On This Day

February 25th: On this Day

1956, Elvis Presley had his first national hit when 'I Forgot To Remember To Forget' went to No.1 on the Billboard Country & Western chart.

1957, Buddy Holly recorded a new version of 'That'll Be The Day', at Norman Petty Recording Studio in Clovis, New Mexico. The title being taken from a phrase used by John Wayne in the film 'The Searchers.'

1964, The Beatles finished recording their next single 'Can't Buy Me Love', at Abbey Road studios, London, (they had first recorded the song on 29 January 1964 at Path Marconi Studios in Paris). They also recorded the B-side, 'You Can't Do That' and another new song 'I Should Have Known Better'.

1967, Pink Floyd appeared at the Ricky Tick Club, Hounslow, England. The Yardbirds were filmed performing in a re-creation of the club built at MGM Studios in Borehamwood for Michelangelo Antonioni's 1966 film Blowup.

1972, Led Zeppelin appeared in front of over 25,000 fans at the Western Springs Stadium, Auckland, New Zealand, the group's first ever gig in New Zealand, (and the largest crowd ever to attend a concert on the island). A special train was chartered from Wellington to bring fans to the concert. News reviews the next day reported the band could be heard over five miles from the Stadium.

1977, The Jam signed to Polydor Records UK for £6,000 ($10,200). They went on to have 18 consecutive Top 40 singles in the UK, from their debut in 1977 to their break-up in December 1982, including four No.1 hits. As of 2007, 'That's Entertainment' and 'Just Who Is the 5 O'Clock Hero?' remained the best-selling import singles of all time in the UK.

1981, Winners at this year's Grammy Awards included Bob Seger who won Best Rock performance for 'Against The Wind', Pat Benatar won Best female performance for 'Crimes Of Passion' and Christopher Cross won Best new artist and Best song for 'Sailing.'
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1984, 'Jump', by Van Halen started a five-week run at No.1 on the US singles chart, (a No.7 hit in the UK). Singer David Lee Roth wrote the lyrics after seeing a television news report about a man who was threatening to commit suicide by jumping off a high building. Roth thought that one of the onlookers of such a scene would probably shout "go ahead and jump".

1989, Simple Minds were at No.1 on the UK singles chart with 'Belfast Child.' At 6 minutes 39 seconds it became the second-longest running No.1 after The Beatles 'Hey Jude.'

1995, Madonna started a seven week run at No.1 on the US singles chart with 'Take A Bow', the track which was co-written with Babyface became a No.16 hit in the UK.

1995, At a private party for 1,200 select guests on the closing night of the Frank Sinatra Desert Classic golf tournament, Frank Sinatra sang before a live audience for the very last time. His closing song was 'The Best is Yet to Come'.

1998, At Radio City Music Hall, Bob Dylan was handed three Grammys, including one for Best Album for 'Time Out Of Mind'. During Dylan's performance of the song, Michael Portnoy, hired as a background dancer, ripped his shirt off and jumped in amongst the band, revealing the words 'Soy Bomb' painted on his chest. Also in the evening, during Shawn Colvin's acceptance speech, Ol Dirty Bastard grabbed the microphone and made various observations such as "Puffy is good, but Wu-Tang is the best" and "Wu-Tang is for the children". He was then escorted from the stage.

2000, The five original Spice Girls were facing a bill of up to £1 million ($1.7 million) after losing a legal battle against the sponsors of their 1988 world tour. The Aprilia Scoter Company had claimed the girls knew of Geri's impending departure.

2004, The Rolling Stones topped a US Rich List of music's biggest money makers. The list was based on earnings during 2003 when the band played their 'Forty Licks' tour, which made them $212 million, (£124.7m) in ticket, CD, DVD and merchandise sales. The three million fans who went to the shows spent an average of $11 (£6.47) each on merchandise. Bruce Springsteen was listed in second place and The Eagles in third.

2006, George Michael was found slumped over in a car in Hyde Park, London. A concerned person spotted the singer and called police who after being checked by paramedics was arrested on suspicion of possessing drugs and then released on bail. Michael made a public statement about the incident and said "I was in possession of class C drugs which is an offense and I have no complaints about the police who were professional throughout." He also said that the event was "my own stupid fault, as usual."

2009, President Obama honoured Stevie Wonder his musical hero, with America's highest award for pop music, the Library of Congress' Gershwin prize at a ceremony at the White House. The president said the Motown legend had been the soundtrack to his youth and he doubted that his wife would have married him if he hadn't been a fan. Wonder's song 'Signed, Sealed, Delivered' had been the theme song during Obama's presidential campaign.

2009, Winners at the 2009 NME Awards, held at London's O2 Academy included Oasis who won best British band, Elbow won the outstanding contribution to British music award. The Killers won best international band and Kings of Leon won best album for "Only by the Night" and The Cure won the godlike genius award.

2011, Susan 'Suze' Rotolo, died from lung cancer. She was the one time girlfriend of Bob Dylan, and the inspiration of some of his early songs. Susan appeared in one of the decade's signature images, walking with Dylan arm-in-arm for the cover photo of his breakthrough album Freewheelin Bob Dylan.

2015, On what would have been George Harrison's 72nd birthday, a new tree was planted in his memory in Griffith Park Los Angeles to replace one that was earlier killed by a beetle infestation. This new yew tree had been chosen to replace the original, as it was far less susceptible to insects.


February 25th: Born on this day

1943, Born on this day, George Harrison guitarist and vocalist with The Beatles The all-time bestselling album in the UK is The Beatles’ 'Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band', with over 4.5 million copies sold. Harrison wrote the 1969 US No.1 & UK No.4 Beatles single ‘Something’. As a solo artist he had the 1971 US No.1 album 'All Things Must Pass' and the 1970 worldwide No.1 single ‘My Sweet Lord’. He was also a member of the Traveling Wilburys with Tom Petty and Bob Dylan. Harrison died of cancer on November 29th 2001.

1948, Born on this day, Elkie Brooks, (Elaine Bookbinder), English singer who had the 1977 UK No.8 single 'Pearl's A Singer'. Brooks was also a member of Vinegar Joe with Robert Palmer.

1957, Born on this day, Stewart Wood, from Scottish group Bay City Rollers who had the 1975 UK No.1 single 'Bye Bye Baby' plus 11 other UK Top 20 singles' and the 1976 US No.1 single 'Saturday Night'.

1957, Born on this day, American drummer Dennis Diken who co-founded The Smithereens. Diken has also played drums for former Kinks guitarist Dave Davies' solo band.

1959, Born on this day, Mike Peters, guitarist and vocalist with The Alarm, who had a 1983 UK No.17 single with '68 Guns'. Solo and member of Dead Men Walking with Kirk Brandon, (ex Spear Of Destiny), Slim Jim Phantom, (Stray Cats), Glen Matlock (Sex Pistols) and Bruce Watson (Big Country).

1971, Born on this day, Daniel Powter, Canadian singer, songwriter who had the 2005 UK No.2 single 'Bad Day'. The song had been featured in a Coca-Cola ad campaign in Europe.

February 27th: On this Day

1964, 21 year-old former hairdresser and cloakroom attendant at The Cavern Club, Cilla Black was at No.1 on the UK singles chart with 'Anyone Who Had A Heart.' Written by Bacharach and David it was Black's first UK No.1. Also this week's UK Top Ten was the first ever to feature only UK acts.

1964, The Rolling Stones made their second appearance on BBC TV show Top Of The Pops performing 'Not Fade Away'.

1967, Pink Floyd continued working on their debut album The Piper At The Gates Of Dawn at Abbey Road Studios, London. With the exception of two group-composed instrumentals and one Roger Waters song, the album was written entirely by Syd Barrett.

1971, Five months after her death, Janis Joplin started a nine-week run at No.1 on the US album chart with her second and final solo studio album Pearl. Joplin sang on all tracks except 'Buried Alive in the Blues', which remained a Full Tilt Boogie instrumental because she died before adding her vocals.

1972, Led Zeppelin appeared at Sydney Showgrounds, Sydney in Australia, over 25,000 fans attending the show. Jimmy Page appeared clean shaven having shaved of the beard he had grown since the summer of 1970.

1977, Keith Richards was arrested at Toronto’s Harbour Castle Hotel, after an ounce of heroin was found following a raid of his hotel room by 15 Royal Canadian Mounted Police. Richards, who was charged with possession with intent to traffic, faced seven years to life in prison. Bail was set at $25,000 (£14,705).

1980, Winners at the Grammy Awards included: song of the year, 'What A Fool Believes', The Doobie Brothers, album of the year, Billy Joel's '52nd St', best new artist, Rickie Lee Jones, best disco record, 'I Will Survive' Gloria Gaynor.

1988, George Michael scored his sixth No.1 US single with 'Father Figure' a No. 11 hit in the UK - the first time Michael had failed to reach the top ten in his home country.

1991, James Brown was paroled after spending two years of a six-year prison sentence, imposed for resisting arrest after a car chase across two States.

1993, After 14 weeks at No.1 on the US singles chart, 'I Will Always Love You', gave Whitney Houston the longest ever US chart topper, taking over from Boyz II Men's hit 'End Of The Road', and became the second biggest selling single in the US.

1993, Marlena Davis of The Orlons lost a battle with lung cancer aged 48. The Orlons who formed in the late 1950s had five US Top 20 hits in the Sixties including ‘The Wah Watusi’, ‘Don't Hang Up’ and ‘South Street’. The Orlons provided back-up vocals on Dee Dee Sharp's 1962 hit ‘Mashed Potato Time’ and Dee Dee Sharp's second hit, ‘Gravy (For My Mashed Potatoes)’.

1999, Britney Spears started a two-week run at No.1 on the UK singles chart with '...Baby One More Time'. It became the biggest UK selling single of the year and also a No.1 in the US. It was originally written for TLC but the song was submitted after completion of their third record, FanMail.

2004, A worker in a supermarket in Aspen, Colorado alerted the police-after seeing a man shopping with his face covered by a mask. Police arrived on the scene and identified the man as Michael Jackson who was in town on holiday with his children.

2007, Bobby Brown was sentenced to 30 days in jail over $19,000 (£9,670) in unpaid child support. An arrest warrant was issued in October 2006 after he failed to show up at a hearing on overdue child support for Kim Ward, the mother of two of his children.

2010, U2 raked in more money than any other music act in the US in 2009 making $109m (£71m) from touring, record sales and other royalties, almost twice as much as the second best, Bruce Springsteen who took home $58m (£38m), followed by Madonna with $47m (£31m) and AC/DC with $44m (£29m). Coldplay were the most successful British group, at number eight, with takings of $27m (£18m).

