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Today in Rock History – October 26

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Bob-Dylan-Live-Carnegie-Hall-19631963, Bob Dylan played a sell out concert at Carnegie Hall in New York City.

1965,  Queen Elizabeth II invested The Beatles with their MBE’s at Buckingham Palace, London. According to an account by John Lennon, the group smoked marijuana in one of the palace bathrooms to calm their nerves. Many former recipients gave their MBE’s back in protest, to which John Lennon responded “Lots of people who complained about us receiving the MBE received theirs for heroism in the war, for killing people.” He continued, “We received ours for entertaining other people. I’d say we deserve ours more.” When asked how he enjoyed meeting Queen Elizabeth II, John said “She’s much nicer than she is in the photos.”

1967, Pink Floyd arrived at Studio 2, EMI Studios, on Abbey Road, St. John’s Wood, London for two days of recording on the album A Saucerful of Secrets, and the single “Apples And Oranges” / “Paintbox.”

1968, Pink Floyd played two shows. The early show took place at Union Hall at Imperial College, in the Kensington section of London. The late show was held at the Middle Earth club, in the Roundhouse, Chalk Farm, London.

1968, The two day San Francisco Pop Festival was held at Alameda County Fairgrounds. The Animals, Procol Harum, Iron Butterfly, Jose Feliciano, Deep Purple, Creedence Clearwater Revival and Canned Heat all appeared.

1969, The classical music reviewer for The New York Times, Clive Barnes, discusses The Who and rock operas in an article. Barnes, who attended one of the Fillmore East shows, says the band played their music too loud but, nevertheless, dubs Tommy “an enormous success,” and predicts that a new kind of opera could arise from it. That night The Who play one last venue before vacation at the Syria Mosque in Pittsburgh. The James Gang is the supporting act. Tickets range from $4 – 6 (£2.50 – 3.75).

1969, The Allman Brothers Band played on the Boston Common in Boston, Massachusetts.

1970, Janis Joplin’s will funded $2,500 to throw a wake party in the event of her demise. The party, which took place at the Lion’s Share in San Anselmo, California, was attended by Joplin’s sister Laura, fiancé Seth Morgan, and close friends, including tattoo artist Lyle Tuttle, Bob Gordon, Jack Penty, and road manager John Cooke. Brownies laced with hashish were unknowingly passed around amongst the guests. Joplin was cremated in the Pierce Brothers Westwood Village Mortuary in Los Angeles; her ashes were scattered from a plane into the Pacific Ocean and along Stinson Beach.

1970, The Who performed at Trentham Gardens in Stoke-on-Trent, England.

1970, The mother of Meredith Hunter, the man slain at the ill-fated Altamont festival, sues the Rolling Stones.

1971, Jethro Tull and Freedom performed at the International Amphitheater in Chicago, Illinois.

1972, The Grateful Dead appear at the Music Hall in Cincinnati, Ohio.

john-lennon-mind-games1973,  John Lennon releases his “Mind Games” single. It later peaks at No. 18.

1973, Queen played at Imperial College in London.

1975, Elton John performs at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, dressed in a sequined Dodger outfit. It’s the last date on his sold-out American tour.

1975, Eric Clapton appears at the Sumpan Kaikan, Shizuoka, Japan.

1977, Hawkwind plays at the Palais des Sportes, Paris.

1978, Yes appears at the Empire Pool, London.

1979, AC/DC, supported by Def Leppard appeared at The Mayfair, in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, England. The two groups were scheduled to appear the night before, but an afternoon fire caused the postponement of the show.

1980, During a recording session, Jefferson Starship’s Paul Kantner suffers a stroke. He later makes a full recovery after spending two weeks in a Los Angeles hospital.

1989, At the end of a Who show at Wembley Arena in London, Roger Daltrey’s voice gives out toward the end and he is forced to leave the stage. Pete wraps it up singing “Behind Blue Eyes” and “Won’t Get Fooled Again.”

1991, Ozzy Osbourne broke his foot after an accident on stage at a gig in Chicago, causing him to cancel the remaining dates of a US tour.

1999,  singer, songwriter, and actor Hoyt Axton died of a heart attack in Victor, Montana aged 61. He wrote songs for, Elvis Presley, Three Dog Night, , John Denver, Ringo Starr, Glen Campbell. His compositions included the 1971 US number one hit,  “Joy To The World.” His mother Mae Boren Axton wrote “Heartbreak Hotel.”

2008, AC/DC went to number one on the UK album chart with Black Ice the Australian band’s fifteenth studio album which went on to become a chart topper in 29 different countries and the second-best selling album of 2008.

2011, A coroner’s inquest on the death of Amy Winehouse reached a verdict of “misadventure.” The report explained that Winehouse’s blood alcohol content was 416 mg per deciliter at the time of her death, more than five times the legal limit. According to the coroner “The unintended consequences of such potentially fatal levels was her sudden death.”

Born on October 26: Keith Hopwood, guitar, Herman’s Hermits (1946); Bootsy Collins, bass player, James Brown, Parliament, Funkadelic, Bootsy’s Rubber Band (1951); Natalie Merchant, 10,000 Maniacs (1963); Keith Urban (1967)

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Song Of The Day – The Jukebox Series #74 – The Who: “I Can See For Miles” b/w “Mary-Anne With The Shaky Hands”– Decca 32206 (G8/H8)

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thewhoicanseeformiles45thewhomaryaneewiththeshakyhands45

Song Of The Day by Eric Berman – The Jukebox Series #74 – The Who: “I Can See For Miles” b/w “Mary-Anne With The Shaky Hands”– Decca 32206 (G8/H8)

“The Jukebox Series” focuses on the 80 records that inhabit my 1963 Seeburg LPC1 jukebox. I’ve had my jukebox (or as I like to call it “the prehistoric iPod”) for a little over twelve years and in that time I’d like to think that I’ve perfected the mix of 45s within.

The Who have several masterpieces in their canon including Tommy, Who’s Next and Quadrophenia. However, one record that doesn’t get name-checked enough when it comes to their greatest masterworks is The Who Sell Out which is by far my all-time favorite of all of their albums.

Back in 1967, The Who managed to do what Brian Wilson and The Beach Boys couldn’t. The Beach Boys’ Smile was meant to create a painterly picture of Americana through music, and inject a broad sense of humor into the music. The Who’s 1967 album, was a quintessentially British album that was injected through and through with humor to burn.

