This Weekend in Music History

December 2nd, 1969 - Cindy Birdsong of the Supremes was kidnapped at knife-point by a man who worked maintenance in the building she lived in. She later escaped unharmed by jumping out of his car on a freeway in San Diego. The kidnapper was later arrested in Las Vegas.

November 30th, 1971 - Sly And The Family Stone are at No.1 on the singles chart with 'Family Affair'. It would be their last No.1 hit and Rolling Stone magazine would later rank the song at 138 on their list of the 500 greatest songs of all time.

November 30th, 1982 - Michael Jackson releases his new album 'Thriller'. It would become one of the best-selling albums in many countries during 1983 to 1984, topping the charts in United States, United Kingdom, Germany, Japan, France, Canada, Australia, Sweden, New Zealand, and the Netherlands.

December 1st, 1964 - The Who plays the first of their 22 consecutive Tuesday night gigs at The Marquee Club in London. The Marquee Club was a springboard for many important British bands in the 60's. Acts such as Jimi Hendrix, David Bowie, Cream, Manfred Mann, Yes, Pink Floyd, Jethro Tull, King Crimson and many others, all appeared at the club.

December 1st, 1990 - Newark's own, Whitney Houston, goes to No.1 on the singles chart with 'I'm Your Baby Tonight', her 8th US No.1. The song received mixed reviews, either being praised as a stand-out track, or ridiculed for trying to follow in the footsteps of Michael Jackson's 'The Way You Make Me Feel'.

December 2nd, 1978 - Rod Stewart is accused for plagiarizing Brazilian musician Jorge Ben Jor's song 'Taj Mahal'. Stewart would agree to donate all his royalties from the song to United Nations Children's Fund.