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Today in Rock History – February 9

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1964, The Beatles made their US live debut on CBS-TV’s The Ed Sullivan Show. They performed five songs including their current number one “I Want To Hold Your Hand,” watched by an estimated 73 million people. The show had received over 50,000 applications for the 728 seats in the TV studio.

1965, The Who play The Marquee Club in London.

1967, Cat Stevens played at Assembly Hall in Worthing, West Sussex, England.

1967, Canadian conductor Percy Faith died aged 67. He scored the 1953 hit “Song from the Moulin Rouge” and 1960 number one “Theme From A Summer Place,” nine weeks at the top of the charts, which won the Grammy Award for Record of the Year in 1961.

1967, the film for the latest Beatles single “Penny Lane” and “Strawberry Fields Forever”was shown on BBC-TV’s Top Of The Pops. It was the first Beatles single not to make number one in the UK since 1963, held off the top by Engelbert Humperdinck’s “Release Me.”

1968, Hal Cone former manager of The Monkees, and Head of Jones Records was found guilty of theft, forgery, receiving stolen property and conspiracy.

1968, Paul Revere & the Raiders performed at the Civic Center in Charleston, West Virginia.

1970, Jack Bruce, Pacific Gas & Electric, and Renaissance played at The Warehouse in New Orleans, Louisiana.

1972, Genesis performed at the Rainbow Theatre in London.

Wings, circa 1972

1972, Paul McCartney’s Wings played the first night of a UK College tour in Nottingham. The group arrived unannounced, asking social secretaries if they would like them to perform that evening. The band’s intended first stop on the tour, Ashby-de-la-Zouch, refused to allow them to play so they drove on to Nottingham. Admission was 40p, British pub rock band Brinsley Schwarz was the opening act for the tour.

1973, The Grateful Dead performed at Roscoe Maples Pavillion at Stanford University in Palo Alto, California.

1974, The Love Unlimited Orchestra went to number one on the singles chart with”Love’s Theme.”

1974, The Who take Quadrophenia to Europe beginning at the Paris Pavilion supported by Speedy Keene and his band. By now Quadrophenia has been cut down to “The Real Me,” “The Punk And The Godfather,” “I’m One,” “5:15,” “Sea And Sand,” “Drowned,” “Bell Boy,” “Dr. Jimmy,” and “Love Reign O’er Me.”

1974, Yes appeared at Tampa Stadium, Tampa, Florida.

1976, David Bowie performed at The Forum in Inglewood, California.

1977, Black Sabbath played at the Municipal Auditorium, Nashville, Tennessee.

1980, Blue Oyster Cult headlined at the  Springfield Civic Center, Springfield, Massachusetts.

1981, American singer Bill Haley was found dead, fully clothed, on his bed at his home in Harlington, Texas from a heart attack, Haley had sold over 60 million records during his career. Scored the 1955 number one single “Rock Around The Clock,” and became known as the first rock ‘n’ roll star. Haley was blinded in his left eye as a child due to a botched operation and later adopted his distinctive spit-curl hairstyle to distract attention from his blind eye.

1981, Phil Collins releases his solo debut, Face Value.

1982, George Harrison presented UNICEF with a check for $9.0 (£5.65) million, ten years after the fundraising concert for Bangladesh.

1990, Nirvana set out on a short west coast tour opening for Dinosaur Jr. at the Pine Street Theater, Portland, Oregon.

1997, Brian Connolly, singer with the 1970’s glam rock group Sweet died of kidney and liver failure aged 51. Connolly replaced Ian Gillan (later of Deep Purple and Black Sabbath) in Wainwright’s Gentlemen who became Sweetshop and then shortened to Sweet.

2009, Led Zeppelin singer Robert Plant took home five prizes for his collaboration with bluegrass singer Alison Krauss at this year’s Grammy Awards held in Los Angeles. The duo won album of the year for Raising Sand and record of the year for “Please Read The Letter.” Coldplay won song of the year for “Viva La Vida.”

Born on this day: Barry Mann, singer, songwriter (1939); Carole King (1942); Joe Ely (1947) and Dennis Thomas, Kool & the Gang (1951)

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Black Sabbath – Rock History – February 5

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beatles-penny-lane1966, The Who, with support acts Screamin’ Lord Sutch & the Savages, the Merseys, the Fortunes, and the Graham Bond Organization, perform at the Odeon Cinema in Southend-on-Sea, England.

1967, The Beatles filmed part of the promo clip for “Penny Lane” around the Royal Theatre, Stratford, London and walking up and down Angel Lane.

1967, The News Of The World reported that Mick Jagger, Pete Townshend, and Ginger Baker had taken LSD at The Moody Blues’ home in the UK. Jagger sued the paper for libel in an on-going feud between the News Of The World and The Stones.

1969, The Move were at number one on the UK singles chart with “Blackberry Way,” the group’s only UK chart topper.

1970, David Bowie recorded four songs at the BBC Paris Cinema, London, for the John Peel Sunday Concert radio show. This was guitarists Mick Ronson’s first appearance with Bowie.

1971, Little Richard, The Allman Brothers Band, and The Chambers Brothers were scheduled to appear at The Spectrum in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Little Richard didn’t play, but disrupted ABB’s set, complaining that the promoter wouldn’t pay him.

1971, Black Sabbath started recording what would be their third album, Master Of Reality at Island Studios in London, England. Released in July, it is sometimes noted as the first stoner rock album. Guitarist Tony Iommi, decided to down tune his guitar down three semi-tones, Geezer Butler also down tuned his bass guitar to match Iommi. The result was a noticeably darker sound that almost two decades later would prove hugely influential on at least three of the biggest grunge bands, namely Smashing Pumpkins, Soundgarden, and Nirvana.

1972, Pink Floyd played at Colston Hall in Bristol, England.

1972, T Rex were at number one on the UK singles chart with “Telegram Sam,” the group’s third UK number one which was taken from their album The Slider. The song is also known for bringing the term “main man” into popular culture.

1972, Paul Simon released his first new song without Art Garfunkel, “Mother and Child Reunion,” which peaked at number four in the US.

