2006Gnarls Barkley's "Crazy" makes history by becoming the UK's first-ever #1 single to top the chart solely on download sales.More
1977Fleetwood Mac's Rumours album hits #1 in America for the first time. It spends an astonishing 31 (non-consecutive) weeks at the top spot.
1967An overzealous audience member throws a smoke bomb onto the stage at The Rolling Stones concert at the Town Hall in Vienna, Austria, leading to a riot and the arrest of 154 fans.
1966Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass become the first act with four albums in the US Top 10 simultaneously. Alpert's albums spend more weeks at #1 in 1966 than The Beatles'.
1964It's a big day for The Beach Boys, who record their first #1 hit, "I Get Around," and also fire their manager, Murry Wilson, who happens to be the father of three of the band members, including leader Brian Wilson, who feels his dad is hindering their progress with unwelcome critiques at their recording sessions.
2011LCD Soundsystem play their final ever gig at Madison Square Garden in New York City. The show lasts four hours and features Arcade Fire and Reggie Watts.
2009Texas-born guitarist Freddie Everett dies at age 49 after a long battle with ALS (Lou Gehrig's disease).
2003Soul singer Edwin Starr dies at age 61 of a heart attack while taking a bath at his home near Nottingham, England.
1998Robert Pilatus of Milli Vanilli dies at age 32 after overdosing on a combination of drugs and alcohol.
1997After 32 years, Joni Mitchell is reunited with her first daughter, Kilauren Gibb. Joni gave the child up for adoption at the start of her career.
1996Blues musician Guitar Gabriel dies at age 70.
1991Lenny Kravitz releases his second album, Mama Said, which will bring him international acclaim with a #8 spot on the UK Albums Chart (#39 in the US).
1991The Rolling Stones release Flashpoint, a live album recorded throughout their Steel Wheels/Urban Jungle Tour.
1987Jazz drummer Buddy Rich dies at age 69 of heart failure after surgery for a malignant brain tumor.
1973The Beatles release two compilation albums: The Beatles 1962-1966 and The Beatles 1967-1970. Both will land in the Top 10 on the US and UK albums charts, with 1967-1970 hitting #1 in the US.
1970Janis Joplin get tattoos on her wrist and heart, the one on her chest reading "One For The Boys."
1969Frank Sinatra's "My Way" enters the charts in the US, where it reaches #27.
1967Steve Winwood leaves The Spencer Davis Group to form Traffic with Jim Capaldi, Chris Wood and Dave Mason.
Marvin Gaye Is Born
1939
Marvin Gaye is born Marvin Pentz Gay Jr. in Washington, DC.
As Marvin Pentz Gay Jr., he's a pastor's kid who earns favor by singing in church from the time he is four years old. The kid grows up to be a troubled teenager who escapes the abuse at home by singing in various doo-wop groups and running away to serve an ill-fated stint in the Army. He even finds mild success as a session singer and member of the vocal quartet The Marquees. But that's where the story of Marvin Pentz Gay Jr. ends and the story of Marvin Gaye begins.
After being discovered by The Moonglows' Harvey Fuqua, the singer adds the 'e' to his surname, allegedly to halt questions about his sexuality but also to sever the connection to his abusive father. As Marvin Gaye, the singer helps shape the Motown sound with solo hits like "How Sweet It Is To Be Loved By You" and "I Heard It Through the Grapevine" and a string of duets with Tammi Terrell ("Ain't No Mountain High Enough," "Ain't Nothing Like The Real Thing").
Although ten albums had established his reputation as The Prince of Soul throughout the '60s, Gaye's private life is a royal mess. His marriage to Anna Gordy - Motown founder Berry Gordy's sister - is in shambles, he is addicted to cocaine, hunted by the IRS, and he watches Tammi Terrell die in his arms (of a malignant brain tumor). His dreams of becoming a professional football player for the Detroit Lions are also shattered.
By 1971, he has every right to ask What's Going On? But his next album is not about his own troubles, but the troubles going on in the world through the eyes of a Vietnam veteran, such as police brutality ("What's Going On"), poverty ("Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler)") and environmental issues ("Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology)"). The landmark album, written and produced by Gaye, proves that soul music can be both sexy and socially conscious.
Gaye continues to record six more albums throughout the '70s and early '80s until he is fatally shot by his father when the two fight on April 1, 1984, just one day before his 45th birthday. Gay Sr. is eventually charged with voluntary manslaughter and given a suspended six-year sentence and probation.
After being discovered by The Moonglows' Harvey Fuqua, the singer adds the 'e' to his surname, allegedly to halt questions about his sexuality but also to sever the connection to his abusive father. As Marvin Gaye, the singer helps shape the Motown sound with solo hits like "How Sweet It Is To Be Loved By You" and "I Heard It Through the Grapevine" and a string of duets with Tammi Terrell ("Ain't No Mountain High Enough," "Ain't Nothing Like The Real Thing").
Although ten albums had established his reputation as The Prince of Soul throughout the '60s, Gaye's private life is a royal mess. His marriage to Anna Gordy - Motown founder Berry Gordy's sister - is in shambles, he is addicted to cocaine, hunted by the IRS, and he watches Tammi Terrell die in his arms (of a malignant brain tumor). His dreams of becoming a professional football player for the Detroit Lions are also shattered.
By 1971, he has every right to ask What's Going On? But his next album is not about his own troubles, but the troubles going on in the world through the eyes of a Vietnam veteran, such as police brutality ("What's Going On"), poverty ("Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler)") and environmental issues ("Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology)"). The landmark album, written and produced by Gaye, proves that soul music can be both sexy and socially conscious.
Gaye continues to record six more albums throughout the '70s and early '80s until he is fatally shot by his father when the two fight on April 1, 1984, just one day before his 45th birthday. Gay Sr. is eventually charged with voluntary manslaughter and given a suspended six-year sentence and probation.
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