History Highlight:

Today, the Great Balls of Fire singer, Jerry Lee Lewis, is 79 years old. This may be surprising to some people because there was a hoax that went around earlier this year claiming that Lewis had died. The singer and piano-player brought together rock and roll and country with a lot of success. He has a dozen gold records, has won several Grammy awards, and he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1986.

Also, Today In:

1976 - In more Jerry Lee Lewis history, while attempting to shoot a soda bottle with his .357 magnum, Jerry Lee Lewis hit his bass player, Norman Owens, twice in the chest. Lewis was charged with shooting a firearm within the city limits. Owens recovered.

1979 - Nick Lowe had a Top 15 hit with "Cruel To Be Kind," while his old Rockpile mate Dave Edmunds had a minor hit with "Girls Talk" (later covered by Elvis Costello).

1989 - While on a motorcycle trip from Los Angeles to the Grand Canyon, Bruce Springsteen stopped in at a small saloon in Prescott, Arizona, and wound up jamming with the house band. The Boss and The Mile High Band burned through "Don't Be Cruel," "I'm On Fire," "Route 66" and a couple of others. Turns out that one of the bartenders, Brenda Techanec, was talking about her problems paying her hospital bills. Springsteen overheard her and a week later she had a check for $100,000 in her hands.

2003 - Reality by David Bowie debuted on the album charts.

2004 - The advance U2 single, "Vertigo," was all over the radio after leaking onto the Internet.