What Happened Today In Music

April 11th

1953 - Hank Williams

Hank Williams' 'Your Cheatin' Heart was at No.1 on the Billboard country chart. The story goes that Williams was prompted to write the song when thinking about his first wife, Audrey Williams, while driving around with his second, Billie Jean Jones who she is supposed to have written down the lyrics for him whilst sat in the passenger seat. The song was record during his last ever recording sessions, on September 23, 1952 and had been released the following year, shortly after he died. 

1956 - Elvis Presley

Travelling from Amarillo to Nashville, the plane that Elvis Presley was flying on developed engine trouble and was forced to make an emergency landing. The incident created a fear of flying for Presley.

1961 - Bob Dylan

Bob Dylan played his first live gig in New York City at Gerde's Folk City, opening for John Lee Hooker.

1963 - Gerry and the Pacemakers

Gerry and the Pacemakers were at No.1 on the UK singles chart with 'How Do You Do It'' The group's first of three UK No.1's.

1964 - The Beatles

The Beatles set a new chart record when they had 14 songs on the Billboard Hot 100. The songs ranged from 'Can't Buy Me Love' at No.1 to 'Love Me Do' at No. 81. 

1965 - Tom Jones

Performing at the New Musical Express poll winners concert, at London's Wembley Empire Pool, England, The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Tom Jones, Freddie and the Dreamers, The Animals, The Kinks, Herman's Hermits, Moody Blues, Them, Cilla Black, The Seekers and Donovan.

1966 - Buffalo Springfield

Buffalo Springfield made their live debut at The Troubadour in Hollywood, California. The folk rock band are renowned both for their music and as a springboard for the careers of Neil Young, Stephen Stills, Richie Furay and Jim Messina. Buffalo Springfield were among the first wave of North American bands to become popular in the wake of the British invasion.

1970 - Peter Green

Peter Green quit Fleetwood Mac while on tour in Germany, to avoid breach of contract he agreed to finish the current tour. While touring Europe in late March 1970, Green took LSD at a party at a commune in Munich, an incident cited by Fleetwood Mac manager Clifford Davis as the crucial point in his mental decline. 

1970 - The Beatles

The Beatles started a two week run at No.1 on the US singles chart with 'Let It Be'. It became the group's 19th US No.1 in 6 years. The track was a No.2 hit in the UK.

1973 - Beach Boys

The Beach Boys appeared at the Omni Coliseum in Atlanta, Georgia. The Beach Boys were at a very low ebb in popularity in America and this show proved a financial disaster for the promoter, with less than 3,000 tickets sold for the 16,000 capacity venue. Opening act was Mothers Finest and middle of the bill was Bruce Springsteen who played a 60-minute set. Elvis Presleyperformed twice in the Omni and a plaque was placed on an interior wall to that effect after his death.

1977 - Alice Cooper

Alice Cooper played to an audience of 40,000 in Sydney, Australia, the largest crowd to attend a rock concert in the country's history. After the show Cooper was placed under house arrest at his hotel until he posted a bond for $59,632. That amount was the sum that a promoter claimed to have paid Cooper for a 1975 Australia tour he never made. The two settled when it was found that the promoter did not fulfill his part of the agreement either.

1981 - Eddie Van Halen

Eddie Van Halen married actress Valerie Bertinelli, co-star of the 1980s television hit, One Day at a Time. The two had met eight months earlier when Bertinelli's brother took her to a Van Halen concert in Shreveport, Louisiana.

1994 - Oasis

Oasis released their first single 'Supersonic' which peaked at No.31 on the UK charts. However, over time it has amassed sales of over 215,000, making it their 13th biggest selling single ever in the UK. 'Supersonic' was also the band's first single to chart in the United States, where it peaked at No. 11 on the US Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart.

2001 - Robbie Williams

Robbie Williams raised 165,000 pounds at a charity auction with the money going to his old school in Stoke to build a performing arts block. The items sold were Robbie's personal possessions, including a toilet from a stage show, a Union Jack bikini, Tiger's head briefs, a Millennium jet pack and the hand written lyrics to 'Angels' which sold for 27,000.

2006 - Eminem

A member of Eminem's rap collective D12 was killed in a nightclub shooting in Detroit after an argument broke out at the CCC nightclub. Proof, (real name Deshaun Holton), was shot at a club on Eight Mile Road, made famous in Eminem's autobiographical film 8 Mile. Holton was a longtime friend of Eminem and was the rappers best man at his wedding in January of this year.

2006 - Pointer Sisters

June Pointer, the youngest of the four Pointer Sisters who went from teenage Gospel singers to the top of the Pop charts with such hits as 'Fire', 'Slow Hand' and 'I'm So Excited', died of cancer at the age of 52.

2013 - Madonna

Malawi accused Madonna of 'bullying state officials' after she reportedly complained about her treatment on a visit to the country. Madonna - who has adopted two Malawian-born children had recently visited 10 primary schools funded by her charity. Madonna's manager accused Malawi's government of having a 'grudge' against the singer's charity, Raising Malawi.

