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Today in Music History: The Bangles hit No. 2 with "Manic Monday"

Left to right: Vicki Peterson, Debbi Peterson and Susanna Hoffs of the band The Bangles perform on stage at the Burswood Theatre on Oct. 6, 2008 in Perth, Australia.
Left to right: Vicki Peterson, Debbi Peterson and Susanna Hoffs of the band The Bangles perform on stage at the Burswood Theatre on Oct. 6, 2008 in Perth, Australia.Paul Kane | Getty Images 2008

March 15, 2019

History Highlight:

Today in 1986, The Bangles were at No. 2 on the U.S. singles chart with "Manic Monday." The song was the first single released from their second studio album, Different Light and was written by Prince under the pseudonym "Christopher". Prince had intended the song for the group Apollonia 6, but he offered it to The Bangles 2 years later. Ironically, the song that was No. 1 on the charts at the time was Prince and The Revolution's "Kiss".

Also, Today in:

1968 - Life magazine described Jimi Hendrix as "the most spectacular guitarist in the world."

1975: Electric Light Orchestra peaked at number nine on the Billboard Hot 100 Singles Chart with "Can't Get It Out of My Head" which was their first top ten single in the U.S.

1976: Kiss released their fourth studio album Destroyer which went on to become their first album to be certified Platinum and contained such Kiss staples as "Detroit Rock City", "Shout It Out Loud", "God of Thunder" and "Beth".

1977 - Kansas received their first Platinum album for their fourth studio album Leftoverture which later went on to sell four million copies in the U.S.

1980 - The Clash's movie "Rude Boy" premiered at London's Prince Charles Cinema. The band members were disenchanted with the movie and it didn't get released in the U.S. until 2006.

1989 - The Rolling Stones signed a contract for $70 million to play 50 concerts in the U.S. It was, at the time, the richest fee for a series of gigs in the history of rock.

1999 - Bruce Springsteen was inducted into the Rock 'n Roll Hall of Fame by U2's Bono.

2002 - Yoko Ono unveiled a seven-foot bronze statue of John Lennon, which overlooked the check-in area of Liverpool's John Lennon Airport. The newly renamed airport's logo featured a sketch of Lennon's face with the inscription, "Above Us Only Skies."

2004 - The Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame inducts Prince at their annual ceremony in New York City. Other inductees that year: Bob Seger, George Harrison, The Dells, ZZ Top, Jackson Browne, and Traffic.

2005 - Stone Roses singer Ian Brown was arrested after a fight during a concert in San Francisco after a fan jumped on stage and attacked the singer, who then became involved in a fight with a security guard.

2014 - Scott Asheton, best-known as the drummer for the Stooges, died of a heart attack aged 64. He co-formed the Stooges in 1967 along with his older brother Ron Asheton, Iggy Pop and Dave Alexander.

2015 - Mike Porcaro, bassist with Toto, died following a battle Lou Gehrig's Disease. He was the middle brother of Toto members Jeff Porcaro and Steve Porcaro.

Birthdays:

Sam "Lightnin" Hopkins, influential blues guitarist and singer, was born today in 1912.

Phil Lesh, bassist for Grateful Dead, is 79.

Mike Love of the Beach Boys is 78.

Sly Stone is 76.

Dee Snider, singer for Twisted Sister, is 64.

Bret Michaels, singer for Poison, is 56.

Mark McGrath of Sugar Ray is 51.

will.i.am of the Black Eyed Peas is 44.

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