InternetFM.com

Hand Curated Radio

You are here: Home / Archives for Blue Oyster Cult

Blue Oyster Cult

Today in Rock History – July 3

by

monkees-tv1967, A private party was held at the Speakeasy Club in London, England for The Monkees. Guests included: John Lennon, George Harrison, Paul McCartney, Dusty Springfield, Eric Clapton, Lulu, and all the members from Manfred Mann, The Who and Procol Harum.

1967, Jimi Hendrix performed at The Scene in New York City.

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

1968, At an impromptu gathering at Joni Mitchell’s house in Lookout Mountain, Laurel Canyon, Los Angeles, David Crosby, Stephen Stills and Graham Nash played together for the very first time.

1969, John Lennon holds a press conference to announce the release of “Give Peace a Chance,” but can’t show up as he and Yoko are recovering from a car crash in Scotland. Ringo fills in instead.

1969, Brian Jones drowned while under the influence of drugs and alcohol after taking a midnight swim in his pool, aged 27. His body was found at the bottom of the pool by his Swedish girlfriend Anna Wohlin. The coroner’s report stated “Death by misadventure,” and noted his liver and heart were heavily enlarged by drug and alcohol abuse. Jones was one of the founding members of The Rolling Stones.

1969, James Brown, Led Zeppelin, Jethro Tull, Sly and the Family Stone, Jeff Beck, Savoy Brown, Johnny Winter, Jethro Tull, Buddy Guy Blues Band, Mothers Of Invention and Ten Years After all appeared at the four day Newport Jazz Festival in Rhode Island.

1969, The Grateful Dead appeared at Reed’s Ranch in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

1970, Gene Ammons,  Sonny Stitt, Kenny Burrell, Miles Davis, Eddie Harris, Herbie Mann, Mongo Santa Maria, Jerry Smith, Oscar Peterson, Roberta Flack, and Sarah Vaughn appeared at the Hampton Coliseum in Hampton, Virginia.

1970, The three day Atlanta Pop Festival took place, featuring The Allman Brothers, Jimi Hendrix, Jethro Tull, Johnny Winter, Mountain, Procol Harum and Rare Earth. Over 200,000 music fans attended the festival.

1971, American singer, songwriter and poet, Jim Morrison of The Doors was found dead in a bathtub in Paris, France, the cause of death was given as a heart attack. No autopsy was ever performed. However other theories exist. Morrison’s girlfriend, Pam Courson, stated that Jim had died of an accidental heroin overdose, having snorted what he believed to be cocaine.

1971, Melody Maker reports on the appearance of a new Who bootleg in the US, Who Unreleased. Seven of the ten tracks are British Who releases that had not yet come out in the States.

1972, Blues singer, guitarist Mississippi Fred McDowell died of cancer aged 68. The Rolling Stones covered his “You Got To Move” on their Sticky Fingers album. He coached Bonnie Raitt on slide guitar technique.

1973, Laurens Hammond the inventor of the Hammond organ died aged 73. Many rock artists including Procol Harum, Keith Emerson, Led Zeppelin, The Doors, The Allman Brothers and The Faces featured the sound of the Hammond. He also invented a silent spring-driven clock and during the World War II, he helped design guided missile systems.

1973, On the last night of a 60-date tour David Bowie announced he was about to retire from live performing, although it eventually transpires that Ziggy Stardust, the stage persona is being retired and not Bowie himself.

1975, Yes performed at the Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City, Missouri.

1975, Lead singer from Three Dog Night Chuck Negron was arrested at his Louisville hotel room on the opening night of the band’s tour and charged with possession of cocaine.

1976, Pete Townshend opens his Meher Baba Oceanic Centre with a week-long convention for his followers and gives away copies of the new Meher Baba tribute LP With Love. It features Pete’s “His Hands,” “Sleeping Dog,” and “Lantern Cabin,” a Pete vocal on “Meher” as well as a Billy Nicholls’ song “Without Your Love,” that will later be a solo hit for Roger.

1976, Brian Wilson played his first live show with The Beach Boys in seven years when they appeared at the Anaheim Stadium, California.

1977, Aerosmith appeared at Freedom Hall, Louisville, Kentucky.

1978, Bob Dylan performed at the Pavillon De Paris, Paris.

1979, James Taylor played at Mid-South Coliseum, Memphis, Tennessee.

1980, Roxy Music appeared at Oberschwabenhalle, Ravensburg, Germany.

