Chapter 01 — Today in music
On a day like today August 30
1972
One to One: John Lennon gives his last full concert at the Garden
On August 30, 1972, John Lennon and Yoko Ono headlined the One to One benefit concerts at Madison Square Garden, in aid of children with mental disabilities. With Elephant's Memory as his band, Lennon ran through 'Imagine', 'Mother' and 'Come Together'. Nobody imagined it would be his last full concert: the man who invented the modern star format left the stage without knowing it.
John Lennon
Yoko Ono
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1935
John Phillips is born, architect of 'California Dreamin'' and of Monterey
On August 30, 1935, John Phillips was born in South Carolina — leader and songwriter of The Mamas & the Papas. He wrote 'California Dreamin'' and 'San Francisco', twin anthems of the hippie dream, and co-organized the Monterey festival that launched Hendrix and Joplin. His private life was a painful shipwreck, but his harmonies remain the very sound of the Californian utopia.
John Phillips
The Mamas & the Papas
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1975
'Why Can't We Be Friends?' tops the chart and funk turns multiracial
On August 30, 1975, War's 'Why Can't We Be Friends?' topped the R&B albums chart. The band came from Long Beach and mixed Black and Chicano members with a Danish harmonica player, unheard of in a country still segregated in practice. Their music did the same: funk with Latin percussion, reggae and jazz in a single track. The title song travelled into space in 1975 during the link-up between Soviet and American craft.
War
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1995
Sterling Morrison dies: the Velvet Underground's secret guitar
On August 30, 1995, one day after his 53rd birthday, Sterling Morrison died in Poughkeepsie, New York, of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. Founding guitarist of the Velvet Underground, his rhythmic weave with Lou Reed carried both the sonic avalanche of White Light/White Heat and the delicacy of Pale Blue Eyes. After leaving the band he earned a doctorate in medieval literature and captained tugboats in Texas — rock's most improbable second act. Months before his death he got to celebrate the Velvets' reunion, his influence already law: from each of his chords, a band was born.
Sterling Morrison
The Velvet Underground
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1924
Kenny Dorham is born: the trumpeter every musician cites and nobody remembers
On August 30, 1924, Kenny Dorham was born in Texas. He played with Charlie Parker, was a founding member of the Jazz Messengers and recorded 'Una Mas' and 'Whistle Stop' for Blue Note, records nineties hip-hop later ransacked looking for trumpets. The critic Gary Giddins wrote that Dorham was the most underrated musician of his generation, and the line was repeated so often it became his unofficial epitaph.
Kenny Dorham
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1939
John Peel is born: the DJ who discovered half of rock history
On August 30, 1939, John Robert Parker Ravenscroft — known to millions of listeners as John Peel — was born in Heswall, England. From his late-night BBC Radio 1 show, which he hosted for nearly four decades, he gave the first push to David Bowie, T. Rex, the Sex Pistols, Joy Division and The Smiths. His legendary Peel Sessions, recorded live at the BBC studios, became a rite of passage for any emerging band. No record executive shaped British rock taste as much as this soft-spoken broadcaster.
John Peel
1950
Micky Moody is born: Whitesnake's founding slide guitar
On August 30, 1950, Micky Moody was born — the English guitarist who poured bluesy flavor into Whitesnake's foundations. Seasoned in Juicy Lucy and a founder of Snafu, he joined David Coverdale from the singer's first solo records and co-wrote band classics like Fool for Your Loving. His elegant slide and taste for British blues marked the group's first era, before the American turn of the eighties. With Bernie Marsden he later formed the Moody Marsden duo, keeper of that original sound.
Micky Moody
Whitesnake
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1971
Lars Frederiksen is born: the Californian punk who arrived just in time
On August 30, 1971, Lars Frederiksen was born in California, to a Danish mother. He joined Rancid in 1993, just as Bay Area punk was about to become a million-dollar business. Rancid signed to an independent label and turned down an enormous offer from a major, a decision that cost them money and bought them credibility for good. Punk was always played out on that exact fork in the road.
Lars Frederiksen
Rancid
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1989
Bebe Rexha is born: the invisible songwriter who decided to step forward
On August 30, 1989, Bleta Rexha was born in Brooklyn, daughter of Albanian immigrants. Before singing she wrote for others: she co-wrote 'The Monster' for Eminem and Rihanna, and handed Selena Gomez and G-Eazy several of their biggest hits. For years the industry told her she was good for writing but not for stardom. She ended up selling millions under her own name, which is the best possible answer to that diagnosis.
Bebe Rexha
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