History Highlight:

Today in 1946, Lux Interior (whose birth name was Erick Lee Purkhiser) of The Cramps was born in Akron, Ohio. In 1976, Purkhiser, together with his wife Kristy Wallace, aka Poison Ivy, formed the punk-rock band The Cramps, with Purkhiser taking his stage name Lux Interior from a TV commercial advertising luxury cars. Originally part of the New York CBGBs scene, The Cramps relocated to Los Angeles in 1980, and they released their debut album, Songs The Lord Taught Us. The Cramps’ musical style combines many influences, including rock, R&B, surf rock, garage rock, and rockabilly, fusing into The Cramps’ signature psychobilly sound. The Cramps were also known for covering crate-digger classics, as is the case with “Goo Goo Muck,” originally recorded by Ronnie Cook and the Gaylads in 1962. The Cramps’ creepy take on “Goo Goo Muck” appears on their 1981 album Psychedelic Jungle, and is a staple of The Current’s Halloween Stream. The Cramps continued to perform up till Lux Interior’s death in 2009 at age 62.

Also, Today In:

1957 - "Jailhouse Rock" by Elvis Presley goes No. 1 in America. A couple weeks later, Presley played a convict-turned-singing sensation in the movie of the same name.

1958 - Buddy Holly's last recording session took place at Pythian Temple Studios in New York City.

1967 - Scottish singer Lulu started a five-week run at No. 1 on the U.S. singles chart with the theme song from the film To Sir With Love. Soul Asylum recorded a live cover version of "To Sir With Love" in 1997 and included it on their album, After the Flood: Live from the Grand Forks Prom, June 28, 1997.

1971 - Mick Jagger became a father when his wife Bianca gave birth to daughter Jade in a Paris hospital.

1972 - Many years after making pioneering rock 'n' roll records, Chuck Berry had his first and only U.S. No. 1 hit, an unlikely novelty tune called "My Ding-a-Ling."

1972 - Curtis Mayfield started a four-week run at No. 1 on the U.S. album chart with soundtrack to Superfly.

1975 - Tom Waits released his third album, Nighthawks at the Diner.

1977 - Meat Loaf releases the landmark album Bat Out Of Hell.

1985 - Simple Minds released their seventh studio album, Once Upon a Time. It features “Alive and Kicking,” “Sanctify Yourself,” “All the Things She Said,” and “Ghost Dancing.”

1992 - Madonna's book Sex is released.

1995 - Blind Melon lead singer Shannon Hoon was discovered dead on his tour bus from an accidental drug overdose.

1995 - Green Day singer Billie Joe Armstrong was arrested and fined $141 after mooning the audience during a gig in Milwaukee.

1997 - Elton John's "Candle In The Wind '97" was declared by the Guinness Book Of Records as the biggest-selling single record of all time, with 31.8 million sales in less than 40 days. The song, performed at the funeral of Diana, Princess of Wales, on Sept. 6, 1997, raised more than $32 million for charity.

2003 - Acclaimed singer-songwriter Elliott Smith died from apparent self-inflicted knife wounds. Smith's death came as a shock to the indie-rock community. His career had been growing in success with two major-label releases, and an Oscar nomination for "Miss Misery" from the Good Will Hunting soundtrack, but he suffered from depression, alcoholism and drug dependence, and these topics appeared throughout his lyrics. At the time of his death, Smith was working on his sixth studio album, From a Basement on the Hill, which was posthumously completed and released in 2004.

2006 - Drummer Sandy West, a founding member (with Joan Jett) of all-girl group The Runaways, died at age 47 due to lung cancer. West has been hailed by fans and critics alike as one of the most groundbreaking drummers in rock history.

2006 - Evanescence were at No.1 on the U.S. album chart with their second album The Open Door.

2010 - Adele returned to The Current to perform in-studio. During the visit, she performed "Someone Like You," "Rolling In The Deep" and "Chasing Pavements." Listen to the entire session here.

2011 - The FBI listed Juggalos - fans of Insane Clown Posse - as "a loosely-organized hybrid gang" in their National Gang Threat Assessment.

2013 - Sid Bernstein, the concert promoter who staged early U.S. shows by The Beatles and The Rolling Stones, died at age 95. Beyond the Beatles and the Stones, Bernstein also arranged gigs for Judy Garland, Ray Charles, and Tony Bennett.

2014 - Cold War Kids released their fifth studio album, Hold My Home. It features “All This Could Be Yours” and “First.”

2016 - Leonard Cohen released his last album You Want It Darker.

Birthdays:

Owen Bradley — record producer who worked with Loretta Lynn, Patsy Cline, Brenda Lee, Kitty Wells, Buddy Holly, Gene Vincent, and more — was born today in 1915.

Dizzy Gillespie was born today in 1917.

Jim Shumate, fiddler with Bill Monroe and the Blue Grass Boys, was born today in 1921.

Celia Cruz, the Cuban-American salsa performer, was born today in 1925. She passed away in July 2003 and was memorialized as a Google Doodle.

Country singer-songwriter Mel Street was born today in 1935.

Manfred Mann is 84.

Steve Cropper, guitarist best known for his work with the Stax Records house band, Booker T. & the M.G.'s, and the Blues Brothers, is 83.

Elvin Bishop, of the Paul Butterfield Blues Band, is 82.

Ron Elliott of the Beau Brummels is 81.

Lux Interior of The Cramps was born on this day in 1946. He passed away in 2009.

Lee Loughnane of Chicago is 78.

Brent Mydland, keyboardist for the Grateful Dead, was born today in 1952.

Charlotte Caffey of the Go-Go's is 71.

Eric Faulkner, lead singer of the Bay City Rollers, is 71.

Julian Cope, frontman of the Teardrop Explodes, is 67.

Steve Lukather, guitarist from Toto and with Ringo Starr's All-Starr Band, is 67. See his interview with Jill Riley about the enduring legacy of 'Africa'.

Nick Oliveri of Kyuss and Queens of the Stone Age is 53.

Matthew Friedberger of the Fiery Furnaces is 52.

Josh Ritter is 48.

Kane Brown is 31.

Doja Cat is 29.

Highlights for Today in Music History are gathered from This Day in Music, Song Facts, Louder and Wikipedia.