This Day in Rock Music History: April 2

1955:  Elvis Presley, Johnny Horton and Floyd Cramer were featured on the famous Louisiana Hayride broadcast from Shreveport Auditorium.
1955:  We first heard of Pat Boone on this date as his first single "Two Hearts" debuted on the chart and on the radio.

1955:  Johnny Ace reached double digits as "Pledging My Love" topped the R&B chart for the tenth week.
1964:  The Beatles made it four #1 songs in the U.K. with "Can't Buy Me Love".  The single scored 2.1 million in advanced copies, still an all-time record.
1964:  The Beach Boys recorded "I Get Around", which would soon become their first #1 song.
1965:  The television show Ready Steady Goes Live! premiered in the U.K.
1965:  The Who made their debut on radio on the U.K. show Joe Loss Pop Show.
1966:  Sonny & Cher, the Turtles, the Mamas and the Papas, Donovan, Otis Redding and Jan & Dean all appeared at a charity concert at the Hollywood Bowl.
1966:  SSgt. Barry Sadler spent a fifth week at #1 on the Adult chart with "The Ballad Of The Green Berets".





                                       One of the Mamas & Papas greatest songs...

1965:  "The Ballad Of The Green Berets" remained at #1 for the fifth week overall.  The Rolling Stones held on to #2 with "19th Nervous Breakdown" while the Righteous Brothers moved from 8 to 3 with "(You're My) Soul And Inspiration".  Lovin' Spoonful owned #4--"Daydream" while Simon & Garfunkel remained fifth with "Homeward Bound".  The rest of the Top 10:  "Nowhere Man" from the Beatles, the Mamas and the Papas maintained with "California Dreamin'", Nancy Sinatra's former #1 "These Boots Are Made For Walkin'" fell to #8, Cher moved from 17 to 9 with a solo hit--"Bang Bang (My Baby Shot Me Down)" and Gary Lewis & the Playboys grabbed #10 with "Sure Gonna Miss Her".
1967:  The Rolling Stones had more trouble at their concerts when 154 Austrian fans were arrested after a riot broke out at the Town Hall in Vienna, Austria.
1968:  Jimi Hendrix appeared in concert at the Paul Suave Arena in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
1969:  Bruce Springsteen and his group Child appeared at the Pandemonium Club in Wanammasa, New Jersey.
1970:  Phil Spector completed final editing and mixing for the Beatles' Let It Be album.








1971:  Ringo Starr released his first solo record "It Don't Come Easy".  (Note:  some websites naively say the song was released on April 16 in the U.S.  "It Don't Come Easy" debuted on the Singles chart on April 7, 1971.  It is physically impossible for a song to be included on the Singles chart if it has not yet been released as a single.)

1973:  John Lennon and Yoko Ono held a press conference at the New York City Bar Association to discuss their side of the story in the United States Immigration Department's attempt to deport John.  (Note:  numerous websites claim the press conference was on April 2, 1972.  Lennon was not ordered to leave the U.S. until March 23, 1973, so that alone would make the 1972 claim nonsensical.  According to the book 'The John Lennon Handbook:  Everything you need to know about John Lennon' by Emily Smith, the correct date is April 1, 1973.  )
1973:  The Beatles released the double compilation album 1962-1966, commonly known as The Red Album, in the U.S.
1973:  The Beatles released the double compilation album 1967-1970, commonly known as The Blue Album, in the U.S.
1975:  The Bay City Rollers had the #1 U.K. song with their remake of the Four Seasons' song "Bye Bye Baby".  It would finish the year as the best-selling song.











1977:  ABBA controlled the Singles chart with their fifth #1 in the U.K., "Knowing Me, Knowing You", a Top 10 song in over 15 countries.
1977:  "Southern Nights" by Glen Campbell racked up a fourth week at #1 on the Adult chart.
1977:  Foreigner's first career single was hot--"Feels Like The First Time" moved from 89 to 70.

Paul McCartney had his 86th career hit, as a member of the Beatles, Wings, and his solo projects...

1977:  Hall & Oates were at #1 with "Rich Girl", holding off ABBA's attempt at their first #1 stateside with "Dancing Queen".  Actor David Soul was at #3 with "Don't Give Up On Us" while Thelma Houston continued to edge up with "Don't Leave Me This Way".  The rest of the Top 10: Barbra Streisand's #1 smash "Evergreen" was down to 5, Glen Campbell bounded up from 16-6 with "Southern Nights", 10cc with "The Things We Do For Love", the Eagles vaulted from 17-8 with "Hotel California", Natalie Cole crossed over with "I've Got Love On My Mind" and Wings landed #10 with "Maybe I'm Amazed".







