This Day in Top 40 History: February 18

Breakthrough Hits and Milestones

• 1966: Brian Wilson of The Beach Boys recorded "Good Vibrations." This beachy, feel-good song became a huge success.
• 1977: The Damned dropped their debut album, featuring tracks such as “Neat Neat Neat” and “New Rose.” The set was praised for its raw energy and aggressive guitar work, so it wasn't surprising that it cracked the Top 40 in the U.K. 
• 1994: The South Korean pop star J-Hope from BTS, Jung Ho-Seok, was born on this day. The music of BTS is some of the most popular K-pop in the world.
• 1997: Live released their fourth studio album, Secret Samadhi. Some of its top tracks were “Freaks,” “Turn My Head,” and “Lakini's Juice.” The record landed at No. 1 on the Billboard 200. 
• 2011: Radiohead issued The King of Limbs, including “Morning Mr Magpie” and “Give Up the Ghost.” While this project reached No. 7 on the U.K. Singles Chart, it peaked at No. 3 on the Billboard 200.
• 2012: Adele's "Set Fire to the Rain" was No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. This song was her third No. 1 hit on the U.S. charts. Today, Adele is one of the hottest pop singers in the world.

Cultural Milestones 

• 1933: Yoko Ono, John Lennon's wife, was born in Tokyo, Japan. When The Beatles went their separate ways, the couple teamed up to form Plastic Ono Band, which scored a number of Top 40 hits in the UK. That pool includes “Give Peace a Chance” and “Instant Karma.” Ono and Lennon also worked on various art and film projects together, and she has used some of them to honor the ex-Beatle after his death in 1980. 
• 1947: Dennis DeYoung was born in Chicago, Illinois. He is best known as the lead singer of Styx. Their most notable hit is “Babe,” which peaked at No. 1 and No. 6 in the U.K. and the U.S., respectively.  The band has placed more Top 10 hits on the Hot 100, such as “Show Me The Way” and “Don't Let It End.”
• 1965: Dr. Dre was born Andre Romell Young in Compton, California. As the founder of Aftermath Entertainment, he helped shape the careers of a string of successful artists such as 50 Cent, Eminem, and Kendrick Lamar. In addition, he has placed at least six Top 10 hits on Billboard's Hot 100, including “Keep Their Heads Ringin' (From "Friday"),” which reached No. 1, and “Let Me Ride.”

Notable Recordings and Performances

• 1954: The actor, dancer, and musician John Travolta was born on Feb. 18. While best known for his acting career, Travolta has also recorded music hits, including "Summer Nights" and "You're the One That I Want" from the movie Grease.
• 1974: Yes played their first concert at New York City's Madison Square Garden. The “Wonderous Stories” hitmakers were on their Tales from Topographic Oceans Tour, which promoted their chart-topping album of the same name.
• 1977: Kiss brought the house down at Madison Square Garden. Like Yes, the “Hard Luck Woman” artists were gracing this venue for the first time, so they drew in hordes of glam rock enthusiasts. 
• 1978: Swedish super-pop group ABBA scored No. 1 on the U.K. charts with the hit song "Take a Chance On Me." This was their third No. 1 hit song in the United Kingdom.
• 2023: "Flowers" by Miley Cyrus topped the Billboard Hot 100 chart for four weeks.
• 2006: The Rolling Stones played a free concert in front of 1.5 million fans at Copacabana Beach in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Since they were on their A Bigger Bang Tour, which supported their Top Five album of the same name, the event's setlist featured songs from the project. Some of these were “Rough Justice” and “Oh No, Not You Again.”

Industry Changes and Challenges

• 1973: Elvis Presley was performing in Las Vegas when four men jumped on stage and tried to shake his hand. Presley gave one of the men a karate-style kick to knock him off the stage, and band members tackled the other intruders.
• 2001: Singer/songwriter James Taylor married his longtime girlfriend Caroline “Kim” Smedvig in a Boston church. Ms. Smedvig was an executive producer for the Boston Symphony Orchestra.
• 2005: Pop diva Britney Spears attacked a magazine that posted photos of her and her new husband, Kevin Federline, while on their honeymoon. She claimed the photographers violated her privacy.
• 2013: Otis "Damon" Harris died of prostate cancer at 62. As part of The Temptations, he sang lead vocals on some of the group's biggest hits, including “Papa Was a Rollin' Stone,” which peaked at No.1 on the Hot 100.
• 2021: Mark Morales, better known as Prince Markie Dee, died at 52, only a day before hitting 53. He was a founding member of The Fat Boys, who placed two Top Five singles in the U.K., “Wipeout” and “The Twist (Yo, Twist).”