1981, bands performing on this date: Kraftwerk at the Hammersmith Odeon, London; Blue Oyster Cult at Autzen Stadium, Eugene, Oregon; Van Halen at Cobo Arena, Detroit; Rush at the Metropolitan Sports Center, Bloomington, Minnesota; and Bruce Springsteen at Brendan Byrne Arena, East Rutherford.

1982, The Human League started a three week run at number one on the US singles charts with “Don’t You Want Me,” also a UK chart topper.

1983, Iron Maiden appeared at Memorial Auditorium, Sacramento, California.

1985, Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band played the first of three sold out shows at Wembley Stadium in London.

1986, U2 crew member Greg Carroll was killed in a motorcycle accident in Dublin while running an errand for Bono. The song “One Tree Hill” on the band’s Joshua Tree album is dedicated to Carroll.

1996, AC/DC played the second of two nights at Palau Sant Jordi, Barcelona, Spain on their Ballbreaker world tour.

2001, American singer, songwriter Johnny Russell died aged 61. Wrote “Act Naturally” covered by The Beatles and Buck Owens. Jim Reeves, Jerry Garcia, Dolly Parton, Emmylou Harris, and Linda Ronstadt all covered his songs.

Born on July 3: David Lynch, The Platters (1929);  Tommy Tedesco, session guitarist for Beach Boys, Everly Brothers, The Supremes, The Monkees, The Association, Barbra Streisand, Elvis Presley, and more (1930); Paul Barrerre, Little Feat (1948); Johnnie Wilder, vocals, Heatwave (1949); Andy Fraser, Free, John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers (1952); Vince Clarke, Depeche Mode, Yazoo, Erasure (1960); and Kevin Hearn, Barenaked Ladies (1969)

Get more Today in Rock History

Today in Rock History – June 6

by

1965, Herman’s Hermits play The Ed Sullivan Show.

1965, The Rolling Stones released the single “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction” on the Decca label in the US. The song also featured on the American version of the Rolling Stones’ fourth studio album, Out of Our Heads, released that July.

1965, The Who played at St. Joseph’s Hall in London.

1966, Roy Orbison’s first wife, Claudette, was killed when a truck pulled out of a side road and collided with the motorbike that she and her husband were riding on in Gallatin, Texas, she was 25.

1966, The Who head from Sweden to Denmark, flying into Copenhagen. That night Keith Moon and John Entwistle go drinking at the Carousel Club and sit in for a set with The Tremeloes.

1968, Screaming Lord Sutch appeared at the Freehold Hullabaloo in Freehold, New Jersey. Sutch was touring the East Coast in a old custom-painted Rolls Royce hearse. The support band was The Castiles, with Bruce Springsteen on vocals).

1969, Creedence Clearwater Revival and Soul Survivors appeared at the Mid-South Coliseum in Memphis, Tennessee.

1969, Rod Stewart signs as a solo artist to Mercury Records.

1970, Christie were at number one on the singles chart with “Yellow River,” the group’s only chart topper. Written by Jeff Christie for the Tremeloes who turned it down, so he recorded it himself.

1970, Felix Cavaliere & The Rascals played at Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, Maryland.

1970, Syd Barrett played his first gig since leaving Pink Floyd at the Extraveganza ’70, at London’s Olympia. He was joined on stage by Floyd guitarist David Gilmour.

1970, This is the third of a four night residency for the Grateful Dead at San Francisco’s Fillmore West.

1970, The Doors appeared at the Pacific Coliseum, Vancouver, British Columbia.

1971, John Lennon and Yoko Ono jammed live on stage with Frank Zappa at The Filmore East in New York. Some of these recordings were released in 1972, on John Lennon’s third post-Beatles album, Some Time in New York City.

1971, This date was the last broadcast of The Ed Sullivan Show. Ed’s final musical guests are Gladys Knight & the Pips.

1972, David Bowie releases his album The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders From Mars.

1973, King Crimson played at Ellis Auditorium, Memphis, Tennessee.

1974, Billy Swan records his chart topping song “I Can Help.”

1975, Pink Floyd fly to America for a tour. It would end in disaster when an addled Roger Waters spits on the audience. The event would serve as the inspiration for writing The Wall in an attempt to exorcise his demons.

1975, The Rolling Stones appeared at Arrowhead Stadium, Kansas City, Missouri.

1976, Genesis performed at the Hammersmith Odeon in London.

1977, Queen appeared at Earls Court in London, England.

1977, Students at UCLA are shocked when Stevie Wonder appears as a guest lecturer, talking about his experiences with Motown and then performing music by way of illustration.

