History highlight:

Miles Davis was born in Alton, Illinois, on this day in 1926. Any conversation about the giants of 20th-century music is incomplete without acknowledging Miles Davis' massive innovations and huge impact on the jazz art form. Never content to stay put in any genre for long, Miles Davis can be credited for making key contributions to the evolution of jazz — leading the way in the invention of new forms like bebop, cool jazz, jazz fusion, and much more. As composer he gave us some of the great jazz standards of the age, and as bandleader, Davis was responsible for assembling some of the finest groups ever to play and record together. His 1959 album, Kind of Blue, is considered one of the greatest jazz records of all time. At the center of it all, Davis' distinctive and virtuosic trumpet playing would practically become the polestar that generations of trumpeters in his wake would hold up as a standard. Davis died in 1991, and in 2006, he was posthumously inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, which recognized him as "one of the key figures in the history of jazz."

Also, today in:

1962 - The original "Twist and Shout" by the Isley Brothers was released. Less than nine months later, the Beatles covered it for their first album.

1964 - Marianne Faithful recorded the Mick Jagger and Keith Richards song "As Tears Go By," accompanied by future Led Zeppelin members Jimmy Page on guitar and John Paul Jones on bass.

1966 - The Beatles recorded "Yellow Submarine" at Abbey Road studios in London. The track features John Lennon blowing bubbles in a bucket of water, shouting, "Full speed ahead, Mister Captain!"

1968 - Blues artist Little Willie John died in prison after being convicted of manslaughter. He co-wrote and was the first to record "Fever" (covered by Peggy Lee) and "Need Your Love So Bad" (covered by Fleetwood Mac). James Brown recorded a tribute album to Little Willie John called Thinking Of Little Willie John... And A Few Other Nice Things.

1972 - Mott The Hoople, on the verge of breaking up, were offered help from David Bowie, who allowed them to record two songs he wrote. They passed on "Suffragette City" but cut "All The Young Dudes," which became their biggest hit and revived their career.

1976 - Led Zeppelin's Jimmy Page and Robert Plant, apparently intoxicated, verbally accosted first-class passengers on a transatlantic flight. Actors Telly Savalas and Dudley Moore, passengers on the same flight, gave statements about the Zeppelin men's misbehavior.

1977 - O'Jays singer Billy Powell died of cancer. The O'Jays had the 1973 No. 1 hit "Love Train."

1977 - Kiss provided Marvel Comics with a vial of their blood to be mixed with the red ink used to print their upcoming comic book. The photo op took place at the printing plant in Depew, New York, where the comic was made.

1984 - Deniece Williams, a former backup singer with Stevie Wonder, started a two-week run at No. 1 on the U.S. singles chart with "Let's Hear It For The Boy," a song from the Footloose film soundtrack.

1986 - AC/DC released their 10th studio album, Who Made Who. It features the single "Who Made Who.” It’s the soundtrack for the Stephen King film Maximum Overdrive.

1986 - The band Europe released their third studio album, The Final Countdown. It features the singles "The Final Countdown," "Love Chaser," "Cherokee," "Rock the Night," and "Carrie."

1987 – The Cure released their seventh studio album, Kiss Me, Kiss Me, Kiss Me, featuring the hit singles "Why Can't I Be You?" and "Just Like Heaven."

1990 - For the first time ever, the top five positions on the U.S. singles chart were held by women artists: Madonna was at No. 1 with "Vogue," Heart were at No. 2 with "All I Wanna Do Is Make Love To You," Sinead O'Connor was at No. 3 with her cover of Prince's "Nothing Compares 2 U," Wilson Phillips were at No. 4 with "Hold On," and Janet Jackson was at No. 5 with "Alright.”

1992 - Stereolab released their debut studio album, Peng!. It features the singles "Peng! 33" and "The Dagger Am I." (The album was issued in the United States on June 13, 1995.)

1994 - Michael Jackson married Lisa Marie Presley, daughter of Elvis Presley. The couple divorced in 1995.

1997 - NSYNC released their debut studio album, NSYNC. It features the singles "I Want You Back," "Tearin' Up My Heart," "Here We Go," and "For the Girl Who Has Everything." (This was the German release. The U.S. release followed on March 24, 1998.)

1997 - The Seahorses released their debut studio album, Do It Yourself. It features the singles "Love Is the Law," "Blinded by the Sun," and "You Can Talk to Me."

1998 - Jeff Buckley released his posthumous compilation album, Sketches for My Sweetheart the Drunk. It features the singles "Everybody Here Wants You" and "Forget Her."

2002 - Eminem released his fourth studio album, The Eminem Show. It features the singles "Without Me," "Cleanin’ Out My Closet," "Superman," and "Sing for the Moment."

2008 - Yale University awarded Paul McCartney an honorary Doctorate of Music.

2009 - Grizzly Bear released their third album, Veckatimest. It features “Two Weeks,” While You Wait for the Others,” and “Cheerleader.”

2014 - Sam Smith released their debut album, In the Lonely Hour. It features “Stay With Me.”

2015 - Unknown Mortal Orchestra released their third studio album, Multi-Love. It features the title track and “Can’t Keep Checking My Phone.”

2017 - Lil Yachty released his debut studio album, Teenage Emotions. It features the singles "Peek a Boo," "Harley," "Bring It Back," and "Forever Young."

2022 - Depeche Mode keyboardist Andy Fletcher died at age 60. Fletcher was a founding member of the band who found success with their dark electronic sound and hits including “Personal Jesus” and “Enjoy the Silence.”

2022 - The four members of Abba made their first public appearance in 14 years as they attended the premiere of their Abba Voyage show in London. Agnetha Fältskog, Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson, and Anni-Frid Lygnstad reunited for the opening night of the concert, which featured digital versions of the band. The concert had been in the works since 2016 and featured groundbreaking new technology that recreated the sight of Abba in their 1970s prime.

2022 – Alan White, best known for his tenure in the progressive rock band Yes, died at age 72. In 1969, White joined John Lennon and Yoko Ono's Plastic Ono Band, playing drums on the singles “Instant Karma!” and “Imagine,” as well as on most of Lennon's 1971 Imagine album. White also performed on more than 50 albums by other musicians, notably George Harrison, Ginger Baker's Air Force, Terry Reid, Joe Cocker and The Ventures.

Birthdays:

Peggy Lee was born today in 1920.

Miles Davis was born today in 1926. (See highlight, above)

Levon Helm of the Band was born today in 1940.

Garry Peterson of the Guess Who and Bachman-Turner Overdrive is 81.

Mick Ronson was born today in 1946.

Stevie Nicks is 78.

Hank Williams Jr. is 77.

British singer Black (aka Colin Vearncombe) who enjoyed a bit hit in 1987 with “Wonderful Life,” was born today in 1962.

Lenny Kravitz is 62.

Kristen Pfaff of Hole was born today in 1967.

Matt Stone of South Park is 55.

Oasis drummer Alan White is 54.

Ms. Lauryn Hill is 51. Hill is an iconic vocalist known for her work in the Fugees and as a solo artist. She was born in Newark, N.J. to a musical family and acted alongside Whoopi Goldberg in Sister Act 2, then skyrocketed to the top of the Billboard 200 with the Fugees’ album The Score. In 1998, Hill released her only studio album as a solo artist, The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill, which earned spot No. 10 on Rolling Stone’s “500 Greatest Albums of All Time” and has sold more than 20 million copies.

Justin Courtney Pierre of Motion City Soundtrack is 50.

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