History Highlight:

Today in 2003, Earl King, the New Orleans blues guitarist, died at age 69. King wrote the classic song "Come On, (Let The Good Times Roll)," covered by Jimi Hendrix and Stevie Ray Vaughan, and he also wrote "Big Chief" recorded by Professor Longhair

Also, Today In:

1970 - Paul McCartney released his debut solo album, McCartney (the black cover with the cherries). The "self-interview" included with the advance-press copies of the album essentially confirmed that The Beatles had indeed broken up. McCartney did very well on the charts (debuting at No. 2), but was not well received by critics — nor by any of the other Beatles, who harshly criticized the album's quality.

1971 - All four Beatles had solo singles in the U.K. charts: Paul McCartney with "Another Day," John Lennon, "Power To The People," George Harrison, "My Sweet Lord," and Ringo Starr, "It Don't Come Easy."

1973 - Pink Floyd were awarded a Gold album for Dark Side of The Moon, one of the most innovative and memorable albums in the history of rock. The disc would stay on the charts for more than 10 years, the longest-charting rock album of all time.

1980 - Bob Marley & The Wailers performed at and were official guests of state at Zimbabwe's Independence festival. Marley described the occasion as the "greatest honor of my life."

1998 - Linda McCartney died after a long battle against cancer. She married Paul McCartney in 1969 after meeting him while she was working as a photographer. As well as a being a member of Wings, Linda became an animal-rights campaigner and launched her own brand of vegetarian food.

2009 - Morrissey walked off stage during his set at the Coachella festival in California after declaring he could "smell burning flesh". A strict vegetarian, Morrissey was reacting to the smoke coming from nearby barbecues.

2016 - Singer Joss Stone postponed shows in the Caribbean to be with her sick dog, which she said was "the closest thing I have to a child". She said her pet had made it through the night but she had to "go back and make sure she was ok".

Birthdays:

Pete Shelley, songwriter and guitarist for the Buzzcocks, is 62.

Liz Phair is 50.

Redman is 47.

Victoria Beckham (Posh Spice) is 43.

Highlights for Today in Music History are gathered from This Day in Music, Paul Shaffer's Day in Rock, Song Facts and Wikipedia.