1974, Genesis appeared at the Palaeur, Rome, Italy.

1974, KISS played at North Alberta Tech, Edmonton, Alberta.

1976, David Bowie appeared at the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Arena, Oakland, California.

1977, Queen performed at Madison Square Garden, New York

1978, The Grateful Dead performed at the University of Northern Iowa in Cedar Falls.

1980, Blue Oyster Cult played at the Onondaga County War Memorial, Syracuse, New York.

1980, Bob Dylan appeared at the Civic Auditorium, Knoxville, Tennessee.

Def-Leppard-Pyromania1983, Def Leppard’s album Pyromania started a 92-week run on the charts. It never reached number one, but sold over 6 million copies in the US alone.

1983, Toto went to number one on the US singles chart with “Africa,” a top three hit in the UK.

1989, The Grateful Dead played at the Henry J. Kaiser Convention Center in Oakland California.

1992, Nirvana appeared at the ANU Bar in Canberra, Australia, during their one and only tour of Australia and New Zealand.

2006, The Rolling Stones played three songs during the half-time show of The Super Bowl in Detroit. After the event, the Stones expressed their displeasure over having Mick Jagger’s microphone turned down during the song “Start Me Up.” The line “you make a dead man come” was cut short and a barnyard reference to “cocks” in the new song “Rough Justice” also disappeared.

2007, Producer Phil Spector won $900,000 (£459,000) after settling an embezzlement claim. Spector said former assistant Michelle Blaine removed $425,000 (£216,000) from his pension and did not repay a $635,000 (£324,000) loan. Ms. Blaine claimed the loan was a gift, and the pension funds were for a film aimed at improving Spector’s image. As part of the settlement, she dropped a counter-claim of sexual harassment.

2015, INXS guitarist Tim Farriss said he may never play the guitar properly again after severing his finger in a boating accident. Farriss caught his left hand while operating a winch on his boat in Sydney, severing his ring finger. He had undergone surgery twice to try to reattach the finger but had been left with permanent hand damage

Born on February 5: Hal Blaine, the Wrecking Crew (1929); Alex Harvey (1935); Corey Wells, Three Dog Night (1942); J.R. Cobb,  Atlanta Rhythm Section (1944); Al Kooper (1944); David Denny, Steve Miller Band (1948); Cliff Martinez, drums, Red Hot Chili Peppers (1954); Duff McKagan, bass, Guns N’ Roses (1964); Keith Mosley, bass, String Cheese Incident (1965); and Bobby Brown (1969)

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Today in Rock History – January 31

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1964, Sales figures show that the Beatles’ “She Loves You” has sold 1.3 million copies in England, while “I Want to Hold Your Hand” has sold 1.5 million.

1967, The Beatles spent a second day at Knole Park, Sevenoaks, Kent, England to complete filming for the ‘Strawberry Fields Forever’ promotional video. The film was shot in color, for the benefit of the US market, since UK television was still broadcasting only in black and white. Taking time out from filming John Lennon bought a 1843 poster from an antiques shop in Surrey which provided him with most the lyrics for The Beatles song “Being For The Benefit Of Mr Kite.”

1968, The Who performed at Town Hall in Wellington, New Zealand.

1969, Organist and singer Billy Preston signs with Apple.

1969, Led Zeppelin played the first of two nights at The Fillmore East, New York City during the band’s first North American tour. Porter’s Popular Preachers opened the night, then Led Zeppelin took the stage. It is alleged that Zeppelin’s show was so powerful and got such an enthusiastic audience that headliners Iron Butterfly refused to follow them.

1970, The Grateful Dead played at The Warehouse in New Orleans. That venue opened the night before.  The band’s arrest that weekend for drug possession was chronicled in their song, “Truckin.”

1970, American blues musician Slim Harpo died of a heart attack while recording in London aged 46. Had the 1966 US number 16 single ‘Baby Scratch My Back’. The Rolling Stones, Pretty Things, Yardbirds and Them all covered his songs.

1970, The Jackson Five went to number one on the singles chart with ‘I Want You Back’. The song was originally written for Gladys Knight & The Pips and was the first of four chart toppers for the group.

1971, Genesis appeared at City Hall, Newcastle, England.

1972, Yes played at Free Trade Hall, Manchester, England.

1974, Bob Dylan performed at Madison Square Garden, New York.

1975, Led Zeppelin played at Olympia Stadium, Detroit.

1976, Abba knocked Queen from the number one position on the UK singles chart with “Mamma Mia.” Queen’s single “Bohemian Rhapsody” had enjoyed a nine week run at the top of the charts.

1976, The Ohio Players are Number one on the US charts with “Love Rollercoaster.”

1977, Aerosmith headlined at the famous Budokan in Tokyo.

talking-heads-oldgreywhistletest1978, Talking Heads made their UK TV debut on the The Old Grey Whistle Test.

1978, Greg Herbert, saxophone player with Blood Sweat & Tears died of an accidental drug overdose in Amsterdam, Holland aged 30. Blood, Sweat & Tears won a Grammy Award in 1969 for Album of the Year.

1980, Bob Dylan appeared at the Orpheum Theater in Memphis, Tennessee.

1981, Blondie went to No.1 on the US singles hart with “The Tide Is High,” the group’s third US No.1, also a No.1 in the UK.

1984, Blue Oyster Cult played at Hall Polyvalent, Schifflange, Luxembourg.

1987, Paul Simon went back to number one on the UK album chart with Graceland, the album stayed on the chart for a total 101 weeks. Graceland later won the 1987 Grammy Award for Album of the Year, while the title song won the 1988 Grammy Award for Record of the Year.

2009, Dewey Martin, drummer with The Dillards and Buffalo Springfield, died aged 68. The Canadian musician had worked with The Monkees as well.

