July 27

Births

1929: Harvey Fuqua (R&B Singer in The Moonglows)

1933: Nick Reynolds (Guitar & Vocals for The Kingston Trio)

1944: Bobby Gentry (Roberta Lee Streeter) (Singer / Songwriter)

1949: Maureen McGovern (Singer)

1955: Bobby Rondinelli (Drummer for Rainbow, Quiet Riot, Black Sabbath & Blue Oyster Cult)

1960: Conway Savage (Bass for Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds)

1962: Karl Mueller (Bass for Soul Asylum)

1964: Rex Brown (Bass for Pantera & Down)

1967: Juliana Hatfield (Singer / Songwriter)

Events

1958: A study by Esso oil (formerly Standard Oil, eventually Exxon) finds that drivers speed more and therefore waste more gas when listening to the new fad of rock and roll music.

1959: Santo and Johnny released the single "Sleepwalk".

1961: The Tokens recorded the single "The Lion Sleeps Tonight" .

1968: A riot erupts at Chicago's Grant Park after Sly and the Family Stone fail to appear for a free concert.

1968:  ‘Mama’ Cass Elliot released her first solo single following the break up of The Mamas and Papas. ’Dream a Little Dream of Me’ had been around since 1931 and had been recorded by Frank Sinatra, Frankie Laine and many others. Cass' version would be the most successful when it peaked at No. 12 on the US chart, and No.11 in the UK.

1969: Robin Gibb of the Bee Gees collapses from "nervous exhaustion" just as the group is about to embark on its first US tour, but it's actually a ruse designed to hasten his exit from the group.

1974: After 23 years, Dinah Shore leaves the NBC-TV network when it cancels her morning program Dinah's Place in order to concentrate on game shows.

1974: John Denver started a two week run at No.1 on the US singles chart with 'Annie's Song', the singers second US No.1. The song was a tribute to his wife and was written in 10 minutes while he was on a ski lift.

1974: Lynyrd Skynyrd released the single "Sweet Home Alabama".

1976: John Lennon ends his four-year fight to stay in the US as a special government hearing granted him a green card (Number A-17-597-321).

1976: Bruce Springsteen's meteoric career rise is stalled when he sues manager Mike Appel for fraud and breach of contract, keeping him from performing or recording for over a year.

1976: After years of alleged physical and verbal abuse, and having left over the Fourth of July with nothing but pocket change and a gas station credit card, Tina Turner files for divorce from her husband of sixteen years, Ike.

1979: A firebomb destroys Alice Cooper's Indian art store in Scottsdale, AZ, causing $200,000 in damage to, among other things, some of Cooper's gold records. The singer jokes that perhaps a "disco music freak" torched the place, as Alice had been quite vocal about not liking the new musical trend.

1983: Madonna's self-titled debut album was released.

1983: Metallica began their first tour entitled "Kill 'em all for one." The tour ended on September 3, 1983.

1985: Paul Young went to No.1 on the US singles chart with his version of the Daryl Hall song 'Every Time You Go Away'.

1985: The Eurythmics were at No.1 on the UK singles chart with 'There Must Be An Angel (Playing With My Heart)', the duo's only UK No.1 single. The song featured a harmonica solo by Stevie Wonder.

1990: R&B Singer Bobby Day died of cancer.

1991: Jesus Jones went to No. 2 on the US chart with 'Right Here, Right Now', unable to shift Bryan Adams '(Everything I Do), I Do It for You', from a seven week stay at the No.1 position.

1991: Jani Lane (Singer for Warrant) marries model Bobbie Brown.

1992: Michael Jackson sues the London tabloid Daily Mirror over claims that too many plastic surgeries had left him permanently disfigured.

1994: Bob Seger serves jury duty in Michigan and, as the foreman in a criminal trial, finds the defendant guilty.

1996: The Spice Girls scored their first No.1 UK single with 'Wannabe'. Seven weeks at No.1 the song won Best British-Written Single at the 1997 Ivor Novello Awards and Best Single at the 1997 Brit Awards. The Girl Power song became the best-selling single by a female group selling over six million copies worldwide.

2001: Leon Wilkeson (Bass for Lynyrd Skynyrd) apparently had been suffering from chronic liver and lung disease and his cause of death on this day was deemed 'from natural causes.' He was 49 years old.

2002: Mariah Carey checked herself into an undisclosed hospital suffering from "extreme exhaustion." The singer cancelled all public appearances, including her headlining appearance at MTV's 20th birthday party. Her record company denied tabloid reports that Carey tried to commit suicide, saying she did have cuts on her body, but the injuries were unintentional after breaking some dishes and glasses.

2006: The company behind file-sharing service Kazaa agrees to pay record labels over $115 million in damages for piracy.

2007: Paul Stanley (KISS) had to leave a concert due to his pulse being twice the normal level. The band performed as a trio with Gene Simmons singing all songs.