August 19

Births

1939: Ginger Baker (Drums for Cream & Blind Faith)

1940: Johnny Nash (Pop Singer)

1945: Ian Gillian (Lead Singer for Deep Purple)

1951: John Deacon (Bass for Queen)

1963: Joey Tempest (Lead Singer of Europe)

1966: LeAnn Womack (Country Singer)

1967: Tabitha Soren (MTV reporter)

1970: MC Eric (Eric martin) (Technotronic)

1972: Elizabeth Wolfgramm (Singer in The Jets)

1989: Lil’ Romeo (Percy Romeo Miller Jr) (Rapper)

Events

1957: Pat Boone appears on the cover of Newsweek with the tag "His Refreshing Song Fills The Air." The article inside claims that "the teen-agers are finally revolting against the musical delinquents."

1966: Just before their first show at the Mid-South Coliseum in Memphis, TN (which is picketed by local KKK members), the Beatles receive an anonymous phone call warning them that at least one of them will be assassinated on stage as a result of John Lennon's "bigger than Jesus" remarks. Midway through their second show of the evening, a lit firecracker is thrown on stage, frightening the band and making them look around to see which of them had been shot. This incident is one of the main reasons the Beatles make this tour their last.

1967: Ringo Starr and his wife, the former Maureen Cox, give birth to their second son, Jason.

1968: The final episode of The Monkees, directed by Micky Dolenz, airs for the last time on NBC-TV. The last song performed in this, the 58th episode, is "Zor And Zam."

1969: Crosby, Stills, and Nash appear on ABC-TV's Dick Cavett Show, the first band to report on the just-concluded Woodstock festival. Joni Mitchell appears, too, to debut her new song about the concert.

1972: The musical variety show The Midnight Special, featuring DJ Wolfman Jack as announcer and John Denver as host, debuts on NBC. The first song performed is War's "Slippin' Into Darkness."

1973: Kris Kristofferson marries Rita Coolidge at his Malibu home in a ceremony officiated by his father, an ordained minister. The marriage would last seven years.

1979: American Rockabilly singer Dorsey Burnette died from a heart attack at his home in Canoga Park, California. He wrote 'It's Late', a hit for Ricky Nelson and Shakin' Stevens.

1980: An asthma attack forces Alice Cooper to cancel tonight's show in Toronto, sparking a riot in the crowd of 1,400.

1988: Elvis Presley's "Hound Dog" is named the most played song in the first hundred years of the jukebox's existence.

1997 - Fleetwood Mac's reunion album "The Dance" was released. It was their first album since 1987 and went on to sell over 5M copies.

1999: Lauryn Hill won New Artist Of The Year and Album Of The Year at the US 'Source Hip Hop Music Awards' in Los Angeles. R. Kelly won R&B Artist of The Year; DMX won Artist Of The Year and solo and live performer Of The Year.

2001: American soul singer Betty Everett died aged 61. She had the 1964 US No.6 single 'The Shoop Shoop Song (It's In His Kiss'), later covered by Cher.

2001: Former Metallica bassist Jason Newsted made his first live appearance with EchoBrain.

2003: A man from Nottinghamshire who sent threatening emails to S Club singer Tina Barrett was jailed for six months. 41 year-old Steven Hindley, showered the singer with roses, chocolates and teddy-bears. But when the messages were ignored, he began to mention threats to the band, including a potential sniper attack. One email begged Miss Barrett to visit him at his home, claiming he was the victim of an incurable brain-tumour and had just three weeks to live.

2005: A life-size bronze statue designed by Paul Daly of Phil Lynott (Lead Singer of thin Lizzy) was unveiled on Harry Street in Dublin. The ceremony was attended by his former Thin Lizzy band members Gary Moore, Brian Robertson and Scott Gorham.

2008: Saxophonist LeRoi Moore, a founding member of the Dave Matthews Band, died aged 46. Publicist Ambrosia Healy said he died from injuries sustained in a vehicle accident in June on his Virginia farm.

2008: Lady Gaga's debut album "The Fame" was released.  The album has sold over 12M copies.

