1951, 18 year old Richard Penniman, who was already using the stage name Little Richard made his first recordings for RCA Camden at the studios of Atlanta radio station WGST.
1956, Frankie Laine was at No.1 on the UK singles chart with ‘A Woman In Love’, the singers fourth and final UK No.1. Laine had the nicknames Mr. Rhythm and Old Leather Lungs.
1961, Decca records released ‘Crazy’ by Patsy Cline. The ballad, composed by Willie Nelson gave Cline a No.2 country hit in 1962. Nelson originally wrote the song for country singer Billy Walker, but Walker turned it down. The song’s eventual success helped launch Nelson as a performer as well as a songwriter. It spent 21 weeks on the chart for Cline, and eventually became one of her signature tunes.
1962, The first night of a two month Motown Records package tour started in Washington DC, featuring Marvin Gaye The Supremes, Mary Wells, The Miracles and 12 year old Stevie Wonder.
1965, The Beatles recorded ‘Day Tripper’ at Abbey Road studio’s London in three takes, they then added vocals and other overdubs, completing the song before the end of the day.
1967, Folk singer Joan Baez was arrested, along with 123 others, for blocking the entrance to an Armed Forces Induction Center in Oakland, California.
1969, Record company executive and founder of the Chess record label Leonard Chess died of a heart attack aged 52. Home to John Lee Hooker, Chuck Berry, Bo Diddley Little Walter, The Moonglows, The Flamingos, Jimmy Reed and Sonny Boy Williamson.
1969, Bobbie Gentry was at No.1 on the UK singles chart with the Burt Bacharach and Hal David song ‘I’ll Never Fall In Love Again,’ the singers only UK No.1.
1972, Creedence Clearwater Revival split up following the failure of their most recent album, ‘Mardi Gras’. After limited success as a solo act and some legal hassles with Fantasy Records, John Fogarty would have two big hits in 1985, ‘Center Field’ and ‘Rock and Roll Girls’. John’s brother Tom Fogarty died in September, 1990 and the surviving members have been touring as Creedence Clearwater Revisited.
1976, One Hit Wonders Rick Dees and his Cast Of Idiots went to No.1 on the US singles chart with ‘Disco Duck, (part one)’. Dees was a US TV and radio presenter, the song became a No.6 hit in the UK.
1976, Stevie Wonder’s ‘Songs In The Key Of Life’, went to No.1 on the US album chart, featuring the tracks ‘Sir Duke’, ‘I Wish’, ‘Pastime Paradise’ and ‘Isn’t She Lovely’. It was Wonder’s third US No.1.
1982, Culture Club appeared on UK TV’s Top Of The Pops performing ‘Do You Really Want To Hurt Me’. They were booked on the show thanks to Shakin’ Stevens being ill and not able to appear. The song became a major hit after their memorable performance on the music TV show.
1986, Keith Richards, Eric Clapton and Robert Cray joined other artists on stage in St Louis, for Chuck Berry’s 60th birthday concert, as featured in the film ‘Hail Hail! Rock & Roll’.
1988, Whitney Houston had her third UK No.1 single with ‘One Moment In Time.’ The song was recorded to celebrate the Seoul Olympic Games of 1988.
1992, Bob Dylan’s 30th Anniversary (of his recording debut) tribute concert took place at Madison Square Garden in New York City. Guest performers include Neil Young, Eric Clapton, George Harrison, Roger McGuinn, Tom Petty, Ronnie Wood and Dylan himself.
2001, Two security guards were sacked after refusing to allow Bob Dylan into his own concert. Dylan who had demanded that security on his ‘Love and Theft’ tour should be tighter than ever didn’t have a pass when he arrived backstage.
2006, CBGB, the legendary New York punk club credited with discovering Patti Smith and Ramones, closed after a final gig by Smith herself. Blondie and Talking Heads also found fame after performing at the club, which helped launch US punk music. The venue first opened in December 1973, its full name CBGB OMFUG standing for “country, bluegrass, blues and other music for uplifting gormandizers”.
2007, French rock star Bertrand Cantat was freed from jail after serving half of an eight-year sentence for killing his actress girlfriend. Cantat, singer with Noir Desir, was jailed for the manslaughter of Marie Trintignant after a violent row in a Lithuanian hotel in July 2003. She died after spending days in a coma.
2007, Madonna signed a ground-breaking recording and touring contract with concert promoter Live Nation becoming the first major star to choose an all-in-one agreement with a tour company over a traditional record contract. The deal reported to be worth $120m over 10 years, would give Live Nation rights to all her music-related projects – including new albums, tours, merchandise, websites, DVDs, sponsorship, TV shows and films.
2010, Auburn University graduate student Justin Havird named a new species of fish, Lepidocephalichthys zeppelini, because the fish’s pectoral fin reminded him of the double-neck guitar used by Jimmy Page. ‘I’m a big Led Zeppelin fan, and I was listening to them while I was working on the fish,’ Havird said. ‘The structure that makes this species unique just reminded me of the guitar that Jimmy Page played’.
2015, Patti Smith was said to be moved to tears after a fan returned a bag of stolen goods to the singer, 36 years after they went missing. They included a shirt worn for a 1978 Rolling Stone cover shot and a bandana given to her by her late brother. The items went missing in June 1979 when a truck, which was carrying $40,000 in amplifiers, guitars and other musical equipment, was stolen from outside a hotel after Smith and her band played a show at the Aragon Ballroom in Chicago.
