On This Day In History

[Bikkie]

1773
First beer brewed in New Zealand
In an attempt to concoct a preventative against scurvy, Captain James Cook brewed a batch of beer on Resolution Island in Dusky Sound, using rimu branches and leaves.



1965
TEAL becomes Air New Zealand
New Zealand’s international airline, Tasman Empire Airways Limited (TEAL), was renamed Air New Zealand Limited.



1974
ACC comes into operation
In 1972 legislation established the Accident Compensation Commission (ACC) to provide insurance for all personal injury.


1978
Thermal insulation required in NZ homes
Early European-style timber frame construction was not as effective as traditional Māori methods at keeping the heat in buildings. Specified levels of thermal insulation were not required by law until 1978.


1981
New Zealand Film Archive launched
The New Zealand Film Archive has grown considerably since it shared Wellington premises with the New Zealand Federation of Film Societies.


1987
State-owned enterprises are born
The State-owned Enterprises Act heralded a major overhaul of the public sector and was a key part of the strategy of economic liberalisation known as 'Rogernomics'.


1992
New Zealand Cartoon Archive launched
The New Zealand Cartoon Archive (now the New Zealand Cartoon and Comics Archive) was launched at a function at the National Library in Wellington by Prime Minister Jim Bolger.



In Music History

2020-Dolly Parton makes a $1 million donation to the Vanderbilt University Medical Center to help fund research for a coronavirus vaccine.

2020-Adam Schlesinger of Fountains of Wayne dies at 52 after contracting coronavirus. He's one of the first popular entertainers to die from the virus, which a week later claims the life of John Prine.

2017 – Bob Dylan received his Nobel Prize for Literature at a private ceremony in Stockholm, recognizing his songwriting as a literary achievement.

2016-Guns N' Roses announce that original members Slash and Duff McKagan are returning to the group to join Axl Rose on the Not In This Lifetime stadium tour of North America. VIP packages (the "Welcome to the Jungle Pit Experience") go for $2,500, which gets you a backstage tour and access to the Paradise City Lounge, but no interaction with the band.

2016-Actor-turned-singer Kiefer Sutherland releases his debut single, "Not Enough Whiskey."

2015-Cynthia Lennon, John Lennon's first wife, dies of cancer at age 75 in Mallorca, Spain.

2012 – 47th Academy of Country Music Awards honored artists including Taylor Swift, Blake Shelton, and Miranda Lambert.

YouTube Rickrolls Users
2008
On April Fools' Day, YouTube tricks users with the popular bait-and-switch prank called Rickrolling by featuring video links that actually lead to Rick Astley's "Never Gonna Give You Up" music video. Several other websites have the same idea, creating an unintentional, internet-wide April Fools' joke.

2008-Scott Weiland officially departs Velvet Revolver, effectively ending the band.

2008-The Rolling Stones release Shine A Light, the soundtrack to their concert film of the same name, directed by Martin Scorsese.

2007-The Hammersmith Palais in London, subject of The Clash song "(White Man) in Hammersmith Palais," hosts its last concert - a gig by The Fall.

2007-Proving she understands irony just fine, Alanis Morissette transforms the Black Eyed Peas' booty anthem "My Humps" into a mournful piano ballad for April Fools' Day. The accompanying music video debuts on YouTube and becomes a viral sensation, garnering millions of views.More

2006-Spin magazine publishes a review of the Guns N' Roses album Chinese Democracy, which Axl Rose and his gang have been working on since 1994. It's an April Fool: the album isn't released until 2008.

2005-Jack Keller dies of leukemia at age 68 in Nashville, Tennessee. The songwriter is known for his pop collaborations with Howard Greenfield, including "Everybody's Somebody's Fool" and "Run To Him." He was also a writer and producer for The Monkees TV series.

2004-Guitarist Paul Atkinson (of The Zombies) dies at age 58 from liver and kidney disease, while also suffering from cancer.

2002 – Luther Vandross released the compilation album Stop to Love, highlighting his contributions to R&B.

1999-"Shake, Rattle And Roll" composer Jesse Stone, aka Charles Calhoun, dies at age 97 in Alamonte Springs, Florida.

1996-After blowing through more than $30 million, MC Hammer files for bankruptcy protection.

1995-Tupac Shakur is in jail (serving time for sexual abuse), but his third album, Me Against the World, hits #1, where it stays for four weeks.

1992-Nigel Preston, drummer and founding member of The Cult, dies of a heroin overdose at age 28.

1992-MC Hammer's 2 Legit 2 Quit tour begins in Hampton, Virginia. By the end of the tour, two of his support acts have become more popular than he is: Boyz II Men and TLC.

1992-Jimmy Buffett and his wife Jane welcome their second daughter, Sarah Delaney.

1992-Billy Idol pleads no contest to charges of misdemeanor assault and battery and is fined $2,000. The incident happened in October 1991, when Idol ended up in a car with two women and allegedly punched one of them. Alcohol was involved.

1991-At his Wembley Arena concert in London, Rod Stewart calls for his wife Rachel Hunter to join him on stage for "You're In My Heart (The Final Acclaim)," but she instead sends out his buddy Elton John, dressed in women's clothes and makeup, to prank her husband. Stewart gamely plays along and sings to Elton.

1991-At his Wembley Arena concert in London, Rod Stewart calls for his wife Rachel Hunter to join him on stage for "You're In My Heart (The Final Acclaim)," but she instead sends out his buddy Elton John, dressed in women's clothes and makeup, to prank her husband. Stewart gamely plays along and sings to Elton.

1989-Living Colour make a splash as the musical guests on Saturday Night Live, performing "Cult of Personality" and "Open Letter (To a Landlord)."

Bangles Hit #1 With "Eternal Flame," Break Up Six Months Later
1989-Bangles hit #1 in America with "Eternal Flame," but break up less than six months later.More

1989-N.W.A.'s "Gangsta Gangsta" becomes the group's first song to enter the Billboard R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, where it debuts at #91.

1986-Hillary Scott of Lady A is born in Nashville. Her mother is the singer Linda Davis.

1986-Bruce Hornsby and the Range release The Way It Is, an album that produces four hits (including the title track) and is certified multi-platinum.

1985 – David Lee Roth left Van Halen to pursue a solo career, a major shift in the rock landscape.

1985-It's no joke: David Lee Roth officially leaves Van Halen to start a solo career.

1984-Marvin Gaye is fatally shot by his own father and dies at age 44. An investigation reveals that Marvin had beaten his father, who ends up serving five years' probation for voluntary manslaughter.

1984 – Marvin Gaye, the legendary soul singer, was tragically shot and killed by his father one day before his 45th birthday. Gaye was celebrated for hits like “Sexual Healing” and “I Heard It Through the Grapevine”.

1983-The second Men at Work album, Cargo, is released in America. The group's debut was released there less than a year earlier and is still getting airplay, leading to Men at Work saturation. Sudden success takes its toll on the group, which breaks up a few years later.

1983-Exodus guitarist Kirk Hammett gets a phone call from manager Mark Whitaker, asking him to audition for Metallica. Hammett accepts, and several days later, is on a plane to New York for his tryout.

1978-The Philadelphia Fury soccer team (owned by Paul Simon, Peter Frampton, James Taylor and others) makes its debut (it lasts three seasons).

1976-Rush disregard their record label's wishes and release 2112. Mercury wanted the band to produce an album with more radio-friendly singles than Caress of Steel, but 2112 is just as ambitious and "progressive" as its predecessor. This time, however, advances in the band's skills and changes in the market make 2112 successful, though it will take 1977's A Farewell to Kings to help nudge 2112 to Gold status.

1975-Journey release their self-titled debut album, a mix of progressive rock and jazz with little emphasis on the vocals. It finds just a niche audience, as do their next two albums, but after adding lead singer Steve Perry to the band in 1977 they switch to a pop sound and become consistent hitmakers.

1974-Tom Petty and his band Mudcrutch leave Gainesville for Los Angeles, and never look back. They soon become Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers.

1971 – Jimi Hendrix’s posthumous album The Cry of Love was certified Gold, six months after his death, by the RIAA, cementing his enduring influence on rock music.

1970-The Joni Mitchell album Ladies Of The Canyon, with the songs "Big Yellow Taxi" and "The Circle Game," is released.

1969-After playing on hits for the likes of Wilson Pickett and Aretha Franklin at FAME Studios in Muscle Shoals, Alabama, four session musicians start Muscle Shoals Sound Studios, where they record The Staple Singers, Paul Simon, Rod Stewart and The Rolling Stones.

Traffic Find Strange (And Possibly Supernatural) Inspiration For Their Debut Album
1967-A former champion horse jockey named Sir William Pigott-Brown rents one of his properties - a 19th century farm in the countryside outside London - to Island Records founder Chris Blackwell, who has his recently signed band Traffic record their debut album there.

1966 – The Troggs recorded “Wild Thing” at Olympic Sound Studio in London, which later became a global hit, topping charts in the UK, US, Australia, and New Zealand.

1966 – David Bowie released his first solo single, “Do Anything You Say”, marking his debut under the stage name David Bowie, though the single failed to chart.

1961-Rock and roll singer Troy Shondell releases his sole hit, "This Time."

1961-The Beatles begin a grueling gig at Hamburg's Top Ten Club - seven hours a day on weekdays (eight hours on weekends) for three months.

1961-Mark White, guitarist and keyboardist for the English new wave group ABC, is born in Sheffield, Yorkshire, England.

1959-Freddy Cannon releases "Tallahassee Lassie," which becomes his first hit. The song is later covered by The Rolling Stones.

1956-Elvis Presley gets his film career going with a screen test at Paramount Studios, where he performs a scene from The Rainmaker. He lands a contract and ends up starring in 31 movies.

1954-Rock drummer Jeff Porcaro (of Toto) is born in South Windsor, Connecticut.

1948-Reggae musician Jimmy Cliff ("The Harder They Come," "Hakuna Matata") is born James Chambers in Somerton District, St. James, Jamaica.

1946-Bass guitarist Ronnie Lane (Small Faces and Faces) is born in Plaistow, London, England.

1945-Rock drummer John Barbata (Jefferson Airplane, Jefferson Starship) is born in Passaic, New Jersey.

1944-Pop singer Frank Gari ("Utopia," "Lullaby of Love") is born Frank Daniel Garofalo in New York City.

1942-Phil Margo is born in Brooklyn, New York. He and brother Mitch will form The Tokens and release the #1 hit "The Lion Sleeps Tonight."

1942-Pop guitarist Alan Blakley (The Tremeloes) is born in Bromley, Kent, England.

1939-Rudolph Isley (of The Isley Brothers) is born in Cincinnati, Ohio.

1934-Country singer-songwriter Jim Ed Brown (The Browns) is born in Sparkman, Arkansas. Aside from forming The Browns with his two sisters, he'll find fame as a solo artist and frequent duet partner of Helen Cornelius ("I Don't Want To Have To Marry You").

1932-Singin' in the Rain star Debbie Reynolds is born Mary Frances Reynolds in El Paso, Texas.

1917-Ragtime composer Scott Joplin dies of syphilitic dementia at age 49 in New York City.

[Bikkie]

1950
Opening ceremony at British Empire Games in Auckland
Forty thousand spectators packed Eden Park for the opening ceremony of the fourth British Empire Games – the first staged since the Second World War.


1975
First woman swims Cook Strait
American Lynne Cox swam from the North Island to the South in 12 hours 7 minutes. The fourth person to do so, she battled heavy seas and strong winds.


1985
USS Buchanan refused entry to New Zealand
New Zealand's Labour government refused the USS Buchanan entry because the United States would neither confirm nor deny that the warship had nuclear capability.



In Music History

2024-Forbes declares Taylor Swift a billionaire, making her the first musician to hit that mark just with her music and performances, not through investments or other ventures. Rihanna, for instance, is a billionaire largely because of her Fenty beauty line.

2015-Lip Sync Battle debuts on the Spike network. Hosted by LL Cool J, it pits celebrities against each other in miming songs. The performances get more elaborate over the show's five seasons, with the most popular being Tom Holland's re-creation of Rihanna's "Umbrella" video. We also get to see Dwayne Johnson do "Shake It Off," Channing Tatum do "Run the World (Girls)" and Anne Hathaway take on "Wrecking Ball."

2013-Just hours before a show in Calgary, Bon Jovi guitarist Richie Sambora leaves the group, citing personal reasons. Surprisingly, he doesn't re-join the band, although he does perform with them at their 2018 Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame induction. Sambora joined the band in 1983 and co-wrote most of their hits.

2011-LCD Soundsystem play their final ever gig at Madison Square Garden in New York City. The show lasts four hours and features Arcade Fire and Reggie Watts.

2009-Texas-born guitarist Freddie Everett dies at age 49 after a long battle with ALS (Lou Gehrig's disease).

2006 – Gnarls Barkley saw their debut single Crazy top the UK singles chart for nine weeks, becoming the first single to reach No.1 solely from download sales.

2003-Soul singer Edwin Starr dies at age 61 of a heart attack while taking a bath at his home near Nottingham, England. Known for his 1970 #1 hit "War," Starr moved from America to England in 1983 and remained a popular performer there until his death.

2001 – Mariah Carey signed a record-breaking $100 million deal with Virgin Records for three albums.

1998-Robert Pilatus of Milli Vanilli dies at age 32 after overdosing on a combination of drugs and alcohol.

1997-After 32 years, Joni Mitchell is reunited with her first daughter, Kilauren Gibb. Joni gave the child up for adoption at the start of her career.

1996-Rosanne Cash released her ninth studio album, 10 Song Demo.

1996-Blues musician Guitar Gabriel dies at age 70.

1996-Zach Bryan is born Okinawa, Japan, where his mother and father are deployed with the US Navy, but he's raised in Oologah, Oklahoma. Zach serves in the Navy for eight years, releasing two albums independently. When he's discharged in 2021, he signs with Warner Records; the following year he has his first hit with "Something In The Orange."

1993-Roberta Flack guest stars as herself on an episode of ABC-TV's Loving.

1991-Lenny Kravitz releases his sophomore album, Mama Said, with the hit "It Ain't Over 'Til It's Over," a plea for reconciliation to his soon-to-be ex-wife, actress Lisa Bonet.
More

1991-The Rolling Stones release Flashpoint, a live album recorded throughout their Steel Wheels/Urban Jungle Tour.

1990-After releasing eight studio albums in her native French, Celine Dion issues her first English-language album, Unison. The lead single, "Where Does My Heart Beat Now," goes to #4, setting the stage for her American breakthrough.

1987-Jazz drummer Buddy Rich dies at age 69 of heart failure after surgery for a malignant brain tumor.

1983 – Pink Floyd reached No.1 in the UK with The Final Cut, their twelfth studio album.

1977 – Fleetwood Mac reached No.1 on the US Billboard 200 with Rumours, their most successful album, which spent over 20 non-consecutive years on the chart and sold more than 40 million copies worldwide.

1977 – ABBA topped the UK Singles chart with Knowing Me, Knowing You for five weeks.

1973-The Beatles release two compilation albums: The Beatles 1962-1966 and The Beatles 1967-1970. Both will land in the Top 10 on the US and UK albums charts, with 1967-1970 hitting #1 in the US.

1970-Janis Joplin get tattoos on her wrist and heart, the one on her chest reading "One For The Boys."

1967-Steve Winwood leaves The Spencer Davis Group to form Traffic with Jim Capaldi, Chris Wood and Dave Mason.

1967-Guitarist and songwriter Greg Camp (of Smash Mouth) is born in West Covina, California.

1967-An overzealous audience member throws a smoke bomb onto the stage at The Rolling Stones concert at the Town Hall in Vienna, Austria, leading to a riot and the arrest of 154 fans.

1966-The Singing Nun, starring Debbie Reynolds, opens in theaters. The film is based on Sister Luc-Gabrielle, a Belgian nun who had a #1 US hit with the French language song "Dominique," re-written in English for the film. Luc-Gabrielle declares it "absolutely idiotic."

1966-Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass become the first act with four albums in the US Top 10 simultaneously:

#2 Going Places
#3 Whipped Cream and Other Delights
#9 South Of The Border
#10 The Lonely Bull

It's a record that stands until December 9, 2023, when Taylor Swift charts five albums simultaneously, including "Taylor's Version" reissues of 1989 and Speak Now.

1965-Freddie & the Dreamers record "Do The Freddie." Inspired by a short-lived dance craze, it will become a #18 hit.

1964 – The Beatles released their sixth single, Can’t Buy Me Love, which began a three-week stint at No.1 on the UK Singles chart and topped charts in seven other countries.

1964-Elvis Presley releases the soundtrack album Kissin' Cousins for his movie of the same name. The album will peak at #6 on the Billboard albums chart.

1964-It's a big day for The Beach Boys, who record their first #1 hit, "I Get Around," and also fire their manager, Murry Wilson, who happens to be the father of three of the band members, including leader Brian Wilson, who feels his dad is hindering their progress with unwelcome critiques at their recording sessions.

