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Today in Rock History – June 23

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1965, Motown releases Smokey Robinson & the Miracles’ “The Tracks of My Tears.” It was a number two hit on the Billboard R&B chart, and reached number 16 on the Billboard Hot 100. Belatedly released in the UK in 1969, it became a Top Ten hit that summer, reaching number nine.

1966, The Beatles fly to Germany, where they will begin their last world tour. The Rolling Stones depart London the same day to begin a tour of America.

1966, The Who performed at the Refectory at the University at Leeds as part of a University Rag Ball along with The Alan Price Set, The Swingin’ Blue Jeans, and John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers, without recently departed guitarist Eric Clapton, who left to form the new group Cream.

1966, The Beatles had their tenth consecutive number one single with “Paperback Writer” / “Rain.” The track is marked by the boosted bass guitar sound throughout, partly in response to John Lennon demanding to know why the bass on a certain Wilson Pickett record far exceeded the bass on any Beatles records. It was also cut louder than any other Beatles record, due to a new piece of equipment used in the mastering process.

1967, Pink Floyd played two shows. An early gig took place at the Locarno Ballroom in Derby, England, where Floyd, Paperback Edition and Thorndyke Mordikai’s Imagination played at the Rolls Royce Apprectices Ball. Later that night, Pink Floyd, Soft Machine, Tomorrow, The Children, Cock-A-Hoop, and The Roll Movement appeared at The 8-Hour Psycho-Chromatic Fantasy, held at Great & Small Halls, Bradford University, Bradford England.

1970, Cubby Checker was arrested in Niagara Falls after police discovered marijuana and other drugs in his car.

1972, Smokey Robinson performs his last show with the Miracles.

1973, George Harrison started a five-week run at number one on the album chart with Living In The Material World, his second solo chart topper.

1974, The Grateful Dead performed at the Jai-Alai Fronton in Miami, Florida.

1975, During his Welcome To My Nightmare tour in Vancouver, Canada, Alice Cooper fell from the stage and broke six ribs.

1975, Jefferson Starship release Red Octopus. Rolling Stone celebrates Marty Balin’s return to the fold by saying, “If it weren’t for Balin, Red Octopus would be completely unlistenable.”

1975, Bob Marley and The Wailers played the first of 14 shows over 7 nights at Paul’s Mall in Boston, Massachusetts, as part of their Natty Dread Tour.

1976, Paul McCartney and Wings played the last date on their Wings Over America tour at the Forum in Los Angeles.

1977, A very inebriated Keith Moon joins Led Zeppelin onstage in Los Angeles. He “belts seven shades of shit” out of a tympani on “Moby Dick” and “Rock and Roll,” then proceeds to call John Bonham the best living rock drummer in the world today.

1984, Duran Duran started a two week run at number one on the US singles chart with “The Reflex,” the group’s first US chart topper,  from their third album, Seven and the Ragged Tiger.

1990, Buddy Holly’s Gibson acoustic guitar sold for £139,658 ($237,419) in a Sotheby’s auction. The guitar was in a tooled leather case made by Holly himself.

2008, Coldplay appeared at Madison Square Garden in New York City on the first night of the North American leg of their 161-date Viva la Vida world Tour.

Born on June 23: June Carter Cash (1923); Stu Sutcliffe (1940); Steve Shelley, drums, Sonic Youth (1962); KT Tunstall, UK singer, songwriter (1975) Jason Mraz (1977)

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Today in Rock History – June 7

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The Grateful Dead

1968, Fleetwood Mac, Grateful Dead and Jefferson Airplane all appeared for the first of a three night run at the Carousel Ballroom, San Francisco, California.

1968, Cream played at the Grande Ballroom in Detroit, Michigan

1969, Supergroup Blind Faith, featuring Eric Clapton, Ginger Baker and Steve Winwood made their live debut at a free concert in London’s Hyde Park.

1969, The Allman Brothers Band appeared at The Hangar in Columbia, South Carolina.

1969, Keith Richards and his partner Anita Pallenburg were involved in a car crash near their home in Sussex. Richards escaped serious injury but Pallenburg was taken to hospital with a broken collarbone and the car was a write-off.

1969, The Who’s Tommy album entered the album chart peaking at No.2. It was the first of two full-scale rock operas from The Who, the other being the 1973’s Quadrophenia.

1969, Bob Dylan and Joni Mitchell both appeared on the first ABC TV Johnny Cash Show from Ryman Auditorium in Nashville. Dylan sang “I Threw It All Away” and “Living The Blues,” and duetted with Johnny Cash on “Girl From The North Country.”

1970, The Who play Tommy at New York’s Metropolitan Opera House.

1972, Led Zeppelin performed at the Montreal Forum, Montreal, Quebec.

1973, David Bowie played at Free Trade Hall, Manchester, England.

1974, Audiences watching ABC saw highlights from the massive California Jam concert, including performances by Emerson, Lake & Palmer and Black Oak Arkansas.

1974, On The Midnight Special, the Kinks pay host to ELO.

1975, Elton John’s album Captain Fantastic And The Brown Dirt Cowboy, went to No.1 on the album chart, the first album ever to enter the chart at No.1.

