On This Day, June 21 in Music History
EVENTS ON JUNE 21 IN MUSIC HISTORY
On this day June 21 in 1969 – The cast of the Broadway rock musical Hair topped the US Billboard 200 chart with their eponymous album. The album stayed for 13 consecutive weeks at No.1 and its the last album by a Broadway cast to top the chart.
1969 – Bandleader and trombonist Ray Conniff started a three-week stint at No.1 on the UK Albums chart with ‘His Orchestra, His Chorus, His Singers, His Sound’.
1975 – Captain & Tennille hit No.1 on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart with their rendition of ‘Love Will Keep Us Together’ for the first of four consecutive weeks on this day June 21 in music history.
1975 – Elton John went to number one on the US Billboard 200 chart with his ninth studio album ‘Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy’. Also a chart-topper in Australia, Canada, and New Zealand that year. In the UK it peaked at No.2.
1979 – American multi-instrumentalist Angus MacLise died on this day June 21 at the age of 41. Best remembered as the original drummer of the rock band Velvet Underground.
1980 – With his rendition of the Roy Orbison song ‘Crying’, Don McLean started a three-week stint at number one on the UK Singles chart.
1980 – German multi-instrumentalist, composer, record producer, and orchestra leader Bert Kaempfert died on this day June 21, aged 56. Best known for songs such as ‘Strangers in the Night’ and ‘Moon Over Naples’.
1986 – With their thirteenth studio album ‘Invisible Touch’, rock band Genesis hit number one in the UK for the first of three weeks straight. It was their fourth domestic chart-topper.
1990 – Thrash metal band Exodus released their fourth studio album ‘Impact is Imminent’ through Capitol Records on this day June 21 in music history. The album peaked at No.137 on the Billboard 200 which is the band’s lowest position on the chart.
1994 – Hip hop group Bone Thugs-N-Harmony released their debut studio album ‘Creepin on ah Come Up’ through Ruthless Records.
1997 – Pop rock group Hanson topped the UK Albums chart with their debut studio release ‘Middle of Nowhere’ on this day June 21.
1997 – Hip hop group Wu-Tang Clan went to number one on the US Billboard 200 with their second studio album ‘Wu-Tang Forever’. The album topped the charts in Canada, New Zealand, and the UK that year as well.
2001 – American blues singer-songwriter and guitarist John Lee Hooker died on this day June 21 at the age of 88. Best remembered for songs such as ‘Boogie Chillen”, ‘Boom Boom’, ‘Crawling King Snake’, ‘Dimples’, etc.
2003 – Alternative rock band Radiohead reached the top spot on the UK Albums chart with their sixth studio release ‘Hail to the Thief’.
2003 – Heavy metal band Metallica hit No.1 in the US with their eighth studio album ‘St. Anger’ on this day June 21 in music history. The album was a big international hit and it peaked at No.1 in 17 other countries.
2008 – With their fourth studio album ‘Indestructible’, heavy metal band Disturbed hit No.1 in the US. It also became a chart-topper in Australia, Canada and New Zealand that year.
2008 – Pop rock group Coldplay started a five-week run at number one in the UK with their fourth studio album ‘Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends’ on this day June 21.
2011 – Maroon 5 & Christina Aguilera released ‘Moves Like Jagger’ on A&M Octone Rcords. The song became a huge international hit and it went to No.1 in over 20 countries. It also sold more than 18 million units worldwide.
2014 – Country music singer and songwriter Miranda Lambert topped the US Billboard 200 on this day June 21 with her fifth studio album ‘Platinum’.
2014 – The number one album in the United Kingdom on this day was ’48:13′ by the indie rock band – Kasabian. This was the group’s fourth consecutive domestic No.1.
2014 – Singer and songwriter Ella Henderson topped the UK Singles chart with ‘Ghost’ on this day June 21 in music history.
2016 – American soul and R&B musician Wayne Jackson died at the age of 74. Best known for playing the trumpet with Mar-Keys and The Memphis Horns.
2018 – English singer and songwriter Jess Glynne scored her third number one single as a solo artist in the UK with ‘I’ll Be There’.
BORN ON JUNE 21 IN MUSIC HISTORY
1932 – American singer Ocie Lee Smith also known professionally as O.C. Smith was born in Mansfield, Louisiana. Best known for the million-selling 1968 hit ‘Little Green Apples’.
1932 – Argentine composer, pianist and conductor Claudio “Lalo” Schifrin was born in Buenos Aires. Best known for composing numerous film scores that earned him five Grammy Awards and multiple nominations for Academy Awards.
1944 – English singer, guitarist and songwriter Raymond “Ray” Davies was born in London. Best known as a founding member of the Kinks.
1947 – Guitarist, singer and songwriter Joseph “Joey” Molland was born in Liverpool, England. He rose to fame as a member of the rock band Badfinger.
1950 – Founding member and drummer of Aerosmith, Joseph “Joey” Kramer was born in The Bronx, New York City.
1951 – American singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Nils Lofgren was born in Chicago, Illinois. Best known as a member of Crazy Horse and the E Street Band.
1952 – American songwriter, singer and guitarist Marcella “Marcy” Levy was born in Detroit, Michigan.
1957 – Drummer Mark Brzezicki was born in Slough, England. He came to prominence as a member of the rock group Big Country.
1959 – Country and bluegrass music singer Kathleen “Kathy” Mattea was born in South Charleston, West Virginia. Best known for the chart-topping singles ‘Goin’ Gone’, Burnin’ Old Memories’, and ‘Come from the Heart’.
1961 – Multi-instrumentalist and singer Kip Winger was born in Denver, Colorado. He gained popularity for his work with Alice Cooper before co-founding the rock band Winger.
1962 – Russian singer and songwriter Viktor Tsoi was born in Leningrad, USSR. Best known as the co-founder and frontman of the group Kino.
1965 – British singer and DJ Sonia Clarke also known professionally as Sonique was born in North London. She came to prominence as a member of the dance band S’Express before embarking a on a solo career.
1969 – American multi-instrumentalist and producer Patrick “Pat” Sansone was born in Meridian, Mississippi. Best known as a member of the rock bands Wilco and The Autumn Defense.
1972 – American country music singer-songwriter, guitarist and piano player Allison Moorer was born in Mobile, Alabama.
1976 – Co-founder and guitarist of the rock band Incubus, Michael “Mike” Einziger was born in Los Angeles, California.
1981 – Singer-songwriter, keyboardist and bassist, Brandon Flowers was born in Henderson, Nevada. Best known for fronting the rock band The Killers
1985 – American singer-songwriter Lana Del Rey was born Elizabeth Grant in New York City.