On This Day, August 2 in Music History
EVENTS ON AUGUST 2 IN MUSIC HISTORY
On this day August 2 in 1962 – Robert Zimmerman officially changed his name to Bob Dylan.
1962 – Aretha Franklin appeared for the first time on American television. She performed ‘Try a Little Tenderness’ and ‘Don’t Cry Baby’ on the TV program American Bandstand.
1971 – Rock band The Who released their fifth studio album ‘Who’s Next’. The album peaked at No.1 in the UK and reached No.4 in the US, and it features some of the band’s biggest hits like ‘Baba O’Riley’ and ‘Won’t Get Fooled Again’.
1972 – Founding member and bass guitarist of the folk rock band The Association, Brian Cole died at the age of 29 of a heroin overdose.
1975 – Rock band the Eagles scored their second number one single on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart with ‘One of These Nights’ on this day August 2.
1980 – With ‘Magic’, Olivia Newton-John started a four-week run at number one on the US Singles chart. Also a chart-topper in Canada.
1980 – Hard rock pioneers Deep Purple went to No.1 in the UK with their compilation album ‘Deepest Purple’ on this day August 2 in music history.
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1983 – American bass guitarist and session musician James Jamerson died at the age of 47. Best remembered for playing the bass on over 50 chart-topping singles for various artists. He was posthumously inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2000.
1986 – Peter Cetera scored his first number one single in the US with ‘Glory of Love’ on this day August 2. The song also reached No.1 in Canada and Sweden while in the UK it peaked at No.3.
1986 – Chris de Burgh hit number one on the UK Singles chart with ‘The Lady in Red’ for the first of three weeks straight. The song also reached No.1 in Belgium, Canada, Ireland, Norway, and South Africa.
1987 – Founding member and bassist of the rock band Sam the Sham, David Martin died from a heart attack, aged 50.
1997 – Nigerian multi-instrumentalist, bandleader and composer Fela Kuti also known as Abami Eda died at the age of 58. Best remembered as a pioneer of the Afrobeat music genre.
2001 – Vocalist and founding member of The 5th Dimension, Ronald Townson died on this day August 2 at the age of 68.
2003 – The soundtrack of the action-comedy film ‘Bad Boys II’ starring Will Smith and Martin Lawrence topped the US Billboard 200 char on this day August 2. The soundtrack features songs by artists such as Jay-Z, Lenny Kravitz, Puff Diddy, Pharrell Williams, Beyonce, Justin Timberlake, Dr. Dre, etc.
2003 – Daniel Bedingfield scored his third number one single in the UK with ‘Never Gonna Leave Your Side’ on this day August 2 in music history.
2008 – Coldplay reached No.1 in the UK with their fourth studio album ‘Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends’. The album was an international hit that year and it topped the charts in 22 countries around the world, including the US.
2008 – With his untitled ninth studio, rapper Nas reached number one on the US Billboard 200 chart on this day August 2.
2009 – American rockabilly musician and record producer Billy Lee Riley died at the age of 75. Best remembered for songs such as ‘Red Hot’ and ‘Rock With Me Baby’.
2010 – Indie rock band Arcade Fire released their third studio album ‘The Suburbs’. It reached number one in Belgium, Canada, Ireland, Norway, Portugal, the UK, and US.
2014 – “Weird Al” Yankovic went to number one in the US with his fourteenth studio album ‘Mandatory Fun’. The album also earned Weird Al a Grammy Award for Best Comedy Album.
2014 – Cheryl Cole and Tinie Tempah topped the UK Singles chart with ‘Crazy Stupid Love’ on this day August 2. The song also reached No.1 in Ireland and on the European Billboard chart.
2018 – The soundtrack album to the musical film ‘Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again‘ started a four-week run at No.1 in the UK on this day August 2 in music history. Also a chart-topper in Australia, Austria, Finland, Greece, Ireland, New Zealand, and the US.
2019 – Christian rock band Skillet released their tenth studio album ‘Victorious’ through Atlantic Records. It peaked at No.17 on the Billboard 200 chart.
BORN ON AUGUST 2 IN MUSIC HISTORY
1935 – Country music singer and songwriter Garland “Hank” Cochran was born in Isola, Mississippi. Best remembered for his hit single ‘Sally Was a Good Old Girl’.
1937 – Canadian multi-instrumentalist Eric Garth Hudson was born on this day August 2 in Windsor, Ontario. Best known as a founding member of the rock group the Band.
1939 – American R&B and soul music singer Edward “Eddie” Patten was born in Atlanta, Georgia on this day August 2 in music history. He rose to fame as a member of the music group Gladys Knight & the Pips.
1941 – American musician Doris Coley was born on this day August 2 in Goldsboro, North Carolina. She rose to fame as a member of The Shirelles.
1944 – Blues keyboardist, composer, and producer Mark Naftalin was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Best known as a member of the Paul Butterfield Blues Band.
1944 – English singer-songwriter and drummer James Capaldi was born on this day in Evesham. Best known as the co-founder of the progressive rock band Traffic.
1948 – Co-founder and frontman of the pop band Amen Corner, Andrew Fairweather Low was born in Cardiff, Wales.
1950 – British guitarist and vocalist David Alan “Ted” Turner was born on this day August 2 in Birmingham, England. He rose to fame as a member of the rock band Wishbone Ash.
1951 – American multi-instrumentalist, singer, songwriter, and producer Andrew Gold was born in Burbank, California on this day August 2 in music history. Best known for songs such as ‘Lonely Boy’, ‘Never Let Her Slip Away’, and ‘Thank You for Being a Friend’.
1951 – American singer-songwriter and guitarist Joe Lynn Turner was born in Hackensack, New Jersey. Best known for his work with the hard rock bands Deep Purple and Rainbow.
1955 – American musician, songwriter and record producer Bryan “Butch” Vig was born on this day in Viroqua, Wisconsin. Best known as a member of the alternative rock band Garbage and for producing Nirvana‘s best-selling album ‘Nevermind’.
1961 – English musician Peter de Freitas was born on this day August 2 in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago. He rose to fame as the drummer of the rock band Echo & the Bunnymen.
1962 – Multi-instrumentalist and singer-songwriter Lee Mavers was born in Liverpool, England. Best known as the co-founder and frontman of the band The La’s.
1970 – American singer and songwriter Zelma Davis was born on this day August 2 in music history. Best known as a member of the group C+C Music Factory.