988 - k.d. lang released her debut solo album, Shadowland. The album included her collaboration with Kitty Wells, Loretta Lynn and Brenda Lee on "Honky Tonk Angels' Medley".

1990 - Nirvana appeared at the Pyramid Club in New York City. The band's label, Sub Pop, filmed the show, and the performance of "In Bloom" was later used as a video.

1993 - Sebadoh released their fourth studio album, Bubble & Scrape. It features the singles "Soul and Fire" and "Sacred Attention."

1993 - PJ Harvey released her second studio album, Rid of Me. It features the singles "50ft Queenie" and "Man-Size." It was recorded at Pachyderm Studio in Cannon Falls, Minnesota.

1994 - Johnny Cash released his 81st album, American Recordings. It was produced by Rick Rubin, and was seen as a massive comeback.

1994 - Live relased their third album, Throwing Copper. Recorded with producer Jerry Harrison of Talking Heads at Pachyderm Studio in Cannon Falls, it is the band’s best-selling release. Singles include “Selling the Drama,” “I Alone,” “Lightning Crashes,” “All Over You,” and “White, Discussion.”

1995 - Courtney Love turned down Playboy magazine's $1 million offer to pose nude.

2005 - Bruce Springsteen released his 13th studio album, Devils & Dust. It features the title track and “All the Way Home.”

2005 - The Mountain Goats released their ninth studio album, The Sunset Tree. It features “This Year.”

2005 - Eels released their sixth studio album, Blinking Lights and Other Revelations. It features "Hey Man (Now You're Really Living)."

2005 - Amerie released her second studio album, Touch. It features “1 Thing.”

2008 - Amy Winehouse spent the night in custody after being arrested on suspicion of assault.

2013 - U.S. country singer George Jones who had a string of number-one songs between the 1950s and 1990s, died at age 81. Jones’s signature song was "He Stopped Loving Her Today," a track about love and death. He was married to Tammy Wynette between 1969 and 1975, and the pair recorded several songs together in the 1970s.

2016 - A list of tracks by a death metal band was accidentally printed on the back of a new album by U.K. comedian Bernie Clifton. The 80-year-old (who is famous for riding a yellow ostrich), said he was "fuming and furious" about the error, which saw songs by the group Abhorrent Decimation printed on his new CD.

2017 - Father John Misty released his video for "Total Entertainment Forever," which stars Macaulay Culkin as a crucified Kurt Cobain.

2019 - Molly Hatchet singer Phil McCormack died, age 58. He'd fronted the Southern rock band since 1996 after having performed with them previously, taking over from Danny Joe Brown.

2019 - Catfish and the Bottlemen released their third studio album, The Balance. It features “Longshot.”

Birthdays:

Carol Burnett is 92.

Duane Eddy was born today in 1938. He died on April 30, 2024.

Giorgio Moroder, Italian composer, songwriter and record producer known as the “Father of Disco,” is 85.

Bobby Rydell was born on this day in 1942.

Gary Wright, best known for his hits "Dream Weaver" and "My Love Is Alive," is 82.

Roger Taylor of Duran Duran is 65.

Chris Mars of the Replacements is 64.

Tionne Watkins, AKA T-Boz of TLC, is 55.

Jay DeMarcus of Rascal Flatts is 54.

Joey Jordison of Slipknot was born today in 1975.

Ms. Dynamite is 44.

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