Today in Rock History – July 31st

1965, In England, the Yardbirds with Jeff Beck perform at the Cleethorpes Jazz Festival.

1966, Cream play their first gig in Windsor, England.

1967, Mick Jagger was given a conditional discharge and Keith Richard’s conviction for permitting his house to be used for the purpose of smoking cannabis resin was quashed by appeal court.

1968, Tommy James and The Shondells were at No.1 on the singles chart with ‘Mony Mony’. Also a hit for Billy Idol in 1987.

1968, Working at Trident studios in London, England, (with its 8-track equipment, EMI was still using 4-track recorders), The Beatles recorded four takes of ‘Hey Jude’.

1969, Elvis Presley kicked off a four week run at the Las Vegas International Hotel, (his first live show since 1961). He reportedly netted $1.5m for the shows. On the menu an Elvis special, polk salad with corn muffins & honey.

1970, After Decca Records demands a final single from the Rolling Stones to make them fulfill their contract, Richards and Jagger deliver the unreleasable “Cocksucker Blues.” The single becomes the title of a Stones documentary that the band decides is also unreleasable.

1971, Pink Floyd leave England to set out on their first tour of the Far East.

1971, Big day in Stones history: At London’s Rialto cinema, the documentary Gimme Shelter premieres. The film includes footage from the infamous concert at Altamont.

1971, James Taylor went to No.1 on the singles chart with the Carole King song ‘You Got A Friend’. The song would go on to win the 1971 Grammy Award for Best Pop Vocal Performance, Male. Taylor scored nine other solo US Top 40 hits during the 70′s.

1971, A security guard was stabbed to death during a concert by The Who at New York’s Forest Hill Stadium.

1976, George Benson started a two-week run at No.1 on the album chart with ‘Breezin’.

1979, AC/DC appeared at The Allen County War Memorial Coliseum, Fort Wayne, Indiana on their If You Want Blood Tour.

1979, James Taylor plays New York’s Central Park for free to show his support for a campaign to restore the park’s Sheep Meadow.

Born on this day:  Amhet Ertegun (1923)  Bob Welch (1943)  Gary Lewis (1946)
Bill Berry (R.E.M. – 1958)

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