On This Day In History

[Bikkie]

1930
First New Zealand-made 'talkie' screened
Coubray-tone news, the work of the inventive Ted Coubray, had its first public screening at Auckland's Plaza Theatre.



In Music History

2021-Gerry Marsden of Gerry and the Pacemakers dies at 78.

2019-Lifetime airs the first installment of the six-part series Surviving R. Kelly, which documents the singer's alleged sex crimes. John Legend is among those speaking out against Kelly in the series.

2017-Janet Jackson gives birth to her first child, a baby boy named Eissa Al Mana, at age 50. The father is the singer's husband, Qatari billionaire Wissam Al Mana.

2014-Phil Everly of The Everly Brothers dies of complications from lung disease at age 74.

2008-Britney Spears suffers from a mental breakdown in Beverly Hills, where she refuses to hand over her sons Jayden James and Sean Preston to their father, Kevin Federline. Britney is eventually taken to Los Angeles' Cedars-Sinai Medical Center via ambulance and is admitted as a "special needs" patient.


Britney Spears Gets A Quickie Wedding
2004-Britney Spears marries her childhood friend Jason Alexander (not the actor) at the Little White Wedding Chapel in Las Vegas.

DMB Debuts "I Did It" On Napster
2001-The Dave Matthews Band become the first major artist to release a song on Napster when "I Did It" debuts on the controversial file-sharing platform.

1997-Researchers at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm publish an article called "Nitric Oxide And Inflammation: The Answer Is Blowing In The Wind" in the journal Nature Medicine. The article deals with the detection of mucosal inflammation, and while we can't speak to its medical efficacy, it does reveal a trend of biomedical researchers using Bob Dylan song titles and lyrics in their articles. The Swedish scientists had a friendly bet going to see how many Dylan references they could inject into their published work; a later study reveals hundreds of medical articles that had borrowed from Dylan, with the most popular song being "The Times They Are A-Changin'.

1995-Canadian news anchor Byron MacGregor, who reached #4 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1974 with his version of "Americans," dies of complications from pneumonia in Detroit, Michigan, at age 46.

1989-The Arsenio Hall Show debuts in syndication, bringing a spate of contemporary musical acts - including many hip-hop artists - to late night during its five-season run. Highlights include Mariah Carey's national TV debut in 1990, and a 1992 appearance by Bill Clinton, who uses his airtime to win over young voters on this way to the White House.

1987-The second class of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is announced, and it includes the first woman: Aretha Franklin. The Coasters, Eddie Cochran, Bo Diddley, Marvin Gaye, Bill Haley, Clyde McPhatter, Rick Nelson, Roy Orbison, Carl Perkins, Smokey Robinson, and Jackie Wilson also enter.

1981-David Bowie finishes his Broadway run as the title character in the play The Elephant Man.

1980-Mellow rocker Kurt Vile is born in Lansdowne, Pennsylvania.

1980-R&B singer and pianist Amos Milburn dies after a series of strokes in Houston, Texas, at age 52. He is known for the 1953 hit "One Bourbon, One Scotch, One Beer."

1976-American interest in The Bay City Rollers peaks as their song "Saturday Night" hits #1 for one week, which is good enough to get their faces on cereal boxes.

1974-Bob Dylan begins a 6-week tour in Chicago with The Band, who do double duty: backing Dylan and then playing their own set. In July, the double album Before The Flood is released, featuring highlights from the shows.

1970-Davy Jones announces he's leaving The Monkees, essentially dissolving the group, which had dwindled to a duo.

1970-Melody Maker names Al Stewart's Love Chronicles its folk album of the year.

1970-B.J. Thomas' "Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head" hits #1 in the US for the first of four weeks.

1970-Four days after learning that their movie Let It Be will be released in theaters, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr meet at Abbey Road Studios and record "I Me Mine" for the film and soundtrack.

1967-The Bee Gees set sail from Australia, where they've been living the past nine years, and head to England, the land of their birth, where they arrive five weeks later.

1967-Declaring himself a conscientious objector, The Beach Boys' Carl Wilson refuses to be sworn in after receiving an induction notice from the US Army.

1964-A month before The Beatles make their iconic live debut in the US on the Ed Sullivan Show, Americans get their first look at the Fab Four when Jack Paar shows a film clip of the band performing "She Loves You" on his TV show'

1957-Fats Domino records "I'm Walking."

1956-Elvis Presley plays a show at the Von Theater in Booneville, Mississippi, where he is advertised as "The Folk Music Fireball."

1946-Led Zeppelin bass player John Paul Jones is born in Sidcup, Kent, England.

1945-Stephen Stills of Buffalo Springfield, and later, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, is born in Dallas, Texas. As a solo artist, he has a hit with his 1970 single "Love The One You're With."

1943-Songwriter and musician Van Dyke Parks, known for his work with The Beach Boys, is born in Hattiesburg, Mississippi.

1926-Beatles producer George Martin is born in London. He signs the group to EMI in 1962 and his expertise as an arranger helps shape the band's unique sound. Upon Martin's death in 2016, Paul McCartney states: "If anyone earned the title of the fifth Beatle it was George."

1916-Maxene Andrews of The Andrew Sisters is born in Mound, Minnesota, to a family that already includes older sister LaVerne and will welcome younger sister Patty in two years.

1909-Victor Borge - pianist, conductor and comedian - is born Borge Rosenbaum in Copenhagen, Denmark.

1900-Lawyer turned composer Maurice Jaubert is born in Nice, France.

1843-The opera Don Pasquale by Gaetano Donizetti and Giacomo Ruffini premieres in Paris.

[Bikkie]

1869 - Te Kooti is defeated at Ngatapa, Poverty Bay. He and his followers escape, though about 120 are later captured and executed. Te Kooti and his key lieutenants seek sanctuary with Tuhoe in the Urewera Ranges.

1896 - Utah enters the Union as the 45th state of the United States.

1936 - US Billboard magazine prints first popular music chart.

1948 - Burma (now Myanmar) becomes an independent republic.

1951 - North Korean and Communist Chinese forces take Seoul, South Korea.

1958 - Sir Edmund Hillary's team become the first to reach the South Pole overland since Robert Falcon Scott in 1912, and the first to do so in motor vehicles.

1960 - French author Albert Camus dies in a car accident, aged 46.

1964 - Pope Paul VI begins the first visit by a pope to Jerusalem.

1965 - Poet TS Eliot dies, aged 76.

2007 - Nancy Pelosi becomes the first female Speaker of the US House of Representatives.

2010 - The world's tallest building, Dubai's Burj Khalifa, opens.

2016 - Robert Stigwood, Australian impresario who produced the Saturday Night Fever and Grease films and soundtracks, dies aged 81.



In Music History

2020-Mariah Carey becomes the first artist to top the Hot 100 in four different decades when "All I Want For Christmas Is You" stays at #1 for a third week.

2013-Rob Caggiano, longtime lead guitarist for the band Anthrax, announces he's quitting the band. The split is affirmed by all members as amicable, with Caggiano hinting that he'd like to work on other projects.

2013-Sammy Johns, who wrote and recorded "Chevy Van," dies at age 66.

2012-Bryan Ferry, 66, marries Amanda Sheppard, 29. Sheppard dated Ferry's son Isaac for a short time.

2011-Gerry Rafferty, who had a huge solo hit with "Baker Street" and was also a member of Stealers Wheel, dies at age 63.

2011-Grady Chapman of The Robins dies at age 81.

2010-After a concert in Paris, Marilyn Manson (40) proposes to his girlfriend, the actress Evan Rachel Wood (22). She accepts but they never get married and Wood later alleges abuse.

2007-Nikki Bacharach, daughter of popular composer Burt Bacharach and actress Angie Dickinson, commits suicide at age 40 after a lifelong battle with Asperger's syndrome. She was the inspiration for her dad's 1969 song "Nikki."

1991-Nirvana sign with Geffen Records. In September, their album Nevermind is released.

1986-After a long battle with addiction, Thin Lizzy frontman Phil Lynott dies at age 36.

1979-Due to renewed interest in The Beatles, the Star Club in Hamburg, Germany, reopens to the public. The club had been an important stepping stone for the band, as they played a residency there early on.

1975-Elton John's "Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds" hits #1 in the US. The Beatles' original, released in 1967 on the Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band album, wasn't released as a single.

1973-Neil Young kicks off his Time Fades Away tour in Madison, Wisconsin with Linda Ronstadt his opening act. Ronstadt is used to playing clubs, but wins over crowds at arenas throughout the tour with her mighty pipes. The following year, she releases her breakthrough album Heart Like A Wheel.

1973-The Allman Brothers Band publicly announce Lamar Williams as their replacement for recently deceased bassist Berry Oakley.

1972-Yes releases "Roundabout."

1970-The Who's Keith Moon accidentally runs over his chauffeur, Neil Boland, killing him. Apparently, Moon's car was under attack from some unruly teenagers, and when Boland jumped out to get them to move, Moon, in a panic, got behind the wheel to drive the car away himself. Unfortunately, the crowd had since pushed Boland under the car.

1968-Jimi Hendrix spends the night in a Swedish jail after trashing a hotel room, reportedly during a fight with his bandmate Noel Redding.

1967-The Doors break on through with their eponymous debut album. The Doors is a hit with listeners and critics alike and produces the single "Light My Fire," which quickly hits #1 in the US.

1966-Deana Carter is born in Nashville. Her dad is country guitarist Fred Carter, Jr.

1965-Leo Fender sells Fender Guitars to CBS for $13 million.

1965-Portishead lead singer Beth Gibbons is born in Devon, England.

1965-David Glasper of Breathe is born in Wales.

1964-Bobby Vinton's "There! I've Said It Again" hits #1 in the US for the first of four weeks.

1962-Robin Guthrie of Cocteau Twins is born in Grangemouth, Scotland.

1962-Peter Steele, the 6' 8" leader of the doom-rock band Type O Negative, is born in Brooklyn, New York.

1960-Marty Robbins' "El Paso" hits #1 in the US despite running a shocking 4:40.

1960-R.E.M. frontman Michael Stipe is born in Decatur, Georgia. In 1980, he befriends Peter Buck, a store clerk at Wuxtry Records in nearby Athens who shares his weird taste in music. They quickly bring Mike Mills and Bill Berry into the fold and just one year later release their debut single, "Radio Free Europe."

1957-Louis Jordan records "Nobody Knows You When You're Down And Out."

1957-Elvis Presley reports for his pre-induction Army physical in Memphis.

1957-On NBC's Steve Allen Show, former heavyweight boxing champ Joe Louis introduces the world to singer Solomon Burke, who performs Louis' song "You Can Run, But You Can't Hide."

1957-Patty Loveless is born Patty Lee Ramey in Pikeville, Kentucky. Her professional surname takes inspiration from her former married name, Lovelace.

1956-Bernard Sumner of New Order is born in Manchester, England.

1955-Talk Talk leader Mark Hollis is born in London.

1954-A young truck driver named Elvis Presley pays to record two songs at the Memphis Recording Service. It's his second visit, and this time MRS head Sam Phillips gets his number and later calls him to record for his Sun label.

1946-Arthur Conley, famous for his hit "Sweet Soul Music," is born in Georgia.

1942-Jazz guitarist John McLaughlin is born in Doncaster, England.

1936-Billboard magazine publishes their first "Hit Parade," which ranks songs based on sales and airplay. The first #1: "Stop! Look! Listen!" by Joe Venuti & his Orchestra.

1932-NBC begins airing The Carnation Contented Hour (named for the sponsor, Carnation Milk), which features performances by top musical acts. The show runs for 19 years.

1926-Songwriter Irving Berlin marries Ellin Mackay, heiress to the Postal Telegraph Cable Company. They remain married until her death in 1988.

[Bikkie]

1554- Great fire in Eindhoven, Netherlands
1593 -William Louis of Nassau becomes governor/viceroy of Drenthe
1638- Petition in Recife Brazil leads to closing of their 2 synagogues
1649 -Francesco Cavalli's opera "Giasone" premieres in Venice (the most popular opera of the 17th century)

1836- Davy Crockett arrives in Nacogdoches, Texas, to aid the revolution

Ford's $5 Day
1914- Industrialist Henry Ford announces his $5 minimum per-day wage, doubling most workers pay from $2.40 for a 9hr day to $5 for an 8hr day




In Music History

2019-The Flaming Lips frontman Wayne Coyne marries Katy Weaver in his hometown of Oklahoma City. The wedding itself takes place inside a plastic bubble like the one Coyne uses to surf crowds.

