February 17

Births

1941: Gene Pitney (Singer)

1957: Loreena McKennitt (Singer)

1963: Larry The Cable Guy (Daniel Lawrence Whitney)

1967: Chanté Moore (R&B Singer)

1970: Tim Mahoney (Lead Guitar for 311)

1971: Denise Richards

1972: Billie Joe Armstrong (Singer & Guitar for Green Day)

1972: Taylor Hawkins (Drummer for Foo Fighters)

1974: Bryan White (Country Artist)

1981: Paris Hilton (ummm…. Singer?)

Events

1960: Elvis Presley won his first Gold record for the album 'Elvis'.

1965: Governor Frank G. Clement declares Patti Page's smash "Tennessee Waltz" the official anthem of that state.

1968: Big Brother and the Holding Company, featuring singer Janis Joplin, are signed by Columbia after a performance at the Anderson Theatre in New York City.

1970: Joni Mitchell announced she was retiring from live performances during a concert at London's Royal Albert Hall. Joni was on stage again by the end of the year.

1971: Johnny Cash is the guest of honor on NBC-TV's This Is Your Life; a few channels over, on Cash's ABC variety show, a young James Taylor makes his TV debut singing "Fire And Rain" and "Carolina On My Mind."

1973: The band Free, which would mutate into Bad Company, disband after playing their final show at the Hollywood Sportatorium in Florida.

1975: AC/DC released their debut album 'High Voltage'.

1976: Harvard names Bette Midler it's Hasty Pudding Woman of the Year. Midler declares that the honor "characterizes what the American male wants in a woman... brains, talent and gorgeous t***."

1976: The Eagles release “Their Greatest Hits 1971-1975” which is tied with Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” for the best selling LP in the US of all times at 29 Million copies.

1988: A 12-year old fan of Motley Crue set his legs on fire while trying to imitate a stunt in the band's "Live Wire" video. The boy suffered burns over ten percent of his body.

1988: Destiny’s Child release their debut album.

1989: Whitesnake singer David Coverdale married actress Tawny Kitaen (known for her provocative appearances in Whitesnake's music videos 'Here I Go Again, 'Is This Love' and 'Still of the Night'). The couple divorced in 1991.

2000: Rapper Trick Daddy was arrested and charged with disorderly conduct at a North Miami Beach nightclub.

2001: Brad Paisley is inducted into the Grand Ole Opry. He wears the yellow jacket that Buck Owens wore the night he recorded his "Live At Carnegie Hall" album. Paisley sings "Two People Fell In Love," from his upcoming album.

2008: During a Temptations/Four Tops concert in Nashville's famed Ryman Auditorium, Little Richard, sitting in the audience, gets a standing ovation from all 2,400 concertgoers.

February 16

Births

1935: Sonny Bono (Singer & Producer)

1952: James Ingram (R&B Singer)

1958: Ice-T (Tracy Morrow) (Rapper)

1961: Andy Taylor (Guitar for Duran Duran & Power Station)

1965: Dave Lombardo (Drummer for Slayer)

1982: Lupe Fiasco (Wasalu Muhammad Jaco ) (Rapper)

Events

1963: Paul Anka marries Marie-Ann Alison DeZogheb in Paris.

1968: Detroit, MI mayor Jerome P. Cavanagh declares today "Aretha Franklin Day."

1969: George Jones marries Tammy Wynette in Ringgold, Georgia, six months after they announced the marriage.

1971: Hell's Angel biker Alan David Pasaro sues the Rolling Stones, claiming that the group's documentary film Gimme Shelter, a document of the infamous 1969 Altamont concert, constitutes invasion of privacy. The film depicts the stabbing of Meredith Hunter by members of the biker group, but Pasaro himself is later acquitted of the crime.

1972: During his week-long stint as host of the syndicated Mike Douglas Show, John Lennon performs "Memphis" and "Johnny B. Goode" with Chuck Berry, who Lennon refers to as "my hero."

1974: Bob Dylan started a four week run at No.1 on the US album chart with Planet Waves, his first US No.1.

