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Today in Rock History – June 28

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

1975, Cher marries Gregg Allman.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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Today in Rock History – June 26

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1965, The Byrds went to number one on the US singles chart with their version of Bob Dylan’s “Mr Tambourine Man.” Only Roger McGuinn from the band played on the song, Wrecking Crew drummer Hal Blaine played on the track.

1965, The Strangeloves,  three Australian aborigines who were really three New Yorkers, enter Billboard’s Hot 100 with “I Want Candy.”

1966, In the midst of a German tour, the Beatles make a long-awaited return to Hamburg, the city where they got their start performing in local clubs. This time they come back in an eight-car motorcade and play to 7,000 people at Ernst Mercky Halle.

1966, During a North American tour, The Rolling Stones played two shows, a matinee show at The Coliseum in Washington DC, and an evening show at The Baltimore Civic Centre in Maryland. The McCoys and The Standells were the support acts.

1969, Joni Mitchell appeared on the ABC TV Mama Cass Television Program from Los Angeles, California.

1970, The Allman Brothers Band appeared at North Georgia Fairgrounds in Marietta, Ohio.

1970, Mountain played at The Warehouse in New Orleans, Louisiana.

1971, Emerson Lake and Palmer went to number one on the UK chart with their second album Tarkus.

1971, Pink Floyd play at Hatfield Polytechnic, in Hatfield, England. Tickets were 60 pence (about 90 cents.)

1972, During sessions at Olympic Studios, London, England, David Bowie recorded “John, I’m Only Dancing,” with Mick Ronson on lead guitar and Lou Reed on rhythm guitar. The track which was released and became a hit single in the UK in September of this year was not released in America, being judged too risqué by RCA Records. The original video directed by Mick Rock, featuring androgynous dancers from Lindsay Kemp’s mime troupe, was banned by British music show Top Of The Pops.

1973, Rolling Stone Keith Richards and his girlfriend Anita Pallenberg were arrested at their home in Chelsea, London on drugs and gun charges.

1974, Cher divorced Sonny Bono after 10 years of marriage. Four days later, Cher married guitarist Gregg Allman, the couple split 10 days after that, got back together and split again. They did stay married for three years, producing Elijah Blue Allman.

1975, Bob Dylan officially releases the long-bootlegged Basement Tapes.

1976, The Grateful Dead played the first of four nights at the Auditorium Theater in Chicago, Illinois.

1976, Legendary ’70s group Roxy Music announce they will undergo a “trial separation.”

1977, Elvis Presley made his last ever live stage appearance when he appeared at the Market Square Arena in Indianapolis. Presley would die less than two months later. The last two songs he performed were  “Hurt”  and  “Bridge Over Troubled Water.”  Before the show Elvis was presented with a plaque commemorating the 2 billionth record to come out of RCA s pressing plant.

1982, American singer and One Hit Wonder Charlene was at number one on the UK singles chart with “I’ve Never Been To Me.” The song was recorded in 1976 and was reissued by Motown records in 1982 by which time Charlene had moved to England and was working in a sweet shop in Ilford, east London.

1999, Elton John was reported to be in talks with a City finance house to secure a £25 million ($42.5 million) loan, using his back catalogue of hits as security. It had been reported that Elton had been spending £250,000 ($425,000) a week on credit cards.

2008, Total Guitar magazine voted Celine Dion’s rendition of the AC/DC track “You Shook Me All Night Long” as the world’s worst cover version ever. In the best cover versions list, Jimi Hendrix was voted into first place with his version of the Bob Dylan song “All Along the Watchtower,” The Beatles rendition of “Twist and Shout,” (first recorded by the Top Notes), was in second place, followed by the Guns N’ Roses version of the Wings song “Live and Let Die.”

