Events in 1958
- Billboard combined the existing sales, jukebox, and radio charts into the unified Hot 100. The first song to top the new chart was “Poor Little Fool” by Ricky Nelson.
- “Splish Splash” by Bobby Darin reached No. 3 on the U.S. chart.
- Ian Broudie, English singer, songwriter, musician, and producer best known for The Lightning Seeds, was born in Liverpool.
- Ricky Nelson became the first artist to top the newly created U.S. Billboard Hot 100 with “Poor Little Fool.”
- The Coasters remained at No. 1 on the R&B chart for an eleventh week with “Searchin'.”
- Elvis Presley underwent military service at Fort Hood, Texas, where he trained in tank operations as part of the 2nd Armored Division.
- Bruce Dickinson, anglický zpěvák, skladatel a frontman heavy metalové skupiny Iron Maiden, se narodil ve Worksopu v Nottinghamshire v Anglii. V roce 1981 se stal zpěvákem Iron Maiden.
- Elvis Presley absolvoval vojenský výcvik ve Fort Hood v Texasu v rámci pokročilého výcviku obsluhy tanků u 2. obrněné divize.
- Bing Crosby and his second wife Kathryn had their first child together, Harry Lillis Crosby III.
- Chris Foreman, guitarist for Madness, was born in London, England.
- Cliff Richard signed a recording contract with EMI Records that would last for the next 45 years. He also began a four-week engagement at Butlins Holiday Camp in Clacton-on-Sea, Essex, as Cliff Richard and the Drifters. His debut single “Move It” followed in the UK on August 29, reaching No. 2.
- Bill Haley attempted to follow up his hit “Skinny Minnie” with “Lean Jean.” The recording reached only No. 67 on the Billboard Hot 100.
- Elvis Presley's “Hard Headed Woman” became the first rock'n'roll single to receive RIAA Gold certification. At the time, a Gold single required documented US sales of at least one million copies.
- During his military service in Memphis, Elvis spent most of the day and evening at the hospital with his mother, Gladys Presley.
- Northern Irish singer and frontman of The Undertones Feargal Sharkey was born. As a solo artist, he later reached No. 1 on the UK chart with “A Good Heart”.
- While staying at home at Graceland, he received a telephone call from his father telling him that his mother Gladys had died. She died at the age of 46. At the time, he was a private in the US Army stationed at Fort Hood, Texas, and was home on emergency leave. At her funeral two days later, he was so overcome with grief that he could not stand and had to be supported. More than 500 police officers supervised the service to keep the enormous crowd from gaining access.
- At the age of 21, Buddy Holly married Maria Elena Santiago in a private ceremony at his parents' home in Lubbock, Texas.
- At his mother Gladys Presley's funeral at Graceland, Elvis was so devastated that friends had to hold him up to keep him on his feet. More than 500 police officers supervised the funeral because of the huge crowd of fans. Fans sent more than 100,000 letters and postcards, approximately 500 telegrams and more than 200 floral arrangements.
- The father of Elvis's longtime friend and Memphis Mafia member Red West died.
- After being drafted into the US Army, Elvis Presley was assigned to the 3rd Armored Division in Friedberg, West Germany.
- Madonna Louise Veronica Ciccone was born in Bay City, Michigan.
- Belinda Carlisle, co-founder and lead singer of The Go-Go's, was born in Los Angeles, California. She also became famous for solo hits such as “Heaven Is a Place on Earth”.
- Elvis Presley was given leave in Memphis during his military service and visited his mother's grave.
- Domenico Modugno's song “Nel Blu, Dipinto di Blu (Volare)” reached No. 1 on the US Billboard Hot 100, beginning a five-week reign at the top. The song became the year's best-selling record.
- Elvis was granted another five days of leave while serving in the military in Germany. During his stay in Memphis, Texas DJ Eddie Fadal visited him, and police took Elvis on a helicopter flight over the city to entertain and cheer him up.
- Perez Prado's song “Patricia” was awarded a gold record by the Recording Industry Association of America. It was the last recording to reach No. 1 on the separate Billboard Jockeys and Top 100 charts before they were merged into the Hot 100.
- The Elegants moved from No. 14 to No. 2 on the chart with “Little Star.”
- Ricky Nelson recorded the song “Lonesome Town” at Master Recorders in Hollywood, California.
- Elvis Presley was on leave in Memphis during his military service.
- Guitarist Ian Mitchell of the Bay City Rollers was born in Downpatrick, County Down, Northern Ireland. In 1976, he joined the group at the age of just 17. Bay City Rollers had the 1975 UK No. 1 hit “Bye Bye Baby”, 11 more UK Top 20 singles, and the 1976 U.S. No. 1 hit “Saturday Night”.
- The Kalin Twins reached No. 1 on the British singles chart with their version of “When”. The song also topped the charts in France and the Netherlands and reached the Top 5 in North America that year.
- British-American guitarist and songwriter Vernon Reid was born in London, England. He grew up in Brooklyn and later founded the rock band Living Colour, in which he serves as guitarist and principal songwriter. The group became famous for its 1988 debut album “Vivid” and the song “Cult of Personality”, which won the Grammy Award for Best Hard Rock Performance in 1990. In 1991, they had the UK No. 12 hit “Love Rears Its Ugly Head”.
- Ian Mitchell, a member of the Bay City Rollers, was born.
- The Staten Island group The Elegants reached number one on the US singles chart with “Little Star”, a reworking of the melody of “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star”. For the next 18 months they promoted the song through television appearances and concerts, but their subsequent recordings “Please Believe Me”, “True Love Affair” and “Little Boy Blue” failed to repeat its success.
- Tommy Edwards moved from number 96 to number 40 on the US chart with “It's All In The Game”.
- Domenico Modugno reached No. 1 with “Nel Blu Dipinto Di Blu (Volare)”, which was the second chart-topping position in Billboard magazine's history.
- English composer Ralph Vaughan Williams died in London at the age of 85. He became known for works such as “A Pastoral Symphony” and “The Lark Ascending”.
- The Elegants moved from No. 14 to No. 2 with “Little Star”.
- The Alan Freed's Big Beat Show revue began its run at the Fox Theatre in Brooklyn, New York. Frankie Avalon, Jimmy Clanton, Chuck Berry, Bobby Freeman, Bill Haley and His Comets, and The Elegants performed. The program deliberately brought together Black and white performers and brought rock and roll to a large mixed teenage audience at a time of strong racial segregation in the United States.
- Michael Jackson was born in Gary, Indiana, and was later known as the "King of Pop". He was a singer, songwriter, and member of Jackson 5 and The Jacksons, as well as a successful solo artist. Guinness World Records recognized him as the most successful entertainer of all time. His music videos for "Beat It", "Billie Jean", and "Thriller" helped break down racial barriers and transformed the music video into an art and promotional form. His 1982 album "Thriller" is the best-selling studio album of all time. Jackson died on June 25, 2009, at the age of 50 after suffering cardiac arrest at his home in Beverly Hills.
- English drummer and keyboard player Martin Jackson was born. He became known as a member of Magazine and Swing Out Sister. Magazine had the UK No. 41 single “Shot By Both Sides” in 1978, while Swing Out Sister had the UK No. 4 single “Breakout” in 1986.
- Ricky Nelson began his concert career with a performance at Steel Pier in Atlantic City, New Jersey. Over two days, his concerts set an attendance record for the venue, drawing 44,221 people. His fee was $10,000, and the opening acts were comedian Henny Youngman and The Four Preps.