The Who took their British concept one step further by building the album around a fake pirate radio station concept, complete with commercials and public service announcements between each song. The album’s release was met with a flurry of law suits because some of the fake jingles were for real products including Heinz Baked Beans and Odorono Deodorant.

Furthermore, the album cover depicted a photo of each band member advertising a product. Pete Townshend is shown applying Odorono Deodorant to his underarm, Roger Daltrey is shown sitting in a bathtub full of Heinz Baked Beans, Keith Moon is shown putting Medac zit cream on his face and John Entwistle is shown with a woman flexing his muscles and holding a teddy bear depicting the album’s Charles Atlas jingle. British first pressings of the album came with a psychedelic poster of a butterfly which was originally considered for the album’s cover art. Copies of the album with the poster sell for thousands of dollars on eBay.

The album includes the single “I Can See For Miles” which is today’s jukebox classic, and along with “Pictures Of Lily,” is amongst The Who’s very best singles. The song was written by Pete Townshend and remains the group’s biggest hit reaching #9 on the U.S. singles chart. The track was recorded in both England and the U.S., and the single version differs from the album version featuring an overdubbed second bass track.

The song was said to inspire Paul McCartney who read a review of “I Can See For Miles” that claimed it was one of the heaviest songs ever released. Not being the type to be one-upped, McCartney set out to write an even heavier song (even though he hadn’t heard “Miles”) resulting in “Helter Skelter.”

The song features a one-note guitar solo that was a reaction to the arrival of Jimi Hendrix on the scene. Townshend believed that he couldn’t possibly complete with the American axe man, so why bother trying. While the record was The Who’s best showing on the charts, Townshend was sure that the song would be their first number one single and was disappointed when it only climbed into the top ten. It has been covered by the likes of Tina Turner, Styx, Marty Stuart and Old Crow Medicine Show and Petra Haden who not only covered the song, but also covered the whole album a capella.

The flip of today’s single is an alternate mix of another Who Sell Out track, “Mary Anne With The Shaky Hands,” which is another essential psychedelic Who track. The song describes a woman who is afflicted with hand tremors, but many believe that the song is their second stab at creating a great song about masturbation (following “Pictures Of Lily”) because of the line “What they’ve done to a man, those shaky hands.”

Several versions of the song exist. The album version included an acoustic guitar part with a rhythmic percussion track, while a second version trades the acoustic guitar for an electric and features an organ solo courtesy of Al Kooper. The version on the flip of today’s single is a mono version with the electric guitar and without the organ solo.

Today in Rock History – October 23

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Jimi_Hendrix_Hey_Joe_11966, The Jimi Hendrix Experience recorded their first single “Hey Joe,” at De Lane Lea studios in London. The earliest known commercial recording of the song is the late-1965 single by the Los Angeles garage band the The Leaves. The band then re-recorded the track and released it in 1966 as a follow-up single which became a hit. The Byrds also performed and recorded a version of the song.

1966, The Yardbirds, with new recruit Jimmy Page, perform at San Francisco’s Fillmore.

1967, Pink Floyd plays at the Bath Pavilion in Bath, Somerset, England.

1969, Columbia Records announces it will take legal action to stop sales of Great White Wonder, the popular bootleg set of previously unreleased Bob Dylan material.

1969, The Who continue a six-night stand at the Fillmore East in New York accompanied by the Joshua Light Show.

1970, Frank Zappa & The Mothers Of Invention perform at Kleinhans Music Hall in Buffalo, New York.

1970, The Who appear at Green’s Playhouse in Glasgow, Scotland.

1971, Yes played at the Empire Theatre, Edinburgh, Scotland.

1972, The Grateful Dead appeared at the Performing Arts Center in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

1972, Filming begins on That’ll Be the Day, a musical starring David Essex, Ringo Starr, and Keith Moon.

1973, Genesis appeared at City Hall, Newcastle, England.

1973,  “Midnight Train to Georgia” by Gladys Knight & The Pips reaches number one on the US singles chart.

1974, David Bowie  appeared at the Arie Crown Theater, Chicago

1975, Eric Clapton performed at Festival Hall, Osaka, Japan.

The Clash
The Clash

1976, The Clash appeared at The ICA in London.

1976, The Jam played an afternoon show at Soho Market in London.

1976, Chicago started a two week run at number one  on the singles chart with “If You Leave Me Now.” It was the group’s 18th Top 40 and first number one.  It went on to win a Grammy Award for Best Pop Vocal Performance.

1976, Led Zeppelin made their US television debut on Don Kirshner’s Rock Concert, when footage from The Song Remains the Same movie of “Dazed and Confused” and “Black Dog” is aired on the popular weekly music show.

1977, AC/DC played at Town Hall, Middlesborough, England.

1978, Sid Vicious tries to commit suicide at Rikers Island in New York.  Vicious was waiting to be charged with murder following the stabbing death of his girlfriend Nancy Spungen.

1980, The Allman Brothers Band appeared at the Sunrise Theater, Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

1980, Mark David Chapman quit his security job and signed out for the last time. Instead of the usual “Chappy” he wrote “John Lennon.” Chapman would murder Lennon on December 8th outside his New York City home.

1982, Culture Club were at number one on the UK singles chart with “Do You Really Want To Hurt Me,” the group’s first chart topper and the first of twelve UK Top 40 hits. The song became a major hit after their memorable debut performance on Top of the Pops, when they stood in for Shakin’ Stevens who was ill and not able to appear.

1984, Pete Townshend stages and performs at an anti-heroin benefit concert at The Moonlight in Hampstead. Making their live debut at this show is a new band called The Stone Roses. Their drummer, Alan “Reni” Wren, also sits in for Pete’s set.

1989, Nirvana played their first ever European show when they appeared at Newcastle’s Riverside Club in North East England. It was the first night of a 36 date European tour for the group who were sharing the bill with Tad.

1993, Meat Loaf had his first UK chart topper with “I’d Do Anything For Love (But I Won’t Do That.”) It stayed at number one for seven weeks. A number one in twenty-eight countries and gave Meat Loaf his first US top hit.

1995, Def Leppard gave themselves a place in the Guinness book Of World Records, by playing three gigs in three continents in 24 hours. Tangier, London and Vancouver.

