Saturday, April 14, 2018

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2015"See You Again" by Wiz Khalifa breaks the Spotify record for most-streamed track in a single day in America when it is streamed 4.2 million times.
2011New American Idol judge Jennifer Lopez is named People magazine's Most Beautiful Person of 2011.
2010Ron Isley of The Isley Brothers is released from jail after serving 3 years for tax evasion. He came up with song ideas in prison and releases the album Mr. I on November 30.
2008Cult '60s Detroit Soul hero Nathaniel Mayer collapses from the brain hemorrhage that will, within the year, take his life.
2007Bring Me the Horizon vocalist Oli Sykes appears in Magistrate's Court, after being accused of urinating on a female fan at one of the band's gigs six days earlier. Due to lack of evidence, charges are later dropped.
2005Blues pianist Johnnie Johnson, known for his work with Chuck Berry, dies in St. Louis, Missouri, at age 80.
2004Crossfade release their self-titled debut album. The profanities on the album are censored, but the band are unable to release an explicit version due to lack of funds.
2004Songwriter Ritchie Cordell, who wrote the '60s-turned-'80s hits "I Think We're Alone Now" and "Mony Mony," dies at age 61 of pancreatic cancer.
2004Pixies return to the stage after 12 years with a 27-song set at the Fine Line Music Cafe in Minneapolis.
2001Kiss wrap up their "Farewell Tour" with a show in Queensland, Australia. Just two years later, they head out on the World Domination Tour.
1999Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers release their album Echo.
1994After nine years of a very public marriage, Billy Joel and Christie Brinkley announce they have separated. They divorce later in the year.
1993Bruce Springsteen releases his second live album, In Concert / MTV Unplugged.
1989Love Boat crooner Jack Jones is honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6104 Hollywood Blvd.
1985The all-star charity single "We Are The World" hits #1 in America, where it stays for four weeks. The song was conceived in December 1984, recorded in January 1985 and released in March. Its rise to the top of the charts is one of the fastest in history.
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The Wailers Spark Up Interest In Reggae With Catch a Fire

1973
The Wailers, led by Bob Marley, release their fifth studio album, Catch a Fire. The first album on their new label, Island Records, it makes Marley and the Wailers international recording stars and brings reggae music to the forefront.
The motivation for the album is desperation. It is not desperation for fame: the band was stranded in England. Marley and his bandmates Peter Tosh and Lee Perry were left there after their tour with fellow reggae singer, Johnny Nash, came to an abrupt halt. Nash and co-founder of JoDa Records, Danny Sims, bolted back to the US after getting word that sales of their 1972 hit, "I Can See Clearly Now," had begun to drop. 

With no money for the airfare back to Kingston, Marley visits Chris Blackwell at his London music studio. Blackwell was born in England but grew up in Jamaica and already knew about the Wailers. After hearing about Marley's dilemma, he fronts the band 8,000 pounds under the condition that they record an album for his Island label.

Blackwell reworks the band's sound, adds background vocals, and creates the reggae-rock sound that becomes the hallmark of the Wailers. The sixth track of the album, "Stir it Up," is an ode that Marley had written for his wife, Rita, in 1967. Nash recorded the song the previous year, taking it to #12 in America and #13 in the UK. 

The memorable original album cover is designed to look like a giant Zippo lighter. Opening the cover reveals the inner workings of the lighter, complete with blazing wick. This cover is scrapped after the first 20,000 printings due to cost concerns and is replaced by something less subtle: a photo of Marley puffing away on a joint.

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