1977:  Fleetwood Mac enjoyed the first week of many at #1 with the landmark album Rumours.  The group began a seven-day tour of the U.K. at the Odeon in Birmingham, England.











1979:  Bob Seger released the single "Old Time Rock & Roll".
1981:  CBS announced the "Nice Price" promotion of back catalog items.  Early LP's from Bob Dylan, Simon & Garfunkel, Billy Joel, ABBA and Janis Joplin could be picked up for just  £2.99.
1983:  Pink Floyd released The Final Cut in the United States, their last album with Roger Waters.  The album had been released on March 21 in the U.K.









1983:  We first heard of an Irish band that would become of the all-time best.  "New Year's Day", U2's first single, debuted on the chart and on the radio.
1983:  Pink Floyd had the top album in the U.K. with The Final Cut.
1983:  Lionel Richie had one of The Top Adult Contemporary Songs of the 1980's, as "You Are" spent a sixth week at #1.
1983:  "Billie Jean" by Michael Jackson enjoyed an eighth week at #1 on the R&B chart.  

"Make Believe" helped make 'Toto IV 'one of the great albums of the Rock Era...

1983:  Thriller by Michael Jackson was #1 on the Album chart for the sixth week.  Frontiers from Journey took second with H2O by Hall & Oates third.  Men At Work's long-running #1 Business As Usual remained in the #4 spot while Styx moved from 10 to 5 with Kilroy Was Here.  The rest of the Top 10:  Rio from Duran Duran, Lionel Richie's self-titled album, the Grammy Award-winning Toto IV was still at #8 after 50 weeks of release, Def Leppard's album Pyromania was #9 and The Distance from Bob Seger & the Silver Bullet Band fell to #10.









1983:  Al Jarreau's new release was gathering respect as "Mornin'" moved from #73 to #55.
1983:  "Billie Jean" by Michael Jackson was #1 for a fifth week.










1984:  Steve Perry, former lead singer of Journey, released his first solo single, "Oh Sherrie".
1987:  U2 began a North American tour to promote The Joshua Tree with a concert at the Arizona State Activity Center in Tempe.













1988:  Terence Trent D'Arby took over at #1 on the R&B chart with "Wishing Well".
1988:  Whitney Houston reached #1 on the Adult Contemporary chart with "Where Do Broken Hearts Go".
1990:  Eric Clapton was fined by Walton-on-Thames Magistrate Court after being arrested for speeding at 105 mph.
1990:  Nirvana was busy working on demos of "In Bloom", "Sappy", "Dive", "Lithium", "Pay To Play", "Imodium" and "Polly" at Smart Studios in Madison, Wisconsin.
1991:  Gloria Estefan had the #1 song "Coming Out Of The Dark".

1991:  Great human being LL Cool J donated a pair of sneakers to every student and teacher at The Thompson Middle School in Dorchester, Massachusetts after the school won the "Foot Locker Cool School Video" contest.
1993:  Roberta Flack appeared on the ABC soap opera, Loving.
1994:  Ace of Base had the #1 album with The Sign.
1995:  2Pac began a four-week stay at #1 with the album Me Against the World.
1997:  Joni Mitchell was reunited with Kilauren Gibb, the daughter she had given up for adoption in 1965.






 
1998:  The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame opened a new wing in Cleveland, Ohio.
1998:  Rob Pilatus of the ill-fated Milli Vanilli was found dead at age 32 in Frankfurt, Germany after taking a deadly dose of drugs and alcohol.

1998:  Metallica debuted the Poor Re-Touring Me Tour at the Newcastle Entertainment Centre in Newcastle, Australia.
2001:  Crazy Town was #1 with "Butterfly".
2001:  Mariah Carey signed the most lucrative recording deal in music history, signing with Virgin Records for $80 million, only to be paid off later not to do any more albums for them.








