On This Day, November 21 in Music History
EVENTS ON NOVEMBER 21 IN MUSIC HISTORY
On this day November 21 in 1960 – Maurice Williams and the Zodiacs hit No.1 on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart with ‘Stay’. At 1 minute and 36 seconds, its the shortest single to ever top the chart.
1970 – The cast of the musical sitcom The Partridge Family started a three-week run at number one in the US with their debut single ‘I Think I Love You’.
1970 – The number one single in the UK on this day was ‘Voodoo Chile’ by the Jimi Hendrix Experience.
1975 – Rock band Queen released their fourth studio album ‘A Night at the Opera’ on this day November 21. It became their first album to peak at No.1 in the UK and the first to reach platinum status in the US. The album also features one of the band’s biggest hits ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’.
1981 – Queen and David Bowie started a two-week run at number one on the singles chart in the UK with ‘Under Pressure’.
1981 – Olivia Newton-John started a massive ten-week stint at number one on the US Singles chart with ‘Physical’. It also reached No.1 in Australia, Belgium, Canada, New Zealand, and Switzerland.
1981 – Rock band Foreigner returned to number one on the US Billboard 200 for the first of five consecutive weeks with their fourth studio album ‘4’.
1987 – British pop group T’Pau topped the UK Albums chart with their debut studio LP ‘Bridge of Spies’.
1987 – With his rendition of the Tommy James & the Shondells 1968 hit ‘Mony Mony’– Billy Idol topped the US Billboard Hot 100.
1992 – Michael Bolton topped the US Billboard 200 chart with his album ‘Timeless: The Classics’.
1992 – American soul music duo Charles & Eddie went to number one on the UK Singles chart with ‘Would I Lie to You’.
1992 – With her first European compilation album ‘Greatest Hits: 1965-1992’, Cher went to number one in the United Kingdom.
1995 – English record executive and music manager Peter Grant died at the age of 60. Best remembered as the manager of Led Zeppelin.
1995 – English guitarist and keyboards player Matthew Ashman died from diabetes, aged 35. Best remembered for his work with bands such as Bow Wow Wow and Adam and the Ants.
1998 – Canadian singer-songwriter Alanis Morrissette started a two-week run at No.1 in the US with her fourth studio album ‘Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie’.
1998 – George Michael hit number one on the UK Albums chart for the first of eight consecutive weeks with ‘Ladies & Gentlemen: The Best of George Michael’.
2002 – American pianist, singer, and composer Hadda Brooks nicknamed the ‘Queen of the Boogie’ died at the age of 86.
2003 – Songwriter, singer, producer, and arranger Alessandro “Teddy” Randazzo died at the age of 68.
2009 – American group The Black Eyed Peas hit number one on the UK Singles chart with ‘Meet Me Halfway’.
2009 – Country music singer Carrie Underwood reached number one on the US Albums chart with her third studio LP ‘Play On’.
2009 – British boy band JLS took the top spot on the UK Albums chart with their eponymous debut studio LP.
2015 – With his debut studio album ‘Traveller’, country music singer Chris Stapleton topped the US Billboard 200 chart.
2017 – American singer, songwriter, guitarist, and actor David Cassidy died at the age of 67.
2019 – The number one album in the UK on this day was ‘Sunsets & Full Moons’ by the Irish pop rock band The Script.
BORN ON NOVEMBER 21 IN MUSIC HISTORY
1904 – Influential jazz musician Coleman Hawkins also known by his nicknames Hawk and Bean was born in Saint Joseph, Missouri.
1933 – Singer-songwriter and country music female pioneer Ollie Imogene “Jean” Shepard was born in Pauls Valley, Oklahoma.
1941 – Saxophonist and one half of the musical duo The Memphis Horns, Andrew Love was born in Memphis, Tennessee.
1941 – American songwriter, producer, and singer David Porter was born in Memphis, Tennessee. He was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame.
1948 – American-English keyboardist, songwriter and vocalist John “Rabbit” Bundrick was born in Houston, Texas.
1948 – Singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and founding member of the funk band War, Leroy “Lonnie” Jordan was born in San Diego, California.
1950 – American guitarist and keyboardist Gary Pihl was born in Chicago, Illinois. Best known as a member of the rock band Boston.
1950 – Singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Livingston Taylor was born in Boston, Massachusetts. He’s also the brother of fellow musicians James, Alex, and Kate Taylor.
1955 – Founding member and guitarist of the rock band The Church, Peter Koppes was in Canberra, Australia.
1962 – Contemporary Christian music singer-songwriter and guitarist Steven Curtis Chapman was born in Paducah, Kentucky.
1965 – Icelandic singer, songwriter, producer, and composer Björk Guðmundsdóttir was born in Reykjavik, Iceland. She rose to international fame as the lead singer of the alternative rock and The Sugarcubes.
1968 – British bass guitarist Alexander “Alex” James was born in Bournemouth, England. Best known as a member of the rock band Blur.
1985 – Canadian singer-songwriter and instrumentalist Carly Rae Jepsen was born in Mission, British Columbia. Best known for her worldwide chart-topping single ‘Call Me Maybe’.