This Day In Music - July 12

 This Day In Music – 12 July

1895 - Oscar Hammerstein II is born in New York City. The musical composer and theatre director becomes known for his collaborations with Richard Rodgers, including The King and I and The Sound of Music - https://youtu.be/WAE0jgITzNw .

1937 - Saxophonist Howie Casey born. He was a member of Derry and the Seniors, the first rock and roll band from Liverpool to play clubs in Germany and later, as leader of the renamed Howie Casey and the Seniors, the first Liverpool group to record an LP. He later featured on several albums by Paul McCartney (Band on the Run, Wings at the Speed of Sound and Back to the Egg) and played live with Paul McCartney on the Wings Over the World tour. He also worked with Marc Bolan The Who, Chuck Berry and Carl Perkins - https://youtu.be/lcXk7-pCqVA .

1943 - Christine McVie is born Christine Anne Perfect in Bouth, Lancashire, England. Playing keyboards and a vocalist with Chicken Shack and then Fleetwood Mac, who scored the No.1 single 'Dreams' taken from their worldwide No.1 album Rumours which spent 31 weeks on the chart. Eight of her songs appeared on Fleetwood Mac's 1988 Greatest Hits album - https://youtu.be/Y3ywicffOj4 .

1946 - Peter Pye was born on the 12th of July 1946 in Walthamstow (The Honeycombs). The Honeycombs were an English beat group, founded in 1963 in North London, best known for their chart-topping 1964 hit, the million selling "Have I the Right?" The band featured Honey Lantree on drums, one of the few female drummers in bands at that time. "Have I the Right?" was also a big success outside the , hitting No. 1 in and Canada, No. 3 in Ireland, No. 5 in the , and No. 2 in the Netherlands - https://youtu.be/o83gLvDdSG8 .

1946 - Jeff Christie (vocalist, bassist for Christie) is born in Leeds, Yorkshire, England. Christie is an English soft rock band that formed at the end of the 1960s. They are best remembered for their & chart-topping hit single "Yellow River", released in 1970 - https://youtu.be/aqUYPgYcgDQ .

1947 - English singer, guitarist, songwriter Wilko Johnson born. He, with Dr Feelgood had the 1979 No.9 single 'Milk And Alcohol' and a founding member of Solid Senders. Wilko stated in early 2013 that he had terminal cancer and was given just 10 months to live, and aptly announced he was going on a farewell tour. In Oct 2014 Johnson said he has been "cured" of the terminal pancreatic cancer - https://youtu.be/a4IjrjMbmC4 .

1948 – - Matt Taylor was born in Brisbane, Qld (The Wild Cherries, Chain). He joined the Bay City Union, one of Australia's first electric blues bands. The band achieved some success playing in dance halls and clubs and recorded a single "Mo’reen" and "Mary Mary", released on the Festival label in 1968. Among the other members of this band was Glenn Wheatley, who was also their manager. The Bay City Union broke up in May 1968. From September 1970 to October 1971, Taylor was the frontman for the blues band Chain, which had a hit single ("Black and Blue") and album ("Toward the Blues") during this period. He then quit the music industry and went to live on a commune led by Fred and Mary Robinson at Beechworth. In 1973, he returned to the music scene as a solo artist, releasing three albums over the next three years, and scoring a major hit with the single "I Remember When I Was Young". He was one of the first artists to record for Mushroom Records, and was managed by Michael Gudinski - https://youtu.be/Ve4MOOiz-uI .

1950 - Eric Carr born in Brooklyn, New York. Drummer with American hard rock band Kiss. Their 1976 No 11 album Rock and Roll Over spent 26 weeks on the chart and they had the 1979 No.1 single 'I Was Made For Loving You'. Carr died on 24th November 1991 - https://youtu.be/ZhIsAZO5gl0 .