 
2003:  Edwin Starr, who gave us the timeless classic "War", died from a heart attack at his home in Bramcote, England at the age of 61.
2006:  John Lennon's schoolbook containing the 12-year-old's drawing of the Lewis Carroll poem The Walrus and the Carpenter" was auctioned off at the price of $239,733.  That poem was the inspiration for the 1967 hit "I Am The Walrus".
2008:  Apple's iTunes became the largest music retailer in the United States.  (Note:  some websites report that iTunes reached #1 on April 5, but an article by 'Ars Technica" shows that it occurred on April 2 with the release of the NPD MusicWatch Survey for the month that afternoon.)   
2011:  Richard Patterson, drummer of the Esquires, died at the age of 66 after suffering a neurological illness.






Born This Day:
 
1939:  Marvin Gaye was born in Washington, D.C.; died April 1, 1984 when he was shot one day prior to his 45th birthday by his father.










 
1941:  Dr. Demento (real name Barret Eugene Hansen), radio personality and creator of the "Funny Five", was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota.










 
1942:  Leon Russell was born in Lawton, Oklahoma; died November 13, 2016 in Nashville, Tennessee after trying to recuperate from quadruple bypass surgery.  (Note:  some websites claim Leon was born in 1941, but he was born in 1942, according to his official website.)
1943:  Glen Dale, guitarist and vocalist with the Fortunes, was born in Deal, Kent, England.
1946:  Kurt Winter, guitarist and songwriter of the Guess Who, was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada; died of kidney failure December 14, 1997.  (Note:  one website shows his birthday as April 14, 1948.  Some websites report his death being December 15, and another website claims his death was on December 22.  Kurt was born in April 2, according to the Manitoba Music Museum.  Winter died on December 14 according to the newspaper 'The Winnipeg Free Press'.) 
1952:  Leon Wilkeson, bassist for Lynyrd Skynyrd, was born in Newport, Rhode Island; was found dead in a Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida hotel room on July 27, 2001 after spending many years suffering from chronic liver and lung disease. 
1953:  David Robinson, drummer of the Cars, was born in Malden, Massachusetts.  (Note:  'MTV' reports that Robinson was born in Malden, Massachusetts, 'AllMusic.com" says he was born in Woburn, Massachusetts, and another website says he was born in Boston.  While there are no credible sources for his birthplace, our best research indicates David was born in Malden.)





 
1956:  Gregory Abbott ("Shake You Down") was born in Manhattan, New York.  (Note:  several websites claim he was born in New York City, and some say he was born in Harlem.  Harlem is a neighborhood, not a city, and will not be shown on an official birth certificate.  New York City contains several boroughs, each being officially census-designated with their own identities.  Abbott was born in Manhattan.) 
1961:  Keren Jane Woodward of Bananarama was born in Bristol, England.

1967:  Greg Camp, songwriter, guitarist and vocalist of Smash Mouth, was born in West Covina, California.
1979:  Jesse Carmichael, keyboardist for Maroon 5, was born in Boulder, Colorado.
1983:  Jasiel A. Robinson (Jung Joc) was born in Atlanta, Georgia.  (Note:  some websites report that he was born in College Park, Georgia.  While there are no credible sources as to his birthplace, our best research indicates he was born in Atlanta and raised in College Park.)

The Legendary Whisky-A-Go-Go

The Whisky-A-Go-Go on Sunset Boulevard opened on January 11, 1964.  The famous Whisky-A-Go-Go was the place to be in rock's infancy.  Johnny Rivers has the Whisky to thank for his career.  He wasn't a traditional artist in the sense that most of his records were recorded live at the Whisky-A-Go-Go where he often was the resident act.

Rivers was the first star to come out of the club.  The tradition of having a girl in a mini-skirt above the crowd dancing in a cage started fairly early.  The Whisky nearly always had two to three bands playing on a given night, but sometimes they weren't billed.  Local bands would try to get on as the opening act and often they would use that as a springboard to fame.

Here is just a small sampling of the acts who played at the Whisky in the late 60's and early 70's: Rascals                                                                Jimi Hendrix Grass Roots                                                        Cream Beau Brummels                                                    Jackie Wilson Gentrys                                                                Them Buffalo Springfield                                                Youngbloods Doors                                                                  Animals Johnny Rivers                                                       Steppenwolf Turtles                                                                  Hollies Chamber Brothers                                                Linda Ronstadt Jefferson Airplane                                                 Golden Earring Outsiders                                                              Fleetwood Mac Iron Butterfly                                                        James Gang Smoky Robinson & the Miracles                           Bread Little Anthony & the Imperials                               Grand Funk Railroad Gladys Knight & the Pips                                       Kinks Temptations                                                           Boz Scaggs Four Tops                                                              Beach Boys Little Richard                                                         War Ventures                                                                Bob Seger Led Zeppelin                                                         Steve Miller Band Chicago Transit Authority                                       Alice Cooper Blood, Sweat & Tears                                            Traffic Spencer Davis Group                                             Canned Heat Three Dog Night                                                     Lynyrd Skynyrd Aerosmith                                                               Steely Dan Bachman-Turner Overdrive                                     Foghat Stevie Wonder                                                        Looking Glass Little Feat                                                               Spirit Labelle                                                                   Ten Years After Black Sabbath                                                        Yes Ted Nugent                                                            Uriah Heap Allman Brothers Band                                             Blues Image The Who                                                                Neil Diamond

