Today in 1975, one of the best selling jazz albums of all time was recorded - a live concert in Cologne, Germany by pianist Keith Jarrett. And it almost didn't happen at all.
Today in 1968 Johnny Cash recorded “At Folsom Prison." Today it's arguably his most acclaimed album ever, but it only came about as a last resort.
Today in 1880 was the birthday of Washington Phillips, a musician who made some astonishing music in the 1920s, but we know very little about his life and his music - we aren't even completely sure what instrument he played.
Today in 1706 was, at least by the old calendar, Benjamin Franklin's birthday. Here's the story of how he once invented his own musical instrument, one for which great composers wrote music.
Today in 1966, the Beatles were trying to make one great take of their new song “Strawberry Fields Forever,” and with help from producer George Martin and engineer Geoff Emerick, they ended up making that one great take out of two half takes.
Today in 1868, at least on paper, Scott Joplin was born, though his actual birth date is probably a different day. He's best known for his groundbreaking ragtime works like "Maple Leaf Rag" and "The Entertainer," but Joplin also wrote two operas.
The famous cover of The Clash's landmark album "London Calling" was taken on September 21, 1979, according to the liner notes. Except that Dave Marin, a concertgoer who was there when the photo was taken, has a concert stub that says September 20th. And he's spent decades trying to get the world to notice that the album credits are a day off.
Apollo 8 brought the first human astronauts to lunar orbit in late 1968, but a few months beforehand, the Soviet Zond 5 mission sent two tortoises (and a few other living things) for a trip around the moon.
Today in 1911, a very strange thing happened in a baseball game: a guy on second base ran backwards and stole first base, the base he'd just been on. Here's his very unusual story.
It's National Ice Cream Day, so it's a good day to tell the story of Agnes B. Marshall. The "Queen of Ices" helped make this frozen treat the icon that it is today.