1952 - Philip Taylor Kramer born is born in Youngstown, Ohio. Bass guitarist for Iron Butterfly. His disappearance on February 12, 1995 caused a mystery lasting four years. On May 29, 1999, Kramer's Ford Aerostar minivan and skeletal remains were found by photographers looking for old car wrecks to shoot at the bottom of Decker Canyon near Malibu, California. Based on forensic evidence his death was ruled as a probable suicide - https://youtu.be/XugIsZbTFy0.

1952 - Liz Mitchell born in Clarendon, Jamaica. Singer from German vocal group Boney M, who had the 1978 & No.1 & No.30 single 'Rivers Of Babylon' and with more than 150 million records sold, they are one of the best-selling artists of all time - https://youtu.be/HTq7vE_5un4 .

1954 - 19-year-old Elvis Presley signed a recording contract with Sun Records. He also gave in his notice at his truck driving day job at The Crown Electric Company. Sam Phillips from Sun Records originally wanted to use the 19-year-old to make demos of songs meant for other artists, but soon realized that here was the man who could bridge the gap between white and black performances.

1958 - The Quarrymen, featuring John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, John "Duff" Lowe on piano and Colin Hanton on drums, recorded a vanity disc at a small studio in an electronics shop owned by a man named Percy Phillips. The band recorded 'That'll Be The Day' and 'In Spite Of Danger' in one take each. With the names of the tunes and the song's writers handwritten on the label, each band member was to keep the 10-inch 78 rpm disc for a week before passing it on. Both recordings eventually ended up on Anthology 1 - https://youtu.be/6fShalUv670 .

1962 - The Rolling Stones make their live debut at the Marquee Club in London subbing for Long John Baldry's Blues Incorporated. The band members are Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Brian Jones, Dick Taylor, Ian Stewart and future Kink Mick Avory. Billed as The Rollin' Stones, they were paid £20 for the gig, the equivalent of £330 in 2010 - https://youtu.be/0aEmxZT71W8 .

1962 - Ray Charles was at No.1 on the singles chart with the Don Gibson penned country ballad 'I Can't Stop Loving You'. His only No.1 was taken from his Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music album. It had reached No. 1 in in June of 1962 - https://youtu.be/6ZKHW74lCpo .

1963 - Alan Duval of UB40 is born. UB40 are an English reggae and pop band, formed in December 1978 in Birmingham, England. The band has had more than 50 singles in the Singles Chart, and has also achieved considerable success. The name "UB40" was selected in reference to an attendance card issued to people claiming unemployment benefits from the government Department of Employment. The designation UB40 stood for Unemployment Benefit, Form 40 - https://youtu.be/zj6jgvYNnYI .

1964 - The Beatles appeared at the Hippodrome Theatre in Brighton with The Fourmost and the Shubdubs (whose drummer, Jimmy Nicol, who had filled in for an ill Ringo Starr on The Beatles' world tour). On the way to tonight's gig George Harrison was involved in a minor crash in his brand-new E-Type Jaguar in Kings Road, Fulham, London. Passing pedestrians collected bits of broken glass as souvenirs - https://youtu.be/tIcYV-5Duz0 .

1965 - The Beach Boys' "California Girls" was released - https://youtu.be/aLIHZsvNrPU .

1969 - Blind Faith, a supergroup with Eric Clapton and Steve Winwood, begin their tour with a show at Madison Square Garden in New York City. Their album isn't released yet, but the show is still a sell-out thanks to Clapton's star power - https://youtu.be/VXasKYQnL6o .

1969 - One Hit Wonders Zager and Evans started a six-week run at No.1 on the US singles chart with 'In The Year 2525, (Exordium And Terminus)'. The song was also No.1 in & the , potentially making them the only one hit wonders ever in each, , the and singles charts - https://youtu.be/U7VqsONNvIs .

1970 - Fritz opens for Janis Joplin at the Santa Clara County Fairgrounds in California. The lead singer in Fritz is Stevie Nicks, who is awestruck watching Joplin perform. Nicks credits Joplin for showing her how to connect with an audience from the stage.

