August 13

Births

1899: Alfred Hitchcock (Author)

1921: Jimmy McCracklin (Blues Pianist & Singer)

1930: Don Ho (Hawaiian Singer)

1951: Dan Fogelberg (Singer / Songwriter)

1959: Danny Bonaduce (The Partridge Family)

1973: Andy Griggs (Country Artist)

1984: James Morrison (Singer / Songwriter)

Events

1924: Vernon Dalhart's "The Prisoner's Song" becomes the first country record to sell a million copies -- a milestone for public acceptance of the genre.

1938: Blues legend Robert Johnson, who was reported to have "made a deal with the Devil" in order to execute his amazing guitar technique, plays his last gig at a dance approximately 15 miles from Greenwood, MS, and is supposedly poisoned by either the club's owner or a jealous girlfriend, who places strychnine in an open bottle of whiskey. When offered the bottle, fellow bluesman Sonny Boy Williamson knocks it out of his hand, admonishing him against ever drinking from an open container at a public event, but Johnson drinks from the next open bottle anyway. He would die three days later.

1952: The original version of 'Hound Dog' was recorded by Willie Mae (Big Mama) Thornton. It would become the first hit for the song-writing team of Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller and went on to top the Billboard R&B chart for seven weeks, selling nearly two million copies.

1959: Bobby Darin signs his first movie contract, a million-dollar, six-year, six-picture deal with Paramount Studios. He would go on to secure a nomination for Best Supporting Actor in 1962.

1963: The Four Seasons sue their struggling first label, Vee Jay, for non payment of royalties and move to Mercury/Philips Records. This would be the first of a long line of incidents that would doom the label.

1964: The Kinks score their first hit as "You Really Got Me," written by Ray Davies on his mother's piano, enters the British charts.

1965: The Jefferson Airplane made its stage debut at the Matrix Club in San Francisco, CA.

1965: Mike Smith, lead singer of The Dave Clark Five, suffered two broken ribs when he was pulled off the stage by fans. The group were in Chicago at the beginning of a US tour.

1967: A planned Joan Baez concert at Washington DC's Constitution Hall is cancelled after the Daughters of the American Revolution protest her recent anti-war remarks concerning Vietnam.

1971: Around midnight on this day, Saxophonist King Curtis was lugging an air-conditioning unit towards his brownstone apartment on West 86th Street in New York City when he noticed two junkies were using drugs on the steps to his home. When he asked them to leave, an argument started. The argument quickly became heated and turned into a fist-fight with one of the men, 26-year old Juan Montañez. Suddenly, Montañez pulled out a knife and stabbed Curtis in the chest. Curtis managed to wrestle the knife away and stab his assailant four times before collapsing. Montañez staggered away from the scene and Curtis was taken to Roosevelt Hospital, where he died from his wounds less than an hour later.

1971: John Lennon leaves England via Heathrow Airport, headed for New York City to find Yoko Ono's estranged and possibly kidnapped daughter Kyoto. It would be the last time he would see England.

1977: Bachman-Turner Overdrive announced that the group is splitting up (though they would reunite within six years).

1980: Songwriter, producer, and artist Todd Rundgren, his female companion, and three others are victims of a home invasion at his house in Woodstock, NY, bound and gagged by four masked intruders who steal art, stereo equipment, and recording equipment. One of the criminals hums Todd's 1972 hit "I Saw The Light" to himself as the robbery takes place.

1982: In response to plummeting record sales (which the industry blames on the sale of blank cassette tapes), major labels CBS, Atlantic, and Warner Brothers announce a series of major staff cuts.

1982: American soul singer Joe Tex died at his home in Navasota, Texas, following a heart attack, just five days after his 49th birthday. Had nine US Top 40 hits including the 1972 US No.2 single 'I Gotcha'.

1988: Willie Nelson becomes the first artist ever to have an album spend 10 years on the Billboard country chart, as "Stardust" logs its 520th week.

1990: While warming up for an outdoor concert at Wingate Field in Flatbush, Brooklyn, Curtis Mayfield is paralyzed by a lighting tower which falls from the stage and onto his back. He will remain a quadriplegic for the next nine years until his death in 1999.

1991: Arista releases Brooks & Dunn's debut album, "Brand New Man".

