1958Cliff Richard made his British television debut on Oh Boy!, performing “Move It,” which later reached No. 2 in Britain.
1962Ringo Starr’s first wife, Maureen, gave birth to their son Zak Starkey, who later became a drummer with The Who and Ringo’s All-Starr Band.
1965The Beatles’ “Yesterday” was released as a U.S. single. It later topped the Billboard Hot 100, sold a million copies in five weeks, and became one of the most recorded songs in history.
1969John Lennon assembled a band with Eric Clapton, Klaus Voormann, and Alan White for the Toronto Rock ’n’ Roll Revival. The performance produced the Gold album Live Peace in Toronto 1969.
1976Peter Frampton’s Frampton album was certified Gold. It contained “Show Me the Way” and “Baby, I Love Your Way,” his commercial breakthrough songs.
1976Lynyrd Skynyrd released One More from the Road, their first live album, which became a multi-Platinum success.
1985“We Are the World” won Best Group Video and the Viewer’s Choice at the MTV Video Music Awards, while Don Henley, Bruce Springsteen, and Tina Turner also took major honors.
2005Paul McCartney released Chaos and Creation in the Backyard, which reached No. 6 in America and No. 10 in Britain and earned a Grammy nomination.
2019Eddie Money died at 70 after a battle with esophageal cancer. He had eleven Billboard Top 40 hits, including “Take Me Home Tonight” and “Walk on Water.”
1955Little Richard and producer Bumps Blackwell shaped “Tutti Frutti” during a last-minute New Orleans session. The song became Richard’s breakthrough, reaching No. 17 on the pop chart and No. 2 on the R&B chart.
1963The Beach Boys’ “Surfer Girl” peaked at No. 7 on the Billboard Hot 100 and later earned Gold status.
1963The Beatles’ “She Loves You” reached No. 1 in Britain, where it remained on the chart for 31 weeks. It also topped the U.S. chart in 1964.
1968Big Brother and the Holding Company’s Cheap Thrills entered the Billboard album chart and later spent eight weeks at No. 1.
1974Eric Clapton’s recording of Bob Marley’s “I Shot the Sheriff” reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, revitalizing his career.
1974Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, Joni Mitchell, and The Band performed for 80,000 people at London’s Wembley Stadium during the 1974 reunion tour.
1984The first MTV Video Music Awards were held at New York’s Radio City Music Hall, with Michael Jackson winning three awards including one for “Thriller.”
1993Meat Loaf released Bat Out of Hell II: Back into Hell. The album topped charts in ten countries, while “I’d Do Anything for Love” reached No. 1 in America and Britain.
1995Paul McCartney’s handwritten lyrics for “Getting Better” sold for $249,000, then a record price for Beatles lyrics.
1956Elvis Presley received a Gold record for “Don’t Be Cruel,” which had topped Billboard’s pop, country, and R&B charts.
1964A Beatles concert at Cleveland’s Public Auditorium was stopped for 15 minutes when police intervened after fans breached the security barriers.
1968The Doors performed in Amsterdam as a trio after Jim Morrison collapsed during Jefferson Airplane’s performance. Ray Manzarek handled lead vocals.
1972John Lennon and Yoko Ono’s Some Time in New York City was released in Britain after a publishing dispute. It reached No. 11 in the U.K. but only No. 48 in America.
1979Led Zeppelin’s In Through the Out Door reached No. 1 on the Billboard album chart, selling more than 1.7 million copies in its first weeks.
1983Huey Lewis and the News released Sports, which eventually produced five U.S. hit singles and earned seven-times-Platinum certification.
1990Bruce Hornsby made his debut as a touring member of the Grateful Dead at Madison Square Garden after Brent Mydland’s death.
2004Johnny Ramone, co-founder and guitarist of The Ramones, died at 55 after a five-year battle with prostate cancer.
2008Pink Floyd keyboardist and founding member Rick Wright died of cancer at 65, closely associated with “The Great Gig in the Sky.”
2019The Cars’ frontman Ric Ocasek was found dead at 75. The New Wave band had placed nine albums on the Billboard 200 and 32 singles on the Hot 100.