2017-Babymetal guitarist Mikio Fujioka dies from injuries resulting from a December 30 fall from an observation deck.

2016-Guns N' Roses confirm that Slash and Duff McKagan, who have not performed with the band since 1993, will join them for their headline set at Coachella. They later announce a full tour with Slash and McKagan.

2015-Good Charlotte's Benji Madden marries actress Cameron Diaz. Nicole Richie and Drew Barrymore are among the bridesmaids.

2010-Record producer Willie Mitchell, who ran Royal Studios in Memphis, Tennessee, dies of a cardiac arrest at age 81.

2009-Sam "The Bluzman" Taylor dies of complications from heart disease in Islandia, New York, at age 74.

2005-Amerie releases "1 Thing."

2005-Danny Sugerman, second manager for The Doors who wrote a number of books about the band, dies of lung cancer at age 50.

2004-Ray Davies of The Kinks is shot in the leg when he pursues two men who snatched his girlfriend's purse. He sings about it on his 2018 track "The Big Guy."

2003-Little Richard guest stars on the "Special Edna" episode of The Simpsons.

Billie Joe Armstrong Arrested For DUI
2003-Green Day lead singer Billie Joe Armstrong is arrested for drunk driving in Berkeley, California, after he is caught speeding in his BMW convertible and blows a .18.More

2002-With the Pittsburgh Steelers down 24-7 in a playoff game against the Cleveland Browns, they play "Renegade" by Styx, which fires up the crowd and impels them to a comeback win. The song becomes a regular feature at Steelers home games, played in the second half when the team needs a boost.

1998-Ken Forssi (original bassist for Love) dies of a brain tumor in Tallahassee, Florida, at age 54.

1998-In the Ally McBeal episode "Cro-Magnon," a thirty-something Ally is reminded of her ticking biological clock when she hallucinates a baby dancing to the tune of Blue Swede's "Hooked On A Feeling." By the end of the episode, Ally relents and grooves along with the tot

1998-Sonny Bono (of Sonny & Cher) dies in a skiing accident in Nevada, near South Lake Tahoe, California, at age 62. An advanced skier, he goes off course to do some "tree skiing" when he crashes and dies. His wife and two children are with him on the slopes, but don't witness the accident.

1997-Johnny Cash plays Coyote, Homer Simpson's imaginary guru, on The Simpsons. Coyote tells Homer to buy more material possessions.

1991-Madonna's "Justify My Love," a new song included on her compilation album The Immaculate Collection, goes to #1 in America, her ninth topper on the tally. The song, co-written by Lenny Kravitz, gets a lot of attention thanks to its video, which was banned by MTV and subsequently released on home video.

1981-DJ/producer Deadmau5 is born in Niagara Falls, Canada. His birth name is Joel Zimmerman; he takes the name Deadmau5 (pronounced "Deadmouse") as his chatroom handle after claiming to find a dead mouse in his computer.

1980-"Rapper's Delight" by The Sugarhill Gang becomes first rap song to hit the Top 40 when it reaches #37 on the chart.

Disco Rules With The Saturday Night Fever Soundtrack
1979-The double-album soundtrack to the film Saturday Night Fever reaches sales of 25 million worldwide, making it the best-selling LP in history.


1979-Jazz double bassist Charlie Mingus dies of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig's disease, in Cuernavaca, Mexico, at age 56.

1976-Former Beatles road manager Mal Evans is shot and killed by police in Los Angeles after he brandishes an unloaded rifle (some claim it was an air gun) after becoming despondent.

1975-The Wiz premieres at the Majestic Theatre on Broadway. An adaptation of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz with an all-black cast, it stars future disco diva Stephanie Mills ("Never Knew Love") as Dorothy. In 1978, the production is turned into a movie starring Michael Jackson and Diana Ross.

1974-Bruce Springsteen performs "Rosalita" for the first time at a concert at Joe's Place in Boston. The song becomes a live favorite that Bruce often plays as an encore.

1974-The Carpenters' compilation album The Singles 1969-1973 hits #1.

1969-Marilyn Manson is born Brian Hugh Warner in Canton, Ohio. Contrary to the urban myth, Warner does not start his entertainment career playing Paul on The Wonder Years (that would be Josh Saviano). After a stint as a music journalist, he teams up with guitarist Scott "Daisy Berkowitz" Putesky and reinvents himself as Marilyn Manson i

1968-Bob Dylan's Greatest Hits album is certified gold.

1967-In order to avoid the draft, folk singer Jesse Winchester moves to Canada.

1966-Kate Schellenbach (drummer for Luscious Jackson) is born in New York City, New York.

1965-The Supremes record "Stop! In The Name Of Love" at Motown studios in Detroit. Soon after, they embark on the first Motown revue tour in Europe.

1963-Leonard Chess, co-founder of Chess records, tells Billboard magazine, "As it stands today, there's virtually no difference between rock and roll, pop and rhythm and blues. The music has completely overlapped."

1963-Grant Young (drummer for Soul Asylum) is born in Iowa City, Iowa.

1960-Phil Thornalley, "Torn" songwriter and producer of The Cure's Pornography album, is born in Worlington, near Mildenhall, Suffolk, England.

1950-Chris Stein (guitarist for Blondie) is born in Brooklyn, New York.

1949-George "Funky" Brown (drummer for Kool & the Gang) is born in Jersey City, New Jersey.

1941-Carmen Miranda records "Chica Chica Boom Chic."

1940-The FCC hears the first demonstration of FM radio.

1932-Blues singer Johnny Adams, known for the '60s hits "Release Me" and "Reconsider Me," is born Laten John Adams in New Orleans, Louisiana.

1929-R&B singer Wilbert Harrison - who wrote the 1962 hit "Let's Stick Together," later known as "Let's Work Together" by Canned Heat - is born in Charlotte, North Carolina.

1923-Record producer Sam Phillips, founder of Sun Records (which launched careers for Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins and Johnny Cash), is born in Florence, Alabama.

1875-Paris' Palais Garnier, one of the most famous opera houses in the world, is inaugurated. Fourteen years previously, Parisian workers attempting to lay the concrete foundations of the opera house uncovered a vast swampy lake. That lake swirling beneath the building and its surrounding cellars inspire Gaston Leroux to write The Phantom of the Opera in 1910.

1649-The opera Giasone by Francesco Cavalli premieres in Venice.

[Bikkie]

1661- The Fifth Monarchists unsuccessfully attempt to seize control of London

1681- First recorded boxing match is organized by Christopher Monck, 2nd Duke of Albemarle, between his butler and his butcher

1690 -Joseph I, later Holy Roman Emperor and son of Emperor Leopold I, becomes King of the Romans and King in Germany

1720- The Committee of Inquiry on the South Sea Bubble publishes its findings

1745- Bonnie Prince Charlies' Jacobite army draws close to Glasgow

1773- Massachusetts slaves petition legislature for freedom

1781- Battle of Jersey: Major Francis Peirson and his men defeat invading French troops

1784- Turkey and Russia sign a treaty in Constantinople

1960-New Zealand's first official TV broadcast
Broadcast from Shortland St in central Auckland, New Zealand’s first official television transmission began at 7.30 p.m.



In Music History

2024-Tool frontman Maynard James Keenan earns his Brazilian jiu jitsu black belt after 20 years of training.

2019-Kanye West debuts his weekly Sunday Service series at his home in Calabasas, California. The event, teased on social media by wife Kim Kardashian, features gospel-soul takes of Kanye's hits with the rapper's celebrity pals rounding out the congregation.

2017-Netflix launches a reboot of the '70s TV series One Day At A Time, this time with a theme song by Gloria Estefan and centered on a Cuban family. Estefan later appears on the show, playing Rita Moreno's sister.

2012-Wiz Khalifa is sued for $2.3 million over his hit song "Black and Yellow." Max Warren, who raps under the name "Maxamillion," claims Khalifa, his producers, and his label stole the song from him. In the lawsuit, Warren states that the idea for the song was taken from his copyrighted 2007 song "Pink and Yellow." Khalifa claims he's never heard of Warren or his music.

2012-NRBQ drummer Tom Ardolino dies of complications from diabetes at age 56.

2009-Ron Asheton (guitarist for The Stooges) is found dead of an apparent heart attack in Ann Arbor, Michigan, at age 60.

2007-"Sneaky Pete" Kleinow (pedal steel guitarist for The Flying Burrito Brothers), suffering from Alzheimer's, dies in Petaluma, California, at age 72.

1999Jazz pianist Michel Petrucciani dies at age 36. Born with a debilitating genetic condition, he became a top performer in his native France.

1999-Photographed by Annie Liebowitz, the Backstreet Boys appear in a print campaign with milk mustaches to promote the beverage.

1998-11-year-old Zac Hanson becomes the youngest songwriter ever nominated for a Grammy when Hanson's debut hit, "MMMbop," is considered for Record of the Year and Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal.

1996-Eazy-E's posthumous single "Just Tah Let U Know" hits #45 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.

1993-Rolling Stones bass player Bill Wyman leaves the group after 30 years of service. "I left because I didn't see anything new happening in the future," he says. "I realized if we played for another 10 years I'd still be playing 'Jumpin' Jack Flash,' 'Honky Tonk Women,' 'Street Fighting Man' until we packed up."

1993-Lucky Thirteen, a Neil Young compilation album with four previously unreleased tracks, hits stores. It's his second compilation album, with the first being the Decade triple album released in 1977.

1993-Jazz trumpeter Dizzy Gillespie dies of pancreatic cancer in Englewood, New Jersey, at age 75.

1992-Steve Gilpin (vocalist for MI-sex) dies after a severe car accident leaves him in a coma in Southport, Queensland, Australia, at age 42.

1987-In Australia, Elton John has throat surgery to remove a lesion on his vocal chords, forcing him to cancel his upcoming US tour. It's good news: the lesion isn't cancerous and he makes a full recovery.

1986-Following a suicide attempt and an alcohol-fueled nervous breakdown, Judas Priest frontman Rob Halford finally goes to rehab. He gets out a month later, completes the Turbo album with the band, and manages to stay sober.

1986-Arctic Monkeys frontman Alex Turner is born in Sheffield, England.

1980-Georgeanna Tillman (of The Marvelettes) dies of lupus and sickle cell anemia a month shy of her 36th birthday.

1979-The Bee Gees' "Too Much Heaven" hits #1 for the first of two weeks.

1979-Barbra Streisand's Greatest Hits, Volume 2 album hits #1 in America.

1977-KISS' Rock And Roll Over album is certified Platinum.

A Talkbox Of Fun On Frampton Comes Alive
1976-Peter Frampton's live double album, Frampton Comes Alive!, is released. Powered by his trusty talkbox sound, it becomes one of the best-selling live albums in history.

1975-Pink Floyd begin recording their album Wish You Were Here after abandoning an earlier concept of an album recorded entirely with household objects.

1973-Carly Simon's "You're So Vain" hits #1 on the Hot 100. Listeners wonder just who the mystery man with the apricot jacket (high fashion!) is.

1968-Gibson patents their "Flying V" electric guitar.

1964-The Rolling Stones begin their first headlining UK tour. Opening act: The Ronettes.

1964-Mark O'Toole (bass player for Frankie Goes To Hollywood) is born in Liverpool, England.

1959-Neil Simpson (bass player for Climax Blues Band) is born in Stoke-on-Trent, England. At age four, he receives a toy guitar featuring a picture of The Beatles.

1959-Kathy Sledge (of Sister Sledge) rounds out the R&B group when she's born the youngest of the five sisters in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

1958-Jerry Lee Lewis' "Great Balls of Fire" hits #2, where it stays for four weeks before dropping down. It is held out of the top spot all four weeks by "At The Hop" by Danny & the Juniors.

1958-Danny and the Juniors' "At The Hop" hits #1 for the first of seven weeks.

