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Today in Rock History – June 2

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

 

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

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

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

1977, Supertramp appeared at Maple Leaf Gardens, Toronto.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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Today in Rock History – May 30

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1964, The Beatles went to number one on the singles chart with “Love Me Do,” the group’s fourth chart topper in five months. The version released in America had Andy White playing drums while Ringo played the tambourine. The British single was a take on which Ringo played the drums.

1965, The Who performed at Mojo Club in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England.

1965, The Rolling Stones played the final night of a US tour at the New York Academy of Music. During the afternoon the band recorded six songs for the Clay Pole TV show.

1966, The Beatles release “Paperback Writer” in the US.

1966, The Who appeared at Sincil Bank Football Ground, Lincoln, England.

1966, The Doors appeared at the Hullabaloo, West Hollywood, California.

1966, The Jefferson Airplane perform at a benefit for the Haight-Ashbury Legal Organization in San Francisco.

1968, Cream appeared at Eagles Auditorium in Seattle, Washington.

1968, The Beatles began recording what became known as the White Album. The double-LP whose official title was simply The Beatles became the first Beatles album released with the Apple label. The first track they recorded was “Revolution.”

1969, Pink Floyd appeared at the Fairfield Halls, Croydon, England.

1969, The Grateful Dead played at Springer’s Inn in Portland, Oregon.

1969, Led Zeppelin played the first of two nights at The Fillmore East in New York City.

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

1970, Frank Sinatra performed at the Mid-South Coliseum, Memphis, Tennessee.

1970, Ray Stevens went to number one on the singles chart with “Everything Is Beautiful.” The former DJ had a string of novelty hits, including “Guitarzan,” “The Streak,” and “Jeremiah Peabody’s Poly Unsaturated Quick Dissolving Fast Acting Pleasant Tasting Green & Purple Pill.”

1971, The Allman Brothers Band played at the State Fairgrounds Coliseum, Detroit, Michigan.

Roxy Music

1972,  Roxy Music play their first major date at Lincolnshire, England’s Great Western Express Festival.

1973, David Bowie appeared at the New Theatre Oxford, Oxford, England.

1974, Bernadette Whelan, a 14 year-old David Cassidy fan died of heart failure four days after attending a concert of his. Over 1,000 other fans had to be given first aid during the White City Stadium show.

1975, Aerosmith played at Cobo Arena, Detroit, Michigan.

1976, Rush performed at the Nelson Center, Springfield, Illinois.

1977, It’s the last chance to see Elvis play Florida as he appears tonight at Jacksonville’s Veterans Memorial Coliseum.

1978, Led Zeppelin begin recording In Through the Out Door.

1979, Yes performed at the Civic Center, Amarillo, Texas.

1980, Carl Radle, bass player with Derek and the Dominoes, died of kidney failure aged 38. Also worked with Gary Lewis & the Playboys, George Harrison, Joe Cocker, Dave Mason & Delaney and Bonnie.

1981, Pete Townshend plays a solo show at Brockwell Park in Brixton, England in support of a march against unemployment in Britain. He performs “A Little Is Enough” (twice due to bad PA mix,) “Cats In The Cupboard,” “Big Boss Man,” “Substitute,” “Corrina Corrina,” “Body Language,” “Join Together,” and “Let My Love Open The Door.” He is accompanied by Neil Abbott (guitar), Peter Hope-Evans (harmonica), Mark Brzezicki (drums) and Tony Butler (bass). Jim Capaldi comes out to do vocals for “Substitute.”

1981, ZZ Top played at the Birmingham–Jefferson Civic Center, Birmingham, Alabama.

1984, King Crimson performed at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre, Vancouver, Canada.

1987, David Bowie kicked off his 87-date Glass Spider world tour at the Feyenoord Stadium, Rotterdam, Holland.

1991, Morrissey played the first date on his debut Kill Uncle US concert tour at San Diego Sports Arena, California

1992, The Black Crowes went to number one on the US album chart with The Southern Harmony And Musical Companion.

2003, Record producer Mickie Most died aged 64. Member of The Most Brothers during late 50’s, and Mickie Most and the Playboys, produced hits for The Animals, Hermans Hermits, Donovan, Kim Wilde, Lulu and Jeff Beck. Most ran his own record label RAK in the 1970’s, having hits with Hot Chocolate, Suzi Quatro and Mud.

2005, Coldplay’s new album X & Y was illegally put on the internet a week before its UK and US release. The leak took place on the day copies were sent to UK radio stations, and the day before it went on sale in Japan.

2007, A leaked copy of the new White Stripes album Icky Thump was played completely on Chicago radio station WKQX 101FM. Jack White personally called the station from Spain, where he was touring, to voice his displeasure.