Born on January 31: Terry Kath, Chicago (1946) Harry Wayne Casey, KC and the Sunshine Band and Phil Manzanera, Roxy Music (1951); Johnny Lydon (aka Johnny Rotten 1956); Lloyd Cole (1961); Jeff Hanneman, guitarist, Slayer (1964); and Justin Timberlake (1981)

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Today in Rock History – January 30

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beatles-strawberry-fields1964, The Searchers were at number one on the UK singles chart with the Sonny Bono song “Needles And Pins.” The group’s second UK chart topper had originally been recorded by Jackie DeShannon

1967, The Beatles shoot a promotional clip for “Strawberry Fields Forever” in Kent, England.

1967, The Jimi Hendrix Experience are filmed at London’s Saville Theatre to promote their next single.

1969, The Beatles, with Billy Preston, played their lunchtime rooftop gig on top of the Apple building on Savile Row in London. It was the final time The Beatles would perform live. The played Get Back / Don’t Let Me Down / I’ve Got A Feeling / The One After 909 / Dig A Pony. Traffic was brought to a standstill as crowds of people gathered below and watched from windows in nearby buildings. The performance itself began at around 12 pm on a bitterly cold Thursday lunchtime and lasted for 42 minutes. John Lennon ended the performance by saying “I’d like to say thank you on behalf of the group and ourselves, and I hope we passed the audition.”

1970, The Flock, Fleetwood Mac, and The Grateful Dead appeared at the opening of The Warehouse in New Orleans.

1970, Edison Lighthouse were at number one on the UK singles chart with “Love Grows (Where My Rosemary Goes.”) The group’s only Top 40 hit spent five weeks at the top of the charts. In February 1970, Tony Burrows became the first, and still the only person to appear on BBC Television’s Top Of The Pops fronting three different acts in one show: Edison Lighthouse (who were number one that week), White Plains, and Brotherhood of Man.

1970, The Who performed at the Concertgebouw, Amsterdam.

1971, Bob Seger played at the Uptown Palladium 12 Theatre‎ in Birmingham, Michigan.

george-harrison-all-things-must-pass1971, George Harrison became the first solo Beatle to have a number one when”‘My Sweet Lord” went to the top of the singles charts. The song from his All Things Must Pass album stayed at number one for five weeks. The track returned to the top of the UK charts in 2002, following his death.

1972, Paul McCartney wrote and recorded his protest song “Give Ireland Back To The Irish” within 24 hours of Bloody Sunday, when 13 Catholics were killed by British paratroopers.

1973, After recently changing their name from Wicked Lester, Gene Simmons, Paul Stanley, Ace Frehley and Peter Criss made their first appearance as KISS at the Popcorn Club in Queens, New York. They wore little or none of the makeup that became the band’s trademark and performed to an audience of three people.

1973, The Allman Brothers Band appeared at Veterans Memorial Coliseum, Madison, Wisconsin.

1974, Aerosmith played at The Brewery, East Lansing, Michigan.

1975, The Bee Gees begin recording “Jive Talkin,” which became their second chart topper.  Gibb’s inspiration for the song came when his wife commented on the sound their car made while crossing a bridge over Biscayne Bay into Miami. She noted, “It’s our drive talkin’.”

1977, Pink Floyd performed at Deutschlandhalle, Berlin, Germany.

1978, The Grateful Dead played at Chicago’s Uptown Theatre.

1980, Rush appeared at the Omni Coliseum, Atlanta, Georgia.

1982, American blues guitarist, singer Sam Lightnin’ Hopkins died of cancer aged 70. He influenced Bob Dylan, Stevie Ray Vaughan and Jimi Hendrix. R.E.M. recorded a song named after him on their Document album.

1982, Hall and Oates went to number one on the US singles chart with “I Can Go For That, (No Can Do,)” the duo’s fourth US chart topper. It was a number eight hit in the UK.

1984, Blue Oyster Cult played at Markthalle, Hamburg, Germany.

1988, INXS had their first US number one hit single with “Need You Tonight.”

1990, Unhappy with the re-issue of the bands early single “Sally Cinnaman,” The Stone Roses trashed their former record company Revolver FM’s offices and threw paint over cars. The band were arrested and charged with criminal damage.

2005, The Chemical Brothers went to number one on the UK album chart with Push The Button, the duo’s fourth UK chart topping album. The Game had the US number one album with The Documentary.

Born on January 30: Joe Terranova, Danny and the Juniors (1941); Marty Balin, Jefferson Airplane (1942); Steve Marriott, Small Faces, Humble Pie (1947); and Phil Collins (1951)

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Today in Rock History – January 27

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Beatles-1962-B1962, The Beatles appeared at Aintree Institute in Aintree, Liverpool. The group had played here many times before but this was their last performance at the venue. Brian Epstein became infuriated when the promoter paid The Beatles’ fee of £15 ($24) with handfuls of loose change. Epstein took this as an insult to the group, and made sure that The Beatles never played for that promoter (Brian Kelly) again.

1965, John and Cynthia Lennon fly to the Alps for a ten-day-long skiing vacation.

1967, The Grateful Dead played at the Avalon Ballroom in San Francisco.

1967, Jimi Hendrix appeared at Chislehurst Caves in London, England.

1967, Pink Floyd played at the UFO, held at the Blarney Club, Tottenham Court Road in London. Also on the bill were AMM, Five Acre Light, Dave Brown, Plight of the Erogenius, and Chapter 1. The Floyd’s performance was filmed and clips of two songs were used in a Granada TV documentary program.

1968, The Bee Gees made their live debut in the United States when they played at the Anaheim Centre, Anaheim California.

1968, The Four Tops and Marvin Gaye performed at the Civic Center in Charleston, West Virginia.

1968, Melody Maker became the first music publication to report that David Gilmour had become a member of Pink Floyd.

1969, The Who begin five days of rehearsals at the Whitehall Theatre working on a new set.

1970, John Lennon’s “Instant Karma!” was written, recorded and released within a period of ten days, making it one of the fastest-released songs in pop music history. The UK release was on February 6th, while the US release took place fourteen days later. The recording was produced by Phil Spector, marking a comeback for the American producer after his self-imposed retirement in 1966, and leading to him being offered the producer’s role on the Beatles’ Let It Be album (1970). The song was recorded at London’s Abbey Road Studios, “Instant Karma!” employs Spector’s signature Wall of Sound technique and features contributions from George Harrison, Klaus Voormann, Alan White and Billy Preston.

