November 28th: The Biggest Music Headlines

Scroll down the page to see all the music headlines, stories and events for November 28 throughout music history

Photo by Paul Bergen/Redferns

Whitney Houston Tops The Charts With Her Record-Breaking Global Hit

On November 28, 1992, Whitney Houston began a record-breaking 14-week run at the top of the Billboard Hot 100 with “I Will Always Love You.” Houston’s soulful rendition of the Dolly Parton-penned song was recorded for The Bodyguard, a film which starred the best-selling artist. In addition to earning a rare Diamond certification from the RIAA, the song also topped charts in nearly every country it was released in, breaking global records as the highest-selling single ever by a female artist.

In 1974, John Lennon made one of his final concert appearances at Madison Square Garden, where he appeared with Elton John for three songs. The duo, who performed their collaborative hit, “Whatever Gets You Thru the Night” plus two Beatles songs (“I Saw Her Standing There” and “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds”), had made a bet in the studio. Lennon agreed that if the duo’s recording made it to No.1, he would join his friend on stage.

In 1954, with “Let’s Have Another Party,” Winifred Atwell became the first Black artist to not only top the UK chart but also to sell a million records.

In 1987, “(I’ve Had) The Time of My Life,” the theme from the blockbuster film, Dirty Dancing, went to No.1 on the Billboard Hot 100. The duet, sung by Jennifer Warnes and Bill Medley (of the Righteous Brothers), later received an Academy Award, a Golden Globe, and a Grammy.

In 1967, The Beatles recorded their fifth and final fan club record, which featured “Christmas Time (Is Here Again)” – a sought-after track that would remain unreleased for decades. Fan club records, which were sent out every December, generally contained spoken-word messages, skits, and exclusive songs.

In 1991, Nirvana delivered a memorable performance on the UK show Top of the Pops. Among several antics, frontman Kurt Cobain attempted to eat his microphone.

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Keep scrolling for all of the headlines for November 28.

BORN ON NOVEMBER 28:

1929: Berry Gordy (record executive)
1943: Randy Newman
1962: Matt Cameron (Soundgarden, Pearl Jam)
1979: Chamillionaire
1983: Rostam Batmanglij (Vampire Weekend)
1984: Trey Songz

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Keep scrolling for all of our November 28 birthdays.

