There are interesting anniversaries every day and, of course, birthdays of note. On this day in 1967, for instance, The Monterey International Pop Music Festival began. Another festival — the Tibetan Freedom Concert — began in at Golden Gate Park in San Francisco in 1996.
Most fans are familiar with the lineup at Monterey. The Tibetan Festival was no slouch, however: This Day in Music says that performers included Rage Against The Machine, The Beastie Boys, Smashing Pumpkins, Fugees, The Red Hot Chili Peppers, John Lee Hooker, Beck, Sonic Youth, Yoko Ono, De La Soul and Richie Havens.
Today also is the 35th anniversary of the Chicago premiere of “The Blues Brothers.” I’ve always been ambivalent about the movie, but more positive than negative. There was a lot of good music and paydays for some folks who no doubt needed them. I was never quite comfortable with the Dan Aykroyd and John Belushi characters and the racial dynamic of the movie. The bottom line, though, was that both of them obviously loved the music. That’s all that really counts.
Above is Ray Charles playing “Shake A Tail Feather.” The cast of the movie is here.
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