1974: During a tour of America the members of Emerson, Lake & Palmer were arrested in Salt Lake City after swimming naked in the hotel pool. They were each fined $75.

1984: Jerry Lee Lewis surrenders to federal authorities on charges of income tax evasion, charges of which he is eventually acquitted.

1990: Ike Turner is sentenced to four years in prison on eleven separate charges, including possession and transport of cocaine. He is in prison when he and ex-wife Tina are inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, he is released after serving eighteen months.

1999: Rap star Ol' Dirty Bastard was arrested in Hollywood for allegedly wearing body armor, a forbidden garment because of his previous arrests. ODB was initially pulled over for driving eratically.

2005: Kid Rock was arrested for allegedly punching a DJ at a strip club in Nashville, Tennessee. Police were called to the incident but Rock escaped from the club. Shortly after, he was pulled over by an officer who got an autograph but did not do a breath test despite smelling alcohol. (The officer has since been fired). The star was eventually arrested a few hours later, taken to the night court and released on $3,000 bail.

2007: Britney Spears shaved her head.

February 15

Births

1944: Mick Avory (Drummer for The Kinks)

1945: John Helliwell (Sax for Supertramp)

1947: David Brown (Bass for Santana)

1951: Melissa Manchester (Singer)

1957: Jake E. Lee (Jakey Lou Williams) (Guitar for Ozzy Osbourne & Badlands)

1959: Ali Campbell (Singer in UB40)

1967: Jane Child (Pop Singer)

1976: Brandon Boyd (Singer in Incubus)

1976: Ronnie Vannucci Jr (Drummer in The Killers)

Events

1954: Big Joe Turner recorded the original "Shake, Rattle & Roll".

1958: Due to the amazing daytime success of Dick Clark's American Bandstand, ABC debuts a new prime-time variety show called The Dick Clark Show. Guests on the first episode include Connie Francis, Pat Boone, Chuck Willis, Jerry Lee Lewis, The Royal Teens, and Johnnie Ray.

1961: Singer Jackie Wilson was left with a stomach wound after Juanita Jones a female fan went to his New York apartment demanding to see him. Jones' gun went off as he tried to disarm her.

1965: Nat "King" Cole died of lung cancer at age 45. In 1956 he became the first black American to host a television variety show.

1967: Music students at Chicago's DePaul University form a seven-piece rock ensemble called The Big Thing. Later, they would change their name to Chicago Transit Authority, and then, simply, Chicago.

1968: Beatles John Lennon and George Harrison, along with their wives, travel to Rishikesh, India to study with the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. The other two band members would soon follow.

1968: US blues harmonica player Little Walter died from injuries incurred in a fight while taking a break from a performance at a nightclub in Chicago.

1969: Florida hairstylist Vickie Jones is arrested for impersonating Aretha Franklin at a club in Fort Myers, FL. Incredibly, her performance is so believable that no patrons demand a refund.

1970: After a Sly and the Family Stone concert runs hours late and causes over a thousand dollars in damages, the Daughters of the American Revolution impose a ban against any further rock concerts at the venue, Washington D.C.'s Constitution Hall.

1975: Capitol Records rushes to release John Lennon's Rock and Roll album after a much shabbier version, called Roots, had begun to be marketed on late-night television. Roots was music exec Morris Levy's version of the "oldies" sessions, which Lennon was court-ordered to undertake as payment for a Chuck Berry line John used in the Beatles' "Come Together." (Levy's copyright was judged to have been infringed by the line "Here come old flat-top, he come groovin' up slowly.")

1975: Gino Vannelli becomes the first white artist to perform on the syndicated dance show Soul Train.

1976: Bette Midler bails out no less than seven members of her entourage from jail after their arrest on drug possession charges.

1977: Sid Vicious joined the Sex Pistols replacing bassist Glen Matlock.

1981: American guitarist Mike Bloomfield was found dead in his car in San Francisco from an accidental heroin overdose. He was a member of the Paul Butterfield band and Electric Flag and had played on Bob Dylan's album 'Highway 61 Revisited'.

1991: Rod Stewart's ex-girlfriend, supermodel Kelly Emberg, files a $25 million palimony suit against the singer in Los Angeles Superior Court.

