14 January:HIROSHI TAMAKI = Japanese actor, model, and singer
21 January:NANA MIZUKI = Japanese voice actress and singer
28 January:NICK CARTER = American singer, songwriter, actor, dancer, record producer, author and video director. He is best known as a member of the pop group The Backstreet Boys
15 February:CONOR OBERST = American singer-songwriter best known for his work in Bright Eyes
18 February:REGINA SPEKTOR = American singer-songwriter and pianist
26 February:ALEX FONG LIK-SUN = Hong Kong singer and actor
27 February:CYRUS BOLOOKI = American musician, member of New Found Glory
2 March:VINCE WALKER = American rock singer, member of Suburban Legends
13 March:FLAVIA CACACE = Italian dancer
19 March:AGNES PIHLAVA = Finnish pop singer
20 March:MIKK MURDVEE = Estonian-Finnish violinist and conductor
21 March:DERYCK WHIBLEY = Canadian musician and producer, member of Sum 41
30 March:YALIN = Turkish pop singer and songwriter
31 March:MAAYA SAKAMOTO = Japanese singer
10 April:BRYCE SODERBERG = Canadian musician, member of Lifehouse
12 April:BRIAN McFADDEN = Irish singer-songwriter, member of Westlife
14 April:WIN BUTLER = American/Canadian musician
24 April:DANNY GOKEY = American singer, third-place finalist on the eighth season of 'American Idol'
29 April:KIAN EGAN = Irish musician, member of Westlife
5 May:MAIA HIRASAWA = Swedish pop singer
6 May:TAEBIN = Korean hip-hop artist, member of 1TYM
28 May:MARK FEEHILY = Irish singer-songwriter, member of Westlife
2 June:ORISH GRINSTEAD = American R&B singer = [died: 2008]
7 June:HENKKA SEPPÄLÄ = Finnish bassist, member of Children of Bodom
13 June:SARAH CONNOR = German singer
16 June:JOEY YUNG = Hong Kong singer
17 June:KIMERU = Japanese singer
20 June:TONY LOVATO = American singer and guitarist, member of Mest
26 June:JASON SCHWARTZMAN = American actor, screenwriter and musician, member of Phantom Planet
29 June:KATHERINE JENKINS = Welsh soprano and singer-songwriter
10 July:JESSICA SIMPSON = American singer and actress
15 July:JW-JONES = Canadian blues artist
20 July:MIKE KENNERTY = American musician, member of The All-American Rejects
22 July:KATE RYAN = Belgian singer
23 July:MICHELLE WILLIAMS = American singer, songwriter and actress, previously a member of R&B group Destiny's Child
26 July:DAVE BAKSH = Canadian musician, singer and producer best known as one of the lead guitarists of punk rock band Sum 41
28 July:STEPHEN CHRISTIAN = American Christian rock singer, member of Anberlin
30 July:DIAM'S born MÉLANIE GEORGIADES = French rapper
12 August:MATT THIESSEN = Canadian singer/guitarist
16 August:VANESSA CARLTON = American singer
19 August:
HOUCINE CAMARA = French singer
DARIUS DANESH = Scottish singer-songwriter & actor
3 September:JASON McCASLIN = Canadian musician, member of Sum 41
6 September:KERRY KATONA = English singer, member of Atomic Kitten
11 September:MIKEY WAY = American musician, member of My Chemical Romance
13 September:TEPPEI TERANISHI = American lead guitarist and keyboardist of the post-hardcore band Thrice
19 September:
TEGAN QUIN = Canadian singer, member of Tegan And Sara
SARA QUIN = Canadian singer, member of Tegan And Sara
25 September:CLIFFORD JOSEPH HARRIS Jr. bka T.I. = American rapper
29 September:DALLAS GREEN = Canadian singer/songwriter
5 October:PAUL THOMAS = American musician best known as the bassist for the pop punk band Good Charlotte
8 October:NICK CANNON = American actor and rapper
10 October:SHERINE = Egyptian singer
12 October:SOLEDAD PASTORUTTI aka LA SOLE = Argentine folklore singer
13 October:ASHANTI = American singer, songwriter, record producer, dancer and actress
24 October:MONICA = American R&B singer, songwriter, producer, and actress
3 November:DAN MARSALA = American musician
10 November:CALVIN CHEN = Taiwanese pop singer