1975, Pink Floyd begins its North American tour at Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia.  The band had arranged for the construction of an large inflatable pyramid to be launched at the climax of Dark Side of the Moon, but it failed to operate that evening. The next several shows were scheduled for indoor venues, so the crew used that time to fix the problem, and it worked successfully in Pittsburgh on June 20th.

1975, John Denver went to No.1 on the singles chart with “Thank God I’m A Country Boy,” the singers third No.1.

1976, The Rolling Stones played at the Pavillon De Paris in Paris.

1977, Led Zeppelin played the first of six sold out nights at Madison Square Garden, in New York City.

1978, Black Sabbath performed at St. Georges Hall, Bradford, England.

1979, Van Halen appeared at the Mid-South Coliseum, Memphis, Tennessee.

1979, Blondie performed ‘”Sunday Girl” on UK music television show Top Of The Pops.

1980, Bob Marley And The Wailers, Average White Band, Joe Jackson and The Q-Tips all appeared at The Summer Of ’80 Garden Party, Crystal Palace, London, England. Tickets £7.50 on the day.

1981, Rush performed at Selland Arena, Fresno, California.

1984, Bob Dylan appeared at Stade de Schaerbeek, Schaarbeek, Belgium

1987,  David Bowie played a concert in West Berlin in front of the Reichstag with the speakers pointing towards the nearby Berlin Wall where thousands of young East Berliners stood and listened.

1990, The Black Crowes played their debut UK gig at the Marquee in London.

1997, Oasis guitarist Noel Gallagher played a five-song set at the Tibet Freedom Concert, Downing Stadium in New York City. U2, Patti Smith and Radiohead also appeared at the concert.

1998, Songwriter Wally Gold died in a New Jersey hospital aged 70. Wrote “It’s My Party, “a hit for Lesley Gore and “It’s Now or Never,” a hit for Elvis Presley. Also a member of late 50’s group The Four Esquires, produced Kansas & Gene Pitney.

2001, During their The Tour of Brotherly Love tour, Oasis, The Black Crowes and Spacehog played the first of three nights at Radio City Music Hall in New York City.

2012, Bob Welch, an early member of Fleetwood Mac who enjoyed a successful solo career with hits such as “Ebony Eyes,” was found dead after an apparent suicide at home in Nashville. He was 66. Police said Welch’s body was found by his wife Wendy with a single gunshot wound to the chest, and he had left a suicide note. Welch was part of Fleetwood Mac in their early years from 1971 to 1974 and worked on such albums as Future Games and Bare Trees.

Born on this day: Dean Martin (1917);  Tom Jones (1940); Prince (1958); and Dave Navarro, Jane’s Addiction (1967)

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Today in Rock History – June 1

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Rock History for June 1

1966, The Beatles returned Abbey Road studios to complete recording on “Yellow Submarine. ” The band, plus friends and members of the staff helped search for a “weird instrument” to create the desired sound effects.  John Lennon ended up blowing bubbles in a bucket of water.  Paul and John imitated different voices.  Roadie Mal Evans played on a bass drum strapped to his chest, marching around the studio with The Beatles following behind singing “We all live in a yellow submarine.”

1966, The Who fly into Arlanda Airport, Stockholm. Pete Townshend is interviewed for a Swedish magazine at the airport. He tells them he is currently working on a musical called “Summer City”.

1967, The Beatles release Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band. Sgt. Pepper became the first Beatles album to be issued simultaneously around the world. It was also the first Beatles album where the track listings were exactly the same for the UK and US versions. The band’s eighth LP, it debuted in the UK at number one, where it stayed for 22 consecutive weeks. The album sold 250,000 copies during the first seven days.

1967, David Bowie released his self titled debut studio album. Two singles were released from the album, “Rubber Band” and “The Laughing Gnome.”

1967, Tommy James & the Shondells performed at the Sports Arena in Toledo, Ohio.

1968, Simon and Garfunkel went to number one on the singles chart with “Mrs Robinson.” The song was featured in the Dustin Hoffman and Ann Bancroft film The Graduate. A cover version by the Lemonheads was a hit in 1992.

1968, Cream appeared at the Edmonton Gardens in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.

1968, Pink Floyd played three shows in the Netherlands on this date. First a 2 o’clock in the afternoon show at Lijn 3 in Amsterdam, as a replacement for Captain Beefheart, who cancelled. Secondly at 8 PM, the band played at ‘t Smurf, De Engh, Bussum. Lastly, a late show at Eurobeurs, Apeldoorn. The band arrived so tardy, that they played past their allotted time. When the promoter turned on the house lights to make the band quit playing and start the “disco,” an argument started between Roger Waters and the promoter. It got so heated that the local police had to be called in to break it up.

1969, Neil Young & Crazy Horse appeared at La Cave in Cleveland, Ohio

1969, The Who performed at Kiel Auditorium, St. Louis, Missouri.

1969, The Plastic Ono Band recorded “Give Peace A Chance” during a “bed-in” at the Hotel La Reine in Montreal, Canada. Producer Phil Spector, poet Allan Ginsberg and writer Timothy Leary all sang on the song.

1970, The Allman Brothers Band appeared at Athens State Teachers College, Athens, Georgia.

1971, Chicago appeared at the London’s Royal Albert Hall, London.

