History Highlight:

Tim Armstrong of the band Rancid was born today in 1965, making him 60. Armstrong grew up in the East Bay region near San Francisco, and he befriended Matt Freeman when the two were five years old. Armstrong and Freeman both attended the same high school, and over the years, played in several bands together. It was in 1991 that Armstrong and Freeman founded the punk-rock band Rancid; together with fellow California bands Green Day and The Offspring, they were a major part of the 1990s punk-rock revival. Rancid released their self-titled debut in 1993, but it was their third album, 1995’s …And Out Come the Wolves, that proved their breakthrough on the merit of such ska-influenced songs as “Ruby Soho,” “Time Bomb,” and “Roots Radicals.” Five months after its release, …And Out Come the Wolves was certified gold by the RIAA. In addition to his work in Rancid, Tim Armstrong has worked as a producer and songwriter for other artists. For example, in 2012, Armstrong produced Jimmy Cliff’s album, Rebirth, which went on to win a Grammy Award for Best Reggae Album.

Also, in:

1967 - The Who peaked at number nine on the Billboard Hot 100 Singles Chart with "I Can See for Miles" which was their first and only top ten single in the U.S.

1971 - Ray Manzarek, Robbie Krieger and John Densmore announced that The Doors would carry on after Jim Morrison's death earlier in the year. They would later split up in October of 1973.

1974 - Nick Drake died in his sleep due to an overdose at age 26. Drake signed to Island Records when he was 20 years old and recorded the classic album Pink Moon in 1972. In 2000, Volkswagen featured the title track from Pink Moon in a TV ad, and within a month Drake had sold more records than he had in the previous 30 years.

1976 - The Band made their final performance, "The Last Waltz", at Winterland Ballroom in San Francisco. The show, held on Thanksgiving Day, also featured Joni Mitchell, Neil Young, Van Morrison, Neil Diamond and Eric Clapton. Martin Scorsese filmed the event and made it into a documentary two years later.

1977 - Eric Clapton released his fifth solo studio album, Slowhand. It features the singles "Lay Down Sally," "Wonderful Tonight," and "Cocaine."

1983 - Patti LaBelle released her sixth studio album, I'm in Love Again. It features the singles "If Only You Knew" and "Love, Need and Want You."

1989 - Alice Cooper peaked at number seven on the Billboard Hot 100 Singles Chart with "Poison" which was Alice Cooper's final top ten single in the U.S.

1992 - The Bodyguard opened nationwide featuring Whitney Houston and Kevin Costner. The soundtrack featuring Houston's "I Will Always Love You" is one of the best-selling soundtracks of all time, selling more than 42 million copies worldwide.

1997 - Will Smith released his debut solo studio album, Big Willie Style. It features the singles "Men in Black," "Just Cruisin'," "Gettin' Jiggy wit It," "Just the Two of Us," and "Miami."

1997 - Garth Brooks released his seventh studio album, Sevens. It features the singles "Longneck Bottle," "She's Gonna Make It," "Two Piña Coladas," "You Move Me," and "Do What You Gotta Do."

2003 - Missy Elliott released her fifth studio album, This Is Not a Test!. It features the singles "Pass That Dutch" and "I'm Really Hot."

2005 - Madonna achieved her sixth number one on the U.S. album charts with "Confessions on a Dance Floor", her third consecutive U.S. album chart topper. The album went to No. 1 in 40 countries, setting a new record previously held by The Beatles when they went No. 1 in 36 countries in 2000.

2007 - Kevin Dubrow, the frontman of metal band Quiet Riot, was found dead in his Las Vegas home at the age of 52. Their 1983 release Metal Health was the first metal album to top the U.S. charts.

2011 - Don DeVito, a longtime Columbia Records executive who produced the Bob Dylan albums Blood on the Tracks and Desire, died at age 72 after a 16-year battle with cancer. DeVito had also worked with artists including Bruce Springsteen, Billy Joel and Aerosmith. He started off as a guitarist touring for Al Kooper, and had his own band, The Sabres, which later broke up mid-tour. According to Columbia, DeVito was stranded in Arkansas, when he happened to meet Johnny Cash and developed what would become a lifelong friendship. Cash would later introduce DeVito to Dylan.

2016 - The Weeknd released his third studio album, Starboy. It features the singles "Starboy," "False Alarm," "I Feel It Coming," "Party Monster," "Reminder," "Rockin'," "Die for You," and "Secrets."

2019 - Scottish singer songwriter Iain Sutherland, who helped compose Rod Stewart's 1975 hit song, “Sailing,” died. Sutherland and his brother Gavin recorded the song in 1972 before it became a worldwide hit for Stewart. The brothers worked as a folk group, the Sutherland Brothers Band, and later combined with a local rock band, Quiver, and billed themselves as the Sutherland Brothers & Quiver.

Birthdays:

Paul Desmond, saxophonist for the Dave Brubeck Quartet and composer of “Take Five,” was born today in 1924.

Soul singer Percy Sledge, singer of No. 1 single "When A Man Loves A Woman," was born today in 1940.

Singer-songwriter Bob Lind, whose 1966 hit single “Elusive Butterfly” helped define the 1960s folk-rock movement, is 83.

Jerry Portnoy, harmonica player for Eric Clapton and Muddy Waters, is 82.

R&B and dance-music singer Jocelyn Brown is 75. Originally from North Carolina, Brown experienced much more career success in the U.K., and as a result, has lived in London since 1990. She has recorded 23 U.K. hit singles, including 1991’s hit song “Don’t Talk Just Kiss” with Right Said Fred.

Amy Grant is 65.

Mark Lanegan of Screaming Trees and Queens of the Stone Age was born today in 1964. Lanegan was born in Ellensburg, Washington, and it was in the Seattle music scene that Lanegan found his voice — quite literally, as Lanegan’s voice led Screaming Trees, a hard-charging, psychedelic-rock band who were a vital part of Seattle’s 1990s grunge music scene alongside such bands as Alice in Chains, Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, Mudhoney, The Melvins, and Nirvana. Screaming Trees had varying success, but their most notable contribution is the alternative-rock favorite "Nearly Lost You," which also featured in the soundtrack to the 1992 Cameron Crowe film Singles. Later, Beyond Screaming Trees, Lanegan was a member of Queens of the Stone Age from 2000 to 2014, and he was also a member of Mad Season, the Seattle band featuring Pearl Jam's Mike McCready, Alice in Chains' Layne Staley, Screaming Trees' Barrett Martin and John Baker Saunders. Supportive and enthusiastic, Lanegan enjoyed a reputation as an eager collaborator with musicians in Seattle, in California, and in the U.K. and Europe. In 2020, Lanegan relocated to Killarney, Ireland. He passed away at home in Killarney on Feb. 22, 2022, at the age of 57.

Tim Armstrong of Rancid is 60.

Comedian and singer Neil Hamburger (aka Gregg Turkington) is 58.

Rodney Sheppard of Sugar Ray is 58.

Erick Sermon of EPMD is 57.

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