1992: Neil Diamond played the first of six sold-out nights at Madison Square Garden in New York. Diamond would bring in over $40 million from touring this year, the second highest in the music industry.

1994: Members from Oasis and The Verve were arrested after smashing up a hotel bar and breaking into a church to steal communion wine. Both bands had been appearing at Hulsfred Festival in Sweden.

1995: Michael Stipe (Singer for R.E.M.) has surgery for a hernia.

1999: Ex Guns N' Roses member Slash was arrested and accused of assaulting his girlfriend at his Sunset Boulevard recording studio by Los Angeles County sheriff's deputies. He was released on bail.

1999: Mick Jagger's marriage to model Jerry Hall was been declared null and void at the High Court in London. Neither Jagger nor Hall were present for the 30-minute hearing before Mr Justice Connell. After hearing evidence on behalf of Hall the judge ruled their "marriage" in Bali in 1990 was not valid either in Indonesia or under English law, and a decree of nullity was granted to Hall. The annulment avoided what had been expected to be a long and costly court battle, in which Ms Hall, 43, was reportedly seeking a $55m share of Jagger's wealth.

2002: Adam Ant pleaded guilty to threatening drinkers at The Prince Of Wales Pub in London in January of this year. The former 1980's pop star had returned to the bar with a starting pistol after being refused entry. He had also thrown a car alternator through the window of the pub.

2007: Fats Domino is honored as an "American Music Legend" by the Recording Industry Association of America.

2007: Amy Winehouse pulled out of two Rolling Stones gigs in Hamburg Germany citing exhaustion, British group Starsailor replaced Winehouse for the shows.

2009: Guitarist Les Paul died in hospital in White Plains, New York at the age of 94 suffering from severe pneumonia. Paul is credited with developing one of the first solid-body electric guitars, which went on sale in 1952 and contributed to the birth of rock. He also developed other influential recording innovations such as multi-track recording and overdubbing.

2011: As Sugarland prepares to take the stage, a wind gust collapses the stage at the Indiana State Fair in Indianapolis. Seven people eventually die and another 45 are treated for injuries.

August 11

Births

1943: Kenny Gamble (Songwriter)

1943: Jim Kale (Bass for The Guess Who)

1949: Eric Carmen (Vocals & Keyboards for The Raspberries & Solo)

1950: Erik Brann (Guitar for Iron Butterfly)

1954: Bryan Bassett (Guitar for Wild Cherry)

1954: Joe Jackson (Singer / Songwriter)

1957: Richie Ramone (Richard Reinhardt) (Drummer for The Ramones)

1968: Charlie Sexton (Guitarist & Singer / Songwriter)

1970: Andy Bell (Guitar & vocals for Ride and Bass for Oasis & Beady Eye)

1970: Ali Shaheed Muhammad (DJ & Rapper in A Tribe Called Quest)

1976: Ben Gibbard (Lead Singer & Guitar for Death Cab for Cutie & The Postal Service)

1978: Mac Daddy (Chris Kelly) (Rapper in Kris Kross)

1985: J-Boog (Jarell Damonte Houston)(Singer in B2K)

1985: Asher Roth (Rapper)

Events

1951: Hank Williams hits #1 in Billboard's country chart with "Hey, Good Lookin'".

1952: Hank Williams was fired from the Grand Ole Opry and told not to return until he was sober.

1956: Elvis Presley's double sided hit 'Don't Be Cruel / Hound Dog’ was released. The single went to No.1 on the US chart, where it stayed for 11 weeks - a record that would not be broken until 1992's Boyz II Men hit 'End of the Road'.

1962: Booker T. and the MG's instrumental song, "Green Onions," was released.

1964: The Who, temporarily known as the High Numbers, take the stage at Harrow, England's Railway Hotel, but not before lead singer Roger Daltrey is involved in a fistfight with his father-in-law just outside.

1964: The Beatles' first film, A Hard Day's Night, has its US premiere in New York City.

