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Today in Rock History – May 24

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1966, Captain Beefheart appeared at the Whisky a Go Go. West Hollywood, California. Supported by Buffalo Springfield and The Doors.

1967, Jimi Hendrix played at Gröna Lund in Copenhagen, Denmark.

1968, The Paul Butterfield Blues Band appeared at the Grande Ballroom in Detroit, Michigan.

1968, Mick Jagger and Marianne Faithfull are arrested on charges of marijuana possession. The same day the Stones release “Jumpin’ Jack Flash,” generally seen as a comeback record following the flop of Their Satanic Majesties Request. It goes to number three in the US, and the top spot in the UK.  Richards has stated that he and Jagger wrote the lyrics while staying at Richards’ country house, where they were awoken one morning by the sound of gardener Jack Dyer walking past the window. When Jagger asked what the noise was, Richards responded, “Oh, that’s Jack – that’s jumpin’ Jack.” The rest of the lyrics evolved from there.

1968, Pink Floyd appeared at The Punchbowl Hotel, Lapworth, England.

1969, Led Zeppelin performed at the Kinetic Playground in Chicago.

1969, Bob Dylan’s album Nashville Skyline peaked at number three in the US charts. The singer’s ninth album, it also scored Dylan his fourth UK chart topper. The album featured “Lay Lady Lay,” which became one of Dylan’s biggest pop hits, reaching the seventh position in the US, his biggest single in three years.

1969, The Beatles started a five week run at number one on the US singles chart with “Get Back,” the group’s 17th chart topper.  The song was credited to “The Beatles with Billy Preston,”  the Beatles’ only single that credited another artist.

1970, The Allman Brothers Band performed at the Shady Grove Music Fair, Gaithersburg, Maryland.

1970, Peter Green played his last gig with Fleetwood Mac when they appeared at the Bath Festival, Somerset, England.

1971, Bob Dylan’s 30th birthday is commemorated with a Peanuts cartoon commenting on the event. Dylan himself spends the day visiting the Wailing Wall in Jerusalem.

1973, David Bowie played at the Odeon Theatre (Lewisham), in London.

1972, Grateful Dead Europe ’72 tour plays at the Lyceum in London, England.

1974, American composer, pianist, and bandleader Duke Ellington, died of lung cancer and pneumonia aged 75. He worked with Louis Armstrong, Ella Fitzgerald, Dizzy Gillespie, Billie Holiday.  He was awarded a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 1966. In 2009 the United States Mint launched a new coin featuring Duke Ellington on the reverse side of the coin.

1974, David Bowie released his eighth studio album Diamond Dogs. Thematically, it was a marriage of the novel Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell, and Bowie’s own glam-tinged vision of a post-apocalyptic world. Bowie had wanted to make a theatrical production of Orwell’s book and began writing material after completing sessions for his 1973 album Pin Ups, but the author’s estate denied the rights. The cover art features Bowie as a striking half-man, half-dog grotesque painted by Belgian artist Guy Peellaert. It was controversial as the full painting clearly showed the hybrid’s genitalia

1975, Earth Wind and Fire went to number one on the singles chart with”Shining Star,” the group’s first and only chart topper.

1976, AC/DC performed at The Nashville, London.

1978, Neil Young appeared at The Boarding House in San Francisco.

1979, Yes played at Selland Arena, Fresno, California.

1980, Genesis fans turning up at the Roxy Club box office in Los Angeles to buy tickets for a forthcoming gig were surprised to find the band members Phil Collins, Tony Banks and Mike Rutherford selling the tickets themselves.

1981, Van Halen played at Wings Stadium, Kalamazoo, Michigan.

1991, Founding member of The Byrds, Gene Clark, died of a heart attack aged 49. He penned group’s hits “I’ll Feel a Whole Lot Better” and “Eight Miles High.” He was also a member of McGuinn, Clark and Hillman.

1991, Guns n’ Roses played the first show on their 192-date Use Your Illusion world Tour at Alpine Valley Music Theatre, East Troy, Wisconsin.