The Whisky continued to host live acts, although these days there are simply thousands of other venues for groups to play at.  In the 70's groups such as the Runaways, Quiet Riot, Van Halen, the Ramones, Blondie, Elvis Costello and the Police played at the club.

Once the first wave of punk rock stars petered out, the famous Whisky began to have hard times and closed its doors in 1982.  But it reopened in 1986 as a place that could be rented by bands.  However, most of the booths disappeared and patrons were required to stand throughout the performances.  Guns N' Roses, Metallica, Motley Crue and the Red Hot Chili Peppers played at the Whisky in the 80's.  When the grunge-rock style took over in the 90's, the Whisky was the site for Soundgarden, Nirvana, and others.

The club is still open on the Sunset Strip with music nightly.

Discography: Metallica

1983:  Kill 'Em All (#120)
1984:  Ride the Lightning (#100)
1986:  Master of Puppets (#29)
1988:  ...And Justice For All (#6)
1991:  Metallica (#1)
1996:  Load (#1)
1997:  Reload (#1)
1998:  Garage, Inc. (#2)
2003:  St. Anger (#1)
2008:  Death Magnetic (#1)

Live Albums:
1993:  Live ****:  Binge & Purge (#26)
1999:  S&M (#2)
2009:  Orgullo, Pasion y Gloria:  Tres Noches en la Ciudad de Mexico
2010:  The Big 4 Live from Sofia, Bulgaria

Video Albums:
1987:  Cliff 'Em All
1989:  2 of 1
1992:  A Year and a Half in the Life of Metallica
1993:  Live ****:  Binge & Purge
1998:  Cunning Stunts
1999:  S&M
2001:  Classic Albums:  Metallica - Metallica
2006:  The Videos:  1989-2004
2009:  Francais Pour Une Nuit
          Orgullo, Pasion y Gloria:  Tres Noches en la Ciudad de Mexico
2010:  The Big 4 Live from Sofia, Bulgaria

Compilations:
1990:  The Good, the Bad and the Live (Box Set)
2004:  Metallica:  Vinyl Box Set
2009:  The Metallica Collection (Box Set)

This Day in Rock Music History: April 1

1955:  George Martin became the head A&R man at Parlophone Records, a division of EMI.

1957:  The Everly Brothers released the single "Bye Bye Love".  (Note:  some websites claim the song was released in March.  Unfortunately, there are no credible sources as to the exact date, but our best research indicates it was on April 1.)
1957:  Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers began a two-week run at the London Palladium.









 
1961:  The hard-working Beatles kicked off 92 straight shows at the Top Ten Club in Hamburg, Germany.  The foursome played for seven hours a night on weekdays and eight hours on weekends.  (Note:  some websites claim the tour was from March 26-July 2.  On March 26, the Beatles performed at the Casbah Club in Liverpool, and didn't arrive in Hamburg until the 27th, according to 'The Beatles Bible'.  According to the source, their last show was July 1 before traveling back to England.)  
1963:  Fats Domino switched recording labels, signing with ABC-Paramount.
1964:  John Lennon was reunited with his father after 17 years.
1965:  The Who recorded a show at a Manchester, England television studio for an appearance on the television show Top of the Pops.  The group then played a concert supporting Donovan at the Brent Town Hall in Wembley Park, with Rod Stewart and the Soul Agents opening for both acts.  (Note:  some websites say the concert was at the Wembley Town Hall.   The building was originally built as Wembley Town Hall, but it became Brent Town Hall when the boroughs of Wembley and Willesden were changed in 1965 to form Brent.  Brent Town Hall has been listed as a Grade II building since 1990.)

1966:  David Bowie's first single, "Do Anything You Say" was released.
1966:  The Troggs recorded "Wild Thing" at Regent Sound Studio in London.