1962-Bass player and songwriter Tony Franklin is born Anthony James Franklin.

1961-Keren Jane Woodward (of Bananarama) is born in Bristol, England.

1957-Elvis Presley appears for the first time outside the United States, performing at the Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto. This and a show the next day in Ottawa would be the only Elvis concerts ever given outside the US.

1956-Johnny Cash records "I Walk The Line" at Sun Studio in Memphis. His label boss, Sam Phillips, has him speed up the tempo, which is a good call: The song becomes Cash's first #1 Country hit.

1952-Dave Bronze (bass guitarist for Procol Harum) is born in Billericay, Essex, England.

1952-Leon Wilkeson (bassist for Lynyrd Skynyrd) is born in Newport, Rhode Island.

1949-David Robinson (drummer for The Cars) is born in Malden, Massachusetts.

1947-Emmylou Harris is born in Birmingham, Alabama.

1946-Kurt Winter (guitarist for The Guess Who) is born in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada.

1943-Jazz guitarist Larry Coryell is born Lorenz Albert Van DeLinder III in Galveston, Texas.

1942-Leon Russell is born Claude Russell Bridges in Lawton, Oklahoma.

1941-Kent Morrill, keyboardist and vocalist for the Fabulous Wailers, is born.

1939-Marvin Gaye is born Marvin Pentz Gay Jr. in Washington, DC.

1938-Country singer Warner Mack, known for a string of chart-toppers including "Is It Wrong (For Loving You)," is born Warner Hensley McPherson Jr. in Nashville, Tennessee.

1928-Singer-songwriter Serge Gainsbourg is born Lucien Ginsburg in Paris, France.

1917-Italian American singer Lou Monte is born in Manhattan, New York.

1912-Jazz singer Herbert Mills (of The Mills Brothers) is born in Piqua, Ohio.

1805-Hans Christian Andersen is born in Odense, Denmark. The author is later the subject of a song by Danny Kaye.

1800-Opus 21: Symphony No. 1 in C major by Ludwig van Beethoven is first performed in Vienna for Baron Gottfried Van Swieten.

[Bikkie]

1043 - Edward the Confessor is crowned king of England.

1882 - After more than 15 years of robbing banks and trains, US outlaw Jesse James is shot in the back at St Joseph, Missouri, by a member of his own gang.

1922 - Lenin appoints Stalin general secretary of the Russian Communist Party.


1943
Battle of Manners Street
Soldiers and civilians slugged it out on the streets of Wellington during the ‘Battle of Manners Street’, the best-known clash between New Zealanders and American servicemen during the Second World War.



In Music History


2022-Jon Batiste and Silk Sonic are the big winners at the Grammy Awards, where Batiste takes Album Of The Year for We Are, and Silk Sonic win Record Of The Year and Song Of The Year for "Leave The Door Open."

2014-Arthur Smith, one of postwar country music's finest guitar pickers, dies at age 93 of natural causes. His 1949 instrumental "Guitar Boogie" was one of the first to showcase the electric guitar and as such had a major influence on the development of rockabilly and rock in general.

2011- Adele’s album 21 spent ten consecutive weeks at No. 1 on the UK charts, breaking Madonna’s previous record for the longest chart-topping run by a female artist.

2008- Mariah Carey surpassed Elvis Presley’s record of 17 US No. 1 hits with Touch My Body, moving closer to The Beatles’ record of 20.

2008-Jay-Z joins Madonna and U2 in signing a huge contract with Live Nation; he scores a 360 deal that includes his own label.

American Idol Songwriting Competition Announced
2007-During a Season 6 episode of American Idol, Ryan Seacrest announces the American Idol Songwriter Competition. The entry fee is $10, and the winning song gets to be the winner's first single. After judges cull the 25,000 entries to 20 finalists, it's put to an online vote and the winner is "This is My Now."More

1999-British composer Lionel Bart, known for the Broadway smash Oliver!, dies at age 68 of cancer.

1998-With the big "alternative" acts now squarely in the mainstream, the Lollapalooza festival is officially cancelled, with Green Day, Radiohead and Foo Fighters among the bands turning down offers to headline. The festival launcheded in 1991 with Jane's Addiction, Nine Inch Nails and Siouxsie and the Banshees at the top of the bill.

1995-The RealAudio Player is introduced, allowing users to stream audio over the internet for the first time. Over the next few years, many artists use it to post songs (or samples of them) on their websites.

1994-About 300 radio stations accept Pearl Jam's offer to broadcast their concert at the Fox Theatre in Atlanta for free. It goes over so well, the band does a series of similar broadcasts over the next few years, bringing a steady stream of live music to their fans.

1990-Jazz singer Sarah Vaughan dies at age 66 of lung cancer.

1989-In Pittsburgh, it's a shakedown outside a Grateful Dead concert as police make about two dozen arrests after some fans try to get in without tickets. "I don't want those deadenders ever back again," Mayor Sophie Masloff says.

1985-Leona Lewis is born in Islington, London, England. After winning The X Factor UK in 2006, she lands a global hit with "Bleeding Love" in 2008.

1983-Danny Rapp (of Danny & the Juniors) dies at age 41 from a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head. He's discovered in a hotel room in Quartzsite, Arizona.

1982-Burt Bacharach and Carole Bayer Sager marry. Five days earlier, the songwriters took home Oscars for Best Original Song for their work on "Arthur's Theme (The Best That You Can Do)" from the movie Arthur.

1981-The Elvis Presley documentary movie This Is Elvis (with Ral Donner narrating) premieres in Memphis.

1980-In Memphis on their first US tour, Chrissie Hynde of The Pretenders gets in an altercation at a bar and is arrested. She kicks out the window of the police cruiser sent to take her away and spends the night in jail. Her group performs the next night at Poet's Music Hall.

1979- Kate Bush began her 28-date Tour of Life at Liverpool’s Empire Theatre, her first major concert tour.

1976- Johnnie Taylor’s Disco Lady began a four-week run at No. 1 on the US Billboard Hot 100, becoming the first single certified Platinum by the RIAA.

1974-Drew Shirley (guitarist for Switchfoot) is born in Key West, Florida.

1971-The Temptations' "Just My Imagination (Running Away With Me)" hits #1 for the first of two weeks.

1968-Skid Row lead singer Sebastian Bach is born Sebastian Philip Bierk is born in Freeport, Bahamas, raised in Canada.

1965- Bob Dylan made his UK singles chart debut with The Times They Are A-Changin’, reaching No. 9.

1965-Peaking at #93, The Who make the US singles chart for the first time, with "I Can't Explain."

1963-Elvis Presley's It Happened At The World's Fair movie opens in Los Angeles (it opens nationally a week later).

1961- The Marcels’ Blue Moon hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, also topping charts in Canada, New Zealand, and the UK.

1961-Eddie Murphy is born in New York City. In 1985, he has a hit with "Party All The Time," written and produced by Rick James. Murphy also makes the charts with the novelty song "Put Your Mouth On Me" and the Michael Jackson collaboration "Whatzupwitu."

1960-Working at RCA's Studio B in Nashville, Elvis Presley pulls an all-nighter, recording nine songs, finishing with "Are You Lonesome Tonight" in the wee hours of the morning. The mournful song becomes one of his biggest hits, going to #1 in America for six weeks.

1960-Elvis Presley records "It's Now or Never" in Nashville at RCA Studio B. With a melody lifted from the 1907 song "O Sole Mio," it veers away from rock and roll but is a huge hit and the song Elvis later says is his favorite of all his recordings.

1959-Because of its references to bad behavior in school (writing on the wall, throwing spitballs), The British Broadcasting Corporation bans The Coasters song "Charlie Brown." The ban is lifted two weeks later.

1956-Elvis Presley performs "Heartbreak Hotel" and "Blue Suede Shoes" onboard the aircraft carrier USS Hancock in San Diego. It's broadcast live on The Milton Berle Show.

1949-Guitarist and songwriter Richard Thompson (of Fairport Convention) is born in Notting Hill Gate, London, England.

1944-Tony Orlando is born Michael Anthony Orlando Cassavitis in the Hell's Kitchen neighborhood of New York City. He becomes a teen singing sensation with the 1961 hit "Bless You," but by 1970 is working in music publishing. That year, he is asked to record vocals for a song called "Candida," as the original singer didn't work out. When it becomes a hit, Orlando resumes his singing career as Tony Orlando & Dawn.

1943-Richard Manuel (lead singer of The Band) is born in Stratford, Ontario, Canada.

1942-"Down In The Boondocks" singer Billy Joe Royal is born in Valdosta, Georgia.

1942-Wayne Newton is born Carson Wayne Newton in Norfolk, Virginia.

1941-Surf rocker Jan Berry (of Jan & Dean) is born William Jan Berry in Los Angeles, California.

1938-Songwriter Jeff Barry is born Joel Adelberg in Brooklyn, New York. In 1964, 17 songs he co-wrote make the Hot 100, including three chart-toppers: "Do Wah Diddy Diddy," "Chapel Of Love" and "Leader of the Pack."

1928-Country singer-songwriter Don Gibson ("Sweet Dreams," "I Can't Stop Loving You") is born in Shelby, North Carolina.

1924-The married Beulah Annan murders her lover Harry Kalstedt then sits drinking cocktails and playing "Hula Lou" over and over again while he dies.

1902-The first series of Alessandro Moreschi's solo recordings is made; he is the only castrato to be recorded solo.

1897-German composer and pianist Johannes Brahms dies at his Vienna apartment.

1869-Edvard Grieg's Piano Concerto in A Minor is premiered at Copenhagen's Casino Theater.




Birthdays of Influential Musicians

Doris Day (1922–2019), American singer and actress.

Richard Manuel (1949–1986), Canadian composer and member of The Band.

Jimmy McGriff (1936–2008), American organist.

Harold Vick (1936–1987), American tenor saxophonist.

Scott LaFaro (1936–1961), American jazz bassist.

Bill Potts (1928–2005), American arranger and pianist.

Bill Finegan (1917–2008), American arranger, composer, and pianist.

Ken Kersey (1916–1983), Canadian pianist.

Billy Taylor, Sr. (1906–1986), American pianist and tuba player.

James “Bubber” Miley (1903–1932), American trumpeter.



Deaths

1990- Jazz singer Sarah Vaughan, known as “The Divine One,” passed away from lung cancer at age 66.

Other notable deaths include Bob Burns, original drummer of Lynyrd Skynyrd, who died in a car crash.

[Bikkie]

2001-Silvia Cartwright becomes governor-general
The swearing-in of Dame Silvia Cartwright as New Zealand’s 18th governor-general completed a female clean sweep of the country’s most powerful political and legal positions.

1921-First school dental nurses begin training
In a world first, 30 women began training as dental nurses for the state-funded School Dental Service.

1905 - An earthquake in Lahore province, then part of India, kills 19,000 people.

1902 - The Rhodes Scholarship fund is created with a bequest of US$10 million in Cecil Rhodes' will.

1841 - US President William Harrison dies of pneumonia, just 31 days after assuming office.




In Music History

2024- Dream pop guitarist Graeme Naysmith passed away, known for his work with the band Pale Saints.

2023-The first truly believable AI-generated song appears online, posted to TikTok by an anonymous user. It's called "Heart On My Sleeve," and mimics the voices of Drake and The Weeknd. It quickly spreads to streaming services and is continually taken down and reposted, raising the issue of copyright with AI music.

2022-Jack Harlow previews his song "First Class" on TikTok with an eight-second snippet four days before its official release. It quickly spreads on the platform and helps the song debut at #1, setting up a new paradigm for launching music.

2017-Pepsi posts a commercial featuring the Skip Marley protest song "Lions" that is pulled the next day amid controversy that it makes light of actual protests.

Kendrick Lamar's Butterfly Flies To #1
2015-Kendrick Lamar's landmark album To Pimp A Butterfly flies to #1 in America.

2015-Marilyn Manson is sucker punched by a fellow patron at a Denny's in Alberta, Canada. The rocker, who stopped by the restaurant for a late-night meal after a show promoting his Pale Emperor album, denies claims that he insulted the assailant's girlfriend and spurred the incident.

2014-Richard Marx and Cynthia Rhodes announce the end of their 25-year marriage that included the birth of three sons. The pair met in 1983 when both were working on the film Staying Alive (Marx on the soundtrack, Rhodes as a dancer).

2012-The single "Boyfriend" by Justin Bieber debuts at #2 on the Billboard Hot 100. It's the third-highest first-week sale at 600,000 copies sold. Lots of teenage girls want to be Bieber's girlfriend.

2009-At the Public Hall in Cleveland, Jeff Beck, Little Anthony & The Imperials, Metallica, Run-DMC and Bobby Womack are inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

2008-The Martin Scorsese-directed Rolling Stones concert documentary Shine A Light hits theaters. The next week, Mick Jagger, Keith Richards and Jack White appear on the cover of Rolling Stone with the headline, "Blues Brothers."

2008-After years of quiet courtship, Jay-Z and Beyoncé get married in a secret ceremony, becoming the most powerful couple in entertainment.

2008-Procol Harum's Gary Brooker wins an appeal in London to an earlier ruling, which stated that Harum organist Matthew Fisher was entitled to 40 percent of the royalties from the band's 1967 smash "A Whiter Shade Of Pale." Though the new ruling notes that Fisher wrote the organ line and should be co-credited, it also overturns the royalty award by noting that Fisher waited 38 years to sue.

2008-New Kids on the Block announce their upcoming reunion tour during NBC's Today show in New York City.

2007-An article is published in New Musical Express quoting Keith Richards as saying, "I snorted my father." Richards later claims it was an April Fools' joke.

2005-A man who won an out-of-court settlement in 1994 against the singer for a similar charge testifies in Michael Jackson's current molestation trial.

2003-The Rolling Stones make their stage debut in India, performing at Bangalore Palace in the middle of a monsoon!

1996-More trouble for Wilson Pickett, who after serving a one-year jail sentence in 1994 is arrested at his New Jersey home and charged with possession of two grams of cocaine. Still on probation, he enters a rehab center in August.

1996-Grateful Dead leader Jerry Garcia's ashes are scattered in the Ganges river in India by Dead guitarist Bob Weir and Garcia's widow, Deborah.

1992-Beastie Boys make their first concert appearance playing instruments at a show at The Palladium in Los Angeles.

1987- U2's album "The Joshua Tree" debuted at No. 7 on the Billboard 200, eventually reaching No. 1 and achieving diamond status in the US.

1987-Starship's "Nothing's Gonna Stop Us Now," written by Diane Warren and Albert Hammond and used in the movie Mannequin, hits #1 in the US.

1981-Styx hit #1 in the US with Paradise Theatre, a concept album based on the rise and fall of a theatre in Chicago.

1978-Loretta Lynn sings "One's On The Way" on episode #308 of The Muppet Show. Because the Muppet Theatre is supposedly being fumigated, the entire show takes place at a railroad station.

1974-R&B singer Andre Dalyrimple is born in Georgia. Along with his three brothers, he'll form the group Soul For Real, known for their 1994 hit "Candy Rain."

1973-R&B singer Kelly Price is born in Queens, New York.

1973-The Elvis Presley Aloha From Hawaii concert, recorded three months earlier, is broadcast in America for the first time when it runs on NBC. The ratings are huge, with a third of households with TV sets tuning in to watch.

1972-Magnus Sveningsson (bass guitarist for The Cardigans) is born in Falkoping, Sweden.

1972-R&B singer Jill Scott is born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

1970- Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young's debut album "Déjà Vu" topped the US albums chart, featuring hits like "Teach Your Children" and "Our House".

1969-CBS cancels the highly rated but controversial Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour. Artists to appear on the show include The Who, The Doors and Jefferson Airplane.

Martin Luther King Jr. Is Killed
1968-US civil rights activist Martin Luther King Jr. is killed after being shot on a Memphis motel balcony. King's life inspires a number of songs, including U2's "Pride (In The Name Of Love)."

1967-Jimi Hendrix guests on the first broadcast of the BBC show Dee Time, hosted by Simon Dee. Cat Stevens is also on the show.

1967-The Beatles finish recording "Within You Without You," a George Harrison song where he plays sitar and is accompanied by various Indian musicians. He has the engineers add some laughter to the end of the track from a sound effects reel.

1966-Mike Starr (bass guitarist for Alice in Chains) is born in Honolulu, Hawaii.

1964-A court orders The Trashmen of "Surfin' Bird" fame to pay royalties to Beechwood Music, holder of the copyright for The Rivingtons' 1962 hit "Papa Oom Mow Mow," which The Trashmen hit borrows heavily from.

