Today in Music History...March 3, 2017 (Now with links)

Music History: March 3

 

2013 Bobby Rogers (The Miracles) dies of complications of diabetes at age 73.

2012 Rock guitarist Ronnie Montrose (Montrose) dies of a self-inflicted gunshot wound at age 64.

2010 Gorillaz' third album Plastic Beach is released. Featuring guest appearances from stars ranging from Snoop Dogg to Lou Reed, it is a huge worldwide hit, reaching #2 in both the US and UK.

2008 Chumbawamba break the record for longest album title with their 160-word release The Boy Bands Have Won...More

2008 Arcade Fire rock for young Obama supporters at the Barack Obama benefit rally at Beachland Ballroom in Cleveland.

2008 Norman "Hurricane" Smith, frequent engineer and producer for the Beatles, dies at age 85 in East Sussex, England.

2007 Robin Thicke tops four different Billboard charts, thanks to his second album, The Evolution of Robin Thicke. The album is at #1 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums tally, while "Lost Without U" tops the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay, and Hot Adult R&B Airplay charts.

1998 Country singer Faith Hill branches out into pop music with "This Kiss," and notches a Top 10 spot on the Hot 100.

1998 Bad Religion's breakthrough album, Stranger Than Fiction, released almost four years earlier, is certified gold by the RIAA, becoming the band's only album to achieve this certification in the United States.

1995 A stalker is arrested trying to break into Roberta Flack's New York apartment.

1995 R.E.M. drummer Bill Berry undergoes successful brain surgery. Berry collapsed due to a brain aneurysm during a concert in Switzerland.

1986 Metallica: "Master Of Puppets"

1986 Christian singer Stacie Orrico is born in Seattle, Washington.

1981 The Elvis Presley documentary movie, This Is Elvis (with Ral Donner narrating) premieres in Memphis.

1981 U2 begins their first major tour of the US with two shows at a Washington, DC, club called The Bayou.

1980 The esteemed auction house Sotheby's holds their first auction of rock memorabilia. Four dollar bills signed by The Beatles are sold for $528.

1978 Van Halen start their first ever US tour in Chicago as the opening act for Journey. Even then, they had the legendary "brown M&Ms" provision in their contract.

1978 Whitesnake, formed by Deep Purple frontman David Coverdale after that band splintered, play their first live gig at Lincoln, England.

1977 Pop singer Ronan Keating (Boyzone) is born in Swords, Dublin, Ireland.

1973 #1 Billboard Album: Elton John's Don’t Shoot Me I’m Only the Piano Player

1973 The live album The Concert for Bangla Desh, taken from the Madison Square Garden benefit concert organized by George Harrison, and featuring Bob Dylan and Eric Clapton, wins the Grammy for Album of the Year.

1972 Nilsson's Nilsson Schmilsson is certified gold.

1969 John Bigham (guitarist, keyboardist for Fishbone) is born in Chicago, Illinois.

1967 The Jeff Beck Group, with an unknown vocalist named Rod Stewart, make their live performance debut, in London.

1966 Buffalo Springfield is formed (as "The Herd") by Neil Young, Stephen Stills and Richie Furay.

1966 Rapper Tone-Loc is born Anthony Terrell Smith in Los Angeles, California.

1965 #1 Billboard Pop Hit: The Temptations' "My Girl"

1965 Eric Clapton plays his last show with The Yardbirds, leaving to join John Mayall's Bluesbreakers. He is replaced by Jeff Beck.

1961 The Supremes: "I Want A Guy"

1953 Robyn Hitchcock is born in London, England. His father is novelist Raymond Hitchcock.

1950 Rock singer Re Styles (The Tubes) is born Shirley Marie MacLeod.

1947 Jennifer Warnes is born in Anaheim, California.

1941 Mike Pender (vocalist for The Searchers) is born in Kirkdale, Liverpool, Lancashire, England.

1931 Cab Calloway records "Minnie The Moocher" on the Brunswick label in New York City. It would become the first jazz recording to sell a million copies.

1706 German composer Johann Pachelbel dies at age 52.