2009, Ozzy Osbourne was suing the band’s guitarist Tony Iommi over royalty payments. The 60-year-old had accused Iommi of falsely claiming to have sole rights to the band’s name which has cost him royalties from merchandise sales. Osbourne was seeking unspecified damages, lost profits and a declaration he is a half-owner of the trademark. Iommi claims Osbourne legally relinquished rights to the band’s name in the 1980s. Osbourne said he believed all four original members of the band should share Black Sabbath’s name equally.

2015, Jeremy Brown, guitarist for Scott Weiland and the Wildabouts, died of unknown causes at the age of 34. Brown began playing with the Stone Temple Pilots singer in 2008

Born on May 30: Lenny Davidson, The Dave Clark Five (1944); Geoffrey Lyall, aka Klaus Flouride, bass, vocals, Dead Kennedys (1949); Nicky Headon, The Clash (1955); Stephen Duffy, Duran Duran (1960); Tom Morello, Rage Against The Machine (1964);  Wynonna Judd, The Judds (1964); Thomas Callaway, aka Cee Lo Green (1974)

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Today in Rock History – May 22

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1964, The Beatles arrived back from their first US trip at Heathrow Airport and were greeted by thousands of fans. Also on this day The Beatles scored their second chart topping album with The Beatles Second Album. It displaced Meet The Beatles! from the top of the charts.

1965,  The Beatles’ “Ticket to Ride ” surpassed Herman’s Hermits  “Mrs. Brown, You’ve Got a Lovely Daughter,” on the top spot on the charts.

1965, The Who appeared at the Astoria Ballroom, Rawtenstall, Lancashire, England.  Also an article on The Who appears in Record Mirror featuring short and angry quotes from Pete and Keith. Pete: “This thing about smashing amplifiers; well, if we’ve got a particularly thick audience out in the sticks we do it but sometimes we take the thing down a bit.” Keith: “We had to do something [“Anyway Anyhow Anywhere”] that would get away from all the rubbish that people are buying.”

1967, Jimi Hendrix played at Kulttuuritalo in Helsinki, Finland.

1967, Florence Ballard appears with the Supremes for the last time on The Tonight Show.

1968, Gary Puckett And The Union Gap were at number one on the singles chart with “Young Girl.” The song which was about under-age sex was their only chart topper.

1968, Pink Floyd performed at the Hotel Billard Palace, Antwerp, Belgium.

1968, Frank Sinatra appeared at Oakland Coliseum, California backed by a full orchestra. The concert was a Democratic Party fundraiser.

1969, John Lennon and Paul McCartney pick up another prize at the  Ivor Novello awards in London, winning A-Side Which Achieved the Highest Certified British Sales, 1968 for “Hey Jude.”

1970, The Byrds and Mason Proffit played at The Warehouse in New Orleans, Louisiana.

1970, The Allman Brothers Band headlined at the Grand Opera House in Macon, Georgia.

1970, Litter, The Bob Seger System, and Mountain performed at the Aragon Ballroom in Chicago

1971, The Rolling Stones album Sticky Fingers started a four-week run at number one on the charts, the group’s second chart topping album, the set featured “Brown Sugar,” “Bitch,” and “Wild Horses.” The artwork for Sticky Fingers, which, on the original vinyl release, featured a working zipper that opened to reveal cotton briefs, was conceived by American pop artist Andy Warhol. The cover, a photo of Joe Dallesandro’s crotch clad in tight blue jeans, was assumed by many fans to be an image of Mick Jagger. The album also features the first usage of the “Tongue and Lip Design” created by John Pasche.

1971, The Faces appeared at Liverpool Stadium in Liverpool, Merseyside, England.

1972, Pink Floyd, Donovan, New Riders of the Purple Sage, Buddy Miles and Carlos Santana, Tom Paxton and Memphis Slim, Dr. John The Night Tripper and Spencer Davis with Sneeky Pete and Gene Clark played at The Amsterdam Rock Circus 1972, Olympisch Stadion, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.

1973, David Bowie appeared at the Odeon Theatre (Romford), in London.

1974, The Who performed at Guildhall, Portsmouth, England.

1975,  The Eagles headlined at the Capital Centre, Landover, Maryland.

1976, During a European tour The Rolling Stones played at Earls Court in London.

1976, Wings started a five week run at number one on the singles chart with “Silly Love Songs,” McCartney’s fifth chart topper since leaving The Beatles.

1976, KISS appeared at The Olympia Theatre, Paris.

1977, Television kicked off their first UK tour at the Apollo Theatre, Glasgow, Scotland, Blondie were the support act.

source: LedZeppelin.com

1977, Led Zeppelin performed at the Tarrant County Convention Center, Fort Worth, Texas.

1979, Rush appeared at Chateau Neuf, Oslo, Norway.