1957-Elvis Presley makes his third and final appearance on the Ed Sullivan Show, where he performs seven songs in three segments, including "Hound Dog," "Don't Be Cruel" and "Heartbreak Hotel." He is only seen from the waist up, leaving viewers to speculate as to what the screams in the audience are about.

1956-Lonnie Donegan's cover of "Rock Island Line" enters the UK charts, eventually selling over three million copies and kicking off the national skiffle craze.

1953-Malcolm Mitchell Young (guitarist for AC/DC) is born in Glasgow, Scotland.

1951-Blues singer Kim Wilson (of Fabulous Thunderbirds) is born in Detroit, Michigan, but will be raised in Goleta, California.

1947-Sandy Denny is born Alexandra Denny in London. She becomes lead singer of Fairport Convention and the only guest vocalist to appear on a Led Zeppelin song ("The Battle Of Evermore").

1946-Pink Floyd founder Syd Barrett is born Roger Keith Barrett in Cambridge, England. He's the band's leader in their early years but suffers from mental illness that leads to erratic behavior and his ouster in 1968. The band moves forward with Roger Waters and David Gilmour at the helm.

1940-Van McCoy is born in Washington, D.C. Known for the 1975 disco hit "The Hustle," he also writes a string of '60s hits, including "Giving Up" (Gladys Knight & the Pips and, later, Donny Hathaway) and "I Get the Sweetest Feeling" (Jackie Wilson).

1937-R&B singer-songwriter Doris Troy is born Doris Elaine Higginsen in The Bronx, New York.

1935-Nino Tempo is born Antonino LoTempio in Niagara Falls, New York. In 1963, he scores a #1 hit on the pop charts with "Deep Purple," a duet with his sister, April Stevens.

1934-Country musician Bobby Lord is born in Sanford, Florida, but is raised in Tampa. His biggest hit on the country chart is "Without Your Love" (1956) at #10.

1924-Bluegrass musician Earl Scruggs (The Bluegrass Boys, The Foggy Mountain Boys) is born near Boiling Springs, North Carolina.

1838-Romantic composer Max Bruch is born in Cologne, Germany.

[Bikkie]

Guy Menzies’ aeroplane at Harihari
1931
Bumpy landing for Tasman’s first solo flyer
Australian Guy Menzies’ flight from Sydney ended awkwardly when he crash-landed in a swamp at Harihari on the West Coast.



In Music History

2020-Rascal Flatts announce they are breaking up following a farewell tour slated for June. They don't get the chance, as the tour is cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic.

2020-Rush drummer/lyricist Neil Peart dies of brain cancer at 67.

2013-Justin Bieber fans are the target of an online trolling campaign. Members of the image board 4chan claim to be implementing an awareness campaign to encourage the pop star to say "no" to drugs. The campaign's premise is "Cut for Bieber," and fans are encouraged to cut themselves and post photos of the damage online accompanied by the #CutForBieber tag on Twitter. Several hoax accounts post results in "response," but it appears no actual Bieber fans fall for the ploy. Earlier in October, a similar troll campaign called "Bald for Bieber" fizzled out, too. That one encouraged fans to shave their heads for the pop star based on the false rumor that he had cancer.

2013-Seattle hip-hop artist Freddy E dies at age 22 of an apparent suicide.

2013-R&B singer Sam Pace (of The Esquires) dies at age 68.

2012-"The One That Got Away" from Katy Perry's album Teenage Dream hits #1 on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Songs chart, making the album the first in history with seven #1s on that tally.

2012-Beyoncé and Jay-Z have their first child: a daughter named Blue Ivy Carter.

2011-Ed Sheeran releases what will be his final independent EP, No.5 Collaborations Project, in the UK. The EP goes on to reach #2 on the UK's iTunes chart, despite Ed having no label.

2011-Bobby Robinson, who did production work for Gladys Knight & the Pips and Elmore James, dies at age 93.

2009-At the People's Choice Awards, Carrie Underwood is the night's big winner, taking home the Favorite Female Singer, Country Song ("Last Name") and Favorite Star Under 35 Awards. Rascal Flatts takes the award for Favorite Group.

2006-Pink marries the motocross rider Carey Hart in Costa Rica.

2004-Chris Robinson (of The Black Crowes) and actress Kate Hudson's son, Ryder Russell, is born.

1999-Rod Stewart and the supermodel Rachel Hunter announce the end of their eight-year marriage.

1997-David Bowie's 50th birthday bash takes place at New York City's Madison Square Garden in the form of a charity concert benefiting Save the Children. Bowie's famous pals - including Sonic Youth, Lou Reed, Robert Smith, Billy Corgan, and Foo Fighters, among others - pay tribute with renditions of the singer's tunes. Bowie closes out the event with his 1969 hit "Space Oddity."

1992-Debbie Gibson makes her Broadway debut, playing Eponine in Les Miserables. It's the beginning of a long stage career for Gibson, who goes on to perform in productions of Grease and Beauty and the Beast.

1981-Eagles Live is certified Platinum; it is 13 years until the next Eagles album is released.

1980-R&B singer Larry Williams dies at age 44 of a gunshot wound to the head in what's eventually deemed a suicide, though some speculate he was murdered. Known for a string of enduring rock 'n roll hits from the mid-'50s, including "Bony Moronie" and "Short Fat Fannie."

1980-Led Zeppelin's In Through The Out Door is certified Platinum; it is the last Zep album issued while drummer John Bonham is alive.

1980-Doo-wop singer Carl White (lead vocalist for The Rivingtons) dies of acute tonsillitis in Los Angeles, California, at age 48.

1974-Carly Simon and James Taylor welcome their first child, Sally Taylor.

1973-Sean Paul is born Sean Paul Ryan Francis Henriques in Kingston, Jamaica.

1972-Bread's soft rock classic "Baby I'm-A Want You" is certified Gold.

1972-The St. Cleve Chronicle reports that a "Major Beat Group" will put music to the epic poem "Thick As A Brick," written by 8-year-old Gerald Bostock. The Society for Literary Advancement and Gestation (SLAG) had disqualified Bostock's poem from their competition, citing an "extremely unwholesome attitude towards life, his God and Country.

1971-The film Performance, starring Mick Jagger, premieres in London two years after its completion.

1970-Max Yasgur, whose farm in upstate New York hosted the original Woodstock Festival, is sued for $35,000 in property damages by neighboring farmers.

Charley Pride Plays The Grand Ole Opry
1967-Charley Pride becomes the first African American solo singer to perform at the Grand Old Opry in Nashville. He is invited to perform at the venerable country music mecca after the success of his hit "Just Between You and Me," which makes it to #9 on the Country music chart.

1964-Blues musician Cyril Davies (of Blues Incorporated) dies of endocarditis, an inflammation of the inner layer of the heart, at age 31, a year after contracting pleurisy, an inflammation of the lining of the lungs.

1963-Gary U.S. Bonds sues Chubby Checker, claiming that Checker's "Dancing Party" is essentially a rewrite of Bonds' hit "Quarter To Three." The case is settled out of court.

1959-Go-Go's guitarist/bassist Kathy Valentine is born in Austin, Texas.

1956-Dean Martin's "Memories Are Made of This" hits #1 in America for the first of six weeks, proving there's still room for crooners in the rock era.

1955-Marian Anderson is the first African-American singer to appear at the Metropolitan Opera. Her performance as Ulrica in Giuseppe Verdi's Un ballo in maschera breaks barriers for black artists in the States.

1954-Muddy Waters records "Hoochie Coochie Man" at Chess Records in Chicago. It becomes a blues standard, with a feral energy that influences a new sound that's emerging: rock and roll.

1950-Ernest Tubb makes his first appearance at The Grand Ole Opry in Nashville, Tennessee.

1950-Gene Autry's "Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer," based on a children's book written in 1939, hits #1 on the Billboard singles chart.

1948-Kenny Loggins is born in Everett, Washington, but eventually settles with his family in Alhambra, California.

1946-Andy Brown (drummer for The Fortunes) is born in Birmingham, England.

1946-Magazine magnate Jann Wenner, most famous for his work with Rolling Stone and for his role in establishing the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, is born in New York City.

1945-Dave Cousins (lead singer for The Strawbs) is born David Joseph Hindson in Hounslow, Middlesex, England.

1944-Michael McCartney is born in Liverpool, England. As "Mike McGear," he forms a band called The Scaffold, but he's best known as the younger brother of Paul McCartney.

1943-Country singer Leona Williams is born Leona Belle Helton in Vienna, Missouri. She writes the Merle Haggard hits "Someday When Things Are Good" and "You Take Me For Granted."

1942-Pop singer Danny Williams is born in Port Elizabeth, Eastern Cape, South Africa.

1939-Lefty Baker (guitarist, vocalist for Spanky & Our Gang) is born Eustace Britchforth in Roanoke, Virginia.

1938-Rory Storm (lead singer of Rory Storm and the Hurricanes) is born Alan Caldwell in Liverpool, England.

1937-Paul Revere (keyboardist for Paul Revere & the Raiders) is born Paul Revere Dick in Harvard, Nebraska.

1936-Jazz double-bass and cello player Eldee Young (Young/Holt Unlimited, The Ramsey Lewis Trio) is born Chicago, Illinois.

1930-Country musician Jack Greene, known for the 1966 hit "There Goes My Everything," is born in Maryville, Tennessee.

1924-George Gershwin finishes work on "Rhapsody In Blue."

1899-Composer and pianist Francis Poulenc is born in Paris, France.

1842-The opera Stabat Mater by Gioacchino Rossini premieres in Paris.

[Bikkie]

1863
Haast begins West Coast expedition
In January 1863, geologist Julius von Haast led an expedition in search of an overland route from the east to the west coast of the South Island.



In Music History

2024-21 Savage releases the official trailer for his movie American Dream: The 21 Savage Story, starring Donald Glover and Caleb McLaughlin (Lucas from Stranger Things). There is no film: It's later revealed to be a marketing ploy to promote his American Dream album, which drops four days later and debuts at #1.

2021-Morgan Wallen releases Dangerous: The Double Album, with the hit "7 Summers." It debuts at #1 in America and stays there for 10 weeks, the longest run at the top since Drake's Views in 2016.

2021-Seventeen-year-old Olivia Rodrigo, known as an actress on various Disney shows, releases her debut single, "Drivers License," a heart-rending song that tops the charts in many territories, including America, where it stays at #1 for eight weeks.

2018-The college football national championship game stages a halftime show for the first time, with Kendrick Lamar taking the stage. Georgia is up 13-0 at the break, but Alabama comes back to win 26-23.

Blackstar Is Released Two Days Before David Bowie Dies
2016-David Bowie's Blackstar album is released on his 69th birthday. When Bowie dies two days later, it becomes clear that his ruminations on mortality are his parting words.

2015-Gospel singer Andraé Crouch dies of complications from a heart attack at age 72.

2014-Reather Dixon Turner of The Bobbettes dies at age 69.

2013-Enigmatic pop icon David Bowie releases the single "Where Are We Now?," from his upcoming album The Next Day. The date of the release also coincides with his birthday. It is his first release in over a decade.

2013-Twenty One Pilots release their breakthrough album, Vessel.

2012-Blues singer Dave Alexander, who sometimes recorded as Omar Shariff, dies at age 73.

2012-Rapper Ol' Dirty Bastard's FBI file is released. The report details nine arrests for the rapper, and says his group Wu-Tang Clan is "heavily involved in the sale of drugs, illegal guns, weapons possession, murder, carjacking and other types of violent crime."

2004-George Harrison's estate sues Dr. Gilbert Lederman of Staten Island University Hospital for $10 million, alleging he forced a dying Harrison to sign souvenirs for him.

2002-Fabian is awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 7065 Hollywood Blvd.

1997-Chuck D guest stars on the NBC sitcom NewsRadio episode "Rap," to face off against Phil Hartman's Bill McNeal, who is convinced rap music will destroy society.

Elvis Stamp Goes Into Circulation
1993-Shortly after midnight on what would have been Elvis's 58th birthday, a 29-cent stamp with his image is officially dedicated at a Graceland ceremony.

