This date in musical history: February 11
In 1847, inventor Thomas Alva Edison was born in Milan, Ohio. Perhaps the greatest inventor of all time, Edison is credited with more than 1,000 patents, including electric lighting and the phonograph, which he patented in 1878.
The first instrument, designed to both record and reproduce the human voice, was very crude, consisting basically of a metal cylinder and two diaphragm-and-needle units.
The first recording Edison made was a recitation of the nursery rhyme "Mary Had a Little Lamb." In a magazine article in June 1878, Edison predicted ten ways in which his invention would benefit mankind. Number one on the list was "letter writing and all kinds of dictation without the aid of a stenographer." At number four was the reproduction of music.
Thomas Edison died in 1931. His various companies, including the Edison Speaking Phonograph Company, were consolidated to form General Electric.
PHOTO: Inventor Thomas Alva Edison -- Bettman Archive.
Other musical milestones on this date:
In 1881, mezzo-soprano and actress Rosita del Vecchio, known as the Sarah Bernhardt of Canada, died in Montreal at the age of 34. She died of bronchial pneumonia, the result of a chill caught while leaving a charity concert. Very popular in Quebec, del Vecchio enjoyed great success as a actress in a series of performances of Jules Barbier's "Jeanne D'Arc" in May 1877 at the Academy of Music in Montreal.
In 1942, Canadian comedienne Anna Russell gave her first one-woman show at the Eaton Auditorium in Toronto. Russell specialized in parodies of concert music and opera, and her recordings and personal appearances made her an international favorite.
In 1963, the Beatles recorded all the tracks for their first album in one 12-hour session with producer George Martin at the EMI Abbey Road studios in London. Among the songs laid down were "I Saw Her Standing There," "Do You Want to Know a Secret" and "Twist and Shout."
In 1964, the Beatles played their first American concert at the Coliseum in Washington, DC.
In 1965, Beatle Ringo Starr married Maureen Cox in London. They divorced ten years later.
In 1972, David Bowie adopted his outlandish "Ziggy Stardust" personna for the first time, at a concert in Tollworth, England. Soon, legions of fans were copying the character, wearing the same orange hair and the lightning streak of face makeup.
In 1979, "Elvis," a biography of the late singer, was shown on ABC television. The program won the largest share of the audience in competition with the blockbuster films "Gone With the Wind" and "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" shown on the other networks.
In 1983, the Rolling Stones documentary, "Let's Spend the Night Together," directed by Hal Ashby, opened in the US and Canada.
In 1986, Boy George appeared on television's "The A-Team." He played a singer mistakenly booked into a country dance hall.
In 1987, in the wake of Liberace's death from AIDS, the London Daily Mirror asked if it could have back the $53,000 US libel award the entertainer won from the paper more than 30 years earlier. The tabloid had called Liberace a "fruit-flavored, mincing, ice-covered heap of mother love" in 1956.
In 1992, Michael Jackson arrived in Gabon to begin a much-publicized, non-performing tour of Africa. The trip, mainly to shoot scenes for Jackson's "Return to Africa" video, was fraught with public relations gaffes and other problems. Jackson would cut it short after a week and move on to London. On the first day, Jackson was received by Gabon's president, Omar Bongo. But the mayor of the capital, Libreville, was unable to present the singer with the keys to the city because of what was termed a wild display of "Jacksonmania" by fans.
In 1994, Bryan Adams and Sting joined Australian stars in a benefit concert at Sydney's Football Stadium. The show raised about $600,000 to aid victims of bush fires in the Sydney area.
In 1918, country music publisher Wesley Rose was born. Wesley and his father Fred are credited with demolishing the barriers between pop and country music by successfully selling the songs of Hank Williams in the pop market. When Williams wrote "Cold, Cold Heart," Wesley Rose travelled from Nashville to New York to try to sell the song. The only person who would listen to him was Mitch Miller, director of pop music at Columbia Records. Miller gave the song to an aspiring young singer named Tony Bennett. Bennett's 1951 recording of "Cold, Cold Heart" sold a million copies. Wesley Rose died on April 26th, 1990.
Born on this date:
In 1935, 1950's rocker Gene Vincent, whose full name was Vincent Eugene Craddock, was born in Norfolk, Virginia. He was signed by Capitol Records as an answer to Elvis Presley, and his career was launched in 1957 with "Be Bop a Lula." Vincent is supposed to have written the song after reading a Little Lulu comic book. He had only two major hits, then began drinking heavily. A comeback attempt in the late '60s failed, and Gene Vincent died of a bleeding ulcer in October 1971. He was only 36.
In 1939, pop songwriter Gerry Goffin was born in New York City. Goffin has been the lyricist for dozens of pop, rock and soul hits, many of them written with Carole King, his former wife. Among the hits the duo wrote were "The Locomotion" for Little Eva, "Up on the Roof" for the Drifters and "One Fine Day" for the Chiffons. A note for trivia buffs - Little Eva was Goffin and King's babysitter at the time of her hit, 1963.
In 1940, singer Bobby (Boris) Pickett, whose novelty "Monster Mash" was a number-one hit in 1962.
In 1941, Brazilian musician and singer Sergio Mendes.
In 1960, guitarist Russ Freeman, leader of the contemporary jazz group the Rippingtons.
In 1962, singer Sheryl Crow.
In 1979, singer and actress Brandy (Norwood).
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