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November 28th

On this day in music

28 Nov 2023 David Bowie's handwritten lyrics fetched £89,000 after they were sold at Omega Auctions in Uxbridge, west London. The lyrics sheet contained the late singer's corrections, drafts and notes when creating his tracks 'Rock n Roll Suicide' and 'Suffragette City'. Both tracks in the sale featured on Bowie's 1972 classic album Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars.
28 Nov 2016 New Zealand born Ray Columbus, singer and songwriter, television host, music manager and entertainer died aged 74. He was the lead singer of Ray Columbus & the Invaders, who scored the 1964 hit was 'She's A Mod', a No.1 hit in Australia, the first song from a New Zealand group to reach the top of the charts in another country. During the 60s, Columbus toured with The Rolling Stones, Roy Orbison and The Newbeats.
28 Nov 2013 It was reported that George Harrison's sister was living in a pre-fabricated home and "struggling for money" since her allowance from The Beatles star's estate was cut off about a year after he died. 82-year-old Louise Harrison admitted that she had no access to her brother's multi-million dollar fortune and was cash-poor living in rural Missouri. She never challenged her brother's estate, adding "I don't care about the money, it's been over ten years and I haven't made any ripples."
28 Nov 2006 US actress Pamela Anderson filed for divorce from rapper Kid Rock after just four months of marriage. In a statement on her website the 39-year-old confirmed she had split from Rock.
28 Nov 2004 Metallica played the last show on their 137-date ‘Madly in Anger with the World Tour’ at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, California. It became the fourth-highest grossing tour of 2004, reaping $60,500,000 in ticket sales.
28 Nov 2002 Tony McCarroll the original drummer with Oasis failed in a bid to sue the group's lawyers after he was sacked because he took too long to file his claim. Judge Justice Gray, at the High Court in London, told McCarroll his case could not proceed because he had brought his claim outside of the six-year time limit.
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28 Nov 2000 David Bowie was crowned the musician's musician. Bowie beat The Beatles and alternative rockers Radiohead in a survey by the NME that asked hundreds of top rock and pop stars to name their biggest musical influence.
28 Nov 2000 Madonna played her first British show for more than seven years at London's Brixton Academy. Tickets changed hands for more than £1,000. QXL.com the internet auctioneers sold one pair for £2,204.
28 Nov 1999 Cliff Richard started a three-week run at No.1 on the UK singles chart with 'Millennium Prayer', despite the record being boycotted by most radio stations. It became Cliff's 14th UK No.1.
28 Nov 1993 Steppenwolf drummer Jerry Edmonton was killed in a car crash not far from his Santa Barbara, California home, he was 47. Steppenwolf had the 1969 US No.2 & UK No.30 single 'Born To Be Wild'.
28 Nov 1992 Whitney Houston started a record-breaking fourteen-week run at No.1 on the US singles chart with 'I Will Always Love You', taken from the 'Bodyguard' soundtrack. The song was written by Dolly Parton.
28 Nov 1991 Nirvana recorded a performance for BBC TV music show Top Of The Pops in London. When asked to lip-sync 'Smells Like Teen Spirit' to a pre-recorded tape Kurt Cobain protested by singing an octave lower (he later confirmed he was imitating Morrissey from The Smiths), and attempted to eat his microphone at one point. He also changed some of the lyrics, exchanging the opening line "load up on guns, bring your friends," for "load up on drugs, kill your friends."
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28 Nov 1987 David Bowie played the second of four sold-out nights during his Glass Spider Tour in Australia and New Zealand at the Kooyong Stadium in Melbourne.
28 Nov 1987 Taken from the film 'Dirty Dancing', the Jennifer Warnes' duet with Bill Medley '(I've Had) The Time Of My Life', went to No.1 on the US singles chart. In the UK the song had two chart outings: in November 1987, after the film's initial release, the song peaked at No.6; and in January 1991, after the film was shown on mainstream television, the song reached No.8.
28 Nov 1987 R.E.M. had their first entry in the Top 10 on the US singles chart with ‘The One I Love.’
28 Nov 1976 The Sex Pistols appeared on BBC TV's 'Nationwide' and ITV's 'London Weekend Show' in the UK.
28 Nov 1976 The Tom Robinson Band made their live debut at The Hope & Anchor, London. The bands biggest hit '2-4-6-8 Motorway' peaked at No.5 in the UK in Oct 77. Robinson now also works as a radio presenter.
28 Nov 1974 John Lennon made one of his final concert appearances when he joined Elton John on stage at Madison Square Gardens in New York City. Lennon performed three songs; 'Whatever Gets You Thru The Night', 'I Saw Her Standing There' and 'Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds.'
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28 Nov 1970 Bob Dylan's 11th studio album New Morning was on the UK charts, his 6th UK No.1. The album featured 'If Not For You' which was recorded by both George Harrison (on his 1970 album All Things Must Pass), and became the title track for Olivia Newton-John's 1971 debut album.
28 Nov 1970 Dave Edmunds was at No.1 on the UK singles chart with his version of the 1955 Smiley Lewis hit 'I Hear You Knocking.' Also the first release on the new MAM record label.
28 Nov 1967 The Beatles recorded their last fan club record as a group; 'Christmas Time Is Here Again!' The Beatles' Christmas records were spoken and musical messages from the group that were posted out on flexi disc at Christmas time to members of their official fan-clubs in the United Kingdom and the United States.
28 Nov 1964 The Shangri-Las went to No.1 on the US singles chart with the 'teen death song', 'Leader Of The Pack'. When released in the UK the song was refused airplay by the BBC, (probably due to its death theme), where it went on to chart three times: No.11 in 1965; No.3 in 1972 (by which time the BBC ban had been lifted); and once again at No.7 in 1976.
28 Nov 1962 The Beatles performed two evening shows: the first at The Cavern Club in Liverpool and the second at the 527 Club in Liverpool. The 527 Club show was a dance for the staff of Lewis Department Store in Liverpool, held on the top floor of the store.
28 Nov 1960 Elvis Presley started a six week run at No.1 on the US singles chart with 'Are You Lonesome Tonight', his third US No.1 of 1960. The single included a spoken passage loosely based on Shakespeare.
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28 Nov 1954 Winifred Atwell was at No.1 on the UK singles chart with 'Let's Have Another Party.' Atwell was the first Black artist to reach No.1 in the UK and the first black artist to sell a million records.

