Pick a Day

Music History Events: Sports

November 15, 1996 The movie Space Jam, starring Michael Jordan and Bugs Bunny, opens in theaters. The soundtrack sells over 6 million copies, thanks mainly to the opening song, "I Believe I Can Fly" by R. Kelly. Other contributors to the soundtrack include Seal, Monica, and Coolio.

August 16, 1996 With the help of Broadway star Chita Rivera, over 50,000 baseball fans at Yankee Stadium break the record for the largest group dance when they bust a move to the "Macarena," the decade's latest dance craze.

July 3, 1996 Cliff Richard leads the Wimbledon Centre Court crowd in singing during a rain delay. His backing singers are former tennis stars Virginia Wade, Martina Navratilova, Hana Mandlíková, Pam Shriver, Liz Smylie, Gigi Fernández and Conchita Martinez.

May 25, 1996 Seventeen-year-old basketball phenom Kobe Bryant takes the singer Brandy, also 17, to his prom in Philadelphia. The pair met earlier that year at the Essence Awards. They never get romantically involved but remain friends.

May 2, 1992 Dance Floor, a horse owned by MC Hammer, comes in third in the Kentucky Derby.

May 17, 1979 Billy Joel sings the national anthem before Game 3 of the Stanley Cup finals between the New York Rangers and Montreal Canadiens at Madison Square Garden. The Rangers lose the game and the series.

April 15, 1977 Lynyrd Skynyrd are celebrated before the Atlanta Braves home opener in a ceremony to honor the band for their live album One More For The Road, which was recorded at the Fox Theatre in Atlanta.

October 21, 1972 During a home game against the University of Alabama, the University of Tennessee's Pride of the Southland Band debuts what will become the school's unofficial fight anthem: "Rocky Top." The bluegrass homage to Tennessee was first recorded by The Osborne Brothers five years earlier.

October 10, 1964 The Olympic Games open in Tokyo, inspiring the song "Tokyo Melody."

April 13, 1958 Mickey Mantle, Yogi Berra and Whitey Ford sing "Take Me Out To The Ballgame" on The Ed Sullivan Show along with the song's writer, Jack Norworth.