1978, Bob Dylan performed at the Universal Amphitheater in Los Angeles.

1979, Def Leppard played at Crookes Workingman’s Club in Sheffield. The gig was reviewed in UK music paper Sounds and led to a recording contract with Phonogram Records.

1981, Van Halen appeared at the Seattle Center Coliseum, Seattle, Washington.

1982, Tom Petty, Crosby Stills & Nash, Bob Dylan, Stevie Wonder, Stevie Nicks and Jackson Browne all appeared at The Rose Bowl, Pasadena, California to a crowd of 85,000 fans at the six hour Peace Sunday, We Have A Dream antinuclear concert. Dylan was joined onstage with Joan Baez and duetted with her on “Blowin’ In The Wind” and “With God On Our Side.” The show was partly broadcast on ABC TV’s Entertainment Tonight program on the same day.

1984, Blue Oyster Cult performed at the Agora Ballroom,  a “cavernous” former bowling alley in an industrial area in Hartford, Connecticut.

1986, A&R man Dick Rowe died of diabetes. Rowe became famous for not signing The Beatles to Decca records and made the classic quote “Nobody cares about guitar group’s anymore.” He did however sign The Rolling Stones to Decca.

2003, Keyboard player with The Animals Dave Rowberry died aged 62. He replaced Alan Price who left in 1965. The Animals had the 1964 UK and US number one single “House Of The Rising Sun.”

2006, Billy Preston died of kidney failure. The Grammy-winning keyboard player collaborated with some of the greatest names in the music industry, including the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, Nat King Cole, Little Richard, Ray Charles, George Harrison, Elton John, Eric Clapton and Bob Dylan.

Born on June 6: Levi Stubbs, The Four Tops (1936); Gary “US” Bonds (1939); Clarence White, The Byrds (1944); and Steve Vai, guitarist, Frank Zappa, David Lee Roth, Whitesnake (1960)

Get more Today in Rock History

Today in Rock History – June 3

by

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)

Get more Today in Rock History

Today in Rock History – June 2

by

1964, The Rolling Stones play their first American show at a Lynn, Massachusetts high school football stadium. They also make their American TV debut on The Les Crane Show. An Associated Press reporter notes, “They are dirtier and streakier and more disheveled than the Beatles, and in some places, they are more popular than the Beatles.”

1966, Frank Sinatra was at number one on the singles chart with “Strangers In The Night.”

1966, The Who kicked off a 10-date European tour in front of 11,000 fans at the Grona Lund in Stockholm, Sweden. Their repertoire included a cover of Stevie Wonder’s “Uptight.”

1967, David Bowie released his debut album, David Bowie, which failed to make the UK charts.

1968, Cream played at the Pacific Coliseum in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.

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

1971, Pink Floyd appeared at the Student Health Centre Refectory, Edinburgh University, Edinburgh, Scotland.

1972, Dion reunites with the Belmonts for an oldies show at New York’s Madison Square Garden.

1972, Spirit and Blue Oyster Cult played at Ft. Homer Hesterly Armory in Tampa, Florida.

1972, Pink Floyd release their soundtrack Obscured by Clouds in the UK. The US release would take place on June 17th.

1973, Paul McCartney had both the number one positions on the US charts when Red Rose Speedway, went to the top of the album chart and “My Love” started a four week run as the top single.

1973, Led Zeppelin played to 50,000 fans at San Francisco’s Kezar Stadium. Although the 2 ½ hour show was 6,000 short of capacity, listeners blanketed the football field and stands. Hundreds of others heard the music for free from rooftops in the surrounding neighborhood.

1973, The Electric Light Orchestra began their first US tour in San Diego, California.

 

1974, KISS played at the Sundowner Drive-In Theater, Anchorage, Alaska.

1975, Rush performed at the Winterland Ballroom, San Francisco.

1976, Wings set a new world record when they performed in front of 67,100 fans in Seattle, the largest attendance for an indoor crowd.

1977, Supertramp appeared at Maple Leaf Gardens, Toronto.

1978, Thin Lizzy released the live double album Live And Dangerous. It was recorded in Philadelphia, London and Toronto in 1977, during the tours accompanying the albums Johnny The Fox and Bad Reputation.

1979, Van Halen played at Carter-Finley Stadium, Raleigh, North Carolina.

1980, Roxy Music performed at Palais De Sport, Paris.

1981, Prince made his live British debut at The Lyceum Ballroom, London. He would not play the UK again for five years.

