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The Virginia Minstrels, led by Dan Emmett, play to a paying audience for the first time at the Chatham Theatre, New York City. USA. Emmett is best-remembered as composer of the popular song Dixie.
Rory Blackwell, widely credited as the first bona fide British rock'n'roll performer, is born in London, UK.
Roy Acuff makes his Grand Ole Opry debut at the Dixie Tabernacle, Nashville, Tennessee, USA. Sacks of mail soon begin arriving at WSM radio, requesting the boy who sang Great Speckled Bird be invited back. This appearance is also memorable as the day on which Acuff sideman Clell Summey becomes the first person to play a Dobro on the Opry.
The Mills Brothers make their Billboard singles chart debut in the USA with Paper Doll.
The Royal Hawaiian Revue - billed as 'The first all-native Hawaiian revue since Parl Harbour' - is presented at The Playhouse Theatre, Statesville, North Carolina, USA.
Jimmy Dorsey And His Orchestra play the first night of two weeks at the Deshler Wallick Hotel, Columbus, Ohio, USA.
Actress and singer Hattie McDaniel, the first African-American to win an Academy Award, dies of breast cancer in Woodland Hills, California, USA.
Jazz saxophonist Charlie Mariano suggests to his fellow jazzers Varty Haroutunian, Herb Pomeroy and Ray Santisi that they start a "jazz workshop", a school where jazz musicians could learn by doing. By June they will have rented space on Stuart Street near Copley Square, Boston, Massachusetts, USA, and started the first Jazz Workshop.Crazy Man, Crazy by Bill Haley And His Comets peaks at No12 on the Billboard Juke Box Chart in the USA for the week ending on this date. It is generally regarded as the first recognized rock'n'roll recording to register on the national American musical charts.
Johnny Otis plays the first night of two weeks at The Club Oasis, Los Angeles, California, USA.
Majorca, the debut single by Petula Clark, peaks at No12 in the UK singles chart.
Marlene Dietrich plays the first night of six weeks at The Cafe De Paris, London, UK.
Decca Records producer Hugh Mendl is the guest on the British tv show Off The Record, hosted by Jack Payne. Mendl produced Lonnie Donegan's first recordings, which launched the skiffle craze and led to the birth of British rock'n'roll. In the 1960s he will be instrumental in bringing David Bowie and Genesis to Decca and will produce the Moody Blues' album Days of Future Passed.
The Platters become the first rock'n'roll group to score a Billboard hit album in the USA when their eponymous LP enters the chart, where it will peak at No7 during a 26-week stay.Bill Haley and The Comets fly out of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA, headed for Chicago, Illinois, USA, on the first leg of a journey that will take them to Sydney, Australia, to begin a tour.
When pianist Winifred Atwell begins a UK tv series, it is estimated that one quarter of the population watches the first show.
James Brown's first R'n'B No1, Try Me, is released in America by Federal Records. It will become the best-selling r'n'b single of the year.
When Al Caldwell's Texans (later to become Rory Storm And The Hurricanes) play at The Mardi Gras Club, Liverpool, England, UK, Europe, they are joined by a new drummer, Richard Starkey. He will later, of course, change his name to Ringo Starr and, still later, move on to The Beatles. This is the first night on which Ringo played with The Hurricanes' guitarist, Johnny Guitar, and he will be inspired in 2017 to write the song Electricity, as his homage to the guitarist.The first Dick Clark Caravan Of Stars package tour plays in Louisville, Kentucky, USA, with acts including Paul Anka, The Drifters, Duane Eddy, Lloyd Price, LaVern Baker, Annette, The Coasters, The Skyliners and Bobby Rydell.
The All American Rock Spectacular featuring Duane Eddy, Johnny Restivo, Crash Craddock, The Diamonds and Santo And Johnny plays the first of two nights in Melbourne, Australia.
Blues pianist Otis Spann, known for his work with Muddy Waters, records his first solo album Otis Spann Is The Blues, in Fine Recording Studios, New York City, for Candid Records.
Aretha Franklin plays the first of six nights at The Showboat, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA.
The first pictures of baby Julian Lennon, son of John Lennon of The Beatles, appear in the UK press.
The Fugs play the first of three nights at The Astor Place Playhouse, 434 Lafayette Street, Manhattan, New York City, USA.
Led Zeppelin, Pacific Gas And Electric and The Illinois Speed Press, play the first of two nights at The Kinetic Playground, 4812 North Clark Avenue, Chicago, Illinois, USA.Vanilla Fudge, Aum and Dr. John The Night Tripper play the first of two nights at the Fillmore East, New York City, USA. Bob Dylan is in the audience.
Dolly Parton reaches No1 in the Billboard Country Singles Chart in the USA with Joshua. This is Parton's first-ever No1.
Got To Be There, the first solo album by Michael Jackson enters the Billboard US Pop and Black Albums Charts simultaneously, in the USA. It will peak at No3 in the Black Albums chart and No14 in the Pop Chart.
Styx release a new LP, Crystal Ball, in the USA. This record sees the debut of Tommy Shaw as the band's guitarist and vocalist, thus initiating their classic lineup.
London's first full-time punk venue, The Roxy, opens in Neal St, Covent Garden, London, England, UK. The Clash play at the opening.Electric Light Orchestra play the first of eight nights at the Empire Pool, Wembley, London.
Fats Domino, Little Anthony, Leslie Gore, The Drifters and Frankie Ford play the first of six nights at The Chicago Theatre, Chicago, Illinois, USA.
On his Dangerous World
Tour, Michael
Jackson plays the first of three nights at Wembley
Stadium, London, U.K..
Destined to be their first Billboard US Top Twenty hit, Today is the new single from Smashing Pumpkins.
I’ll Be There For You by The Rembrandts spends the first of eight weeks at No1 on the Billboard Hot 100 Airplay chart in the USA. The success of this one hit wonder song is largely due to the fact that it was used as the theme for the immensely popular tv series Friends.
When U2 play the first of two nights at at the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum, Oakland, California, support band Oasis premieres two new songs, Be Here Now and D?You Know What I Mean?
Ke$ha releases her debut album, 
A mere thirty years after their international No1 hit single Video Killed The Radio Star, the original line-up of The Buggles play their first full live gig, a fundraising show at The Supperclub, London W10, England, UK, supported by Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark aka OMD.
You Me At Six play the first of two nights at the Civic Hall, Wolverhampton, England, UK, Europe, supported by The Blackout.Hip-hop duo THEESatisfaction release their debut album awE naturalE on Sub Pop Records in the UK.
On The Wall Tour 2012, Roger Waters plays the first of two nights at Yankee Stadium, New York City, USA.
High Hopes by Bruce Springsteen makes its debut at No1 in the Official UK Albums Chart.
Pink Floyd release their first new album in twenty years, The Endless River, on Columbia Records in the UK.1843 |
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