July 21

Births

1948: Cat Stevens (Steven Demetre Georgiou) (Singer/Songwriter)

1955: Howie Epstein (Bass for Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers)

1955: Taco (Tacho Ocheriski) (Singer)

1961: Jim Martin (Guitar for Faith No More)

Events

1958: CBS-TV's Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts, one of the major talent shows of the decade, ends its run after launching the careers of, among others, Connie Francis, Tony Bennett, Pat Boone, and the McGuire Sisters.

1967: Jimi Hendrix begins the first of three nights at Greenwich Village's Cafe Au Go-Go in New York.

1969: Duke Ellington and his band appear on ABC one day after the historic moon landing, performing a new piece entitled "Moon Maiden."

1973: "Mary Wilson Day" is declared in Detroit in honor of the Supremes member.

1973: Jim Croce started a two week run at No.1 on the US singles chart with 'Bad, Bad Leroy Brown'. Croce was killed in a plane crash three months later.

1977: Linda Ronstadt, who's just released a cover version of the Rolling Stones' "Tumbling Dice," hops onstage at the band's Tucson, AZ concert to sing it with them.

1977: Despite protests, The Sex Pistols made their first appearance on the UK music show Top Of The Pops, where they lip-synched to their third single, 'Pretty Vacant'. The performance helped push the song up the charts to No.7.

1983: Diana Ross plays a famous free concert in New York City's Central Park that is unfortunately interrupted by torrential rains. Ignoring the danger, Diana continues singing, urging the crowd to ignore the downpour, saying, "I need a bath, anyway, it's too hot," and "It took me a lifetime to get here... I ain't goin' nowhere." Unfortunately, the show does indeed stop when the rain proves to be too much for the band and the crowd, forcing Diana to reschedule the concert for the next day.

1987: Guns 'n Roses released their debut album, "Appetite For Destruction."

1988: As part of his sentence for his notorious drug and getaway spree, a South Carolina judge orders James Brown to put on a concert to benefit police and children's charities. Brown complains to the press that the state is trying to get a free concert out of his misfortune.

1990: Roger Waters 'The Wall' took place at the Berlin Wall in Potzdamer Platz, Berlin. Over 350,000 people attended and the event was broadcast live throughout the world, Van Morrison, Bryan Adams, Joni Mitchell, The Scorpions, Cyndi Lauper, Sinead O'Connor and others took part.

1990: BBC's Radio One apologized to listeners after Madonna repeatedly cursed during a live concert broadcast.

1994: Oasis played their first ever American show as part of the New Music Seminar at Wetlands in New York City.

1995: A Los Angeles judge throws out a lawsuit filed against Michael Jackson by five of the pop star's security guards, who alleged that they were fired after learning the "truth" about Jackson's nighttime visits with young boys.

1999: Charley Pride receives a star of the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

2003: Coldplay singer Chris Martin was charged with malicious damage in Australia after he allegedly attacked a photographer's car after he had taken pictures of him surfing at Seven Mile Beach. Martin admitted he had lost his temper due to the constant harassment by that journalist, and consequently smashed his windscreen and let the air out of his tires.

2004: Composer Jerry Goldsmith died after a long battle with cancer aged 75. Created the music for scores of classic movies and television shows ‘Star Trek’, ‘Planet of the Apes’, ‘The Man from U.N.C.L.E.’ and ‘Dr. Kildare.’

2007: Sharon Osbourne's music mogul father Don Arden died in a Los Angeles nursing home at the age of 81. Dubbed the Al Capone of Pop for his uncompromising business practices, he steered The Small Faces, Black Sabbath and ELO to stardom.

2008: Amy Winehouse's husband was jailed for 27 months for attacking a pub landlord and perverting the course of justice. Blake Fielder-Civil, 26, of Camden, north London, admitted assaulting James King, 36, at the Macbeths pub in Hoxton, east London, in June 2006. He also admitted at Snaresbrook Crown Court trying to make Mr King withdraw his complaint using a $400,000 bribe.