2015, Madonna said she suffered whiplash as a result of her "nightmare" accident at the 2015 Brit Awards. The 56-year-old was pulled backwards off stage by a cape, which was supposed to fall from her shoulders causing the singer to fall down a flight of steps.


February 27th: Born on this day

1927, Born on this day, Guy Mitchell, US singer who had the 1957 UK & US No.1 single ‘Singing The Blues’ plus over ten other UK Top 40 singles. Mitchell died on July 1st 1999.

1948, Born on this day, Eddie Gray from Tommy James and the Shondells who had the 1966 US No.1 single 'Hanky Panky' and the 1968 UK No.1 single 'Mony Mony'.

1950, Born on this day, Robert Balderrama, from American group ? & The Mysterians who had the 1966 US No. 1 & UK No.37 single '96 Tears'. (which was also a UK No.17 hit for The Stranglers in 1990).

1951, Born on this day, English singer and songwriter Steve Harley best known as the frontman with Cockney Rebel who had the 1975 UK No.1 single 'Make Me Smile, (Come Up And See Me') as well as hits with 'Mr Soft' and 'Judy Teen'. Harley has released over five solo albums and has also worked as a radio presenter.

1954, Born on this day, Neal Schon, guitarist from Journey who had the 1982 US No.2 single 'Open Arms'. Was also a member of Santana, who had the 1977 UK No.11 single 'She's Not There'.

1955, Born on this day, Gary Christian, from English group The Christians who had the 1988 UK No.8 single 'Harvest For The World'.

1957, Born on this day, Adrian Smith from Iron Maiden who had the 1982 UK No.1 album The Number Of The Beast, and the 1991 UK No.1 single 'Bring Your Daughter To The Slaughter'.

1960, Born on this day, Paul Humphreys, from Liverpool duo Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark who had the 1984 UK No.5 single 'Locomotion'.

1964, Born on this day, Derek McKenzie from British group The Shamen who had the 1992 UK No.1 single 'Ebeneezer Goode'.

1964, Born on this day, Ewan Venal, from Scottish group Deacon Blue who had the 1988 UK No.8 single 'Real Gone Kid' plus over 15 other UK Top 40 singles.

1971, Born on this day, Rozonda Thomas, Chilli, singer from American girl group TLC who had the 1995 US No.1 & UK No.4 single 'Waterfalls', and the 1999 US No.1 album 'Fanmail' which spent 57 weeks on the UK chart.

1973, Born on this day, Peter Andre, singer and former actor and reality TV star who had the 1996 UK No.1 single 'I Feel You', and the 1996 UK No. 1 album 'Natural'.

1981, Born on this day, Josh Groban, US singer, who had the 2002 US No.7 & UK No.28 album ‘Josh Groban’ and the 2004 US No.1 album 'Closer'. Groban was America's top selling artist of 2007.

March 1st: On this day
1958, Buddy Holly played the first of 25 dates on his only UK tour at the Trocadero, Elephant & Castle, London. Also on the bill was Gary Miller, The Tanner Sisters, Des O'Connor, The Montanas, Ronnie Keene & His Orchestra.
1961, Elvis Presley signed a five-year movie deal with producer Hal Wallis. During his career, Elvis made over feature films
1967, Working at Abbey Road studios, London, The Beatles started recording a new John Lennon song 'Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds'. The song was inspired by a drawing his 3 year-old son Julian returned home from school with one day. The picture, which was of a little girl with lots of stars, was his classmate - Lucy O’Donnell, who also lived in Weybridge, and attended the same school as Julian.
1968, Elton John's first single 'I've Been Loving You' was released on the Phillips label, with lyrics credited to Bernie Taupin (although John later admitted that he wrote the song by himself, giving Taupin credit as an effort to earn Taupin his first publishing royalties). The song didn't chart.
1969, Jim Morrison of The Doors was charged with lewd and lascivious behaviour after showing his penis to the audience during a show in Miami. He was found guilty and sentenced to eight months hard labour. Morrison died in Paris while the sentence was on appeal.
1973, Pink Floyd released their eighth studio album The Dark Side of The Moon in the US. It remained in the US charts for 741 discontinuous weeks from 1973 to 1988, longer than any other album in history. After moving to the Billboard Top Pop Catalog Chart, the album notched up a further 759 weeks, and had reached a total of over 1,500 weeks on the combined charts by May 2006. With an estimated 45 million copies sold, it is Pink Floyd's most commercially successful album and one of the best-selling albums worldwide.
1974, Chris Difford placed an advert in a shop window saying: 'lyricist seeks musician for co-writing'. Glen Tillbrook answered the ad and the pair went on to form Squeeze and had hits with 'Cool for Cats', 'Up the Junction', 'Tempted', 'Labelled With Love', and 'Pulling Mussels (From the Shell)'.
1975, The Eagles went to No.1 on the US singles chart with 'Best Of My Love', the first of five US No.1's for the band. The song was included on their 1974 album On the Border and was released as the third single from the album. According to Don Henley, the lyrics were written while in a booth in Dan Tana's Restaurant close to the Troubadour in West Hollywood.
1979, Joy Division appeared at The Hope & Anchor, Islington, London, England. Admission was 75p ($1.28).
1980, Blondie were at No.1 on the UK singles chart with 'Atomic' the group's third UK No.1 single from their album 'Eat To The Beat'.
1986, Mr Mister started a two week run at No.1 on the US singles chart with 'Kyrie', the group's second US No.1, a No.11 hit in the UK. Also the group's album 'Welcome To The Real World' went to No.1 on the US album chart.
1990, Janet Jackson played the first night on her 120-date Rhythm Nation world tour at the Miami Arena in Florida. As part of the show Jackson's had a live panther on-stage, but after concerns were raised over safety of the crowds and several incidents of the panther urinating on the stage Jackson axed the cat from the show in the summer leg of the tour.
1991, Frank Smith from Air Supply died of pneumonia in Melbourne, Australia. (1980 UK No.11 single 'All Out Of Love', 1981 US No.1 single 'The One That You Love').
1994, Nirvana played their final ever concert when they appeared at The Terminal Einz in Munich, Germany. The 3,000 capacity venue was a small Airport Hanger. The power went off during the show so they played an impromptu acoustic set including a version of The Cars 'My Best Friend's Girl.'
1995, Bruce Springsteen's Streets of Philadelphia won three Grammys for Song of the Year, Best Male Vocal Performance and Best Rock Song.
1995, During a gig at the Patinoire Auditorium in Lausanne, Switzerland, R.E.M. drummer Bill Berry collapsed on stage from a ruptured brain aneurysm. He recovered and later re-joined the band.
1997, A Motley Crue fan who claimed his hearing had been irreparably damaged after a show in New Jersey had his lawsuit thrown out of court. The judge told Clifford Goldberg who had sat near the front of the stage, knew the risk he was taking.
1997, 'Bowie Bonds' were issued on the US Stock Exchange. Linked to David Bowie's back catalogue albums with money earned on the bonds via interest from royalties, investors could expect to make an 8% profit in about 10 years.
2001, Sean 'Puffy' Combs became the star witness of his own defence in a New York court claiming he didn't have a gun during a shooting in a New York club. The singer claimed he thought he was being shot at.
2004, Michael Jackson unveiled a new website, www.mjjsource.com. The site featured a celebration of his music career plus news on his current criminal trial, including short biographies of his attorneys and a calendar listing upcoming court dates.
2009, Kelly Clarkson went to No.1 on the UK singles chart with 'My Life Would Suck Without You'. US singer Clarkson won American Idol in 2000 and became the only American Idol contestant to have topped the UK charts.
2016, 76-year-old Ginger Baker posted on his blog that he had cancelled all of his scheduled shows for the year and was going into immediate retirement. The former drummer for Cream and Blind Faith revealed that his doctor had just diagnosed him with serious heart problems, causing him to announce "No more gigs for this old drummer."
March 1st: Born on this day
1904, Born on this day, American big-band musician, arranger, composer, and bandleader Glenn Miller. He was the best-selling recording artist from 1939 to 1943, leading one of the best-known big bands. In just four years Glenn Miller scored 23 No.1 hits. Miller's recordings include 'In the Mood', 'Moonlight Serenade', 'Pennsylvania 6-5000', and 'Chattanooga Choo Choo'. On December 15, 1944, while traveling to entertain US troops in France during World War II, Miller's aircraft disappeared in bad weather over the English Channel.
1927, Born on this day, Harry Belafonte, US singer,who had the 1957 UK No.1 & US No.12 single with ‘Mary’s Boy Child’ and a 1957 UK No.2 & US No.5 with ‘Banana Boat Song’. He also scored over 15 US Top 40 albums, including the 1956 Calypso.
1928, Born on this day, American trumpeter, bandleader and producer Willie Mitchell. He was best known for his Hi Records label of the 1970s, which released albums by a large stable of popular Memphis soul artists, including Mitchell himself, Al Green, O. V. Wright, Syl Johnson and Ann Peebles. Mitchell died on 5 January 2010 from a cardiac arrest age 81.
1942, Born on this day, Jerry Fisher, vocals, Blood Sweat & Tears, (1969 US No.12 & UK No.35 single 'You've Made Me So Very Happy').
1944, Born on this day, Mike D'Abo, singer, songwriter, Manfred Mann, (1968 UK No.1 & US No.10 single 'Mighty Quinn'). Wrote 'Handbags & Gladrags' covered by Rod Stewart and Stereophonics. Also wrote 'Build Me Up A Buttercup' a 1968 hit for The Foundations.
1944, Born on this day, Roger Daltrey, vocals, The Who (1965 UK No.2 single My Generation plus over 20 other UK hit singles, 16 US Top 40 singles, rock opera albums Tommy and Quadrophenia). Solo, (1973 UK No.5 single 'Giving It All Away'). The Who are considered one of the most influential rock bands of the 20th century, selling over 100 million records worldwide. He and Pete Townshend received Kennedy Center Honors in 2008 and The George and Ira Gershwin Award for Lifetime Musical Achievement at UCLA in 2016.
1946, Born on this day, Tony Ashton, vocals, keyboards, Ashton Gardner & Dyke, (1971 UK No.3 single 'The Resurrection Shuffle').
1958, Born on this day, Nik Kershaw, singer, songwriter, producer, (1984 solo UK No.2 single 'I Won't Let The Sun Go Down On Me').
1962, Born on this day, Peter Stephenson, The Shamen, (1992 UK No.2 single 'Ebeneezer Goode').
1963, Born on this day, Rob Affuso, Skid Row, (1989 US No.4 & 1990 UK No.12 single '18 And Life').
1969, Born on this day, Dafydd Leuan, drums, Super Furry Animals, (1998 UK No.12 single 'Ice Hockey Hair').
1969, Born on this day, Christina Bergmark, keyboards, vocals, The Wannadies, (1996 UK No.18 single, 'You And Me Song').
1973, Born on this day, Ryan Peake, guitar, Nickelback, (2002 US No.1 & UK No. 4 single 'How To Remind You', 2001 US No.2 & 2002 UK No.2 album 'Silver Side Up').
1987, Born on this day, Kesha Rose Sebert, (Kesha), 2009 US No.1 single with Flo Rida, ‘Right Round’, solo US No.1 single ‘Tik Tok’. Her third studio album Rainbow went to No.1 on the US chart in 2017.
1994, Born on this day, Justin Bieber, Canadian singer. Bieber is the first artist to have seven songs from a debut album chart on the Billboard Hot 100. His 2009 debut single 'One Time' was a Top 30 hit in over 10 countries. With a global fan base, termed as "Beliebers", and over 40 million followers on Twitter, he was named by Forbes magazine in 2012 as the third-most powerful celebrity in the world.

