FROM WIKIPEDIA COMMONS
The 5th Dimension is an American popular music vocal group. Their music encompasses sunshine pop,[1] pop soul[1] and psychedelic soul.[2]
Formed as the Versatiles in late 1965, the group changed its name to “the 5th Dimension” by 1966.[3] Between 1967 and 1973 they charted with 20 top 40 hits on Billboard’s Hot 100, two of which – “Up, Up and Away” (no. 7, 1967) and the 1969 number one “Medley: Aquarius/Let the Sunshine In (The Flesh Failures)” — won the Grammy Award for Record of the Year. Other big hits include “Stoned Soul Picnic” (no. 3), “Wedding Bell Blues” (no. 1), “One Less Bell to Answer” (no. 2), a cover of “Never My Love” (pop no. 12/Easy Listening no. 1), “(Last Night) I Didn’t Get to Sleep at All” (no. 8), and “If I Could Reach You” (pop no. 10/Easy Listening no. 1). Three of their records reached the top ten of Billboard‘s Rhythm & Blues/Soul chart. Five of their 19 top 20 hits on the Easy Listening chart reached number one.[4]
The five original members were Lamonte McLemore, Marilyn McCoo, Florence LaRue, Ronald Townson, and Billy Davis Jr. Their earliest recordings were on the Soul City record label, which was started by recording artist Johnny Rivers. The group later recorded for Bell/Arista Records, ABC Records, and Motown Records.
Some of the songwriters who worked with the 5th Dimension went on to careers of their own, especially Ashford & Simpson, who wrote the song “California Soul“. The group is also notable for having more success with the songs of Laura Nyro than Nyro did herself,[3] particularly with “Stoned Soul Picnic”, “Sweet Blindness“, “Wedding Bell Blues”, “Blowin’ Away” and “Save the Country“. The group also recorded songs by well-known songwriters including Burt Bacharach and Hal David (“One Less Bell to Answer”) and Jimmy Webb, who wrote “Up, Up and Away“. The group’s 1967 LP The Magic Garden features all but one song composed by Webb.
The 5th Dimension’s producer Bones Howe used Bob Alcivar as the singers’ vocal arranger as well as instrumental backing by the Wrecking Crew for their recording sessions.
TODAY’S ALMANAC
Question of the Day
I live in New York City and have a three-year-old fig tree. It bore fruit for the first time this year, but it failed to ripen. Why? What is a good fertilizer?
A good garden fertilizer, such as 5-10-5, used at the rate of one pound per 50 square feet, will probably supply sufficient nutrients. However, in northern states, fig trees need heavy protection during the winter and usually bear little fruit. Check with your local fruit growers or your local extension service to see if your cultivar has a good track record in your area.
Advice of the Day
Buy next year’s wood for the stove now and season it yourself.
Home Hint of the Day
Planning to use steel wool on a project where rusting is a concern? Choose bronze wool (available at marine supply stores) instead . It doesn’t rust, so you don’t have to worry about the small slivers that invariably stick to the surface you’re working on.
Word of the Day
Conjunction
The time at which two or more celestial bodies appear closest in the sky. Inferior: Mercury or Venus is between the Sun and Earth. Superior: The Sun is between a planet and Earth.
Puzzle of the Day
What did one hurricane say to the other hurricane?
I have my eye on you.
Born
- John George Lambdon (governor-general of British North America) – 1792
- Beverly Cleary (author) – 1916
- Dr. Peter Safar (originator of CPR) – 1924
- Montserrat Caballe (opera singer) – 1933
- Herbie Hancock (musician) – 1940
- David Letterman (talk show host) – 1947
- Tom Clancy (author) – 1947
- David Cassidy (singer and actor) – 1950
- Andy García (actor) – 1956
- Vince Gill (musician) – 1957
- Jennifer Morrison (actress) – 1979
- Claire Danes (actress) – 1979
- Stubbs the Cat (honorary mayor of Talkeetna, Alaska) – 1997
Died
- Clara Barton (founder of the American Red Cross) – 1912
- Franklin D. Roosevelt (32nd U.S. president) – 1945
- Sugar Ray Robinson (boxer) – 1989
- Abbie Hoffman (social and political activist) – 1989
- Georgia Engel (actress, best known as Georgette Franklin on The Mary Tyler Moore Show) – 2019
Events
- Charles A. Gayler received a patent for a fireproof safe– 1833
- Charles Gayler received a patent for a fireproof iron chest – 1833
- First U.S. championship billiards game– 1859
- The US Civil War began– 1861
- Women granted the right to vote in Ontario– 1917
- Nova Scotia’s Moose River gold mine collapsed, trapping 3 people– 1936
- Bill Haley and His Comets recorded Rock Around the Clock– 1954
- The polio vaccine developed by Dr. Salk was found to be successful after subjection to a year of clinical trials– 1955
- Aquarius/Let the Sunshine In by the 5th Dimension topped the charts for 6 weeks– 1969
- Terry Fox began his Marathon of Hope across Canada in St. John’s, Newfoundland, by dipping his artificial leg into the Atlantic Ocean– 1980
- Space shuttle Columbia first launched– 1981
- Harold Washington was elected the first African-American mayor of Chicago– 1983
- Texaco Inc. became the largest U.S. company in history to file bankruptcy after it is ordered to pay Pennzoil $8.53 billion in damages for unfair business practices– 1987
- Golfer Fred Couples won the Masters tournament– 1992
Weather
- Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, was hit by a tornado; 150 houses lost their roofs– 1856
- Fourteen inches of snow at Bloomfield, Vermont– 1929
- 231-mph wind gust on Mt. Washington, New Hampshire, second highest wind speed in the world– 1934
- 21 inches of snow fell in Selby, South Dakota– 1995
- Ice out, Lake Winnipesaukee, NH– 2009
COURTESY www.almanac.com
