On This Day, August 24 in Music History
EVENTS ON AUGUST 24 IN MUSIC HISTORY
On this day August 24 in 1956 – Elvis Presley recorded ‘Love Me Tender’ at the 20th Century Fox Studios in Los Angeles. The song featured in the film of the same name and it topped the singles charts in the US and Canada.
1959 – With ‘The Three Bells’, the vocal trio The Browns started a four-week run at No.1 on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart. Also a chart-topper in Australia and a No.6 hit in the UK that year.
1963 – “Little” Stevie Wonder topped the US Billboard 200 chart with his first live album ‘Recorded Live: The 12 Year Old Genius’ on this day August 24 in music history.
1974 – Paul Anka and Odie Coates hit number one on the US Singles chart with ‘(You’re) Having My Baby’ for the first of three consecutive weeks.
1976 – British composer, singer, organist, and pianist Michael Head died on this day August 24 at the age of 76.
1978 – American singer-songwriter, trumpeter, and bandleader Louis Prima died at the age of 67. Best remembered for forming and fronting multiple bands in various music genres.
1981 – The Rolling Stones released their 18th studio album ‘Tattoo You’ on their own record label Rolling Stones Records. The album was a commercial success and it reached No.1 in Australia, Canada, the Netherlands, France, New Zealand, and the United States.
1985 – Pop rock band Tears for Fears returned to number one on the US Billboard 200 chart with their second studio album ‘Songs from the Big Chair’. The album also topped the charts in Canada, Germany, and the Netherlands that year.
1985 – Huey Lewis and the News scored their first No.1 single in the US with ‘The Power of Love’. The song became a chart-topper in Australia, Canada, and Japan, and it featured in the popular sci-fi film ‘Back to the Future’ which helped it to conquer the charts worldwide.
1991 – Heavy Metal band Metallica went to No.1 in the UK with their self-titled fifth studio album also known as ‘The Black Album’ on this day August 24 in music history.
1996 – Nearly four months after originally topping the US Billboard 200, Alanis Morissette returned for a three-week run at No.1 on the chart with the same album ‘Jagged Little Pill’.
1998 – American record producer, arranger, conductor, and composer Eugene “Gene” Page died at the age of 58. Best remembered for his work with the likes of The Supremes, Jefferson Starship, the Jackson 5, Cher, Elton John, Aretha Franklin, and many other music acts.
1999 – American big band trombonist and session musician Warren Covington died on this day August 24, aged 78.
2002 – Pop and R&B girl group Sugababes scored their second number one single in the UK with ‘Round Round’.
2010 – Pop singer Katy Perry released her third studio album ‘Teenage Dream’ through Capitol Records. The album went on to sell over 12 million copies and it reached No.1 in several countries worldwide.
2013 – With their self-titled second and final studio album, alternative folk band The Civil Wars topped the US Billboard 200 chart on this day August 24 in music history.
2013 – English singer Ellie Goulding started a three-week run at number one on the UK Singles chart with ‘Burn’.
2017 – Singer and songwriter Dua Lipa scored her first number one single in the United Kingdom with ‘New Rules’.
2019 – Singer-songwriter Billie Eilish scored her first number one single in the US with ‘Bad Guy’ on this day August 24. The song was an international hit topping the charts in 15 countries worldwide, and it also won her two Grammy Awards for Record and Song of the Year.
2019 – Heavy metal band Slipknot went to number one in the US with their sixth studio album ‘We Are Not Your Kind’. The album was an international hit and it topped fifteen charts worldwide.
2021 – English drummer and graphic artist Charles “Charlie” Watts died at the age of 80. Best remembered as the longtime member of The Rolling Stones.
BORN ON AUGUST 24 IN MUSIC HISTORY
1905 – American delta blues singer-songwriter and guitarist Arthur “Big Boy” Crudup was born in Forest, Mississippi. Best known for songs such as ‘That’s All Right’, and ‘My Baby Left Me’.
1915 – R&B singer and rock and roll pioneer Wynonie Harris was born on this day August 24 in Omaha, Nebraska.
1938 – American multi-instrumentalist and vocalist David Freiberg was born in Boston, Massachusetts. Best known as a member of the bands Quicksilver Messenger Service, Jefferson Airplane, and Jefferson Starship.
1942 – Singer, multi-instrumentalist, and founding member of The Chi-Lites, Marshall Thompson was born on this day August 24 in Chicago, Illinois.
1942 – American singer James McCleese also known professionally as Jimmy Soul was born in Weldon, North Carolina. He rose to fame with his chart-topping hit ‘If You Wanna Be Happy’.
1943 – Founder and lead guitarist of the rock band Quicksilver Messenger Service, John Cipolina was born in San Francisco, California.
1945 – English multi-instrumentalist, singer-songwriter, and record producer Kenneth “Ken” Hensley was born on this day August 24 in London. He came to prominence as a member of the rock ban Uriah Heep.
1945 – Founding member and tenor saxophonist of the Average White Band, Malcolm “Molly” Duncan was born in Montrose, Scotland.
1947 – American multi-instrumentalist James “Jimmy” Fox was born in Cleveland, Ohio. Best known as the founder and drummer of the James Gang.
1948 – French composer, record producer, and pioneer of the electronic and new-age music genres Jean-Michel Jarre was born in Lyon, France on this day August 24 in music history.
1951 – Singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Danny Joe Brown was born in Jacksonville, Florida. Best known as the lead singer of the rock band Molly Hatchet.
1953 – American vocalist and bass guitarist John Cowan was born in Minerva, Ohio. He came to prominence as a member of the progressive bluegrass band New Grass Revival.
1954 – English drummer Stephen “Steve” Holley was born on this day August 24 in London. Best known as a member of Wings from 1978 until 1981.
1961 – British musician, composer, and songwriter Mark Bedford also known as Bedders was born in London, England. Best known as a member of the ska band Madness.
1963 – Heavy metal singer-songwriter John Bush was born in Los Angeles, California on this day August 24 in music history. Best known as the lead singer of the metal bands Armored Saint and Anthrax.
1968 – Brazilian guitarist, songwriter, and producer Andreas Kisser was born in Sao Paulo, Brazil. He came to prominence as the lead guitarist of the metal band Sepultura.