1901 : The first record company, The Victor Talking Machine Company, is incorporated, later merging with the Radio Corporation of America to become RCA-Victor.

1945 : Elvis Presley made his first ever-public appearance in a talent contest at the Mississippi Alabama Dairy Show singing ‘Old Shep’, Elvis was 10 years old at the time and came second.

1952 : The long-running radio hit The Adventures Of Ozzie & Harriet, now featuring a 12-year-old Rick Nelson, debuts on CBS-TV, where it will run for another 14 years, bringing the total life of the show to 22 years!

1955 : The Mickey Mouse Club, featuring a 12-year-old Annette Funicello, debuts on ABC-TV.

1957 : ABC-TV premieres The Pat Boone Chevy Showroom variety show, later featured in Michael Moore’s documentary Roger and Me. The show runs for three years.

1958 : The Biggest Show Of Stars 1958 Tour kicked off at the Worcester Auditorium in Worcester, Massachusetts. This Autumn Edition featured; Buddy Holly, Frankie Avalon, Bobby Darin, The Olympics, Dion & The Belmonts, Bobby Freeman, The Elegants, Jimmy Clanton, The Danleers, Duane Eddy, Clyde McPhatter and The Coasters.

1964 : John Lennon writes I Feel Fine.

1964 : The Supremes’ Baby Love enters the charts.

1964 : The LP The Animals enters the charts.

1965 : Johnny Cash is stopped by US Customs officials at the Mexican border on suspicion of heroin smuggling and found to be holding over 1,000 prescription narcotics and amphetamines. He receives a suspended sentence.

1967 : American singer, songwriter Woody Guthrie died after suffering from Huntington’s Chorea disease. Guthrie was a major influence on Bob Dylan and American folk music. The 70’s film ‘Bound For Glory’ is based on his life. His best-known song is ‘This Land Is Your Land’, which is regularly sung in American schools.

1968 : Working at Trident Studios in London, The Beatles recorded the new George Harrison song ‘Savoy Truffle’. George, Paul, and Ringo recorded just one take of the basic track (drums, bass, and lead guitar). The song was inspired by Eric Clapton’s love of chocolates, particularly Mackintosh’s Good News.

1973 : No. 1 Billboard Pop Hit: Cher’s Half-Breed

1977 : The TV event Elvis In Concert, filmed just weeks before The King’s death, is shown on CBS, with good friend Ann-Margret hosting. It shocks many with the depiction of a bloated and drug-addled Elvis Presley in his final days.

1978 : The members of Aerosmith bailed thirty fans out of jail after they were arrested for smoking pot during an Aerosmith concert at Fort Wayne Coliseum.

1980 : Bruce Springsteen begins is tour for The River in Ann Arbor, Michigan, where he’s joined by Bob Seger in a performance of Thunder Road.

1982 : No. 1 Billboard Pop Hit: John Cougar’s Jack And Diane.

1988 : Hollywood premiers the acclaimed documentary Imagine: John Lennon.

1991 : M.C. Hammer offered a $50000 reward for the return of Michael Jackson’s white glove, which had been stolen from the Motown Museum. This was part of an on-going battle between Hammer and Michael Jackson.

1991 : Texas governor Ann Richards proclaimed October 3, (Stevie Ray Vaughan’s birthday), to be “Stevie Ray Vaughan Day”. An annual motorcycle ride and concert in Central Texas benefits the Stevie Ray Vaughan Memorial Scholarship Fund.

1992 : Sinead O’Connor ripped up a photograph of Pope John Paul II, on the US TV show ‘Saturday Night Live’, in a protest at abortion laws. The incident happened as Sinead ended her live performance and out of nowhere, produced a photograph of Pope John Paul II, which she ripped into pieces. There was stunned silence in the studio and the station went to a commercial. NBC was fined $2.5 million dollars by the Federal Communications Commission.

1999 : Akio Morita the founder of Sony electronics died aged 78. The 1979 Sony Walkman transformed both Sony and consumers across the world.

1999 : Tom Jones charts a UK #1 album for the first time in 25 years when his set Reload hits the top spot. Joining the 59-year-old Jones on the album are Robbie Williams, Stereophonics, Barenaked Ladies and the Pretenders.

2000 : The Cars singer and bass player Benjamin Orr died of cancer at home in Atlanta at the age of 53. Sang lead vocals on the bands hits ‘Just What I Needed’, ‘Let’s Go’ and ‘Drive’.

2000 : John Lennon’s assassin Mark Chapman was denied parole after serving 20 years in prison. Chapman was interviewed for 50 minutes by parole board members who concluded that releasing Chapman would ‘deprecate the seriousness of the crime.’

2002 : Original guitarist, vocalist from American psychedelic rock band Iron Butterfly Darryl DeLoach died of liver cancer at the age of 56.

2003 : The film of the benefit concert The Concert For George, an all-star tribute to the recently deceased ex-Beatle George Harrison, opens in US theaters.

2004 : Teenage English soul star Joss Stone becomes the youngest female solo artist to top the British album survey as Mind Body & Soul debuts at No. 1. The 17-year-old’s second release, and first full-length, bows ahead of top 10 entries by Marilyn Manson, Tom Jones and Brian Wilson.

2006 : British alternative rock trio Muse and Radiohead frontman Thom Yorke are the big winners at the fifth annual BT Digital Music Awards in London, each taking home a brace of trophies.

2007 : The Rolling Stones’ “A Bigger Bang” tour, named after their latest album, sets a new world record for grosses when the two-year jaunt rakes in nearly 560 million dollars.

2008 : Singer, producer and songwriter Johnny J (Johnny Jackson) died after jumping from a tier in a Los Angeles jail while serving a sentence for driving under the influence. He produced Tupac Shakur’s albums All Eyez on Me and Me Against the World, as well as many of Shakur’s subsequent posthumous albums and Candyman.

2011 : According to new scientific research, Queen’s We Are The Champions was found to be the catchiest song ever written. Drs Pawley and Mullensiefen, of Goldsmiths University, London, England, conducted research into what makes a song memorable and compiled a list of the ten “catchiest” songs of all time. In order to get the results, they observed thousands of volunteers singing a selected list of tracks. During the research, they discovered that sing-along songs contained four key elements: long and detailed musical phrases, multiple pitch changes in a song’s ‘hook’, male vocalists, and higher male voices making a noticeable vocal effort. Y.M.C.A. by the Village People, Sum 41’s Fat Lip, and Europe’s The Final Countdown were also in the list.