1980, U2 kicked off their 23-date 11 O’Clock Tick Tock tour at The Hope & Anchor in London.

1980, Black Sabbath played at the Apollo Theatre, Manchester, England.

1982, The Grateful Dead performed at the Greek Theatre, at The University of California at Berkeley.

1983, ZZ Top appeared at the Birmingham-Jefferson Convention Complex, Birmingham, Alabama.

1984, Van Halen performed at the San Diego Sports Arena, San Diego, California.

1991, Wil Sinnott from The Shamen drowned while swimming off the coast of La Gomera when he was pulled under by strong currents. The Shamen were in Tenerife filming a video for their new single “Move Any Mountain.”

2000, Travis swept the board at the Ivor Novello awards. Singer Fran Healy won two awards for Best Contemporary Song for the single “Why Does It Always Rain On Me,” and Songwriter Of The Year for the Travis album The Man Who.

2004, Morrissey appeared at the M.E.N. arena Manchester, England on his 45th birthday. It was Morrissey’s return to his home city Manchester after an absence of 12 years and the 18,000 tickets sold out in only 90 minutes. During the set Morrissey performed five Smiths songs.

2005, Dave Matthews Band were at number one on the US album chart with Stand Up. The album entered the chart at No.1 with sales of 465,000. Features the singles “American Baby,” “Dreamgirl,” and “Everybody Wake Up.”

Born on this day: Bruce Rowlands, Fairport Convention (1941); Calvin Simon, Funkadelic (1942); Bernie Taupin (1950); Morrisey (1954); and Dan Roberts, bass, Crash Test Dummies (1967)

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Today in Rock History – April 13

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1966, At Abbey Road, the Beatles record “Paperback Writer.”

1966, During a four month world tour, Bob Dylan appeared at Sydney Stadium in Sydney Australia, the first of seven shows in Australia.

1967, Nancy and Frank Sinatra were at number one on the singles chart with “Somethin’ Stupid,” making them the only father and daughter to have a chart topping single as a team.

1967, Pink Floyd appeared at the Tilbury Railway Club in Tilbury, England.

1968, Bobby Goldsboro started a five week run at No.1 on the singles chart with ‘Honey.

1970, Genesis appeared at Friars, Aylesbury, England. Peter Gabriel, Mike Rutherford, Tony Banks and band received £10 for the gig.

1971, The Rolling Stones released ‘Brown Sugar’ the first record on their own label, Rolling Stones Records, which introduces the infamous licking- tongue and lips logo.

1973, Roger Daltrey releases his first solo album, “Daltrey.”

1974, Elton John went to number one on the singles chart with “Bennie And The Jets,” his second chart topper.

1974, Paul McCartney’s Band On The Run went to number one on the album charts. McCartney’s third number one, which went on to sell over 6 million copies world-wide.

1978, The Supremes played the first of three nights at the Palladium in London, England.

1979, Dave Lee Roth collapses from exhaustion onstage in Spokane, Washington during a Van Halen concert.

Born on April 13:  Brian Pendelton, The Pretty Things, and Jack Casady, Jefferson Airplane (1944); Lowell George (1945); Al Green (1946): Max Weinberg, E Street Band (1951); Butch Taylor, Dave Matthews Band (1961) and Marc Ford, The Black Crows

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Today in Rock History – March 2

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1967, The ninth annual Grammy Awards are held. Frank Sinatra’s Sinatra, A Man and His Music wins Album of the Year, while “Strangers in the Night” is named Record of the Year. John Lennon and Paul McCartney win the Song of the Year Grammy for “Michelle.”

1967, Engelbert Humperdinck was at number one on the singles chart with “Release Me.” The singer’s first of two number ones, the song spent six weeks at the top of the chart and a record fifty-six weeks on the chart.

1968, Blue Cheer give birth to heavy metal when their interpretation of “Summertime Blues” is released. The single goes to number 14.

1968, “Call Me Lighting” backed with “Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde” enters the US charts. It reaches number 40 in the Billboard charts and number 38 in Cash Box. That night The Who perform at New Edmonton Gardens in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. After the show they are thrown out of their hotel’s English-style pub for having long hair. In response John writes the song “What Are We Doing Here?”

1969, John Lennon and Yoko Ono perform at a jazz festival in Cambridge, England, where they record “Let’s Go On Flying,” “Snow Is Falling All the Time,” “Don’t Worry Kyoko,” “Song for John,” and “Cambridge 1969.” It’s the first time a Beatle has performed solo.

1970, Genesis appears at the Mistrale Club, Beckenham, in the London Borough of Bromley, England.

1972, Yes appeared at the Onondaga County War Memorial, Syracuse, New York.

1973, David Bowie played at the Masonic Temple Auditorium, Detroit, Michigan.

