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Song Of The Day – The Jukebox Series #5 – Ben E. King – “Spanish Harlem” b/w “Don’t Play That Song (You Lied)” – Atlantic Oldies 45 OS-13068 (I1/J1)

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Song Of The Day by Eric Berman – The Jukebox Series #5 – Ben E. King  – “Spanish Harlem” b/w “Don’t Play That Song (You Lied)”  – Atlantic Oldies 45 OS-13068  (I1/J1)

“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.

Today’s Song Of The Day exposes me for who I really am…a sucker for a great pop song. Give me a lush hummable melody and a simple lyric that I can relate to, add to it some strings for sweetening, and I’m a happy boy. So it should come as no surprise that the music that emanated from The Brill Building in New York City (1619 Broadway on 49th Street) from the late 1950s through the mid-sixties is right up my alley.

I think that growing up in proximity to New York City gave me an added appreciation of the music that came from that building’s hallowed halls, as the rhythm of the streets, the vibe and sounds of the city are inherent in every recording, and “Spanish Harlem” is certainly no different.

Today’s jukebox classic is from a double A-sided single I purchased cheaply on line when I first got the juke. It is one of the original records that I put in there, and it is also one that I can’t see myself ever taking out. I just never tire of Ben E. King’s classic “Spanish Harlem.”

The Spanish Harlem section of New York City was a crime-ridden Latino neighborhood, and the 1960 hit was written by Jerry Lieber and Phil Spector and released on the burgeoning Atco record label. Lieber’s partner Mike Stoller, did the arrangement on the track and came up with the song’s signature intro fill that runs throughout the song; however he does not receive a composer credit. Mike Stoller: “I presumed my contribution was seminal to the composition, but I also knew that Phil didn’t want to share credit with anyone but Jerry, so I kept quiet.”

The song was King’s first hit after leaving The Drifters, climbing to the #15 position on the R&B charts and #10 Pop, and it also served as the title track of his debut solo album. Singing background vocals was a then-unknown Dionne Warwick (as a member of The Gospelaires). The day the track was cut was indeed very productive, as King also recorded his follow-up single “Stand By Me” during the same session.

Aretha Franklin covered the song in 1971 and scored an even bigger hit with it climbing to the #1 position on the R&B charts and #2 on the Pop charts. Dr. John is also heard playing piano on her version. The song was also covered by the likes of Larua Nyro (on her essential 1971 album Gonna Take A Miracle), Jay And The Americans, The Mamas & The Papas, Leon Russell, Chet Atkins, Neil Diamond, Tom Jones, Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass and even Led Zeppelin, who used to incorporate the song’s melody into live performances of “Dazed And Confused.”

The flip of this double A-sided 45 is King’s 1962 version of “Don’t Play That Song (You Lied)” which was written by Atlantic Records head honcho Ahmet Ertegun and Betty Nelson (although my 45RPM copy is credited only to “Nugetre” which is Ertegun backwards). King’s version of the song climbed to the #2 position on the R&B charts and up to #11 on the Pop side. The song was also covered again by Aretha Franklin on her 1970 album Spirit In The Dark. Her version peaked at #1 on the R&B charts and went to #11 Pop.

Today in Rock History – July 22

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beatles-introducing-beatles1963, The Beatles’ first US album, Introducing The Beatles was pressed by Vee-Jay Records, who thought they had obtained the legal rights from EMI affiliate, Trans-Global Records. When it was finally released in January, 1964, Capitol Records would hit Vee Jay with an injunction against manufacturing, distributing, advertising, or otherwise disposing of records by the Beatles. After a trial, Vee-Jay was allowed to release any Beatles records that they had masters of in any form until October 15th, 1964. After that time, they no longer had the right to issue any Beatles product.

1964, The Beach Boys performed at Assembly Hall at the University of Illinois, Champaign, Illinois.

1965, Mick Jagger, Brian Jones and Bill Wyman from The Rolling Stones were each fined £5 at East Ham Magistrates Court, London after being found guilty of insulting behaviour at a Romford Road service station. The three had all urinated against a wall.

1966, The Who played at Central Pier in Morecambe, Lancashire, England.

1967, Pink Floyd appeared at The Beach Ballroom, Aberdeen, Scotland. The venue is home to one of Scotland’s finest dance floors, famous for its bounce, which floats on fixed steel springs. During the 1960s The Beatles,  The Small Faces, and Cream all appeared at the Beach.

Quicksilver Messenger Service
Quicksilver Messenger Service

1967, Quicksilver Messenger Service and Big Brother & the Holding Company appeared at the Convention Hall, San Diego, California.

1967, The Who play their first American live gig at New York’s Paramount Theater.

1969, Aretha Franklin was arrested for causing a disturbance in a Detroit parking lot. After posting $50 bail, she ran down a road sign while leaving the police station.

1969, The Doors perform at the Aquarius Theater in Hollywood, California, portions of the show appear on Absolutely Live. Later the entire concert was released on CD as well.

1971, John and Yoko spent the second day filming the Imagine promotional film at their home in Tittenhurst Park Ascot, England. Today’s footage included the morning walk on the grounds though the mist and John Lennon singing “Imagine” in the white room on his white piano.

1972, Roxy Music appeared at Civic Hall, Dunstable, Bedfordshire, England.

1972, The Grateful Dead play the Paramount Northwest Theater in Seattle, Washington.

1972, Paul and Linda McCartney were arrested in Sweden for possession of drugs.

1972, The Rolling Stones performed at Mellon Arena in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

1973, Humble Pie and Mountain appear at Kiel Auditorium in St. Louis, Missouri.

1973, Van Morrison appeared at Birmingham Town Hall, playing his first UK show for over 2 years.

1974, The Eagles release their third album, On the Border.

1975, Number one on the Billboard album charts is Led Zeppelin’s Physical Graffiti.  Second is Olivia Newton-John with Have You Never Been Mellow. Number three is Bob Dylan’s Blood on the Tracks.

1975, Three Dog Night appear at the Capital Centre, Landover, Maryland.

1975, The Rolling Stones go into the Musicland Studios in Munich to begin recording Black and Blue.

1976, On the campaign trail, Jimmy Carter tells the National Association of Record Merchandisers’ Scholarship Foundation Dinner his musical inspiration as governor of Georgia was Bob Dylan, the Grateful Dead, and Led Zeppelin. He makes pertinent quotations from Dylan’s “Blowin’ in the Wind.”