August 18

Births

1925: Sonny Til (Lead Singer of The Orioles)

1939: Johnny Preston (Pop Singer)

1944: Carl Wayne (Singer for The Move)

1945: Sarah Dash (R&B Singer in Labelle)

1949: Nigel Griggs (Bass for Split Enz)

1950: Dennis Elliott (Drummer for Foreigner)

1952: Patrick Swayze (Actor / Singer)

1967: Dan Peters (Drums for Mudhoney)

1967: Blas Gomez (Drummer for Slaughter)

1968: Brian Tichy (Drums for Billy Idol, Whitesnake & Foreigner)

1969: Everlast (Erik Schrody) (House Of Pain & Solo)

1971: Aphex Twin (Richard James) (Electronic Artist)

Events

1937: The first FM (frequency modulation) radio station in the US, Boston's WGTR (now WAAF), is granted its construction permit by the FCC.

1962: The Beatles perform at at the 17th annual fete for the Birkenhead, England, Horticultural Society at local Hulme Hall, a gig notable only as the first time Ringo Starr will play onstage with the band. Ringo had prepared for two hours with the group beforehand.

1964: The Beatles arrive in San Francisco, CA, for the start of their first full US tour, met at the airport by nine thousand screaming fans (but not the ticker tape parade that had been rumored). A fenced-off press area is destroyed by the sheer size of the crowd, forcing a frightened group to retreat to their hotel. There, a woman is beaten and robbed on another floor, ignored by authorities who assume the screaming is part of the Beatles' fan base.

1969: The Woodstock Music and Art Fair in Bethel, NY, ends at approximately 9 am EST when Jimi Hendrix performs "Hey Joe." {His now-legendary rendition of the US National Anthem "The Star Spangled Banner" actually came a few songs earlier.)

1969: While filming the violent gangster movie Ned Kelly in Australia, Mick Jagger is hit in the hand by a stray bullet from an old gun being used as a prop.

1973: Jazz drumming legend Gene Krupa plays what is to be his last live show, a gig with the Benny Goodman Quartet in New York City.

1976: Marvin Gaye narrowly averts a ten-day stint in the Los Angeles country jail for failure to pay child support and alimony.

1977: Elvis Presley's funeral is held in at his Memphis estate, Graceland, where 150 mourners attend, including such luminaries as Ann-Margret, James Brown, and actor George Hamilton.  Held in Graceland's living room, It lasted from 2:00 pm to 4:00 pm, and was led by Woodale Church of Christ pastor C.W. Bradley. Televangelist Rex Humbard gave a short sermon, followed by a testimonial from comedian Jackie Kahane, who often opened Elvis' shows.  Outside, 75,000 fans mourn, so many that President Jimmy Carter has ordered the National Guard in to maintain order.

Elvis' burial begins with a long procession down the street that bears his name, a white hearse and seventeen white limousines behind, ending at Forest Hill Cemetery. The 900-pound copper coffin is carried by pallbearers Jerry Schilling, Joe Esposito, George Klein, Lamar Fike, Billy Smith, Charlie Hodges, Gene Smith, and Dr. George Nichopoulous. A small service is then held in the mausoleum, followed by the paying of respects from family and friends. Elvis' father, Vernon, is the last to pay respects, kissing the coffin and repeating "Daddy will be with you soon." Elvis is interred at 4:30 pm CST.


1978: The Temptations' Melvin Franklin is shot four times in the hand and leg during an attempted carjacking, but survives.

1979: Nick Lowe married Johnny Cash's stepdaughter Carlene Carter in Los Angeles. The couple are now divorced.

1982: Liverpool names four of its streets for its hometown heroes the Beatles: John Lennon Drive, Paul McCartney Way, George Harrison Close and Ringo Starr Drive.

1984: George Michael was at No.1 on the UK singles chart with his first solo single 'Careless Whisper.' It made George the first person to reach No.1 as a solo artist and a member of a band in the same year. It gave Epic records UK their first UK million seller and the song was No.1 in nearly 25 countries, selling over six million copies worldwide.

1984: Nick Rhodes from Duran Duran married American model Julie Anne at Marylebone registry office London, England.

1986: Bon Jovi released their "Slippery When Wet" album.

1990: Jazzie B from Soul II Soul was injured when he was involved in a seven-car pile-up while travelling from Detroit to Chicago.

1991: Billy Preston is arrested on charges of battery after allegedly attacking a 16-year-old prostitute once Preston discovered he was a transvestite. The keyboardist and singer is eventually given five years probation.

1992: Kurt Cobain became a father when his wife Courtney Love gave birth to a daughter Frances Bean.

2005: Kanye West called for an end to homophobia in the hip-hop community during an MTV interview saying “hip-hop was always about speaking your mind and about breaking down barriers, but everyone in hip-hop discriminates against gay people. Not just hip-hop, but America just discriminates, I wanna just, to come on TV and just tell my rappers, just tell my friends, 'Yo, stop it'."

