On This Day In Music 10th April

1911 Martin Denny born in New York. Band Leader/Composer/Pianist. Best recalled tunes: “Quiet Village”, and “The Enchanted Sea”. Denny died in Honolulu on March 2, 2005, aged 93.
1921 Sheb Wooley (Shelby Wooley) born in Erick, Oklahoma. A.K.A. Ben Colder. He played Pete Nolan in the TV series ‘Rawhide’. He appeared in the Western movie High Noon in 1952.Wooley was diagnosed with leukemia in 1996. After seven years of battling the illness, he died at the age of 82 at the Skyline Medical Center in Nashville, Tennessee, on September 16, 2003. 
1928 Nate Nelson born in Chicago, IIIinois. US Lead Singer with the Flamingos & joined The Platters in 1965. He died on the 1st Jun 1984 (aged 52) in Boston, Suffolk County, Massachusetts from heart disease. 
1932 Bobbie Smith born in Detroit, Michigan. US Lead Singer with The Spinners, (1980 UK No.1 & US No.2 single ‘Working My Way Back To You’). He died from pneumonia and influenza on March 16, 2013 (aged 76).
1936 Ricky Valance, (born David Spencer), the first Welsh singer to score a UK No.1 with the 1960 single, ‘Tell Laura I Love Her.’ 
1940 Bunny Wailer (Neville O’Reilly Livingston) born in Kingston, Jamaica.. Jamaican Bassist, Singer & Conga Player with Bob Marley and the Wailers.
1947 Karl Russell born in Columbus, Ohio. US Singer with the Hues Corporation, but left the group before they had a hit with “Rock The Boat” in 1974.
1947 Burke Shelley born in Llanishen, Cardiff, Wales. Bass Guitarist, and vocalist Welsh rock group Budgie. (1971 single ‘Nude Disintegrating Parachutist Woman’). 
1947 Fred Smith born in New York. Bass Guitarist with Television, (1977 single and album ‘Marquee Moon’). 
1948 Eddie Hazel born in Brooklyn, New York City. American guitarist and singer in early funk music in the United States who played lead guitar with Parliament-Funkadelic. Hazel was a posthumous inductee of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, inducted in 1997 with fifteen other members of Parliament-Funkadelic. Funkadelic, (1978 US No.16 album ‘One Nation Under A Groove’). On December 23, 1992, Hazel died from internal bleeding and liver failure.
1950 Jane Clifton born in Spain. Australian Actress, Comediene & Singer. She had a hit with “Girl On The Wall” in 1984 & provided backing vocals on Jo Jo Zep’s hit “Taxi Mary”.
1951 Terre Roche born in New York. Singer/Songwriter with The Roches, worked with Paul Simon and Loudon Wainwright. 
1953 Nat King Cole was attacked on stage by a group of five racial segregationists during a show at the Municipal Hall in Birmingham, Alabama. The attackers were arrested by police and Cole returned later that night for a second show. 
1956 Leo Fender patents the successor to his popular “Telecaster” model of electric guitar, this time called the “Stratocaster.” 
1956 While performing at the Municipal Auditorium in Birmingham, Alabama, Nat King Cole is assaulted by five segregationists and tackled on stage, but local police quickly arrest the perpetrators, who had originally planned to kidnap the singer. Cole bravely performs a second show later that night. 
1956 Steven Gustafson born in Seville, Spain. Bass Guitarist with 10,000 Maniacs, (1993 UK No.47 single ‘Candy Everybody Wants’, 1994 US No.11 single ‘Because The Night’). 
1957 Ricky Nelson, 16, performs his first single, a cover of Fats Domino’s “I’m Walking,” on The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet, the TV series he stars in alongside his real-life family. The song quickly climbs the charts and launches his music career. 
1957 US singer Chuck Willis was killed in a car accident aged 30. Had the 1957 US No. 12 single ‘C.C. Rider’). 
1958 Bobby Darin recorded “Splish Splash”. 
1958 Brian Setzer born in New York, New York. US Leadsinger, Guitarist & songwriter, with The Stray Cats, (1980 UK No.9 single ‘Runaway Boys’, 1983 US No.3 single ‘Stray Cat Strut’), Brian Setzer Orchestra. 
