17 AUGUST
In Music History
1993 While in therapy, Jordan Chandler, the 13-year-old son of a Beverly Hills dentist, alleges that singer Michael Jackson molested him while he visited Jackson's Neverland Ranch. The resultant civil suit costs Jackson over $20 million, but no criminal charges are filed, with Jackson's lawyers claiming the family in question had previously attempted to extort the singer.
1993 Jeff Buckley performs at the Sin-é café in New York City. A few months later, recordings from the show become his first release, an EP called Live at Sin-é.
1992 Exodus release their fifth studio album, Force of Habit.
1990 Actress/singer Pearl Bailey dies of arteriosclerotic coronary artery disease in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, at age 72. Had a top-ten hit with "Takes Two to Tango" in 1952.
1987 Studio drummer Gary Chester dies in New York at age 62.
1987 Beastie Boys and Run-D.M.C. wrap up their Together Forever tour with a show at Madison Square Garden in New York City. Run-D.M.C. tell fans to stay in school and avoid drugs; Beastie Boys have cage dancers and beer.More
1987 Tom Waits releases Franks Wild Years, his ninth studio album.
1984 At the outset of his latest world tour, a fatigued Elton John announces his upcoming retirement, which, like so many before and after, deosn't take.
1974 Eric Clapton's album 461 Ocean Boulevard hits #1 in America.
1974 Paper Lace's "The Night Chicago Died" hits #1, where it will stay for one week.
1973 Paul Williams (original lead singer for The Temptations) dies of an apparent suicide in Detroit, Michigan, at age 34.
1972 Gladys Knight is a contestant on The Dating Game.
1969 Singer/actor Donnie Wahlberg (of New Kids on the Block) is born in Dorchester, Boston, Massachusetts.
1969 Rapper Kelvin Mercer (of De La Soul) is born in The Bronx, New York.
1968 The Rascals' "People Got To Be Free" hits #1 for the first of five weeks.
Nirvana Shoot "Smells Like Teen Spirit" Video
1991Nirvana shoot their video for "Smells Like Teen Spirit." It is set to look like a deranged pep rally at "Anarchy High School," and features fans recruited at a concert two days earlier. The video is a huge hit on MTV and helps propel Nirvana into the mainstream.
Read more17 AUGUST
Featured Events
2011 "Last Friday Night (T.G.I.F.)" by Katy Perry hits #1 on the Hot 100, making her just the second artist with five #1 singles from the same album (Teenage Dream). The other five-time chart topper: Michael Jackson's Bad.
2004 The venerable "Like A Rock" ad campaign comes to an end, as Chevy stops using the song and ends their association with Bob Seger. The 1986 song wasn't written for Chevy, but was used in the ads since 1989. Two years later, John Mellencamp's "Our Country" becomes the Silverado theme.
2002 Nelly becomes the fifth artist to replace himself at #1 on the Hot 100 when "Dilemma" takes the top spot from "Hot In Herre."
1980 At the Toledo Speedway Jam II in Toledo, Ohio, ZZ Top headline the show with AC/DC, Sammy Hagar and Humble Pie on the undercard. (Also advertised on the poster: 800 kegs of beer, drinking age 18 in Ohio!) It is the last time AC/DC is a support act until 2003, when they open for The Rolling Stones.
1977 It's the day after Elvis Presley is found dead, and throngs of fans come to Graceland to mourn. President Jimmy Carter releases a statement saying, in part, "Elvis Presley's death deprives our country of a part of itself. He was unique and irreplaceable."
1969 Woodstock moves into day three, with performances by Joe Cocker; Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young; Blood, Sweat & Tears; and Country Joe & the Fish, who perform their famous "Fish Cheer."
1968 The Doors' third album, Waiting For The Sun, hits #1 in America thanks to the hit "Hello, I Love You." They recorded the song after scraping plans to put a Jim Morrison poetry piece called "Celebration of the Lizard" on the entire first side.
©2024 Songfacts®, LLC