ON THIS DAY IN BLACK MUSIC HISTORY: AUGUST 29

#1 R&B Song 1953:  “Crying in the Chapel,” the Orioles

Born:  Dinah Washington (Ruth Lee Jones), 1924; Marion Williams, 1927; Micheal Jackson, 1958; Pebbles (Perri McKissack), 1965; Carl Martin (Shai), 1970

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1954   Capitol Records signed the Five Keys. The group went on to have four Top 1oo hits, including the standard, “Out of Sight, Out of Mind.” These hit were in more of a pop style than they had when recording R&B for Aladdin Records.

1958   Alan Freed’s Brooklyn Fox show featured the Cleftones, the Danleers, and the Olympics, among others. The show ran for ten days.

1964   Six years after his first Top 5 hit, Bobby Freeman was back, peaking at 35 with “C’mon and Swim.”

The record was written and  produced by a San Francisco-area disc jockey named Sylvester Stewart, who would later form his own band, Sly & the Family Stone.

Sly & the Family Stone

1966   In a tribute to one of the artists who most influenced them, the Beatles performed Little Richard’s “Long Tall Sally” as the last tune of their final concert at San Francisco’s Candlestick Park.

1981   The Pointer Sisters’ “Slow Hand” reached #2 pop and #7 R&B, becoming their biggest pop hit. The song that kept it from #1 was Lionel Richie and Diana Ross’s “Endless Love.”

1998   Mary J. Blige, Mariah Carey, Missy Elliot, Maze, and others performed in the KMEL-FM All-Star Jam at the Shoreline Amphitheater in Mountain View, CA.

1998   Janet Jackson was honored with the International Female Artist of the Year award in Oslo, Norway, at their first annual HitAwards.