1971, Harry Nilsson begins recording his album Nilsson Schmilsson in London.

1971, Joni Mitchell releases her album Blue.

1971, The two-room shack in Tupelo, Mississippi, where Elvis Presley was born on January 8, 1935 was opened to the public as a tourist attraction.

Pink Floyd at Abbey Road studios

1972, Pink Floyd were working at Abbey Road studios, London on Dark Side Of The Moon.

1973, Former Soft Machine drummer Robert Wyatt broke his spine after attempting to leave a party by climbing down a drainpipe and falling three stories. It left Wyatt permanently crippled and confined to a wheelchair.

1973, Paul Simon releases There Goes Rhymin’ Simon.

1974, UK weekly music paper The NME published its 100 Great Albums: at number three: The Beach Boys Pet Sounds; number two: Bob Dylan Blonde On Blonde; and The Beatles’ Sgt Pepper was voted to the top spot.

1974, John Cale, Brian Eno, Kevin Ayers, and Nico perform the concert commemorated in the live LP June 1, 1974.

1974, Linda Ronstadt begins recording “Heart Like a Wheel” in Los Angeles. Her last project for Capitol Records. Some of the studio musicians and singers included, Andrew Gold, Glen Frey, Emmylou Harris, Don Henley, Russ Kunkel, Maria Muldaur, Timothy B. Schmdt, and J.D. Souther.

1975, The Rolling Stones kicked off their biggest ever US tour at Assembly Center at Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge. The tour would take in 45 shows in 26 cities. Guitarist Ron Wood joined The Stones on tour for the first time, replacing Mick Taylor.

1975, Aerosmith played at Roberts Municipal Stadium, Evansville, Indiana.

1976, Yes performed at Municipal Auditorium, Nashville, Tennessee.

1977, Bob Marley and The Wailers played the first of four nights at the Rainbow Theatre in London. There were six nights booked at the Rainbow, but the last two shows were cancelled due to a serious toe injury Marley received, in a friendly football game with French journalists, just before the tour’s start in Paris. Subsequently, the tour’s second leg in the United States was postponed and then cancelled.

1977, Emerson, Lake & Palmer played at Cobo Arena, Detroit, Michigan.

1978, U2 appeared at Mount Temple Comprehensive School in Dublin, Ireland.

1978, David Bowie performed at the Falkoner Theater, Copenhagen, Denmark.

1980, Rush played at the Gaumont Theatre, Southampton, England.

1981, The first issue of the Heavy Metal magazine Kerrang! was published as a special pull-out by UK weekly music paper Sounds. AC/DC appeared on the front cover, and there were features on Motorhead, Girlschool and Saxon.

1984, David Gilmour appeared at Constitution Hall, Washington D.C.

1985, Prince & The Revolution started a three-week run at number one on the US album chart with Around The World In A Day.

1986, ZZ Top performed at the Providence Civic Center, Providence, Rhode Island.

1991, American soul singer David Ruffin died of a drug overdose. After taking a large amount of cocaine Ruffin passed out, a friend drove him to a hospital in Philadelphia, where he later died. He was one of the lead singers of The Temptations (1964–68) during the group’s “Classic Five” period as it was later known. He was the lead voice on such famous songs as “My Girl” and “Ain’t Too Proud to Beg”.

2006, The 1994 debut album by Oasis, Definitely Maybe, was voted the greatest album of all time in a survey to mark 50 years of the Official UK Albums Chart. The Beatles came in second and third place with Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band and Revolver, OK Computer by Radiohead was fourth and (What’s the Story) Morning Glory by Oasis was voted fifth.

2013, Modern Vampires of the City by Vampire Weekend went to number one on the US album charts. Their second album Contra’ also debuted at the top spot in 2010, making this the first time an independent rock band had entered at number one with two consecutive releases. Modern Vampires of the City also shattered the previous record for first week vinyl sales, moving nearly 10,000 units.

Born on June 1: Pat Boone (1934); James William McCarty, Mitch Ryder and The Detroit Wheels, Buddy Miles, Cactus,  Bob Seger (1945) Ron Wood, Jeff Beck Group, The Faces, The Rolling Stones (1947); Tom Robinson, singer-songwriter (1950); Graham Russell, Air Supply (1950); Alan Wilder, keyboards, vocals, Depeche Mode (1959); Simon Gallup, The Cure (1960); Mike Joyce, drums, The Smiths (1963); Alanis Morissette (1974)

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Today in Rock History – May 19

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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)

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Today in Rock History – May 18

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1967, The Beatles were selected to represent the UK for the first-ever global-wide satellite broadcast. The group agreed to be shown in the studio recording a song written especially for the occasion, scheduled for June 25. John Lennon wrote “All You Need is Love” which was thought to sum up the 1967 “Summer of Love” and The Beatles’ sympathies. With the satellite broadcast being broadcast to many non-English-speaking countries, the BBC asked The Beatles to “keep it simple.”

1967, Pink Floyd started recording their forthcoming single “See Emily Play” at Sound Techniques Studios, Chelsea, London. Syd Barrett was inspired to write See Emily Play, by the “looning about” of the early Pink Floyd fan Emily Young, (who is now a renowned sculptor). Guitarist David Gilmour, playing gigs in France with his own band in that period, visited Floyd in the studio during a trip to London.

