Music Almanac: April 12*
- Ned Miller (87)
- Herbie Hancock (72)
- John Kay (Steppenwolf) (68)
- Donald Ray Mitchell (Was Not Was) (63)
- David Cassidy (62)
- J.D. Nicholas (Heatwave, Commodores) (60)
- Pat Travers (58)
- Alexander Briley (Village People) (56)
- Vince Gill (55)
- Will Sergeant (Echo & the Bunnymen) (54)
Deaths:
- 1975 - Josephine Baker - Stroke (58)
- 1999 - Boxcar Willie - Leukemia (67)
On This Day:- 1944 - Hank Williams signed with Acuff & Rose.
- 1961 - Percy Faith won Record of the Year for Theme From a Summer Place at the 3rd Grammy Awards. Song of the Year was the Theme From Exodus (Ernest Gold) and Best New Artist Bob Newhart also won Album of the Year for The Button-Down Mind of Bob Newhart.
- 1963 - Two years and one day after playing his first show in New York, Bob Dylan plays his first major show at Town Hall.
- 1963 - The Beatles meet the Rolling Stones for the first time in Richmond, England.
- 1965 - Elvis Presley's movie, Girl Happy, premiers.
- 1966 - Jan Berry of Jan & Dean is almost killed when runs his car into the back of a parked truck.
- 1966 - Tom Jones had his tonsils out.
- 1967 - After missing his flight due to a drug search, Mick Jagger punched an airport official in the face at La Bourget Airport in France.
- 1973 - The movie That'll Be the Day, with Ringo Starr, Keith Moon, David Essex, Billy Fury and Dave Edmunds, premiers in London.
- 1975 - David Bowie announced the second of many career retirements.
- 1975 - Mick Jagger says Ron Wood will join the band for their upcoming tour.
- 1979 - Mickey Thomas joined Jefferson Starship.
- 1984 - It was Louie, Louie Day in Olympia, WA.
- 1988 - Sonny Bono was elected the mayor of Palm Springs, CA.
- 1989 - David Cassidy answered two Los Angeles DJ's question of "Whatever happened to David Cassidy?", performing three songs on their show and landing a new recording contract.
- 1990 - James Brown moves to a work-release center after serving 15 months in prison for aggravated assault.
- 1992 - Don Henley and 6,000 others participated in A Walk for Walden Woods.
- 2000 - Metallica took their stand on peer-to-peer sharing by suing Napster, Yale University, the University of Southern California and Indiana University.
- 2000 - Bo Diddley sued Nike for their continued use of his name and image after the expiration of a 1991 contract.
- 2000 - An exhibition of paintings by Tony Bennett at a London gallery was announced.
- 2002 - Ozzy Osbourne received his star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
- 2010 - The Vatican forgave John Lennon for his 1966 comment about the Beatles being "bigger than Jesus."
- 2010 - Bret Michaels had an emergency appendectomy.
Marriages:
- 1964 - Chubby Checker and Catherina Lodders
- 1986 - Belinda Carlisle and Morgan Mason
Recorded:
- 1939 - Woodchopper's Ball - Woody Herman
- 1954 - Rock Around the Clock - Bill Haley & the Comets
- 1969 - The Ballad of John & Yoko - Beatles
Released:
- 1954 - Shake, Rattle & Roll - Joe Turner
- 1955 - Ain't That a Shame - Fats Domino
- 1963 - From Me to You - Beatles (U.K. release)
- 1967 - New York Mining Disaster 1941 - Bee Gees (U.K. release)
- 1967 - The Laughing Gnome - David Bowie
- 1969 - The Boxer - Simon & Garfunkel
- 1972 - Exile on Main Street - Rolling Stones
- 1985 - We Are the World (Album) - Various Artists
Number Ones - U.S. Singles:
- 1969 - Aquarius/Let the Sunshine In (The Flesh Failures) - Fifth Dimension (6 weeks)
- 1975 - Philadelphia Freedom - Elton John (2 weeks)
Number Ones - U.S. Albums:- 1958 - My Fair Lady - Original Cast
- 1969 - Blood, Sweat & Tears - Blood, Sweat & Tears (2 weeks, 1 previous week at number 1)
Number Ones - U.K. Singles:
- 1957 - Cumberland Gap - Lonnie Donegan (5 weeks)
- 1980 - Working My Way Back to You/Forgive Me Girl - Spinners (as the Detroit Spinners) (2 weeks)
Number Ones - U.K. Albums:
- 1969 - Goodbye - Cream (1 week, 2 previous weeks at number 1)
