History Highlight:

Today in 1994, Kurt Cobain of Nirvana died by suicide at his home in Seattle. Strangely, like Jimi, Janis, Jim Morrison and Brian Jones, he was 27 when he died. Cobain formed Nirvana with Krist Novoselic in 1985 and established it as part of the Seattle music scene and grunge genre. Despite releasing only three full-length studio albums in their seven-year career, Nirvana has come to be regarded as one of the most influential and important rock bands of the modern era.

Also, Today In:

1958 - The first "Greatest Hits" compilation is released, and it's by Johnny Mathis. It's a huge hit, and the format catches on quickly. The Mathis album stays in the Billboard 200 album chart for over 9 years, a record not broken until Pink Floyd's Dark Side Of The Moon.

1968 - James Brown played Live at the Boston Garden and it was broadcast live in an effort to quell potential riots in the city.

1972 - David Crosby and Graham Nash released their first album as a duo, titled Graham Nash David Crosby.

1980 - R.E.M. played their first ever gig when they appeared at St Mary's Episcopal Church, Athens, Georgia. The band had no name at this point - according to Michael Stipe, they had considered "Twisted Kites", "Negro Wives" and "Cans of Piss" - but they settled on "R.E.M." after Stipe selected it at random from a dictionary. Fortunately.

1985 - At 3:50 pm GMT, 5,000 radio stations around the world played the benefit single "We Are The World" simultaneously.

1988 - Tracy Chapman released her debut self-titled album, containing some of her most notable hits, including “Fast Car” and “Talkin’ Bout a Revolution.”

2002 - Layne Staley, lead singer of Alice in Chains, passed away at age 34. The band rose to international fame in the early 1990s during Seattle's grunge movement, and became known for Staley's distinct vocal style, which is known as one of the most memorable voices in the history of grunge music. Staley was also a member of the supergroups Mad Season and Class of '99. From about 1996 on, he wasn't in the public spotlight much, and never performed live again. He struggled for much of his adult life with depression and drug addiction, which ultimately resulted in his death.

2006 - World-renowned American singer/songwriter Gene Pitney died at the age of 66. He charted 16 Top 40 US hits and 22 Top 40 hits in the UK. He also wrote the early 60s hits "He's A Rebel" by The Crystals and "Hello, Mary Lou" by Ricky Nelson. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame in 2002.

2008 - Apple's iTunes overtook Wal-Mart to become the largest music retailer in the US.

2008 - Toto broke up after performing their final concert in Seoul.

2009 - Donald Trump fired TLC member Tionne Watkins, better known by her stage name T-Boz, in the sixth week of The Celebrity Apprentice, season 8.

2011 - A statue in tribute to Nirvana singer Kurt Cobain was unveiled in his hometown of Aberdeen, Washington. The unveiling marked the 17th anniversary of Cobain's death, which occurred on April 5, 1994.

2012 - Jim Marshall, inventor of the Marshall amplifier, died in London at age 88. His amplifiers and speakers known as 'Marshall stacks' were used by Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton, Jimmy Page and almost every other major rock guitarist in the '60s and '70s and by the next generation of guitarists as well, including Kurt Cobain, Eddie Van Halen and Slash.

2013 - Paramore released their self-titled album, containing the hit songs “Ain’t It Fun” and “Still Into You”.

2017 - At age 73, Barry Manilow comes out as gay. He reveals that he has been in a romantic relationship with his manager, Garry Kief, for nearly 40 years (they met in 1978), and that they married in a secret ceremony in 2014.

2019 - Shawn Smith, a long-time singer-songwriter on the Seattle music scene, died at age 53 due to complications from diabetes. He performed with the bands Brad, Pigeonhead and Satchel, among others. In a strange coincidence, fellow Seattle luminaries Kurt Cobain and Layne Staley (Alice in Chains) died on the same date in 1994 and 2002, respectively.

2019 - The Aretha Franklin documentary Amazing Grace is finally released in theaters, 47 years after it was recorded in 1972.

2019 - Weyes Blood released her fourth album, Titanic Rising. It features “Andromeda,” “Everyday,” and “Movies.”

Birthdays:

Tony Williams of the Platters was born today in 1928.

English record producer Joe Meek was born today in 1929.

Jack Clement was born today in 1931.

Led Zeppelin manager Peter Grant was born today in 1935.

Crispian St. Peters was born today in 1939.

Ronald White of the Miracles was born today in 1939.

Allan Clarke of the Hollies is 82.

Dave Holland, drummer for Trapeze and Judas Priest, was born today in 1948.

Agnetha Fältskog from ABBA is 74.

Les Binks, drummer for Judas Priest, is 73.

Everett Morton, drummer for the British 80s ska band The Beat, was born on this day in 1951.

Peter Case is 70.

Stan Ridgway of Wall of Voodoo is 70.

Jacob Slichter, drummer for Semisonic, is 63.

Mike McCready, lead guitarist for Pearl Jam, is 58.

Troy Gentry of Montgomery Gentry was born on this day in 1967.

Paula Cole is 56.

Miho Hatori of Cibo Matto is 54. She has also collaborated with Gorillaz, Beastie Boys, and Handsome Boy Modeling School.

Pharrell Williams is 51.

Juicy J is 49.

Mariqueen Maandig of How to Destroy Angels (with husband Trent Reznor) is 43.

Marissa Nadler is 43.

Highlights for Today in Music History are gathered from This Day in Music, Paul Shaffer's Day in Rock, Song Facts and Wikipedia.