1968, Archie Bell and The Drells started a two week run at No.1 on the singles chart with ‘Tighten Up’,

1968, Grateful Dead, The Doors, The Steve Miller Band and Jefferson Airplane all appeared at The Northern California Rock Festival in Santa Clara. It took place at the Santa Clara County Fairgrounds .

1972, According to today’s New York Times, the Beatles have agreed to split the fortune they accrued in their partnership. Paul McCartney says they’ve come to this arrangement to free up the $17 million that was frozen as they sued one another.

1972, Europe ’72 stop for the Grateful Dead was the Kongressaal Deutsches Museum in Muenchen, Germany.

1973, Pink Floyd plays the first of two shows at London’s Earl’s Court Exhibition Hall after the official UK release of “Dark Side of the Moon.”

1974, Ray Stevens started a three week run at No.1 on the singles chart with the novelty song ‘The Streak’ which capitalized on the then popular craze of streaking.

1975, Five times married US country singer, Tammy Wynette was at No.1 on the singles chart with ‘Stand By Your Man.’ Originally recorded by Tammy Wynette and released as a single in 1968. It proved to be the most successful record of Wynette’s career and is one of the most covered songs in the history of country music.

1977, the third Grateful Dead show on this date took place at the renown Fox Theatre in Atlanta, Georgia.

1978, Bob Marley and The Wailers played the first night on a 19-date North American tour at the Hill Auditorium, Ann Arbor, Michigan.

1978, The Buddy Holly Story has its world premiere in Dallas. Star Gary Busey is later nominated for the Best Actor Oscar.

1980, Joy Division singer and guitarist Ian Curtis hanged himself in the kitchen of his house in Macclesfield, England at the age of 23. Curtis had the Iggy Pop album ‘The Idiot’, playing on his stereo and left a note that said, ‘At this very moment, I wish I were dead. I just can’t cope anymore.’ Joy Division released the critically acclaimed debut album Unknown Pleasures in 1979, and recorded their follow-up ‘Closer’ in 1980.

1984, Simple Minds were at No.1 on the US singles chart with ‘Don’t You Forget About Me’, (a No. 7 hit in the UK). Written by Keith Forsey (who won an Oscar for “Flashdance… What a Feeling”) and Steve Schiff (guitarist and songwriter from the Nina Hagen band, the track was featured in the 1985 American teen drama film The Breakfast Club.

Born on this day: Joe Turner, bluesman (1911); perry Como (1912); Albert Hammond (1942);  – Rick Wakeman (1949); and George Strait (1952)

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Today in Rock History – May 15

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1966, Pink Floyd played at The Marquee Club, Wardour Street, London.  They were billed as the Pink Floyd Sound, as part of their “Spontaneous Underground” period.

1967, Paul McCartney is hanging out with Keith Moon and Eric Burdon at Georgie Fame concert at the Bag O’Nails club in London. The young American photographer of The Who’s March visit to New York, Linda Eastman, is there and Paul meets her for the first time.  They married on March 12, 1969.

1968, George Harrison and Ringo Starr attended the premiere of ‘Wonderwall’ at the Cannes Film Festival.

1968, At a press conference, Paul McCartney and John Lennon say they’ve ended their association with the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi.

1969, John Lennon’s Life With The Lions was released on Apple’s avant-garde imprint Zapple. One side of the album was recorded on a cassette player at London’s Queen Charlotte Hospital during Yoko Ono’s pregnancy which ended in a miscarriage.

1970, A Pink Floyd concert at London’s Crystal Palace is so loud it kills fish in a nearby lake.

1970, In the new releases section of the local record store is the self-titled debut from the mighty Black Sabbath.

1970, The Grateful Dead played at the Fillmore East in New York. This show has been commercially released as Road Trips: Vol 3, Number 3.

1971, Crosby Stills Nash & Young scored their second number one album with 4 Way Street.

1971, Paul McCartney releases his album Ram.

1973, Bob Marley and The Wailers played the first of four sold-out nights at the Speakeasy in London, England as part of their Catch A Fire Tour.

1974, Bill Wyman releases the first solo album by a Rolling Stone, Monkey Grip.

1974, Frank Zappa and his wife announced the birth of their third child, a boy named Ahmet Rodan, after the Japanese movie monster that lived of a steady diet of 707 planes.

1975, Fleetwood Mac debut their new lineup in El Paso, Texas. It’s the first incarnation of the band that includes Stevie Nicks, Lindsey Buckingham, Mick Fleetwood, and John and Christine McVie.

1976, The Rolling Stones went to number one on the album chart with Black And Blue, the group’s sixth No.1 album.

1977, The Grateful Dead performed at the St. Louis Arena in St. Louis, Missouri.

1981, Former Sex Pistol John Lydon’s band Public Image Ltd performed a show at New York’s Ritz Club posing behind a video screen while the music was played from tapes. They were showered with missiles and eventually booed off stage.