March 3rd: On this Day

1966, Neil Young Stephen Stills and Richie Furay formed Buffalo Springfield in Los Angeles. Among the first wave of American bands to become popular in the wake of the British invasion, the group combined rock, folk, and country music into a sound all its own. Its million-selling song 'For What It's Worth' became a political anthem for the turbulent late 1960s.

1969, Led Zeppelin recorded their first BBC Radio 1 'Top Gear' session during the afternoon at the Playhouse Theatre in London, England. Songs recorded were 'Dazed And Confused', 'Communication Breakdown', 'You Shook Me' and 'I Can't Quit You Baby'. Free, The Moody Blues and Deep Purple were also in session on the show.

1973, Slade's 'Com On Feel The Noize', entered the UK at No.1, making Slade the first act to achieve this since The Beatles.

1973, Winners at this year's Grammy Awards included, Roberta Flack who won Song of the year and Record of the year with 'The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face' and Harry Nilsson won Best pop vocal performance for 'Without You.'

1977, The first night of an UK tour with Johnny Thunders and the Heartbreakers, Cherry Vanilla and The Police kicked off at the Roxy Club, London. John Otway and Wild Willie Barratt played at The Speakeasy, London and Iggy Pop supported by The Vibrators appeared at Huddersfield Poly.

1979, The Bee Gees scored their fourth UK No.1 single with 'Tragedy.' Also today The Bee Gees went to No.1 on the US album chat with 'Spirits Having Flown', the brother's second US No.1 album.

1984, Nena started a three week run at No.1 on the UK singles chart with '99 Red Balloons.' Originally sung in German, '99 Luftballons' was re-recorded in English as '99 Red Balloons'. The song was a No.2 hit in the US and the only UK hit for Nena making her a One Hit Wonder.

1990, Lindy Layton and Beats International were at No.1 in the UK with the single 'Dub Be Good To Me.' Formed by ex-Housemartins Norman Cook, the song was based on the SOS Band's 1984 hit 'Just Be Good To Me' and The Clash song 'Guns of Brixton'.

1990, During a world tour Paul McCartney played the first of 6 sold-out nights at the Tokyo Dome, Tokyo, Japan. The final night was broadcast live to venues in 10 other Japanese cities; Fukuoka, Hiroshima, Kumamoto, Matsuyama, Nagoya, Niigata, Osaka, Sapporp, Sendai and Takamatsu.

1994, The Smashing Pumpkins were banned from appearing on BBC TV's Top Of The Pops due to the content of the song's lyrics. The bands single 'Disarm' was this week's highest new entry.

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

1999, Oasis agreed to pay their former drummer Tony McCarroll a one-off sum of £550,000 ($935,000) after he sued the Manchester band for millions in unpaid royalties. McCarroll had been sacked from the band in 1995.

2000, Former Bay City Roller, Derek Longmuir was released on bail on charges of downloading child pornographic images from the internet and keeping indecent videos in his home.

2000, Tom Jones won the Best male artist at this year's Brit Awards. Other winners included Travis for Best band and Best album 'The Man Who.' Best single went to Robbie Williams for 'She's The One', Five won Best pop act, TLC won Best International group, Beck won Best International Male, Macy Gray won Best newcomer and Outstanding Contribution went to The Spice Girls.

2001, Stereophonics were forced to change the title of their new album after car manufacturer Daimler Chrysler objected to their use of the copyrighted word 'Jeep'. The UK title became 'Just Enough Education To Perform.'

2002, TV show 'Pop Idol' winner Will Young scored his first UK No.1 single with 'Anything Is Possible / Evergreen.' Young set a new sales record for a debut artist with over 1 million in the first week. It became the biggest selling single of 2002.

2003, Ray Jackson who found fame with Lindisfarne took out legal action against Rod Stewart over his 1970s hit song ‘Maggie May.’ Jackson claimed he came up with the worldwide hit's classic mandolin melody and claimed he may have lost at least £1m because he was not credited for the track's distinctive "hook." Jackson was paid just £15 for the recording session by Stewart in 1971.

2004, Elton John announced he was planning to marry his long-term partner David Furnish if new UK laws allowed it. A Civil Partnership bill was being passed through Parliament which would give gay couple's greater rights.

2005, 50 Cent released The Massacre, the follow-up to his 6x platinum debut 'Get Rich or Die Tryin'. The album sold over 1 million copies in its first week, going 4x platinum in two months. The success of the album gave 50 Cent five top-five singles in 2005.

2008, Beatles engineer Norman Smith died at the age of 85. Smith who worked on every studio recording the band made between 1962 and 1965 was nicknamed "Normal Norman" by John Lennon. As a producer in 1966, he signed Pink Floyd and produced their early albums including Saucerful of Secrets and as Hurricane Smith had the 1971 UK No.2 hit 'Don't Let It Die'.

2009, To celebrate the release of U2's twelfth studio album and their appearance every night for a week on The Late Show with David Letterman, New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg temporarily renamed part of 53rd street in Midtown Manhattan U2 Way.

2010, A woman claiming to be the wife of Sean 'P Diddy' Combs was freed on $5,000 (£3,326) bail after being arrested near the rappers home on Long Island, New York. Cemelia Green claimed to be married to the rapper and producer who was said to be worth around $350m (£233m). There was no official comment from Combs, who was unmarried.

2012, American rock guitarist Ronnie Montrose died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound aged 64. The guitarist who led the bands Montrose and Gamma had been ill suffering from prostate cancer. Montrose had also worked with Edgar Winter, Van Morrison, Dan Hartman, Sammy Hagar and many other artists.

2015, Keith Richards objected to a planned £1.5million cafe being built on a beachfront near his country mansion. The guitarist lodged an objection against the new development which is near his Redlands estate where he was famously arrested with band mate Mick Jagger in 1967 in a drugs raid. Richards is opposed to the planned restaurant which was earmarked for West Wittering beach in West Sussex.


March 3rd: Born on this day

1927, Born on this day, Junior Parker, US blues singer/songwriter who wrote ‘Mystery Train’, which was covered by Elvis Presley. He also worked with B.B. King and Howlin’ Wolf. Parker died on November 18th 1971.

1941, Born on this day, Mike Pender, The Searchers, (1964 UK No.1 & US No.13 single 'Needles And Pins'). They were the second group from Liverpool, after The Beatles to have a hit in the United States when 'Needles and Pins' charted during the first week of March 1964.

1944, Born on this day, Jance Garfat, bass, Dr Hook, (1972 US No.5 & UK No.2 single 'Sylvia's Mother' plus 9 other US Top 40 hits).

1947, Born on this day, Dave Mount, Mud, (1974 UK No.1 single 'Tiger Feet' plus 14 other UK Top 40 singles). Mount died on 2nd December 2006.

1947, Born on this day, Jennifer Warnes, singer, (1982 US No.1 & UK No.7 single 'Up Where We Belong' with Joe Cocker).

1948, Born on this day, Terence 'Snowy' White, guitarist, who worked with Thin Lizzy, Pink Floyd and Roger Waters. As a solo artist, he had a 1983 UK Top 10 hit single 'Bird Of Paradise'.

1949, Born on this day, Derek (Blue) Weaver, keyboards, Amen Corner, (1969 UK No.1 single 'If Paradise Is Half As Nice'). Strawbs, (1973 UK No.2 single with 'Part Of The Union'). Also worked with The Bee Gees, (1975 US No.1 'Jive Talking').

1949, Born on this day, American music producer, multi-instrumentalist Richie Cannata most notable for playing saxophone in Billy Joel's band. Also worked with The Beach Boys, Celine Dion and Jennifer Lopez.

1954, Born on this day, Chris Hughes, Adam and the Ants, (1981 UK No.1 single 'Stand And Deliver' plus 15 other UK Top 40 singles).

1966, Born on this day, Tone- Loc, (Antony Smith), US rapper, (1989 UK No. 13 single,'Funky Cold Medina').

1977, Born on this day, Irish recording artist, singer-songwriter, musician, Ronan Keating, who with Boyzone scored the 1996 UK No.1 single 'Words' and 4 UK No.1 albums. As a solo artist Keating had the 1999 UK No.1 single 'When You Say Nothing At All', (which was featured in the film Notting Hill) and his 2000 UK No.1 album 'Ronan' spent over a year on the chart.

