2006 – Lil’ Kim appears at the 2006 MTV Video Music awards fresh from prison, wearing a business suit that is a far cry from the skimpy getups of her past.
2004 – Carl Wayne, the former lead vocalist for the hit-making ’60s U.K. band the Move and the latter-day singer for the Hollies, dies at his home in England after a battle with cancer. He is 61.
2002 – Steve Wariner receives the 2002 Minnie Pearl Humanitarian Award during the Grand Ole Opry’s tribute to Minnie Pearl. The previous year’s winner, Kathy Mattea, presents the award to Wariner.
2002 – Lionel Hampton, one of the last of the jazz giants, dies from complications of old age and a recent heart attack in New York City at the age of 94. Hampton, an innovative vibraphonist and bandleader, had been in failing health for several years after a series of strokes.
2000 – Songwriter Harold Clayton, who co-wrote the SOS Band hit “Take Your Time (Do It Right),” is killed in a hit-and-run accident in Los Angeles. He is 53.
1999 – Bluesman R.L. Burnside undergoes heart surgery in Memphis. The 72-year-old singer/songwriter/guitarist had recently canceled two shows due to shortness of breath and exhaustion; after extensive tests, it was determined that he required angioplasty surgery.
1998 – Madonna files suit against the YMCA to prevent it from building a high-rise residential tower near Lincoln Center in New York City. Madonna files the action because the building “creates a hazard for me and my child.” Madonna uses the recent fall of scaffolding at a Times Square high-rise renovation as grounds for her suit.
1997 – James Brown becomes the first U.S. artist to appear in Lebanon following the recent lift of the ban on U.S. travel to the country. After playing in Beirut, Brown heads to Moscow where he performs in honor of the city’s 850th anniversary.
1997 – The Microsoft Network webcasts U2’s performance in Dublin. Internet participants are able to control remote PopCams at the concert, which allow users to see the performance from several perspectives. The event is accessible to any Internet user at http://u2popmart.msn.com.
1996 – Opera singer Ljuba Welitsch dies at the age of 83.
1995 – The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum opens in Cleveland. The city is argued to be the birthplace of rock beginning in the rooms of radio station WMMS, where disc jockey Alan Freed coined the term “rock ‘n’ roll” in the early 1950s.
1991 – Metallica’s self-titled album debuts at No. 1 on Billboard’s pop album chart.
1987 – Michael Jackson’s “Bad” video is televised for the first time on CBS-TV.
1974 – “The Partridge Family” television show ends, leaving David Cassidy free to pursue a solo music career.
1970 – Debbie Gibson is born on Long Island, N.Y.
1945 – Van Morrison is born in Belfast, Ireland. His biggest hit is the top 10 song “Domino,” released in 1970.
This Day in Music
2006 - Lil' Kim appears at the 2006 MTV Video Music awards fresh from prison, wearing a business suit that is a far cry from the skimpy getups of her past.