TODAY IN HISTORY – DECEMBER 14th
1932 - Born this day, Charlie Rich, Grammy Award-winning singer, 1974 US No.1 and UK No.2 single The Most Beautiful Girl. Died 25 July 1995.
1949 - Born on this day, Cliff Williams, bass player for AC/DC (he replaced Mark Evans in 1977). UK No.36 single with 'Whole Lotta Rosie', the bands 1980 UK No.1 & US No.14 album Back in Black sold over 49 million copies.
1958 - Born this day, Mike Scott, musician, guitarist, singer, Waterboys, 1991 UK No.3 single Whole Of The Moon, first released in 1985.
1962 - Bill Wyman made his live debut with The Rollin' Stones at the Ricky Tick Club, Star and Garter Hotel in Windsor, England. The group were know as The Rollin' Stones during this period.
1963 - American blues and jazz singer Dinah Washington died aged 39. Known as the ‘Queen of the Blues’ she scored the 1959 US No.8 Grammy Award wining single 'What A Diff'rence A Day Makes' and the 1961 hit 'September In The Rain'.
1967 - Rolling Stones guitarist Brian Jones was rushed to St Georges hospital in London after collapsing. A doctor reported Jones was tired and suffering from over strain and was also recovering from having some teeth out.
1968 - Marvin Gaye scored his first US No.1 single when I Heard It Through The Grapevine started a five week run at the top. It was Marvin's 15th solo hit and also his first UK No.1 single in March 69.
1969 - The Jackson Five made their first network television appearance in the US when they appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show.
1970 - George Harrison received a gold record for his single, My Sweet Lord.
1977 - The film Saturday Night Fever starring John Travolta premiered in New York. The soundtrack featuring the Bee Gees was one of the best selling of all time.
1979 - Born on this day, Sophie Monk, Bardot, winners of the Australian Popstars reality show, (2000 Australian No.1 single ‘Poison’, and 2000 Australian No.1 self-titled album). Now solo.
1980 - Yoko Ono called on fans to observe ten minutes of silence in memory of John Lennon. 30,000 gathered outside St George's Hall in Liverpool, while nearly 100,000 attend a memorial in New York's Central Park.
1988 - Born on this day, Vanessa Hudgens, American actress and singer from High School Musical, as part of the cast had the 2006 US No.1 ‘High School Musical’ album and 2007, US No.1 ‘High School Musical 2’ album. Over 17 million viewers in the United States watched the TV premier of High School Musical; making it the highest rated basic cable broadcast in U.S. history.
1991 - Michael Jackson started a four-week run at No.1 on the US album chart 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. Nine singles were released from the album spanning two years (1991–1993).
1998 - Billy Preston pleaded guilty to insurance fraud in a Los Angeles court and agreed to testify against six other defendants who allegedly participated in starting fires, staging thefts and rigging car crashes for which a total of 18 fraudulent insurance claims were filed. Preston received five years of probation and one year in jail to run concurrently with a sentence he was already serving for violating probation on a prior conviction for cocaine possession.
1999 - Sir Paul McCartney appeared at The Cavern Club Liverpool, his last gig at the venue was in 1963. The show was filmed for TV and also went out live on the internet.
2002 - UK music channel Music Choice analysed all the Christmas No.1 singles of the past 30 years and identified criteria for their success. These included the use of sleigh bells, children singing, church bells harmony and references to love. They concluded that Sir Cliff Richard's 1988 hit Misletoe and Wine was the perfect Christmas hit.
2004 - The funeral took place in Arlington, Texas for Damageplan and Pantera guitarist Dimebag Darrell, Eddie Van Halen, placed Darrell’s original black and yellow stripes guitar into the Kiss Kasket he was buried in. Several thousand fans and friends gathered at the Arlington Convention Center in Arlington, to mourn the guitarist’s death. Darrell was shot five times in the back of the head during a gig at the Alrosa Villa Club in Columbus on 8th Dec 04 by a mentally ill former US Marine. Damageplan's drum technician, John Brooks, and tour manager, Chris Paluska, were both injured in the incident.
2009 – 2004 Rolling Stone releases it’s Greatest 500 songs of all time list.
1. Like a Rolling Stone – Bob Dylan
2. Satisfaction – Rolling Stones
3. Imagine – John Lennon
4. What’s going on – Marvin Gaye
5. Respect – Aretha Franklin
6. Good Vibrations – The Beach Boys
7. Johnny B Goode – Chuck Berry
8. Hey Jude – The Beatles
9. Smells like teen spirit – Nirvana
10. What’d I say – Ray Charles
11. My Generation – The Who
12. A change is gonna come – Sam Cooke
13. Yesterday – The Beatles
14. Blowin in the wind – Bob Dylan
15. London Calling – The Clash
16. I want to hold your hand – The Beatles
17. Purple Haze – Jimmi Hendrix
18. Maybelline – Chuck Berry
19. Hound Dog – Elvis
20. Let it be – The Beatles
25. God only knows – The Beach Boys
50. Tracks of my tears – Smokey Robinson and the Miracles
75. Whole Lotta Love – Led Zepplin
100. You can’t always get what you want – The Rolling Stones
2011 - Troggs singer Reg Presley was hospitalized in Winchester, England, with what was suspected to be a stroke. Presley had become ill during a gig in Germany a few days earlier.
