On this day in music, July 22, 1977, Elvis Costello released his debut album, My Aim Is True, in the UK via Stiff Records. The artist, who was born Declan McManus in London, was accompanied by members of the San Francisco country rock band Clover, who had moved to the UK, though their names were omitted from the credits due to record company politics. My Aim Is True marked Costello’s first of five LPs helmed by producer Nick Lowe and featured such enduring favorites as “Alison” and “The Angels Wanna Wear My Shoes.”
In 2006, the late country legend Johnny Cash scored the second and final chart-topping LP of his career with the Rick Rubin-produced American V: A Hundred Highways, released nearly four years after his death. Rubin, who had signed the aging country star to his American label in 1994, added the instrumental parts to pre-existing vocal tracks after Cash’s death. Cash first topped The Billboard 200 more than three decades earlier with At San Quentin.
In 2019, 81-year-old singer, songwriter, and keyboardist, Art Neville, passed away. The New Orleans-born artist rose to fame in the late 60s with The Meters, scoring such instrumental hits as “Sophisticated Cissy” and “Cissy Strut.” After the group split in 1977, Neville joined his siblings to form the Neville Brothers, whose track “Healing Chant” from 1989’s Yellow Moon won a Grammy for Best Pop Instrumental Performance. Neville also appeared on tracks by Paul McCartney, Labelle, and Robert Palmer.
In 1989, American singer and actress Martika scored her sole US chart-topper with “Toy Soldiers,” a song about drug addiction that was a No. 5 smash in the UK. Born Marta Marrero in California, Martika attracted the interest of Prince, who worked with her in 1991 on her second and final studio album, Martika’s Kitchen.
In 2005, Eugene Record, a founder member of the Chicago-based R&B harmony group The Chi-Lites, died of cancer at the age of 64. Famed for his falsetto voice, Record led the group on 43 R&B chart hits between 1969 and 1998, including the two early 70s No.1s “Have You Seen Her” and “Oh Girl.” Record also put out three solo albums.
In 2019, Queen‘s iconic “Bohemian Rhapsody” video reached one billion views on YouTube, making it the first pre-1990s visual to reach the milestone on the platform. “Bohemian Rhapsody” was also named the most Googled song of 2018.
BORN ON JULY 22
1941: George Clinton (Parliament-Funkadelic)
1944: Rick Davies (Supertramp)
1947: Don Henley (Eagles)
1961: Keith Sweat
1963: Emily Saliers (Indigo Girls)
1964: Will Calhoun (Living Colour)
1967: Pat Badger (Extreme)
1973: Daniel Jones (Savage Garden)
1973: Rufus Wainwright
1992: Selena Gomez
The Litchfield City Council had a couple of rousing discussions Monday evening, but no decisive action was taken on either topic. The liquor store staff is wishing to sell THC products at the store, and there was also discussion on the topic of data centers.
Mayor Ron Dingmann says there have been rumors that a data center could be located in Litchfield. He says one of the concerns about data centers is that they require a lot of electricity and use lots of water.
Dingmann says there are positive affects for having data centers in the community as well so they will discuss the pros and cons at a future meeting. He says on the THC issue, the Council tabled any action until next month in order to gather more information. The liquor store staff members are getting daily requests from customers for THC products and are then going elsewhere to purchase them.
Mayor Dingmann says the Litchfield City Council also approved of a tax parcel split and site plan review for Rod Lindquist to allow for a Victory Lane oil change facility to be constructed at 1525 East U.S. Highway 12. He says the Council also approved plans and specifications and ordered bids for the Swift Avenue/Ripley Street project which will begin this fall and won’t wrap up until June of 2028.
The Meeker County Board of Commissioners has approved of an interim use permit for a cannabis manufacturing plant on property located at 16506 MN Highway 15, south of Dassel, in Section 31 of Collinwood Township for Jingles Farms LLC. The 13,000 square foot building will be built on a 9-and-a-half acre parcel of property, pending state approval.
The Board has approved of a conditional use permit for Midwest Metal of Atwater for a truss manufacturing facility on property located in Section 5 of Acton Township. The 100-by-200-foot building will be constructed about 2-miles west of Grove City.
The Commissioners also moved to approve a conditional use permit for Bergstrom Pork for a 900 animal unit swine feedlot with a barn located at 56390 375th Street in Section 18 of Manannah Township, with conditions, and after meeting MPCA requirements. The 152.5-by-185-foot swine confinement barn will house 3,000 finished hogs.
On this day in music, July 21, 1987, Los Angeles hard rockers Guns N’ Roses unleashed their debut album, Appetite for Destruction, via Geffen Records. Aided by three hit singles – “Welcome To The Jungle,” “Paradise City” and “Sweet Child O’ Mine” – the album quickly rose to the top of the Billboard 200. It would eventually amass US sales of over 18 million, making it the best-selling debut LP of all time in America.
In 2004, the award-winning conductor and movie composer Jerry Goldsmith died, aged 75. Originally from Los Angeles, he was a classically trained pianist who began writing music for radio in the 1950s before moving into TV in the 60s, where he scored the popular US TV shows Dr. Kildare and Gunsmoke. His striking score to the 1968 movie Planet Of The Apes resulted in a slew of memorable movie soundtracks over the next 40 years, including The Omen (for which he won an Oscar) and Basic Instinct.
In 1973, Philadelphia singer-songwriter Jim Croce scored the first of two US chart-toppers with the self-penned “Bad, Bad Leroy Brown.” Three months later, the 30-year-old artist perished in a plane crash. His single “Time in a Bottle,” released that November, would become the third posthumous No.1 hit in the history of the Billboard Hot 100.
In 1977, controversial punk rock group the Sex Pistols made their debut on the British music show, Top Of The Pops, where they lip-synced to their third single, “Pretty Vacant,” a No. 7 hit in the UK. The band’s bassist, also the song’s co-writer, Glen Matlock, claimed that the tune was inspired by ABBA’s “SOS.”
In 2002, noted record producer Gus Dudgeon died, aged 59, in a car accident alongside his wife. Born Angus Boyd Dudgeon in Surrey, England, he was best remembered for producing David Bowie’s “Space Oddity” in 1969 and Elton John’s “Your Song” two years later. Dudgeon’s other credits included sessions with The Beach Boys, Joan Armatrading, Chris Rea, and XTC.
In 1994, Oasis made their US debut at Wetlands in New York City as part of an annual music industry convention called the New Music Seminar. The Manchester band would soon become Brit-pop icons.
BORN ON JULY 21
1922: Kay Starr (Singer)
1939: Kim Fowley (Producer)
1946: Barry Whitwam (Herman’s Hermits)
1948: Cat Stevens/Yusuf Islam
1955: Howie Epstein (Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers)
1958: Henry Priestman (The Christians)
1961: Jim Martin (Faith No More)
1981: Paloma Faith