July 20th

Musical birthdays today include Kim Carnes (81), Moody Blues bassist John Lodge (81), Carlos Santana (79), original AC/DC lead singer Dave Evans (74), Twister Sister guitarist Jay Jay French [né John Segall] (73), former Sex Pistols drummer Paul Cook (70), ex-Simple Minds keyboardist Mick MacNeil (68) country singer Radney Foster (67), former Talk Talk drummer Lee Harris (64), Pearl Jam guitarist Stone Gossard (60), Dandy Warhols frontman Courtney Taylor-Taylor (59), rapper Kool G Rap [né Nathaniel Wilson] (58), ex-Bikini Kill drummer & vocalist Tobi Vail (57), and former Ash guitarist & vocalist Charlotte Hatherley (47). 

Shoutout to the Great Beyond for country singer Cindy Walker, born on this day in 1918... for jazz bassist & producer Peter Ind, born in 1928... for West End & Broadway musicals singer Sally Ann Howes, born in 1930... for early rock singer Buddy Knox, born in 1933... for  Soundgarden lead singer Chris Cornell, who would have been 61... for rapper DJ Screw [né Robert Davis, Jr.], who would have been 53... for R&B singer Roy Hamilton, who died on this date in 1969... and for folk singer & producer Artie Traum, who left us in 2008.

Also on July 20th: Billboard publish their first comprehensive record chart. The magazine previously put out best-seller lists submitted by the individual record companies, but the new chart combines the top sellers from all major labels. Their first № 1 song is ‘I'll Never Smile Again’ by Frank Sinatra and the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra (1940)... Dimitri Shostakovich makes the cover of Time Magazine (1942)... Jan & Dean go to № 1 in the US with 'Surf City' (1963)... Capitol records release the Beatles' album Something New for the US market (1964)... Bob Dylan releases 'Like a Rolling Stone' (1965)... Johnny Cash's 'Folsom Prison Blues', recorded live at the institution in January, goes to the top of the Billboard Country chart... Iron Butterfly's second LP, In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida, enters the US chart for the first time. The album, which is often considered the first heavy metal record to chart, contains the 17-minute title track that fills the second side of the LP which goes on sell over four million copies in the US alone... Jane Asher announces on the national British TV show 'Dee Time' that her engagement to Paul McCartney is off. Paul reportedly is watching at a friend's home and is surprised by the news (1968)... The Carpenters' summer replacement variety show 'Make Your Own Kind of Music' debuts on NBC-TV (1971)... Tim Buckley, The Sensational Alex Harvey Band, Mahavishnu Orchestra, Van Morrison, The Doobie Brothers and The Allman Brothers are all on the bill for a one-day festival at Knebworth Park, England (1974)... Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band play the opening night on their Born To Run Tour at the Palace Theater in Providence, RI. The show also marks the live debut of Steven Van Zandt, AKA Miami Steve, as a member of The E Streeters (1975)... The Buzzcocks make their live debut as the opening act for The Sex Pistols at the Lesser Free Trade Hall in Manchester. In the audience are Morrissey, Bernard Sumner, Peter Hook [soon to form Joy Division], Mark E Smith [0f The Fall] and Mick Hucknall. Tickets cost £1 (1976)... Alex Cox's film 'Sid & Nancy', based on the life of Sid Vicious and with Gary Oldman in the title role, has its world premiere in London (1986)... Church groups throughout middle America claim that pictures of Britney Spears printed in the latest issue of Rolling Stone, on newsstands today, encourage child pornography. The shots show a scantily-clad Britney in her bedroom (1999)... The Evergreen Ballroom in Lacey, WA is destroyed by a fire. During the ballroom's heyday from the '50s through the '70s, the site hosted gigs by Elvis, Johnny Cash, Duke Ellington, Chuck Berry, Little Richard, Ike & Tina Turner and Fats Domino among others. Glen Campbell had lived in the kitchen at the venue for several months before achieving stardom (2000)... Jackson Browne settles his lawsuit against US Senator John McCain and the Republican Party after his 1977 hit 'Running On Empty' was used without permission in a 2008 McCain presidential campaign ad that aired on TV and over the Internet. McCain and the Party apologize for using the song in the ad and say that the Senator himself 'had no knowledge of, or involvement in, the creation or distribution of the video' (2009).