1932 - Born this day, Charlie Rich, Grammy Award-winning singer, 1974 US No.1 and UK No.2 single The Most Beautiful Girl. Died 25 July 1995.
1949 - Born on this day, Cliff Williams, bass player for AC/DC (he replaced Mark Evans in 1977). UK No.36 single with 'Whole Lotta Rosie', the bands 1980 UK No.1 & US No.14 album Back in Black sold over 49 million copies.
1958 - Born this day, Mike Scott, musician, guitarist, singer, Waterboys, 1991 UK No.3 single Whole Of The Moon, first released in 1985.
1962 - Bill Wyman made his live debut with The Rollin' Stones at the Ricky Tick Club, Star and Garter Hotel in Windsor, England. The group were know as The Rollin' Stones during this period.
1963 - American blues and jazz singer Dinah Washington died aged 39. Known as the ‘Queen of the Blues’ she scored the 1959 US No.8 Grammy Award wining single 'What A Diff'rence A Day Makes' and the 1961 hit 'September In The Rain'.
1967 - Rolling Stones guitarist Brian Jones was rushed to St Georges hospital in London after collapsing. A doctor reported Jones was tired and suffering from over strain and was also recovering from having some teeth out.
1968 - Marvin Gaye scored his first US No.1 single when I Heard It Through The Grapevine started a five week run at the top. It was Marvin's 15th solo hit and also his first UK No.1 single in March 69.
1969 - The Jackson Five made their first network television appearance in the US when they appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show.
1970 - George Harrison received a gold record for his single, My Sweet Lord.
1977 - The film Saturday Night Fever starring John Travolta premiered in New York. The soundtrack featuring the Bee Gees was one of the best selling of all time.
1979 - Born on this day, Sophie Monk, Bardot, winners of the Australian Popstars reality show, (2000 Australian No.1 single ‘Poison’, and 2000 Australian No.1 self-titled album). Now solo.
1980 - Yoko Ono called on fans to observe ten minutes of silence in memory of John Lennon. 30,000 gathered outside St George's Hall in Liverpool, while nearly 100,000 attend a memorial in New York's Central Park.
1988 - Born on this day, Vanessa Hudgens, American actress and singer from High School Musical, as part of the cast had the 2006 US No.1 ‘High School Musical’ album and 2007, US No.1 ‘High School Musical 2’ album. Over 17 million viewers in the United States watched the TV premier of High School Musical; making it the highest rated basic cable broadcast in U.S. history.
1991 - Michael Jackson started a four-week run at No.1 on the US album chart 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. Nine singles were released from the album spanning two years (1991–1993).
1998 - Billy Preston pleaded guilty to insurance fraud in a Los Angeles court and agreed to testify against six other defendants who allegedly participated in starting fires, staging thefts and rigging car crashes for which a total of 18 fraudulent insurance claims were filed. Preston received five years of probation and one year in jail to run concurrently with a sentence he was already serving for violating probation on a prior conviction for cocaine possession.
1999 - Sir Paul McCartney appeared at The Cavern Club Liverpool, his last gig at the venue was in 1963. The show was filmed for TV and also went out live on the internet.
2002 - UK music channel Music Choice analysed all the Christmas No.1 singles of the past 30 years and identified criteria for their success. These included the use of sleigh bells, children singing, church bells harmony and references to love. They concluded that Sir Cliff Richard's 1988 hit Misletoe and Wine was the perfect Christmas hit.
2004 - The funeral took place in Arlington, Texas for Damageplan and Pantera guitarist Dimebag Darrell, Eddie Van Halen, placed Darrell’s original black and yellow stripes guitar into the Kiss Kasket he was buried in. Several thousand fans and friends gathered at the Arlington Convention Center in Arlington, to mourn the guitarist’s death. Darrell was shot five times in the back of the head during a gig at the Alrosa Villa Club in Columbus on 8th Dec 04 by a mentally ill former US Marine. Damageplan's drum technician, John Brooks, and tour manager, Chris Paluska, were both injured in the incident.
2009 – 2004 Rolling Stone releases it’s Greatest 500 songs of all time list.
1. Like a Rolling Stone – Bob Dylan
2. Satisfaction – Rolling Stones
3. Imagine – John Lennon
4. What’s going on – Marvin Gaye
5. Respect – Aretha Franklin
6. Good Vibrations – The Beach Boys
7. Johnny B Goode – Chuck Berry
8. Hey Jude – The Beatles
9. Smells like teen spirit – Nirvana
10. What’d I say – Ray Charles
11. My Generation – The Who
12. A change is gonna come – Sam Cooke
13. Yesterday – The Beatles
14. Blowin in the wind – Bob Dylan
15. London Calling – The Clash
16. I want to hold your hand – The Beatles
17. Purple Haze – Jimmi Hendrix
18. Maybelline – Chuck Berry
19. Hound Dog – Elvis
20. Let it be – The Beatles
25. God only knows – The Beach Boys
50. Tracks of my tears – Smokey Robinson and the Miracles
75. Whole Lotta Love – Led Zepplin
100. You can’t always get what you want – The Rolling Stones
2011 - Troggs singer Reg Presley was hospitalized in Winchester, England, with what was suspected to be a stroke. Presley had become ill during a gig in Germany a few days earlier.