TODAY IN HISTORY – DECEMBER 16th
1770 - Born this day, Ludwig van Beethoven, in Bonn, Germany, composer. Died in 1827. (Ode to Joy). Best known for his 9th Symphony.
1945 - Born on this day, Tony Hicks, guitar, The Hollies, (over 25 Top 40 hits since 1963, 1972 US No.2 single 'Long Cool Woman In A Black Dress', 1988 UK No.1 single 'He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother' first released in 1969.
1946 - Born this day, Benny Anderson, in Stockholm, Sweden, singer, musician, pianist, Abba, first UK hit 1974 No.1 single Waterloo, followed by 8 other UK No.1 singles and 9 UK No.1 albums, 1977 US No.1 single Dancing Queen.
1949 - Born this day, Billy Gibbons, in Houston, Texas, guitar, vocals, ZZ Top, 1985 UK No.16 single Legs.
1960 - George Harrison was deported from Germany for being too young to perform with the Beatles there.
1965 - Released as a double A side The Beatles 'Day Tripper / We Can Work It Out', became their ninth UK No.1 and their third Christmas chart topper in a row. The single was a US No.1 in January 1966.
1966 - The first Jimi Hendrix Experience single Hey Joe, was released on Polydor after being rejected by Decca Records.
1967 - The Lemon Pipers released Green Tambourine on an unsuspecting psychedelic world. The tune made No.1 on 3 February 1968.
1967 - The Rolling Stones announced that Marianne Faithfull was the first signing to their Mother Earth label.
1970 - Five singles and five albums by Creedence Clearwater Revival were certified gold in the US. The singles were: ‘Down on the Corner’, ‘Lookin out My Back Door’, ‘Travelin' Band’, ‘Bad Moon Rising’ and ‘Up around the Bend’. The LPs were ‘Cosmo's Factory’, ‘Willy and the Poor Boys’, ‘Green River’, ‘Bayou Country’ and ‘Credence Clearwater Revival’.
1971 - Don McLean's eight-minute-plus version of American Pie was released and hit No.1 on 15 January 1972.
1972 - Paul McCartney's single, Hi, Hi, Hi, was released. It peaked at No.10 on the charts on 3 February 1973.
1972 - Billy Paul started a three week run at No.1 on the US singles chart with 'Me and Mrs Jones', a No.12 hit in the UK. The song which describes an extramarital affair between a man and his lover, was later recorded by Michael Buble.
1974 - In a press release Mick Taylor announced that he was leaving The Rolling Stones, saying he felt that now is the time to move on and do something new.
1988 - American soul and disco singer Sylvester James died of complications from AIDS in San Francisco aged 41. Scored the 1978 US No.36 & UK No.8 single 'You Make Me Feel, Mighty Real'. He sang back-up vocals for Aretha Franklin on her 1985 Who's Zoomin' Who’ Album.
1989 - Billy Joel went to No.1 on the US album chart with his 11th studio release 'Storm Front'. The album featured one of Joel's three No.1 hits, 'We Didn't Start the Fire', a fast-paced song, mentioning some of the major historical events that took place in his time, and 'Leningrad', Joel's take on the end of the Cold War.
1991 - Chubby Checker filed a lawsuit against McDonald's in Canada seeking $14,000 million for it's alleged use of an imitation of his voice on The Twist, in a french fries commercial.
1993 - MTV aired Nirvana's 'Unplugged' session for the first time. The album featured an acoustic performance taped at Sony Music Studios in New York City on November 18, 1993. Unlike many artists who appeared on the show, Nirvana filmed its entire performance in a single take with the band's fourteen-song setlist included six cover versions.
1994 - Ex-Monkee Davy Jones, was charged with Driving While under the Influence.
1997 - Died this day, Nicolette Larson, singer, songwriter, (Lotta Love), from a brain seizure aged 45. She worked with Neil Young, Linda Ronstadt, David Crosby.