2003, Paul McCartney made his first ever live performance in Russia when he appeared in-front of 20,000 fans in Red Square

2007, Amy Winehouse, Madonna and Arctic Monkeys were among the winners at the Ivor Novello Awards. Winehouse won best contemporary song for her hit “Rehab,” while Madonna collected the international hit of the year for “Sorry.” Sheffield-based band Arctic Monkeys collected the best album award for Whatever People Say I Am That’s What I’m Not.

2010, Paul Gray, the bassist with US metal band Slipknot, was found dead in a hotel in Des Moines, Iowa. The body of the 38-year-old musician was found by an employee at the hotel in a suburb of the city. Police said foul play was not suspected, but an autopsy would be carried out. The nine members of Slipknot wore masks in public and referred to other bandmates by numbers; Gray was number two.

Born on May 24: Bob Dylan (1941); Derek Quinn, Freddie and the Dreamers (1942); Patti Labelle, singer (1944); Steve Upton, Wishbone Ash (1946); Albert Bouchard, drums, Blue Oyster Cult (1947); Guy Fletcher, English keyboard player, guitarist, producer, Dire Straits, The Notting Hillbillies (1960); Dwight Errington Myers, aka Heavy D, rapper (1967); Rich Robinson, The Black Crowes (1969); Alessandro Cortini, keyboards, Nine Inch Nails (1976)

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Today in Rock History – April 28

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1966, The Kinks appeared at the Mecca Ballroom, Nottingham, England.

1966, The Young Rascals topped the Pop charts with  “Good Lovin’.” This is the first of three number one songs for group, which later records as just The Rascals.

1966, The Who perform at The Witchdoctor at the Savoy Room in Catford, England.

1967, Pink Floyd performed at the Tabernacle Club, Hillgate, Stockport, England.

1967, Johnny Cash appeared at the Burlington Auditorium in Burlington, Iowa.

1968, The Broadway musical Hair opened at the Baltimore Theatre in New York City. The musical’s profanity, its depiction of the use of illegal drugs, its treatment of sexuality, its irreverence for the American flag, and its nude scene caused much comment and controversy. The production ran for 1,729 performances, finally closing on July 1st, 1972.

1968, The Mothers of Invention played at the Grande Ballroom, Detroit, Michigan.

1968, Cream performed at the Peabody Opera House in St. Louis, Missouri.

1969, Yes appeared at the Marquee Club, London.

1970, The Allman Brothers Band performed at the State University of New York in Stony Brook.

1971, Hawkwind appeared St. Michels Mount, Penzance, England.

1972, Pink Floyd played at the Auditorium Theater in Chicago.

1973, King Crimson performed at the Academy of Music in New York.

Dark side1973, Pink Floyd’s album Dark Side Of The Moon went to number one on the chart, it went on to enjoy a record breaking 741 weeks, selling over 20 million copies world-wide.

1973, The Faces scored their first number one album with Ooh La La.

1974, Queen appeared at Exposition Hall, Portland, Maine.

1975,  John Lennon appears on The Tonight Show, and Ringo Starr shows up on The Smothers Brothers Show to sing his “No No Song.”

1976, The Rolling Stones played at Festhalle, Frankfurt, Germany.

1977, Eric Clapton appeared at the Hammersmith Odeon in London.

1978, Mike Oldfield played the first of two nights at London’s Wembley Arena, England.

1979,  When “Heart of Glass” by Blondie hits number one, Andy Warhol throws a party for the group at Studio 54 in New York.

1979, The Very Best Of Leo Sayer started a three-week run at number one on the UK album chart, giving Sayer his first and only chart topping LP.

1980, The Grateful Dead played at Boutwell Auditorium in Birmingham, Alabama.

1980, Marshall Tucker Band bass player Tommy Caldwell died of injures from a jeep car crash in his hometown of Spartanburg, South Carolina. The thirty year-old was an original member of the band, and composed several of their songs and played bass, percussion, guitar, and contributed backup vocals.