1991-Jeremy Delle, a 15-year-old student at Richardson High School in Texas, shoots himself in his English class. When Eddie Vedder reads about it, he writes the song "Jeremy" about Delle and other young people who have committed suicide in schools.

1991-Steve Clark of Def Leppard dies of an accidental drug overdose at age 30.

1989-Richard Marx marries Dirty Dancing actress Cynthia Rhodes, subject of his song "Right Here Waiting." They divorce in 2014.

1981-Linda Ronstadt makes her Broadway debut alongside Rex Smith and Kevin Kline in the revival of The Pirates of Penzance, which runs for 787 performances.

1980-Prince makes his national television debut, performing "I Wanna Be Your Lover" and "Why You Want To Treat Me So Bad" on the NBC variety show Midnight Special.

1979-Rush are named Canada's Official Ambassadors Of Music by the Canadian government.

1974-Kiss sign their first recording deal, with Casablanca Records.

1972-Dennis Coffey becomes the first white performer on Soul Train, performing his hit "Scorpio."

1969-Jeff Abercrombie of Fuel is born in Tennessee.

1968-Stax Records releases Otis Redding's "(Sittin' On) The Dock Of The Bay" and Sam & Dave's "I Thank You." Both are very successful, but neither artist scores another hit (Redding had died about a month earlier).

1967-R. Kelly is born Robert Sylvester Kelly in Chicago. He performs with the groups MGM (Musically Gifted Men) and Public Announcement before releasing his solo debut, 12 Play, in 1994, featuring the #1 hit "Bump N' Grind."

1966-Rubber Soul becomes The Beatles' seventh #1 US album. It stays at the top for six weeks.

1966-The last episode of Shindig on ABC features The Who and The Kinks.

1966-Mother Love Bone frontman Andrew Wood is born in Columbus, Mississippi.

1960-Harry Gifford dies at his London home, aged 82. He co-wrote "When I'm Cleaning Windows" with Fred Cliffe & George Formby.

1960-Eddie Cochran records "Three Steps To Heaven," which turns out to be his final recording session and his only #1 hit single in the UK.

1957-Rock and roll comes to Australia when Bill Haley, LaVern Baker and The Platters kick off a tour at Newcastle Stadium that continues on to West Melbourne Stadium and Sydney Stadium. It's the first rock stadium show, pre-dating the Beatles Shea Stadium concert by eight years.

1955-Loverboy frontman Mike Reno is born Joseph Michael Rynoski in New Westminster, Canada.

David Bowie Is Born
1947-David Jones is born in London. At age 18, he changes his name to David Bowie (after the Bowie knife) to avoid confusion with Davy Jones of The Monkees.

1947-Terry Sylvester of The Hollies is born.

1946-The Doors guitarist Robby Krieger is born in Los Angeles.

1943-Marcus Hutson of The Whispers is born in St. Louis, Missouri.

1943-Lee Jackson of The Nice is born in Newcastle upon Tyne, England.

1940-Jerome "Little Anthony" Gourdine of Little Anthony & the Imperials is born in Brooklyn, New York.

1937-Shirley Bassey is born in Cardiff, Wales. Known for recording several of the James Bond themes in the '60s and '70s.

1935-The King is born: Elvis Aaron Presley

[Bikkie]

1900 -Founding of Lazio Football Club: On January 9, 1900, nine young athletes founded Società Podistica Lazio in Rome's Prati district, initially as a running club. The club later expanded to include football in 1901. source: sslazio.it

1901- Millionaires' Dinner and U.S. Steel Formation: On January 9, 1901, steel magnate Charles M. Schwab hosted the "Millionaire's Dinner" at the Hotel Schenley in Pittsburgh, bringing together 89 wealthy individuals to discuss the formation of U.S. Steel, a consolidation of major steel companies into a single corporation. source: en.wikipedia.org

1902- Discovery Expedition reaches Cape Adare: On January 9, 1902, the British National Antarctic Expedition, led by Robert Falcon Scott aboard the ship Discovery, arrived at Cape Adare in Victoria Land, Antarctica. The crew conducted a brief landing and examined the remains of Borchgrevink's camp before continuing their journey along the Victoria Land coast. source: en.wikipedia.org

1903- Wind Cave National Park established: Wind Cave National Park, located in South Dakota, was established on January 9, 1903, as the seventh national park in the United States. source: nps.gov

1905- Bloody Sunday: Spark of the 1905 Russian Revolution: On 9 January 1905, following the Bloody Sunday massacre on 5 January, widespread unrest and strikes erupted across Russia, marking the beginning of the 1905 Russian Revolution.

1907 George Pardee concludes gubernatorial term in California: George Pardee served as the 22nd Governor of California from 1903 to 1907. His term concluded on January 9, 1907. source: en.wikipedia.org

1909- First pilot's licenses issued in France: On January 9, 1909, France issued its first pilot's licenses, marking a significant development in aviation history. source: en.wikipedia.org

1913- Birth of Richard Nixon: Richard Milhous Nixon, the 37th President of the United States, was born on January 9, 1913, in Yorba Linda, California. source: archives.gov

1915- Woman's Peace Party Established: The Woman's Peace Party was established at an organizational convention held in Washington, D.C., on January 9–10, 1915. The gathering was attended by more than 100 delegates representing women's organizations from around the United States. Jane Addams was elected President of the new organization. source: britannica.com

1917- Battle of Rafa in World War I: On January 9, 1917, British forces captured the Ottoman garrison at El Magruntein, near Rafa, marking the completion of the Sinai Peninsula's recapture. The Desert Column, including the ANZAC Mounted Division and Imperial Camel Corps Brigade, faced strong resistance but succeeded after intense fighting. British casualties were 487, with 71 killed; Ottoman losses included 200 killed and 1,434 captured. source: en.wikipedia.org

1919 -Freikorps Deployment in Berlin: On January 9, 1919, the Freikorps, a paramilitary organization composed of World War I veterans, were deployed in Berlin. The Freikorps were mobilized to suppress the Spartacist uprising, a left-wing revolt aimed at establishing a socialist government in Germany. Their deployment marked a significant escalation in the use of paramilitary forces to maintain order during the volatile post-war period. source: en.wikipedia.org

1920 -Tragic shipwreck of the Treveal: On January 9, 1920, the ship Treveal sank, resulting in a significant loss of life. The incident highlighted the dangers of maritime travel during this period and led to discussions on improving safety regulations.

1921- First Battle of İnönü in Greco-Turkish War: The First Battle of İnönü occurred on January 9, 1921, during the Greco-Turkish War. Turkish forces successfully repelled Greek troops, marking a significant turning point in the conflict and boosting Turkish morale



In Music History

2013-At the People's Choice Awards, One Direction win Favorite Album (Up All Night) and Favorite Song ("What Makes You Beautiful"). Katy Perry gets Favorite Music Video ("Part of Me"), Favorite Female Artist, Favorite Pop Artist, and Favorite Music Fan Following for her fan club, the Katycats.

2012-The White Stripes frontman Jack White appears on the History Channel show American Pickers. In the episode, White buys a stuffed elephant head for the sticker price of $12,500.

Steve Jobs Announces The iPhone
2007-John Mayer joins Steve Jobs onstage at the Macworld Expo in San Francisco to introduce Apple's latest invention: the iPhone.

2006-The Phantom of the Opera becomes the longest-running Broadway show when it marks its 7,486th performance at the Majestic theater, breaking the record held by Cats, another Andrew Lloyd Webber musical.

2005-Mötley Crüe lead singer Vince Neil marries Lia Gerardini at a ceremony in Las Vegas officiated by MC Hammer, who shared a house with Neil on the reality show The Surreal Life. Among the guests are his bandmates Tommy Lee and Nikki Sixx, and basketball star Dennis Rodman. It's Neil's fourth marriage.

2005-D'Angelo is arrested for drunk driving in his Richmond, Virginia, hometown. He is also charged with possession of marijuana and possession of a controlled substance. The reclusive singer hasn't toured since 2000 and doesn't do so again until 2012.

2004-Miley Cyrus makes her movie debut in Tim Burton's Big Fish, playing 8-year-old Ruthie. She's credited as "Destiny Cyrus."

2003-MC Hammer and Vince Neil star in the first season of The Surreal Life on the WB network.

2002-MTV Cribs tours Mariah Carey's New York penthouse in a special one-hour episode. The pop star, who shows off her personal salon and department-store-sized closet, also demonstrates an elliptical workout in stilettos and enjoys a chaste bubble bath.

1999-Just seven months after hitting the top spot with his debut, DMX' second album, Flesh of My Flesh, Blood of My Blood, goes to #1 in America.

1991-Sinead O'Connor is named Worst-Dressed Woman of 1990 in Mr. Blackwell's annual list.

1984-Van Halen release their sixth album, 1984, which finds Eddie Van Halen playing synthesizer as well as guitar. It's their most popular album, reeling in new fans with radio-friendly songs like "Jump" and "I'll Wait" while feeding their faithful with rockers like "Panama" and "Hot For Teacher." Lead singer David Lee Roth leaves the next year, replaced by Sammy Hagar.

1981-Jazz drummer Cozy Cole, known for the 1958 hits "Topsy" and "Topsy II," dies of cancer at age 71.

1980-At The Fast Lane in Asbury Park, New Jersey, Bruce Springsteen takes the stage with the cover band Atlantic City Expressway to perform his song "The Promised Land." The group's lead singer is a 17-year-old high school kid named John Bongiovi, who later forms the band Bon Jovi.

1979-The Bee Gees perform "Too Much Heaven," the #1 song in America, at the Music For UNICEF Concert at the United Nations General Assembly in New York City, and also donate royalties from the song to the charity. Other performers include Donna Summer, Rod Stewart and John Denver. It airs on NBC the next night, and later, a soundtrack album is released.

1978-A.J. McLean of Backstreet Boys is born in West Palm Beach, Florida.

1973-Lou Reed marries a cocktail waitress named Betty. Not much is known of this union, but apparently it doesn't last very long.

1968-Carl Bell of Fuel is born in Kenton, Tennessee.

1967-Smash Mouth lead singer Steve Harwell is born in Santa Clara, California.

1967-Dave Matthews is born in Johannesburg, South Africa. He eventually settles in Charlottesville, Virginia, and forms The Dave Matthews Band.

1965-The Beatles' Beatles 65 jumps from #98 to #1 on the Billboard albums chart in one week. The group has two other entries in the Top 10 as well: A Hard Day's Night (#6) and The Beatles' Story (#7).

1963-Charlie Watts joins The Rolling Stones, replacing Tony Chapman as their drummer.

1963-Eric Erlandson of Hole is born in Los Angeles, California.

1962-Sam Cooke releases "Twistin' the Night Away."

1960-Patsy Cline becomes a member of the Grand Ole Opry.

1951-Crystal Gayle ("Don't It Make My Brown Eyes Blue") is born in Paintsville, Kentucky. She's the younger sister of country singer Loretta Lynn.

1950-David Johansen, lead singer of New York Dolls, is born in Staten Island, New York.

1948-Paul King of Mungo Jerry is born in Dagenham, Essex, England.

1947--Frank Sinatra records the Irving Berlin ballad "Always."

1944-James Patrick "Jimmy" Page is born in Heston, Middlesex, England. He is a session musician in England before forming The Yardbirds and Led Zeppelin.

1943-Scott Walker is born in Hamilton, Ohio. In the '60s, he has a number of UK hits as a solo artist and as a member of The Walker Brothers, who aren't actually brothers.

1943-Kenneth "Wally" Kelly, tenor vocalist in The Manhattans, is born in Jersey City, New Jersey.

1941-Singer Roy Head is born in Three Rivers, Texas. Known for the 1965 soul song "Treat Her Right."

1941-Joan Baez is born in Staten Island, New York. An unrelenting activist, she lends her voice and music to the Civil Rights Movement, leads protests against the Vietnam War, and fights to abolish the death penalty.

1898-Music hall star Gracie Fields is born Grace Stansfield at Rochdale, Lancashire, England.

1839-Composer John Knowles Paine is born in Maine.

[Bikkie]

Bishop Pompallier
1838
Catholic missionaries arrive in Hokianga
French Bishop Jean Baptiste François Pompallier arrived in Hokianga. His party celebrated their first mass three days later.


