The first jukebox was installed at Palais Royal Hotel in San Francisco in 1899.

In December 1925, American composer George Gershwin appeared as a soloist at a concert in New York's Carnegie Hall. He played his Concerto in F, the first jazz concerto for piano in musical history.

Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II wrote the first musical for which an original cast album was recorded: Oklahoma! (1943). They also wrote the first musical about Chinese-Americans: Flower Drum Song (1958).

Loretta Lynn was country music's first female millionaire, at age 30 in 1965.

Beatle John Lennon appeared on the first cover of "Rolling Stone" magazine, which debuted on November 9, 1967.

As a result of Russian copyright law changes in 1975, the Rolling Stones were the first rock group to receive Russian royalties.

During their 1976 tour, The Who was the first rock group to use lasers in a live performance.

The first American pop group to tour the U.S.S.R. was the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band during their 1977 concert tour.

In 1990, Irish rock singer Sinéad O'Connor became the first musical recording artist to refuse a Grammy Award, which she won for her recording of, ironically enough, "I Do Not Want What I Haven't Got." She claimed that too much emphasis was placed on the pop charts, and not enough on the ills and abuses of the world. O'Connor, already controversial because she shaved her head, was savagely lambasted by the press and the public for her controversial statements.

In 1992, singer Peabo Bryson became the first artist to have three separate records at the top of four different charts (Hot 100, Hot Adult Contemporary, Classical Crossover, and Contemporary Jazz). The songs were "A Whole New World," "We Kiss in a Shadow," and "By the Time This Night Is Over".

At a ceremony in Manhattan's Waldorf-Astoria in 1998, Carlos Santana became the first Hispanic to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Author: Vicki McClure Davidson

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