1981, Steve Currie, former member of T Rex, was killed in a car crash returning to his home near Vale de Parra, Algarve, Portugal, he was 33 years old. Currie joined T. Rex (recently renamed from Tyrannosaurus Rex) as bass guitarist in late 1970, and also worked as a session player, playing on “Motorbikin” by Chris Spedding.

1983, During the second leg of their War North American tour, U2 appeared at the Rochester Institute Of Technology Ice Rink, Rochester, New York.

1984, King Crimson appeared at Kani Hoken Hall, Tokyo.

1985, Eric Clapton performed at the Civic Center, Providence, Rhode Island.

1988, Rush played at Wembley Arena in London.

1990, Guns N’ Roses leader Axl Rose married Erin Everly, daughter of The Everly Brothers Don at Cupid’s Wedding Chapel in Las Vegas. They divorced in January 91 after a stormy nine months of marriage.

1990, Sinead O’Connor started a six-week run at number one on the US album chart with I Do Not Want What I Haven’t Got.

1999, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

2002, Sugababes scored their first UK chart topping single with “Freak Like Me.” The song was originally sung by American Adina Howard in 1995, and was mixed with the synth line from Gary Numan’s 1979 hit “Are Friends Electric?”

2008, Scott Weiland, singer with The Stone Temple Pilots, was sentenced to 192 hours in county jail for his November 2007 drunk driving conviction. He was also fined $2000 (£1333,) and required to complete an 18-month alcohol program, as well as placed on probation for four years.

2015, Jack Ely died at the age of 71 after a long illness. The Kingman singer’s hit ‘Louie Louie’ reached the top of the charts in 1963 and sparked an FBI investigation into whether or not its lyrics were obscene

Born on April 28: John Wolters, drums, Dr. Hook (1945); Chuck Leavell, American singer-songwriter, keyboards, The Allman Brothers Band, Sea Level (1953); Kim Gordon, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, producer, Sonic Youth, Ciccone Youth, Free Kitten (1953);  Eddie Jobson, English keyboardist,  violinist, Curved Air, Roxy Music, U.K., Jethro Tull (1955);  Phil King, English bass player, Lush, The Jesus and Mary Chain (1960) Scott Putesky, aka Daisy Berkowitz, American guitarist, Marilyn Manson, Jack Off Jill (1968); Howard Donald, English singer-songwriter, producer, Take That (1968); Violent J, American rapper, producer, wrestler, actor, Insane Clown Posse, Dark Lotus,  Psychopathic Rydas (1972)

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Today in Rock History – October 18

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Animals-19641964, The Animals kicked off their first headlining UK tour at the ABC in Manchester with Carl Perkins, Gene Vincent and The Nashville Teens supporting.

1964, Taking a day off from their British tour The Beatles go into the studio and complete the recording of six album tracks and the A-side of their next single, “I Feel Fine.” They also complete “Eight Days a Week,” “Kansas City/Hey Hey Hey Hey,” “Mr. Moonlight,” “I’ll Follow the Sun,” “Everybody’s Trying to Be My Baby,” “Rock and Roll Music,” and “Words of Love.”

1966, The Jimi Hendrix Experience played their first gig as a band supporting French pop star Johnny Hallyday at the Paris Olympia in France.

1967, John Lennon stars as Private Gripweed in Richard Lester’s film How I Won the War, which opens at London’s Premiere Theatre.

1967, The Bee Gees were at number one on the UK singles chart with “Massachusetts.” It was the group’s first of five UK chart toppers. Engelbert Humperdink was at number two with “The Last Waltz,” and Traffic were third with “Hole In My Shoe.”

1968, John and Yoko were taken to Paddington Green police station and charged with obstruction, after cannabis was discovered at the apartment they were staying in. Lennon pleaded guilty the following month and was fined £150 ($240.)

1968, Led Zeppelin appeared at the Marquee Club in London. By contractual agreement they were billed at the New Yardbirds. They received 50% of the gross ticket sales, less £15 ($24) to pay for the support act, The Bakerloo Blues Line.

1968, Its a Beautiful Day and The Youngbloods perform at Terrace Ballroom in Salt Lake City, Utah.

