Today in Music History for May 20:

In 1927, the Canadian Folk Song and Handicraft Festival opened in Quebec City. It was the first of the CPR Festivals -- a series of music and folk arts events -- held across the country until 1931 under the auspices of the Canadian Pacific Railway. The festivals, organized by the railway's publicity agent, John Murray Gibbon, were one of the first attempts to acquaint Canada's many different musical communities and audiences with each other. After the success of the first Quebec festival, CPR announced a competition offering $3,000 in prize money for compositions based on French-Canadian folk songs.

In 1946, pop singer/actress Cher, whose full name is Cherilyn Sarkisian LaPier, was born in El Centro, Calif. She and husband Sonny Bono enjoyed great success beginning in 1965 with the chart-topping "I Got You Babe." "Sonny and Cher" became household names with their TV series, which ran from 1971-75 before their marriage and professional collaboration ended. Cher went on to a successful singing and Oscar-winning acting career. Her hit singles have included "Gypsies, Tramps and Thieves," "Half-Breed," "Dark Lady," "I Found Someone" and "If I Could Turn Back Time." But her biggest recording success came with "Believe," whose title track spent four weeks atop the Billboard chart in early '99. The then 54-year-old Cher became the oldest woman to hit the top spot, and her 34 years between No. 1 hits was the longest of any pop recording artist.

In 1954, Bill Haley's "Rock Around the Clock" was released. The record was not a hit until after it was included in the soundtrack of "Blackboard Jungle" the following year.

In 1966, Pete Townshend and Roger Daltrey of "The Who" started a show in Windsor, England, without Keith Moon and John Entwistle. When the pair finally showed up, Townshend whacked Moon over the head with his guitar. Moon promptly quit the band, but was back a week later.

In 1966, the restored Grand Theatre opened in Kingston, Ont., with a performance of the revue "Spring Thaw." The theatre, originally the Grand Opera House, was built in 1902 and hosted such performers as Sarah Bernhardt and Al Jolson. The Grand later became a movie house before being restored as a home for the Kingston Symphony Orchestra.

In 1967, Jimi Hendrix signed his first U.S. recording contract with Reprise. A month later he would be a star after his historic performance at the Monterrey Pop Festival.

In 1970, "The Beatles'" last film, "Let It Be," premiered. It was basically a documentary of the group's breakup, including footage of their last public performance -- on the roof of their Apple Corps headquarters in London.

In 1971, Peter Cetera, bass player and vocalist with "Chicago," was beaten by three men at a Chicago Cubs baseball game, apparently because they didn't like the length of his hair. Cetera lost four teeth and required five hours of surgery.

In 1978, the movie "The Buddy Holly Story" premiered in Holly's hometown of Lubbock, Texas.

In 1985, Harlem's Apollo Theatre, a showcase for black talent for 50 years, re-opened after being closed for five years. Although the Apollo still featured the traditional live stage shows, the new theatre was designed primarily as a television production facility.

In 1986, Yoko Ono brought her critically-maligned "Starpeace" tour to Montreal. Most North American dates on the tour had been cancelled because of poor ticket sales. Things didn't go well in Europe, either. In Vienna, it was reported that only 700 of 1,800 tickets had been sold, and many of the others were given away to avoid embarrassment.

In 1988, Dick Jacobs, the producer of Buddy Holly's New York sessions, died in New York at age 70. As A&R director for Coral and Brunswick Records, Jacobs also worked with "The Johnny Burnette Trio," Jackie Wilson and Teresa Brewer. As an orchestra leader, he also had his own hits in 1956 and '57 with "Main Title" and "Molly-O" from "The Man With the Golden Arm," plus "Petticoats of Portugal" and "Fascination."

In 1998, about 400 people attended the invitation-only funeral for Frank Sinatra in Beverly Hills, Calif. He had died six days earlier of a heart attack at age 82. Among the celebrity mourners were Gregory Peck, Kirk Douglas, Sophia Loren and former U.S. first lady Nancy Reagan. More than 1,000 fans gave Sinatra a final round of applause as his flower-draped coffin was carried from the Good Shepherd Catholic Church.

In 1998, "Black Sabbath" drummer Bill Ward suffered a heart attack during a London rehearsal. Vinny Appice filled in as the reunited "Sabbath" toured for the first time in 20 years.

In 2009, Kris Allen's smooth vocals and boy-next-door image propelled him to "American Idol" victory, turning the theatrical powerhouse Adam Lambert into the most unlikely of also-rans.

In 2009, 59-year-old singer Natalie Cole underwent successful kidney transplant surgery. She had been receiving dialysis three times a week since September 2008. The kidney dialysis was unrelated to her struggle with hepatitis C. (She died Dec. 31, 2015.)

In 2012, Robin Gibb, co-founder of the "Bee Gees" whose soaring three part falsetto harmonies with his brothers Maurice and Barry defined the disco era, died after a battle with colon cancer and intestinal problems. He was 62. The band began their career in the musically rich 1960s but it was their soundtrack for the 1977 movie "Saturday Night Fever" that sealed their success. They sold more than 200 million records and had a long string of successful singles, making their way into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

In 2012, British neo-soul singer Adele was the big winner at the Billboard Music Awards, taking awards in a dozen categories, including Top Artist and Top Pop Album for "21." "LMFAO" took home six awards, including Hot 100 Song of the Year for "Party Rock Anthem" and Best Duo or Group. L'il Wayne and "Coldplay" received four awards each, and Canadian Justin Bieber won Top Social Artist.

In 2012, a 22-year-old Taylor Swift became the youngest winner of the Woman of the Year award at the Billboard Music Awards.

In 2013, Ray Manzarek, a founding member of the 1960s rock group "The Doors" whose versatile and often haunting keyboards complemented Jim Morrison's gloomy baritone and helped set the mood for some of rock's most enduring songs like "Light My Fire" and "Riders On the Storm," died from bile duct cancer. He was 74.

In 2018, Ed Sheeran and rapper Kendrick Lamar won six awards each at the Billboard Music Awards. Sheeran won top artist and top male artist. Lamar won top rap artist and top Billboard 200 album (DAMN.). Taylor Swift took home top female artist while the top Hot 100 song was "Despacito" by Luis Fonsi and Daddy Yankee featuring Justin Bieber. Janet Jackson became first black woman to receive the Billboard Icon Award.

----

(The Canadian Press)

© 2021 The Canadian Press. All rights reserved., source Canadian Press DataFile