What Happened Today In Music

February 2nd

1959 - Buddy Holly

Buddy Holly, Richard Valens and The Big Bopper all appeared at the Surf Ballroom, Clear Lake, Iowa. This was all three acts last ever gig before being killed in a plane crash the following day.

1962 - The Beatles

The Beatles played their first professionally organised gig outside of Liverpool at The Oasis Club, Manchester. The groups set started with their version of 'Hippy Hippy Shake'. 

1967 - Jimi Hendrix

The Jimi Hendrix Experience appeared at the Blue Pad Club in Darlington, England which was part of the Imperial Hotel Complex on Grange Road. The show was advertised as "Don't miss this man who is Dylan, Clapton, and James Brown all in one". After the show, as the roadies were loading up a van, one of Hendrix's Fender guitars was stolen.

1969 - Yoko Ono

Yoko Ono divorced her husband Tony Cox, Yoko was granted custody of their daughter Kyoko. John Lennon married Yoko the following month on 30th March.

1973 - Keith Emerson

Keith Emerson of Emerson Lake and Palmer injured his hands when his piano rigged to explode as a stunt, detonated prematurely during a concert in San Francisco.

1974 - Carpenters

The Carpenters started a four week run at No.1 on the UK album chart with 'The Singles 1969-73', featuring 12 hits and the US No.1 'Top Of The World' it went back to the top of the charts on three other occasions.

1976 - Genesis

Genesis released 'A Trick Of The Tail', their seventh studio album and the first to feature drummer Phil Collins as full-time lead vocalist following the departure of original vocalist Peter Gabriel. After auditioning over 400 vocalists, which saw Collins teaching the potential lead singers the songs, the band decided that Collins should be the new vocalist.

1979 - Sid Vicious

Sex Pistols bassist Sid Vicious died of a heroin overdose in New York City. There had been a party to celebrate Vicious' release on $50,000 (£29,412) bail pending his trial for the murder of his former girlfriend, Nancy Spungen, the previous October. Party guests, said that Vicious had taken heroin at midnight. An autopsy confirmed that Vicious died from an accumulation of fluid in the lungs that was consistent with heroin overdose. A syringe, spoon and heroin residue were discovered near the body.

1980 - Specials

The Specials were at No.1 on the UK singles chart with 'The Special A.K.A. Live E.P'. The lead track 'Too Much Too Young' was the shortest song to reach No.1 on the UK singles chart in the 1980s at 2'04".

1989 - George Michael

George Michael received undisclosed damages in excess of £100,000 ($170,000) from The Sun newspaper over articles printed that stated Michael had gatecrashed a party given by Andrew Lloyd Weber and was drunk and abusive.

1993 - Willie Nelson

Willie Nelson agreed to pay $9 million of the $16.7 million he owed the Internal Revenue Service. His accountants, Price Waterhouse, had not been paying Nelson's taxes for years and in addition to the unpaid taxes, Nelson's situation was worsened by the weak investments he had made during the early 1980s.

2001 - Buster Bloodvessel

Bad Manners singer Buster Bloodvessel was told he was 'too fat' to survive an urgently needed operation. Buster collapsed on stage during a show in Italy but Doctors felt that his huge 30 stone frame might not make it through surgery.

2002 - Stevie Wonder

The Phonographic Performance Ltd launched performersmoney.com for artists to check if they were owed any of the £10 million ($17 million) in unclaimed money. It showed that Michael Jackson was owed over £100,000 ($170,000) for 'Say, Say, Say', Stevie Wonder had money owing for 'Ebony And Ivory' and Ray Davies of The Kinks was owed a six-figure fee for 'You Really Got Me'. Director Dominic McGonigal said "If anyone has seen Rick Astley please let him know, he is still earning money for his hits."

2003 - Tatu

Russian girl duo Tatu started a four-week run at No.1 on the UK singles chart with 'All The Things She Said'. The song had been a hit on the Russian charts three years earlier. Tatu were the first Russian act to score a UK No 1.

2004 - Janet Jackson

TV network CBS apologised for its broadcast of the American Super Bowl after Janet Jackson was left exposed when Justin Timberlake ripped her top. The pair had been performing a raunchy half-time duet when one of Jackson's breasts was exposed as Timberlake pulled at her top. CBS quickly cut away from the scene but was still flooded with calls from angry viewers about the half-time entertainment, produced by MTV. Timberlake insisted it had been an accident saying "I am sorry that anyone was offended by the wardrobe malfunction during the half-time performance of the Super Bowl."

2007 - Billy Henderson

American singer Billy Henderson, one of the founders of US soul group The Spinners, died aged 67 after complications from diabetes. They had several hits in the 1970s, including ‘I'll Be Around’ (1972) and ‘Could It Be I'm Falling in Love’, ‘Then Came You’ (with Dionne Warwick), and "It's a Shame". The Spinners also scored the the 1980 UK No.1 & US No.2 single 'Working My Way Back To You.'

2007 - Joe Hunter

US keyboardist Joe Hunter, a veteran session musician as one of the Funk Brothers who helped craft the distinctive Motownsound, died in Detroit, Michigan, at the age of 79. Hunter performed with such legendary Motown acts as Marvin Gaye, Smokey Robinson and Martha and the Vandellas.

