Today in Music History...February 17, 2017

Music History: February 17

 

2015 "Because I Got High" singer Afroman is arrested for assault after punching a female fan who attempts to dance with him on stage at a show in Biloxi, Mississippi. Afroman, who didn't see the woman until he turns around to clock her, blames his anxiety and says that he hadn't had time to take his meds when he went on stage.

2013  Country singer Mindy McCready dies of a self-inflicted gunshot at age 37.

2010 Mumford & Sons make their US TV debut on The Late Show with David Letterman.

2006 Bill Cowsill (The Cowsills)

2006 Ray Barretto

2005 With Tommy Lee back in the band for the first time in five years, Mötley Crüe begin their Red, White & Crüe tour in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. It's a circus theme, with clowns, fire-eaters and acrobats. For his drum solo, Tommy Lee and his rig go up on a trapeze and he performs from 30 feet in the air.

2004 The Darkness win Brit Awards for Best British group, Best British Rock Act and Best British Album (Permission to Land) (Must Destroy/Warner). Busted wins for the British Breakthrough Award and takes Best Pop Act.

2001 Brad Paisley joins the cast of the Grand Ole Opry.

1998 Ani DiFranco fascination peaks as the singer ships 250,000 copies of her latest album on her own label, Righteous Babe Records. DiFranco's DIY business model has earned her a great deal of media coverage, as it proves that an artist doesn't need a major label to succeed.

1998 Songwriter Bob Merrill commits suicide aged 76. His compositions include the #1 UK hits "(How Much Is) That Doggie In The Window?" and "She Wears Red Feathers (And A Huly-Huly Skirt)."

1997 ABC airs Hey, Hey, It's the Monkees, a one-hour comedy special written and directed by original Monkee Mike Nesmith. From their '60s pad, the group recall their old shenanigans and sing a medley of their classic hits: "Last Train To Clarksville", "Daydream Believer", "(I'm Not Your) Steppin' Stone", "I'm A Believer" and "Pleasant Valley Sunday."

1996 Eazy-E's posthumous album Str8 off tha Streetz of Muthaphukkin Compton debuts at #3 on the Billboard 200 chart and #1 on the R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart.

1995 25 years after agreeing to sing at Marcia Brady's prom, Davy Jones reunites with the Bradys... sort of. Jones and fellow Monkees Peter Tork and Micky Dolenz appear in the spoof The Brady Bunch Movie. Jones performs at the prom again, singing a grungy rendition of "Girl," the same song he sang on the TV show.

1991 Ed Sheeran

1990 Emma Anderson admits in an interview that her band Lush is the "Most hated band in London."

1990  Aerosmith appear on Saturday Night Live, performing "Monkey on My Back" and "Janie's Got A Gun," and also appearing in a Wayne's World skit where Tom Hanks plays their roadie.

1982 Thelonious Monk

1979 The Clash open their first US tour at the Palladium in New York City.

1974 Bryan White

1973 Free play their final live gig in Hollywood, Florida as Simon Kirke and Paul Rodgers leave to form Bad Company.

1972 Billie Joe Armstrong (frontman for Green Day) is born in Oakland, California. He is raised in nearby Rodeo, where he records his first song at age 5.

1972 Pink Floyd performs "Eclipse" at the Rainbow Theatre in London. A year later, this music becomes the Dark Side Of The Moon album.

1971 Johnny Cash is the subject of the TV show This Is Your Life.

1971 James Taylor makes his TV debut on ABC's Johnny Cash Show.

1970 Timothy Mahoney (311)

1970 Bee Gee Maurice Gibb opens in the London stage musical, Sing A Rude Song.

1969 Jon Randall

1969 Bob Dylan and Johnny Cash record some duets in Nashville, with Girl From The North Country eventually ending up on Dylan's Nashville Skyline album, which Cash writes liner notes for.

1966 Brian Wilson begins recording The Beach Boys' "Good Vibrations."

1965 "Tennessee Waltz" is declared the state's official song.

1965  Samuel Bayer, who directs the videos for "Smells Like Teen Spirit" and "No Rain," is born in Syracuse, New York.

1964 The first Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass concert is held, in Los Angeles.

1960 The Everly Brothers sign with Warner Bros. Records in a 10-year contract worth $1 million.

1950 Rickey Medlocke, Lynyrd Skynyrd member and front man of the band Blackfoot, is born in Jacksonville, Florida. He is inducted into the Native American Music Hall of Fame in 2008.

1946 Dodie Stevens

1940 Gene Pitney

1935 Johnny Bush

1933 Bobby Lewis

1922 Tommy Edwards

Eagles Release The Greatest Of Greatest Hits Albums

1976

The Eagles release Their Greatest Hits (1971-1975) a collection of 10 songs from their first four albums. For a while, it is certified as the top-selling album in US history.

Many fans came late to the Eagles' party, so the album is a chance for them to catch up with a digest of their back catalog, including favorites like "Peaceful Easy Feeling" and "Desperado." With the big-name acts between releases, it slides into the #1 spot in March and stays for a total of five weeks.

Thanks to catalog sales, the album keeps selling through the '80s and in 1990 the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) certifies that 12 million units have shipped. That number somehow jumps to 22 million in 1995, and when it is listed at 26 million in 1999, it takes over from Michael Jackson's Thriller as the best-selling album of all time. In 2006, it still holds the title with 29 million sold, but after Jackson's death in 2009, Thriller vaults past it on the list.

Of course, there is some fudgy math going on here as the RIAA is tracking units shipped, which allows for all kinds of creative accounting. Still, the album is wildly successful and the standard bearer for a greatest hits compilation. In 1982, Eagles Greatest Hits, Vol. 2 is released, and it also enjoys fantastical sales figures, certified at over 11 million. Along with Hotel California, this gives the group three albums with 10 million-plus certifications, what the RIAA calls a "diamond."