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Today in Rock History – July 10

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rolling-stones-satisfaction1965, The Rolling Stones started a four week run at number one on the US singles chart with “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction,” the group’s first chart-topper there. In the UK, the song was initially played only on pirate radio stations because its lyrics were considered too sexually suggestive.

1966, Johnny Tilotson, The Jive Five, The Tymes, The Shangra-Las and local band The Castiles (with Bruce Springsteen on vocals) all appeared at the Surf ‘n See Club in Seabright New Jersey.

1968, Eric Clapton announced that Cream would be splitting up following a farewell tour later in the year.

1968, The Nice were banned from appearing at London’s Royal Albert Hall after burning an American flag on stage. Two years later, Keith Emerson, leader of the Nice, joined Greg Lake and Carl Palmer in Emerson, Lake and Palmer.

1968, Diana Ross & the Supremes and Stevie Wonder appeared at San Diego Sports Arena, San Diego, California.

1969, Bob Dylan, Iron Butterfly, and Blues Image all appeared at the Mississippi River Festival at Southern Illinois University in Edwardsville, Illinois.

1969, The funeral of Rolling Stone Brian Jones took place in his home town at Hatherley Road Parish Church, Cheltenham. Canon Hugh Evan Hopkins read Jones’ own epitaph, “Please don’t judge me too harshly.” Bill Wyman, Keith Richards and Charlie Watts from The Stones attended the funeral.

1970, The Allman Brothers Band played at Stony Brook University in Stony Brook, New York.

1970, The Who single “Summertime Blues” backed with “Heaven and Hell” is released. The A-side comes from the album Live at Leeds while the B-side is a quickly recorded mono studio version of the Entwistle song done for the BBC, with a new vocal slapped on. It reaches number 38 in Britain and in the US, it makes number 27 in the Billboard charts.

1971, The Who performed during their “unpublicized” tour of the UK at Civic Hall, Dunstable, England.

1972, Harry Nilsson released Son of Schmilsson. His eighth album featured friends Ringo Starr and George Harrison, plus Klaus Voorman, Nicky Hopkins, Peter Frampton, Chris Spedding, Bobby Keys and Lowell George. It included the hit “Spaceman, ” and the satirical classics “You’re Breaking My Heart” and “Joy.”

1972, Pink Floyd release “Free Four”/”Stay” as a 7″ single in the US.

1973, Led Zeppelin performed for two hours and forty minutes to 11,000 fans at the Milwaukee Arena in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

1974, David Bowie played the first of five dates at The Tower Theatre in Philadelphia the recordings of which made up the David Live album released later that year.

1975, The Rolling Stones played at The Forum in Inglewood, California.

1976, One hit wonders Starland Vocal Band started a two week run at No.1 on the US singles chart with “Afternoon Delight.”

1976, Aerosmith performed at Comiskey Park in Chicago, home of the White Sox baseball team. The stadium was demolished in 1991, when a new stadium was opened next door.  The Beatles performed at Comiskey in 1965.

1977, Cher gave birth to a baby boy Elijah Blue.  Gregg Allman was the father.

1978, Rolling Stone Bill Wyman was knocked unconscious after falling from the stage during a Stones concert at the Coliseum in St Paul, Minnesota.

1979, Chuck Berry was sentenced to five months in jail after being found guilty of tax evasion.

Bob Marley, courtesy Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (rockhall.com)

1980, Bob Marley and the Wailers began what would be Marley’s last ever UK tour when they appeared in Dublin, Ireland.

1980, During their 23 date 11 O’Clock Tick Tock tour, U2 appeared at The Clarendon Hotel in London.

1981, The Moody Blues performed at Pine Knob Music Theatre, Clarkston, Michigan.

1981, The Grateful Dead played at the Civic Center in St. Paul, Minnesota.

1984, King Crimson appeared at Le Spectrum in Montreal, Quebec.

1987, Producer and record company executive John Hammond died. He brought Stevie Ray Vaughan, Bob Dylan, Aretha Franklin, Leonard Cohen and Bruce Springsteen to Columbia Records. Hammond also worked as a producer with Bessie Smith, Billie Holiday, Benny Goodman and Count Basie.

