TODAY IN HISTORY – JUNE 15th
1937 - Born this day, Waylon Jennings, in Littlefield, Texas, US country singer, played bass with Buddy Holly in 1959 (gave up his plane seat to the Big Bopper on the ill-fated flight). 1980 US No.21 single Theme From The Dukes Of Hazzard. Died 13 February 2002. (another source suggests born 1933).
1941 - Born on this day, Harry Nilsson, US singer, songwriter, (1972 UK & US No.1 single with his version of The Badfinger song 'Without You', 1969 US No.6 single 'Everybody's Talkin' from the film Midnight Cowboy'). The Monkees, Three Dog Night & Ronettes all covered his songs. He died on January 15th 1994.
1949 - Born on this day, Russell Hitchcock, vocals, Air Supply, (1980 UK No.11 single 'All Out Of Love', 1981 US No.1 single 'The One That You Love').
1950 - Born this day, [Neville] Noddy Holder, guitar, songwriter, vocals, Slade, 1971 UK No.1 single Coz I Luv You, plus 5 other UK No.1 singles and 18 UK top 40 hits, now a radio and TV presenter and actor.
1956 - Sixteen-year-old John Lennon of the music group, The Quarrymen, met 14-year-old Paul McCartney and invited him to join the group. In a few years, the group became The Beatles.
1961 - On this weeks UK singles chart: No.5, Clarence Frogman Henry, 'But I Do', No.4, Ricky Nelson, 'Hello Marylou', No.3, The Shadows, 'The Frightened City', No.2, Del Shannon, 'Runaway', No.1, Elvis Presley, 'Surrender.'
1964 - Born this day, Courteney Cox Arquette, in Birmingham, Alabama, actress. (Monica on Friends). Also appeared in the video for Bruce Springsteen’s “Dancing in The Dark” in 1984.
1965 - Bob Dylan recorded his first 'electric' hit, Like A Rolling Stone.
1974 - ABBA's second album (but first UK release), 'Waterloo' entered the UK chart for the first time peaking at No.28. The album's title track won ABBA the 1974 Eurovision Song Contest.
1974 - Ray Stevens was at No.1 on the UK singles chart with a song about the latest British craze of running naked in a public place called The Streak.
1976 - Born on this day, Gary Lightbody, guitar, vocals, Snow Patrol, (2006 UK No.1 album ‘Eyes Open’, 2006 UK No.6 single ‘Chasing Cars’).
1977 - The Sex Pistols held a party on a boat as it sailed down The River Thames in London. The Pistols performed 'Anarchy In The UK' outside The Houses Of Parliament resulting in members from the party being arrested when the boat docked later that day.
1982 - Pete Farndon bass player with The Pretenders was fired from the group, he went to form a group with Topper Headon from The Clash. Farndon was found dead in his bath on 14 April 1983.
1985 - Dire Straits started a nine week run at No.1 on the US album chart with Brothers In Arms.
1988 - During Bruce Springsteen’s stay in Rome during a world tour, paparazzi took a shot of Bruce in his underpants sharing an intimate moment with his backing singer Patti Scialfa. The picture confirmed the rumour that Bruce and Patti were having an affair.
1989 - Nirvana's debut album 'Bleach' was released in the US. The title for the album came from a poster 'Bleach Your Works' urging drug users to bleach their needles. Kurt Cobain claimed that most of the lyrics on the album were written the night before recording while he was feeling "pissed off", and that he did not regard them highly.
1991 - Paula Abdul started a five week run at No.1 on the US singles chart with 'Rush Rush', her 5th US No.1, a No.6 hit in the UK.
1996 - US jazz singer Ella Fitzgerald died in Beverly Hills, California, aged 79. Already blinded by the effects of diabetes, Fitzgerald had both her legs amputated in 1993. Winner of 13 Grammy Awards, the 1956 'Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Cole Porter Songbook' was the first of eight "Songbook" sets. Appeared in the TV commercial for Memorex, where she sang a note that shattered a glass while being recorded on a Memorex cassette tape. The tape was played back and the recording also broke the glass, asking "Is it live, or is it Memorex"
2002 - A rare autographed copy of The Beatles' album Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band sold at auction for £34,000 ($57,800), more than five times the estimated price.
2005 - Coldplay went straight to No.1 on US album chart with their third album 'X&Y', having already entered at number one in the UK. The last time a British artist had a simultaneous US and UK number one was in November 2000 with '1', a compilation of hits by The Beatles. The last studio album to reach number one on both sides of the Atlantic was Radiohead's 'Kid A' in October 2000. 'X&Y' went on to top over 30 global charts.
2010 - A case against a man accused of threatening Elton John's life was withdrawn just hours before his trial was due to begin. Neal Horsley had responded to Elton's suggestion that Jesus Christ was gay in a Parade magazine interview by writing an angry online response entitled "Why Elton John Must Die". After being held in an Atlanta, Georgia jail since last March, Fulton County Superior Court Judge Kimberly Esmond Adams dismissed the case against Horsley because his actions did not warrant criminal charges.
2011 – Two men are arrested not far from 24 year old English singer, Joss Stone’s, home. Detectives found them near her home in a Devon village and their car was found to contain an arsenal of weapons as well as rope, a sword and body bag.
2013 - A 24-year-old woman died in hospital after falling at the Stone Roses concert in Glasgow. The woman was among 50,000 fans who attended a gig at Glasgow Green to hear the Manchester indie band. Police also Police made a total of 24 arrests during and after the concert for anti-social and drugs offences.