1977, Stiff Records released My Aim Is True the debut album from Elvis Costello in the UK.

1978, The Police sign with A&M Records.

1979, The Allman Brothers Band appeared at Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum, Uniondale, New York.

1981, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers played at Maple Leaf Gardens, Toronto.

1982, Van Halen performed at BJCC Arena, Birmingham, Alabama.

1989, Simply Red scored their first UK top charting album with their third release A New Flame.

1989, The soundtrack album Batman by Prince started a six-week run at number one on the US album chart.

2003, Coldplay played the second of two nights at the Hordern Pavilion in Sydney, Australia on their A Rush of Blood to the Head world tour.

2004, American singer, songwriter and producer Arthur Crier died of heart failure. Member of The Chimes and had worked with Little Eva, Gene Pitney, The Four Tops, The Temptations, Ben E. King, Johnny Nash and The Coasters.

2005, Founder member and singer with The Chi-lites, Eugene Record died of cancer. Had the 1972 US No.1 single “Oh Girl” and 1972 UK No.3 single “Have You Seen Her.” He also released three solo albums.

2006, Johnny Cash was at number one on the US album chart with American V: A Hundred Highways. Released posthumously on July 4, the vocal parts were recorded before Cash’s death, but the instruments were not recorded until 2005.

Born on July 22: George Clinton, Parlaiment, Funkadelic (1941); Bobby Sherman (1943); Estelle Bennett, The Ronettes, and Rick Davies, Supertramp (1944); Don Henley (1947); and Rufus Wainwright (1973)

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Today in Rock History – June 28

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1966, The Small Faces appeared live at the Marquee Club in Wardour Street, London. Admission cost $1.05

1967, Pink Floyd performed at The Dance Hall, Eel Pie Island Hotel, Twickenham, England.

1968,The Beatles were at Studio Two at Abbey Road studios, where they recorded “Good Night,” John Lennon’s lullaby for his 5-year-old son Julian. It was said to be inspired by Cole Porter’s “True Love.”   Ringo singing the lead vocal. It was completed after two more sessions in July, and appeared on the White Album.

1968, Ten Years After played at the Fillmore West, San Francisco.

1968, Pink Floyd released their second album A Saucerful Of Secrets in the UK. It is both the last Pink Floyd album on which Syd Barrett would appear, and the only studio album to which all five band members contributed.  That same day the band performed A Saucerful of Secrets for the program Release on BBCTV2. It would air the following evening.  That night, Floyd played for the Students Celebration Dance- The End Of It All Ball,  at the Music Hall in Shrewsbury, England.

1968, The Who performed at the Shrine Auditorium, Los Angeles.

1968, Aretha Franklin appears on the cover of Time magazine.

1969, Fleetwood Mac, Led Zeppelin, Nice, John Mayall, Ten Years After, Taste, Liverpool Scene and Chicken Shack, Keef Hartley, Taste and Savoy Brown, all appeared at The Bath Festival of Blues in England, the DJ was John Peel. Over 12,000 fans attended.

1969, Pink Floyd played at the Winter Gardens Pavilion, Weston-Super-Mare, Somerset, England. Supporting acts were The Ken Birch Band and the Mike Slocombe Combo.

1969, Henry Mancini started a two week run at number one on the US singles chart with “Love Theme from Romeo And Juliet.” The film’s love theme was used as the backing for “Our Tune” by DJ Simon Bates on his BBC Radio 1 show.

1969, Crosby, Stills & Nash release their self-titled debut album.

1970, Ten Years After performed at the Canadian National Exhibition Stadium, Toronto.

1971, Yes appeared at the Whiskey A Go-Go in Hollywood, California.

1972, Pink Floyd played the first of two nights at The Dome in Brighton, England. These were makeup shows for a concert performance at the same venue in January that had to be stopped in the middle of “Money” due to technical difficulties.

1972, Led Zeppelin performed at the Community Arena in Tucson, Arizona. Tickets cost $4 – $6 (£2.67 – £4.)

1973, The Searchers, Gerry & the Pacemakers, Herman’s Hermits, and Wayne Fontana appear at a revival show at New York’s Madison Square Garden.

1974, The Grateful Dead play at the Garden in Boston, Massachusetts.

1975, The Eagles started a five-week run at number one on the US album chart with ‘One Of These Nights’.

1975, Wings went to number one on the UK charts with the album Venus And Mars, featuring the US chart topping single “Listen What The Man Said.”

1975, American singer songwriter Tim Buckley completed the last show of a tour in Dallas, Texas, playing to a sold-out crowd of 1,800 people. This was Buckley’s last ever show, he died the following day of a heroin and morphine overdose at age 28.

1975, Cher marries Gregg Allman.

1977, Elton John achieved a life long ambition when he became the Chairman of Watford Football Club.

1978, The Clash supported by The Specials appeared at Friars, Aylesbury, England.

1980, Roxy Music scored their second number one album with Flesh And Blood. It would return to the top spot again in August for another three weeks, in total spending 60 weeks on the albums chart in the United Kingdom. The album also peaked at number 35 in the United States and number ten in Australia.

1986, Wham! were at number one on the UK singles chart with their fourth and final UK chart topper “The Edge Of Heaven.” Also on this day Wham! played their farewell concert in front of 80,000 fans at Wembley Stadium, London.

1997, Radiohead went to number one on the UK album chart with their third album OK Computer. The British group’s first self-produced album later appeared in many critics’ lists and listener polls for best album of the year, and also won a Grammy for Best Alternative Music Performance.

2005, 2 Pac featuring Elton John was at number one on the UK singles chart with “Ghetto Gospel.” It was written by Tupac Shakur and produced by Eminem. The song uses samples from the Elton John song “Indian Sunset” from his 1971 album Madman Across the Water.

2007, The Spice Girls confirmed they would reform for a world tour to take place in December 2007 and January 2008 with the original line-up, who had not performed on stage since Ginger Spice Geri Halliwell quit in May 1998. The 11 dates announced included a London show on December 15th, eight days after the first date in Los Angeles. Other dates included Cologne, Madrid Beijing, Hong Kong, Sydney and Cape Town. The tour was being put together by Simon Fuller, whose 19 company masterminded the group’s global success more than a decade earlier.