2002, A federal judge in St. Louis dismissed a lawsuit against Chuck Berry by Johnnie Johnson, a piano player and former collaborator who wanted royalties for more than 30 songs written between 1955 and 1966. The songs in question included “No Particular Place To Go,” “Roll Over Beethoven,” and “Sweet Little Sixteen.” Johnson’s lawsuit argued that he and Berry were co-writers on many of the songs, but because Berry copyrighted them in his name alone, Johnson got none of the royalties. The judge ruled that too many years had passed to bring about a royalties suit.

2005, Arctic Monkeys scored their first UK number one single with “I Bet You Look Good On The Dancefloor,” the Sheffield band’s debut single.

Born on October 23: Ellie Greenwich, songwriter (1940); Freddie Marsden, Gerry And The Pacemakers (1940); Greg Ridley, bass player, Spooky Tooth, Humble Pie (1943); Michael Burston, Motorhead (1949); Dwight Yoakam, (1956); Robert Trujillo, bass, songwriter Metallica, Black Label Society, Suicidal Tendencies (1964); Dale Crover, singer-songwriter, drummer, producer Melvins (1967);

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Today in Rock History – October 22

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The-Who-1966-B1964, EMI sends Kit Lambert a letter of rejection for The High Numbers. That was the original  band name for The Who. The rejection letter is later included with the Live At Leeds album. Since the reason the group is rejected is their lack of original material, Kit and Chris Stamp set up Pete with a Vortexion reel-to-reel recorder and tell him to get writing.  From this time on almost all Pete Townshend songs will be written and presented as completed demos, a style of presentation then unknown in England. His first pieces with the new system are a dance song called “You Don’t Have To Jerk” and a male chauvinist/hot-rod song (meant to appeal to both Roger and Keith) named “Call Me Lightning.”

1966, The Supremes had their first number one album with The Supremes a Go Go, knocking The Beatles Revolver, from the top of the charts.

1966, The Beach Boys “Good Vibrations” made its debut on the singles chart. Written by Brian Wilson and Mike Love, the track was recorded over 6 weeks in four different Los Angeles studios, at a cost of over $16,000 (£10,000.) The recording engineer would later say that the last take sounded exactly like the first, six months earlier. The record would reach number one on the charts in December 1966.

1967, The Who play two shows at the Saville Theatre in London, preceded by Vanilla Fudge and Studio Six. Before the show, Pete is interviewed on camera about illicit drugs by Australian director Peter Clifton. During the show, Pete plays a two-necked guitar and Keith wears a jester’s outfit.

1969, American singer Tommy Edwards died after suffering a brain aneurysm in Henrico County, Virginia, at the age of 47. He had the 1958 US and UK top single “It’s All In The Game.”

1969, Paul McCartney publicly denied rumors that he was dead. The most recent of many “clues” of this death hoax was the fact that he was the only barefoot Beatle on the newly released Abby Road LP cover. The story was actually started as a prank by Fred La Bour, a sports and arts writer for the student paper, The Michigan Daily at the University of Michigan.

led-zeppelin-led-zep-II1969, Led Zeppelin II was released on Atlantic Records in the UK. The Jimmy Page-produced album which was recorded over six months between four European and three American tours, peaked at number one in both the UK and the US, going on to sell over 12 million copies in the US alone, and spending 138 weeks on the UK chart. The album is now recognized by writers and music critics as one of the greatest and most influential rock albums ever recorded.

1970, The Who appear at the ABC Cinema in Stockton-on-Tees, England.

1970, Pink Floyd played at the Fillmore West, San Francisco, along with the Roger Wagner Chorale, three French horns, three trombones, three trumpets, and a tuba. They were there for the second ever stage performance of the “Atom Heart Mother Suite.”

1971, The Who perform at the Opera House in Blackpool, Lancashire, England.

1973, Roxy Music appear at City Hall, Sheffield, England.

1974, David Bowie plays at the Arie Crown Theater, Chicago.

1975, The Allman Brothers Band perform at the Civic Center, Bakersfield, California.

1976, Frank Zappa appears at the Memorial Auditorium, Buffalo, New York.

1978, Bob Dylan plays at the University Of Dayton Arena, Dayton, Ohio.

1979, The Pretenders started a run of four consecutive Monday nights at the Marquee Club in London.

1980, The Grateful Dead kicked off an eight night performance at Radio City Music Hall in New York.

1982, Mayor Sara Robertson in Worcester, MA, declared today Van Halen Day, in response to local fans collecting 25,000 signatures requesting the band add a second show to their tour.

1983, Culture Club went to number one on the album chart with their second release Colour By Numbers.

1988, Phil Collins started a two week run at number one on the singles chart with “Groovy Kind Of Love,” his 6th chart topper.

1988, U2 scored their fourth number one album with the double set and film soundtrack Rattle And Hum, featuring their first number one single “Desire.”

1989, English folk singer, songwriter, poet, and record producer Ewan MacColl died aged 74. He wrote “Dirty Old Town” and “The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face,” which became a number one hit for Roberta Flack in 1972. Acts including Planxty, The Dubliners, Elvis Presley and Johnny Cash recorded his songs. He was the father of singer, songwriter Kirsty MacColl.

1990, Pearl Jam played their first ever concert when they appeared at the Off Ramp in Seattle.

1993, Oasis signed a six-album deal with Creation Records for a £40,000 ($64,000) advance.

2000, George Michael paid £1.45 ($2.32) million for the Steinway piano on which John Lennon wrote “Imagine.” George said, “I know that when my fingers touch the keys of that Steinway, I will feel truly blessed. And parting with my money has never been much of a problem, just ask my accountant.” The singer outbid Robbie Williams and The Oasis brothers.

2000, Pearl Jam appeared at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, California, celebrating the tenth anniversary of their first live performance as a band.

2008, A homeless man claimed a £2,000 ($3200) reward by returning a waxwork head of ex-Beatle Sir Paul McCartney which had been left on a train. Anthony Silva found the item in a bin at Reading station after auctioneer Joby Carter left it under a seat at Maidenhead station. The homeless man thought it was a Halloween mask and had been using it as a pillow before realizing what it was. The wax model sold the following week for £5,500 ($8800) at auction.

Timothy Leary
Timothy Leary

Born on this day: Timothy Leary  (1920); Bobby Fuller, The Bobby Fuller Four (1942); Leslie West, Mountain (1945); and Eddie Brigati, vocals, The Young Rascals (1946); Greg Hawkes, keyboards, The Cars (1952); Stiv Bators, vocals, Dead Boys, Wanderers, Lords Of The New Church (1956); Cris Kirkwood, singer-songwriter, bass, Meat Puppets (1960); Jon Foreman, singer-songwriter, guitarist Switchfoot,  Fiction Family (1976)

Link to Today in Rock History archives.

