About maketodayrock.com: We celebrate musicians' birthdays, remember those we've lost, and highlight key moments in music such a release dates, chart peak dates, or anything else tied to a specific date. Pick any day from the menu in the top right. The front page shows recent obituaries.
April 29, 1931 ~ Singer, trumpeter Louis Armstrong records Them There Eyes ~ Written by Maceo Pinkard, Doris Tauber, William Tracy. Published in 1930. Louis Armstrong's version counts as one of the earliest popular versions, preceded though by Hal Kemp and Bing Crosby in 1930. The song would however become most closely associated with Billie Holiday who recorded a version in 1939 for Vocalion Records. Others who have subsequently covered the song included Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald and Caterina Valente in the 1950s, Peggy Lee, Carmen McRae, Sarah Vaughan and Kenny Ball in the 1960s, Diana Ross in 1972 for the Lady Sings The Blues Holiday bio-pic soundtrack, Barbara Cook, Chaka Khan and Nancy Wilson in the 1980s, Oscar Peterson in the 1990s, Aretha Franklin in the 2000s, and as a collaborative effort by Beth Hart and Joe Bonamassa in 2013
April 29, 1930 ~ Jazz drummer Joe Porcaro born in New Britain, Connecticut, USA ~ Father of Toto musicians Jeff Porcaro, Mike Porcaro, Steve Porcaro. Leader and sideman. Has worked with Natalie Cole, Don Ellis, Stan Getz, Freddie Hubbard, Gladys Knight, Madonna, the Monkees, Gerry Mulligan, Pink Floyd, Frank Sinatra, Sarah Vaughan, Rosemary Clooney, Lalo Schifrin, Mike Mainieri, Emitt Rhodes, Louie Bellson, Bonnie Raitt, Glen Campbell, Eric Carmen, Cheryl Lynn, Randy Crawford, Yvonne Elliman, Donna Summer, Sérgio Mendes, Roger Kellaway, Joe Cocker, Diana Krall, and Harry Connick Jr ~ Porcaro passed away in 2020
April 29, 1929 ~ Conga player Ray Barretto born in New York, New York, USA ~ Leader and sideman. Sampled by Urban Dance Squad. Worked with Charlie Parker, Jose Curbelo, Tito Puente, Adalberto Santiago, the Fania All-Stars, Sonora Matancera, Celia Cruz, the New World Spirit, Gene Ammons, the Bee Gees, Kenny Burrell, Arnett Cobb, Ray Bryant, Billy Cobham, Eddie Lockjaw Davis, Eumir Deodato, Jimmy Forrest, Dizzy Gillespie, Slide Hampton, Bill Doggett, Art Farmer, Eddie Harris, Willis Jackson, Yusef Lateef, Junior Mance, Clifford Jordan, Herbie Mann, Wes Montgomery, Michel Sardaby, Sonny Stitt, Jack McDuff, the Weather Report, Charles Williams, Julius Watkins, and Frank Wess ~ Barretto passed away in 2016
April 29, 1928 ~ R&B singer Carl Gardner, full name Carl Edward Gardner, born in Tyler, Texas, USA ~ Key member of the Robins including on the 1955 hit Smokey Joe's Cafe. Best known as co-founding member of the Coasters, scoring a number of mid- to late 1950s hits pivotal to the development of rock & roll including Young Blood, Yakety Yak, Charlie Brown and Poison Ivy ~ Gardner passed away in 2011
April 29, 1922 ~ Jean Baptiste Frederic Isidor Thielemans, commonly known as harmonica player, guitarist, composer Toots Thielemans, born in Brussels, Belgium ~ Preeminent jazz harmonica player. Closely associated with friend, fan, frequent collaborator Quincy Jones. Best known for his composition Bluesette, for a number of soundtracks, and for his many collaborations. Over the course of his career Thielemans has worked with Sidney Bechet, Charlie Parker, Miles Davis, Max Roach, Benny Goodman, Dinah Washington, George Shearing, Ella Fitzgerald, Pat Metheny, Jaco Pastorius, Stéphane Grappelli, JJ Johnson, Oscar Peterson, Shirley Horn, Joe Pass, Bill Evans, Peggy Lee, Elis Regina, Billy Joel, Julian Lennon, John Denver, Dizzy Gillespie, Urbie Green, Brook Benton, James Last, Joe Lovano, and Paul Simon ~ Thielemans passed away in 2016April 29, 1920 ~ Composer, pianist Harold Shapero, full name Harold Samuel Shapiro, born in Lynn, Massachusetts, USA ~ Initially played jazz, notably with the swing ensemble the Hal Kenny Orchestra, but would later gravitate towards contemporary classical. Well known compositions include Nine-Minute Overture, Symphony For Classical Orchestra, Serenade In D, and Credo ~ Shapero passed away in 2013
