EVENTS THAT HAPPENED ON THIS DAY FEBRUARY 17 IN MUSIC HISTORY
On this day February 17 in 1956 – With ‘Memories are Made of This’, Dean Martin hit No.1 on the UK Singles chart for the first of four consecutive weeks.
1962 – Gene Chandler started a three-week stint at number one on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart with ‘Duke of Earl’.
1966 – The Beach Boys began recording ‘Good Vibrations’ on this day February 17 in music history. It was released as a single on October 10 that year and it became a chart-topper in the US, New Zealand, Malaysia, Spain, and the UK.
1966 – With ‘These Boots Are Made for Walkin’, Nancy Sinatra reached the top spot on the UK Singles chart. The song was a worldwide hit and it also became a chart-topper in the US, Australia, Denmark, Singapore, South Africa, and the Netherlands.
1968 – Diana Ross & The Supremes started a three-week stint at No.1 in the UK on this day February 17 with their compilation album ‘Diana Ross & The Supremes: Greatest Hits’.
1972 – One year before the official release of ‘The Dark Side of The Moon’, Pink Floyd began playing material from the album at their gigs. They performed at the Rainbow Theatre in London on this date. However, the band had to stop doing that due to bootleg recordings appearing on the market.
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1973 – With their fifth studio album ‘The World Is a Ghetto’, American band War started a two-week run at No.1 on the US Billboard 200 on this day February 17.
1975 – John Lennon released his sixth solo studio album ‘Rock ‘n’ Roll’. It featured covers of popular songs from the 1950s and 1960s, and it peaked at No.6 on both the UK and US Album charts.
1975 – Hard rock band AC/DC released their debut studio album ‘High Voltage’ on this day February 17 in music history.
1976 – Rock band the Eagles released their first compilation album ‘Greatest Hits (1971-1975)’ through Asylum Records. The album peaked at No.1 in North America and became a Top 3 hit in the UK, Australia, and New Zealand.
1978 – Singer-songwriter Kate Bush released her debut studio album ‘The Kick Inside’ on this day February 17. It became a chart-topper in Portugal and The Netherlands while in the UK it peaked at No3. The album also features her number one hit ‘Wuthering Heights’.
1979 – With their third studio album ‘Parallel Lines’, Blondie hit No.1 in the UK for the first of four consecutive weeks. The album features hit singles such as ‘Heart of Glass’ and ‘One Way Or Another’, and it was also a hit in the US where it peaked at No.6.
Blondie – One Way Or Another
1982 – American jazz pianist and composer Thelonious Monk died on this day February 17 in music history, aged 64. Best remembered for composing jazz standards such as ‘Blue Monk’, ‘Round Midnight’, and ‘Straight, No Chaser’.
1998 – R&B girl group Destiny’s Child released their eponymous debut studio album through Columbia Records. The album became a certified Platinum record and it features the chart-topping single ‘No, No, No’.
1998 – American songwriter and theatrical composer Robert “Bob” Merrill died on this day February 17, aged 76. Best remembered for penning multiple number one hits during the 1950s and for writing musicals for Broadway.
2001 – With his fifth studio album ‘Hot Shot’, reggae singer Shaggy hit number one on the US Billboard 200 for the first of four weeks straight. The album also topped the UK, Canadian, German, New Zealand, and Portuguese charts that year.
2001 – The number one single in the United States on this day February 17 was ‘Ms. Jackson’ by the hip hop duo OutKast.
2007 – With her third studio album ‘Not Too Late’, Norah Jones went to number one on the US Billboard 200 chart. The album was a big hit worldwide that year, reaching No.1 in over 20 countries, including the UK, Canada, and New Zealand.
2007 – Singer-songwriter Mika started a two-week run at No.1 in the UK on this day February 17 in music history with his debut studio album ‘Life in Cartoon Motion’.
2014 – American multi-instrumentalist, producer, and composer Robert Casale also known as Bob 2 died at the age of 61. Best remembered for his work with the new wave band Devo.
2018 – Singer and songwriter Justin Timberlake topped the US Albums chart on this day February 17 with his fifth studio release ‘Man of the Woods’.
2022 – Indie pop band Bastille scored their third number one album in the United Kingdom with ‘Give Me the Future’
BORN ON THIS DAY FEBRUARY 17 IN MUSIC HISTORY
1935 – American country music singer-songwriter John Bush Shinn was born in Houston, Texas on this day February 17 in music history.
1936 – English singer and actor John Leyton was born on this day in Frinton-on-Sea, Essex. Best known for his 1961 chart-topping single ‘Johnny Remember Me’.
1940 – Singer and songwriter Gene Pitney was born on this day February 17 in Hartford, Connecticut. Best known for scoring over twenty Top 40 singles on the UK and US music charts which earned him an induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2002.
1946 – American pop-rock singer Geraldine Ann Pasquale better known by her stage name Dodie Stevens was born in Chicago, Illinois.
1950 – Frontman of the rock band Blackfoot, Rickey Medlocke was born in Jacksonville, Florida on this day February 17 in music history. He’s also known for his work with Lynyrd Skynyrd.
1969 – Country music record producer and musician Jon Stewart also known professionally as Jon Randall was born in Dallas, Texas.
1972 – American drummer Taylor Hawkins was born on this day in Fort Worth, Texas. He is best known as a long time member of the rock band Foo Fighters.
1972 – American singer-songwriter and guitarist Billie Joe Armstrong was born on this day February 17 in Oakland, California. He rose to fame as the co-founder and frontman of the punk rock band Green Day.
1974 – Country music singer-songwriter and instrumentalist Bryan Shelton White was born in Lawton, Oklahoma. Best known for chart-topping singles such as ‘Sittin’ on Go’, ‘So Much for Pretending’, and ‘Rebecca Lynn’.
1981 – English vocalist, songwriter, and instrumentalist John Hassall was born in London on this day February 17 in music history. Best known for playing bass guitar with the rock band The Libertines.
1991 – Singer-songwriter and guitarist Edward “Ed” Sheeran was born in Halifax, England. He’s one of the best-selling artists of all time with over 150 million records sold worldwide.