Song Of The Day – The Jukebox Series #70–The Beach Boys: “California Girls” b/w “Let Him Run Wild” – Capitol 5464 (U7/V7)

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beachboyscaliforniagirls45beachboyscaliforniagirlspicsleevebeachboyslethimrunwild45

Song Of The Day by Eric Berman – The Jukebox Series #70–The Beach Boys: “California Girls” b/w “Let Him Run Wild” – Capitol 5464 (U7/V7)

“The Jukebox Series” focuses on the 80 records that inhabit my 1963 Seeburg LPC1 jukebox. I’ve had my jukebox (or as I like to call it “the prehistoric iPod”) for a little over twelve years and in that time I’d like to think that I’ve perfected the mix of 45s within.

The A-side of today’s jukebox classic, “California Girls” has the greatest introduction to any record I have ever heard, and it’s a sound that slays me every time I hear it, even after all these years. It is indeed pure perfection from the pen of Brian Wilson. Brian Wilson: “I came up the introduction first. I’m still really proud of that introduction. It has a classical feel. I wrote the song ‘California Girls’ in the same key as the introduction. It took me some time. I wanted to write a song that had a traditional country and western left hand piano riff, like an old country song from the early ’50s. I wanted to get something that had kind of a jumpy feeling to it in the verses.” (Goldmine)

No matter how sublime that track is (and it totally is), it’s the single’s B-side that guaranteed it a slot in my jukebox. “Let Him Run Wild” is as close to perfection as it gets. Gossamer harmonies…incredible lyrics…music that superbly captures the mood of uncertainty. It’s hands down, one of their best recordings reflecting a simpler time for the band…and the world.

The 1966 release of The Beach Boys’ masterwork Pet Sounds ushered in a new mature era for the band. Gone were the simple, innocent paeans to girls, fun, sun and cars, and in their place was a new mature sound complete with lyrics reflecting feelings of ennui and uncertainty for the future, combined with complex musical arrangements and instrumentation.

Under closer inspection, the seeds of Pet Sounds were sown on the two previous Beach Boys album, Beach Boys Today! and Summer Days (And Summer Nights!!), where both of today’s jukebox classics were culled from, showing glimmers of the new mature sound and making those two platters every bit as potent and, dare I say it, as good as the coveted masterpiece that followed.

Beach Boys Today! was still pretty much steeped in that good old Beach Boys sound, especially on songs like “Do You Wanna Dance,” “Dance Dance Dance,” “I’m So Young” and “Help Me, Rhonda.”  These songs reflected the feelings of teenage innocence that put the band on the map in the first place.

However, behind the scenes things were changing. Certainly, drug use by the band members played a huge part in the maturation of their sound, but they were also beginning to outgrow the dominance of Murray Wilson (their dad), who was a constant impediment to the progress the group was making in the studio.

This can be heard in session tapes for “Help Me, Rhonda” (on the bootleg recording called Capitol Punishment) where Murray can be heard constantly badgering and inserting his influence into the proceedings, much to the chagrin of the band and especially Brian. This was not a new occurrence for the group; they had to put up with Murray’s presence at their sessions since their inception. But during this session you can hear the members of the group cracking wise behind Murray’s back about his suggestions.

Things finally come to a head when (probably) for the first time in his career, Brian has the confidence to tell his father off and sternly ask him to leave the studio. All of this is invisible when playing back the final product, but it is all captured on tape for posterity giving fans a taste of the underbelly of one of their most jovial performances.

Several of the songs on Beach Boys Today! (released in March of 1965) reflect a new mature sound, especially on the wondrous single “When I Grow Up (To Be A Man)” where Brian tackles his uncertainty about the future in the lyrics, while making it all seem easy with its tight intricate harmonies. You can also hear Wilson’s compositional sophistication in the arrangements of “In The Back Of My Mind” and “Don’t Hurt My Little Sister.”  In the plaintive “Please Let Me Wonder,” the aforementioned feelings of ennui that began to underpin Wilson’s entire being are perfectly encapsulated.

The first half of the follow up album, Summer Days (And Summer Nights!!)  (released in June of 1965), takes a giant step backwards with a clutch of songs that hearken back to the group’s more innocent sound including “Salt Lake City,” “The Girl From New York City,” “Amusement Parks U.S.A.” and “Then I Kissed Her.” And even though jubilance can be heard pouring forth from the record’s grooves the sounds on the flip side of the platter tell a completely different story.

The second side of the record acts as a fairly accurate precursor of what was to come the following year on Pet Sounds. By this point, The Beach Boys’ touring schedule was pretty much non-stop, and Brian felt intense pressure to come up with more hit singles and albums to meet the demands that Capitol Records put upon him. As a result, Wilson began having panic attacks on the road and found it harder and harder to deal with day to day life on the road.

You can hear the pressures of being an in-demand Beach Boy wreaking havoc on him in the songs themselves. Sure, the group was still singing about relationships and girls, but the complex arrangements and instrumentation pointed the group in a new, stylistically bold direction that they would take once Brian Wilson pulled himself off of the road and camped himself inside the studio. You can hear it in the overall feeling of depression and dread inherent in one of their all-time greatest tracks (and the flip of today’s jukebox classic), “Let Him Run Wild.”

Wilson’s arrangements were becoming more sophisticated as heard in the spectacular orchestral intro to “California Girls,” and in “The Little Girl I Once Knew,” which has several false stops that confused DJs who ultimately took a pass on playing it on the radio. And the album’s one goof track “I’m Bugged At My Old Man” wasn’t really a joke after all.

“California Girls” climbed to #3 on the charts in 1965. The song’s inspiration came from an LSD trip of Brian Wilson’s. After initially feeling paranoid and running up to his room to hide, he came down and began to work on piano figure that runs through the song. Within an hour, he had the “East coast girls are hip” part of the song worked out. The following day, he and Mike Love finished writing the song together. (Beautiful Dreamer documentary via Wikipedia) The song was also Bruce Johnston’s appearance on a Beach Boys record.