Born on Jun 26: Col. Tom Parker, Elvis’ manager (1910); Billy Davis, Jr., The Fifth Dimension (1940); Larry Taylor, Canned Heat (1942) Mick Jones, The Clash (1955); Chris Isaak (1956) ; Colin Greenwood,  Radiohead (1969)

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Today in Rock History – February 27

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

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

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

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

1970, Elvis Presley performed at Houston’s Astrodome.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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Today in Rock History – February 16

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beatles-ed-sullivan-miami1964, The Beatles made their second live appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show, exactly one week after the first. Before an audience of 3,500 at the Deauville Hotel in Miami Beach, Florida.

1965, The Who perform at the Marquee Club where they are filmed for French television performing “Heatwave,” “Tell Me More,” “Shout and Shimmy,” and “Smokestack Lightning.” The footage is later broadcast on the ORTF TV 2 program Seize Millions De Jeunes on March 18th. Pete and manager Kit Lambert are both interviewed, the latter in French. Sticking to English, Pete expresses his doubts about marriage and mocks religious belief.

1967, Pink Floyd played at Guildhall in Southampton, Hampshire, England.

1967, Petula Clark was at number one on the singles chart with the Charlie Chaplin penned “This Is My Song,” the singers second and last chart topper.

1968, Jimi Hendrix played back to back shows during his US tour at the Music Hall at Fair Park, as well as at McFarlin Memorial Auditorium in Dallas, Texas.

1972, Rolling Stones drummer Charlie Watt’s wife Shirley was arrested after an incident at Nice Airport for swearing and hitting customs officials.

1972, Genesis played at Greens Playhouse, Glasgow, Scotland.

1972, Led Zeppelin made their Australian live debut when they kicked off a six-date tour at the Subiaco Oval, Perth. Police battled with over 500 fans who rammed locked gates trying to get into the concert. Over 4,000 fans stood outside the venue without tickets and local residents jammed police phone lines to complain about the noise.

1973, Grand Funk Railroad played at the Mid-South Coliseum in Memphis, Tennessee.

bob-dylan-Planet-Waves1974, Bob Dylan started a four week run at number one on the album chart with Planet Waves. The album was originally set to be titled Ceremonies Of The Horsemen, a reference to the song “Love Minus Zero / No Limit,” from the 1965 album Bringing It All Back Home. When Dylan decided to change the title at the last minute, the release was delayed for two weeks.

1974, During a tour of America the members of Emerson, Lake & Palmer were arrested in Salt Lake City after swimming naked in the hotel pool.

1974, Winners in the UK music weekly Disc Readers Awards Poll included: Slade for Top UK group. Top musician, Roy Wood; David Bowie won UK and World male singer, as well as Top single with “Jean Genie,” and album with Aladdin Sane. Top female singer was Lynsey De Paul, and Brightest hope was won by David Essex.

1975, Cher started her own weekly hour of a music and comedy show on CBS-TV. The singer had co-hosted The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour with her former husband. Cher’s new show featured a female guest each week.

1976, David Bowie appeared at the  Civic Auditorium, Albuquerque, New Mexico.

1977, ZZ Top performed at the Dane County Coliseum, Madison, Wisconsin.

1978, Santana played at  Maple Leaf Gardens, Toronto.

1980, Rush appeared at the University Of Dayton Arena, Dayton, Ohio.

1982, The Grateful Dead performed at the Warfield Theater in San Francisco.

springsteen-born_in_the_USA1985, Bruce Springsteen went to number one on the album chart with Born In The USA, The singer’s seventh studio album. It was the best-selling album of 1985 in the United States, and Springsteen’s most successful album ever. The album produced a record-tying string of seven top ten singles.

 1991, The Simpsons were at number one on the UK singles chart with “Do The Bartman.” The song was written by Michael Jackson and Bryan Lorenand. The Simpsons became the first cartoon characters to reach number one since the Archies hit “Sugar Sugar” in 1969. Jackson was a massive fan of The Simpsons and had called the producers one night offering to write Bart a number one single and do a guest spot on the show.

