TODAY IN HISTORY – July 17th
1941 - Born this day, Spencer Davis, musician, guitarist, in Wales, Spencer Davis Group, 1966 UK No.1 single Keep On Running, Somebody Help Me, I'm A Man, 1967 US No.7 single Gimme Some Lovin.
1949 - Born this day, Mick Tucker, musician, drummer, Sweet, 1973 UK No.1 single Blockbuster, plus 14 other UK top 40 singles. Died of leukaemia on 14 February 2002.
1949 - Born on this day, Geezer Butler, bass, Black Sabbath, (1970 UK No.4 single 'Paranoid', the bands self-titled 1970 album was voted as the best British rock albums ever by Kerrang! in 2005)
1952 - Born this day, David Hasselhof, in Baltimore, Maryland, actor. (Revenge of the Cheerleaders, Baywatch, Knight Rider). Also well known and popular singer in Europe.
1952 - Born this day, Phoebe Snow [Laub], singer, songwriter, 1975 US No.5 single Poetry Man, 1979 UK No.37 single Every Night. (Theme from It's a Different World).
1959 - Died this day, Billie Holiday, [Eleanora Fagan Gough]. While under police arrest for narcotic addiction, singer Billie Holliday died at age 44 in Metropolitan Hospital in New York City. Holiday was one of the greatest blues singers in America. She had battled drug addiction for years, and was arrested twelve years earlier for possession of heroin for which she served one year and one day in prison. She was arrested while lying in her hospital bed just before she died.
She was born 7 April 1915 in Baltimore, Maryland, USA. In 1939 she introduced Strange Fruit and God Bless The Child. Also sang Loverman (Oh, Where Can You Be?). She was discovered by John Hammond. In 1933 Hammond organised her first recording session with Benny Goodman. She used the name 'Billie Holiday' because of her admiration for film star Billie Dove.
1968 - The Beatles animated film Yellow Submarine premiered at the London Pavilion. The song Yellow Submarine had become one of the group's greatest hits and served as inspiration for the movie. In the movie's psychedelic fantasy, the Beatles save Pepperland from the evil intentions of the Blue Meanies. It opens in America several months later.
1970 - Born on this day, Mandy Smith, in 1983 at age 13 she started dating the then 47 year old Rolling Stones bassist Bill Wyman. The couple married in 1989, divorced 1992. Smith became a singer, model and actress, released records with SAW none of which charted. Wyman's son dated Mandy's mother.
1971 - John Lennon and Yoko Ono appeared on the BBC late night talk show, Parkinson, where John chastised the British media for calling Yoko "ugly" and for saying that she broke up The Beatles.
1972 - A bomb exploded under The Rolling Stones equipment van in Montreal, believed to be the work of French separatists. Angry fans rioted throwing bottles and rocks after 3,000 tickets for the show turned out to be fake.
1978 - Andy Gibb started a seven week run at No.1 in the US singles charts with Shadow Dancing.
1979 - Gary Moore left Thin Lizzy during a US tour and was replaced by ex Slick & Rich Kids guitarist Midge Ure.
1982 - Irene Cara started a three week run at No.1 in the UK with the single Fame.
1987 - The Ozzy Osbourne Band started a 16 week tour of US prisons.
1993 - U2 scored their fifth UK No.1 album with Zooropa.
1993 - Guns N’ Roses appeared at River Plate Stadium in Buenos Aires, Argentina, in front of 80,000 people, the final show on their Use Your Illusion Tour. A highlight of the night was English drummer Cozy Powell playing drums with Matt Sorum, dressed as a Domino's Pizza delivery boy.
1995 - Robbie Williams left Take That, leaving them as a fab four, the group had scored six UK No.1 singles with Robbie in the group.
1996 - Died this day, Chas Chandler, he had been a member of The Animals and manager of Slade and Jimi Hendrix.
2004 - Half of the 4,500 people in the audience walked out of Linda Ronstadt's show at the Aladdin Resort and Casino in Las Vegas after the singer dedicated an encore of ‘Desperado’ to filmmaker Michael Moore and urged the crowd to see his film Fahrenheit 9/11.
2013 – The most popular song played on New Zealand radio over the past week is “Treasure” by Bruno Mars.
2013 - U2 singer Bono received France's highest cultural honour for his contribution to music and commitment to humanitarian causes when he was presented with the Commander of the Order of Arts and Letters by French Culture Minister Aurelie Filippetti in Paris.