July 19th

Musical birthdays today include variety singer Vicki Carr [née Florencia Cardona] (85), Average White Band bassist Alan Gorrie (80), original Eagles guitarist Bernie Leadon (79), Brian May (79), ex-Bauhaus drummer Kevin Haskins (64), Machine Head frontman Robb Flynn (58), Symphony X lead singer Russell Allen (55), trip hop/hip hop producer Wax Tailor [né Jean-Christophe Le Saoût] (51), ex-Dirty Pretty Things bassist David 'Didz' Hammond (45), and Grizzly Bear drummer Christopher Bear (44).  

Shoutout to the Great Beyond for operatic baritone Aldo Protti and Juilliard String Quartet founding member Robert Mann, both born today in 1920... for country singer Sue Thompson, born in 1925... for bluesman Buster Benton, born in 1932... for Commander Cody [né George Frayne IV], who would have been 82... for Grateful Dead keyboardist Keith Godchaux, who would have been 78... for Lynyrd Skynyrd founding member Allen Collins, who would have been 756.. for rock journalist & Swell Maps co-founder Nikki Sudden [né Adrian Godfrey], who would have been 70... for country singer Lefty Frizzell, who died on this date in 1975... and for folklorist & musicologist Alan Lomax, who left us in 2002.

Also on July 19th: Franz Liszt gives his final public performance in Yelizavetgrad in the Russian Empire [today Kirovohrad, Ukraine] (1886)... In Vienna, Anton Webern conducts the first performance of his own Five Pieces for Orchestra, one of the shortest known compositions for a full symphony ~ the first movement consists of 6 1/3 bars and lasts 19 seconds (1911)... Sun Records releases Elvis' first single, 'That's All Right' (1954)... George Treadwell, the manager of The Drifters, fires the entire group and hires the then unknown Ben E. King and five other vocalists to replace them (1958)... In the first of the sessions which will produce his album This Is Our Music, Ornette Coleman records the only standard ~ 'Embraceable You' ~ that appears on any of his albums for Atlantic (1960)... Elvis wraps filming on his movie 'Speedway', co-starring Nancy Sinatra (1967)... Among the guests on Johnny Cash's weekly variety show on ABC are Joni Mitchell and The Monkees. Cash himself performs 'Last Train to Clarksville', and The Monkees return the favour by playing the host's own 'Everybody Loves a Nut' (1969)... The tumult of the Stones '72 American tour continues as Mick Jagger and Keith Richards are arraigned for assault & battery in Warwick, RI after getting into a scuffle with a newspaper photographer (1972)... Paul McCartney & Wings have both the № 1 song and album in America with 'Listen to What the Man Said' and Venus and Mars, respectively... Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band rehearse for a reported 19 hours at the Record Plant in NYC before kicking off the Born to Run tour (1975)... Deep Purple split up at the end of a UK tour. David Coverdale goes on to form Whitesnake, while Jon Lord and Ian Paice form a band with Tony Ashton. The classic line up of Blackmore, Gillan, Glover, Lord & Paice will reform in 1984. Glenn Hughes returns to Trapeze and Tommy Bolin puts together his own band [but will die before the end of the year] (1976)... An exhibition featuring paintings by Joni Mitchell, John Mayall, Klaus Voormanm, Ron Wood and Commander Cody opens at the Vorpal Gallery in Laguna Beach, CA (1980)...  Roy Orbison Day is proclaimed in Odessa, TX, as the singer plays there for the first time in 15 years. Orbison receives the keys to the city in a pre-concert ceremony (1981)... Bruce Springsteen plays behind the Iron Curtain for the first time, as he and the E Street Band bring the Tunnel of Love tour to 150,000 concertgoers in East Berlin (1987)... James Brown changes accommodations behind bars after $40,000 in cash and cheques are discovered in his minimum security cell. The Godfather of Soul was given a six year sentence the previous December after several run-ins with the law, including charges of illegal gun possession, resisting arrest, assault and leading the authorities on several high-speed of car chases. His new home will be at a medium security cell at the Stevenson Correctional Institute in Columbia, SC (1989)... The Spice Girls make their debut on Top of the Pops, performing 'Wannabe', the first of their nine UK № 1s (1996)... Ozzy Osbourne and his former Black Sabbath band mate Tony Iommi settle a long-running legal dispute over the use of the group's name. Ozzy filed suit against the guitarist in May of last year, accusing Iommi of falsely claiming to be the sole owner of the Black Sabbath name by lodging an application with the US Patent and Trademark Office. The pair release a joint statement confirming they have settled the dispute 'amicably' (2010). 