1999: Minnesota Governor Jesse Ventura -- a former Rolling Stones concert bodyguard -- declares today "Rolling Stones Day."

February 14

Births

1943: Maceo Parker (Sax Player)

1945: Vic Briggs (Lead Guitar for The Animals)

1947: Tim Buckley (Singer / Songwriter)

1950: Roger Fisher (Guitar for Heart)

1963: D'Wayne Wiggins (R&B Singer in Tony, Toni, Tone)

1972: Rob Thomas (Singer for Matchbox Twenty & Solo)

1978: Dwele (R&B Singer)

Events

1958: CBS' Walter Cronkite reports that the government of Iran has banned rock and roll for being unhealthy and anti-Islamic. The "unhealthy" claim is backed by Iranian doctors who warn of hip damage due to "extreme gyrations."

1964: Chad and Jeremy guest star on ABC's The Patty Duke Show.

1967: Aretha Franklin recorded her song "Respect" in New York.  Her Sisters sang back up on the song.

1970: The Who play a legendary concert at Leeds University in England which will become the Live at Leeds LP.

1970: Billboard Magazine reports that the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is "Mounting Total War Against Tape Pirating of Prerecorded Music."

1972: On the same day the band breaks up for the first time, Los Angeles mayor Sam Yorty declares today "Steppenwolf Day."

1972: John Lennon and Yoko Ono begin their week-long stint as guest hosts on the syndicated Mike Douglas Show.

1973: David Bowie collapses due to "total exhaustion" at the end of his Valentine's Day show at New York's Madison Square Garden.

1974: Rolling Stone reports that David Bowie has declined an offer from a gay liberation group who asked him to compose "the world's first Gay National Anthem."

1974: Daryl Dragon and Toni Tennille (a/k/a The Captain and Tennille) are married in Virginia City, NV.

1980: Lou Reed marries Sylvia Morales in New York City's Greenwich Village.

1981: Billy Idol left Generation X for a solo career.

1977: Singer / songwriter Janis Ian received 461 Valentine's day cards after indicating in the lyrics of her song 'At Seventeen', she had never received any.

1977: The B-52's made their first live performance appearing in a Greenhouse at a Valentines day party in Athens, Ga.

1978, Dire Straits began recording their first album at Basing Street Studios, London. The whole project cost $21,250 to produce.

1984: Elton John marries sound engineer Renate Blauel in Sydney, Australia. Attendees include Olivia Newton-John and Rod Stewart. The couple divorced three years later.

1986: Frank Zappa guest stars on NBC's Miami Vice. Zappa portrayed a crime boss named 'Mr. Frankie.'

1993: Harry Nilsson suffers his first heart attack.

1994: The Grateful Dead's Jerry Garcia marries Deborah Koons.

1996: Prince married Mayte Garcia in a Minneapolis church. He also composed a special song for his wife, 'Friend, Lover, Sister, Mother, Wife', which she heard for the first time when they had their first wedding dance. The couple split in 1998.

1999: Elton John guest stars on Fox's The Simpsons.

2000: KISS announces their "farewell tour."

2004: Dave Holland, former drummer with Judas Priest was jailed for eight years for indecent assault and the attempted rape of a 17-year old boy. The youth, who had learning difficulties, had been taking drum lessons from Holland.

2008: Oasis singer Liam Gallagher married his long-term partner, the ex-All Saints singer Nicole Appleton at a civil ceremony in London.

February 13

Births

1919: Tennessee Ernie Ford (Country Singer)

1942: Peter Tork (Keyboards & Bass for The Monkees)

1945: King Floyd (R&B Singer)

1950: Peter Gabriel (Lead Singer for Genesis & Solo)

1950: Bob Daisley (Bass for Ozzy Osbourne & Rainbow)

1951: David Naughton (Singer)

1952: Ed Gagliardi (Bass for Foreigner)

1956: Peter Hook (Bass for New Order)

1961: Henry Rollins )Singer for Black Flag & Rollins Band)

1966: Freedom Williams (Lead Vocals for C+C Music Factory)

1974: Robbie Williams (Singer)

1976: Feist (Singer / Songwriter)

1978: Hamish Glencross (Guitar for My Dying Bride)

Events

1967: The Monkees announced that from now on they would be playing on their own recordings instead of session musicians.

