Birthdays
- 1915 - Johnny Bond (d. 1978)
- 1921 - Nelson Riddle (d. 1985)
- 1925 - Hazel Dickens (d. 2011)
- 1926 - Andy Griffith (d. 2012)
- 1934 - Pat Boone
- 1941 - Wayne Kemp (d. 2015)
- 1943 - Tom Bahler (songwriter)
- 1945 - Linda Scott
- 1945 - Jim McCarty (Mitch Ryder & the Detroit Wheels, Buddy Miles Express, Cactus)
- 1947 - Ronnie Wood (Faces, Jeff Beck Group, Rolling Stones)
- 1950 - Charlene
- 1950 - Tom Robinson (Cafe Society)
- 1950 - Wayne Nelson (Little River Band)
- 1950 - Darrell "Wayne" Perry (songwriter) (d. 2005)
- 1952 - John Ellis (Vibrators)
- 1953 - Ronnie Dunn (Brooks & Dunn)
- 1956 - Lisa Hartman Black
- 1958 - Barry Adamson (Magazine, Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds)
- 1959 - Alan Wilder (Depeche Mode)
- 1960 - Simon Gallup (Cure)
- 1960 - Jesse Johnson (Time)
- 1961 - Monty Powell (songwriter, producer)
- 1963 - Michael Joyce (Smiths)
- 1967 - Roger Sanchez
- 1968 - Jason Donovan
- 1969 - Damon Minchella (Ocean Colour Scene, Paul Weller)
- 1974 - Alanis Morissette
- 1981 - Brandi Carlile
Deaths
- 1981 - Jimmy Murphy - Heart attack (55)
- 1984 - Nate Nelson (Flamingos, Platters) - Heart disease (52)
- 1991 - David Ruffin (Temptations) - Drug overdose (50)
- 1996 - Don Grolnick (session musician) - Non-Hodgkin lymphoma (48)
- 2000 - Tito Puente - Complications of open heart surgery (77)
- 2007 - Tony Thompson (Hi-Five) - Accidental inhalation of Freon (31)
- 2008 - Alton Kelley (West coast rock poster artist) (67)
- 2013 - Richard Raines (Perfect Stranger) - Suicide
- 2015 - Jean Ritchie (92)
On This Day
- 1942 - Tex Ritter signed with Capitol Records, the labels first country artist.
- 1956 - Doris Day signed a five-year deal with Columbia for $1 million.
- 1957 - The Everly Brothers debuted on the Grand Ole Opry.
- 1958 - Elvis Presley completed basic training.
- 1960 - Chuck Berry was found not guilty of violating the Mann Act.
- 1964 - Dolly Parton moved to Nashville, the day after she graduated high school. On the first day in town, she met her future husband, Carl Dean, in a laundromat.
- 1964 - The Rolling Stones landed in the U.S. for the first time.
- 1965 - Art Garfunkel graduated from Columbia University
- 1967 - Fairport Convention made their live debut in Golders Green, England.
- 1967 - The Kingston Trio broke up.
- 1971 - The small, two-room home where Elvis Presley was born in Tupelo, MS was opened to the public for the first time.
- 1973 - Robert Wyatt broke his back after falling three stories trying to climb down a drainpipe. He was left wheel-chair bound.
- 1975 - The Rolling Stones started a 45-show U.S. tour with, for the first time, Ron Wood on guitar.
- 1979 - Jello Biafra of the Dead Kennedys started Alternative Tentacles Records.
- 1979 - Sgt. Barry Sadler was arrested for killing songwriter Lee Emerson.
- 1980 - Jerry Lee Lewis was arrested after failing to pay a $450,000 judgement to a nightclub owner.
- 1981 - The first issue of Kerrang! from Heavy Metal magazine was published.
- 1985 - Bruce Springsteen started the European leg of his Born in the USA tour in Dublin, Ireland.
- 1992 - Rod Stewart and Rachel Hunter are parents together for the first time.
- 1994 - The Bee Gees, Lionel Richie and Otis Redding were among the new inductees into the Songwriters Hall of Fame.
- 1995 - Alan Wilder left Depeche Mode.
- 1997 - Emma Bunton (Baby Spice of the Spice Girls) returned to the U.K. in a cast after breaking her ankle while shooting a Turkish TV show.
- 1998 - Scott Weiland of the Stone Temple Pilots is arrested in New York on drug possession charges.
- 1999 - Kix Brooks of Brooks & Dunn begins a trip from Nashville to New Orleans via Sea-Doo to raise money for St. Jude's Children's Hospital.
- 2000 - The movie Honest which starred three members of All Saints was pulled from theaters after an extremely low opening.
- 2000 - The Dixie Chicks opened their Fly tour in Winnipeg, Manitoba.
- 2000 - Brian Wilson debuted his official website.
- 2003 - Paul Gray of Slipknot was arrested after a car accident. He was charged with drug possession and drunk driving.
- 2006 - The YoungbloodZ were arrested on drug and weapons charges in Atlanta, GA.
- 2009 - The new Cowboys Stadium was opened with a concert by George Strait.
- 2013 - George Strait played the final concert of the first half of his farewell tour at the Alamodome in San Antonio, TX.