 

July 18th

Musical birthdays today include Dion DiMucci (87), guitarist Lonnie Mack (85), Martha Reeves (85), country singer Ricky Scaggs (72), original XTC drummer Terry Chambers (71), original Red Hot Chili peppers drummer Jack Irons (64), rapper M.I.A. [née Mathangi Arulpragasam] (51), System of a Down guitarist Daron Malakian (51), Ryan Cabrera (45), Underoath drummer Aaron Gillespie (42), and rapper Hopsin [né Marcus Hopson] (41). 

Shoutout to the Great Beyond for operatic soprano Pauline Viardot, born on this day in 1821... for chansonnier Henri Salvador, born in 1917... for conductor Kurt Masur, and for jazz bassist & Dexter Gordon sideman Don Bagley, born in 1927... for Screamin' Jay Hawkins, born in 1929... for Rolling Stones keyboardist Ian Stewart, who would have been 90... for Village People vocalist Glenn 'the Biker' Hughes, who would have been 76... for Bobby Fuller, whose body was found in his parked car on this day in 1966. He was 23 ~ the cause of death has never been officially determined... for Nico [née Christa Päffgen], who died today in 1988... and for folksinger Mimi Fariña, who left us in 2001.

Also on July 18th: 18-year-old truck driver Elvis Presley makes his first ever recording when he pays $3.98 at the Memphis Recording Service singing two songs, 'My Happiness' and 'That's When Your Heartaches Begin'. The so-called vanity disc is intended as a gift for his mother. It will surface 37 years later as part of an RCA compilation called Elvis ~ the Great Performances (1955)... Brenda Lee has the № 1 single in America with 'I'm Sorry' (1960)... The Byrds release the album Fifth Dimension (1966)... The Beatles record 'Cry Baby Cry' and 'Helter Skelter'. One of the takes of the latter song turns into an extended jam lasting 27'18", making it the longest single recording in the entire Beatle archive (1968)... Ringo records his vocal to 'Octopus' Garden' (1969)... Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band open a four night stand at Max's Kansas City in NYC. The opening act is Bob Marley & the Wailers, making their American live debut (1973)... The US Justice Department orders John Lennon out of the country by September 10th. The Immigration and Naturalization Service denied him an extension of his non-immigrant visa because of his guilty plea in England to a 1968 marijuana possession charge (1974)... Def Leppard make their live debut at the Westfield School, Sheffield, in front of 150 students (1978)... Billy Joel has both the № 1 single and album in the US with 'It's Still Rock 'n' Roll to Me' and Glass Houses, respectively (1980)... Bobby Brown marries Whitney Houston at her New Jersey estate (1992)... At a church in the village of Blidoe on the Baltic archipelago island of Roslagen off central Sweden, a piano piece by Claude Debussy found in 2001 is performed for the first time. Composed in 1917 during World War I, he gave the piece to his coal supplier, a native of Blidoe, for keeping his house warm during the winter in Paris. Entitled 'The evening that was lit up by the embers', the composition is played by French pianist Jean-Pierre Armengaud (2003)... Paul Simon files a law suit against Rhythm USA Inc., a Georgia-based subsidiary of a Japanese firm, claiming the company never had his permission to sell wall clocks that play ‘Bridge Over Troubled Water’. The suit claimed that as one of the best known songs throughout the world, a proper licensing agreement would earn at least a $1 million licensing fee (2007).

July 17th

Musical birthdays today include Spencer Davis (87), Kraftwerk drummer Wolfgang Flür (79), Black Sabbath bassist Geezer Butler (77), R&B singer Regina Belle (63), country singer Craig Morgan (62), original Dinosaur Jr. bassist Lou Barlow (60), country singer Elizabeth Cook (54), Symphony X drummer Jason Rullo (54), ex-Mars Volta guitarist Paul Hinojos (51), country singer Luke Bryan (50), Animal Collective  keyboardist Noah 'Panda Bear' Lennox (48), Thousand Foot Krutch frontman Trevor McNevan (48), Atomic Kitten vocalist Natasha Hamilton (44), and McFly frontman Tom Fletcher (40). 

 

Shoutout to the Great Beyond for hymn writer Isaac Watts, born on this day in 1674... for country singer Red Sovine, born on this day in 1918... for jazzman & electric guitar pioneer George Barnes, born in 1921... for jazz singer Jimmy Scott, born in 1925... for songwriter & pianist Vince Guaraldi, and jazz drummer & longtime Dave Brubeck sideman Joe Morello, both born in 1928... for Stooges drummer Ron Asheton, who would have been 78... for Phoebe Snow, and Temptations vocalist Damon Harris, both of whom would have been 76... for Nicolette Larson, who would have been 74... for Gang Starr rapper Guru [né Keith Elam], who would have been 65... for Billie Holiday, who died on this date in 1959... for John Coltrane, who died in 1967... for impresario & original Animals bassist Chas Chandler, who passed away in 1996... and for jazzman Peter Appleyard, who left us today in 2015. today. 