2002, David Bowie, Suede, Divine Comedy, Green Day, No Doubt, Paul Weller, Ian Brown, Joe Strummer, New Order, Doves and Shed 7 all appeared at the four day Move festival, Old Trafford Cricket Ground, Manchester, England.

2008, The drum skin used on the cover of The Beatles’ Sgt Pepper album sold for £541,250 ($1 million) at Christie’s Memorabilia auction in London. Other items sold included John Lennon’s lyrics for “Give Peace a Chance” which sold for £421,250 ($832,257.) A pair of tinted prescription sunglasses belonging to Lennon, which he wore for the cover of the single “Mind Games,” sold for £39,650 ($79,000.) A rare 1/4 inch reel to-reel master tape recording of the Jimi Hendrix Experience performing at the Woburn Music Festival in 1968 went for £48,050 ($95,00), a Marshall amplifier used by Hendrix in concert fetched £25,000 ($50,000).

Born on July 10: Jerry Miller, Moby Grape (1943); Arlo Guthrie (1947); Ronnie James Dio (1949); and Greg Kihn (1950)

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Today in Rock History – July 3

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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Today in Rock History – May 21

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who-anyway-anywhere-anyhow1965, The Who’s second single, “Anyway Anyhow Anywhere” backed with “Daddy Rolling Stone” is released in the UK on Brunswick. Derek Johnson in New Musical Express calls is “a wild racer, with just about every conceivable gimmick…it commands attention and should do well.”

1967, Jimi Hendrix signed with Reprise Records on the US Warner Brothers label. They released the guitarist’s three studio albums Are You Experienced?, Axis: Bold as Love, and Electric Ladyland.

1967, Pink Floyd was at Studio 3, EMI Studios, Abbey Road, St. John’s Wood in London to record songs for their debut album, Piper At The Gates Of Dawn.

1968, The Monkees appeared at The Olympia Stadium, Salt Lake City.

1968, Rolling Stone Brian Jones appeared at Great Marlborough Street Magistrates court, London on a charge of possession of marijuana, Jones was released on £200 ($320) bail.

1969, Yes played at Harrods Way Inn, London.

1970, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young recorded “Ohio.”

1970, The Allman Brothers Band appeared at Seabreeze High School Auditorium, Daytona Beach, Florida.

1971, UK rock group Free announced that they were splitting up.

1971, King Crimson played at Regal Cinema, Cambridge, England.

1971, Paul McCartney releases his solo album Ram.

1972, The Doors, Pink Floyd, The Faces, Family, Curved Air, Atomic Rooster, The Kinks, Rory Gallagher, Uriah Heep, Country Joe McDonald, Buddy Miles, Status Quo, Brinsley Schwarz, Spencer Davis, The Strawbs and Humble Pie all appeared at the Second British Rock Meeting, Insel Grun, Germersheim, West Germany. The festival was due to take place in Mannheim, West Germany, but after protests from the locals, the concert actually took place in nearby Germersheim.

1973, David Bowie performed at the Theatre Royal, Norwich, England.

1974, Two would-be concert promoters were arrested by police on fraud charges in connection with selling mail order tickets for a forthcoming “Elten John” show. The misspelling help detect their fraud. Police took away over $12,000 in checks.

1975, ZZ Top appeared at Boston’s Music Hall

1976, The Rolling Stones begin a six-night stand at London’s Earls Court. Reviews of the show are the first to describe the band as “dinosaurs.”

1977, Rod Stewart was at number one on the singles chart with the double A sided single “I Don’t Want To Talk About It / First Cut Is The Deepest.’

1977, Stevie Wonder started a three week run at number one on the singles chart with his tribute to Duke Ellington, “Sir Duke,” his sixth US chart topper. It made it to number two in the UK.

1977, Grateful Dead performed at Lakeland Civic Center, Lakeland, Florida, a show that can be heard on Dick’s Picks #29.

1978, Black Sabbath played at City Hall, Newcastle, England.

1979, Elton John started a tour of Russia, when he played the first of eight concerts making him the first Western star ever to do so.

