1965 - Eric Clapton plays his last show with The Yardbirds, leaving to join John Mayall's Bluesbreakers. He is replaced by Jeff Beck.
1966 - The Rolling Stones went into RCA's Hollywood Studios in Los Angeles to begin work on the album Aftermath. It would result in their first set of all-original material, including "Under My Thumb" and "Paint It Black."
1966 - Neil Young, Stephen Stills and Richie Furay formed Buffalo Springfield in Los Angeles. Buffalo Springfield's time was short -- they formed in 1966 and split in 1968 -- but their legacy was vast. Nominally a folk-rock band, Buffalo Springfield also showed a facility with country-rock, psychedelia, soul, and hard rock, all the while embracing the possibilities of the recording studios of Los Angeles. Stephen is in the Colorado Music Hall Of Fame as a member of Manassas and Richie as a member of Poco. (Photo by Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images for Autism Speaks)
1995 - R.E.M. drummer Bill Berry underwent surgery to halt bleeding caused by a brain aneurysm. The operation was a success, but he still felt it was best that he retire from the band.
1972 - Elton John released 'Rocket Man' as a single, (officially titled 'Rocket Man (I Think It's Going to Be a Long, Long Time)'. The song was inspired by the short story "The Rocket Man" in The Illustrated Man by Ray Bradbury.
1981 - U2 begin their first major tour of the US. It would eventually land in Denver at the old Rainbow Music Hall in May of that year..
2010 - Gorillaz' third album, Plastic Beach, is released. Delivered five years after the delicate whimsical melancholy of 2005’s Demon Days, Plastic Beach is an explicit sequel to its predecessor, its story line roughly picking up in the dystopian future where the last album left off, its music offering a grand, big-budget expansion of Demon Days, spinning off its cameo-crammed blueprint. Featuring guest appearances from Snoop Dogg to Lou Reed and Mick Jones and Paul Simonon from the Clash.
Birthdays:
Doc Watson, bluegrass, folk, country, blues guitarist, songwriter was born on this day in 1923. Blind from a young age he won seven Grammy awards as well as a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. Watson's fingerstyle and flatpicking skills, as well as his knowledge of traditional American music, were highly regarded.
1927 - Junior Parker, blues singer/songwriter was born on this day in 1927. He wrote ‘Mystery Train’, which was covered by Elvis Presley. He got name checked in Al Green's version of "Take Me To The River."
Robyn Hitchcock is 69.
On this Day In Music History is sourced from Allmusic, This Day in Music, Song Facts and Wikipedia.