Eagle Classic Hitstory July 17 on birminghamseagle.com

On This Day in Eagle Classic Hitstory...

July 17

1925
Singer Little Jimmy Scott - much beloved by Lou Reed - is born in Cleveland.

1941
Guitarist Spencer Davis is born in Wales. He forms the R&B/rock quartet the Spencer Davis Group in 1963 with brothers Steve and Muff Winwood and Peter York. The group’s two top 10 songs are "Gimme Some Lovin’" and "I’m a Man."

1949
Jon Wetton, who sang with Asia on hits like "Heat of the Moment," is born in Derby, England.

1949
Bassist Geezer Butler of Black Sabbath is born in Birmingham, England.

1949
Mick Tucker, drummer for Sweet, is born in Harlesden, England.

1950
Damon Harris, occasional member of the Temptations, is born in Baltimore.

1952
Singer's singer Phoebe Snow ("Poetry Man") is born in New York.

1958
No. 1 Hit: "Hard Headed Woman," Elvis Presley. The song is taken from the Presley film King Creole.

1959
Jazz singer Billie Holiday dies. She posthumously receives a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 1987 and three of her recordings receive Grammy Hall of Fame Awards: "Strange Fruit" (1939), "God Bless the Child" (1941) and "Lover Man (Oh, Where Can You Be?)" (1945). The 1972 film Lady Sings the Blues is based on her life.

1961
Motown Records releases The Supremes' first single, "Buttered Popcorn" with "Who's Loving You" on the flip side. The record fails to chart.

1965
James Brown's "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag" enters the pop and R&B charts. It will hit #8 on the pop and #1 on the R&B charts.

1965
The Miracles' "Tracks of My Tears" is released.

1965
The Byrds' LP "Mr. Tambourine Man" enters the charts.

1965
Them's "Here Comes The Night" is released.

1967
The Jimi Hendrix Experience opens for The Monkees at The Forest Hills Tennis Stadium in New York.

1967
Jazz guru John Coltrane dies of liver cancer in New York at age 40.

1968
The Beatles animated movie, Yellow Submarine debuts in London at the Pavilion Theatre. John, Paul, and George attend the screening.

1971
Blood, Sweat & Tears' B,S&T 4 enters the album charts.

1972
A bomb placed under a ramp at the Montreal Forum blows out the cones of 30 speakers stored inside one of the Rolling Stones' equipment trucks. Montreal radio stations receive at least 50 calls from would-be bombers. It's never determined who planted the dynamite and the show goes on as planned.

1974
The Moody Blues open up their own studio in London. It was the first studio designed for quadrophonic recording.

1974
The U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service orders John Lennon to leave the country within 60 days.

1975
Ringo Starr and Maureen Cox divorce. She dies in 1994.

1976
The Rolling Stones' "Hot Stuff" single peaks at #50.

1976
ELO's OLE ELO LP enters the charts.

1976
The Beach Boys 15 Big Ones makes it to the LP chart where it floats right to #8 and is certified gold in September.

1976
Heart's "Magic Man" is released.

1979
Guitarist Gary Moore leaves Thin Lizzy, to be replaced by future Ultravox member and "Do They Know It's Christmas" songwriter Midge Ure.

1982
Frank Zappa and his 14 year old daughter Moon Unit have a novelty hit with "Valley Girl." It debuts at #75. Val-speak makes its way to commercials and network television to the eternal shame of us all.

1982
"Going To A Go-Go" by the Rolling Stones peaks at #25 on the singles chart.

1982
Chicago's Chicago 16 album enters the chart. The album featured the #1 hit "Hard To Say I'm Sorry."

1986
About 50 people are injured outside a Run D.M.C. show in Long Beach, CA.

1987
Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richards signs a solo deal with Virgin Records.

1991
A revamped Lynyrd Skynyrd opens their world tour in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

1991
James Brown is honored by his home state of Georgia for his comeback following a two year prison term.

1993
Tireless "Weird Al" Yankovic records "Bohemian Polka" and "Harvey the Wonder Hamster" for his album Alapalooza.

1994
In Pontiac, Mich., Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley make a surprise appearance at a Kiss convention. But while browsing the stalls, they discover Kiss costumes stolen from them more than a decade ago. D'oh!

1996
Chas Chandler, who was bassist for the Animals as well as Jimi Hendrix's manager, dies in a British hospital at age 57. He had been undergoing tests related to an aortic aneurysm.

1996
The Smashing Pumpkins, a group known for their anti-drug stance, fires drummer Jimmy Chamberlin. This came less than a week after Chamberlin was arrested on a drug charge and the group's stage keyboardist Jonathan Melvion died of a heroin overdose.

1997
Punk japesters Blink-182 release their breakthrough Dude Ranch. Featuring the hit "Dammit (Growing Up)," the album peaks at No. 67 on the Billboard 200.

1998
Marc Hunter, lead singer with Dragon, dies after a nine-month battle with throat cancer. He is 44. New Zealand-born Hunter is one of Australia’s most flamboyant performers, known as much for his off-stage antics as for his Dragon chart-toppers, such as "April Sun In Cuba," "Get That Jive," and "Rain."

2002
Travis drummer Neil Primrose suffers a head injury while swimming in a pool in Belfort, France, necessitating the cancellation of several European concerts.

2003
Mark Wilson, bassist with Aussie rock revivalists Jet, gets a black eye after a group of thugs attack him in Sydney.

2003
Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck, the media's hottest couple, are interviewed by NBC's Dateline. When asked if they actually realize how famous they are, Lopez replies, "We don’t sit around here and think about that."

2004
Singer Linda Ronstadt is fired by the Aladdin Casino after she praises Michael Moore's film Fahrenheit 9/11 during her stage show. The audience reacted with boos and threw cocktails.

2005
Terrorist bombings in London forced the cancellation or postponement of a number of concerts in the city. Cancelled events include Sum 41’s show at Astoria, the Prodigy at London Carling Brixton, Nate James at Shepherd’s Bush Empire, and El Presidente at the Underbelly.

2006
Jane's Addiction guitarist Dave Navarro and teen fantasy Carmen Electra announce they are splitting after three years of marriage. Their breakup is described as "amicable."