Born on this day: David Knights, Procol Harum (1945);  Steven J. Morse, Dixie Dregs, Deep Purple (1954); Clint Boon, English singer, keyboards, Inspiral Carpets, The Clint Boon Experience (1959);  Charlie Clouser, American keyboard player, songwriter, producer, Nine Inch Nails (1963);  Steve Williamson, English saxophonist, composer, Jazz Warriors (1964); Mark Stoermer,  The Killers (1977); Michael Crafter, Australian singer-songwriter, Confession, I Killed the Prom Queen, Carpathian, Bury Your Dead (1981)

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Today in Rock History – June 13

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1967, The Bee Gees appeared live on the UK TV show As You Like It. The group were promoting their debut single “New York Mining Disaster 1941.”

1968, Quicksilver Messenger Service and The Hallucinations performed at Boston Tea Party in Boston, Massachusetts.

1969, The Who stage the Hollywood premiere of Tommy, performing the rock opera at the Hollywood Palladium as part of the “Magic Circus” with fellow acts Poco, and the Bonzo Dog Band. Attending the show are Janis Joplin, Spirit, Mama Cass Elliot, David Crosby, Peter Tork and The Turtles.

1969, The Rolling Stones held a photo call in Hyde Park to introduce new guitarist Mick Taylor. The 20 year-old former John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers member made his live debut with the Stones the following month at a free concert at Hyde Park London.

1969, Glen Campbell played at the Civic Center in Charleston, West Virginia.

1969,  Aretha Franklin, Ray Charles, Sam & Dave, and the Staple Singers perform at the Soul Bowl ’69, held at the Astrodome in Houston, Texas.

1969, The Grateful Dead performed at the Convention Center in Fresno, California.

1969, Led Zeppelin play at Town Hall in Birmingham, the first of eleven shows in England and France before returning to the US. Supporting acts were Liverpool Scene and Blodwyn Pig

1969, Pink Floyd played at the Great Hall, Devonshire House at the University of Exeter, in Exeter, England.

1970, The Beatles started a two week run at number one on the US singles chart with “The Long And Winding Road,” the group’s 20th chart topper. The album Let It Be started a four-week run at number one the US album chart on the same day.

1970, Grand Funk Railroad, supported by Steel Mill, featuring Bruce Springsteen, appeared at the Ocean Ice Palace in Bricktown, New Jersey, tickets cost $5.00 (£3.33.)

1970, Christine Perfect says she will retire from music following the release of her self-titled solo album. However, she later becomes a member of her husband, John McVie’s, band, Fleetwood Mac.

1971, Grin, led by Nils Lofgrin played at the Alexandria Roller Rink, Alexandria, Virginia.

1972, The Rolling Stones performed at the San Diego Sports Arena, San Diego, California.

1972, Clyde McPhatter, original lead vocalist with The Drifters, died of a heart attack in New York. He joined Billy Ward & the Dominoes in 1950, formed The Drifters in 1953, and had several solo hits including 1962’s “Lover Please.” He was posthumously inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1987.

1973, David Bowie played at the Gaumont State Theatre, London.

1974, King Crimson appeared Cow Palace in San Francisco.

1974, David Bowie, Corinne “Coco” Schwab., Stuey George and driver Jim James leave the MainMan suite at the Sherry Netherland Hotel in New York to begin the nine hour trip by limousine to Montreal for the start of the “Diamond Dogs” tour.

1975, John Lennon made his last ever TV appearance when he appeared on Salute To Sir Lew Grade, performing “Slippin And Slidin,” and “Imagine.”

1976, Aerosmith appeared at the Civic Center, Charleston, West Virginia.

1977, Crosby Stills and Nash performed at the Providence Civic Center, Providence, Rhode Island.

1977, Rush played at the Empire Theatre, Liverpool, England.

1979, The Allman Brothers Band performed at Memorial Auditorium, Buffalo, New York.

1980, Before a Philadelphia Phillies baseball game, Pat Benatar performs a short set and dances with the team mascot, the Phillie Phanatic.

1980, “Roadie” opens across America. Appearing in the film are VH1 giants Meat Loaf, Blondie, Pat Benatar, Cheap Trick, Alice Cooper, and Styx.

1980, The Grateful Dead performs at the Seattle Center Coliseum, in Seattle, Washington.

1981, Smokey Robinson was at number one on the UK singles chart with a song he wrote in the late 60’s. “Being With You.” It was his first solo chart topper.

1984, Yes appeared at the Falkoner Teater, Copenhagen, Denmark.

1988, The biggest charity Rock concert since Live Aid in 1985 took place at London’s Wembley Stadium, to rally against South African apartheid. Among the performers were Sting, Stevie Wonder, Bryan Adams, George Michael, Whitney Houston and Dire Straits. Half the money raised went towards anti-apartheid activities in Britain, the rest was donated to children’s charities in southern Africa.

1992, Erasure started a five-week run at number one in the UK with the Abba-Esque EP. The release featured four covers of Abba hits and Vince Clark & Andy Bell dressed up as the two female members of Abba for the videos.

1992, Billy Ray Cyrus started a 17-week run at number one on the US album chart with Some Gave All. His debut album featured the world-wide breakthrough song “Achy Breaky Heart,” which was originally recorded as “Don’t Tell My Heart” by The Marcy Brothers on their 1991 self-titled album.

1995, Alanis Morissette released her studio album, Jagged Little Pill. The album went on to sell over 30 million copies world-wide, and made Morissette the first female Canadian to score a US number one album. Jagged Little Pill featured the massive hits “You Oughta Know,” “Hand in My Pocket,” “Ironic,” and “You Learn.”

2003, The Arctic Monkeys made their live debut at The Grapes pub in Sheffield, England. They received £27 ($46) from ticket sales.

2015, Rapper MC Supreme was killed in Malibu, California when a pickup truck hit his parked car on the shoulder of the Pacific Coast Highway. The 47-year-old “Black in America” performer, whose real name was Dewayne Coleman, was pronounced dead at the scene. The driver of the truck was arrested on suspicion of DUI.

