Births
1899: Fred Astaire (Singer)
1909: Mother Maybelle Carter (Country Singer)
1935: Larry Williams (R&B Singer)
1938: Henry Fambrough (Singer in The Spinners)
1940: Arthur Alexander )Country Singer)
1941: Danny Rapp (Danny and the Juniors)
1944: Jackie Lomax (Singern& Guitarist)
1946: Dave Mason (Singer & Guitar for Traffic)
1946: Donovan (Singer)
1946: Graham Gouldman (10cc)
1947: Jay Ferguson (Spirit)
1951: Ron Banks (The Dramatics)
1952: Sly Dunbar (Reggae Drummer in Sly & Robbie)
1957: John Ritchie (Sid Vicious) (Bass & Vocals for The Sex Pistols)
1957: Karl Hyde (Vocals & Guitar for Underworld)
1960: Paul Hewson (Bono) (Vocals & Guitar for U2)
1967: Young MC (Marvin Young) Rapper
1968: Richard Patrick (Guitarist for Filter & Nine Inch Nails)
Events
1940: Jimmy Dorsey recorded "Perfidia".
1960: A group from Liverpool named the Beatals changes its name to the Silver Beatles after local scenester Brian Casser declares the first name ridiculous. The five-piece (which at this point includes Stu Sutcliffe on bass and Tommy Moore on drums) audition to become singer Billy Fury's backing group. Though they don't get the main gig, they do score a gig backing up fellow Liverpudlian Tommy Quickly on a Scottish tour.
1963: The Rolling Stones make their first recordings for Decca Records, including the Chuck Berry cover "Come On," but all are rejected by the label as "dreadful."
1964: Dusty Springfield makes her television debut on CBS' Ed Sullivan Show, singing "I Only Want To Be With You."
1965: The Rolling Stones recorded "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction".
1966: Struggling singer Janis Joplin, back home in her native Texas, is invited back out to San Francisco by her friend Chet Helms, who invites her to audition with a group he's managing called Big Brother and the Holding Company.
1967: Mick Jagger and Keith Richards appeared at Chichester Crown Court, Sussex, charged with being in possession of drugs, they elect to go to trial pleading not guilty and were both granted $180 bail.
1968: Reacting to alleged abuse of audience members by policemen, Jim Morrison incites a riot at a Doors concert at the Chicago Coliseum.
1969: Tricia Nixon, daughter of the US President, invites The Temptations and the Turtles to perform at a White House ball. For some reason, Turtles guitarist Mark Volman keeps falling off the stage; rumors persist later that he and the band had prepared for the gig by snorting cocaine off of Abraham Lincoln's desk.
1969: Frank Sinatra's version of 'My Way' made the British Top ten for the first time. Over the next three years it re-entered the Top 50 singles chart on eight different occasions. Paul Anka re-wrote the original French song for Sinatra, after he told Anka he was quitting the music business. Anka changed the melodic structure and lyrics to the song with Sinatra in mind.
1974: Eric Clapton recorded "I Shot the Sheriff."
1974: Led Zeppelin launches its new record label, Swan Song, with a swank dinner at the Bel Air Hotel in Los Angeles that quickly devolves into a food fight.
1977: Adam And The Ants made their live debut when they played at the ICA, London.
1983: Metallica began recording the album "Kill 'Em All" in New York. They finished on May 27, 1983.
1985: All girl group The Go-Go's announced they were breaking up. The members went on to enjoy solo success, (Belinda Carlisle and Jane Wiedlin) and the group reformed in the late 90's.
1986: Motley Crue drummer Tommy Lee married TV star Heather Locklear in a courtyard in Santa Barbara California with five hundred guests. Tommy wore a white leather tuxedo.
1986: The Pet Shop Boys went to No.1 on the US singles chart with 'West End Girls', the duo's first US No.1, also a No.1 in the UK.
1991: Bushwick Bill (Geto Boys) lost his right eye after being shot by his girlfriend.
1994: Rapper Tupac Shakur began serving a 15-day county jail term for attacking director Allen Hughes on a video set.
1994: Barbra Striesand begins her 1st concert tour in 30 years.
1999: American singer, songwriter poet, cartoonist, screenwriter, and author of children's books Shel Silverstein died of a heart attack aged 57. Wrote, 'A Boy Named Sue' for Johnny Cash (which Silverstein won a Grammy for in 1970) and many songs for Dr Hook including 'Sylvia's Mother' and 'The Cover of the Rolling Stone.'
2000: Bobby Brown was arrested at Newark airport, New Jersey for breaking his probation order. He had been wanted in Florida since 1999 when his probation officer reported that a urine test proved positive for cocaine use.
2003: Steven Tyler (Aerosmith) was given an honorary doctorate degree in music by the Berklee College of Music.
2004: Glen Campbell is sentenced to 10 days in a jail after he pleads guilty to driving under the influence (and leaving the scene of the ensuing car wreck) the previous November in Phoenix.
2005: Seal married German supermodel Heidi Klum in a low-key ceremony on a beach in Mexico near the singer's home on the luxurious Costa Careyes.
2007: Pink Floyd's original members gather for the first time since 1980 to perform a concert at Barbican Centre, in London, a tribute to their recently deceased ex-frontman Syd Barrett.
2007: US hip-hop artist Akon apologised after footage of him dancing provocatively on stage with a teenage girl was posted on the internet. It led to telecommunications company Verizon pulling out as a sponsor of his US tour with Gwen Stefani. The incident took place on 12 April in Trinidad, where Akon was performing at a nightclub. It was later reported that the girl was just 14. In a statement Akon said he didn't know the girl was underage. He said: "I want to sincerely apologise for the embarrassment and any pain I've caused to the young woman who joined me on stage, her family and the Trinidad community for the events at my concert.”
