THIS DAY IN MUSIC

December 19th: On this Day

1957, Elvis Presley had his draft notice served on him for the US Army. He went on to join the 32nd Tank Battalion third Armor Corps based in Germany.

1957,

1958, Conway Twitty was at No.1 on the UK singles chart with 'It's Only Make Believe'. The song became the first to reach the UK Top 10 in four different years by different artists: Billy Fury (1964), Glen Campbell (1970) and Child (1978).

1964, The Beatles fourth album 'Beatles For Sale' started a seven-week run at No.1 on the UK album charts. Recorded when Beatlemania was just past its peak 'Beatles for Sale' was The Beatles' fourth album in just 21 months.

1964, The Supremes scored their third US No.1 single of the year when 'Come See About Me', went to the top of the charts. It made No.27 on the UK chart.

1967, Buffalo Springfield appeared at the Community Concourse, San Diego, California. The group became a springboard for the careers of Neil Young Stephen Stills, Richie Furay and Jim Messina.

1968, During a UK tour Led Zeppelin appeared at The Civic Hall, Exeter, England, supported by The Empty Vessels, featuring Martin Turner and Steve Upton who later formed Wishbone Ash. Zeppelin were paid £125 for the gig.

1969, Mick Jagger was fined £200 plus 50 guineas costs at Marlborough Magistrates Court for illegal possession of cannabis.

1969, The Beatles latest Christmas record, 'The Beatles' Seventh Christmas Record' was released to members of their fan club in the UK and the US.

1970, Elton John's first US hit, ‘Your Song’ entered the Billboard Hot 100, where it went on to reach number eight. The Hollies had been offered the song and Three Dog Night had already recorded a version which was included on their ‘It Ain't Easy’ album.

1979, Elvis Presley's personal physician, George Nichopoulos, was charged with 'illegally and indiscriminately' prescribing over 12,000 tablets of uppers, downers, and painkillers for the star during the 20 months preceding his untimely death. Although he was acquitted this time, he was charged again in 1980 and again in 1992 and was stripped of his medical license in July 1995.

1981, ABBA scored their seventh UK No.1 album with The Visitors, the Swedish pop group's eighth and final studio album. It was one of the first records to be recorded and mixed digitally, and was the first in history to be manufactured on the new CD format in 1982 on Atlantic.

1987, The Pet Shop Boys had their third UK No.1 single with their version of 'Always On My Mind. The duo had performed a version of 'Always on My Mind' on Love Me Tender, an TV special commemorating the tenth anniversary of Elvis Presley's death, their performance was so well-received that the group decided to record the song and release it as a single.

1993, Michael Clarke drummer with The Byrds died of liver failure aged 47. Also worked with the Flying Burrito Brothers and Jerry Jeff Walker. Before his death Clarke had expressed a wish of alerting children to the dangers of alcoholism. Following his wishes, Clarke's girlfriend Susan Paul started a foundation in Clarke's name, called the Campaign for Alcohol-free Kids.

1994, The Manic Street Preachers played the first of three nights at The Astoria, London, the last shows Richey Edwards made with the band before disappearing. Edwards vanished on February 1st 1995 leaving no clues to his whereabouts and has never been seen since.

1999, Irish boyband Westlife started a four week run at No.1 on the UK singles chart with their versions of the ABBA song 'I Have A Dream' and the Terry Jacks hit (written in French by Belgian, Jacques Brel and English lyrics by poet Rod McKuen), 'Seasons In The Sun'. It gave the group the Christmas No.1 and the last No.1 of the century.

2000, 10,000 Maniacs guitarist Robert Buck died of liver failure aged 42. Best know for ‘Hey Jack Kerouac’, ‘What's The Matter Here’ and 'Candy Everybody Wants'.

2000, Songwriter, guitarist and singer and founder member of The Staple Singers, Roebuck 'pop' Staples died. Best known for their 1970s hits ‘I'll Take You There’, ‘Respect Yourself’, and ‘Let's Do It Again’.

2005, Sir Elton John turned down £5.7m for the exclusive rights to his civil union to his partner David Furnish. The couple had considered the offer from a US television channel, putting the money in the Elton John Aids Foundation, but they told Attitude magazine they had decided to keep the day private.

2006, Two giant eyeballs donated by Pink Floyd raised £16,500 for the homeless charity Crisis. The 6ft-high props, made to promote the Pulse DVD, were on the auction site eBay for a week and attracted 46 bids. Pink Floyd's David Gilmour, a vice-president of Crisis, said extra help was needed in the winter months.

2012, Madonna's MDNA World Tour made more money than any other during 2012. The tour grossed $228m (£141m), after more than 1.6 million fans paid to see her perform in 65 cities worldwide since last June. She beat Bruce Springsteen into first place on the highest-grossing tour list, who earned $198 million (£123 million). Also in the top 25 were Coldplay, who took fifth place, and Lady Gaga at number six, who attracted audiences reaching 1.1 million people in comparison. Jay-Z and Kanye West came in at number nine, while Justin Bieber's tour was the 20th highest-earning at $30.6 million (£18.9m).

2012, Nick Mason stepped in to help save Foote's, the historic London music shop where he bought his first ever drum kit. The Pink Floyd drummer, along with the store's sales director, Rob Wilson, were buying the business (which will now re-open in a new location at 41 Store Street, Bloomsbury, London) from the family who has owned it since the '30s.

2015, Thirty-three years after it was released, Michael Jackson's classic album Thriller became the first to sell more than 30 million copies in the US. The Recording Industry Association of America reported latest sales figures showing The EaglesTheir Greatest Hits 1971-75 had now sold 29m and Billy Joel Greatest Hits Volume I & Volume II, 23m copies.

2016, The Official Chart Company announced it was changing the way it calculated the Top 40 to reflect the rise in streaming. Currently, 100 streams counted as one "sale" of a song. From January 2017, the ratio will become 150:1. It was hoped that the change would break the bottleneck at the top of the charts, as hits on streaming services linger for weeks on end.

December 19th: Born on this day

1915, Born on this day, Édith Piaf, French cabaret singer, songwriter and actress and one of France's greatest international stars. Her well known songs include, 'La Vie en rose' (1946), 'Non, je ne regrette rien' (1960), and 'Hymne à l'amour' (1949). After years of alcohol abuse Piaf died on 10 October 1963.

1918, Born on this day, Professor Longhair, New Orleans blues singer and pianist who influenced Fat's Domino, Allen Toussaint and Dr John. Longhair died of a heart attack on 30th Jan 1980.

1940, Born on this day, Phil Ochs, US folk singer songwriter. Wrote 'There But A Fortune', hit for Joan Baez. Hung himself on 9th April 1976 suffering from chronic depression.

1941, Born on this day, Maurice White, American singer-songwriter, musician, record producer, arranger and bandleader with Earth Wind and Fire, who had the 1975 US No.1 single 'Shining Star', and the 1981 UK No.3 single 'Let's Groove'. White died on February 4, 2016.

1941,

1944, Born on this day, Alvin Lee, guitar vocals, Ten Years After, (1970 UK No.10 single 'Love Like A Man'). Lee died on 6 March 2013. According to his website, he died from "unforeseen complications following a routine surgical procedure", he was 68.

1944, Born on this day, Zal Yanovsky, The Lovin Spoonful, (1966 US No.1 & UK No.8 single 'Summer In The City'). Died of a heart attack on 13th December 2002.

1949, Born on this day, John McEuen, Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, (1971 US No.9 single 'Mr Bojangles').

1958, Born on this day, Chris Hamill, (Limahl), vocals, Kajagoogoo, (1983 UK No.1 single 'Too Shy').