1970, The Who played at the Operettenhaus in Hamburg, Germany.

David Bowie in 1971

1971, David Bowie arrived in the US for the first time. He couldn’t play live because of work permit restrictions, but attracted publicity when he wore a dress at a promotion event.

1971, Neil Young performed at Macky Auditorium, at the University Of Colorado in Boulder.

1972, Pink Floyd performed Dark Side of the Moon at City Hall, in Newcastle-Upon-Tyne, England. Also in the performance was One of These Days / Set The Controls For The Heart of The Sun / Echoes, and the encore was A Saucerful of Secrets.

1973, No Secrets by Carly Simon enters the third of five weeks atop the US album charts.

1973, Roxy Music won “the most promising new name,” section in the NME reader’s poll.

1973, “Superstition,” the lead single from Stevie Wonder’s Talking Book album gave him his second number one single in the US, 10 years after his first chart topper. Jeff Beck created the original drum beat while in the studio with Wonder. After writing the song, Wonder offered it to Beck to record, but at the insistence of Berry Gordy, Wonder himself recorded it first. Beck was instead offered “Cause We’ve Ended As Lovers,” which he recorded on Blow by Blow in 1975.

1975, The J Geils Band appeared at Maple Leaf Gardens, Toronto.

1976, David Bowie filed a lawsuit against attorney Michael Lippman claiming that he had taken a 15% agents fee instead of the customary 10%.

1977, The Clash signed to CBS Records in the UK for £100,000 ($160,000.)

1977, AC/DC performed at The Haymarket, Sydney, Australia.

1979, Ian Dury And The Blockheads were at number one on the UK singles chart with “Hit Me With Your Rhythm Stick,” their only UK chart topper, after it overtook “Y.M.C.A.”

1980, Def Leppard played the first of two nights at The Marquee, London. Tickets cost £2 ($3.40).

1980, Bob Dylan performed at the Uptown Theatre, Kansas City, Missouri.

1984, Blue Oyster Cult played at Ausstellungshalle, Sindelfingen, Stuttgart, Germany.

1984, Madonna made her first appearance in the UK when she appeared on C4 TV music program The Tube performing “Holiday.” The show was broadcast live from the Hacienda Club in Manchester.

1994, Oasis made their London live debut when the played at King’s Cross Water Rats.

1998, James Brown was charged with possession of marijuana and unlawful use of a firearm after police were called to his South Carolina home. Brown later claimed the drugs were used to help his eyesight.

2002, Enrique Iglesias scored his first UK number one single with “Hero.” His father, Julio Iglesias, had a UK number one hit in 1981.

2006, Gene McFadden, R&B vocalist and songwriter, best known as half of the Philly soul team McFadden & Whitehead, died of cancer at the age of 56. The duo had the 1979 hit “Ain’t No Stoppin’ Us Now,” which sold more than 8 million copies and was nominated for a Grammy Award.

2014, American folk singer and activist Pete Seeger died at the age of 94. He had a string of hit records during the early 1950’s as a member of the Weavers, most notably their recording of Lead Belly’s “Goodnight, Irene.” The song was a number one for 13 weeks in 1950. Members of the Weavers were blacklisted during the McCarthy Era. In the 1960s, he re-emerged on the public scene as a prominent singer of protest music in support of international disarmament, civil rights, counterculture and environmental causes.

2015, Tom Petty and Jeff Lynne were given a song writing credit on Sam Smith’s hit “Stay With Me,” because of the similarities to his 1989 track “I Won’t Back Down.” “Stay With Me” had been nominated for three Grammy awards, including Song of the Year. The parties made an out of court settlement.

Born on January 27: Elmore James (1918); Bobby “Blue” Bland (1930); Nick Mason, drums, Pink Floyd (1944); Nedra Talley, singer, The Ronettes (1946); Kim Gardner, bass, Ashton Gardner & Dyke (1948); Brian Downey, Thin Lizzy (1951); Margo Timmins, vocals, Cowboy Junkies (1961); Gillian Gilbert,  keyboards,  singer, New Order, The Other Two (1961)

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Today in Rock History – January 26

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Petula-Clark-Downtown1965, “Downtown” by Petula Clark was at number one on the US singles chart. A young Jimmy Page had played as a session guitarist on the track, giving him his first US number one hit, as well as a number two hit in the UK.

1965, during a Rolling Stones tour of Australia and New Zealand, guitarist Keith Richards had his shirt torn off after 50 fans invaded the stage during the gig at The Town Hall in Brisbane.

1966, The Who played at the Locarno Ballroom in Stevenage, Hertfordshire, England.

1967, Jack Newfield’s article “Brecht of the Jukebox, Poet of the Electric Guitar,” about Bob Dylan, was published in the Village Voice today.

1968, Pink Floyd played in the Old Refractory, at the Student’s Union at Southampton University, Highfield, Southampton, England. Also on the bill was Tyrannosaurus Rex and The Incredible String Band. Members of Floyd decided not to pick up Syd Barrett on the way to the show due to his ongoing troubles and a mere two weeks after David Gilmour officially became a member of the band. That was the end of Syd Barrett as part of Pink Floyd.

1969, Led Zeppelin played the last of three nights at Boston Tea Party in Boston.

1970, Elvis Presley played the first night of a four-week engagement playing 2 shows every night at The International Hotel in Las Vegas.

1970, The Who play the Stadt Opera House in Cologne, Germany. Their $2500 salary for the two nights is donated to the Save The Children Fund and the taxes on their shows are also excused as the German government declares The Who to be a “cultural attraction.” Both German President Heinemann and Chancellor Willie Brandt attend the show and visit The Who backstage afterwards.

1970, John Lennon wrote, recorded and mixed his new single “Instant Karma” all in one day.

1971, Elvis Presley played the first night of a 31-date run at The Hilton Hotel in Las Vegas. Elvis played a 8:30 pm and midnight shows on most days.

1972, Hawkwind played at the Rex Ballroom, Bognor, Regis, England.