The song was very influential at the time and, most notably, The Beatles’ paid homage to it with their song “Back In The U.S.S.R.” from The White Album in 1968. McCartney came up with the idea for the song while in India studying Transcendental Meditation with the Maharishi Yogi with Mike Love, the rest of The Beatles, Mia Farrow and her sister Prudence (of “Dear Prudence” fame). Mike Love: “Paul came down to the breakfast table one morning saying, ‘Hey, Mike, listen to this.’ And he starts strumming and singing, ‘Back in the U.S.S.R.,’ the verses. And I said, ‘Well, Paul, what you ought to do is talk about the girls around Russia, Ukraine girls and then Georgia on my mind, and that kind of thing.’ Which he did.” (Songfacts)

In the “originality” department, Katy Perry’s song “California Girls” initially grabbed the “I wish they all could be California Girls” line before The Beach Boys threatened her with a law suit. And in 1985, David Lee Roth brought the song back to the #3 position on the pop charts propelled by a hedonistic MTV video that was played in heavy rotation.

Musicians on the track featured the best of The Wrecking Crew including Hal Blaine on drums, Frank Capp on vibraphone, Jerry Cole on guitar, Al de Lory on organ, Carol Kaye on bass, Leon Russell on piano, Billy Strange on tambourine, plus a whole slew of horn players.

During the tour behind these albums, Wilson’s panic attacks became too much to bare, ultimately forcing him to leave the touring band for good. Glen Campbell was brought in as his replacement on the road and Brian Wilson set up shop full time in the studio to work. The results can be heard on Pet Sounds.

Today in Rock History – October 21

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beatles-studio-19651965, Wanting to improve on a previous recording session The Beatles started from scratch on a new song called “Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown,”) finishing recordings in three takes. They also begin working on a new John Lennon song “Nowhere Man.”

1965, The Kingsmen perform “Louie Louie” on the ABC television variety show Shindig!  Also guesting were the Dave Clark Five.

1965, The Spencer Davis Group recorded “Keep On Running” at Pye Studios in London, England. The track went on to top the UK chart the following January.

1966, Pink Floyd appeared at the London Free School, held at the All Saints Church Hall, Powis Gardens, London.

1967, Scottish singer Lulu started a five-week run at number one on the US singles chart with the theme from the film To Sir With Love.

1967, Pink Floyd performed at Willamette University, in Salem, Oregon.

1970, Pink Floyd’s show at the Fillmore West in San Francisco included a brass and choir for the performance of “Atom Heart Mother.” The choir came back on for an encore of “Ave Maria.” Tickets were $3.

1971, Rolling Stone Mick Jagger became a father when his wife Bianca gave birth to daughter Jade in a Paris hospital.

1972, Pink Floyd performed at a benefit show for War on Want, The Albany Trust Deptford, and Save The Children Fund. The show was held at the Empire Pool, Wembley, London.

1972, Chuck Berry started a two week run at number one on the singles chart with “My Ding-A- Ling,” his first and only US and UK chart topper, 17 years after his first chart hit.

1972, Pete Townshend’s solo album Who Came First hits the British charts. Although it has Pete on the cover and is marketed as a solo album, it is more a compilation of the privately released Meher Baba albums. For instance, the single released from the album, “Forever’s No Time At All” (backed with “This Song Is Green,”) features a lead vocal by Billy Nicholls. The album reaches #30 in the British charts. The single does not chart.

1972, Curtis Mayfield started a four-week run at No.1 on the album chart with soundtrack to Superfly.

1973, The Grateful Dead played at the Omaha Civic Center in Omaha, Nebraska.

1973, Elton John, Sutherland Brothers, and Quiver performed at the Hollywood Sportatorium in Hollywood, Florida.

1974, Roxy Music appeared at the Odeon in Edinburgh, Scotland.

1975, The soundtrack to the film Lisztomania is released. The movie stars Roger Daltrey and was helmed by Tommy director Ken Russell. Rick Wakeman’s planned “concept album” version of the soundtrack is turned down for a simple collection of songs and performances. The result does not chart in the U.K. and peaks at number 145 in the US. Wakeman’s version of the soundtrack is not released until 2002.

1975, Elton John is the latest addition to the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

1975, The Doobie Brothers played at the Capital Centre, Landover, Maryland.

1976, Los Angeles’ Fox Wilshire Theatre hosts the west coast premiere of Led Zeppelin’s The Song Remains The Same.” It was attended by the band. Jimmy Page said, “(The premieres were) held apart by a few days so we could check the cinemas out. It’s not as easy a job as you’d think getting the sound right for cinemas. The first time in New York was great, the first time one had sat in an audience. Every time I had seen the film before was with technicians, people with a really critical eye. Then the film  really lived for the first time and you could see people getting off on things, applauding and laughing at the right time, generally vibing. Other charity premieres are held in various major cities including: Toronto, Boston and Dallas, San Francisco and Chicago, but not attended by the band.

keith-moon21976, Keith Moon played his last show with The Who at the end of a North American tour at Maple Leaf Gardens, Toronto. On September 7, 1978, Moon died of an overdose of a sedative Heminevrin, that had been prescribed to prevent seizures induced by alcohol withdrawal.

1976, Aerosmith appeared at the Stadthalle, Erlangen,Germany.

1977, Rush performed at Will Rogers Auditorium, Fort Worth, Texas.

1978, The Clash sacked manager Bernie Rhodes, saying the band and record company “found him hard to deal with.” Melody Maker journalist Caroline Coon took his place.

1980, Van Halen played at the Hulman Center, Terre Haute, Indiana.

1981, The Allman Brothers Band appeared at Memorial Coliseum, Corpus Christi, Texas.

1983, The Grateful Dead appeared at The Centrum in Worcester, Massachusetts.

1989, Jive Bunny And The Mastermixes had their second UK number one single with “That’s What I Like.” The Theme from Hawaii Five-O was the recurring hook in the record which also included “Lets Twist Again,” “Lets Dance,” “Great Balls of Fire,” and “The Twist.”

1992, George Michael took Sony Records to court in a fight over his contract with the company. He lost the case in 1994. Michael worked with Sony again less than 10 years later.

1995, Shannon Hoon, lead singer for Blind Mellon dies of a suspected cocaine overdose after an all-night drug binge following a “disappointing performance” the night before in Houston, Texas. The band is best known for the song “No Rain.”

1997, Elton John’s “Candle In The Wind 97” was declared by the Guinness Book Of Records as the biggest selling single record of all time, with 31.8 million sales in less than 40 days and raising more than £20 ($32)million for charity.