2006: Justin Hawkins the lead singer of The Darkness checked himself into the Priory rehabilitation clinic suffering from exhaustion after three years of non-stop work.

2008: Soul singer Pervis Jackson died of cancer. Was a member of The Spinners (Also known as The Motown Spinners and The Detroit Spinners). Had the 1980 UK No.1 & US No.2 single 'Working My Way Back To You'.

August 17

Births

1909: Larry Clinton (Trumpeter)

1919: Georgia Gibbs (Pop Singer)

1932: Duke Pearson (Jazz Pianist)

1933: Mark Dinning (Pop Singer)

1939: Luther Allison (Blues Guitarist)

1947: Gary Talley (Guitar for The Box Tops & Big Star)

1949: Sib Hashian (Drums for Boston)

1953: Kevin Rowland (Singer for Dexy's Midnight Runners)

1955: Colin Moulding (Bass for XTC)

1958: Belinda Carlisle (Singer for The Go-Go's)

1962: Gilby Clarke (Guitar for Guns ‘N’ Roses)

1964: Maria Mckee (Singer for Lone Justice & Solo)

1965: Steve Gorman (Drums for The Black Crowes & Stereophonics)

1966: Jill Cunniff (Singer for Luscious Jackson)

1969: Donnie Wahlberg (Singer for New Kids On The Block)

1969: Posdnuos (Kelvin Mercer) (Rapper in De La Soul)

Events

1962: A riot breaks out during a Gary U.S. Bonds performance at the Boston Arena.

1964: The Kinks released the single "You Really Got Me".

1964: Glasgow council in Scotland announced that all boys and men with Beatle styled haircuts would have to wear bathing caps after a committee was told that hair from ‘Beatle-cuts’ was clogging the pools filters.

1966: During a press conference in Toronto (where the group was scheduled to play that night) the Beatles creates more controversy by siding with American "draft dodgers" who moved to Toronto rather than be sent to Vietnam. John jokes, "Ah, we've had it in Memphis now," referring to the death threats received there after his "bigger than Jesus" statement.

1972: Gladys Knight appears as a contestant on ABC-TV's The Dating Game.

1973: Paul Williams (The Temptations) was found dead in an alley, on the ground next to his car, having just left the new house of his then-girlfriend after an argument. A gun was found near his body. His death was ruled a suicide by the coroner. He owed $80,000 in taxes and his celebrity boutique business had failed.

1977: One day after Elvis Presley's untimely demise, thousands of fans crowd Memphis and Graceland to mourn. FTD florists report the largest number of flower orders in their history sent as tributes to the King's family; US President Jimmy Carter issues a statement saying, in part, "Elvis Presley's death deprives our country of a part of itself. He was unique and irreplaceable... he was a symbol to people the world over of the vitality, rebelliousness and good humor of his country."

1979: Rolling Stone guitarist Keith Richards' wife, Anita Pallenberg, is accused of running a witches coven, complete with "pot smoking sex orgies," by the New York Post.

1984: At the outset of his latest world tour, a fatigued Elton John announces his upcoming retirement, which, like so many before and after, wouldn't take.

1985: "Highwayman" appears at the top of the Billboard chart, teaming Waylon Jennings, Willie Nelson, Johnny Cash and Kris Kristofferson.

1986: Rick Allen (Def Leppard) played his first concert with his band since losing his left arm in a car accident.

1986: 42 people were beaten or stabbed at a Run D.M.C. concert in Long Beach, CA.

1991: Nirvana shot the video for ‘Smells Like Teen Spirit’ at GMT Studios in Culver City, California, costing less than $50,000 to make, the shoot features real Nirvana fans as the audience.

1993: While in therapy, the thirteen-year-old son of a Beverly Hills dentist, Jordan Chandler, alleges that singer Michael Jackson molested him while he visited Jackson's Neverland Ranch. The resultant civil suit costs Jackson over $20 million, but no criminal charges are filed, with Jackson's lawyers claiming the family in question had previously attempted to extort the singer.

1995: Microsoft buys the rights to the Rolling Stones' 1981 smash "Start Me Up" to use as the theme for their Windows 95 rollout.

1995: Security guards carried Courtney Love offstage after she began fighting with Hole fans because they weren't cheering loud enough during the last night of the Lollapalooza tour in Mountain View, CA.