1964-The Beatles hold the top five spots on the Billboard Hot 100 chart with the following singles:

5) "Please Please Me"
4) "I Want To Hold Your Hand"
3) "She Loves You"
2) "Twist And Shout"
1) "Can't Buy Me Love"


1962-Craig Adams (bass guitarist for The Cult) is born in Otley, West Yorkshire, England.

1961-Former teen idol Fabian graduates from Philadelphia's South Side High.

1960-RCA Victor decides to release all future singles -- starting with its next, Elvis Presley's "Stuck On You" -- in both mono and stereo versions.

1960- Elvis Presley recorded "Are You Lonesome Tonight?" at RCA Victor studios in Nashville, which later became a chart-topping hit.

1960-Frank Sinatra's version of "High Hopes" from the movie A Hole In The Head wins the Oscar for Best Original Song.

1958-Earl Grant records "(At) The End (Of A Rainbow)."

1952-Dave Hill (guitarist for Slade) is born in Holbeton, Devon, England.

1952-Blues guitarist Gary Moore (of Thin Lizzy) is born Robert William Gary Moore in Belfast, Northern Ireland.

1951-Country musician Steve Gatlin (of The Gatlin Brothers) is born in Olney, Texas.

1950-Rock drummer Phillip "Pip" Pyle (of Gong, Hatfield and the North, and National Health) is born in Sawbridgeworth, Hertfordshire, England.

1948-Berry Oakley (bass guitarist for The Allman Brothers Band) is born Raymond Berry Oakley III in Chicago, Illinois.

1948-Pick Withers (drummer for Dire Straits) is born David Withers in Leicester, England.

1942-Kris Jensen, known for the 1962 hit "Torture," is born Peter Jensen in New Haven, Connecticut.

1941-R&B singer Major Lance, known for hits like "The Monkey Time" and "Um, Um, Um, Um, Um, Um," is born in Winterville, Mississippi.

1940-Songwriter Sharon Sheeley, who writes hits for Glen Campbell, Brenda Lee and Eddie Cochran, is born in California. She also pens Ricky Nelson's first #1 hit, "Poor Little Fool."

1939-Jazz musician Hugh Masekela is born in Witbank, South Africa.

1938-Country singer-songwriter Norris "Norro" Wilson is born in Scottsville, Kentucky.

1938-Actor and singer Michael Parks is born Harry Samuel Parks in Corona, California.

1936-Margo Sylvia, lead singer of The Tune Weavers (known for the 1957 hit "Happy, Happy Birthday Baby"), is born Margo Lopez.

1932-Music mogul Clive Davis, founder of Arista Records, is born in Brooklyn, New York. In addition to working with artists like Kelly Clarkson, TLC, Alicia Keys, and Aretha Franklin, he will help launch the careers of Whitney Houston and Barry Manilow.

1929- Sigmund Romberg and Oscar Hammerstein II's operetta "The New Moon" opened at the Drury Lane Theatre in London's West End.

1914-Singer and actress Frances Langford is born Julia Frances Langford in Hernando, Florida.

1913-Chicago blues legend Muddy Waters is born McKinley Morganfield in Rolling Fork, Mississippi.





Notable Birthdays
Muddy Waters (1915-1983): Influential American blues musician, would have turned 110 this year.
Gary Moore (1952-2011): Northern Irish musician, would have turned 73 this year.

[Bikkie]

1871
NZ's first overseas diplomatic post created
New Zealand’s first overseas diplomatic post was created when Isaac Featherston was appointed as agent-general in London.

Phar Lap at Flemington Racecourse, Melbourne, c. 1930
1932
Death of Phar Lap
The champion racehorse Phar Lap was New Zealand-born and bred, but never raced in this country. He won 37 of his 51 races and 32 of his last 35, including the 1930 Melbourne Cup. In the gloom of the great Depression, Phar Lap’s exploits thrilled two countries.



In Music History

Amazing Grace Hits Theaters, 47 Years After It Was Filmed
2019-The Aretha Franklin documentary Amazing Grace is finally released in theaters, 47 years after it was recorded in 1972.More

Bob Dylan And St. Vincent Do Classic Songs From Same-Sex Perspective
2018-The EP Universal Love – Wedding Songs Reimagined is released, with six classic songs sung from the perspective of same-sex couples. Bob Dylan does "She's Funny That Way" as "He's Funny That Way," and St. Vincent turns "Then He Kissed Me" into "Then She Kissed Me."More

2017-At age 73, Barry Manilow comes out as gay.

2017-Trans-Siberian Orchestra founder Paul O'Neill is found dead in a Tampa, Florida, hotel room. The band announces the 61-year-old rocker died from a chronic illness.

2015-Two days after Furious 7 is released in theaters, the "See You Again" video, featuring footage from the film, debuts on Facebook and Twitter. The next day, it is posted on YouTube, where it eventually breaks the record for most views, previously held by "Gangnam Style."

2016- Drake released One Dance, which topped charts in multiple countries and became the most-streamed track of the year on Spotify.

2012-The Philip Lynott Exhibition opens at the 02 in London, celebrating the legacy of the Thin Lizzy frontman.

2011-Folk musician Gil Robbins (of the folk band The Highwaymen) dies of prostate cancer two days after his 80th birthday in Baja California, Mexico.

2009-Donald Trump fires TLC member Tionne Watkins, better known by her stage name T-Boz, in the sixth week of The Celebrity Apprentice, Season 8.

2008-Leona Lewis hits #1 in the US with "Bleeding Love." It's the first American hit for Lewis, who won the UK version of The X Factor in 2006. The song was written by Ryan Tedder and Jesse McCartney, and intended for McCartney.

2008-Toto breaks up after performing its final concert in Seoul.

2006-Rock and roll singer-songwriter Gene Pitney dies of a heart attack at age 66 while touring the UK.

2005-Matchbox Twenty frontman Rob Thomas releases his debut solo album, …Something To Be, featuring the Top 10 hit "Lonely No More."More

Aberdeen Beckons: Come As You Are
2005-On the eleventh anniversary of Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain's suicide, his hometown of Aberdeen, Washington adds the phrase "Come As You Are" to its welcome sign.

2002-Alice In Chains frontman Layne Staley dies after overdosing on heroin and cocaine. The 34-year-old singer had fallen into addiction and lost most contact with the outside world. His body isn't discovered until two weeks later, when police enter his apartment on April 19 after friends and associates report him missing.

2002-In Philadelphia, 12-year-old Taylor Swift sings the national anthem before the 76ers game against the Detroit Pistons. She's from the borough of Wyomissing, about 60 miles away.

1998-Prolific rock drummer Cozy Powell, who did time in Rainbow and Black Sabbath, dies at 50 when he crashes his car on the M4 near Bristol, England. He was racing to his girlfriend's house, who had called him distraught.

1997- Aerosmith’s Nine Lives reached No.1 on the US Billboard 200, and The Chemical Brothers topped the UK Singles chart with Block Rockin’ Beats.

1994-Kurt Cobain of Nirvana kills himself with a shotgun at age 27. His body isn't discovered until three days later when an electrician enters to install an alarm.

1988-Tracy Chapman's eponymous debut album is released.

1987-Jazz drummer Buddy Rich's funeral takes place in Los Angeles, with Frank Sinatra, Artie Shaw, and Johnny Carson in attendance.

1985-Thousands of radio stations play "We Are The World" simultaneously at 10:50 a.m. EST. In the next few weeks, the song goes to #1 in America and the UK.

1985- Thrash metal band Exodus released their debut album Bonded by Blood, a classic in the genre.

1984-Marvin Gaye's funeral takes place in Los Angeles, with Smokey Robinson, Stevie Wonder, Quincy Jones and Berry Gordy attending. Gaye died 4 days earlier when he was shot by his father during an argument.

1982-The record industry trade magazine Record World folds after 36 years.

1981-Blues-rock musician Bob "The Bear" Hite (lead singer of Canned Heat) dies at age 38 after snorting a vial of heroin - thinking it was cocaine - given to him by a fan.

1980- R.E.M. performed their first show at St. Mary’s Episcopal Church in Athens, Georgia, and Genesis topped the UK Albums chart with Duke.

1978-Duran Duran play their first live gig, in Birmingham, England. Singer Stephen Duffy leaves the band two years later and is replaced by Simon Le Bon - shortly before the band are signed to EMI records.

1977-David Bowie and Iggy Pop perform together on Dinah Shore's daytime show on NBC.

1975-Minnie Riperton's "Lovin' You," with the most famous high note of the '70s, is the #1 hit in America.

1974-The Guess Who host a celebrity tennis tournament in Toronto to benefit Ballet of Canada.

Pharrell Williams Is Born
1973-Singer/superproducer Pharrell Williams is born in Virginia Beach, Virginia. As half of the hip-hop production duo The Neptunes, he's a prime architect of the popular music landscape of the 2000s.More

1971-Chicago is the first American rock band to perform at Carnegie Hall.

1969-The Guess Who's "These Eyes" enters the Billboard singles chart.

1968- Simon & Garfunkel released Mrs. Robinson, which became a US chart-topper and won a Grammy for Record of the Year.

James Brown Quells Riots In Boston
1968-With tensions high the night after Martin Luther King Jr. is assassinated, James Brown goes ahead with his concert at the Boston Garden, agreeing to televise the show to help keep calm in the city.

1968-Singer-songwriter Paula Cole, known for the 1997 hit "Where Have All The Cowboys Gone?," is born in Rockport, Massachusetts.

1967-Elvis Presley's 24th movie, Double Trouble, premieres in Hollywood.

1967-Monkees fans march in London in protest of band member Davy Jones' announced induction into the Army. The teen heartthrob is eventually exempted from duty for being his family's main provider.

1966-Pearl Jam guitarist Mike McCready is born in Pensacola, Florida. One of his most notable songwriting contributions to the band is "Given To Fly" from 1998, a song that represents a period of renewal.

1965-"Chim Chim Cher-ee," composed by The Sherman Brothers for the Disney musical Mary Poppins, wins the Academy Award for Best Original Song.

1965- At the 37th Academy Awards, the Sherman Brothers won Best Original Song for Chim Chim Cher-ee from Mary Poppins.

1964-Rapper Christopher "Kid" Reid (Kid 'N Play) is born in The Bronx, New York City.

1964-The Beatles film the famous opening scene from their first movie, A Hard Day's Night, running away from several rabid female fans at London's Marylebone train station.

1964-The Searchers make their US television debut, singing "Needles And Pins" and "Ain't That Just Like Me" on The Ed Sullivan Show.

1961-On The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet episode "A Question of Suits and Ties," Ricky Nelson sings "Travelin' Man" in what could be considered the first music video

1951-Everett Morton (drummer for The English Beat) is born in the West Indies.

1950-Agnetha Faltskog (of ABBA) is born in Jönköping, Småland, Sweden.

1944-R&B singer Nicholas Caldwell (of The Whispers) is born in San Francisco, California.

1942-Allan Clarke (original lead singer of The Hollies) is born Harold Allan Clarke in Salford, Lancashire, England.

1941-Folk musician Dave Swarbick (of Fairport Convention) is born in New Malden, England.

1939-R&B singer Ronnie White (of The Miracles) is born in Detroit, Michigan.

1939-Pop singer-songwriter Crispian St. Peters is born Robin Peter Smith in Swanley, Kent, England.

1934-Jazz tenor saxophonist Stanley Turrentine is born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

1932-R&B singer Billy Bland, known for the '60s hits "Let the Little Girl Dance" and "Harmony," is born in Wilmington, North Carolina.

1929-English record producer Joe Meek, famous for writing and producing the Tornados' instrumental hit "Telstar," is born Robert George Meek in Newent, Gloucestershire, England.

1928-R&B singer Tony Williams (of The Platters) is born in Elizabeth, New Jersey.

1926-Jazz drummer Stan Levey is born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

King Oliver's Creole Jazz Band Makes First African-American Jazz Recordings
1923-Joe Oliver and King Oliver's Creole Jazz Band, featuring a young Louis Armstrong, make the first jazz recordings by an African American band at Gennett Records in rural Richmond, Indiana.

1922-Actress and singer Gale Storm, star of the '50s TV shows My Little Margie and The Gale Storm Show, is born Josephine Owaissa Cottle in Bloomington, Texas.

1902- Maurice Ravel’s “Pavane pour une infante défunte” premiered in Paris, performed by pianist Ricardo Viñes.

1803- Ludwig van Beethoven conducted the first performance of his 2nd Symphony in D in Vienna, marking an early milestone in classical music history.





Notable Live Performances
The Fleetwoods performed Come Softly to Me on The Ed Sullivan Show, an early example of televised music promotion.

Jerry Lee Lewis recorded Live at the Star Club in Germany, later acclaimed as a legendary live rock album.

Duran Duran played their first live show in Birmingham, England, in 1979.

The Allman Brothers Band, Yes, and Genesis all performed significant concerts on April 5 in the 1970s, contributing to rock history.




Famous Birthdays

Tony Williams (1928), jazz drummer, The Platters

Peter Grant (1935), manager of Led Zeppelin

Agnetha Fältskog (1950), ABBA singer-songwriter

Mike McCready (1966), guitarist, Pearl Jam

Paula Cole (1968), singer-songwriter and pianist

Pharrell Williams (1973), singer, producer, and songwriter

[Bikkie]

1864
Pai Mārire ambush in Taranaki
A British patrol was ambushed by Pai Mārire fighters near Ōakura. The heads of the seven men killed were taken around the North Island by Pai Mārire disciples to encourage enlistment in the movement.


1919
Maori (Pioneer) Battalion returns from war
The Maori (Pioneer) Battalion was one of only three New Zealand Expeditionary Force formations – and the only battalion – to return from the First World War as a complete unit.


In Music History

2023-The series Beef airs on Netflix with a soundtrack that revives several songs from the '90s and '00s, including "Drive" by Incubus, "Self Esteem" by The Offspring, and "Lonely Day" by System of a Down.

2018-Cardi B releases her debut album, Invasion Of Privacy. It goes to #1 and clears a path for female rappers like Megan Thee Stallion and GloRilla.

2016-Hello Billboard, my old friend. Simon & Garfunkel's 1966 chart-topper "The Sound of Silence" peaks at #6 on the Hot Rock Songs chart thanks to its appearance in a meme involving Ben Affleck and his botched blockbuster Batman V Superman: Dawn Of Justice.

2016-On his 79th birthday, Merle Haggard dies at his ranch in Northern California. Haggard placed 71 songs in the Top 10 of the Country chart during his lifetime.

2004-Wilco's frontman, Jeff Tweedy, checks into a rehabilitation center after developing an addiction to painkillers. A statement released by the band reads: "The treatment follows a well-documented history of Tweedy's battle with migraine headache."

2004-Rock and roll guitarist Niki Sullivan (of Buddy Holly's backing band The Crickets) dies at age 66 of a heart attack in Sugar Creek, Missouri.

2002-Sarah McLachlan gives birth to her first child, daughter India Ann Sushil Sood.

1999-Bob Weir and Mickey Hart of Grateful Dead appear at an Al Gore presidential fundraiser, with Gore's wife, notorious anti-rock crusader Tipper, playing congas.

1998-Wendy O. Williams (lead singer of Plasmatics) dies of a self-inflicted gunshot wound at age 48 in Storrs, Connecticut.

1998-On the TV show Murphy Brown, Candice Bergen's lead character turns 50, and her coworkers celebrate by recreating an episode of American Bandstand. Dick Clark, Chubby Checker, Fabian and Lesley Gore all make appearances.

1998-Tammy Wynette dies at age 55 after suffering numerous health problems.

1997-The Michael Jackson short film/theme ride Captain EO is shown for the last time at Disneyland.

1993-Tool disrupt the grunge genre's victory parade with Undertow, their visionary debut album. Aided by the distinctive and unsettling music videos for "Sober" and "Prison Sex" (directed by Adam Jones), the album sells two million copies and earns the band an ardent fan base.

1993-Bruce Hornsby releases his first solo album, Harbor Lights. Jerry Garcia, Pat Metheny, Bonnie Raitt, Branford Marsalis, and Phil Collins all make appearances on this jazzy recording.

Annie Lennox Issues First Solo Album
1992-Annie Lennox releases her first solo album, Diva, with the hits "Why" and "Walking On Broken Glass."

1992-George Harrison performs his first full live solo concert since 1969, appearing in London in a benefit for the Natural Law political party.

1988-Barbara "Sandi" Robison falls ill during a performance in Butte, Montana. She's rushed to a hospital but never fully recovers. She dies from toxic shock a couple of weeks later.

1986-Composer John Longmire dies at his Guernsey home at age 85.

1985-Gilbert O'Sullivan wins a two-million-dollar judgment against his manager, Gordon Mills, for royalties owed him on his 1972 smash "Alone Again (Naturally)."

1984-Rock and roll musician Ral Donner, known for the 1961 hit "You Don't Know What You've Got (Until You Lose It)," dies at age 41 of lung cancer.