1982, Asia went to number one on the US album chart with their self-titled album. It spent a total of nine weeks at number one and became the best-selling album in the US for 1982. The supergroup included former members of several veteran progressive rock bands, namely bassist/vocalist John Wetton (formerly King Crimson, Roxy Music, Uriah Heep, U.K., Wishbone Ash), guitarist Steve Howe (Yes), keyboardist Geoff Downes (Yes, The Buggles) and drummer Carl Palmer ( The Crazy World of Arthur Brown, Atomic Rooster, Emerson, Lake & Palmer).

1994, Blur scored their first UK number one album with Parklife, which went on to spend over two years on the chart. The album featured four UK hit singles, “Girls & Boys,” “End of a Century,” “Parklife,” and “To the End.”

Born on this day: Graham Goble, Little River Band (1946); Brian Eno (1948); and Mike Oldfield (1953)

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Today in Rock History – May 11

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1967, Pink Floyd begin two days of recording with producer Joe Boyd, working on the tracks “Interstellar Overdrive,” “Arnold Layne,” “Let’s Roll Another One” and “Nick’s Boogie.”

1967, The Bee Gees made their Top Of The Pops debut performing “New York Mining Disaster” on the UK TV show.

1968, Jimi Hendrix moves into a London townhouse formerly owned by the Messiah’s composer George Frederick Handel. The guitarist tells the Daily Mirror that he will “not let the tradition down.”

1969, Yes played at Frank Freeman’s Club, Kidderminster, England.

1969, The Rolling Stones go to number five in the American album charts with their new release Beggars Banquet. It peaked at number three in the UK charts the previous year.

1969, The Allman Brothers Band performed the first of two nights at the Piedmont Music Festival in Atlanta.

1969, Jethro Tull release their debut album This Was.

1970, The triple soundtrack album Woodstock was released, going gold within two weeks.

1971, King Crimson appeared at Guild Hall, Plymouth, England.

1972, John Lennon appeared on the US television Dick Cavett Show, claiming he was under surveillance from the FBI.

1972, David Bowie played at Assembly Hall, Worthing, England.

1972, The Grateful Dead’s fabled European tour stops at Rotterdam, Netherlands for a show at the Civic Hall.

1973, Wings kicked off their first official tour at the Bristol Hippodrome, playing 15 UK shows.

1973, Alice Cooper appeared at The Forum, Inglewood, California.

1974, Led Zeppelin attended an Elvis Presley show at the Inglewood Forum in Los Angeles, California. After a shaky start to the show, Elvis stopped the band and jokingly said: “Wait a minute…if we can start together fellas, because we’ve got Led Zeppelin out there, lets try to look like we know what were doing.” All four members of Zeppelin met with Elvis after the show, spending over two hours backstage. Elvis asked for all the group’s autographs for his daughter Lisa Marie.

1975, Led Zeppelin play “Kashmir” live for the first time during a gig at the Ahoy in Rotterdam.

1976, AC/DC performed at the Marquee Club, London.

1978, Rush appeared at the Memorial Coliseum, Fort Wayne, Indiana.

1978, at the end of their News Of The World 46-date tour, Queen played three sold-out nights at Wembley Arena, London, England.

1979, Rod Stewart appeared at Cobo Arena, Detroit, on his Blondes Have More Fun tour, tickets $12.50.

1981, Jamaican singer-songwriter Bob Marley died of lung cancer and a brain tumor aged 36. Had the 1981 single “No Woman No Cry,” plus over ten other UK Top 40 singles. In 1990, February 6 was proclaimed a national holiday in Jamaica to commemorate his birth. The compilation album, Legend, released in 1984, is the best-selling reggae album ever with sales of more than 20 million copies. Time magazine chose Bob Marley & The Wailers’ Exodus as the greatest album of the 20th century.

1985, UK producer and keyboard player Paul Hardcastle was at number one on the UK singles chart with “19.”The title referred to the average age of American soldiers in the Vietnam War and features dialogue by television narrator Peter Thomas, and a strong anti-war message.

1987, The UK indie chart had The Smiths at number one on with “Sheila Take A Bow,” number two, The Cult, “Lil’ Devil” number three, The Pogues, “The Irish Rover.” The CD chart, David Bowie a the top spot with Never Let Me Down, Raindancing by Alison Moyet stood at number two and Genesis Invisible Touch rounded out the top three.

1996, Bill Graham the Irish journalist from Hot Press magazine, credited with discovering U2, died of a heart attack aged 44. Graham brought the fledgling band to the attention of Paul McGuiness, who became their manager. Members from Clannad, U2, Hothouse Flowers and Gavin Friday all attended his funeral.

2001, Oasis, The Black Crowes and Spacehog kicked off The Tour of Brotherly Love, a North American tour at The Hard Rock in Las Vegas, Nevada. (The three bands featuring pairs of brothers, (Noel and Liam Gallagher, Chris and Rich Robinson, Royston and Antony Langdon, respectively).

2003, Jimi Hendrix Experience bassist Noel Redding died at his home in Ireland aged 57. Redding played on the classic Hendrix albums Are You Experienced, ‘Axis: Bold as Love and Electric Ladyland. Right up until his death, Redding had been taking legal action against the Hendrix estate for payment estimated at £3.26 ($5.22) million for his part in recordings and for ongoing royalties. Had also been a member of Fat Mattress and formed The Noel Redding Band.