1995: Depeche Mode singer Dave Gahan was rushed to Cedars-Sinai Medical Centre after an apparent suicide attempt. Police had found him at his Los Angeles home with a two-inch laceration on his wrist.

1997: Liverpool, Nova Scotia, dedicates The Hank Snow Country Music Centre, a museum dedicated to its native country music legend.

1998: Carlos Santana is awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

1999: Derek Longmuir of the Bay City Rollers is arraigned on charges of possession of illegal drugs and child pornography. He is sentenced to 300 hours of community service.

2004: Singer / songwriter Dan Fogelberg reveals that he is battling advanced prostate cancer.

2004: Chevy officially ends its association with Bob Seger, whose 1986 hit "Like A Rock" had been used in Silverado ads since 1989. Two years later, General Motors would begin using John Mellencamp's "Our Country" as the Silverado theme.

2007: High School Musical 2 premiered on the US Disney Channel and Family Channel. Watched by a total of 17.2 million viewers in the United States, making it the highest rated basic cable broadcast in U.S. history.

2008: Jackson Browne was suing US Republican presidential candidate John McCain for using one of his songs without permission. Browne claimed the use of his song Running on Empty in an advert was an infringement of copyright and would lead people to conclude he endorses McCain. Browne was seeking more than $75,000 in damages.

2009: An arrest warrant was issued for singer Bobby Brown after he failed to appear at a court hearing involving child maintenance payments. Judge Christina Harms ordered Mr Brown, to be arrested next time he was in the state of Massachusetts. The singer had allegedly fallen $45,000 behind in payments for two teenage children he had with former girlfriend Kim Ward.

August 16

Births

1931: Eydie Gorme (Singer)

1938: Ketty Lester (Pop Singer)

1942: Barbara George (R&B Singer)

1945: Kevin Ayers (Guitar for The Soft Machine)

1945: Gary Loizzo (Guitar & Vocals for The American Breed)

1948: Barry Hay (Lead Vocals for Golden Earring)

1949: Scott Asheton (Drums for Iggy Pop and the Stooges)

1953: James "J.T." Taylor (Singer for Kool and the Gang)

1957: Tim Farriss (Guitar for INXS)

1958: Madonna (Madonna Louise Veronica Ciccone) (Singer)

1964: Matt Lukin (Bass for Mudhoney & Melvins)

1972: Emily Erwin (Singer & Banjo for Dixie Chicks)

1980: Vanessa Carlton (Pop Singer & Pianist)

1980: Bob Hardy (Bass for Franz Ferdinand)

Events

1938: Blues legend Robert Johnson died (probably poisoned by a jealous husband) at the age of 27 at a country crossroads near Greenwood, Mississippi. His recordings from 1936–1937 have influenced generations of musicians including Muddy Waters, Bob Dylan, Jimi Hendrix, Led Zeppelin, The Rolling Stones, Johnny Winter, Jeff Beck and Eric Clapton..

1957: Buddy Holly and The Crickets, still being billed by the band name only, begin a six-night engagement at Harlem's famed Apollo Theater, the first white rock act to play the venue. Although crowds boo a little at first -- many, including the venue, assumed they'd be seeing R&B vocal group The Crickets -- by the third night of the engagement Buddy's energy and songs have won them over.

1962: Detroit harmonica prodigy "Little" Stevie Wonder releases his first single, "(I Call It Pretty Music, But...) The Old People Call It The Blues," featuring another newcomer, Marvin Gaye, on drums. It fails to chart.

1962: Brian Epstein, manager of the Beatles, fires drummer Pete Best on the orders of the other members of the group, with no clear explanation and no other members present. Incredibly, Epstein then asks Best to fulfill his commitment and play the group's show that night in Cheshire's Riverpark Ballroom, but when he doesn't show, the group is ready with a replacement: Johnny Hutchinson of fellow Merseybeat group The Big Three. Fans will react badly to the news, pummeling the group at their next few shows, sending petitions to local papers, and shouting "Pete Best forever, Ringo never!" at the Cavern.

1965: David Jones' official stage name became David Bowie.

1968: The Jackson Five perform their first official live gig, opening for Diana Ross and the Supremes at the (Great Western) Forum in Los Angeles.