2008 - Spice Girls

The Spice Girls cut short their reunion world tour, blaming "family and personal commitments". The band said they would end their tour in Toronto on 26 February, with planned shows in Beijing, Sydney, Cape Town and Buenos Aires being axed. A spokesman for the group said: "Sadly, the tour needs to come to an end by the end of February due to family and personal commitments."

2013 - The Beatles

A 1960’s Beatles Record Player, produced for fans as a commercial Beatles memorabilia item, fetched $12,100 in an online auction. The Record Player, which was highly-sought by Beatles collectors worldwide, was manufactured in a limited quantity. Because of this, some believed there was still a strong possibility a few remaining players to be discovered.

2014 - Skinny Puppy

Skinny Puppy sent the US government an invoice after finding out their music was used as torture device in Guantanamo Bay. Despite the band's aggressive sound, they said they had never envisioned their music being used in such a way. Asked how they felt about their songs allegedly being used in the detention camp, singer cEvin Key replied: "Not too good. We never supported those types of scenarios. … Because we make unsettling music, we can see it being used in a weird way. But it doesn’t sit right with us."

Born Today In Music

February 2nd

1940 - Alan Caddy

Alan Caddy, guitarist with The Tornadoes, who had a 1962 UK & US No.1 single with ‘Telstar’. This was the first major hit from a UK act on the American chart. Caddy died on August 16th 2000.

1942 - Graham Nash

British-American singer-songwriter Graham Nash, known for his light tenor voice and for his songwriting contributions as a member of The Hollies and supergroup Crosby, Stills & Nash. Nash initially met both David Crosby and Stephen Stills in 1966 during a Hollies US tour. CSN's scored the hit singles 'Marrakesh Express' (which had been rejected by the Hollies), 'Our House', 'Teach Your Children'.

1943 - Peter Macbeth

Peter Macbeth from The Foundations who had the 1967 UK No.1 single 'Baby Now That I've Found You' and the 1969 US No.3 single 'Build Me Up A Buttercup'.

1945 - Ronnie Goodson

Ronnie Goodson, from John Fred and His Playboy Band who had the 1968 US No.1 & UK No.3 single 'Judy in Disguise (With Glasses)' which was a parodic play on the title of The Beatles' song 'Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds'.

1946 - Howard Bellamy

Howard Bellamy from the Bellamy Brothers who had the 1976 US No.1 single 'Let Your Love Flow', and the 1979 UK No.3 single 'If I Said You Had A Beautiful Body Would You Hold It Against Me'.

1947 - Derek Sulman

Derek Shulman, Simon Dupree And The Big Sound who had the 1967 UK No.9 single 'Kites' and then became a member of Gentle Giant. He later became a successful record exec, signing Bon Jovi, Pantara, Nickleback and others.

1948 - Alan Mckay

Alan Mckay, guitarist with Earth, Wind & Fire, who had the 1975 US No.1 single 'Shining Star', and the 1981 UK No.3 single 'Let's Groove'. The band has received 20 Grammy nominations and were the first African-American act to sell out Madison Square Garden.

1949 - Ross Valory

Ross Valory, bassist with the Steve Miller Band, who had the 1974 US No.1 & 1990 UK No.1 single 'The Joker'.

1951 - Alphonso Johnson

American jazz bassist Alphonso Johnson who was a member of the influential jazz fusion group Weather Report from 1973 to 1975, and has performed and recorded with numerous high-profile rock and jazz acts including Santana, Phil Collins, Bob Weir of the Grateful Dead, and Chet Baker.

1952 - Rick Dufay

Rick Dufay American guitarist who played in Aerosmith in the period after Brad Whitford left the band in 1980 up to his return in 1984.

1963 - Eva Cassidy

Eva Cassidy, US singer. She is the only artist to score three posthumous UK No.1 albums: 2001’s 'Songbird'; 2002’s 'Imagine' and 2003’s 'American Tune'. In 2001 she also had a UK No.42 single with ‘Over The Rainbow’ and the 2007 UK No.1 single 'What a Wonderful World' with Katie Melua. Eva died of skin cancer on November 2nd 1996, aged 33.

1964 - Charlie Heather

Charlie Heather, drummer with English folk rock band The Levellers who had the 1995 UK No.12 single 'Just The One'.

1966 - Robert Deleo

Born on this day in Montclair, New Jersey, was Robert DeLeo, bassist with Stone Temple Pilots, Talk Show and Army of Anyone. His elder brother, guitarist Dean DeLeo, was also a member of the band.

1966 - Steve Firth

Steve Firth, bassist from English alternative rock band Embrace, who had the 2006 UK No. 2 single ‘Natures Law’, the 2006 UK No.1 album This New Day and two other UK No.1 albums.

1969 - John Spence

John Spence, singer, and original member of No Doubt in the late 1980s. Committed suicide on December 21st 1987 by shooting himself.

1971 - Ben Mize

Ben Mize, drummer from American rock band Counting Crows, who had the 1994 UK hit single 'Mr Jones', and the 1996 US No.1 album Recovering The Satellites. They received a 2004 Academy Award nomination for their song 'Accidentally in Love', which was included in the film Shrek 2.

1977 - Shakira

Shakira, (Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll), singer who had the 2002 UK No.2 single 'Whenever Wherever' and the 2006 world-wide No.1 single 'Hips Don't Lie'. She is the highest selling Colombian artist of all time, having sold over forty million albums.