Also on July 17th: Handel's Water Music is premiered as George I and his retinue sail down the Thames from Whitehall to Chelsea on a barge with 50 musicians (1717)... Johnny Cash has his final session at Sun Studios, recording 'Down the Street to 301' and 'I Hope I Remember to Forget' (1958)... The Beatles release the single 'All You Need Is Love/'Baby You're a Rich Man' (1967)... John & Yoko appear on the late-night BBC talk show Parkinson. John chastises fans who have called Yoko 'ugly', and vehemently denies rumours that she 'broke up the Beatles' (1971)... A bomb believed to have been planted by Québecois separatists explodes under The Rolling Stones equipment van in Montreal. Also, angry fans riot, throwing bottles and rocks after 3,000 tickets sold for the show turn out to be fake (1972)... In London, The Moody Blues open what they claim is the world's first 'Quadraphonic' recording studio (1974)... A Russian language version of Conway Twitty's 1970 hit 'Hello Darlin' is broadcast to a worldwide audience as part of the joint US-Soviet Apollo-Soyuz Test Project. The song, which in Russian is called 'Privyet Radost,' is offered as a 'gesture of goodwill' from the Apollo crew to the cosmonauts. Twitty worked with a language professor from the University of Oklahoma to record the phonetic Russian version of the song (1975)... Simple Minds make their live debut at the Satellite Club in Glasgow (1978)... Gary Moore leaves Thin Lizzy in the middle of a US tour and is replaced by guitarist Midge Ure (1979)... Irene Cara hits № 1 on the UK singles chart with 'Fame' (1982)... Robbie Williams announces that he is leaving Take That, one of the most successful boy bands of the '90s (1995)... Muse release the album Origin of Symmetry (2001)... Half of the 4,500 people in the audience walk out of Linda Ronstadt's show at the Aladdin Resort and Casino in Las Vegas after the singer dedicates an encore of ‘Desperado’ to filmmaker Michael Moore and urges the crowd to see his scathingly anti-Bush administration film Fahrenheit 9/11 (2004)... Bono receives France's highest cultural honour for his contribution to music and commitment to humanitarian causes when he is made Commander of the Order of Arts and Letters by French Culture Minister Aurélie Filippetti in Paris (2013).

July 16th

Musical birthdays today include classical pianist Bella Davidovich (98), blues singer Denise LaSalle (87), Rubén Blades (78), classical violinist Pinchas Zukerman (78), former Police drummer Stewart Copeland (74), producer & DJ Norman Cook (63), Ting Tings co-founder Jules De Martino (57), Sunny Day Real Estate frontman Jeremy Enigk (52), and No Devotion keyboardist Jamie Oliver (51).

Shoutout to the Great Beyond for Ginger Rogers, born on this day in 1911... for Latin jazz percussionist Cal Tjader, born in 1925... for jazz trumpeter John Chilton, born in 1932... for Searchers bassist Tony Jackson, who would have been 86... for reggae pioneer Desmond Dekker, who would have been 85... for Harry Chapin, who was killed in a road accident today in 1981 at the age of 38... for conductor Herbert Von Karajan, who died on this date in 1989... for Styx drummer John Panozzo, who died in 1995... for big band singer Jo Stafford, who passed away in 2008... for Deep Purple keyboardist Jon Lord and country music legend Kitty Wells, both of whom left us today in 2012.

