On This Day, March 7 in Music History
EVENTS ON MARCH 7 IN MUSIC HISTORY
On this day March 7 in 1966 – English rhythm guitarist and vocalist Mike Milward died at the age of 23 from leukemia. Best remembered for his work with the Merseybeat band The Fourmost.
1966 – Singe-songwriter and instrumentalist Brian Wilson released his first single as a solo artist titled ‘Caroline No’. The song peaked at No.32 on the US Billboard Hot 100.
1968 – Elvis Presley recorded ‘Wonderful World’, ‘Edge Of Reality’, and ‘A Little Less Conversation’ on this day March 7 in music history. The latter was released on September 3 and it became an international No.1 hit.
1969 – The Recording Industry Association of America (RIA) awarded Tommy Roe a Gold Record for his single ‘Dizzy’. The single was a big hit that year and it reached No.1 in the UK, Canada, and the US.
1970 – American actor Lee Marvin started a three-week run at No.1 on the UK Singles chart with ‘Wand’rin’ Star’ on this day March 7. Fun fact – the song blocked The Beatles from reaching the top of the chart with ‘Let It Be’.
1970 – With their fifth and final studio album ‘Bridge over Troubled Water‘, Simon & Garfunkel hit No.1 on the US Billboard 200 for the first of ten consecutive weeks.
1971 – Jamaican saxophonist and flautist Harold McNair died on this day March 7 at the age of 39 from lung cancer.
1975 – David Bowie released his ninth studio album ‘Young Americans’ through RCA Records. The album peaked at No.2 in the UK and reached No.9 in the US. The title-track and ‘Fame’ were both international hits.
10 Interesting Facts About David Bowie
1983 – Stevie Wonder and Neil Sedaka were inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame on this day March 7 in music history at the 14th annual induction ceremony held in New York City.
1983 – New wave band Tears for Fears released their debut studio album ‘The Hurting’ through Phonogram and Mercury records. The album went on to sell over 1 million copies and it peaked at No.1 in the UK.
1983 – Synth-pop band New Order released their single ‘Blue Monday’ on this day March 7. It became the biggest selling 12-inch single of all time with over 700,000 copies sold in the UK alone.
1987 – With their debut studio album ‘Licensed to Ill’, rap rock group the Beastie Boys started a seven-week stint at No.1 on the US Billboard 200 chart.
1988 – British pedal steel guitar player Gordon Huntley died on this day March 7 from cancer, aged 62. Best remembered as a member of the folk-rock group Mathews Southern Comfort.
1998 – With ‘Frozen’, Madonna topped the UK Singles chart. The song was a worldwide hit that year and it reached No.1 in eight other countries and peaked at No.2 in the US.
1999 – American high tenor singer Marvin Inabnett better known by his stage name Marv Ingram died on this day March 7 in music history, aged 60. Best remembered as a founding member of the male quarter The Four Preps.
2000 – Country music singer-songwriter Julius Frank Anthony Kuczynski also known as Pee Wee King died at the age of 86.
2009 – Kelly Clarkson scored her first number one single in the United Kingdom with ‘My Life Would Suck Without You’ on this day March 7. The song also became a chart-topper in the US and Canada.
2009 – American singer and actor Jimmy Boyd died on this day at the age of 70. Best remembered for his hit rendition of ‘I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus’.
Jimmy Boyd – I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus
2009 – Electronic dance music group The Prodigy reached No.1 in the UK on this day March 7 in music history with their fifth studio album ‘Invaders Must Die’.
2013 – British guitarist, singer, songwriter, and record producer Peter Brockbanks better known as Peter Banks died at the age of 65. Best remembered as the co-founder of the progressive rock bands Yes and Flash.
2015 – Pop rock band Imagine Dragons went to number one on the US Billboard 200 with their second studio album ‘Smoke + Mirrors’ on this day March 7.
2019 – With ‘Someone You Loved’, Scottish singer-songwriter Lewis Capaldi hit No.1 on the UK Singles chart for the first of seven consecutive weeks.
2020 – South Korean boy band BTS had the number one album in the United States on this day March 7 with ‘Map of the Soul: 7’.
BORN ON MARCH 7 IN MUSIC HISTORY
1908 – English jazz trumpeter, mellophone player, vocalist, and bandleader Nathaniel Gonella was born in London. Best known as a founder of the big band The Georgians.
1923 – American clarinetist and saxophonist Mahlon Clark was born in Portsmouth, Virginia. Best known for his work with the Lawrence Welk orchestra in the 1960s.
1943 – Singer, songwriter, bass guitarist and record producer Chris White was born in Barnet, England. He rose to fame as a member of the rock band The Zombies.
1944 – American singer-songwriter and guitarist Townes Van Zandt was born in Fort Worth, Texas. Best known for songs such as ‘To Live Is to Fly’, ‘Pancho and Lefty’, ‘If I Needed You’, and ‘For the Sake of the Song’.
1945 – Singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Arthur Taylor Lee was born in Memphis, Tennessee. Best known as the co-founder and frontman of the rock band Love.
1946 – Singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Peter Wolf was born Peter Walter Blankfield in the Bronx, New York.
1952 – American singer, songwriter, and instrumentalist Ernie Isley was born in Cincinnati, Ohio. Best known as a member of the family music group The Isley Brothers.
1953 – DJ, record producer, singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist Leon Sylvers III was born in South Bend, Indiana.
1962 – American singer-songwriter Leslie Wunderman also known professionally as Taylor Dayne was born in New York City.
1967 – American drummer and songwriter Randell “Randy” Guss was born in Detroit, Michigan. He rose to fame as a founding member of the alternative rock band Toad the Wet Sprocket.
1973 – French singer, composer, and record producer S’bastien Izambard was born in Paris. Best known as a member of the multi-national classical crossover vocal group Il Divo.
1977 – English singer Paul Cattermole was born in St Albans, Hertfordshire. He came to prominence as a member of the pop group S Club 7.
1982 – English singer Kelli Young was born in London. Best known as the lead singer of the pop group Liberty X.