2004, Singer Doris Troy died. She had been a session singer with Dionne Warwick, sang on Pink Floyd’s Dark Side Of The Moon, and released an album on The Beatles’ Apple label. She had also had a 1964 UK  number 37 single with “Whatcha Gonna Do About It” and a 1963 US number ten hit “Just One Look.”

2005, Yusuf Islam, the former Cat Stevens, was awarded substantial damages from The Sunday Times and The Sun, after they had printed articles alleging he was involved in terrorism. Both newspapers apologized to the 56 year-old musician for the “false and highly defamatory allegations.” The papers also paid his legal bills and pledged not to repeat the allegations. The money awarded was given to Tsunami relief projects.

Born on this day: Otis Blackwell,  songwriter (1932); Sony Bono (1935); Lynn Paul, singer, The New Seekers (1949); Tracy Morrow, aka Ice-T, rapper, actor (1959); Andy Taylor, Duran, Duran (1961)

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Today in Rock History – October 6

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1964, The Beatles spent the afternoon recording “Eight Days A Week” at Abbey Road studios in London. Late evening was spent at The Ad Lib Club, London, partying with The Ronettes and Mick Jagger.

1965, The Who play at the Palais de Danse in Cowdenbeath, Scotland.

1967, The Jimi Hendrix Experience recorded a session for the UK BBC radio show Top Gear. Stevie Wonder who was also appearing on the show, jammed with Hendrix.

1967, The Doors appeared at the Cal State Gymnasium, Los Angeles, California. Also on the bill, The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band and The Sunshine Company.

1967, Pink Floyd appeared at the Miss Teenage Brighton Contest, Top Rank Suite, Brighton, England, playing the musical interlude during the contest. They played “Arnold Layne,” ” See Emily Play,” ” Matilda Mother,” and “Astronomy Domine.”

1967, The Who spent two days at spent in New York at Talentmasters Studio. Al Kooper joined The Who on organ to record two versions of “Mary Anne With The Shaky Hand.” One is released on the B-side of the U.S. release “I Can See For Miles,” while the other remained in the vaults until the 1995 edition of The Who Sell Out. Also recorded is a studio version of “Summertime Blues,” an organ overdub on “Relax” performed by Pete, and new vocals to replace the guide vocals on “I Can See For Miles.”

1968, Pink Floyd performed at The Country Club, Belsize Park, in London.

1969, George Harrison’s song “Something” was released as the “A” side of a Beatles’ 45, a first for Harrison. The track was released as a “double A-side, along with Lennon and McCartney’s “Come Together,” the single will reach the top of the charts in the next month.

1970, Genesis performs at British Legion Hall, Princes Risborough, England.

1970, The US Top 5 singles we at number 5, “All Right Now” by Free, number 4, “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough,” Diana Ross, number 3, “Candida,” Dawn,  At number two, “I’ll Be There,” Jackson Five, and the top spot belonged to “Cracklin’ Rose,” by Neil Diamond.

1971, The Allman Brothers Band performed at Pan American Center in Las Cruces, New Mexico.

1972, Led Zeppelin flew into Hong Kong  and were mobbed by fans asking for autographs. The  group was just passing through Hong Kong on its way home after concerts in Japan.

1973, Cher started a two week run at number one on the US singles chart with “Half-Breed,” the singer’s second chart topper.

1973, Slade scored their second UK number one album when Sladest started a three week-run at the top of the charts. In the US, Brothers and Sisters by The Allman Brothers entered the last of it’s five week run at number one.

Eric-Clapton_19751974, Eric Clapton performs at The Spectrum, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

1975, Roxy Music plays at Trentham Garden, Stoke, England.

1976, The Who appears at Veterans Memorial Complex, Phoenix, Arizona.

1977, Frank Zappa performed at Memorial Auditorium, Buffalo, New York.

