This Day in Music
In 2009, 50-year-old “King of Pop,” Michael Jackson, died in his Beverly Hills home. While Jackson’s personal life was mired in controversy and mystery, the artist’s enduring influence was undeniable. After rising to fame as a child, performing alongside his brothers in The Jackson 5, Jackson broke out as a solo star with 1979’s Off the Wall. It was 1982’s Thriller, however, that changed the course of his career – and pop culture history. Holding the record as the highest-selling album of all time, Thriller was the first LP to feature seven Top Ten hits on the Billboard Hot 100, including “Beat It” and “Billie Jean,” while its music videos broke racial barriers on MTV. Over the next decade, Jackson would continue to smash records, rising to become the world’s most successful entertainer through albums like Bad and Dangerous.
In 1984, Prince released his iconic sixth studio album, Purple Rain. The album, which featured his band the Revolution, also served as the soundtrack to his film of the same name. One of the world’s best-selling albums of all time, Purple Rain remained at the top of the Billboard 200 for an astonishing 24 consecutive weeks, while it produced two No.1 hits, “When Doves Cry” and “Let’s Go Crazy,” as well as the Top Ten singles “I Would Die 4 U” and the title track. The album went on to win two Grammy Awards and an Academy Award for Best Original Song Score.
In 1967, The Beatles performed “All You Need Is Love” live, via satellite, to 400 million viewers in 25 countries. Captured at EMI Studios, the segment featured a colorful array of decor and signs, plus a variety of high-profile backing vocalists, including Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Graham Nash, Keith Moon, and Eric Clapton. The performance was part of the groundbreaking Our World TV production, which marked the first multinational production broadcast via multiple satellites.
In 1988, with “Foolish Beat,” 17-year-old Debbie Gibson became the youngest female artist to write, produce, and record a No.1 hit on the Billboard Hot 100.
In 1988, 26-year-old Hillel Slovak, the founding guitarist of the Red Hot Chili Peppers, died of an overdose. The Israeli-born musician met his future bandmates as a student at Los Angeles’ Fairfax High School. While he did not appear on the band’s debut album, he can be heard on 1985’s Freaky Styley and 1987’s The Uplift Mofo Party Plan.
BORN ON JUNE 25
1935: Eddie Floyd
1945: Carly Simon
1952: Tim Finn (Split Enz, Crowded House)
1954: David Paich (Toto)
1963: George Michael
1972: Mike Kroeger (Nickelback)
1991: Charlie Salt (Blossoms)