Ellen Dougherty, c.1895
1902
World's first state-registered nurses
Ellen Dougherty was one of the world’s first state-registered nurses. Grace Neill, Assistant Inspector in the Department of Asylums and Hospitals, advocated state registration of trained nurses, which was introduced by the Nurses’ Registration Act 1901.


Laura Hood and Dorothy Moncrieff wait for their husbands
1928
Pioneer aviators vanish over the Tasman
New Zealanders George Hood and John Moncrieff disappeared during a ‘gallant if somewhat ill-organised attempt’ to complete the first flight across the Tasman Sea.




In Music History

2025-Sam Moore, one of the soul men in the duo Sam & Dave, dies at 89.

2023-Jeff Beck dies at 78 after coming down with bacterial meningitis.

2019-In light of the Surviving R. Kelly miniseries, Lady Gaga pulls her 2013 R. Kelly collaboration, "Do What U Want," from streaming services and issues a statement supporting his accusers.

2018-Motörhead guitarist "Fast" Eddie Clark dies of complications from pneumonia at age 67.

2017-Buddy Greco dies in Las Vegas, Nevada, at age 90. Greco was a jazz singer who recorded several hit songs across all genres, his most popular being a cover of "The Lady is a Tramp." He also palled around with Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin, and was considered one of the Rat Pack's "mascots."

2016-Justin Bieber claims the top three spots on the UK singles chart, making him the first artist to do so. The songs:

#1: "Love Yourself"
#2: "Sorry"
#3: "What Do You Mean?"

2011-Margaret Whiting, a popular singer who duetted with Johnny Mercer on the seasonal favorite "Baby It's Cold Outside," dies at age 86.

2009-Fergie marries actor Josh Duhamel in Malibu, California. They split up eight years later.

2008-Panic! At The Disco announce they will be dropping their "!" with the release of their next album, Pretty. Odd.

2006-The High School Musical soundtrack is released. It sells 6000 copies its first week, but after the movie airs on January 20, it does a lot better, eventually selling over 4 million, making it the #1 album of 2006.

2003-British and Dutch police recover 500 Beatles master tapes missing since they were stolen from Abbey Road studios about 30 years earlier.

1999-The Sopranos debuts on HBO. Bruce Springsteen's guitarist, Steven Van Zandt, plays Silvio Dante, a character he modeled on his relationship with Bruce: Unlike most of Tony Soprano's inner circle, Silvio doesn't want to be the boss.

1997-James Brown gets a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

1995-Rory Gallagher plays his last concert, in the Netherlands. Five months later he dies of complications from a liver transplant.

1985-Chris Isaak releases his debut album, Silvertone. The LP is named after his three-piece backup band.

1979-Chris Smith, the half of Kris Kross known as "Daddy Mac," is born in Atlanta. The duo has a #1 hit in 1992 with "Jump."

1979-Richard Carpenter of the Carpenters enters the Menninger Clinic in Topeka, Kansas, to treat an addiction to quaaludes. He takes a year off after his treatment.

1978-Shinedown frontman Brent Smith is born Knoxville, Tennessee. He's the main songwriter in the band, delivering emotionally charged tunes like "Second Chance" and "A Symptom of Being Human."

1976-C.W. McCall's "Convoy" hits #1 in the US amid fascination with trucker culture and CB radios.

1969-Frustrated by a film crew recording the Let It Be sessions and plans his bandmates are making for a concert he wants no part of, George Harrison quits The Beatles, writing in his diary: "Got up. Went to Twickenham. Rehearsed until lunchtime. Left The Beatles. Went home." He is lured back a few days later with assurances that the concert would be cancelled and his wishes respected.

1964-Brad Roberts of Crash Test Dummies is born in Winnipeg, Canada. His super-deep voice powers their big hit, "Mmm Mmm Mmm Mmm."

1956-Folk singer Shawn Colvin is born in South Dakota. Her song "Sunny Came Home" (about a woman who burns her house down) wins the Grammy Awards for Record of the Year and Song of the Year in 1998.

1955-Rock guitarist Michael Schenker (of Scorpions and UFO) is born in West Germany.

1953-Pat Benatar is born Patricia Andrzejewski in Lindenhurst, Long Island, New York. Classically trained as a vocalist, she uses her exceptional range to soar into the choruses of hits like "Love Is A Battlefield" and "Hit Me With Your Best Shot." A fixture on MTV, she becomes one of the biggest stars of the '80s.

1953-Perry Como's "Don't Let The Stars Get In Your Eyes" hits #1 in the US.

1949-The vinyl record format war heats up as RCA introduces the 45-RPM, 7-inch record. It eventually replaces the 78-RPM record for "singles" - one song on each side. The format takes off in the early years of the rock era.

1948-Donald Fagen of Steely Dan is born in Passaic, New Jersey.

1946-Aynsley Dunbar (drummer for Journey, Whitesnake, and Jefferson Airplane) is born in Liverpool, England.

1945-Rod Stewart is born in London, England. He joins the Jeff Beck Group from 1967-69 and Faces from 1969-75, but makes his biggest impact as a solo artist.

1944-Frank Sinatra Jr. is born Francis Wayne Emmanuel Sinatra to legendary crooner Frank Sinatra and first wife, Nancy Barbato Sinatra, in Jersey City, New Jersey. The name Emmanuel is an homage to Frank Sr.'s friend Manie Sacks, then head of Columbia Records.

1943-Jim Croce is born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. His song "Bad, Bad Leroy Brown" hits #1 in July 1973, but Croce is killed in a plane crash just two months later. In the wake of his death, his song "Time In A Bottle" goes to #1.

1939-Scott McKenzie ("San Francisco (Be Sure To Wear Some Flowers In Your Hair)") is born Philip Wallach Blondheim in Jacksonville, Florida, but is raised in North Carolina.

1939-Actor Sal Mineo is born in New York City. His music connection is on the operatic stage, where he played in NBC Opera Theatre's 1954 production of Richard Strauss' Salome and directed Gian Carlo Menotti's The Medium in 1972.

1935-Ronnie Hawkins, whose group The Hawks is a precursor to The Band, is born in Huntsville, Arkansas.

1927-Johnnie Ray is born in Hopewell, Oregon. He becomes one of the most popular performers of the '50s, his career waning with the rise of rock and roll.

1927-Singer/violinist Gisele MacKenzie is born in Winnipeg. She finds popularity as a guest on several TV shows throughout the '50s, including The Jack Benny Program and Your Hit Parade.

1924-Jazz drummer Max Roach is born in North Carolina.

1917-Jerry Wexler is born in New York City. As a producer and executive with Atlantic Records, he plays a key role in the success of Aretha Franklin, Led Zeppelin and Wilson Pickett.

1915-Bandleader Buddy Johnson is born in Darlington, South Carolina.

1910-The French conductor Jean Martinon is born in Lyon, France.

[Bikkie]

Painting of Ruapekapeka pā, 1846
1846
Ruapekapeka pā occupied by British and Māori forces
The battle at Ruapekapeka (‘the bats’ nest’), a sophisticated pā built by the Ngāpuhi chief Kawiti, ended the Northern War. Debate soon raged as to whether the fortress had been deliberately abandoned or captured.



In Music History

2016-In the day after David Bowie's passing, his music videos on VEVO are viewed 51 million times, shattering the previous record of 36 million held by Adele after she released "Hello." Most of the views are for Bowie's last two videos, "Lazarus" and "Blackstar," which portend his death.

2013-Jimmy O'Neill, a DJ who hosted the TV show Shindig!, dies at age 73.

2013-Re/Create, a charity event to aid victims of 2012's Hurricane Sandy, holds a celebrity clothing auction. Among the items auctioned off are duds donated by music celebrities, including an autographed pair of Yeezy II sunglasses from Kanye West, a WeSC jacket Skrillex wore to the 2012 Grammys, a Mugler bag donated by Lady Gaga, and a Sue Wong evening gown from Kelly Osbourne.

2009-Bruce Springsteen wins Best Song from a Motion Picture for "The Wrestler" at the Golden Globe Awards. Mickey Rourke wins for Best Actor in a Drama for his work on the film.

2005-Jefferson Airplane drummer Spencer Dryden dies of cancer at age 66.

2003-Mickey Finn, who helped supply the beat of glam rock as the drummer for T. Rex, dies at age 55.

2000-After serving half of his four-month sentence for possession of child pornography, Gary Glitter is released from a British jail.

1999-Peter Tork of The Monkees guest stars as a bandleader on the "Best Man" episode of The King of Queens.

1999-Pop singer Miss Toni Fisher, known for the 1959 song "The Big Hurt," dies of a heart attack at age 68.

1998-Nike debuts its "I Can" commercial, introducing the British band The Verve to a wide American audience with the song "Bitter Sweet Symphony." The song becomes the band's only hit in the States, which is bittersweet because they had to sign away royalties to the song to get the publishing rights to the string sample.

1996-Kenny G's Breathless becomes the first album of mostly instrumental tracks certified Diamond for sales of 10 million in America.

1995-Sean McDonnell (lead singer, guitarist for Surgery) dies at age 30, four days after suffering a severe asthma attack.

1994-Diana Ross makes Mr. Blackwell's Worst-Dressed List. Blackwell refers to her as "a Martian meter maid."

1992-Nirvana's Nevermind album hits #1 in America, unseating Michael Jackson's Dangerous.

1992-Nirvana make their first appearance on Saturday Night Live. They leave a mark: after performing their hit "Smells Like Teen Spirit," they play "Territorial Pissings" for their second song, then trash their instruments and anything else they can find on stage.

1992-Paul Simon becomes the first international artist to perform in Johannesburg, South Africa, since the lifting of the UN boycott. Simon had violated the UN ban by traveling to South Africa years earlier to find musicians for his Graceland album.

1971-Tom Rowlands of The Chemical Brothers is born in Kingston upon Thames, England.

1971-Mary J. Blige is born in New York City. The "J." stands for Jane.

1967-Jimi Hendrix records "Purple Haze" at De Lane Lea Studios in London.

1964-The Whisky-a-Go-Go opens at Sunset Boulevard in West Hollywood, California, and quickly becomes a vital music venue. Some of the early acts to play the Whiskey include The Animals, The Doors and Otis Redding.

1964-Billboard publishes its first Country and Western Albums chart. Johnny Cash gets the first #1 with Ring of Fire.

1963-Despite warnings that a marriage would shatter his image as a teen idol, Frankie Avalon marries former beauty queen Kay Diebel. The union is successful and welcomes eight children, starting with Frankie Jr. in September.

1958-Vicki Peterson, who along with her sister, Debbi, forms The Bangles, is born in Los Angeles.

1949-Dennis Greene, singer with The Kingsmen and Sha Na Na, is born in New York City.

1946-Naomi Judd is born Diana Ellen Judd in Ashland, Kentucky. She and daughter Wynonna form the country duo The Judds and release their first album, Why Not Me, in 1984.

1942-Clarence Clemons, the saxophone player in Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band, is born in Virginia.

1933-Country singer Goldie Hill is born in Texas. She lands a contract with Decca Records and releases her #1 hit "I Let the Stars Get In My Eyes" in 1953.

1924-Bluesman Slim Harpo is born James Isaac Moore in Lobdell, Louisiana.

1895-Laurens Hammond, inventor of the Hammond organ, is born in Evanston, Illinois.

[Bikkie]

Queen Elizabeth II speaking in Parliament, 1954
1954
Queen Elizabeth II opens Parliament
A crowd of 50,000 greeted Queen Elizabeth II, resplendent in her coronation gown, when she opened a special session of the New Zealand Parliament in its centennial year.


In Music History

2023-Lisa Marie Presley, the only child of Elvis, dies of cardiac arrest at 54.

Proud Mary Movie Irks Fogerty
2018-The movie Proud Mary opens in theaters with the tagline, "killing for the Man every night and day." John Fogerty is not pleased, tweeting his disapproval.

2014-Beautiful: The Carole King Musical opens on Broadway. It wins a Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album and is nominated for a Tony Award for Best Musical.

2013-The 1974 Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow used by Freddie Mercury until his death in November 1991 is sold at an auction for £74,000 to a Russian businessman. It comes with a box of Kleenex Mansize tissues left in the car by the Queen frontman.

