The Four Aces topped Cashbox with “Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing,” the first American No. 1 written specifically for a motion picture. It reached No. 2 in Britain and won the 1956 Academy Award for Best Original Song.

Jerry Lee Lewis recorded “Great Balls of Fire” at Sun Studio in Memphis as the follow-up to “Whole Lotta Shakin’ Goin’ On.” Released a month later, it sold more than a million copies in ten days and eventually six million, reaching No. 2 behind “At the Hop” in January 1958.

Little Richard ended a five-year withdrawal from secular music by opening his first British tour in Doncaster alongside Sam Cooke and Gene Vincent. He initially planned a gospel-only set but, inspired by the audience response to Cooke, returned explosively to rock and roll with “Long Tall Sally.”

Cream drummer Ginger Baker collapsed from exhaustion at Sussex University after his demanding solo in “Toad.” He recovered in a local hospital and soon resumed touring.

British rocker Johnny Kidd died in a Lancashire car crash at 30. Though he never charted in America, his UK hits and authorship of “Shakin’ All Over”—the Guess Who’s 1965 chart debut—secured his transatlantic influence.

Cass Elliot opened a planned fourteen-day, $40,000-a-week solo engagement at Caesars Palace, but severe tonsillitis and an under-rehearsed band produced a disastrous first night. The casino canceled the run immediately, and Newsweek compared the performance to an ocean liner sinking on its maiden voyage.

Dionne Warwick returned to the U.S. Top 10 with the Spinners collaboration “Then Came You.” During this period she added an “e” to Warwick for astrological luck before later restoring the familiar spelling, itself a variation of her actual surname Warrick.

Stevie Wonder’s Songs in the Key of Life debuted at No. 1 on Billboard’s album chart, only the third LP to do so. His first release after a $13 million Motown agreement, the three-record set went Platinum and produced “Sir Duke,” “I Wish,” and “Isn’t She Lovely.”

Billy Joel’s breakthrough LP The Stranger entered Billboard’s album chart and eventually reached the Top 10. It yielded four American Top 30 singles and became his first UK-charting album, peaking there at No. 24.

Actor and singer David Soul earned his second UK No. 1 of the year with “Silver Lady.” His earlier chart-topper “Don’t Give Up on Us” had also reached No. 1 in America that April.

Debby Boone’s “You Light Up My Life” began eight weeks atop Cashbox and ultimately led Billboard for ten, making it one of the decade’s dominant singles. Britain was less receptive, where it stopped at No. 48.

Stephen Bishop’s “On and On” reached its No. 11 Hot 100 peak during a 28-week stay. It rose to No. 6 in Canada but did not become a UK hit.

Anne Murray won the Country Music Association’s Album of the Year award for A Little Good News, becoming the first woman to receive the honor even as her pop-chart momentum was fading.

Little Richard suffered a broken leg, bruised ribs, and head and facial injuries when his rented Nissan struck a telephone pole in West Hollywood. He later pleaded guilty to misdemeanor reckless-driving charges, and the injuries prevented him from attending the first Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction in January 1986.

Chuck Berry received a Hollywood Walk of Fame star at 1777 North Vine Street, and his concert documentary Hail! Hail! Rock ’n’ Roll premiered in Los Angeles that evening.

ZZ Top’s Billy Gibbons, Dusty Hill, and Frank Beard placed advance reservations with Pan Am for the first passenger flight to the Moon. The publicity stunt promoted the band’s space-themed album Afterburner.

The Dark Side of the Moon finally left Billboard’s album chart after a record 741 nonconsecutive weeks. Rule changes later allowed catalogue titles to return; by early 2026, Pink Floyd’s LP had accumulated an unmatched 996 weeks and roughly 50 million worldwide sales.

Pete Townshend answered Ron Wood’s suggestion that the Who’s 25th-anniversary tour was motivated by money by pointing to Mick Jagger’s greater financial needs and the failure of Jagger’s latest solo album.

Procol Harum drummer B.J. Wilson died at 43 after spending three years in a coma caused by a severe drug-and-alcohol overdose. He joined the group shortly after “A Whiter Shade of Pale,” which had featured session drummer Bill Eyden.

Elvis Aaron Presley: The Tribute aired live on American pay-per-view from Memphis’s Pyramid Arena. Tony Bennett, Jerry Lee Lewis, and Chris Isaak performed Presley songs while Lisa Marie Presley and Michael Jackson watched from a private box.

Debbie Rowe filed to end her three-year marriage to Michael Jackson. Their divorce became final in April 2000, with Rowe granting Jackson full custody of their children Prince and Paris.

EMI recalled an anniversary vinyl edition of “Love Me Do” after mistakenly using the version with session drummer Andy White instead of Ringo Starr. Apple ordered unsold copies destroyed, but examples already purchased by fans quickly became valuable collectibles.

Michael Jackson’s estate sued three Japanese companies for allegedly selling unauthorized key chains, mugs, towels, postcards, and other merchandise bearing the late singer’s name and likeness.

Larry Verne, whose novelty record “Mr. Custer” topped the Hot 100 in 1960, died from heart failure at 77. After leaving music, he spent 35 years constructing film sets in Hollywood.

Don Ciccone, guitarist for the Critters on “Mr. Dieingly Sad,” died at 70. After serving in Vietnam with the U.S. Air Force, he joined the Four Seasons from 1973 to 1981 and sang falsetto on “December, 1963 (Oh, What a Night).”

UK music-licensing organization PPL named Queen the nation’s most-played rock act of the 21st century. David Bowie ranked second, followed by U2, Oasis, Fleetwood Mac, Stereophonics, the Rolling Stones, the Police, the Killers, and Kings of Leon.