History Highlight:

Kim Carnes was born on this day in 1945, making her 75 today. She started off her career as a songwriter and session background singer with the Waters sisters (featured in the documentary '20 Feet from Stardom'), then released her debut album Rest on Me in 1972. But what Carnes is by far best-known for is her 1981 worldwide hit "Bette Davis Eyes". This became the best-selling single of the year in the U.S., spending nine weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, going Gold, and winning Grammys for Record of the Year and Song of the Year. That album, Mistaken Identity, went to No. 1 on the Billboard 200, was certified Platinum, and was nominated for the Grammy Award for Album of the Year. Her most recent studio album is 2004's Chasin' Wild Trains, and these days she lives in Nashville, where she continues to write music.

Also, Today In:

1940 - Billboard's first comprehensive record chart was published. The magazine had previously published best-seller lists submitted by individual record companies, but the new chart combined the top sellers from all major labels. Billboard's first No. 1 song was "I'll Never Smile Again" by Frank Sinatra and the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra.

1963 - Jan and Dean started a two-week run at No. 1 on the U.S. singles chart with "Surf City," written by Beach Boy Brian Wilson, with the Beach Boys on backing vocals.

1965 - Bob Dylan released "Like a Rolling Stone" which would become his first major hit single eventually peaking at number two on Billboard's Hot 100 Singles Chart.

1968 - Iron Butterfly's second album, In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida, entered the U.S. album chart for the first time. The album, which went on to sell more than four million copies in the U.S. alone, contained the 17-minute title track that filled the second side of the LP. The song would later inspire one of Bart Simpson's more creative pranks.

1974 - The Ramones decided that their new lead singer would be their then-drummer Joey Ramone.

1975 - Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band played the opening night on their Born To Run Tour at The Palace Theatre in Providence, R.I. The tour actually began more than a month before the album, Born to Run, was released; "Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out" made its first appearance, but the show was mostly dominated by older material. The show also saw the live debut of Steven Van Zandt, aka Little Steven, as a member of The E Street Band.

1976 - Buzzcocks made their live debut supporting The Sex Pistols and Slaughter & The Dogs at The Lesser Free Trade Hall, Manchester. In the audience were Morrissey, Bernard Sumner and Peter Hook (soon to form Joy Division), Mark E. Smith (The Fall) and Mick Hucknall.

1986 - Sid And Nancy, the film based on the life of Sex Pistol Sid Vicious, premiered in London.

1991 - EMF went to No. 1 on the U.S. singles chart with "Unbelievable." The song spent 14 weeks on the chart before reaching the top. Fun fact: the song contains samples of U.S. comedian Andrew Dice Clay throughout the track, including the loud exclamation of "oh!" at the start of each chorus along with the words "it's unbelievable" spoken during the bridge.

1996 - De La Soul's Stakes Is High debuts at No. 13 on the Billboard 200 chart, and No. 4 on the R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart.

2016 - Wiz Khalifa and Snoop Dogg began their "High Road" tour with a show in West Palm Beach, Florida. Said Khalifa, "It's a joint performance."

2017 - Linkin Park lead singer Chester Bennington died at age 41. His body, taken by suicide, was found at a private home. The singer was said to be close to Soundgarden vocalist Chris Cornell, who took his own life in May of 2017. Formed in 1996, Linkin Park has sold more than 70 million albums worldwide and won two Grammy Awards.

Birthdays:

Carlos Santana, better known as simply Santana, is 73.

Simple Minds keyboardist Mick MacNeil is 62.

Soundgarden and Audioslave frontman Chris Cornell was born today in 1964.

Pearl Jam guitarist Stone Gossard is 54.

Mark Mallman is 47.

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