Born on June 13: Uriel Jones, session drummer, the Funk Brothers (1934); Bobby Freeman, singer (1940); Marv Tarplin, American guitarist, songwriter, the Miracles (1941);  Malcolm McDowell, actor  (1943); Dennis Locorriere, guitar, Dr Hook (1949); Howard Leese, American guitarist, producer, Bad Company, Heart (1951); Paul De Lisle, American bass player, songwriter, Smash Mouth (1963); Denise Pearson, English singer-songwriter, Five Star (1968); Rivers Cuomo, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, Weezer, Avant Garde, Homie (1970);

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Today in Rock History – June 3

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the-who-sweden-19661966, The Who arrive at a TV studio in Stockholm to appear on the Popside program for Sverige Television. Coming onstage busting through a Union Jack paper hoop, they mime performances of “Daddy Rolling Stone,” “It’s Not True,” “Bald Headed Woman,” “The Kids Are Alright,” “Substitute,” and “My Generation” while standing on a ramp. The show is directed by Peter Goldmann, later to direct the promotional films for The Beatles’ “Strawberry Fields Forever” and “Penny Lane.” It airs on Swedish television on two days later.

1967, The Doors “Light My Fire” was released in the US, it went on to reach number one on the singles chart two months later.

1967 Pink Floyd, Hydrogen Jukebox, and The Sun Trolley played to the largest crowd that the UFO Club had ever held. The Tottenham Court Road club in London was an early part of the London psychedelic scene. Jimi Hendrix, Eric Burdon, and Pete Townshend were among the rock stars in attendance.

1967, Janis Joplin performed at California Hall in Berkeley, California.

1967, Aretha Franklin went to the top of he US singles charts with her version of the Otis Redding hit “Respect.” It was a top ten hit on the UK charts.

1967, Jefferson Airplane appear on American Bandstand, playing “White Rabbit” and “Somebody to Love.”

1968, Valerie Solanas shot Andy Warhol and art critic and curator Mario Amaya at Warhol’s studio in New York City. Solanas had been to see Warhol after asking for the return of a script which had apparently, been misplaced. Warhol was seriously wounded in the attack and barely survived.

1968, Pink Floyd performed at the Concertgebouw in Vissingen, The Netherlands, supported by Dragonfly.

1969, Yes appeared at the Bay Hotel, Sunderland, England.

1970, Deep Purple released their fourth studio album Deep Purple In Rock. This was the first album to feature the classic Mk II lineup of – Ritchie Blackmore, Ian Gillan, Roger Glover, Jon Lord and Ian Paice.

1970, The Kinks’ Ray Davies was forced to make a 6,000 mile round trip from New York to London to record one word in a song. Davies had to change the word “Coca-Cola” to “Cherry Cola” on the bands forthcoming single “Lola” due to an advertising ban at BBC Radio.

1971, The Band appeared at London’s Royal Albert Hall during a European tour.

1971, King Crimson played at Winter Gardens, Bournemouth, England.

1972, Joe Cocker, The Beach Boys, Melanie, Richie Havens and Sha Na Na all appeared at the Crystal Palace Garden Party, England.

1972, Jethro Tull started a two-week run at number one on the US album chart with Thick As A Brick.

1972, Blue Oyster Cult and Aliotta, Haynes & Jeremiah performed at The Warehouse in New Orleans, Louisiana.

1972, The Rolling Stones kicked off their seventh North American tour at the Pacific Coliseum, Vancouver, Canada. The 32 date tour grossed $4 million (£2.5 m,) making it the richest rock tour in history.

1972, Family gospel group of father and three daughters The Staple Singers went to number one on the singles chart with “I’ll Take You There.”

1972, The Eagles release “Take It Easy.”

1972, Pink Floyd released the soundtrack to director Barbet Schroeder’s Obscured by Clouds in the UK. The album which was recorded in Paris, France in less than two weeks, peaked at number six on the UK chart and number 46 on the US chart.

1972, David Bowie performed at City Hall, Newcastle Upon Tyne, England.

1973, Led Zeppelin played a three hour show at The Forum, Inglewood, California. The setlist: Rock and Roll, Celebration Day, (Bring It On Home intro) Black Dog, Over the Hills and Far Away, Misty Mountain Hop, Since I’ve Been Loving You, No Quarter, The Song Remains the Same, Rain Song, Dazed and Confused (incl. San Francisco), Stairway to Heaven, Moby Dick, Heartbreaker, Whole Lotta Love (incl. Let That Boy Boogie, I’m Going Down, I’m a Man, The Hunter), The Ocean, Communication Breakdown, Organ solo ~ Thank You.

1975, Aerosmith played at Market Square Arena, Indianapolis, Indiana.

1976, The Grateful Dead played at the Paramount Theater in Portland, Oregon.

1976, Yes headlined at the Omni Coliseum, Atlanta, Georgia.

1977, Rush performed at the Odeon Theatre, Birmingham, England.

1978, Genesis appeared at the Palais Des Sports, Dijon, France.

1979, Journey performed at War Memorial Auditorium. Syracuse, New York.

1980, Roxy Music played at the Palais Des Grottes, Cambrai, France.

1983, US session drummer Jim Gordon murdered his mother by pounding her head with a hammer. A diagnosed schizophrenic, it was not until his trial in 1984 that he was properly diagnosed. Due to the fact that his attorney was unable to use the insanity defense, Gordon was sentenced to sixteen years-to-life in prison in 1984. Gordon won Grammy Award  for co-writing “Layla” with Eric Clapton. Gordon worked with The Beach Boys, John Lennon, George Harrison Frank Zappa and many other artists.

1989, The Fine Young Cannibals started a seven-week run at number one on the US album chart with The Raw & The Cooked.

1990, The Big Day, free festival took place in Glasgow, Scotland with Wet Wet Wet, Deacon Blue, Hothouse Flowers, Sheena Easton, Texas, Hue and Cry, John Martyn, Eddi Reader, The Average White Band and others.

1995, Bryan Adams started a five week run at number one on the US singles chart with”‘Have You Ever Really Loved A Woman,” Taken from the film Don Juan De Marco it became Adams third US solo chart topper, and a number four hit in the UK.

2002, Paul McCartney, Sting, Elton John, Brian Wilson, Cliff Richard, Ozzy Osbourne, The Corrs, Will Young, Atomic Kitten and S Club 7 all appeared at The Queen’s Jubilee concert at Buckingham Palace, London.

2011, American singer, songwriter Andrew Gold died in his sleep aged 59 from a heart attack. Had the 1977 US number seven single “Lonely Boy,” and the 1978 UK top five single “Never Let Her Slip Away.”

Born on June 3: Allen Ginsburg (1926); Ian Hunter (1939); Curtis Mayfield (1942); Michael Clarke, The Flying Burrito Brothers, The Byrds (1943);  Dave Alexander, bass, Iggy Pop And The Stooge (1947); Mickey Finn, T Rex (1947); Billy Powell, keyboards, Lynyrd Skynyrd (1952); David Cole, C & C Music Factory (1962); Mike Gordon, Phish (1965)

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Today in Rock History – May 20

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1965, The Who performed at Town Hall in Kidderminster, West Midlands, England.