1973, John Entwistle and his new solo band Rigor Mortis release the single “Made In Japan” backed with “Hound Dog” in the UK. The launch party is held in a Japanese steak house in Soho. The single fails to chart.

1974, Ringo Starr went to number one on the singles chart with his version of the Johnny Burnette 1960 hit “Your Sixteen.”

1974, Genesis appeared at the Forest National, Brussels, Belgium.

1975, The BBC Omnibus documentary Cracked Actor, a film about David Bowie was shown on UK TV

1975, In Austin, Texas, Bob Dylan makes a surprise guest appearance at a Joni Mitchell concert.

1976, The Beatles’ nine-year contract with EMI expires.

1977, former Fleetwood Mac guitarist Peter Green was committed to a mental hospital following an incident when he threatened his accountant Clifford Adams with an air rifle when he was trying to deliver a £30,000 ($51,000) royalty check to him.

1978, Rush played at the MECCA Arena, Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

1980, Prince made his TV debut on American Bandstand.

1984, Blue Oyster Cult performed at Friedrich Ebert Halle, Ludwigshafen, Germany.

1986, Allen Collins, guitarist from Lynyrd Skynyrd crashed his car, paralyzing him from the waist down and killing his girlfriend Debra Jean Watts. Collins had survived the infamous plane crash in 1977 that killed singer Ronnie Van Zant, guitarist Steve Gaines, vocalist Cassie Gaines, and assistant road manager Dean Kilpatrick.

1989, Bon Jovi kicked of the North American leg of their New Jersey Syndicate Tour at the Reunion Arena in Dallas, Texas.

1989, Singer Donnie Elbert died of a stroke aged 52. He had the 1972 US number 22 & UK number 11 single “I Can’t Help Myself,” “Sugar Pie Honey Bunch,” “Where Did Our Love Go?,” and “A Little Piece of Leather.”

1991, Queen had their second UK number one with “Innuendo.” At 6 minutes 30 seconds, it exceeded their epic “Bohemian Rhapsody” by 35 seconds and became the third longest UK number song of all time, behind The Beatles’ “Hey Jude” and Simple Minds’ “Belfast Child,” At a later date, “All Around The World” by Oasis, at 9 minutes 38 seconds took over the top slot and demoted “Innuendo” to fourth place). For ‘Innuendo’s’ flamenco guitar solo, Brian May was joined by Yes guitarist Steve Howe.

1993, The Grateful Dead appeared at the Oakland-Alemeda County Coliseum in Oakland, California.

2003, Justin Timberlake went to number one on the UK album chart with his debut solo album Justified, which went on to spend over a year on the UK charts.

2007, The Rolling Stones topped the US music rich list for the second year running after making $150.6 million (£76.2m) in 2006. Tim McGraw and Faith Hill were second in the poll with a combined fortune of $132m (£67.2m) and American country band Rascal Flatts appeared third, having earned $110.5m (£56.2m) in the past year.

2008, Alicia Keys was at number one on the US album chart with her third album As I Am. The album sold over 742,000 copies in its first week, the largest ever first week sales for any female R&B artist.

Born on January 26: Huey “Piano” Smith (1934); Ashley Hutchings, bassist, Fairport Convention (1945); Corky Laing, drummer, Mountain (1948); Derek Holt, Climax Blues Band (1949); David Briggs, Little River Band (1951); Eddie Van Halen (1957); Anita Baker (1958); Andrew Ridgeley, singer, Wham! (1963)

singer Ronnie Van Zant, guitarist Steve Gaines, vocalist Cassie Gaines, assistant road manager Dean KilpatrickRead More: 36 Years Ago: Lynyrd Skynyrd’s Plane Crashes, Killing Three Band Members | http://ultimateclassicrock.com/lynyrd-skynyrd-plane-crashes/?trackback=tsmclip
singer Ronnie Van Zant, guitarist Steve Gaines, vocalist Cassie Gaines, assistant road manager Dean KilpatrickRead More: 36 Years Ago: Lynyrd Skynyrd’s Plane Crashes, Killing Three Band Members | http://ultimateclassicrock.com/lynyrd-skynyrd-plane-crashes/?trackback=tsmclip

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Today in Rock History – January 9

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beatles651965, The Beatles started a nine week run at number one on the album chart with Beatles 65, the group’s fourth chart topper.

1965, John Lennon makes a guest appearance on the British satirical TV show Not Only, opposite comedians Peter Cook and Dudley Moore.

1966, The Who played at the Cosmopolitan Club in Carlisle, Cumbria, England.

1967, “I’m a Believer,” written by Neil Diamond and recorded by ‘The Monkees’ is number one in the US.

1967, The Beatles record the flutes, trumpets, piccolos and flugelhorn for “Penny Lane.”

1969, Jimi Hendrix appeared at the Concert House in Stockholm, Sweden.

1969, The Beatles were at number one on the album chart with the White Album, The Rolling Stones were second with Beggars Banquet, and The Seekers were at number three with Best Of The Seekers.

1970, During a UK tour Led Zeppelin appeared at The Royal Albert Hall, London, the night of Jimmy Page’s 26th birthday. (John Lennon, Eric Clapton and Jeff Beck were all in the audience). The two and a quarter hour set was recorded and filmed but shelved for several decades, eventually seeing a release on a 2003 official DVD.

1971, Pink Floyd are at EMI Studios in London recording the forthcoming album Meddle.

1973, Mick Jagger was refused a Japanese visa on an account of a 1969 drug conviction causing The Rolling Stones to cancel a forthcoming tour.

1973, Bob Dylan and The Band performed at Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto.

1975, Elton John’s version of The Beatles’  “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds” is number one in the US. John Lennon makes good on a promise to Elton for appearing on his recording of “Whatever Gets You Through The Night.” He is credited on the record as Dr. Winston O’Boogie, Winston being Lennon’s middle name.

1975, KISS played at the Commodore Ballroom in Vancouver, Canada.