1977 - Dominic Howard born. Drummer from English rock band Muse who scored the 2003 No.1 album Absolution, and the 2003 UK No.8 single, 'Time Is Running Out'. Muse were nominated for five Grammy Awards, of which they won Best Rock Album for The Resistance - https://youtu.be/O2IuJPh6h_A .

1979 - American singer songwriter Minnie Riperton died of cancer aged 31. The Stevie Wonder produced 'Loving You' gave Minnie a No.1 single in 1975 (#3 in ). She worked at Chess records singing backup for various artists such as Etta James, Fontella Bass, Bo Diddley, Chuck Berry and Muddy Waters. Also a member of Wonderlove in 1973, a backup group for Stevie Wonder - https://youtu.be/KhaUnHJjS8A .

1980 - Olivia Newton-John and the Electric Light Orchestra had the No.1 single with 'Xanadu', taken from the film of the same name. It gave Olivia Newton-John her third No.1 single (No. 2 in ) - https://youtu.be/cLi8fTlDEag .

1982 – - Mahalia Violet Barnes was born in Sydney, NSW, Australia. An Australian singer-songwriter and manager, the daughter of Scottish-Australian rock singer Jimmy Barnes and Jane Mahoney. She began performing as part of children's pop group The Tin Lids with siblings, Eliza-Jane 'E.J.', Elly-May and Jackie, but has since become a session and backup singer in her own right. She most recently has sung backup for Joe Bonamassa in the studio, and live gigs - https://youtu.be/dLdLRpq9ZBI .

1983 - Kimberly Perry born. Singer with American country music group The Band Perry, who scored the Country No.1 hit 'If I Die Young'. The bands second album, Pioneer, released in 2013 produced additional No.1 singles in 'Better Dig Two', and 'DONE.' - https://youtu.be/4emYaDbaJ8w .

1983 - Former Traffic member Chris Wood died of pneumonia at age 39, after a lengthy illness. He also played with Jimi Hendrix in 1968, appearing on the Electric Ladyland album and worked with Free, John Martyn and the Small Faces - https://youtu.be/63GDyRr5CBM

1986 - Simply Red scored their first No.1 single with 'Holding Back The Years'. Simply Red singer Mick Hucknall wrote the song when he was seventeen, while living at his father's house. The chorus did not come to him until many years later - https://youtu.be/yG07WSu7Q9w .

1988 - Playgirl magazine publishes their list of the 10 sexist rockers. They are: George Michael; LL Cool J; Bryan Ferry; Michael Hutchence of INXS; Richard Marx; John Cougar Mellencamp; Bret Michaels of Poison; Larry Mullen Jr. of U2; Robert Plant; Terence Trent D'Arby.

1991 - Take That released their debut single 'Do What U Like', a commercial failure that peaked at No. 82 on the Singles Chart. The low-budget video featured the band getting naked, showing their bare buttocks and smearing jelly over themselves, resulting in the video being banned from daytime television - https://youtu.be/qpqAXZI0s0s .

2003 - Saxophonist, composer and arranger Benny Carter died aged 95. He worked with Miles Davis, Ella Fitzgerald, Ray Charles and composed TV theme's including Ironside and M-Squad.

2007 - Rod Stewart is awarded the CBE Order of the British Empire by Prince Charles in a ceremony at Buckingham Palace - https://youtu.be/FOt3oQ_k008 .

2020 - English singer-songwriter Judy Dyble died age 71. She was a founding member of Fairport Convention and Trader Horne. In addition, she and multi-instrumental Ian McDonald joined and recorded several tracks with Giles, Giles and Fripp, who later became King Crimson. During Fairport's early live shows in London in the late 1960s Dyble shared stages with acts such as Jimi Hendrix, and Syd Barrett-era Pink Floyd. Famously, she sat on the front of the stage at the Speakeasy Club knitting, while Hendrix and Fairport Convention guitarist Richard Thompson jammed - https://youtu.be/fPq5ijmY6wQ .