1974, Stevie Wonder won four awards at the Grammys. Innervisions is named Album of the year, while Best R&B song and Best vocal go to “Superstition” and “You Are The Sunshine Of My Life” wins for Pop vocal performance. Joel Dorn (producer) and Roberta Flack take home a statue for “Killing Me Softly With His Song.”

1974, Terry Jacks started a three week run at number one on the singles chart with “Seasons In The Sun.”

1975, A policeman who stopped a Lincoln Continental for running a red light in Los Angeles was surprised to find Paul McCartney at the wheel with his wife Linda. The cop detected a smell of marijuana and on searching the car found eight ounces of the drug. Linda was arrested for the offense.

1976, The Who appeared at the Pavillon de Paris, Paris.

1977,  Black Sabbath performed at The Apollo, Glasgow, Scotland.

1977, The Jam played the first of a five-week Wednesday night run at The Red Cow, Hammersmith, London. The group had just signed a four-year recording contract with Polydor records.

1977, AC/DC appeared at The Top Rank in Swansea, England.

1977, David Bowie and Iggy Pop played at Newcastle City Hall, Newcastle, England.

1978, Eric Clapton performed at the Boutwell Auditorium, Birmingham, Alabama.

1979, Rush appeared at the Dallas Convention Center, Dallas, Texas.

1979, Stevie Ray Vaughn played at Soap Creek Saloon, Austin, Texas.

1980, ZZ Top performed Dane County Coliseum, Madison, Wisconsin.

1983, A new digital audio system, a five-inch compact disc containing up to 1 hour of music was launched by Sony, Philips and Polygram.

1985, Phil Collins started a five-week run at number one on the UK chart with his third solo LP No Jacket Required.

1985, The Smiths were at number one on the UK indie charts with “How Soon Is Now.”

1991, 21 years after it’s first release, “All Right Now” by Free made it to number two in the UK singles chart after being re-issued to coincide with its use in a Wrigley’s Chewing gum TV ad.

1991, French singer Serge Gainsbourg died of a heart attack. Famous for his 1969 UK chart topping duet with Jane Birkin on “Je t’aime… Moi non plus.” During his career, he wrote the soundtracks for more than 40 films.

1996, Oasis scored their second UK number one single when “Don’t Look Back In Anger” went to number one. From the band’s What’s The Story Morning Glory‘album. It was the first Oasis single to feature Noel on lead vocals instead of his brother, Liam Gallagher.

1999, Dusty Springfield died after a long battle against cancer, aged 59. The British singer had her first UK hit single in 1963 with “I Only Want To Be With You,” which reached number four, the 1966 UK number one and US number four single with “You Don’t Have To Say You Love Me,” plus over 15 other UK Top 40 singles.

2003, Singer, songwriter Hank Ballard died from throat cancer. He wrote and recorded “The Twist” but it was only released on the B-side of a record. One year later, Chubby Checker debuted his own version of “The Twist” on Dick Clark’s Philadelphia television show. It topped the charts and launched a dance craze that prompted the creation of other Twist songs, including “Twist and Shout” by the Isley Brothers and “Twistin’ the Night Away” by Sam Cooke.

2008, Canadian guitarist, singer, Jeff Healey, died of cancer. Healey lost his sight to retinoblastoma, a rare cancer of the eyes when he was eight months old, resulting in his eyes being surgically removed. After living cancer-free for 38 years, he developed sarcoma in his legs. Despite surgery for this, the sarcoma spread to his lungs and ultimately was the cause of his death. Healey released over 12 albums, presented a long running radio show and worked with many artists including Stevie Ray Vaughan, Buddy Guy, BB King, ZZ Top & Eric Clapton.

2013, A pencil doodle by Paul McCartney when he was a teenager sold for over $5,000. The sketches were drawn by McCartney during the late 1950’s while a student at the Liverpool Institute High School For Boys. The drawings showed multiple faces with different expressions on a single sheet of paper in pencil. The auction house said the drawing sold for £3,764 ($5,692)

Born on March 2: Kurt Weill (1900); Lawrence Payton, American singer-songwriter, producer, Four Tops (1938); Lou Reed (1942); Rory Gallagher (1949); Karen Carpenter (1950); Dale Bozzio, American singer, Missing Persons (1955); John Cowsill (1956); Mark Evans, bass, AC/DC (1956); John Bon Jovi (1962); Chris Martin, singer-songwriter, Coldplay (1977);

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Today in Rock History – December 8

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beatles -sgtpeppers1966, Working at Abbey Road in London, Paul McCartney overdubbed his lead vocal for “When I’m Sixty-Four.” Then The Beatles set about remaking a new John Lennon song “Strawberry Fields Forever.”

