1956, Elvis Presley appeared on American TV’s ‘Stage Show’ and performed ‘Heartbreak Hotel’ and ‘Blue Suede Shoes.’
1958, English singer Michael Holliday was at No.1 on the UK singles chart with ‘The Story Of My Life.’ The song gave writers Bacharach and David their first UK No.1 hit.
1963, In less than ten hours, The Beatles record ten new songs for their first album plus four other tracks which would be the next two singles. John Lennon’s vocal on The Isley Brothers ‘Twist & Shout’ was recorded in one take to complete the album.
1964, The Beatles made their live concert debut in the US at the Washington Coliseum. Over 350 police surrounded the stage to keep the 8,000 plus screaming fans in control. One police officer who found the noise so loud stuck a bullet in each ear as ear plugs. The Beatles had to stop three times and turn Ringo’s drum kit around and re-position their microphones so that they faced a different part of the audience. The set list: ‘Roll Over Beethoven’, ‘From Me to You’, ‘I Saw Her Standing There’, ‘This Boy’, ‘All My Loving’, ‘I Wanna Be Your Man’, ‘Please Please Me’, ‘She Loves You’, ‘I Want to Hold Your Hand’, ‘Twist and Shout’, and ‘Long Tall Sally’.
1969, The Monkees set a new record when their second album, ‘More Of The Monkees’ jumped from No.122 to the top of the US chart. The album then stayed in pole position for eighteen weeks.
1972, During their The Dark Side of The Moon tour, Pink Floyd appeared at the Free Trade Hall, Manchester, England. The show was abandoned after 25 minutes due to a power cut.
1972, Led Zeppelin scored their third US Top 20 hit single with ‘Black Dog / Misty Mountain Hop’, peaking at No.15, and taken from their fourth album. The song’s title is a reference to a nameless black Labrador retriever that wandered around the Headley Grange studios during recording. Robert Plant recorded his vocal for the track in two takes.
1973, A local charity raised over £500 ($850) selling bedsheets and pillowcases used by The Rolling Stones after a show at Western Springs Stadium in Auckland, New Zealand.
1977, David Bowie released ‘Sound and Vision’ as a single, which was taken from his latest album Low. ‘Sound and Vision’ was used by the BBC in the UK on trailers at the time, providing considerable exposure, much needed as Bowie opted to do nothing to promote the single himself, and helped the song to No.3 on the UK charts.
1978, The Brotherhood Of Man were at No.1 on the UK singles chart with ‘Figaro’, the group’s third and last UK No.1.
1985, The Police won Outstanding Contribution to British music at the fourth annual Brit Awards held in London. Other winners included Prince for best International Act and Best Soundtrack for Purple Rain, British Single was Frankie Goes To Hollywood ‘Relax’, British Video was Duran Duran for ‘Wild Boys’, British Comedy Recording Neil ‘Hole In My Shoe’, British Album went to Sade for ‘Diamond Life’, British Male Solo Artist was won by Paul Young, British Female Solo Artist, Alison Moyet and Best British Group went to Wham!
1987, The Smiths were at No.1 in the UK indie charts with ‘Shoplifters Of The World Unite.’ The title alludes to the communist slogan “Workers of the world, unite!”, and the 1966 David and Jonathan hit ‘Lovers of the World Unite’. The photograph on the sleeve is of a young Elvis Presley.
1989, Paula Abdul started a three week run at No.1 on the US singles chart with ‘Straight Up’, the first of three No.1’s in 1989, a No.3 hit in the UK.
1992, Motley Crue fired their singer Vince Neil when he turned up for rehearsals, claiming that he had lost his passion for the band and was now more involved with racing cars.
1998, The hand-written lyrics to ‘Candle in the Wind’ by Bernie Taupin were auctioned off at Christie’s in LA for £278,512.
2000, Spice Girls Geri Halliwell appeared in court to give evidence over the dispute with Aprilla Motorcycles. The company were suing the Spice Girls for £1.6 million ($2.72 million) over lost advertising as sponsors for the 1998 Spiceworld World tour.
2003, The British Phonographic Industry reported its biggest sales decline in decades, with the biggest slump in a single year since the birth of the CD market in the early 1980s. Piracy, illegal duplication and distribution by international criminals of CD’s were all blamed for the decrease.
2007, Mika went to No.1 on the UK album chart with his debut album ‘Life In Cartoon Motion.’ Pretty Ricky were at No.1 on the US album chart with ‘Late Night Special’ the American R&B & hip-hop group’s second album and first No.1.
2008, Heather Mills and Sir Paul McCartney appeared at the High Court in London for a hearing to reach a financial settlement for their divorce. The hearing in the Family Division, which was taking place in private, was expected to last five days. The couple, who had a four-year-old daughter, Beatrice, announced the end of their four-year marriage in 2006. There had been speculation among divorce experts, based on recent cases, that the settlement could reach £60m.
2009, Ronettes singer Estelle Bennett died at her home in Englewood, N.J. She was 67. The 60’s girl group best known for their work with producer Phil Spector had the 1963 hit ‘Be My Baby’ which epitomized the famed “wall of sound” technique.
2012, Whitney Houston was found dead in suite 434 at the Beverly Hilton Hotel, submerged in the bathtub. Beverly Hills paramedics arrived at approximately 3:30 p.m. and found the singer unresponsive and performed CPR. Houston was pronounced dead at 3:55 p.m. Local police said there were “no obvious signs of criminal intent.” It was later ruled by the coroner to have been an “accidental drowning”
2014, Queen made UK chart history by becoming the first act to sell six million copies of an individual album. Their first Greatest Hits collection, which includes the hits ‘We Will Rock You’ and ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ had extended its lead after being Britain’s highest-selling album for several years. The Official Charts Company said one in three British families now owned a copy of the 1981 compilation.
