1966 - The Doors officially signed with Elektra Records in a deal for the band to produce seven albums. The band also reluctantly agreed to release ‘Break On Through’ as their first single. The lyric "She gets high/she gets high/she gets high" was changed to ‘She gets/she gets/she gets" in order to secure radio play.
1980 - Blondie hit No. 1 on the charts with "The Tide Is High" - a song written by Jamaican reggae star John Holt and released in 1967 with his group The Paragons. Harry and Stein heard the song on a compilation tape they picked up in London; they thought it was too good not to record. It would be Blondie's penultimate No. 1 hit, as their final chart topper was the following year's "Rapture." (Photo by Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images for Luxottica)
1990 - David Bowie appeared as The Elephant Man on Broadway. A role he debuted in Denver.
1992 - Ozzy Osbourne announced his retirement from touring after a gig in California, saying "Who wants to be touring at 46?"
2007 - In a charity auction, a 25-year-old man from Scotland pays $170,000 for two tickets to the Led Zeppelin reunion show at the O2 Arena in London. Over a million people entered a lottery for the 18,000 tickets, which sold for a face value of $255.
2016 - Jazz and blues pianist, singer, and songwriter Mose Allison died aged 89. He became notable for playing a unique mix of blues and modern jazz. His 'Young Man Blues' a staple of The Who's live performances.
2018 - Roy Clark died aged 85. Best known for hosting Hee Haw, a nationally televised country variety show, from 1969 to 1997. A virtuosos guitar player, at one time the highest paid country artist in the U.S.
Birthdays:
Tony Thompson of Chic was born today in 1954.
Anni-Frida Lyngstad of ABBA is 76.
Jay Bennett, former multi-instrumentalist in Wilco and Titanic Love Affair, was born on this day in 1963.
Ol' Dirty Bastard (ODB) was born today in 1968.
Highlights for Today in Music History are gathered from This Day in Music, Song Facts and Wikipedia.