1983 in music

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This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1983.

Trends

• Classical music on CD has become popular among listeners.

Events

January–April

• January 1
  • ZTT Records is founded.
  • The Merchant Ivory film Heat and Dust is released. On the soundtrack, composed by Zakir Hussain, Ivory is featured on tanpura with Hussain (who also appeared in the film) on tabla.
• January 8 – The UK singles chart is tabulated from this week forward by The Gallup Organization. In 1984 electronic terminals will be used in selected stores to gather sales information, and the old "sales diary" method will be gradually phased out over the next few years.
• February 2 – "Menudomania" comes to New York as 3,500 screaming girls crowd Kennedy Airport to catch a glimpse of Puerto Rican boy band Menudo, who are playing six sold-out shows at the Felt Forum.
• February 11 – The Rolling Stones concert film Let's Spend the Night Together opens in New York.
• February 13 – Marvin Gaye performs The Star-Spangled Banner" before the NBA All-Star Game.
• February 26 – Michael Jackson's Thriller album hits #1 on the US charts, the first of thirty-seven (non-consecutive) weeks it would spend there on its way to becoming the biggest-selling album of all time.
• February 28 – U2 releases their 3rd album War which debuts at #1 in the UK and produces the band's first international hit single.
• March 2 – Compact discs go on sale in the United States. They had first been released in Japan the previous October.
• March 4 – Neil Young cancels the remainder of his tour after collapsing backstage in Louisville, Kentucky, after playing for seventy-five minutes.
• April 5
  • A Generative Theory of Tonal Music by Fred Lerdahl and Ray Jackendoff is published.
  • US Interior Secretary James G. Watt causes controversy when he effectively bans the Beach Boys from a return performance at the Fourth of July festivities in Washington, announcing that Wayne Newton would perform instead. Watt claims that rock bands attract "the wrong element". That same week President Reagan, himself an avowed Beach Boys fan, presents Watt with a plaster foot with a hole in it, symbolizing that Watt had shot himself in the foot.
• April 11 – Dave Mustaine is fired from Metallica just as the band is set to begin recording its début album. He is replaced by Kirk Hammett.
• April 18 – Ellen Taaffe Zwilich becomes the first woman to win the Pulitzer Prize for Music.

May–August

• May 16
  • Singer Anna Vissi marries composer Nikos Karvelas.
  • The Motown 25 Special airs on NBC, celebrating a quarter century of Motown Records. Michael Jackson unveils his moonwalk dance move during an performance of "Billie Jean".
• May 28–June 4 – The second US Festival is held at Glen Helen Park in California.
• June 18–19 – Menudo's second visit to New York. The band plays four shows at Madison Square Garden and all 80,000 tickets sell out within three days of going on sale.
• June 20 – Catalunya Ràdio begins broadcasting.
• July 1 – Chilean Band Los Prisioneros debuted at the Miguel Leon Prado High School Song festival. They would personify the rebellion of young Chileans leading to protests which eventually ousted Augusto Pinochet
• July 19 – Simon and Garfunkel begin their North American summer tour in Akron, Ohio.
• July 21 – Diana Ross performs a filmed concert in Central Park in heavy rain; eventually the storm forces her to postpone the rest of the concert till next day.
• July 29 – Friday Night Videos is broadcast for the first time on NBC.
• August 5 – David Crosby is sentenced by a judge in Dallas, Texas to five years in prison on drug and weapon possession charges.
• August 16
  • Johnny Ramone suffers a near-fatal head injury during a fight over a girl in front of his East Village apartment.
  • Singer Paul Simon marries actress Carrie Fisher.
• August 20 – The Rolling Stones sign a new $28 million contract with CBS Records, the largest recording contract in history up to this time.

September–December

• September 1 – Joe Strummer and Paul Simonon of The Clash issue a press statement announcing that Mick Jones has been fired from the group.
• September 4 – Phil Lynott performs his final show with Thin Lizzy in Nuremberg, Germany.
• September 18 – The members of Kiss show their faces without their makeup for the first time on MTV, simultaneous with the release of their album Lick It Up.
• September 20 – The first ARMS Charity Concert is held at the Royal Albert Hall in London.
• November 26 – Quiet Riot's Metal Health album tops the US album charts, the first heavy metal album to hit #1 in America.
• December 2
  • The Uday-Ustav Festival, a tribute to Uday Shankar, is staged at the instigation of Uday's younger brother, Ravi Shankar.
  • Michael Jackson's 14-minute music video for Thriller is premiered on MTV.
  • Phish plays first show.
• December 25 - Marvin Gaye gives his father, as a Christmas present, an unlicensed Smith & Wesson .38 special caliber pistol so that Gaye could protect himself from intruders. A few months later, Gaye Sr would use it to shoot his son dead.
• December 31 – The twelfth annual New Year's Rockin' Eve special airs on ABC, with appearances by Culture Club, Rick James, Laura Branigan, Barry Manilow, Mary Jane Girls and David Frizzell.