1978, Abba members Benny Andersson and Anni-Frid Lyngstad married.

1979, Robert John went to number one on the US singles chart with “Sad Eyes.”

1979, The Buzzcocks, supported by Joy Division, appeared at the Odeon Theatre, Edinburgh, Scotland, tickets £2.50 ($4.)

1979, Led Zeppelin’s In Through The Out Door was at number one on the US album chart. Six versions of the cover were released, each depicting the same bar scene photographed from one of six different angles.

1979, “Gotta Serve Somebody” gave Bob Dylan his twelfth US top 40 hit when it entered the chart for the first time. It was recorded at Muscle Shoals Sound Studios in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. The song won Dylan the Grammy Award for Best Rock Vocal Performance by a Male in 1980.

1980, The Grateful Dead performed at the Warfield Theater in San Francisco.

1981, ZZ Top appeared at Hemmerleinhalle, Nuremberg, Germany.

1984, David Bowie scored his sixth UK number one album with Tonight, featuring the single “Blue Jean.”

1984, Stevie Ray Vaughn played at the Orpheum Theater, Boston, Massachusetts.

1991, Michael Jackson gave away the bride at Elizabeth Taylor’s seventh wedding, held at Jackson’s Neverland Ranch. The Groom was construction worker Larry Fortensky, whom Taylor would divorce in 1997.

2005, A Rolling Stones concert at the University of Virginia, in the US, was halted eight songs into the show at the Scott Stadium after police received a bomb threat targeting the stage area. A 45-minute police sweep of the area found nothing unusual, and the band completed the show. The Stones were touring to promote their latest album, A Bigger Bang.

2010, A set of John Lennon’s fingerprints were seized by the FBI from a New York memorabilia dealer who intended to sell them for $100,000 (£62,621) minimum bid. The prints were taken at a New York police station in 1976 when Lennon applied for permanent US residence. The bureau believed the card was still government property and was investigating how it landed in private hands.

2011, Jefferson Starship’s “We Built This City” was named “The worst song of the 1980s” in a poll by Rolling Stone magazine. “The Final Countdown” by the Swedish band Europe came in second, and “Lady in Red” by Chris de Burgh was third. Also making the top five were Wham!’s “Wake Me Up (Before You Go Go”) and “The Safety Dance” by Men Without Hats.

Born on October 6: Thomas McClary, guitar, The Commodores (1949); David Hidalgo, Los Lobos and Kevin Cronin, REO Speedwagon (1951);  Matthew Sweet (1964); and Tommy Stinson, bass, The Replacements (1966)

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Song Of The Day – “Tonight I’ll Be Staying Here With You” by Cher

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cherWhen one thinks of interpreters of Bob Dylan, the name Cher doesn’t automatically come to mind. But she was, in fact, a huge champion of Dylan’s songs, and his songs fit her voice like a glove. Over the years, Cher has covered such Dylan copyrights as “All I Really Want To Do” (a #15 hit),“Lay Lady Lay” (titled “Lay Baby Lay” on her version), “I Threw It All Away,” “Don’t Think Twice, It’s All Right,” “Like A Rolling Stone,” “Masters Of War,” “The Times, They Are A-Changin’” and today’s Song Of The Day, “Tonight I’ll Be Staying Here With You.”

Cher cut her version of “Tonight I’ll Be Staying Here With You” when it was a new song from Dylan’s just-released “Nashville Skyline.” Her version was released on the 1969 album “3614 Jackson Highway,” titled for the address of Muscle Shoals Studios in Alabama.

The idea of bringing Cher to Muscle Shoals to work with Jerry Wexler, Tom Dowd and Arif Mardin (who had also produced Dusty Springfield’s Dusty In Memphis album) was a brilliant one, and the results produced a terrific album that was not particularly well received when released and, unfortunately, didn’t sell well either.  Although Wexler does get a production credit on the record, he was not present for the recording of Cher’s vocals because he came down with pneumonia during the sessions. He did, however, choose all of the songs for Cher to record.