1969: During the Who's performance of their rock opera Tommy at Woodstock (specifically, during the instrumental "Underture") activist and hippie leader Abbie Hoffman leaps on stage, grabs the microphone, and yells "I think this is a pile of s**t, while John Sinclair rots in prison!" (Sinclair, a fellow activist, had been sentenced for ten years for two marijuana joints.) Pete Townshend, not knowing who Hoffman is, hits him over the head with his guitar and orders him to "**** off my ****ing stage!"

1974: The Ramones played their first concert at New York's CBGB’s.

1975: Peter Gabriel announced he was leaving Genesis to go solo. Phil Collins would be the new lead singer after the group auditioned more than 400 potential musicians.

1977: At his home in Graceland, Elvis Presley takes the book he's been reading, Frank Adams' The Scientific Search For The Face Of Jesus, and goes into his bathroom, "Don't fall asleep in there," says girlfriend Ginger Alden, knowing his propensity to nod off. "Okay, I won't," he says. Ginger goes back to sleep.

At 1:30 pm CST, Ginger awakens and sees Elvis is still gone. When knocking on the bathroom door produces no reply, she enters and finds his lifeless body on the floor in front of the toilet.

Alden screams for Elvis associates Al Strada and Joe Esposito, who arrive and call the fire department. An ambulance is dispatched. Daughter Lisa Marie and father Vernon arrive in the bathroom, but Lisa Marie is quickly removed from the scene. Elvis is rushed to nearby Baptist Memorial Hospital, where, after several attempts to revive him, he dies at 3:30 pm CST. His autopsy is performed at 7:00 pm.

The official coroner's report lists "cardiac arrhythmia" as the cause of Presley's death, but this was later admitted to be a ruse entered into by the Presley family along with autopsy physicians Dr. Jerry T. Francisco, Dr. Eric Muirhead and Dr. Noel Florredo to cover up the real cause of death, a cocktail of ten prescribed drugs, taken in doses no doctor would prescribe: The painkillers Morphine and Demerol. Chloropheniramine, an antihistamine. The tranquilizers Placidyl and Vailum. Finally, four drugs were found in "significant" quantities: Codeine, an opiate, Ethinamate, largely prescribed at the time as a "sleeping pill," Quaaludes, and a barbituate, or depressant, that has never been identified. It has also been rumored that Diazepam, Amytal, Nembutal, Carbrital, Sinutab, Elavil, Avental, and Valmid were found in his system at death.

The phrase "cardiac arrhythmia," in the context of the coroner's report, means little more than a stopped heart; the report initially tried to attribute the arrhythmia to cardiovascular disease, but Elvis' own personal physician has stated that Presley had no such chronic problems at the time.

1977: Manchester punk band The Buzzcocks signed to EMI's United Artists label.

1980: Alabama registers its first #1 single in Billboard with "Tennessee River".

1983: Paul Simon marries Star Wars actress Carrie Fisher at his New York duplex. The couple would divorce just two years later.

1985: Madonna married Sean Penn in Malibu.  She would file for divorce the next year.

1995: Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys performs live for the first time with his daughters Carnie and Wendy, recently famous for their stint in the trio Wilson Phillips.

1995: R&B musician Robert "Robby" Debarge dies at 36 from complications from AIDS.

1997: Pakistani singer Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan died of cardiac arrest at age 48. He had recorded with Bruce Springsteen Eddie Vedder and Peter Gabriel.

2003: Country artist Daryle Singletary marries surgical nurse Holly Mercer at the Lovely Lanes Chapel in St. Simons, Georgia.

2003: The USPS unveils a new commemorative postage stamp of recently-deceased composer Henry Mancini, famous for the Pink Panther theme and several other film works.

2005: Madonna suffered three cracked ribs, a broken collarbone and a broken hand in a horse-riding accident on her country estate. The accident happened when she fell off a new horse in the grounds of her Ashcombe House on the border of Wiltshire and Dorset on her 47th birthday. The singer was treated at hospital in Salisbury, 90 miles south-west of London.

2005: P Diddy appeared on the TV Today Show and announced that he was altering his stage name again, dropping the "P." and referring to himself simply as "Diddy." The name change to Diddy upset Richard "Diddy" Dearlove, a London based DJ who took out court proceedings against P Diddy over the use of the name. He won when an out of court settlement of $200,000 was agreed and as a result, Combs is no longer be able to use the name Diddy in the UK.

2011: Rock veteran John Mellencamp and model Elaine Irwin have officially divorced after an 18-year-marriage. The couple, which shares two teenage sons, separated in September of 2010 and filed for divorce on Jan. 14, 2011. 