2013-Black Sabbath, complete with their newly reunited original frontman Ozzy Osbourne, announce the upcoming release of the album 13, the first Black Sabbath album in 18 years (since 1995's Forbidden).

2012-Lou Reed and John Cale of The Velvet Underground sue the Andy Warhol Foundation for licensing the iconic banana logo Warhol created for the band to third parties.

Vampire Weekend Release Contra With Unwitting Cover Girl
2010-Vampire Weekend release their second album, Contra, which goes to #1 in America. The cover girl is an unwilling subject, leading to a lawsuit.

2004-Randy VanWarmer, who had a hit in 1979 with "Just When I Needed You Most," dies of leukemia at age 48.

2003-While awaiting emergency surgery for a strangulated intestine, Maurice Gibb of the Bee Gees dies unexpectedly of a heart attack at age 53.

2002-Saturday Night Live skewers the uproar over the rumor that 'N Sync will be appearing in the latest installment of the Star Wars franchise, Attack of the Clones. The skit features an over-the-top cameo by the boy band, including Jimmy Fallon as Justin Timberlake, singing their hit "Bye Bye Bye" and a Star Wars-themed ballad about being a "Jedi knight in these Jedi days."

2002-Adam Ant, suffering from manic depression, is arrested after bringing a starter pistol to a London pub and threatening to shoot customers. He left to get the pistol after some patrons were poking fun at him for his clothing.

Britney Spears Releases Debut Album
1999-Britney Spears releases her first album, ...Baby One More Time.

1998-The 13th Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremonies are held in New York. Inductees include the Eagles, Fleetwood Mac, The Mamas & The Papas, Lloyd Price, Santana, and Gene Vincent.

1995-The 10th Annual Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremonies are held in New York. Inductees include The Allman Brothers Band, Al Green, Janis Joplin, Led Zeppelin, Martha and the Vandellas, Neil Young, and Frank Zappa.

1993-At the eighth annual Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony, Cream, Ruth Brown, Creedence Clearwater Revival, The Doors, Frankie Lymon & the teenagers, Etta James, Van Morrison, and Sly & the Family Stone are welcomed into the hall. Cream reunite on stage, but Morrison skips the ceremony, becoming the first living inductee to do so.

1993-Zayn Malik, the first One Direction member to go solo, is born in East Bowling, Bradford, England.

1992-The Rolling Stones' Mick Jagger and wife Jerry Hall have their third child, Georgia May Ayeesha.

1991-"I Touch Myself" by Australian new wave girl group Divinyls hits #1 on the Australian ARIA chart, #4 on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart, and #10 on the UK charts. This is a landmark event, as the song deals very frankly with female libido and sexual desire - not just as the passive object of a male.

1990-Bob Dylan plays the longest show of his career, performing 50 songs over four hours and 20 minutes at the club Toad's Place in New Haven, Connecticut. One of the songs in his set is "Dancing In The Dark," the only time Dylan covers a Bruce Springsteen song.

1981-The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) donates several rock albums to the Library of Congress, including Bob Dylan's Blonde on Blonde and KISS' Alive!

1977-Stephen Stills and Neil Young's album Long May You Run is certified Gold.

1974-Melanie Chisholm - also known as Mel C or "Sporty Spice" of The Spice Girls - is born in Whiston, England.

1974-Steve Miller's "The Joker" hits #1 in the US, leaving many to wonder what exactly is the "pompatus of love."

1974-Jim Croce's album You Don't Mess Around with Jim, the one with "Time In A Bottle" and "Operator," hits #1 in America three months after his death in a plane crash.

1971-Janis Joplin's album Pearl is released, three months after her death from a heroin overdose. It goes to #1 and yields her only chart-topping single, "Me And Bobby McGee."

1970-Raekwon aka "The Chef" of Wu-Tang Clan is born Corey Quontrell Wood in Staten Island, New York.

1970-Zack de la Rocha, the lead singer and lyricist of Rage Against The Machine, is born in Long Beach, California. He uses his platform to draw attention to causes like the military-industrial complex ("Bulls On Parade") and police brutality ("Killing In The Name") while pushing musical boundaries by merging rock with rap.

Led Zeppelin Release Debut Album
1969-Led Zeppelin's self-titled debut album is released in America.More

1968-The Supremes play a trio of nuns on the Tarzan episode "The Convert."

1968-The Doors' album Strange Days is certified gold.

1965-Rob Zombie is born Robert Cummings in Haverhill, Massachusetts. He works as a production assistant for the popular children's series Pee-Wee's Playhouse before forming the band White Zombie.

1965-NBC debuts the variety show Hullabaloo!, their answer to ABC's Shindig!. The first episode features The New Christy Minstrels, Gerry and the Pacemakers, The Zombies (introduced by Jack Jones), and Woody Allen.

1963-Steve Lawrence's "Go Away Little Girl," written by Gerry Goffin and Carole King, hits #1 in the US.

1959-Per Gessle of Roxette is born in Sweden.

1959-Berry Gordy, who had a hit as a songwriter with "Lonely Teardrops," launches the Tamla Record Company with $800 he borrowed from his family. A year later, he changes the label's name to Motown Records.

1957-Elvis Presley records "All Shook Up," "Got a Lot o' Livin' to Do," "I Believe," and "Tell Me Why."

1955-A teenaged Etta James releases her first single, the #1 R&B hit "The Wallflower," re-titled from the scandalous-sounding "Roll With Me, Henry."

1955-NRBQ drummer Tommy Ardolino is born in Springfield, Massachusetts

1954-Felipe Rose (The Indian from The Village People) is born in New York City. An original member, he's with the group until 2017, when Victor Willis (the cop) assumes control and brings in a new lineup.

1951-Big Star guitarist Chris Bell is born in Memphis, Tennessee.

1946-Jazz musician George Duke is born in San Rafael, California.

1945-Singer Maggie Bell of Stone the Crows is born in Glasgow, Scotland.

1944-Cynthia Robinson of Sly & the Family Stone is born in Sacramento, California.

1941-Blues musician Long John Baldry is born in England.

1939-William Lee Golden of The Oak Ridge Boys is born in Brewton, Alabama.

1930-Glenn Yarbrough of the folk group The Limeliters is born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

1928-Soul singer Ruth Brown is born in Portsmouth, Virginia. Known for her huge voice, Brown is inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1993.

1926-Country singer Ray Price is born in Texas.

1906-Country blues performer Mississippi Fred McDowell is born in Rossville, Tennessee. The Rolling Stones cover his "You Gotta Move" on their 1971 album, Sticky Fingers.

1905-Country singer Tex Ritter is born Woodward Maurice Ritter in Murvaul, Texas. He becomes the first artist to sign with Capitol Records.

1723-The opera Ottone by George Frideric Handel premieres in London.

[Bikkie]

1890
'Torpedo Billy' Murphy wins world featherweight boxing title
By defeating Irishman Ike Weir at San Francisco, Murphy became the first New Zealander to win a world professional boxing title.



In Music History

2025-SZA appears on The Drew Barrymore Show, where she breaks down her 2017 song "Drew Barrymore." She tells the host that she inspired the song and was a big influence on her because Drew embraced her imperfections and was "unapologetically yourself."

2023-Iggy Azalea launches an OnlyFans account to promote her upcoming album Hotter Than Hell and post photos that are too racy for Instagram. The album never materializes, but Azalea becomes a top earner during her run on the platform, which lasts about a year.

2022-"Baby Shark" becomes the first video to reach 10 billion views on YouTube.

2022-Ronnie Spector of The Ronettes dies of cancer at 78.

2011-Ed Sheeran announces he has been signed to Atlantic Records.

2009-Season 8 of American Idol debuts, with songwriter Kara DioGuardi added as a fourth judge.

2008-Over five months after its release, Amy MacDonald's This Is The Life album reaches the top of the UK albums chart.

2003-British police arrest The Who guitarist Pete Townshend as part of their "Operation Ore" sting operation to crack down on child pornography. Townshend admits to having indecent images of children, but insists that he was doing research for an upcoming book dealing with his own experience with sexual abuse. He is placed on the sex offenders' register for five years.

1986-Ozzy Osbourne is taken to court by the parents of John McCollum, a depressed teenager who shot himself while listening to Ozzy's song "Suicide Solution." The parents claim that their son was driven to suicide by Ozzy's song. The court later throws the case out.

Frankie Gets Banned
1984-The BBC bans the Frankie Goes to Hollywood song "Relax" due to sexual content. The controversy generates tremendous interest in the song, which reaches #1 in the UK the following week.

1979-Donny Hathaway commits suicide at age 33 by jumping from the balcony of his 15th floor room at the Essex House hotel in New York City.

1978-The Police start recording their debut album, Outlandos d'Amour. Their budget is just £1,500, which drummer Stewart Copeland borrowed from his brother, entertainment executive Miles Copeland III.

1978-Elvis Presley's cover of "My Way" is certified Gold.

1979-The YMCA files a lawsuit against Village People for their hit single "Y.M.C.A.," claiming the song is defaming to the organization. The suit is not only dropped, but the Y.M.C.A. adopts the song as their nonofficial commercial jingle after seeing the huge popularity boost the group brings them. Later, the US Navy recruits Village People to try to work similar magic for Navy recruitment.

1976-Seven employees of Brunswick Records and Dakar Records are tried on charges of withholding more than $184,000 in artist royalties. The case is eventually thrown out, but the reputations of the defendants are irreparably damaged.

1976-Bic Runga is born Briolette Kah Bic Runga at Christchurch, New Zealand.

1973-Carly Simon's album No Secrets, featuring the hit single "You're So Vain," hits #1 in America.

1973-Eric Clapton returns to the stage for the first time in about 18 months, playing the first of two all-star shows at the Rainbow Theater in London. Recorded as Eric Clapton's Rainbow Concert, it also features Pete Townshend (of The Who); Steve Winwood, Jim Capaldi, Ric Grech and Rebop Kwaku Baah (of Traffic); and Ronnie Wood (of Faces). Townshend helped set up the shows to get Clapton out of his drug-induced depression. A highlight of both shows is Clapton performing on "Layla."

1972-Aretha Franklin performs the first of two concerts at the New Temple Missionary Baptist Church in Los Angeles that are recorded for her live album Amazing Grace, which sells over 2 million copies when it is released in June. Film footage is also shot, but the documentary doesn't appear until 2019, after Franklin's death.

1970-John Lennon and Yoko Ono have their hair cut and donate it to a charity auction.

Johnny Cash Plays Folsom Prison
1968-Johnny Cash plays two shows for inmates at Folsom Prison in California. Unlike his previous prison concerts, they are recorded and packaged into his acclaimed live album At Folsom Prison.

1968-Dr. K.C. Pollack of the University of Florida audio laboratory reports that tests have determined rock and roll concerts cause noise damage in teenagers' ears.

1965-Bob Dylan records "Farewell, Angelina," a landmark song in the evolution of his surrealist songwriting process. The recording, however, doesn't see the light of day until it's released on The Bootleg Series Volume 1-3: Rare & Unreleased over 25 years later.

1963-A pre-famous Bob Dylan appears in a British television play called The Madhouse on Castle Street, playing an itinerant musician. No recording exists, but Dylan supposedly played "Blowin' In The Wind" during the show, marking the first broadcast of the song.

1962-Country singer Trace Adkins is born in Sarepta, Louisiana. His many hits include "You're Gonna Miss This" and "Honky Tonk Badonkadonk."

1962-Gene Chandler releases "Duke Of Earl."

1961-Suggs aka Graham McPherson (lead singer of Madness) is born in Hastings, Sussex, England.

1958-Marty Robbins' #1 country hit "The Story of My Life" peaks at #15 on the Hot 100. It's the first hit from Burt Bacharach and Hal David, who become one of the most prolific and renowned songwriting duos of the '60s and '70s.

1954-Trevor Rabin (guitarist for Yes) is born in Johannesburg, South Africa. Rabin is also a noted film composer with over 40 scores to his credit, including Remember the Titans (2002) and National Treasure (2004).

Occult Rocker Jinx Dawson Born
1950-Jinx Dawson, practitioner of the dark arts and frontwoman of the metal band Coven, is born in Indianapolis, Indiana.

