1945 : The #1 song in America is “Rum and Coca-Cola” by The Andrews Sisters. It’s a sanitized cover of a calypso song about American servicemen in Trinidad who get drunk and solicit prostitutes.

1953 : Patti Page’s “(How Much Is) That Doggie In The Window?” hits #1 in America. A version by Lita Roza would also top the chart in the UK.

1959 : Doo-wop group The Platters scored their only UK No.1 hit with ‘Smoke Gets In Your Eyes.’ Also a US No.1 hit.

1964 : The Beatles set a new record for advance sales in the U.S. with 2,100,000 copies of their latest single ‘Can’t Buy Me Love.’ When pressed by American journalists in 1966 to reveal the song’s “true” meaning, Paul McCartney stated “I think you can put any interpretation you want on anything, but when someone suggests that ‘Can’t Buy Me Love’ is about a prostitute, I draw the line.”

1965 : The Rolling Stones were at No.1 on the UK singles chart with ‘The Last Time’, the bands third UK No.1 and first No.1 for songwriters Mick Jagger and Keith Richards.

1965 : The Beatles continue filming in Austria for their second movie, Help! They completed the “ski lift” segment of the film.

1968 : The posthumously released Otis Redding single ‘(Sittin’ On) The Dock Of The Bay’ started a five week run at No.1 on the US chart, (a No.3 hit the UK). Otis was killed in a plane crash on 10th December 1967 three days after recording the song. ‘Sittin’ On The Dock Of The Bay’, became the first posthumous No.1 single in US chart history and sold over four million copies worldwide.

1969 : Fleetwood Mac, The Move, Amen Corner, Peter Sarstedt, The Tymes, Harmony Grass and Geno Washington all appeared at ‘Pop World 69’ at London’s Wembley Empire Pool, England.

1970 : Motown singer Tammi Terrell died of a brain tumour at the age of 24. She had collapsed onstage on October 14, 1967 into Marvin Gaye’s arms during a concert in Hampton, Virginia. Initially Terrell recorded solo, but from 1967 onwards she recorded a series of duets with Marvin Gaye, including the 1967 US No.5 ‘Your Precious Love’ and the 1968, ‘Ain’t Nothing Like the Real Thing’. Marvin Gaye reacted to her death by taking a four year hiatus from concert performance and went into self-isolation.’

1971 : Winners at this years Grammy Awards included, Simon and Garfunkel who won Record of the year, Song of the year and Album of the year for Bridge Over Troubled Water. The Carpenters won Best new act and Best vocal performance.

1972 : John Lennon lodged an appeal with the US immigration office in New York, after he was served with deportation orders arising from his 1968 cannabis possession conviction.

1972 : The Dripping Springs Reunion festival kicks off in a field near Austin, Texas. Envisioned as the Woodstock of country music, the 3-day event features performances by Willie Nelson, Earl Scruggs, Bill Monroe, Kris Kristofferson, Loretta Lynn, Buck Owens and Dottie West. The festival is poorly promoted and a huge flop, with attendance estimated at about 20,000 (combined) when at least 180,000 were expected. Two years later, Willie Nelson used the same site for the first of his Fourth of July Picnic concerts, which would become a popular annual event and help establish Austin as a music destination.

1974 : During a US tour Elvis Presley played the first of four nights at the Midsouth Coliseum in Memphis Tennessee. This was the first time Elvis had played in Memphis since 1961.

1977 : Paper Lace were at No.1 on the UK singles chart with the anti-war pop song ‘Billy Don’t Be A Hero,’ the group’s only No.1. Bo Donaldson and the Heywoods scored a US No.1 with their version of the song.

1977 : After being with the label for just six days the Sex Pistols were fired from A&M due to pressure from other label artists and its Los Angeles head office. 25,000 copies of ‘God Save The Queen’ were pressed and the band made $127,500 from the deal.

1977 : Pink Floyd played the second of five sold-out nights at Empire Pool, Wembley, London, England. The set list included: Sheep, Pigs on the Wing 1, Dogs, Pigs on the Wing 2, Pigs (Three Different Ones), Wish You Were Here, Shine On You Crazy Diamond, Welcome to the Machine, Have a Cigar, Money and Us and Them.

1979 : CBS-TV airs the Wings Over America special.

1991 : Eddie Van Halen and his wife Valerie Bertinelli welcome a son, Wolfgang Van Halen, who eventually becomes the bass player in Van Halen.

1992 : During a Metallica gig at Orlando Arena fans dangled an usher by his ankles from the balcony as trouble broke out at the concert. The band were charged $38,000 for repairs and cleaning after the audience trashed the building.

1999 : RIAA issues its first Diamond Award (sales over 10-million) to Eagles’ Their Greatest Hits.

1999 : Stone Temple Pilots play in impromptu gig at the Viper Room in L.A. It’s the first time in two years the band has performed.

2002 : Liza Minnelli takes her fourth trip down the aisle when she marries promoter David Gest in New York. Michael Jackson serves as best man and Elizabeth Taylor is matron of honor.

2003 : Gareth Gates featuring The Kumars started a two-week run at No.1 on the UK singles chart with ‘Spirit In The Sky.’ The song had been a UK No.1 for Norman Greenbaum in 1970 and for Doctor and the Medics in 1986. Also a 1982 UK airplay hit for The Cheaters.

2005 : Billy Joel checked into a rehabilitation centre for alcohol abuse. A statement from the 55-year-old singer’s spokesperson put his latest problems down to “a recent bout of severe gastrointestinal distress.”

2010 : ABBA were inducted into the US Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, along with Genesis and The Hollies. Abba’s Benny Andersson and Anni-Frid Lyngstad accepted their trophies, in New York.

2010 : A rare Led Zeppelin recording from the group’s 1971 gig at St Matthew’s Baths Hall in Ipswich, England was unearthed at a car boot sale. The bootleg copy of the audio from the group’s gig on November 16th 1971 was picked up for just “two or three pounds” by music fan Vic Kemp. “I was going through a stand of CDs at the car boot at Portman Road and the guy who was selling them said, ‘You might be interested in this,'” Vic Kemp told the Evening Star. “It must have been recorded by someone standing at the front with a microphone. You can hear Robert Plant talking to the audience quite clearly.”

2011 : Megadeth frontman Dave Mustaine collapses backstage at a concert in Russia. He was in extreme pain from kidney stones but insisted on perfroming six songs for the crowd before going to the hospital 30 minutes later.

2015 : Andy Fraser songwriter and bass guitarist with Free died in California aged 62. The London-born musician became a founding member of the British group when he was just 15 and went on to write most of the material with Free lead singer Paul Rodgers, including Free’s 1970 hit ‘All Right Now’.