Musician Birthdays: Paul Stanley (guitarist, vocals of KISS, born in 1950)

– In 1967: The Monkees TV show was shown for the first time in the UK.

– In 1969: Led Zeppelin appeared at the Wheaton Youth Center, Wheaton, during their first North American tour. Some reports suggest that only 55 fans attended this show, (if so, this would make it the smallest audience they ever played to). This show was on a Monday and the night of Richard Nixon’s inauguration. Zeppelin were paid $250 to appear.

– In 1969: Bruce Springsteen had two of his poems published in the Ocean County College Literary Yearbook Seascapes. Springsteen was in his second semester at the Toms River, New Jersey College.

– In 1982: During an Ozzy Osbourne concert in Des Moines, Iowa, a member of the audience threw bat onto the stage. Stunned by the light, the bat lay motionless, and thinking it was a rubber fake, the singer picked it up and attempted to bite its head off. As he did this, the bat started to flap its wings and Ozzy soon realized it wasn’t fake but in fact a living thing. After the show Ozzy was immediately rushed to the nearest hospital for rabies shots.

– In 1983: Def Leppard released their third studio album ‘Pyromania’ which featured new guitarist Phil Collen and was produced by Robert John “Mutt” Lange. The album has now sold over 10 million copies in the US.

– In 1988: The Beatles were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. George Harrison, Ringo Starr, and Yoko, Sean, and Julian Lennon all attend. Paul McCartney does not attend, sending instead a letter stating that continuing business differences with the other ex-Beatles was the reason for his absence.

– In 1997: Ben and Jerry’s introduced ‘Phish food’, a new flavor of ice cream named after the rock group Phish. The ingredients were chocolate ice cream, marshmallows, caramel and fish-shaped fudge.

– In 2002: George Harrison had the posthumous UK No.1 single with the re-release of the 1971 former No.1 ‘My Sweet Lord’. Harrison’s single replaced Aaliyah’s ‘More Than A Woman’, the only time in chart history that one deceased artist had taken over from another at No.1.

– In 2003: 8 Mile, starring Eminem toppled The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers from its four-week hold at the top of the UK box office. The story of a Detroit rapper took £4,440,334 at 423 cinemas in the UK and Ireland.

Musician Birthdays: Janis Joplin (Singer/songwriter, famous for hits “Me and Bobby McGee”, “Piece of My Heart”, born in 1943), Dolly Parton, (country singer/songwriter/actress, famous for hit, “I Will Always Love You”, born in 1946),  Robert Palmer, famous for hits, “Simply Irrestible”, “Addicted To Love”, born in 1949)

– In 1959: The Platters ‘Smoke Gets In Your Eyes’, started a three week run at No.1 on the US singles chart.

– In 1963: The Beatles made their first national TV appearance in the UK on ‘Thank Your Lucky Stars’ performing ‘Please Please Me’.

– In 1967: The Beatles began recording ?A Day in the Life? at Abbey Road studio?s London, recording four takes of the new song

– In 1971: Tracks from The Beatles White Album (including ‘Helter Skelter), were played in the courtroom at the Sharon Tate murder trial to find out if any songs could have influenced Charles Manson and his followers to commit murder. Actress Sharon Tate who was married to film director Roman Polanski, was eight and a half months pregnant when she was murdered in her home, along with four others, by followers of Charles Manson.

– In 1978: Johnny Rotten was fired from The Sex Pistols for ‘not being weird enough anymore.’

– In 1980: Pink Floyd’s ‘The Wall’ started a 15-week run at #1 on the US album chart. The group’s third US #1, it went on to sell over 23 million copies in the US alone. ‘The Wall’ is still the third largest grossing album in the US, behind Michael Jackson’s ‘Thriller’ and Eagles’ ‘Greatest Hits’.

– In 1988: Bon Jovi’s and Mötley Crüe manager Doc McGheep pleaded guilty to importing more than 40,000lb of marijuana into the US from Colombia via a shrimp boat. McGhee received a five-year suspended prison sentence, a fine of $15,000, and was ordered to set up an anti-drugs foundation.

– In 1991: Janet Jackson went to No.1 on the US singles chart with ‘Love Will Never Do’, her 5th US No.1, a No.31 hit in the UK.

– In 1997: Madonna won the Best Actress award for her role in Evita at the Golden Globe Awards.

– In 1998: American Rockabilly singer, songwriter Carl Perkins died aged 65 from throat cancer. He wrote the classic rock & roll song ‘Blue Suede Shoes’, the first record by a Sun label to sell a million copies.