March 5th: On this day
1955, Elvis Presley made his TV debut when he appeared on the weekend show 'Louisiana Hayride' on KWKH TV, broadcast from Shreveport Auditorium in Shreveport, Louisiana.
1956, Frank Sinatra released his tenth studio album Songs for Swingin' Lovers! (the first album ever to top the UK Albums Chart). Sinatra aficionados often rank it his best album and many music critics consider it one of the greatest albums of its era. The original cover had Sinatra facing away from the young couple, but in 1957 Capitol altered the cover with a new image of Sinatra facing the couple.
1963, Country singers Patsy Cline, Cowboy Copas and Hawkshaw Hawkins were killed in a plane crash near Camden, Tennessee. They were travelling to Nashville after appearing at a benefit concert for the widow of Kansas City disc jockey 'Cactus' Jack Call, who had died in a car crash. On 7 March, country singer Jack Anglin was killed in a car crash on his way to Cline's funeral. Cline was the first country singer to cross over as a pop artist.
1963, The Beatles recorded what would be their third single 'From Me to You' just five days after John Lennon and Paul McCartney wrote the song. Originally planned as the B-side of the record, it was switched to the A-side during the recording session, with 'Thank You Girl' demoted to the B-side.
1965, The Mannish Boys released their second single 'I Pity The Fool', featuring a young David Bowie. Produced by Shel Talmy, (who was also producing the early singles and albums by The Who and The Kinks). Jimmy Page was Talmy's regular session musician and played the guitar solo on 'I Pity the Fool'.
1965, The Rolling Stones kicked off their fifth UK tour at The Regal Theatre, Edmonton, London. A 14-date package tour with The Hollies, The Konrads and Dave Berry and the Cruisers.
1967, Pink Floyd, Jeff Beck, The Ryan Brothers and Lee Dorsey all appeared at the Saville Theatre, Shaftesbury Avenue, London, England. Brian Epstein, manager of The Beatles leased the theatre in 1965, presenting both plays and music shows. The venue became notorious for its Sunday night concerts.
1971, Led Zeppelin started a 12-date 'Thank You' tour for British fans, appearing at the clubs from their early days and charging the same admission prices as in 1968. The first show was at The Ulster Hall, Belfast, Northern Ireland where they played songs from their upcoming fourth album, including the first public performances of 'Black Dog', 'Stairway To Heaven', 'Going To California' and 'Rock And Roll'.
1973, The former US manager of Jimi Hendrix Michael Jeffrey was one of 68 people killed in a plane crash in France. Jeffery was en-route to a court appearance in London related to Hendrix.
1975, Rod Stewart met Swedish actress, Britt Ekland at a party in Los Angeles, the couple went on to have a high profile love affair.
1977, Barbra Streisand started a three week run at No.1 on the US singles chart with ‘Love Theme From A Star Is Born’, her second US No.1. It made No.3 in the UK. The Eagles were at No.2 with ‘New Kid In Town’ and The Steve Miller Band was at No.3 with ‘Fly Like An Eagle’.
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. His tombstone reads "I may be gone, but rock n roll lives on."
1983, Michael Jackson started a seven week run at No.1 on the US singles chart with 'Billie Jean', his fourth solo US No.1, also No.1 in the UK. And on this day Jacksons album Thriller went to No.1 for the first time on the UK album chart, it went on to become the biggest selling album of all time with sales over 65 million.
1992, R.E.M. cleaned up in The Rolling Stone Music Awards winning Album of the year, for 'Out Of Time', Artist of the year, Best single for 'Losing My Religion', Best video for 'Losing My Religion' and Best band, Best guitarist and Best songwriter awards.
1994, Grace Slick was arrested for pointing a shotgun at police in her Tiburon, home in California. The singer was later sentenced to 200 hours of community service and three month's worth of Alcoholics Anonymous meetings.
1995, Viv Stanshall of The Bonzo Dog Doo Dah Band was killed in a house fire. The English singer-songwriter, painter, musician, author, and poet is best known for his work with the Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band, for his surreal exploration of the British upper classes in Sir Henry at Rawlinson End, and for narrating Mike Oldfield's Tubular Bells.
2000, Former rap artist MC Hammer became a preacher at the Jubilee Christian Centre in San Jose. Hammer had been declared bankrupt in 1996 after squandering his $50 million (£29.4 million) fortune.
2000, Madonna went to No.1 on the UK singles chart with her version of the Don McLean 1972 hit 'American Pie'. It was her 50th UK hit and the singers ninth UK No.1 and taken from the soundtrack to the 2000 film The Next Best Thing.
2002, The first episode of Osbourne's TV Show was aired on MTV in the US. Focusing on the madman and his family (his wife Sharon, and two of their three children). Oblivious to the camera, they bicker, squabble, curse and hang out backstage at Ozzy shows.
2004, UK guitarist John McGeoch died in his sleep aged 49. He had been a member of Magazine, who had the 1978 UK No.41 single 'Shot By Both Sides', and also worked with Siouxsie And The Banshees, Armoury Show and Public Image Ltd.
2005, A commemorative plaque for the The Jimi Hendrix Experience was unveiled in Loisin-sous-Lens. Hendrix had appeared at The Twenty Club when it opened in 1967. It was his first European tour where he was totally unknown. Club owner Rikki Stein stated: "The place was packed and at the end of ’Wild Thing’, his first number, there was total silence. The entire audience just stood there, open-mouthed. They’d never seen or heard anything like it in their life."
2006, Corinne Bailey Rae went to No.1 on the UK album chart with her debut album 'Corinne Bailey Rae.' Rae became only the fourth female British act in history to have her first album debut at No.1 on the UK chart.
2007, Records by the Rolling Stones and Paul Simon were chosen for preservation by the US Library of Congress. The Stones '(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction' and Paul Simon's Graceland album entered the National Recordings Registry, which preserves historic works for future generations. Other recordings chosen this year included Carl Perkins' 'Blue Suede Shoes', 'Be My Baby' by The Ronettes, 'A Change Is Gonna Come' by Sam Cooke and the eponymous album The Velvet Underground and Nico.
2008, Lou Pearlman, the man behind boy bands 'N Sync and the Backstreet Boys was set to plead guilty to a $300m (£152m) 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 (£506,000) fine.
2011, 61 year-old Charles Mulchrone's teenage love for The Beatles paid dividends when he sold his old autograph book at Sheppard's auction house, Durrow, for 1,300 euros. It contained the signatures of John Lennon and Yoko Ono when the couple stayed at a hotel in Mulranny in the summer of 1968. Charles plucked up the courage to approach them and got their signatures, he said they were "sweet as pie" to him. John Lennon had bought Dorinish island in Clew Bay, Ireland and it was said that he had wanted to build a house there.
2012, Sony admitted that a number of Michael Jackson tracks had been stolen after its website was hacked. The singer, who died in June 2009 at the age of 50, had recorded unreleased duets with artists ranging from the late Freddie Mercury and Black Eyed Peas singer will.i.am.
March 5th: Born on this day
1933, Born on this day, American blues singer-songwriter and pianist Tommy Tucker who scored the 1964 US No.11 hit 'Hi Heel Sneakers'. Tucker left the music industry in the late 1960s, taking a position as a real estate agent in New Jersey. He died on 22 January 1982 aged 48, after being overcome by poisonous fumes while he was renovating the floors of his New York City home.
1948, Born on this day, Eddy Grant, singer with The Equals who had the 1968 UK No.1 single 'Baby Come Back', and as a solo artist scored the 1982 UK No.1 single 'I Don't Wanna Dance'.
1951, Born on this day, Elaine Page, UK singer who had the 1985 UK No.1 single 'I Know Him So Well'.
1952, Born on this day, Alan Clark, keyboard player with Dire Straits who had the 1985 US No.1 single 'Money For Nothing' and the 1986 UK No.2 single 'Walk Of Life'.
1956, Born on this day, Teena Marie, US singer who had the 1980 UK No. 6 single 'Behind The Groove'. In 2004, while Teena Marie was sleeping in a hotel room, a large picture frame fell and struck her on the head. The blow caused a serious concussion that would result in momentary seizures for the rest of her life. Marie died on December 26th 2010.
1957, Born on this day, Mark E Smith, singer from Manchester group The Fall who had the 1987 UK No.30 single with their version of 'There's A Ghost In My House'.
1958, Born on this day, Andy Gibb, younger brother of The Bee Gees. He had a 1978 UK No.10 single with ‘An Everlasting Love’ and a 1978 US No.1 single with ‘Shadow Dancing’, which spent seven weeks at the top, plus two other US No.1 singles. Gibb died on March 10th 1988.
1962, Born on this day, identical twin brothers, Craig and Charlie Reid from the Scottish band The Proclaimers, who had the 1987 UK No.3 single 'Letter From America', 1988 UK No.6 album 'Sunshine Over Leith' as well as the 2007 UK No.1 single with the Comic Relief charity hit 'I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles).'
1970, Born on this day, John Frusciante, guitarist with Red Hot Chili Peppers who had the 1992 UK No.26 single with ‘Under The Bridge’, the 1991 US No.3 al

March 7th: On this Day

1953, Guy Mitchell was at No.1 on the UK singles chart with 'She Wears Red Feathers'. The song details a bizarre story of an English banker's love for a hula-hula girl.

1962, The Beatles recorded their first radio appearance, at the Playhouse Theatre, Hulme, Manchester, for the BBC radio program Teenager's Turn - Here We Go'. After a rehearsal, the Beatles put on suits for the first time and, along with the other artists appearing on the program, record the show in front of a teenage audience.

1965, During a Rolling Stones gig at The Palace Theatre in Manchester, England a female fan fell from the circle while the group were playing. The crowd below broke her fall and the girl escaped serious injury just breaking a few teeth.

1966, Mike Millward guitarist from The Fourmost died, aged 23. The Liverpool group who were managed by Brian Epstein had the 1964 UK No.6 single 'A Little Loving'.

1966, Brian Wilson released 'Caroline No' the first solo single by a Beach Boy. Before it evolved into the final song we know today, (Wilson's recording reappeared as the final track on the Beach Boys' studio album Pet Sounds). The song was originally written as 'Carol I Know'.

1966, Tina Turner recorded her vocal on the Phil Spector produced 'River Deep Mountain High'. It went on to make No.3 in the UK but only No.88 on the US chart. Spector was well aware of Ike Turner's controlling attitude in the studio, and therefore he drafted an unusual contract: the River Deep – Mountain High album and single would be credited to Ike & Tina Turner, but Ike was paid $20,000 to stay away from the studio, and only Tina Turner's vocals would be used on the record. Session musicians who played on the track included Leon Russell (keyboards), Glen Campbell (guitar), and Hal Blaine (drums).

1967, Working on their next album The Beatles recorded additional overdubs for 'Lovely Rita', including harmony vocals, effects, and the percussive sound of a piece of toilet paper being blown through a haircomb.

1969, Led Zeppelin appeared at the Bluesville 69 Club at the Hornsey Wood Tavern, Finsbury Park, London, England. The venue was a function room at the back of the pub, and was so small that the stage was only just big enough for John Bonham's drums, and the rest of the group had to stand on the floor at the same level as the crowd.

1970, Lee Marvin was at No.1 on the UK singles chart with 'Wand'rin Star', taken from the film 'Paint Your Wagon.'

1970, Simon and Garfunkels album Bridge Over Troubled Water started a ten week run at No.1 on the US chart. The duo had split-up by the time of release.

