History Highlight:

Today in 2021, Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit released the charity covers album, Georgia Blue. The album was Isbell’s eighth studio album to that date, and his fifth with the 400 Unit. In the album’s liner notes, Isbell wrote, “On election day 2020, when I saw that there was a good chance the state of Georgia might go blue, I came up with an idea: to record an album of Georgia-related songs.” The album comprises covers of 13 songs by Georgia artists, and it features many special guests, including Chris Thile and Béla Fleck on R.E.M.’s “Nightswimming”; Julien Baker and Brandi Carlile on Indigo Girls’ “Kid Fears”; Amanda Shires on Cat Power’s “Cross Bones Style”; Adia Victoria on Precious Bryant’s “The Truth”; Brittney Spencer with John Paul White on Gladys Knight and the Pips’ “Midnight Train to Georgia”; and John Paul White on R.E.M.’s “Driver 8.” The album was engineered and mixed by Minnesota-raised, Nashville-based audio engineer Gena Johnson. All proceeds from the album’s sales went to three Georgia-based nonprofit organizations that encourage voter registration and participation: Black Voters Matter, Stand-Up Georgia, and Fair Fight.

Also, Today In:

1955 - At a concert in his hometown of Lubbock, Texas, a young Buddy Holly opened for a young Elvis Presley. Nashville talent scout Eddie Crandall was in the audience and arranged for Holly to audition and record demos for the Decca label.

1965 - Jimi Hendrix signed his first recording contract in the U.K., where he would received $1 and a 1% Royalty on all of his recordings.

1966 - The Four Tops started a two-week run at No. 1 on the U.S. singles chart with "Reach Out And I'll Be There," their second No. 1.

1973 - The U.S. Supreme Court upholds, by a 7-2 vote, the 1971 FCC directive that bans radio DJs from playing songs that glorify drugs.

1973 - Keith Richards was found guilty of trafficking cannabis by a court in France. Richards was given a one-year suspended sentence, a 5,000-franc fine, and was banned from entering France for two years.

1976 - EMI Records signed the Sex Pistols for a considerable sum, but dropped them the following year.

1976 - Electric Light Orchestra released their sixth studio album, A New World Record. It features the singles "Livin' Thing," "Do Ya," "Rockaria!," and "Telephone Line."

1977 - Debby Boone started a 10-week run at No. 1 on the U.S. singles chart with "You Light Up My Life."

1978 - Toto released their debut studio album, Toto. It features the singles "Hold the Line," "I'll Supply the Love," "Georgy Porgy," and "Rockmaker."

1979 - ABBA played their first concert in North America when they appeared in Vancouver, B.C.

1984 - British synth-pop trio Bronski Beat released their debut album, The Age of Consent. The band members — Jimmy Somerville, Steve Bronski and Larry Steinbachek, all of whom were gay — wore their sexuality proudly on their sleeves as they released an album inspired by LGBTQIA+ advocacy in the face of Britain’s then-oppressive legislation regarding gay rights as compared to the rest of Europe. The album includes four hit singles: the original songs “Smalltown Boy” and “Why?,” and the cover tracks “It Ain’t Necessarily So” and “I Feel Love (Medley).” The single “Smalltown Boy” peaked at No. 3 in the U.K. singles chart and at No. 48 in the U.S. Billboard Hot 100.

1988 - Bon Jovi started a four-week run at No. 1 on the U.S. album chart with their fourth release, New Jersey. The album produced five Billboard Hot 100 Top 10 singles, the most top-ten hits to date for a hard-rock album.

1990 - Ride released their debut studio album, Nowhere. It features “Vapour Trail” and “Kaleidoscope.”

1993 - Crash Test Dummies released their second studio album, God Shuffled His Feet. It features the title track, “Afternoons and Coffeespoons,” and “Mmm Mmm Mmm Mmm.”

1994 - R.E.M. entered the Billboard 200 album chart at No. 1 with Monster. The album was their ninth and was a stylistic shift from the band’s previous two albums — 1991's Out of Time and 1992's Automatic for the People — with loud, distorted guitar tones and simple arrangements. Monster features the singles, "What's the Frequency, Kenneth?,” “Bang and Blame,” “Crush with Eyeliner,” “Strange Currencies,” and “Tongue.”

1995 - Paul and Linda McCartney were the guest voices on The Simpsons in an episode called "Lisa the Vegetarian." Paul's condition for appearing on the show was that Lisa's decision to become a vegetarian would be a permanent change for her character. Simpsons producer David Mirkin agreed. In the episode, Paul explains that if you play "Maybe I'm Amazed" backwards, you'll hear a recipe for lentil soup.

1996 - Counting Crows released their second studio album, Recovering the Satellites. It features the singles "Angels of the Silences," "A Long December," and "Daylight Fading."

1996 - Jon Spencer Blues Explosion released their fifth studio album, Now I Got Worry. It features the singles "2Kindsa Love," "Wail," and "Rocketship."