1947-John Lees (founder of Barclay James Harvest) is born in Oldham, Lancashire, England.

1941-Glenn Miller makes the vocal group The Modernaires a part of his band. The quartet soon adds a female member, Paula Kelly, and appears on some of Miller's most popular songs, including "Chattanooga Choo Choo" and "That Old Black Magic."

1938-Allan Jones records "The Donkey Serenade."

1927-Country singer-songwriter Liz Anderson is born in Roseau, Minnesota. Aside from her own hit "Mama Spank" (1964), she pens hits for other artists, including Merle Haggard ("(My Friends Are Gonna Be) Strangers") and her own daughter, Lynn Anderson ("If I Kiss You (Will You Go Away)").

1909-Jazz trombonist Quentin "Butter" Jackson is born in Springfield, Ohio. He starts his music career playing with Cab Calloway and later the Duke Ellington Orchestra.

1887-Comic singer Sophie Tucker is born Sonya Kalish in the Ukraine. She settles in Hartford, Connecticut, and sings at her family's restaurant for tips.

[Bikkie]

Bob Fitzsimmons
1891
Bob Fitzsimmons wins world middleweight boxing title
Fitzsimmons knocked out Jack Dempsey in New Orleans to become the second New Zealander to hold a world boxing title.

Trilobite limestone found by Malcolm Simpson
1948
14-year-old finds New Zealand’s oldest fossils
In 1948, a 14-year-old Nelson schoolboy discovered the oldest fossils ever found in New Zealand.



In Music History

2014-Bruce Springsteen appears on Late Night With Jimmy Fallon, where he performs a reworked version of "Born To Run" titled "Gov. Christie Traffic Jam." In the song, Springsteen mocks a scandal where New Jersey governor Chris Christie's staff shut down parts of a road to retaliate against a mayor who didn't endorse him. "You're killing the working man who's stuck in the Governor Chris Christie Fort Lee, New Jersey, traffic jam," Springsteen sings.

2012-Little-known Lana Del Rey takes heaps of social media abuse for her lethargic performance on Saturday Night Live. She gets retribution when her Born To Die album, released two weeks later, earns her a global fanbase.

2008-Daughtry creates an uproar when he bad-mouths American Idol, saying the show is on the "decline." Randy Jackson refutes Daughtry's comment, but the show later suffers yet another season of declining ratings.

2002-Jon Bon Jovi makes the first of his 10 appearances on the TV series Ally McBeal playing Victor Morrison, a plumber who becomes Ally's boyfriend.

2000-Nashville-based country fan magazine Music City News closes its doors after 37 years of publication.

2000-We learn the paternity of Melissa Etheridge's two children when Rolling Stone reports that David Crosby is the surrogate father.

1999-Jerry Hall files for divorce from Mick Jagger, who contests it, claiming they were never actually married. Hall claims adultery, as the Brazilian model Luciana Morad is pregnant with Jagger's baby.

1998-After a three-year legal battle, Shirley Bassey is cleared of charges brought against her by her longtime assistant, Hilary Levy, who claimed Bassey slapped her and used an anti-semitic slur against her.

1997-The Beach Boys guest star on the "Karate Kid Returns" episode of the ABC sitcom Home Improvement.

1992-Tommy Page sings at Stephanie Tanner's birthday party on the Full House episode "Crushed."

1992-Jerry Nolan of The Heartbreakers and New York Dolls dies from a stroke at age 45 while being treated for meningitis and pneumonia.

1992-R. Kelly and Public Announcement release the album Born Into The 90's, with the hits "She's Got That Vibe" and "Honey Love."

1989-The soundtrack to the film Dirty Dancing reaches sales of ten million copies, which is now known as Diamond certification. The movie was set in 1963, and the soundtrack contained songs from that era along with new ones like "(I've Had) The Time of My Life," which were written for the film.

1984-Madonna makes her first appearance on American Bandstand. When asked by Dick Clark about her ambitions (blonde or otherwise), the singer replies: "To rule the world."

1980-Rush release Permanent Waves, their seventh studio album. "The Spirit of Radio" and "Freewill" help make it their first to reach the Top 5 on the US albums chart, where it peaks at #4. The album represents a new direction for the band, with songs becoming denser and more radio friendly, setting the stage for the upcoming Moving Pictures.

1978-At the Winterland Ballroom in San Francisco, The Sex Pistols lead singer, Johnny Rotten, ends the show by telling the crowd, "Ever get the feeling you've been cheated? Goodbye." It is their final concert until their 1996 reunion.

1978-Fleetwood Mac's Rumours album hits #1 for a record 31st week on the US chart.

1978-Player's "Baby Come Back" hits #1 for the first of three weeks.

1977-David Bowie releases Low, the first of three albums produced with the help of Brian Eno in which Bowie explores electronic music. Much of the album is instrumental.

1975-Joe Walsh's album So What is certified Gold.

1973-Elvis Presley's "Aloha From Hawaii" special is the first concert featuring just one performer to be broadcast live via satellite. Australia, Japan and other nearby countries see it live, while most other territories watch it later on tape delay. The concert is released as a double album later in the year.

1972-Paul Simon releases his second solo album, Paul Simon. It contains his first Garfunkel-less hits, "Mother and Child Reunion" and "Me and Julio Down by the Schoolyard."

1970-John Lennon's erotic "Bag One" lithographs are exhibited publicly in London (and removed by Scotland Yard two days later).

1970-At the Frontier Hotel in Las Vegas, The Supremes play their last concert with Diana Ross, who introduces her replacement, Jean Terrell. Ross performs with the group just once more: at the Motown 25 TV special in 1983.

1969-Deep Purple record "Hey Bop A Re Bop" at the BBC; this alternative version of "The Painter" is not released until 2000 on the Remastered The Book Of Taliesyn.

1969-Dave Grohl (of Nirvana, Foo Fighters) is born in Warren, Ohio.

1968-LL Cool J is born James Todd Smith in Bay, New York. His stage name stands for Ladies Love Cool James.

1968-Martin Luther King, Jr. visits Joan Baez and other inmates at the Santa Rita Jail who are serving time for protesting the Vietnam War. Baez has long supported King, performing at his March On Washington in 1963 and joining his movement to peacefully desegregate Mississippi schools in 1966.

Tribes Gather For A "Human Be-In"
1967-Upwards of 25,000 people turn up at Golden Gate Park for "A Gathering of the Tribes for a Human Be-In" - a prelude to the Summer of Love.

1966-David Jones issues his first recording under the name "David Bowie." Jones changed his last name to Bowie in order to avoid confusion with the Monkees' Davy Jones. The single is called "Can't Help Thinking About Me" and is credited to David Bowie and the Lower Third.

1965-Richard Walters, better known as Slick Rick, is born in London, England. He's one of the first acts signed to Def Jam Records and becomes a rap legend upon the release of his 1988 solo debut, The Great Adventures Of Slick Rick.

1960-United States Army Corporal Elvis Presley (53310761) receives a promotion to Sergeant.

1959-Geoff Tate (lead singer for Queensryche) is born in Stuttgart, West Germany.

1959-Chas Smash (of Madness) is born Cathal Joseph Smyth in London, England.

1957-Elvis Presley records "Wearin' That Loved On Look," "You'll Think of Me," and "I'm Movin' On."

1950-The Andrews Sisters' "I Can Dream, Can't I?" hits #1.

1948-Tim Harris (original drummer for The Foundations) is born in England.

1948-T-Bone Burnett is born Joseph Henry Burnett III in St. Louis, Missouri. A guitarist, songwriter and producer, he wins an Academy Award for Best Original Song for "The Weary Kind " from the 2009 movie Crazy Heart.

1938-Jack Jones is born in Hollywood, California, to actor Allan Jones and actress Irene Hervey.

1938-Allen Toussaint is born in New Orleans, where he makes a mark as a piano player, producer and songwriter. He plays on "Lady Marmalade" and writes "Southern Nights."

1938-Country singer Billie Jo Spears is born in Beaumont, Texas. Her first hit is "Mr. Walker It's All Over" in 1969.

1936-Soul singer Clarence Carter is born in Montgomery, Alabama.

1936-Harriet Hilliard records "Get Thee Behind Me Satan."

1931-Caterina Valente is born to Italian parents in Paris, France.

1929-Country singer Billy Walker is born in Ralls, Texas. Known for the 1962 hit "Charlie's Shoes."

1917-Jazz trumpeter Billy Butterfield is born in Middletown, Ohio. In 1940, he plays a legendary solo on Artie Shaw's hit rendition of "Stardust."

1908-Russ Columbo is born Ruggiero Eugenio di Rodolfo Colombo in Camden, New Jersey.

1676-Italian composer Francesco Cavalli dies at age 73.

[Bikkie]

1535 - Henry VIII declares himself head of the Church in England.

1559 - Elizabeth I is crowned in Westminster Abbey.

1649 - French court leaves Paris at outbreak of Fronde Rebellion.

The rules of basketball way in 1892. Southland Times are published on this date.

1970
Vietnam War protesters greet US Vice-President
United States Vice-President Spiro Agnew’s three-day visit to New Zealand sparked some of the most violent anti-Vietnam War demonstrations seen in this country.


In Music History

2024-Elton John wins an Emmy for his Farewell From Dodger Stadium live special, completing his EGOT collection. He won his first Grammy in 1987 ("That's What Friends Are For"), his first Oscar in 1994 ("Can You Feel The Love Tonight" from The Lion King) and a Tony in 2000 for scoring Aida.

2018-Gospel star Edwin Hawkins dies of pancreatic cancer at age 74. With his Northern California State Youth Choir, he recorded an album at his church to raise money to send them on a trip. When the radio station KSAN got a copy, they started playing "Oh Happy Day," a hymn he arranged. This led to a record deal, the choir was renamed The Edwin Hawkins Singers, and the song became the first traditional gospel tune to become a pop hit, reaching #4 in America and #2 in the UK.

Dolores O'Riordan Dies
2018-Cranberries lead singer Dolores O'Riordan dies in London at 46 years old.

2015-Kim Fowley dies of bladder cancer in Hollywood, California. The self-styled "Lord of Garbage" and founder of The Runaways was an infamous eccentric and was often sighted in his later days walking the Las Vegas strip with a cane, and his hair dyed green.

2011-Anthrax guitarist Scott Ian marries Meat Loaf's daughter, Pearl Aday.

2011-Bluesman Fred Sanders Jr. dies of lung cancer at age 71.

2010-Charlie Daniels is rushed to the hospital after suffering a stroke. Daniels recovers and is released from the hospital two days later.

2009-In Tupelo, Mississippi, Darius Rucker, once a headliner with his pop band Hootie & the Blowfish, joins Brad Paisley's tour, where he is third on the bill behind Paisley and Dierks Bentley. It's Rucker's first tour as a country artist; he's willing to do "everything the new guy does" to make it happen.

2005-Sheryl Crow, Christina Aguilera and Tim McGraw participate in a benefit for victims of the tsunami in Southern Asia.

2003-In Albuquerque, New Mexico, Lou Rawls is arrested on one count of battery against his girlfriend.

1998-James Brown is admitted to a South Carolina hospital for addiction to painkillers. He's released a week later.

1994-Harry Nilsson, known by the mononym Nilsson, dies of heart failure at age 52, nearly one year after suffering a massive heart attack.

1994-Ska music bubbles under in America as Billboard publishes a cover story called "Hunt for 'Next Big Thing' Unearths Ska Underground." Bands like No Doubt, Reel Big Fish and Sublime soon break through with ska-inflected sounds.

1994-Counting Crows are the musical guest on Saturday Night Live, performing "Mr. Jones" and "Round Here." The appearance sparks sales of their debut album and sends radio stations scrambling to add the songs to their playlists. Despite this breakthrough appearance, the band is never asked back for the show.


1993-Prolific lyricist Sammy Cahn, known for enduring tunes like "Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!," dies of heart failure at age 79.

1992-Appearing on Entertainment Tonight, Brenda Lee criticizes the selections for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, noting the lack of female talent - such as The Shirelles, Dionne Warwick, and Connie Francis. She calls them "the women who pioneered rock and roll" and points out that they're just as important as the men.

