19 MAY
In Music History
1996 Sonic Youth, Smashing Pumpkins, Peter Frampton and Cypress Hill appear on the "Homerpalooza" episode of The Simpsons.
1992 Pop/soul singer Sam Smith is born in London, England.
1992 DJ/producer Marshmello is born Christopher Comstock in Philadelphia.
1991 Odia Coates, known for a string of '70s duets with Paul Anka, including the #1 "(You're) Having My Baby," dies of breast cancer at age 49.
1990 Five weeks after debuting at #39 on the Hot 100 chart, Madonna's "Vogue" moves into the #1 spot.
1986 Former Genesis frontman Peter Gabriel transitions from cult performer to pop star with the release of his fifth solo album, So, which includes the hit single "Sledgehammer."More
1984 The song "Thriller" falls off the Hot 100, ending a run of hits from the Thriller album that started on November 6, 1982, when "The Girl Is Mine" entered the tally. In that stretch, only two weeks went by without a Thriller song on the chart.
1979 Waylon Jennings and Jessi Colter become the parents of Waylon Albright "Shooter" Jennings.
1979 Two months after they are married, Eric Clapton and Pattie Boyd finally get a wedding reception, as Clapton gets a break in touring. Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr and George Harrison are guests, and jam together for the first time in almost 10 years.
1975 Lynyrd Skynyrd release the single "Saturday Night Special." The B-side is "Made in the Shade." It's the only single released from the Nuthin' Fancy album.
1973 Stevie Wonder hits #1 in America with "You Are The Sunshine Of My Life," a song inspired by his wife (and sometimes co-writer) Syreeta Wright.
1972 Jenny Berggren (lead singer of Ace of Base) is born Jenny Cecilia Petrén in Gothenburg, Sweden.
1972 Elton John releases Honky Chateau, which includes "Rocket Man." It becomes his first #1 album in America, igniting a run of six consecutive chart toppers.
1970 Rapper Prince Be (of P.M. Dawn) is born Attrell Cordes in Jersey City, New Jersey. His stepfather is Kool & the Gang's George Brown.
1964 Lawrence Wright dies in London. His death goes unreported by Melody Maker, the newspaper he founded in 1926.
Marilyn Monroe Sings "Happy Birthday, Mr. President"
1962Less than three months before her death, Marilyn Monroe makes one of her last public appearances at President John F. Kennedy's 45th birthday celebration, where she famously sings "Happy Birthday, Mr. President" in his honor.
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Featured Events
2009 The first episode of the TV series Glee airs, featuring a Glee Club performance of Journey's "Don't Stop Believin'" that brings the song back to the charts. The Glee version lands at #4 - five spots higher than Journey's original.
1998 Sonny and Cher get a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. For Sonny, who died January 5, 1998, it's a posthumous honor.
1993 Depeche Mode begin their Devotional tour in Lille, France. They reach new levels of excess on the trek, culminating with lead singer Dave Gahan having a heart attack during a show.More
1992 Billy Ray Cyrus releases his debut album, Some Gave All, featuring his signature song "Achy Breaky Heart." The album dominates the Billboard 200 chart for 17 consecutive weeks, and the single's music video spawns a line-dancing trend across the US, where a new breed of country music is already becoming a phenomenon. More
1951 Jeffrey Ross Hyman is born in Queens, New York. He forms the Ramones and takes the stage name Joey Ramone. At first, he's the drummer, but he becomes the lead singer when Dee Dee struggles to sing and play bass at the same time.
1945 Pete Townshend of The Who is born in Chiswick, United Kingdom.
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