1966, Bob Dylan and The Band played at the ABC Theatre in Edinburgh, Scotland. Some members of the audience were unhappy with Dylan “going electric,” and attempted to overpower the band by playing their own harmonicas.

1966, Pete Townshend and Roger Daltrey of the Who grew tired of waiting for John Entwistle and Keith Moon to arrive for their gig at the Ricky Tick Club in Windsor, England. Moon had taken Bruce Johnston of the Beach Boys to a taping of Ready Steady Go! and had also been popping pills. Pete and Roger took to the stage with the rhythm section of the local band that opened the show. When Moon and Entwistle finally arrived in the middle of the set. During the finale of “My Generation,” as Keith kicked over his drum set, Pete already in a foul mood, swung his guitar into the amp stack and accidentally (or on purpose) hit Moon on the head with his guitar. A brawl ensued. Moon suffered a cut on his leg and possibly a broken ankle. Moon and Entwistle quit the band, only to rejoin a week later.

1967, The Beatles new album Sgt Pepper”s Lonely Hearts Club Band had a special preview on the Kenny Everett BBC Light program, Where It’s At. They played every track from the album, except “A Day In The Life,” which the BBC had banned saying it could promote drug taking.

1967, The Young Rascals started a two week run at number one on the singles chart with “Groovin.”

1967, Pink Floyd performed at Floral Hall in Southport, Lancashire, England. The support act was Big Sleep.

1967, Jimi Hendrix signs a US record deal with Reprise Records.

1967, Aretha Franklin’s “Respect” was the number one R&B single in America.  It had returned to the top of the charts after being dislodged by Martha & the Vandellas.

1968, Pete Townshend marries Karen Astley.

1968, The Beatles, armed with a bunch of new songs after their visit to India, met at George Harrison’s home in Esher, Surrey. They taped 23 new songs on George’s 4-track recorder, many of which would end up on The Beatles’ next two albums, the White Album and Abbey Road. The demos included “Cry Baby Cry,” “Revolution,” “While My Guitar Gently Weeps,” “Blackbird,” and “Child of Nature,” a Lennon song that became “Jealous Guy.”

1969, Peter Cetera, from the band Chicago, was beaten up by four men at a Chicago Cubs-Dodgers baseball game at Los Angeles’ Dodger Stadium. The men objected to the length of Cetera’s hair. In the liner notes to a Chicago box set, he recalled, “four Marines didn’t like a long-haired rock ‘n’ roller in a baseball park,  and of course I was a Cub fan, and I was in Dodger Stadium, and that didn’t do so well. I got in a fight and got a broken jaw in three places, and I was in intensive care for a couple of days.”  Cetera underwent four hours of emergency surgery.

1969, Led Zeppelin started three days of recording and mixing sessions at A&R Studios in New York City, which included the recording of “Heartbreaker” and various other parts for new tracks for the group’s  second album.

1970, Mountain played at the Eastown Theater in Detroit, Michigan.

1970, The final feature film involving The Beatles Let It Be was premiered simultaneously in London and Liverpool a week after the film’s US release.

1972, Fleetwood Mac  and McKendree Spring appeared at Ellis Auditorium in Memphis, Tennessee.

1972, T Rex were at number one on the UK singles chart “Metal Guru,” the band’s fourth and final chart topper. They also had the UK number one album with Bolan Boogie.

1972, Uriah Heep played at Liverpool Stadium in Liverpool, Merseyside, England.

1973, King Crimson appeared at the Civic Theatre, Ottawa, Canada.

1973, The Grateful Dead performed at the Stadium on the campus of the University of California at Santa Barbara.

1974, KISS played at Foothills Arena, Calgary, Alberta.

1975, AC/DC headlined at Croxton Park Hotel, Thornbury, Australia.

1976, Aerosmith played at  Municipal Auditorium, Mobile, Alabama.

1977, Rush performed at the Aragon Ballroom, Chicago.

1978, The Saturday Night Fever soundtrack entered the 18th week of its amazing run of 24 weeks at number one on the US album charts.

1978, Paul McCartney went to number one on the US singles chart with “With A Little Luck,” his sixth solo US chart topper. It was taken from the London Town album.

1979, The Allman Brothers Band appeared at The Forum, Inglewood, California.

1980, Bob Dylan performed at the Franklin County Veterans Memorial Auditorium, Columbus, Ohio.

1983, David Bowie played at Festhalle, Frankfurt, Germany.

1989, Ferry “Cross The Mersey” by Ferry Aid started a three week run at number one on the UK singles chart. The song was recorded to raise funds for the Hillsborough Football victims. Gerry Marsden, Paul McCartney, Holly Johnson and The Christians all featured on the recording

1997, U2 caused traffic chaos in Kansas City, Missouri after they paid for traffic control to close down five lanes so they could shoot the video for “Last Night On Earth.” Apart from major traffic jams, a passing Cadillac crashed into a plate glass window trying to avoid a cameraman.

1997, Foo Fighters released their second album The Colour And The Shape. The album was a Grammy nominee for Best Rock Album in 1998. Even though Foo Fighters are an American band, the word “Colour” in the album title is always spelled with the British spelling. This was a nod to producer Gil Norton, who is British. It reached the third spot on the UK charts, and was a top ten album in the US.

2001, R.E.M. started a two-week run at number one on the UK album chart with “Reveal.”

2007, Linkin Park went to number one on the UK album chart with Minutes To Midnight the bands fifth Top 20 UK album. Also a US chart topper.

2012, Robin Gibb, a member of the Bee Gees, and a singer-songwriter who helped to turn disco into a global phenomenon by providing the core of the soundtrack to Saturday Night Fever, died from cancer aged 62.

2013, Ray Manzarek, keyboard player and founder member of the The Doors died aged 74. Manzarek, who had suffered from bile duct cancer for many years, died in a clinic in Rosenheim, Germany. He formed The Doors with lead singer Jim Morrison in 1965 after a chance meeting with his old film school classmate at Venice Beach, Los Angeles.

2014, Prince Rupert Loewenstein, the Bavarian banker credited with turning The Rolling Stones into the world’s richest rock band, died at the age of 80. It was on Loewenstein’s advice that the Stones became tax exiles, decamping to the south of France in the 1970s.

