January 6 – Today in Music History

1924 Bluegrass musician Earl Scruggs (The Bluegrass Boys, The Foggy Mountain Boys) is born near Boiling Springs, North Carolina. 
1929 Wilbert Harrison born in Charlotte, North Carolina. US Singer/Songwriter, 1959 US No.1 single ‘Kansas City.’ Wrote ‘Let’s Work Together’ hit for Canned Heat & Bryan Ferry. 
1934 Country musician Bobby Lord is born in Sanford, Florida, but is raised in Tampa. His biggest hit on the country chart would be “Without Your Love” (1956) at #10. 
1935 Nino Tempo born in New York. US Musician. Nino & his singing sister April Stevens had a best seller in 1963 with Deep Purple. 
1937 R&B singer-songwriter Doris Troy is born Doris Elaine Higginsen in The Bronx, New York. Troy died on February 16, 2004 from emphysema at her home in Las Vegas, Nevada, aged 67.
1944 Van McCoy born in Washington, D.C. UK Singer/Songwriter/Producer. McCoy died from a heart attack in Englewood, New Jersey, on July 6, 1979, at the age of 39. (1975 US No.1 & UK No.3 single ‘The Hustle’). Produced Gladys Knight & Aretha Franklin. 
1946 Syd Barrett born in Cambridge, England. Was an English musician, composer, singer, songwriter, and painter. Best known as a founder member of the band Pink Floyd, Barrett was the lead singer, guitarist and principal songwriter in its early years and is credited with naming the band. Barrett was excluded from Pink Floyd in April 1968 after David Gilmour took over as their new frontman, and was briefly hospitalized amid speculation of mental illness. Barrett died from complications arising from diabetes aged 60 on 7th July 2006. 
1947 Sandy Denny born in Merton Park, London, England. UK folk singer and member of Fairport Convention. She died on April 21st 1978 after falling down the stairs at a friend’s house. She sang on the Fairport Convention 1969 UK No.21 single ‘Si Tu Dois Partir’ and also worked as a solo artist. She is featured on the Led Zeppelin track ‘Battle Of Evermore’ on the bands fourth album. 
1951 Blues singer Kim Wilson (Fabulous Thunderbirds) is born in Detroit, Michigan, but will be raised in Goleta, California. 
1953 Malcolm Young born in Glasgow, Scotland. Rhythm Guitarist with AC/DC, His younger brother Angus is lead Guitarist. Malcolm & Angus are the only twooriginal member in the band. (1980 UK No.36 single ‘Whole Lotta Rosie’. 1980 UKNo.1 & US No.14 album ‘Ba
1956 Elvis Presley performed in the gym at Randolph High School, Mississippi; this was the last time he ever appeared in a small auditorium. 
1958 Gibson guitars launched it’ ‘Flying V’ electric guitar. Guitarists who played a Flying V include, Albert Collins, Jimi Hendrix, Marc Bolan and Billy Gibbons from ZZ Top. 
1959 Kathy Sledge born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. US Singer. She is the youngest sister in Sister Sledge, (1979 US No.2 single ‘We Are Family’, 1985 UK No.1 ‘Frankie’). 
1960 Muzz Skillings, bass, Living Colour, (1991 UK No.12 single ‘Love Rears Its Ugly Head’). 
1962 Elvis Presley had his third UK No.1 album with ‘Blue Hawaii’; it spent a total of 18 weeks at the top of the charts. 
1962 Cliff Richard & The Shadows went to No.1 on the Australian Singles Chart with ‘When The Girl In Your Arms Is The Girl In Your Heart’. 
1964 Mark O’Toole born in Walton, Liverpool, England. UK Bass Player with Frankie Goes To Hollywood, (1984 UK No.1 & US No.10 single ‘Relax’ and six other UK Top 40 singles). 
1964 The first night of a 14 date UK tour ‘Group Scene 1964’, featuring The Rolling Stones, The Ronettes, Marty Wilde, The Swinging Blue Jeans and Dave Berry and The Cruisers, played at the Granada Theatre, Harrow on The Hill, Middlesex. 
1966 The Beatles’ “Day Tripper” b/w “We Can Work It Out” is certified gold. 
1967 The Who played their first gig of this year when they appeared at Morecambe, Central Pier in England. 
1968 Irish singer Val Doonican was at No.1 on the UK album chart with ‘Val Doonican Rocks, But Gently’. 
1968 The Beatles ‘Magical Mystery Tour’ started an eight week run at No.1 on the US album chart, the group’s 11th US chart topper. 
1968 Gibson patents their “Flying V” electric guitar. 
1970 Crosby Stills Nash & Young made their UK live debut at the Royal Albert Hall, London. 
1973 Carly Simon’s ‘You’re So Vain’, (with Mick Jagger on backing vocals), started a three week run at No.1 on the US singles chart. 
1975 Pink Floyd started sessions start at Abbey Road Studios London for their next album ‘Wish You Were Here’. 
1975 The mayor of Boston cancelled a Led Zeppelin concert after over 2,000 fans rioted trying to buy tickets. The fans caused an estimated $50,000 to $75,000 damage at Boston Garden. The gig during the bands North American tour was rescheduled for Feb 4th. 