2001, Concerts at Madison Square Garden and the RFK stadium in Washington were expected to raise millions in funds for the victims of the September 11th terrorist attacks. Stars who appeared included Michael Jackson, Tom Petty, Aerosmith, *NSYNC, P-Diddy, James Brown, Paul McCartney, David Bowie, Eric Clapton, The Who, and Elton John.

2006, American musician, singer, songwriter, and drummer Sandy West died from lung cancer. She was a founding member, with Joan Jett, of the all-girl group The Runaways. Cherie Currie, the initial lead singer of The Runaways, said, “Sandy West was by far, the greatest female drummer in the history of rock and roll. No one could compete or even come close to her, but the most important was her heart.”

2006, Evanescence were at number one on the US album chart with their second album The Open Door. It became the 700th top album in Billboard since the chart became a weekly feature in 1956.

2007, Stereophonics went to number one on the UK album chart with Pull The Pin, the bands sixth studio album.

2013, Sid Bernstein, the concert promoter who staged early US shows by The Beatles and The Rolling Stones, died at age 95. Bernstein booked The Beatles for their legendary show at Shea Stadium in New York in 1965, which was the first concert to be staged in a large stadium. Bernstein also promoted The Beatles’ performance at Carnegie Hall in New York on their first US tour in 1964. He also arranged the first five American dates for the Rolling Stones, as well as shows for Judy Garland, Ray Charles and Tony Bennett.

Born on October 21: Manfred Mann (1940); Steve Cropper, Booker T & the MG’s (1941); Elvin Bishop (1942); Ron Elliott, The Beau Brummels (1943);Lee Loughnane, trumpet, Chicago (1946); Lux Interior, singer-songwriter, The Cramps (1946); Brent Mydland, keyboards, The Grateful Dead (1952); Charlotte Caffey, The Go- Go’s (1953); Eric Faulkner, singer, Bay City Rollers, (1954) Julian Cope, Teardrop Explodes (1957);  and Steve Lukather, Toto (1957); Nick Oliveri, bass, Kyuss, Queens of the Stone Age (1971)

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Today in Rock History – October 20

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monster-mash-pickett1962, Bobby “Boris” Pickett and the Crypt Kickers started a two week run at number one on the US singles chart with “Monster Mash.” It became a number three hit in the UK eleven years later in 1973. The song had been banned by The BBC in the UK, deemed offensive.

1965, The Who performed at the Top Rank Ballroom in Southampton, England.

monkees-tv1967, Davy Jones of The Monkees opened his own boutique in Greenwich Village named Zilch.

1968, Cream and Deep Purple appeared at the San Diego Sports Arena, San Diego, California.

1969, The Who begin a six-night stand at the Fillmore East in New York accompanied by the Joshua Light Show. After the show Bill Graham throws a party for The Who at Max’s Kansas City. Led Zeppelin, who were in the audience for the show, also attend.

1969, John Lennon and Yoko Ono release The Wedding Album in the US. Highlights include “John and Yoko,” in which the couple yell each others name for 25 minutes

1971,  The Velvet Underground played at Birmingham University, England during a UK tour.

1971, King Crimson appear at Liverpool University, Liverpool, England.

1972, David Bowie played at the Civic Auditorium, Santa Monica, California.

1973, Queen appeared on the In Concert show on UK BBC Radio One.

1973, The Rolling Stones went to number one on the singles chart with “Angie,” the group’s seventh US chart topper.

1974, Aerosmith appear at the Civic Center, Providence, Rhode Island.

1975, The Allman Brothers Band performed at The Forum, Inglewood, California.

1976, Led Zeppelin’s film The Song Remains The Same, premiered in New York City. The charity night raised $25,000 for the Save The Children fund.

1977, Ronnie Van Zant, Steve Gaines and Cassie Gaines from Lynyrd Skynyrd were all killed along with manager Dean Kilpatrick, the pilot and co-pilot when their rented plane ran out of fuel and crashed into a heavily forested area five miles from Gillsburg, Mississippi. The crash seriously injured the rest of the band and crew who were due to play at Louisiana State University that evening. The crash occurred days after the release of Street Survivors.

Police1978, The Police made their US debut at CBGB’s, New York. The trio had flown on low cost tickets with Laker Airtrain from the UK, carrying their instruments as hand luggage.

1979, On Saturday Night Live, Bob Dylan performs three songs from his religiously inclined Slow Train Coming album.

1979, Herb Alpert started a two week run at number one on the singles chart with “Rise,” giving the co-founder of A&M records his second chart topper

1979, The Eagles started a nine week run atop the album charts with The Long Run, the band’s fourth number one.

1980, U2 released their debut album, Boy on Island Records. It was produced by Steve Lillywhite. Boy included U2’s first hit single, “I Will Follow.” The album’s release was followed by the group’s first tour of continental Europe and the United States. The album received generally positive reviews from critics. It peaked at number 52 in the UK and number 63 in the US.

1981, Foreigner played at the Capital Centre, Landover, Maryland.

1982, The Who play the Kingdome in Seattle, Washington.

1983, The Grateful Dead appeared at The Centrum, in Worchester, Massachusetts.

1983, American country and western singer, songwriter, Merle Travis died of a heart attack aged 65. Acknowledged as one of the most influential American guitarist’s of the twentieth century. He wrote “Sixteen Tons,” a 1955 US number one for Ernie Ford. He appeared in the 1953 movie From Here to Eternity singing “Reenlistment Blues.”

1994, Pulp singer Jarvis Cocker presented this week’s edition of the UK music show Top Of The Pops, introducing Michelle Gayle, Let Loose and INXS.

2011, US photographer Barry Feinstein, best known for taking enduring pictures of musicians such as Bob Dylan and George Harrison, died aged 80. Feinstein was responsible for capturing more than 500 record sleeves, including Harrison’s All Things Must Pass album and the cover photograph for Dylan’s album The Times They Are A-Changin. Feinstein’s picture of Dylan at a damp ferry port on the banks of the River Severn was also used in No Direction Home, Scorsese’s 2005 film about the musician. The Rolling Stones’ sleeve for Beggars Banquet, shot in a graffiti-covered toilet, was also Feinstein’s work.

2014, John Holt, reggae singer and songwriter who first found fame as a member of the Paragons, died aged 67. Holt wrote the song “The Tide Is High,” which was famously covered by Blondie.

