History highlight:

On this day in 1994, Hole released their major-label debut album, Live Through This. The second studio album from the Courtney Love-led group features “Miss World,” “Doll Parts,” and “Violet.” It received universal acclaim from critics, and has been placed on many lists of the best albums of the 90s.

Also, today in:

1954 - Bill Haley recorded “Rock Around the Clock” at Pythian Temple studios in New York City.

1963 - Bob Dylan performed his first major solo concert at the Town Hall in New York City. Dylan played a 24-song set that included "Blowin' In The Wind," "A Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall," "Highway 51," and "Last Thoughts On Woody Guthrie."

1966 - In an eerie recreation of the duo's single from the year before, Jan Berry of Jan & Dean crashed his Corvette into a parked truck on Beverly Hills' Whittier Drive, near a stretch of road in Los Angeles known as Dead Man's Curve. Berry suffered paralysis and extensive brain damage, and he required four years of rehabilitation to be able to talk and a full decade in order to perform live again. See digital producer Luke Taylor's personal story on this very topic.

1968 - The outspoken Frank Zappa performed at a dinner for the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences: the folks who give us the Grammys. Zappa says the event was "a load of pompous hokum" and told the audience, "All year long you people have manufactured this crap, now for one night you're gonna have to listen to it!"

1969 - The 5th Dimension started a six-week run at No. 1 on the U.S. singles chart with "Aquarius / Let The Sunshine In." The tune is a medley of two songs written for the 1967 musical Hair. The single topped the American pop charts and was eventually certified platinum in the U.S. The Wrecking Crew provided instrumental backing, and the song listed at No. 66 on Billboard's "Greatest Songs of All Time."

1973 - The film "That'll Be The Day" premiered in London, featuring David Essex, Ringo Starr, Keith Moon, Billy Fury and Dave Edmunds.

1973 - In one of Sesame Street’s most memorable moments, Stevie Wonder played a funky, seven-minute live version of "Superstition" on the show.

1975 - The legendary Josephine Baker died in France at the age of 68. An American-born French dancer, jazz and pop singer, and actress, Baker was the first black woman to star in a major motion picture (Zouzou, which came out in 1934). Baker refused to perform for segregated audiences in the United States and is noted for her contributions to the Civil Rights Movement.

1975 - David Bowie announced his second career retirement, saying, "I've rocked my roll. It's a boring dead end, there will be no more rock 'n' roll records from me."

1983 - 41 years ago today, R.E.M. released their debut album, Murmur. Critics loved the album, and though the band experienced drama with their label and producer changes during the recording process, they debuted a new quiet, introverted side of the first wave of alternative rock in the United States. Murmur drew critical acclaim upon its release for its unusual sound, defined by lead singer Michael Stipe's cryptic lyrics, guitarist Peter Buck's jangly guitar style, and bass guitarist Mike Mills's melodic basslines.

1988 - Sonny Bono was elected mayor in his hometown of Palm Springs, California. He would hold the position until 1992.

1994 - Rollins Band released Weight, featuring the hit “Liar.”

1995 - Two weeks after Selena's death, George W. Bush (then the governor of Texas) declared "Selena Day" in Texas.

1999 - Backstreet Boys released "I Want It That Way."

2008 - Lou Reed married his third wife, the conceptual artist Laurie Anderson. The couple, who had been together since the early '90s, had decided to get married the previous day, so they met at a friend's house in Boulder, Colorado and held the ceremony in the backyard.

2011 - Foo Fighters released their seventh studio album, Wasting Light. Wanting to capture the essence of their earlier work and avoid the artificiality of digital recording, Foo Fighters recorded in the garage of frontman Dave Grohl in Encino, California, using only analog equipment. 

2016 - A U.S. court ruled that Led Zeppelin founders Robert Plant and Jimmy Page must face trial in a copyright row over the song "Stairway to Heaven." The copyright infringement action had been brought by Michael Skidmore, a trustee for the late Spirit guitarist Randy Wolfe, who played on the same bill as Led Zeppelin in the 1960s and claimed he should have been given writing credit on the track.

2019 - John Hutch, drummer of The Big Three, died at age 79. The Big Three rivaled The Beatles for popularity in the early 1960s. Hutch filled in on drums behind Lennon, McCartney and Harrison in both 1960 and 1962 and later claimed he was offered the opportunity to become Pete Best's successor before Ringo Starr was given the job in The Beatles.

2019 - Anderson .Paak released his fourth album, Ventura. It features the singles “Make It Better” and “King James.”

2019 - Fontaines D.C. released their debut album, Dogrel. It features “Boys in the Better Land.”

Birthdays:

Hound Dog Taylor was born today in 1912.

Helen Forrest was born today in 1917.

Ned Miller was born today in 1925.

Tiny Tim was born today in 1932.

Herbie Hancock is 84.

Steppenwolf frontman John Kay is 80.

David Letterman is 77.

Alex Briley, the "G.I." from the Village People, is 73.

David Cassidy of the Partridge Family was born today in 1950.

Pat Travers is 70.

Vince Gill is 67.

Will Sergeant of Echo & The Bunnymen is 66.

Art Alexakis of Everclear is 62.

Rob Baker of The Tragically Hip is 62.

Amy Ray of Indigo Girls is 60.

Sarah Cracknell of St. Etienne is 57.

Toby Gad is 56.

Coldplay bassist Guy Berryman is 46.

Brendon Urie of Panic! at the Disco is 37.

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