1968, Glen Campbell started a five-week run at No.1 on the US album chart with 'Wichita Lineman.' Jimmy Webb's inspiration for the lyrics came while driving through Washita County in northern Oklahoma. Webb was driving through an endless litany of telephone poles, each looking exactly the same as the last. Then, in the distance, he noticed the silouette of a solitary lineman atop a pole. Webb then "put himself atop that pole and put that phone in his hand" as he considered what the lineman was saying into the receiver.
1969, The Monkees made what would be their last live appearance for 15 years when they played at The Oakland Coliseum, California.
1969, David Bowie, The Graham Bond Organisation and Dusty Springfield all performed at a fund raising show in London for youth magazine 'Rave'.
1969, The Rolling Stones played the final night on a 17 date North American tour at the International Raceway Festival, West Palm Beach, Florida. Also appearing, The Moody Blues, Ten Years After, King Crimson, Janis Joplin, The Band, Steppenwolf and Iron Butterfly
1971, Sly And The Family Stone were at No.1 on the US singles chart with 'Family Affair', their fourth and final No.1. Rolling Stone magazine later ranked the song #138 on their list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. 1982, Michael Jackson's 'Thriller' album was released. It spent 190 weeks on the UK album chart became the biggest selling pop album of all time, with sales over 50 million copies. Seven singles were released from the album, including 'Beat It', which featured guitarists Eddie Van Halen and Steve Lukather and 'Billie Jean'.
1985, Wham! Were at No.1 on the UK singles chart with 'I'm Your Man', the duo's third UK No.1, a No.3 hit in the US.
1989, The Happy Mondays and fellow Mancunians The Stone Roses both made their debut appearance on UK TV music show Top Of The Pops. The Mondays performed 'Hellelujah' and the Roses 'Fools Gold.'
1991, Michael Jackson scored his fourth UK No.1 album with his eighth studio album Dangerous. The album has sold over 32 million copies worldwide making it one of the best selling albums of all time.
1991, Milli Vanilli singer Rob Pilatus attempted suicide while staying at The Mondrain Hotel, Los Angeles by taking an overdose of sleeping pills and slashing his wrists.
1994, Tupac Shakur was shot five times during a robbery outside a New York City recording studio.
1996, Ice Cube obtained a restraining order to keep an obsessed fan away from him and his family. Cynthia Renee Collins was told to stop harassing the 26 year-old rapper, and stay at least 100 feet away from him.
1997, Chumbawamba's Danbert Nobacon was arrested by Italian police for wearing a skirt and was detained in police cells overnight.
1997, Metallica were at No.1 on the US album chart with ‘Reload’, the bands third US No.1 album.
1999, Don 'Sugarcane' Harris was found dead in his Los Angeles apartment at the age of 61. The American guitarist and violinist was part of the 50's duo Don & Dewey. He also worked with Little Richard, John Mayall, Frank Zappa, John Lee Hooker and Johnny Otis.
1999, Elton John was blasted by the Boy Scout Association after he appeared on stage at London's Albert Hall performing 'It's A Sin' with six male dancers dressed as Boy Scouts. The dancers had peeled of their uniforms during the performance.
2001, The first Top of the Pops UK Awards were held in Manchester, with categories voted by viewers of the BBC show. Winners included: Best pop act: Westlife, Best R&B Act: Destiny's Child, Best Rock Act: U2, Best Dance Act: Fatboy Slim, Best Newcomer: Nelly Furtado, Best Single: Kylie Minogue, 'Can't Get You Out Of My Head', Best Album: Travis, 'The Invisible Band', Artist on top of the world: Jennifer Lopez, Hall of Fame Award: Sir Paul McCartney.
2002, High Court probate records showed that George Harrison left his fortune of £99m in a trust to his wife Olivia and his son Dhani, depriving the taxman of £40m. His English mansion near Henley-on-Thames was said to be worth £15m.