Also on July 16: Mozart's opera Die Entführung aus dem Serail [The Abduction from the Seraglio] premieres at the Burgtheater in Vienna (1782)... 'His Master's Voice', the logo of the Victor Recording Company and later RCA Victor, is registered with the US Patent Office. The logo shows the dog, Nipper, looking into the horn of a gramophone (1900)... Jimmie Rogers records 'Blue Yodel #9', with an uncredited Louis Armstrong on trumpet and Satchmo's wife Lil Hardin on piano (1930)... The Beach Boys sign with Capitol Records... Bill Evans goes into the studio leading a group larger than his usual trio for the first time. The sessions will produce the album Interplay (1962)... Jack Bruce, Ginger Baker and Eric Clapton announce the formation of Cream (1966)... The Beatles record George's new song 'Something' at Abbey Road (1969)... Neil Young releases the album On the Beach (1974)... Shaun Cassidy has the № 1 song in the US with his remake of The Crystals' 1962 hit 'Da Doo Ron Ron' (1977)... Dolly  Parton's theme park Dollywood opens in Pigeon Forge, TN (1986)... Queen Latifah is the victim of a botched carjacking attempt that leaves her bodyguard and driver in critical condition with a gunshot wound (1995)... Coldplay's debut album Parachutes hits № 1 on the UK chart (2000)... The White Stripes play their 'shortest live show ever' at the George Street Theatre, St. John's, Newfoundland. At 7 PM, Jack White plays a single C# note accompanied by a bass drum/crash cymbal hit from Meg. At the end of the 'concert', Jack announces "We have now officially played in every province and territory in Canada". They then leave the stage, after promising to return in exactly three hours' time to perform a full show. [They do] (2007).

 

 

July 15th

Musical birthdays today include R&B singer Millie Jackson (82), Linda Ronstadt (0), former 13th Floor Elevators guitarist Roky Erickson (79), Lynyrd Skynyrd drummer Artimus Pyle (79), ex-Buggles keyboardist Trevor Horn (78), former Ramones drummer Marky Ramone [né Marc Bell] (70), Jason Bonham (59), System of a Down drummer John Dolmayan (53), The Diplomats rapper Jim Jones (50), former My Chemical Romance lead guitarist Ray Toro (49), and session drummer & video director Vice Cooler (42). 

Shoutout to the Great Beyond for songwriter Dorothy Fields [best remembered for 'The Sunny Side of the Street' and 'The Way You Look Tonight'], born on this day in 1905... for country singer Lloyd 'Cowboy' Copas, born in 1913... for Cameroonian makossa guitarist Francis Bebey, born in 1929... for classical guitarist Julian Bream, born in 1933... for original Yes guitarist Pete Banks, who would have been 79... for New York Dolls guitarist Johnny Thunders [né John Genzale, Jr.], who would have been 73... for Ian Curtis, who would have been 70... for composer & pianist Carl Czerny, who died on this date in 1857... and for early rock saxophonist & songwriter Bill Justis, who left us in 1982.

Also on July 15th: Empress Maria Theresa of Austria decrees that a new opera house be erected on the site of the Ducal Theater of Milan, recently destroyed by fire. When dedicated in 1778, the new structure will be known as La Scala (1776)... 17-year-old John Lennon's mother Julia is killed by a car driven by an off-duty police officer named Eric Clague [Clague is charged with DWI, but is later acquitted of the offence] (1958)... This week's US Top three singles, in descending order, are The Byrds' 'Mr Tambourine Man', The Four Tops' 'I Can't Help Myself' The Rolling Stones' ('I Can't Get No) Satisfaction' (1965)... The Doors open for The Jefferson Airplane at the Convention Center in Anaheim, CA (1968)... Elton John has his first US № 1 album with Honky Chateau (1972)... The Edgar Winter Group, Sly & The Family Stone, Canned Heat, Lindisfarne and The Kinks all appear at The Great Western Express Festival at White City, west London. With his wife having recently walked out of their marriage taking their young children with her, Ray Davies of The Kinks announces from the stage that he is "sick of the whole thing" and is retiring. He then takes an overdose of tranquilizers backstage, but changes his mind and takes a taxi to the nearest hospital before collapsing (1973)... Bob Dylan plays before his largest UK audience ever, as an estimated 200,000 fans gather at the Blackbushe Aerodrome in Surrey to hear the singer headlining a bill that includes Eric Clapton, Joan Armatrading and Graham Parker (1978)... Simply Red go to № 1 on the US singles chart with 'If You Don't Know Me by Now' (1989)... Pink Floyd play a concert in Venice on a floating stage on the canal beside the Piazza San Marco. Over 200,000 people attend the show [almost double the number authorities had planned for], causing damage to buildings and bridges. The cost cleaning of the area after the concert, which was broadcast live on TV to over 20 countries with an estimated audience of almost 100 million, is estimated at £25,000. Two Venice councillors will later be ordered to stand trial for the costs incurred by the show (1989)...   
Aerosmith are forced to cancel a forthcoming US tour after Joey Kramer is involved in a freak accident. Sparks from a gas pump set the drummer's car on fire and completely destroyed it as he was filling up. He was admitted to hospital with second-degree burns (1994)... In Hiltons, VA, Johnny Cash plays his final concert, which is also his first public appearance since the funeral of his wife June in May of this year (2003)... Victor Willis, the original 'policeman' in the Village People, is arrested after real police find a gun and drugs in his convertible in Daly City, south of San Francisco. Willis also has an outstanding $15,000 felony warrant for possession of narcotics (2005)... Over 10,000 people apply for a job with P Diddy after the rapper posted an advert on YouTube saying that he was looking for a new personal assistant. He warned applicants that the job would be far from easy, and would involve everything from getting him ready for the red carpet to aiding in billion dollar deals to helping him jump out of planes in films (2007).

