10 ready-to-read segments for November 21, lead story first. Free to use on air; a quick credit to Today in Tunes is appreciated.
On this day in 1955, 71 years ago: Elvis Presley signs with RCA. Within months, his first RCA single, "Heartbreak Hotel," became a No. 1 hit. Here's Elvis Presley with “Heartbreak Hotel.”
On this day in 1877, 149 years ago: Thomas Edison announces his phonograph. Edison revealed the first phonograph, a machine that could capture sound and then play it back.
On this day in 1937, 89 years ago: Shostakovich's Fifth Symphony premieres in Leningrad. Yevgeny Mravinsky led the Leningrad Philharmonic, and the crowd applauded for more than half an hour.
On this day in 1959, 67 years ago: Rock and roll DJ Alan Freed is fired by WABC. The man who helped popularize the phrase "rock and roll" lost his New York radio job when he wouldn't sign an FCC statement swearing he had never accepted payola.
On this day in 1981, 45 years ago: "Physical" starts a 10-week run at No. 1. Olivia Newton-John's hit took over the Hot 100 this week and held the top spot until late January 1982, the longest stay at No. 1 of any single in the 1980s.
On this day in 1852, 174 years ago: Spanish guitar master Francisco Tárrega is born. Best known for pieces like "Recuerdos de la Alhambra" and "Capricho Árabe," he also wrote "Gran Vals," a snippet of which became the Nokia tune, the default ringtone on Nokia phones.
On this day in 1904, 122 years ago: Tenor sax trailblazer Coleman Hawkins is born. Among the first prominent jazz players on his horn, he cut a landmark swing-era "Body and Soul" in 1939, whose bold harmonies have been called an early stirring of bebop.
On this day in 1965, 61 years ago: Björk is born in Iceland. After fronting the Sugarcubes, she went solo with Debut, an album credited with bringing electronic music into mainstream pop.
On this day in 1985, 41 years ago: Carly Rae Jepsen is born. The Canadian singer's "Call Me Maybe" went to No. 1 in the US and was the world's best-selling single of 2012.
On this day in 2017, 9 years ago: Teen idol David Cassidy dies at 67. Playing Keith Partridge on TV, he became the lead singer of the Partridge Family's records, and the group's very first single, "I Think I Love You," was a hit.
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