Bands formed

• See Musical groups established in 1983

Bands disbanded

• See Musical groups disestablished in 1983

Bands reformed

• The Animals
• The Everly Brothers

Biggest hit singles

The following songs achieved the highest chart positions in the charts of 1983.

#	Artist	Title	Year	Country	Chart Entries
1	Culture Club	"Karma Chameleon"	1983		UK 1 – September 1983, US BB 1 – February 1984, Canada 1 – December 1983, Netherlands 1 – September 1983, Sweden (alt) 1 – October 1983, Switzerland 1 – October 1983, Norway 1 – October 1983, Éire 1 – September 1983, New Zealand 1 for 6 weeks October 1983, Australia 1 for 5 weeks July 1984, Austria 3 – November 1983, Germany 3 – January 1984, South Africa 7 of 1984, Poland 8 – September 1983, Australia 8 of 1983, US CashBox 14 of 1984, POP 15 of 1984, Italy 16 of 1983, KROQ 25 of 1983, US BB 29 of 1984, RYM 49 of 1983, Scrobulate 71 of 80s, Germany 159 of the 1980s, OzNet 979
2	Michael Jackson	"Billie Jean"	1983		UK 1 – January 1983, US BB 1 – January 1983, Canada 1 – February 1983, Switzerland 1 – March 1983, Republic of Ireland 1 – March 1983, Australia 1 for 5 weeks February 1984, Netherlands 2 – January 1983, Sweden (alt) 2 – March 1983, France 2 – January 1983, US CashBox 3 of 1983, Austria 3 – April 1983, Poland 3 – February 1983, Germany 3 – March 1983, Australia 4 of 1983, RYM 4 of 1983, POP 4 of 1983, Norway 6 – April 1983, Italy 8 of 1983, South Africa 15 of 1983, 15 in 2FM list, Scrobulate 16 of pop, Global 33 (5 M sold) – 1983, Acclaimed 33, Europe 40 of the 1980s, Party 53 of 2007, Rolling Stone 58, Germany 139 of the 1980s, OzNet 249, WXPN 620
3	Irene Cara	"Flashdance...What a Feeling"	1983		US BB 1 – April 1983, US CashBox 1 of 1983, Canada 1 – May 1983, Canada RPM 1 for 3 weeks - June 1983, Sweden (alt) 1 – May 1983, France 1 – July 1983, France SNEP 1 - September 1983, Switzerland 1 – June 1983, Norway 1 – June 1983, Italy 1 for 9 weeks - November 1983, New Zealand 1 for 6 weeks - July 1983, Australia 1 for 7 weeks - June 1983, UK 2 – June 1983, Austria 4 – August 1983, Japan 1 for 2 weeks - August 1983, Germany 4 – June 1983, Netherlands 13 – April 1983, Belgium 20 - May 1983, Poland 21 – July 1983, US BB 6 of 1983, Japan 7 of all time (international songs), Australia 2 of 1983, POP 3 of 1983, South Africa 9 of 1983, Scrobulate 31 of gay, AFI 55, Germany 57 of the 1980s, RYM 121 of 1983, OzNet 243, RIAA 256, Oscar in 1983
4	David Bowie	"Let's Dance"	1983		UK 1 – March 1983, US BB 1 – April 1983, Canada 1 – March 1983, Netherlands 1 – March 1983, Sweden (alt) 1 – April 1983, France 1 – March 1983, Switzerland 1 – April 1983, Norway 1 – March 1983, Éire 1 – April 1983, New Zealand 1 for 6 weeks April 1983, Austria 2 – May 1983, Germany 2 – April 1983, US CashBox 4 of 1983, Poland 5 – April 1983, KROQ 6 of 1983, US BB 15 of 1983, Italy 19 of 1983, Australia 24 of 1983, RYM 32 of 1983, Scrobulate 40 of 80s, POP 47 of 1983, Germany 172 of the 1980s, Belgium 258 of all time, Acclaimed 1445
5	The Police	"Every Breath You Take"	1983		UK 1 – May 1983, US BB 1 – July 1983, US BB 1 of 1983, Canada 1 – May 1983, Éire 1 – June 1983, US CashBox 2 of 1983, Sweden (alt) 2 – June 1983, Norway 2 – June 1983, KROQ 3 of 1983, Poland 5 – June 1983, South Africa 5 of 1983, Netherlands 6 – May 1983, Switzerland 6 – July 1983, Austria 8 – August 1983, Germany 8 – June 1983, France 10 – May 1983, Australia 10 of 1983, Italy 10 of 1983, Virgin 12, Scrobulate 13 of 80s, US BB 16 of 1983, RYM 16 of 1983, Europe 33 of the 1980s, Acclaimed 38, OzNet 38, RIAA 44, POP 49 of 1983, Poland 68 of all time, TheQ 76, Rolling Stone 84, 90 in 2FM list, Belgium 110 of all time, WXPN 216

