History highlight:

Carol Kaye — session bassist for the Wrecking Crew, who played on more than 10,000 recording sessions for artists including Frank Sinatra, Simon & Garfunkel, Stevie Wonder, Sam Cooke, Barbra Streisand, Ritchie Valens, The Supremes, The Beach Boys, The Temptations, the Four Tops, The Monkees, Nilsson and countless others — is 90. Kaye began her music career in 1949 as a guitarist in Los Angeles jazz clubs and in touring big bands. In 1957, wanting to stay home with her growing family, Kaye began work as a studio musician. Although she had worked primarily as a guitarist, Kaye offered to play bass when, in a 1963 session at Capitol Records, the bassist failed to show. From the next year onwards, Carol Kaye became a first-call bassist known for inventing rhythmic, propulsive bass lines on the spot. To this day, Kaye is a revered musician and highly respected music instructor. Incidentally, in season 3 of the TV series The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, Liza Weil’s fictitious character Carole Keene — a touring bassist who becomes a mentor to Midge — was loosely based on Carol Kaye.

Also, today in:

1945 - Billboard published the first U.S. LP chart. Nat King Cole was at No. 1 with A Collection Of Favorites.

1958 - Elvis Presley, at 23 years old, enters the United States Army in Memphis.

1962 - Mick Jagger and Keith Richards perform their first paid gig when they appear as Little Boy Blue & the Blue Boys at a club in Ealing, England.

1965 - On the first date of their anniversary tour, Rolling Stones bass player Bill Wyman was zapped and knocked out by an electrical shock from a microphone stand in Odense, Denmark.

1966 - Simon & Garfunkel made their first appearance on the Brit singles chart with "Homeward Bound."

1973 - The O'Jays went to No. 1 on the U.S. singles chart with "Love Train." The song's lyrics of unity mention a number of countries, including England, Russia, China, Egypt and Israel, as well as the continent of Africa.

1973 - Lou Reed was bitten on the buttocks by a zealous fan at a concert in Buffalo, N.Y. This is not a joke. The display of affection happened as Reed got ready to play the classic Velvet Underground tune "Waitin' For The Man." The crazed fan — screaming, "Leather!" — evaded security as he attacked Reed. The fan was ejected, and Reed commented afterward that the U.S. "seems to breed real animals."

1979 - The Bee Gees started a two-week run at No. 1 on the U.S. singles chart with "Tragedy," the group's eighth U.S. No. 1.

1990 - Canadian singer Alannah Myles started a two-week run at No. 1 on the U.S. singles chart with "Black Velvet."

1992 - A Chicago court settled the Milli Vanilli class action suit by approving cash rebates of up to $3 to anyone proving they bought the group's music before Nov. 27, 1990, the date the lip-synching scandal broke.

2000 - Jack and Meg White of The White Stripes get divorced not long after releasing their second album, De Stijl. Despite the split, the band stayed together until 2011.

2009 - The Decemberists released their fifth studio album, The Hazards of Love. It features “The Rake’s Song.”

2009 - Legendary Motown drummer Uriel Jones died. He was a recording session drummer for Motown's in-house studio band, the Funk Brothers, during the 1960s and early 1970s. Jones had a hard-hitting, funky sound, best heard on the tracks for the hits "Ain't No Mountain High Enough" — both versions, by Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell in 1967 and the 1970 remake by Diana Ross — plus "I Heard It Through the Grapevine" and "Ain't That Peculiar" by Marvin Gaye.

2010 - Rock photographer Jim Marshall dies at age 74. Marshall was the official photographer for the Beatles' final concert in San Francisco's Candlestick Park, and he was head-photographer at Woodstock. He photographed Jimi Hendrix setting his guitar on fire at the Monterey Pop Festival, and Johnny Cash at San Quentin.

2013 - Songwriter and record producer Deke Richards died of esophageal cancer aged 68. He is notable for being a member of both The Clan and The Corporation, the latter being a hitmaking production team that wrote and produced The Jackson 5's early hits, including “I Want You Back,” “ABC,” and “The Love You Save.” He produced Diana Ross and the Supremes after Holland, Dozier and Holland left Motown in 1968 and co-wrote “Love Child” for the Supremes and “I'm Still Waiting” for Diana Ross.

2014 - Future Islands released their fourth studio album, Singles. It features “Seasons (Waiting on You).”

2020 - Bill Rieflin died at age 59. Rieflin came to prominence in the 1990s mainly for his work as a drummer with groups particularly in the industrial rock and industrial metal scenes such as Ministry, Swans, Chris Connelly, and Nine Inch Nails. He worked regularly with R.E.M. following the retirement of Bill Berry in 1997. He was a member of King Crimson from 2013 until his death.

Birthdays:

Carol Kaye, session bassist for the Wrecking Crew, is 90.

Songwriter Don Covay — who wrote “Chain of Fools” — was born today in 1936.

R&B singer Billy Stewart (“Billy’s Blues”) was born today in 1937.

Holger Czukay of Can was born today in 1938.

Songwriter Michael Masser — co-wrote Whitney Houston hits "Didn't We Almost Have It All," "Saving All My Love for You," "All at Once," and "Greatest Love of All" — was born today in 1941.

Klaus Dinger of Neu! and Kraftwerk was born today in 1946.

Lee Oskar from War is 77.

Nick Lowe — a noted figure in power pop and new wave — is 76. Lowe is best known for the songs “Cruel To Be Kind” and “(What’s So Funny ‘Bout) Peace, Love, and Understanding,” which Elvis Costello turned into a hit. He also made a splash in holiday music with his 2013 album Quality Street: A Seasonal Selection for All the Family, which includes the original song, “Christmas at the Airport.” Lowe’s creative output continues; his latest album is 2024’s Indoor Safari, a collaboration with his longtime touring band Los Straitjackets.

Steve Lang of April Wine was born today in 1949.

Dougie Thomson of Supertramp is 74.

Nena is 65.

Patterson Hood of Drive-By Truckers is 61.

Sharon Corr, vocalist and violinist of the Corrs, is 55.

Vincent Mason, aka Maseo or Pasemaster Mace of De La Soul, is 55.

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