1969, The Temptations scored their second US number one single with “Can’t Get Next To You,” a number 13 hit in the UK.

1969, Pink Floyd appeared at University College, London.

1969, Jefferson Airplane’s Paul Kantner is arrested for marijuana possession in Hawaii.

1969, Led Zeppelin, along with Lee Michaels, and the Magic Veil Light Show, performed at the Detroit Olympia in Detroit, Michigan. The “Old Red Barn” was home to the Red Wings hockey club from 1927 until 1979.

1969, BB King, Albert King, and Santana appeared at The Kinetic Playground in Chicago.

the-who-19711970, The Who performed at the Odeon, Lewisham, England, having taken a week break due to Roger Daltrey’s bout with bronchitis.

1971, King Crimson appeared at De Montford Hall, Leicester, England.

1972, The Grateful Dead played at the Fox Theatre in St. Louis, Missouri.

1974, Rush and KISS performed at the Parthenon Theatre, Hammond, Indiana.

 1975, For the second episode of Saturday Night Live, the musical guests are Simon & Garfunkel, temporarily reunited for this TV appearance.

1977, Lynyrd Skynyrd played at the Lakeland Civic Center, Lakeland, Florida.

1978, Bob Dylan performed at the Chicago Stadium, Chicago.

1979, Buggles were at number one on the UK singles chart with “Video Killed The Radio Star.” The Buggles were a studio band featuring producer Trevor Horn. Famously, it was the first ever music video shown on MTV.

1980, The third single from Pete Townhend’s solo album Empty Glass, “A Little Is Enough” backed with “Cats In The Cupboard,” peaks at number 72 in the U.S. Billboard charts. It reaches number 89 in Cash Box.

1985, Who bassist John Entwistle and his mansion Quarwood are featured on Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous. The show contains footage of John playing with the first lineup of his solo band “The Rock”.

1986, Huey Lewis and the News went to number one on the US album chart with Fore!

1989, During a gig at The Los Angeles Coliseum, California, opening for the Rolling Stones, Guns N’ Roses front man Axl Rose announced that this would be the last Guns N’ Roses concert, unless the band members “got their shit together.” He was referring to their use of heroin. He later wrote a song about a heroin dealer, “Mr. Brownstone.”

1990, Pete Townshend performs part of his musical The Iron Man on German television.

2000, American singer and actress Julie London died after suffering a stroke. She notched the 1956 US number nine and UK number 22 single “Cry Me A River,” which was also featured in the 1956 film The Girl Can’t Help It. She recorded 32 albums during her career, and played the role of nurse Dixie McCall, in the television series Emergency!  from 1972 to 1979.

2002, After a 15-year court battle, New York State’s highest court ruled that the Ronettes, did not have the right to share the money earned by their producer Phil Spector through the use of the group’s songs in movies, television and advertising. Citing a 1963 contract signed by the group, the court also substantially reduced the amount they stood to gain from royalties on sales of records and compact discs.

2008, Adele appeared on Saturday Night Live along with then US vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin. The show earned its highest ratings in 14 years with a total of 17 million viewers. Adele who performed “Chasing Pavements” and “Cold Shoulder,” then topped the iTunes charts the following day. Her debut album jumped thirty-five places to number 11 on the US chart the following week.

2013, Paul McCartney gave an impromptu gig in Covent Garden, London to a crowd of more than 2,000 fans during the lunchtime hour. McCartney’s latest solo album New was released in the same week.

Born on October 18: Chuck Berry (1926); Laura Nyro (1946); Gary Richrath, REO Speedwagon, Joe Egan, Stealers Wheel (1949); and Keith Knudson, drummer, The Doobie Brothers (1952)

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Today in Rock History – September 10

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1964, The Kinks third single “You Really Got Me,” was at number one on the singles chart. Future Led Zeppelin founder and guitarist Jimmy Page played tambourine on the track.

1964, Rod Stewart recorded his first single, a version of Willie Dixon’s “Good Morning Little School Girl.” Future Led Zeppelin bass player John Paul Jones played on the session.