August 15

Births

1925: Oscar Peterson (Jazz Pianist)

1925: Bill Pinkney (Singer in The Drifters)

1930: Jackie Brenston (R&B Singer & Sax Player)

1933: Bobby Helms (Country Singer)

1941: Don Rich (Country Guitarist)

1942: Peter York (Drums for The Spencer Davis Group)

1946: Jimmy Webb (Songwriter)

1948: Tom Johnston (Guitar & Vocals for The Doobie Brothers)

1950: Tommy Aldridge (Drums for Whitesnake, Ozzy & Thin Lizzy)

1951: Bobby Caldwell (Singer)

1952: Johnny Thunders (Guitar for The New York Dolls)

1961: Matt Johnson (Singer for The The)

1984: Dave Welsh (Guitarist for The Fray)

1989: Joe Jonas (Singer for The Jonas Brothers)

Events

1939: After five directors, several script drafts, and endless casting changes, The movie musical The Wizard Of Oz premieres at Grauman's Chinese Theatre in Hollywood.

1956: "Colonel" Tom Parker, actually a Dutch immigrant who merely played at being a Southern aristocrat, becomes "special adviser" to Elvis Presley, effectively taking over management duties from Bob Neal, who knew managing the King was about to become a full-time job.

1958: Buddy Holly marries Maria Elena Santiago, a former receptionist at his music publishing company, in a private ceremony held at Holly's boyhood home in Lubbock, TX.

1964: After the massive success of the Beatles' first film, A Hard Day's Night, United Artists rushes to sign up-and-comers The Dave Clark Five to a film project entitled Catch Us If You Can (which was released in the US as Having A Wild Weekend).

1965: At 8 pm EST, the Beatles take the stage at Shea Stadium in New York City, marking the very first time a rock band would headline a stadium concert and a major victory for promoter Sid Bernstein, who had arranged the gig after his gamble of booking the then-unknown group at Carnegie Hall had paid off. Tickets for the show, sold merely by word of mouth created by kids who asked Bernstein about the next Beatles show while he strolled in Central Park, sold out in just three weeks, beating the stadium's old seating record with 56,000 seats sold.

1969: Promising "three days of peace, love, and music," The Woodstock Music and Art Fair begins on Max Yasgur's sixty-acre farm in Bethel, NY (nearby Woodstock being the original location). Featuring two dozen of the country's hottest bands, the festival draws over 450,000 hippies to the tiny town, causing unimaginable traffic and logistics problems but nevertheless impressing the ordinary citizens. Three deaths, two births, four miscarriages, and a wedding are all reported before Jimi Hendrix ends the festivities with his legendary rendition of the US national anthem. Also appearing were (in part) Joe Cocker, Crosby Stills Nash and Young, Santana, The Who, Creedence Clearwater Revival, Grateful Dead, Janis Joplin, The Band, Canned Heat, Joan Baez, Santana, Melanie, Ten Years After, Sly and the Family Stone, Johnny Winter, Jefferson Airplane, Ravi Shankar, Country Joe and the Fish, Blood Sweat and Tears, and Arlo Guthrie. Among those who elected not to attend were Tommy James and the Shondells, Led Zeppelin, The Beatles, Bob Dylan, The Byrds, Jethro Tull, and The Moody Blues.

1973: Baltimore, MD, declares today "Cass Elliot Day" in honor of the native singer for The Mamas and the Papas.

1980: George Harrison's acclaimed autobiography I Me Mine -- the first by any Beatle -- hits the shelves.

1980: John Lennon enters the Record Plant Studios in New York to record his "comeback" album, Double Fantasy.

1983: Ramones guitarist Joey Ramone, beaten in fight-undergoes brain surgery.

1996: A New York women's shelter refuses to take money raised by a recent benefit concert when they learn that one of the performers was James Brown, often accused of emotional and physical abuse of women.

2000: David Bowie and his wife, supermodel Iman, become the proud parents of their first child, Alexandria Zahra Jones.

2004: Rolling Stones drummer Charlie Watts was being treated for throat cancer after being diagnosed with the disease in June.

2005: Sly Stone comes out of a long seclusion to visit the Knitting Factory in Los Angeles, where his little sister Vet headlines with the latest version of the Family Stone.

2007: The Osmonds reunite for the first time in over two decades to perform their 50th anniversary concert for PBS.

2011: Singer/actress Hilary Duff, 23, announced that she is expecting her first child with husband Mike Comrie, 30.