June 12

Births

1928: Vic Damone (Singer)

1930: Jim Nabors (Gomer Pyle and Singer)

1941: Chick Corea (Keyboardist)

1941: Reg Presley (Singer for The Troggs)

1949: John Wetton (Bass for King Crimson & Asia)

1951: Brad Delp (Lead Singer & Guitar for Boston)

1959: John Linnell (Accordion, Keyboards & Sax for They Might Be Giants)

1962: Grandmaster Dee (Drew Carter) (DJ for Whodini)

1969: Bardi Martin (Bass for Candlebox)

1977: Kenny Wayne Shepherd (Blues Singer & Guitarist)

1979: Robyn (Singer)

1985: Chris Young (Country Singer)

Events

1935: At age 17, Ella Fitzgerald recorded her first songs. The two songs were "Love and Kisses" and "I'll Chase the Blues Away.

1957: Jimmy Dorsey died of throat cancer at age 53.

1959: Sam Cooke insists on racially integrated seating for tonight's dual-headlining show with Jackie Wilson in Norfolk, VA.

1959: Bo Diddley released "Go Go Bo Diddley."

1961: Frankie Avalon begins a 12-day tour of South America, one of the first rock tours to play on the continent.

1962: Brenda Lee dislocates her neck while performing at the Latin Casino in Cherry Hill, NJ, and is hospitalized; one year later to the day, the teen idol finally graduates from the showbiz-friendly high school Hollywood Professional.

1965: Sonny and Cher make their US television debut, singing "Just You" on ABC-TV's American Bandstand.

1965: Rolling Stones release the single "Satisfaction".

1966: The Dave Clark Five break a record by becoming the first rock band to make 12 appearances on CBS-TV's Ed Sullivan Show.

1973: Grand Funk Railroad recorded "We're An American Band".

1978: Country singer Johnny Bond died of a heart attack at age 63.

1982: The largest political rally in US history occurs when three-quarters of a million people cram into New York's Central Park for the Rally for Nuclear Disarmament, a musical protest featuring Bruce Springsteen, Jackson Browne, James Taylor, Linda Ronstadt, and Gary "U.S." Bonds.

1987: The Los Angeles Coroner's Office rules that blues legend Paul Butterfield died from a heart attack caused by decades of drug and alcohol abuse.

1989: The Elvis Presley Autoland Museum, a section of Graceland devoted to twenty of the King's vintage cars, opens to the public.

1992: Jordan and Danny of New Kids on the Block are acquitted in copyright-infringement charges stemming from their song "I'll Be Your Everything," which the estate of Percy Sledge claimed borrowed heavily from Sledge's 1975 song of the same name.

1994: Cab Calloway suffers a stroke in his hometown of Rochester, NY, the beginning of a series of medical events which will lead to his death in November.

1999: It was reported that Oasis had paid Gary Glitter $340,000 as an out-of-court settlement after being accused of using the Gary Glitter lyric, ‘Hello, hello, it’s good to be back’ in the song ‘Hello’.

2000: Bruce Springsteen debuts his new song, "American Skin (41 Shots)," which protests the NYPD killing of unarmed suspect Amadou Diallo, to resounding boos at Madison Square Garden.

2002: Clive Calder the man who is credited with discovering Britney Spears sold his record company Zomba to BMG Music for $2 billion. Calder started Zomba in 1975 and had hits with Billy Ocean, Sam Fox and Tight Fit.

2003: In New York, the Songwriters' Hall of Fame inducts new members Little Richard, Van Morrison, Queen, and Phil Collins.

2005: Pink Floyd announced they would reunite with former bassist Roger Waters, who left the band in 1985, on July 2 for the Live 8 London concert. This would be the first time the band had played together as a quartet since The Wall tour in 1981.

2011: Carl Gardner, lead singer of '50s group the Coasters, passed away in Port St. Lucie, Florida after an extended illness.

June 11

Births

1946: John Lawton (Singer for Uriah Heep)

1947: Glenn Leonard (Vocals for The Temptations)

1948: Skip Alan (Drummer for Them & The Pretty Things)

1949: Frank Beard (Drummer for ZZ Top)

1952: Donnie Van Zant (Singer in .38 Special)

1961: Robert Birch (Vocals for Stereo MC's)

1969: Steven Drozd (Drummer for The Flaming Lips)

1969: Dan Lavery (Bass for Tonic & The Fray)

Events

1949: Hank Williams shoots into superstardom overnight when he performs his new single, "Lovesick Blues," at Nashville's "Grand Old Opry." He's called back for a record six encores.