2014 - Nirvana

Nirvana were enlisted to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, alongside the likes of Kiss and Beatles manager Brian Epstein. REM's Michael Stipe inducted the group, saying: "Nirvanatapped into a voice that was yearning to be heard. Nirvana were kicking against the mainstream. They spoke truth and a lot of people listened."

2014 - Jesse Winchester

American musician and songwriter Jesse Winchester died aged 69. To avoid the Vietnam War draft he moved to Canada in 1967, where he began his career as a solo artist. His best known songs include 'Yankee Lady', 'The Brand New Tennessee Waltz', 'Mississippi, You're on My Mind', 'A Showman's Life', and 'Biloxi'.

2017 - J Geils

J Geils, American guitarist, with The J. Geils Band died aged 71. With the J. Geils Band he had the 1982 US No.1 & UK No.3 single 'Centerfold', which was taken from their US No.1 1981 album Freeze Frame.

2017 - Toby Smith

British musician Toby Smith died aged 46. He was most famous for being the keyboardist and co-songwriter for Jamiroquai from 1992 until his departure in 2002. He was music producer and manager for The Hoosiers and in 2013, Smith co-produced Matt Cardle's third album Porcelain.

2019 - Nipsey Hussle

One person was shot dead and three others injured in a drive-by shooting during Nipsey Hussle's funeral procession in Los Angeles. Thousands of fans and scores of big name stars including Stevie Wonder, Snoop Dogg, Beyonce and Jay Z, Kendrick Lamar and 50 Cent had gathered at the Staples Centre to pay tribute to the murdered 33-year-old rapper.

Born Today In Music

April 11th

1921 - Ronnie Milne

British musician Ronnie Milne who as a member of The Stargazers had two UK No.1 singles, 'Broken Wings' in 1953 (which was the first recording by a native British act to top the UK Singles Chart) and the 1954 'I See the Moon'. He died on 9 February 2014. 

1946 - Bob Harris

Bob Harris, English music presenter known for being a host of the BBC2 music programme The Old Grey Whistle Test, and as a co-founder of the listings magazine Time Out.

1956 - Neville Staples

Jamaican born English singer Neville Staples who with The Specials had the 1981 UK No.1 single 'Ghost Town'. When The Specials split up, Neville along with Terry Hall and Lynval Golding, formed Fun Boy Three. They had a string of chart hits, some in collaboration with the all-female trio Bananarama.

1958 - Stuart Adamson

Scottish guitarist, vocalist, and songwriter Stuart Adamson. He formed The Skids, who had a 1979 UK No.10 single with ‘Into The Valley’ then Big Country, who had the 1983 UK No.10 single with ‘Fields Of Fire’ plus 14 other UK Top 40 singles. On 26 November 2001, Adamson was reported missing by his wife Melanie. At the time, the couple had been estranged for six weeks, and Melanie filed for divorce on the day he disappeared. Adamson had been due to face drunk-driving charges in March 2002 and had been ordered to attend Alcoholics Anonymous. He died on December 16th 2001, his body found in a closet in his room at the Best Western Plaza Hotel in Honolulu, Hawaii.

1965 - Nigel Pulsford

Nigel Pulsford, of the rock band Bush who had the 1997 UK No.7 single 'Swallowed'. The bands debut album, Sixteen Stone sold over 7 million copies in the US.

1966 - Lisa Stansfield

English singer, songwriter and actress Lisa Stansfield, who had the 1989 UK No.1 & US No.3 single 'All Around The World', taken from her first solo album, Affection.

1969 - Cerys Matthews

Welsh singer, songwriter, author, and broadcaster Cerys Matthews, who with alternative rock band Catatonia who had the 1998 UK No.3 single 'Mulder And Scully'. She founded 'The Good Life Experience', a festival of culture and the great outdoors in Flintshire in 2014.

1970 - Delroy Pearson

Delroy Pearson, from British pop/R&B group Five Star who had the 1986 UK No.3 single 'System Addict' plus 15 other UK Top 40 singles.

1971 - Oliver 

Oliver "Ollie" Riedel, bassist, for the German rock band Rammstein who formed in Berlin in 1994. Five of their albums reached No.1 on the German album charts.

1977 - DJ Fresh

Daniel Stein better known by his stage name DJ Fresh, English musician, DJ and record producer. His two 2011 UK No.1 singles, ‘Louder’ and ‘Hot Right Now’ became the UK's first dubstep and drum and bass No.1's. 

1978 - Tom Thacker

Canadian musician Tom Thacker, guitar, vocals and co-founde of Sum 41. They had the 2001 UK No 13 single 'In Too Deep', and the 2001 UK No. 7 album 'All Killer No Filler'.

1987 - Joss Stone

Joss Stone, (Joscelyn Eve Stoker), UK soul singer who rose to fame in late 2003 with her multi-platinum debut album, The Soul Sessions, which made the 2004 Mercury Prize shortlist. Her multi-platinum Mind Body & Soul, topped the UK Albums Chart for one week and spawned the top ten hit 'You Had Me'. Stone also joined the supergroup SuperHeavy which was formed by Mick Jaggertogether with Dave Stewart and Damian Marley (the youngest son of Bob Marley).