1959 Babyface (Kenneth Edmonds) born in Indianapolis, Indiana. US Singer & Songwriter. 
1959 Katrina Leskanich born in Kansas. Lead Vocalist with Katrina And The Waves (1983 UK No.8 single ‘Walking On Sunshine’). 
1960 The Beatles former bass player Stuart Sutcliff died, (original bassist for eighteen months – January 1960 – June 1961). Sutcliff had stayed in Hamburg Germany after leaving the group. He died of a brain haemorrhage in an ambulance on the way to hospital, aged 22. 
1962 Mark Oliver Everett born in Virginia, United States.American lead singer, songwriter, guitarist, keyboardist and sometime drummer of the rock band Eels. 
1963 Alan ‘Reni’ Wren born in Manchester, England.English rock drummer with the Stone Roses. (1989 UK No.8 single ‘Fool’s Gold’, 1989 album, The Stone Roses’). 
1964 A British school in Wrexham, North Wales, asked parents to please keep children in school uniform and not to send them to school in ‘corduroy trousers’, like the ones worn by The Rolling Stones. 
1965 The last night of a twice- nightly UK package tour featuring Dusty Springfield, Heinz, The Zombies and Bobby Vee at The Sophia Gardens, Cardiff, Wales. 
1965 British acts started a run of seven weeks at the top of the US charts when Freddie and the Dreamers went to No.1 with ‘I’m Telling You Now’, followed by Wayne Fontana’s ‘Game Of Love’, Herman’s Hermits ‘Mr’s Brown’ and The Beatles ‘Ticket To Ride.’ 
1965 Marvin Gaye recorded his version of ‘I Heard It Through The Grapevine’. The song was first recorded by The Miracles and had also been a million seller in 1967 for Gladys Knight and the Pips. 
1967 On his 41st single release Cliff Richard had his ninth UK No.1 with ‘Congratulations’ the British entry in the 1968 Eurovision Song Contest. 
1968 Mike Mushok born in Ludlow, Massachusetts. American musician who is the lead guitarist for Saint Asonia. He is best known as the lead guitarist for the alternative metal band Staind. Mushok has also previously been a member of the band Newsted. Staind, (2001 US No.1 album, ‘Break The Cycle’, 2001 US No. 7 & UK No. 15 single ‘It’s Been A While’). 
1970 Doors singer Jim Morrison was dragged off stage by keyboardist Ray Manzarek during a concert in Boston, after Morrison asked the audience, ‘Would you like to see my genitals?’. Theater management quickly switched off the power. Morrison had been arrested in Miami a year earlier for “lewd and lascivious behavior” during a performance. 
1970 27 year-old Paul McCartney issued a press statement, announcing that The Beatles had split, (one week before the release of his solo album). McCartney said, “I have no future plans to record or appear with The Beatles again, or to write any music with John”. John Lennon, who had kept his much-earlier decision to leave The Beatles quiet for the sake of the others, was furious. When a reporter called Lennon to comment upon McCartney’s resignation, Lennon said, “Paul hasn’t left. I sacked him.” 
1970 Bobby Goldsboro recorded “Watching Scotty Grow”. 
1970 In publicity materials released to promote his first solo album, Paul McCartneyindicates that he’s done with The Beatles. 
1970 “Wild World” by Cat Stevens peaked at #11 on the US singles chart; it was parodied into “Microsoft Word” by Paul Anderson in 1994.
1971 The song, “Theme from ‘Shaft'” received an Academy Award for Best Original Song in a film in 1971. Isaac Hayes, the composer and artist for the recording, received a standing ovation during the presentation of his Oscar.
1971 Led Zeppelin’s album Houses Of The Holy is certified Gold 
1973 Peter Frampton went to No.1 on the US album chart with ‘Frampton Comes Alive’, the biggest selling ‘live’ album in rock history. It was the best-selling album of 1976, selling over 6 million copies in the US. Frampton Comes Alive! was voted “Album of the year” in the 1976 Rolling Stone readers poll. It stayed on the chart for 97 weeks. 
1976 The TV soundtrack album ‘Rock Follies’ started a two-week run at No.1 on the UK chart. Follies featured Julie Covington. 