1967, Pink Floyd appeared at the Royal College of Art in London.

1968, Singer and guitarist Graham Nash left The Hollies and started working with David Crosby and Stephen Stills who went on to form Crosby Stills and Nash.

1969, Mick Jagger was quoted saying “I don’t really like singing very much, I enjoy playing the guitar more than I enjoy singing and I can’t play the guitar either.”

1969, On trial in Canada on drug possession charges, Jimi Hendrix told a Toronto court that he had only smoked pot four times in his life, snorted cocaine twice and took LSD no more than five times. Telling the jury that he had now outgrown drugs. They found the guitarist not guilty.

1970, Yes performed at City Hall, Newcastle, England.

1971, This weeks Top selling 8-Track cartridges chart, number 5: Frank Sinatra’s Greatest Hits Vol. 2, number 4: Carole King, Tapestry, number 3: Simon and Garfunkel, Bridge Over Troubled Water, number two: Motown Chartbusters Vol. 6, and number one: John Lennon, Imagine.

1972, King Crimson played at the Odeon, Newcastle, England.

1972, Led Zeppelin appeared at the Hardrock Concert Theatre in Manchester, England. Ticket price was £1.25 ($2).

1973, The Grateful Dead performed at Cameron Indoor Stadium on the campus of Duke University, in Durham, North Carolina.

1974, Genesis appeared at the Palace Theatre, Providence, Rhode Island.

1975, Bob Dylan played at Madison Square Garden, New York.

1977, Four people were arrested after a riot broke out when Blondie didn’t arrive for a gig in Brisbane. Over 1,000 Australian fans had waited more than an hour for the group to appear on stage, but the gig was cancelled due to singer Debbie Harry being ill.

1979, Styx went to number one on the singles chart with “Babe,” the group’s only chart topper.

John-Lennon-john-lennon-collection1980, John Lennon was shot five times by 25 year old Mark Chapman outside the Dakota building in New York City where John and Yoko lived. Chapman had been stalking Lennon for days outside the Dakota apartments and asked for an autograph as Lennon walked through the courtyard. As he signed a piece of paper Chapman fired five shots, four of which struck the ex-Beatle. Lennon was rushed to Roosevelt hospital where he was pronounced dead on arrival shortly after 11 pm.

1981, The Rolling Stones performed at the Capital Centre, Landover, Maryland.

1982, American country singer, songwriter Marty Robbins died aged 57 of complications following cardiac surgery. He had the first number one of the ’60s in the US with “El Paso.”  The song won him a Grammy Award as well. Robbins later portrayed a musician in the 1982 Clint Eastwood film Honkytonk Man.

1984, Frankie Goes To Hollywood were at number one on the UK singles chart with “The Power Of Love.” The group’s third chart topper of the year and final UK number one.

1995, Courtney Love appeared on the ABC TV show 10 Most Fascinating People, telling host Barbara Walters that she wished she had done “eight thousand million things differently” to have prevented the death of her husband Kurt Cobain.

2000, A plaque to commemorate the 20th anniversary of John Lennon’s death was unveiled outside his childhood home in Liverpool.

Born on December 8: Sammy Davis, Jr. (1925);  Jerry Butler, The Impressions (1939);  Bobby Elliott, drums, The Hollies (1941);  Jim Morrison (1943); Mike Botts, drums, Bread (1944); Graham Knight, Marmalade (1946); Greg Allman (1947); Ray Shulman, violinist, guitarist, producer, Simon Dupree and the Big Sound, Gentle Giant (1949); Dan Harman (1950); Kasim Sulton, singer-songwriter, bass, producer Blue Öyster Cult, Utopia (1955); Warren Cuccurullo, guitarist, Duran Duran, Missing Persons (1956); Andrew Edge, drummer, Thompson Twins (1956); Phil Collen, guitar, Def Leppard (1957); Marty Friedman, guitar, Megadeth (1962); Sinéad O’Connor (1966); Corey Taylor, singer, Slipknot (1973); Nick Zinner, guitarist, Yeah Yeah Yeahs (1974)

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Song Of The Day – Mad Men Double Header – “Don’cha Go ‘Way Mad” by Frank Sinatra and “Wives And Lovers” by Jack Jones

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madmen1I know I’ve featured both of these classics before, but with the return of Mad Men to our TV screens for a new season, they both seemed appropriate to feature again.

The first song is the epitome of the early seasons of Mad Men by America’s favorite playboy of the time. Back in 1962, Frank Sinatra was the epitome of that “Ring A Ding Ding” era with his Rat Pack buddies tearin’ up the Vegas town on a nightly basis. Oh to be a fly on the wall for some of them hi-jinx!

