This Day In Music - July 15

 This Day In Music – 15 July (Check out Alice Cooper's 2016 election platform!)

1936 - Country singer Tommy Dee is born in Vicker, Virginia. In 1959, he writes the hit "Three Stars" in honour of Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and J.P. "The Big Bopper" Richardson, who tragically died in a plane crash earlier that year - https://youtu.be/wwO8bsMKuyI .

1942 - Glenn Miller and his band recorded "Jukebox Saturday Night." - https://youtu.be/2A_PuQ3NzmU

1944 - Millie Jackson born in Thomson, Georgia. US soul singer, (1973 No. 24 single, 'Hurts So Good', 1985 No.32 single with Elton John 'Act Of War') - https://youtu.be/vKbuDkueGek .

1946 - American singer Linda Ronstadt born in Tucson, Arizona. Her music career starts as lead singer of the folk trio the Stone Poneys. Linda had the 1975 No.1 single 'You're No Good' ( #19), and the 1989 No.2 single with Aaron Neville, 'Don't Know Much' (#3 ) plus over 15 other Top 40 hits. She has earned 11 Grammy Awards, three American Music Awards, two Academy of Country Music awards, an Emmy Award, and an ALMA Award - https://youtu.be/7OG3FCUbAsc .

1947 - Guitarist Peter Banks, a founding member of Yes who is with the band until 1970, is born Peter William Brockbanks in Chipping Barnet, North London, England. After playing with bassist Chris Squire in the Syn, Banks and Squire helped form Yes in 1968. Banks died aged 65 on 7th March 2013.

1948 - Artimus Pyle born (born Thomas Delmer Pyle) in Louisville, Kentucky. The drummer with Lynyrd Skynyrd from 1974 to 1977 and from 1987 to 1991. Lynyrd Skynyrd are best known for their 1974 No. 8 single, 'Sweet Home Alabama' and the 1982 single 'Freebird'. His musical career with Skynyrd earns him induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2006 - https://youtu.be/D0W1v0kOELA .

1949 - Trevor Horne born. From the, Buggles, (1979 & No.1 single 'Video Killed The Radio Star'), Yes, (1980-81), produced three UK No.1's for Frankie Goes To Hollywood, 'Relax', 'Two Tribes', & 'The Power Of Love') - https://youtu.be/W8r-tXRLazs .

1950 - Nat "King" Cole's "Mona Lisa" hits #1 in . Written for the film Captain Carey, U.S.A., it goes on to win the Oscar for Best Song - https://youtu.be/G2vgJ0MGOlg .

1950 - Ian McCridie born. The guitarist from Scottish pop group Middle Of The Road, who had the 1971 & No.1 single 'Chirpy Chirpy Cheep Cheep', which is one of only a few singles to have sold in excess of 10 million physical copies - https://youtu.be/HSNSTerj2Kc .

1952 - Eight-year-old prodigy Gladys Knight appears on the TV show Ted Mack's Amateur Hour, which was a precursor to shows like Star Search and American Idol. She wins the top prize of $2,000 for her performance of Nat King Cole's "Too Young."

1952 - Johnny Thunders (John Genzale) is born John Anthony Genzale Jr. in Queens, New York. Guitarist and vocalist with The New York Dolls, 1973 album 'New York Dolls'. He died of a drug overdose on 23rd April 1991.

1953 - Alicia Bridges is born in Lawndale, North Carolina. US singer known for the 1978 No.3, No.5 & No. 32 single 'I Love The Night Life' - https://youtu.be/umAurdHLNzU .

1954 - - Journeyman, Carlton Spencer was born. Carlton was a member of several groups, including The Silver Studs / Studs, The Stevie Wright Band / Stevie Wright and Hard Rain, the Andy Gibb Band, and Silverwing, where he played keyboards.

1956 - Marky Ramone (drummer for The Ramones) is born Marc Steven Bell in Brooklyn, New York.

1956 - American instrumental rock guitarist and multi-instrumentalist, Joe Satriani born in Westbury, New York. He is a 15-time Grammy Award nominee and has sold over 10 million albums, making him the biggest-selling instrumental rock guitarist of all time - https://youtu.be/7NJ_nzOckOQ .

1956 - Ian Curtis born in Macclesfield, England. Guitarist and vocalist with Warsaw, Joy Division, (1980 No.13 single 'Love Will Tear Us Apart'). In 1976 he joins Joy Division, one of the most influential and critically acclaimed UK alternative bands. Curtis hanged himself in the kitchen of his house in Macclesfield, England on 18th May 1980 at the age of 23. Curtis had the Iggy Pop album 'The Idiot', playing on his stereo and left a note that said, 'At this very moment, I wish I were dead. I Just can't cope anymore.' Following the singer's death in May 1980, the remaining members of the band continue to write and perform as New Order - https://youtu.be/zuuObGsB0No .

1956 - The Teenagers featuring Frankie Lymon were at No.1 on the singles chart with 'Why Do Fools Fall In Love' , a No.6 hit in the and #17 in . At 13, Lymon was the youngest performer to make No.1 in the - https://youtu.be/q96ylFiQK_I .

1958 - John Lennon's mother, Julia, is killed when she's hit by a car driven by an off-duty police officer. Lennon, 17 at the time, later writes the songs "Julia" and "Mother" about her - https://youtu.be/82I12bKofdg .

1962 - Héctor Angulo, a Cuban student attending the Manhattan School of Music, plays the song "Guantanamera" for Pete Seeger during the Folk Festival of the Catskills at Camp Woodland in Phoenicia, New York, where Angulo is working as a counsellor for the summer. Seeger learns the song and adds it to his repertoire, introducing it to American audiences - https://youtu.be/h0gg3-xvMB0 .

