Births
1942 Jill Jackson, Paul and Paula, (1963 US No.1 & UK No.8 single, 'Hey Paula').
1944 Joe Cocker, (1968 UK No.1 single 'With A Little Help From My Friends', plus 8 other UK Top 40 singles, 1982 US No.1 single with Jennifer Warnes 'Up Where We Belong').
1946 Cherilyn Sarkasian, (Cher), singer, Sonny & Cher, (1965 UK & US No.1 single 'I Got You Babe'), Solo, (1991 UK No.1 single 'The Shoop Shoop Song', 1998 UK No.1 & 1999 US No.1 single 'Believe', plus over 15 other UK Top 40 singles).
1947 Steve Currie, T Rex, (1971 UK No.1 single 'Hot Love', plus over 20 other UK Top 40 singles). Currie died on 28th April 1981.
1952 Warren Cann, drummer, Ultravox, (1981 UK No.2 single 'Vienna', plus 15 other UK Top 40 singles).
1954 Jimmy Henderson, Black Oak Arkansas, (70's US No.25 single 'Jim Dandy To The Rescue').
1955 Steve George, Mr Mister, (1985 US No.1 & 1986 UK No.4 single 'Broken Wings').
1958 Jane Wieldin, guitar, vocals, The Go-Go's (1982 US No.2 single 'We Got The Beat', 1982 UK No.47 single 'Our Lips Our Sealed') and solo (1988 UK No.12 single 'Rush Hour').
1960 Sue Cowsill, The Cowsills, (1967 US No.2 single 'The Rain, The Park & Other Things', 1969 US No.2 single the theme from 'Hair'). TV's Partridge Family was based on the family.
1961 Nick Heyward, guitar, vocals, Haircut 100, (1982 UK No.3 single 'Love Plus One') & Solo.
1961 Dan Wilson, American guitarist, vocalist, and songwriter. Singer with Semisonic, in which he wrote hits like ‘Secret Smile’, ‘Closing Time’ and ‘Chemistry’. Produced the 2007 US No,1 album Mike Doughty's album Haughty
1963 Brian Nash, guitar, Frankie Goes To Hollywood, (1984 UK No.1 & US No.10 single 'Relax' and six other UK Top 40 singles).
1966 Thomas Gorman, guitarist, Belly, ('Feed The Tree' UK No.32 single 1993).
1967 Kit Clark, Danny Wilson, (1988 UK No.3 single 'Mary's Prayer').
1981 Sean Conlon, vocals, Five, (1998 UK No.2 single 'Everybody Get Up', 1999 UK No.1 single 'Keep On Movin').
Deaths
1964 Rudy Lewis of The Drifters died aged 28. (1960 US No.1 & UK No.2 single 'Save The Last Dance For Me').
Events
1942 "I've Got A Gal in Kalamazoo" was recorded by Glenn Miller and His Orchestra.
1954 Bill Haley and the Comets' "Rock Around the Clock" was released. It was not successful until it was released in 1955 on the soundtrack to "Blackboard Jungle."
1957 Andy Williams was at No.1 on the UK singles chart with 'Butterfly', the US singers only UK No.1 and the first of 40 hit singles from 1957 until 2002 on the UK chart.
1960 Alan Freed, a disc jockey, was indicted for income tax evasion stemming from payola.
1961 Cliff Richard made his debut on ITV's 'Thank Your Lucky Stars'
1965 Jackie Trent was at No.1 in the UK with the single 'Where Are You Now (My Love)
1967 The BBC announced a ban on The Beatles track 'A Day In The Life' from Sgt Peppers saying that it could promote drug taking
1967 The Young Rascals started a 2 week run at No.1 on the US singles chart with 'Groovin', it made No.8 in the UK. The group named themselves after a US comedy TV show.
1967 Jimi Hendrix signed his first American record contract with Reprise Records.
1968 Pete Townshed and Karen Astley were married.
1968 On BBC 2 TV, a short play 'The Pistol Shot', featuring a young dancer called David Bowie
1969 While watching a baseball game in Dodger Stadium, Los Angeles, Peter Cetera was set upon by four Marines who broke his jaw; Cetera spent two days in intensive care.
1970 The final feature film involving The Beatles 'Let It Be', was premiered in Britain simultaneously in London and Liverpool a week after it was unveiled in the US
1972 T Rex had their 4th and final UK No.1 single with 'Metal Guru'. They also started a 3 week run at No.1 on the UK album chart with 'Bolan Boogie'
1977 The stage show "Beatlemania" opened at the Winter Garden Theater, New York.
1977 Television kicked off a 10 date UK tour at the Village Bowl, Bournemouth, support act was Blondie who were making their UK live debut.
1978 'The Buddy Holly story' film was premiered in Holly's home town, of Lubbock, Texas
1978 'With A Little Luck', gave Paul McCartney his sixth solo No.1 record on the US singles chart.
1979 Elton John performed in Leningrad, Soviet Union.
1981 Appearing at Bingley Hall, Staford, England, Bruce Springsteen.
1989 'Ferry 'Cross The Mersey' by Ferry Aid started a 3 week run at No.1, the song was recorded to raise funds for the Hillbsbourgh Football victims, Gerry Marsden, Paul McCartney, Holly Johnson and The Christians all featured on the recording
1989 Jason Donovan started a 2 week run at No.1 on the UK album charts with his debut album 'Ten Good Reasons'
1989 Paula Abdul started a 2 week run at No.1 on the US singles chart with 'Forever Your Girl', her 2nd US No.1, a No.24 hit in the UK.
1992 Aerosmith donated $10,000 to support "Corporal Politics," a controversial art exhibition at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
1995 Robson Green and Jerome Flynn started a 7 week run at No.1 on the UK singles chart with their versions of 'Unchained Melody/(there'll be Blue birds over) the White Cliffs of Dover' the third Time that 'Unchained Melody' had been a hit
1995 Don Henley married Sharon Summerall.
1996 The Metallica single "Until It Sleeps" was released world-wide, excluding North America, where it was released the next day.
1997 U2 caused traffic chaos in Kansas City, Missouri after they paid for traffic control to close down five lanes so they could shoot the video for 'Last Night On Earth'. Apart form major traffic jams a passing Cadillac crashed into a plate glass window trying to avoid a cameraman.
1998 Tommy Lee from Motley Crue was sentenced to six months jail after being found guilty of spousal abuse.
2001 R.E.M. started a two-week run at No.1 on the UK album chart with 'Reveal'.
2001 S Club 7 went back to the top of the UK singles for the second time with 'Don't Stop.'
2005 Kylie Minogue had a cancerous lump removed from her breast at St Frances Xavier Cabrini Hospital in Melbourne, Australia. The singer had been due to begin the 20-date Australian leg of her current worldwide Showgirl tour in Sydney.
2006 Heavy metal monsters Lordi became Finland's first ever Eurovision Song Contest winners after their song Hard Rock Hallelujah won in Athens. The band won the Eurovision public vote after singing their heavy rock anthem dressed in horror costumes.
2006 Tool were at No.1 on the US album chart with ‘10,000 Days’ the American bands second No.1 album.
2007 Linkin Park went to No.1 on the UK album chart with 'Minutes To Midnight' the bands fifth Top 20 UK album. Also a US No.1.