1984-Steve "Little Steven" Van Zandt announces he's leaving the E-Street Band, and goes on to helm the Sun City project. He will return in the '90s when the band reforms.

1983-Ronald Reagan's secretary of the Interior, James Watt, cancels an appearance by The Beach Boys at Washington DC's Independence Day festivities, infamously stating that the band would attract "an undesirable element."

1980-Andrew Wood forms the group Malfunkshun in Seattle, Washington, marking what some consider the beginning of grunge. The music of Malfunkshun makes an impact on Wood's roommate Chris Cornell, who forms Soundgarden. Wood moves on to Mother Love Bone, and after he dies of a heart attack in 1990, that group adds Eddie Vedder and becomes Pearl Jam

1979-In Beverly Hills, Rod Stewart marries George Hamilton's ex-wife, Alana. The couple divorces in 1984.

1978-Peter Frampton guest-stars on NBC-TV's Black Sheep Squadron.

1974-Blue Swede's "Hooked On A Feeling" hits #1.

1974-Al Green performs his hit "Here I Am (Come and Take Me)" on Soul Train. Green, who had broken an arm and is wearing a sling, performs the song live, which is rare on the show because live performances are expensive and complicated to produce.

1974-The Eagles, Earth, Wind & Fire, Black Sabbath, Deep Purple and Emerson, Lake and Palmer play to a crowd of 200,000 at the California Jam in Ontario, California.

1974-Billy Joel scores his first Top 40 hit with "Piano Man," which comes in at #33 (it peaks at #25 two weeks later).

ABBA Wins Eurovision With "Waterloo"
1974-ABBA become European stars overnight when their composition "Waterloo" wins the annual Eurovision Song Contest.

1972-The Monkees' Micky Dolenz guest stars as himself on the "Barbara Lost" episode of ABC-TV's My Three Sons.

1971-Russian composer Igor Stravinsky dies of heart failure at age 88 in New York.

1971-Carly Simon plays her first show as a solo artist when she opens for Cat Stevens at the Troubadour nightclub in Los Angeles. Anxiety makes it very hard for her to play live, but she can't resist a chance to play some shows with Stevens, her favorite singer.

1970-Diana Ross, having left The Supremes four months earlier, issues her debut single as a solo artist, "Reach Out And Touch (Somebody's Hand)."

1969-Original bassist Pete Quaife leaves The Kinks. Nobby Dalton takes his place.

1969-Joanie Sommers guests on the syndicated Frankie Avalon Easter (TV) Special.

The Graduate Soundtrack Goes To #1
1968-The Graduate soundtrack hits #1 in America thanks to Simon & Garfunkel's "Mrs. Robinson," which tops the Hot 100 less than two months later.

1965-Elvis Presley releases "Crying In The Chapel."

1963-With his contract with Imperial Records expiring, Fats Domino signs with ABC-Paramount and begins recording in Nashville.

1963-Bobby Darin records "Eighteen Yellow Roses."

1958-Selwyn Brown (keyboardist for Steel Pulse) is born in London, England.

1957-Perry Como's "Round And Round" hits #1.

1956-The Capitol Tower, new home of Capitol Records, opens on the corner of Hollywood and Vine in Los Angeles. The 13-story building, which resembles a stack of records, houses three new recording studios where Frank Sinatra, Bobby Darin, Linda Ronstadt, and many other stars will lay down tracks. The building becomes an LA landmark, with the red light at the top flashing "HOLLYWOOD" in Morse Code.

1956-Having impressed Paramount Studios with his screen test five days earlier, Elvis Presley is signed to a seven-year, three-picture deal worth nearly half a million dollars.

1953-Christopher Franke (of the electronic group Tangerine Dream) is born in Berlin, Germany.

1952-Original Accept singer (and later frontman of UDO), Udo Dirkschneider, is born in Wuppertal, Germany.

1947-Drummer Tony Connor (of Hot Chocolate) is born in Romford, England.

1944-Bass guitarist John Stax (of The Pretty Things) is born in Crayford, Kent, England.

1944-Alan Lee Brackett of the Peanut Butter Conspiracy is born in Los Angeles, California.

1942-Anita Pallenberg is born in Rome. A model, she has a short relationship with Brian Jones of The Rolling Stones and a long one with Keith Richards, with whom she has three children.

1937-Country musician Merle Haggard is born in Oildale, California. For the first years of his life, he lives in an abandoned boxcar that his father converted into a home.

1929-Composer and pianist Andre Previn - known for Academy Award-winning scores to Gigi, Porgy & Bess, Irma la Douce, and My Fair Lady - is born Andreas Ludwig Priwin in Berlin, Germany.

1927-Jazz musician Gerry Mulligan is born in Queens, New York City.

1925-Eddie Cantor records "If You Knew Susie."

1922-Jazz pianist Dorothy Donegan is born in Chicago, Illinois.

1917-Blues harmonica player Walter Horton is born in Horn Lake, Mississippi.

[Bikkie]

1954- WALB TV channel 10 in Albany, GA (NBC/ABC) begins broadcasting

1956- France officially relinquished its protectorate in Morocco, Spain follows suit for regions of her protectorate in northern Morocco

1957- Last of NY's electric trolleys completes its final run

1958- Dodgers erect 42-foot screen in left field at LA Coliseum to cut down on home runs, since it is only 250 feet down the line

1959- Oklahoma ends prohibition, after 51 years

1959- Radar first bounces off the Sun in Stanford, California

1962- Indian cricketer Polly Umrigar slams 172 not out vs West Indies at Port-of-Spain in 248 minutes



In Music History
2020-John Prine, acclaimed singer-songwriter of Angel From Montgomery, passed away aged 73, due to COVID-19 complications, leaving a legacy of 23 albums and five Grammy Awards.

2017-Pearl Jam, Nile Rodgers, Electric Light Orchestra, Journey, Joan Baez, Tupac Shakur and Yes are inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

2016-After 15 years of memorable performances, cringeworthy auditions, and shocking eliminations, the American Idol stage finally goes dark, but not before one more winner is crowned: Trent Harmon.

2015-Don McLean's original manuscript to his lyric for "American Pie" sells at auction for $1.2 million. Says McLean: "I thought it would be interesting as I reach age 70 to release this work product on the song 'American Pie' so that anyone who might be interested will learn that this song was not a parlor game."

2014-25-year-old Peaches Geldof, daughter of the Live Aid mastermind Bob Geldof, is found dead in Kent, England, after overdosing on heroin. Her mother, Paula Yates, died in 2000 when Peaches was 11.

2013-Andy Johns (engineer for Led Zeppelin, Television, and The Rolling Stones) dies at age 62 of complications from a stomach ulcer.

Rock Of Ages Revives '80s Rock On Broadway
2009-The jukebox musical Rock of Ages, a celebration of glam metal and classic rock of the '80s, opens at the Brooks Atkinson Theatre.More

2008-Bob Dylan gets an honorary Pulitzer Prize for his "profound impact on popular music and American culture." He's the first rock musician to win the award.

2008-The newly reunited Stone Temple Pilots announce a 65-date reunion tour and play for the first time since 2002.

2007-Beyoncé's "Beautiful Liar," featuring Latin-pop star Shakira, breaks the record for the highest leap on the Billboard Hot 100 when it jumps 91 places to #3. The record was previously held by Akon, whose "Smack That," featuring Eminem, rose from #95 to #7 (ultimately peaking at #2) in 2006.

2000-At The Roxy in Los Angeles, Brian Wilson covers the Barenaked Ladies' tribute song "Brian Wilson" for the first time ("If you want to find me, I'll be out in the sandbox..."). The concert is later released as Live at the Roxy Theatre, his first live album.

1999-Shania Twain's third album Come On Over is certified Diamond (10 million in sales) by the RIAA, making her the first female artist with back-to-back Diamond albums; her second album, The Woman in Me, was certified in 1997.

1998-George Michael is arrested for disorderly conduct at a park restroom in Beverly Hills, California, after an undercover officer observes him performing a "lewd act." He comes out as gay soon after.

1998-Drummer Carlos Vega (James Taylor's band) dies at age 41 from a self-inflicted gunshot wound the day before he is scheduled to appear on The Oprah Winfrey Show alongside James Taylor.

1998-Mary Bono, who was married to Sonny Bono when he died in a skiing accident four months earlier, wins a special election to claim her husband's seat in California's 44th Congressional District. Mary, who has no previous political experience, holds office until 2013.

1998- Singer-songwriter Berit Dybing, known as Ber, was born, later gaining recognition for viral hits like Meant To Be.

1990- Farm Aid IV concert in Indianapolis featured artists including Bonnie Raitt, Elton John, Willie Nelson, and Iggy Pop.

1990-Guns N' Roses play their last show with drummer Steven Adler, whose drug addiction is taking a toll on his playing. He is booted from the band before their next performance.

1990- Elton John arrives after holding vigil for Ryan White, an 18-year-old who is one of the first high-profile AIDS victims (he contracted the disease from a blood transfusion). Elton dedicates his performance of "Candle In The Wind" to White, who dies the next day.

Bonnie Raitt Lands Her First #1 Album
1990-Bonnie Raitt emerges from a career slump with her first #1 album, Nick Of Time, unseating Paula Abdul's Forever Your Girl.

1988-When the piano wire that keeps him safely suspended during his gallows stunt snaps, Alice Cooper nearly hangs himself for real on stage at Wembley Arena in London. He's able to slip his chin over the rope to keep his neck from snapping until a roadie can rescue him.

1987-Whitesnake slides into hair metal with their seventh, self-titled album. It's by far their most successful, with the MTV hits "Here I Go Again" and "Is This Love?"

1987-Jazz singer Maxine Sullivan, known for her 1937 swing version of "Loch Lomond," dies after suffering a seizure at age 75 in New York City.

Sade Makes the Cover of Time Magazine
1986-Sade makes the cover of Time magazine under the headline Pop's Smooth Operator. The article lauds her as "a new princess of pop" with a "sophisticated sound, elegant look."

1985-Wham! become the first Western pop group to play in China when they perform at the Worker's Gymnasium in Beijing. Footage from their trip appears in the video for their song "Freedom."

1984-New British Invasion: 40 of the artists on the US Top 100 singles chart are Brits - a new record.

1981-Rick James releases his most successful album, Street Songs, with "Fire And Desire" and "Super Freak."

1979-Minute By Minute by The Doobie Brothers claims the top spot on the US albums chart, thanks in part to "What A Fool Believes," written by Kenny Loggins and Doobies frontman Michael McDonald.

1979-Rickie Lee Jones is the musical guest on Saturday Night Live. She performs her hit "Chuck E.'s In Love" and does a full-beatnik rendition of "Coolsville," complete with cigarette and beret.

1978-The Police release "Roxanne" in the UK. BBC Radio 1 refuses to play it, which tanks the song, but when the band tours America a year later it catches on in that country, becoming their first hit.

1978- Prince released his debut album For You, showcasing his multi-instrumental talents and producing hits like Soft and Wet.

1979- The Doobie Brothers’ album Minute by Minute began a two-week run at number one on the US Billboard 200.

1977- The Damned became the first British punk band to perform live in the United States at CBGB in New York.

1975-After a show in Paris, Ritchie Blackmore leaves Deep Purple to form Rainbow. He is eventually replaced by Tommy Bolin.

1975-John Cooper, frontman for the Christian rock band Skillet, is born in Memphis, Tennessee.

1973- Diana Ross’ soundtrack album Lady Sings the Blues topped the US Billboard 200 chart, and Vicki Lawrence’s The Night the Lights Went Out in Georgia reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100.

1971-The Rolling Stones announce their own record label, Rolling Stones Records, which they vow to make a "small operation we can handle" so as not to suffer the pitfalls of The Beatles' Apple Records.

1971- Don McLean’s iconic song American Pie became a cultural touchstone; its original manuscript was later auctioned for $1.2 million in 2015.

1970-Popular songwriting team Hal David and Burt Bacharach win the Academy Award for Best Original Song for "Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head" from the 1969 film Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. Performed by B.J. Thomas, it hit #1 on the US charts. Bacharach also takes the prize for Best Original Score for his work on the film.

1969- Leonard Cohen released his second studio album, Songs from a Room.

1968-At the Generation Club in New York, Jimi Hendrix, Joni Mitchell, B.B. King, Richie Havens and Buddy Guy take the stage for a jam session in tribute to Martin Luther King, Jr., who was killed three days earlier.

1968-Three days after the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Nina Simone performs "Why? (The King of Love Is Dead)" at the Westbury Music Fair in Long Island, New York, in his honor. The song was written by her bassist, Gene Taylor, less than 24 hours earlier.

1962- Mick Jagger and Keith Richards met Brian Jones at the Ealing Jazz Club in London, a meeting that led to the formation of the Rolling Stones.

1962-Bobby Rydell wins the role of Hugo in the movie version of Bye Bye Birdie.

1962- Shelley Fabares’ debut single Johnny Angel began a two-week run at number one on the US Billboard Hot 100, also topping charts in Canada and New Zealand.

1959-Marty Robbins records "El Paso."

1959-As the snow melts in Mason City, Iowa, Buddy Holly's glasses are found from the plane crash that killed him two months earlier. They are turned in to police, where they stay until 1980, when a sheriff finds them and returns them to Holly's widow.

1958-Nat King Cole portrays famed blues musician W.C. Handy in the biographical film St. Louis Blues. The star-studded cast includes music greats Mahalia Jackson, Eartha Kitt, Ella Fitzgerald, Pearl Bailey, Cab Calloway, and 10-year-old Billy Preston as a young Will Handy.

1956-Network TV premiere: Rock & Roll Dance Party with Alan Freed, on CBS.

1956-Capitol Records Tower: Opened as the first circular office building in Los Angeles, housing recording studios and offices, with Frank Sinatra’s Tone Poems of Color as the first album recorded there.

1956-The Platters make their national television debut on Tommy & Jimmy Dorsey's Stage Show on CBS.

1956- Alan Freed’s Rock 'n' Roll Dance Party premiered on CBS Radio, the first regularly scheduled national rock and roll broadcast.

1951-Janis Ian is born Janis Eddy Fink in New York City (but will be raised in New Jersey). She writes her first song at age 12 and completes her first hit, "Society's Child," at 14.

1951-Bruce Gary (drummer for The Knack) is born in Burbank, California.

1949- The Rodgers and Hammerstein musical South Pacific opened at the Majestic Theater in New York City, eventually running for 1,928 performances and winning 10 Tony Awards.

1948-Dallas Taylor, a drummer known for his work with Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, is born in Denver, Colorado.

1948-John Oates (of Hall & Oates) is born in New York City.

1948-Carol Douglas, known for the pioneering disco track "Doctor's Orders," is born in Brooklyn, New York, to a musical family. Her mom is jazz performer Minnie Newsome, the supposed inspiration for Cab Calloway's "Minnie the Moocher," and her cousin is soul singer Sam Cooke.

1947-Pat Bennett (of The Chiffons) is born in The Bronx, New York.

1943-Rock guitarist Mick Abrahams (of Jethro Tull) is born in Luton, Bedfordshire, England.

1938-Rock drummer Spencer Dryden (of Jefferson Airplane, New Riders of the Purple Sage) is born in New York City.

1937-R&B vocalist Charlie Thomas (of The Drifters) is born in Lynchburg, Virginia.

1935-Country singer-songwriter Bobby Bare is born in Ironton, Ohio.

1920-Ravi Shankar, Hindustani classical musician and composer (and dad to Norah Jones), is born Robindro Shaunkor Chowdhury in Benares, India.

1915-Billie Holiday is born Eleanora Fagan in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

1917-Jazz percussionist Mongo Santamaria, known for composing the jazz standard "Afro Blue," is born Ramon Santamaria Rodriguez in Havana, Cuba.

1912-Songwriter Jack Lawrence is born Jacob Louis Schwartz in Brooklyn, New York. Co-wrote Frank Sinatra's first solo hit, "All or Nothing at All."

1908-Composer and arranger Percy Faith is born in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

1805-Beethoven's 3rd Symphony (Eroica) is premiered in Vienna's Theater-an-der-Wien. Innovative in length and size of orchestra, many criticize the first movement for its dissonant chords.

1724 Johann Sebastian Bach’s St John Passion premiered at St. Nicholas Church in Leipzig, Germany, marking a significant moment in Baroque sacred music history.

[Bikkie]

1923
Rail tunnel pierces the Southern Alps
The opening of the 8.5-km Ōtira tunnel completed the long-planned transalpine railway between Christchurch and Greymouth. At the time, it was the longest tunnel outside the Alps and the seventh-longest in the world.



1965
Cook Islands achieves self-government
First included within the boundaries of New Zealand in 1901, the islands were governed by a Resident Commissioner until 1946. When they achieved self-government, Cook Islanders remained New Zealand citizens.