Born on this day: Joe Cocker (1944); Cher (1946); Steve Currie, T Rex (1947); Jimmy Hendrson, Black Oak Arkansas (1954); Jane Wieldin,  The Go-Go”s (1958); Dan Wilson, Semisonic (1961);  Busta Rhymes (1972)

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Today in Rock History – April 29

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April 29

1967, The 14-hour Technicolour Dream benefit party for The International Times was held at Alexandra Palace, Muswell Hill in London. Seeing the event mentioned on TV, John Lennon called his driver and went to the show. Coincidentally, Yoko Ono was one of the performers. More than thirty acts appeared included The Move, The Pretty Things, Soft Machine, Tomorrow, The Flies, The Creation Arthur Brown, and The Graham Bond Organisation. All the bands played for free. Members of Pink Floyd drove all night from an gig in The Netherlands arriving at 3 AM, and taking the stage at dawn.  The entire event was documented by BBC Television.

1967, Aretha Franklin releases her interpretation of the Otis Redding song “Respect.”

1967, Jimi Hendrix, The Walker Brothers, Engelbert Humperdink and Cat Stevens played two shows at Bournemouth Winter Gardens, England.

1969, While working on tracks for the forthcoming Beatles Abbey Road album, Ringo Starr added his vocal to “Octopus’s Garden.”

1970, The Allman Brothers Band played at Aliotta’s Lounge in Buffalo, New York.

1971, Promoter Bill Graham announces he’s closing the Fillmore Auditoriums in San Francisco and New York.

1972, David Bowie performed at Town Hall, High Wycombe, England.

1973, John Denver began a weekly live UK BBC 2 TV special, The John Denver Show.

1973, The Bay City Rollers appeared at The Odeon Theatre, Edinburgh in Scotland.

1974, King Crimson performed at the Stanley Theater, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

1975, Yes played at the Palace Theatre, Manchester, England.

The Bee Gees

1975, After suffering the indignity of having an album rejected by their label, the Bee Gees release their career renaissance Main Course, featuring the disco hits “Jive Talkin'” and “Nights on Broadway.”

1976, Genesis performed  Community Theater, Berkeley, California.

1976, After a gig in Memphis, Bruce Springsteen took a cab to Elvis Presley’s Graceland home and proceeded to climb over the wall. A guard took him to be another crank fan and apprehended him.

1976, Bob Dylan appeared at Expo Hall, Municipal Auditorium, Mobile, Alabama.

1977, The Grateful Dead played the first of five nights at the New York Palladium, New York.

1977, The Kinks appeared at the Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto, Ontario.

1979, Van Halen played at Market Square Arena, Indianapolis, Indiana.

1980, Black Sabbath began their first tour with vocalist Ronnie James Dio, who had replaced Ozzy Osbourne.

1983, Roxy Music performed at the California State University, Fresnom, California.

1984, Yes appeared at the Civic Center in Erie, Pennsylvania.

1993, Guitarist, producer, Mick Ronson died of liver cancer aged 46. Ronson recorded and toured with David Bowie from 1970 to 1973. He released the 1974 solo album Slaughter On Tenth Avenue. Ronson co-produced Lou Reed’s album Transformer. He was also part of the Hunter Ronson Band with Ian Hunter. Among the talent Ronson worked with were Morrissey, Slaughter & The Dogs, The Wildhearts, The Rich Kids, Elton John, Johnny Cougar, T-Bone Burnett.

1995, Rapper Tupac Shakur married Keisha Morris inside the Clinton Correctional Facility, where he was serving a four-year jail term for sex abuse.

2001, A blue plaque was unveiled at 38 Aubrey Walk, Kensington, London to honor the musical heritage of the address where British singer Dusty Springfield lived between 1968 and 1972.

2007, Arctic Monkeys started a three week run at number one on the UK album chart with their second album Favourite Worst Nightmare.

Born on April 29: Duke Ellington (1899); Carl Gardner, American singer, The Coasters (1928); Willie Nelson (1933); Klaus Voorman,  Manfred Mann, Plastic Ono Band (1942);  Tammi Terrell, singer (1945); Tommy James (1947); Michael Karoli, German guitarist, songwriter, Can (1948); Francis Rossi, Status Quo (1949); Mark Kendall, American guitarist,  songwriter, Great White (1957); Carnie Wilson, American singer-songwriter, actress Wilson Phillips (1968); China Forbes, American singer-songwriter, Pink Martini (1970); Mike Hogan, bass, The Cranberries (1973)

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Today in Rock History – February 15

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beatles-meet-the-beatles1964, The Beatles scored their first number one album with Meet The Beatles! The album stayed at the top of the charts for eleven weeks.

1964, The Dave Clark Five appeared on the UK TV show Thank Your Lucky Stars.

1965, American singer and pianist Nat King Cole died of lung cancer. His first hit was the 1943 “Straighten Up and Fly Right.” Cole also had the 1955 US number two single “A Blossom Fell,” the 1957 UK number two single “When I Fall In Love,” plus over 20 other US and UK Top 40 singles. He was the father of singer Natalie Cole, and in 1956 became the first black American to host a television variety show.

1967, Jimi Hendrix played at the Dorothy Ballroom in Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, England.

1968, US blues harmonica player Little Walter died from injuries incurred in a fight while taking a break from a performance at a nightclub in Chicago. First harmonica player to amplify his harp giving it a distorted echoing sound. He joined Muddy Waters’ band in 1948.

1968, The Lennons and Harrisons arrived in India to study meditation with the Maharishi, Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr arrived four days later. Ringo returned before the others comparing the experience to be “like a Butlins holiday camp.”

1969, The Who performed at Dreamland Fun Park in Margate, Kent, England.

1969, Led Zeppelin played the second of two nights at Thee Image Club in Miami, Florida. Thee Image was a converted bowling alley, with all of the lanes stripped out and standing room only. The stages were on the center back wall.

1969, Singer Vickie Jones was arrested on fraud charges for impersonating Aretha Franklin in concert at Fort Myers, Florida. No-one in the audience had asked for their money back.

1969, Sly and the Family Stone started a four week run at number one on the US singles chart with “Everyday People,” their first chart topper.

1970, Grand Funk, Mountain, Chicago, Rare Earth, Cold Blood, Rotary Connection appeared at the Mid-South Coliseum in Memphis, Tennessee.

