Music Almanac: October 18

Birthdays

• 1919 - Anita O'Day (d. 2006)
• 1926 - Chuck Berry (86)
• 1938 - Ronnie Bright (Valentines, Cadillacs, Coasters) (73)
• 1940 - Cyntha Weil (72)
• 1943 - Russ Giguere (Association) (69)
• 1946 - Joe Egan (Stealers Wheel) (66)
• 1947 - Laura Nyro (d. 1997)
• 1949 - Gary Richrath (REO Speedwagon) (63)
• 1953 - Vickie Wynans (59)
• 1956 - Dick Crippen (Tenpole Tudor) (56)
• 1961 - Wynton Marsalis (51)
• 1965 - Curtis Stigers (47)
• 1967 - Tim Cross (Sponge) (45)
• 1971 - Mark Morrison (Bluetones) (41)
• 1974 - Peter Svensson (Cardigans) (38)
• 1974 - Nonchalant (born Tanya Pointer) (38)
• 1977 - Simon Rix (Kaiser Chiefs) (35)
• 1982 - Ne-Yo (born Shaffer Smith, Jr.) (30)

Deaths

• 1994 - Lee Allen (early rock saxophonist) (67)
• 2000 - Julie London - Stroke (74)
• 2007 - Lucky Dube - Murdered (43)
• 2008 - Dee Dee Warwick - Effects of narcotics addiction (63)

On This Day

• 1956 - Elvis Presley was assaulted by a gas station owner who was upset that the singer had drawn a small crowd of autograph seekers.
• 1957 - Paul McCartney made his first appearance with the Quarry Men.
• 1964 - The Animals opened their first headlining tour in Manchester, England.
• 1966 - The Jimi Hendrix Experience played their first show as a band in Paris, France.
• 1967 - The movie How I Won the War with John Lennon opened in London.
• 1968 - John Lennon and Yoko Ono were charged with obstruction after marijuana was found in their apartment.
• 1968 - Bob Wills was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame.
• 1969 - Paul Kantner of the Jefferson Airplane is arrested for marijuana possession.
• 1969 - Richard Nadar held his first Rock and Roll Revival concert in New York.
• 1974 - Mary Woodson, the ex-girlfriend of Al Green, poured a boiling pot of grits on the singer and then commits suicide.
• 1986 - For the first time in U.S. chart history, female vocalists held the top three positions on the singles chart (Janet Jackson (When I Think of You), Tina Turner (Typically Male), Cyndi Lauper (True Colors))
• 1989 - Axl Rose announced he was quitting Guns N' Roses to the crowd at the Los Angeles Colisseum.
• 1990 - It was Rocky Horror Picture Show Day in Los Angeles.
• 1992 - Loretta Lynn was released after two days in a Nashville jail after swearing at her former husband in front of their children.
• 2000 - Zach De La Rocha quit Rage Against the Machine.
• 2002 - The Ronettes lost their court case against Phil Spector that he owed them money for the use of their songs in movies, advertising and television.
• 2005 - Midge Ure of Ultravox received his Officer of the British Empire (OBE) from the Queen for his music and charity work.
• 2007 - Amy Winehouse and her husband, Blake Fielder-Civil were arrested in Norway for marijuana possession.
• 2007 - It was announced that the Spice Girls' Greatest Hits album would be available two months early exclusively through Victoria's Secret stores.

Marriages

• 1952 - Hank Williams and Billie Jean Eshliman
• 1983 - John Anderson and Jamie Atkinson
• 1986 - Christine McVie (Fleetwood Mac) and Eduardo Quintela
• 1998 - Frank Sinatra, Jr. and Cynthia McMurrey

Recorded

• 1964 - Eight Days a Week - Beatles
• 1976 - The Buzzcocks had their first recording session in Manchester, England.

Broadcasts

• 1968 - Hollywood Palace (ABC) - Jackson 5 (broadcast debut)
• 1975 - Saturday Night Live (NBC) (second program) - Simon & Garfunkel