1966 - The first episode of The Monkees TV show aired in the US. The series ran for a total of 58 episodes.
1975 - Pink Floyd release the album Wish You Were Here. Pink Floyd followed the commercial breakthrough of Dark Side of the Moon with Wish You Were Here, a loose concept album about and dedicated to their founding member Syd Barrett. Musically, it's arguably even more impressive, showcasing the group's interplay and David Gilmour's solos in particular. And while it's short on actual songs, the long, winding soundscapes are constantly enthralling.
The original follow up to Dark Side (and something the band had been toying around with since 1969) was an album called Household Objects. where the band would use rubber bands, beer bottles, utensils, aerosol cans, etc, as instruments.
1996 - Jack Gillis marries Meg White. He takes her last name, and the couple forms The White Stripes. They tell reporters they are brother and sister, which goes over until a reporter for the Detroit Free Press uncovers their marriage license in 2001.
2003 - Johnny Cash died in a Nashville hospital. He was 71. One of the most influential musicians of the 20th century, Cash's career had spanned rockabilly, country, gospel, and rock n' roll, and his flouting of musical boundaries continued right up until the end of his life. Cash died four months after the passing of his beloved wife and partner, June Carter Cash. (Photo credit should read DANIEL JANIN/AFP via Getty Images)
2007 - The surviving members of Led Zeppelin announced they would reform for a star-studded tribute concert in London. Robert Plant, Jimmy Page and John Paul Jones would play at a show to remember the late Atlantic Records founder Ahmet Ertegun. The place of Led Zeppelin drummer John Bonham, who died in 1980, would be taken by his son Jason. The one-off concert, the trio's first performance for 19 years, would take place at the O2 arena in London on 26th November.
18,000 tickets priced at $255 each are doled out in an online lottery. At least a million registrations come in for the show, which is scheduled for November 26 but postponed to December 10 when Jimmy Page breaks his finger.
Birthdays:
Country legend George Jones was born today in 1931. Nicknamed Possum, his signature song was He Stopped Loving Her Today, a track about love and death. He was married to Tammy Wynette between 1969 and 1975 and the pair recorded several songs together in the 1970s.
Barry White was born today in 1944. By the time he's a teenager, White's squeaky voice deepens into a lush bass-baritone that will boom in bedrooms across America, but he has to break free of the gang life first. After he's arrested for boosting $30,000 worth of Cadillac tires, the 16-year-old criminal experiences an awakening during a four-month stint in jail. A song on the radio inspires him to pursue a different path and, with the words of Elvis Presley's "It's Now Or Never" echoing in his mind, he heads to Hollywood to become a singer.
Maria Muldaur, who had the 1974 hit, 'Midnight At The Oasis,'
is 79.
Drummer Neil Peart (Rush) was born today in 1952. He passed in 2020. Ask just about any rock drummer who their influences are and chances are Rush's Neil Peart will be high on the list. With his technically demanding, precise, and deeply complex rhythmic style, few rock drummers scaled the heights that Peart did both on record and on-stage. Unlike many of his peers, Peart wrote a lot of his parts and solos, making him as much a musical architect as a drummer. In addition to being one of music's great drummers, Peart was also Rush's primary lyricist (and an author), whose topics included everything from demon and wizard imagery to political and social topics
Ben Folds is 56.
Jennifer Hudson is 41.
On This Day In Music History was sourced from This Day in Music, Louder Sound, Allmusic, Song Facts and Wikipedia.