On this day in music, April 7, 2015, singer-songwriter Don McLean’s original manuscript for his iconic 1971 hit,“American Pie,” was auctioned at Christie’s in New York and fetched $1.2 million. Consisting of a 16-page draft containing hand-written lyrics and notes, the manuscript, said the singer, would “divulge everything there is to divulge” about a song whose words had intrigued listeners for years and referenced Buddy Holly’s death in a 1959 plane crash.
In 2020, 73-year-old singer-songwriter John Prine died from Covid-19 complications. The Illinois-born “Angel From Montgomery” songwriter initially worked as a mailman and was then drafted into the US Army during the Vietnam War before starting a music career. He went on to release 23 albums between 1971 and 2018, winning five Grammy awards along the way. The artist had many fans among his peers, including Bob Dylan, Bonnie Raitt, and Kris Kristofferson, who all admired Prine’s gift as an eloquent storyteller.
In 1985, Wham! performed in Beijing, a groundbreaking moment that made them the first major Western band to appear in communist China. They sang before an audience of 12,000 in the city’s Peoples’ Gymnasium.
In 1978, The Police released “Roxanne,” the first single plucked from their debut album, Outlandos d’Amour. A song about a man who falls for a sex worker, it initially missed the UK charts but when reissued a year later – after their song “Can’t Stand Losing You” was a hit – it rose to No. 12.
In 1962, Mick Jagger and Keith Richards met Brian Jones for the first time at Ealing Jazz Club in West London. Jones, who went under the name Elmo Lewis, was playing slide guitar with Alexis Korner’s band, Blues Incorporated. Shortly afterward, they formed the Rolling Stones.
In 1977, The Damned became the first British punk group to perform live in America when they played the first of a four-night residency at New York’s iconic CBGBs.
BORN ON APRIL 7
1915: Billie Holiday
1942: Joel Dorn (Producer)
1947: Patricia Bennett (The Chiffons)
1947: Florian Schneider (Kraftwerk)
1949: John Oates (Hall and Oates)
1951: Janis Ian
1952: Bruce Gary (The Knack)
1991: Anne-Marie
The Litchfield Watercade Royalty has a $1,000 bingo event coming up on Sunday at the Muddy Cow in Litchfield, starting at 1 p.m. Tickets are $20 each and there are a few left in advance at the Muddy Cow.
Miss Litchfield Brooke Caron says the event will help to raise money for the Litchfield Watercade royalty program. She says they will use the funds for wardrobe and travel expenses as they are representing Litchfield in other communities.
Caron says she and Princesses Katelyn and Raigan have been attending parades in other communities since they were crowned last July – and have had a couple of parades over the winter months – the Halloween parade in Anoka and the St. Patrick’s Day parade in Maple Lake, and they’ve read to children at elementary schools. She says she’s a freshman this year at the College of St. Benedict, majoring in strategic communication.
Heather Winkelman says anyone playing bingo on Sunday must be at least 18-years-old. She says the money raised during the event will also help fund the scholarships that are given to the girls after their reigns for college expenses.
Winkelman says you should purchase a ticket for Sunday’s bingo event at the Muddy Cow as soon as possible. The event begins at 1 p.m. on April 12th, and you could have a chance to win the top prize of $1,000.
The Litchfield Lions Club has its annual Pancake and French toast breakfast on Sunday from 8:30-to-12:30 at the Litchfield Eagles Club. Freewill donations will be accepted.
Hal Wenaas says they will serve pancakes, French toast, sausage and beverages. He says the proceeds will help youth in the community – especially with getting food bags to school children and filling the food pantries at the schools.
Wenaas says there are lots of great sponsors helping them put on the breakfast on Sunday including Thrivent, First District Association, Family Fare, Forsman Farms and the Litchfield Eagles Club. He says the Litchfield Lions meet on the 2nd and 4th Mondays at Prospects and new members are welcome to join.
Larry Jensen says the Litchfield Lions had a successful food collection on March 28th at Family Fare and at Walmart in Litchfield. He says they collected 2,336-pounds of food and $10,092 and the cash that is collected goes a long way for the Meeker Area Food Shelf.
Jensen says the Litchfield Lions would like to thank the community for all of its support.
The Litchfield City Council spent the bulk of last night’s meeting on issues related to the Litchfield Area Recreation Center. One of the issues that came up for discussion was a request to use the facility for a gun show near the end of November.
The majority of Council members agreed that the new facility is a recreation center not an event center so a resolution passed on a 5-to-2 vote to deny the request for the gun show and to have a moratorium on events at the LARC that are not related to recreation or wellness, effective April 15th, with Mayor Ron Dingmann and Council member Malinda Larson voting against the resolution. There was also discussion on reducing the number of hours the LARC is open during the summer months, but no action was taken on that issue. Former State Representative Dean Urdahl also spoke to the Council about the fact that the City has not yet received the $6-million from the State of Minnesota for the LARC. City Administrator Dave Czoik told the Council that there is a signed agreement with the state and that wheels are in motion for the issues that are holding up the payment of the funds.
The Council approved of repairs for the dissolved air flotation unit at the wastewater plant by MMS Mechanical Solutions of Waite Park for $61,820; approved of promoting Bryce Manning to Golf Course Manager; and approved of a motion to get quotes for a new community sign at the intersection of Depot Street and Sibley Avenue.
The Willmar School District has canceled all classes today due to a threat. According to a posting on Monday night on the Willmar School District Facebook page, Superintendent Dr. Bill Adams said “After school today, the district received a threat regarding school safety. We immediately began an investigation in close collaboration with local law enforcement. At this time, the school district and local authorities need more time to fully investigate and determine the credibility of this threat.”
Out of an abundance of caution, all Willmar Public Schools will be closed April 7, 2026. Please note the following impacts for Tuesday: There will be no eLearning. No entry will be allowed into any school site. All before- and after-school activities are canceled. Cardinal Place will be closed.
Adams went on to say “The safety and well-being of our students and staff are our highest priority. We apologize for the inconvenience this sudden closure causes and deeply appreciate your understanding and cooperation as we prioritize the safety of our school community. We will continue to evaluate the situation alongside law enforcement and will provide you with an update when available.”
Earlier in the day on Monday, a middle school student was caught with a paring knife in their backpack, apparently in response to a social media dispute they had with someone else over the weekend. No one was injured. In an emailed letter to parents, Adams’ said “During the investigation, administrators learned that the situation was connected to a social media exchange from the weekend involving inappropriate and threatening language between two students. The school has addressed the matter in accordance with district policies and procedures.” The letter does not say if the student was arrested.