1965, The Who perform at Borough Assembly Hall in Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire, England.

1965, The Byrds begin recording “Turn! Turn! Turn!” Unlike their first hit, “Mr. Tambourine Man,” members of the group itself were permitted to play instead of session musicians.

1966, The Beatles started a six-week run at number one on the album chart with Revolver, the group’s ninth chart topper.

1966, The Supremes started a two week run at number one on the singles chart with “You Can’t Hurry Love.”

1967, Jimi Hendrix played at Stora Salen Akademiska Föreningen, Lund, Sweden.

1968, The Beatles were at number one on the singles chart with “Hey Jude,” the group’s 15th number one and the longest chart topper ever at seven minutes and ten seconds. The single was the first release on the group’s Apple records label.

1970, Elvis Presley appeared at Kiel Auditorium in St. Louis, Missouri.

1971, Led Zeppelin played at Onodaga War Memorial Arena in Syracuse, New York. A mezzanine ticket cost $6 (£3.75).

1971, The Allman Brothers Band appeared at Central Theater, Passaic, New Jersey. The opening act was Cactus.

1972, King Crimson performed at Civic Hall, Wolverhampton, England.

1972, Pink Floyd played at McFarlin Auditorium, Southern Methodist University, Dallas, Texas.

1973, The BBC banned The Rolling Stones single “Star Star,” from their Goat’s Head Soup album because it contained the word “Star-fucker” in the chorus a dozen times.

1974, The New York Dolls spit up. The influential American band formed in 1972 and made just two albums, the 1973’s New York Dolls, and Too Much Too Soon in 1974.

1976, ZZ Top performed at Madison Square Garden, New York.

1977, Rush appeared at Saskatoon Arena, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada.

1978, AC/DC played at Veterans Memorial Coliseum, Columbus, Ohio.

1979, The Police appeared live at The Assembly Rooms, Derby, England.

1980, Van Halen performed at Tingley Coliseum, Albuquerque, New Mexico.

1981, Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band appeared at the Rosemont Horizon, Rosemont, Illinois.

1988, Guns N’ Roses started a two week run at number one on the US singles chart with “Sweet Child O’ Mine,” the group’s first US number one, a number 24 hit in the UK.

1991, Nirvana’s single “Smells Like Teen Spirit” was released in the US. The unexpected success of the song in late 1991 propelled Nevermind to the top of the charts at the start of 1992, an event often marked as the point where alternative rock entered the mainstream.

1994, REM were at number nine on the singles chart with “What’s The Frequency Kenneth.” The song was inspired by a bizarre incident when Dan Rather of CBS news was accosted on the street by a man who kept asking him “What’s the frequency, Kenneth?”

1995, Kiss played the first date on their 117-date Alive World Tour at Chattanooga Memorial Auditorium in Chattanooga, Tennessee.

2005, Grammy-award winning guitarist and singer Clarence “Gatemouth” Brown died from complications of lung cancer and the long term effects of emphysema and heart disease in Texas at the age of 81. Recorded with Eric Clapton, Ry Cooder and Frank Zappa during a career that spanned 50 years.

2009, A harmonica owned by Bob Dylan sold for £2,700 ($4320) at auction in Norfolk, England, more than four times the guide price. The singer-songwriter had presented the chromonica harmonica, made by Hohner, to a member of his wardrobe department in 1974.

Born on September 10: Cynthia Lennon (1939); Jose Feliciano (1945) Danny Hutton, Three Dog Night (1946); Barrie Barlow, Jethro Tull (1949); Don Powell, drums, Slade (1950); Joe Perry, Aerosmith (1950); and Mikey Way, bass, My Chemical Romance (1980)

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Today in Rock History – August 20

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mccoys1965, The Rolling Stones’ manager Andrew Loog Oldham and his partner Tony Calder launched Immediate records. Their first release was The McCoy’s “Hang On Sloopy.” Mick Jagger, Eric Clapton and Nico  all attended the launch party. The label became the home of The Small Faces, The Nice, Amen Corner and Chris Farlowe and a young producer, guitarist Jimmy Page.