In Music History

2024-Decades after listeners synched it to The Wizard Of Oz, many skywatchers use Pink Floyd's album The Dark Side Of The Moon to soundtrack the total solar eclipse, with the last track, "Eclipse," playing as the moon blocks out the sun.

2023-Jimin of BTS becomes the first South Korean solo artist to hit #1 in America when his song "Like Crazy" debuts at the top spot. PSY came close in 2012 when "Gangnam Style" went to #2.

2016-Steve Miller, notoriously averse to awards ceremonies, goes on a backstage rant when he is inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. He says the Hall is like "a private boys club," and lets loose on the organizers. "It's a bunch of jackasses and jerks and f--king gangsters and crooks."

2016-Gavin Rossdale and Gwen Stefani are officially divorced after 14 years of marriage. They share three sons: Kingston, Zuma, and Apollo.

2016-The Baltimore Orioles play the Woody Guthrie song "This Land Is Your Land" during the seventh inning stretch in their game against the Rays, starting a tradition of playing the song at every Friday home game. It's part of their "Community Heroes" program to honor local citizens and an effort to diversify their musical selections to reflect progressive ideals. On Saturday nights they play "America The Beautiful," and on Sundays it's "God Bless America."

2016-The Guns N' Roses reunion tour gets underway in Las Vegas. Axl Rose, who fractured his foot at a warm-up show, performs from the throne Dave Grohl used to play Foo Fighters shows when he was hobbled.

2016-Bruce Springsteen cancels an upcoming show in Greensboro, North Carolina, in protest of a state law limiting the rights of transgender people. "Some things are more important than a rock show and this fight against prejudice and bigotry - which is happening as I write - is one of them," he writes.

Pearl Jam follows suit, bowing out of a show in Raleigh.

2013-Cher fans fear the singer is dead when the hashtag #nowthatchersdead trends on Twitter. It turns out the tag is for Margaret Thatcher.

2013-Annette Funicello dies at age 70 of multiple sclerosis. The actress became famous as a Mouseketeer on the original Mickey Mouse Club before becoming a pop singer and was known for a string of popular '60s "Beach Party" films with co-star Frankie Avalon.

2010- Malcolm McLaren, manager of the Sex Pistols and influential in punk rock, passed away.

2008-Lady Gaga releases her first single, "Just Dance," co-written with Akon, who sings on the track. It catches on in clubs and gradually climbs the pop chart, landing at #1 in January 2009.

2006-The Rolling Stones play their first-ever concert in mainland China with a gig in Shanghai.

2003-Lisa Marie Presley, daughter of Elvis Presley, releases her first solo album, To Whom It May Concern. It debuts at #5 in America.

2001-Country singer-songwriter Van Stephenson (of BlackHawk) dies at age 47, two years after being diagnosed with melanoma.

2001-Cuban violinist Pedro Depestre Gonzales (of Buena Vista Social Club) dies at age 55 after collapsing on stage during a concert performance in Basel, Switzerland.

2000- Westlife scored their fifth consecutive UK number one single with Fool Again.

2000- Santana featuring The Product G&B reached No. 1 on the US Billboard Hot 100 with Maria Maria.

2000-NSYNC's album No Strings Attached hit No. 1 on the US Billboard 200 for eight consecutive weeks.

2000-In a Saturday Night Live skit where Blue Öyster Cult is recording "(Don't Fear) The Reaper," Christopher Walken demands more cowbell from Will Ferrell, who complies. A catch phrase is born.

1997-Singer-songwriter Laura Nyro ("Stoned Soul Picnic," "Wedding Bell Blues," "And When I Die") dies at age 49 of ovarian cancer.

1996-Delta blues musician Roosevelt "Booba" Barnes dies at age 59 of lung cancer.

1994-Kurt Cobain's body is found in his Seattle home by an electrician sent to install a burglar alarm. He is believed to have died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound three days earlier. The Nirvana song "Come As You Are" takes on new meaning with the line, "I swear that I don't have a gun."

1994-The Offspring release their breakthrough album Smash on the indie label Epitaph Records. Thanks to the success of the singles "Come Out and Play" and "Self Esteem," it sells over 10 million copies worldwide to become the best selling independently released and distributed album of all time.

1992- Clarke Peters’ musical Five Guys Named Moe opened in NYC, running for 445 performances.

1989-The 1975 lead singer Matt Healy is born in London.

1989-"The Look" by Roxette hits #1 on the Hot 100, the first of four chart-toppers for the Swedish duo.

1985-The musical Leader Of The Pack: The Songs Of Ellie Greenwich opens on Broadway (running for 120 performances).

1984-Vampire Weekend frontman Ezra Koenig is born in Glen Ridge, New Jersey.

1980-The TV movie Kenny Rogers as The Gambler, based on the song "The Gambler," airs on CBS. It becomes the highest-rated TV movie of the year and leads to four sequels, all starring Rogers.

1977- The Clash released their self-titled debut album in the UK, achieving cult status in punk rock.

1975- Aerosmith released Toys in the Attic, which became their most commercially successful album in the US.

1975-Dutch singer-songwriter Anouk is born Anouk Teeuwe in The Hague, Netherlands.

1974-Dr. John releases the album Desitively Bonnaroo. The title, a creole saying for "good stuff," provides the appellation for the Bonnaroo music festival.

1974- Paul McCartney & Wings released the single Band on the Run in the US.

1972-Bass player Paul Gray, a founding member of Slipknot, is born in Los Angeles but is raised in Des Moines, Iowa, where he forms the band. Gray is just 38 when he dies from a drug overdose in 2010.

1971- Chicago became the first rock group to sell out a week of shows at Carnegie Hall in New York City.

1970- The UK premiere of the Woodstock documentary film took place in London.

1968-The TV special Petula airs on NBC. At one point in the show, host Petula Clark grabs hold of Harry Belafonte's arm while they are singing a duet. This marks the first time a white woman and black man have physical contact on TV in such context.

1967-The Doors' first single, "Break On Through (To The Other Side)," hits a wall, stalling at #126 in the US. Their next release, "Light My Fire," does much better, going to #1.

1967- Sandie Shaw won the Eurovision Song Contest for the UK with Puppet On A String

1964-The Supremes record "Where Did Our Love Go," which becomes their breakout hit.

1964-Rapper Biz Markie is born Marcel Theo Hall in New Jersey.

1963-Julian Lennon is born John Charles Julian Lennon, the first child of John Lennon and his first wife, Cynthia. Imbued with many of his father's talents for music, he releases his debut album, Valotte, in 1984 with the hit "Too Late for Goodbyes"

1963-Frank Sinatra hosts the 35th Academy Awards, held at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium. Lawrence of Arabia wins Best Picture, with composer Maurice Jarre taking home Best Original Score. Henry Mancini and Johnny Mercer land Best Original Song for "Days Of Wine And Roses" from the film of the same name.

1963-Patty Duke wins the Best Supporting Actress Academy Award for The Miracle Worker.

1962-Guitarist Izzy Stradlin, a founding member of Guns N' Roses, is born Jeffrey Dean Isbell in Lafayette, Indiana.

1956-The Johnny Burnette Trio (with brother Dorsey) make the first of three appearances on Ted Mack's Amateur Hour on ABC-TV.

1954- The musical By the Beautiful Sea, starring Shirley Booth, opened in NYC.

1951-Rock bassist Mel Schacher (of Grand Funk Railroad, ? & the Mysterians) is born in Owosso, Michigan.

1947-Pioneering Christian rock performer Larry Norman is born in Corpus Christi, Texas.

1947-Yes guitarist Steve Howe is born in London.

1944-Drummer Keef Hartley (of John Mayall's Bluesbreakers, Keef Hartley Band) is born in Preston, Lancashire, England.

1942-Rock singer Roger "Chappo" Chapman (of Family) is born in Leicester, England.

1942- Arnold Schoenberg and Tudor's ballet Pillar of Fire premiered in New York City.

1941-Soul singer J.J. Jackson, known for the 1966 crossover hit "But It's Alright," is born Jerome Louis Jackson in Gillett, Arkansas.

1938- Walter Piston's 1st Symphony in E premiered in Boston, conducted by the composer.

1935- Béla Bartók's 5th String Quartet debuted in Washington, D.C..

1931- Dmitri Shostakovich's ballet The Arrow premiered.

1929-Singer-songwriter Jacques Brel is born in Schaerbeek, Brussels, Belgium.

1922-Jazz singer Carmen McRae is born in Harlem, New York City.

1896-Edgar Yipsel Harburg, known as "Yip," is born in New York City. He co-writes many popular songs, including "Over The Rainbow" and "Brother, Can You Spare A Dime."

1781- Mozart premiered his Violin Sonata No. 27 in G major (K. 379),.

[Bikkie]

1850
Sisters of Mercy arrive in New Zealand
Nine Sisters of Mercy arrived in Auckland on the Oceanie with Bishop Pompallier and a number of priests.



1932
Unemployed disturbances in Dunedin
During the 'angry autumn' of 1932, in the depths of the Great Depression, unemployed workers in Dunedin reacted angrily when the Hospital Board refused to assist them.



In Music History

2021-Hardcore rapper DMX dies at age 50 a week after suffering a massive heart attack. His first five albums all went to #1 in America.

2018-The chain is broken: Fleetwood Mac announce that Lindsey Buckingham has been fired from the band and will be replaced with Mike Campbell and Neil Finn on their upcoming tour.

2012-Alabama Shakes release their debut album, Boys & Girls, featuring "Hold On." Led by powerhouse singer Brittany Howard, they bring a rootsy, organic sound to the landscape that helps earn them a Grammy nomination for Best New Artist.

2009-Following a contentious interview where he insults Canadian audiences, Billy Bob Thornton's music career hits a roadblock when he and his band the Boxmasters are booed at their show in Toronto opening for Willie Nelson. The Boxmasters cancel their remaining Canadian dates the next day.More

2009-Philadelphia soul singer Randy Cain (of The Delfonics) dies at age 63.

2008-Elton John plays a fundraiser for Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign at Radio City Music Hall in New York City, bringing in about $2.5 million. In 2013, Clinton is honored by the Elton John AIDS Foundation for her support of gay rights.

2004-Weird Al Yankovic's parents, Nick and Mary Yankovic, are found dead of accidental carbon-monoxide poisoning in their Fallbrook, California. The tragedy was caused by using their fireplace with the flue closed.

2000- Craig David became the youngest UK male solo artist to write and perform a #1 hit with "Fill Me In".

1999-Bruce Springsteen begins his first tour with the E Street Band since 1988 with a concert in Barcelona. The European leg ends in June, with the first American show in their home turf of New Jersey on July 15. The tour lasts until July 2000, a total of 132 shows.

1999-Faith Hill begins her first headlining tour ("This Kiss") in Minneapolis.

1997-Nashville songwriter Mae Axton, co-writer of Elvis Presley's "Heartbreak Hotel," dies at age 82 when she has a heart attack and drowns in her hot tub.

1997-Amidst personal tensions between its band members, Soundgarden announce their breakup, which lasts for 13 years.

Gillian Welch Releases Revival
1996-Bluegrass duo Gillian Welch and David Rawlings release their debut album, Revival.

1996- Semisonic released their debut album Great Divide, featuring the song "F.N.T. (Fascinating New Thing)".

1996-The New York Yankees grounds crew dances to "Y.M.C.A." as they drag the field in the fifth inning of their home opener, eliciting roars of approval from the crowd. The routine, with improved choreography, becomes a regular feature at Yankee Stadium.

1994-Heavy metal makes a mark as Pantera's album Far Beyond Driven debuts at #1 in America.

1994-Wayne Newton marries his second wife, Kathleen.

1994- The Rock for the Rainforest benefit concert at Carnegie Hall featured Sting, Elton John, Whitney Houston, Luciano Pavarotti, and others.

1994-Pearl Jam visit the White House, where they meet with President Bill Clinton. The band push for reforms to rein in Ticketmaster, while Clinton looks for help crafting an official statement on Kurt Cobain, who was found dead the previous day.

1992-"Deep Cover" by Dr. Dre, written for the movie of the same name, is released. It marks the first appearance of Snoop Doggy Dogg, recently signed to Dre's Death Row Records, on a major release.

1988-Billy Ocean's "Get Outta My Dreams, Get Into My Car," from the movie License To Drive, hits #1 in the US. Written by Ocean with superproducer Mutt Lange, it's the last of his three US #1 hits, following "Caribbean Queen (No More Love On The Run)" and "There'll Be Sad Songs (To Make You Cry)."

1988-R&B singer Brook Benton dies of pneumonia at age 56, two years after contracting spinal meningitis.

1988- Billy Ocean reached #1 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 with "Get Outta My Dreams, Get into My Car," and Pet Shop Boys hit #1 in the UK with "Heart".

1988-Soul singer Dave Prater (of Sam & Dave) dies at age 50 in a single-car accident in Sycamore, Georgia.

1987-Jesse McCartney is born in Ardsley, New York. At 17, while starring in the TV series Summerland, he releases his first single, "Beautiful Soul," a hit with his fanbase of teenage girls.

1986-The musical Time premieres at the Dominion Theatre in London. Produced by Dave Clark, the show stars Cliff Richard in the lead role.

1985-Frankie Goes to Hollywood open a European tour in Copenhagen, then spend the rest of the year in tax exile from the United Kingdom.

1984-Cher, for her performance in Silkwood, loses the Best Supporting Actress Academy Award to Linda Hunt (in The Year Of Living Dangerously). Cher would win for Best Actress three years later for her role in Moonstruck.

1983- David Bowie’s "Let's Dance" topped both the U.S. and UK charts, produced by Nile Rodgers and featuring Stevie Ray Vaughan.

1977-Europop Rules In America With "Dancing Queen"
ABBA goes to #1 on the US singles chart with "Dancing Queen," the group's seventh US Top 40 hit and first #1. The song is also a #1 in the UK and 12 other countries.

1977-Alt rock singer-songwriter Gerard Way (of My Chemical Romance) is born in Summit, New Jersey.

1976-Folk singer-songwriter Phil Ochs commits suicide at age 35 in Far Rockaway, New York City, after a long battle with bipolar disorder and alcoholism.

1973- Paul McCartney released "My Love," which became his biggest U.S. solo hit, staying at #1 for four weeks.

1973-Queen play the Marquee Theater in London, their first concert since signing with EMI Records.

1971- Ringo Starr released the single "It Don't Come Easy," produced by George Harrison.

1969- Bob Dylan released his ninth studio album, Nashville Skyline, marking a stylistic shift to country music and featuring the hit "Lay Lady Lay" with liner notes by Johnny Cash.

1969-King Crimson make their debut performance with a show at the Speakeasy in London.

1969-Kevin Martin (lead vocalist of Candlebox) is born in Elgin, Illinois.

1966-Jeff Beck collapses on stage at a Yardbirds concert in France. Said their drummer Jim McCarty: "You never really quite knew what was going to happen with him."

1966- The Righteous Brothers reached #1 in the U.S. with "(You're My) Soul and Inspiration," while Percy Sledge released "When a Man Loves a Woman" and Jr. Walker & The All Stars released "(I'm A) Road Runner".

1965-Bruce Johnston joins The Beach Boys as the permanent replacement for Brian Wilson.

1962-Henry Mancini wins the Best Original Song Academy Award for "Moon River" from Breakfast At Tiffany's.

1957- Howard Hanson's "Song of Democracy" premiered in Washington, D.C..

1953-Hal Ketchum, whose country hits include "Small Town Saturday Night" and "Past The Point Of Rescue," is born in Greenwich, New York.

1950-Keyboardist Peter Wood (Roger Waters' backing group, The Bleeding Heart Band) is born in Middlesex, England.

1948-Rock 'n roll singer Dave "Chico" Ryan (of The Happenings, Sha Na Na, Bill Haley & His Comets) is born in Arlington, Massachusetts.

1945-Rock 'n roll singer Emil Stucchio (of The Classics) is born in New York.

1943-Music producer Terry Knight (Grand Funk Railroad, Bloodrock) is born Richard Terrance Knapp in Lapeer, Michigan.

1942- Alexander Gretchaninov's 4th Symphony premiered at Carnegie Hall, conducted by John Barbirolli.

1941-Country singer Kay Adams, known for the 1966 hit "Little Pink Mack," is born Princetta Kay Adams in Knox City, Texas.

1939- Marian Anderson performed before 75,000 at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C., after being denied permission to sing at Constitution Hall due to racial segregation.

1932-Rockabilly singer Carl Perkins is born in Ridgely, Tennessee.

1894- Anton Bruckner's 5th Symphony in B premiered in Graz, Austria-Hungary, in an abridged and re-orchestrated version by Franz Schauk without the composer's approval.

1887-Classical composer Florence Beatrice Price is born in Little Rock, Arkansas.

1860-An anonymous vocalist sings "Au Clair De La Lune" to Parisian inventor Edouard-Leon Scott de Martinville, who makes the first known and oldest surviving recording of the human voice.

