Birthdays
- 1900 - Malvina Reynolds (d. 1978)
- 1917 - Tex Williams (d. 1985)
- 1931 - Scott Turner (songwriter) (d. 2009)
- 1932 - Jack Earls
- 1936 - Rudy Lewis (Drifters) (d. 1964)
- 1938 - Roger Greenaway
- 1941 - Pete Shannon (Nashville Teens)
- 1946 - Keith Moon (Who) (d. 1978)
- 1947 - Linda Thompson (born Linda Pettifer)
- 1947 - Rex Allen, Jr.
- 1948 - Marian Leighton-Levy (co-founder of Rounder Records)
- 1949 - Rick Springfield
- 1949 - Woody Paul (born Paul Chrisman) (Riders in the Sky)
- 1951 - Jimi Jamison (Survivor) (d. 2014)
- 1951 - Mark Hudson (Hudson Brothers)
- 1953 - Bobby G (Bucks Fizz)
- 1954 - Mark Avsec (Wild Cherry, Donnie Iris & the Cruisers)
- 1959 - Edwyn Collins
- 1961 - Dean DeLeo (Stone Temple Pilots)
- 1962 - Shaun Ryder (Happy Mondays, Black Grape)
- 1967 - Cadella Marley (Ziggy Marley & the Melody Makers)
- 1969 - Ira Dean (Trick Pony)
- 1969 - Barry Bales (Alison Krauss & Union Station)
- 1974 - Shifty Shellshock (born Seth Binzer) (Crazy Town)
- 1978 - Julian Casablancas (Strokes)
- 1978 - Randy Rogers (Randy Rogers Band)
- 1979 - Richie Neville (Five)
- 1981 - Natalie Horler (Cascada)
- 1986 - Sky Blu (born Skylar Gordy) (LMFAO)
Deaths
- 1960 - Oscar Hammerstein II - Stomach Cancer (65)
- 1990 - David Rose - Heart attack (80)
- 1995 - Dwayne Goettel (Skinny Puppy) - Heroin overdose (31)
- 2001 - Eric Allendale (Foundations) (65)
- 2006 - Maynard Ferguson - Kidney and liver failure (78)
- 2006 - David Schnaufer (credited with restoring the popularity of the dulcimer) - Lung cancer (53)
- 2010 - Bill Phillips (74)
- 2010 - George David Weiss (songwriter) (89)
On This Day
- 1952 - Kitty Wells became the first woman to ever reach number 1 on the Billboard Country Singles chart with It Wasn't God Who Made Honky Tonk Angels.
- 1966 - The Beatles played Shea Stadium in New York for the last time.
- 1966 - Big Brother & the Holding Company signed with Mainstream Records.
- 1970 - Lou Reed and the Velvet Underground performed together for the last time.
- 1970 - The Wailers started recording with Lee "Scratch" Perry and the lineup of Bob Marley, Peter Tosh, Bunny Wailer, Aston Barrett and Carlton Barrett.
- 1974 - John Lennon said he saw a UFO from his New York apartment.
- 1975 - Paul Kossoff of Free has a blood clot that stops his heart for 35 minutes. Amazingly, he recovers and goes back to playing only to die the next year.
- 1980 - The Talking Heads expanded their group for touring, including Adrian Belew and Bernie Worrell.
- 1982 - Dolly Parton went directly from the concert stage to an Indiana hospital and has surgery the next day for hemorrhaging.
- 1985 - Aerosmith opened their Done With Mirrors tour in East Troy, WI.
- 1991 - Dire Straits started their reunion tour in Dublin, Ireland. They would be on the road for the next two years.
- 1993 - Duran Duran received their star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
- 1993 - The Los Angeles Police formally announced that Michael Jackson was the subject of a criminal investigation.
- 1994 - The KLF burned 1 million pounds on the Isle of Jura in Scotland.
- 1995 - Natalie Merchant becomes one of the first artists to do an interview on the World Wide Web.
- 1999 - Don Henley sued Paramount Pictures for backing out of a deal to include one of his songs in the movie Double Jeopardy.
- 2000 - Kenny Rogers received his star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
- 2002 - Del Reeves made his final appearance at the Grand Ole Opry.
- 2003 - Bobby Brown was arrested in Atlanta for a parole violation.
- 2003 - Trace Adkins became a member of the Grand Ole Opry.