Born on October 20: Jelly Roll Morton (1890); Wanda Jackson,  singer-songwriter, guitarist (1937); Jay Siegel, The Tokens (1939); Ric Lee, drummer, Ten Years After (1945); Tom Petty (1950); Alan Greenwood, keyboards, Foreigner (1951);  David Ryan, drummer, The Lemonheads (1964); Norman Blake, Scottish singer-songwriter, guitarist, Teenage Fanclub (1965); Snoop Doggy Dogg, aka,Calvin Broadus (1971); Paul Wilson, bass, Snow Patrol (1978)

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Today in Rock History – October 8

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beatles-1964B1964, Working at Abbey Road studios in London, The Beatles recorded their next single “She’s a Woman” in seven takes, plus overdubs, recording the song from start to finish in five hours.

1964, Roy Orbison was at No.1 on the UK singles chart with “Oh Pretty Woman,” his third UK No.1. The title was inspired by Orbison’s wife Claudette interrupting a conversation to announce she was going out.  Orbison asked if she was okay for cash, and his co-writer Bill Dees interjected “A pretty woman never needs any money.”

1965, The Who appeared at City Hall in Perth, Australia.

1965, During a UK The Rolling Stones appeared at The ABC, Stockton on Tees. Also on the bill, Spencer Davis Group, Unit Four + 2, The Checkmates, The End, and Charles Dickens and The Habits.

1965, The Florescents supported by The Castiles, which featured a young singer called Bruce Springsteen appeared at the I.B. Club in Howell, New Jersey. This was The Castiles first publicly advertised nightclub appearance. Admission was $1.00

1966, Cream drummer Ginger Baker collapsed during a gig at Sussex University, England after playing a 20 minute drum solo. He recovered in a local hospital.

1967, Jimi Hendrix, Arthur Brown and John’s Children all appeared at the Saville Theatre in London, England.

1969, Humble Pie, supported by David Bowie, appeared at The Coventry Theatre in England.

1971, The Allman Brothers Band appeared at the Winterland Ballroom in San Francisco, California.

led-zeppelin-led-zep-II1971, Led Zeppelin II was enjoying its 100th week on the UK album charts. It was the band’s first album to hit No.1 in the US, knocking The Beatles’ Abbey Road twice from the top spot, where it remained for seven weeks. When first released the album had advance orders of 400,000 copies in the USA, (the advertising campaign was built around the slogan “Led Zeppelin II Now Flying.”) In 1999, it was certified 12 times Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for US sales in excess of 12 million copies.

1972, David Bowie performed at the Fisher Theatre in Detroit, Michigan.

1974, The Ramones played at CBGB, New York.

1975, The Doobie Brothers appeared at the Mid-South Coliseum, Memphis, Tennessee.

1976, AC/DC played at Jahrhunderthalle, Frankfurt am Main, Germany.

1977,   David Soul was at No.1 on the UK singles chart with “Silver Lady,” his second and last UK No.1 single. Soul was an actor on the American TV cop show Starsky & Hutch.

1978, Yes performed at the Oakland-Alameda Coliseum in Oakland, California.

1980, Blue Oyster Cult played at Market Square Arena, Indianapolis, Indiana.

1982, R.E.M. appeared at the Peppermint Lounge, New York City, supported by The Fleshtones.

1987, Chuck Berry was awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. His film biography, Hail, Hail Rock & Roll also premiered on the same night.

1988, On their 12th single release, U2 scored their first UK No.1 with “Desire.” The track which was also a US No.3 hit, was taken from their album Rattle And Hum.

1989, The Grateful Dead played at the Hampton Coliseum, in Hampton Roads, Virginia.

1992, The US Postal Service issued a set of commemorative stamps to celebrate pop music legends. The stamps included Elvis Presley, Bill Haley, Buddy Holly, Otis Redding, Ritchie Valens, Clyde McPhatter and Dinah Washington.

2000, Radiohead started a two-week run at No.1 on the UK album chart their fourth studio album Kid A. The album became the first Radiohead release to debut at No.1 in the US.

2006, The Killers started a three week run at No.1 on the UK album chart with Sam’s Town the US bands second album.The title refers to a hotel-casino in the band’s hometown of Las Vegas.

Born on this day: George Bellamy, guitar, The Tornadoes (1940); Butch Rillera, Redbone and Ray Royer, guitarist, Procol Harum (1945); Tony Wilson, Hot Chocolate (1947); Johnny Ramone, guitar, The Ramones (1948); and Bruno Mars (1985)

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Today in Rock History – September 30

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Donovan and Bob Dylan

1965, Donovan made his US television debut on Shindig! along with The Hollies, The Turtles and the Dave Clark Five.

1965, The Rolling Stones performed at the Gaumont Theatre in Hanley, Staffordshire, UK. Also on the bill were The Moody Blues, The Spencer Davis Group, The End and The Habits.

1966, Pink Floyd, along with Soft Machine, held a concert for the London Free School at the All Saints Church in Powls Gardens, London.

1967, BBC Radio 1 was launched in the UK. Former Radio Caroline DJ Tony Blackburn was the first presenter on air. The Move’s “Flowers In The Rain” was the first record played.

1967, The Doors played at Family Dog in Denver, Colorado.

1967, Pink Floyd appeared at The Imperial Ballroom, Nelson, England. The Imperial was a regular venue in the North West of England during the 1960s that saw many acts appearing, including The Beatles, The Who, Jimi Hendrix and Cream.

1969, Christine Hinton the girlfriend of David Crosby was killed in a car crash near San Francisco.

1971, Rick Wakeman made his live debut with Yes at The De Montford Hall, Leicester at the start of a 23-date UK tour.

1971, The Allman Brothers performed at the Civic Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota.  The opening act failed to show up, so the band performed two sets.

1971, Pink Floyd taped a live show at the Paris Cinema in London for BBC Radio One in which the band played “Fat Old Sun,” “One of These Days,” “The Embryo,” and “Blues.” It was broadcast twelve days later on Sounds of the Seventies omitting only the song “Blues.”

1972, David Cassidy, star from the TV series The Partridge Family, was at number one on the singles chart with “How Can I Be Sure.” It was his first chart topper. The song was originally recorded by The Young Rascals in 1967.

1972, UK Music magazine Melody Maker hosted the Poll Awards Concert at The Oval, Kennington, South London. The headliner was Emerson, Lake & Palmer. Also on the bill, Wishbone Ash, Focus, and Genesis.

1972, The Grateful Dead performed an outdoor show at American University in Washington, DC.

1973, King Crimson appeared at Morris Auditorium, South Bend, Indiana.