[Bikkie]

1919
New Zealand votes for prohibition – until soldiers’ votes are counted
A special liquor referendum initially gave prohibition a majority of 13,000 over continuance (the status quo), raising the hopes of those who had for decades campaigned against the manufacture and sale of alcohol.



In Music History

2022- The revival of Cabaret starring Eddie Redmayne won Best Musical at the UK’s Olivier Awards, while Life of Pi won Best Play.

2014- The 29th Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inducted Peter Gabriel, Hall & Oates, KISS, Nirvana, Linda Ronstadt, Cat Stevens, The E Street Band, Brian Epstein, and Andrew Loog Oldham.

2012-Robin Gibb's orchestral production Titanic Requiem (released to mark the 100th anniversary of the sinking of The Titanic) premieres in London.

2009-Blues musician Rocky Hill dies at age 62 of undisclosed medical complications.

2007-Fantasia Barrino becomes the first American Idol winner to star in a Broadway musical when she takes on the role of Celie in The Color Purple. In 2023, she plays the same role in the film adaptation.

2007-The Hendersonville, Tennessee house once owned by Johnny Cash burns to the ground. It had been purchased after Cash's death by Barry Gibb of The Bee Gees, who planned to renovate it.

2007-Jazz singer Dakota Staton, known for the 1957 hit "The Late, Late Show," dies at age 76.

2004-Two months after her "wardrobe malfunction" at the Super Bowl, Janet Jackson hosts Saturday Night Live and is also the musical guest.

2003-Pop singer Little Eva dies at age 59, 18 months after being diagnosed with cervical cancer.

2003-Country singer Noel Fox (of The Oak Ridge Boys) dies at age 63, days after suffering a massive stroke.

2002-South Carolina Governor James Hodges declares James Brown the state's "Godfather Of Soul."

1999-The all-star tribute concert Here There and Everywhere: A Concert For Linda is held at London's Royal Albert Hall, where Paul McCartney, George Michael, Chrissie Hynde (of The Pretenders), Elvis Costello and Sinead O'Connor raise money for animal charities while remembering Paul's wife Linda, who has recently succumbed to breast cancer.

1998-Three days after being arrested in a Los Angeles park for lewd conduct, George Michael comes out as gay in an interview with CNN. "I have no problem with people knowing that I'm in a relationship with a man right now," he says.

1998-Cleveland radio disc jockey Eddie O'Jay, a pioneer of R&B radio who inspired The O'Jays' moniker and became their manager, dies at age 73.

1998-The romantic drama City of Angels premieres in theaters, starring Nicolas Cage as an angel who gives up eternal life to be with a mortal woman (Meg Ryan). The soundtrack features Alanis Morissette's "Uninvited" and the Goo Goo Dolls' "Iris." Both songs were written specifically for the film.

1995-Lee Greenwood and wife, Kim, welcome a baby boy, Dalton Lee, in Nashville.

Depeche Mode Knocks Whitney From #1
1993-Depeche Mode's eighth album, Songs of Faith and Devotion, reaches #1 in America, knocking Whitney Houston's soundtrack from The Bodyguard off the top spot, and holding off challengers Eric Clapton, Kenny G and Sting. Inspired by the grunge scene, the band adds distorted guitars and live drums to their signature synth sound.

1992-Brash stand-up comedian Sam Kinison, who also appeared in several music videos ("Bad Medicine," "Kickstart My Heart," "Wild Thing"), dies at age 38 when his car is hit by a teenage drunk driver.

1991-Peter Noone of Herman's Hermits guest stars as a rock star on the "Glitter Rock - April 12, 1974" episode of Quantum Leap.

1990-Public Enemy release their highly anticipated third album, Fear Of A Black Planet, with the incendiary lead single "Fight The Power." The album becomes the first in hip-hop history to sell a million copies its first week of release.

1990-Maren Morris is born in Arlington, Texas. She moves to Nashville and launches a successful career in country music, but her biggest hit comes when she lends vocals to the "The Middle," a techno-dance track by the producer Zedd.

1990- Hip hop groups A Tribe Called Quest (People’s Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhytm) and Public Enemy (Fear of a Black Planet) released influential albums that shaped the genre.

1990-A Tribe Called Quest release their debut album, People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm, drawing comparisons to the mellow grooves of De La Soul. It doesn't do much damage on the charts but ages well, with the songs "Can I Kick It?" and "Bonita Applebum" earning a place as hip-hop classics.

1989-The Cult release their fourth album, Sonic Temple, which peaks at #10 on the US chart. The album features some of The Cult's biggest hits, including "Fire Woman," "Sun King," "Edie (Ciao Baby)" and "Sweet Soul Sister."

1989- The 24th Academy of Country Music Awards honored Hank Williams Jr., George Strait, and K.T. Oslin.

1988-George Michael and Madonna are "honored" at the 8th Golden Raspberry Awards, where the former Wham! singer takes Worst Original Song for "I Want Your Sex," the #2 hit featured in Beverly Hills Cop II, and Madonna is named Worst Actress for her role as Nikki Finn in Who's That Girl. It's Madge's second consecutive win in the category, having landed the prize the year before for her role in Shanghai Surprise.

1985-Madonna begins her first tour, the Virgin Tour, in Seattle. Her opening act is a petulant, little-known white rap trio called the Beastie Boys, which gets booed throughout their set.

1986-Linda Creed, the "Lyric Queen of Philadelphia" who wrote hits for The Spinners, The Stylistics, and Whitney Houston, dies of cancer at 37. In 1992, she's inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame.

1984-Singer and actress Mandy Moore is born Amanda Leigh Moore in Nashua, New Hampshire.

1980-Bass guitarist Bryce Soderberg (of Lifehouse) is born in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada.

1976- Peter Frampton’s live album Frampton Comes Alive! topped the US Billboard 200, selling over six million copies and becoming one of the best-selling live albums of all time.

1979-Italian composer Nino Rota, who won an Academy Award for Best Original Score for The Godfather Part II, dies at age 67 of heart failure.

1979-Pop singer-songwriter Sophie Ellis-Bextor is born in Hounslow, London, England.

1976-Peter Frampton's album Frampton Comes Alive! hits #1 in the US, where it stays for 10 non-consecutive weeks, more than any other album in 1976.

1976-Stevie Wonder is featured in an ad in Down Beat magazine, endorsing the Mu-Tron III effects pedal, which uses synthesizer envelopes to create a wah effect for guitar. Wonder had used the pedal on his 1973 smash "Higher Ground."

1975-Alt rock singer-songwriter Chris "Ender" Carrabba (of Dashboard Confessional) is born in West Hartford, Connecticut.

1973-Led Zeppelin's album Houses Of The Holy is certified Gold.

1970-Heavy metal guitarist Mike Mushok (of Staind) is born in Manhasset, New York.

1970-Elton John releases Elton John, his first album in America and second in the UK. It includes "Your Song" and "Take Me To The Pilot."

1970- Paul McCartney officially announced the breakup of The Beatles in a press release, marking a pivotal moment in rock history.

1970-Q-Tip of A Tribe Called Quest is born Jonathan Davis in New York City. Also known as "The Abstract," he works to elevate hip-hop by incorporating more eclectic samples (many from jazz records) and writing lyrics that carry a socially conscious message that never comes off preachy.

1970-R&B singer Kenny Lattimore ("Never Too Busy," "For You") is born in Washington, DC.

1970-At one of the band's last concerts, in Boston, Doors frontman Jim Morrison asks the audience if they'd like to see something of his "that rhymes with 'sock,'" and then, more bluntly, screams "Would you like to see my genitals?" The power in the stadium is switched off, and keyboardist Ray Manzarek pulls the singer, already facing similar charges from a Miami gig, off the stage.

Banned Gainsbourg/Birkin Duet Hits #1 In UK
1969-Serge Gainsbourg and Jane Birkin's steamy duet "Je T'aime... Moi Non Plus" hits #1 in the UK, where it's banned by the BBC.

1968- The Broadway musical George M!, based on the life of George M. Cohan, opened at the Palace Theater in NYC for 435 performances.

1968-Bill Kreutzmann invites Mickey Hart to join Grateful Dead as its second drummer.

1968- Cliff Richard’s Congratulations topped the UK Singles chart as the British Eurovision entry.

1967- Aretha Franklin released her iconic version of Respect, which peaked at No.1 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and won two Grammy Awards.

1967-Paul McCartney attends a Beach Boys recording session in Hollywood.

1967- Nancy and Frank Sinatra’s Somethin’ Stupid became the first father-daughter song to hit No.1 on the Billboard pop chart.

1965-Freddie & the Dreamers' "I'm Telling You Now" goes to #1 in the US.

1962-Stu Sutcliffe, original bass guitarist for The Beatles, dies at age 21 of a brain aneurysm.

1960-Hip hop DJ Afrika Bambaataa (of Afrika Bambaataa & The Soulsonic Force) is born Kevin Donovan in The Bronx, New York.

1960-Katrina Leskanich of Katrina & the Waves is born in Topeka, Kansas.

1959-R&B singer-songwriter Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds is born in Indianapolis, Indiana.

1959-Brian Setzer (of Stray Cats, The Brian Setzer Orchestra) is born in Massapequa, New York.

1958-Rock 'n roll singer Chuck Willis dies at age 30 of peritonitis.

1958-Bobby Darin records "Splish Splash" and "Queen Of The Hop" at Atlantic Studios in New York.

1957-Ricky Nelson, 16, performs his first single, a cover of Fats Domino's "I'm Walking," on The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet, the TV series he stars in alongside his real-life family. The song quickly climbs the charts and launches his music career.

1957–1961: Early TV performances by Ricky Nelson (I’m Walking) and Del Shannon (Runaway) marked the rise of rock and pop on television.

1957-Bass guitarist Steve Gustafson (of 10,000 Maniacs) is born in Seville, Spain.

1956-Performing to an all-white audience at a segregated show in Birmingham, Alabama, Nat King Cole is attacked by four members of the Ku Klux Klan who rush the stage to assault him. Cole suffers a back injury and is treated at the hospital, but returns that night to play his second show, this time to an all-black audience. The attackers receive the maximum sentence of 180 days in jail.

1956-Leo Fender patents the successor to his popular "Telecaster" model of electric guitar, this time called the "Stratocaster."

1955–1979: Composer Nino Rota, known for The Godfather scores, died at 67.

1954- Perry Como’s rendition of Wanted topped the US Billboard Singles chart for eight consecutive weeks.

1953- The Stargazers reached No.1 on the UK Singles chart with Broken Wings.

1950-Guitarist Eddie Hazel (of Funkadelic) is born in Brooklyn, New York City.

1948-Bass guitarist Fred Smith (of Blondie, Television) is born in New York.

1947-Reggae musician Bunny Livingston (of Bob Marley & The Wailers) is born Neville O'Riley Livingston in Kingston, Jamaica.

1937- Cole Porter’s musical Red, Hot and Blue, starring Ethel Merman, Jimmy Durante, and Bob Hope, closed at the Alvin Theatre in New York City after 183 performances.

1936-R&B singer Bobbie Smith (of The Spinners) is born in Detroit, Michigan.

1930- The first full performance of Igor Stravinsky’s ballet Le Sacre du Printemps (The Rite of Spring) took place at the Metropolitan Opera House in Philadelphia, featuring Martha Graham and the Philadelphia Orchestra led by Leopold Stokowski.

1921-Actor and novelty singer Sheb Wooley is born in Erick, Oklahoma.

1911-Pianist Martin Denny is born in New York City.

1868-Johannes Brahms' German Requiem is premiered in Bremen Cathedral as part of the Good Friday remembrance.

Births- Composer Werner Fabricius (1633) and Eugene Francis Charles D’Albert (1864) were born on this day.

[Bikkie]

1869
New Zealand's first royal visit
The Duke of Edinburgh, Prince Alfred Ernest Albert, arrived in Wellington as captain of the frigate HMS Galatea. The first member of the British royal family to visit New Zealand, he was greeted with haka, speeches and bunting.


1916
New Zealand Division arrives in France
The Minnewaska, a troopship carrying the headquarters of the recently formed New Zealand Division, arrived in Marseilles, France




In Music History

2022-At the CMT Awards, The Judds reunite for their first TV appearance in 20 years, performing their 1990 song "Love Can Build A Bridge." Earlier that day, the mother-daughter duo also announced a 10-date arena run across the US dubbed "The Final Tour," with Martina McBride as a supporting act.

2020-Bob Dylan, 78, lands his first #1 on a Billboard chart when "Murder Most Foul" tops the Rock Digital Song Sales tally.

2017-Toby Smith, original keyboardist for Jamiroquai, dies at age 46.

2017-J. Geils, guitarist and founding member of J. Geils Band, dies at age 71.

2015-Justin Timberlake and Jessica Biel welcome their first child, a son named Silas Randall.

2014-Jesse Winchester dies at age 69 of bladder cancer. He was one of the major singer-songwriters of the "country rock" movement in the early '70s, blessed with an amazing voice but still better known for his songwriting, which resulted in several hits for other "outlaw" country artists.

2011-Chicago blues musician Lacy Gibson dies at age 74 of a heart attack.

2006-Eminem's good friend and D12 bandmate DeShaun "Proof" Holton is shot and killed at age 32 in an altercation at a sketchy nightclub in Detroit.

2006-For the 25-year anniversary reissue of David Byrne and Brian Eno's My Life in the Bush of Ghosts album, the multi-tracks for two songs - "A Secret Life" and "Help Me Somebody" - are made available for download, for fans to remix and upload to the website.

2006-Paul Anka guest stars on "The Real Paul Anka" episode of Gilmore Girls.

2006-June Pointer of The Pointer Sisters dies at age 52 after being hospitalized for a stroke and diagnosed with cancer.

2005- The 4th CMT Video Music Awards took place, with Keith Urban, Gretchen Wilson, and Kenny Chesney winning.

2002-Pamela Anderson and Kid Rock are engaged after he proposes to her in the desert outside Las Vegas.

2002-Aretha Franklin and seven other Motown stars are honored with street names in Detroit's new low-income housing project.

2001-Folk musician Sandy Bull dies at age 60 of lung cancer.

1997-After a 20-year absence, Grand Funk re-forms for a tour that benefits the Bosnian-American Relief Fund, which aids victims of the genocide in Bosnia.

1997-Reprising the Beatles famous rooftop concert, Paul McCartney plays two songs from his upcoming album Flaming Pie from the top of a building he owns in London.

1992-Country singer Lee Greenwood marries Kimberly Payne, who was Miss Tennessee in 1989.

1992-Pearl Jam are the musical guests on Saturday Night Live, where they perform two songs and gape at host Sharon Stone.More

1991-Ringo Starr appears on the Season 2 episode of The Simpsons "Brush With Greatness."

1990-Elton John plays at the funeral for Ryan White, an 18-year-old who contracted AIDS from a blood transfusion. Michael Jackson also attends the funeral and later dedicates the song "Gone Too Soon" to White.

1988-Cher wins Best Actress for the romantic comedy Moonstruck at the Academy Awards in New York.

1988-In the midst of a decade characterized by materialism and excess, Neil Young releases This Note's for You, his 16th studio album. The title song mocks the marketing industry and the corporate music scene.

1987-Soul singer-songwriter Joss Stone is born Joscelyn Eve Stoker in Dover, Kent, England.

1983-Dave Mustaine is kicked out of Metallica because of his drug and alcohol addictions. Soon after, he forms Megadeth, which becomes one of the most successful metal bands of the era.

1981-Van Halen guitarist Eddie Van Halen marries actress Valerie Bertinelli. They separate in 2001 and divorce in 2007. Their son, Wolfgang, goes on to become the bass player in his dad's group.

1979-Rock drummer and vocalist Sebastien Grainger (of Death from Above 1979) is born in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada.

1978-Liberace gives a concert for birds on The Muppet Show, playing classical pieces and the 1925 song "Five Foot Two, Eyes of Blue." Sam the Eagle disapproves.

1978-Aretha Franklin marries her second husband, actor Glynn Turman, in New York City. The Four Tops sing Stevie Wonder's "Isn't She Lovely" at the ceremony.

1970-The Beatles' "Let It Be" hits #1 US for the first of two weeks.

1970- Paul McCartney announced a temporary break with the Beatles due to personal differences.

1970-Fleetwood Mac founding member Peter Green announces he is leaving the group to devote himself to "what God would have me do." After a few member changes, Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks join the band for their most successful lineup in 1974.

1970-Alt rock bassist Dylan Keefe (of Marcy Playground) is born in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

1969-Alt rock singer-songwriter Cerys Matthews (of Catatonia) is born in Swansea, Wales, UK.

1967-Flying back to England after participating in The Beach Boys' aborted Smile sessions, Paul McCartney comes up with the idea for The Beatles' film and album Magical Mystery Tour.

1966-Frank Sinatra records "Strangers In The Night," improvising the famous "dooby, dooby doo" at the end.