1966: The Beatles fly to Chicago to begin their last world tour and give a press conference at the Astor Towers Hotel at which John Lennon attempts to apologize for his recent "bigger than Jesus" remarks: "If I had said television is more popular than Jesus, I might have got away with it... originally I was pointing out that fact in reference to England-- that we meant more to kids than Jesus did, or religion, at that time. I wasn't knocking it or putting it down, I was just saying it as a fact... I'm not saying that we're better, or greater, or comparing us with Jesus Christ as a person or God as a thing or whatever it is, you know. I just said what I said and it was wrong, or was taken wrong. And now it's all this..." Paul: "And this is the point-- you know, this is why we're getting in all these messes with saying things. Because, you know, we're just trying to move forwards. And people seem to be trying to just sort of hold us back and not want us to say anything that's vaguely sort of, you know, inflammatory... I think it's better for everyone if we're just honest about the whole thing." George: "Well, in the context that it was meant -- it was the fact that Christianity is declining, and everybody knows about that, and that was the fact that was trying to be made... I agree that it's on the wane." Ringo: "Well, I just hope it's all over now, you know. I hope everyone's straightened out, and it's finished."

1969: Diana Ross holds a party for 350 at Beverly Hills' Daisy Club to announce her discovery of the singing group the Jackson 5 -- even though Gladys Knight actually recommended them to Motown head Berry Gordy. That night, the group gains even more exposure by performing at the first Miss Black America pageant.

1972: The mayor of San Antonio, TX, declares today "Cheech and Chong Day" after the popular comedy duo, although neither was born anywhere near the city.

1972: Elvis and Pricilla Presley filed for divorce. They had married in May of 1967.

1973: Rather than join Paul McCartney in traveling to Nigeria to record the band's latest album, Band On The Run, Henry McCullough and Denny Seiwell both quit Wings, forcing Paul, wife Linda, and Denny Laine to record the album as a trio.

1976: Keith Moon of the Who is hospitalized after having a complete mental breakdown and trashing his room at the Fountainbleau Hotel in Miami, FL.

1982: Donna Summer has her first daughter, Amada Grace Sudano, with husband Bruce Sudano.

1984: Ray Parker JR. started a three week run at No.1 on the US singles chart with the theme from the film 'Ghostbusters'. Parker who had been a session guitarist for Stevie Wonder and Marvin Gaye was accused of plagiarizing the melody from Huey Lewis and the News song ‘I Want a New Drug’, resulting in Lewis suing Parker, the pair settled out of court in 1985.

1986: Thanks to MTV's repeated marathons of their Sixties TV show, six vintage albums by The Monkees re-enter the Billboard album charts.

1987: Rolling Stone magazine declares the Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band the best album of the last twenty years.

1989: Three members of L.L. Cool J crew were arrested and charged with raping a 15 year-old girl. The incident took place after a concert when the girl had won a backstage pass on a radio contest.

1992: The vast Mall of America opens in Bloomington, MN with Ray Charles on hand to sing his famous version of "America The Beautiful."

1996: Mel Taylor (Drummer for The Ventures) died from cancer.  Only two weeks elapsed between Taylor's cancer diagnosis until his death. He had been a cigarette smoker, but had quit the habit about 11 years before his death.

1999: KISS are awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

2000: Madonna gave birth to a baby boy Rocco Ritchie at The Cedars-Sinai Hospital Beverly Hills.

2005: Steve Earle and Allison Moorer are married at the Hermitage Hotel in downtown Nashville. It's his seventh wedding, her second.

2011: 18-year-old pop singer Miranda Cosgrove has suffered a broken ankle after her tour bus was involved in an accident.

August 10

Births

1909: Leo Fender (Founder of Fender Guitar)

1928: Jimmy Dean (Country Singer)

1928: Eddie Fisher (Pop Singer)

1940: Bobby Hatfield (Singer in The Righteous Brothers)

1943: Ronnie Spector (Lead Singer in The Ronettes)

1943: James Griffin (Singer & Guitar for Bread)

1947: Ian Anderson (Vocals & Flute for Jethro Tull)

1950: Patti Austin (R&B Singer)

1961: Jon Farriss (Drummer for INXS)

1962: Julia Fordham (Singer / Songwriter)

1964: Aaron Hall (Singer for Guy & Solo)

1967: Todd Nichols (Guitar for Toad The Wet Sprocket)

1968: Michael Bivins (Singer for New Edition & Bell Biv DeVoe)

Events

1959: Four members of the Platters -- the male four -- are arrested in Cincinnati and charged with "aiding and abetting prostitution, lewdness, and assignation" after local police found the singers in a Sheraton Gibson Hotel after-show party entertaining four scantily-clad nineteen-year-olds, including three white girls. The members would be acquitted of the charges in December, but in the meantime, the arrest led to the Platters being banned in several major radio markets.

