History Highlight:

Today in 1948, John William Cummings — better known as Johnny Ramone — was born in Queens, N.Y. Johnny was the guitarist and a founding member of the Ramones. Known for his fast, high-energy guitar playing, Johnny's style consisted of rapid downstrokes and barre chord shapes. This unique playing style, combined with heavy gain from his amplifier, created the bright, buzzsaw-like sound Johnny's guitar parts were known for, and it was highly influential on many rock guitarists. In 2003, Johnny was number 16 on Rolling Stone's list of the "100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time." Johnny Ramone died on Sept. 15, 2004, after battling prostate cancer; a statue was dedicated in his honor at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery in Los Angeles on Jan. 15, 2005.

Also, Today In:

1957 - Working with producer Sam Phillips at Sun Records in Memphis, Tenn., Jerry Lee Lewis recorded his classic, "Great Balls Of Fire."

1966 - Cream drummer Ginger Baker collapsed during a gig at Sussex University in England after playing a 20-minute drum solo. He later recovered in a local hospital.

1987 - Chuck Berry was awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. His film biography, Hail, Hail Rock & Roll also premiered on the same night.

1988 - Following an unprecedented 741 weeks on the Billboard 200 Album Chart, Dark Side Of The Moon by Pink Floyd finally fell off the chart

1992 - The U.S. Postal Service issued a set of commemorative stamps to celebrate pop music legends, including Elvis Presley, Bill Haley, Buddy Holly, Otis Redding, Ritchie Valens, Clyde McPhatter and Dinah Washington.

2007- Arctic Monkeys were named the best act in the world at the Q Awards held in London.

2013 - Philip Chevron, the guitarist with Irish folk-punk band The Pogues, died of cancer at age 56.

2016 - Robert Plant and St. Vincent played the Festival of Disruption in Los Angeles, an event staged by the director David Lynch that included film screenings and meditation.

Birthday:

Tony Wilson, Hot Chocolate, who had the 1975 US No.3 single 'You Sexy Thing' and over 25 other Top 40 hits is 71

Bruno Mars is 33.

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