This Day in Top 40 History: July 8

Breakthrough Hits and Milestones

• 1980: Blondie's “Call Me” hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100. It became one of the defining songs of the decade.
• 1995: TLC's hit single “Waterfalls” kicked off its seven-week reign at the top of the Billboard Hot 100. It was the group's second U.S. No. 1 and quickly became one of their most well-known songs.
• 1996: The Spice Girls dropped “Wannabe” and exploded onto the pop scene. Their message of girl power hit instantly.
• 1997: Smash Mouth released their debut studio effort, Fush Yu Mang. The album reached No. 19 on the Billboard 200. Additionally, its top single, "Walkin' on the Sun,” peaked at No. 1 on Billboard's Adult Pop Airplay Chart and No. 19 on the U.K. Singles Chart. 
• 2000: Enrique Iglesias' “Be With You” took the top spot on the Billboard Hot 100 chart again. 
• 2008: On his 38th birthday, Beck issued Modern Guilt, featuring “Gamma Ray,” “Modern Guilt,” and “Chemtrails.” The album reached No. 4 and No. 9 on the U.S. Billboard 200 and the U.K. Official Albums Chart, respectively. 

Cultural Milestones

• 1954: Elvis Presley's single “That's All Right” was played on the radio for the first time, sparking Elvis mania.
• 1958: The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) presented its first-ever gold album certification. The Oklahoma! Soundtrack was the lucky album that sold 500,000 copies. Today, there have been over 2,000 albums that have achieved the RIAA's platinum certification of 1,000,000 units sold.
• 1961: Toby Keith was born in Clinton, Oklahoma. After a stint as an oil industry worker, Keith decided to pursue music. Keith has an impressive 20 No. 1 hits on Billboard's Hot Country Songs Chart, including “You Shouldn't Kiss Me Like This,” “I Love This Bar,” and “As Good As I Was Once Was.” He died from stomach cancer in February 2024. 
• 1992: Garth Brooks and his ex-wife, Sandy Mahl, welcomed their first daughter, Taylor Mayne Pearl Brooks. Mahl and the “If Tomorrow Never Comes” hitmaker share two more daughters,  August Anna Brooks and Allie Colleen Brooks. The latter has followed in her father's footsteps and is into country music as well. 
• 1998: Jaden Smith was born to Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith in Malibu, California. Apart from appearing in films such as The Pursuit of Happiness and The Karate Kid, Jaden has scored a few Top 40 albums in the U.S., such as ERYS and SYRE. His collaboration with Justin Bieber, “Never Say Never,” landed at No. 8 on Billboard's Hot 100. 

Notable Recordings and Performances

• 1962: The Beatles recorded their first single, “Love Me Do.” 
• 1980: Queen lit up the stage at The Forum in Inglewood, California. The band played more than 20 songs, including “We Are The Champions,” “Bohemian Rhapsody,” and “Crazy Little Thing Called Love.” They were on The Game Tour, which promoted their No. 1 record of the same name. 
• 1997: Michael Jackson released "Blood on the Dance Floor." This shift in style emphasized his creative range.
• 2023: Taylor Swift took her Eras Tour to GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri. For this concert, she had a 45-song setlist spanning her entire discography, so it included hits from most of her albums at the time. Some of these were  “Lavender Haze,” “the last great american dynasty,” “Enchanted,” and “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together.” Notably, the Eras Tour was Swift's tribute to her artistic evolution, highlighting songs from every stage of her career.

Industry Changes and Challenges

• 1971: A mini-riot broke out during a Mott the Hoople concert at Royal Albert Hall in London. The band was set to perform for two nights, but that didn't happen, as the incident prompted the venue to temporarily ban pop and rock groups. At the same time, the “All the Young Dudes” hitmakers were required to pay £1,467 for damages.
• 2004: Mark Purseglove was sentenced to three and a half years in prison and ordered to pay $3.3 million after being convicted of running a global counterfeit CD empire.
• 2007: In Minneapolis' First Avenue nightclub, Prince's performance was cut short due to venue curfew restrictions. His performance started at 2:45 a.m., but the nightclub was only allowed to stay open until 3 a.m.
• 2018: Tab Hunter died a few days before his 87th birthday. According to sources, his cause of death was cardiac arrest, which was allegedly triggered by a blood clot. Hunter's most notable hit was “Young Love,” his 1957 single that hit No. 1 in both the U.S. and the U.K. and eventually sold more than a million copies.