1963: 13 year-old Little Stevie Wonder started a three week run at No.1 on the US singles chart with 'Fingertips part II', making him the youngest singer to top the charts at the time.

1964: On his way to visit two injured fans in Liverpool, England, Mick Jagger is pulled over and fined $50 for speeding and driving without insurance.

1970: Jim Morrison of the Doors goes on trial in Miami, FL, for an infamous incident on March 1, 1969, where he allegedly exposed himself on stage. (Though no doubt drunk, disinterested, and verbally taunting the audience, according to firsthand accounts, Morrison is generally thought these days to have been innocent of the major charge, sparking talk of a posthumous public vindication by Florida officials.)

1972: Paul and Linda McCartney are arrested backstage in Gothenburg, Sweden, for possession of six ounces of marijuana. The couple are released after paying a combined fine of $1,200.

1976: Elton John begins a historic record-breaking ten-night run of concerts at New York City's Madison Square Garden.

1983: Kajagoogoo fired their lead singer Limahl who took up a solo career with the theme to “The Neverending Story”. The group scored the 1983 UK No.1 single 'Too Shy'.

1985: Madonna's "Like A Virgin" became the first album by a female to be certified for 5 million sales.

1985: Canadian singer / guitarist Bryan Adams scored his first US No.1 album with 'Reckless.'

1985: 'Money for Nothing' by Dire Straits peaked at No.4 on the UK singles chart. Notable for its groundbreaking music video and a cameo appearance by Sting singing the song's falsetto introduction and backing chorus, "I want my MTV," who also co-wrote the song with Mark Knopfler. The video was also the first to be aired on MTV Europe when the network started on 1 August 1987.

1985: Michael Jackson buys ATV Music (every Beatle songs) for $47 Million after out-bidding Paul McCartney.

1985: Simon Le Bon from Duran Duran was air lifted to safety when his boat 'Drum' overturned while racing off the English coast. Le Bon was trapped under the hull with five other crew members for twenty minutes, until being rescued by the Royal Navy.

1987: Wilson Pickett is found guilty of threatening patrons at a New Jersey bar with a loaded shotgun after a brawl inside the club. He is given two years' probation and fined $1,000.

1993: The Dave Matthews Band played at The Flood Zone in Richmond, Virginia. The gig was recorded with some of tonight’s songs ending up on the bands first major label album ‘Remember Two Things.’

1995: Jimmy Buffett led a birthday celebration for U.S. President Clinton's birthday at the White House.

1999: it was announced that Oasis rhythm guitarist Paul 'Bonehead' Arthur's had quit the band after finishing his guitar parts on the bands new album.

2001: The Dixie Chicks' Martie Seidel marries Gareth Maguire in Kailua, Hawaii.

2002: When The Dixie Chicks perform on the Grand Ole Opry, Natalie Maines interrupts the proceedings to announce the newest inductees into the Country Music Hall of Fame: Opry members Porter Wagoner and "Jumpin'" Bill Carlisle.

2004: The Rolling Stones' Charlie Watts confirms that he is undergoing treatment for throat cancer, which will eventually go into remission.

2007: Spice Girl Emma Bunton gave birth to a baby boy called Beau at London's private Portland Hospital. Bunton and her partner Jade Jones, a former member of defunct boy band Damage, had been together for eight years.

2008: Singer / songwriter Isaac Hayes died at his home in Memphis, Tennessee, at the age of 65. Police were called to his home after his wife found him unconscious. He was taken to hospital where he was pronounced dead. Hayes won an Oscar for the 1971 hit Theme From Shaft as was also known as the voice of Chef from the hit cartoon show, South Park. He was married four times and had 12 children.

2009: Brooks & Dunn announce in a five-sentence note to their fans that they're ending their run as a duo after one last tour. "It's time to call it a day".

2011: Rebecca Black withdrew from her school after teasing from her classmates over her YouTube phenomenon, "Friday," became too pervasive to ignore.