1963 - - Joy Smithers born. Joy is an Australian actress, best known for her acting performances on television, and her role as a television news presenter such as with MTV in the late 1980s. Also known as a backing vocalist for the Eurogliders (Groove album).

1966 - Jason Bonham born. He is a drummer, and son of Led Zeppelin drummer, John Bonham. As well as playing with Led Zeppelin, (at Atlantic Records 40th Anniversary concert and the 02 concert), Jason has worked with Jimmy Page (on his Outrider album), UFO, Foreigner, Steel Dragon, Damnocracy, Airrace, Virginia Wolf, Black Country Communion and Paul Rodgers - https://youtu.be/2cZ_EFAmj08 .

1972 - Elton John started a five-week run at No.1 on the album chart with his fifth studio album Honky Chateau, his first chart topper. The album was titled after the 18th century French chateau where it was recorded, Château d'Hérouville. Both the tracks from the album 'Rocket Man' and 'Honky Cat' were released as singles. His next five albums also enter that orbit, going to #1 - https://youtu.be/DtVBCG6ThDk .

1973 - At a festival concert in White City, London, a visibly distraught Ray Davies, newly separated from his wife, announces on stage that he's retiring from show business, leaves the concert, and checks into a local hospital for exhaustion. (A week later, he will return to the band.)

1978 - The Rolling Stones started a two-week run at No.1 on the album chart with Some Girls the group's seventh No.1 album. The cover designed by Peter Corriston, featured The Rolling Stones in garish drag alongside select female celebrities and lingerie ads. The cover immediately ran into trouble when Lucille Ball, Farrah Fawcett, Liza Minnelli (representing her mother Judy Garland), Raquel Welch, and the estate of Marilyn Monroe who all threatened legal action.

1982 - Bill Justis of "Raunchy" fame (and from Sun Records) dies of cancer at age 55. Justis had a number one hit in in 1963 with "Tamoure" - https://youtu.be/4IwmnTopT0A .

1983 - The Saturday Night Fever sequel Staying Alive debuts in theatres, starring John Travolta. The Bee Gees also return for the soundtrack, introducing five new songs, including "The Woman In You."

1986 - Columbia Records dropped Johnny Cash after 28 years. Johnny signed with Polygram the next year.

1989 - Pink Floyd appeared in Canal di San Marco, Piazza San Marco, Venice, Italy on a floating stage. Over 200,000 people attended the gig (almost double the number authorities had planned for) causing damage to buildings and bridges. The cleaning of the area after the concert was said to be around £25,000 and the concert was broadcast live on TV to over 20 countries with an estimated audience of almost 100 million. Two Venice councillors were later ordered to stand trial for the costs incurred by the concert.

1998 - Aerosmith were forced to cancel a forthcoming tour after Joey Kramer was involved in a freak accident. The drummer's car set on fire and was completely destroyed as he was filling up with petrol. He was admitted to hospital with second-degree burns.

2000 - Sad Cafe singer Paul Young died of a heart attack at his Manchester home aged 53. 'Run Home Girl' was a hit for Sad Cafe in the , 'Everyday Hurts' was a No.3 hit in 1979. Joined Mike Rutherford and Paul Carrack in Mike and the Mechanics and had the hits 'The Living Years' and 'Silent Running' - https://youtu.be/jf9ZZyiyfas .

2010 - The group Take That announced that Robbie Williams had re-joined the band to record their first album since Williams left the band 15 years before, ending a longstanding feud with Gary Barlow.

2011 - - To celebrate the 50th anniversary of their Adult Contemporary chart, which had various names over the years, including Easy Listening, Billboard publishes its list of the top 100 Adult Contemporary songs of all time, with Savage Garden's "Truly Madly Deeply" at #1 (1997 #1), followed by "Lead Me On" by Maxine Nightingale and "Drift Away" by Uncle Kracker - https://youtu.be/WQnAxOQxQIU .

2012 - The "Gangnam Style" video is posted to YouTube; we are powerless to resist. Performed by K-Pop singer PSY, the absolutely bananas video becomes the most-watched video in YouTube history, surpassing even Justin Bieber's hit "Baby." (In 2017, it is overtaken by "See You Again.") - https://youtu.be/CH1XGdu-hzQ .

2012 - Queen were crowned top of the patriotic pops in a survey of 100,000 music fans. The band's anthem We Are The Champions was named number one by fans who were asked what song made them proud to be British - https://youtu.be/04854XqcfCY

2015 - A judge trimmed more than $1m (£639,000) from the damages Pharrell Williams was ordered to pay after the Blurred Lines copyright trial. The case revolved around the question of whether Williams and his co-writer Robin Thicke had copied Marvin Gaye's 1977 hit 'Got To Give It Up'. The judge also gave Gaye's family a 50% cut of future earnings from the song - https://youtu.be/yyDUC1LUXSU .

2016 - As he's done since 1972, Alice Cooper announces he's running for president, this time with the campaign slogan "A Troubled Man for Troubled Times." His platform includes "Adding Lemmy to Mount Rushmore" and "Getting Brian Johnson back in AC/DC." He loses to Donald Trump but gains more exposure for his song "Elected." - https://youtu.be/LiQW1TlDZMU

2018 - "November Rain" by Guns N' Roses becomes the first '90s video to pass a billion views on YouTube. The next closest '90s video is "Zombie" by The Cranberries, at 739 million - https://youtu.be/AM1aBr7xltA .