1980, A thief broke into Electric Lady Studios in New York City, the recording studio built by Jimi Hendrix and stole five Hendrix gold records.

1982, The Hacienda Club was opened in Manchester, England. Madonna made her UK TV debut at the club when C4 music show The Tube was broadcast live. It was home to many Manchester acts and Oasis, Happy Mondays, U2, The Smiths, Charlatans, James, M People, who all played at the club.

1983, David Bowie went to number one on the US singles chart with “Let’s Dance,” featuring blues guitarist Stevie Ray Vaughan. It was Bowie’s first single to reach number one on both sides of the Atlantic. The music video was made by David Mallet on location in Australia including a bar in Carinda in New South Wales, featured Bowie playing with his band while impassively watching an Aboriginal couple’s struggles against metaphors of Western cultural imperialism.

1988, Prince scored his first UK number one album with Lovesexy. The cover, based on a photo by Jean Baptiste Mondino, caused some controversy upon release as it depicts Prince in the nude. Some record stores refused to stock it, or wrapped the album in black.

1994, The Manchester United Football Club, along with Status Quo, were at number one on the UK singles chart with “Come On You Reds.”

2001, Producer, arranger and keyboardist Tommy Eyre died of cancer aged 51. He worked with George Harrison, Wham!, Dusty Springfield, and BB King. Eyre played and arranged Joe Cocker’s hit “With A Little Help From My Friends” and Gerry Rafferty’s “Baker Street.”

2006, Madonna played the first of three sold out nights at The Los Angeles Forum in California, the first dates on her Confessions Tour. The 60-date tour grossed over $260 (£162.5) million, becoming the highest grossing tour ever for a female artist.

2011, Adele went to number one on the US singles chart with “Rolling In The Deep,” taken from her second studio album, 21. The video to the song was nominated for seven MTV Video Music Awards nominations, “Rolling in the Deep” was also the Billboard Year End Hot 100 Number One Single of 2011.  The song received three 2012 Grammy Awards for Record of the Year, Song of the Year, and Best Short Form Music Video.

2013, Trevor Bolder, the bassist in David Bowie’s legendary 1970s backing band Spiders From Mars, died from cancer at the age of 62. Bolder appeared on the studio albums Hunky Dory (1971), The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars (1972), Aladdin Sane (1973), and Pin Ups (1973). He joined Uriah Heep in 1976, replacing John Wetton.

Born on this day: Fats Waller (1904); Tony Sheridan (1940); Ronald Isley, The Isley Brothers (1941); Martin Carthy, English singer-songwriter, guitarist,  producer, Steeleye Span, The Watersons, Waterson:Carthy, Brass Monkey,  Blue Murder (1941); Vincent Crane, keyboards, The Crazy world of Arthur Brown (1943); Leo Sayer (1948);  Stan Lynch, American drummer, songwriter,  producer, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers (1955); Kevin Shields, American-Irish singer-songwriter, guitarist, producer, My Bloody Valentine, The Complex, and Primal Scream (1963); Martin Blunt, bass, The Charlatans (1964); Christopher G. Wallace, aka Biggie Smalls, aka Notorious B.I.G. (1972); Adam Gontier, Canadian singer-songwriter, guitarist, Three Days Grace, Big Dirty Band, and Saint Asonia (1978)

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Today in Rock History – December 14

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1967, Rolling Stones guitarist Brian Jones was rushed to St Georges hospital in London after collapsing. A doctor reported Jones was tired and suffering from over strain and was also recovering from having some teeth out.

1968, Deep Purple played at the Grande Ballroom in Detroit, Michigan.

1968, Marvin Gaye scored his first number one single when “I Heard It Through The Grapevine” started a five-week run at the top. It was Marvin’s 15th solo hit. The song was written by Norman Whitfield and Barrett Strong in 1966, the single was first recorded by Smokey Robinson & the Miracles, as well as Gladys Knight & the Pips.

1969, The Jackson Five made their first network television appearance when they appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show.

1970, Grand Funk Railroad performed at Park Center in Charlotte, North Carolina.

1971, The Grateful Dead were in Ann Arbor, Michigan where they played at Hill Auditorium.

