Chapter 01 — Today in music
On a day like today June 17
1967
Otis Redding conquers Monterey and rock meets soul in person
On the night of June 17, 1967, Otis Redding took the Monterey stage before a hippie audience that barely knew him and left them floored with twenty minutes of incandescent soul. 'This is the love crowd, right?', he asked, and put them in his pocket. It was his consecration before rock's white audience; six months later he died in a plane crash.
Otis Redding
1943
Barry Manilow is born, the ballad craftsman who filled arenas without critics' permission
On June 17, 1943, Barry Manilow was born in Brooklyn — the man behind 'Mandy' and 'Copacabana'. While rock critics used him as a piñata, he sold tens of millions of records and sold out entire Las Vegas seasons. Half a century on, his melodic craft stands vindicated: writing perfect ballads is also high art, however much it hurts to admit.
Barry Manilow
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