This Day in Top 40 History: February 27

Breakthrough Hits and Milestones

• 1978: Village People released their sophomore album, Macho Man, featuring “Key West” and “Sodom and Gomorrah.” It stalled at No. 24 on the Billboard 200 but spent more than 60 weeks on the chart. The title track cracked the Top 30 on the Billboard Hot 100, reaching No. 25. 
• 1980: Dionne Warwick won Best Pop Vocal Performance for "I'll Never Love This Way Again" at the 22nd GRAMMY Awards. In addition, Herb Alpert won Best Pop Instrumental Performance for "Rise."
• 1984: Queen issued their 11th studio LP, The Works, in the U.K. The project reached No. 2 in the region and produced up to four Top 40 singles, including “Radio Ga Ga,” “I Want to Break Free,” and “Hammer to Fall.”
• 1984: Nick Kershaw dropped Human Racing, his debut album. It would become one of the best-performing records that year, peaking at No. 5 on the U.K. Official Albums Chart. It delivered a few Top 20 hits as well, such as “I Won't Let the Sun Go Down on Me” and “Wouldn't It Be Good.”
• 1993: Whitney Houston's "I Will Always Love You" from the movie The Bodyguard hit No. 1 for 14 consecutive weeks on the Billboard Hot 100. This song was written by Dolly Parton, but Houston made it famous.
• 2015: Justin Bieber hit the top 10 on Billboard with his song "Where Are Ü Now." This song went to No. 1 on the Hot Dance/Electronic Songs and No. 8 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Cultural Milestones

• 1981: Josh Groban, best known for “You Raise Me Up,” was born in Los Angeles, California. While young, his parents encouraged him to pursue music. That may have motivated him to leave Carnegie Mellon University and build his recording career. As of this writing, Groban has scored three No. 1 albums in the U.S., including Closer and Noel.
• 2015: Legendary Star Trek actor Leonard Nimoy died. While best known for his role as the science fiction character Spock, he also had a musical career. His albums included Leonard Nimoy Presents Mr. Spock's Music from Outer Space and Two Sides of Leonard Nimoy.
• 2016: Elton John and Lady Gaga gave a free performance ahead of the Oscars on the Sunset Strip in Los Angeles, California. The two superstars wanted to thank the city of West Hollywood for hosting Elton John's Oscars viewing party that raised funds for his Elton John AIDS Foundation.
• 2019: T. Pain was declared the winner of the first season of The Masked Singer. Disguising himself as the one-eyed monster, the “Bartender” singer beat Donny Osmond and Gladys Knight, who performed as the Peacock and the Bee, respectively. 
• 2021: Post Malone hosted a free virtual concert for the Pokémon 25th anniversary celebration. Katy Perry was also part of the virtual show.

Notable Recordings and Performances

• 1967: Pink Floyd walked into London's Sound Techniques Studios to record their debut single, “Arnold Layne.” Written by Syd Barrett, the track tells the tale of a thief with a penchant for women's undergarments. It peaked at No. 20 on the U.K. Singles Chart, but it failed to crack the U.S. Hot 100.
• 1993: Johnny Cash performed at the Rhythm Café in Santa Ana, California. Rick Rubin, who was in the audience, was impressed by the “A Boy Named Sue” singers' raw talent, so he convinced him to record an album with stripped-down cover songs. This marked the beginning of Cash and Rubin's collaboration — a few months later, they began working on the project in Rubin's living room.
• 1995: Singer-songwriter PJ Harvey released her album To Bring You My Love with hits such as "Working for the Man" and "Send His Love to Me."
• 2009: Katy Perry performed at the famous venue Koko in London, England.
• 2023: Singer SZA sold out the Capital One Arena in Washington D.C. Her show featured her seemingly floating on a raft above the crowd, with a lighthouse shining on the other side of the stage.

Industry Changes and Challenges

• 1970: “White Rabbit” hitmakers Jefferson Airplane were fined $1,000 for allegedly using offensive language during a concert in Oklahoma. This incident came at a time when obscene content was restricted in the region after The Doors' Jim Morrison exposed himself during a show in Miami, Florida, in 1969. 
• 1977: While The Rolling Stones' Keith Richards was asleep, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) raided his hotel suite in Toronto, Canada, and found drugs, including heroin and cocaine. He was arrested on charges of drug possession, but luckily, he didn't serve time.
• 1991: James Brown was released on parole after serving a little over two years of his six-year prison sentence in a prison in South Carolina. The "It's a Man's Man's Man's World" singer had been arrested in December 1988 on charges of assault, drug, and gun possession. Before his parole, he had spent 10 months in Aiken completing a work release program. 
• 1993: Marlena Davis died from lung cancer at the age of 48. Her band, The Orlons, had hits such as "The Wah-Watusi" and "Don't Hang Up."
• 2015: Madonna revealed she was suffering from whiplash after falling due to a wardrobe malfunction at the Brit Awards two days earlier.
• 2024: Donna Summer's estate filed a lawsuit against Ye and Ty Dolla Sign. They claimed that the rappers' track "Good (Don't Die)" had illegally sampled Summer's song, "I Feel Love."