1972, Born To Boogie,  the Ringo Starr directed movie premiered in London. The film was based around a concert at Wembley Empire Pool, London, England starring Ringo Starr, Marc Bolan and T. Rex, and was released on The Beatles’ Apple Films label.

1972, Fleetwood Mac appeared at the Mid-South Coliseum, Memphis, Tennessee.

1973, Bruce Springsteen appeared at the Pinecrest Country Club, Shelton, Connecticut. Only 200 tickets were sold for the show.

1973, Roger Daltrey of The Who performs the second of two nights as Tommy in the second all-star concert version of the orchestral Tommy at the Rainbow Theatre in London.

1974, Pink Floyd played the last show of the 1974 British Winter Tour at the Hippodrome in Bristol. These shows were notable for the concert debut of “You Gotta Be Crazy,” an early version of “Dogs” that would subsequently appear on the Animals album.

1975, The Allman Brothers Band performed at the Mid-South Coliseum, Memphis, Tennessee.

1976, AC/DC played at the Civic Centre, Dubbo, New South Wales, Australia.

1978, Rush appeared at the International Amphitheater, Chicago.

1979, ZZ Top performed at Freedom Hall Civic Center, Johnson City, Tennessee.

1980, Yoko Ono called on fans to observe ten minutes of silence in memory of John Lennon. 30,000 gathered outside St George’s Hall in Liverpool, while nearly 100,000 attend a memorial in New York’s Central Park.

1981, During their Ghost In The Machine World Tour, The Police played the first of three sold out nights at Wembley Arena, London, England.

1985, Whitney Houston scored her first UK number one single with “Saving All My Love For You.” The song, which was written by Michael Masser and Gerry Goffin, had been a minor hit for Marilyn McCoo and Billy Davis Jr. in 1978, and was also a US chart topper for Houston.

1991, Michael Jackson started a four-week run at No.1 on the US album chart with his eighth studio album Dangerous. The album has sold over 32 million copies worldwide making it one of the best selling albums of all time. Nine singles were released from the album spanning two years (1991–1993).

1999, Sir Paul McCartney appeared at The Cavern Club Liverpool, where his last gig at the venue was in 1963. The show was filmed for TV and also went out live on the Internet.

2003, Ozzy & Kelly Osbourne went to number one on the UK singles chart with “Changes,” a remake of a track first sung by Ozzy on the Black Sabbath album Volume IV in 1972. It was the first father and daughter chart topper since Frank & Nancy Sinatra in 1967.

2004, The funeral took place in Arlington, Texas for Damageplan and Pantera guitarist Dimebag Darrell, Eddie Van Halen, placed Darrell’s original black and yellow stripes guitar into the Kiss Kasket he was buried in. Several thousand fans and friends gathered at the Arlington Convention Center in Arlington, to mourn the guitarist’s death. Darrell was shot five times in the back of the head during a gig at the Alrosa Villa Club in Columbus on 8th Dec 04 by a mentally ill former US Marine. Damageplan’s drum technician, John Brooks, and tour manager, Chris Paluska, were both injured in the incident.

Born on this day:  Charlie Rich (1932); Frank Allen, The Searchers (1943); Jackie McAuley, Them (1946);  Mike Scott, singer, songwriter, The Waterboys (1958); Tim Skold, bass, Marilyn Manson (1966)

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Today in Rock History – December 12

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1966, Pink Floyd make their first ever appearance at the Royal Albert Hall. Their would play the RAH three more times, with the last performance there in 1970.

1966, Jimi Hendrix performs at the RamJam Club in London.

1967, Rolling Stone Brian Jones was given 3 years probation and a £1,000 ($1,600) fine for drug offenses. Three psychiatrists agreed that Jones was an extremely frightened young man with suicidal tendencies.

1967, Jefferson Airplane appears at the Civic Center in Charleston, West Virginia.

1969, The Allman Brothers Band played at the Woodrose Ballroom in Deerfield, Massachusetts.

1970, Smokey Robinson and the Miracles started a two week run at No.1 on the singles chart with ‘Tears Of A Clown’. It was the group’s 26th Top 40 hit a The song was written by Stevie Wonder in 1966, and his producer Hank Cosby, Smokey Robinson wrote the lyrics.