1966, The Beatles, touring America for the last time, were forced to cancel and reschedule their performance in Cincinnati’s open-air stadium, Crosley Field. Heavy rain (and no cover provided) made electrocution a virtual certainty if The Beatles had attempted to perform.

1968, The University of Tennessee reported that a guinea pig subjected to days of rock music played at 120 decibels had suffered acute hearing damage.

1969, After finishing “I Want You, (She’s So Heavy,”) The Beatles worked on the running order for the Abbey Road album. A preliminary master tape was compiled, the medley was originally slated for side one of the album, and the placement of “Octopus’s Garden” and “Oh! Darling” were reversed from the final version. The album was to end with the slashed guitar chord that finishes “I Want You (She’s So Heavy”). This was the last time all four Beatles were together in Abbey Road studios.

1969, Led Zeppelin appeared at The Aerodrome in Schenectady, New York.

1970, Deep Purple performed at the Terrace Ballroom in Salt Lake City, Utah.

1971, On the second night of a North American tour, Led Zeppelin appeared at the Seattle Centre Coliseum, Seattle, Washington.

1971, Ten Years After and Procol Harum appear  at The Forum in Montreal, Quebec.

1972, The Grateful Dead play at the Civic Auditorium in San Jose, California.

1972, Mahavishnu Orchestra appeared at the Montreux Pavillion, Montreux, Switzerland.

1972, David Bowie performed at the Rainbow Theatre in London.

1973, Bruce Springsteen played the first of a seven night run at Oliver’s in Boston, Massachusetts playing two 60-minute sets each night.

1974, REO Speedwagon, Elvin Bishop and the Allman Brothers Band play at Bosse Park in Evansville, Illinois.

1976, Yes performed at the Sports Arena, Toledo, Ohio.

1977, The Emotions started a five week run at No.1 on the US singles chart with “Best Of My Love.” It made it to No.4 in the UK.

1977, Rush plays at the Music Hall, Houston, Texas.

1979, The Allman Brothers Band appeared at the Stanley Theater, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

1980, During a North American tour, Queen appeared at the Civic Centre, Hartford, Connecticut.

1980, John Lennon began recording his final album, ‘Double Fantasy’. It would be released on November 17th by the newly-formed Geffen Records and would win the 1982 Grammy Award for Album of the Year.

1981, Blue Oyster Cult played at Queensway Hall, Dunstable, England.

1982, King Crimson and Roxy Music appeared at Belenenes, Lisbon, Portugal.

1983, Madness, Joan Jett, The Police and R.E.M. all appeared at JFK Stadium in Philadelphia.

1986, Rick Allen drummer with Def Leppard made his first live appearance with the band after losing an arm in a car accident, when they appeared at the Monsters Of Rock Festival, Castle Donington, England.

1988, Steve Winwood went to No.1 on the US album chart with his fifth solo album Roll With It. The title cut also topped the US singles charts.

1988, Iron Maiden, Kiss, David Lee Roth, Megadeth, Guns N’ Roses and Helloween all appeared at the Monsters Of Rock Festival, Castle Donington, England. Two rock fans died while slam dancing as Guns N’ Roses played.

1990, Aerosmith appeared at the Marquee Club London. Led Zeppelin guitarist Jimmy Page joined the band on stage for a blues jam.

1991, Nirvana and Sonic Youth kicked off a joint European tour at Sir Henry’s Pub, Cork, Ireland.

2006, The Rolling Stones played the first of two nights at Twickenham Stadium on their A Bigger Bang world tour. Feeder and The Charlatans also appeared.

2007, The funeral of Manchester music mogul and broadcaster, Tony Wilson was held at St Mary’s Roman Catholic Church in Manchester. Peter Hook and Stephen Morris, two members of first Factory signing Joy Division, as well as a later band, New Order, attended along with Happy Mondays front man, Shaun Ryder.

