December 12

Births

1915: Frank Sinatra (The Man !)

1918: Joe Williams (Jazz Singer)

1923: Bob Dorough (Singer & Composer for Schoolhouse Rock)

1938: Connie Francis (Pop Singer)

1940: Dionne Warwick (Singer)

1943: Dickey Betts (Guitarist & Singer / Songwriter for The Allman Brothers)

1943: Grover Washington, Jr. (Jazz & R&B Singer)

1944: Rob Tyner (Singer for MC5)

1953: Bruce Kulick (Guitar for Grand Funk Railroad & Kiss)

1957: Sheila E. (Sheila Escovedo) (Drummer)

1957: Cy Curnin (Singer for The Fixx)

1968: Danny Boy (Rapper in House Of Pain)

1972: Hank Williams III (Country / Rock Artist)

1976: Dan Hawkins (Guitar for The Darkness)

1979: Sharin Foo (Bass & Vocals for The Raveonettes)

Events

1957: Al Priddy a DJ on US radio station KEX in Portland was fired after playing Elvis Presley's version of 'White Christmas' The station management said, 'it's not in the spirit we associate with Christmas'.

1961: Mike Douglas begins his TV variety/talk show in Cleveland, OH.

1963: The LP John Fitzgerald Kennedy - A Memorial Album becomes the fastest-selling album in history, selling four million copies in six days. The tribute was recorded the day of Kennedy's assassination.

1967: A London Appeals Court reduces the nine-month prison sentence of the Rolling Stones' Brian Jones, citing psychiatric testimony that he could not handle prison. Jones had been busted for marijuana possession.

1970: The Doors played what would be their last ever live show with Jim Morrison when they played at the Warehouse in New Orleans.

1974: The Rolling Stones begin recording their Black and Blue album in Munich, Germany, with an array of second guitarists, cementing Mick Taylor's departure from the group. One of the session guitarists, the Faces' Ron Wood, would become Taylor's permanent replacement.

1980: Thousands march peacefully in memory of John Lennon in New York, walking down Fifth Avenue and ending at the Dakota Building, site of his murder.

1985: On her 45th birthday, Dionne Warwick is awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

1992: Whitney Houston started a twenty-week run at No.1 on the US album chart with 'The Bodyguard'. It has sold over 44 million copies worldwide, becoming the best-selling soundtrack album of all time, as well as one of the best selling albums of all time.

2001: The state of Nevada declares today Frank Sinatra Day.

2001: Arthur Lee, guitarist and singer from Love, was released from prison after serving almost six years of an eleven-year sentence. Lee had been convicted of possession of a firearm and for allegedly shooting a gun in the air during a dispute with a neighbor.

2002: After three months, Gordon Lightfoot leaves a Hamilton, Ontario hospital, where he'd been sent for emergency surgery on his abdomen.

2005: Dierks Bentley proposes to Cassidy Black in Las Vegas. Two days later, the couple marries in Mexico.

2007: Ike Turner, the former husband of Tina Turner died at the age of 76 at his home near San Diego, California. Turner who was a prolific session guitarist and piano player is credited by many music historians with making the first rock 'n' roll record in 1951.