1973, The Rolling Stones performed at Festhalle, Frankfurt, Germany.

1974, Police were called to a Lynyrd Skynyrd and Blue Oyster Cult concert after a fight broke out between two sound engineers. The Skynyrd roadie claimed that the sound had been deliberately turned off during the band’s set.

1976, Hawkwind played at Queensway Hall, Dunstable, England. The hall which initially proved a popular venue for banquets and balls, but was less successful when it staged plays and concerts. The district council, faced with the need to pay for huge structural repairs, decided instead to accept an offer to pull down the building and replace it with a supermarket. The money from the sale of the hall went towards building the Grove Theatre, which opened in 2007.

1977, Eric Clapton performed at Shi Kokaido, Nagoya, Japan.

1977, Mary Ford died from cancer after being in a diabetic coma for 54 days. She was one-half of the husband-and-wife musical team of Les Paul and Mary Ford. Between 1950 and 1954, the couple had 16 top-ten hits. In 1951 alone, they sold six million records.

1977, Frank Zappa played at Cobo Arena, Detroit, Michigan.

1978, John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John had their second chart topper from the film Grease with “Summer Nights.” It spent seven weeks at number one, becoming the second best selling single of 1978, beaten only by the Bee Gees’ “Night Fever.”

1987, L.A.’s Coconut Grove plays host to an all-star gathering as Bruce Springsteen, Bonnie Raitt, Tom Waits, and Elvis Costello join Roy Orbison onstage to tape a TV special. The evening’s proceedings are eventually released as A Black and White Night.

1993, Kate Pierson from The B-52’s was charged with criminal mischief and trespassing during an anti-fur protest at Vogue’s New York City offices.

1995, Simply Red scored their first UK number one single when “Fairground” started a four-week run at the top of the charts. It was their fifteenth UK Top 40 hit.

2003, An auction of the contents of Sir Elton John’s London home raised more than £1.4 ($2.24) million. An oil painting, entitled Madison Square Park, sold for £67,200, and a 19th Century portrait of Lieutenant George Dyer, painted by James Northcote in 1817, fetched £55,200. Sir Elton sold off the items so he could redecorate his home in a more modern style.

2004, Mick Jagger held a press conference with Dave Stewart at Essex House in New York City, USA, to promote the soundtrack to the movie Alfie. The re-make of the 1966 film also featured Joss Stone, Sheryl Crow and Nadirah Nadz Seid. The track “Old Habits Die Hard” from the soundtack co-written by the two won the BFCA Award, Golden Globe, Sierra Award and the World Soundtrack Award.

2006, Justin Timberlake started a two week run at number one on the US album chart with his second solo album FutureSex/LoveSounds.

2007, Foo Fighters went to number one on the UK album chart with Echoes Silence Patience & Grace, the band’s sixth studio album and second UK chart topper. Reba McEntire was at number one on the US album chart with Reba: Duets.

Born on September 30: Johnny Mathis (1935);  Gus Dudgeon, producer (1942); Frankie Lymon (1942); Dewey Martin, The Dillards, Buffalo Springfield (1942); Marc Bolan, T-Rex (1947); Robby Takac, bass, Goo Goo Dolls (1964); Trey Anastasio, Phish (1964)

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Song Of The Day by Eric Berman – The Jukebox Series #48– Argent: “Hold Your Head Up” b/w “God Gave Rock And Roll To You” – Epic Memory Lane Series 45 15-2332 (Q5/R5)

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argentholdyourheadup45argentgodgaverockandrolltoyou45

Song Of The Day by Eric Berman – The Jukebox Series #48– Argent: “Hold Your Head Up” b/w “God Gave Rock And Roll To You” – Epic Memory Lane Series 45 15-2332 (Q5/R5)

“The Jukebox Series” focuses on the 80 records that inhabit my 1963 Seeburg LPC1 jukebox. I’ve had my jukebox (or as I like to call it “the prehistoric iPod”) for a little over twelve years and in that time I’d like to think that I’ve perfected the mix of 45s within.

When the British Invasion band The Zombies disintegrated in 1969 before the posthumous release of their biggest hit single “Time Of The Season,” keyboardist Rod Argent formed the band Argent with Jim Rodford on bass, Bob Henrit on drums and Russ Ballard on guitar. (The latter two musicians were members of the group Unit 4+2, the subject of The Jukebox Series #33.)

While The Zombies’ music consisted of finely tuned ear worms that were designed to climb up the charts and go directly into the hearts of music fans around the world, Argent’s music was a far more difficult mix of jazz, prog rock and classical influences. While the group’s first two albums didn’t make any significant waves on the single or album charts, the song “Liar” from their debut became a top ten hit by Three Dog Night.

Today’s jukebox classic is the song Argent is best known for. “Hold Your Head Up” was written by Rod Argent and Chris White (who also wrote songs for The Zombies) and was released on their third album All Together Now which was released in 1972. The heavily edited single version of the song (from 6:15 on the album down to 3:15 for the single) sold over a million copies and climbed to the #5 spot of the U.S. and UK pop charts. (For our purposes, I’ve included an audio clip of the far superior unedited version of the song.)

With its propulsive beat, layered vocal harmonies and long sinuous organ solo, the song grabbed hold of the AM charts in 1972, and fit in perfectly alongside tracks by Yes, Genesis and Jethro Tull on the FM radio playlists of the early 1970s. Over the years, the song has been covered by the likes of Steppenwolf, Uriah Heap and the 1980s hard rock band Mr. Big.

The flip of today’s single is “God Gave Rock And Roll To You” which is probably best known by the covers it spawned by KISS and the Christian rock band Petra. The song was actually recorded during sessions for Argent’s All Together Now album but was not released as a single until it appeared on their 1973 album In Deep.

The KISS cover of the song (titled “God Gave Rock ‘n’ Roll To You II”) was featured in the 1991 film Bill & Ted’s Bogus Journey and its soundtrack album, and later appeared on KISS’ Revenge album.  Petra converted the song into a well-known Christian rock anthem and recorded it twice, once on their 1977 album Come And Join Us, and again on 1984’s Beat The System.

After running its course with little follow up success, Argent broke up in 1976 and Jim Rodford joined The Kinks while Rod Argent began producing albums. The original lineup reformed in 2010 for the High Voltage Festival in London, and these days Rod Argent and Colin Blunstone (of The Zombies) tour under their own names and as The Zombies performing Argent and Zombies hits.