1967:  The world first heard of this great San Francisco band on this date as their first single, "Somebody To Love" debuted on the chart.  Jefferson Airplane.
1967:  The Kinks were in concert for two shows at the Scene '67 Theatre inside Kelvin Hall in Glasgow, Scotland.  The Fortunes were among the bands supporting the Kinks.
1967:  There was a new #1 song on the Easy Listening chart--"Somethin' Stupid", by father and daughter team Frank & Nancy Sinatra.








1967:  Simon & Garfunkel had a hot new song, as "At The Zoo" moved from #58 to #34.











       
                                           The Five Americans reached the Top 10...

1967:  The Turtles remained atop the chart with "Happy Together".  The Mamas and the Papas held steady with "Dedicated To The One I Love" with former #1 "Penny Lane" from the Beatles in third.  Herman's Hermits were back with "There's A Kind Of Hush" and there was a lot of chart activity with songs dropping as the Four Tops moved from 18-5 with "Bernadette".  The rest of the Top 10:  "This Is My Song" from Petula Clark, Buffalo Springfield remained at #7 with "For What It's Worth", although most stations had it higher, the Beatles had their 48th hit in four years with "Strawberry Fields Forever", Frank Sinatra & daughter Nancy moved to #9 with "Somethin' Stupid" and the Five Americans had a big hit on their hands with "Western Union".





 
1967:  The Monkees spent their 21st consecutive week at #1 on the Album chart, 13 with their self-titled debut and 8 with More of the Monkees.  That was a Rock Era record, but the group was far from done.










1968:  Tommy James & the Shondells released the single "Mony Mony".














1968:  The Rascals released the single "A Beautiful Morning".
1969:  The Beach Boys sued their record label, Capitol, for $2 million in unpaid royalties.  The group also announced that they were starting their own Brothers Records label.
1970:  Musicians recorded the orchestral scores for the Beatles' songs "The Long And Winding Road" and "Across the Universe" that would be included on the Let It Be album.  Drummer Ringo Starr was the only group member present in the studio, as his drums were recorded as well.  It was the final time that a Beatle was in a recoding session until the Anthology series in the 1990's.







 
1970:  The movie Woodstock premiered in Hollywood.
1970:  Over one million postal ticket applications were sent to Earls Court in London for the forthcoming series of six European concerts by the Rolling Stones.
1971:  Led Zeppelin performed in concert for the BBC Radio show Rock Hour at London's Paris Theater.  The group performed songs from their forthcoming fourth album.










1972:  Dr. Hook debuted on the chart with their first single, "Sylvia's Mother".
1972:  Mar Y Sol, a rock festival in Manatí, Puerto Rico, featured kicked off with Rod Stewart, Alice Cooper, Emerson Lake & Palmer, the Allman Brothers, Dave Brubeck, the J. Geils Band, Brownsville Station, and Dr. John performing over the four-day festival.  It was the first major performance of Billy Joel, who electrified the crowd.  Joel's performance was brought to the attention of Clive Davis, head of Columbia Records, and Billy was signed to Columbia the following year.













                                                                                 "Melissa"...

1972:  The Allman Brothers Band entered the Top 10 with one of their biggest career albums--Eat a Peach.
1972:  Roberta Flack wasted no time reaching #1 on the Adult chart with "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face".
1972:  America remained at #1 with "A Horse With No Name" as Neil Young continued at #2 with "Heart Of Gold.  










1974:  Paul McCartney & Wings released one of the great singles of Paul's career--"Band On The Run".  The song was not released in the U.K. until June.






 



1974:  Gordon Lightfoot released the single "Sundown".
1975:  The Bay City Rollers' TV series Shang-A-Lang premiered on ITV in the U.K.













 
1976:  AC/DC made their live U.K. debut at the Red Cow in Hammersmith, London.
1976:  Pink Floyd guitarist David Gilmour's house was broken into and guitars valued at over £7,000 were stolen. 









 
1977:  Elvis Presley was admitted to a hospital in Memphis, Tennessee following fatigue and intestinal flu.  He was confined to a hospital bed for six days.
1978:  The Philadelphia Fury soccer team, owned by Paul Simon, Peter Frampton, James Taylor and others, made their debut.
1978:  The #1 song in the U.K. was "Denis" by Blondie.
1978: Roberta Flack and Donny Hathaway rose to #1 on the R&B chart with "The Closer I Get To You".