Top hits on record

1. The First Picture of You The Lotus Eaters
2. Relax Frankie Goes to Hollywood

Published popular music

• "I Guess That's Why They Call It the Blues" w. Bernie Taupin m. Elton John
• "An Innocent Man" w.m. Billy Joel
• "Karma Chameleon" w.m. George O'Dowd, Jon Moss, Roy Hay, Mikey Craig & Phil Rickett
• "Uptown Girl" w.m. Billy Joel
• "Total Eclipse of the Heart" – Jim Steinman

Births

• January 13 – William Hung, American musician
• January 18 – Samantha Mumba, Irish singer and actress
• January 19 – Hikaru Utada, singer and songwriter
• January 20 – Mari Yaguchi, Japanese singer (Morning Musume) and host
• January 24 – Frankie Grande, American actor, singer, and dancer
• January 25 – Andrée Watters, Canadian singer
• February 1 – Andrew VanWyngarden, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (MGMT)
• February 5 – Baby K, Singaporean-Italian singer-songwriter
• February 8 – Jim Verraros, American singer
• February 10 – Bless, Canadian rapper
• February 19 – Mika Nakashima, Japanese singer and actress
• March 3 – Katie White, singer (The Ting Tings)
• March 8 – Piano Squall, pianist
• March 9 – Mayte Perroni, Mexican singer and actress
• March 10 – Carrie Underwood, singer
• March 14 – Taylor Hanson (Hanson)
• March 15 – Florencia Bertotti, Argentine actress and singer
• March 19 – Ana Rezende (Cansei de Ser Sexy)
• March 29 – Luiza Sá (Cansei de Ser Sexy)
• March 30 – Hebe Tian, member of the Taiwanese girl-group S.H.E
• April 4 – Tei, Korean ballad singer
• April 16 – Marié Digby, American singer
• May 8 – Matt Willis, British musician (Busted) and presenter
• May 11 – Holly Valance, singer and actress
• May 14 – Anahi, Mexican singer and actress
• June 2 – Brooke White, American singer
• June 17
  • Connie Fisher, British actress and singer
  • Lee Ryan, British singer
• June 27 – Evan Taubenfeld, American guitarist, singer, and songwriter
• June 30
  • Patrick Wolf, singer/songwriter
  • Cheryl, member of Girls Aloud
• July 1
  • Leeteuk, singer
  • Marit Larsen, Norwegian musician (M2M)
• July 2 – Michelle Branch (The Wreckers)
• July 3
  • Steph Jones, American singer-songwriter
  • Matt Papa, American singer-songwriter
• July 4
  • Ben Jorgensen, American singer, guitarist, member of Armor For Sleep
  • Andrew Mrotek, American drummer (The Academy Is...)
• July 7 – Ciara Newell, Irish singer (Bellefire)
• July 9 – Lucia Micarelli, violinist and actress
• July 10 – Heechul, singer
• July 11 – Marie Serneholt (A*Teens)
• July 18 – Aaron Gillespie, drummer (Underoath)
• July 21 – Eivør Pálsdóttir, Faroese singer and composer
• July 24 – Morgan Sorne, American singer-songwriter and multi-media artist
• August 7 – Christian Chávez, Mexican singer and actor
• August 14 – Sunidhi Chauhan, playback singer
• August 18
  • Danny!, American record producer/recording artist
  • Mika, British singer
• August 28 – Alfonso Herrera, Mexican singer and actor
• August 30 – Jun Matsumoto, Japanese singer and actor
• September 14 – Amy Winehouse, English singer (died 2011)
• September 17 – Jennifer Peña, American singer and actress
• September 26 – Samantha Hammel, American producer, actress and singer
• September 30 – T-Pain, American rapper & singer-songwriter
• October 7 – Flying Lotus, American rapper and producer, founded Brainfeeder
• October 10 – Alyson Hau, Hong Kong radio DJ
• October 22 – Plan B, English hip hop rapper
• October 24 – Adrienne Bailon, American singer and actress
• October 26 – Houston, American R&B singer
• October 29
  • Amit Sebastian Paul, Swedish singer (A-Teens)
  • Richard Brancatisano, Australian actor/musician
• October 30 – Diana Karazon, Jordanian singer
• November 7 – Forrest Kline, American singer and songwriter (Hellogoodbye)
• November 10 – Miranda Lambert, American country musician
• November 14
  • Lil Boosie, American rapper
  • Chelsea Wolfe, American singer-songwriter
• November 16
  • Fallon Bowman, South African–born guitarist (Kittie)
  • K, South Korean singer
• November 28 – Tyler Glenn, American alternative singer (Neon Trees)
• December 17 – Kosuke Saito, Japanese DJ
• December 29 – Jessica Andrews, American country music singer
• December 31 – Sayaka Ichii, Japanese singer (Morning Musume)

