May 1

Births

1907: Kate Smith (Singer)

1930: Little Walter (Blues Harmonica Player)

1939: Judy Collins (Folk Singer)

1945: Rita Coolidge (Singer)

1954: Ray Parker, Jr. (Singer in Raydio and Solo)

1966: Johnny Colt (Bass for The Black Crowes)

1967: Tim McGraw (Country Singer)

1968: D'arcy Wretsky-Brown (Bass for Smashing Pumpkins)

1970: Bernard Butler (Guitar & vocals for Suede)

Events

1931: Kate Smith makes her radio show debut with the twice-weekly Kate Smith Sings show on NBC.

1942: The US government seizes the nation's jukebox factories and puts them to work making war materials.

1955: A St. Louis guitarist named Chuck Berry is signed to Chess Records in Chicago after bluesman Muddy Waters recommends him to the label.

1957: The Kingston Trio form in Palo Alto, CA.

1963: Lesley Gore performs her first big hit, "It's My Party," on ABC-TV's American Bandstand.

1965: Spike Jones (Lindley Armstrong) died of emphysema.

1966: The Beatles perform what is to be their last British concert when they appear at the Empire Pool in Wembley, England, to perform at the "1965-66 Annual Poll-Winners' All-Star Concert" given by the New Musical Express. The fifteen-minute set consists of "I Feel Fine," "Nowhere Man," "Day Tripper," "If I Needed Someone," and "I'm Down." Due to legal wrangling over license, this performance is, sadly, not filmed for posterity.

1967: Carl Wilson of the Beach Boys is arrested by the FBI for draft-dodging and refusing to take an oath of allegiance to the United States. Wilson, a conscientious objector to the Vietnam War, is eventually exonerated by his draft board and rejoins the band, touring in Ireland.

1967: Elvis Presley's entourage flies to Vegas to meet the singer and fiance Priscilla Beaulieu, and the couple are married at 9:30 am in the Aladdin Hotel suite of hotel owner (and Parker friend) Milton Prell. Elvis' best men are Joe Esposito and Marty Lacker. The officiating judge is David Zenoff, a Nevada Supreme Court Justice. After the ceremony the group decamps to the lobby, where a press conference is held. Mafioso Red West, furious at being excluded from the ceremony, refuses to attend the breakfast reception.

1969: Bob Dylan guest stars on ABC-TV's The Johnny Cash Show, featuring the two icons collaborating on three Dylan songs: "I Threw It All Away," "Living The Blues," and "Girl From The North Country.".

1969: Jimi Hendrix was arrested at Toronto International Airport for possesion of narcotics and was released on $10,000 bail.

1970: Elton John and lyricist Bernie Taupin combined for the first time on Elton’s first American album "Elton John".

1972: Paul Simon released his self-titled solo debut album.

1973: Washington, DC mayor Walter Washington officially declares today Marvin Gaye day in the singer's hometown.

1973: Bachman-Turner Overdrive released its first LP (self-titled) with former Guess Who guitarist Randy Bachman.

1974: The Carpenters are invited to the Nixon White House in order to perform for the President and his visitor, West German Chancellor Willy Brandt.

1975: The Rolling Stones announce their upcoming tour by being driven down Fifth Avenue in Manhattan, performing "Brown Sugar" on the back of a flatbed truck.

1979: Elton John performs in Israel, the first Western pop act to do so.

1980: the South African government banned Pink Floyd's single 'Another Brick In The Wall' after black children adopted the song as their anthem in protest against inferior education.

1983: The Style Council played their first-ever live gig at the Empire Theatre Liverpool.

1984: Fleetwood Mac drummer and founder member Mick Fleetwood filed for bankruptcy.

1989: A suspicious man is arrested in a Los Angeles jewelry store after anonymous calls to the police; the man in question turns out to be Michael Jackson in a ludicrous disguise.

1997: The house where Kurt Cobain committed suicide went up for sale. The asking price for the five-bedroom house built in 1902 was $3 million. The carriage house where the Nirvana guitarist died had been demolished.

1998: Snoop Doggy Dog and MC Delmar Arnaud were each found with less than an ounce of marijuana and were arrested and booked on one count of misdemeanor marijuana possession each.

1999: The Lyz Art Forum in Siegen, Germany, presents an exhibition of 70 paintings by Paul McCartney, including "Bowie Spewing," which is indeed a young portrait of the singer.

2000: Former Village Voice scribe Jimmy McDonough sues Neil Young for $1.8 million in civil court for allegedly backing down from his agreement to authorize a biography McDonough spent years writing.

2003: While being treated for kidney failure, Barry White suffers a stroke, paralyzing the right side of his body. The singer never fully recovers, and dies a few months later.

2005: Coldplay became the first British band to have a new entry in the US Top 10 singles chart since The Beatles. Coldplay's latest single ‘Speed Of Sound’ entered the chart at number eight, only the second time a UK band has achieved the feat. The Beatles managed it with 'Hey Jude' in 1968.

2005: Matchbox 20 singer Rob Thomas went to No.1 on the US album chart with his first solo album 'Something To Be.' This marked the first time a male artist from a rock group had debuted at number one with his first solo album since the Billboard Top 200 was introduced 50 years ago.