“Don’cha Go ‘Way Mad” is a somewhat chauvinistic comment on the subservient role women played during the early ’60s. It has lots of verve and swagger as it nonchalantly asks the woman to forgive and forget her man’s fling…but at least it does swing! It comes from one of The Chairman Of The Board’s greatest sixties albums, Sinatra and Swingin’ Brass, and was written by Jimmy Mundi, Al Stillman and Jazz saxophonist, Illinois Jacquet. The arrangements come from the one and only Neal Hefti.

The second song in today’s Mad Man salute is one of my very favorite Burt Bacharach-Hal David compositions! Jack Jones was awarded a 1964 Grammy award for Best Pop Male Performance for “Wives And Lovers.” He also won one in 1962 in the same category for his hit “Lollipops and Roses.” Along with the equally talented pop vocalist, Robert Goulet, he was also known for his recording of “The Impossible Dream” from the musical Man Of LaMancha. Mr. Jones also scored big with the incomparable “Love Boat Theme” and “Lady.”!

The times were different back then…and as we enter yet another new season of Mad Men, the times are a-changin’ still

Today in Rock History – October 28

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tami-show1964, the first of two nights billed as the “T.A.M.I. Show” took place at the Civic Auditorium, Santa Monica. Smokey Robinson & The Miracles, The Beach Boys, Chuck Berry, Marvin Gaye, The Supremes, and The Rolling Stones all performed. The best footage from each of the two concert dates was edited into a 123-minute film, which was released on December 29, 1964. Jan and Dean emceed the event and performed its theme song, “Here They Come (From All Over the World).”

1964, The Who, still using their former name, The High Numbers performed at Town Hall in Greenwich, England.

1965, The first mono mix of The Beatles’ “We Can Work It Out” was made for a television show, The Music of Lennon and McCartney. However, when the band heard the mix the next day, they decided to overdub more vocals.

1967, Pink Floyd played at Dunelm House, Durham University Students’ Centre, Durham University, Durham, England.

1967, The Who  make their last appearance on BBC radio’s Saturday Club. They follow it by beginning a package tour of the U.K. with supporting acts Traffic, The Herd, The Marmalade and The Tremeloes. The Who play twelve songs during their first set at City Hall in Sheffield but, after the first show runs long, The Who’s second set is cut short when the stage manager orders them offstage after three songs. Pete Townshend goes ballistic, smashing two speakers and The Herd’s lighting gear. Roger Daltrey tries to stop him and they begin to scuffle. When the stage manager tries to break it up, Pete grabs him by the throat and drags him offstage where he continues smashing things backstage.

1967, Simon and Garfunkel performed at Assembly Hall at The University of Illinois in Champaign, Illinois.

1968, Neil Young appeared solo at the Bitter End in New York City.

1969, Yes played at Theatre 140, Brussles, Belgium.

1970, Hawkwind appeared at Barnet College, Salisbury, Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe.)

1970, The Who performed at Stadthalle in Vienna, Austria.

1971, Black Sabbath headlined at Community War Memorial Auditorium, Rochester, New York.

1972, The United States Council for World Affairs announced it was adopting The Who song “Join Together” as it’s official theme tune.

1972, Led Zeppelin play the first of two nights at the Pavillion in Montreux, Switzerland. Melody Maker writes about the gigs, “They will reshape your values about what is genuine and what isn’t. They just have to be the best heavy band this country has produced.”

1973, King Crimson played at Town Hall, Birmingham, England.

1973, David Cassidy was at number one on the UK singles chart with “Daydreamer / The Puppy Song,” the singer’s second chart topper. “The Puppy Song” was Cassidy’s version of the Harry Nilsson song.

1974, Jamaican reggae artist Ken Boothe was at number one on the UK singles chart with his version of a song by David Gates, from Bread, “Everything I Own.” Boy George also took the song to the the top in 1987.

1974, Three Dog Night appeared at the Boston Garden, Boston, Massachusetts.

David-bowie-Live1974, David Bowie played the first of seven sold-out nights on his Diamond Dogs Tour at the Radio City Music Hall in New York City.

1975, Rush performed at Randy’s Rodeo, San Antonio, Texas.

1976, Aerosmith appeared at Eberthalle, Ludwigshafen, Germany.

1977, Kansas played at the Lakeland Civic Center, Lakeland, Florida.

1978, Nick Gilder went to number one on the singles chart with “Hot Child In The City.”

1978, Queen played the first night on their 79-date Jazz tour at the Dallas Convention Center, Dallas, Texas.

1978, The animated cartoon, Kiss Meets the Phantom of the Park, was shown on NBC-TV in the U.S. The four rock stars had to deal with a mad scientist who went crazy in an amusement park. All four members of Kiss had just released their individual solo albums.

1978, Bob Dylan played at  Southern Illinois University Stadium, in Carbondale, Illinois.