One of the reasons the album might not have sold so well was that back in 1969 the address and the studio were a completely unknown entity. In fact, Cher’s album was the first record cut there.  The studio was formed in 1969 by musicians Barry Beckett (keyboards), Roger Hawkins (drums), Jimmy Johnson (guitar) and David Hood (bass) who had left the legendary FAME Studios, founded by Arthur Alexander, to launch Muscle Shoals.

Cher remains one of our greatest interpreters of song, especially in the 1960s, and for this album she adeptly covered Buffalo Springfield’s “For What It’s Worth,” Otis Redding’s “(Sittin’ On) The Dock Of The Bay,” Dr. John’s “I Walk On Gilded Splinters,” Dan Penn and Spooner Oldham’s “Cry Like A Baby” (a hit for The Box Tops), Chips Moman and Dan Penn’s (by way of Aretha Franklin) “Do Right Woman, Do Right Man” and three of the above named Dylan songs, including today’s Song Of the Day.

The musicians on the sessions were Eddie Hinton on lead guitar, Jimmy Johnson on rhythm guitar, Barry Beckett on keyboards, Dave Hood on bass and Roger Hawkins on drums. The record was re-released by Rhino Handmade in 2001 and augmented with another 12 songs Cher cut for Atco that went unreleased.

Song of the Day – “Tonight I’ll Be Staying Here with You” by Cher

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Song of the Day by Eric Berman – “Tonight I’ll Be Staying Here with You” by Cher

When one thinks of great interpreters of Bob Dylan, the name Cher doesn’t automatically come to mind. But she was, in fact, a huge champion of Dylan’s songs, and his songs fit her voice like a glove. Over the years, Cher covered such Dylan copyrights as “All I Really Want To Do” (a #15 hit),“Lay Lady Lay” (titled “Lay Baby Lay” on her version), “I Threw It All Away,” “Don’t Think Twice, It’s All Right,” “Like A Rolling Stone,” “Masters Of War,” “The Times, They Are A-Changin’” and today’s Song Of The Day, “Tonight I’ll Be Staying Here with You.”

Cher cut her version of “Tonight I’ll Be Staying Here with You” when it was a new song from Dylan’s just-released “Nashville Skyline.” Her version was released on the 1969 album “3614 Jackson Highway,” titled for the address of Muscle Shoals Studios in Alabama where it was recorded.

The idea of bringing Cher to Muscle Shoals to work with Jerry Wexler, Tom Dowd and Arif Mardin (who had also produced Dusty Springfield’s killer Dusty in Memphis album) was a brilliant one, and the results produced a terrific album that was not particularly well received when released and, unfortunately, didn’t sell well either. Although Wexler does get a production credit on the record, he was not present for the recording of Cher’s vocals because he came down with pneumonia during the sessions. He did, however, choose all of the songs for Cher to record.

One of the reasons the album might not have sold so well was that back in 1969 the address and the studio were a completely unknown entity. In fact, Cher’s album was the first record cut there. The studio was formed in 1969 by musicians Barry Beckett (keyboards), Roger Hawkins (drums), Jimmy Johnson (guitar) and David Hood (bass) who had left the legendary FAME Studios, founded by Arthur Alexander, to launch Muscle Shoals.

Cher remains one of our greatest interpreters of song, especially in the 1960s, and for this album she adeptly covered Buffalo Springfield’s “For What It’s Worth,” Otis Redding’s “(Sittin’ On) The Dock Of The Bay,” Dr. John’s “I Walk On Gilded Splinters,” Dan Penn and Spooner Oldham’s “Cry Like A Baby” (a hit for The Box Tops), Chips Moman and Dan Penn’s (by way of Aretha Franklin) “Do Right Woman, Do Right Man” and three of the above named Dylan songs, including today’s Song of the Day.