1976 Stevie Wonder is featured in an ad in Down Beat magazine, endorsing the Mu-Tron III effects pedal, which uses synthesizer envelopes to create a wah effect for guitar. Wonder had used the pedal on his 1973 smash “Higher Ground.” 
1976 UK music weekly The Melody Maker reviewed a Sex Pistols gig with the words, ‘I hope we shall hear no more of them.’ 
1976 Sophie Ellis Bextor born in Hounslow, London, England. UK Singer, theaudience, (2000 UK No.25 single ‘If You Can’t Do It When You’re Young, When Can You Do It’), 2000 UK No.1 single with Spiller, ‘Groovejet, If This Ain’t Love’), Solo, (2001 UK No.2 single ‘Murder On The Dancefloor). Also a number 1 in Australia. 
1979 “Love You Inside Out” single by Bee Gees was certified Gold by the RIAA
1979 Italian composer Nino Rota, who won an Academy Award for Best Original Score for The Godfather Part II, dies at age 67 of heart failure. 
1979 Bryce Dane Soderberg born in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. Canadian musician and songwriter, best known as the bassist and vocalist for American rock band Lifehouse. (2001 US No.10 & UK No.25 single ‘Hanging By A Moment’). 
1980 Liz McClarnon born in Liverpool, England. Vocalist with Atomic Kitten, (2000 UK No.1 single ‘Whole Again’). 
1981 Iron Maiden scored their first UK No.1 album with ‘The Number Of The Beast.’ 
1982 Andrew Dost born in Cass City, Michigan. American musician, singer and current member of the indie rock band Fun., in which he plays several instruments, mainly the piano. Fun’s second album, ‘Some Nights’ saw the band score their first No.1 hit single, ‘We Are Young’. 
1983 Mandy Moore (Amanda Moore) born in Nashua, New Hampshire. US Singer. 
1984 Nate Nelson, lead vocalist for The Flamingos on their 1959 hit ‘I Only Have Eyes For You’, died of heart disease aged 52, a day after his wife had made a plea to his fans to find a heart for her ailing husband. 
1984 Madonna kicked off her very first North American tour by playing the first of three nights at the Paramount Theatre in Seattle, Washington. The Beastie Boys opened for Madonna on this 40-date Virgin Tour. 
1985 Pet Shop Boys were at No.1 on the UK singles chart with ‘Heart’, the duo’s fourth UK No.1. 
1988 George Michael and Madonna are “honored” at the 8th Golden Raspberry Awards, where the former Wham! singer takes Worst Original Song for “I Want Your Sex,” the #2 hit featured in Beverly Hills Cop II, and Madonna is named Worst Actress for her role as Nikki Finn in Who’s That Girl. It’s Madge’s second consecutive win in the category, having landed the prize the year before for her role in Shanghai Surprise. 
1988 The Cult release their fourth album, Sonic Temple, which peaks at #10 on the US chart. The album features some of The Cult’s biggest hits, including “Fire Woman,” “Sun King,” “Edie (Ciao Baby)” and “Sweet Soul Sister.” 
1989 Tom Waits took Doritos Chips to court for using a ‘Waits’, sound-alike on radio ads. The jury awarded him $2.475 million in punitive damages, Waits comments after the case, ‘now by law I have what I always felt I had…a distinctive voice.’ 
1990 Peter Noone of Herman’s Hermits guest stars as a rock star on the “Glitter Rock – April 12, 1974” episode of Quantum Leap. 
1991 Brash stand-up comedian Sam Kinison, who also appeared in several music videos (“Bad Medicine,” “Kickstart My Heart,” “Wild Thing”), dies at age 38 when his car is hit by a teenage drunk driver. 
1992 Depeche Mode’s eighth album, Songs of Faith and Devotion, reaches #1 in America, knocking Whitney Houston’s soundtrack from The Bodyguard off the top spot, and holding off challengers Eric Clapton, Kenny G and Sting. Inspired by the grunge scene, the band adds distorted guitars and live drums to their signature synth sound. 