1971, Jamacan saxophonist and flautist, Harold McNair died of lung cancer aged 39. Worked with Donovan, Melanie and Ginger Baker's Air Force, and had toured Europe with Quincy Jones.

1973, During a showcase gig at Max's Kansas City, New York, CBS records boss John Hammond suffered a heart attack. The event was to mark the signing of his new act Bruce Springsteen.

1973, A song from the movie Deliverance called 'Dueling Banjos' by Eric Weissberg and Steve Mandel became one of the few 1970s instrumentals to be awarded a Gold record. The record had topped the Cash Box Magazine Best Sellers list and reached No.2 on the Billboard Hot 100.

1975, David Bowie released his ninth studio album Young Americans. The album marked a departure from the glam rock style of Bowie's previous albums, showcasing his interest in soul and R&B music. Young Americans featured the song 'Fame' (co-written with Carlos Alomar and John Lennon), which gave Bowie his first US No.1 hit single.

1976, Elton John was immortalised in wax at Madame Tussauds in London. The first rock star to be so since The Beatles.

1980, The film Coal Miner's Daughter, the biography of Loretta Lynn and starring Sissy Spacek opened. Spacek won the Academy Award for Best Actress for her portrayal of Lynn; Tommy Lee Jones and Beverly D'Angelo also play leading roles in the film, which was a huge success with critics and at the box office.

1987, The Beastie Boys became the first rap act to have a No.1 album in the US with their debut album, Licensed To Ill. The album is one of Columbia Records' fastest-selling debut records to date. The group originally wanted to title the album Don't Be a Faggot, but Columbia Records refused to release the album under this title - arguing that it was homophobic.

1987, The first five Beatles albums, Please Please Me, With the Beatles, A Hard Day's Night, Beatles for Sale and Help! were released on Compact disc. Capitol Records decided to release the original UK mixes of the Beatles albums, (the first four CDs were released in mono). This marked the first time that many of these mono mixes were available in the US.

1988, British pedal steel guitar player Gordon Huntley died of cancer. Was a member of Matthews Southern Comfort, (UK No.1 single 'Woodstock') and as a session player worked with many acts including Elton John, Rod Stewart, The Pretty Things, Cliff Richard and Fairport Convention.

1991, The readers of Rolling Stone magazine voted George Michael the best male singer and sexiest male artist.

1998, Madonna went to No.1 on the UK singles chart with 'Frozen' the singers eighth UK No.1. Taken from her dance-influenced album 'Ray of Light'.

2001, The man who discovered Blur, David Balfe won a high court battle to earn £250,000 in back royalties. Balfe had waged a legal battle for over two years to regain the royalties after selling his Food Records label to EMI in 1994.

2004, The Smiths song 'I Know It's Over' topped a poll of tunes, which people turn to when they are miserable in 'The Songs That Saved Your Life' poll by BBC radio station 6 Music. REM's 'Everybody Hurts' and Radiohead's 'Fake Plastic Trees' also made the Top 10.

2007, Rhett Hutchence the brother of INXS singer Michael Hutchence defended his decision to sell some of the late star's belongings online saying he needed money to set up home with his new girlfriend. Items in the auction included lyrics, T-shirts and a fax his brother had sent to his then girlfriend Kylie Minogue.

2009, Rapper Coolio was charged with drug possession after being arrested at Los Angeles International Airport. The 45-year-old, whose real name is Artis Leon Ivey Jr, was later released on $10,000 (£7,000) bail.

2012, Sales of albums by The Monkees soared following the death of singer Davy Jones. 'Best Of The Monkees' re-entered the Billboard album chart at No.20 with sales of over 17,000 units.

2017, Darren Salter, senior coroner for Oxfordshire confirmed that George Michael died as a result of heart and liver disease. Michael was suffering from dilated cardiomyopathy with myocarditis and fatty liver. The singer died aged 53 on Christmas Day 2016 at his home in Goring-on-Thames, Oxfordshire.


March 7th: Born on this day

1944, Born on this day, Townes Van Zandt singer-songwriter. His music has been covered by such notable and varied musicians as Bob Dylan, Lyle Lovett, Steve Earle, Cowboy Junkies, Andrew Bird, Alison Krauss, and Gillian Welch. Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard covered his song 'Pancho and Lefty', scoring a No.1 hit on the Billboard country music charts. He died on January 1, 1997.

1945, Born on this day, Arthur Lee guitarist, songwriter with US group Love who had the 1966 US No.33 single '7 And 7 Is', and the 1968 UK No.24 album 'Forever Changes'. Lee died on 3rd Aug 2006 in Memphis at the age of 61 following a battle with acute myeloid leukaemia.

1945, Born on this day, Chris White, bassist with The Zombies who had the 1964 US No.2 & UK No.12 single 'She's Not There'.

1946, Born on this day, Matthew Fisher from Procol Harum who had the 1967 UK No.1 & US No.5 single 'A Whiter Shade Of Pale' and scored the hits 'Homburg', 'Conquistador'.

1946, Born on this day, Peter Wolf, singer with The J Geils Band who had the 1982 US No.1 & UK No.3 single 'Centrefold'. Wolf was once married to US actress Faye Dunaway.

1952, Born on this day, Ernie Isley, The Isley Brothers who had the 1968 UK No.3 single 'This Old Heart Of Mine' and the 1969 US No.2 single 'It's Your Thing'.

1962, Born on this day, Taylor Dayne, US singer, (Leslie Wundermann), 1988 UK No.3 single 'Tell It To My Heart', 1990 US No.1 single 'Love Will Lead You Back'.

1966, Born on this day, Paul Davis, keyboards with Manchester group Happy Mondays who had the 1990 UK No.5 single 'Step On'.

1973, Born on this day, S'bastien Izambard, singer with Il Divo who had the 2004 UK No.1 self-titled album which was also number one in 13 countries around the world.

1977, Born on this day, Paul Cattermole, singer with UK pop group S Club 7 who had the 1999 UK No.1 single 'Bring It All Back'. Their 2000 UK No.1 album '7' spent over a year on the UK chart.

1982, Born on this day, Kelli Young, singer, with UK group Liberty X who had the 2002 UK No.1 single 'Just A Little'.

1997, Born on this day, Josh Dewhurst, English guitarist of the indie pop band Blossoms. Their the self-titled debut studio album peaked at No.1 on the UK chart in Aug 2016.

March 9th: On this Day

1964, The Beatles filmed the last day of train scenes for the movie A Hard Day's Night. During their six days of filming aboard a moving train, The Beatles travelled a total of 2,500 miles on the rails.

1964, Capitol Records released a song called 'Letter To The Beatles' by The Four Preps. The lyrics describe a boy lamenting the fact that he's lost his girlfriend to The Fab Four. On its first day, the record shot to No.85 on the charts and it looked like The Preps were going to have another hit on their hands. Unfortunately they had included a few bars from 'I Want To Hold Your Hand' without permission and Capitol was forced to withdraw the single to avoid a lawsuit.

1966, The Beach Boys started recording the Brian Wilson and Tony Asher penned song 'God Only Knows', which when released in May 1966 was the eighth track on the group's album Pet Sounds. It became a UK No.2 single in 1966 and the B-side of 'Wouldn't It Be Nice' in the US.

1967, Pink Floyd and The Thoughts appeared at The Marquee Club London, England. The Marquee club has often been defined as 'the most important venue in the history of pop music', not only for having been the scene of the development of modern music culture in London, but also for having been an essential meeting point for some of the most important artists in rock music.

1968, Bob Dylan started a ten week run at No.1 on the UK chart with John Wesley Harding. The album marked Dylan's return to acoustic music after three albums of electric rock music and was exceptionally well received by critics, also reaching No.2 on the US charts. The commercial performance was considered remarkable, considering that Dylan had made Columbia Records release the album without much publicity.

1970, Having recently changed their name from Earth to Black Sabbath, Ozzy Osbourne, Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler and Bill Ward made their concert debut at The Roundhouse, London.

1971, Led Zeppelin appeared at Leeds University, Leeds, England, during their 'Back To The Clubs' tour. This was the first tour which saw Zeppelin performing 'Stairway To Heaven', 'Black Dog' and 'Going To California.'

1974, Alvin Stardust was at No.1 on the UK singles chart with 'Jealous Mind'. Know as Shane Fenton in the 1960s, it was the singer's only UK chart topper.

1975, Actor Telly Savalas was at No.1 on the UK singles chart with his version of the David Gates (from Bread) song 'If'. Savalas was currently high in the TV ratings playing the policeman Kojak.

1981, Robert Plant played a secret gig at Keele University, England with his new band The Honey Drippers.

1985, Dead Or Alive were at No.1 on the UK singles chart with 'You Spin Me Round (Like A Record). It was the first No.1 for the production team of Stock, Aitken and Waterman who went on to produce over 100 UK Top 40 hits.

1985, Mick Jagger released his solo single 'Just Another Night' a No. 12 hit in the US and No. 32 on the UK charts.

1985, REO Speedwagon started a three week run at No.1 on the US singles chart with 'Can't Fight This Feeling', it made No.16 in the UK.

1987, U2 released their fifth studio album The Joshua Tree which features the singles 'Where The Streets Have No Name', and 'I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For'. The album became the fastest selling in UK history and the first album to sell over a million CDs, spending a total of 201 weeks on the UK chart. It topped the charts in over 20 countries and became U2's first US No.1 album.

1991, 'Should I Stay Or Should I Go' gave The Clash their only UK No.1 single after the track was used for a Levi's TV advertisement. The track was first released in 1982 from their album Combat Rock. The Spanish backing vocals were sung by Joe Strummer and Joe Ely.

1996, Take That scored their eighth and last UK No.1 single (until re-forming in 2006) with their version of The Bee Gees 1977 song 'How Deep Is Your Love', (originally intended for US singer Yvonne Elliman), and used as part of the soundtrack to the film Saturday Night Fever.

1997, Notorious BIG was gunned down and killed as he left a party at the Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles. Born Christopher Wallace the rapper was pronounced dead on arrival at Cedars Sinai Hospital. He was 24 years old.

2004, Former Crazy Town guitarist Rust Epique died of heart failure from an apparent heart attack at his home in Las Vegas. Epique was 36. Crazy Town had the 1999 world-wide No.1 single 'Butterfly'.

2005, 53-year-old Danny Joe Brown, the original lead singer of Molly Hatchet, died from renal failure due to complications from diabetes. Brown was the front man for the band's self-titled album in 1978, which went Platinum.