1980, Dire Straits appeared at the Roxy in Los Angeles.

1981, ZZ Top played at The Astrodome, Houston, Texas.

1983, Blue Oyster Cult performed at Hiram Bithorn Stadium, San Juan, Puerto Rico.

1985, Bob Dylan releases Biograph, one of the first major box sets.

1985, The Grateful Dead played at the Fox Theater in Atlanta, Georgia.

1989, Janet Jackson started a four week run at number one on the US album chart with Janet Jackson’s Rhythm Nation 1814. It is only one of three albums to produce seven Top-ten US singles, the other two being Thriller by Michael Jackson and Bruce Springsteen’s Born In The USA.

1997, R.E.M. drummer Bill Berry announced that he was leaving the group after 17 years, becoming a farmer.

2001, The various artists album God Bless America went to number one on the US chart, featuring tracks from Bruce Springsteen, Bill Withers, Celine Dion, Mariah Carey, Bob Dylan and Frank Sinatra.

2008, A statue honoring AC/DC’s Bon Scott was unveiled at the Fremantle Fishing Boat Harbour in Western Australia. Although born in Scotland, Scott grew up in Fremantle after his family emigrated to Australia in 1952. Bon started out his newfound Australian life in Melbourne, his family lived in the suburb of Sunshine for four years before moving to Fremantle. Scott died on February 20, 1980. He is buried in Fremantle cemetery.

2011, The organizers of a planned Metallica concert in India were arrested after the show was called off, leading fans of the band to destroy the stage and vandalize equipment. Metallica had been booked to play in Delhi on Friday, but they postponed the show after a security barrier in front of the stage collapsed. The four promoters of the gig, were arrested on fraud charges after they refused to refund tickets. Around 25,000 people had purchased tickets to see what would have been Metallica’s first-ever concert in India.

2013, New Zealand singer Lorde, 16, topped the UK singles chart with her debut single, “Royals,” making her the youngest solo artist to score a UK chart topper since 15-year-old Billie Piper’s “Because We Want To” in 1998. Lorde was signed to Universal on a development deal at just 13 years old, after a friend’s father sent them home recordings of her singing Duffy and Pixie Lott tracks.

Born on October 28: Charlie Daniels (1936); Graham Bond, keyboards, sax, The Graham Bond Organisation (1937); Wayne Fontana (1940); Elton Dean,  sax, keyboards, Soft Machine (1945); Thelma Hopkins, singer, Dawn (1948); Stephen Morris, drums, Joy Division, New Order (1957); William Reid, The Jesus and Mary Chain (1958); Neville Henry, The Blow Monkeys (1959); Caitlin Cary, singer and violinist, Whiskeytown (1968); Ben Harper (1969); Frank Ocean (1987)

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Song Of The Day – “A Lot Of Livin’ To Do” by Sammy Davis, Jr.

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SammyIt’s the wham of Sam, from the musical Bye Bye Birdie.

Without Sammy Davis Jr., there wouldn’t have been a James Brown or Prince. He was clearly the most talented of the Rat Pack by a mile…could sing circles around Frank and Dino…and had the moves and comedic talents to make him the total entertainment package. He was in a word, a dynamo!

Davis was born into a family of vaudevillians, and he began his career dancing as part of the family act at the age of three. Over the years, he gained popularity as a standout in the act which led to a recording contract with Decca Records and the lead role in the Broadway Musical, Mr. Wonderful.

By the late 1950s, Davis was rubbing shoulders with Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Joey Bishop and Peter Lawford, and the media began referring to them as The Rat Pack. Together, they all had a jolly old time while breaking down the racial barriers in the entertainment world. When Sinatra formed his own Reprise record label in 1961, Davis was one of the first artists he signed.

This swingin’ gem comes from Sammy’s 1962 Reprise album What Kind Of Fool Am I. The album, a collection of twelve songs from the Broadway stage, proved to be one of his most popular landing at #14 on the album charts. The album included  “Once In A Lifetime,” “Begin The Beguine” with a spare percussive arrangement, and the very groovy “Gonna Build A Mountain,” songs that would remain amongst his most requested performances for the rest of his career.

The album’s title track would go on to become one of Davis’ signature songs, but it is today’s Song Of The Day that is the essence of cool hipness, as Sammy effortlessly swings against a sturdy Marty Paich arrangement. This album was issued on CD, along with most of the rest of his Reprise recordings, in 2004 by Collectors’ Choice Music.

Today in Rock History – July 23

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1964, The Beatles were atop the UK singles chart with “A Hard Days Night,” the group’s fifth.  They would be number one on the US Billboard Hot 100 in August.

1964, The Beatles take part in the Night of a Hundred Stars at the London Palladium.

