2 FEBRUARY
In Music History
1975 Stevie Wonder's daughter Aisha (heard crying at the beginning of "Isn't She Lovely") is born. Aisha is Wonder's first child, born to Yolanda Simmons.
1973 NBC debuts The Midnight Special rock variety show, its response to ABC's popular In Concert series. The first host: Helen Reddy.
1973 Emerson, Lake and Palmer keyboard player Keith Emerson injures his hands when a rigged piano explodes prematurely during a San Francisco gig, leaving him with minor cuts and a broken fingernail.
1971 The Point!, an animated fable written by pop star Nilsson, makes its debut on ABC's Movie of the Week.
1968 After cycling through a number of band names (including Bag 'O Nails and Navy Blue), Ian Anderson's group plays the Marquee Club in London as Jethro Tull, a name that sticks. Their agent suggested the name; Jethro Tull is the inventor of the seed drill.
1966 Robert DeLeo, who will form Stone Temple Pilots along with his brother Dean and lead singer Scott Weiland, is born in Montclair, New Jersey.
1963 The Beatles begin their first British tour at the Gaumont in Bradford. They're listed last on the bill, which includes The Honeys, The Kestrals, The Red Price Orchestra and 16-year-old Helen Shapiro.
1963 Eva Cassidy is born in Washington, D.C. She is raised in Maryland.
1957 Dale Hawkins records "Susie Q."
1957 Fats Domino makes an appearance on The Perry Como Show, singing his hits "Blue Monday" and "Blueberry Hill."
1956 The Coasters sign with Atlantic Records.
1949 Ross Valory, bass player with Journey and the Steve Miller Band, is born in San Francisco.
1948 Al McKay (of Earth, Wind & Fire) is born in New Orleans, Louisiana.
1947 Peter Lucia (of Tommy James & the Shondells) is born in Morristown, New Jersey.
1946 Howard Bellamy (of the country duo The Bellamy Brothers) is born in Darby, Florida.
Bill Murray Wakes Up To "I Got You Babe"... Again
1993Bill Murray can't stop waking up to the Sonny and Cher song "I Got You Babe" in the movie Groundhog Day.
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Featured Events
2011 The White Stripes split up after six albums, ending their run as one of the most successful rock duos.More
1996 Gene Kelly, one of the most famous dancers of his time, dies at age 83. Kelly was also an accomplished singer, known for crooning the title track of Singin' In The Rain.
1993 Willie Nelson settles his $17 million tax debt with the US Internal Revenue Service by paying them $9 million in cash and assets already seized. Some of the cash was raised through sales of his 1991 album The IRS Tapes: Who'll Buy My Memories, released specifically to fund his payout.
1979 Sid Vicious of The Sex Pistols, out on bail after being accused of killing his girlfriend Nancy Spungen, dies of a heroin overdose at age 21.
1977 Shakira is born Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll in Barranquilla, Colombia. At 13, she gets a record deal with Sony Music – the first step on her path to becoming a worldwide superstar. More
1974 Barbra Streisand scores her first #1 when "The Way We Were" hits the top spot.More
1973 Elvis Presley meets Muhammad Ali in Las Vegas. The two exchange gifts, and Ali later says, "I felt sorry for him because he didn't enjoy life the way he should. He stayed indoors all the time. I told him he should go out and see people."
1959 At the Surf Ballroom in Clear Lake, Iowa, Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and The Big Bopper play their last show as part of the "Winter Dance Party" tour. Admission: $1.25. The last song of the night: The Big Bopper's "Chantilly Lace."
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