March 5

Births

1946: Murray Head (Singer)

1948: Eddy Grant (Singer)

1952: Alan Clark (Keyboards for Dire Straits)

1956: Teena Marie (R&B Singer)

1958: Andy Gibb (Singer)

1966: Zachary Stevens (Lead Singer Savatage)

1969: MC Solaar (French Rapper)

1970: John Frusciante (Guitar for The Red Hot Chili Peppers)

Events

1951: Ike Turner, recording as Jackie Brenston and his Kings of Rhythm, records "Rocket '88" for Sam Phillips at his Memphis Recording Service (later Sun Studios) in Memphis, a record now considered by many musicologists to be the first rock and roll record.

1960: At 9:15 am, Elvis Presley is officially discharged from the United States military (though he will remain on reserve for another four years). He collects a final paycheck of nine dollars and eighty-one cents and boards a train for Memphis.

1963: Patsy Cline died in a plane crash at 30 years old.

1969: The rock magazine Creem is published for the first time.

1971: At the beginning of their "Thank You" tour at Ulster Hall in Belfast, Led Zeppelin debut the first live performance of their upcoming song, "Stairway To Heaven." The audience is underwhelmed.

1973: Alabama, billed as Wildcountry, makes its debut at The Bowery in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. They remain regulars at the club for the next seven years.

1975: One of the more famous romances in rock begins when Rod Stewart meets Swedish model and actress Britt Ekland at a party thrown by mutual friend Joni Mitchell.

1982: Actor and singer John Belushi died from an overdose of cocaine and heroin. Belushi was one of the original cast members on US TV's Saturday Night Live, played Joliet 'Jake' Blues in The Blues Brothers and also appeared in the film Animal House.

1994: Grace Slick of Jefferson Airplane/Starship is arrested by police in Tiburon, CA, for waving a shotgun at them when they arrive at her home to mediate a reported domestic dispute. Slick is eventually sentenced to 200 hours of community service and a dozen Alcoholics Anonymous meetings.

2002: MTV began airing "The Osbournes." The reality television show followed the daily activities of rock musician Ozzy Osbourne and his family.

2004: The Sunday edition of Britain's Daily Mail lists Paul McCartney's worth at 1.3 billion US dollars.

2008: Lou Pearlman, the man behind boy bands 'N Sync and the Backstreet Boys was set to plead guilty to a $300m fraud scheme. The music mogul admitted to a court in Florida of running scams that defrauded investors and major banks for more than 20 years. The charges carried a maximum of 25 years in prison and a $1m fine.

2009: Taylor Swift makes her TV acting debut, stabbed in the heart with scissors on CBS' "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation".

March 4

Births

1944: Bobby Womack (R&B Singer)

1948: Chris Squire (Bass for Yes)

1948: Shakin’ Stevens (Singer)

1951: Chris Rea (Singer / Songwriter & Guitarist)

1963: Jason Newsted (Bass for Metallica)

1967: Evan Dando (Vocals & Guitar for The Lemonheads & Solo)

Events

1959: The very first Grammy Awards are held in New York City, and the winners, to one's surprise, have nothing to do with rock and roll, or, sometimes, even the categories they were nominated in: for some reason, the Champs' "Tequila" wins Best R&B Song, but Record of the Year goes to "Volare" by Domenico Modugno, while Henry Mancini's Peter Gunn soundtrack LP wins Album of the Year.

1967: The Spencer Davis Group is dealt a crippling blow when its star members, Steve Winwood and his brother, Muff, announce their intention to leave. The elder Winwood would eventually go on to form the band Traffic.

1968: Temptations members Eddie Kendricks and Otis Williams are hospitalized with minor injuries after skidding on an icy road near Sommerset, PA.

1969: Sonny and Cher Bono are the proud parents of their first and only child, a daughter named Chastity.

1970: Janis Joplin heads to Rio de Janeiro after being fined $200 for using obscene language at a Miami, FL concert the previous November. While there, she announces her intention to quit drugs and alcohol.

1977: CBS released The Clash's self- titled first album in the UK. CBS in the U.S. refused to release it until 1979. Americans bought over 100,000 imported copies of the record making it one of the biggest- selling import records of all time.

1979: The Jackson 5's Randy Jackson is involved in a serious car crash near Los Angeles, breaking both legs and nearly dying when a nurse at the hospital nearby injects him with methadone.

1983: George Jones marries Nancy Sepulveda at the home of his sister, Helen Scroggins, in Woodville, Texas. The newlyweds eat their wedding dinner at a Burger King in Jasper, Texas.

1986: Richard Manuel (Piano for The Band) committed suicide at the age of 41.

1993: Whitney Houston and Bobby Brown became parents when Whitney gave birth to a baby girl, Bobbi Kristina Houston Brown.

1994: Kurt Cobain was rushed to hospital after overdosing on alcohol and drugs in a Rome hotel during a Nirvana European tour. Cobain had taken 50-60 pills of Rohypnol mixed with champagne; rumors on the internet claimed that Kurt was dead.

1996: Minnie Pearl of complications from a stroke at age 83.

2001: Michael Jackson and friend Macaulay Culkin spend the night shopping at a London record store, which stays open after hours to accommodate the pair.

2002: Doreen Waddell, singer with Soul II Soul was killed after attempting to run across the A27 in Brighton, England after being caught shoplifting.

2010: Rascal Flatts has a guest role on CBS-TV's "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation." The script has bass player Jay DeMarcus electrocuted in the opening scene as the band plays "Unstoppable".

