2021 Renowned producer Phil Spector, 81, dies after getting coronavirus in prison, where he was serving time for killing the actress Lana Clarkson in 2003.
2019 At the Forum in Los Angeles, the surviving members of Soundgarden play their first show together since Chris Cornell's passing as part of the star-studded I Am the Highway: A Tribute to Chris Cornell concert.More
2016 Alanis Morissette debuts her advice column for The Guardian, answering a plight from a woman on the brink of an emotional affair.
2016 Bruce Springsteen begins The River Tour with a show in Pittsburgh. His 1980 album The River is the centerpiece of the tour, played start to finish at many stops. The tour is the year's most successful, grossing over $268 million.
2015 Puddle of Mudd frontman Wesley Scantlin is arrested at the Denver International Airport after he takes a baggage carousel for a joyride into a restricted area. A local fan bails him out, but the band is still hours late for their performance, and an angry promoter tells the audience he will never book the act again.
2014 Toni Tennille files for divorce from husband Daryl Dragon. The Captain & Tennille duo had been married for 39 years.
2008 Radiohead is slated to perform a free gig at a small record store in London, but nearly 1,500 fans turn up, forcing the band to move the show to a nearby club.
2002 A section of Interstate 80 in California is renamed the "Sonny Bono Memorial Freeway."
1999 The inaugural ball for Minnesota Governor (and former professional wrestler) Jesse Ventura goes down at the Target Center in Minneapolis. America play "Ventura Highway," and Warren Zevon does "Werewolves Of London" with Ventura, wearing his trademark bandana and feather boa, howling along on stage.
1991 The Byrds, LaVern Baker, John Lee Hooker, The Impressions, Wilson Pickett, Jimmy Reed, and Ike and Tina Turner are inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in the sixth class. The event is overshadowed by news that America has launched airstrikes on Iraq, starting the Persian Gulf War.
1981 The TV series Harper Valley P.T.A., inspired by the Jeannie C. Riley song and the 1978 movie of the same name, debuts on NBC. Barbara Eden, who played scandalous single mom Stella Johnson in the movie, reprises her role. The show lasts two seasons.
1980 Paul McCartney packs about half a pound of marijuana in his luggage, which lands him 10 days in a Tokyo jail upon arrival. He had the weed in New York and wanted to bring it with him to smoke on tour, saying, "This stuff was too good to flush down the toilet, so I thought I'd take it with me."
1979 Cher's divorce from Gregg Allman of The Allman Brothers becomes final.
1979 Roger Miller sings a medley of songs on The Muppet Show. He also sings "In the Summertime" in a patch of musically skilled watermelons and drops the bombshell news that he, like the all-chicken cast of Vet's Hospital, once suffered from "Cluckitis."
1979 Aaliyah is born Aaliyah Haughton in Brooklyn, New York.
Jamaican police mistake Jimmy Buffett for a drug smuggler and shoot at his seaplane (the Hemisphere Dancer) after it lands in the water. Bono of U2 is on board with his family, along with Island Records head Chris Blackwell.
Read more2018 Eminem is questioned by the Secret Service about lyrics in his song "Framed," where he imagines Ivanka Trump murdered in the trunk of his car. Agents determine he is not a threat; Eminem later raps about it on his song "The Ringer": "Agent Orange just sent the Secret Service to meet in person."
1992 Eric Clapton goes acoustic, recording Eric Clapton Unplugged for MTV. The album wins six Grammy Awards, including Record Of The Year.
1988 George Harrison hits #1 with "Got My Mind Set On You," becoming the act with the longest time between #1 hits - it was 24 years since "Give Me Love (Give Me Peace On Earth)." The Beach Boys break this record when "Kokomo" hits #1 in November.
1988 Tina Turner performs at Estadio do Maracana in Rio de Janeiro to a sell-out crowd of 180,000, setting a new record for attendance at a performance by a solo artist.
1964 The musical Hello, Dolly! opens on Broadway, starring Carol Channing in the title role. The show is a huge hit, and a recording of the title song by Louis Armstrong goes to #1 in May, knocking The Beatles out of the top spot.
1938 Clarinetist Benny Goodman, who many call an improvisational genius, breaks through cultural barriers to play the first-ever jazz concert at Carnegie Hall.More
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