Born on this day: Irving Berlin (1888);  Eric Burdon (1941); Les Chadwick, Gerry And The Pacemakers (1943); and Butch Trucks, Allman Brothers (1947); Greg Dulli,  singer-songwriter and guitarist, The Twilight Singers, The Afghan Whigs (1965).

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Today in Rock History – May 4

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pink-floyd-may-19671967, Pink Floyd performed at the Locarno Ballroom in Coventry, West Midlands, England.

1968, Steppenwolf make their first appearance on American Bandstand.

1968, The Yardbirds played at the Grande Ballroom in Detroit, Michigan.

1968, Mary Hopkin won her heat on the ITV talent show Opportunity Knocks. She later signed with The Beatles owned Apple Records, Paul McCartney produced her UK No.1 single “Those Were The Days,” which also made No. 2 in the US. Hopkin later married record producer Tony Visconti.

1968, The Who appear at Melody Fair in North Tonawanda, New York.

1969, John Lennon, Paul McCartney, and Ringo Starr all show up at the London wrap party for The Magic Christian. The film, based on Terry Southern’s novel, stars Peter Sellers and Ringo.

1969, The Allman Brothers Band appeared at Central City Park in Macon, Georgia.

1970,  Four Kent State Students killed, seven others wounded by Ohio National Guardsmen during demonstrations against Nixon’s invasion of Cambodia. Neil Young pens the song “Ohio” within a week and Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young record and release it in early June.

1972, The Grateful Dead perform at the Olympia Theater in Paris during their fabled Europe ’72 tour.

1972, Pink Floyd played at the Music Hall in Boston on the last night of a North American tour. The show was moved from the Orpheum Theater, a smaller venue due to the high ticket demand.

1973, Led Zeppelin opened their 1973 North American tour, which was billed as the “biggest and most profitable rock & roll tour in the history of the United States.” The group would gross over $4 million from the dates, flying between gigs in “The Starship,” a Boeing 720 passenger jet, complete with bar, shower room, TV and video in a 30′ lounge and a white fur bedroom.

1973, Frank Zappa & The Mothers Of Invention appeared at Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto.

1974, Grand Funk Railroad started a two week run at No.1 on the singles chart with their version of the Little Eva hit “The Loco-Motion.” It was only the second time that a cover version had been a No.1 as well as the original.

1974, The film soundtrack to The Sting’by Marvin Hamlisch started a five-week run at number one on the album chart.

1975, Elvis Presley kicked off a 31- date North American Tour by playing two shows at the Civic Center in Lake Charles, Louisiana.

1976, David Bowie performed the first of four nights at the Empire Pool, Wembley, in London. Earlier in the day, he gave a rare interview to Jean Rook of the Daily Express.

1976, The Rolling Stones played at the AWD Dome, Bremen, Germany.

1977, The Patti Smith Group, David Johansen, Dead Boys, Blondie, Suicide and Richard Hell & The Voidoids all appeared at a Punk Benefit at CBGB’s in New York City.

1978, “Night Fever” by The Bee Gees was at number one on the UK singles chart. The group’s third chart topper and the theme from the film Saturday Night Fever. The song was a US number one for over two months.

1979, Rush appeared at the Hammersmith Odeon, London.

1980, ZZ Top performed at the Capitol Theatre, Passaic, New Jersey.

1984, King Crimson played at Kenmin Hall, Kanagawa, Japan.

1987, American blues vocalist, harmonica player Paul Butterfield, who fronted The Paul Butterfield Blues Band, died at his home in North Hollywood, California, of drug-related heart failure, he was 44. He achieved international recognition, as one of the early acts performing during the Summer of Love, at The Monterey festival and Woodstock festival.

1989, Stevie Ray Vaughan set out on what would be his last ever tour at the Orpheum Theatre, Vancouver, British Columbia. The guitarist was killed in a helicopter crash on 27th Aug 1999 after a concert at Alpine Valley Music Theater in Wisconsin, after playing 107 of the 110 dates.

1996, Alanis Morissette started a six-week run at No.1 on the UK album chart with Jagged Little Pill.

2004, Clement Seymour Dodd died aged 72. Producer and major force in the development of ska and reggae, made the first recordings of Bob Marley.

Born on this day – Dick Dale (1937); Nicholas Ashford, Ashford & Simpson (1942); George Wadenius, Blood Sweat & Tears (1945); Bruce Day, Santana, Pablo Cruise (1951); Randy Travis (1959); and Mike Dirnt, bass, Green Day (1972)

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Today in Rock History – April 23

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1965, The Rolling Stones kicked off their third North American tour at the Maurice Richard Arena in Montreal, Canada.

1966, The Who played at the Odeon Theatre in Rochester, Kent, England.

1967, Jimi Hendrix appeared at the Gaumont Theatre in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England.

1969, The Beatles were at number one on the UK singles chart with “Get Back,” the group’s 16th British chart topper. Writing credits included “The Beatles with Billy Preston,” the only Beatles single that included another artist credit.

1969, The Ash Grove club in Los Angeles, where Canned Heat cut their teeth, burns down.

1969, The Grateful Dead play the last of three shows at The Ark in Boston. The ill-fated club near Fenway Park didn’t last very long, and was subsequently taken over by the more famous venue the Boston Tea Party.

