This Day in Music
On this day in music, February 4, 2017, Black Sabbath played the final date of their farewell tour in their home city of Birmingham, UK. Credited with inventing heavy metal music, the band played a two-hour set of 15 songs, culminating with their first hit, 1970’s “Paranoid.” Aptly dubbed “The End Tour,” the global run was comprised of 81 shows, while this particular date was documented as a film, Black Sabbath: The End of the End, and streamed live on Black Sabbath’s Facebook page.
In 1983, singer, drummer, and one-half of Carpenters, Karen Carpenter, died at the age of 32. After signing with A&M Records in 1969, the duo (which also featured Karen’s brother, Richard) quickly rose to become one of the biggest pop acts of the 70s. Along the way, Karen became the breakout star, thanks to her stunning three-octave range. Tragically, Carpenter also struggled with anorexia nervosa, which ultimately took her life. Following her passing, the condition received more attention, while the Karen A. Carpenter Memorial Foundation was established to fund research on anorexia and other eating disorders.
In 1977, Fleetwood Mac released their 11th album, Rumours. Their first album to top the charts on both sides of the Atlantic, Rumours sold over 10 million copies worldwide in its first month of release. In addition to earning Album of the Year at the Grammys, it was later inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame and selected for preservation in the National Recording Registry by the Library of Congress.
In 1972, David Bowie recorded the final songs for his iconic fifth album, The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars, including “Rock ‘n’ Roll Suicide,” “Starman,” and “Suffragette City.” The record, which follows Bowie’s fictional alter ego, Ziggy Stardust, was released that June. Today, it is not only considered to be one of the groundbreaking artist’s greatest works, but also one of the best albums of all time.
In 1978, The Bee Gees kicked off a four-week run at the top of the Billboard Hot 100 with “Stayin’ Alive,” the era-defining second single off the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack.
In 2016, singer, songwriter, and producer, Maurice White, died at 74. White was best known as the founder and bandleader of Earth, Wind & Fire, as well as the co-lead singer, alongside Philip Bailey. During his five-decade-long career, the Songwriter Hall of Famer was nominated for 22 Grammy awards (winning seven) and inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Vocal Group Hall of Fame with his bandmates. White was also a sought-after songwriter and producer, who worked with the likes of Barbra Streisand, The Emotions, and Neil Diamond.
BORN ON FEBRUARY 4
1948: Alice Cooper
1951: Phil Ehart (Kansas)
1960: Tim Booth (James)
1962: Clint Black
1963: Wasserman (The Offspring)
1975: Natalie Imbruglia
