In 1958, the first hit compilation album, Johnny Mathis' 'Johnny's Greatest Hits,' entered the Billboard chart and stayed there for almost 9½ years, a tenure record that remained unbroken until 1982 when it was surpassed by Pink Floyd's "Dark Side Of The Moon."
In 1959, The Fleetwoods sing their current #1 hit "Come Softly To Me" on The Ed Sullivan Show. The song was written as "Come Softly", but the owner of Dolphin Records, Bob Reisdorf, added "To Me" because he thought the original title might be considered risqué and would not receive radio play. It's interesting to note that the title phrase never appears in the song's lyrics.
In 1961, Barbra Streisand made her network television debut when she appeared on NBC's "Tonight With Jack Paar," with guest host Orson Bean. Bean had recently performed with her in a nightclub and invited her to be on the late-night program for some national exposure when he filled in for Paar. She sang "A Sleeping Bee" and "When The Sun Comes Out." Phyllis Diller and Gore Vidal were also on the show.
In 1962, the Beatles performed at the Cavern Club in Liverpool as part of a special night presented by the Beatles' fan club. The Beatles wear their black leather outfits for the first half of the performance, for old time's sake, then change into their new suits for the second half of the show.
In 1964, the Searchers made their U.S. debut by appearing on CBS-TV's "The Ed Sullivan Show," singing "Needles and Pins" and "Ain't That Just Like Me."
In 1965, 30 year old Sonny Bono and his 18 year old wife Cher are signed to Atco Records by Ahmet Ertegun. The duo had earlier made a handful of unsuccessful singles as Caesar and Cleo, but over the next seven years they would enjoy eleven Billboard Top 40 hits.
In 1967, Paul McCartney flies to America to attend girlfriend Jane Asher's 21st birthday party in Denver, Colorado. He gave her a large diamond ring, which she later lost.
Also in 1967, in London, Monkees fans marched in protest of the announced Army induction of band member Davy Jones. The teen heartthrob was eventually exempted from duty because he was his family's main provider.
In 1967, Elvis Presley's 24th feature film, "Double Trouble," co-starring Annette Day, Yvonne Romain, and John Williams, opened in U.S. and Canadian movie theaters.
In 1968, after riots had broken out in 30 US cities, James Brown made a national television appeal for calm in the wake of the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
In 1969, "These Eyes" by The Guess Who enters the Billboard chart on its way to #6 a month later. Guitarist Randy Bachman wrote the basic piano chords with an original title of "These Arms". Vocalist Burton Cummings changed the title to "These Eyes" and added the middle eight bars.
In 1970, the Temptations performed "Psychedelic Shack" on CBS-TV's "The Ed Sullivan Show."
In 1971, Chicago became the first American Rock group to perform at Carnegie Hall. They played six sold out shows and recorded the concerts for the four-record album, "Chicago at Carnegie Hall", which became their third LP to make the top 5 in the US.
In 1972, Elvis Presley kicked of a 15 date US tour at the Memorial Auditorium in Buffalo, New York.
Minnie Riperton was at #1 on the U.S. singles chart in 1975 (2 in the U.K.) with the Stevie Wonder produced “Loving You” – her only U.S. chart hit. Riperton died of cancer on 12 July 1979.
In 1977, David Bowie appeared on Dinah Shore's TV special.
In 1977, Jackson Browne, John Sebastian and others raised $150,000 at an environmental charity concert in Tokyo.
In 1978, Duran Duran made their live debut at The Lecture Theatre, Birmingham Polytechnic.
In 1980, R.E.M. played their first ever gig when they appeared at St. Mary’s Episcopal Church, Athens, Georgia.
In 1981, Canned Heat singer Bob “The Bear” Hite died of a heart attack at age 36. The band played at both the 1967 Montery Pop Festival and the 1969 Woodstock Festival.
In 1982, after 36 years, the record industry trade magazine Record World ceased publication and filed for bankruptcy protection.
In 1983, US Interior Secretary James Watt officially announces that he will not invite The Beach Boys and The Grass Roots to perform at the annual Fourth of July celebration in Washington because they attract "the wrong element of people." His choice of entertainers is Wayne Newton. President Ronald Regan would overturn the decision two days later.
In 1983, Danny Rapp, leader of 50's group Danny and the Juniors committed suicide in a hotel in Arizona by shooting himself.
In 1984, Marvin Gaye’s funeral took place at Forest Lawn Cemetery, Los Angeles. Smokey Robinson, Stevie Wonder, Quincy Jones, Berry Gordy and other Motown singers, writers and producers attended the service.
