What happened in Music on this day !?

February 19th

Born in 1963 - Seal

British singer-songwriter Henry Samuel, singer, songwriter, (Seal). He had the 1991 UK No.2 single 'Crazy', and the 1995 US No.1 & UK No.4 single 'Kiss From A Rose'. His 1991 self-titled album spent 65 weeks on the UK chart. Seal has won multiple awards throughout his career, including three Brit Awards; he won Best British Male in 1992, as well as four Grammy Awards and an MTV Video Music Award.

February 20th

Born 1988 - Rihanna

Rihanna, Barbadian R&B singer who had 2007 world-wide No.1 single 'Umbrella' featuring Jay-Z. 'Umbrella' became the longest running UK No.1 in the 21st Century. The song debuted at No.1 on the chart based on digital sales alone. Rihanna has sold more than 20 million albums and 60 million singles which makes her one of the best selling artists of all time. She is the youngest solo artist in Billboard charts history to achieve eleven No.1 singles.

February 21st

Born in 1933 - Nina Simone

American singer, songwriter, pianist, composer, arranger and civil rights activist Nina Simone. She had the 1959 US No.18 single 'I Love You, Porgy', and the 1968 UK No.2 single 'Ain't Got No I Got Life', and went on to record more than 40 albums between 1958 and 1974. She suffered from breast cancer for several years before she died in her sleep at her home in Carry-le-Rouet (Bouches-du-Rhône), on 21 April 2003.

February 22nd

Born in 1974 - James Blunt

English singer, songwriter James Blunt. The former Army captain had the 2005 UK No.1 single 'You're Beautiful' and the 2005 UK No.1 album Back To Bedlam. He became the first British artist to top the American singles chart in nearly a decade when 'You're Beautiful' reached No.1 in 2006. The last British artist to do so was Elton John in 1997 with 'Candle in the Wind'.

February 23rd

Born in 1955 - Howard Jones

English musician, singer and songwriter Howard Jones, who had the 1983 UK No.2 single 'What Is Love', plus 9 other UK Top 40 singles. His 1984 album Human's Lib spent over a year on the UK chart. He also scored the 1986 US No.4 single 'No One Is To Blame'. Jones has also been a member of Ringo Starr's All Star Band.

February 24th

Born in 1947 - Rupert Holmes

British-American composer, singer-songwriter Rupert Holmes, who had the 1980 US No.1 & UK No. 23 single 'Escape, (The Pina Colada Song) and the1980 hit 'Him'. He is also known for his musicals The Mystery of Edwin Drood, which earned him two Tony Awards, and Curtains, and for his television series Remember WENN.
 

February 25th

Born in 1943 - George Harrison

George Harrison guitarist and vocalist with The Beatles The all-time bestselling album in the UK is The Beatles’ 'Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band', with over 4.5 million copies sold. Harrison wrote the 1969 US No.1 & UK No.4 Beatles single ’Something’. As a solo artist he had the 1971 US No.1 album 'All Things Must Pass' and the 1970 worldwide No.1 single ‘My Sweet Lord’. He was also a member of the Traveling Wilburys with Tom Petty and Bob Dylan. He organised the 1971 Concert for Bangladesh with Indian musician Ravi Shankar, a precursor to later benefit concerts such as Live Aid. In his role as a music and film producer, Harrison produced acts signed to the Beatles' Apple record label before founding Dark Horse Records in 1974. He co-founded HandMade Films in 1978, initially to produce the Monty Python troupe's comedy film The Life of Brian (1979). Harrison died of cancer on November 29th 2001 age 58.

February 26th

Born 1953 - Michael Bolton

American singer and songwriter Michael Bolton who was the frontman of the band Blackjack. His early career also saw him as a successful songwriter, co-writing hits like 'How Am I Supposed to Live Without You' for Laura Branigan, which later became his own chart-topper. Bolton has sold more than 75 million records and recorded eight top 10 albums and two No.1 singles on the Billboard charts.

February 27th

Born in 1957 - Adrian Smith

Adrian Smith, guitarist with English heavy metal band Iron Maiden, who had the 1982 UK No.1 album The Number Of The Beast, and the 1991 UK No.1 single 'Bring Your Daughter ...To The Slaughter'. Iron Maiden have sold over 100 million copies of their albums worldwide.

February 28th

Born in 1957 - Cindy Wilson

Cindy Wilson, singer and founding member with American new wave rock band The B-52's who had the 1990 UK No.2 & US No.3 single 'Love Shack'. She sang with the Ramones in the early 1980s on the song ‘Chop Suey’, with Kate Pierson and Debbie Harry.

March 1st

March 2nd

Born in 1942 - Lou Reed

American musician, singer and songwriter Lou Reed from Velvet Underground. After leaving the band in 1970, Reed released twenty solo studio albums. His second, Transformer (1972), was produced by David Bowie and arranged by Mick Ronson, and brought mainstream recognition. Reed scored the 1973 solo hit 1 'Walk On The Wildside' and the 1997 UK No.1 charity single 'Perfect Day'. Reed died from liver disease on 27th Oct 2013 aged 71.

March 4th

Born in 1968 - Patsy Kensit

Patsy Kensit, actress, who appeared in the 1986 film Absolute Beginners and was the singer in Eighth Wonder who had the 1988 UK No.7 single 'I'm Not Scared'. Kensit has been married four times. In 1988, she married Dan Donovan of the band Big Audio Dynamite, they divorced in 1991. In 1992, she married Jim Kerr, lead singer of Simple Minds. During the marriage, she gave birth to a son. Kensit and Kerr divorced in 1996, and in April 1997, she married Oasis singer Liam Gallagher from the band Oasis. Kensit and Gallagher had a son. Kensit and Gallagher divorced in 2000. She then married DJ Jeremy Healy on 29 November 2007; the couple divorced in 2011. Once married to Simple Minds singer Jim Kerr and married in 1997. The couple split in 2000.

March 5th

Born in 1948 - Eddy Grant

Guyanese-British singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Eddy Grant. With The Equals (one of the United Kingdom's first racially mixed pop groups), he had the 1968 UK No.1 single 'Baby Come Back', and as a solo artist scored the 1982 UK No.1 single 'I Don't Wanna Dance'. His 1983 single 'Electric Avenue' earned him a Grammy Award nomination and Grant is also well known for the anti-apartheid 1988 song 'Gimme Hope Jo'anna'.

March 9th

Born in 1945 - Robin Trower

English rock guitarist and vocalist Robin Trower who with Procol Harum, had the 1967 UK No.1 single & US No.5 'A Whiter Shade Of Pale'. He formed the Robin Trower Band in 1973 and has since released over 20 albums.

March 11th

Born in 1950 - Bobby McFerrin

Bobby McFerrin, American jazz vocalist and conductor known for his 1988 US No.1 & UK No.2 single 'Don't Worry Be Happy'. The track won Song of the Year and Record of the Year at the 1989 Grammy Awards.