1966-Lisa Stansfield is born in Manchester, England. She becomes the first white woman with more than one #1 hit on the US R&B chart when "All Around The World" and "You Can't Deny It" both hit the top spot in 1989.

1965-Alt rock guitarist Nigel Pulsford (of Bush) is born in Newport, Monmouthshire, England.

1965-How's this for a lineup: At the annual New Musical Express Poll Winners Concert in London, performers include The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, The Kinks, The Animals, The Moody Blues, Tom Jones, Them, Donovan, The Seekers and Cilla Black.

1965-Bob Dylan's second album, The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan, goes to #1 in the UK. It's the first time an artist other than The Beatles or The Rolling Stones has topped the chart since the Summer Holiday soundtrack on April 28, 1963.

1964-The Beatles set a new record when 14 of the Top 100 songs on the chart are theirs. "Can't Buy Me Love" is #1 and "Love Me Do" is their lowest at #81.

1963-Nat King Cole records "Lazy-Hazy-Crazy Days Of Summer."

1962-Elvis Presley's Follow That Dream movie premieres in Ocala, Florida, near where it was filmed (it opens nationally six weeks later).

1961-Doug Hopkins (lead guitarist, songwriter for the Gin Blossoms) is born in Seattle, Washington, but will be raised in Tempe, Arizona.

1961-Bob Dylan plays for the first time at Gerde's Folk City in Greenwich Village, opening for John Lee Hooker and performing a new song entitled "Blowin' In The Wind."

1959-Paul Anka guests on host Frankie Avalon's first network radio program, on ABC.

1959-Music producer and composer David Lowe, known for his compositions for BBC News themes, is born in Birmingham, England.

1958-Big Country frontman Stuart Adamson is born in Manchester, England.

1957-Jim Lauderdale is born in Trautman, North Carolina. The Americana icon earns a reputation as a songwriter's songwriter in Nashville, where he writes popular songs for George Strait ("The King Of Broken Hearts"), Patty Loveless ("Halfway Down"), Vince Gill ("Sparkle"), and The Chicks ("Hole In My Head"), in addition to recording his own material. His longtime partnership with Grateful Dead lyricist Robert Hunter results in over 100 songs, including "Memory," a ballad completed mere months before Hunter's death.

1956-Elvis Presley's tour plane develops engine trouble while flying the singer from Amarillo, Texas, to Nashville, forcing an emergency landing in Arkansas. When he calls his mother, Gladys, to tell her, she begs him to never fly again, instilling a fear of flying in Elvis which will take him years to get over.

1956-Gene Vincent and His Blue Caps record "Be-Bop-a-Lula."

1952-Rock drummer Terry Ollis (of Hawkwind) is born in Hammersmith, London, England.

Singin' In The Rain Debuts
1952-Singin' In The Rain, starring Gene Kelly, Donald O'Connor and newcomer Debbie Reynolds, is released in the US, but barely makes a splash.

1946-Bob Harris, radio presenter and host of BBC2's music show The Old Grey Whistle Test, is born in Northampton, England.

1943-R&B singer Tony Victor (of The Classics) is born in Brooklyn, New York City.

1935-Doo-wop singer Richard Berry, composer and original performer of "Louie Louie," is born in Extension, Louisiana.

1918-Jazz bassist Jimmy Lewis is born in Nashville, Tennessee. Known for working with the Count Basie Orchestra, Duke Ellington, Billie Holiday, Sam Cooke, and King Curtis, among others.

1889-Jazz musician Nick LaRocca, composer of the jazz classic "Tiger Rag," is born Dominic James LaRocca in New Orleans, Louisiana.

1727-Johann Sebastian Bach's St Matthew Passion is performed for the first time in Leipzig's St. Thomas Church.

[Bikkie]

1902
Railway accident in South Africa kills 16 New Zealand soldiers
Sixteen members of the Eighth New Zealand Contingent were killed when their train collided with a goods train at Machavie (Machavierug), near Potchefstroom in Transvaal.



1913
HMS New Zealand begins tour of nation’s ports
The Royal Navy battlecruiser HMS New Zealand arrived in Wellington to begin a 10-week tour during which half a million New Zealanders inspected the vessel.



In Music History

2024- Coachella music festival kicked off, headlined by Lana Del Rey, Tyler The Creator, Doja Cat, and No Doubt.

2023-"Gasolina" by Daddy Yankee becomes the first reggaeton song entered into the Library of Congress National Recording Registry. Other songs added include "Margaritaville" and "Stairway To Heaven."

2016- A US court ruled that Led Zeppelin founders Robert Plant and Jimmy Page must face trial over the song Stairway to Heaven regarding alleged similarities to Spirit’s song Taurus.

2015-Florence Welch of Florence + the Machine breaks her foot leaping off the stage at Coachella. For the next several weeks, she sits during performances, per doctor's orders.

2013-Five years after the release of Folie à Deux, Fall Out Boy issue their pop-leaning comeback album, Save Rock and Roll, featuring the hit "My Songs Know What You Did In The Dark (Light Em Up)."

2011-Ed Sheeran is due to play a free show at The Barfly in Camden, London. Over 1000 fans turn up, prompting Sheeran to play four separate sets, including one on the street outside the venue once it had closed.

2011-Karmin post a cover of "Look at Me Now" to YouTube with their singer Amy Heidemann speed rapping the Busta Rhymes section. It goes viral and lands the duo a deal with Epic Records.

2009-Brian McKnight is the seventh contestant eliminated on Season 8 of The Celebrity Apprentice.

2008-Lou Reed marries his third wife, the conceptual artist Laurie Anderson. The couple, who have been together since the early '90s, decided to get married the previous day, so they meet at a friend's house in Boulder, Colorado, and hold the ceremony in the backyard.

2007-Akon, who has a tendency to bring girls on stage and dance with them very suggestively, does so with a 15-year-old girl at a concert in Trinidad and Tobago. When video surfaces, outrage ensues and Verizon drops their sponsorship of the Sweet Escape tour, which Akon is supporting for Gwen Stefani.

2007-In Omaha, Nebraska, Kenny Chesney launches his Flip Flop Summer tour. 17-year-old Taylor Swift was going to be an opening act on the tour but had to bow out when Cruzan Rum came on as a sponsor. Chesney makes it up to her with a note of encouragement and a big check that helps line up her own tour in 2009.

2005-Shakira releases "La Tortura," a Spanish-language duet with Alejandro Sanz. Thanks to a saucy video that runs on MTV, it crosses over to an English-speaking audience and becomes the first Top 40 hit (#23) sung entirely in Spanish since "Macarena" in 1996.

2001-Gladys Knight marries her fourth husband, longtime friend William McDowell.

2000- Metallica filed a lawsuit against Napster and several universities for copyright infringement.

1999-Backstreet Boys release "I Want It That Way."

1999-Country singer Boxcar Willie dies of leukemia at age 67 in Branson, Missouri.

1999-Billy Joel's Greatest Hits Volume I & Volume II becomes just the fourth album certified by the RIAA as Double Diamond for sales of over 20 million in the US, following Thriller, Eagles - Their Greatest Hits 1971 - 1975 and The Wall.

1996-The Hollywood Rock Walk inducts Jan & Dean, The Ventures, The Chantays, and The Surfaris.

1995-Dave Grohl's new band Foo Fighters starts a club tour in Tempe, Arizona, opening for Mike Watt. Grohl is also Watt's drummer for the tour, and an incognito Eddie Vedder is his guitarist.

1994-Hole release their major-label debut album, Live Through This, exactly one week after the suicide of Kurt Cobain, husband of the band's frontwoman, Courtney Love.

1993-Actress Lisa Bonet files for divorce from Lenny Kravitz, officially ending their six-year marriage (they separated in 1991). Their daughter, Zoe Kravitz, later becomes a very popular actress.

1992-The Eagles' Don Henley leads 6,000 fans through Walden Woods in Massachusetts as part of a benefit walk to save the literally significant woods popularized by Henry Thoreau's work.

1990-Sinead O'Connor refuses to appear as the musical guest on Saturday Night Live in protest of the guest host, comedian Andrew Dice Clay.

1990-The Astronomical Union's Minor Planet Center in Arizona announces that four newly discovered asteroids, 4147-4150, will be named Lennon, McCartney, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr.

1990-James Brown is put on work release after spending months in jail on charges of drug possession and resisting arrest. He makes $3.80/hour counseling youths about drug abuse.

1989-David Cassidy's comeback begins when Los Angeles KLOS, to which the former Partridge Family singer is listening, wonders what happened to him. Before long, he's at the studio, performing three songs that land him a new record deal.

1989-Garth Brooks releases his debut album, Garth Brooks, featuring the #1 Country hits "If Tomorrow Never Comes" and "The Dance."

1988-Sonny Bono (of Sonny & Cher) is elected mayor in his hometown of Palm Springs, California. He holds the position until 1992; in 1994 he is elected to Congress.

1986-Belinda Carlisle of The Go-Go's marries actor Morgan Mason.

1984-"Louie Louie Day" is held in Olympia, Washington, as an unsuccessful attempt is made to make it the official state song.

1984-Rush release Grace Under Pressure, their 10th studio album and, according to guitarist Alex Lifeson, their most satisfying. With standout tracks "Distant Early Warning" and "Red Sector A," it's well received by fans.

1983-R.E.M. release their debut album, Murmur.

1982- Composer Roger Sessions received the Pulitzer Prize for Music for his Concerto for Orchestra.

1981-Rush are guests at Kennedy Space Center to witness the first space shuttle launch, which inspires their song "Countdown."

1979-Mickey Thomas, lead singer on Elvin Bishop's 1975 hit "Fooled Around And Fell In Love," becomes the new lead vocalist for Jefferson Starship.

1978- Guy Berryman, future bassist of Coldplay, was born in Kirkcaldy, Scotland.

1977-At The Rathskeller in Boston, The Damned get a tepid reception for their first set, so when they return to the stage, they sit down and eat pizza while they play, telling the crowd, "We can sit on our asses just like you."

Bob Seger Finally Breaks Through With Live Bullet
1976-Bob Seger, beloved in Michigan but an obscurity elsewhere, releases Live Bullet, which captures the intensity of his live performances and makes him a national act.More

1975-Elton John's "Philadelphia Freedom," named after the professional tennis team his friend Billie Jean King coaches, hits #1 on the Hot 100

1975-Josephine Baker dies at 68 of a cerebral hemorrhage in Paris, France. Baker, who was born and raised in America, became one of the most popular entertainers in France after moving there in the 1920s.

1975- David Bowie announced a temporary retirement in a Playboy interview, following the release of Young Americans.

1974- Bad Company released “Can’t Get Enough”, a classic rock staple.

1973-In one of the show's most memorable moments, Stevie Wonder plays a funky, 7-minute live version of "Superstition" on Sesame Street.

1970-Alt rock singer-songwriter Nicholas Lofton Hexum (of 311) is born in Madison, Wisconsin.

1969- The 5th Dimension began a six-week run at No.1 on the Billboard Hot 100 with the medley “Aquarius / Let The Sunshine In”, from the musical Hair.

1968-The outspoken Frank Zappa performs at a dinner for the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, who are the people who give us the Grammys. Zappa says the event is "a load of pompous hokum" and tells the audience, "All year long you people have manufactured this crap, now for one night you're gonna have to listen to it!"

1967-Greyhound begins offering tours of the Haight-Ashbury district of San Francisco, billing it as "Hippyland."

1966-In an eerie recreation of the duo's single from the year before, Jan Berry of Jan & Dean crashes his Corvette into a parked truck on Beverly Hills' Whittier Drive, near a stretch of road in Los Angeles known as Dead Man's Curve. Berry suffers paralysis and extensive brain damage, and will require four years of rehabilitation to be able to talk and a full decade in order to perform live again.

1966-Tom Jones enters a hospital to have his tonsils removed, though some who claim to have seen his tonsils since claim his real visit was for a nose job.

1965-The Byrds release their cover of Bob Dylan's "Mr. Tambourine Man." It's their first single and a huge hit, going to #1 in June.

1964-Folk singer-songwriter Amy Ray (of Indigo Girls) is born in Decatur, Georgia.

1964-Chubby Checker marries Miss World 1962, Catharina Johanna Lodders, of the Netherlands.

1963- Bob Dylan performed his first major solo concert at Town Hall in New York City, featuring songs like Blowin’ In The Wind and A Hard Rain’s A-Gonna Fall.

1962-Alt rocker Art Alexakis (frontman of Everclear) is born in Los Angeles, California.

1961-Ray Charles is the big winner at the third annual Grammy Awards, winning four trophies, including the award for Best Male Vocal for "Georgia On My Mind."

1958-Rock guitarist Will Sergeant (of Echo & the Bunnymen) is born in Liverpool, England.

1954-At his first session for Decca Records, Bill Haley records "Rock Around The Clock" and "Thirteen Women" (a post-nuclear song that was originally the A-side of the single).

1954- Bill Haley & His Comets recorded “Rock Around the Clock” at the Pythian Temple studios in New York City, a song that became the first rock and roll single to top both the US and UK charts and helped bring rock into mainstream culture.

1954- Big Joe Turner released “Shake, Rattle and Roll”, another influential early rock and roll hit.

1950-David Cassidy is born in New York City to actor Jack Cassidy and actress Evelyn Ward. He becomes a teen idol and pop star thanks to his role as Keith Partridge on the musical sitcom The Partridge Family.

1947-Alexander Briley (The sailor from The Village People) is born in Harlem, New York City.

1944-Rocker John Kay (frontman of Steppenwolf) is born Joachim Fritz Krauledat in former Tilsit, East Prussia, Germany.

1940-Jazz musician Herbie Hancock is born in Chicago, Illinois. After playing in Miles Davis' band, he makes very eclectic and experimental jazz music. In 1983 he has a hit with "Rockit," which incorporates synthesizers and turntable scratching.

1939-Woody Herman records "Woodchopper's Ball."

1932-Singer Tiny Tim is born Herbert B. Khaury is born in Manhattan, New York City.

1925-Country singer Ned Miller, known for the 1962 crossover hit "From A Jack To A King," is born in Rains, Utah.

1925-R&B singer Prentiss Barnes (of The Moonglows) is born in Magnolia, Mississippi.

1921-Chicago blues musician Shakey Jake Harris is born James D. Harris in Earle, Arkansas, but would be raised in Chicago, Illinois. A professional gambler, he borrows his nickname from the dice players' expression "shake 'em."

1919-Orchestra leader and singer Billy Vaughn is born in Glasgow, Kentucky.

1917-Helen Forrest (girl singer of the Swing Era for Artie Shaw, Benny Goodman and Harry James), is born Helen Fogel in Atlantic City, New Jersey.

1916-Composer and arranger Russ Garcia (The Benny Goodman Story (1956), The Complete Porgy and Bess (1956)) is born in Oakland, California.

1826-German composer Carl Maria von Weber travels to London to conduct the opening of his opera, Oberon.

[Bikkie]

1896
National Council of Women formed
Three years after New Zealand became the first self-governing country in which all women could vote, representatives of 11 women’s groups met in Christchurch’s Provincial Council Buildings to form the National Council of Women.


1982
First kōhanga reo opens
Pukeatua Kōhanga Reo, in Wainuiomata, Lower Hutt, accepted its first intake of tamariki on Easter Tuesday in 1982


In Music History

2024-At Coachella, two of the biggest ska bands of the '90s reunite: Sublime and No Doubt. Sublime is fronted by Jakob Nowell, whose father Brad was the group's lead singer until his death in 1996. For No Doubt, it's their first show since 2015.

2019-UFO keyboard player Paul Raymond dies of a heart attack at 73.

2019-Billie Eilish hits #1 in America with her debut album, When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?, making the 17-year-old singer the first artist born in the '00s to top the chart.

2017-At his concert in Chicago, Eric Church brings the unknown singer Ashley McBryde on stage, where she wins over the crowd with her song "Bible And A .44." The video goes viral and launches her career.

2015-"See You Again" by Wiz Khalifa breaks the Spotify record for most-streamed track in a single day in America when it is streamed 4.2 million times.

2013-After years of medical troubles stemming from a 2008 car accident, Deftones bassist Chi Cheng dies at age 42.

2011-New American Idol judge Jennifer Lopez is named People magazine's Most Beautiful Person of 2011.

2010-Ron Isley of The Isley Brothers is released from jail after serving 3 years for tax evasion. He came up with song ideas in prison and releases the album Mr. I on November 30.

2009-A jury finds the now 69-year-old Phil Spector guilty of second-degree murder in the 2003 shooting death of actress Lana Clarkson.

2008-Cult '60s Detroit Soul hero Nathaniel Mayer collapses from the brain hemorrhage that will, within the year, take his life.

