More About Music History On This Day
21 Dec 1985
Bruce Springsteen's album, Born in the USA passed Michael Jackson's Thriller to become the second longest-lasting LP on the Billboard US Top 10. It stayed there for 79 weeks. Only The Sound of Music with Julie Andrews lasted longer at 109 weeks.
21 Dec 1991
'Bohemian Rhapsody - 'These Are The Days Of Our Lives' by Queen started a five week run at No.1 in the UK, the 1975 word-wide hit had been re-released following the death of Freddie Mercury.
21 Dec 1992
American blues singer and guitarist, Albert King died from a heart attack in Memphis, Tennessee. He recorded dozens of influential songs, such as 'Crosscut Saw' and 'As The Years Go Passing By', and the 1967 album, 'Born Under a Bad Sign.'
21 Dec 1996
The charity record 'Knockin' on Heaven's Door' went to No.1 on the UK singles chart. With the consent of Bob Dylan musician Ted Christopher of Dunblane, Scotland wrote a new verse for the song in memory of the schoolchildren and teacher killed in the Dunblane massacre. The cover version of the song included brothers and sisters of the victims singing the chorus and Mark Knopfler on guitar.
21 Dec 1998
Scottish singer Karl Denver died from a brain tumor aged 67. Had the 1962 UK No.4 single 'Wimoweh' and 1990 UK hit 'Lazyitis- One Armed Boxer' with Happy Mondays.
21 Dec 2003
Eminem's ex-wife Kimberley Mathers pleaded guilty to a drug and driving offences. Mathers had been pulled by traffic police in June and was charged with possession of cocaine, two other charges driving with a suspended license and maintaining a drug house in which police discovered marijuana and Ecstasy were dropped. The 28-year-old mother appeared in a Michigan court after turning herself in, having previously failed to attend a November 1 hearing and removed an electronic tagging device used to monitor her movements.
21 Dec 2003
Michael Andrews feat Gary Jules went to No.1 on the UK singles chart with their version of the Tears For Fears song 'Mad World.' The song took just 90 minutes to record in 2001 and was featured in the film Donnie Darko.
21 Dec 2003
Tommy Hubbard from Whitby, aged 14, won the 2003 Riffathon, a nationwide guitar competition in aid of Action For Brazil's Children Trust. The final was held at the University of Surrey and was judged by Jimmy Page and Brian May. The ten Riffathon finalists each performed a Led Zeppelin classic track with a full live band. Tommy's performance of 'Ramble On' won him the star prize of a 1958 re-issue Gibson Les Paul standard guitar, donated by Gibson Guitars.
21 Dec 2005
Sir Elton John and his partner David Furnish became the first gay celebrities to register their relationship as a civil partnership. The 20-minute ceremony took place at The Guild Hall, Windsor, England, guest’s included Ringo Starr, Victoria Beckham, Joss Stone, Sting, Elvis Costello, Jamie Cullum, George Michael and The Osbournes - Ozzy, Sharon, Jack and Kelly.
21 Dec 2008
The 2008 X-Factor winner Alexandra Burke started a three-week run at No.1 on the UK singles chart with 'Hallelujah'. The song was written by Leonard Cohen, and his version charted at the same time, and Jeff Buckley's cover reached No 2, just being held off by Alexandra. Three versions of the same song were in the chart at once, something not seen since the 1950s.
21 Dec 2010
A concert by Kings of Leon was postponed after a fire broke out on two of their tour buses which were parked at The O2 arena in London. The blaze began on one coach before spreading to another tour bus in the loading bay of the venue in Greenwich. About 60 firefighters were at the scene and ambulance crews treated six people for smoke inhalation. An O2 spokesman said the fire meant there was not enough time to rig the arena for the sell-out concert.
21 Dec 2012
Rolling Stones guitarist, 65-year-old Ronnie Wood married his fiancée Sally Humphreys during a private ceremony in London. Keith Richards, Rod Stewart and Paul McCartney all attended the wedding.
21 Dec 2012
'Gangnam Style' by South Korean musician Psy became the first YouTube video to reach a billion views. By the end of 2012, the song had topped the music charts of more than 30 countries.
21 Dec 2012
Paul Simon performed his classic track 'The Sound of Silence' at the funeral of a teacher who died in the school shooting in Connecticut on 14 December of this year. The 1966 song was understood to be a favorite of 27-year-old Victoria Soto, a first-grade teacher at Sandy Hook Elementary School. The singer, a family friend, performed the song in front of some 400 mourners, at Soto's local church on Wednesday. Twenty-six people were killed in the mass shooting the previous week.
21 Dec 2014
Sir Elton John and his partner David Furnish formally converted their civil partnership to a marriage hosting a ceremony at their Windsor estate in Berkshire. David and Victoria Beckham, Ed Sheeran, Lulu and actor David Walliams were among the guests.
21 Dec 2016
American singer Richard Marx told of how he had to restrain a fellow passenger on a Korean Air flight after the man, who was drunk allegedly attacked others onboard. The incident happened as Marx and his wife were travelling from Hanoi to Seoul. The man was arrested upon landing and South Korean.
21 Dec 2019
Mariah Carey topped the US Billboard Hot 100 with 'All I Want for Christmas Is You' for the first time, 25 years after its original release, thereby breaking several records, including the longest trip to number one. With estimated sales of over 16 million copies worldwide, 'All I Want for Christmas Is You' is the best-selling holiday song by a female artist, and one of the best-selling physical singles in music history. The following year, the song also topped the charts in the UK for the first time, spending a record 69 weeks in its top 40 prior to reaching number one.
