History Highlight:

Today in 2013, The Joy Formidable released their second full-length studio album, Wolf's Law, in the United States; it released a day earlier in the band’s native United Kingdom. Songs for the album were written over a period of months in 2012, when The Joy Formidable were on tour in the U.S. As a result, vocalist Ritzy Bryan said Wolf's Law touched on corporate greed and materialism as well as Native American mythology, with instrumentation ranging from heavy-metal-style guitars to symphonic string arrangements — not surprising given Bryan and bassist Rhydian Dafydd both have classical music backgrounds. Wolf’s Law features the singles "Cholla," "This Ladder Is Ours," and "Silent Treatment."

Also, in:

1959 - Buddy Holly made his last recordings in his New York City apartment, alone, with an acoustic guitar and tape recorder. He recorded "Peggy Sue," "Crying, Waiting, Hoping," "That's What They Say," "What to Do," "Learning the Game" and "That Makes it Tough." The recordings were embellished and overdubbed, and released posthumously by Coral Records.

1966 - The Beatles’ “Day Tripper” peaked at No. 5 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart.

1966 - The Beach Boys went into the studio to record "Wouldn't It Be Nice," which would be the opening track on their forthcoming album Pet Sounds.

1966 - Nancy Sinatra entered the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart with what would be her biggest hit, "These Boots Are Made for Walkin'." The tune went No. 1 the following month and would spend 14 weeks altogether on the singles chart.

1967 - The Monkees performed live for the very first time at The Cow Palace in San Francisco to a sell-out crowd.

1977 - Wings went No. 1 on the U.S. album chart with Wings Over America, Paul McCartney's sixth U.S. No. 1 after The Beatles.

1977 - Stevie Wonder went No. 1 on the U.S. singles chart with "I Wish," his fifth U.S. No. 1.

1979 - Sister Sledge released their third studio album, We Are Family. It features the singles "He's the Greatest Dancer," "We Are Family," "Lost in Music," and "Thinking of You."

1983 - The Clash peaked at No. 8 on the Billboard Hot 100 Singles Chart with "Rock the Casbah," which was their first and only top-10 single in the U.S.

1983 - The 24-hour music video network MTV started broadcasting to the West Coast after being picked up by Group W Cable in Los Angeles. When MTV first launched on August 1, 1981, it was only available to cable subscribers in New Jersey. It took some time for the service to proliferate as other cable networks across the U.S. added it to subscriber plans.

1989 - Metallica's first music video, for "One," made its debut. Running 7:44, it incorporates footage from the 1971 war movie, Johnny Got His Gun.

1996 - Frank Black released his third solo studio album, The Cult of Ray. It features the singles "Men in Black," "The Marsist," and "I Don't Want to Hurt You (Every Single Time)."

2001 - Low released their fifth studio album, Things We Lost in the Fire. It features the singles "Dinosaur Act," "Sunflower," and "Laser Beam."

2007 - The Good, the Bad & the Queen released their self-titled debut studio album, The Good, the Bad & the Queen. It features the singles "Herculean," "Kingdom of Doom," and "Green Fields."

2008 - Cat Power (aka Chan Marshall) released her eighth studio album, Jukebox. The 12-track collection is almost entirely cover songs, except for two originals by Marshall, "Song to Bobby" and "Metal Heart." Yesterday (January 21) was Chan Marshall’s birthday.

2012 - Adele broke an American chart record that has stood for years after being originally set by The Beatles and Pink Floyd. The singer's second album, 21, clocked up 16 weeks at No. 1 on the U.S. chart, matching the success of the Titanic soundtrack.

2013 - Fidlar released their self-titled debut studio album, Fidlar. It features the singles "Cheap Beer," "Stoked and Broke," "No Waves," and "Cocaine."

2013 - Toro y Moi released his third studio album, Anything in Return. It features the singles "So Many Details," "Say That," "Never Matter," and "Rose Quartz."

2013 - Ra Ra Riot released their third studio album, Beta Love. It features the singles "Dance with Me," "Binary Mind," and "Beta Love."

2013 - Foxygen released their second studio album, We Are the 21st Century Ambassadors of Peace & Magic. It features the singles "Shuggie," "San Francisco," and "No Destruction."

2016 - Savages released their second studio album, Adore Life. It features the singles "The Answer," "Evil," "Adore," and "T.I.W.Y.G."

2016 - Chairlift released their third and final studio album, Moth. It features the singles "Ch-Ching," "Romeo," "Crying in Public," and "Moth to the Flame."

2017 - English bass guitar player Pete Overend Watts and founding member of the 1970s rock band, Mott the Hoople, died from throat cancer aged 69.

2017 - German drummer Jaki Liebezeit died of pneumonia at age 78. He was best-known as a founding member of the experimental rock band Can who were hailed as pioneers of the German krautrock scene. He also worked with Jah Wobble, Depeche Mode and Brian Eno.

2018 - Neil Diamond announced he would retire from concert touring after a Parkinson's Disease diagnosis.

Birthdays:

Gospel and soul singer Sam Cooke was born on this day in 1931.

Addie Harris, singer from The Shirelles, was born today in 1940.

Malcolm McLaren — manager for the Sex Pistols, New York Dolls, Adam and the Ants, and others — was born today in 1946.

Drummer Vini Lopez, a founding member of the E Street Band with Bruce Springsteen, is 78.

Steve Perry, who was the lead singer for Journey between 1977 to 1987 and 1995 to 1998, is 77. He was born Jan. 22, 1949, in Hanford, California. Perry also wrote or co-wrote several of Journey’s biggest hits, including “Lights,” "Lovin', Touchin', Squeezin'," “Any Way You Want It,” “Open Arms,” and “Don’t Stop Believin’.” His nickname is “The Voice,” and he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame with Journey in 2017. He has released four solo albums, including 2021’s The Season. His biggest hit as a solo artist include “Oh Sherrie,” “Foolish Heart,” and “You Better Wait.” He duets with Dolly Parton on a new version of “Open Arms” featured on Parton’s 2023 Rockstar album. In 2018, Perry stopped by our studios to talk to Jill about his new album and his deeply personal motivation to return from isolation.

English drummer Nigel Pegrum (Small Faces, Lee Grant And The Capitols, Uriah Heep) is 77.

Jim Jarmusch — musician and director of Down by Law (starring Tom Waits) and Coffee and Cigarettes (starring Waits, Iggy Pop, the White Stripes, RZA, and more) — is 73.

Michael Hutchence — the Australian musician, singer-songwriter and actor — was born on this day in 1960. He co-founded INXS, which sold over 60 million records worldwide and was inducted into the ARIA Hall of Fame in 2001. He was the lead singer and lyricist of the band from 1977 until his death in 1997.

Steven Adler, former drummer for Guns N' Roses, is 61.

DJ Jazzy Jeff is 61.

Angel Olsen is 39. Olsen grew up in St. Louis, Missouri, and she learned piano and guitar and began writing music while in high school. After high school, Olsen moved to Chicago to pursue music, where she collaborated with a number of artists including Bonnie “Prince” Billy, Wilco, and Cass McCombs. In 2011 and 2012, respectively, Olsen released her debut EP and album on Asheville, North Carolina-based Bathetic Records, and was later signed to Jagjaguwar. Olsen has since released five albums on the label, including 2022’s Big Time. Olsen is known for powerful tunes that pack a punch, such as the driving “Shut Up Kiss Me”; the slow-burn rocker “Give It Up”; and the orchestral crooner “Big Time.”

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