Celebrating 1 January
Birthdays
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1942 – Joe McDonald, lead singer, Country Joe and the Fish
1950 – Morgan Fisher, keyboardist, Mott the Hoople
1956 – Martin Plaza, guitarist, Mental As Anything
1958 – Grandmaster Flash, hip hop musician and DJ
1968 – Rick J. Jordan, keyboardist, Scooter
1972 – Tom Barman, guitarist, dEUS
1980 – Richie Faulkner, guitarist, Judas Priest
1985 – Naughty Boy (Shahid Khan), DJ, rapper, producer
1997 – Noah Kahan, singer/songwriter
2000 – ice Spice (Isis Naija Gaston), US rapper
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Died on this day
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1953 – Hank Williams, country & western singer (born 1923)
1984 – Alexis Korner, British blues pioneer (born 1928)
1997 – Townes Van Zandt, singer/songwriter (born 1944)
2013 – Patti Page, pop and country singer (born 1927)
2019 – Pegi Young, singer/songwriter (born 1952)
2020 – Marty Grebb, guitarist, The Buckinghams (born 1945)
2021 – Mick Bolton, keyboardist, Mott The Hoople (born 1950)
2023 – Fred White, drummer, Earth, Wind and Fire (born 1955)
2023 – Gangsta Boo, US rapper (born 1979)
2025 – Wayne Osmond, The Osmonds (born 1951)
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And on this day in...
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1962 – The Beatles auditioned for Decca in London. Decca passed, choosing Brian Poole and the Tremeloes instead...........
1964 – The first edition of Top of the Pops was transmitted in the UK
1967 – The Doors made their live TV debut in the US
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Page last updated 30 January 2026