TODAY IN HISTORY – FEBRUARY 3rd
1947 - Born this day, Dave Davies, rock singer, guitarist, The Kinks, 1964 UK No.1 and US No.7 You Really Got Me, 1967 UK No.2 single Waterloo Sunset, plus 19 other UK top 40 singles.
1959 - Born on this day, Lol Tolhurst, keyboards, with The Cure, who had the 1989 US No.2 single 'Love Song', the 1992 UK No.6 single 'Friday I'm In Love', plus over 20 other UK Top 40 singles.
1959 - Died this day, US singer, guitarist and composer Buddy Holly was killed in a plane crash. In bad weather, the plane crashed into a cornfield only minutes after take-off near Mason City, Iowa. He was 22 years old. He was born 7 September 1936 in Lubbock, Texas, USA. His first solo hit was Peggy Sue in 1957. Also killed in the same plane crash were Richie Valenz (Ricardo Valenzuela), aged 17, he was born 13 May 1941 in Los Angeles, California, USA, and the Big Bopper (JP (Jiles Perry) Richardson), aged 24. He was born 24 October 1935 in Sabine Pass, Texas, USA.
The plane's pilot was not certified to fly by instruments, which was what he attempted to do. It was determined that he could not see the stars nor the lights below because of the visual obstruction of falling snow, and he misread the instrument panel. Holly had a string of record hits in his short career, including Peggy Sue, That'll Be the Day, and It's So Easy, and set the tone for music in the 1960's. He greatly influenced rock groups and singers that came later, such as The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, and Bob Dylan. Valenz had just recorded two back-to-back hits, Donna and La Bamba. The tragic news of the three young entertainers' deaths devastated the world. Holly was buried in his home town of Lubbock, Texas, and more than 1,000 people attended the funeral. Paul McCartney bought the publishing rights to all of Buddy's work in 1976.
1967 - Producer Joe Meek shot his landlady Violet Shenton and then shot himself at his flat in London, Meek produced The Tornadoes hit 'Telstar', the first No.1 in the US by a British group. Meek was interested in spirituality and often attended séances . At one such meeting in 1958 he was warned that Buddy Holly would die on February 3. Meek tried his best to find Holly when he was in London to warn him but failed in his mission. Holly died on February 3, 1959.
1970 - Led Zeppelin II was in the Top 20 on both the UK & US album charts after peaking at No.1. The album went on to spend 138 weeks on the UK chart. The album is now recognised by writers and music critics as one of the greatest and most influential rock albums ever recorded.
1970 - Born on this day, Richie Kotzen, Mr. Big, who had the 1992 US No.1 & UK No.3 single 'To Be With You'. Also worked with Poison.
1973 - Elton John started a three-week run at No.1 on the US singles chart with 'Crocodile Rock'. Elton's first of five US No.1 singles.
1978 - Harry Chapin met with US President Jimmy Carter, to discuss fighting hunger.
1979 - Blondie had their first of 5 UK No.1 singles, with Heart Of Glass.
1979 - The Blues Brothers went to No.1 on the US album chart with Briefcase Full Of Blues.
1986 - Dire Straits were at No.1 on the UK album charts with their fifth studio album Brothers in Arms. With ten weeks at No.1, the album is the seventh best-selling album in UK chart history and won two Grammy Awards in 1986, and also won Best British Album at the 1987 Brit Awards. Brothers in Arms also spent nine weeks at No.1 on the Billboard 200 in the US, and thirty-four weeks at No.1 on the Australian Album Chart.
1996 - Rap artist Queen Latifah was stopped by a California Highway Patrol officer and arrested for reportedly possession of a concealed, loaded handgun, possession of marijuana, and speeding as she was traveling west on Interstate 10. Pending the results of a sobriety test, she could also face DUI charges. The Grammy-winning singer was known for her anti-drug and anti-violent messages in her music, and was a popular actress on the TV sitcom Living Single. She was given 2 years probation.
1999 - Tony Hadley singer with Spandau Ballet told a High Court in London of his "desperate" financial situation after his solo career failed. Hadley and band members Steve Norman and drummer John Keeble, were suing Spandau Ballet songwriter Gary Kemp for hundreds of thousands of pounds of allegedly unpaid publishing royalties. Hadley earned £120,000 a year during the band's heyday in the early 1980s, but the court heard that when he fell on hard times he was forced him to sell his home to pay off a £50,000 overdraft in 1993.
2002 - Paul McCartney and Barry Manilow sang at a pre-game concert before Super Bowl XXXVI in New Orleans.
2003 - The exclusive documentary Living With Michael Jackson was shown on UK television. Reporter Martin Bashir had spent eight months with the star, the show's editor said, 'viewers will not believe what they're seeing'.
2003 - Producer Phil Spector was arrested for allegedly shooting a woman to death in his Alhambra, California home.
