15 OCTOBER
In Music History
1946 Frankie Carle's "Rumors Are Flying" hits #1.
1946 Richard Carpenter (of The Carpenters) is born in New Haven, Connecticut, but would later relocate to Downey, California.
1942 Don Stevenson (drummer for Moby Grape) is born in Seattle, Washington.
1942 Pop singer Chris Andrews is born in Romford, Essex, England. Aside from his own 1965 hit, "Yesterday Man," he penned a string of hits for Adam Faith ("The First Time," "We Are In Love") and Sandie Shaw (including "Girl Don't Come").
1938 R&B singer Marv Johnson is born in Detroit, Michigan. His song "Come to Me" was the first record on the Tamla label, which would later become Motown.
1935 Singer/songwriter Barry McGuire (of The New Christy Minstrels) is born in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, but would be raised in California.
1925 Guitarist Mickey Baker (of Mickey & Sylvia) is born MacHouston Baker in Louisville, Kentucky.
1913 David Carroll - arranger, conductor and musical director (for Mercury Records) - is born in Taylorville, Illinois. Known for his hit versions of "Melody of Love" in the '50s.
1906 Blues singer/songwriter Victoria Spivey is born in Houston, Texas. Composed "Black Snake Blues," "Dope Head Blues" and "Organ Grinder Blues," among others.
1905 Claude Debussy's symphonic suite "La Mer" is premiered by the Lamoureux Orchestra under the baton of Camille Chevillard in Paris. The piece was initially not well received, but soon became one of the French composer's most admired and frequently performed orchestral works.
1890 New Orleans police chief David Hennessy is gunned down in the first widely publicized Mafia murder in the USA. The event is memorialized in the song "The Hennessy Murder."
Rick Nelson Gets Booed At The Garden Party
1971Rick Nelson (formerly Ricky) plays the "Rock & Roll Spectacular" concert at Madison Square Garden. When he plays some newer songs, the hit-hungry audience boos. Nelson writes the song "Garden Party" about the experience, and it becomes a hit, reviving his career.
Read more15 OCTOBER
Featured Events
2014 At the St. Louis club Blueberry Hill, Chuck Berry performs for the last time. The rocker, who dies in 2017, played monthly gigs at the venue starting in 1996.
2003 The Louis Armstrong House Museum opens its doors to the public. Located in the Corona neighborhood of Queens, New York, the home was the longtime residence of the late singer. He and wife Lucille Wilson moved in as newlyweds in 1943 and stayed until Armstrong's death in 1971.
1995 Paul McCartney and his wife Linda appear on an episode of The Simpsons where they help Lisa become a vegetarian. Paul explains that if you play "Maybe I'm Amazed" backwards, you'll hear a recipe for lentil soup.
1977 Debby Boone's "You Light Up My Life" hits #1 for the first of 10 weeks, the longest consecutive chart run in the history of the Hot 100 at the time.
1964 Cole Porter dies of kidney failure at age 73. He had suffered with chronic pain since the late-'30s when he was severely injured in a horseback-riding accident, leading to years of operations and an eventual amputation of his right leg.
1960 The famous lineup of The Beatles records together for the first time when Ringo Starr replaces an ailing Pete Best as the group backs up Rory Storm and the Hurricanes guitarist Wally Eymond on a recording of George Gershwin's "Summertime."
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