Subscribe | UPI Odd Newsletter Subscribe (July 7) Today's musical birthdays include former "Tonight Show" music director Doc Severinsen, who was born in 1927 (age 75); the late Mary Ford, Les Paul's wife and singing partner during the 1950s, was born in 1928; Weather Report keyboardist Josef Zawinul in 1932 (age 70); Ringo Starr in 1940 (age 62); Warren Entner of Grass Roots in 1944 (age 58); Argent bassist Jim Rodford in 1945 (age 57); guitarist Larry "Rhino" Rheinhardt of Iron Butterfly in 1948 (age 54); David Hodo of the Village People in 1950 (age 52); and Lynval Golding of Fun Boy 3 in 1952 (age 50). Advertisement Today in music history: In 1954, Dewey Phillips, a disc jockey at Memphis radio station WHGB, played Elvis Presley's "That's All Right (Mama)." It marked the first time a Presley record had been played on the radio anywhere. In 1968, the Yardbirds broke up -- leaving Jimmy Page to fulfill concert obligations with his own group. He initially called the band the New Yardbirds, but later dubbed it Led Zeppelin. In 1971, Swedish pop stars Bjorn Ulvaeus and Agnetha Faltskog married in a Gothic church in the village of Verum, Sweden. Two years later, the couple joined Benny Andersson and Anni-Frid Lyngstad to form ABBA. Advertisement In 1980, exactly 12 years after the Yardbirds broke up, Led Zeppelin played its final gig -- in West Berlin. In 1984, Franki Valli married Randy Clohessy. In 1986, Boy George began substance abuse treatment at a secret site -- apparently for heroin addiction. In 1992, the Red Hot Chili Peppers received eight nominations for the 1991 MTV Video Music Awards. In 1993, the Recording Industry Association of America announced that Garth Brooks was the decade's leading recording artist, selling more than 24 million records. Also in 1993, Paul Anka announced he was joining Garth Brooks' boycott of retailers selling used CDs. In 1994, the fourth annual Lollapalooza rock music festival kicked off in Las Vegas. In 1997, Ronnie DeVoe of New Edition pleaded guilty to resisting arrest following a scuffle with Louisville, Ky., police the previous February. He was ordered to perform 20 hours of community service. In 2000, the wife of bad-boy rapper Eminem attempted suicide at the couple's suburban Detroit home following her husband's concert in nearby Auburn Hills, Mich. News reports said the incident may've been prompted by the bitter custody battle between Eminem and his mother over his 14-year-old half-brother. Advertisement Also in 2000, Bobby Brown was released from the North Broward, Fla., Detention Center, where he'd served 26 days for violating his parole in a 1996 drunk driving case. Topping the charts on this date: "Rock Around The Clock" by Bill Haley and His Comets (1955), "Easier Said Than Done" by The Essex (1963), "It's Too Late/I Feel the Earth Move," by Carole King (1971),"Ring My Bell" by Anita Ward (1979). Today's musical quiz: Eminem prides himself on being from Detroit, but where was he born? Answer: Kansas City, Mo.
