History Highlight:

Today in 1928, Burt Bacharach was born, which makes him 89 today. The songwriter, pianist and arranger has written hundreds of hit songs, including "The Look of Love" (1967), "This Guy's in Love with You" (1968), "Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head" (1969), "(They Long to Be) Close to You" (1970), "Arthur's Theme (Best That You Can Do)" (1981), "That's What Friends Are For" (1986) and "On My Own" (1986). In 2012, Bacharach and his songwriting partner Hal David received the Library of Congress Gershwin Prize for Popular Song; the first time the honor has been given to a songwriting team. The ceremony was hosted by President Obama.

Also, Today In:

1946 - Keyboardist Ian McLagan was born in the London borough of Hounslow. Best known for his work with the Small Faces and the Faces, McLagan also worked with the Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan, Bonnie Raitt, Joe Cocker, Billy Bragg and Bruce Springsteen. A Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee, McLagan passed away on Dec. 3, 2014, in Austin, Texas, at age 69 due to complications from a stroke. McLagan's visit to The Current in June 2014 remains a favorite among the staff of the station, whom McLagan impressed not only with his musical chops but also with his charm, his friendship and his sincere warmth.

1958 - The Everly Brothers started a four-week run at No. 1 with "All I Have To Do Is Dream." Written by the husband-and-wife songwriting team Felice and Boudleaux Bryant, the track was recorded in just two takes.

1963 - Bob Dylan walked out of rehearsals for The Ed Sullivan Show after being told he couldn't perform his song "Talking John Birch Paranoid Blues" due to it mocking the U.S. military and segregation. CBS officials asked Dylan to substitute it for another song, but the singer reportedly said: "No, this is what I want to do. If I can't play my song, I'd rather not appear on the show."

1964 - The Beach Boys started a four-week run at No. 1 on the U.S. album chart with Beach Boys Concert, the group's first No. 1 album.

1965 - The Rolling Stones recorded "(I Can't Get No), Satisfaction" at RCA Hollywood studios. Keith Richards had come up with the guitar riff in the middle of the night a week earlier. It gave the Stones their first No. 1 single in the U.S.

1967 - Pink Floyd stages the first-ever rock concert with quadraphonic sound at Queen Elizabeth Hall in England.

1967 - The first Jimi Hendrix album, Are You Experienced?, is released. Songs include "Foxy Lady," "Hey Joe" and "Purple Haze."

1972 - The Rolling Stones release their tenth studio album Exile On Main Street. Although the album met with mixed reviews at the time, it is now widely regarded as the band's best work and routinely appears on lists of the greatest albums of all time.

1973 - Led Zeppelin started a three-week run at No.1 on the US album chart with their fifth album Houses Of The Holy. The group's third U.S. No. 1 album went on to spend 39 weeks on the U.S. chart. Houses Of The Holy has now been certified 11 times Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for US sales in excess of 11 million copies.

1975 - Graham Russell and Russell Hitchcock meet at rehearsals for a production of Jesus Christ Superstar in Sydney, Australia. They would become good friends and form Air Supply.

1977 - After being dropped by both EMI and A&M records in less than six months, Virgin Records announced that it had signed the Sex Pistols.

1984 - Lionel Richie started a two-week run at No. 1 on the U.S. singles chart with "Hello", his second U.S. solo No. 1.

2001 - Singer and TV host Perry Como died aged 88. He scored 14 No. 1 singles, including the singles "Magic Moments" and "Catch A Falling Star." Como was once the highest-paid performer in the history of television.

2008 - Singer-songwriter Neil Young had a spider named after him - the "myrmekiaphila neilyoungi". College biologist Jason Bond discovered a new species of trapdoor spider in Alabama and decided to name it after his favorite musician.

Birthdays:

British New Wave singer/frontman Ian Dury (The Blockheads) was born today in 1942.

Steve Winwood is 69.

Billy Squier is 67.

British guitar player Billy Duffy (The Cult) is 56.

Highlights for Today in Music History are gathered from This Day in Music, Paul Shaffer's Day in Rock, Song Facts and Wikipedia.