15 November:ACE YOUNG = American singer and reality show finalist
17 November:CLARK ISAAC HANSON = American musician best known as a member of the pop rock trio Hanson
18 November:DUSTIN KENSRUE = American vocalist, lyricist, and rhythm guitarist in the Orange County, California post-hardcore/experimental rock quartet Thrice
26 November:SATOSHI OHNO = Japanese singer
28 November:LISA MIDDELHAUVE = German singer, member of Xandria
5 December:IBRAHIM MAALOUF = French-Lebanese trumpet player and teacher, composer and arranger
6 December:KEI YASUDA = Japanese singer
9 December:SIMON HELBERG = American actor and comedian
10 December:
SARAH CHANG = American violinist
CHRIS GAYLOR = American drummer with The All-American Rejects
18 December:CHRISTINA AGUILERA = American singer, songwriter and actress
24 December:TOMAS KALNOKY = American musician, member of Streetlight Manifesto
Timeline of Musical Events
1 January:
CLIFF RICHARD is appointed an MBE by Elizabeth II
The Zorros audition drummer GREG PEDLEY
7 January: At the age of 44, songwriter LARRY WILLIAMS is found dead in his Los Angeles, California home of a gunshot wound to the head. Investigators are never able to determine whether his death was a murder or suicide.
13 January: The Beach Boys, Grateful Dead, and Jefferson Starship perform at a benefit concert at Oakland Coliseum for the people of Kampuchea.
16 January:PAUL McCARTNEY is arrested in Tokyo for possession of a half pound of marijuana. The remaining part of McCartney's tour has to be canceled.
25 January:PAUL McCARTNEY is released from a Japanese jail and ejected from the country by Japanese authorities.
8 February:DAVID BOWIE and his wife of nearly 10 years, Angie, file for divorce. Bowie gets custody of their 9-year-old son, Zowie.
14 February: Lou Reed marries Sylvia Morales in New York City's Greenwich Village.
19 February: Bon Scott, lead singer of AC/DC, dies in London. Although common folklore cites pulmonary aspiration of vomit as the cause of his death, the official cause is listed as "Acute alcohol poisoning" and "Death by Misadventure".
23 February: Ron Wood of the Rolling Stones and his wife are busted for cocaine possession on the Caribbean island of Saint Martin. They are set free after spending five days in custody due to the inability of authorities to prove the cocaine in the apartment belonged to either of them.
29 February: Buddy Holly's trademark glasses and the Big Bopper's wristwatch are "rediscovered" in old police files by the Mason City, Iowa, sheriff. Holly and the Big Bopper were killed in a plane crash on February 3, 1959, along with singer Ritchie Valens.
1 March: Patti Smith marries former MC5 member Fred "Sonic" Smith.
3 March: Sotheby's auction house in London auctions off a Rivera Hotel, Las Vegas napkin signed by Elvis Presley for £500. Other items auctioned included four American dollar bills autographed by the Beatles, for 220 pounds and a collection of personal letters belonging to the Rolling Stones, also for 220 pounds
8-16 March: Tbilisi Rock Festival (1980) = the first state-sanctioned rock music festival in the Soviet Union.
14 March: Record producer Quincy Jones receives a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
19 March: Elvis Presley's autopsy is subpoenaed during the trial of Dr. George Nichopoulous, who would later be found guilty of overprescribing drugs to Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis and other clients.
20 March: Radio Caroline shuts down in the UK after radio ship Mi Amigo sinks in a storm.
1 April: Brian Johnson is made the new lead singer of AC/DC.
13 April: The Broadway musical Grease closes its run of 3,388 performances, making it the longest running show on Broadway up until that time.
