History Highlight:
Today in 1999, Abigail Morris, frontperson of the band The Last Dinner Party, was born, making her 27. Morris grew up in London, and she began writing songs at age 13. During her first week at Kings College London, she met fellow first-year students Lizzie Mayland and Georgia Davies, and the three agreed to start a band. With the addition of Emily Roberts and Aurora Nishevci, the five musicians formed The Last Dinner Party with a common vision: “The clear idea wasn't a specific genre and look, it was more of an ethos,” Morris told The Current’s Jessica Paxton in 2024, “which was just sort of maximalist and sincere … We knew that we didn't want to put up barriers or boxes … And we like to just give ourselves free rein to follow what we like.” The Last Dinner Party released their debut album, Prelude to Ecstasy, in 2024, which includes the singles, “Nothing Matters” and “Sinner.” They followed that album with 2025’s From the Pyre, which features the single, “Count the Ways.” The Last Dinner Party headlined at the Palace Theatre in St. Paul on June 5, 2026, and they’ll be back in the Twin Cities on Sunday, Nov. 1, opening for Sombr at Target Center in Minneapolis.

Also, Today In:

1970 - Bob Dylan released New Morning.

1973 - David Bowie released his seventh album Pin Ups. The album is a collection of cover versions of some of Bowie's favorite songs, including tracks by Pink Floyd, The Pretty Things, The Who, The Yardbirds and The Kinks.

1979 - Prince released his second album, Prince, which contains the No. 1 R&B hit "I Wanna Be Your Lover" and the original version of "I Feel For You," later a hit for Chaka Khan. It was his first album certified Platinum for sales over 1 million.

1979 - The Specials released their debut studio album, The Specials. It features the singles "Gangsters," "A Message to You Rudy," and "Too Much Too Young."

1979 - Madness released their debut studio album, One Step Beyond.... It features the singles "The Prince," "One Step Beyond," "My Girl," and "Night Boat to Cairo."

1979 - Following a vicious legal battle with MCA Records, the third Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers album, Damn The Torpedoes, was released on the label's new subsidiary, Backstreet Records. It features “Don’t Do Me Like That” and “Refugee.”

1984 - The Talking Heads concert movie Stop Making Sense opened in theaters. A highly unconventional film that doesn't rely on crowd shots or backstage footage, it's hailed as a triumph of the genre.

1985 - Norwegian band A-ha went to No. 1 on the U.S. singles chart with "Take On Me," making them the first group from Norway to achieve a No. 1 hit in the U.S. The song's success might be attributed to its distinctive music video, featuring the band in a pencil-sketch animation method called rotoscoping, which won six awards and was nominated for two others at the 1986 MTV Video Music Awards.

1987 - Australian rock band INXS released their sixth studio album, Kick. The band's most successful studio album, Kick has been certified six times platinum by the RIAA and peaked at No. 3 on the Billboard 200. The album also spawned four U.S. top 10 singles: "New Sensation", "Never Tear Us Apart", "Devil Inside" and "Need You Tonight."

1991 - At a concert in their hometown of Manchester, Oasis played their first gig with Noel Gallagher in the lineup.

1993 - Pearl Jam released their second studio album, Vs. It features the singles "Go," "Daughter," "Animal," and "Dissident." This was the wider CD and cassette release after vinyl had arrived on Oct. 12.

1995 - Nirvana were at No. 1 on the U.S. album chart with the live compilation album, From The Muddy Banks Of The Wishkah.

1999 - Handsome Boy Modeling School released their debut studio album, So... How's Your Girl?. It features the singles "Rock n' Roll (Could Never Hip Hop Like This)," "The Projects (P Jays)," and "Metaphysical."

1999 - Pharoahe Monch released his debut studio album, Internal Affairs. It features the singles "Simon Says," "Right Here (Remix)," and "The Light."

2004 - Elliott Smith released his sixth and final studio album, From a Basement on the Hill. It features the single "Pretty (Ugly Before)."

2004 - Ted Leo and the Pharmacists released their fourth studio album, Shake the Sheets. It features the single "Me and Mia."

2004 - Le Tigre released their third studio album, This Island. It features the singles "New Kicks," "TKO," and "After Dark."

2005 - A survey conducted by the U.K. branch of Prudential concluded that the average person spent around $42,000 on music during their lives; the total included the amount spent on sound equipment, concerts and albums. Survey participants who identified as music enthusiasts were likely to spend more than double that, parting with slightly more than $89,000 in a lifetime.

2007 - Johnny Marr was made a visiting professor of music at the University of Salford in Manchester. The former Smiths guitarist delivered a series of workshops and master classes to students pursuing the Bachelor of Arts degree in Popular Music and Recording.

2013 - Noel Harrison, whose "Windmills Of Your Mind" won an Academy Award for Best Original Song for the 1968 heist film The Thomas Crown Affair, died of a heart attack at age 79.

2016 - Phil Chess, co-founder of Chess Records, died at the age of 95.

2018 - Greta Van Fleet released their debut studio album, Anthem of the Peaceful Army. It features the singles "When the Curtain Falls," "You're the One," and "Lover, Leaver."

2018 - Elle King released her second studio album, Shake the Spirit. It features the singles "Shame" and "Baby Outlaw."

2021 - The TV series Queens, starring Brandy and Eve as members of a hip-hop group from the 1990s who reunite in the 2020s, debuted on ABC.

Birthdays:

Dave Guard, founding member of the Kingston Trio, was born today in 1934.

Larry Chance, frontman of Larry Chance and the Earls, was born today in 1940.

Soul and disco singer George McCrae, best known for his 1974 hit, “Rock Your Baby,” is 82.

Reggae musician Peter Tosh was born on this day in 1944. A core member of The Wailers with Bob Marley and Bunny Wailer, Tosh wrote many of the Wailers' hit songs such as "Get Up, Stand Up", "400 Years", and "No Sympathy". He went solo after his involvement with The Wailers, and was tragically murdered in 1987 during a home invasion.

“The Queen of Northern Soul” Gloria Jones, best known for her hit song “Tainted Love,” is 81.

Country and gospel singer Jeannie C. Riley, whose 1968 song “Harper Valley PTA” was a No. 1 hit on both the country and pop charts, is 81.

Keith Reid of Procol Harum was born today in 1946.

Wilbert Hart of The Delfonics, whose hits include 1968’s “La-La Means I Love You,” is 79.

Pat Simmons, guitarist, singer with The Doobie Brothers is 78.

Karl Wallinger, frontman for World Party, was born today in 1957.

Broadway singer Jennifer Holliday, known for her recording of the Dreamgirls torch song, "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going,” is 66.

Madness drummer Daniel Woodgate is 66.

Todd Park Mohr, frontman of Big Head Todd and the Monsters, is 61.

Rodney Carrington is 58.

Pras Michel of the Fugees is 54.

Gregory Alan Isakov is 47.

Stephen Lee Bruner, better known by his stage name Thundercat, is 42.

Caroline Rose is 37.

Abigail Morris, lead singer for the Last Dinner Party, is 27. See highlight, above.

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