Chapter 01 — Today in music
On a day like today August 21
1952
Joe Strummer is born, punk's hoarse conscience
On August 21, 1952, John Mellor was born in Ankara — a diplomat's son who reinvented himself as Joe Strummer, leader of The Clash. He turned punk into a vehicle of global conscience, opening it to reggae, dub and rockabilly on 'London Calling'. His creed that the band should matter less than the causes remains the ethical yardstick of the genre.
Joe Strummer
The Clash
Listen
Via YouTube
1904
Count Basie is born, the count who ruled swing with a single note
On August 21, 1904, Count Basie was born in New Jersey — the pianist and bandleader whose Kansas City orchestra defined swing like few others: demolishing riffs, perfect silences and his signature economy of playing one exact note where others crammed twenty. His pulse influenced rhythm and blues and, through it, the rhythmic backbone of rock and roll.
Count Basie
Listen
Via YouTube
1916
Consuelo Velázquez is born, who wrote 'Bésame mucho' having never kissed anyone
On August 21, 1916, Consuelo Velázquez was born in Jalisco. A classically trained pianist, she composed 'Bésame mucho' as a teenager and always said she had never kissed anyone at the time. The song became one of the most recorded in history in any language: Sinatra, Elvis, Cesária Évora and the Beatles all sang it — the latter on their Decca audition tapes. Nobody has exported so much from Mexico with so few notes.
Consuelo Velázquez
Listen
Via YouTube
1951
Glenn Hughes is born, the 'Voice of Rock' who brought funk to Deep Purple
On 21 August 1951, Glenn Hughes was born in England — the bassist and singer who jumped from Trapeze to Deep Purple in 1973 to replace Roger Glover. In the Mk III and IV lineups he injected hard rock with a funk pulse and a countertenor range that earned him the nickname 'The Voice of Rock'. Albums like 'Burn' proved the genre could swing without losing power. He entered the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame with Deep Purple in 2016 and stayed active with projects like Black Country Communion.
Glenn Hughes
Deep Purple
Listen
Via YouTube
1976
'All Things in Time' tops the chart and Philadelphia rescues a veteran
On August 21, 1976, Lou Rawls' 'All Things in Time' topped the R&B albums chart. Rawls had spent fifteen years recording jazz and soul with a baritone as deep as a well, never finding the big hit. Gamble and Huff signed him to their Philadelphia label, gave him 'You'll Never Find Another Love like Mine' and sent him to number one. Sometimes it isn't the career that fails: it's the arrangement.
Lou Rawls
Gamble and Huff
Listen
Via YouTube
1938
Kenny Rogers is born, the gambler who crossed every border
On 21 August 1938, Kenny Rogers was born in Houston, fourth of eight children in a humble family. Before ruling country music he passed through psychedelic rock with The First Edition, whose 'Just Dropped In (To See What Condition My Condition Was In)' was immortalized in 'The Big Lebowski'. With over 120 charting singles and about 100 million records sold, he embodied the crossover of country, pop and rock like few others. Ballads like 'The Gambler' made him a master storyteller of the American song.
Kenny Rogers
Listen
Via YouTube
1962
Gilberto Santa Rosa is born: the gentleman who made salsa respectable
On August 21, 1962, Gilberto Santa Rosa was born in Santurce, Puerto Rico. He arrived as the hard salsa of the seventies was fading and led what became known as salsa romántica, the melodic strand purists despised and that filled stadiums across Latin America. He was the first salsa singer to perform at Carnegie Hall. His nickname, the Gentleman of Salsa, sums up a career built on elegance inside a street genre.
Gilberto Santa Rosa
Listen
Via YouTube
1967
Serj Tankian is born, the insurgent voice of System of a Down
On 21 August 1967, Serj Tankian was born in Beirut to Armenian parents who moved to Los Angeles when he was seven, amid the Lebanese civil war. Fronting System of a Down since 1994, he turned metal into a theatrical, political vehicle able to leap from whisper to scream within a bar. Albums like 'Toxicity' took that blend of fury, melody and memory of the Armenian genocide to the top of the charts. His elastic voice redefined what a metal frontman could be at the turn of the century.
Serj Tankian
System of a Down
Listen
Via YouTube
1979
Kelis is born: the singer who turned a milkshake into a threat
On August 21, 1979, Kelis Rogers was born in Harlem. She debuted in 1999 screaming with rage on 'Caught Out There' and in 2003 made 'Milkshake' with the Neptunes, three minutes of hollow percussion and provocation that sounded like nothing before it. She later trained as a professional chef and took that up instead. Her career is an uncomfortable reminder: you can define the sound of an era and still need to find another job.
Kelis
The Neptunes
Listen
Via YouTube
2004
'The Hunger for More' tops the chart in the year G-Unit ruled
On August 21, 2004, Lloyd Banks' 'The Hunger for More' topped the R&B and hip-hop albums chart. He was the second G-Unit member after 50 Cent to debut at number one, and it worked as a show of force: the crew could turn any of its members into a star. That label-within-a-label model ruled rap for half a decade and then collapsed almost overnight.
Lloyd Banks
G-Unit
Listen
Via YouTube
One ephemeris a day, one editorial a week. Zero spam, pure archive.