– In 2001: It was reported that Paul McCartney was set to become the world?s first pop star billionaire. McCartney was said to be worth ?725 million ($1,233) and was expected to become a billionaire after huge sales from The Beatles compilation hits album.

– In 2006: American soul singer, Wilson Pickett died in hospital near his Ashburn, Virginia home of a heart attack aged 64. Pickett recorded the soul classics ?Mustang Sally?, ?Everybody Needs Somebody to Love? and ?In The Midnight Hour? plus he scored 15 other US Top 40 singles.

– In 2007: Canadian singer songwriter and former Mamas and the Papas singer Denny Doherty died at the age of 66. He died at his home near Toronto, Canada after a short illness. The group scored the 1966 US No.1 & UK No.2 single ‘Monday Monday.’

Musician Birthdays: Jonathan Davis (singer of Korn, born in 1971)

– In 1964: The Beatles made their US chart debut when ‘I Want To Hold Your Hand’ entered the chart at No.45 just ten days after its release, making it the fastest-breaking and the fastest selling single in Capitol Records history. It went on to spend seven weeks at the No.1 position.

– In 1965: The Rolling Stones recorded ‘The Last Time’ and ‘Play With Fire’ at the RCA studio in Hollywood, California. Phil Spector played acoustic guitar on ‘Play With Fire.’

– In 1967: Jimi Hendrix recorded an appearance on UK TV show Top Of The Pops and also played a show at the Seven and a Half Club in Mayfair, London.

– In 1974: Former members from Free, (Paul Rodgers & Simon Kirke), Mott The Hoople, (Mick Ralphs), and King Crimson, (Boz Burrell), formed Bad Company. The band went on to score a US No.1 album with their debut release.

– In 1975: Barry Manilow scored his first US No.1 single when ‘Mandy’, (originally titled ‘Brandy’ when it was recorded in 1972 by Scott English), went to the top of the charts.

– In 1984: Van Halen kicked off their 103-date ‘1984’ North American tour at Jacksonville Coliseum in Jacksonville, Florida.

– In 1989: At just 38 years old, Stevie Wonder became the youngest living person to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. At a ceremony held at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New York, other inductees include The Rolling Stones, The Temptations, Otis Redding and Dion DiMucci.

– In 1991: During an AC/DC North American tour three fans were killed during a crush in a crowd at a gig in Salt Lake City.

– In 1996:  Lisa Marie Presley divorced Michael Jackson after less then two years of being married.

– In 2000: Spencer Goodman was executed by lethal injection in Huntsville, Texas. Goodman was convicted of kidnapping and murdering the wife of ZZ Top manager Bill Ham in 1991. Ham was present for the execution.

– In 2004: Josh Groban was at No.1 on the US album chart with ?Closer.?

– In 2006: Animals in Michael Jackson’s private zoo were declared to be in good health after officials paid a surprise visit to the singer’s Neverland ranch. A medical officer from the US department of agriculture inspected the property following concerns voiced by the animal rights group, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals. Jackson had earlier moved out of Neverland and had taken up residence in Bahrain in the Middle East.

– In 2008: Four photographers were arrested for reckless driving after they chased Britney Spears’ car on the outskirts of Los Angeles. The four were among a group of paparazzi seen driving at high speed, each of the men were ordered to post $5,000 (?2,539) bail. The cars were following Ms Spears’ car too closely and travelling at an unsafe speed and made several unsafe lane changes, according to police.

– In 2011: The largest collection of Beatles memorabilia went on display in a new museum in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Rodolfo Vazquez, a 53-year-old accountant, turned his mammoth Beatles collection into a museum with more than 8,500 objects – setting the new world record for the largest collection of Beatles memorabilia. Some of the items included a box of condoms bearing the names of John Lennon and Yoko Ono, a brick from the Cavern Club, a hunk of the stage from the Star Club in Hamburg, and certified copies of the band members’ birth certificates. Among his favorite items were 64 boxes of chewing gum in the form of Beatles records.

Musician Birthdays: Eartha Kitt (US singer/songwriter/actress, also famous for playing Catwoman on Batman TV series, born in 1927), Mick Taylor (guitarist for John Mayall & The Blues Breakers, the Rolling Stones, born in 1948), Steve Earle (US Singer/Songwriter, born in 1955), Susanna Hoffs (singer/guitarist of the Bangles, born in 1959), Kid Rock (US Singer/songwriter/rapper, born in 1971)

– In 1963: The Beatles played at the Cavern Club at lunchtime and in the evening played at the Majestic Ballroom, Birkenhead. At the Majestic, every ticket had been sold in advance, leaving 500 disappointed fans waiting outside.