- 2004 - Queen became the first western rock act to be sanctioned in Iran.
- 2005 - Les McKeown of Bay City Rollers was arraigned for cocaine possession and distribution.
- 2007 - Brian May of Queen received his docterate in astrophysics from London's Imperial College.
- 2008 - Madonna started her Sticky & Sweet tour in Cardiff, Wales.
- 2013 - Linda Ronstadt revealed she had Parkinson's Disease in an interview with the AARP.
Marriages
- 1962 - John Lennon and Cynthia Powell
- 1969 - Wendy Steiner (Wendy Waldman) and Ken Waldman
- 1975 - Ian Curtis (Joy Division) and Deborah Woodruff
- 1989 - Ric Ocasek (Cars) and Paulina Porizkova
- 1999 - Phil Everly and Patti Arnold
- 2010 - Julio Iglesias and Miranda Rijnsburger
Released
- 1977 - Simple Dreams - Linda Ronstadt
Broadcasts
- 1958 - Dick Clark Show (ABC) - Chuck Berry, Rusty Draper, Jerry Wallace
- 1958 - The Bob Crosby Show (NBC) - Bobby Darin
- 1959 - The Dinah Shore Chevy Show (NBC) - Jimmy Dean
- 1963 - Ready, Steady, Go! - Rolling Stones
- 1969 - The Johnny Cash Show (ABC) - Lulu, Chet Atkins, John Hartford, Statler Brothers
- 1973 - Good Vibrations From Central Park (ABC) - Eagles, Sly & the Family Stone, Melissa Manchester, John Sebastian
- 1973 - Dean Martin Presents: Music Country - Donna Fargo, Jeannie C. Riley, Jerry Reed, Johnny Russell, Danny Davis & The Nashville Brass
Number Ones - U.S. Singles
- 1969 - Honky Tonk Women - Rolling Stones (4 weeks)
- 1975 - Fallin' in Love - Hamilton, Joe Frank & Reynolds (1 week)
- 2008 - Disturbia - Rihanna (2 weeks)
Number Ones - U.S. Albums
- 1969 - At San Quentin - Johnny Cash (4 weeks)
- 1997 - No Way Out - Puff Daddy & the Family (2 weeks (1 previous week at number 1))
- 2008 - Mamma Mia! - Soundtrack (1 week)
- 2014 - Guardians of the Galaxy: Awesome Mix, Vol. 1 - Various Artists (2 weeks)
Number Ones - U.S. R&B Singles
- 1952 - Mary Jo - Four Blazes (3 weeks)
- 1969 - Share Your Love With Me - Aretha Franklin (5 weeks)
- 1975 - Get Down Tonight - K.C. & the Sunshine Band (1 week)
- 2008 - A Milli - Lil Wayne (1 week)
Number Ones - U.S. Country Singles
- 1952 - It Wasn't God Who Made Honky Tonk Angels - Kitty Wells (6 weeks)
- 1969 - A Boy Named Sue - Johnny Cash (5 weeks)
- 1975 - Rhinestone Cowboy - Glen Campbell (2 weeks)
- 1980 - Drivin' My Life Away - Eddie Rabbitt (1 week)
- 1986 - Strong Heart - T.G. Sheppard (1 week)
- 2008 - Should've Said No - Taylor Swift (2 weeks)
Number Ones - U.S. Adult Contemporary Singles
- 1975 - How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved By You) - James Taylor (1 week)
- 1980 - Why Not Me - Fred Knoblock (2 weeks)
- 1986 - Words Get in the Way - Gloria Estefan and Miami Sound Machine (2 weeks)
- 2008 - Bleeding Love - Leona Lewis (1 week)
- 2014 - Stay With Me - Sam Smith (5 weeks)
Number Ones - U.K. Singles
- 1980 - Ashes to Ashes - David Bowie (2 weeks)
- 1986 - I Want to Wake Up With You - Boris Gardiner (3 weeks)
- 2018 - Shotgun - George Ezra (2 weeks)
Number Ones - U.K. Albums
- 1980 - Flesh and Blood - Roxy Music (3 weeks)
- 1986 - Now That's What I Call Music 7 - Various Artists (5 weeks)
- 1997 - White on Blonde - Texas (1 week)
- 2003 - American Tune - Eva Cassidy (2 weeks)
- 2008 - The Script - The Script (2 weeks)