1970: On this day, Friday the 13th, Black Sabbath released their debut self-titled studio album on Vertigo records. Peaking at #8 on the charts, the album has been recognized as the first main album to be credited with the development of the heavy metal genre.

1972: Led Zeppelin is forced to cancel a gig in Singapore when local officials, seeing their long hair, refuse to let them off the plane.

1978: Los Angeles mayor Tom Bradley officially declares today "Al Green Day."

1980: Police raided the home of former Sex Pistol John Lydon who greeted them waving a ceremonial sword, the only illegal item they found was a canister of tear gas, claimed to be for defence against intruders.

1981: Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon becomes the rock album to spend the most consecutive weeks on the Billboard Top 200 Albums chart -- 402 weeks from March 1973. It would eventually leave the charts April 23, 1988, after 724 weeks.

1982: The 300-pound gravestone of Lynyrd Skynyrd lead singer Ronnie Van Zant is stolen from the cemetery in Orange Park, CA. Police find it two weeks later in a dry river bed.

1988: Michael Jackson purchases a ranch in Santa Ynez, CA, which he renames "Neverland."

1997: Michael Jackson and wife Debbie Rowe become the proud parents of their first child, Prince.

1998: Police at Manchester Airport arrested former Stone Roses singer, Ian Brown after an incident during a flight from Paris. Brown was found guilty in August the same year and jailed for four months; British Airways also banned him from flying with the airline.

2002: Country artist Waylon Jennings died in his sleep of diabetic complications.

February 12

Births

1939: Ray Manzarek (Kayboards for The Doors)

1944: Moe Bandy (Country Singer)

1948: Joe Schermie (Bass for Three Dog Night)

1950: Steve Hackett (Guitar for Genesis)

1952: Michael McDonald (Vocals & Piano for The Doobie Brothers)

1955: Bill Laswell (Bass for Praxis)

Events

1924: George Gershwin's "Rhapsody In Blue" gets its first public performance, conducted by jazz legend Paul Whiteman at New York City's Aeolian Hall. Gershwin himself plays piano. Luminaries in the audience include John Philip Sousa and Jascha Heifetz.

1961: The Miracles' 'Shop Around' became Motown Record's first million-selling single.

1964: The Beatles conclude their triumphant first American visit with two 25-minute shows at Carnegie Hall. Afterwards, the group heads to the White House with British PM Sir Alec Douglas-Home for a visit. President Lyndon Johnson is overheard to remark to the PM: "I like your advance guard. But don't you think they need haircuts?"

1967: A squad of fifteen police officers enter Rolling Stone guitarist Keith Richards' home, "Redlands," in West Wittering, Sussex, England, and raid it on suspicion of narcotics possession. Finding "various substances of a suspicious nature," officials arrest Richards and his companions, Stones singer Mick Jagger and his girlfriend, singer Marianne Faithful, on May 10. The arrest sets off a national furor, since it is alleged the raid was orchestrated by the News of the World tabloid for revenge against a Jagger libel suit.

1968: John and Michelle Phillips of the Mamas and the Papas become the proud parents of their only child, daughter Chynna.

1968: Jimi Hendrix returns to the high school he dropped out of, Seattle, Washington's Garfield High School, to perform a concert there. Officials present him with an honorary diploma and the key to the city.

1972: Al Green went to No.1 on the US singles chart with 'Let's Stay Together', his only US chart topper.

1974: The legendary rock club The Bottom Line opens in Greenwich Village, New York City.

1989: Tiny Tim declares his candidacy for mayor of New York City.

1995: Van Halen scored their first US No.1 album with 'Balance.'

1997: David Bowie is awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

2005: A train was named after Clash frontman Joe Strummer at a ceremony in Bristol. The diesel train owned by Cotswold Rail, was named after the singer, guitarist who died aged 50 in 2002.