March 30

Birthdays

1913: Frankie Laine (Singer)

1914: Sonny Boy Williamson (Blues Artist)

1942: Graeme Edge (Drummer for The Moody Blues)

1945: Eric Clapton

1948: Jim "Dandy" Mangrum (Black Oak Arkansas)

1950: Dave Ball (Procol Harum)

1950: Re Styles (Guitar & vocals for The Tubes)

1955: Randy VanWarmer (Singer)

1962: MC Hammer (Stanley Kirk Burrell) (Rapper)

1964: Tracy Chapman (Singer)

1965: Tim Dorney (Republica)

1968: Celine Dion (Singer)

1973: Adam Goldstein (DJ AM)

1976:  Mark McClelland (Snow Patrol)

1979:  Norah Jones (Singer)

1980: Paul Wall (Rapper)

Events

1923: The world's first dance marathon, which would become quite the fad in the Roaring Twenties, was held in New York City's Audubon Ballroom.

1955: Fats Domino recorded "Blue Monday".

1957: Buddy Knox became the first artist in the Rock 'n' Roll era to write his own number one hit when ‘Party Doll’ topped the US singles chart.

1962: Pravda, the official newspaper of the USSR, runs an article warning Russians against falling victim to the decadent new Western fad known as "The Twist."

1963: 16 year old Lesley Gore recorded "It's My Party".  She also appeared on “American Bandstand” on the same day.

1963: The Chiffons started a four week run at No.1 on the US singles chart with ‘He’s So Fine’. In 1971 George Harrison was taken to court accused of copying the song on his 1970 ‘My Sweet Lord’ and ordered to pay $587,000 to the writers.

1966: A famous riot occurs at a Rolling Stones show in Paris, one which leads to the arrest of no less than 85 concertgoers.

1966: Barbra Streisand's second TV special Color Me Barbra airs on CBS.

1967: The Beatles visit Chelsea Manor Studios in London to photograph the cover of their newest album, Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, wearing satin marching band outfits of various bright colors and posing amid cardboard cutouts of several dozen famous personages. Michael Cooper's series of photographs would become amongst the most famous in rock history.

1967: While set to perform "Purple Haze" on BBC-TV's Top Of The Pops, a technician instead mistakenly cues up Alan Price's version of Randy Newman's "Simon Smith And His Amazing Dancing Bear." Hendrix good-naturedly replies: "I don't know the words to this one, man."

1970: Miles Davis releases the Album Bitches Brew.

1974: John Denver went to No.1 on the US singles chart with 'Sunshine On My Shoulders', the singers first of four US No.1's. Denver was killed in a plane crash on 12th October 1997.

1975: Jeff Beck (Yardbirds Guitarist) released his first solo album, "Blow by Blow," in the U.S

1976: The Sex Pistols played their first show at The 100 club, London, they begin a weekly residency at the club in June.

1978: Paul Simonon and Nicky Headon, from The Clash, were arrested in Camden Town, London after shooting down racing pigeons with air guns from the roof of Chalk Farm Studios. Four police cars and a helicopter were required to make the arrest. Their fines totalled $1,360.

1989: Gladys Knight performs her first solo show ever at Bally's in Las Vegas.

1992: R.E.M. started recording sessions for their Automatic For The People album at Bearsville Studios, Woodstock, New York.

1996: The Prodigy started a three-week run at No.1 on the UK singles chart with 'Firestarter', the first single from the album The Fat of the Land. The wah-wah guitar riff in 'Firestarter' was sampled from The Breeders' track 'S.O.S.'

1999: Kiss cancelled three concert dates in Russia due to anti-American sentiment over the U.N. bombing of Yugoslavia.

2001: LeAnn Rimes reached an out of court settlement with her father and her former manager. The country star filed a lawsuit claiming the pair had stolen $12 million from her.

2004: At a restaurant near Lake Tahoe, the jazz trio house band are shocked when Paul McCartney steps onstage to join them for a rendition of "Don't Get Around Much Anymore."

2005: Neil Young undergoes successful surgery to remove a brain aneurysm.

2007: A crazed stalker is arrested in Peasmarsh, Sussex, England, after driving at high speed through Paul McCartney's security checkpoint and up to just a few yards from his mansion. Led away after leading police on three-mile chase, the trespasser began screaming "I must get to him!" He was later judged mentally ill.