2007, Brad Delp lead singer of US rock band Boston committed suicide by carbon monoxide poisoning in at his home in the New Hampshire town of Atkinson. He died from the smoke of two charcoal grills he’d lit inside his sealed master bathroom. He was found by police lying on a pillow on his bathroom floor with a note paper-clipped to his shirt which read: "Mr. Brad Delp. I am a lonely soul." Boston had the 1977 UK No.22 single 'More Than A Feeling' and the 1986 US No.1 single 'Amanda.'

2010, Lil Wayne was sentenced to a year in prison at New York City's Rikers Island jail complex after pleading guilty to gun possession. The charges were linked to his arrest in 2007 when a gun was found on his tour bus. His sentencing came after several delays; the first date was postponed to allow the rapper to have dental work and the second had to be rearranged after a fire broke out in the New York court complex.

2012, 76-year-old Jerry Lee Lewis married for the seventh time when he wed his caregiver Judith Brown. Lewis split from his sixth wife, Kerrie McCarver, in 2004 after twenty years of marriage. Brown, who was 14 years younger than Lewis, was previously married to the star's cousin Rusty.

2016, A study by The Journal of Advanced Nursing reported that pop records set a bad example by portraying ageing and old people in a negative light, focusing on dying and physical decline. Researchers trawled the musical archives from the 1930s to the present day for any tracks mentioning old age. The majority, 55 out of 76 songs, focused on "bad" aspects of ageing. The Beatles and Elton John featured on the "negative list", along with Pulp and The Who.


March 9th: Born on this day

1930, Born on this day, American jazz saxophonist, violinist, trumpeter and composer Ornette Coleman. He was one of the major innovators of the free jazz movement of the 1960s. Coleman died of a cardiac arrest at the age of 85 in New York City on June 11, 2015.

1934, Born on this day, Lloyd Price, US singer, songwriter, (1959 US No.1 & UK No.7 single 'Stagger Lee').

1936, Born on this day, Mickey Gilley, US singer, (1980 US No. 22 single 'Stand By Me' from the soundtrack 'Urban Cowboy').

1942, Born on this day, singer-songwriter and record producer, John Cale, Velvet Underground, (1968 'White Light, White Heat', 1967 Velvet Underground And Nico 'peeled banana' album). He produced the first albums of the Stooges, the Modern Lovers, Patti Smith, Squeeze, and Happy Mondays.

1942, Born on this day, Mark Lindsay, singer, guitarist with Paul Revere & The Raiders, (1971 US No.1 single with ‘Indian Reservation’ plus 14 other US Top 30 hit singles).

1944, Born on this day, English guitarist Trevor Burton a founding member of The Move who scored the 1969 UK No.1 single 'Blackberry Way'. He later teamed up with Steve Gibbons who fronted the long-established Birmingham group The Uglys and was also a member of the Birmingham supergroup Balls and then fronted The Trevor Burton Band.

1945, Born on this day, Robert Calvert, singer, poet, Hawkwind & solo, (1972 UK No.3 single 'Silver Machine'). Calvert died on 14th August 1988.

1945, Born on this day, Ron Wilson, drummer, The Surfaris, (1963 US No.2 & UK No.3 single 'Wipe Out'). Died of a brain anueryism on 7th May 1989.

1945, Born on this day, Robin Trower, guitarist, Procol Harum, (1967 UK No.1 single & US No.5 ' 'A Whiter Shade Of Pale'' & three top 20 solo albums).

1946, Born on this day, Jim Cregan, guitar, Family, Cockney Rebel, (1975 UK No.1 single 'Make Me Smile', Come Up And See Me), also works with Rod Stewart.

1948, Born on this day, Chris Thompson, vocals, Manfred Mann's Earth Band, (1976 UK No.6 single 'Blinded By The Light', a US No.1 in 1977).

1948, Born on this day, Jeffrey Osborne, soul singer, (1984 UK No.11 & US No. 29 single 'On The Wings Of Love').

1949, Born on this day, Jimmy Fadden, Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, (1971 US No.9 single 'Mr Bojangles').

1951, Born on this day, Frank Rodriguez, ? & The Mysterians, (1966 US No. 1 & UK No.37 single 96 Tears). The song was a UK No.17 hit for The Stranglers in 1990.

1958, Born on this day, Martin Fry, vocals, ABC, (1982 UK No.4 & 1983 US No.18 'The Look Of Love' plus nine other UK Top 40 singles).

1968, Born on this day, Robert Sledge, drums, Ben Folds Five, (1997 UK No.26 single 'Battle Of Who Could Care Less').

1969, Born on this day, Adam Siegel, American rock guitarist and producer. Founding member of the Los Angeles punk band Excel, and subsequently became the lead guitarist for the Suicidal Tendencies side project Infectious Grooves.

1980, Born on this day, Chingy, US rapper, (2003 US No.2 album ‘Jackpot’, 2003 US No.2 & UK No.17 single ‘Right Thurr’).

1987, Born on this day, Lil Bow Wow, (Shad Moss), US rapper, (2001 UK No. 6 single 'Bow Wow, That's My Name').

March 12th: On this Day

1955, American jazz saxophonist and composer Charlie Parker died of a heart attack in New York City while watching Tommy Dorsey's Orchestra on television. He was 34. The coroner who performed his autopsy mistakenly estimated Parker's 34-year-old body to be between 50 and 60 years of age. (After years of drug and alcohol abuse).

1963, The Beatles played at the Granada Cinema in Bedford. Also on the bill, Chris Montez and Tommy Roe. John Lennon, suffering from a heavy cold, was unable to perform, so The Beatles set was rearranged so that George and Paul could sing the parts that John usually sang.

1967, The Velvet Underground & Nico the debut album by the Velvet Underground was released by Verve Records. Though the record was a commercial failure upon release and was almost entirely ignored by contemporary critics, The Velvet Underground & Nico is now widely recognised as one of the greatest and most influential albums in the history of popular music.

1968, The Rolling Stones started recording their next single 'Jumpin' Jack Flash' with new producer Jimmy Miller at Olympic studios in London. Keith Richards has stated that he and Jagger wrote the lyrics while staying at Richards' country house, where they were awakened one morning by the sound of gardener Jack Dyer walking past the window. When Jagger asked what the noise was, Richards responded, "Oh, that's Jack - that's jumpin' Jack."

1969, Paul McCartney married Linda Eastman at Marylebone Register Office. They then held a reception lunch at The Ritz Hotel, Paul then went to Abbey Road studios in the evening to work. George Harrison and his wife Patti were arrested on the same day and charged with possession of 120 joints of marijuana.

1969, The Temptations became the first Motown recording act to win a Grammy Award - for 'Cloud Nine' for the Best Rhythm & Blues Group Performance. The single which reached No.2 on the US charts was the first of their singles to feature Dennis Edwards instead of David Ruffin in the lineup, and was the first of producer Norman Whitfield's psychedelic soul tracks.

1970, James Browns backing band The J.B.'s were formed after most of the members of his previous band walked out on him over a pay dispute. The J.B.'s initial lineup included bassist William "Bootsy" Collins and his guitarist brother Phelps "Catfish" Collins, formerly of the obscure funk band The Pacemakers.

1971, The Allman Brothers Band played the first of two nights at the Fillmore East, New York. Both shows were recorded and released as The Allman Brothers live double album, which became the groups breakthrough album.

1974, John Lennon made the headlines after an incident at the Troubadour Club, LA. Out on a drinking binge with Harry Nilsson, Lennon hurled insults at the performing Smothers Brothers and punched their manager before being forcibly removed.

1977, The Sex Pistols were involved in a fight at London's Speakeasy Club with Bob Harris, presenter of BBC 2's The Old Grey Whistle Test, resulting in one of the shows engineers needing 14 stitches in his head. Two days later Harris's solicitors contact Derek Green at A&M the bands record label. Harris's management also managed Peter Frampton, one of the label's top acts at A&M. Green discussed the matter with the company's two founders, Jerry Moss and Herb Alpert and the decision is made to cancel the Pistols contract and halt production of the bands first single, 'God Save The Queen'.

1983, U2 scored their first UK No.1 album with 'War', which went on to spend a total of 147 weeks on the chart. The album featured the singles 'New Years Day' and 'Two Hearts Beat As One'.

1983, Welsh singer Bonnie Tyler had her only UK No.1 single with a song written by Meat Loaf's producer, Jim Steinman, 'Total Eclipse Of The Heart'. Also No.1 in the US, (the only Welsh artist to score a US No.1), Canada and Australia, the single sold over 5 million copies.

1988, Rick Astley started a two week run at No.1 on the US singles chart with 'Never Gonna Give You Up', also a No.1 in the UK.

1994, Swedish group Ace Of Base started a six week run at No.1 on the US singles chart with 'The Sign', a No.2 hit in the UK.

1995, The Spin Doctors played a gig at singer Chris Barron's old School in Princeton and raised $10,000 (£5,882) towards a trip to France and the UK for the school choir.

2001, Judy Garland's 'Over The Rainbow' was voted the Song Of The Century in a poll published in America. Musicians, critics and fans compiled the list by the RIA. The highest placed UK act was The Rolling Stones (I Can't Get No) Satisfaction in 16th place. The Beatles had 'I Want To Hold Your Hand' at No. 28.

2004, Rosalind Morganfield, the 34 year old daughter of Blues artist Muddy Waters, surrendered to police after a warrant was issued accusing her of being involved in the 1996 murder of 19 year old Timothy Jason Harrington during a drug deal.

2006, Former Pink Floyd guitarist David Gilmour went to No.1 on the UK album chart with his third solo album On An Island. In 2009 UK radio station Planet Rock held a poll asking listeners to name the 'Greatest Solo Album Written By A Former Band Member'. David Gilmour was voted into first place with On An Island.

2007, Amy Winehouse made her US television debut on the Late Show with David Letterman performing 'Rehab'. The song went on to win three Grammy Awards, including Record of the Year, Song of the Year, and Best Female Pop Vocal Performance and also won an Ivor Novello Award for Best Contemporary Song.



2009, Hundreds of fans queued at the O2 arena in London as Michael Jackson tickets went on sale to the public. The 50-year-old pop veteran had confirmed he would be playing a 50-date residency at the venue, beginning on 8 July 2009. Some 360,000 pre-sale tickets had already sold. Organisers said the This Is It tour had become the fastest-selling in history, with 33 seats sold each minute. Prices ranged from £170 to £10,000, but tickets bought directly from the singer's website cost up to £75. Jackson had said this would be the last time he would perform in the UK.

