1942 Roger McGuinn (born Jim McGuinn) of the Byrds was born.

1963 The Rolling Stones played their first ever gig outside London when they appeared at The Alcove Club, Middlesbrough, Yorkshire supporting The Hollies.


1964 The Animals went to No.1 on the UK singles chart with 'The House Of The Rising Sun.' Recorded in one take, this was the first UK No.1 to have a playing time of more than four minutes.

1968 Black Sabbath played their first gig at a small backstreet Blues club in Birmingham, England.

1969 Over 100 US radio stations banned The Beatles new single 'The Balled Of John and Yoko' due to the line 'Christ, you know it ain't easy', calling it offensive.

1978 The BBC announced a ban on The Sex Pistols' latest single ‘No One Is Innocent’, which featured vocals by Ronnie Biggs, the British criminal notorious for his part in the Great Train Robbery of 1963. At the time of the recording, Biggs was living in Brazil, and was still wanted by the British authorities, but immune from extradition.

1985 At 12.01 Status Quo started the 'Live Aid' extravaganza, held between Wembley Stadium, London and The JFK Stadium, Philadelphia. The cream of the world's biggest rock stars took part in the worldwide event, raising over £40million. TV pictures beamed to over 1.5bn people in 160 countries made it the biggest live broadcast ever known. Artists who appeared included Paul McCartney, Phil Collins, The Who, U2, David Bowie and Mick Jagger, Queen, Tina Turner, The Cars, Neil Young, Tom Petty, Bob Dylan, Bryan Adams, Hall and Oates, Lionel Richie and Led Zeppelin.

1985 Led Zeppelin re-forms (with Phil Collins replacing the late John Bonham on drums) for the Live Aid benefit concert in Philadelphia.

1986 Invisible Touch (Genesis) was a hit.

1991 Bryan Adams went to No.1 on the UK singles chart with 'Everything I Do I Do It For You' which featured on the soundtrack for the film Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves. It stayed at No.1 for a record-breaking 16 weeks, (breaking a record held since 1955), also a No.1 in the US (for 7 weeks) and a hit in 16 other countries. Won a Grammy Award for Best Song Written Specifically for a Motion Picture in 1992.