1992-Johnny Cash, Bobby "Blue" Bland, Booker T. & the MG's, The Isley Brothers, The Jimi Hendrix Experience, Sam & Dave, and The Yardbirds are inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

New "Give Peace A Chance" To Protest Gulf War
1991-On the United Nations deadline for Iraq to remove troops from Kuwait, a new version of "Give Peace A Chance" is released, with contributions from Iggy Pop, Tom Petty, LL Cool J and dozens of others.

1988-DJ/producer Skrillex is born Sonny Moore in Los Angeles.

1982-Harry Casey (the KC in KC and the Sunshine Band) is badly injured in a head-on collision in Hialeah, Florida. After a long rehab, he returns to action and lands another hit in 1984 with "Give It Up."

1981-Phil Collins plays "In The Air Tonight" on Top of the Pops with a paint can and brush nearby as props, seemingly a reference to the painter with whom his first wife cheated on him.

1981-Pitbull is born Armando Pérez in Miami. His high-energy, Latin-flavored rap finds an audience with his 2004 debut album M.I.A.M.I., but he goes international with his 2009 hit "I Know You Want Me (Calle Ocho)."


Stevie Wonder Rallies For MLK Day

1981-Stevie Wonder leads a rally in Washington to get Martin Luther King's birthday declared an official holiday. He performs his song "Happy Birthday," written for King, which becomes a rallying call for the movement.

1977-Leo Sayer's "You Make Me Feel Like Dancing" hits #1.

1977-The Eagles' Hotel California album hits #1, taking over the top spot from Stevie Wonder's Songs in the Key of Life.

1974-With '50s nostalgia trending, Happy Days premieres on ABC with "Rock Around The Clock" as its theme song.

1974-Brownsville Station's "Smokin' In The Boys' Room" is certified Gold.

1972-Don McLean's "American Pie" hits #1 US for the first of four weeks. The single runs 8:36 - you have to flip the 45 over to hear all of it.

1971-George Harrison releases "My Sweet Lord" in the UK.

1971-Chase records "Get It On."

1969-Elvis Presley records "A Little Bit of Green" and "Gentle On My Mind."

1967-The Buckinghams record "Don't You Care."

1967-Lisa Velez (of Lisa Lisa & Cult Jam) is born in Hell's Kitchen, New York City.

1967-Mick Jagger does as he's told and sings "let's spend the night together" as "let's spend some time together" when The Rolling Stones appear on the Ed Sullivan Show. Jagger rolls his eyes derisively when he sings the altered line.

1967-The film The Fastest Guitar Alive, starring Roy Orbison and Sheb Wooley, premieres in New York City.

1965-The Who's first single, "I Can't Explain," is released in the UK.

1965-Bob Dylan records "Maggie's Farm" in Studio A at Columbia Recording Studios.

1964-The King and I soundtrack album is certified gold.

1961-The Supremes sign with Motown Records. Along with Mary Wilson, Diana Ross and Florence Ballard, there is a fourth member, Barbara Martin, who leaves a year later. All except Martin are under 18 (Ross is 16) and need parental consent, which is granted after label boss Berry Gordy and his sister, Esther, win over their parents.

1958-Elvis Presley records "Hard Headed Woman," "Trouble," "New Orleans," "King Creole," and "Crawfish."

1952-Cellist Melvyn Gale (of Electric Light Orchestra) is born in London, England.

1948-Ronnie Van Zant (Lynyrd Skynyrd vocalist, guitarist, and driving force) is born in Jacksonville, Florida.

1942-The Glen Gray Orchestra records "It's the Talk of the Town."

1941-Captain Beefheart is born Don Vliet in Glendale, California.

1936-Edward "Sonny" Bivins of The Manhattans is born in Macon, Georgia.

1930-Blues guitarist Earl Hooker is born in Quitman County, Mississippi.

1909-Jazz drummer Gene Krupa is born in Chicago, Illinois.

[Bikkie]

Cover of WAAF recruitment booklet
1941
Women's Auxiliary Air Force founded
The Women’s Auxiliary Air Force (WAAF) was formed to enable the Royal New Zealand Air Force to release more men for service overseas during the Second World War.



In Music History

2021-Renowned producer Phil Spector, 81, dies after getting coronavirus in prison, where he was serving time for killing the actress Lana Clarkson in 2003.

2019-At the Forum in Los Angeles, the surviving members of Soundgarden play their first show together since Chris Cornell's passing as part of the star-studded I Am the Highway: A Tribute to Chris Cornell concert.

2018-Eminem is questioned by the Secret Service about lyrics in his song "Framed," where he imagines Ivanka Trump murdered in the trunk of his car. Agents determine he is not a threat; Eminem later raps about it on his song "The Ringer": "Agent Orange just sent the Secret Service to meet in person."

2016-Alanis Morissette debuts her advice column for The Guardian, answering a plight from a woman on the brink of an emotional affair.

2016-Bruce Springsteen begins The River Tour with a show in Pittsburgh. His 1980 album The River is the centerpiece of the tour, played start to finish at many stops. The tour is the year's most successful, grossing over $268 million.

2015-Puddle of Mudd frontman Wesley Scantlin is arrested at the Denver International Airport after he takes a baggage carousel for a joyride into a restricted area. A local fan bails him out, but the band is still hours late for their performance, and an angry promoter tells the audience he will never book the act again.

2014-Toni Tennille files for divorce from husband Daryl Dragon. The Captain & Tennille duo had been married for 39 years.

2008-Radiohead is slated to perform a free gig at a small record store in London, but nearly 1,500 fans turn up, forcing the band to move the show to a nearby club.

2002-A section of Interstate 80 in California is renamed the "Sonny Bono Memorial Freeway."

1999-The inaugural ball for Minnesota Governor (and former professional wrestler) Jesse Ventura goes down at the Target Center in Minneapolis. America play "Ventura Highway," and Warren Zevon does "Werewolves Of London" with Ventura, wearing his trademark bandana and feather boa, howling along on stage.

Jamaican Police Maica Mistaica, Shoot At Jimmy Buffett's Plane
1996-Jamaican police mistake Jimmy Buffett for a drug smuggler and shoot at his seaplane (the Hemisphere Dancer) after it lands in the water. Bono of U2 is on board with his family, along with Island Records head Chris Blackwell.

1992-Eric Clapton goes acoustic, recording Eric Clapton Unplugged for MTV. The album wins six Grammy Awards, including Record Of The Year.

1991-The Byrds, LaVern Baker, John Lee Hooker, The Impressions, Wilson Pickett, Jimmy Reed, and Ike and Tina Turner are inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in the sixth class. The event is overshadowed by news that America has launched airstrikes on Iraq, starting the Persian Gulf War.

1988-George Harrison hits #1 with "Got My Mind Set On You," becoming the act with the longest time between #1 hits - it was 24 years since "Give Me Love (Give Me Peace On Earth)." The Beach Boys break this record when "Kokomo" hits #1 in November.

1988-Tina Turner performs at Estadio do Maracana in Rio de Janeiro to a sell-out crowd of 180,000, setting a new record for attendance at a performance by a solo artist.

1981-The TV series Harper Valley P.T.A., inspired by the Jeannie C. Riley song and the 1978 movie of the same name, debuts on NBC. Barbara Eden, who played scandalous single mom Stella Johnson in the movie, reprises her role. The show lasts two seasons.

1980-Paul McCartney packs about half a pound of marijuana in his luggage, which lands him 10 days in a Tokyo jail upon arrival. He had the weed in New York and wanted to bring it with him to smoke on tour, saying, "This stuff was too good to flush down the toilet, so I thought I'd take it with me."

1979-Cher's divorce from Gregg Allman of The Allman Brothers becomes final.

1979-Roger Miller sings a medley of songs on The Muppet Show. He also sings "In the Summertime" in a patch of musically skilled watermelons and drops the bombshell news that he, like the all-chicken cast of Vet's Hospital, once suffered from "Cluckitis."

1979-Aaliyah is born Aaliyah Haughton in Brooklyn, New York.

1975-Paul McCartney and Wings arrive in New Orleans to begin sessions on their Venus and Mars album at Allen Toussaint's Sea Saint studios. They stay through Mardi Gras.

1975-Jazz musician Paul Beaver (of Beaver and Krause) dies at age 49.

1975-Sly and the Family Stone fail to attract much notice with their eight-show, six-night "comeback" bid at Radio City Music Hall.

1973-Bruce Springsteen performs at Villanova University, Philadelphia, to an audience of 25 people. His concert had not been advertised due to a strike by Villanova's school newspaper The Villanovan.

1973-Gospel singer Clara Ward (leader of The Famous Ward Singers) dies at age 48 after suffering two strokes.

1972-David Seville (real name: Ross Bagdasarian), who created The Chipmunks, dies of a heart attack at age 52.

1971-At a press conference in Memphis, Tennessee, Elvis Presley pleases the conservative crowd when he says, "I don't go along with music advocating drugs and desecration of the flag. I think an entertainer is for entertaining and to make people happy."

1970-John Lennon's "Bag One" exhibit at the Arts Gallery in London is closed down by Scotland Yard. The original Lennon lithographs in the exhibit are ruled obscene. Eight prints are confiscated.

1969-Aretha Franklin's attorney calls police in Ocala, Florida to let them know the woman who has been performing there as Franklin - quite convincingly - is a fake. The imposter, Vickie Jones, is arrested but set free when it becomes clear she was coerced into the scheme by an unscrupulous promoter. She becomes a popular live draw when news of her arrest, and how she can believably sing like Aretha, gets out.

1968-Blue Cheer release their debut album, Vincebus Eruptum. Considered a high-water mark of psychedelic music, it's also a formative influence on the heavy metal genre.

1965-The Guess Who release their debut album, Shakin' All Over.

1964-The musical Hello, Dolly! opens on Broadway, starring Carol Channing in the title role. The show is a huge hit, and a recording of the title song by Louis Armstrong goes to #1 in May, knocking The Beatles out of the top spot.

1962-Paul Webb (bassist for Talk Talk) is born in Essex, England.

1962-Maxine Jones (of En Vogue) is born in Paterson, New Jersey.

1959-Sade is born Helen Folasade Adu in Ibadan, Nigeria. She moves to England with her mother when she's 4, and after studying fashion design in London, she forms the band Sade in 1982. Their first album, Diamond Life, is released in 1984 and includes the hit "Smooth Operator."

1957-Little Richard records "Lucille."

1957-The Cavern Club, where The Beatles cut their teeth, opens in Liverpool, England.

1950-Damo Suzuki (lead singer of the German band Can) is born Kenji Suzuki in Japan.

1948-John Carpenter, horror film director and composer, is born in Carthage, New York. Known for Halloween, The Thing, and Christine.

1944-Country pop singer Jim Stafford is born in Winter Haven, Florida. His first charting hit is "Swamp Witch" in 1973.

1943-Ronnie Milsap is born in Robbinsville, North Carolina. He becomes country music's first successful blind singer, starting with his first chart-topper, "Pure Love," in 1974.

1942-Billy Francis (keyboardist for Dr. Hook & the Medicine Show) is born in Mississippi.

1942-Kay Kyser records "A Zoot Suit (For My Sunday Gal)."

1942-Electric blues guitarist Barbara Lynn, known for the 1962 R&B hit "You'll Lose A Good Thing," is born Barbara Lynn Ozen in Beaumont, Texas.

1939-Ray Phillips (of The Nashville Teens) is born in Tiger Bay, Cardiff, South Wales.

Benny Goodman Brings Jazz To Carnegie Hall
1938-Clarinetist Benny Goodman, who many call an improvisational genius, breaks through cultural barriers to play the first-ever jazz concert at Carnegie Hall.

1934-Bob Bogle (lead guitarist, bassist for The Ventures) is born in Oklahoma.

1932-Duke Ellington records "It Don't Mean a Thing (If it Ain't Got that Swing)."

1929-Jazz drummer G.T. Hogan is born in Galveston, Texas.

1908-Broadway entertainer Ethel Merman is born Ethel Agnes Zimmermann in Astoria, Queens.

1853-Italian guitarist Matteo Carcassi dies in Paris.