March 8

Births

1945: Micky Dolenz (Singer & Drummer for The Monkees)

1946: Randy Meisner (Bass & Vocals for The Eagles & Poco)

1947: Michael Allsup (Guitar for Three Dog Night)

1948: Mel Galley (Guitar for Whitesnake)

1957: Clive Burr (Drummer for Iron Maiden)

1958: Gary Numan (New Wave Singer)

1968: Shawn Mullins (Singer / Songwriter)

1979: Tom Chaplin (Singer for Keane)

1979: Andy Ross (Guitar, Keyboards & Vocals for OK Go)

1982: Kat Von D (Tattoo Artist)

Events

1963: The Four Tops sign with the Motown label -- as a jazz-pop act -- for the sum of $400.

1964: The Dave Clark Five appear for the first time on CBS-TV's Ed Sullivan Show, performing "Do You Love Me" and "Can’t You See That She’s Mine." It will be the first of eighteen appearances for the group.

1968: Promoter Bill Graham's East Coast version of the Fillmore, his legendary San Francisco rock ballroom, opens in the East Village section of New York City. Dubbed, appropriately enough, the Fillmore East, its first show features Big Brother and the Holding Company, Albert King, and Tim Buckley.

1969: The Small Faces break up following the departure of lead singer Steve Marriott. Marriott goes on to form Humble Pie, while the Small Faces eventually regroup with new lead singer Rod Stewart and become simply Faces.

1970: Diana Ross gives her first solo concert performance, appearing at a show in Framingham, MA.

1971: After activist Abbie Hoffman sends them a tape of the song, Radio Hanoi plays Jimi Hendrix' version of the Star-Spangled Banner.

1973: Ron Mckernan, keyboard player with The Grateful Dead, died aged 27 from liver failure brought on by alcohol poisoning.

1973: Paul McCartney is fined $250 for growing cannabis on his Scotland farm, claiming that while the plants are his, they were grown from seeds given him by a friend, and he wasn't sure what sort of seeds they were. Right.

1974: Rising from the ashes of Free and Mott The Hoople, the newly-formed Bad Company play their first live gig, at Newcastle City Hall in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, England.

1993: "Beavis and Butthead" premiered on MTV as a series.

2003: Former Dire Straits frontman Mark Knopfler was injured when the Honda motorbike he was riding was involved in a collision with a Fiat Punto car. The 53-year-old singer and guitarist suffered a broken collar bone and six broken ribs in the accident which happened in London's smart Belgravia district in mid-morning traffic.

2009: A blue plaque in honour of The Who drummer Keith Moon was unveiled on the site of the Marquee Club in Soho, London, where in 1964 the band played the first of 29 gigs there. Fans on scooters turned up to pay tribute to Moon, who was 32 when he died of an accidental overdose in 1978.