2010, Over 130 people were arrested and eight people were hospitalised as fans tried to gatecrash a Metallica show in Colombia. 1,500 police and four tanks were brought in to manage the crowds as property was vandalized and destroyed, as thousands of ticketless fans rioted during Metallica's first Colombian concert in eleven years.

2012, Country star Taylor Swift beat Adele and Lady Gaga to be named the highest-earning pop artist of 2011. The 22-year-old earned $35,719,902 (£22.7m) in 2011 from a combination of music sales, royalties and touring. U2 took second place with $32m (£20m) thanks to their 360 tour, seen by more than seven million people while Adele came 10th.

2012, Doobie Brothers drummer Michael Hossack died at his home in Dubois, Wyoming at the age of 65. He had been battling cancer for some time and succumbed to complications of the disease with his family at his side. Hossack was a member of the Doobie Brothers between 1971 and 1973, playing on several of the band's best-known hits, including 'Listen to the Music' and 'China Grove'.

2013, Bob Dylan was voted into the American Academy of Arts and Letters, marking the first time a rock musician had been chosen for the elite honor society. Officials in the Academy – which recognises music, literature and visual art – were unable to decide if Dylan belonged for his words or his music and instead inducted him as an honorary member like previous honorees Meryl Streep, Woody Allen and Martin Scorsese.

2013, Clive Burr, drummer with Iron Maiden died in his sleep in London, four days after his 56th birthday, due to complications related to MS. Iron Maiden had the 1982 UK No.1 album The Number Of The Beast, and the 1991 UK No.1 single 'Bring Your Daughter To The Slaughter'. Burr was a member of up-and-coming British metal band, Samson, before joining Maiden in 1979.

2016, Iron Maiden's personal Boeing 747 was badly damaged after colliding with a tow truck while grounded at Santiago, Chile. The band's crew and their twenty tons of equipment were not onboard at the time of the crash, but two ground crew workers were injured.


March 12th: Born on this day

1917, Born on this day, Leonard Chess, the founder of the Chess record label, home to John Lee Hooker, Chuck Berry, Bo Diddley and Jimmy Reed. Chess died of a heart attack on October 16th 1969, aged 52.

1940, Born on this day, American singer and musician Al Jarreau. He received a total of seven Grammy Awards and Jarreau is best known for his 1981 album Breakin' Away. He also sang the theme song of the late-1980s television series Moonlighting. He died of respiratory failure on February 12, 2017 at the age of 76, just two days after announcing his retirement.

1942, Born on this day, Brian O'Hara, The Fourmost, (1964 UK No.6 single 'A Little Loving'). Hung himself on 27th June 1999.

1946, Born on this day, Liza Minnelli, singer, actress, dancer, daughter of Judy Garland and film director Vincente Minnelli. (1970 film 'Cabaret', 1989 UK No.6 single 'Losing My Mind').

1948, Born on this day, James Taylor, US singer, songwriter, (1971 US No.1 & UK No.4 single 'You've Got A Friend'. His first album was released on The Beatles Apple label. Taylor married Carly Simon in 1972.

1948, Born on this day, Les Holroyd, Barclay James Harvest, 8 UK Top 40 albums from 1974-87.

1949, Born on this day, Bill Payne, Little Feat, two Top 40 albums during the 70's, best-known songs 'Dixie Chicken' and 'Sailin Shoes'.

1949, Born on this day, Mike Gibbins, drummer with Badfinger, (1970 UK No.4 & US No.7 single 'Come And Get It'). Gibbins died on 4th Oct 2005.

1951, Born on this day, Jack Green, The Pretty Things, (1964 UK No. 10 with 'Don't Bring Me Down').

1956, Born on this day, Steve Harris, bass, Iron Maiden, (1982 UK No.

March 14th: On this day
1962, Bruce Channel started a three week run at No.1 on the US singles chart with 'Hey! Baby'. The song features a prominent riff from well-known harmonica player Delbert McClinton who while touring the UK in 1962 met John Lennon and gave him some harmonica tips. Lennon put the lessons to use right away on 'Love Me Do' and later 'Please Please Me'.
1963, Cliff Richard and The Shadows were at No.1 on the UK singles chart with 'Summer Holiday.' Taken from the film of the same name, it became Richards' seventh UK No.1 single.
1964, For the first time in British recording history, all Top Ten singles in the UK were by British acts. No.1 was 'Anyone Who Had A Heart' by Cilla Black, No.2 - 'Bits and Pieces' by The Dave Clark Five, No.3 - 'Little Children' by Billy J Kramer, No.4 - 'Diane' by The Bachelors, No.5 - 'Not Fade Away' by The Rolling Stones, No.6 - 'Just One Look' by The Hollies, No.7 - 'Needles and Pins' by The Searchers, No.8 - 'I Think Of You' by The Merseybeats, No.9 - 'Boys Cry' by Eden Kane, and No. 10 - 'Let Me Go Lover' by Kathy Kirby.
1968, The promotional film for 'Lady Madonna' was broadcast in black and white on Top Of The Pops on UK television. The video portion of the film clip was shot while The Beatles were performing the song 'Hey Bulldog', but the 'Lady Madonna' audio track was paired with the video for the promo release.
1972, Soul singer, Linda Jones, died aged 26 in New York after collapsing into a diabetic coma following a performance at Harlem's Apollo Theatre in new York. Jones scored the 1967 US No.21 single 'Hypnotized'.
1978, Blondie were at No.2 on the UK chart with their version of the Randy & the Rainbows song 'Denis', kept off the No.1 position by Kate Bush's 'Wuthering Heights'.
1981, Eric Clapton was hospitalised with bleeding ulcers causing a US tour to be cancelled. He was back in hospital five weeks later after being involved in a car crash.
1982, Metallica made their live debut when they appeared at Radio City in Anaheim, California. Metallica formed in Los Angeles, California, in late 1981 when Danish-born drummer Lars Ulrich placed an advertisement in a Los Angeles newspaper, The Recycler, which read, "Drummer looking for other metal musicians to jam with Tygers of Pan Tang, Diamond Head and Iron Maiden." Guitarists James Hetfield and Hugh Tanner of Leather Charm answered the advertisement.
1983, Jon Bon Jovi, Richie Sambora and Alec John Such formed Bon Jovi. Their fourth album, New Jersey, released in 1988, is notable for producing five Billboard Hot 100 Top 10 singles, the most top ten hits to date from a hard rock album.
1985, Dead Or Alive were kicked off the UK music television show The Tube after admitting they were incapable of playing 'live.' The group scored the 1985 UK No.1 single 'You Spin Me Round, Like A Record'.
1987, Boy George scored his first UK No.1 single as a solo artist with the David Gates song 'Everything I Own'. Originally recorded by Gates's band Bread for their 1972 album Baby, I'm a Want You, the song was also a UK No.1 for Ken Boothe in 1974.
1991, American songwriter and Blues singer Doc Pomus died from lung cancer aged 65. He is best known as the lyricist of many rock and roll hits written with Mort Shuman including, ‘A Teenager in Love’, ‘Save The Last Dance For Me’, ‘Sweets For My Sweet’, ‘Can't Get Used to Losing You’, ‘Little Sister’, ‘Suspicion’, ‘Surrender’ and ‘Viva Las Vegas.’
1991, R.E.M. played the first of two nights at London's Borderline Club under the name of 'Bingo Hand Job.'
1995, With the release of 'Me Against the World' Tupac Shakur became the first male solo artist to have a No.1 album on the Billboard chart while in prison.
1999, Stereophonics went to No.1 on the UK album chart with 'Performance And Cocktails', becoming only the third Welsh band to score a No.1 album and the first No.1 album for Richard Branson's V2 label.
2001, Peter Blake, who designed The Beatles classic Sgt. Pepper album cover sued the group's record company for more money. Blake was paid £200 ($340) for the famous figures in 1967, but was now 'cheesed off' that EMI had never offered to pay more money.
2005, Michael Jackson was blasted by British Army veterans for wearing military badges while on trail for child abuse. The singer had appeared in court on most days with either an Army motif on his breast pocket or a cap badge tied around his neck.
2006, U2 topped Rolling Stone magazine's annual list of the year's biggest money earners from 2005 with $154.2m. (£78m), The Rolling Stones were listed second with $92.5m (£47m) and The Eagles third with 63.2m. (£32.m). Paul McCartney was in fourth place with $56m (£28m) and Elton John in fifth with $48.9m. (£24.8m).
2008, Peter MacBeth, a member of The Foundations who had the 1968 UK hit with 'Build Me Up Buttercup', was jailed for child sex offences. MacBeth sexually assaulted a young girl on four occasions over the course of six years and downloaded child porn from the internet. The 71-year-old was suffering from cancer and had had he a tracheotomy which meant he lost his voice. Doctors had said he had between three and five years to live.
2010, Phil Blake of UK indie band Redtrack returned to his career as the bassist with the band after he underwent a pioneering operation to reattach his hand after it was hacked to the bone in a machete attack. Blake thought he would never play guitar again after a teenage robber hacked through his arm when he refused to hand over a mobile phone.
2011, Ronnie Hammond, the lead singer of The Atlanta Rhythm Section, died of heart failure at the age of 60. He led the band to two Billboard Top Ten hits, 'So Into You' in 1977 and 'Imaginary Lover' in 1978.
2014, American musician, Gary Burger died of pancreatic cancer on at the age of 71. He is best known as the guitarist and vocalist for the Garage rock band the Monks who formed in Gelnhausen, West Germany in 1964, by five American GIs stationed in the country. With their blend of shrill vocals, feedback, and guitarist David Day's six-string banjo (which baffled audiences), music historians have since identified the Monks as a pioneering force in avant-garde music.
2016, Sony ATV Music Publishing announced that it would buy out Michael Jackson's share of a joint music publishing venture for $750m. The purchase gave Sony the rights to about three million songs, including works by The Beatles, Bob Dylan and Taylor Swift, but did not include Jackson's master recordings.



