1962, Don Everly collapsed during rehearsals on stage at the Prince of Wales Theatre in London on the eve of a 22 date Everly Brothers UK tour. He was flown back to the US for treatment and the tour continued with Phil Everly performing solo.
1963, The Beatles made their debut on ITV’s ‘Sunday Night at The London Palladium’, topping the bill and transmitted live to an audience of 15 million viewers. They played, ‘From Me To You’, ‘She Loves You’, ‘Twist and Shout’ and ‘I’ll Get You.’
1965, The Who recorded ‘My Generation’ at Pye studios, London. When released as a single it reached No.2 on the UK chart, held off the No.1 position by The Seekers ‘The Carnival Is Over’. Roger Daltrey would later say that he stuttered the lyrics to try to fit them to the music. The BBC initially refused to play the song because it did not want to offend people who stutter.
1970, Janis Joplin’s ashes were scattered at Stinson Beach in Marin County, California. The singer had been found dead on the floor beside her bed at the Landmark Hotel in Hollywood California on 4th Oct. The official cause of death was an overdose of heroin, possibly combined with the effects of alcohol.
1973, The Rolling Stones started a four week run at No.1 on the US album chart with ‘Goats Head Soup’ the group’s fourth US No.1.
1974, TV host Ed Sullivan died. Leader of the Ed Sullivan Singers and Orchestra. Introduced The Beatles and other UK acts to America via his Ed Sullivan TV show, from New York City, which ran from June 20, 1948 to June 6, 1971, on CBS every Sunday night at 8pm. The Beatles appearance on February 9th 1964 is considered a milestone in American pop culture and the beginning of the British Invasion in music. The broadcast drew an estimated 73 million viewers.
1977, 32 year old Shirley Brickley of The Orlons was shot and killed by an intruder in her Philadelphia home. The Orlons had five US Top 20 hits in the 60’s including ‘The Wah Watusi’, ‘Don’t Hang Up’ and ‘South Street’. The Orlons provided back-up vocals on Dee Dee Sharp’s 1962 hit ‘Mashed Potato Time’ and Dee Dee Sharp’s second hit, ‘Gravy (For My Mashed Potatoes)’.
1979, Michael Jackson went to No.1 on the US singles chart with ‘Don’t Stop Till You Get Enough’, his second US solo No.1, a No.3 hit in the UK.
1979, ‘Reggatta De Blanc’ the second album from The Police started a four-week run at No.1 in the UK. The album which features the band’s first two No.1 hits, ‘Message in a Bottle’ and ‘Walking on the Moon’, cost only £6,000 to record.
1984, Stevie Wonder started a three week run at No.1 on the US singles chart with ‘I Just Called To Say I Love You’, his 7th US No.1, also No.1 in the UK.
1984, U2 scored their second UK No.1 album with ‘The Unforgettable Fire.’ The album was produced by Brian Eno and Daniel Lanois and featured the single ‘Pride (In The Name Of Love’).
1990, George Michael went to No.1 on the US singles chart with ‘Praying For Time’, his 6th US solo No.1, and his the last solo single to occupy the top of the chart in the US.
2000, UK newspaper The Mirror reported that Toni Braxton had pulled out of this years US Mobo awards after one of her breast implants had exploded. A spokesman for her Arista record label said “We don’t comment on our artistes personal lives.”
2001, Australian singer songwriter Peter Doyle died of throat cancer aged 52. Solo artist and a member of The New Seekers. Scored the hits, ‘What Have They Done To My Song Ma’, ‘Never Ending Song of Love’ and ‘I’d Like to Teach the World to Sing’ with The New Seekers.
2002, UK rock band Muse took legal action against Celine Dion after she announced her forthcoming Las Vegas show would be called ‘Muse’. Singer Matt Bellamy from the band said ‘We don’t want anyone to think we’re Celine Dion’s backing band.’
2002, Will Young went to No.1 on the UK album chart with his debut album ‘From Now On.’ Young came to prominence after winning the 2002 inaugural series of the British music contest Pop Idol, making him the first winner of the now-worldwide Idols-format franchise. His debut single, ‘Anything is Possible’, was released two weeks after the show’s finale and became the fastest-selling debut single in the United Kingdom.
2004, The US Internal Revenue Service charged 63-year-old Ronald Isley, lead singer of the Isley Brothers, with tax evasion for failing to report income from royalties and performances by the band between 1997 and 2002. He was later found guilty and sentenced to three years in prison.
2008, In a video message on his website, Ringo Starr announced that he no longer has time to sign autographs and asked fans not to send him any mail at all. “No more fan mail and no objects to be signed. Nothing.” After finishing a tour of the US and Canada, he was dividing his time between Los Angeles, the South of France and his UK home in Surrey.
2009, Al Martino, a Pop crooner who scored over 10 hits including ‘I Love You Because’, ‘Spanish Eyes’ and ‘I Love You More And More Every Day’, died at the age of 82. He was often remembered for playing the Frank Sinatra type role of Johnny Fontane in The Godfather. Martino was at No.1 on the first ever UK pop chart published on 8th Nov 1952 by the New Musical Express.
2011, American band Maroon 5 were on the top 10 of the UK singles chart with Moves Like Jagger, featuring Christina Aguilera. Its lyrics referred to a male’s ability to impress a female with his dance moves, which he compared to those of Mick Jagger. The video featured old video footage of Jagger and his iconic dance moves. Moves Like Jagger was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance at the 54th Grammy Awards.
2012, An oil painting by the German artist Gerhard Richter which was owned by Eric Clapton sold for £21m ($34m) – an auction record for a work by a living artist. Clapton was set to give the money to the Crossroads Centre drug and alcohol rehabilitation center founded by the guitarist in Antigua.
2016, Bob Dylan was awarded the 2016 Nobel Prize for Literature, becoming the first songwriter to win the prestigious award. The 75-year-old rock legend received the prize “for having created new poetic expressions within the great American song tradition”.