– In 1964: The Rolling Stones released their first EP, which included, ‘You Better Move On’, ‘Poison Ivy’, ‘Bye Bye Johnny’ and ‘Money’. It peaked at No.15 on the UK chart.

– In 1966: NBC-TV in the US bought The Monkees series, placing it on their 1966 autumn schedule.

– In 1967: The Jimi Hendrix Experience recorded a session for Radio Luxembourg’s Ready Steady Radio. The band ran up a bar bill of £2.5 shillings, ($6.21), which they were unable to pay.

– In 1969: Led Zeppelin I, the band’s debut album, was released in the US, coinciding with the band’s first headlining US concert tour. It was to peak at No. 10 in the US chart, and at No. 6 in the UK. The RIAA in the US has now certified it as having sold over 10 million copies in the US alone.

– In 1970: The Doors played the first of four shows at the Felt Forum in New York City. The shows were recorded for the bands forthcoming ‘Absolutely Live’ album.

– In 1975: Television and Blondie appeared at GBGB’s, New York City.

– In 1976: Barry Manilow scored his second US No.1 single with ‘I Write The Songs’, written by Beach Boy Bruce Johnson.

– In 1981: Mötley Crüe formed when bass guitarist Nikki Sixx left the band London and began rehearsing with drummer Tommy Lee and vocalist, guitarist Greg Leon, (who later left). Sixx and Lee then added guitarist Bob “Mick Mars” Deal. Vince Neil accepted an offer to join (after turning them down) in April of this year.

– In 1998: Savage Garden started a two week run at No.1 on the US singles chart with ‘Truly Madly Deeply’.

– In 2003: A long-lost recording featuring John Lennon and Mick Jagger was set to spark a biding war at a London auction. The acetate record was recorded in 1974 with Jagger singing the blues song ‘Too Many Cooks’ and Lennon playing guitar. The track had never been release because the two artists were both signed to different record companies.

– In 2008: The Police played the first nine dates in Australian and New Zealand at the Westpac Stadium in Wellington, New Zealand, on their 152-date Reunion tour.

Musician Birthdays: Aaliyah (R&B, soul singer, actress, born in 1979)

– In 1964: The Beatles played two shows at the Olympia Theatre, Paris, France, the first of an 18-night engagement. This first show was attended mostly by Paris’ “top society” members (all dressed in formal evening attire). The French press had little good to say about The Beatles in the next day’s papers, but The Beatles didn’t care, because they’d just received news that their single ‘I Want to Hold Your Hand’ had hit No.1 in the US, selling 10,000 copies an hour in New York City alone.

– In 1965: The Beatles played the last of a 16 night run billed as ‘Another Beatles’ Christmas Show’ that had started on Jan 1st at The Hammersmith Odeon, London.

– In 1969: Fleetwood Mac, Creedence Clearwater Revival and Albert Collins all appeared at the Fillmore West, San Francisco, California.

– In 1973: Bruce Springsteen appeared at Villanova University, Philadelphia to an audience of 25 people.

– In 1977: One half of TV cop show “Starsky & Hutch” (he was blonde Hutch), David Soul went to No.1 on the UK singles chart with ‘Don’t Give Up On Us’. Also a No.1 in the US.

– In 1978: Sex Pistol, Sid Vicious fell through a glass door at a San Francisco hotel, took a drug overdose and was rushed to hospital.

– In 1980: Paul McCartney was jailed for nine days in Tokyo for marijuana possession after being found with 219g on his arrival at Narita Airport in Japan.

– In 1984: Paul and Linda McCartney were arrested in Barbados for drug possession and were each fined $200 (£117).

– In 1985: David Bowie’s schizophrenic half-brother Terry Burnes killed himself after laying down on the railway lines at Coulsdon South station, London. He was killed instantly by a passing train. He was 47.

– In 1987: TV presenter Jools Holland was suspended from Channel 4’s UK music show The Tube for 6 weeks, after using the phrase ‘groovy fuckers’ during a live trailer broadcast in children’s hour.

– In 1988: 24 years after The Beatles first topped the chart, George Harrison went to No.1 on the US singles chart with ‘Got My Mind Set On You’.

– In 1988: George Michael went to No.1 on the US album charts with his debut solo album ‘Faith’. It went on to sell over 8 million copies.

– In 1988: Tina Turner gave herself a place in the record books when she performed in front of 182,000 people in Rio De Janeiro. The largest audience ever for a single artist.

– In 1989: Michael Jackson played the first of five nights at the Memorial Sports Arena in Los Angeles, California. These were the last shows on the singers Bad World Tour. Jackson donated more than $1m of the final concert’s takings to an organisation fighting child cruelty.

– In 1990: Ike Turner was convicted of driving under the influence of cocaine and being under the influence of cocaine and sentenced to a four year prison sentence in California.