                                     Clapton with one of his biggest career hits...

1978:  The Soundtrack to "Saturday Night Fever" prevailed for an 11th week at #1 on the Album chart.  Eric Clapton's Slowhand provided the closest competition, but it was way behind.  The great Billy Joel album The Stranger was still third after 26 weeks with Barry Manilow's Even Now in the #4 spot.  The rest of the Top 10:  Aja from Steely Dan, George Benson with Weekend in L.A., Jackson Browne slipped with Running On Empty, Kansas moved to #8 with Point of Know Return, Queen's News of the World slipped and Styx finished the list with The Grand Illusion.







                            Paul Davis's song was about as durable as they come...

1978:  "Night Fever" by the Bee Gees was #1 for a third week.  The group had now been at #1 in 10 of the last 15 weeks, and songs written by the group (they also wrote "Love Is Thicker Than Water" for Andy Gibb) had been #1 for 12 of 15 weeks.  Their previous #1--"Stayin' Alive" was second, followed by Eric Clapton's "Lay Down Sally" and Barry Manilow with "Can't Smile Without You".  Two other songs written by the Bee Gees, "Emotion" by Samantha Sang and "If I Can't Have You" from Yvonne Elliman, were next.  The rest of the Top 10:  "I Go Crazy" by Paul Davis was still in the Top 10 after 32 weeks, Andy Gibb's song mentioned above, Jay Ferguson with "Thunder Island" and Kansas moved in with "Dust In The Wind".
1980: 32-year-old Brian Johnson became the lead singer of AC/DC, replacing Bon Scott who had died after a drinking binge.








 
1982:  Toto released the single "Rosanna".














1982:  John Cougar released the single "Hurts So Good" on Riva Records.








 
 
1983:  Kirk Hammett joined Metallica.










 
1984:  One of the most shocking moments in rock history--Marvin Gaye was shot dead by his father at his parent's home in Los Angeles, the day before his 45th birthday.  Gaye had tried to intervene in a squabble his parents were having over misplaced documents, but was killed by the gun Gaye had given his father just four months before.  Marvin Gaye, Sr. pleaded guilty to manslaughter after first-degree murder charges had been dropped due to the discovery that he had a brain tumor.
1985:  David Lee Roth quit Van Halen.







1989:  Guns N' Roses released the single "Patience".
1989:  Madonna collected her third #1 album in the U.K. with Like A Prayer.
1989:  The Fine Young Cannibals had the only new Top 10 album--The Raw & the Cooked.








 
1989:  The Bangles went to #1 in the U.S., the U.K. and Australia with "Eternal Flame", their second career #1.  "Stand" by R.E.M. shot up from 14 to 8.










1991:  Mariah Carey released the single "I Don't Wanna' Cry".  (Note:  several websites naively report the single being released on April 25.  It debuted on the Singles chart on April 6.  It is physically impossible for a song to be included on the Singles chart if it has not yet been released as a single.)
1992:  Jimmy Buffett's daughter Sarah Delaney was born in Nashville, Tennessee.
1993:  Carole King, David Crosby, Kenny Loggins, Phish, and Ann & Nancy Wilson of Heart played a benefit concert in Portland, Oregon to save the forests.
1993:  Willie Nelson's tour bus crashed into a car in Riverdale, Nova Scotia, Canada, killing the car driver.
1995:  Montell Jordan had the new #1 song on the R&B chart with "This Is How We Do It".
1995:  Madonna's "Take a Bow" was #1 overall for a sixth week.  











2000:  Santana's "Maria Maria" took over the #1 spot in the U.S. where it would stay for nine weeks.
2001:  Spice Girl Mel B was advised to sell her Buckinghamshire mansion because she couldn't afford to keep it.
2002:  Paul McCartney opened his "Driving USA" tour at the Oakland Arena in California.







 
2002:  Sum 41 opened a national concert tour in Philadelphia.