1976, Graham Parker of Graham Parker & the Rumour signs his first recording contract.

queen-Bohemian-Rhapsody1976, Queen were at number one on the singles chart with “Bohemian Rhapsody.”The single enjoyed a nine week run on the charts, selling more than a million copies by the end of the month.

1977, Rush appeared at Municipal Auditorium, San Antonio, Texas.

1979, The music for UNICEF concert took place in New York City featuring Rod Stewart, The Bee Gees, Earth Wind and Fire, Abba and Donna Summer.

1981, The Allman Brothers Band performed at the Wicomico Civic Center in Salisbury, Maryland.

1982, The Human League went back to number one on the UK album chart for three weeks with Dare.

1983, Blue Oyster Cult played at My Father’s Place, Roslyn, New York.

1997, David Bowie performed his 50th Birthday Bash concert (the day after his birthday) at Madison Square Garden, New York with guests Frank Black, Sonic Youth, Robert Smith of The Cure, The Foo Fighters, Lou Reed, and Billy Corgan and Placebo. Proceeds from the concert went to the Save The Children fund.

2001, Winners at the 28th annual American Music Awards: Favorite Album, Creed, Human Clay; Male Artist, Kid Rock; Favorite Female Artist, Faith Hill; Favorite Group, Backstreet Boys; Favorite New Artist, 3 Doors Down.

2003, A grand piano once owned by Elvis Presley was sold for $685,000 (£425,711). Music producer Robert Johnson and partner Larry Moss sold the piano to the chairman of the Blue Moon Group, Michael Muzio who was planning to take the piano on a casino-sponsored promotional tour. He was then planning for the piano to be shown at the proposed rock museum at Walt Disney World.

2005, Elvis Presley went to number one on the UK singles chart with “Jailhouse Rock.” The single sold just 21,262 copies to reach number one, the lowest sales ever for a UK chart topper since data began in 1969. The single was released to celebrate the 70th anniversary of his birth, a previous Elvis chart topper was re-released each week.

2009, Dave Dee died at the age of 65, following a three-year battle with cancer. The UK singer had eight top 10 hits, with Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick and Tich including a UK number one single in 1968 with “The Legend of Xanadu,” in which Dee famously cracked a whip. The singer, whose real name was David Harman, was originally a police officer and as a police cadet was called to the scene of the car crash that killed Eddie Cochrane during a UK tour in 1960.

Born on January 9: Bill Cowsill, The Cowsills (1929); Joan Baez (1941); Jimmy Page (1944); David Johansen, The New York Dolls (1950); Crystal Gayle, singer, songwriter (1951); Dave Matthews (1967); Steve Harwell, Smash Mouth (1967)

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Today in Rock History – January 4

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jimi-hendrix-experience1967, The Jimi Hendrix Experience played at the Bromel Club, Bromley, England. It was the first of what would be over 240 gigs in 1967, including many dates with two shows per night.

1967, The Doors released their self-titled debut album The Doors. Unique packaging of the album included each band member’s bio.

1968, The University of California, Los Angeles announced that students taking music degrees would have to study the music of The Rolling Stones, saying they had made such an important contribution to modern music.

1970, Chauffeur Neil Boland was accidentally killed when The Who’s drummer Keith Moon ran over him. Moon was trying to escape from a Gang of skinheads after a fight broke out at a pub in Hatfield, England. Moon had never passed his driving test.

1970, The Beatles, minus John Lennon, re-record vocals and a new guitar solo on the Paul McCartney song “Let It Be” at Studio Two, EMI Studios, London. This session will be the final studio appearance for The Beatles, as a group. The final date that all four of The Beatles were in the studio together was August 20, 1969.

1971, Soft Machine performed at Fairfield Hall, Croydon, England.

1971,  At London’s Abbey Road studios, Pink Floyd begin sessions for Meddle, the follow-up to their 1970 album Atom Heart Mother. The same month director Stanley Kubrick asks the band if he can use Atom Heart Mother as the soundtrack for his movie A Clockwork Orange. The band say no.

1973, Roxy Music appeared at My Mother’s Place, Washington, DC.

1973, Rolling Stone magazine announces that The Allman Brothers Band has hired Lamar Williams as the replacement for Berry Oakley, who died in a motorcycle crash in 1972.

1974, Bruce Springsteen played the first of a three night run at Joes’ Place in Cambridge Massachusetts. Supported by Peter Johnson & The Manic Depressives. On the ticket it stated: Because of the energy crisis all our outside lights except for one will be shut off.

1975, Elton John started a two week run at number one on the singles chart with his cover of The Beatles “Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds.” It was his third US chart topper, and featured John Lennon on guitar.

1976, Blue Oyster Cult appeared at the Capital Centre, Landover, Maryland.

1977, The Sex Pistols shocked passengers and airline staff at Heathrow Airport when they spat and vomited boarding a plane to Amsterdam.

1978, Rush performed at Veterans Memorial Auditorium, Columbus, Ohio.

1980, ZZ Top played at the Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center, San Antonio, Texas.

1981, The Allman Brothers Band appeared at the Capitol Theater, Passaic, New Jersey.

1983, Aerosmith performed at the Neal S. Blasidell Center Arena, Honolulu, Hawaii.

1986, Irish singer, songwriter and bassist thin-lizzy-phil-lynottPhil Lynott of Thin Lizzy died of heart failure and pneumonia due to septicaemia after being in a coma for eight days, following a drug overdose on December 25th.  A life-size bronze statue of Phil Lynott was unveiled on Harry Street in Dublin in 2005.

2005, The owner of a recording studio where Eminem recorded his Slim Shady LP was found shot dead. AJ Abdallah, who was 36, was discovered by a business colleague at the Detroit studio, it was thought he had been dead for at least two days. Police suggested that a robbery may also have taken place. Mr Abdallah had lived in a apartment above the studio on Eight Mile Road, the Detroit street which inspired the title of Eminem’s 2002 film 8 Mile.

2006, The house where Johnny Cash lived for 35 years was bought by Bee Gees singer Barry Gibb. The rustic house near Nashville, Tennessee went on the market in June 2005 with an asking price of $2.9 million (£1.7m). Gibb said he planned to preserve the house to honor the Cash memory. Unfortunately, in April 2007, the house burned to the ground. Gibb was having the house renovated when a flammable spray sealer caused fire to break out during construction.