2004 - Sean 'P. Diddy' Combs settled a $3 million (£1.76 million) court case filed by his former driver after an incident in 1999. Wardell Fenderson had driven Mr Combs and his then-girlfriend Jennifer Lopez away from a New York nightclub where three people had been wounded in a shooting. Mr Fenderson said he was traumatized by having guns in the car and being ordered to ignore police orders to stop, for which he was arrested.
2004 - R. Kelly appeared in Court and entered of plea of not guilty to 21 charges of child pornography. Kelly, who was free on bond, did not talk during the brief hearing. Outside the Cook County Criminal Courthouse fans voiced their support for the singer, proclaiming his innocence with placards and T-shirts. Kelly had been arrested in Florida after he was indicted by a grand jury in Chicago on 21 counts of child pornography, stemming from a videotape that allegedly shows the star performing sexual acts with a 14-year-old girl.
2006 - Former Dynasty star Heather Locklear filed for divorce from Bon Jovi guitarist Richie Sambora after 11 years of marriage. Locklear who was previously married to Motley Crue drummer Tommy Lee and Sambora were married in 1994 and have an eight-year-old daughter called Ava.
2007 - Daughtry were at No.1 on the US album chart with their self-titled debut. Lead singer Chris Daughtry was the fourth-place finalist on the fifth season of American Idol. The album sold over a 1m copies after just five weeks of release, becoming the fastest selling debut rock album of all time.
2007 - Wayne Fontana, of 'Game Of Love' fame, was arrested at his home in Glossop, Derbyshire, England and charged with arson with intent to endanger life. The 61 year-old, who was already set to appear in court in March on traffic offenses, was accused of pouring gasoline over a bailiff's car and setting it on fire. The following November, he was sentenced to 11 months in jail, but was allowed to walk free from court immediately after already serving the equivalent of his term while held under the Mental Health Act.
2008 - UK singer Adele went to No.1 on the UK album chart with her debut album '19'. As of December 2011, worldwide sales for the album stood at over 6.5 million copies.
2010 - AC/DC singer Brian Johnson, joined a growing group of critics of Bob Geldof and U2 singer Bono over their very public charity work, saying they should stop lecturing audiences about charity work and instead do their good deeds in private. Johnson said "When I was a working man I didn't want to go to a concert for some bastard to talk down to me that I should be thinking of some kid in Africa. I'm sorry mate, do it yourself, spend some of your own money and get it done. It just makes me angry."
1947 - Born this day, Dave Davies, rock singer, guitarist, The Kinks, 1964 UK No.1 and US No.7 You Really Got Me, 1967 UK No.2 single Waterloo Sunset, plus 19 other UK top 40 singles.
1959 - Born on this day, Lol Tolhurst, keyboards, with The Cure, who had the 1989 US No.2 single 'Love Song', the 1992 UK No.6 single 'Friday I'm In Love', plus over 20 other UK Top 40 singles.
1959 - Died this day, US singer, guitarist and composer Buddy Holly was killed in a plane crash. In bad weather, the plane crashed into a cornfield only minutes after take-off near Mason City, Iowa. He was 22 years old. He was born 7 September 1936 in Lubbock, Texas, USA. His first solo hit was Peggy Sue in 1957. Also killed in the same plane crash were Richie Valenz (Ricardo Valenzuela), aged 17, he was born 13 May 1941 in Los Angeles, California, USA, and the Big Bopper (JP (Jiles Perry) Richardson), aged 24. He was born 24 October 1935 in Sabine Pass, Texas, USA.
The plane's pilot was not certified to fly by instruments, which was what he attempted to do. It was determined that he could not see the stars nor the lights below because of the visual obstruction of falling snow, and he misread the instrument panel. Holly had a string of record hits in his short career, including Peggy Sue, That'll Be the Day, and It's So Easy, and set the tone for music in the 1960's. He greatly influenced rock groups and singers that came later, such as The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, and Bob Dylan. Valenz had just recorded two back-to-back hits, Donna and La Bamba. The tragic news of the three young entertainers' deaths devastated the world. Holly was buried in his home town of Lubbock, Texas, and more than 1,000 people attended the funeral. Paul McCartney bought the publishing rights to all of Buddy's work in 1976.
1967 - Producer Joe Meek shot his landlady Violet Shenton and then shot himself at his flat in London, Meek produced The Tornadoes hit 'Telstar', the first No.1 in the US by a British group. Meek was interested in spirituality and often attended séances . At one such meeting in 1958 he was warned that Buddy Holly would die on February 3. Meek tried his best to find Holly when he was in London to warn him but failed in his mission. Holly died on February 3, 1959.
1970 - Led Zeppelin II was in the Top 20 on both the UK & US album charts after peaking at No.1. The album went on to spend 138 weeks on the UK chart. The album is now recognised by writers and music critics as one of the greatest and most influential rock albums ever recorded.
