On this day today:
1898 - American bass-baritone concert artist Paul Leroy Robeson is born in Princeton, New Jersey.
1932 - Rockabilly singer Carl Perkins is born in Ridgely, Tennessee.
1962 - Henry Mancini wins the Best Original Song Academy Award for "Moon River" from Breakfast At Tiffany's.
1966 - Jeff Beck collapses on stage at a Yardbirds concert in France. Said their drummer Jim McCarty: "You never really quite knew what was going to happen with him."
1969 - Bob Dylan stuns fans and critics alike by releasing Nashville Skyline, a country album sung in an entirely different voice from the one Dylan has been using.
1969 - King Crimson make their debut performance with a show at the Speakeasy in London.
1973 - Queen play the Marquee Theater in London, their first concert since signing with EMI Records.
1977 - ABBA goes to #1 on the US singles chart with "Dancing Queen," the group's seventh US Top 40 hit and first #1. The song is also a #1 in the UK and 12 other countries.
1977 - Alt rock singer-songwriter Gerard Way (of My Chemical Romance) is born in Summit, New Jersey.
1979 - Supertramp's Breakfast In America is certified Gold.
1983 - David Bowie was at No.1 on the UK singles chart with the title track from his latest album 'Let's Dance', his fourth UK No.1 and featuring blues guitarist Stevie Ray Vaughan. The song introduced Bowie to a new, younger audience oblivious to his former career in the 1970s and was a US No.1 hit, Bowie’s first single to reach number one on both sides of the Atlantic.
1984 - Cher, for her performance in Silkwood, loses the Best Supporting Actress Academy Award to Linda Hunt (in The Year Of Living Dangerously). Cher would win for Best Actress three years later for her role in Moonstruck.
1985 - Frankie Goes to Hollywood open a European tour in Copenhagen, then spend the rest of the year in tax exile from the United Kingdom.
1986 - The musical Time premieres at the Dominion Theatre in London. Produced by Dave Clark, the show stars Cliff Richard in the lead role.
1988 - Billy Ocean's "Get Outta My Dreams, Get Into My Car," from the movie License To Drive, hits #1 in the US. Written by Ocean with superproducer Mutt Lange, it's the last of his three US #1 hits, following "Caribbean Queen (No More Love On The Run)" and "There'll Be Sad Songs (To Make You Cry)."
1992 - "Deep Cover" by Dr. Dre, written for the movie of the same name, is released. It marks the first appearance of Snoop Doggy Dogg, recently signed to Dre's Death Row Records, on a major release.
1994 - Pearl Jam visit the White House, where they meet with President Bill Clinton. The band push for reforms to rein in Ticketmaster, while Clinton looks for help crafting an official statement on Kurt Cobain, who was found dead the previous day.
1994 - Heavy metal makes a mark as Pantera's album Far Beyond Driven debuts at #1 in America.
1997 - Amidst personal tensions between its band members, Soundgarden announce their breakup, which lasts for 13 years.
1999 - Bruce Springsteen begins his first tour with the E Street Band since 1988 with a concert in Barcelona. The European leg ends in June, with the first American show in their home turf of New Jersey on July 15. The tour lasts until July 2000, a total of 132 shows.
2000 - Craig David went to No.1 on the UK singles chart with 'Fill Me In'. At 18 years 11 months he became the youngest UK male solo artist to write and sing a UK No.1.
2000 - Moby started a five-week run at No.1 on the UK album chart with 'Play'. The album went on to spend 81 weeks on the chart.
2009 - Following a contentious interview where he insults Canadian audiences, Billy Bob Thornton's music career hits a roadblock when he and his band the Boxmasters are booed at their show in Toronto opening for Willie Nelson. The Boxmasters cancel their remaining Canadian dates the next day.
2013 - According to the Official Charts Company one billion songs had now been downloaded in the UK. Adele's 'Someone Like You' was the most downloaded single of all time in the UK, followed by tracks by Maroon 5 and Gotye. The Official Charts Company said on average more than three million tracks were now sold every week.
2018 - The chain is broken: Fleetwood Mac announce that Lindsey Buckingham has been fired from the band and will be replaced with Mike Campbell and Neil Finn on their upcoming tour.
2021 - Hardcore rapper DMX dies at age 50 a week after suffering a massive heart attack. His first five albums all went to #1 in America.