1977 KISS’ Rock And Roll Over album is certified platinum. 
1977 EMI Records dropped The Sex Pistols, giving the band £40,000 ($68,000) to release them from their contract. 
1979 The Bee Gees started a two week run at No.1 on the US singles chart with ‘Too Much Heaven’ the group’s 7th US No.1. 
1979 Showaddywaddy went to No.1 on the UK chart with their ‘Greatest Hits’ compilation. 
1979 The Village People scored their only UK No.1 single with ‘Y.M.C.A.’ At its peak the single was selling over 150,000 copies a day. In the gay culture from which the group sprang, the song was understood as celebrating the YMCA’s reputation as a popular cruising and hookup spot. 
1980 Georgeanna Gordon singer with Motown girl group The Marvelettes died aged 46. (1961 US No.1 single ‘Please Mr Postman’). 
1986 Alex Turner born in High Green, Sheffield. is an English musician, singer, and songwriter. He is the lead vocalist, guitarist, and principal songwriter of the English indie rock band Arctic Monkeys. Turner has also recorded with a side-project called The Last Shadow Puppets and as a solo artist. (2005, UK No.1 single ‘I Bet You Look Good On The Dancefloor’, 2006 UK No.1 album ‘Whatever People Say I Am That’s What I’m Not’). 
1987 Eric Clapton started what became an annual event by playing six shows at the Royal Albert Hall, London. 
1988 George Michael went to No.1 on the Australian Singles chart with ‘Faith’ staying at the top spot for 2wks. 
1989 The biggest selling UK album artists of 1988 were, No.5, Dire Straits, No.4, U2, No.3, Michael Jackson, No.2, Kylie Minogue and No.1, Fleetwood Mac. 
1990 Phil Collins started a three-week run at No.1 on the US album chart with ‘…But Seriously’. 
1992 Steve Gilpin, lead singer for NZ band Mi-Sex, ded aged 41. He had been in a coma since a car accident in November 1991.
1993 It was reported that David Bowie had lost over £2.5 million ($4.25 million) in unpaid royalties to an Italian Mafia-linked bootleg fraud. 
1996 James Brown’s wife Adrienne died in a Los Angeles hospital aged 47 after suffering a heart attack during a major plastic surgery operation. 
1997 Two bronze busts worth £50,000 were stolen from a garden at George Harrison’s estate in Henley-on- Thames, Oxfordshire. Thieves had climbed a 10- foot-wall and cut the figures of two monks from their stone plinths. 
2001 Pink Floyd guitarist David Gilmour won the right to his dot com name. Dave took legal action in his battle to reclaim davidgilmour.comfrom Andrew Herman who had registered the URL and was selling Pink Floyd merchandise through the site. 
2002 Daniel Bedingfield went back to No.1 on the UK singles chart for the second time with ‘Gotta Get Thru This’. 
2004 Feargal Sharkey, the former lead singer with The Undertones was made Head of The Live Music Forum a body to promote music in the UK. 
2005 US CD sales rose for the first time in four years. The CD format accounted for 98% of the 666 million albums sold, according to research company Nielsen Soundscan. A total of 140 million digital tracks were legally downloaded during 2004, equivalent to 14 million albums. R&B star Usher was the biggest-selling artist with his album ‘Confessions’ selling eight million copies. Other top sellers of the year were Norah Jones, Eminem and country stars Kenny Chesney and Gretchen Wilson. The UK recorded a record year for album sales in 2004, with 237 million sold The Scissor Sisters proved the most popular album of the year, followed by Keane and Maroon 5. 
2006 Ms Dynamite was charged with assaulting a police officer and disorderly conduct. The singer allegedly punched a female officer in the face, bruising her nose, while in custody. She had been arrested after allegedly kicking the door to the Paragon Lounge night-club in London and was said to have been abusive towards officers who questioned her. 
2006 American soul, jazz, singer Lou Rawls died at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. The 72-year-old, Grammy-winning artist had been battling lung cancer. Rawls had the 1976 US No.2 & UK No.10 single ‘You’ll Never Find Another Love Like Mine’. 
2006 A collection of Elvis Presley memorabilia bought by a council worker who embezzled nearly £600,000 was set to be sold to compensate the local authority. Julie Wall, 46, from Rippon Drive in Sleaford, was jailed for three years for the offence last October. The collection – which included rare recordings and foreign pressings of Elvis songs, was to be auctioned off by a High Court receiver to provide compensation. 
2006 Guitarist, trumpeter and drummer Alex St. Claire died. Member of The Omens, The Solid Senders and an original member of Captain Beefheart and his Magic Band and Frank Zappa. 
2007 US country-rock steel guitar player ‘Sneaky’ Pete Kleinow, died aged 72. He was one of the original members of the Flying Burrito Brothers with the Byrds’ Chris Hillman and Gram Parsons. Also worked with John Lennon and Joni Mitchell. 
2014 Jason Derulo went to No.1 on the Australian Singles Chart with “Trumpets”, staying at No.1 for one week. 
2017 Norway announced that it would become the first country in the world to gradually stop using the FM radio network. The move, which aimed to ditch the analogue platform in favour of a digital one called Digital Audio Broadcasting, would bring a clearer sound to the nation’s five million people.