May 16th

Musical birthdays today include jazz drummer Billy Cobham (74), King Crimson lead guitarist Robert Fripp (72), Jonathan Richman (67), Heaven 17 singer Glenn Gregory (60), former Noir Désir guitarist Serge Teyssot-Gay (55), Dave Matthews Band violinist Boyd Tinsley (54), former Nirvana bassist Krist Novoselic (53), Janet Jackson (52), R&B singer Ralph Tresvant (50), ex-Slowdive lead singer Rachel Goswell (47), and P.O.D. lead singer Sonny Sandoval (44).

Shoutout to the Great Beyond for jazzman Woody Herman, born today in 1913... for Liberace, born in 1919... for jazz trombonist Eddie Bert, born in 1922... for jazz singer Betty Carter, who would have been 89 today... for Django Reinhardt, who died on this date in 1953... for pianist and arranger Ernie Freeman, who died in 1981... for Sammy Davis Jr., who passed away in 1990... for soul singer Marvin Johnson [whose debut single was the first 45 RPM issued by Berry Gordy's proto-Motown label Tamla], who died in 1993... for heavy metal singer Ronnie James Dio, who died in 2010... and for 'Godfather of Go-go' Chuck Brown, who left us five years ago today.   

Also on May 16th: Jean-Baptiste Lully takes up the position of King's Master of Music at the court of Louis XIV (1661)... The first flat gramophone disc is demonstrated at the Franklin Institute in Philadelphia, PA by its inventor, Emile Berliner (1888)... Ethel Merman makes her Broadway debut in the opening of 'Annie Get Your Gun' (1946)... Mary Wells has the № 1 single in America with 'My Guy' (1964)... Driving away after a gig at the Civic Hall in Long Beach, CA, the limo taking the Rolling Stones back to their hotel is besieged by fans who cave in the roof by standing on it. The band attempt to hold the roof up while their chauffeur drives off with bodies falling onto the road (1965)... The Beach Boys' Pet Sounds and Bob Dylan's Blonde on Blonde are both released (1966)... Pete Townshend spends the night in a US jail for assaulting a man during a Who gig at The Fillmore East. Townshend, who claimed self-defence, was unaware that the man who jumped onto the stage was a plainclothes policeman trying to warn the audience that a fire had broken out. The Who guitarist is later fined $30 for the offence (1969)... Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young go to № 1 on the US album chart with Deja Vu (1970)... Neil Young makes an unannounced appearance at The Bottom Line in NYC and plays most of the songs from his forthcoming album On the Beach (1974)... Patti Smith makes her UK debut at The Roundhouse, London (1976)... The London Evening Standard reports that Led Zeppelin singer Robert Plant has been arrested at the airport in Atlanta, GA for being drunk and pulling a knife. Plant was in fact at his home in Wales at the time of the incident, and the person arrested was a man impersonating the singer. The newspaper will run an apology the following night (1977)... U2 have their first US № 1 single with 'With or without You' (1987)... Keith Richards falls while reaching for a book on a high shelf of the library in his Connecticut home. The fall breaks several of his ribs, causing the Stones to postpone many dates on their Bridges To Babylon tour (1998)... Bob Dylan tops the US and UK album charts simultaneously for the only time in his career with Together through Life (2009).