July 14th

Musical birthdays today include jazz vibraharpist & drummer Tommy Vig (88), session drummer Jim Gordon (81), Tenacious D co-founder Kyle Gass (66), Beninoise singer Angélique Kidjo (66), ex-Throwing Muses singer/guitarist Tanya Donelly (60), Crash Test Dummies keyboardist Ellen Reid (60), Pink Martini pianist Thomas Lauderdale (56), The Verve lead guitarist Nick McCabe (55), Black Eyed Peas rapper Taboo [né Jaime Gómez] (51), country singer Jamey Johnson (51), and Imagine Dragons frontman Dan Reynolds (39). 

Shoutout to the Great Beyond for Woody Guthrie, born on this day in 1912... for Devo guitarist & keyboardist Bob Casale, who would have been 72 today... for Byrds guitarist Clarence White, who was killed by a drunk driver whilst loading equipment after a gig on this day in 1973 at the age of 29... for original Spinners lead singer Philippé Wynne, who died on this date in 1984... for chansonnier Leo Ferré, who passed away in 1993... and for jazz organist & Sonny Stitt sideman Gene Ludwig, who left us today in 2010. 

Also on July 14th: Henry Purcell is appointed organist of the Chapel Royal in London (1682)... Bobby Vinton hits № 1 in the US with 'Roses Are Red, My Love'... The Beatles play their first ever show in Wales, at the Regent Dansette in Rhyl (1962)... Miles Davis plays his first show in Japan, at the Koseinenkin Hall in Tokyo. The performance is taped and later released as Miles in Tokyo, the only recorded incarnation of the trumpeter's second great quintet prior to the arrival of Sam Rivers on tenor saxophone with Wayne Shorter... The Rolling Stones have their first UK № 1 single with 'It's All Over Now' (1964)... The Who begin their first full North American tour at the Memorial Coliseum in Portland, OR as the opening act for Herman's Hermits (1967)... The Byrds, James Taylor, Steeleye Span, Sandy Denny, Tom Paxton and The Incredible String Band all appear at the Lincoln Folk Festival in the UK ~ tickets are £2 (1971)... During a concert at the John Wayne Theatre in Hollywood, CA, Phil and Don Everly get into a violent dispute in between songs. Phil smashes his guitar and storms offstage;  Don finishes the set by himself and then announces that The Everly Brothers have split (1973)... Elvis Costello & the Attractions make their live debut at The Garden in Penzance, Cornwall (1977)... Talking Heads release the album More Songs about Buildings and Food (1978)... Allen Klein, the former business manager of The Beatles and The Rolling Stones, begins serving a two month sentence for falsifying tax returns (1980)... The world premiere of Alan Parker's film 'Pink Floyd: The Wall' is held at the Empire Cinema in London's West End (1982)... Madonna has both the № 1 single in the UK with 'Papa Don't Preach', and the № 1 album with true Blue (1986)... Tom Jones loses a paternity suit and is ordered to pay $200 a week in child support to 27 year old Katherine Berkery of New York. The judge in the case is Judy Sheindlin, who is still serving in her 15 year tenure as a New York Family Court magistrate before going on to TV fame as Judge Judy (1989)... Plans for Sting to write an official anthem for Tuscany come under fire by locals who insist that the job should go to an Italian rather than to a foreigner. The British pop star owns a house in Tuscany and was nominated to compose the anthem by regional politician Franco Banchi who lives nearby (2003)...  A pair of glasses worn by John Lennon spark a bidding war after being offered for sale online. The circular sunglasses were worn by Lennon during The Beatles 1966 tour of Japan, where the band played some of their last ever live dates. Anonymous rival bidders have pushed the price as high as £750,000 at online auction house 991.com (2007)... Michael Jackson fans from all over the world congregate at London's O2 arena, where the star had been due to begin a run of 50 concerts. The fans, who leave messages on a wall of tributes and conduct Jackson sing-a-longs, hold a minute's silence at 1830 BST to mark the time when the doors to the concert would have opened (2009).