2011: The Grand Ole Opry’s Billy Graham died of natural causes at age 85.  He had been a Nashville studio musician singing and playing guitar.

August 9

Births

1959: Kurtis Blow (Curtis Walker) (Rapper)

1963: Whitney Houston (Singer)

1968: Sam Fogarino (Drums for Interpol)

1972: Juanes (Juan Esteban Aristizábal Vásquez) (Colombian Singer & Guitarist)

Events

1963: ITV television in Britain premieres the legendary rock and roll variety show Ready! Steady! Go!, which would run until 1966. The first episode features co-host Dusty Springfield as well as musical guests The Searchers, Pat Boone, and The Tremeloes.

1964: Bob Dylan and Joan Baez share the stage for the first time, singing "With God On Our Side" at the Newport Folk Festival.

1964: The crowd of over three thousand at tonight's Rolling Stones gig in Manchester, England, prove hard to control, accidentally breaking the ribs of one policeman and causing another two to faint in the crush.

1967: At England's National Jazz and Blues Festival in Sunberry, Jerry Lee Lewis is kicked off the stage after the overenthusiastic crowd responds to his set with a near-riot.

1978: Muddy Waters performs at the Carter White House.

1980: AC/DC scored their first UK No.1 album with 'Back In Black'.  It only went to #4 in the US. It was the first AC/DC album recorded without former lead singer Bon Scott, (who died on 19 February 1980 at the age of 33), and was dedicated to him. The album has sold an estimated 49 million copies worldwide to date, making it the second highest selling album of all time, and the best selling hard rock or heavy metal album, as well as the best selling album ever released by a band.

1980: Ten original Gerald Scarfe drawings for Pink Floyd’s album ‘The Wall’ were stolen from the foyer of Earls Court, London, England where they were being exhibited.

1985: After the massive success of the Motown 25 TV special on NBC, the network debuts the ill-fated Motown Revue variety series, which would only run for five weeks.

1986: Queen give what would prove to be their last live performance ever at the annual Knebworth Park Festival in England, closing as usual with "We Will Rock You / We Are The Champions" and "God Save The Queen."

1988: Rob Base & DJ E-Z Rock release the album “It Takes Two”.

1991: The 5th Dimension are awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk Of Fame.

1991: Rick James pled innocent to charges that he imprisoned, tortured and sexually assaulted a woman in his California home.

1994: During an Oasis gig at The Riverside in Newcastle upon Tyne, England, guitarist Noel Gallagher was hit in the face by a man who had jumped on the stage. Noel refused to carry on playing and after leaving the stage a mob of over 300 people attacked the bands bus as they were leaving.

1995: The Grateful Dead’s Jerry Garcia’s body was discovered in his room at the rehabilitation clinic. The cause of death was a heart attack. Garcia had long struggled with drug addiction, weight problems, and sleep apnea, all of which contributed to his physical decline. He was well known for his distinctive guitar playing and was ranked 13th in Rolling Stone's "100 Greatest Guitarist's of All Time"

2002: Lisa Marie Presley was married to actor Nicolas Cage in a union that lasts less than four months.

2005: Singer / Songwriter Marc Cohn survived being shot in the head during an attempted car jacking as he left a concert in Denver, Colorado. Cohn was struck in the temple by the bullet but it did not penetrate his skull. Police said a man tried to steal Cohn's tour van as it left after a show, the attacker was fleeing police after trying to pay a hotel bill with a stolen credit card.

2007: As the first Phil Spector / Lana Clarkson murder trial winds down, the legal teams visit the famed producer's Alhambra mansion in California to take a look at the scene of the crime.

2007: Amy Winehouse cancelled a series of European shows after being admitted to hospital suffering from "severe exhaustion". The 23-year-old singer was taken to University College London Hospital and later discharged. In the past few weeks she had pulled out of the T in the Park festival - also citing "exhaustion", Liverpool's Summer Pops event and concerts in Norway and Denmark.

2007: Baltimore's mayor Sheila Dixon proclaimed today as the city's official 'Frank Zappa Day' citing Zappa's musical accomplishments as well as his defense of the First Amendment to the United States Constitution.

