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.
July 11, 1949 ~ Classical guitarist Liona Boyd, full name Liona Maria Carolynne Boyd, born in London, UK ~ Billed as “the First Lady of the Guitar” by her promoters, Boyd has evolved into one of the most popular classical guitarists. Has recorded over two dozen albums since the mid 1970s, especially acclaimed for Persona released in 1986. Has guested on recordings by Chet Atkins, the Canadian Brass, and Maurice Jarre
July 11, 1948 ~ Pierre Job, commonly known as composer, producer Hector Zazou, born in Sidi Bell Abbes, French Nigerioa ~ First gained attention as half of the duo ZNR alongside Joseph Racaille, noted for their 1976 Barricade 3 debut album. Would go on to become an in-demand producer and collaborator working with artists such as Sandy Dillon, MImi Goese, Barbara Gogan, Sevara Nazarkhan, Carlos Núnez, and Anne Grete Preus ~ Zazou passed away in 2008
July 11, 1948 ~ Reggae, dub producer Herman Chin Loy born in Trelawny Parish, Jamaica ~ Best known for his 1960s and early 1970s productions. Worked with Augustus Pablo, Dennis Brown, Alton Ellis, Bruce Ruffin, Lloyd Charmers, the Hippy Boys, the Now Generation, Horace Swaby, Little Roy, and Ernest Wilson
July 11, 1947 ~ Singer Francine Reed born in Chicago, Illinois, USA ~ Sister of jazz singer Margo Reed. Best known for her association with Lyle Lovett. Duetted with Willie Nelson and Delbert McClinton. As a solo artist best known for her rendition of the Ida Cox-classic Wild Women (Don't Get The Blues). Has also worked with Miles Davis, Stanley Jordan, Smokey Robinson, Etta James, the Crusaders, Roy Orbison, and Enlightenment Road Band
July 11, 1947 ~ Guitarist Jeff Hanna born in Detroit, Michigan, USA ~ Co-founding and core member of the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band. Also an in-demand collaborator and session musician. Has worked with artists such as Linda Ronstadt, Suzy Bogguss, the Texas Tenors, Patty Loveless, Rascal Flatts, Matraca Berg, Emmylou Harris, the Chieftains, Johnny Cash, Earl Scruggs, Michael Martin Murphey, and Dickey Betts
July 11, 1947 ~ Ska, rocksteady, reggae singer, songwriter John Holt, full name John Kenneth Holt, born in Kingston, Jamaica ~ Instrumental in the development of lovers' rock. Member of the Paragons, known for songs such as Ali Baba, I See Your Face and their biggest hit The Tide Is High. The latter, penned by Holt, would later be covered by both Blondie and Atomic Kitten. Holt also established himself as a successful solo artist, collaborating with producers such as Bunny Lee, Prince Buster, Alvin Ranglin, and Henry Jujo Lawes ~ Holt passed away in 2014
July 11, 1942 ~ Trumpeter Tomasz Stańko born in Rzeszow, Poland ~ Leader and sideman. Mainly works in free jazz and avant-garde idioms. Formed his first band, the Jazz Darings, in 1962, also featuring Janusz Muniak, Adam Makowicz, Jacek Ostaszeweski, and Wiktor Perelmuter. The band is credited to be the first European outfit to play free jazz. Stanko has also worked with Jack DeJohnette, Dave Holland, Reggie Workman, Rufus Reid, Lester Bowie, David Murray, Manu Katché, Chico Freeman, Cecil Taylor, the Globe Unity Orchestra, Krzysztof Penderecki, Don Cherry, Edward Vesala, Tomasz Szukalski, Howard Johnson, Gary Peacock, and Billy Hart ~ Stańko passed away in 2018
July 11, 1941 ~ Jazz trumpeter, hornist, violinist, composer Henry Lowther, full name Thomas Henry Lowther, born in Leicester, UK ~ As a leader best known for his 1970 Child Song album. Closely associated with Mike Westbrook, Johnny Dankworth, Graham Collier, and the London Jazz Composers Orchestra. Backed Keef Hartley at the famed 1969 the Woodstock Music and Art Fair performance. To pop rock audiences also known for his associations with John Mayall (Bare Wires), Manfred Mann, Jack Bruce (Songs For A Tailor), Alexis Korner, Norma Winstone, Richard Thompson, Elton John, the Pretenders (The Pretenders), Loudon Wainwright III, and Talk Talk (It's My Life)July 11, 1940 ~ Songwriter Jacques Revaux, full name Jacques Abel Jules Revaux, born in Azay-sur-Cher, France ~ Best known for co-penning Comme D'Habitude with Claude François. The song would be translated by Paul Anka and popularized by Frank Sinatra as My Way. Revaux also co-founded the label Trema Records and has written extensively for Michel Sardou