1970 - Born on this day, Richie Kotzen, Mr. Big, who had the 1992 US No.1 & UK No.3 single 'To Be With You'. Also worked with Poison.
1973 - Elton John started a three-week run at No.1 on the US singles chart with 'Crocodile Rock'. Elton's first of five US No.1 singles.
1978 - Harry Chapin met with US President Jimmy Carter, to discuss fighting hunger.
1979 - Blondie had their first of 5 UK No.1 singles, with Heart Of Glass.
1979 - The Blues Brothers went to No.1 on the US album chart with Briefcase Full Of Blues.
1986 - Dire Straits were at No.1 on the UK album charts with their fifth studio album Brothers in Arms. With ten weeks at No.1, the album is the seventh best-selling album in UK chart history and won two Grammy Awards in 1986, and also won Best British Album at the 1987 Brit Awards. Brothers in Arms also spent nine weeks at No.1 on the Billboard 200 in the US, and thirty-four weeks at No.1 on the Australian Album Chart.
1996 - Rap artist Queen Latifah was stopped by a California Highway Patrol officer and arrested for reportedly possession of a concealed, loaded handgun, possession of marijuana, and speeding as she was traveling west on Interstate 10. Pending the results of a sobriety test, she could also face DUI charges. The Grammy-winning singer was known for her anti-drug and anti-violent messages in her music, and was a popular actress on the TV sitcom Living Single. She was given 2 years probation.
1999 - Tony Hadley singer with Spandau Ballet told a High Court in London of his "desperate" financial situation after his solo career failed. Hadley and band members Steve Norman and drummer John Keeble, were suing Spandau Ballet songwriter Gary Kemp for hundreds of thousands of pounds of allegedly unpaid publishing royalties. Hadley earned £120,000 a year during the band's heyday in the early 1980s, but the court heard that when he fell on hard times he was forced him to sell his home to pay off a £50,000 overdraft in 1993.
2002 - Paul McCartney and Barry Manilow sang at a pre-game concert before Super Bowl XXXVI in New Orleans.
2003 - The exclusive documentary Living With Michael Jackson was shown on UK television. Reporter Martin Bashir had spent eight months with the star, the show's editor said, 'viewers will not believe what they're seeing'.
2003 - Producer Phil Spector was arrested for allegedly shooting a woman to death in his Alhambra, California home.
2004 - Sean 'P. Diddy' Combs settled a $3 million (£1.76 million) court case filed by his former driver after an incident in 1999. Wardell Fenderson had driven Mr Combs and his then-girlfriend Jennifer Lopez away from a New York nightclub where three people had been wounded in a shooting. Mr Fenderson said he was traumatized by having guns in the car and being ordered to ignore police orders to stop, for which he was arrested.
2004 - R. Kelly appeared in Court and entered of plea of not guilty to 21 charges of child pornography. Kelly, who was free on bond, did not talk during the brief hearing. Outside the Cook County Criminal Courthouse fans voiced their support for the singer, proclaiming his innocence with placards and T-shirts. Kelly had been arrested in Florida after he was indicted by a grand jury in Chicago on 21 counts of child pornography, stemming from a videotape that allegedly shows the star performing sexual acts with a 14-year-old girl.
2006 - Former Dynasty star Heather Locklear filed for divorce from Bon Jovi guitarist Richie Sambora after 11 years of marriage. Locklear who was previously married to Motley Crue drummer Tommy Lee and Sambora were married in 1994 and have an eight-year-old daughter called Ava.
2007 - Daughtry were at No.1 on the US album chart with their self-titled debut. Lead singer Chris Daughtry was the fourth-place finalist on the fifth season of American Idol. The album sold over a 1m copies after just five weeks of release, becoming the fastest selling debut rock album of all time.
2007 - Wayne Fontana, of 'Game Of Love' fame, was arrested at his home in Glossop, Derbyshire, England and charged with arson with intent to endanger life. The 61 year-old, who was already set to appear in court in March on traffic offenses, was accused of pouring gasoline over a bailiff's car and setting it on fire. The following November, he was sentenced to 11 months in jail, but was allowed to walk free from court immediately after already serving the equivalent of his term while held under the Mental Health Act.
2008 - UK singer Adele went to No.1 on the UK album chart with her debut album '19'. As of December 2011, worldwide sales for the album stood at over 6.5 million copies.
2010 - AC/DC singer Brian Johnson, joined a growing group of critics of Bob Geldof and U2 singer Bono over their very public charity work, saying they should stop lecturing audiences about charity work and instead do their good deeds in private. Johnson said "When I was a working man I didn't want to go to a concert for some bastard to talk down to me that I should be thinking of some kid in Africa. I'm sorry mate, do it yourself, spend some of your own money and get it done. It just makes me angry."