1996 - The Lemonheads released their seventh studio album, Car Button Cloth. It features the singles "If I Could Talk I'd Tell You," "It's All True," and "The Outdoor Type."

1996 - Phish released their sixth studio album, Billy Breathes. It features the singles "Free" and "Character Zero."

2000 - Already a smash in their native Britain, Radiohead landed the No. 1 album slot in the United States with Kid A. This success was credited variously to a unique marketing campaign — the early Internet leak of the album — and anticipation after the band's acclaimed 1997 album, OK Computer. The album's songwriting and recording were experimental for Radiohead, as the band had replaced their earlier "anthemic" rock style with a more electronic sound. Several publications have rated Kid A as the best album of the 2000s and among the greatest of all time.

2002 - Broken Social Scene released their second studio album, You Forgot It in People. It features the singles "Stars and Sons," "Cause = Time," "Almost Crimes (Radio Kills Remix)," and "Lover's Spit."

2003 - The Louis Armstrong House Museum opened its doors to the public. Located in the Corona neighborhood of Queens, New York, the home was the longtime residence of the late singer and trumpet player.

2010 - Kings of Leon released their fifth studio album, Come Around Sundown. It features “Radioactive,” “Pyro,” and “Back Down South.”

2013 - Lizzo released her debut studio album, Lizzobangers. Co-produced by Lazerbeak from Doomtree and by Ryan Olson (Poliça, Gayngs, Marijuana Death Squads), the album was released on Olson’s Totally Gross National Product label before being re-released a few months later on Virgin Records, setting Lizzo on the path toward stardom. "We made that album with no money," Lazerbeak recalled to The Current in 2018. "We had zero expectations." Lizzobangers features the singles "Batches & Cookies," "Paris," "Faded," and "Bus Passes and Happy Meals."

2013 - Pearl Jam released their 10th studio album, Lightning Bolt. It features the singles "Mind Your Manners," "Sirens," and "Lightning Bolt."

2013 - The Head and the Heart released their second studio album, Let's Be Still. It features the title track and the singles "Shake" and "Another Story."

2013 - The Avett Brothers released their eighth studio album, Magpie and the Dandelion. It features the singles "Another Is Waiting," "Morning Song," "Open-Ended Life," and "Vanity."

2013 - Madonna was banned from the Alamo Drafthouse Cinema chain after being accused of texting during a film. Attending the New York Film Festival screening of 12 Years a Slave, the pop star was reportedly asked to stop texting by an audience member. Tim League, CEO of Alamo Drafthouse, tweeted: "Until she apologizes to movie fans, Madonna is banned from watching movies at Alamo." The chain is famous for its strict policy of requiring its audiences to maintain proper cinema-going etiquette.

2014 - Chuck Berry performed for the last time at the St. Louis club Blueberry Hill. The legendary rocker, who died in 2017, played monthly gigs at the venue starting in 1996.

2014 - U2 frontman Bono said he was sorry after their latest album was automatically added to the libraries of all iTunes users around the world, saying the move was a "drop of megalomania, a touch of generosity." iTunes users complained that the 11-track Songs of Innocence had been added to their music library without permission and that it was not clear how to delete it.

2020 - English musician and songwriter Gordon Haskell died from cancer age 74.

2021 - Coldplay released their ninth studio album, Music of the Spheres. It features the singles "Higher Power," "My Universe," "Let Somebody Go," "Coloratura," "People of the Pride," "Biutyful," and a live version of "Humankind."

2021 - Remi Wolf released her debut studio album, Juno. It features the singles "Michael" and "Cake."

2021 - Pokey LaFarge released his seventh studio album, In The Blossom of Their Shade. It features the tracks “Rotterdam” and “Get It ‘Fore It’s Gone.”

Birthdays:

Blues singer Victoria Spivey was born today in 1906.

Paul Tanner — developer of the Electro-Theremin used frequently in Beach Boys songs such as “Good Vibrations” — was born today in 1917.

Mickey Baker of the R&B duo Mickey & Sylvia, who enjoyed a No. 1 R&B single in 1957 with “Love is Strange,” was born today in 1925.

R&B singer, songwriter and pianist Marv Johnson, whose 1959 single “Come to Me” was the first to be released on the Tamla Records label, was born today in 1938.

Nigerian musician and political activist Fela Kuti, considered the pioneer and chief innovator of the Afrobeat genre, was born today in 1938.

Robert Ward of the Ohio Players was born today in 1938.

Don Stevenson of Moby Grape is 84.

Richard Carpenter of the Carpenters is 80.

Chris de Burgh, best known for his 1986 hit song “Lady in Red,” is 78.

Tito Jackson was born today in 1953.

Alex Paterson of the Orb is 67.

Former Wilco guitarist and keyboardist Jay Bennett was born today in 1963.

Dave Stead of the Beautiful South is 60.

Eric Benét is 60.

Ginuwine is 56.

Keyshia Cole is 45.

Jessie Ware is 42.

Highlights for Today in Music History are gathered from This Day in Music, Song Facts, Discogs, Bandcamp, and Wikipedia.