10 ready-to-read segments for January 8, lead story first. Free to use on air; a quick credit to Today in Tunes is appreciated.
On this day in 1968, 58 years ago: Otis Redding's "Dock of the Bay" is released. Stax's Volt label issued the song about a month after Redding died in a plane crash, three days after his final session on it. Co-written with Steve Cropper, it became the first US No. 1 single by an artist who had already died. Here's Otis Redding with “(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay.”
On this day in 1735, 291 years ago: Handel's opera Ariodante premieres in London. Based on episodes from Ariosto's Orlando furioso, the opera opened at Covent Garden. Its lament "Scherza infida," with a mournful bassoon line, is counted among Handel's finest arias.
On this day in 1966, 60 years ago: The Beatles' "We Can Work It Out" tops the Hot 100. The single took over from Simon & Garfunkel's "The Sound of Silence" and traded the No. 1 spot with it through January 1966.
On this day in 2016, 10 years ago: David Bowie releases Blackstar on his 69th birthday. Made with a New York jazz quartet led by saxophonist Donny McCaslin, the album arrived two days before Bowie died of cancer. It became his first No. 1 album in the US.
On this day in 2021, 5 years ago: Olivia Rodrigo releases "Drivers License." The heartbreak ballad smashed Spotify streaming records within days and debuted at No. 1 on the Hot 100, making Rodrigo the youngest artist ever to enter the chart at the top. It stayed there eight weeks.
On this day in 1792, 234 years ago: Hymn composer Lowell Mason is born. Born in Medfield, Massachusetts, Mason arranged "Joy to the World," wrote the tune for "Nearer, My God, to Thee" and is credited with bringing music lessons into American public schools.
On this day in 1935, 91 years ago: Elvis Presley is born in Tupelo, Mississippi. Born in Tupelo, Mississippi, 35 minutes after his twin brother Jesse was stillborn, Elvis grew up to become rock and roll's defining star, with an estimated 500 million records sold.
On this day in 1937, 89 years ago: Shirley Bassey is born in Cardiff. Born on Bute Street in Cardiff's Tiger Bay, Bassey became the voice of three James Bond themes, including "Goldfinger", and is the only artist with more than one official Bond song.
On this day in 1975, 51 years ago: Met Opera tenor Richard Tucker dies on tour. A former cantor from Brooklyn, Tucker sang at the Met for about 30 years. He died of a heart attack in Kalamazoo, and his funeral was held on the Met's stage, an honor no other singer has received.
On this day in 2015, 11 years ago: Gospel great Andraé Crouch dies at 72. Crouch wrote "The Blood Will Never Lose Its Power" at 15 and won seven Grammys. His choir sang on Michael Jackson's "Man in the Mirror."
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