1970, The Doors played what would be their last ever live show with Jim Morrison when they played at the Warehouse in New Orleans.

1970, Abraxas by Santana enters it’s fourth week at number one on the US album charts.  It hit the top spot for a week on October 24th, then returned for the last five weeks of 1970 on November 28th.

1971, The Who performed at the Civic Auditorium, San Francisco.

1972, Genesis appeared at Philharmonic Hall, New York.

1973, The Grateful Dead played at the Omni, in Atlanta. Georgia.

1974, KISS performed at the I.M.A. Sports Arena, Flint, Michigan.

1975, Rush played at War Memorial Arena, Syracuse, New York.

1976, Uriah Heep appeared at the Lakeland Civic Center, Lakeland, Florida.

1978, David Bowie played the last show of his world tour at NHK Hall in Tokyo, Japan.

1981, The Human League had their only UK No.1 single with ‘Don’t You Want Me.’ The Christmas hit of 81, the biggest seller of 1981 and Virgin Records first No.1 UK single. It would top the US charts six months later. The group’s singer Phil Oakey disliked the song so much that it was relegated to the last track on their latest album’ Dare’.

1981, King Crimson performed at Expo Hall, Osaka, Japan.

1982, Judas Priest played at Mid-South Coliseum, Memphis, Tennessee.

1985, Scottish keyboard player Ian Stewart died of a heart attack in his doctor’s Harley Street waiting room in London. He was a co-founder of The Rolling Stones.  Stewart was the first to respond to Brian Jones’s advertisement in Jazz News of  May 2nd, 1962 seeking musicians to form a rhythm & blues group. Stewart was dismissed from the line-up by the band’s manager, Andrew Loog Oldham, in May 1963 but remained as road manager and piano player. He played on all The Rolling Stones albums between 1964 and 1983, except for Beggars Banquet. Also played piano on Led Zeppelin’s “Rock and Roll” and “Boogie With Stu” from Physical Graffiti.

Born on this day:  Frank Sinatra (1915),  Connie Francis (1938); Dionne Warwick (1940);  Grover Washington Jr; Dickey Betts, Allman Brothers; and Mike Smith, Dave Clark Five (1943);  Clive Bunker, Jethro Tull (1946); Ralph Scala, The Blue Magoos (1947); Ray Jackson, Lindisfarne (1948); Shiela E. (1959); and Eric Schenkman, guitar, The Spin Doctors (1963)

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Song Of The Day by Eric Berman – The Jukebox Series #77 – The Rolling Stones: “Honky Tonk Woman” b/w “You Can’t Always Get What You Want”– London 45-910 (N8/P8)

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rollingstoneshonkytonkwoman45rollingstoneshonkytonkwomanpicsleeverollingstonesyoucantalwaysget45

Song Of The Day by Eric Berman – The Jukebox Series #77 – The Rolling Stones: “Honky Tonk Woman” b/w “You Can’t Always Get What You Want”– London 45-910 (N8/P8)

“The Jukebox Series” focuses on the 80 records that inhabit my 1963 Seeburg LPC1 jukebox. I’ve had my jukebox (or as I like to call it “the prehistoric iPod”) for a little over twelve years and in that time I’d like to think that I’ve perfected the mix of 45s within. And no jukebox is complete without a single by The Rolling Stones!

The first thing that grabs you is the cowbell, and if that doesn’t get your immediate attention, then you’re dead. Then comes Charlie Watts’ rim-shot snare attack that sets up one of the funkiest drum patterns this side of Memphis. Enter the hip-swaying guitar crunch of Keith Richards and Bill Wyman’s funk-infused bass playing that sets this track (and you the listener) into motion. The rest of the band kicks into the groove…yes, on this one, it’s all about the groove. And the groove of “Honky Tonk Woman” is as infectious as it is incessant.