1970, Fairport Convention, Fotheringay and Matthews Southern Comfort all appeared at The Roundhouse, London,

1971, Emerson, Lake and Palmer performed at the Eastown Theater in Detroit, Michigan.

1971, The Rolling Stones released  Sticky Fingers in the UK. The album reached the top spot in the UK and the US.  It was the band’s first release on Atlantic Records. The cover design featured a pair of jeans with a working zipper that was designed by Andy Warhol, who was paid £15,000 for the art work.

1972, Pink Floyd’s North American tour stops at Cincinnati’s Music Hall for a performance of Dark Side of the Moon.

1972, Procol Harum played at Ford Auditorium in Detroit, Michigan.

1973, King Crimson played at Henry Levitt Arena, Wichita, Kansas.

1974, Yes performed Palazzo Di Palaeur Dello Sport, Rome, Italy.

1975, During a North American tour Pink Floyd played the first of five sold out nights at the Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena in Los Angeles, California.

1976, The Ramones released their self-titled debut album. On the same day, The Sex Pistols played The Nashville Rooms in London supporting The 101’ers, who featured Clash vocalist Joe Strummer.

Marley in 1976 – photo by D. Burnett

1976, Bob Marley and The Wailers kicked off their Rastaman Vibration North American and European 42-date tour at the Tower Theater in Upper Darby, Pennsylvania.

1976, Genesis appeared at the Opera House, St. Louis, Missouri.

1977, A Siouxsie & the Banshees performance at London’s Roxy Club inspires audience member Stuart Goddard to form the Ants. He later becomes international pop star Adam Ant.

1977, Thelma Houston went to number one on the US singles chart with “Don’t Leave Me This Way.” It was a number 13 hit in the UK.

1977, Joan Jett supported by Blondie appeared at the Whisky A Go-Go, Los Angeles.

1978, Sex Pistols bassist Sid Vicious filmed his version of “My Way” for the Sex Pistols film The Great Rock n Roll Swindle.

1979, David Bowie premiered his new single “Boy’s Keep Swinging” on the BBC’s TV’s Kenny Everett Video Show.

1980, The Who performed at McNichols Arena, Denver, Colorado.

1980, Rush played at Wings Stadium, Kalamazoo, Michigan.

1980, Bob Dylan appeared at Le Theatre Saint-Denis, Montreal, Quebec.

1982, Black Sabbath performed at Seattle Arena, Seattle, Washington.

u2-chapel-hill-19831983, U2 kicked off their 48-date War North American tour at The Carolina Concert For Children benefit at Kenan Stadium in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. Also on the bill were Grand Master Flash, The Producers, and Todd Rundgren, although by most accounts U2 was the highlight of the concert. At one point during the show, Bono began climbing up the vertical rigging tower, while carrying a large white flag. He made his way up on top of the scaffolding, at least 20-25 feet above the stage, in the rain, waving the flag, a scene for the ages.  There were only about 4000 in attendance, well short of the 20,000 capacity.

1987, Carole King sued record company owner Lou Adler for breach of contract. King claimed that she was owed over $400,000 in royalties. She also asked for all rights to her old recordings.

1988, Iron Maiden went to number one on the UK album chart with Seventh Son Of A Seventh Son, their second chat topping LP.

1991, Founder member of The New York Dolls Johnny Thunders, born John Anthony Genzale, Jr., died of a drug overdose. He renamed himself Johnny Thunders, after a comic book of the same name. The influential New York Dolls formed in 1972 and made just two albums. A teenage Morrissey acted as president of the UK branch of the New York Dolls fan club. He formed The Heartbreakers with Dolls drummer Jerry Nolan, and Television bassist Richard Hell.

1994, Pink Floyd were at number one on the UK album chart with The Division Bell, their fourth chart topping album.

1995, Peter Hodgson from Liverpool found a tape in his attic containing 16 of The Beatles’ earliest recordings made in 1959. The tape included “Hello Little Girl,” a Lennon-McCartney composition that the Beatles never recorded, and Ray Charles’ “Hallelujah, I Love Her So.” The sessions had been made on a reel-to-reel recorder that Hodgson’s father had lent to Paul McCartney.

2008, Amy Winehouse went out on a drink and drug-fuelled spree and hit and head-butted two men. After drinking all day, Amy visited the Good Mixer pub in Camden, London with Babyshambles guitarist Mik Whitnall. Inside she allegedly punched Mustapha el Mounmi in the face after he refused to give way to her at the pool table. The singer then left to visit Bar Tok in the early hours and once at the bar shouted “I am a legend get these people out. I want to take drugs.” After leaving the bar a good Samaritan tried to get her a cab, but she reportedly thought he was trying to molest her and allegedly head-butted him in the face.

2012, Thomas “Tommy” Marth, the touring and studio saxophonist for the Killers, died after shooting himself in the head at his Las Vegas home. The 33-year-old musician joined the band in 2005 and played on the live tours with Brandon Flowers and the group between 2008 and 2010. Tommy also performed on the 2006 release Sam’s Town and 2008’s Day & Age.