Deaths

• January 5 – Amy Evans, operatic soprano and actress, 98
• January 7 – Edith Coates, operatic mezzo-soprano, 74
• January 28 – Billy Fury, singer, 42 (heart attack)
• January 31 – Lorraine Ellison, soul singer, 51
• February 4 – Karen Carpenter, singer and drummer, 32 (cardiac arrest due to anorexia nervosa)
• February 8
  • Charles Kullman, operatic tenor, 80
  • Alfred Wallenstein, cellist, 84
• February 12 – Eubie Blake, pianist, 96
• February 18 – Leopold Godowsky, Jr., violinist and chemist, 82
• February 22 – Sir Adrian Boult, conductor, 93
• February 23 – Herbert Howells, organist and composer, 90
• February 28 – Winifred Atwell, pianist, 69
• March 6 – Cathy Berberian, singer and composer, 57
• March 7
  • Igor Markevitch, Ukrainian composer and conductor, 70
  • William Walton, British composer, 80
• April 4 – Danny Rapp (Danny and the Juniors), 41 (suicide by gunshot)
• April 5 – Cliff Carlisle, country and blues singer, 79
• April 13 – Dolo Coker, jazz pianist and composer, 55
• April 14 – Pete Farndon (The Pretenders), 30 (drug overdose)
• April 17 – Felix Pappalardi, producer and bassist, 43 (gunshot)
• April 23 – Earl Hines, jazz pianist, 79
• April 30
  • Muddy Waters, blues singer and guitarist, 70 (heart attack)
  • George Balanchine, choreographer, 79
• May 23
  • George Bruns, film composer, 68
  • Finn Mortensen, composer and music critic, 61
• May 25 – Paul Quinichette, saxophonist, 67
• June 2 – Stan Rogers, folk musician, 33
• June 25 – Alberto Ginastera, Argentine composer, 67
• July 4 – Claus Adam, cellist, 66
• July 5 – Harry James, bandleader, 67
• July 12 – Chris Wood, rock musician, 39
• July 23 – Georges Auric, composer, member of Les Six, 84
• July 27 – Jerome Moross, composer, conductor and orchestrator, 69
• July 30 – Howard Dietz, lyricist, 86
• August 2 – James Jamerson, bassist, 47
• August 3 – Helge Bonnén, pianist and composer, 87
• August 6 – Klaus Nomi, singer, 39 (complications from AIDS)
• August 13 – Zdeněk Liška, film composer, 61
• August 14 – Omer Létourneau, pianist, organist, composer and conductor, 92
• August 17 – Ira Gershwin, lyricist, 86
• August 24 – Arkady Filippenko, composer, 71
• September 5 – John Gilpin, dancer, 53 (heart attack)
• September 24 – Isobel Baillie, operatic soprano, 88
• September 25 – Paul Jacobs, pianist, 53 (complications from AIDS)
• October 16
  • Øivin Fjeldstad, violinist and conductor, 80
  • George Liberace, violinist and arranger, 72
• November 3 – Alfredo Antonini, conductor, 82
• November 7 – Germaine Tailleferre, composer, only female member of Les Six, 88
• November 15 – John Grimaldi, English keyboard player and songwriter (Argent), 28
• November 19 – Tommy Evans, bassist of the rock group Badfinger, 36 (suicide)
• December 6 – Lucienne Boyer, singer, 80
• December 11 – Simon Laks, Polish composer and violinist, 82
• December 28 – Dennis Wilson, American singer, songwriter and drummer, 39 (drowned)
• date unknown
  • Antonio Mairena, Andalusian flamenco singer, 73 or 74
  • Pat Smythe, Scottish-born jazz pianist, 59 or 60

Awards

Grammy Awards

• Grammy Awards of 1983

Eurovision Song Contest

• Eurovision Song Contest 1983

Charts

US no. 1 hits

• Hot 100 no. 1 hits of 1983

US top 40 hits

• Billboard Top 40 of 1983

See also:

• 1983 in music (UK)
• Record labels established in 1983