1999 - A 28 year-old man died after falling more than 80ft at Earls Court, London, while dismantling the set at a Spice Girls concert.
2000 - The estranged father and former manager of LeAnn Rimes made embarrassing allegations during a legal battle over millions of pounds. Rimes told the court that LeAnn paid her mother £6,700 every time she styled her hair before a show.
2001 - Robbie Williams and Nicole Kidman started a three week run at No.1 on the UK singles chart with their version of the Frank and Nancy Sinatra 1967 No.1 hit Somethin' Stupid. The Christmas No.1 for this year.
2001 - Stuart Adamson, lead singer of Big Country was found dead in Hawaii a month after disappearing from his home in the US. The 43-year-old musician had fought a long battle against alcholism. His body was found in a hotel room.
2003 - Michael Jackson was out on police bail of $3m after being arrested following allegations of child abuse. The 45-year-old singer strenuously denied the allegations, calling them a big lie. Following the allegations of child abuse a special information web site was set up by the District Attorney's office because of the level of media interest in the case. Mr Jackson, who was arrested, cited and released after surrendering to police on 20th November, was due to appear in court on 9 January.
2007 - American singer songwriter Dan Fogelberg died at his home in Maine at the age of 56. The US singer, songwriter discovered he had advanced prostate cancer in 2004. Had the 1981 album ‘The Innocent Age’, which featured the hits ‘Leader of the Band,’ ‘Hard to Say,’ and ‘Run for the Roses.’
2012 - X Factor winner James Arthur topped the UK singles chart with his debut single, Impossible. The 24-year-old's cover of Shontelle's 2010 track sold 490,000 copies becoming the fastest-selling single of the year.
2013 - It was reported that Miley Cyrus had insured her infamous tongue for $1 million. A source told Heat magazine: "Miley's totally aware of how her tongue is getting more headlines than she is, and getting it insured is just part of her trademarked image. It's not the first time she's done something like this - when she first cut her hair short, she tried to get her new crop patented. She wanted it to become known as The Miley".
1770 - Born this day, Ludwig van Beethoven, in Bonn, Germany, composer. Died in 1827. (Ode to Joy). Best known for his 9th Symphony.
1945 - Born on this day, Tony Hicks, guitar, The Hollies, (over 25 Top 40 hits since 1963, 1972 US No.2 single 'Long Cool Woman In A Black Dress', 1988 UK No.1 single 'He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother' first released in 1969.
1946 - Born this day, Benny Anderson, in Stockholm, Sweden, singer, musician, pianist, Abba, first UK hit 1974 No.1 single Waterloo, followed by 8 other UK No.1 singles and 9 UK No.1 albums, 1977 US No.1 single Dancing Queen.
1949 - Born this day, Billy Gibbons, in Houston, Texas, guitar, vocals, ZZ Top, 1985 UK No.16 single Legs.
1960 - George Harrison was deported from Germany for being too young to perform with the Beatles there.
1965 - Released as a double A side The Beatles 'Day Tripper / We Can Work It Out', became their ninth UK No.1 and their third Christmas chart topper in a row. The single was a US No.1 in January 1966.
1966 - The first Jimi Hendrix Experience single Hey Joe, was released on Polydor after being rejected by Decca Records.
1967 - The Lemon Pipers released Green Tambourine on an unsuspecting psychedelic world. The tune made No.1 on 3 February 1968.
1967 - The Rolling Stones announced that Marianne Faithfull was the first signing to their Mother Earth label.
1970 - Five singles and five albums by Creedence Clearwater Revival were certified gold in the US. The singles were: ‘Down on the Corner’, ‘Lookin out My Back Door’, ‘Travelin' Band’, ‘Bad Moon Rising’ and ‘Up around the Bend’. The LPs were ‘Cosmo's Factory’, ‘Willy and the Poor Boys’, ‘Green River’, ‘Bayou Country’ and ‘Credence Clearwater Revival’.