July 11, 1938 ~ Singer Bing Crosby records Mexicali Rose ~ Written by Jack Tenney and Helen Stone, originally published in 1923. Used in the 1936 Gene Autry film of the same name. A top 3 hit for Bing Crosby in 1938, released as a single paired with Silver On The Stage on the flip side. It would become a pop standard, recorded by Jerry Lee Lewis, Slim Whitman, Vera Lynn, and Jim Reeves
July 11, 1937 ~ Composer, songwriter George Gershwin passed away in Los Angeles, California, USA ~ Noted composer and pianist who spanned popular and classical. Best known for works such as Rhapsody In Blue, the opera Porgy & Bess, and standards such as I Got Rhythm, Swanee, and Embraceable You. There are reportedly over 25,000 recordings of the Gershwin-penned Summertime, the first to hit the pop charts being Billie Holiday in 1936. Other artists who have charted with this classic include Sam Cooke, Al Martino, Ricky Nelson and Janis Joplin's band Big Brother & the Holding Company ~ Gershwin was born in 1898July 11, 1936 ~ Robert Lee Wilson, commonly known as singer, guitarist, songwriter Smokey Wilson, born in Glen Allan, Mississippi, USA ~ Has been releasing solo records since the late 1970s. Fronted the house band at his own Pioneer Club Watts. Worked with Booba Barnes, Big Jack Johnson, Frank Frost, Big Joe Turner, Rod Piazza, Hollywood Fats, Percy Mayfield, Pee Wee Crayton, and Albert Collins ~ Wilson passed away in 2015
July 11, 1932 ~ Singer, guitarist, banjoist Alex Hassilev born in Paris, France ~ Blessed with a rich, robust baritone voice, Hassilev would rise to fame as co-founding member of pop folk trio the Limeliters. Hassilev and Glenn Yarbrough were performing regularly at their own club the Limelite in Aspen, when they were approached by Lou Gottlieb with the idea of forming a trio to work as a demo band for the Kingston Trio. However, their voices blended together so well that the three decided to venture out on their own. Their 1961 sophomore album, Tonight In Person recorded live at the Ash Grove, Hollywood, would propel the group to national fame with the album staying on the charts for over a year and peaking at No.5 Billboard Hot 200. A contemporary review by the Los Angeles Times stated the Limeliters have “a certain musical and verbal finesse which places them above and beyond their many contemporaries.” In contrast to their on-stage harmony, the three singers would regularly clash off-stage, earning them the nickname “the Bicker Brothers” and according to their then-manager Ken Kragen the band were breaking up every day they were in existence. The group was especially popular through 1963, at the height of their fame putting out records every few months while still touring extensively with over 300 dates per year. The band disbanded in 1965 and have reconvened from time to time ~ Hassilev passed away in 2024July 11, 1931 ~ Arthur Gelien, commonly known as singer, actor Tab Hunter, born in New York, New York, USA ~ Mostly known as an actor, starring in over 40 films. As a singer best known for his late 1950s hits 99 Ways and Young Love, the latter would top the Billboard Hot 100 charts for six weeks ~ Gelien passed away in 2018
July 11, 1931 ~ Actor, songwriter, lyricist Thomas Hörbiger born in Berlin, Germany ~ Co-wrote Merci Chérie with Udo Jürgens. Performed by Jürgens it would win Austria the 1966 Eurovision Songfestival with a staggering 31 points awarded, nearly twice as much as runner-up Sweden, the duo Lill Lindfors & Svante Thuresson only earning 16 points with their performance of Nygammal Vals ~ Hörbiger passed away in 2011