14 April: A member of the New Jersey State assembly introduces a resolution to make Bruce Springsteen's "Born to Run" the official state song.
17 April: As the "official guests of State", Bob Marley and the Wailers perform at Zimbabwe's Independence festival. Marley calls the event the "greatest honor of my life."
19 April: Johnny Logan wins the 25th Eurovision Song Contest for Ireland, with the song "What's Another Year".
30 April: The Roger Daltrey film, McVicar, opens in London.
4 May: America's Top 10, the television version of radio's American Top 40 and hosted by Casey Kasem, debuts this week in syndication.
18 May: Ian Curtis, vocalist of pioneering post-punk group Joy Division, hangs himself in his Macclesfield home. His death comes just days before Joy Division are scheduled to begin their first U.S. tour.
June
Rock and Roll pioneer Bill Haley performs for the last time during a tour of South Africa. After this tour, his health deteriorates and he dies in February 1981. July 1980 marks the 25th anniversary of Haley's "Rock Around the Clock" reaching No. 1 on the American singles charts.
The Sony Walkman goes on sale in the United States.
25 June: Kiss plays its first show with new drummer Eric Carr at the New York Palladium.
27 June: John Lydon and Keith Levene of Public Image Ltd make an appearance on The Tomorrow Show with host Tom Snyder. In a famously uncomfortable interview, Lydon gives curt and vague responses to most of Snyder's questions.
18 July: The documentary and concert film No Nukes opens in New York.
25 July: AC/DC release Back in Black which later becomes the highest selling album by any band to date.
31 July: The Eagles end their tour with a contentious show in Long Beach, California. They would not play together again until 1994.
4 August: John Lennon and Yoko Ono begin the recording of the Double Fantasy album.
16 August: The first Monsters of Rock heavy metal festival is held at Donington Park in England. Rainbow headlines, and Judas Priest, Scorpions, April Wine, Saxon, Riot and Touch also perform.
19 August: Fans at Exhibition Stadium in Toronto stage a riot after Alice Cooper no-shows due to illness.
23 August: The Heatwave festival near Toronto features The B-52's, Talking Heads, The Pretenders, Elvis Costello and many others.
26 August: Pete Comita replaces Tom Petersson in Cheap Trick.
31 August: Karen Carpenter marries Thomas Burris. "Because We Are in Love" is played at their wedding.
13 September:
Solid Gold, a new music television series, premieres in syndication.
Elton John plays a free concert for 400,000 people in New York's Central Park. He performs the encore in a Donald Duck costume.
20 September: Ozzy Osbourne's breakthrough debut album Blizzard of Ozz is released in the UK.
25 September: John Bonham, drummer of Led Zeppelin, is found dead by bandmate John Paul Jones.
9 October: A riot breaks out at a Black Sabbath concert in Milwaukee after bassist Geezer Butler is hit in the head by a bottle and the band quits the stage.
26 October: Paul Kantner of Jefferson Starship is rushed to hospital following a cerebral hemorrhage. He soon recovers without surgery, defying medical odds.
21 November: The Eagles' Don Henley is arrested when cocaine, Quaaludes, and marijuana are found in his hotel room after a 16-year-old prostitute has drug-related seizures. Henley is also subsequently charged with contributing to the delinquency of a minor.
December: Duran Duran signs with EMI after finalizing its lineup and touring as a support act for Hazel O'Connor.
4 December: Led Zeppelin disbands following the death of drummer John Bonham.
7 December: Darby Crash, leader of seminal L.A. punk band The Germs dies of a heroin overdose in a suicide pact.
8 December: John Lennon is shot dead outside his apartment building in New York City. His single, "(Just Like) Starting Over", subsequently becomes a number one hit in many countries, including the United States, United Kingdom and Australia.
14 December: Over 100,000 mourners attend a public vigil for John Lennon in Central Park. 10 minutes of silence are observed at 2pm.
31 December: The ninth annual New Year's Rockin' Eve special airs on ABC, with appearances by The Charlie Daniels Band, Billy Preston, Syreeta, Chuck Berry and Barry Manilow.
