EVENTS THAT HAPPENED ON THIS DAY DECEMBER 11 IN MUSIC HISTORY
On this day December 11 in 1961 – With their debut single ‘Please Mr. Postman’, The Marvelettes topped the US Billboard Hot 100 chart.
1964 – American soul singer Sam Cooke was shot and killed by a motel manager Bertha Franklin after he tried to assault her and a girl he met at a party. The singer died at the age of 33.
1968 – Comedy music group The Scaffold reached the top of the UK Singles chart with ‘Lily the Pink’ on this day December 11 in music history and stayed at No.1 for three weeks straight.
1971 – Another comedy song was at number one in the UK on this day, this time it was ‘Ernie (The Fastest Milkman in the West)’ by comedian and singer Benny Hill. He topped the Singles chart for four consecutive weeks.
1971 – John Lennon released his debut solo studio album ‘John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band’ through Apple Records on this day December 11. The album peaked at No.6 in the US and No.8 in the UK.
1982 – Singer and choreographer Toni Basil scored her first and only No.1 single in the US with ‘Mickey’. The song also reached No.1 in Australia and Canada while in the UK, Ireland, New Zealand, and South Africa it peaked in the Top 3.
1993 – The number one single in the UK on this day December 11 was the novelty song ‘Mr. Blobby’ by the fictional character of the same name from the TV show ‘Noel’s House Party’.
1993 – With ‘Again’, Janet Jackson scored her second chart-topper of the year in the US. She previously topped the Billboard Hot 100 for eight weeks straight with ‘That’s the Way Love Goes’.
1993 – The number one album in the United States on this day December 11 was the debut studio LP ‘Doggystyle’ by the American rapper Snoop Doggy Dogg.
1998 – American singer and songwriter Lynn Strait died at the age of 30 in a car crash. Best remembered as the frontman of the nu metal band Snot.
1999 – With her greatest hits compilation ‘All the way…A Decade of Song’, Celine Dion reached the top spot on the US Albums chart on this day December 11 in music history. She held the top spot for two consecutive weeks.
1999 – Canadian singer Shania Twain hit number one on the UK Albums chart with her third studio LP ‘Come On Over’ for the first of five consecutive weeks.
2004 – The number one single in the United States on this day December 11 was ‘Drop It Like It’s Hot’ by Snoop Dogg featuring Pharrell.
Snoop Dogg ft. Pharrell – Drop It Like It’s Hot
2004 – The charity supergroup Band Aid 20 topped the UK Singles chart with a new rendition of the 1984 song ‘Do They Know It’s Christmas’. The only artists to feature on both the original and new version of the song were Paul McCartney and Bono.
2004 – With their eleventh studio LP ‘How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb’, Irish rock band U2 topped the US Albums chart on this day December 11 in music history.
2010 – Singer and songwriter P!nk scored her third chart-topping single in the United States with ‘Raise Your Glass’.
2010 – American rapper Kanye West topped the US Billboard 200 with his fifth studio album ‘My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy’.
2012 – Indian sitarist and composer Ravi Shankar died on this day December 11 at the age of 92. He was the father of singer-songwriter and pianist Norah Jones.
2014 – Country music singer and songwriter Dawn Sears died on this day December 11, aged 53 from lung cancer. Best remembered for her single ‘Runaway Train’.
BORN ON THIS DAY DECEMBER 11 IN MUSIC HISTORY
1906 – American jazz musician and composer John “Jack” Purvis was born in Kokomo, Indiana on this day December 11 in music history.
1908 – American modernist composer Elliott Cook Carter Jr. was born on this day in New York City.
1916 – Cuban musician, composer, arranger and bandleader Perez Prado nicknamed the ‘King of the Mambo’ was born on this day December 11 in Matanzas, Cuba. Best known for popularizing the mambo music genre with the hit song ‘Mambo No.5’.
1926 – R&B singer, songwriter and instrumentalist Willie Mae Thornton better known by her stage name Big Mama Thornton was born in Ariton, Alabama.
1940 – Singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist David Gates was born on this day December 11 in Tulsa, Oklahoma. He rose to fame as the frontman of the soft rock band Bread.
1944 – American singer Brenda Mae Tarpley also known professionally as Brenda Lee was born in Atlanta, Georgia. She’s one of the best-selling artists of all time with over 100 million records sold worldwide.
1948 – American drummer Chester Thompson was born in Baltimore, Maryland on this day December 11 in music history. Best known for his work with the likes of Weather Report, Santana, Genesis, The Mothers of Invention, etc.
1954 – Singer, songwriter, and bass guitarist Jermaine Jackson was born on this day in Gary, Indiana. Best known as a member of the family group The Jackson 5.
1956 – Australian guitarist and vocalist Stephen “Stevie” Young was born on this day December 11 in Glasgow, Scotland. Best known for his work with the hard rock band AC/DC.
1958 – Bassist, songwriter, and co-founder of the hard rock band Mötley Crüe, Nikki Sixx was born Frank Carlton Serafino Feranna Jr in San Jose, California.
1961 – American bass guitarist Darryl Jones was born on this day December 11 in Chicago, Illinois. Best known for his work with The Rolling Stones, Miles Davis, and Sting.
1961 – American DJ, producer, and rapper Antoine Carraby also known professionally as DJ Yella was born in Los Angeles, California. He rose to fame as a member of the influential hip hop group N.W.A.
1964 – Singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Justin Currie was born on this day December 11 in Glasgow, Scotland. He came to prominence as a founding member of the band Del Amitri.
1964 – Founding member and bassist of the rock band Widespread Panic, David “Dave” Schools was born in Richmond, Virginia.
1973 – American rapper, songwriter, and producer Yasiin Bey also known by his stage name Mos Def was born in Brooklyn, New York on this day December 11 in music history.