 
2002: The U.S. National Museum of American History put Louis Armstrong's cornet on display.
2003:  R. Kelly announced he was recording a tribute to members of the military called "Soldier's Heart".  Proceeds of the song went to families of the soldiers.  (Note:  several websites report that the announcement took place on April 2.  As there is a 'Billboard' article on April 1, 2003 regarding the news, that makes the April 2 date impossible.) 
2003:  Pearl Jam was in concert at Denver's Pepsi Center.  Eddie Vedder took a George W. Bush mask and impaled it with his mike stand to the crowd's delight.
2004:  Paul Atkinson, guitarist with the Zombies, died at age 58 of liver and kidney disease in Santa Monica, California.  Atkinson had been a record executive at Columbia, RCA, and MCA, helping sign acts such as ABBA, Bruce Hornsby, Mr. Mister and Judas Priest.
2006:  Former R.E.M. drummer Bill Berry joined members of the group onstage at Georgia Theatre in Athens to play "Country Feedback".
2007:  Modest Mouse had the #1 album with We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank.


Born This Day:
 
1932:  Debbie Reynolds was born in El Paso, Texas.
1934:  Jim Ed Brown of the Browns ("The Three Bells" from 1959) and a solo artist, was born in Sparkman, Arkansas.
1939:  Rudolph Isley of the Isley Brothers was born in Cincinnati, Ohio.
1942:  Alan Blakely, rhythm guitarist of the Tremeloes ("Silence Is Golden"), was born in Bromley, Kent, England; died of cancer June 10, 1996.  (Note:  some websites claim Blakely was born in Dagenham, Essex, England.  Unfortunately, there are no credible sources for either birthplace, but our best research indicates he was born in Bromley.  Some websites report his death as being on June 1, 1996, but we believe they are missing a digit.) 
1942:  Phil Margo, singer and drummer of the Tokens ("The Lion Sleeps Tonight"), producer of Tony Orlando & Dawn, the Chiffons and the Happenings, and science fiction author, was born in Brooklyn, New York.
1942:  Danny Brooks, bass singer of the Dovells ("You Can't Sit Down") 
1945:  John Barbata, drummer of the Turtles, Jefferson Airplane/Starship and Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, and also a session guitarist for Eric Clapton, was born in Passaic, New Jersey.
 
1946:  Ronnie Lane, co-founder, vocalist and bassist with Small Faces ("Itchycoo Park"), was born in Plaistow, Essex, England; died on June 4, 1997 (age 51) after a battle with multiple sclerosis.  (Note:  some websites naively say Lane was born in Plaistow, London.  Plaistow formed part of the county borough of West Ham in Essex until 1965, when it formed the London county borough of Newham.  Lane was born prior to 1965, so he was not born in the county of London, but in the county of Essex.)
1947:  Robin Scott (known as "M" on the hit "Pop Muzik" in 1979) was born in Croydon, London.
1948:  Jimmy Cliff, singer (remake of "I Can See Clearly Now") and songwriter (Cat Stevens' "Wild World"), was born in St. James, Jamaica.
1948:  Simon Cowe, guitarist for Lindisfarne ("Run For Home"), was born in Jesmond Dene, Tyne and Wear, England.
1952:  Billy Currie, songwriter and keyboardist for Ultravox, was born in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, England.




 
1954:  Jeff Porcaro, drummer for Toto, was born in Hartford, Connecticut; died August 5, 1992 in Hidden Hills, California of a heart attack brought on by hardening of the arteries from cocaine use.  (Note:  some websites claim Porcaro died in Canoga Park or Los Angeles; according to the newspaper 'The Los Angeles Times', he died at his home in Hidden Hills.)
1961:  Mark White, guitar and keyboardist for ABC, was born in Sheffield, Yorkshire, England.

1961:  Susan Boyle, singer who caught the world by storm after her appearance on Britain's Got Talent, was born in Blackburn, West Lothian, Scotland.  Susan's album I Dreamed a Dream was released shortly afterwards.
1965:  Peter O'Toole, bass guitarist and mandolinist of Hothouse Flowers, was born in Dublin, Ireland.
1971:  Method Man (real name Clifford Smith) was born in Hempsted, New York.  (Note:  some websites claim Smith was born in Hempsted, Long Island.  Long Island is not a city or a state, so we know that is inaccurate.  Others say he was born in Richmond, New York.  Richmond became a borough in 1898, and it wasn't until 1975 that Staten Island was recognized as the name of the borough.  However, our best research indicates Smith was born in Hempsted.)
1972:  Jesse Tobias, guitarist and songwriters who has worked with the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Alanis Morissette and Morrissey, was born in Austin, Texas.
1981:  Hannah Louise Spearitt, vocalist for S Club 7, was born in Great Yarmouth, Norfolk, England.
1986:  Hillary Scott of Lady Antebellum was born in Nashville, Tennessee.