March 3

Births

1947: Jennifer Warnes (Singer / Songwriter)

1953: Robyn Hitchcock (Singer / Songwriter)

1963: Jason Curtis Newsted (Bass for Metallica)

1966: Tone-Loc (Anthony Terrell Smith) (Rapper)

Events

1931 - The "Star Spangled Banner" was adopted as the American national anthem. The song was originally known as "Defense of Fort McHenry."

1931: The first jazz album to sell a million copies was recorded. It was "Minnie The Moocher" by Cab Calloway.

1957: Chicago's Cardinal Stritch bans rock and roll from all area Catholic schools.

1963: Patsy Cline gives her final show, along with Dottie West & George Jones. Tickets are $1.50, and the money benefits the widow of late Kansas City deejay "Cactus Jack" Call.

1964: The Beatles begin shooting the train scenes for A Hard Day's Night.

1966: The band The Herd is formed in Los Angeles, featuring unknowns Neil Young, Stephen Stills, Richie Furay (later of Poco), Bruce Palmer and Dewey Martin. It would later be renamed Buffalo Springfield and play a huge role in birthing the folk-rock movement.

1967: The Jeff Beck Group makes its debut on a London stage, featuring unknowns Ron Wood, Aynsley Dunbar, and singer Rod Stewart.

1980: Sotheby's holds its first auction of rock and roll memorabilia.

1983: A Hell's Angels biker identified only as "Butch" confirms, in front of a US Senate hearing, that the motorcycle gang had indeed taken out a contract to kill Mick Jagger. The Rolling Stones leader was seen as having blamed the gang for the death of concertgoer Meredith Hunter at Altamont. "There’s always been a contract on the band," he stated, noting "two attempts to kill them that I know about. They will some day. They swear they will do it."

1986: Metallica released their third album, the highly influential album, Master of Puppets, considered by many in the metal community to be the best metal album of all time. This was the last Metallica album with bassist Cliff Burton who was killed when the group's tour bus over-turned in southern Sweden while touring to promote the album.

1994: Kurt Cobain of Nirvana lapsed into a coma in Italy after taking a combination of Valium and champagne.

1995: Foo Fighters made their live debut during a benefit show at The Satyricon in Portland, Oregon.

2006: Gary Glitter is sentenced to three years in a Vietnamese prison after local officials find him guilty of sexual abuse in the case of two underage girls found at his home.

March 2

Births

1904: Dr. Seuss (Theodor Seuss Geisel)

1917: Desi Arnaz (Ricky Ricardo)

1923: Doc Watson (Bluegrass Artist)

1938: Lawrence Payton (Singer in The Four Tops)

1942: Lou Reed (Guitar & Vocals for Velvet Underground & Solo)

1948: Rory Gallagher (Blues Guitarist)

1950: Karen Carpenter (Singer for The Carpenters)

1955: Dale Bozzio (Lead Singer for Missing Persons & Solo)

1962: Jon Bon Jovi (Singer)

1968: Daniel Craig (Bond, James Bond)

1977: Chris Martin (Singer, guitar & Piano for Coldplay)

Events

1960: Elvis Presley, having completed his stint with the US Army's 1st Medium Tank Battalion, 32nd Armor, leaves Germany and a tearful, teenage Priscilla Beaulieu behind to return to American civilian life. On the way, his plane refuels in Scotland's Prestwick Airport, marking the first and only time The King will set foot in the UK.

1963: A "Limbo Party" at the Cow Palace in San Francisco, hosted by dance craze maven Chubby Checker, also features Marvin Gaye, The Four Seasons, The Crystals, Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass, Lou Christie, Paul and Paula and Dick and Dee Dee. That same day, the Four Seasons become the first group to have its first three singles reach #1 in the US ("Sherry," "Big Girls Don't Cry," and the latest, "Walk Like A Man").

1964: The Beatles begin filming their first movie, A Hard Day's Night, at London's Paddington railway station. During filming, George Harrison meets teenage actress Pattie Boyd and is instantly smitten. They would marry two years later.

1975: Paul and Linda McCartney's car runs a red light in Los Angeles, and police discover eight ounces of marijuana in her purse. She is arrested, but Paul, who is driving, is not.

1983: Sony, Polygram and Philips, working together, introduce a new music format to the US. Called a "compact disc," it's a five-inch wonder which runs one hour of playing time.

1984: Model Jerry Hall and Mick Jagger are the proud parents of their first child, Elizabeth Scarlett Jagger.

1999: Singer Dusty Springfield died of breast cancer at age 59.

2000: DMX was arrested for driving without a license and marijuana possession in Cheektowaga, NY.

2006: Glam rock legend Gary Glitter goes to trial for the alleged molestation of two girls, ages 11 and 12, in his Vietnamese home. Glitter claims he was merely teaching the duo to speak English.

2007: American R&B singer Kelis was arrested in Miami Beach, Florida, after the singer started screaming racial obscenities at two female police officers who were working on an undercover operation on South Beach as prostitutes. Kelis was detained and charged with two misdemeanor charges of disorderly conduct and for resisting arrest.

2008: Canadian guitarist & singer / songwriter, Jeff Healey, died of cancer. He lost his sight to retinoblastoma, a rare cancer of the eyes when he was eight months old, resulting in his eyes being surgically removed. After living cancer-free for 38 years, he developed sarcoma in his legs. Despite surgery for this, the sarcoma spread to his lungs and ultimately was the cause of his death.

2009: DJ Norman Cook (Fatboy Slim) checked himself into rehab to battle an alcohol addiction. His manager Garry Blackburn said. "Norman is voluntarily seeking help for his alcohol problem but he's in good shape."