Today in Music History for Dec. 17:
In 1857, the Sacred Harmonic Choir, conducted by John Carter, performed Handel's Messiah in Toronto. It is thought to have been the first complete oratorio presented in Upper Canada.
In 1939, Eddie Kendricks, an original member of "The Temptations," was born in Birmingham, Ala. He sang lead on the group's first hit, "The Way You Do the Things You Do," in 1964. He was with the band for 11 years, leaving in 1971. He topped the U.S. charts in 1973 with "Keep on Truckin'," and the following year reached No. 2 with "Boogie Down." He also enjoyed success in the 1980s touring and recording with fellow "Temptation" alumnus David Ruffin, and with Darryl Hall and John Oates. Kendricks died of lung cancer in Birmingham on Oct. 5, 1992.
In 1942, white bluesman Paul Butterfield was born in Chicago. He formed his first blues band, featuring Mike Bloomfield on guitar, in 1965, when the idea of a white man playing the blues was still regarded as novel. Butterfield had developed his harmonica style by playing with black musicians at clubs on Chicago's south side. Butterfield was responsible for first bringing the sound of the black man's music to the mass North American public, but by 1968 his group had been eclipsed by the British band "Cream," and its lead guitarist Eric Clapton. "The Paul Butterfield Blues Band" ceased to exist in 1972, and Butterfield began a solo career. On May 4, 1987, Butterfield was found dead of a drug overdose in his Los Angeles home. In 2015, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
In 1963, Carroll James Jr. became the first American DJ to air a "Beatles" record when he played "I Want to Hold Your Hand" on WWDC in Washington. That was two months before "The Beatles" were on "The Ed Sullivan Show." James had arranged for a British flight attendant to bring him a copy of the record.
In 1969, an estimated 50 million TV viewers saw singer Tiny Tim marry his fiancee, Miss Vicky, on NBC's 鈥淭he Tonight Show.鈥� At the time, Tiny Tim, whose real name was Herbert Khaury, was earning $50,000 a week for singing his soprano-voiced novelty songs in Las Vegas night clubs. But fame was fleeting, and he soon returned to the small folk clubs in which he began performing.
In 1969, Chicago's first album, "Chicago Transit Authority," was certified gold.
In 1970, "The Beach Boys" played a command performance for Princess Margaret in London.
In 1977, "Elvis Costello and the Attractions" performed on "Saturday Night Live" as a last-minute replacement for the "Sex Pistols," who were denied U.S. visas. Costello was told not to play his song "Radio, Radio" because of its criticisms of the broadcasting industry, but he interrupted another song to play it.
In 1982, "The Who" played the last concert of their "farewell" tour at Toronto's Maple Leaf Gardens. By the end of the decade, they had reunited for another tour.
In 1982, blues singer Big Joe Williams died in Macon, Miss., at the age of 79. His best known song -- "Baby, Please Don't Go" -- was covered by numerous rock bands.
In 1982, singer Karen Carpenter performed for the last time, singing Christmas carols at the private school attended by her godchildren. Her friends tried to talk her out of the performance because of her poor health. Carpenter died the following Feb. 4 of a heart attack brought on by anorexia nervosa at age 32.
In 1986, a jury in Las Vegas found that NBC defamed Wayne Newton by linking the singer to organized crime figures. He was awarded more than $19 million in damages. The amount was later reduced to about $6 million.
In 1991, country star Reba McEntire fired five members of her band, including four who replaced those killed in a plane crash the previous March.
In 1992, Barbra Streisand signed a music and movie deal with Sony USA. Terms weren't revealed, but sources estimated the deal was worth $60 million.
In 1994, "December 1963 (Oh What a Night)" by "The Four Seasons" was on Billboard's Hot 100 chart for what was, at the time, a record 46th week. The song had reached No. 1 when it was first released in 1976.
In 1994, Quebec pop star Celine Dion married her longtime manager Rene Angelil in a lavish ceremony at Montreal's Notre-Dame Basilica. She was 26, he was 51. Among the 500 guests were record producer David Foster, singer Rene Simard and former prime minister Brian Mulroney. Hundreds of fans gathered outside the church.
In 1997, Garth Brooks made a whirlwind, one-day trip to five Canadian cities to promote his album "Sevens." He stopped in Montreal, Toronto, Winnipeg, Calgary and Vancouver. To cap the tour, Country Music Television Canada broadcast a one-hour Brooks special live from Vancouver.
In 1997, "The Presidents of the United States of America" announced their breakup. They have since reunited.
In 1998, U.S. marshals seized items from the Los Angeles home of Michael Jackson's father, including the baby grand piano used to write songs for the "Thriller" album. The seizures were an attempt to collect more than $1 million as part of a court judgment following the bankruptcy of Jackson Communications.
In 1998, "Grateful Dead" bassist Phil Lesh underwent a successful liver transplant in Jacksonville, Fla. He had been diagnosed with hepatitis C in 1992.
In 1999, Grover Washington, U.S. jazz saxophonist and composer, died at the age of 56.
In 2000, Harold Burroughs Rhodes, the inventor of the electric piano bearing his name, died in Los Angeles at age 89. His instrument, manufactured by Fender as the Fender Rhodes piano, used a piano-like keyboard that was responsive to the player's touch.
In 2001, German opera singer Martha Moedl died in Berlin at age 89. She rose to international fame in the 1950s and '60s with her performances of Wagner.
In 2008, hip-hop star Akon (born Aliaune Thiam) pleaded guilty to harassment for tossing a fan off the stage at an upstate New York concert in June 2007. He served no jail time in return for performing 65 hours of community service and paying a $250 fine.
In 2009, country singer LeAnn Rimes' husband Deane Sheremet officially filed for divorce. They were married in February 2002 and had no children together.
In 2010, musician and artist Don Van Vliet, who performed a complex brand of experimental rock under the name Captain Beefheart, died in California due to complications stemming from multiple sclerosis. He was 69.
In 2011, Cesaria Evora, the Cape Verdian singer nicknamed the "Barefoot Diva," died at age 70, She started singing as a teenager in the bayside bars in the 1950s and won a Grammy in 2003 after she took her African islands music to stages across the world.
In 2013, 28-year-old Kingston, Jamaica-native Tessanne Chin was crowned the Season 5 winner of NBC's "The Voice."
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The Canadian Press
