History Highlight:

Today in 1989, Taylor Swift was born, making her 36. Originally from West Reading, Pennsylvania, Swift showed an early interest in music, and she performed the National Anthem before a Philadelphia 76ers game at age 11. Soon after, she began taking guitar lessons and writing original music. While still a middle schooler, Swift’s parents moved to suburban Nashville, Tennessee, to get their precocious daughter closer to the music industry — and by age 14, Swift had signed her first publishing deal. Now one of the world’s biggest superstars in any field, Swift boasts legions of fans who are captivated by her thoughtful songwriting and personal lyrics. In 2024, Swift made history as the first artist to win four Album of the Year awards at the Grammys.

Also, Today In:

1966 - The Jimi Hendrix Experience recorded "Foxy Lady" in London.

1969 - Diana Ross took the Latino Casino in Philadelphia to court for $27,500 after her two pet dogs died after eating cyanide tablets left by an exterminator in her dressing room.

1969 - Bob Dylan was featured on the cover of Rolling Stone magazine, on sale for $.35.

1975 - David Bowie's "Golden Years" was released. The song was the main single from Bowie's Station To Station album. Bowie has said he was looking to emulate something of the feeling of the song "On Broadway", and that he offered it to Elvis Presley to perform, but that Presley declined it.

1976 - Aerosmith peaked at number eleven on the Billboard 200 Album Chart with Toys in the Attic, their first album to reach the top forty on the Billboard 200 Album chart. It later went on to sell eight million copies in the U.S.

1976 - Three days after its release, Wings over America, the first and only live album by Wings was certified Gold by the RIAA.

1982 - Culture Club released their debut studio album, Kissing to be Clever. It features “Do You Really Want to Hurt Me.”

1986 - Billy Idol peaked at number six on the Billboard 200 Album Chart with his third full length studio album Whiplash Smile which went on to go Platinum in the U.S.

1993 - Former Guns N' Roses guitarist Slash joined Billy Joel onstage during a concert at the Los Angeles Sports Arena to contribute a solo to "Shameless".

1996 - Jerry Maguire, directed by Cameron Crowe, opened in North American theaters. The film featured cameos from Glenn Frey of the Eagles and Jerry Cantrell of Alice in Chains.

1999 - BMI published their list of the most-played songs on American radio and TV in the 20th century. The Top 5: "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'", "Never My Love", "Yesterday", "Stand By Me", "Can't Take My Eyes Off of You”.

2000 - After former Democratic presidential hopeful Al Gore delivered his concession speech to George W. Bush in Washington, D.C., Gore held a party in his home with a performance by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, which featured guest appearances by Jon Bon Jovi and Stevie Wonder.

2002 - Nas released his sixth studio album, God’s Son. It features “Made You Look.”

2004 - KT Tunstall released her debut studio album, Eye to the Telescope. It features "Black Horse and the Cherry Tree."

2008 - Kanye West went to No. 1 on the U.S. album chart with 808s & Heartbreak, his fourth studio album.

2012 - Songwriting legend Carole King won the Library of Congress' Gershwin Prize in recognition of her lifetime achievement. She was the first woman to have been awarded this honor.

2013 - Beyoncé's self-titled album was released with no advance notice, sending radio stations scrambling to get the songs on the air and generating lots of free publicity. It features “Drunk in Love,” “Partition,” and “XO.”

2016 - TV star Alan Thicke, who composed the theme songs for Diff'rent Strokes, Wheel of Fortune, and The Facts of Life, died at the age of 69.

2019 - Roy Loney, the founding lead singer of the influential San Francisco power pop band the Flamin' Groovies, died at age 73.

2019 - Harry Styles released his second solo album, Fine Line. It features “Lights Up,” “Adore You,” “Falling,” “Watermelon Sugar,” “Golden,” “Treat People With Kindness,” and the title track.

Birthdays:

Dick Van Dyke is 100.

Tim Hauser of Manhattan Transfer was born today in 1941.

Jeff "Skunk" Baxter, guitarist for Steely Dan and The Doobie Brothers, is 77.

Ted Nugent is 77.

Tom Verlaine, singer-songwriter for Television, was born on this day in 1949. The band was an early fixture of CBGB and the 1970s New York rock scene. Their debut album Marquee Moon is often considered one of the defining releases of the post-punk era. Verlaine died on January 28, 2023.

Morris Day is 68.

Jamie Foxx is 58.

Nick McCarthy, guitarist for Franz Ferdinand, is 51.

Tom DeLonge of Blink-182 is 50.

Amy Lee of Evanescence is 44.

Taylor Swift is 36.

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