Also in 1980
The single "Groovy Ghost Show" by Casper is one of the first recorded hip hop songs from Chicago.
The Hee Bee Gee Bees release a cutting parody of a Bee Gees' disco-style single. Though not a hit in the UK, it is a huge success elsewhere, especially in South Africa, and helps to encourage the Gibb brothers to diversify stylistically.
Phil Collins signs a contract with Atlantic Records to distribute his solo records in the US and in Europe outside the UK (on WEA label).
Published Popular Music
"Come Follow the Band" = lyrics by MICHAEL STEWART; music by CY COLEMAN from the musical 'Barnum'
"Desire" = lyrics & music by BARRY GIBB, MAURICE GIBB & ROBIN GIBB
"Do Right" = lyrics & music by PAUL DAVIS
"Fame" = lyrics by DEAN PITCHFORD; music by MICHAEL GORE
"He's So Shy" = lyrics by CYNTHIA WEIL; music by TOM SNOW
"Memory" = lyrics by T. S. ELIOT & TREVOR NUNN; music by ANDREW LLOYD WEBBER from the musical 'Cats'
"My Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys" = lyrics & music by SHARON VAUGHAN
"Never Knew Love Like This Before" = lyrics & music by JAMES MTUME & REGINALD LUCAS
"Nine to Five" = lyrics & music by DOLLY PARTON from the film 'Nine to Five'
"No Night So Long" = lyrics by WILL JENNINGS; music by RICHARD KERR
"The Winner Takes It All" = lyrics & music by BENNY ANDERSSON & BJORN ULVAEUS
Classical Music
GEORGE CRUMB
A Little Suite for Christmas, A.D. 1979 for piano
MARIO DAVIDOVSKY
Consorts for symphonic band
String Quartet No. 4
LORENZO FERRERO
Nebbia di latte for flutes and live electronics
Variazioni sulla notte for guitar
TRYGVE MADSEN
Sonata for Tuba and Piano
KRZYSZTOF PENDERECKI
Symphony No. 2 = "Christmas"
Opera
PHILIP GLASS
Satyagraha
KIRKE MECHEM
Tartuffe
WILLIAM MATHIAS
The Servants (libretto by Iris Murdoch)
DAVID WARRACK
Drummer
Musical Theatre
BARNUM
Broadway production opened at the St. James Theatre on April 30 and ran for 854 performances
BRIGADOON
(Lerner & Loewe)
Broadway revival opened at the Majestic Theatre on October 16 and ran for 133 performances
CAMELOT
(Lerner & Loewe)
Broadway revival opened at the New York State Theatre on July 8 and ran for 56 performances
COLETTE
London production opened at the Comedy Theatre on September 24 and ran for 47 performances
A DAY IN HOLLYWOOD/A NIGHT IN THE UKRAINE
Broadway production opened at the John Golden Theatre on April 2 and transferred to the Royale Theatre on June 17 for a total run of 588 performances
FORTY-SECOND STREET
Broadway production opened at the Winter Garden Theatre on August 25, transferred to the Majestic Theatre on March 30, 1981 and transferred to the St. James Theatre on April 7, 1987 for a total run of 3486 performances
THE LIFE AND ADVENTURES OF NICHOLAS NICKLEBY
London production opened at the Aldwych Theatre on June 5
ON THE TWENTIETH CENTURY
London production opened at Her Majesty's Theatre on March 19 and ran for 165 performances
SWEENEY TODD
(Stephen Sondheim)
London production opened at the Drury Lane Theatre on July 2 and ran for 157 perofrmances
THE UMBRELLAS OF CHERBOURG
London production opened at the Phoenix Theatre on April 10
WEST SIDE STORY
(Leonard Bernstein)
Broadway revival opened at the Minskoff Theatre on February 14 and ran for 333 performances
Please address any comments concerning this page to The Music Maestro
Mark Chard BSc, PLY
Page created: 26th August 2011
Last edited: 21st February 2024
