Today in Music History for Sept. 25:
In 1932, Glenn Gould, the Canadian concert and recording pianist, was born in Toronto. He received his musical education at the Royal Conservatory of Music and performed as a concerto soloist for the Toronto Symphony at age 14. He was among Canada's leading musical performers when still in his early 20s. His first U.S. recording in 1955, Bach's "Goldberg Variations," brought him immediate international attention. Gould abruptly quit his concert career in 1964 because of what he termed the sports-arena atmosphere of live performances. He became fascinated with the possibilities of recording technology. During the next 17 years, his recorded repertoire included virtually all of the piano works of Bach and Beethoven and much of the music of Mozart. In 1980, Gould re-recorded the Bach "Goldbergs," saying it would be his final piano solo recording. Gould suffered a massive stroke the day after his 50th birthday in 1982. He died on Oct. 4th in a Toronto hospital.
In 1933, Canadian folk and country singer Ian Tyson was born in Victoria. He teamed with Sylvia Fricker in 1961 to perform folk songs, and the couple married in 1964. "Ian and Sylvia" were at the forefront of the '60s folk revival with songs like "Four Strong Winds," "You Were On My Mind" and "Lovin' Sound." They began performing country-rock in 1968 when they formed "The Great Speckled Bird" as their backup band. The duo made their last appearances together in 1975, apart from a reunion concert in Toronto a decade later. Ian Tyson has since become a respected performer of western songs and performed -- with Gordon Lightfoot -- during the opening ceremonies of the 1988 Winter Olympics in Calgary.
In 1954, Elvis Presley made his first and only appearance at the Grand Ole Opry. After Presley performed his rocked-up version of Bill Monroe's "Blue Moon of Kentucky," the Opry's talent co-ordinator is said to have advised him to go back to driving trucks. On the same day, Sun Records released Presley's second single, "Good Rockin' Tonight" backed with "I Don't Care If the Sun Don't Shine."
In 1960, "The Twist" by Chubby Checker reached the top of the Billboard chart. Checker, of course, didn't originate "The Twist." It was recorded by Hank Ballard as the B-side of his 1958 hit "Teardrops On My Letter." But it was Checker's recording that started the twist craze.
In 1964, Brian Epstein turned down an offer from a group of U.S. businessmen to buy out his management contract with "The Beatles."
In 1965, a "Beatles" cartoon series began a four-year run on ABC. The show featured genuine "Beatles" songs but actors performing their speaking voices.
In 1969, rapper-actor Will Smith was born. He first caught attention as a rapper in the 1980s as half of the duo "DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince." They had a string of hits in the 1980s and 鈥�90s such as "Girls Ain't Nothing But Trouble," "Parents Just Don't Understand" -- for which they won the first-ever Grammy for Best Rap Performance in 1988 and "Summertime," also a Grammy winner in 1991. After starring in a hit TV sitcom, "The Fresh Prince of Bel Air," Smith expanded his career into movies. He was nominated for an Oscar for his performance in "Six Degrees of Separation." Movie hits include "Bad Boys," "Independence Day," "Men In Black," "Enemy of the State," "Ali", 鈥淗itch", "I Am Legend" and "Hitchcock". But he didn鈥檛 give up on his recording career, and in 1997 "Big Willie Style" produced hits such as "Getting Jiggy Wit It" and "Men In Black." He continues to record and act.
In 1975, country musician and singer Charlie Monroe, the elder brother of bluegrass pioneer Bill Monroe, died of cancer at age 72.
In 1979, the Andrew Lloyd Webber-Tim Rice musical "Evita," starring Patti LuPone as Eva Peron, opened on Broadway.
In 1980, "Led Zeppelin" drummer John Bonham died at the home of guitarist Jimmy Page in Windsor, England. Bonham, who was 32, fell asleep and choked on his own vomit after a drinking binge. His death came on the eve of an American tour by "Led Zeppelin" and marked the end of the group.
In 1980, "The Rolling Stones" began a tour to promote the album "Tattoo You" with a concert in Philadelphia. A movie of the tour, "Let's Spend the Night Together," was made by director Hal Ashby.
In 1987, Bruce Springsteen joined "U2" on stage in Philadelphia to play guitar on "Stand By Me."
In 1989, Billy Joel sued his former manager, Frank Weber, for $90 million. Joel alleged Weber stole millions of dollars outright and lost millions more in risky investments such as horsebreeding.
In 1990, drummer Dave Grohl joined "Nirvana." After lead singer Kurt Cobain's death, Grohl went on to front "Foo Fighters."
In 1993, Madonna kicked off her raunchy "Girlie Show" world tour before 72,000 fans at Wembley Stadium in London. A topless dancer preceded Madonna's arrival on stage.
In 1995, Neil Young was part of a partnership that purchased model train maker Lionel Trains Inc. Young, a model train hobbyist, had been working to make the trains easier for the handicapped to use. He has two sons with cerebral palsy.
In 1998, an MTV Russian-language music channel went on the air from Moscow. Ten years earlier, authorities in the Soviet Union had branded the U.S. music video channel as "capitalism's favourite instrument for perverting young minds."
In 2001, conductor Mario Bernardi and singer Diane Dufresne were named among the year鈥檚 six winners of the Governor-General鈥檚 Performing Arts Awards for lifetime achievement.
In 2007, Patrick Bourque, the former bass player for the Canadian country music band "Emerson Drive," committed suicide in his Montreal home. He quit the group in July and moved back to his hometown to work on side projects.
In 2008, former "Beatle" Sir Paul McCartney played a historic concert in Israel in front of an estimated 40,000 cheering fans at Tel Aviv's Yarkon Park. The 66-year-old singer kicked off show with the familiar "Beatles'" song "Hello, Goodbye." The gig came 43 years after "The Beatles" were banned from performing in Israel.
In 2009, "Creed" set a Guinness World Record for most cameras used for covering a live music event. Their Houston concert was shown live on RockPit.com using 239 cameras. It included simultaneous filming backstage, aerial views of the stadium and pre-show and post-show interviews.
In 2009, classical pianist Alicia de Larrocha, 86, died in Barcelona, Spain.
In 2012, singer Andy Williams died after a year-long battle with bladder cancer. He was 84. With a string of gold albums, a hit TV series and the signature "Moon River," he was known for his easy-listening style and his wholesome, middle-America appeal was the antithesis of the counterculture that gave rise to rock and roll.
In 2016, Jean Shepard, "the grand lady of the Grand Ole Opry" who had a long recording career as an influential female in country music, died at age 82. She presented a strong female point of view on songs like "Twice the Lovin' in Half the Time" and "The Root of All Evil (Is a Man)." Shepard was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2011.
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The Canadian Press