April 29, 1919 ~ Choral conductor, composer Stephen Wilkinson, full name Stephen Austin Wilkinson, born in Cambridgeshire, UK ~ Conducted the Hertford Choir. Staff musician with the BBC for over 25 years starting in 1953, best known for his work with the BBC Northern Singers. Has also guested with the RTE Singers, and het Nederlands Kamerkoor. Wilkinson's daughter is mezzo-soprano singer Clare Wilkinson ~ Wilkinson passed away in 2021
April 29, 1908 ~ Jazz trumpeter Philippe Brun born in Paris, France ~ Worked with Gregor, Danny Polo, Ray Ventura, Bert Ambrose, Jack Hylton, Fred Waring, Django Reinhardt, Alix Combelle, Eddie Brunner, André Ekyan, Edmond Cohanier, and Teddy Stauffer ~ Brun passed away in 1994
April 29, 1907 ~ Constantin Rossi, commonly known as cabaret, pop singer, actor Tino Rossi, born in Ajaccio, France ~ Reportedly recorded over 2,000 songs and appeared in more than 25 films. Best known for his 1946 hit Petit Papa Noel which sold over 30 million copies worldwide ~ Rossi passed away in 1983
April 29, 1906 ~ Jazz trumpeter, scat singer Ward Pinkett, full name William Ward Pinkett Jr, born in Newsport News, Virginia, USA ~ Active during the Harlem Renaissance. Worked with King Oliver, James P Johnson, Chick Webb and with Jelly Roll Morton. Plagued by alcoholism Pinkett was admired as a musician but regarded as an unreliable band member. In poor health he died of pneumonia at age 30 ~ Pinkett passed away in 1937
April 29, 1905 ~ Pianist, composer Ignacio Cervantes, full name Ignacio Cervantes Kawanag, passed away in Havana, Cuba ~ Child prodigy. Would go on to become highly influential in the creolization of Cuban music. Would flee Cuba in 1875 after being warned by the government for raising money to fund the rebel cause, to return in later years. Known for his opera Maledetto, chamber pieces, zarzuelas, and songbooks. Father of María Cervantes, pianist, singer, composer ~ Cervantes was born in 1847April 29, 1903 ~ Frank Ciccio, commonly known as singer Frank Parker, born in New York, New York, USA ~ Active since the 1920. Best known as tenor singer in Harry Horlick's orchestra and as a singer for various radio show throughout the 1950s, working with personalities such as Jack Benny, George Burns, and Arthur Godfrey. Hosted his own radio show That Atlantic Family On Tour, syndicated on CBS Radio stations ~ Ciccio passed away in 1999
April 29, 1899 ~ Edward Kennedy Ellington, commonly known as bandleader, composer Duke Ellington, born in Washington DC, USA ~ Colossal figure in jazz, wrote over 1,000 songs and led the Duke Ellington Orchestra for about 5 decades from the early 1920s until his death in the mid 1970s. Known best for hits such as East St Louis Toodle-oo, Three Little Words, Sophisticated Lady, Stormy Weather, Cocktails For Two, Solitude, Cotton, Oh Babel Maybe Someday, I Let A Song Go Out Of My Heart and perhaps his best known Take The A-Train ~ Ellington passed away in 1974April 29, 1879 ~ Conductor, impresario Thomas Beecham born in St Helens, UK ~ Especially known as an advocate of lesser known composers such as Frederick Delius and Hector Berlioz. Closely associated with the London Philharmonic Orchestra, the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and the Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra ~ Beecham passed away in 1961