2008, Beyonce won a long-running legal wrangle over claims her hit song “Baby Boy” infringed the copyright of another artist’s work. The appeals court in Houston, Texas upheld a 2006 decision which dismissed musician Jennifer Armour’s claims that its lyrics were based on her work.  Armour claimed she had sent  “I Got A Little Bit Of Love For You” to Beyonce’s manager and record company in early 2003.

2011, Scottish singer songwriter Gerry Rafferty died aged 63 after a long illness. Rafferty had been a member of Stealers Wheel, who had the 1973 US number three and UK number eight single “Stuck In The Middle With You” and had the solo 1978 UK number three and US number two single “Baker Street.”

Born on January 4: John McLaughlin, the Graham Bond Organisation, Alexis Korner, Mahavishnu Orchestra (1942); Bernard Sumner, guitar, vocals, Warsaw, Joy Division (1956);  Nels Cline, guitar, Wilco (1956); Michael Stipe, R.E.M. (1960); Martin Mcaloon, bass, Prefab Sprout (1962); Robin Guthrie, guitar, keyboards, programming, Cocteau Twins (1962); Till Lindemann poet,  vocalist, Rammstein (1962); Beth Gibbons, vocals, Portishead (1965); Cait O’Riordan, bass, The Pogues (1965); Ben Darvill, harmonica, Crash Test Dummies (1967)

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Today in Rock History – December 31

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the-monkees-im-a-believer-19661966, The Monkees started a seven-week run at number one on the singles charts with the Neil Diamond song “I’m A Believer.”

1966, Ray Charles appeared at the City Center Arena in Seattle Washington.  The tickets cost $4.50 at the door.

1966, The Move, Pink Floyd, and The Who appeared at the New Year’s Eve All Night Rave, at The Roundhouse, Chalk Farm Road, London.

1967, Songwriter and producer Bert Berns died of heart failure aged 38. He wrote many classic songs including “Twist And Shout,” “Hang On Sloopy,” “Here Comes the Night,” “I Want Candy,” and “Brown Eyed Girl.”

1968, Joe Cocker, Amen Corner, John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers, The Small Faces, Free and Bonzo Dog Doo Dah Band all appeared at Alexandra Palace, London.

1969,  Jimi Hendrix unveils his new group Band of Gypsys at New York’s Fillmore East. The concert, featuring the rhythm section of Billy Cox and Buddy Miles backing Hendrix, later appears on the album Band of Gypsys.

1969, The Allman Brothers Band performed at the UNC-Charlotte Cafeteria in Charlotte, North Carolina.

1969, BBC television broadcast the program Man of the Decade, who is … John Lennon! Rolling Stone names Lennon its Man of the Year, while Lennon himself admits to the New Musical Express that he’s considering leaving the Beatles.

1970, Paul McCartney filed a suit against the rest of The Beatles to dissolve their partnership.

1971, Bob Dylan makes a special appearance at the Band’s New Year’s Eve concert at the New York Academy of Music, performing “Down In The Flood,” “When I Paint My Masterpiece,” “Like A Rolling Stone,” and “Don’t Ya Tell Henry” with them.

1971, Queen played at the Rugby Club, Twickenham, England.

1972, Roxy Music performed at the Kinetic Playground, Chicago.

1973, Australian band AC/DC made their live debut when they appeared at Chequers Bar in Sydney.

1974,  Ron Wood denies reports that he will join the Rolling Stones as a replacement for the recently departed Mick Taylor.

1975, KISS plays at the Coliseum, Evansville, Indiana.

1975, JJ Cale appears at Ebbets Field, Denver, Colorado.

1976, The Cars give their debut performance at Pease Air Force Base in Portsmouth, N.H.

1978, San Francisco’s Winterland Theater closes its doors after a farewell performance by the Grateful Dead and the Blues Brothers.

1978,  Bauhaus gives its debut performance in Wellingborough, England. Bauhaus are an English rock band formed in Northampton in 1978 by Peter Murphy (vocals), Daniel Ash (guitar), Kevin Haskins (drums) and David J (bass). The band took their name from the German Bauhaus art movement, originally going by the name Bauhaus 1919, dropping the latter portion within a year of the band’s formation

debbie-harry-blondie-19791979, Blondie’s gig at The Apollo Theatre, Glasgow, Scotland was broadcast live on BBC 2’s Old Grey Whistle Test.

1979, David Bowie performed an acoustic version of ‘Space Oddity’ on the UK TV Kenny Everett New Year’s Show.

1979, The Grateful Dead played a New Year’s Eve show at the Oakland Auditorium. John Cipollina of Quicksilver Messenger Service sat in with the band on three songs in the second set.

1980, Blue Oyster Cult played at Mid-South Coliseum, Memphis, Tennessee.

1981, The Grateful Dead performed at the Oakland Auditorium. Joan Baez joined them for the first set.

1982, Max’s Kansas City in New York City closed down. The venue had been a launching pad for such artists as The New York Dolls, Bruce Springsteen and The Velvet Underground.

1982, The Grateful Dead returned to the Oakland Auditorium for a three-set show, which included guests John Cipollina, Etta James, and the Tower of Power horns.

1984, Def Leppard drummer Rick Allen, crashed his Corvette on a highway outside Sheffield, England. Allen lost his left arm in the accident.

1985, Ricky Nelson was killed along with six others, when his charted light aircraft crashed in Texas.  Nelson had played himself on his parent’s US TV The Adventures Of Ozzie and Harriet.

1991, Pearl Jam, Nirvana and the Red Hot Chili Peppers all appeared on the same bill at the Cow Palace, San Francisco, California.

1999, The Manic Street Preachers performed to 57,000 fans at the Millennium Stadium, Cardiff. The Guinness Book of Records confirmed that the concert set a new record as the biggest indoor show ever staged in Europe, tickets £30.

2000, Black Crowes singer Chris Robinson married actress Kate Hudson the daughter of actress Goldie Hawn. The couple separated in 2006.