2007: Jennifer Lopez won $545,000 in a case against her first husband who planned to publish a book claiming she had several affairs. Lopez claimed Ojani Noa had violated a previous legal settlement preventing him from revealing private details about their relationship. The star claimed Mr. Noa offered not to publish the book in return for $5 million.

2011: Singer Gavin DeGraw suffered a broken nose and was hospitalized after he was attacked by a group on a New York City street.

2011: Kiss guitarist/vocalist Paul Stanley and wife, Erin, welcomed their fourth child, daughter Emily Grace Stanley. 

August 8

Births

1907: Benny Carter (Jazz musician)

1932: Mel Tillis (Country Singer)

1933: Joe Tex (Soul Singer)

1952: Robin Quivers (Howard Stern Show)

1956: Christopher Foreman (Guitar for Madness)

1961: Rikki Rockett (Richard Allan Ream) (Drums for Poison)

1961: The Edge (Dave Evans) (Guitar for U2)

1962: Kool Moe Dee (Mohandas Dewese) (Rapper)

1965: Aaron Abeyta (Lead Guitar for NOFX)

1973: Scott Stapp (Singer for Creed)

1973: Mark Wills (Country Artist)

1976: Joshua “JC” Chasez (Vocals for N’SYNC)

1976: Drew Lachey (Singer in 98 Degrees)

1980: Mike Hindert (Bass for The Bravery)

Events

1923: A fourteen-year-old clarinet player named Benny Goodman lands his first professional gig, playing for a cruise ship operating on Lake Michigan near Chicago.

1958: Bing Crosby and wife Kathryn announce the birth of their first child (and Bing's fifth overall), Harry Lillis Crosby III.(Harry is Bing's real first name.)

1969: Photographer Iain MacMillan shoots the cover for the Beatles' album, Abbey Road, just outside the studios of the same name where the band recorded most of its classic songs. The photo, which merely shows the band crossing the street while walking away from the studio, has become iconic in its own right, and provides "Paul Is Dead" enthusiasts with several erroneous "clues" to his "death," including the fact that Paul is barefoot. (Supposedly this represents a corpse, but McCartney has stated that it was simply a hot day.) The shoot, which lasts ten minutes, produces six shots, from which Paul picks the cover.

1970: At Philadelphia's Mount Lawn Cemetery, Janis Joplin purchases a headstone for her idol, Bessie Smith, the famous African-American blues singer who died from injuries suffered in a 1937 car crash -- after being refused at a whites-only hospital. (Bessie's widower refused to purchase a stone for her.)

1975: Hank Williams, Jr. falls 500 feet down Ajax Mountain near Missoula, MT, exposing part of his brain and keeping him in and out of hospitals for the next two years. The resultant facial scars would inspire his trademark "hat, beard, and shades" look.

1975: Saxophonist Cannonball Adderley died of a stroke at age 46.

1980: The Greater London Council banned The Plasmatics from blowing a car up on stage during their UK live debut at London's Hammersmith Odeon.

1982: Mickey Thomas (Singer for Jefferson Starship) married Sara Kendrick.

1983: Harold Melvin and three members of the Blue Notes are arrested for cocaine, marijuana, and meth possession at Caesars Boardwalk Regency Hotel Casino in Atlantic City.

1986: David Crosby (The Byrds, Crosby Stills & Nash) is released from prison after serving only eight months of his original five-year sentence for cocaine and firearms possession.

1992: A riot broke out during a Guns N' Roses and Metallica gig at Montreal stadium when Metallica's show was cut short after singer James Hetfield was injured by pyrotechnics. Guns N' Roses took the stage but frontman Axl Rose claimed that his throat hurt, causing the band to leave the stage early. The cancellation led to a riot by the audience who overturned cars, smashed windows, looted local stores and set fires.

1996: Kiss appeared at the Riverfront Coliseum in Cincinnati, Ohio on their 192 date Alive World Tour. During this show a fan threw his fake leg on stage, which all the members signed and handed back to him.

2000: In Portugal, Oasis walked off stage for the second time in two weeks when drummer Alan White was hit by a rock.

2005: Two jurors in the Michael Jackson molestation case tell NBC-TV's Today that they have come to regret their ruling of "not guilty."