1937 - Born this day, Waylon Jennings, in Littlefield, Texas, US country singer, played bass with Buddy Holly in 1959 (gave up his plane seat to the Big Bopper on the ill-fated flight). 1980 US No.21 single Theme From The Dukes Of Hazzard. Died 13 February 2002. (another source suggests born 1933).
1941 - Born on this day, Harry Nilsson, US singer, songwriter, (1972 UK & US No.1 single with his version of The Badfinger song 'Without You', 1969 US No.6 single 'Everybody's Talkin' from the film Midnight Cowboy'). The Monkees, Three Dog Night & Ronettes all covered his songs. He died on January 15th 1994.
1949 - Born on this day, Russell Hitchcock, vocals, Air Supply, (1980 UK No.11 single 'All Out Of Love', 1981 US No.1 single 'The One That You Love').
1950 - Born this day, [Neville] Noddy Holder, guitar, songwriter, vocals, Slade, 1971 UK No.1 single Coz I Luv You, plus 5 other UK No.1 singles and 18 UK top 40 hits, now a radio and TV presenter and actor.
1956 - Sixteen-year-old John Lennon of the music group, The Quarrymen, met 14-year-old Paul McCartney and invited him to join the group. In a few years, the group became The Beatles.
1961 - On this weeks UK singles chart: No.5, Clarence Frogman Henry, 'But I Do', No.4, Ricky Nelson, 'Hello Marylou', No.3, The Shadows, 'The Frightened City', No.2, Del Shannon, 'Runaway', No.1, Elvis Presley, 'Surrender.'
1964 - Born this day, Courteney Cox Arquette, in Birmingham, Alabama, actress. (Monica on Friends). Also appeared in the video for Bruce Springsteen’s “Dancing in The Dark” in 1984.
1965 - Bob Dylan recorded his first 'electric' hit, Like A Rolling Stone.
1974 - ABBA's second album (but first UK release), 'Waterloo' entered the UK chart for the first time peaking at No.28. The album's title track won ABBA the 1974 Eurovision Song Contest.
1974 - Ray Stevens was at No.1 on the UK singles chart with a song about the latest British craze of running naked in a public place called The Streak.
1976 - Born on this day, Gary Lightbody, guitar, vocals, Snow Patrol, (2006 UK No.1 album ‘Eyes Open’, 2006 UK No.6 single ‘Chasing Cars’).
1977 - The Sex Pistols held a party on a boat as it sailed down The River Thames in London. The Pistols performed 'Anarchy In The UK' outside The Houses Of Parliament resulting in members from the party being arrested when the boat docked later that day.
1982 - Pete Farndon bass player with The Pretenders was fired from the group, he went to form a group with Topper Headon from The Clash. Farndon was found dead in his bath on 14 April 1983.
1985 - Dire Straits started a nine week run at No.1 on the US album chart with Brothers In Arms.
1988 - During Bruce Springsteen’s stay in Rome during a world tour, paparazzi took a shot of Bruce in his underpants sharing an intimate moment with his backing singer Patti Scialfa. The picture confirmed the rumour that Bruce and Patti were having an affair.
1989 - Nirvana's debut album 'Bleach' was released in the US. The title for the album came from a poster 'Bleach Your Works' urging drug users to bleach their needles. Kurt Cobain claimed that most of the lyrics on the album were written the night before recording while he was feeling "pissed off", and that he did not regard them highly.
1991 - Paula Abdul started a five week run at No.1 on the US singles chart with 'Rush Rush', her 5th US No.1, a No.6 hit in the UK.
1996 - US jazz singer Ella Fitzgerald died in Beverly Hills, California, aged 79. Already blinded by the effects of diabetes, Fitzgerald had both her legs amputated in 1993. Winner of 13 Grammy Awards, the 1956 'Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Cole Porter Songbook' was the first of eight "Songbook" sets. Appeared in the TV commercial for Memorex, where she sang a note that shattered a glass while being recorded on a Memorex cassette tape. The tape was played back and the recording also broke the glass, asking "Is it live, or is it Memorex"
2002 - A rare autographed copy of The Beatles' album Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band sold at auction for £34,000 ($57,800), more than five times the estimated price.
2005 - Coldplay went straight to No.1 on US album chart with their third album 'X&Y', having already entered at number one in the UK. The last time a British artist had a simultaneous US and UK number one was in November 2000 with '1', a compilation of hits by The Beatles. The last studio album to reach number one on both sides of the Atlantic was Radiohead's 'Kid A' in October 2000. 'X&Y' went on to top over 30 global charts.
2010 - A case against a man accused of threatening Elton John's life was withdrawn just hours before his trial was due to begin. Neal Horsley had responded to Elton's suggestion that Jesus Christ was gay in a Parade magazine interview by writing an angry online response entitled "Why Elton John Must Die". After being held in an Atlanta, Georgia jail since last March, Fulton County Superior Court Judge Kimberly Esmond Adams dismissed the case against Horsley because his actions did not warrant criminal charges.
2011 – Two men are arrested not far from 24 year old English singer, Joss Stone’s, home. Detectives found them near her home in a Devon village and their car was found to contain an arsenal of weapons as well as rope, a sword and body bag.
2013 - A 24-year-old woman died in hospital after falling at the Stone Roses concert in Glasgow. The woman was among 50,000 fans who attended a gig at Glasgow Green to hear the Manchester indie band. Police also Police made a total of 24 arrests during and after the concert for anti-social and drugs offences.