1958: Jerry Lee Lewis finds that the marriage scandal involving his 14-year-old second cousin has migrated back to the States when he is booed off a New York stage. The second show is canceled due to poor ticket sales, and Lewis' career, for the time being anyway, is ruined.

1964: The Rolling Stones hold an attention-grabbing "press conference" in the middle of Michigan Avenue in Chicago, just outside Chess Studios; it's promptly broken up by the local police.

1964: Queen Elizabeth orders Beatles to her birthday party, they attend.

1965: Buckingham Palace announces that the Beatles are to be awarded the MBE (Members of the British Empire) award by Queen Elizabeth II, an award traditionally only presented to upper-crust members of the community. Several members immediately return their awards, complaining that they have become "debased."

1966: Britain's Melody Maker reports that one of the first "supergroups," Cream, has formed from former members of John Mayall's Bluesbreakers, Manfred Mann, and the Graham Bond Organization.

1966: European radio is abuzz with rumors that Roger Daltrey, lead singer of The Who, has been killed in an auto accident days earlier. In fact, guitarist Pete Townshend was in the wreck, but survived with minor injuries.

1968: During the recording of the Rolling Stones' new song, "Sympathy For The Devil," London's Olympic Studio mysteriously catches fire.

1969: David Bowie releases the single "Space Oddity" to coincide with the first lunar landing.

1971: A drunken Dennis Wilson, drummer for the Beach Boys, accidentally puts his hand through the glass door of his home, severing nerves that keep him from his instrument for the better part of three years.

1976: Wild Cherry releases the single "Play That Funky Music".

1977: Joe Strummer and Topper Headon were detained overnight in prison in Newcastle upon Tyne having failed to appear at Morpeth Magistrates on May 21st.  Both Clash members were to answer a charge relating to the theft of a Holiday Inn pillowcase. They were both fined $170.

1977: KC and the Sunshine Band became only the second group after The Jackson Five to achieve four US No.1's when 'I'm Your Boogie Man' went to the top of the charts.

1978: The Rolling Stones released the Album "Some Girls."

1983: Drummer Alex Van Halen married Valeri Kendall in Los Angeles, California. Brother Eddie Van Halen was best man.

1988: Nelson Mandellas 70th birthday tribute took place at Wembley Stadium, London, featuring Whitney Houston, Phil Collins, Dire Straits, Stevie Wonder, Tracy Chapman, George Michael, Eric Clapton, UB40, The Eurythmics and Simple Minds. The event was broadcast live on BBC 2 to 40 different countries with an estimated audience of 1 billion.

1990: The United Nations appoints Olivia Newton-John as its first Goodwill Ambassador to the environment.

1992: U2 has ABBA's Bjorn Ulvaeus and Benny Anderson join them onstage at their concert in Stockholm for a rendition of ABBA's 1975 smash "Dancing Queen."

1998: Scott Weiland (Singer for Stone Temple Pilots) skipped a scheduled court date and checked himself into a drug treatment facility.

2000: Aaliyah went to No.1 on the US singles chart with 'Try Again'. It became the first "airplay-only" song to reach No.1 on the US singles chart (no points from a commercial single release).

2002: Three hundred guests, including Elton John, David Gilmour, Chrissie Hynde, and former bandmate Ringo Starr, attend the wedding of Paul McCartney to former model and current activist Heather Mills at St. Salvator Church in Glaslough, Ireland. Paul's three children from his first marriage all attend; Mills walks down the aisle holding eleven "McCartney" roses specially developed for the occasion. The couple would divorce in 2008.

2003: Adam Ant was arrested after going berserk and stripping off in a London cafe. The former 1980's pop star had thrown stones at neighbour's homes smashing windows before going to the nearby cafe.

2004: Courtney Love surrendered to US police after allegedly assaulting a woman at the home of her former manager and ex-boyfriend. Ms Love was charged with assault with a deadly weapon. She was later released on bail. The charges related to an incident on 25 April 2004, when Ms Love allegedly assaulted a woman with a bottle and a torch at the LA home of Jim Barber.