Bruce Springsteen's album, Born in the USA passed Michael Jackson's Thriller to become the second longest-lasting LP on the Billboard US Top 10. It stayed there for 79 weeks. Only The Sound of Music with Julie Andrews lasted longer at 109 weeks.
21 Dec 1991
'Bohemian Rhapsody - 'These Are The Days Of Our Lives' by Queen started a five week run at No.1 in the UK, the 1975 word-wide hit had been re-released following the death of Freddie Mercury.
21 Dec 1992
American blues singer and guitarist, Albert King died from a heart attack in Memphis, Tennessee. He recorded dozens of influential songs, such as 'Crosscut Saw' and 'As The Years Go Passing By', and the 1967 album, 'Born Under a Bad Sign.'
21 Dec 1996
The charity record 'Knockin' on Heaven's Door' went to No.1 on the UK singles chart. With the consent of Bob Dylan musician Ted Christopher of Dunblane, Scotland wrote a new verse for the song in memory of the schoolchildren and teacher killed in the Dunblane massacre. The cover version of the song included brothers and sisters of the victims singing the chorus and Mark Knopfler on guitar.
21 Dec 1998
Scottish singer Karl Denver died from a brain tumor aged 67. Had the 1962 UK No.4 single 'Wimoweh' and 1990 UK hit 'Lazyitis- One Armed Boxer' with Happy Mondays.
21 Dec 2003
Eminem's ex-wife Kimberley Mathers pleaded guilty to a drug and driving offences. Mathers had been pulled by traffic police in June and was charged with possession of cocaine, two other charges driving with a suspended license and maintaining a drug house in which police discovered marijuana and Ecstasy were dropped. The 28-year-old mother appeared in a Michigan court after turning herself in, having previously failed to attend a November 1 hearing and removed an electronic tagging device used to monitor her movements.
21 Dec 2003
Michael Andrews feat Gary Jules went to No.1 on the UK singles chart with their version of the Tears For Fears song 'Mad World.' The song took just 90 minutes to record in 2001 and was featured in the film Donnie Darko.
21 Dec 2003
Tommy Hubbard from Whitby, aged 14, won the 2003 Riffathon, a nationwide guitar competition in aid of Action For Brazil's Children Trust. The final was held at the University of Surrey and was judged by Jimmy Page and Brian May. The ten Riffathon finalists each performed a Led Zeppelin classic track with a full live band. Tommy's performance of 'Ramble On' won him the star prize of a 1958 re-issue Gibson Les Paul standard guitar, donated by Gibson Guitars.
21 Dec 2005
Sir Elton John and his partner David Furnish became the first gay celebrities to register their relationship as a civil partnership. The 20-minute ceremony took place at The Guild Hall, Windsor, England, guest’s included Ringo Starr, Victoria Beckham, Joss Stone, Sting, Elvis Costello, Jamie Cullum, George Michael and The Osbournes - Ozzy, Sharon, Jack and Kelly.
21 Dec 2008
The 2008 X-Factor winner Alexandra Burke started a three-week run at No.1 on the UK singles chart with 'Hallelujah'. The song was written by Leonard Cohen, and his version charted at the same time, and Jeff Buckley's cover reached No 2, just being held off by Alexandra. Three versions of the same song were in the chart at once, something not seen since the 1950s.
21 Dec 2010
A concert by Kings of Leon was postponed after a fire broke out on two of their tour buses which were parked at The O2 arena in London. The blaze began on one coach before spreading to another tour bus in the loading bay of the venue in Greenwich. About 60 firefighters were at the scene and ambulance crews treated six people for smoke inhalation. An O2 spokesman said the fire meant there was not enough time to rig the arena for the sell-out concert.
21 Dec 2012
Rolling Stones guitarist, 65-year-old Ronnie Wood married his fiancée Sally Humphreys during a private ceremony in London. Keith Richards, Rod Stewart and Paul McCartney all attended the wedding.
21 Dec 2012
'Gangnam Style' by South Korean musician Psy became the first YouTube video to reach a billion views. By the end of 2012, the song had topped the music charts of more than 30 countries.
21 Dec 2012
Paul Simon performed his classic track 'The Sound of Silence' at the funeral of a teacher who died in the school shooting in Connecticut on 14 December of this year. The 1966 song was understood to be a favorite of 27-year-old Victoria Soto, a first-grade teacher at Sandy Hook Elementary School. The singer, a family friend, performed the song in front of some 400 mourners, at Soto's local church on Wednesday. Twenty-six people were killed in the mass shooting the previous week.
21 Dec 2014
Sir Elton John and his partner David Furnish formally converted their civil partnership to a marriage hosting a ceremony at their Windsor estate in Berkshire. David and Victoria Beckham, Ed Sheeran, Lulu and actor David Walliams were among the guests.
21 Dec 2016
American singer Richard Marx told of how he had to restrain a fellow passenger on a Korean Air flight after the man, who was drunk allegedly attacked others onboard. The incident happened as Marx and his wife were travelling from Hanoi to Seoul. The man was arrested upon landing and South Korean.
21 Dec 2019
Mariah Carey topped the US Billboard Hot 100 with 'All I Want for Christmas Is You' for the first time, 25 years after its original release, thereby breaking several records, including the longest trip to number one. With estimated sales of over 16 million copies worldwide, 'All I Want for Christmas Is You' is the best-selling holiday song by a female artist, and one of the best-selling physical singles in music history. The following year, the song also topped the charts in the UK for the first time, spending a record 69 weeks in its top 40 prior to reaching number one.
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