1941 - Born this day, Spencer Davis, musician, guitarist, in Wales, Spencer Davis Group, 1966 UK No.1 single Keep On Running, Somebody Help Me, I'm A Man, 1967 US No.7 single Gimme Some Lovin.
1949 - Born this day, Mick Tucker, musician, drummer, Sweet, 1973 UK No.1 single Blockbuster, plus 14 other UK top 40 singles. Died of leukaemia on 14 February 2002.
1949 - Born on this day, Geezer Butler, bass, Black Sabbath, (1970 UK No.4 single 'Paranoid', the bands self-titled 1970 album was voted as the best British rock albums ever by Kerrang! in 2005)
1952 - Born this day, David Hasselhof, in Baltimore, Maryland, actor. (Revenge of the Cheerleaders, Baywatch, Knight Rider). Also well known and popular singer in Europe.
1952 - Born this day, Phoebe Snow [Laub], singer, songwriter, 1975 US No.5 single Poetry Man, 1979 UK No.37 single Every Night. (Theme from It's a Different World).
1959 - Died this day, Billie Holiday, [Eleanora Fagan Gough]. While under police arrest for narcotic addiction, singer Billie Holliday died at age 44 in Metropolitan Hospital in New York City. Holiday was one of the greatest blues singers in America. She had battled drug addiction for years, and was arrested twelve years earlier for possession of heroin for which she served one year and one day in prison. She was arrested while lying in her hospital bed just before she died.
She was born 7 April 1915 in Baltimore, Maryland, USA. In 1939 she introduced Strange Fruit and God Bless The Child. Also sang Loverman (Oh, Where Can You Be?). She was discovered by John Hammond. In 1933 Hammond organised her first recording session with Benny Goodman. She used the name 'Billie Holiday' because of her admiration for film star Billie Dove.
1968 - The Beatles animated film Yellow Submarine premiered at the London Pavilion. The song Yellow Submarine had become one of the group's greatest hits and served as inspiration for the movie. In the movie's psychedelic fantasy, the Beatles save Pepperland from the evil intentions of the Blue Meanies. It opens in America several months later.
1970 - Born on this day, Mandy Smith, in 1983 at age 13 she started dating the then 47 year old Rolling Stones bassist Bill Wyman. The couple married in 1989, divorced 1992. Smith became a singer, model and actress, released records with SAW none of which charted. Wyman's son dated Mandy's mother.
1971 - John Lennon and Yoko Ono appeared on the BBC late night talk show, Parkinson, where John chastised the British media for calling Yoko "ugly" and for saying that she broke up The Beatles.
1972 - A bomb exploded under The Rolling Stones equipment van in Montreal, believed to be the work of French separatists. Angry fans rioted throwing bottles and rocks after 3,000 tickets for the show turned out to be fake.
1978 - Andy Gibb started a seven week run at No.1 in the US singles charts with Shadow Dancing.
1979 - Gary Moore left Thin Lizzy during a US tour and was replaced by ex Slick & Rich Kids guitarist Midge Ure.
1982 - Irene Cara started a three week run at No.1 in the UK with the single Fame.
1987 - The Ozzy Osbourne Band started a 16 week tour of US prisons.
1993 - U2 scored their fifth UK No.1 album with Zooropa.
1993 - Guns N’ Roses appeared at River Plate Stadium in Buenos Aires, Argentina, in front of 80,000 people, the final show on their Use Your Illusion Tour. A highlight of the night was English drummer Cozy Powell playing drums with Matt Sorum, dressed as a Domino's Pizza delivery boy.
1995 - Robbie Williams left Take That, leaving them as a fab four, the group had scored six UK No.1 singles with Robbie in the group.
1996 - Died this day, Chas Chandler, he had been a member of The Animals and manager of Slade and Jimi Hendrix.
2004 - Half of the 4,500 people in the audience walked out of Linda Ronstadt's show at the Aladdin Resort and Casino in Las Vegas after the singer dedicated an encore of ‘Desperado’ to filmmaker Michael Moore and urged the crowd to see his film Fahrenheit 9/11.
2013 – The most popular song played on New Zealand radio over the past week is “Treasure” by Bruno Mars.
2013 - U2 singer Bono received France's highest cultural honour for his contribution to music and commitment to humanitarian causes when he was presented with the Commander of the Order of Arts and Letters by French Culture Minister Aurelie Filippetti in Paris.