2008: Nancy Sinatra appears before the US Congress pleading for legislation that would require all performers, not just songwriters, to get paid for songs played on commercial analog radio.

2009: Pete Doherty was released on $80,000 bail to await trial accused of driving dangerously after a gig. The Babyshambles frontman was stopped after police saw a car being driven erratically in Gloucester. The 30-year-old appeared at Stroud Magistrates' Court and pleaded guilty to possessing heroin and to having no driving license or insurance.

2011: Singer Lily Allen marries long time fiancé Sam Cooper in Gloucestershire, England.

June 10

Births

1910: Howlin' Wolf (Chester Arthur Burnet) (Blues Singer & Guitarist)

1922: Judy Garland (Singer)

1961: Kim Deal (Bass & vocals for Pixies)

1961: Kelley Deal (Vocals & Guitar for The Breeders)

1961: Maxi Priest (Max Elliott) (Reggae Singer)

1964: Emma Anderson (Guitar for Lush)

1964: Jimmy Chamberlin (Drums for The Smashing Pumpkins)

1967: Darren Robinson (Human Beatbox) (Rapper in The Fat Boys)

1968: The D.O.C (Tracy Lynn Curry) (Rapper)

1970: Mike Doughty (Vocals & Guitar for Soul Coughing)

1971: JoJo (Joel Hailey) (Vocals for Jodeci)

1973: Faith Evans (R&B Singer)

1977: Nergal (Adam Darski) (Lead Vocals for Behemoth)

Events

1931: In a country-music milestone, Jimmie Rodgers records in a Nashville studio with gospel harmony legends The Carter Family.

1964: The first edition of the official Rolling Stones book was issued. Also on this day, The Stones recorded 'It's All Over Now', and ‘Time Is On My Side' during their first session at Chess studios in Chicago.

1966: The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band celebrates its 20th anniversary with a concert of 10,000 in their hometown of Denver.

1966: While performing with the Small Faces on the ITV show Ready Steady Go!, lead singer Steve Marriott collapses and falls on the stage from exhaustion, forcing the band to cancel a week of upcoming shows.

1971: Police fire tear gas into the rowdy crowd at tonight's Jethro Tull concert in Denver, but the band continues playing even though some of them have trouble seeing their instruments.

1972: Sammy Davis Jr started a three week run at No.1 on the US singles chart with 'Candy Man', his only US No.1. The song was taken from the film 'Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory'.

1977: Joe Strummer and Nicky Headon from The Clash were each fined $8.50 by a London court for spray-painting “The Clash” on a wall.

1982: Addie Harris from The Shirelles died of a heart attack after a show in Atlanta. They became the first all girl group to have a number one single on the Billboard Hot 100.

1986: Grateful Dead leader Jerry Garcia slips into a diabetic coma for five days, resulting in the cancellation of the remainder of the band's tour.

1990: Two members of 2 Live Crew were arrested in Hollywood, FL, on obscenity charges. The album had been judged as obscene by a federal judge.

1991: Temptation David Ruffin's funeral is held in Detroit, with attendees including Aretha Franklin, Stevie Wonder, and former bandmate Eddie Kendricks, who is arrested at the service for failure to pay child support.

1992: Model Kelly Emberg has her palimony suit against Rod Stewart thrown out.

1993: Irish singer Sinead O'Connor took out a full-page ad in the Irish Times asking the public to "stop hurting me please." She blamed her troubles on abuse she suffered as a child. O'Connor was still being criticized for ripping up a picture of the Pope during an appearance on Saturday Night Live the previous October.

1998: Rapper DMX was arrested in New York on charges of rape, sodomy and unlawful imprisonment. DMX denied the charges.

1998: Steve Sanders (Oak Ridge Boys) was found dead at the age of 45. He had apparently died of a self-inflicted gun shot wound.

2003: Kim Mathers, the ex-wife of rapper Eminem, was arrested and released pending further investigation in St. Clair Shores, Michigan, for driving with a revoked license. Two Ziploc bags containing a 'white powdery substance' were found in the glove box of her white Cadillac.

2004: Ray Charles died at 11:35 a.m. of liver cancer at his home in Beverly Hills, California, surrounded by family and friends. He was 73 years old.

2005: Ottawa Governor General Adrienne Clarkson officially makes Paul Anka an Officer of the Order of Canada.