Born on this day in music

28 Nov 1984 Trey Songz, American singer-songwriter, record producer, actor, and rapper. He had the US No.1 album Trigga in 2014.
28 Nov 1983 American songwriter, composer, producer and multi-instrumentalist, Rostam Batmanglij from Vampire Weekend. 2010 US & UK No.1 album, ‘Contra’ and the 2013 US No.1 album 'Modern Vampires of the City'.
28 Nov 1979 Chamillionaire, (born Hakeem Seriki), US rapper, (2006 US No.1 & UK No.2 single ‘Ridin’).
28 Nov 1970 Matt Cheslin, bass player, Neds Atomic Dustbin, (1991 UK No.16 single 'Happy').
28 Nov 1968 Dawn Robinson, En Vogue, (1992 US No.2 & UK No.4 single 'My Lovin').
28 Nov 1962 Matt Cameron, drummer with Soundgarden, who joined Pearl Jam in 1998. At the age of thirteen, he and some friends played in a cover band called KISS, however, after a letter from the management of the rather better-known band Kiss, threatening the boys with legal action, they called it a day.
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28 Nov 1959 Australian bassist Richard Grossman who has played bass guitar for the Divinyls and Hoodoo Gurus and was also a member of Australian bands: Matt Finish, Ghostwriters, Persian Rugs, The Kelly Gang and Men At Work.
28 Nov 1958 David Van Day, singer, from pop vocal duo Dollar who had the 1981 UK No.4 single 'Mirror Mirror'.
28 Nov 1954 David Jaymes, from British pop band Modern Romance who had the 1982 UK No.4 single 'Best Years Of Our Lives' and a string of UK hits.
28 Nov 1949 Hugh McKenna, keyboards, from the Sensational Alex Harvey Band who had the 1975 UK No.7 single 'Delilah, and the 1975 album Next. McKenna died of cancer at the age of 70 in December 2019.
28 Nov 1948 Beeb Birtles from Australian group, Little River Band who scored the 1978 US No.3 single 'Reminiscing' plus 12 other US Top 40 singles selling more than 30 million records.
28 Nov 1943 Randy Newman, singer, songwriter, Composer of 'Mama Told Me Not To Come', 'Simon Smith And The Amazing Dancing Bear', 1977 US No.2 single 'Short People.' Film soundtracks including 'Ragtime.' Once hailed as the greatest songwriter alive by Paul McCartney. Since the 1980s, Newman has worked mostly as a film composer, his film scores include Ragtime, Toy Story; A Bug's Life; Toy Story 2; Monsters, Inc.; Cars; Toy Story 3; and Monsters University.
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28 Nov 1940 Bruce Channel, US singer, (1962 US No.1 & UK No.2 single 'Hey! Baby').
28 Nov 1940 Trinidadian British singer, Clem Curtis, the original lead vocalist of sixties soul group The Foundations who scored the 1967 UK No.1 single 'Baby Now That I've Found You' and the 1969 US No.3 single 'Build Me Up A Buttercup'. The group was the first multi-racial group to have a No.1 hit in the UK in the 1960s. Curtis died on 27 March 2017 at the age of 76, after a lung cancer diagnosis earlier that year.
28 Nov 1939 Gary Troxel, The Fleetwoods, (1959 US No.1 & UK No.6 single 'Come Softly To Me').
28 Nov 1929 Berry Gordy, founder of Motown Records. In 1957 Jackie Wilson recorded 'Reet Petite', a song Gordy had co-written with his sister Gwen and writer-producer Billy Davis. Wilson recorded six more songs co-written by Gordy over the next two years, including 'Lonely Teardrops'. Gordy reinvested the profits from his songwriting success into producing. In 1957, he discovered the Miracles (originally known as the Matadors) and began building a portfolio of successful artists. Over the next decade, he signed such artists as The Supremes, Marvin Gaye, The Temptations, The Four Tops, Gladys Knight & The Pips, Stevie Wonder and the Jackson 5.