– In 1992: Eric Clapton recorded his unplugged session for MTV. The set which included his current hit single ‘Tears in Heaven’ and a reworked acoustic version of ‘Layla’, earned six Grammy Awards for the album including Record of the Year.

– In 1996: Jamaican authorities opened fire on Jimmy Buffett’s seaplane, mistaking it for a drug trafficker’s plane. U2 singer Bono was also on the plane; neither singer was injured in the incident.

– In 2000: It was reported that Mick Jagger had lost the chance of a knighthood because of his errant ways. British Prime Minister Tony Blair had second thoughts about the message it would give about family values.

– In 2004: Michael Jackson appeared in court and pleaded not guilty to seven charges of child molestation. The singer who arrived 21 minutes late was told off by the Santa Barbara judge saying ‘Mr Jackson, you have started out on the wrong foot here, it is an insult to the court.’

– In 2008: Radiohead were forced to abandon an intimate gig at Rough Trade East records in London after police raised safety fears. The band moved the gig to a nearby club after over 1,500 fans turned up after the event was announced in the morning promising tickets to the first 200 fans.

– In 2009: Boy George was sentenced to 15 months in prison after being convicted of falsely imprisoning a male escort. The Culture Club frontman denied the charge at Snaresbrook crown court and claimed the victim, Norwegian Audun Carlsen, 29, had stolen photos from his laptop. The singer told police he invited Carlsen back to his home after a cocaine-fuelled pornographic photo shoot in January, 2007, because he suspected the Norwegian of stealing pictures from his computer. He admitted handcuffing Carlsen to a wall in April 2007 but said he did so in order to trace the missing property.

Musician Birthdays: Captain Beefheart (singer/songwriter, born in 1941) Ronnie Van Zandt (singer of Lynyrd Skynyrd, born in 1948), Adam Jones (guitarist of Tool, born in 1965)

– In 1961: The Supremes signed a world wide recording contract with Motown Records.

– In 1965: The Who released their first single ‘I Can’t Explain’. With Jimmy Page on guitar and The Ivy League on backing vocals, it went on to reach No.8 on the UK chart.

– In 1967: The Rolling Stones were forced to change the lyrics of ‘Lets Spend The Night Together’ to ‘Lets Spend Some Time Together’ when appearing on the US TV’s The Ed Sullivan Show after the producers objected to the content of the lyrics.

– In 1969: George Harrison had a five-hour meeting with John, Paul and Ringo where he made it clear that he was fully prepared to quit The Beatles for good. Harrison wasn’t happy with plans for live performances and the Let It Be film project.

– In 1972: Don McLean’s ‘American Pie’ started a four week run at No.1 in the US singles chart.

– In 1977: The Eagles went to No.1 on the US album chart with ‘Hotel California’ the group’s third US No.1 album.

– In 1982: The Police kicked off the North American leg of their 119-date Ghost In The Machine world tour at Boston Garden, Boston, Massachusetts, supported by The Go-Go’s.

– In 1983: Men At Work started a four week run at No.1 in the US singles chart with ‘Down Under’ the Australian act group’s second US No.1, also a No.1 in the UK.

– In 1998: Harmonica player Junior Wells died, (born Amos Blakemore). Worked with Muddy Waters, Van Morrison, Carlos Santana, Bonnie Raitt and The Rolling Stones.

Musician Birthdays: Zakk Wylde (Guitarist for Ozzy solo, Guitarist/singer for Black Label Society, born in 1967), Dave Grohl (Drummer for Nirvana, Them Crooked Vultures, Queen of the Stone Age, singer/guitarist for the Foo Fighters, born in 1969), Caleb Folowill (singer/guitarist for Kings of Leon, born in 1982)

– In 1963: Charlie Watts made his live debut with The Rolling Stones at The Flamingo Jazz Club, Soho, London.

– In 1964: The Beatles (minus Ringo Starr, who was fog-bound in Liverpool) departed from Liverpool for Paris, France for an 18-day run at the Olympia Theatre. Arriving in Paris, John, Paul, and George were met by 60 fans. Ringo, accompanied by roadie Neil Aspinall, arrived the next day.

– In 1970: Diana Ross made her last appearance with The Supremes at The Frontier Hotel, Las Vegas.

– In 1978: The Sex Pistols played their last live gig at Winterland, San Francisco, (they re-formed in 96).

– In 1989: Bobby Brown went to No.1 on the US singles chart with ‘My Prerogative.’

– In 2006: American actor and stand-up comic Jamie Foxx started a two-week run at No.1 on the US album chart with his second album ‘Unpredictable.’