2007-Bring Me the Horizon vocalist Oli Sykes appears in Magistrate's Court, after being accused of urinating on a female fan at one of the band's gigs six days earlier. Due to lack of evidence, charges are later dropped.

2005-Blues pianist Johnnie Johnson, known for his work with Chuck Berry, dies in St. Louis, Missouri, at age 80.

2004-Crossfade release their self-titled debut album. The profanities on the album are censored, but the band are unable to release an explicit version due to lack of funds.

2004-Pixies return to the stage after 12 years with a 27-song set at the Fine Line Music Cafe in Minneapolis.

2004-Songwriter Ritchie Cordell, who wrote the '60s-turned-'80s hits "I Think We're Alone Now" and "Mony Mony," dies at age 61 of pancreatic cancer.

2001-Kiss wrap up their "Farewell Tour" with a show in Queensland, Australia. Just two years later, they head out on the World Domination Tour.

2000- Rock for the Rainforest benefit concert was held at Carnegie Hall, featuring artists like Sting, Elton John, and Billy Joel.

1999-Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers release their album Echo.

1999- VH1 debuted its Internet radio station called VH1 at Work.

1996-Seconds before their first Saturday Night Live performance, Rage Against the Machine's roadies place upside-down American flags on their amplifiers in a band-sanctioned protest of the American political system - billionaire candidate Steve Forbes is hosting the show. The SNL crew quickly tears them down, and the band is booted from building without a second song.

1994-After nine years of a very public marriage, Billy Joel and Christie Brinkley announce they have separated. They divorce later in the year.

1993-Bruce Springsteen releases his second live album, In Concert / MTV Unplugged.

1989-Love Boat crooner Jack Jones is honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6104 Hollywood Blvd.

Fleetwood Mac Return With Tango In The Night
1987-Fleetwood Mac release Tango In The Night, their first album since Mirage five years earlier. Guitarist Lindsey Buckingham, who produced the album and had a hand in writing seven of the 12 songs, leaves before they tour.More

1985-The all-star charity single "We Are The World" hits #1 in America, where it stays for four weeks. The song was conceived in December 1984, recorded in January 1985 and released in March. Its rise to the top of the charts is one of the fastest in history.

David Crosby Caught Freebasing Cocaine
1982-David Crosby is busted for freebasing cocaine, leading to a downward spiral that winds through the Dallas County Jail.

1980-The musical Grease closes on Broadway after a record 3,883 performances.

1979-David Lee Roth collapses on stage from exhaustion during a Van Halen tour stop in Spokane, Washington.

1979-Thin Lizzy release their ninth album, Black Rose: A Rock Legend, with standout tracks "Waiting For An Alibi" and "Got To Give It Up."

1975-Latin-pop singer Lou Bega is born David Lubega to a Ugandan father and a Sicilian mother in Munich, Germany.

1975-It's the last date of Hawkwind's A Dead Singer Tour in the UK at Queensway Hall in Dunstable.

1974-Paul McCartney & Wings' LP Band On The Run hits #1.

1974-"Bennie And The Jets," Elton John's song about a glam-rock goddess who wears electric boots and a mohair suit, hits #1 in America.

1973-The Wailers Spark Up Interest In Reggae With Catch a Fire.
The Wailers, led by Bob Marley, release their fifth studio album, Catch a Fire. The first album on their new label, Island Records, it makes Marley and the Wailers international recording stars and brings reggae music to the forefront.

1973-The Who's lead singer, Roger Daltrey, releases his first solo album, Daltrey.

1972-Staind frontman Aaron Lewis is born in Rutland City, Vermont, raised in Massachusetts.

1970-Loretta Lynn becomes the first female country artist with a gold album when Don't Come Home A-Drinkin' (With Lovin' On Your Mind), featuring the chart-topping title song, is certified by the RIAA.

1970-It's the first sellout of the Montreal Forum, thanks to Led Zeppelin.

1969-Diana Ross makes her first television appearance as a solo act, performing on Dinah Shore's NBC special Like Hep.

1968-Bobby Goldsboro's "Honey" hits #1 in the US, where it stays for five weeks. A love-it-or-hate-it song, it tells the story of a man whose wife dies and is reminded of her every time he looks at the tree she planted.

1967-The Rolling Stones play a show in Warsaw, Poland, their first concert behind the Iron Curtain of Soviet countries.

1966-Blues-rock guitarist Marc Ford (of The Black Crowes) is born in Long Beach, California.

1965-The Beatles win their first Grammy Awards, taking Best New Artist and Best Performance by a Vocal Group for "A Hard Day's Night." Record of the Year goes to "The Girl From Ipanema" by Stan Getz and Joao Gilberto.

1963-At the 36th Academy Awards, Bobby Darin is nominated for Best Supporting Actor for his role as a traumatized war hero in the drama Captain Newman, M.D. He loses to Melvyn Douglas in the Western Hud.

1962-The Beatles begin their legendary stint at the new Star-Club in Hamburg, Germany. Performing three to four hours a night for 48 days (with only one day off), the group logs a total of 172 hours of performance. When they return to England, they're already stars with a recording contract.

1962-Hillel Slovak (original guitarist for Red Hot Chili Peppers) is born in Haifa, Israel, to parents who are Holocaust survivors.

1961-Hiro Yamamoto (original bass player for Soundgarden) is born in Park Forest, Illinois.

1961-At the third annual Grammy Awards, the comedy album The Button-Down Mind Of Bob Newhart wins Album Of The Year, beating out albums by Frank Sinatra, Harry Belafonte and Nat King Cole. The Grammys, which have yet to introduce a rock category, choose another comedy album for the award two years later: The First Family by Vaughn Meader.

1959-The Fleetwoods' "Come Softly To Me" hits #1.

1958-Mickey Mantle, Yogi Berra and Whitey Ford sing "Take Me Out To The Ballgame" on The Ed Sullivan Show along with the song's writer, Jack Norworth.

1957-Elvis Presley lands his seventh #1 hit in America with "All Shook Up." It spends nine weeks at the top of the chart, more than any other song in 1957.

1957-R&B keyboardist Wayne Lewis (of Atlantic Starr) is born in White Plains, New York.

1955-Louis Johnson (bass guitarist for The Brothers Johnson) is born in Los Angeles. Also a session musician, he plays on Michael Jackson's Thriller and Off The Wall albums.

1954-Jimmy Destri (keyboardist for Blondie) is born James Mollica in Brooklyn, New York.

1951-Drummer Max Weinberg (of Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band) is born in Newark, New Jersey.

1951-R&B singer Peabo Bryson is born Robert Peapo Bryson in South Carolina.

1946-Soul singer Al Green is born in Forrest City, Arkansas. He is born "Al Greene," but drops the trailing "e" in 1968.

1946-Rock guitarist Roy Loney (of Flamin' Groovies) is born in San Francisco, California.

1945-Lowell George of Little Feat is born in Hollywood, California.

1944-Brian Pendleton (rhythm guitarist for The Pretty Things) is born in Heath Town, Wolverhampton, England.

1944-French composer and pianist Cécile Chaminade dies in Monte Carlo at age 86.

1944-Bass guitarist Jack Casady (of Jefferson Airplane/Starship, Hot Tuna) is born John William Casady in Washington, DC.

1942-Academy Award-winning film composer Bill Conti (Rocky, The Right Stuff) is born in Providence, Rhode Island.

1940-Lester Chambers of The Chambers Brothers is born in Mississippi.

1934-R&B vocalist Horace Key (of The Tams) is born in Atlanta, Georgia.

1913-Western Swing fiddler "Pappy" Wade Ray is born in Evansville, Indiana.

1906-Jazz saxophonist Bud Freeman, who collaborates with Benny Goodman, is born in Chicago, Illinois.

1742-George Frederic Handel's Messiah is premiered at Fishamble Street, Dublin. It is part of a charity series of concerts that the composer had been invited to give by the Lord Lieutenant.

[Bikkie]

1932
Unemployed riot rocks Queen Street
Auckland’s Queen Street riot was by far the most destructive of the disturbances that rocked the four main centres in the ‘angry autumn’ of 1932.


New Zealander Kelsey Smith competes with Australian Jodie Kenny
2018
Black Sticks Women win Commonwealth gold
In the 2010s New Zealand’s women’s hockey team was consistently among the best in the world, but until 2018 it had not won a major tournament


In Music History

Katy Perry Goes to Space
2025-Katy Perry does some space tourism, joining five other women (including journalist Gayle King) on a 10-minute suborbital flight aboard a Blue Origin rocket. "Space is going to finally be glam," she says before liftoff. "We are going to put the 'ass' in astronaut."

2019-Logic (Bobby Hall) becomes the first rapper with a New York Times best seller when his novel Supermarket tops the Paperback Trade Fiction list.

2018-Dire Straits is inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, but with frontman Mark Knopfler skipping the ceremony, nobody inducts them and they do not perform.More

2018-Beyoncé, who had to cancel the previous year because of her pregnancy, headlines Coachella in lavish fashion, with over 70 performers and a reunion of Destiny's Child. She becomes the first black woman to headline the festival.

2016-At the Fox Theatre in Atlanta, Prince plays his last concert, as he dies a week later. His last song is "Purple Rain."

2016-In an interview with the Mormon Stories podcast, Neon Trees lead singer Tyler Glenn reveals that he is leaving the Mormon church in response to its ruling that gay marriage is apostasy. Glenn came out as gay in 2014.

2015-Percy Sledge, who had a #1 hit with "When A Man Loves A Woman" and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, dies at age 74.

2014-Sam Smith releases "Stay With Me," his breakthrough hit in America. It's a song about yearning and loneliness that Smith later reveals is about guy.

2012-Red Hot Chili Peppers, Beastie Boys, Guns N' Roses and Faces are inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

2010-Blues musician Mississippi Slim, real name Walter Horn Jr., dies at age 66 after suffering a heart attack.

2010-Type O Negative frontman Peter Steele dies of heart failure at 48.

2009-Tom Petty, Jeff Lynne, Paul McCartney, Olivia Harrison and Dhani Harrison hit the Hollywood Walk of Fame in Los Angeles to take part in the ceremony honoring George Harrison with his very own star in Hollywood.

2007-Hawaii-born pop singer Don Ho, known for the 1966 hit "Tiny Bubbles," dies at age 75 of heart failure, two years after being diagnosed with cardiomyopathy.

2005-John Fred Gourrier, who with John Fred and His Playboy Band had a #1 hit with "Judy in Disguise (with Glasses)," dies at age 63.

2003-R&B singer Angie Stone makes her Broadway debut when she joins the cast of Chicago.

2000-At a show at The Garage in London, the all-girl punk rockers L7 raffle off a chance to "meet intimately" with their drummer, Dee Plakas, claiming they "want their fans to get more bang for their buck." Whether or not they go through with the stunt is unclear, but it drums up plenty of publicity for the show.

1999-Anthony Newley - British actor and singer-songwriter - dies at age 67 of renal cancer. In addition to his numerous Top 40 hits on the UK chart in the early-'60s, Newley, along with his songwriting partner Leslie Bricusse, earned an Academy Award nomination for the film score to Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory (1971).

1998-Clutch's third full-length album, The Elephant Riders, is issued, spawning such classics as the title track, "The Soapmakers," "The Yeti," and "The Dragonfly."

1997-Depeche Mode release their ninth album, Ultra, in the UK. Work on the album had to be stopped in 1996 when lead singer Dave Gahan nearly died of a drug overdose; he spent a lot of time making court appointments and trying to get sober when operations resumed. The band is in no condition to tour to support the album, but it still makes #1 in the UK and sells over 500,000 copies in America.

1997-Creed release their debut album, My Own Prison, on their own label, Blue Collar Records. When a local radio station in Tallahassee puts the title track in rotation, they earn a deal with Wind-Up Records, which re-issues the album in August.

1995-Singer and actor Burl Ives dies at age 85 of oral cancer.

1990-Rock and roll singer Thurston Harris, known for his hit 1957 cover of Bobby Day's "Little Bitty Pretty One," dies at age 58 of a heart attack.

1990-Tommy Page's "I'll Be Your Everything" hits #1 in America.

Say Anything Revives "In Your Eyes"
1989-Cameron Crowe's teen drama Say Anything…, starring John Cusack and Ione Skye, opens in theaters. The movie is famous for an iconic scene featuring Peter Gabriel's "In Your Eyes."More

1988-Public Enemy's sophomore album, It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back, is released. Often cited as one of the greatest hip-hop albums of all-time, the album spawns such PE classics as "Don't Believe the Hype," "Night of the Living Baseheads," and "Black Steel in the Hour of Chaos," as well as the original version of "Bring the Noise."

1986-LL Cool J becomes the first solo rapper with a Gold album when his debut, Radio, is certified for sales of 500,000 in America. He becomes the first Platinum solo rapper a year later when his second album, Bigger And Deffer, sells a million.

1983-Rock bassist Pete Farndon (of The Pretenders) overdoses on heroin and drowns in his bathtub at age 30.

1981- Bobby Helms signed with Decca Records and released "Fraulein" (#36), "My Special Angel" (#1), and "Jingle Bell Rock" (#13).

1980-A New Jersey State assemblyman introduces a resolution to make Bruce Springsteen's "Born To Run" the official state song of New Jersey.

1980-Win Butler (lead vocalist, songwriter for Arcade Fire) is born Edwin Farnham Butler III in Truckee, California.

1980- Fats Domino's "Ain't That A Shame" reached #10 on the Billboard Top 100 and #1 on the R&B chart.

1980-Judas Priest release British Steel, a metal landmark containing the tracks "Living After Midnight" and "Breaking the Law."

1980-Iron Maiden release their self-titled debut album, with a twin-guitar attack and lyrics that pull from the worlds of mythology and horror. The song "Iron Maiden," which refers to the medieval torture device that band is named after, becomes a live stalwart, played before the encore at most of their concerts throughout their career.

1979-The Doobie Brothers land their second #1 US hit with "What A Fool Believes." The song goes on to win Grammys for Record Of The Year and Song Of The Year, while the album, Minute By Minute, wins Album Of The Year.

1978- Art Garfunkel hit No.1 in the UK with 'Bright Eyes', the theme song from the animated film 'Watership Down'.

1975-Former Faces guitarist Ronnie Wood is announced as the replacement for Rolling Stones' Mick Taylor on their upcoming tour. By the end of the year, Wood is their permanent guitarist.

1974-On Easter Sunday, the concert documentary Ladies and Gentlemen: The Rolling Stones, premieres at the Ziegfeld Theatre in New York. It's the first of its kind with quadraphonic sound, requiring a special system. It's a grand event, but Mick Jagger declares the film "boring."

1974-Rapper Shawntae "Da Brat" Harris is born in Chicago, Illinois.

1974- Led Zeppelin started a two-week run at No.1 in the UK with their fifth studio album 'Houses of the Holy'.

1970-Stephen Stills breaks his wrist when he drives into a parked car. He heads to Hawaii to heal, furthering divisions within his band, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young.

1969-Dutch bassist Martyn LeNoble (of Porno For Pyros) is born in Vlaardingen, The Netherlands. In 2013, he marries the actress Christina Applegate.

1969-Barbra Streisand (in Funny Girl) ties Katherine Hepburn (in The Lion In Winter) for the Best Actress Academy Award.

1968-The very first VH1 Divas special debuts on the music channel as a benefit concert for VH1's Save The Music Foundation. Headliners are Aretha Franklin, Mariah Carey, Celine Dion, Gloria Estefan, and Shania Twain, with a guest appearance by Carole King.

1968-Producer Phil Spector marries Ronnie Bennett of The Ronettes. They divorce in 1974, with Ronnie later alleging abuse.

1967-The final Where The Action Is airs on ABC-TV.

1966- The Beatles finished recording 'Paperback Writer' at Abbey Road Studios, which was released on May 30 and became a chart-topper in nine countries worldwide.

1965-The Elvis Presley/Shelley Fabares movie Girl Happy opens in theaters.

1964-UFO guitarist Vinnie Moore is born in New Castle, Delaware.

1963-The Beatles, who are filming an appearance on the show Thank Your Lucky Stars at a nearby studio, stop by the Crawdaddy Club in Richmond, England, where the upstart The Rolling Stones are performing. The bands meet for the first time backstage and hang out that evening.

1960-The musical Bye Bye Birdie, inspired by the drafting of Elvis Presley into the Army, opens on Broadway.

1956-Bobby Helms auditions for, and signs with, Decca Records.

1950-The character Dan Dare appears on the front cover of the British comic Eagle, later inspiring a song by Elton John.

1945-Guitarist Ritchie Blackmore (of Deep Purple, Rainbow, Blackmore's Night) is born in Weston-super-Mare, Somerset, England.

1935-Loretta Lynn, a coal miner's daughter, is born in Butcher Hollow, Kentucky. She overcomes poverty to become one of the most beloved and influential women in country music. "She blazed so many trails for all of us girls in country music," Miranda Lambert says.