1984, Wham! had their first UK number one with “Wake Me Up Before You Go Go.” Written and produced by George Michael, one half of the duo. Inspiration for the song was a scribbled note left by his Wham! partner Andrew Ridgeley for Andrew’s parents, originally intended to read “wake me up before you go” but with “up” accidentally written twice, so Ridgeley wrote “go” twice on purpose.

1984, Aerosmith played at the Capitol Theater in Concord, New Hampshire, the first night on their 59-date North American Back In The Saddle tour.

1999, Junior Braithwaite from Bob Marley and the Wailers was shot dead aged 46, in the home of a fellow musician in Kingston, Jamaica. Braithwaite was one of the founders of, and the first lead singer of The Wailers. He left the band in 1964.

2002, Pop Idol winner Will Young scored his second UK No.1 single with his version of The Doors 1967 hit “Light My Fire.”

2008, Guitarist and singer Bo Diddley (born Ellas Otha Bates) died of heart failure at his home in Archer, Florida at age 79. The legendary singer and performer, was known for his homemade square guitar and his distinctive rhythm, known at the “Bo Diddley beat,” which influenced artists from Buddy Holly to Bruce Springsteen, The Rolling Stones and U2.

Born on June 2:  Johnny Carter, American singer, The Flamingos and The Dells (1934); Otis Williams, singer, The Charms (1936); Charlie Watts (1941); William Guest, American singer-songwriter, producer, Gladys Knight & the Pips (1941); Marvin Hamlish (1944);  Chubby Tavares, Tavares (1950); Michael Steele, bass, vocals, The Bangles (1959); Lydia Lunch, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, actress, Teenage Jesus and the Jerks, 8-Eyed Spy, Harry Crews,  My Life with the Thrill Kill Kult (1959); Tony Hadley, English  singer-songwriter,  Spandau Ballet (1960); Dez Cadena, American singer-songwriter, guitarist Misfits, Black Flag, Osaka Popstar, DC3, The Gentlemen,  Loaded (1961); Thor Eldon, guitar, The Sugarcubes (1962);  Jason Falkner, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, producer, Jellyfish, The Grays, and The Three O’Clock (1968); Tim Rice-Oxley, English singer-songwriter, keyboards, Keane, Mt. Desolation (1976)

Get more Today in Rock History

Today in Rock History – May 19

by

beatles -sgtpeppers1967, The Beatles held a press party at manager Brian Epstein’s house in London for the launch of the Sgt. Pepper’s album. Linda Eastman was hired as the press photographer.

1967, Pink Floyd played at Club A’ Go Go in Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear, England.

1969, The Who appeared at The Rock Pile in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

1970, New Riders of the Purple Sage, along with The Grateful Dead, performed at the Washington University Quadrangle in St. Louis, Missouri.

1971, Emerson, Lake And Palmer and Mott the Hoople played at the Peabody Opera House in St. Louis, Missouri.

1971, King Crimson performed at the Lyceum Ballroom in London.

1972, David Bowie appeared at Oxford Brookes University in Oxford, Oxfordshire, England.

1973, Stevie Wonder went to number one on the US singles chart with “You Are The Sunshine Of My Life.” His third chart topper, it was the second release from Talking Book.

1973, Paul Simon released the single “Kodachrome” which became a hit in the US, but was banned from airplay in the UK because it contained a brand name.

1973, Humble Pie played at Memorial Auditorium, Buffalo, New York.

1973, The Allman Brothers Band performed at Fairground Coliseum, Columbus, Ohio.

1974, The Grateful Dead performed at the Memorial Coliseum in Portland, Oregon.

1976, Bob Dylan played at Henry Levitt Arena, Wichita, Kansas.

1976, Rolling Stone Keith Richards crashed his car near Newport Pagnell, Buckinghamshire, England, after falling asleep at the wheel.

1976, Aerosmith performed at the Von Braun Civic Center, Huntsville, Alabama.

1978, Dire Straits released their first major label single “Sultans Of Swing.”

1979, Van Halen appeared at The Spectrum, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

1979, Eric Clapton held a party at his Surrey house celebrating his recent marriage to Patti Boyd. Clapton had set-up a small stage in the garden and as the evening progressed, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr ended up jamming together along with Clapton, Ginger Baker and Mick Jagger. The jam session comprised a selection of Little Richard and Eddie Cochran songs.

1979, Supertramp went to number one on the US album chart with Breakfast In America, the group’s only chart topper.

1980, Black Sabbath played at City Hall, Newcastle-Upon-Tyne, England.