The musicians on the sessions were Eddie Hinton on lead guitar, Jimmy Johnson on rhythm guitar, Barry Beckett on keyboards, Dave Hood on bass and Roger Hawkins on drums. The record was re-released by Rhino Handmade in 2001 and augmented with another 12 songs Cher cut for the Atco label that went unreleased.

Song Of The Day by Eric Berman – The Jukebox Series #57– Cher: “Gypsys, Tramps & Thieves” b/w “The Way Of Love” – MCA/Collectables COL-900087 (N6/P6)

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chergypsies45cherwayoflove45

Song Of The Day by Eric Berman – The Jukebox Series #57– Cher: “Gypsys, Tramps & Thieves” b/w “The Way Of Love” – MCA/60035 (N6/P6)

“The Jukebox Series” focuses on the 80 records that inhabit my 1963 Seeburg LPC1 jukebox. I’ve had my jukebox (or as I like to call it “the prehistoric iPod”) for a little over twelve years and in that time I’d like to think that I’ve perfected the mix of 45s within.

Today’s jukebox classic is as much a testament to performance and great songwriting, as it is to timing and opportunities demonstrating the power of television when it comes to career revival. In 1971, Sonny & Cher were offered their first television variety show, The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour which debut in August and became a big hit. As a result, many of the songs Cher performed on the show also became her biggest hits. Case in point is today’s Song Of The Day which was performed in September of 1971 on the show, and by November it was sitting atop the charts selling over four million copies in its wake.

When it was released, it had been four years since Cher had had a top ten single with “You Better Sit Down Kids,” and this song not only marked a comeback for Cher, but put her firmly in the spotlight where she has remained ever since. It was also the song that kicked off the era of Cher as a glamour queen wearing dresses designed by Bob Makie rather than the hippie attire she was known for up to this point. As a result, she became an icon to both gay men and middle-aged housewives at the same time.

The song was from her seventh solo album which was simply titled Cher, however the album was retitled Gypsies Tramps & Thieves after the single broke big. It was Cher’s first album for a new record label (Kapp Records) and also her first without Sonny Bono at the production helm.

The song was originally titled “Gypsies, Tramps & White Trash,” but songwriter Bob Stone amended the title upon the urging of the late, great producer Snuff Garrett. The song tells a story about the cyclical nature of life from the vantage point of a sixteen year old girl from a family of gypsys whose mother dances for the men of the town, and then they move on to the next town. The daughter was “born in the wagon of a traveling show” whose mother “used to dance for the money they’d throw.” Years later, the daughter finds herself in the same position dancing for money when she meets a 21 year old guy who travels with the show. Three months later, he finds out that she’s “a girl in trouble” (i.e. pregnant) and then he leaves her in the lurch. A performance of the song was performed on The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour TV show and was made into a video for the song in 1971.

The song is regularly used to kick off games by the Clyde F.C.  Scottish football team. It was covered by the likes of Cilla Black, Vicki Lawrence, Nirvana and the English punk rock band Anti-Nowhere League, amongst others.

The flip of this double-A-sided reissue single was another top-ten hit from the album called “The Way Of Love,” which peaked on the singles charts at #7 selling over one million copies. The melody of this song shares an uncanny resemblance with Perry Como’s 1970 hit, “It’s Impossible,” so much so that Cher took to performing the two songs in a medley during concerts.

“The Way Of Love” had its genesis in the French song “J’ai le mal de toi,” and was written by Jack Dieval with French lyrics by Michel Rivgauche. The lyrics to the English version were written by Al Stillman and the song was recorded by British singer Kathy Kirby, whose version of the song charted at #88 on the U.S. Billboard charts in 1965. The song’s lyrics were somewhat ambiguous as to whether the relationship was between a man and a woman, a mother and a daughter, or most notoriously by two women, further giving Cher credibility with her gay fans.

