Today In Oldies Music History: April 18
--Births
1918: Tony Mottola1924: Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown
1935: Paul Rothchild
1936: Lennie Baker (Sha Na Na)
1938: Hal Galper
1939: Glen Hardin (The Crickets)
1942: Mike Vickers (Manfred Mann)
1946: Hayley Mills
Deaths
1996: Bernard Edwards (Chic)Events
1957: Buddy Knox is inducted into the Army Reserve, leading his record label to rush him into the studio to record no less than twenty followups to his hit "Party Doll." None make the charts.1963: Backstage at a Royal Albert Hall performance in London for the radio show Swingin' Sound '63, the Beatles' Paul McCartney meets an actress and TV personality named Jane Asher.
1969: Lulu marries Maurice Gibb of the Bee Gees at St. James' Church, Buckinghamshire, England, a marriage that will last four years. 3,000 fans attend, as do John Lennon's wife, Cynthia, and producer Mickie Most.
1970: While on stage with Led Zeppelin in Phoenix, lead singer Robert Plant collapses from "exhaustion."
1971: The Diana Ross television musical special Diana, featuring guest stars Jackson 5, Bill Cosby, and Danny Thomas, airs on ABC.
1975: The Alice Cooper television special Welcome To My Nightmare airs on ABC.
1975: An entire crowd of Bay City Rollers fans attempt to swim across a nearby lake to meet the band at a BBC Radio-sponsored event in Mallory Park racetrack, Leicestershire, England. 39 fans are brought to the hospital, four of whom are admitted.
1981: Yes bassist Chris Squire and drummer Alan White begin rehearsals with the remaining members of Led Zeppelin, leading to rumors of the death of Yes and the beginning of a new band dubbed XYZ (Ex-Yes and Zeppelin). The rumored band never materializes, and Yes reforms under their old name for the hit 1983 album 90125.
1985: Liberace breaks his own record at Radio City Music Hall, pulling in two million dollars for his latest engagement.
1987: Aretha Franklin scores a #1 US hit with "I Knew You Were Waiting For Me," a duet with George Michael of Wham! Her first Number One in 19 years and ten months, it breaks the record for the longest span between #1 hits.
1988: The accused murderer of reggae legend Peter Tosh, Dennis "Leppo" Lobban, goes on trial in Jamaica.
1988: Legendary Motown songwriters Holland/Dozier/Holland are inducted into the Songwriters' Hall of Fame.
Releases
1975: John Lennon, "Stand By Me"Recording
1936: Gene Autry, "Back In The Saddle Again"1969: The Beatles: "Old Brown Shoe," "I Want You (She's So Heavy)"