March 14th: Born on this day
1922, Born on this day, American musician and composer Les Baxter who had the 1956 US No.1 single 'Poor People Of Paris'. In the 1960s, he formed the Balladeers, a conservative folk group in suits that at one time featured a young David Crosby.He died on 15th January 1996.
1933, Born on this day, American record producer, composer and musician Quincy Jones. He is known for his 1962 tune 'Soul Bossa Nova' and later scored the 1978 US No.1 single 'Stuff Like That'. Has a record 79 Grammy Award nominations. Jones was the producer of the three albums by Michael Jackson, Off The Wall, Bad and Thriller which has now sold more than 65 million copies worldwide.
1945, Born on this day, American saxophonist Walter Parazaider with Chicago, who had the 1976 UK & US No.1 single 'If You Leave Me Now'. The band formed in 1967 in Chicago, Illinois as The Chicago Transit Authority before shortening the name in 1970. Chicago have had five consecutive No.1 albums on the Billboard chart and 20 top-ten singles on the Billboard Hot 100.
1945, Born on this day, James O’Rourke, guitarist and singer with John Fred & His Playboy Band, (1968 US No.1 & UK No.3 single with ‘Judy In Disguise’).
1946, Born on this day, Jim Pons, bass guitar, The Turtles, (1967 US No.1 single 'Happy Together', UK No. 4 with 'She'd Rather Be With Me'). Went on to work with Frank Zappa.
1947, Born on this day, Jona Lewie, UK singer, (1980 UK No. 3 with 'Stop The Cavalry').
1947, Born on this day, English singer-songwriter and pianist Peter Skellern who had the 1972 UK No. 3 with 'Your A Lady'. In October 2016, he was ordained as a deacon and priest of the Church of England, but died only four months later from a brain tumour. on February 2017 at the age of 69.
1957, Born on this day, Chris Redburn, Kenny, (1975 UK No.3 with 'The Bump').
1963, Born on this day, Steve Lambert, Roman Holiday, (1983 UK No.14 with 'Don't Try To Stop It').
1983, Born on this day, Taylor Hanson, keyboards, singer Hanson, (1997 UK & US No.1 single 'MMMbop'). Tinted Windows.
1988, Born on this day, Colby O'Donis, American R&B and hip hop singer-songwriter and actor. 2009 US No.1 single 'Just Dance' with Lady GaGa.

March 16th: On this Day

1959, Doo-wop group The Platters scored their only UK No.1 hit with 'Smoke Gets In Your Eyes' (also a US No.1 hit). The song was a show tune written by American composer Jerome Kern and lyricist Otto Harbach for their 1933 musical Roberta. Paul Whiteman had the first hit recording of the song in 1934.

1964, The Beatles set a new record for advance sales in the U.S. with 2,100,000 copies of their latest single 'Can't Buy Me Love.' When pressed by American journalists in 1966 to reveal the song's "true" meaning, Paul McCartney stated "I think you can put any interpretation you want on anything, but when someone suggests that 'Can't Buy Me Love' is about a prostitute, I draw the line."

1965, The Rolling Stones were at No.1 on the UK singles chart with 'The Last Time', the bands third UK No.1 and first No.1 for songwriters Mick Jagger and Keith Richards.

1968, The posthumously released Otis Redding single '(Sittin' On) The Dock Of The Bay' started a five week run at No.1 on the US chart, (a No.3 hit the UK). Otis was killed in a plane crash on 10th December 1967 three days after recording the song. 'Sittin' On The Dock Of The Bay', became the first posthumous No.1 single in US chart history and sold over four million copies worldwide.

1970, Motown singer Tammi Terrell died of a brain tumour at the age of 24. She had collapsed onstage on October 14, 1967 into Marvin Gaye's arms during a concert in Hampton, Virginia. Initially Terrell recorded solo, but from 1967 onwards she recorded a series of duets with Marvin Gaye, including the 1967 US No.5 'Your Precious Love' and the 1968, ‘Ain't Nothing Like the Real Thing’. Marvin Gaye reacted to her death by taking a four year hiatus from concert performance and went into self-isolation.

1971, Winners at this years Grammy Awards included, Simon and Garfunkel who won Record of the year, Song of the year and Album of the year for Bridge Over Troubled Water. The Carpenters won Best new act and Best vocal performance.

1972, John Lennon lodged an appeal with the US immigration office in New York, after he was served with deportation orders arising from his 1968 cannabis possession conviction.

1974, During a US tour Elvis Presley played the first of four nights at the Midsouth Coliseum in Memphis Tennessee. This was the first time Elvis had played in Memphis since 1961.

1977, Paper Lace were at No.1 on the UK singles chart with the anti-war pop song 'Billy Don't Be A Hero,' the group's only No.1. Bo Donaldson and the Heywoods scored a US No.1 with their version of the song.

1977, After being with the label for just six days the Sex Pistols were fired from A&M due to pressure from other label artists and its Los Angeles head office. 25,000 copies of 'God Save The Queen' were pressed and the band made £75,000 ($127,500) from the deal.

1991, Seven members of Country singer Reba McEntire's band and her road manager were among 10 people who were killed when their private jet crashed in California just north of the Mexican border. McEntire, who had given a private concert in San Diego for IBM employees the night before, was not on the plane.

1992, During a Metallica gig at Orlando Arena fans dangled an usher by his ankles from the balcony as trouble broke out at the concert. The band were charged $38,000 (£22,353) for repairs and cleaning after the audience trashed the building.

1996, Charles Pope singer with the American vocal group The Tams died of heart failure. They had the 1964 US hit 'What Kind of Fool (Do You Think I Am)' and the 1971 UK No.1 single 'Hey Girl Don't Bother Me'. The group took their name from the Tam o'shanter hats they wore on stage.

2010, ABBA were inducted into the US Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, along with Genesis and The Hollies. Abba's Benny Andersson and Anni-Frid Lyngstad accepted their trophies, in New York.

2010, A rare Led Zeppelin recording from the group's 1971 gig at St Matthew's Baths Hall in Ipswich, England was unearthed at a car boot sale. The bootleg copy of the audio from the group's gig on November 16th 1971 was picked up for just "two or three pounds" by music fan Vic Kemp. "I was going through a stand of CDs at the car boot at Portman Road and the guy who was selling them said, 'You might be interested in this,'" Vic Kemp told the Evening Star. "It must have been recorded by someone standing at the front with a microphone. You can hear Robert Plant talking to the audience quite clearly."

2012, A series of "medical mishaps" forced Morrissey to cancel the rest of his forthcoming concerts in the US. The ex-Smiths frontman had suffered a number of illnesses including a bleeding ulcer, Barrett's oesophagus and double pneumonia. The 53-year-old, had already called off 21 gigs this year due to poor health.

2015, Sam Smith stopped Madonna from topping the UK album chart, denying her the 12th No.1 of her career. Madonna's latest album, Rebel Heart, had been in pole position throughout the week, but Smith's In The Lonely Hour sneaked ahead at the last minute, beating Madonna by 12,000 sales. In The Lonely Hour had now spent six separate spells at No.1 - a record for a male solo artist.

2015, Andy Fraser songwriter and bass guitarist with Free died of a heart attack caused by Atherosclerosis in California aged 62. The London-born musician became a founding member of the British group when he was just 15 and went on to write most of the material with lead singer Paul Rodgers, including Free's 1970 hit 'All Right Now', 'My Brother Jake' and 'The Stealer'. Fraser also penned 'Every Kinda People', a hit for Robert Palmer as well as songs for Joe Cocker, Chaka Khan, Rod Stewart and Paul Young.

2017, American blues harmonica player, singer and songwriter James Cotton died from pneumonia aged 81. Cotton worked in Howlin' Wolf's band in the early 1950s. In 1955, he was recruited by Muddy Waters to come to Chicago and join his band. In 2006, Cotton was inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame.


March 16th: Born on this day

1936, Born on this day, American folk singer-songwriter Fred Neil who wrote 'Everybody's Talkin'', which became a hit for Harry Nilsson after being used for the film Midnight Cowboy. His song 'The Other Side of This Life" was covered by the Lovin’ Spoonful, The Animals, The Youngbloods, Peter Paul & Mary and Jefferson Airplane. Neil died of natural causes on July 7th 2001, as he battled skin cancer.

1942, Born on this day, American country music singer and songwriter Jerry Jeff Walker. He wrote 'Mr Bojangles' a hit for The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band in 1970. Since then Walker's song has been recorded by many popular artists, including Garth Brooks, Chet Atkins, Jim Croce, Jamie Cullum, John Denver, Neil Diamond, Bob Dylan, Billy Joel, Elton John, Don McLean and Dolly Parton.

1948, Born on this day, American rock musician Michael Bruce, guitarist with the Alice Cooper Band, who had the 1972 UK No.1 & US No.7 single 'School's Out' and the 1973 US & UK No.1 album Billion Dollar Babies.

1950, born on this day, Scottish musician Matt Irving best known as the bass guitar player for Manfred Mann's Earth Band between 1981 and 1986. Irving has also worked with with The Lords of the New Church, Squeeze, Chris Rea, Paul Young and Roger Waters. He died on 3 April 2015.

1954, Born on this day, English singer-songwriter, actor, film producer, and television writer Jimmy Nail who had the 1985 UK No.3 hit 'Love Don't Live Here Anymore' and the 1992 UK No.1 single 'Ain't No Doubt'. Nail also appeared in the TV series Auf Wiedersehen, Pet, Spender and Crocodile Shoes.

1954, Born on this day, American musician, singer, songwriter, Nancy Wilson who with Heart had the 1986 US No.1 single 'These Dreams, and the 1987 US No.1 & UK No.3 single 'Alone'.

1959, Born on this day, American musician, rapper, Flavor Flav who rose to prominence as a member of the hip-hop group Public Enemy. They had the 1991 US No.4 album Apocalypse 91... The Enemy Strikes Black.

1963, Born on this day, Stuart Kerr, drummer with Love & Money and then Texas who had the 1989 UK No.8 single 'I Don't Want A Lover'.

1966, Born on this day, H.P. Baxxter (born Hans-Peter Geerdes in Leer), German techno group Scooter who have sold over 14 million records and are considered the most successful single-record German act with 20 top ten hits. 2008 UK No.1 album 'Jumping All Over The World.'

1970, Born on this day, Alex Lee, guitarist who has worked with Goldfrapp, Suede, Placebo, Strangelove and The Blue Aeroplanes.

1972, Born on this day, Andrew Dunlop, guitarist with Scottish rock band Travis. Their 1999 UK album The Man Who spent nine weeks at No.1 on the UK Charts and one-hundred and thirty-four weeks in the top 100 of the chart. Travis had and 1999 UK No.10 single 'Why Does It Always Rain On Me', plus over 10 other UK Top 40 singles.

1979, Born on this day, Leena Peisa, keyboards, Lordi. Became Finland's first ever Eurovision Song Contest winners after their song 'Hard Rock Hallelujah' won the contest held in Athens in 2006.