April 16th 1956, Buddy Holly's first single 'Blue Days, Black Nights', was released. The track was later featured on That'll Be The Day the third album from Buddy Holly. Decca, Holly’s first major record label, after failing to produce a hit single from...
April 16th 1970, The Led Zeppelin single 'Whole Lotta Love' was certified Gold in the US after selling over a million copies. The single had peaked at No. 4 on the US singles chart. In the UK Atlantic Records had expected to issue the edited version themselves,...
Happy birthday to Edward John O'Brien, born on 15th April 1968, guitarist with Radiohead. Their 1993 debut single 'Creep' was initially unsuccessful, but it became a worldwide hit several months after the release of their debut album, 'Pablo Honey'. Their...
April 14th 2015, American R&B and soul singer Percy Sledge died of liver cancer at his home in Baton Rouge aged 73. The inspiration behind his 1966 US No.1 hit 'When a Man Loves a Woman', came when Sledge's girlfriend left him for a modelling career after...
August 20th 1949, Born on this day, Phil Lynott, Irish singer, songwriter, bass player, Thin Lizzy. (1973 UK No.6 single 'Whisky In The Jar'). Lynott died on 4th Jan 1986 of heart failure and pneumonia after being in a coma for eight days following a...
6th Aug 1988, 'Appetite For Destruction' Guns N' Roses debut album went to No.1 in the US, after spending 57 weeks on the chart and selling over 5 million copies. Singles from the album, ‘Sweet Child O’ Mine,’ ‘Welcome to the Jungle’ and ‘Paradise City’...
August 6th 1928, Born on this day, Andy Warhol, pop artist and producer, the founder of the Pop Art movement. Produced and managed The Velvet Underground, designed the 1967 Velvet Underground and Nico, 'peeled banana' album cover and The Rolling Stones...
Happy birthday to Robert Plant, born on 20th Aug 1948, singer with Led Zeppelin who had the 1969 US No.4 single Whole Lotta Love. The bands fourth album released in 1971 featuring the rock classic Stairway To Heaven has sold over 37 million copies. Plant...
August 19th 1964, The Beatles kicked off a North American tour at the Cow Palace in San Francisco, California, to a crowd of 17,130. Playing 12 songs which made up their repertoire for the entire tour: ‘Twist and Shout’, ‘You Can't Do That’, ‘All My Loving’,...
Happy birthday to Alison Krauss, born on 23rd July 1971, bluegrass-country singer, songwriter and fiddler. She released her first solo album in 1987 and then was invited to join the band with which she still performs, Alison Krauss and Union Station....
July 14th 1912, Born on this day, Woodrow Wilson ‘Woody’ Guthrie in Okemah, Oklahoma. Folk singer and songwriter, famous for his ‘Dust Bowl Ballads’ and protest songs in the 1930’s and 1940’s. His work was a major influence on the young Bob Dylan,providing...
July 9th 1972, Paul McCartney and Wings played their very first show in the small French town of Chateauvillon. The band included Denny Laine, Denny Seiwell, Henry McCullough and Paul's wife, Linda. It was McCartney's first time on the road since The...
Happy birthday to the great Brian Robert Setzer (born April 10, 1959) an American guitarist, singer and songwriter. He first found widespread success in the early 1980s with the 1950s-style rockabilly revival group Stray Cats, and revitalized his career...
April 14th 1969, The recording of 'The Ballad Of John and Yoko' took place, with just two Beatles, Paul McCartney and John Lennon. Paul played bass, drums and piano with John on guitars and lead vocals. The song was banned from many radio stations as...
22nd June 1963, 13-year old Stevie Wonder first entered the US singles chart as Little Stevie Wonder with 'Fingertips Parts One and Two.' 'Fingertips' which featured a young Marvin Gaye on drums was the first live, non-studio recording to reach No.1 on...
April 12th 1954, Bill Haley recorded 'Rock Around the Clock' at Pythian Temple studios in New York City. Considered by many to be the song that put rock and roll on the map around the world. The song was used over the opening titles for the film 'Blackboard...
July 2nd 1969, Bassist Noel Redding and drummer Mitch Mitchell quit The Jimi Hendrix Experience after completing the three-day Denver Pop Festival. Hendrix and drummer Mitch Mitchell would later team with bassist Billy Cox to form the short-lived Gypsy...
July 3rd 1973, After 182 Ziggy Stardust concert performances, David Bowie announced he was about to retire from live performing, although it eventually transpires that Ziggy Stardust the stage persona is being retired and not Bowie himself. Only his guitarist...
Richard Berry, Jr. (April 11, 1935 – January 23, 1997) was an African-American singer, songwriter and musician, who performed with many Los Angeles doo-wop and close harmony groups in the 1950s, including The Flairs and The Robins. He is best known as...
11th April 1966, Buffalo Springfield made their live debut at The Troubadour in Hollywood, California. The folk rock band are renowned both for their music and as a springboard for the careers of Neil Young, Stephen Stills, Richie Furay and Jim Messina....
April 10th 1970, Doors singer Jim Morrison was dragged off stage by keyboardist Ray Manzarek during a concert in Boston, after Morrison asked the audience, 'Would you like to see my genitals?'. Theater management quickly switched off the power. Morrison...
April 9th 1983, David Bowie was at No.1 on the UK singles chart with the title track from his latest album 'Let's Dance', his fourth UK No.1 and featuring blues guitaristStevie Ray Vaughan. The song introduced Bowie to a new, younger audience oblivious...
April 8th 1963, Born on this day, Julian Lennon, first son of Beatle John Lennon and the only child of Lennon's first wife Cynthia Lennon. His godfather was Beatles' manager Brian Epstein. Julian Lennon had the 1991 UK No.6 single 'Saltwater'. Had a cameo...
Jimmy "T99" Nelson (born James Nelson, April 7, 1919 – July 29, 2007) was an American jump blues and rhythm and blues shouter and songwriter. With a recording career that spanned over 50 years, Jimmy "T99" Nelson became a distinguished elder statesman...
Ravi Shankar (IPA: [ 7 April 1920 – 11 December 2012), his name often preceded by the title Pandit, an Indian musician who was one of the best-known exponents of the sitar in the second half of the 20th century as well as a composer of Hindustani classical...
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