1970, The Daughters of the American Revolution announce that there will be no more rock concerts at their Constitution Hall in Washington, D.C. Seems the organization was miffed that Sly & the Family Stone sparked a riot after turning up five hours late for a gig there.

1971, The Allman Brothers Band played at the Cumberland County Crown Coliseum in Fayetteville, North Carolina.

1973, The Grateful Dead appeared at the Dane County Coliseum in Madison, Wisconsin.

1974, Yes performed at the New Haven Veterans Memorial Coliseum, New Haven, Connecticut.

Linda Ronstadt

1975, Linda Ronstadt went to number one on the singles chart with “You’re No Good,”a classic song written by Clint Ballard, Jr. which first charted for Betty Everett in 1963. It was Ronstadt’s only solo chart topper out of 12 other top 40 hits. Also Ronstadt went to number one on the album chart with Heart Like A Wheel.

1975, Gino Vannelli becomes the first white man to perform on Soul Train. His current hit song was “People Gotta Move.”

1976, Roxy Music appeared at the Kent State University Memorial Gymnasium, Kent, Ohio.

1977, SwangSong, Led Zeppelin’s label released the following:  “For the fourth consecutive year, Led Zeppelin swept the top honors in the major U.S. and U.K. music polls. Zeppelin took five first places in Creem and Circus and six in Britain’s New Musical Express.  Over 40,000 ballots were cast in the Circus readers poll determining that Led Zeppelin were 1976’s best group. Jimmy Page topped Jeff Beck and Queen’s Brian May to maintain his position as best guitarist. Robert Plant was voted number one male vocalist. The best songwriting award went to Page and Plant. Elton John and Bernie Taupin placing second. Jimmy Page won the top spot as producer of the year.”

1977, Glen Matlock was fired as bass player from The Sex Pistols, being replaced by Sid Vicious. Matlock rejoined in the ’90s when the Pistols reformed.

1978, Frank Zappa played at Deutschlandhalle, Berlin, Germany.

1979, At the 21st Grammy Awards, the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack won Album of the Year and The Bee Gees were named Best Pop Group and Best Arrangement for Voices for “Staying Alive.” Billy Joel’s “Just the Way You Are” won Record and Song of the Year. Donna Summer’s “Last Dance” won two Grammys: Best Female R&B Vocal and Best R&B Song.

1980, Rush appeared at Roberts Municipal Stadium, Evansville, Indiana.

1981, American guitarist Mike Bloomfield was found dead in his car in San Francisco from an accidental heroin overdose. He was a member of the Paul Butterfield Band and Electric Flag. Bloomfield played on Bob Dylan’s album Highway 61 Revisited.

1984, Van Halen played at the Hampton Coliseum, Hampton, Virginia.

1997, U2 went to number one on the UK singles chart with “Discotheque,” the band’s third UK chart topping single. The entire track was leaked onto the Internet in December 1996, forcing U2 to move up the release date.

2000, BBC Sessions, the collection of live and studio Who tracks recorded for the BBC from 1965 to 1970, was finally released in the US and Europe. European purchasers get the extra tracks “Man With Money” and the complete “Shakin’ All Over/Spoonful” unavailable on the US disc. However, American purchasers have the option of getting a seven-track bonus disc unavailable in Europe if they buy BBC Sessions at Best Buy department stores. The CD peaks at #101 in the U.S., #24 in the UK and #50 in Japan.

2006, Winners at the Brit Awards included, James Blunt who won British male solo artist, British female solo artist went to KT Tunstall. Coldplay won Best British album for X&Y and Best British single for “Speed of Sound.” Kaiser Chiefs won Best British group and Best British Live Act, British urban act went to Lemar, British breakthrough act was Arctic Monkeys, International breakthrough act was won by Jack Johnson. International male solo artist was Kanye West with Madonna winning International female solo artist. Green Day won International group and Best International album with American Idiot and Outstanding contribution to music went to Paul Weller.

2008, A flat once rented by The Beatles in London went up for sale for £1.75 ($2.8) million. The band shared the three-bedroom top floor property in Green Street, Mayfair in the autumn of 1963. A publicity photo of the Fab Four peering over a banister, used as the cover for the December 1963 edition of The Beatles Book, was taken at the top of the property’s communal stairwell.

Born on February: Brian Holland, songwriter, producer (1941); Glyn John, producer (1942); Denny Zager, Zager & Evans, Mick Avory, drummer, The Kinks (1944); John Helliwell,  sax, keyboards, Supertramp (1946); David Brown, bass, Santana (1950); Melissa Manchester (1952); John Goodsall,  guitaris, Brand X, Atomic Rooster (1953); Ali Campbell,  English, singer-songwriter,  guitar, UB40 (1959); Brandon Boyd, Incubus (1976); Ronnie Vannucci, Jr., American,  drummer, songwriter, The Killers, Big Talk (1976); Brooks Wackerman, American, drummer, Bad Religion, Infectious Grooves, Fear and the Nervous System, Bad4Good (1977)

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Today in Rock History – February 14

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aretha-franklin-19671967,  Aretha Franklin records a cover of Otis Redding’s “Respect”at Atlantic Studios in New York. It would become a number one US single in June.

1967,  The Doors play the Whisky A Go-Go in Los Angeles.

1967, Jimi Hendrix appeared at Gray’s Club in Tilbury, Essex, England.

1968, Manfred Mann were at number one on the UK singles chart with their version of the Bob Dylan song “The Mighty Quinn.” It was a number ten hit in the US.

1968, Drumming up some publicity, Frank Zappa announces he’s working on two films with his Mothers of Invention. Uncle Meat doesn’t see the light of day until 1987, while a proposed Japanese monster movie never comes to fruition.

1969, The Grateful Dead perform at the Electric Factory in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

1970, The compilation album Motown Chartbusters Vol. 3 went to number one on the UK chart, featuring Diana Ross and The Supremes, Stevie Wonder, The Temptations and The Four Tops.

1970, Pink Floyd performed at King’s Hall, Stoke-on-Trent, England.

1970, The Who appeared at Leeds University, England. The show was recorded for the band’s forthcoming Live At Leeds album. The University of Leeds refectory, has now been named a national landmark in the UK, commemorated with a blue plaque.

1972, John Lennon and Yoko Ono started a week long run as co-hosts on the Mike Douglas TV show.

1973, David Bowie collapsed on stage during a concert at Radio City Music Hall in New York City.

