Pick a Day

Music History Events: Innovations

January 10, 1949 The vinyl record format war heats up as RCA introduces the 45-RPM, 7-inch record. It eventually replaces the 78-RPM record for "singles" - one song on each side. The format takes off in the early years of the rock era.

June 21, 1948 The Columbia label announces its new technological breakthrough, a "long-playing" vinyl phonograph record that can hold up to 23 minutes of music on a side.

October 1, 1947 Bing Crosby broadcasts the first ever pre-recorded radio show when he airs his Philco Radio Time show on the ABC network using a magnetophon, a Nazi recording technology discovered and brought to America by US Army Corps Officer John Thomas "Jack" Mullin. The magnetophon leads to the evolution of multi-track recording technology, which revolutionizes the music industry. Crosby becomes an investor in the technology, which he uses so he doesn't have to always do his shows live.

July 27, 1940 Billboard issues its first chart detailing what records are selling the most copies. Titled "National List of Best Selling Retail Records," it's a precursor to the Hot 100 and the first to count record sales (the existing charts are for sheet music sales, jukebox play and radio plugs). It's not an exact science, as Billboard polls record stores to find out what is selling - a practice that stays in effect until the '90s, when call-a-clerk is replaced with Soundscan technology. The first chart is dominated by big band hits, with "I'll Never Smile Again" by Tommy Dorsey (featuring Frank Sinatra on vocals) at #1 and three songs by Glenn Miller in the Top 10.

January 1, 1940 W2XDG in New York becomes the first licensed FM station and begins broadcasting from the Empire State Building.

December 27, 1927 Show Boat opens at the Ziegfeld Theatre on Broadway, changing the paradigm for modern musicals.More

November 2, 1920 KDKA in Pittsburgh becomes the first commercially licensed radio station in the United States. They are not the first station on the air, but the first to get the broadcast license. With consumers unsure of the benefits of radio, the station announces results of the Harding-Cox presidential election, getting the news to those with a radio much faster than everyone who had to wait for the morning paper.

July 13, 1897 A US patent is granted to inventor Guglielmo Marconi for transmitting electrical signals, leading to the invention of radio.

October 25, 2024 A Spanish version of Brenda Lee's holiday classic "Rockin' Around The Christmas Tree" ("Noche Buena y Navidad") is released. The song was created using AI trained on Lee's vocals from when she recorded the original at 13. It's the second AI-generated release from a major artist, following Randy Travis' "Where That Came From" six months earlier, and the first use of AI to translate a song to another language.

October 11, 2024 The movie Piece By Piece, a biography of Pharrell Williams set in the animated LEGO universe, opens in theaters. Many of his close collaborators, including Gwen Stefani, Justin Timberlake, Snoop Dogg, lend their voices and appear as Lego avatars.

February 28, 2019 Weezer join the Fortnite universe with "Weezer World," a "Creative Island" where players can ride around on a hoverboard while listening to Weezer tunes. It's one of the first Fortnite musical collaborations; earlier in the month, Marshmello held a virtual concert. Weezer return in 2024 with "Sweat(er) City," which includes a unique weapon: a sweater yarn stun gun. (You know, because "The Sweater Song.")

September 18, 2011 At the Austin City Limits festival, Awolnation lead singer Aaron Bruno does a little crowd surfing, using a boogie board to actually surf on top of the crowd before performing their apropos hit "Sail."More

March 2, 2009 Late Night With Jimmy Fallon debuts on NBC. Fallon's house band is familiar to many hip-hop fans: The Roots. It's the first time an established band has joined a late night show, and it's a big win for all involved. The Roots gain lots of exposure and a steady paycheck; Fallon gets a versatile and highly respected band that shines in segments like "Freestylin' with The Roots" and "Classroom Instruments."

October 30, 2008 The makers of Rock Band secure the rights to produce the first-ever Beatles music video game.

May 9, 2005 The music video for Stevie Wonder's "So What The Fuss" is issued with a descriptive audio track by Busta Rhymes for the visually-impaired.

March 27, 2005 The medical drama Grey's Anatomy debuts on ABC with a new approach to music, using little-known songs, complete with lyrics, to soundtrack many scenes. Songs popularized by the series include "How To Save A Life" by The Fray, "Chasing Cars" by Snow Patrol and "The Story" by Brandi Carlile.

February 19, 2004 Pink introduces an aerial routine into her repertoire when she sings "Get The Party Started" while swinging from silk ropes at her Dublin show to kick off her Try This tour. The aerials become a hallmark of her shows and get more elaborate as she improves her skills. She does some aerial acrobatics while singing at the Grammy Awards in 2010 and again in 2014.

November 6, 2001 In an early effort at online try-before-you-buy, Virgin Records posts 90-second clips of the songs from Mick Jagger's upcoming album Goddess in the Doorway.

September 25, 2001 The voice of Bob Marley ushers satellite radio onto the air, promising listeners greater variety on the dial - for a price - with the launch of XM Satellite Radio. It is the first worldwide broadcast of a satellite radio station.

October 25, 2000 Mounds of pending litigation against it notwithstanding, embattled music file-swapping service Napster continues to expand with the release of a Macintosh-friendly version available for download. The new Mac version comes complete with exclusive features such as file search logs, "drag and drop" capability, and a color scheme that matches the hues on Apple's new iMac models.

November 1, 1999 With getting music over the internet still a novel concept and technical challenge, Third Eye Blind offer their single "Anything" exclusively online. It's free, but can only be played for three weeks.

October 21, 1999 George Martin, who produced most of the Beatles albums, lends his reputation and four decades of music business experience to a start-up Internet company catering to unsigned bands. Martin announces that he will serve as chairman of the advisory board for Garageband.com.

November 2, 1998 Atlantic Records takes a crack at online video, launching a music video service called Instavid. A partnership with RealNetworks, it doesn't get very far, since end users have limited bandwidth.

July 27, 1994 Bob Seger serves jury duty in Michigan and, as the foreman in a criminal trial, finds the defendant guilty.

April 28, 1994 Warren G releases his debut single, "Regulate," taking G-Funk in a bold new direction by sampling the laid-back groove to Michael McDonald's "I Keep Forgettin'" and some dialogue from the movie Young Guns. The song climbs to #2, where it spends three weeks behind "I Swear" by All-4-One.

April 3, 1994 About 300 radio stations accept Pearl Jam's offer to broadcast their concert at the Fox Theatre in Atlanta for free. It goes over so well, the band does a series of similar broadcasts over the next few years, bringing a steady stream of live music to their fans.

March 2, 1983 The first CD players are released in America, along with 16 albums on CD.

October 1, 1982 In Tokyo, Sony introduces the first digital compact-disc player, which sells for about $650.

June 21, 1982 The first "Fête de la Musique," a music festival also known as "World Music Day," is launched in Paris. Unlike corporate festivals, this one is about street music, and free to the public. The festival returns every June 21 and spreads throughout the world in various forms.

October 17, 1980 Dire Straits release their third album, Making Movies. Three of the songs - "Romeo And Juliet," "Tunnel Of Love" and "Skateaway" - are accompanied by short films sold on a home video also called Making Movies.