1971 - Don McLean's eight-minute-plus version of American Pie was released and hit No.1 on 15 January 1972.
1972 - Paul McCartney's single, Hi, Hi, Hi, was released. It peaked at No.10 on the charts on 3 February 1973.
1972 - Billy Paul started a three week run at No.1 on the US singles chart with 'Me and Mrs Jones', a No.12 hit in the UK. The song which describes an extramarital affair between a man and his lover, was later recorded by Michael Buble.
1974 - In a press release Mick Taylor announced that he was leaving The Rolling Stones, saying he felt that now is the time to move on and do something new.
1988 - American soul and disco singer Sylvester James died of complications from AIDS in San Francisco aged 41. Scored the 1978 US No.36 & UK No.8 single 'You Make Me Feel, Mighty Real'. He sang back-up vocals for Aretha Franklin on her 1985 Who's Zoomin' Who’ Album.
1989 - Billy Joel went to No.1 on the US album chart with his 11th studio release 'Storm Front'. The album featured one of Joel's three No.1 hits, 'We Didn't Start the Fire', a fast-paced song, mentioning some of the major historical events that took place in his time, and 'Leningrad', Joel's take on the end of the Cold War.
1991 - Chubby Checker filed a lawsuit against McDonald's in Canada seeking $14,000 million for it's alleged use of an imitation of his voice on The Twist, in a french fries commercial.
1993 - MTV aired Nirvana's 'Unplugged' session for the first time. The album featured an acoustic performance taped at Sony Music Studios in New York City on November 18, 1993. Unlike many artists who appeared on the show, Nirvana filmed its entire performance in a single take with the band's fourteen-song setlist included six cover versions.
1994 - Ex-Monkee Davy Jones, was charged with Driving While under the Influence.
1997 - Died this day, Nicolette Larson, singer, songwriter, (Lotta Love), from a brain seizure aged 45. She worked with Neil Young, Linda Ronstadt, David Crosby.
1999 - A 28 year-old man died after falling more than 80ft at Earls Court, London, while dismantling the set at a Spice Girls concert.
2000 - The estranged father and former manager of LeAnn Rimes made embarrassing allegations during a legal battle over millions of pounds. Rimes told the court that LeAnn paid her mother £6,700 every time she styled her hair before a show.
2001 - Robbie Williams and Nicole Kidman started a three week run at No.1 on the UK singles chart with their version of the Frank and Nancy Sinatra 1967 No.1 hit Somethin' Stupid. The Christmas No.1 for this year.
2001 - Stuart Adamson, lead singer of Big Country was found dead in Hawaii a month after disappearing from his home in the US. The 43-year-old musician had fought a long battle against alcholism. His body was found in a hotel room.
2003 - Michael Jackson was out on police bail of $3m after being arrested following allegations of child abuse. The 45-year-old singer strenuously denied the allegations, calling them a big lie. Following the allegations of child abuse a special information web site was set up by the District Attorney's office because of the level of media interest in the case. Mr Jackson, who was arrested, cited and released after surrendering to police on 20th November, was due to appear in court on 9 January.
2007 - American singer songwriter Dan Fogelberg died at his home in Maine at the age of 56. The US singer, songwriter discovered he had advanced prostate cancer in 2004. Had the 1981 album ‘The Innocent Age’, which featured the hits ‘Leader of the Band,’ ‘Hard to Say,’ and ‘Run for the Roses.’
2012 - X Factor winner James Arthur topped the UK singles chart with his debut single, Impossible. The 24-year-old's cover of Shontelle's 2010 track sold 490,000 copies becoming the fastest-selling single of the year.
2013 - It was reported that Miley Cyrus had insured her infamous tongue for $1 million. A source told Heat magazine: "Miley's totally aware of how her tongue is getting more headlines than she is, and getting it insured is just part of her trademarked image. It's not the first time she's done something like this - when she first cut her hair short, she tried to get her new crop patented. She wanted it to become known as The Miley".