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Music Almanac: October 20, 2017
Birthdays
- 1885 - Jelly Roll Morton (d. 1941)
- 1908 - Stuart Hamblen (d. 1989)
- 1913 - Grandpa Jones (born Louis Jones) (d. 1998)
- 1934 - Eddie Harris (d. 1996)
- 1937 - Wanda Jackson (80)
- 1938 - Kathy Kirby (d. 2011)
- 1939 - Jay Siegel (Tokens) (78)
- 1939 - Ray Jones (Billy J. Kramer & the Dakotas) (d. 2000)
- 1942 - John Carter (born John Shakespeare) (producer, songwriter) (75)
- 1945 - Ric Lee (Ten Years After) (72)
- 1950 - Tom Petty (d. 2017)
- 1951 - Al Greenwood (Foreigner) (66)
- 1958 - Mark King (Level 42) (59)
- 1958 - Ricky Byrd (Joan Jett & the Blackhearts) (59)
- 1964 - Jim Sonefeld (Hootie & the Blowfish) (56)
- 1964 - Dave Ryan (Lemonheads) (56)
- 1965 - Norman Blake (Teenage Fanclub) (52)
- 1966 - Fred Coury (Cinderella) (51)
- 1971 - Snoop Dogg (46)
- 1971 - Dannii Minogue (46)
- 1971 - Jimi Westbrook (Little Big Town) (46)
- 1976 - Tom Wisniewski (MxPx) (41)
- 1977 - Nick Hodgson (Kaiser Chiefs) (40)
- 1978 - Paul Wilson (Snow Patrol) (39)
- 1980 - Gary Jarman (Cribs) (37)
- 1989 - Jess Glynne (28)
Deaths
- 1977 - Ronnie Van Zandt (Lynyrd Skynyrd) - Plane crash (29)
- 1977 - Cassie Gaines (Lynyrd Skynyrd) - Plane crash (29)
- 1977 - Steve Gaines (Lynyrd Skynyrd) - Plane crash (28)
- 1983 - Merle Travis - Heart attack (65)
- 1997 - Henry Vestine (Canned Heat) - Heart and respiratory failure (52)
- 2007 - Paul Raven (Killing Joke) - Heart attack (46)
- 2010 - Ari Up (born Ariane Forster) (Slits) - Cancer (48)
- 2011 - Barry Feinstein (music photographer) (80)
On This Day
- 1951 - Hank Williams signed a movie contract with MGM.
- 1960 - The Elvis Presley film G.I. Blues premiered
- 1962 - LeRoy Van Dyke joined the Grand Ole Opry.
- 1964 - The Rolling Stones played their first live show in France at the Paris Olympia. The show ended in a riot.
- 1966 - Del Reeves became a member of the Grand Ole Opry.
- 1967 - Davy Jones opened a boutique in Greenwich Village, New York.
- 1976 - The Song Remains the Same, the Led Zeppelin concert film, premiered in New York.
- 1978 - The Police played live for the first time in the U.S. at CBGBs in New York.
- 1992 - The movie Pure Country, starring George Strait, premiered in Nashville.
- 1994 - Bruce Springsteen and Neil Young joined Bob Dylan on stage at the Roseland Ballroom in New York.
- 1996 - Mark Morrison was arrested for conspiracy to rob a London store.
- 1999 - Ricky Martin started a North American tour in Miami, FL.
- 1999 - Johnny Cash was admitted to the hospital for the second time in a year suffering from pneumonia.
- 2000 - The Vocal Group Hall of Fame held their second induction ceremony for the 1999 and 2000 classes. New members for 1999 were The Ink Spots, The Imperials, Hank Ballard & The Midnighters, The Moonglows and The Four Seasons among others. 2000 inductees were The Flamingos, Frankie Lymon & The Teenagers, Dion & The Belmonts, The Drifters and The Mama’s & The Papa’s.
- 2003 - Cheryl Tweedy of Girls Alive was found guilty of assaulting a worker at a nightclub.
- 2003 - The Kills postponed a U.K. tour due to exhaustion.
- 2003 - Jimmy Cliff was awarded Jamaica's Order of Merit.
- 2005 - Rapper Sticky Fingaz was arrested after leaving an unlicensed gun in his New York hotel room.
- 2006 - The movie Flicka, starring Tim McGraw, premiered.
Marriages
- 1991 - Clint Black and Lisa Hartman
- 1996 - Kelly Willis and Bruce Robison
- 2013 - Kelly Clarkson and Brandon Blackstock
Recorded
- 1955 - The Banana Boat Song (Day-O) - Harry Belafonte
- 1965 - We Can Work it Out - Beatles
Released
- 1962 - Big Girls Don't Cry - Four Seasons (single)
- 1969 - The Wedding Album - John Lennon & Yoko Ono
- 1973 - The Joker - Steve Miller Band (single)
- 1980 - Boy - U2
- 1992 - Erotica - Madonna
- 2009 - Southern Voice - Tim McGraw
Number Ones – U.S. Singles
- 1962 - Monster Mash - Bobby Boris Pickett & the Crypt Kickers (2 weeks)
- 1973 - Angie - Rolling Stones (1 week)
- 1979 - Rise - Herb Alpert (2 weeks)
- 1990 - I Don't Have a Heart - James Ingram
- 2001 - I'm Real (Murder Remix) - Jennifer Lopez Featuring Ja Rule (2 weeks (3 previous weeks))
Number Ones – U.S. Albums
- 1945 - Selections From Going My Way - Bing Crosby (6 weeks)
- 1956 - Calypso - Harry Belafonte (7 weeks (4 previous weeks))
- 1962 - Peter, Paul & Mary - Peter, Paul & Mary (6 weeks)
- 2001 - Pain is Love - Ja Rule (2 weeks)
- 2007 - Magic - Bruce Springsteen (1 week)
Number Ones – U.S. R&B Singles
- 1962 - Do You Love Me - Contours (1 week)
- 1973 - Midnight Train to Georgia - Gladys Knight & the Pips (4 weeks)
- 2012 - Diamonds - Rihanna (14 weeks)
Number Ones – U.S. Country Singles
- 1958 - City Lights - Ray Price (13 weeks)
- 1979 - All the Gold in California - Larry Gatlin & the Gatlin Brothers (2 weeks)
- 1984 - I Don't Know a Thing About Love (The Moon Song) - Conway Twitty (1 week)
- 2007 - Love Me If You Can - Toby Keith (1 week)
- 2012 - We Are Never Getting Back Together - Taylor Swift (9 weeks)
Number Ones – U.S. Adult Contemporary Singles
- 1962 - I Remember You - Frank Ifield (1 week)
- 2007 - Home - Daughtry (2 weeks (8 previous weeks))
Number Ones – U.K. Singles
- 1960 - Only the Lonely - Roy Orbison (2 weeks)
- 1979 - Video Killed the Radio Star - Buggles (1 week)
- 1984 - Freedom - Wham! (3 weeks)
- 2012 - Don't You Worry Child - Swedish House Mafia Featuring John Martin (1 week)
Number Ones – U.K. Albums
- 1962 - The Best of Ball, Barber & Bilk - Kenny Ball, Chris Barber & Mr. Acker Bilk (1 week)
- 1990 - Some Friendly - Charlatans (1 week)
- 2007 - Change - Sugarbabes (1 week)
- 2012 - Babel - Mumford & Sons (2 weeks (1 previous week))
- 2016 - Revolution Radio - Green Day (1 week)
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