2003, A block of East 2nd Street in New York City was officially renamed Joey Ramone Place. It is the block where Joey once lived with band mate Dee Dee Ramone, and is near the music club CBGB, where the Ramones played their first gigs. In 2010, it was reported that "Joey Ramone Place," was New York City's most stolen sign. As of September 27, the sign has been moved to 20 feet above ground level.
2005, Babyshambles singer Pete Doherty was arrested on suspicion of possessing class A drugs after he was stopped by police while driving his car in Ealing, west London. Police had stopped the vehicle because it was being driven "in an erratic manner" and recovered "substances" from the scene.
2005, Police were investigating claims that Michael Jackson was trafficking drugs to feed his 40 pills-a-day habit. The singer was suspected of flying antidepressants and painkillers from the US to his current home in Bahrain.
2006, The sale of Syd Barrett's final belongings were sold by Cheffins auctioneers in Cambridge, England. The sale of the 77 items raised £119,890 ($233,786). Ten paintings alone raised over £55,000 and two bicycles over £10,000. The sale included such things as the armchair he used to sit in, his home-made bread bin, tools, notebooks and binders and books. The sale catalogue described Barrett - who quit Pink Floyd in 1968 - as a man with a "total disinterest in materialism."
2007, During a Christies Rock and Roll auction held the Rockefeller Plaza, New York City a collection of 276 ticket stubs compiled by a rock journalist who covered many of the greatest rock concerts at New York City venues between the late 1960s to the 1990s, sold for $2,000. The tickets included concerts by: Jimi Hendrix, The Who, Rolling Stones, Frank Zappa, Beach Boys, Pink Floyd, Traffic, Allman Brothers, Led Zeppelin, Neil Young, Fleetwood Mac, Grateful Dead and Bruce Springsteen.
2008, Take That went to No.1 on the UK singles chart with 'Greatest Day', their 11th UK No.1 which was taken from their 2008 album The Circus. Also on this day, The Killers went to No.1 on the UK album chart with 'Day & Age' the bands third album.
2009, The death of Boyzone singer Stephen Gately was the most searched for topic on Google's UK site in 2009. It was closely followed by the rise of Britain's Got Talent runner-up Susan Boyle Microsoft revealed that the death of Michael Jackson dominated its Bing search engine results during the year.
2010, Rapper Warren G appealed to generous fans to help hip-hop star Nate Dogg cover his medical bills as he continues to undergo physical therapy following his last stroke in 2008. The "Area Codes" singer, real name Nathaniel Hale, was left partially paralyzed after he was hospitalized in December 2007 and again in September 2008.
2011, As Miranda Kerr debuted the 2011 Fantasy Bra on the catwalk during the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show, Maroon 5 cranked out their hit “Moves Like Jagger”, minus Christina Aguilera. Other performers included Kanye West, Jay-Z and Nicki Minaj. Watch below! As Kanye walked on stage to the opening chords of “Stronger”, he made reference to his late mother. “In 2007, I was supposed to perform this song on this show,” he said. “I lost my superhero. Now she’s my super angel.”
2012, Gotye wins album of the year at Australia's Aria music awards for his internationally acclaimed "Making Mirrors." The album features the Belgian-born, Australian-raised singer's multiplatinum hit "Somebody That I Used to Know," which was the top song of the year on digital music service Spotify. The gala featured appearances by Taylor Swift, Nicki Minaj and Russell Brand. British pop group One Direction was dubbed best international artist.
Born on this day
1929, Dick Clark, host of US TV's longest running music show American Bandstand.
1953, June Pointer, the Pointer Sisters, (1981 US No.2 single 'Slow Hand'', 1984 UK No.2 single 'Automatic') Died on 11th April 2011.
1967, Dwight "Heavy D" Myers, Heavy D and the Boyz, (1981 US Platinum album 'Peaceful Journey' US and UK No.1 single 'Now That We've Found Love'). Died on 8th November 2011.
1978, Clay Aiken, singer, runner-up in 2003 US American Idol, (2003 US No.1 single 'This Is The Night').
RE-Blogged from http://www.thisdayinmusic.com/