1980, Ringo Starr and his future wife, actress Barbara Bach were involved in a car crash less than half a mile from where Marc Bolan was killed, the car was totaled, but Starr and Bach were not seriously injured.

1982, Blue Oyster Cult appeared at Rudi Sedlmayr Halle, Munich, Germany.

1983, Roxy Music performed at Maple Leaf Gardens, Toronto.

1984, Bob Marley and the Wailers started a 12-week run at number one on the UK album chart with the compilation album Legend, released to commemorate the third anniversary of Marley’s death. It reached the fifth spot in the US. Legend is the best-selling reggae album of all-time, with over 15 million copies sold in the United States and an estimated 25 million copies sold globally.

1988, James Brown was arrested for the fifth time in 12 months, following a car chase near his home, he was charged with assault, resisting arrest and being in charge of illegal weapons, he was given a 6 year jail sentence.

2001, Mike Sammes founder of The Mike Sammes Singers died aged 73. He worked with Tom Jones, Cliff Richard and featured on The Beatles’ “I Am The Walrus” and “The Long And Winding Road.”

2007, Lawyers for Michael Jackson dropped an effort to block an auction of the star’s personal belongings and other Jackson family items. An agreement was reached with representatives of an auctioneer, who was the current owner of the materials, and a New Jersey man who claimed to own a warehouse full of Jackson memorabilia, after a failed business venture wound up in bankruptcy court.

2013, A guitar played by John Lennon and George Harrison sold for $408,000 (£269,000) at auction. The custom-made instrument, built in 1966 by VOX was bought by an unidentified US buyer in New York. Harrison played “I Am The Walrus” on the guitar in a scene from Magical Mystery Tour in 1967. Lennon used it in a video for “Hello, Goodbye” later that year. After playing the guitar, Lennon gave it as a 25th birthday present to Alexis “Magic Alex” Mardas, a member of The Beatles’ inner circle in the 1960s.

Born on this day:  Pete Townshend (1945); Tom Scott, saxophonist (1946); Greg Herbert, Blood Sweat & Tears (1947); Dusty Hill, ZZ Top (1949); Grace Jones and Joey Ramone (1952); and Philip Rudd, drums, AC/DC (1954)

Get more rock history at Yeah Baby Tunes

Today in Rock History – February 27

by

1964, The Rolling Stones made their second appearance on BBC TV show Top Of The Pops performing “Not Fade Away.”

1965, This marked the first date of a 21 twice- nightly UK package tour with Del Shannon, Wayne Fontana & the Mindbenders, and Herman’s Hermits, stopping at Sheffield’s City Hall, England.

1967, Pink Floyd continued working on their debut album The Piper At The Gates Of Dawn at Abbey Road Studios, London. With the exception of two group-composed instrumentals and one Roger Waters song, the album was written entirely by Syd Barrett.

1969, The Grateful Dead played at the Fillmore West, San Francisco.

1970, Elvis Presley performed at Houston’s Astrodome.

1970, Jefferson Airplane is fined $1000 (£ 625) for using profanity during a show in Oklahoma City.

1971, Small Faces, The Grease Band, and Savoy Brown appeared at The Warehouse in New Orleans, Louisiana.

1971, Three Dog Night performed at the Indiana State Fairgrounds Coliseum in Indianapolis.

1971, Five months after her death, Janis Joplin started a nine-week run at number one on the album chart with Pearl.

1972, T Rex appeared at New York’s Carnegie Hall.

1972, Yes played at the Palace Theater, Waterbury, Connecticut.

1972, Led Zeppelin performed at Sydney Showgrounds, Sydney in Australia.

1973, The Rolling Stones played at the Randwick Racecourse in Sydney.

1974, Cher filed for divorce from Sonny Bono. Cher married Gregg Allman from The Allman Brothers band on June 27th of the following year.

1976, The Who begin a European tour at Hallenstadion, Zürich, Switzerland.

1977, Keith Richards was arrested by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police at Toronto’s Harbour Castle Hotel, for possession of heroin and cocaine. Bail was set at $25,000.

1977, Led Zeppelin cancel the first date of their world tour in Dallas after Robert Plant comes down with tonsillitis.

1977, Pink Floyd performed at Olympiahalle, Munich, Germany.

1978, Rush appeared at the Gaumont Theatre, Southampton, England.

1980, Winners at the 22nd Grammy Awards included: Song of the year, “What A Fool Believes” by The Doobie Brothers, Album of the year, Billy Joel’s 52nd St, and Best new artist, Rickie Lee Jones.