It’s got all the makings of not only one, but two great tracks on a double sided single paired with “You Can’t Always Get What You Want” on the flip. It’s what made 45s great back in the day. Two great songs with the flip side of the single equally as strong as the top side. The Beatles’ did it with “Paperback Writer” and “Rain” cohabitating on the same seven inch. The Beach Boys also did it with “Wouldn’t It Be Nice and “God Only Knows.” The Monkees gave us “I’m A Believer” and “(I’m Not Your) Steppin’ Stone” on one single, and then there was the pairing of “Till The End Of The Day” and “Where Have All The Good Times Gone” by The Kinks. The world of vinyl is littered with dozens of others. At the end  of this post, share some of your classic single pairings…anyway, back to the music at hand…

Several versions of “Honky Tonk Woman,” the top side of today’s jukebox classic, were recorded by The Stones in 1969. There was today’s single version that found its way onto the compilation album Through The Past Darkly (Big Hits Vol. 2). The original was a country version that was based on Hank Williams’ “Honky Tonk Blues” and recorded before the electric version. It was later released on their Let It Bleed album under the title “Country Honk” with a much slower tempo with different lyrics. A third version was performed in concert and captured on Get Yer Ya-Ya’s Out! with a different second verse. Doesn’t matter which version’s your pleasure, they’re all superb! The single topped both the US and UK charts in 1969, and it’s been a staple of The Stones’ concerts ever since.

The “Country Honk” version was the group’s first attempt at the song and it is notable for being Brian Jones’ last recording with the band. According to Keith Richards, the electric take of the track was influenced by Jones’ replacement Mick Taylor. Richards: “… the song was originally written as a real Hank Williams/Jimmie Rodgers/1930s country song. And it got turned around to this other thing by Mick Taylor, who got into a completely different feel, throwing it off the wall another way.” (Crawdaddy via Wikipedia). However, since memory isn’t Mr. Richards’ strong suit, Mick Taylor says: “I added something to ‘Honky Tonk Woman’, but it was more or less complete by the time I arrived and did my overdubs.” (McPherson, Ian. Track Talk: Honky Tonk Women via Wikipedia) Over the years, Ry Cooder has also taken credit for inspiring the electric riff as well.

The original British single was released the day after Brian Jones death on the fourth of July, 1969, and copies of the record were given away free to those who stayed to clean the park up after the tribute concert they gave in Hyde Park in Jones’ memory. The song has been covered by the likes of Ike & Tina Turner, Waylon Jennings, Joe Cocker, Gram Parsons, Travis Tritt, Elton John, Billy Joel, Taj Mahal, Leslie West, The Meters, The Pogues, Tesla and Def Leppard.

On the flip lies the epic “You Can’t Always Get What You Want,” another stone cold classic from Let It Bleed that broke boundaries of what an AM hit record could be. The album version of the song clocked in at seven and a half minutes and featured vocals on the intro and the long fade by the London Bach Choir. The single version which clocks in at a still-long-for-radio five minutes, eschews the choir intro. The song did not chart when it was first released, however it ultimately reached #42 on the charts in 1973 and remains one of their most popular songs in concert. Once Let It Bleed was released, The London Bach Choir unsuccessfully tried to have their name removed from the credits because of the album’s title and the inclusion of the song “Midnight Rambler” which was about a serial killer.

The group had a hard time recording “You Can’t Always Get What You Want” because Charlie Watts could not get catch the groove of the song. As a result, producer Jimmy Miller handles the drum duties on this track. Mick Jagger: “‘You Can’t Always Get What You Want’ was something I just played on the acoustic guitar—one of those bedroom songs. It proved to be quite difficult to record because Charlie couldn’t play the groove and so Jimmy Miller had to play the drums. I’d also had this idea of having a choir, probably a gospel choir, on the track, but there wasn’t one around at that point. Jack Nitzsche, or somebody, said that we could get the London Bach Choir and we said, ‘That will be a laugh.” (Loewenstein, Dora; Dodd, Philip (2003). According to the Rolling Stones. San Francisco: Chronicle Books via Wikipedia) The lineup on the song also featured Al Kooper, who played the organ and the French horn part.

This is another Rolling Stones classic that has seen its share of cover version by the likes of Bette Midler, Aretha Franklin, George Michael, Def Leppard, Luther Allison, Rusted Root, Steel Pulse, the cast of Glee and numerous others.