History Highlight:

Today in 1963, brother-sister duo Nino Tempo and April Stevens went to No. 1 on the U.S. singles chart with "Deep Purple." In 1964, it won the Grammy Award for Best Rock And Roll Recording. The song would become a favorite of guitarist Ritchie Blackmore’s grandmother. Blackmore would then suggest it as a name for his band in 1968. Perhaps if the song never existed, the group would have taken on their second name choice, "Concrete God".

Also, Today In:

1968 - The Jimi Hendrix Experience went to No. 1 on the U.S. album chart with Electric Ladyland. The double album included "Crosstown Traffic," "Voodoo Chile" and "All Along the Watchtower." The album was the only record from the band produced by Jimi Hendrix, and by mid-November, it had charted at number one in the United States, where it spent two weeks at the top spot.

1973 - David Bowie was the host of a special edition of the ABC show "Midnight Special". His show was called "1980 Floor Show", and featured Bowie doing a duet of "I Got You Babe" with Marianne Faithfull, who wore a nun's habit with an open back.

1974 - John Lennon was at No. 1 on the U.S. singles chart with "Whatever Gets You Through The Night." Elton John played on the session and made a deal with Lennon that if the song reached No. 1, Lennon would have to appear on stage live with Elton. Lennon kept his side of the deal, and on Thanksgiving Day 1974, the two played three songs together during a show at New York's Madison Square Garden: "I Saw Her Standing There," "Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds" and "Whatever Gets You Through the Night." The public had no idea Lennon was going to appear during the show. According to a BBC documentary about the event, Elton John says the crowd gave Lennon a 10-minute standing ovation.

1977 - Rush received their first Gold records in the U.S. for 2112, All the World's A Stage and A Farewell To Kings.

1985 - Starship started a two-week run at No. 1 on the U.S. singles chart with "We Built This City."

1988 - Former Beach Boys manager Stephen Love was sentenced to five years’ probation for embezzling almost $1 million from the group's accounts.

2000 - Jewel becomes one of the first artists to stream a concert online, doing so to benefit an organization working to bring clean water to those who need it.

2001 - The city of Palm Springs, California unveiled a statue in its downtown area honoring the late Sonny Bono, half of Sonny and Cher and mayor of the city in the '80s.

2002 - The Rolling Stones and John Mellencamp played a private concert for billionaire David Bonderman's 60th birthday party at The Joint in Las Vegas. Robin Williams entertained guests between acts. The party cost $7 million.

2005 - I Walk the Line: A Night for Johnny Cash airs on CBS, with U2, Kris Kristofferson, Jerry Lee Lewis and several others paying tribute to the singer.

2006 - Queen's Greatest Hits is declared the most popular album of all time in Britain, with more than 5.5 million units sold. The Beatles come in second with Sgt. Pepper.

2006 - The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) sends 417 more letters to sixteen college administrators threatening mass lawsuits if file-sharing is found happening on university servers.

2008 - MTV's Total Request Live ends after 10 seasons with a special three-hour finale. Guests include several of the countdown's mainstays, including Justin Timberlake, Beyonce, Taylor Swift, Eminem, and Britney Spears. Britney's "...Baby One More Time" takes the top spot on the final tally, which presents the Top 10 most iconic music videos.

2010 - The Beatles back catalogue was made available on iTunes, after years of negotiations. Apple chief executive and Beatles fan Steve Jobs said it had "been a long and winding road to get here. We love the Beatles and are honored and thrilled to welcome them to iTunes."

2014 - U2's Bono was involved in what doctors called a "high energy bicycle accident." The singer was rushed to New York-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center's emergency department and underwent five hours of surgery. The injury forced the group to postpone a planned weeklong residency on The Tonight Show starring Jimmy Fallon.

Birthdays:

Songwriter Teenie Hodges, who wrote many hits for Al Green, including "Take Me to the River", "Love and Happiness", "L-O-V-E (Love)", and "Here I Am (Come and Take Me)", was born today in 1945.

Stone Roses bassist Gary "Mani" Mounfield is 61.

Canadian jazz pianist and singer Diana Krall is 59.

Highlights for Today in Music History are gathered from This Day in Music, Song Facts and Wikipedia.