1981, The first Who single recorded after Keith Moon’s death, “You Better You Bet,” is released in the UK. The b-side is John Entwistle’s song “The Quiet One.” It reaches number nine on the charts.

1983, Blue Oyster Cult played at the Bicentennial Center, Salina, Kansas.

1988, Aerosmith performed at the Hirsch Memorial Coliseum, Shreveport, Louisiana.

1993, Whitney Houston’s “I Will Always Love You” spent 14 weeks at number one on the US singles charts, giving her the longest ever US chart topper, taking over from Boyz II Men’s hit “End Of The Road,” and became the second biggest selling single in the US.

2004, A worker in a supermarket in Aspen, Colorado alerted the police-after seeing a man shopping with his face covered by a mask. Police arrived on the scene and identified the man as Michael Jackson who was in town on holiday with his children.

2010, U2 raked in more money than any other music act in the US in 2009 making $109m (£71m) from touring, record sales and other royalties, almost twice as much as the second best, Bruce Springsteen who took home $58m (£38m), followed by Madonna with $47m (£31m) and AC/DC with $44m (£29m). Coldplay were the most successful British group, at number eight, with takings of $27m (£18m).

Born on February 27: Eddie Gray, Tommy James & the Shondelles (1948); Robert Ballderama, ? and the Mysterians (1950); Neal Schon,  Journey (1954); Adrian Smith, Iron Maiden (1957); Johnny Van Zant, Lynryd Skynyrd (1957); Paul Humphreys, Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark (1960); Josh Groban (1981)

Link to Today in Rock History main page.

Today in Rock History – February 24

by

Rolling-Stones-19631963, The Rolling Stones started a Sunday night residency at The Station Hotel, Richmond, Surrey. The Stones were paid $41 for the gig and played on the first night to a total of 66 people.

1965, The first full day of filming took place for The Beatles movie Help! with the group riding bicycles on location near London Airport, England.

1966, The Who perform at the Victoria Ballroom in Chesterfield, England, without Roger Daltrey, who had come down with laryngitis. Pete Townshend and John Entwistle share the vocals. Beforehand, John and Keith Moon sit in with the opening act, The Fruit Eating Bears.

1967, The Who play two shows at the Palazzetto dello Sport in Bologna, Italy.

1967, Pink Floyd performed two shows on this date. An early show took place at the Ricky Tick Club, at the Thames Hotel in Windsor, and a late show, their regular Friday gig at the UFO, held at the Blarney Club on Tottenham Court Road in London.

1968, Jimi Hendrix, Soft Machine, Eire Apparent, and The Paupers played at CNE Coliseum in Toronto. After the concert, Hendrix reportedly jammed with Robbie Robertson and members of The Hawks, soon to be known as The Band, at an area club.

1969, The Jimi Hendrix Experience played their last ever-British performance when they appeared at the Royal Albert Hall.

1969, Led Zeppelin appeared at the Lafayette Club in Wolverhampton, West Midlands, England.

1970, Syd Barrett participated in two recording sessions for the BBC at Maida Vale Studios in London. Playing along with Syd were David Gilmour, and Jerry Shirley on drums.

1972, The Allman Brothers Band appeared at the Pacific Coliseum in Vancouver.

1972, Genesis performed at the Free Trade Hall, Manchester, England.

1973, Roberta Flack had her second number one when “Killing Me Softly With His Song,” started a five-week run at the top. The song was written about US singer songwriter Don McLean.

1973, The Byrds made their final live appearance when they played at The Capitol Theatre in Passaic, New Jersey. It was their current incarnation of the group, which included Roger McGuinn, Clarence White, John York and Gene Parsons.

1974, Yes appeared at Cornell University, Ithaca, New York.

led-zeppelin-physical-graffiti1975, Led Zeppelin released their sixth album Physical Graffiti in the UK. Recording sessions had been disrupted when bassist and keyboard player John Paul Jones had proposed quitting the band, supposedly to become choirmaster at Winchester Cathedral, England, although in reality he just needed time to rest after Zeppelin’s demanding tour schedule. The group decided on a double album so they could feature songs left over from their previous albums Led Zeppelin III, Led Zeppelin IV and Houses Of The Holy.

1976, The Eagles Greatest Hits became the first album to be certified platinum by the R.I.A.A. New certification’s represented sales of 1 million copies for albums and two million for singles.

1977, ZZ Top played at Cobo Arena, Detroit.

1978, Bob Dylan performed at Matsushita Denki Taiikukan, Hirakata City, Osaka, Japan.