1974, Daryl Dragon and Toni Tennille (of Captain And Tennille) married in Virginia City, while on a promotion tour of the States. They divorced in 2014.

1974, Keith Moon flies back to London to play drums at an all-star Roy Harper concert at The Rainbow. Jimmy Page, David Bedford, and John Bonham also take part under the band name Interglactic Elephant Band. Part of the show is later released as the Roy Harper album Flashes From The Archive Of Oblivion.

1975, Rush played at Wilfrid Laurier University, Waterloo, Ontario, Canada.

1977, Singer songwriter Janis Ian received 461 Valentine’s day cards after indicating in the lyrics of her song “At Seventeen,” she had never received any.

1977, The B-52’s made their first live performance, appearing in a Greenhouse at a Valentines Day party in Athens.

1979, Dire Straits performed at the Rosengarten, Mannheim, Germany.

1980, Blue Oyster Cult played at Agricultural Hall, Allentown, Pennsylvania.

1986, Frank Zappa appeared on an episode of the television series Miami Vice. Zappa portrayed a crime boss named “Mr. Frankie.”

1987, Bon Jovi started a four week run at number one on the US singles chart with “Livin’ On A Prayer,” the group’s second US number one, a number four hit in the UK.

1989, Keyboard player Vincent Crane died.  He was a member of The Crazy World of Arthur Brown, and Atomic Rooster.

1992, The film Wayne’s World, which featured appearances from Meat Loaf and Alice Cooper, premiered in the US. The use of Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody” in the film propelled the song to number two on the US singles charts nearly 20 years after its first release.

1994, The Grateful Dead’s Jerry Garcia married movie maker Deborah Koons.

1995, Rapper Tupac Shakur was sentenced to one-and-a-half to four-and-a-half years in prison on a sexual abuse charge. He was later released on appeal.

1999, Lenny Kravitz scored his first UK number one single with “Fly Away,” a number twelve hit in the US. The track had been used on a TV ad for cars.

2002, Mick Tucker, drummer with glam rock band Sweet, died of leukemia.

2003, Stolen reel-to-reel studio recordings by The Beatles were found in Australia. Police recovered the tapes of the White Album and Abbey Road, after they were advertised for sale in a Sydney newspaper. Australian police had been tipped off by British detectives from Operation Acetone, an investigation into thefts of original Beatles music from Abbey Road studios in London in the 1960’s.

2007, Winners at the 27th annual Brit Awards at London’s Earls Court included Muse, who won Best British Live Act, British Breakthrough Act went to The Fratellis. Winner of the Best International Breakthrough Act was Orson. Take That won the first-ever live vote, when they took home the Best British Single for “Patience.” Arctic Monkeys were named Best British Group, James Morrison was named Best British Male and Amy Winehouse won Best British Female. Justin Timberlake won Best International Male, and Nelly Furtado won Best International Female. The Killers won Best International Group and Best International Album for Sam’s Town and Oasis won the Outstanding Contribution to Music Award.

2009, Bruce Springsteen went to number one on the US album chart with Working on a Dream, his sixteenth studio album.

2010, Doug Fieger singer, songwriter with The Knack died after a long battle with cancer. The Knack had the 1979 US number one and UK number six single “My Sharona,” which he wrote for Sharona Alperin, who later became his girlfriend.

Born on February 14: Maceo Parker, sax, Parliament-Funkadelic (1943); Vic Briggs, The Animals (1945); Doug Simiril, piano, Steve Miller Band (1946); Tim Buckley (1947); Rob Thomas, Matchbox 20 (1972)

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Song Of The Day – “Work Song” by Nina Simone

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ninasimoneHere’s one that was released the year I was born, yet it sounds as hip and current as, well, I am.  OK, it is hipper and more current than I am, but it goes to show just how timeless Nina Simone’s recordings really were.

Simone’s interpretive talents as a singer and piano player earned her the nickname, “The High Priestess Of Soul,” and put her right up there with greats like Anita O’Day, Odetta, Sarah Vaughan and Judy Henske, who all possess a similar earthy style. She was a terrific songwriter, comfortable mingling soul, gospel, folk and blues into a stew that was uniquely her own, and she was also an outspoken Civil Rights activist.

It took a long time for me to crack the hard façade that Nina Simone projected, before I could really appreciate the depths of her talent. Her severe earnestness over the struggles she faced as a black woman during the infancy of the civil rights movement created a seemingly impenetrable barrier between me and her music. But with maturity on my side, I’ve come to love and respect Simone’s whole approach, and the influence she’s had on everyone from Laura Nyro and John Lennon (who cited her recording of “I Put A Spell On You” as an inspiration for The Beatles “Michelle”) to Alicia Keys and Diana Krall.

Simone came to Colpix Records in 1959, after scoring a big hit with “I Loves You, Porgy” on the Bethlehem label. Her deal at Colpix gave her complete artistic control over the material she recorded which was unheard of at the time, and she released nine albums for the label, seven of which were recorded live in front of an audience.  Today’s Song Of The Day, the much covered “Work Song” written by Nat Adderly and Oscar Brown, Jr., is from her second record for the label, 1961’s studio effort Forbidden Fruit.

Part of the album’s excellence comes down to Simone’s sympathetic backing trio consisting of Chris White on bass, Bobby Hamilton on drums, and crucially, the great Al Schackman on guitar, whose tasty licks light up this entire recording, especially on the tunes “Just Say I Love Him” and the album’s opener “Rags And Old Iron.” But its Simone’s vocals and amazing piano accompaniments, especially on “Gin House Blues,” the swaggering “I Love To Love” and the album’s title track, “Forbidden Fruit,” that really elevate the proceedings to new heights of gospel fervor.

Later albums like Nina Simone In Concert from 1964 and the essential RCA album Nina Simone Sings The Blues from 1967, included signature songs that dealt with the civil rights issues of black women like “Mississippi Goddam,” “Backlash Blues,” “Four Women” and “To Be Young, Gifted And Black,” which was later covered by Aretha Franklin and Donny Hathaway.  She was also responsible for introducing the songs “Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood” and “House Of The Rising Sun,” years before The Animals recorded them.

Additionally, her recording of “Sinnerman” was sampled by the likes of Kanye West and Timbaland, but her greatest success came surprisingly from the song “My Baby Cares For Me” which was recorded on  her 1960 debut album for Colpix, but didn’t become popular until 1987 when it was used in a UK television commercial for Chanel No. 5 perfume.