The song has been covered by Ronnie James Dio in 1964 with his group Ronnie Dio and the Prophets, and has also seen covers by such middle-of-the-road artists as Vikki Carr and Shirley Bassey.

Song Of The Day by Eric Berman – The Jukebox Series #22 – Bob Dylan: “Lay Lady Lay” b/w “I Threw It All Away” – Columbia 45 RPM Single 13-33178 (C3/D3)

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Song Of The Day by Eric Berman – The Jukebox Series #22 – Bob Dylan: “Lay Lady Lay” b/w “I Threw It All Away” – Columbia 45 RPM Single 13-33178 (C3/D3)

“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.

The late 1960s introduced a new Bob Dylan to the world. With his motorcycle accident and requisite seclusion in Woodstock behind him, he emerged with John Wesley Harding, a rootsy, back-to-basics album in 1968 that flew in the face of the flamboyant psychedelic music that was currently all the rage at the time.

However, nothing could prepare Dylan fans for what followed in 1969: A content Dylan who was seemingly happy with his lot in life, complete with a new soulful, melodic croon of a voice that replaced the nasal monotone of the past.  Most crucially, the 1969 Dylan model marked another shift in musical direction away from the mainstream, with an album of country influenced tunes called Nashville Skyline that was quite simply, unlike anything else he had recorded up to that point.

The album was recorded with a who’s who of Nashville’s finest session musicians including Norman Blake on guitar and dobro, Kenny Buttrey on drums, Fred Carter, Jr. on guitar, Charlie Daniels on bass, Pete Drake on pedal steel guitar, Charlie McCoy on guitar and harmonica, Bob Wilson on piano and organ and several others including Johnny Cash who provided duet vocals on “Girl From The North Country.”

“Lay Lady Lay,” the A-side of today’s jukebox classic was originally intended for the soundtrack of the movie Midnight Cowboy, but it was submitted too late to make the film and Nilsson’s cover of Fred Neil’s “Everybody’s Talking” was used in its place. Dylan then offered the song to the Everly Brothers backstage at a concert. When Dylan played “Lay Lady Lay” for them, they thought he was singing “lay across my big breasts, babe” instead of “lay across my big brass bed” and didn’t’ think that the song was appropriate for them to record. When they finally heard the correct lyrics in Dylan’s recording, they realized what a mistake they had made. They finally got around to recording the song for their EB 84 album in 1984.

“Lay Lady Lay” became one of Dylan’s biggest singles climbing all the way to #7 on the Billboard pop charts. According to Johnny Cash, Dylan introduced the song in a song circle of writers who congregated at Cash’s house that included Shel Silverstein who played “A Boy Named Sue,” Joni Mitchell who broke out “The Circle Game,” Graham Nash who performed “Marrakesh Express” and Kris Kristofferson who played “Me And Bobby McGee.”

Over the years, “Lay Lady Lay” has been covered by the likes of Cher, The Byrds, The Everly Brothers, Melanie, The Isley Brothers, Keith Jarrett, Neil Diamond, Isaac Hayes, Richie Havens, Steve Howe, Booker T. & The MGs, Buddy Guy, Duran Duran and Ministry.

The flip of today’s single was the first single release from Nashville Skyline, although it only charted at #85 on the Billboard pop charts. After writing the song, Dylan shared it with George Harrison who brought it to The Beatles’ Let It Be recording sessions. Session tapes reveal that George took the song out for a spin during The Beatles’ session and performed it solo. The song has also been covered by Cher, Elvis Costello, Graham Parker, Lambchop and Yo La Tengo.

Looking for classic Dylan recordings on YouTube is somewhat of a lost cause, so today’s audio clips feature Cher’s version of “Lay Lady Lay” under the title “Lay Baby Lay” recorded for her 1969 album 3614 Jackson Highway, and George Harrison’s bootleg take of “I Threw It All Away” from The Beatles’ Let It Be sessions in January of 1970.