1979, Rush appeared at the State Fairgrounds Coliseum, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.

1982, Winners at the Grammy Awards included John & Yoko Album of the year with Double Fantasy, Kim Carnes for Song of the year with Bette Davis Eyes, Quincy Jones won producer of the year, and Sheena Easton best new act.

1982, King Crimson performed at the E J Thomas Auditorium, Akron, Ohio.

1982, The Police won best British group at the first annual Brit Awards held in London. Adam And The Ants won best album for Kings Of The Wild Frontier, Cliff Richard won British Male Solo Artist, and Randy Crawford won British Female Solo Artist. British Breakthrough Act went to The Human League. British Producer was Martin Rushent, and Outstanding Contribution went to John Lennon.

1984, Blue Oyster Cult appeared at the Palace Theatre, Albany, New York.

1992, Kurt Cobain married Courtney Love in Waikiki, Hawaii. The press reported that the couple were expecting a baby on Sept 10th of that year.

2000, Carlos Santana won eight awards at the Grammy Awards. Before the Supernatural album, the guitarist had not had a top ten album since 1981. Sting won two awards, one for best pop album and another for best male pop vocalist. Sir Elton John won the legend award, and Phil Collins the best soundtrack award for Tarzan.

2004, Estelle Axton, who helped create the legendary US soul music label Stax, died in hospital in Memphis, aged 85. Stax was home to Otis Redding, Rufus Thomas, Isaac Hayes and Booker T and the MG’s and the Stax studio, “Soulsville USA” was second only to Motown in its production of soul hits during its 1960s heyday.

2014, Franny Beecher, the lead guitarist for Bill Haley & His Comets from 1954 to 1962, died in his sleep from natural causes. He was 92 years old. He continued to perform with surviving members of the Comets into 2006.

Born on February 24: Paul Jones, Manfred Mann (1942); Nicky Hopkins (1944); Rupert Holmes, “The Pina Colada Song” (1947); and Lonnie Turner, Steve Miller Band  (1947); George Thorogood (1950); Michelle Shocked (1962)

Link to Today in Rock History main page

Today in Rock History – February 14

by

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)

Link to Today in rock history archive. 

Albert Bouchard, Co-founder of Blue Öyster Cult Joins InternetFM Advisory Team

by

Lake Bluff, IL (February 14, 2020)

SRN Broadcasting announced today that Albert Bouchard, a co-founder of multi-platinum recording artists Blue Öyster Cult, has joined the InternetFM advisory team.

Bouchard joins a group of ten advisors who provide technical advice, industry introductions, and assistance to the development and marketing teams working on the InternetFM platform. He is the first professional musician in the group, which also includes several radio station owners, a former record industry consultant, and more.

“We are thrilled to have Albert Bouchard round out our experienced and passionate group of advisors that span across the broadcast and music communities,” said Steven Leventhal, co-founder of InternetFM. “As a member of one of the most beloved American bands of the mid-1970’s that’s widely popular among our listener base, Albert will help us further tap into our audience, and provide a premium experience tailored just for them”

“The crystal radio has faded into the past, but this idea of listening to a radio program from far away under the covers at night still seems like magic,” stated Bouchard. “I look forward to working with the incredible team to help make the InternetFM app the preeminent source for streaming radio.”

Bouchard was a key member of Blue Öyster Cult during the years they achieved international success with hit songs like Cities on Flame With Rock and Roll, (Don’t Fear) the Reaper, Godzilla, and Burnin’ For You. The band has had a profound influence on many hard rock and heavy metal acts that followed such as  Iron Maiden, Metallica, Alice in Chains, Twisted Sister, Ratt, the Cult, Queens of the Stone Age, and more.

L to R: Joe Bouchard, Dennis Dunaway, and Albert Bouchard of Blue Coupe

About Albert Bouchard: After college he formed a band with Don “Buck Dharma” Roeser and his brother, Joe, that would become Blue Öyster Cult. He left B.O.C. in 1982 and worked as session musician and musical director for oldies acts. He then went back to college, got his BA in music, MA in English Literacy and taught in a Public High School in Manhattan. In 2008 he formed a band with brother Joe, and Alice Cooper’s bass player, Dennis Dunaway, called Blue Coupe, who’ve released three CDs and continue to play concerts all over the world. In 2016 President Obama honored Bouchard at the White House as an outstanding educator. His discography includes over 65 nationally released albums, including four platinum and eight gold records.

