February 12th

Musical birthdays today include country singer Moe Bandy (79), former Clear Light lead singer Cliff DeYoung (78), Genesis guitarist & founding member Steve Hackett (73), ex-Doobie Brothers lead singer Michael McDonald (71), former Thin Lizzy guitarist Brian Robertson (67), ex-Servants frontman David Westlake (58), Chynna Phillips (55), Barenaked Ladies bassist Jim Creeggan (53), and Irish singer-songwriter Lisa Hannigan (42). 

Shoutout to the Great Beyond for Elizabethan choral composer Thomas Campion, born on this day in 1567... to saxophonist and bandleader Tex Beneke, born in 1914... for jazz & soul singer Gene McDaniels, who would have been 86 today... for Ray Manzarek, who would have been 83... for Brazilian popular singer José 'Dominguinhos' de Morais, who would have been 82... for former Go-Betweens vocalist and songwriter Grant McLennan, who would have been 65... for German conductor and virtuoso pianist Hans von Bülow, who died on this date in 1894... for Eubie Blake, who passed away in 1983... for former Iron Butterfly bassist Philip Taylor Kramer, who died in 1995... and for Screamin' Jay Hawkins, who left us today in 2000. 

Also on February 12: George M. Cohan's musical George Washington premieres on Broadway (1906)... George Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue receives its premiere in a concert entitled An Experiment in Modern Music at the Aeolian Hall in NYC, with the composer at the piano and Paul Whiteman leading his orchestra (1924)... Dean Martin has the biggest hit of his career as his single 'Memories Are Made of This' tops the charts on both sides of the Atlantic (1956)... The Miracles' 'Shop around' becomes Motown's first million-selling single (1961)... The Beatles return to New York City by train from Washington, D.C. for two performances at Carnegie Hall. There was such a demand for tickets that some extra seating has been arranged surrounding the stage. Tickets ranged from $1.65 to $5.50 (1964)...  Pye Records announce that they have signed 'the British Bob Dylan', when they add Donovan to the label. The Scottish singer-songwriter produces a series of hit albums and singles between 1965 and 1970 and becomes a friend of leading pop musicians including Joan Baez, Brian Jones, and The Beatles. He influenced John Lennon when he taught him a finger-picking guitar style in 1968 (1965)... 15 police officers raid 'Redlands', the West Sussex home of Keith Richards. The officers of the law, armed with a warrant issued under the Dangerous Drugs Act, .take away various substances for chemical analysis. George and Pattie Harrison were at the house, but it is said that the police waited for them to leave in order not to have to bust the holder of an OBE (1967)... John Lennon performs 'Instant Karma' on Top of the Pops, making him the first Beatle in four years to appear on the show (1970)... Al Green has his only US № 1 single with 'Let's Stay Together'... The Allman Brothers Band release Eat a Peach (1972)... The Sex Pistols make their London live debut as the opening act to Eddie and the Hot Rods at the Marquee Club (1976)... The Police record their first single, 'Fall Out', at Pathway Studios in London for £150... Pink Floyd release Animals in the US... and Blondie, Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers and The Ramones all appear on the same bill at the Whisky a Go Go in Los Angeles (1977)... XTC release English Settlement (1982)... U2 hold a press conference in the lingerie department of the Union Square branch of KMart in Manhattan to announce their 'Pop Mart' world tour, scheduled to begin in Las Vegas on April 25... David Bowie receives a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame (1997).. The Class 47 locomotive 47828 operated by Cotswold Railways is renamed 'The Joe Strummer' at a ceremony in Bristol to honour the Clash frontman who died at age 50 in 20o2 (2005)... In a press conference in Los Angeles, Sting confirms will reunite for a world tour which will begin in Vancouver on May 28th. Their opening act will be Fiction Plane, the band led by Sting's son Joe Sumner (2007)...  A full frontal nude photo of Madonna, taken in 1979 when she was a 20-year-old dancer trying to make ends meet in NYC, sells at auction for $37,500 (2009).