2004, Pete Waterman was awarded an OBE for his services to music. Once part of the Stock, Aitken & Waterman team he also booked the first ever tour for The Bay City Rollers, signed Musical Youth and Nik Kershaw during the 70’s and was promotion consultant for John Travolta. Waterman had written and produced more than 200 hit singles in 25 years for acts from Kylie Minogue to Steps.

2012, A draft of a letter John Lennon written to Eric Clapton on September 29, 1971 asking him to collaborate on a musical project sold for $35,000 (£21,875) at an auction. Still in pristine condition, the latter was originally estimated to fetch somewhere between $20,000 and $30,000

Born on this day: Andy Summers, The Police (1942); John Denver (1943); Burton Cummings, Guess Who (1947); Donna Summer (1948); Tom Hamilton, bass, Aerosmith (1951); Paul Westerberg, guitar, vocals, The Replacements (1960); Scott Ian, Anthrax (1963)

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Today in Rock History – December 26

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beatles-1964B1964, The Beatles started a three week run at number one on the singles chart with “I Feel Fine.” It was the group’s sixth chart topper of the year in which they had 30 entries on the chart, giving them a total of 18 weeks at the top of the charts.

1964, The Rolling Stones placed an advertisement in the music paper New Musical Express, wishing starving hairdressers and their families a Happy Christmas.

1965, While spending Christmas at his father’s home in Cheshire, Paul McCartney crashed from the moped he was riding and suffered a five-inch cut to his mouth.

1966, John Lennon appeared as a men’s room attendant in Peter Cook’s and Dudley Moore’s BBC TV show Not only… But also.

1966, The Jimi Hendrix Experience played an afternoon show at The Uppercut Club, London. Hendrix also wrote the lyrics to “Purple Haze” in the dressing room on the same day.

1967, BBC Television broadcast The Beatles’ movie Magical Mystery Tour in black and white. The next day, the British press and the viewing public pronounce the film an utter disaster. The negative reaction was so strong that a US television deal for broadcasting the movie was cancelled.

1967, The Doors performed at Winterland Arena in San Francisco.

1968, Led Zeppelin started their first North American tour supporting Vanilla Fudge and Spirit at Denver Auditorium, Colorado. Tickets for this Sunday night gig cost $5. Denver music man Barry Fey nearly became famous for being the guy who refused to book Led Zeppelin. “About 10 days before the show, I got a call from the agent saying, ‘Barry, I want to add an act to our show,’ ” Fey said. “I said, ‘all the tickets are sold.’ “He said, ‘You’ve got to do this for me, Barry, this is a big, big act. Their name is Led Zeppelin.’ I thought it was a joke.” Fey turned Terry down, until the agent showed Fey the money. “Ten minutes later Ron called back and said ‘Vanilla Fudge is going to give you $750, and if you give $750 of your own money, we still can put Led Zeppelin on the show.’ ” Fey caved in. “I got up on the stage and said, ‘Ladies and gentlemen, give a warm Denver welcome to Led Zeppelin,’ ” Fey said. “They started playing, and it was incredible. It was an unbelievable show; people were gasping.”

1969, Yes played at the Marquee Club, London.

1969, The Allman Brothers Band appeared at the Fillmore East, New York.

1970, George Harrison started a four week run at number one on the singles chart with “My Sweet Lord,” making him the first Beatle to score a number one hit. The song was originally intended for Billy Preston.

1972, Roxy Music played at Curtis Hixon Hall, Tampa Bay, Florida.

1973, Alice Cooper performed at New Haven Coliseum, New Haven, Connecticut.

1974, KISS appeared at the Civic Auditorium, Grand Rapids, Michigan.

1976, The Sex Pistols recorded “God Save The Queen” at Wessex Studios London, England.

1978, Rush played at the Montreal Forum, Montreal, Canada.

1979, The first night of a series of concerts were held at The Hammersmith Odeon in London, for the People of Kampuchea, featuring Queen, The Clash, The Pretenders, The Who, Elvis Costello, Wings, and many more artists. The events which were organized by Paul McCartney and Kurt Waldheim were aimed to raise money for the victims of war-torn Cambodia.

1the wall979, Pink Floyd’s The Wall was at number one on the album chart. The album spent a total of 15 weeks at the top, during a 35-week stay on the chart.

1980, Blue Oyster Cult played at Cumberland County Memorial, Fayetteville, North Carolina.

1981, AC/DC started a three-week run at number one on the US album chart with For Those About To Rock We Salute You the follow-up to their highly successful album Back In Black. The name of the album was inspired by a book Angus Young read, entitled For Those About to Die, We Salute You, about Roman gladiators.

1982, Aerosmith appeared at the Dallas Convention Center, Dallas, Texas.

1983, Blue Oyster Cult played at Memorial Coliseum, Portland., Oregon.

1999, American soul, R&B, and funk singer, songwriter Curtis Mayfield died aged 57. He was a member of The Impressions,  who had the 1965 US number seven single “Lilies Of The Field,” and as a solo artist, with the 1971 UK number 12 single “Move On Up,” and 1972 US number four single “Freddie’s Dead, Theme From Superfly.”

2007, Amy Winehouse’s second album Back to Black was named as the biggest-selling album of the year. Released at the end of 2006 the album has sold more than 1.5 million copies in the UK, achieving five platinum sales awards. Winehouse was also nominated for six Grammys including song of the year.

2012, Fontella Bass, the US female singer, pianist, who had the 1965 US number four and UK number 11 single “Rescue Me” died of complications following a heart attack aged 72.

Born on December 26: Steve Allen (1921); Abdul “Duke” Fakir, The Four Tops (1935); Phil Spector (1940); John Scofield (1951); Henning Schmitz,  drummer,Kraftwerk (1953); Lars Ulrich, Metallica (1955); Jay Farrar,  singer-songwriter, guitarist, Uncle Tupelo, Son Volt (1966); James Mercer, guitarist, The Shins, Broken Bells (1970);  Zach Blair, guitarist Hagfish, Gwar, Rise Against (1973)

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