2006: Travis Barker (Drummer for Blink-182) filed for a divorce from ex-beauty queen Shanna Moakler.

August 7

Births

1942: B.J. Thomas (Pop Singer)

1950: Rodney Crowell (Country Guitarist & Singer / Songwriter)

1951: Pete Way (Bass for Fastway, UFO & Ozzy Osbourne)

1958: Bruce Dickinson (Vocals for Iron Maiden)

1960: Jacquie O'Sullivan (Singer for Bananarama)

1964: Ian Dench (Guitar for EMF)

1966: Kristin Hersh (Singer & Guitar for Throwing Muses & Solo)

1977: Jamey Jasta (Lead Singer for Hatebreed)

Events

1954: Johnny Cash married Vivian Liberto at St. Ann’s Catholic Church in Memphis. Cash had plans of becoming a Memphis appliance salesman, he instead formed a band with Luther Perkins and Marshall Grant, and was signed to Sun Records a year later.

1957: The Quarrymen (minus new member Paul McCartney, away at Scout camp!) make their debut at Liverpool's Cavern Club. Manager Alan Sytner instructs them not to play rock and roll, but midway through their performance, John lights into a version of Elvis' "Don't Be Cruel," which the crowd loves.

1963: The first of the Frankie Avalon / Annette Funicello "beach movies," Beach Party, opens in American theaters, featuring music by surf legend Dick Dale. Exactly 24 years later on this day, the reunion movie Back To The Beach opens, with Frankie and Annette cast as parents with wild and crazy teens of their own, and featuring music by Fishbone and Pee-Wee Herman.

1965: Mike Smith (Singer for Dave Clark Five) had two ribs broken when he was pulled off the stage by a fan in Chicago.

1970: Christine Perfect, now married to bass player John McVie, joins her husband's band, Fleetwood Mac, as its first female member.

1971: The Bee Gees started a four week run at No.1 on the US singles chart with 'How Can You Mend A Broken Heart'. It was the group's tenth US hit and first No.1.

1974: J. Geils Band frontman Peter Wolf marries movie star Faye Dunaway in a Beverly Hills courtroom. They would divorce in 1979.

1991: Paul Simon gives a free concert in Central Park, much as he had in 1981 with partner Art Garfunkel. The performance eventually became the album Paul Simon's Concert In The Park.

1995: LL Cool J and Simone Johnson were married.

1996: A federal appeals court overturns the ruling that original Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers members Jimmy Merchant and Herman Santiago co-wrote the group's biggest hit, 1955's "Why Do Fools Fall In Love?" ruling that copyright claims must be filed within three years of the song's publication.

1997: Garth Brooks played to the largest crowd ever in New York's Central Park. An estimated 1 million people attended the live concert with an additional 14.6 million viewing live on HBO.

1999: Violence erupted outside a Dave Matthews Band concert in Hartford, CT. 55 arrests were made in the parking lot of the Meadows Music Theater.

2000: Having recently won back merchandising rights for their son's famous name, the family of Jimi Hendrix succeeds in shutting down the faux-official website www.jimihendrix.com.

2002: Three members of Oasis were injured when the taxi they were travelling in was involved in a crash during a US tour in Indianapolis. Noel Gallagher, Andy Bell and Jay Darlington were all taken to hospital and treated for cuts and bruises.

2006: Barry Manilow cancels some dates at the Las Vegas Hilton while doctors attempt to repair torn cartilage in his hip.

2007: The Isley Brothers' Ron Isley begins serving a 27-month sentence at the Federal Correctional Institution at Terre Haute, IN for income tax evasion.

2007: Lily Allen had her US work visa cancelled after arriving at Los Angeles airport. The 22-year-old, who was due to tour America in September, had flown in for the MTV Video Music Awards launch. She was held at the airport for five hours in connection with an arrest for an alleged assault in London in June.

2008: Elvis Presley's peacock jumpsuit, was sold at auction for $300,000, making it the most expensive piece of Elvis memorabilia ever sold at an auction. The white outfit with a plunging V-neck and high collar featured a blue-and-gold peacock design, hand-embroidered on the front and back and along the pant legs.

2011: Grammy-winning OutKast rapper Big Boi (Antwan Patton) was arrested in Miami for possession of drugs including ecstasy and Viagra pills.