1972 - Bruce Springsteen signed with Columbia Records and started to assemble the E Street Band from various Asbury Park ex-band mates.
1978 - The Rolling Stones release Some Girls. By 1978, both punk and disco had swept the group off the front pages, and Some Girls was their fiery response to the younger generation. Opening with the disco-blues thump of "Miss You," Some Girls is a tough, focused, and exciting record, full of more hooks and energy than any Stones record since Exile on Main St. Their rockers sound harder and nastier than they have in years. Some Girls may not have the back-street aggression of their '60s records, or the majestic, drugged-out murk of their early-'70s work, but its brand of glitzy, decadent hard rock still makes it a definitive Stones album.
2015 - A copy of The Beatles' White Album signed by convicted murderer Charles Manson went up for auction on the website iOffer. You could also skip the auction and just buy the LP for $50,000.
2017 - Gene Simmons of Kiss files a trademark application for the devil horns hand gesture, which he claims he invented in 1974.
According to Simmons, he invented the gesture when he used it at a concert in 1974; he is seen using it on the cover of the 1977 Kiss album Love Gun.
Simmons is not the first musician to use the gesture: John Lennon (in cartoon form) did it on the cover of the "Yellow Submarine" single in 1966. The band Coven did it on the album art of their 1969 debut, Witchcraft, although this variation, popularized by Ronnie James Dio when he joined Black Sabbath in 1979, is with the thumb folded inward. (Photo by Joseph Prezioso / AFP)
.
Birthdays:
Cole Porter was born today in 1891. His numerous hit songs include "Night and Day", "Begin the Beguine", "I Get a Kick Out of You", "Well, Did You Evah!", "I've Got You Under My Skin", "My Heart Belongs to Daddy" and "You're the Top".
Les Paul was born today in 1915. He was a jazz, country, and blues guitarist, songwriter, luthier, and inventor. He was one of the pioneers of the solid-body electric guitar, and his prototype, called the Log, served as inspiration for the Gibson Les Paul.
Paul is credited with many recording innovations. His early experiments with overdubbing (also known as sound on sound), delay effects such as tape delay, phasing, and multitrack recording were among the first to attract widespread attention. His licks, trills, chording sequences, fretting techniques, and timing set him apart from his contemporaries and inspired many guitarists of the present day.
He broke his right arm in a car accident and had it set at an angle so he could still play guitar.
Jackie Wilson was born today in 1934. A tenor with a four-octave vocal range, he was nicknamed "Mr. Excitement", and was important in the transition of rhythm and blues into soul. .
Matthew Bellamy of Muse is 45.
On this Day In Music History was sourced from This Day in Music, Allmusic, Song Facts and Wikipedia.