1993 Mariah Carey went back to No.1 on the UK album chart for one week with ‘Music Box.’ 
1994 Over 5,000 fans attended a US public memorial service for Kurt Cobain at Seattle Flag Pavilion. 
1994 Lee Greenwood and wife, Kim, welcome a baby boy, Dalton Lee, in Nashville. 
1995 Limp Bizkit guitarist Wes Borland married Heather McMillan, the honeymoon was spent visiting amusement parks across the country. 
1998 Cleveland radio disc jockey Eddie O’Jay, a pioneer of R&B radio who inspired The O’Jays’ moniker and became their manager, dies at age 73. 
1998 The romantic drama City of Angelspremieres in theaters, starring Nicolas Cage as an angel who gives up eternal life to be with a mortal woman (Meg Ryan). The soundtrack features Alanis Morissette’s “Uninvited” and the Goo Goo Dolls’ “Iris.” Both songs were written specifically for the film. 
1998 TLC started a four week run at No.1 on the US singles chart with ‘No Scrubs.’ 
1999 The all-star tribute concert Here There and Everywhere: A Concert For Linda is held at London’s Royal Albert Hall, where Paul McCartney, George Michael, Chrissie Hynde (of The Pretenders), Elvis Costello and Sinead O’Connor raise money for animal charities while remembering Paul’s wife Linda, who has recently succumbed to breast cancer. 
2000 Bruce Springsteen won a court battle to keep the rights to his early songs. Ronald Winter of Masquerade Music had released the album ‘Before The Fame’ was found to be in breach of copyright. Springsteen was awarded more than £2m damages. 
2001 Sean Puffy Combs was stopped by police in Golden Beach, Miami who informed him that his driving license was suspended. Combs was not arrested because he claimed he was unaware of the suspension, but he was cited for the traffic violation. 
2001 Eminem was given 2 years probation and fined £1,800 and £3,600 costs after admitting carrying a concealed weapon. The charges followed an incident outside a club in Warren, Michigan last June when Eminem ‘pistol whipped’ John Guerra after he saw him kissing his wife. 
2001 South Carolina Governor James Hodges declares James Brown the state’s “Godfather Of Soul.” 
2002 American singer Little Eva died in Kinston, North Carolina, aged 59. She had the 1962 US No.1 & UK No.2 single ‘The Loco-Motion’. Eva was working as a babysitter for songwriters Carole King and Gerry Goffin who asked her to record the song they’d just written. ‘The Loco-Motion’ was also a hit for Grand Funk Railroad in 1974 (US No.1) and for Kylie Minogue in 1988 (US No.3). 
2003 Former Oak Ridge Boys member Noel Fox died at a Nashville hospital following a series of strokes aged 63. Fox sang with the Oak Ridge boys until 1972, and later became a music business executive. 
2003 The final episode of The Osbournes was aired on MTV in the UK. The show reached a peak audience of eight million at it’s height during a three year run, Ozzy was at a loss to explain its popularity, saying, “I suppose Americans get a kick out of watching a crazy Brit family like us make complete fools of ourselves every week.” 
2005 Actress Gwyneth Paltrow and Coldplay singer Chris Martin announced they had named their second child, a boy, Moses Martin. The couple also had a daughter named Apple. 
2006 Jazz singer Dakota Staton, known for the 1957 hit “The Late, Late Show,” dies at age 76. 
2007 The Hendersonville, Tennessee, house once owned by Johnny Cash burns to the ground. It had been purchased after Cash’s death by Barry Gibb of The Bee Gees, who planned to renovate it. 
2007 Blues musician Rocky Hill dies at age 62 of undisclosed medical complications 
2009 Robin Gibb’s orchestral production Titanic Requiem (released to mark the 100th anniversary of the sinking of The Titanic) premieres in London. 
2012 Kate Bush received her CBE for services to music from the Queen at an investiture ceremony at Windsor Castle, England. The singer-songwriter, who was catapulted to fame in 1978 when Wuthering Heights topped the charts, said she was “incredibly thrilled”. The 54-year-old dedicated the award to her family and joked that it would have pride of place at the top of her Christmas tree. 
2013 Doo-wop singer Richard Berry, composer and original performer of “Louie Louie,” is born in Extension, Louisiana.