About InternetFM: InternetFM is a network of 40 independent streaming radio station available at InternetFM.com and the InternetFM app. The radio stations are located in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and the Netherlands.  Listeners span over 150 countries worldwide. The flagship radio product is Acid Flashback radio, a free-form rock station programmed by Steven Leventhal, a radio veteran with nearly three decades of broadcast radio experience.

Contact:
Steven Leventhal
Steve@internetfm.com
847-735-1995

Today in Rock History – February 11

by

Beatles-Twist-and-Shout1963, In less than ten hours, The Beatles record ten new songs for their first album plus four other tracks which would be the next two singles. John Lennon’s vocal on The Isley Brothers “Twist & Shout” was recorded in one take to complete the album.

1964, The Beatles made their live concert debut in the US at the Washington Coliseum. Over 350 police surrounded the stage to keep the 8,000 plus screaming fans in control. One police officer who found the noise so loud stuck a bullet in each ear as ear plugs. The Beatles had to stop three times and turn Ringo’s drum kit around and re-position their microphones so that they faced a different part of the audience.

1965, Ringo Starr married his long-time girlfriend Maureen at Caxton Hall Register Office in London. John and George attended, Paul was away on holiday.

1967, Jimi Hendrix played at the Blue Moon in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, England.

1968, The Who go into IBC Studios to complete the recording of “Glow Girl” as well as recording the backing tracks for “Call Me Lightning” and “Little Billy.” That evening they drive out to Crawley, West Sussex, to play the Starlite Ballroom. Their supporting group is Jo-Jo Gunne.

1969, The Monkees set a new record when their second album More Of The Monkees, jumped from number 122 to the top of the album chart. The album then stayed in there for eighteen weeks.

1970, Fleetwood Mac, The Allman Brothers and Grateful Dead all appeared at the Fillmore East in New York City.

1971, Ry Cooder and Captain Beefheart performed at the Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

1972, Led Zeppelin scored their third US Top 20 hit single with “Black Dog / Misty Mountain Hop,” from Led Zeppelin IV.  The song peaked at number fifteen.  The song’s title is a reference to a nameless black Labrador retriever that wandered around the Headley Grange studios during recording. Robert Plant recorded his vocal for the track in two takes.

1972, During their Dark Side Of The Moon tour, Pink Floyd appeared at the Free Trade Hall, Manchester, England. The show was abandoned after 25 minutes due to a power cut.

1973, A local charity raised over $850 selling bedsheets and pillowcases used by the Rolling Stones after a show at Western Springs Stadium in Auckland, New Zealand.

1974, Bob Dylan played at the Alameda County Coliseum, Oakland, California.

Bowie 1976 source: bowiegoldenyears.com
Bowie 1976 source: bowiegoldenyears.com

1976, David Bowie performed at the Forum in Inglewood, California. In the audience are Linda Blair, Henry Winkler, Carole King and Cameron Crowe. In the dressing room after the show, Bowie chatted to Christopher Isherwood and David Hockney, who also attended.

1978, Eric Clapton appeared at the Civic Auditorium, Santa Monica, California.

1980, Blue Oyster Cult performed at the Mid-Hudson Civic Center, Poughkeepsie, New York.

1983, Eric Clapton took the stage at Veterans Memorial Coliseum, Phoenix, Arizona.

1986, Aerosmith played at Memorial Coliseum, Corpus Christi, Texas.

1992, Motley Crue fired their singer Vince Neil when he turned up for rehearsals, claiming that he had lost his passion for the band and was now more involved with racing cars.

1998, The hand-written lyrics to “Candle in the Wind” by Bernie Taupin were auctioned off at Christie’s in LA for $278,512 (£174,070.)

2012, Whitney Houston was found dead in suite 434 at the Beverly Hilton Hotel, submerged in the bathtub. Beverly Hills paramedics arrived at approximately 3:30 p.m. and found the singer unresponsive and performed CPR. Houston was pronounced dead at 3:55 p.m.

Born on February 11: Gene Vincent (1935); Gerry Goffin (1939); Bobby “Boris” Pickett (1940); Sergio Mendes (1941); Otis Clay, bluesman (1942); Alan Rubin, trumpet, The Blues Brothers (1943); Derek Schulman, Gentle Giant (1947); Paul D. Hudson, aka HR, singer, guitar, Bad Brains (1956); Sheryl Crow (1962); Fredrik Thordendal, Swedish guitarist, songwriter, Meshuggah (1970); Craig Jones, keyboards, Slipknot (1972); Mike Shinoda, singer-songwriter, guitar, producer Linkin Park, Fort Minor (1977)

Link to Today in Rock History main page.