1965, The Kinks perform “You Really Got Me” on the TV show, Where the Action Is.

1965,  The Dave Clark Five played at Independence Arena in Charlotte, North Carolina.

1966, Frank Sinatra went to number one on the album chart with Strangers In The Night. The LP would be the most successful of his career, being certified platinum for 1 million copies sold in the US. The title track would earn him two Grammy awards for Record Of The Year and Best Male Vocal Performance.

1966, The Rolling Stones played at Patio Gardens in Farmington, Utah.

1966, Napoleon XIV releases the perennial novelty favorite “They’re Coming to Take Me Away, Ha-Haaa!” In reality he was record engineer Jerry Samuels.

1967, The Who performed at McFarlin Memorial Auditorium in Dallas, Texas.

1967, Pink Floyd appeared at the Cosmopolitan Club in Carlisle, Cumbria, England.

1968,  The Beatles completed the recording of “Everybody’s Got Something To Hide Except Me And My Monkey” for the White Album at Abbey Road studios in London. John added a new lead vocal, while Paul and George performed the backup vocals.

1969, The Rolling Stones were at number one on the singles chart with “Honky Tonk Women,” the group’s eighth and last chart topper.

1969, Los Angeles Mayor Sam Yorty had big plans to proclaim today “James Brown Day.” Brown shows up at his office at 10 AM to receive the honor. But when Yorty doesn’t turn up on time, he leaves.

1971, The Allman Brothers Band played at the Alan B. Sheppard Civic Center, Virginia Beach, Virginia.

1971, The Rolling Stones and Brian Jones’ father sue former manager Allen Klein for $29 million, alleging that he mismanaged the band’s funds.

1972, Roxy Music appeared at the Black Prince, Bexley, England.

1973, Queen play at the Marquee Club in London.

1975, Yes appeared at the Civic Center in Providence, Rhode Island.

1976, Aerosmith performed at Memorial Auditorium, Buffalo, New York.

1977, Who drummer Keith Moon joined Led Zeppelin on stage during a gig at The Forum, Inglewood, Los Angeles playing a duet with Zeppelin drummer John Bonham before taking to the microphone and attempting to sing.

1977, Barry Manilow went to number one on the US singles chart with “Looks Like We Made It,” his third US chart topper. It was not a hit in the UK.

1978, The Rolling Stones performed at Anaheim Stadium, Anaheim, California.

1979, Keyboard player with The Grateful Dead Keith Godchaux died following injuries sustained in a car accident aged 32. He co-wrote songs with Lowell George (of Little Feat) and was a member of The New Riders of the Purple Sage.

1980, Black Sabbath appeared at the County Fairgrounds, Ventura, California.

1981, Blue Oyster Cult played at Swing Auditorium, San Bernardino, California.

1983, The Police kicked off the North American leg of their Synchronicity 107-date world tour at Comiskey Park, Chicago, Illinois. The Police also went to number one on the US album chart with Synchronicity, which spent a total of seventeen weeks at the top.

1988, Richard Marx went to number one on the US singles chart with ‘Hold On To The Nights’, his first US chart topping single.

1988, After forty-nine weeks on the US album chart, Hysteria by Def Leppard went to the number one position.

1989, Ringo Starr kicked off his first tour since the break-up of the Beatles with a show in Dallas. His backup band included guitarist Joe Walsh, organist Billy Preston, and Bruce Springsteen’s sax man Clarence Clemons.

1990, The Grateful Dead played at the World Music Theater in Tinley Park, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago. This would be Brent Mydland’s last show. He died three days later of an overdose.

1996, Rob Collins, keyboard player with The Charlatans died in a car crash, aged 29.  An investigation into the accident showed that Collins had consumed a considerable amount of alcohol and was not wearing a seatbelt. He died from head injuries on the roadside shortly after the accident, having been thrown through the windshield.

2004, American guitarist Bill Brown died of smoke inhalation in a house fire. Member of The Ozark Mountain Daredevils and The Titanic Blues Band.

2011, Amy Winehouse was found dead at her north London home, she was 27. A Metropolitan Police spokesman confirmed that a 27-year-old woman had died in Camden and that the cause of death was as yet unexplained.  The troubled singer had a long battle with drink and drugs which overshadowed her musical career.

Born on July 23: Dino Danelli, drums, The Young Rascals (1945); Andy Mackay, Roxy Music (1946); Tony Joe White, singer, songwriter(1947); David Essex (1947); Blair Thorton, guitar, Bachman Turner Overdrive (1950); Martin Gore, keyboards, Depeche Mode (1961); Nick Menza, drums, Megadeth (1964); Tim Kellett, keyboards, trumpet, Simply Red (1964);  Slash, Guns N’ Roses (1965); and Alison Krauss (1971)

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