Born on April 23: Roy Orbison (1936); Ray Peterson, singer (1937); John Miles, singer, songwriter, guitarist (1949); Ray Burns, (Captain Sensible), The Damned (1955); Steve Clark, Def Leppard (1960); Simon Matthews, drummer, Jesus Jones (1964)

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Check out more cool pictures of reggae artists from the ’70 including the one above.

Today in Rock History – April 22

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beatles-ticket-to-ride1965, The Beatles were at number one on the UK singles chart with “Ticket To Ride.” Taken from the film Help! it was the group’s seventh UK chart topper.

1966, “Wild Thing” by The Troggs (who were originally called The Troglodytes) was released in the US on both the Atco and Fontana labels. The song went on to reach number one. Fronted by Reg Presley, “Wild Thing” became a major influence on garage rock and punk rock. The original version was written by Chip Taylor in 1965 with his New York based group The Wild Ones.

1967, Jimi Hendrix played at the Odeon Theatre in Manchester, England.

1967, Pink Floyd performed a 45-minute set at Benn Memorial Hall, in Rugby England. Keyboardist Rick Wright was quoted in a local paper, “We started off as an R&B group, but later decided to adopt our own style. Our music is made to represent hallucinatory effects and this is enhanced by the use of lights.”

1967, In the most popular Monkee poll conducted in the music paper Disc & Music Echo, Davy Jones received 63% of the votes, Mickey Dolenz 22%, Peter Tork 8% and Mike Nesmith 7%.

1968, Cream performed at Massey Hall in Toronto.

1969, John Lennon changed his middle name from Winston to Ono on the roof of the Apple building in London.

1969, In Dolton, England, the Who perform their rock opera Tommy live in its entirety for the first time.

1969, A&M signs a brother-sister act called the Carpenters.

1969, Fleetwood Mac kicked off a 10-date UK tour at the Royal Albert Hall, London. Also on the bill, BB King, Sonny Terry and Brownie McGhee and Duster Bennett.

1970, Pink Floyd performs at the Capitol Theater, Port Chester, New York.

1971, The Allman Brothers Band played at Middle Tennessee State University in Murfreesboro, Tennessee.

1971, Pink Floyd performs at Norwich Lads Club in Norwich, England.

deep purple-machine-head1972, Deep Purple scored their second UK number one album with Machine Head.

1973, Yes appeared at the West Palm Beach Auditorium, West Palm Beach, Florida.

1974, Tina Turner starts filming in the role of Acid Queen in the Who’s film Tommy.

1975, Pink Floyd performed at the Sports Arena in San Diego, California as part of their North American tour.

1975, Rush appeared at the Indiana Convention Center, Indianapolis, Indiana.

1976, Bob Dylan played at the Belleview Biltmore Hotel, Clearwater, Florida.

1977, The Grateful Dead play at the Spectrum in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

1978, Bob Marley and the Wailers performed at the One Love Peace Concert in Jamaica. It was Marley’s first public appearance in Jamaica since being wounded in an assassination attempt a year and a half earlier.

1977, Black Sabbath appeared at Lisebergshalle, Gothenberg, Sweden.

1978, Gerry Rafferty releases his hit single “Baker Street.”

1978, John Belushi and Dan Aykroyd made their first ever appearance as The Blues Brothers on NBC television’s Saturday Night Live.blues brothers

1980, The Who appear at The Salt Palace Arena, Salt Lake City, Utah.

1985, Eric Clapton played at The Coliseum, Richmond, Virginia.

1989, Madonna began a three week run at number one on the US singles chart with “Like A Prayer.”  It was her seventh US chart topper, and a number one hit in the UK.

1991, The Dave Matthews Band played their first ever-live show when they appeared at The Earth Day festival in Charlottesville, Virginia.

2003, Songwriter Felice Bryant died of cancer. She wrote many hits with her husband Boudleaux including: The Everly Brothers, “Bye Bye Love,” “All I Have To Do Is Dream,” “Wake Up Little Susie,” and “Raining In My Heart,” a hit for Buddy Holly. Other acts to record the duo’s songs include Bob Dylan, The Beatles, Tony Bennett, Simon & Garfunkel, Sarah Vaughan, Grateful Dead, Dolly Parton, Elvis Presley, Beach Boys, Roy Orbison, Elvis Costello, Count Basie, Dean Martin, Ruth Brown, Cher, R.E.M., and Ray Charles.

2008, It was revealed that ’60s singer Tommy Steele took Elvis Presley on a secret tour of London in 1958 after Presley struck up a friendship with Steele. When the rock legend flew into London for a day, Steele apparently took him round the city, showing him famous landmarks such as the Houses of Parliament. For more than 50 years, Presley fans had believed the only time Elvis ever set foot in the UK was during a stop-over at Prestwick Airport in Scotland in March 1960.

2013, Richie Havens, the folk singer who opened the legendary 1969 Woodstock rock festival, died of a heart attack at 72. He died at his home in Jersey City, New Jersey.

Born on April 22: Charles Mingus (1922); Glen Campbell (1936); Jack Nitzsche, producer, songwriter (1937); Peter Frampton (1950); Pete Car, American guitarist, Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section (1950); Paul Carrack, Squeeze (1951); Shavo Odadjian, bass, System of a Down (1974)

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