Marriages
- 1950 - George Jones and Dorothy Bonvillion
- 1985 - Merle Haggard and Debbie Parret
- 1997 - Kenny Rogers and Wanda Miller
- 2002 - Mary Chapin Carpenter and Timmy Smith
- 2005 - Jack White and Karen Elson
- 2007 - Tony Bennett and Susan Crow
- 2013 - Diana DeGarmo and Ace Young
- 2015 - John Osborne (Brothers Osborne) and Lucie Silvas
Divorces
- 1992 - Natalie Cole and Andre Fischer (separated)
- 1994 - Matthew Sorum (Guns N' Roses, Velvet Revolver) and Kai (filed)
Recorded
- 1955 - Patsy Cline had her first recording session at Coral Records.
- 1957 - You Send Me - Sam Cooke
- 1959 - The Three Bells - Browns
- 1969 - Give Peace a Chance - John Lennon & Yoko Ono (during Montreal bed-in)
- 1974 - June 1, 1974 (live album) - John Cale, Brian Eno, Kevin Ayers, Nico
- 1974 - Heart Like a Wheel - Linda Ronstadt (first day of recording)
Released
- 1958 - The Kingston Trio - Kingston Trio (debut album)
- 1967 - Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band - Beatles
- 1967 - David Bowie - David Bowie (debut album)
- 1972 - People Need Love - ABBA (debut single)
- 1972 - Eagles - The Eagles (debut album)
- 1973 - Live & Let Die - Paul McCartney & Wings
- 1973 - Touch Me - Gary Glitter
- 1974 - Bad Company - Bad Company
- 1975 - Red Headed Stranger - Willie Nelson
- 1976 - The Runaways - Runaways (debut album)
- 1982 - Still Life - Rolling Stones
- 1982 - Three Sides Live - Genesis
- 1983 - Synchronicity - Police
- 1984 - Missing You - John Waite (single)
- 1985 - The Dream of the Blue Turtles - Sting (solo debut)
- 1993 - Gravity's Rainbow - Pat Benatar
- 1993 - 14 Shots to the Dome - LL Cool J
- 1999 - Enema of the State - Blink-182
- 1999 - No Angel - Dido (debut)
- 1999 - On the 6 - Jennifer Lopez (debut)
- 1999 - Who Needs Pictures - Brad Paisley (debut)
- 1999 - Play - Moby
- 1999 - Venni Vetti Vecci - Ja Rule (debut)
- 2000 - Broken Bracelet - Michelle Branch (debut)
Awards
- 2000 - First DanceStar Awards
- DanceStar of the Year - Moby
- Album of the Year - Play - Moby
- 2001 - Boy Scouts of America
- Silver Buffalo Award - Oak Ridge Boys
Broadcasts
- 1958 - The Ed Sullivan Show (CBS) - Jimmie Rodgers
- 1959 - First edition of the BBC's Juke Box Jury aired.
- 1966 - Where the Action Is - Freddy Cannon, Maxine Brown
- 1973 - Midnight Special - Paul Williams (host), Argent, Gunhill Road, Sydney Jordan, Slade, Statler Brothers, Stylistics
- 1991 - Rock Steady (Russian TV) - Sting (debut program)
- 1993 - MTV Unplugged - 10,000 Maniacs (first time an act appeared for a second time on the show)
Number Ones - U.S. Singles
- 1959 - The Battle of New Orleans - Johnny Horton (6 weeks)
- 1963 - It's My Party - Lesley Gore (2 weeks)
- 1968 - Mrs. Robinson - Simon & Garfunkel (3 weeks)
Number Ones - U.S. Albums
- 1995 - Around the World in a Day - Prince & the Revolution (3 weeks)
- 1991 - Out of Time - R.E.M. (1 week (1 previous week at number 1))
- 2002 - We Invented the Remix - P. Diddy and The Bad Boy Family (1 week)
- 2013 - Modern Vampires of the City - Vampire Weekend (1 week)
Number Ones - U.S. R&B Singles
- 1963 - If You Wanna Be Happy - Jimmy Soul (1 week)
- 1968 - Shoo-Be-Doo-Be-Doo-Da-Day - Stevie Wonder (1 week)
- 1974 - Be Thankful For What You Got - William DeVaughn (1 week)
- 1985 - Rock Me Tonight (For Old Times Sake) - Freddie Jackson (6 weeks)
- 1991 - I Wanna Sex You Up - Color Me Bad (2 weeks)
Number Ones - U.S. Country Singles
- 1946 - New Spanish Two Step - Bob Wills (15 weeks (1 previous week))
- 1963 - Lonesome 7-7203 - Hackshaw Hawkins (2 weeks (1 previous week))
- 1974 - Pure Love - Ronnie Milsap (1 week)
- 1985 - Don't Call Him a Cowboy - Conway Twitty (1 week)
- 1991 - Meet Me in the Middle - Diamond Rio (2 weeks)
Number Ones - U.S. Adult Contemporary Singles
- 1974 - I Won't Last a Day Without You - Carpenters (1 week)
Number Ones - U.K. Singles
- 1961 - Surrender - Elvis Presley (4 weeks)
- 1996 - Three Lions (The Official Song of the England Football Team) - Baddiel & Skinner & Lightning Seeds (1 week)
- 2002 - Without Me - Eminem (1 week)
- 2013 - La La La - Naughty Boy Featuring Sam Smith (1 week)
Number Ones - U.K. Albums
- 1974 - The Singles: 1969-1973 - Carpenters (1 week (15 previous weeks))
- 1991 - Seal - Seal (3 weeks)
- 2002 - Destination - Ronan Keating (1 week)
- 2013 - Random Access Memories - Daft Punk (2 weeks)
- 2017 - Divided - Ed Sheeran (1 week (9 previous weeks))