In 1985, an estimated 5,000 radio stations around the world simultaneously played the song "We Are the World".
In 1987, Buddy Rich's funeral in Los Angeles also drew notable mourners, including Frank Sinatra, Artie Shaw, and Johnny Carson.
On April 5, 1994, Kurt Cobain committed suicide at his home in Seattle. Cobain’s body wasn’t discovered until April 8, by an electrician who had arrived to install a security system, who initially believed that Cobain was asleep, until he saw the shotgun pointing at his chin. A suicide note was found that said, “I haven’t felt the excitement of listening to as well as creating music, along with really writing ... for too many years now.”
In 1995, Jimi Hendrix's former girlfriend, Monika Danneman, committed suicide after losing a court case brought by another former Hendrix lover, Kathy Etchingham. The two women had disputed the circumstances of the guitarist's death, which led in 1993 to the police reopening their inquiries into the incident.
In 1998, British drummer Cozy Powell was killed when his car smashed into crash barriers on a motorway in Bristol, England. Powell had worked with Whitesnake, Emerson, Lake & Palmer, Black Sabbath, Rainbow and the ELP spin-off Emerson, Lake & Powell. Plus he did session work with Donovan, Roger Daltrey, Jack Bruce, Jeff Beck, Gary Moore and Brian May.
In 1998, in front of an audience of 9,000 people in Glasgow, Scotland, the Spice Girls gave their first concert.
In 2003, in Melbourne, Australia on the eve of the Iraq War, Carlos Santana declared on stage, "We are the architects of the world and our agenda is different to Saddam Hussein and George Bush. Dignity and grace are our weapons - unity, salvation and elegance."
In 2006, Gene Pitney was found dead at age 65 in his bed in a Cardiff hotel. The American singer was on a U.K. tour and had shown no signs of illness. Pitney helped The Rolling Stones break the American market with his endorsement of the band. Mick Jagger and Keith Richards wrote his hit “That Girl Belongs to Yesterday,” which became the Stones duo’s first composition to reach the American charts. He scored the 1962 U.S. #4 single “Only Love Can Break a Heart,” plus more than 15 other U.S. and U.K. Top 40 hits.
In 2007, Former KISS guitarist Mark St. John died from an apparent brain hemorrhage at the age of 51. St. John was KISS’s third official guitarist, having replaced Vinnie Vincent in 1984 and appeared on the album Animalize.
In 2008, Apple’s iTunes overtook Wal-Mart to become the largest music retailer in the U.S. Market research firm NPD said iTunes surpassed Wal-Mart in January and February if 12 downloads are considered equal to the sale of one CD album. At that point, iTunes had sold more than four billion songs since its launch in 2003.
In 2008, Danity Kane were at #1 on the US album chart with their second album 'Welcome To The Dollhouse'.
In 2008, in Seoul, South Korea, Toto performed their last concert before disbanding.
In 2011, the Recording Academy announced a major streamlining of its Grammy categories, cutting them from 109 down to 78. Gone are awards for Best Male and Female Vocal in the Pop, Country and R&B genres, Pop and Country collaboration, and Best Pop, Rock and Instrumental Performances. In all, 52 awards were eliminated and 21 were created.
In 2011, a statue in tribute to Nirvana singer Kurt Cobain was unveiled in his hometown of Aberdeen, Washington, The unveiling marked the 17th anniversary of Cobain's death, which occurred on April 5, 1994. The statue designed by local artists Kim and Lora Malakoff was of his signature Fender Jag-Stang guitar. The concrete guitar was eight and a half feet tall and also featured a ribbon with lyrics written on it from Nirvana's 'On a Plain'. It reads: "One more special message to go and then I'm done and I can go home."
In 2012, Jim Marshall, who made rock ’n’ roll rawer and noisier by inventing the Marshall amplifier died at a hospice in London, aged 88. His amplifiers and speakers known as 'Marshall stacks' were used by Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton, Jimmy Page and almost every other major rock guitarist in the ’60s and ’70s and by the next generation of guitarists as well, including Kurt Cobain, Eddie Van Halen and Slash.
In 2012, the Los Angeles County coroner released Whitney Houston's final autopsy report which showed the singer drowned face down in a tub of "extremely hot water" about 12 inches deep. Her death was ruled an accidental drowning with the "effects of atherosclerotic heart disease and cocaine use" as contributing factors.
birthdays today include: Mike McCready Pearl Jam (1966), Agnetha Faltskog ABBA (1950) and Dave Holland of Judas Priest (1944) among others.