January 1963 in Music History

Events in Music

Jan 5 "Carnival!" closes at Imperial Theater NYC after 719 performances

Musical Finale

Jan 5 Alan Jay Lerner and Frederick Loewe's musical "Camelot", starring Richard Burton, Julie Andrews, and Robert Goulet, closes at Majestic Theater, NYC, after 873 performances and winning 4 Tony Awards

Music Premiere

Jan 6 Lionel Bart's musical "Oliver!", based on Charles Dickens' "Oliver Twist", and featuring a young Davy Jones, opens at Imperial Theater, NYC; runs for 774 performances, winning 3 Tony Awards

Music Premiere

Jan 8 Dmitri Shostakovich' opera "Katharina Ismailova" premieres in Riga

Jan 11 Beatles release single "Please Please Me" / "Ask Me Why"; peaks at #2 in UK, and #3 in US
Jan 12 "Go Away Little Girl" by Steve Lawrence peaks at #1
Jan 16 Los Angeles night club and music venue The Whiskey A-Go-Go opens (inducted into Rock and Roll Hall of Fame 2006)
Jan 26 "Milk & Honey" closes at Martin Beck Theater NYC after 543 performances
Jan 28 "Still" single released by Bill Anderson (Billboard No. 1 U.S. Hot Country Singles, 1963)

Music Recording

Jan 31 Tony Sheridan & Beat Brothers (later known as The Beatles) record "What'd I Say" & "Ruby Baby"

Birthdays in Music

Jan 2 Wu Man, Chinese-American pipa (lute-like instrument) player, and composer (Silk Road Ensemble), born in Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
Jan 4 Till Lindemann, German heavy metal singer (Rammstein), born in Leipzig, East Germany
Jan 5 Rick Ambrose, Dutch heavy metal singer (Jewel - "Mystery Of Fate"), born in Amsterdam, Netherlands
Jan 6 Paul Brindley, English pop bassist (Sundays, Can't Be Sure)
Jan 7 Clint Mansell, English musician and composer, born in Coventry, United Kingdom
Jan 13 Tim Kelly, American rock guitarist (Slaughter), born in Trenton, New Jersey (d. 1998)
Jan 15 Carl McCoy, British gothic-metal rock singer (Fields of the Nephilim - "Blue Water"), and graphic artist, born in Lambeth, London, England
Jan 17 Cyrus Chestnut, American jazz pianist and composer, born in Baltimore, Maryland
Jan 17 Kai Hansen, German heavy metal guitarist and vocalist (Helloween, Gamma Ray), born in Hamburg, West Germany
Jan 19 Caron Wheeler, English singer (Soul II Soul - "Keep on Movin'"), born in Acton, London
Jan 20 Mark Ryden, American Pop Surrealist painter, album cover art creator (Michael Jackson; Aerosmith; 4 Non-Blondes), born in Medford, Oregon
Jan 23 Guido Karp, German music photographer, born in Mayen, West Germany
Jan 25 Carl Fysh, British pop-rocker (Brother Beyond - "Can You Keep a Secret?")
Jan 25 Marcello Giordani, Italian tenor (Metropolitan Opera, 1993-2008), born in Augusta, Sicily (d. 2019)
Jan 26 Andrew Ridgeley, British pop guitarist, songwriter and producer (Wham - "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go"), born in Windlesham, Surrey, England
Jan 26 Jazzie B [Beresford Romeo], English rapper (Soul II Soul - "Feel Free"), born in Hornsey, London, England
Jan 28 Danny Spitz, heavy metal guitarist (Anthrax, 1983-95, 2005-08 - State of Euphoria), born in Rockland County, New York
Jan 30 Danny Wright, American new age pianist, and composer, born in Fort Worth, Texas

Weddings in Music

Willie Nelson

Jan 12 Country singer Willie Nelson (29) weds singer Shirley Collie (31) in Las Vegas; divorce in 1971

Deaths in Music

Jan 2 Dick Powell [Richard Ewing Powell], American singer, actor, producer and director (Cry Danger, Dick Powell Theater), dies from cancer at 58
Jan 3 Oskar Back, Hungarian-Dutch violinist and pedagogue, dies at 83
Jan 10 Tadeusz Szeligowski, Polish composer (The Peacock and the Girl), dies at 66
Jan 13 (Conrad) "Sonny" Clark, American hard pop jazz and session pianist, composer, and group leader (Sonny's Crib), dies of a heart attack, exacerbated by heroin use, at 31
Jan 16 Gilardo Gilardi, Argentine composer, pianist and conductor (La leyenda del urutaú, Réquiem, Misa de Gloria), dies at 73
Jan 16 Ike Quebec, American tenor-saxophone player, dies of cancer at 44
Jan 30 Francis Poulenc, French pianist and composer (Concert champêtre; Les Biches), dies of a heart attack at 64