Pick a Day

Music History Events: Odds And Ends

August 15, 1980 George Harrison becomes the first Beatle to release an autobiography when his book I Me Mine is published.

February 29, 1980 Buddy Holly's iconic glasses, which were lost in the plane crash that killed him in Iowa, are found in evidence by a local sheriff. The glasses were found two months after the crash and turned in to police, where they stayed for the next 21 years.

October 5, 1979 ABBA visits the White House while on tour for the first and only time in America. They meet President Carter's daughter Amy, who is a big fan.

February 2, 1973 Elvis Presley meets Muhammad Ali in Las Vegas. The two exchange gifts, and Ali later says, "I felt sorry for him because he didn't enjoy life the way he should. He stayed indoors all the time. I told him he should go out and see people."

January 22, 1972 In an interview with Melody Maker, David Bowie says, "I'm gay and I always have been."

November 5, 1971 After Elvis Presley's set at the Met Center in Bloomington, Minnesota, announcer Al Dvorin tells the crowd, "Elvis has left the building." The phrase soon enters the cultural lexicon, used to signal that an event is truly over.

August 31, 1971 John Lennon leaves England to start a new life with his wife, Yoko, in New York City. He never returns to England.

August 25, 1970 Jimi Hendrix opens Electric Ladyland Studios in New York City. He dies a few months later, but the studio lives on, with many major acts recording there over the years.

August 22, 1969 The Beatles participate in their final photo shoot, which is held on the lawn of John Lennon's home at Tittenhurst Park in Sunninghill, England. Photos from the session are used on the front and back covers of their Hey Jude compilation album.More

August 8, 1969 The Beatles shoot the photo for their Abbey Road album cover at the crosswalk outside Abbey Road studios, where they are recording. Fans find many nested clues in the shot of the four band members walking in stride across the street, fuelling rumors that Paul McCartney is dead.More

July 30, 1969 The Beatles, producer George Martin, and the Abbey Road engineers assemble the first rough cut of the proposed Abbey Road medley. Paul McCartney, feeling that the song "Her Majesty" distracts from the flow of the medley, has it removed and orders it erased. Second engineer John Kurlander, not wanting to destroy a Beatles song, instead appends it to the end of the medley tape, adding 15 seconds of leader to make sure it's kept separate. When he finds out, Paul likes the effect so much that he leaves the ending of the album just that way.

July 26, 1968 Auditioned to a sheen by their father Joe, The Jackson 5 join Motown Records, signing a one-year contract. They move from their home in Gary, Indiana, to Los Angeles, where they became huge stars, hitting #1 in the US with their first four singles.

May 7, 1968 On a plane ride returning home from his last gig with the band Bluesology, keyboard player Reginald Dwight looks for a stage name he can use for his burgeoning solo career. In the cabin, he comes across the band's horn player Elton Dean and lead singer Long John Baldry, and asks them if he can appropriate their names to concoct a new one for himself. They agree, and Elton John is born.

December 7, 1967 The Beatles' Apple Boutique officially opens its doors at 94 Baker Street in London. Seven months later, they close the boutique and give away the remaining merchandise.

June 13, 1967 Colin Hay, 14 years old, arrives in Australia with his family, who have left Scotland for better opportunity. He forms the band Men at Work, which becomes one of the most popular acts in the country.

June 3, 1967 "It was the third of June, another sleepy, dusty delta day," as Billie Joe McAllister jumps off the Tallahatchee Bridge, according to the Bobbie Gentry song "Ode To Billie Joe."

December 26, 1966 Jimi Hendrix writes the lyrics to "Purple Haze" in his dressing room between performances at London's Uppercrust Club. He claims the song is not about drugs, but inspired by a dream where he was surrounded by a purple haze.

June 26, 1963 John Lennon and Paul McCartney compose "She Loves You" in a hotel room in Newcastle, England, while on tour there.

May 15, 1963 The Rolling Stones sign with Decca Records in London, the label that turned down The Beatles the year before.

April 14, 1963 The Beatles, who are filming an appearance on the show Thank Your Lucky Stars at a nearby studio, stop by the Crawdaddy Club in Richmond, England, where the upstart The Rolling Stones are performing. The bands meet for the first time backstage and hang out that evening.

March 8, 1963 The Four Tops get a $400 advance to sign with Motown. They spend the rest of the year singing backup for other acts, including The Supremes.

June 5, 1959 Robert Zimmerman graduates from Hibbing High School in Minnesota. He moves on to the University of Minnesota, but soon leaves for New York City to become the full-time folk singer, Bob Dylan.

January 12, 1959 Berry Gordy, who had a hit as a songwriter with "Lonely Teardrops," launches the Tamla Record Company with $800 he borrowed from his family. A year later, he changes the label's name to Motown Records.

February 8, 1956 Buddy Holley becomes "Buddy Holly" when he signs a recording contract with Decca Records that leaves out the "e" in his last name.

November 20, 1955 In the music equivalent to the Babe Ruth trade, Sun Records owner Sam Phillips sells Elvis Presley's contract to RCA for $35,000. It wasn't all bad for Phillips: Presley had just one year left on his contract, and Phillips invested the money in a local hotel chain called the Holiday Inn, which made him a bigger fortune than anything he did in music.

July 17, 1955 Disneyland opens in Anaheim, California with a parade broadcast live on ABC. Walt Disney introduces their new group of young performers, the Mouseketeers, who star in the upcoming series The Mickey Mouse Club. Annette Funicello is the breakout star.

September 21, 2016 The day before dropping his single "Starboy," The Weeknd releases a photo showing his new haircut.More

March 17, 2016 Prince's ex-wife Mayte Garcia puts a collection of his memorabilia up for auction.More

January 1, 2012 During celebrations in Times Square, Lady GaGa shares a kiss with New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg just after the ball drops.

July 15, 2009 According to Billboard, since Michael Jackson's death, which occurred on June 25, 2009, American consumers have purchased more than 2.3 million of his albums.