This Day in Music
On September 24, 1991, Nirvana released Nevermind. The seminal album, which marked the Seattle band’s sophomore full-length and major label debut, was recorded at Sound City Studios in Van Nuys, CA, in May and June of 1991 and produced by Butch Vig. While Nevermind was initially slow to move up the charts, the success of single “Smells Like Teen Spirit” eventually pushed the album to No.1 in January 1992. It has since become one of the world’s best-selling albums of all time. The influence of Nevermind, meanwhile, cannot be understated. Featuring such genre-defining songs as “Come as You Are,” “Lithium,” “In Bloom,” and, of course, “Smells Like Teen Spirit,” the album shifted the course of modern music and paved the way for countless alt-rock bands to find mainstream success in their wake.
In 1957, Elvis Presley released his classic hit, “Jailhouse Rock.” The song was recorded for the film of the same name, in which Presley plays Vince Everett – an inmate who learns the guitar while in prison and eventually becomes a star after his release. The influential song was a massive hit, topping the US and UK pop charts, and landing in the Top 10 across the globe.
In 1984, Culture Club scored their second No.1 hit in the UK with “Karma Chameleon.” The track followed their first chart-topper, “Do You Really Want to Hurt Me.”
In 1988, jazz vocalist Bobby McFerrin began a two-week run at the top of the Billboard Hot 100 with his laid-back classic, “Don’t Worry Be Happy.”
In 2012, Mumford & Sons released their second studio album, Babel. Topping the charts in both the US and the UK, Babel became the fastest-selling album of 2012 in the UK and marked the year’s highest-selling debut in the US.
In 2006, Scissor Sisters enjoyed concurrent runs atop the UK’s album and singles charts with their sophomore effort, Ta-Da, and “’I Don’t Feel Like Dancin’,” respectively.
In 1966, Jimi Hendrix landed in London, where he would soon find success as an artist. Joined by his manager, Chas Chandler, Hendrix famously arrived with just the clothes on his back, having sold the rest of his threads to settle a hotel bill in New York.
BORN ON SEPTEMBER 24
1940: Barbara Allbut (The Angels)
1942: Gerry Marsden (Gerry And The Pacemakers)
1942: Phyllis Allbut (The Angels)
1942: Linda McCartney
1946: Jerry Donahue (Fairport Convention)
1971: Peter Salisbury (The Verve)