July 11, 1929 ~ Singer, pianist, saxophonist, songwriter Danny Flores, also known as Chuck Rio, born in Santa Paula, California, USA ~ Founded the Champs with guitarist Dave Burgess. Flores is best remembered for authoring the near-instrumental Tequila, originally the flip side of the Champs' debut single. As listeners requested the B-side over its A-side, Train To Nowhere, the single was re-released and shot to No.1 on the Billboard Hot 100 ~ Flores passed away in 2006July 11, 1927 ~ Conductor Herbert Blomstedt born in Springfield, Massachusetts, USA ~ Worked with the Norrköping Symphony Orchestra, the Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra, the Danish Radio Symphony, the Swedish Radio Symphony, the Dresdner Staatskapelle, and the San Francisco Symphony
July 11, 1925 ~ Composer Charles Chaynes, full name Charles Augustin Chaynes, born in Toulouse, France ~ Wrote a number of operas, chamber works and one symphony. Noted for his 1951 cantata Et L'Homme Se Vit Les Portes Rouvrir. Best known for his work for radio and TV serving as producer for RTF and as head of the channel France Musique ~ Chaynes passed away in 2016
July 11, 1925 ~ Colarature soprano Mattiwilda Dobbs born in Atlanta, Georgia, USA ~ One of the first African-American singers to enjoy international fame in opera, paving the way for artists such as Leontyne Price, Shirley Verrett, Jessye Norman, and Kathleen Battle. Dobbs was closely associated with the Metropolitan Opera, and has notably performed with the San Francisco Opera, La Scala, the Paris Opera, and the Vienna State Opera. Following the example of other African-American performers, Dobbs refused to perform for segregated audiences although it hurt her career as she declined offers of work in the southern states. Dobbs retired from performing by the mid 1970s, and has since served as a teacher. In 1989, Dobbs was elected to the board of directors of the Metropolitan Opera ~ Dobbs passed away in 2015July 11, 1914 ~ Bandoneonist, bandleader, composer Anibal Troilo, full name Anibal Carmelo Troilo, born in Buenos Aires, Argentina ~ Popular bandleader during the golden age of tango, a period from the early 1940s through the mid 1950s. Best known for his instrumentals though he has also recorded with vocalists such as Roberto Goyneche, Edmundo Rivero and Francisco Fiorentino. Noted for employing Astor Piazzolla in his orchestra from 1939 through 1944 ~ Troilo passed away in 1975
July 11, 1905 ~ Jazz trombonist Clyde Bernhardt born in Gold Hill, North Carolina, USA ~ Influenced by Ma Rainey and Bessie Smith. Bernhardt had a lengthy career, starting in the early 1920s working with the likes of Tillie Vennie, Richard Cheatham, and the Whitman Sisters. Would go on to work with the likes of the Alabamians, Billy Fowler, Vernon Andrade, Jay McShann, Cecil Scott, Luis Russell, and Claude Hopkins, before leading his own ensembles, making his most significant recordings from the mid 1940s through the 195s0s. In the 1970s, interest in Bernhardt resurged, leading the Harlem Blues & Jazz Band, a veteran band with whom he recorded close to a dozen albums with sidemen such as Doc Cheatham, Happy Caldwell and Miss Rhapsody ~ Bernhardt passed away in 1986
July 11, 1897 ~ Jazz, country, folk singer, ukulele player Johnny Marvin, full name John Senator Marvin, born in Butler, Oklahoma, USA ~ Active since the mid 1920s, recording some 50 songs for Victor Records through the end of the decade. Regarded as one of the premier ukulele players. Has also recorded for other labels, going by different monikers including Elton Spence, Ukulele Luke, and Honey Duke. Helped launch Gene Autry's career by introducing him to his friend Art Satherley of the American Record Company. In turn Autry would often employ Marvin to provide songs and orchestration for his soundtracks, though often uncredited ~ Marvin passed away in 1944