Born on August 20: Jim Reeves, US country singer (1924); Dave Brock, Hawkwind (1941), Isaac Hayes (1942); James Pankow, Trombone, Chicago (1947); Robert Plant (1948); and Phil Lynott Irish singer, songwriter, bass player, Thin Lizzy (1949)

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Today in Rock History – August 8

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1969, The photo session for the cover of The Beatles Abbey Road album took place on the crossing outside Abbey Road studios. Photographer Iain McMillan, balanced on a step-ladder in the middle of the road took six shots of John, Ringo, Paul, and George walking across the zebra crossing while a policeman held up the traffic. The band then returned to the studio and recorded overdubs on “The End,” “I Want You (She’s So Heavy,”) and “Oh! Darling.”

1969, During a North American tour Led Zeppelin appeared at the Swing Auditorium in San Bernardino, California, supported by Jethro Tull.

1969, Yes played at Mother’s, Birmingham, England.

1969, Alice Cooper performed at the Eastown Theater in Detroit, Michigan.

1969, Pink Floyd appeared at the 9th National Jazz Pop Ballads & Blues Festival at the Plumpton Race Track in Streat, England, along with Soft Machine, Keith Tippett, East of Eden, the Bonzo Dog Band, Roy Harper, The Who, and many others.  It was the kickoff night of a three day event.

1970, Blood Sweat & Tears started a two week run at number one on the US album chart with Blood Sweat & Tears 3.

1970, Janis Joplin bought a headstone for the grave of her greatest influence Bessie Smith at the Mont Lawn Cemetery in Philadelphia. Blues singer Smith died in 1937 after being refused admission to a whites only hospital.

1971, Hawkwind appeared at the Red Lion in London.

1972, Yes performed at the Paramount Theater, Seattle, Washington.

david-bowie-young-americans1974, Recording sessions for David Bowie album Young Americans begins at Philadelphia’s Sigma Sound Studios.

1974, Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young played at Roosevelt Stadium, Jersey City, New Jersey.

1975, Cannonball Adderley, the jazz bandleader who charted with “Mercy, Mercy, Mercy,” dies from a stroke in Gary, Indiana. He was 46.

1975, The lineup at this year’s Summerfest at Rich Stadium in Buffalo, New York  was The Rolling Stones, Bobby Womack, and The Outlaws.

1977, Alice Cooper played at Cobo Arena, Detroit, Michigan.

1978, Neil Diamond appeared at Pine Knob Music Theatre, Clarkston, Michigan.

1979, KISS brought their act to Memorial Auditorium, Buffalo, New York.

1980, The Greater London Council banned The Plasmatics from blowing a car up on stage during their UK live debut at London’s Hammersmith Odeon.

1980, The Allman Brothers Band performed at Mesa Auditorium in Phoenix, Arizona.

1981, The Pretenders kick off their second American tour in Fort Pierce, Florida.

1981, MTV makes its first live concert stereo broadcast. The band is REO Speedwagon.

1981, ZZ Top played at the Omaha Civic Auditorium, Omaha, Nebraska.

1981, The Allman Brothers Band appeared at Alpine Valley Music Theatre, East Troy, Wisconsin.

1982, The Grateful Dead are joined onstage by John Cippolina, founding member of Quicksilver Messenger Service, for the final six songs of the second set of their show at Alpine Valley Music Theatre.

1983, The Police performed at the Civic Arena, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

1986, David Crosby of Crosby, Stills and Nash was released from prison after serving three years for drug and weapons possession. His conviction would be overturned by a Texas appeals court in November 1987.

1987, U2 scored their second US number one single from their Joshua Tree album with “I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For.” The song received two nominations for the 30th Grammy Awards in 1988, for Record of the Year, and Song of the Year.

1991, On A Friday, later to become known as Radiohead, appeared at The Jericho Tavern, Oxford, England. The band had met while attending Abingdon School, a boys-only public school. “On a Friday” referred to the band’s usual rehearsal day in the school’s music room.

1992, A riot broke out during a Guns N’ Roses and Metallica gig at Montreal stadium when Metallica’s show was cut short after singer James Hetfield was injured by pyrotechnics. Guns N’ Roses took the stage but frontman Axl Rose claimed that his throat hurt, causing the band to leave the stage early. The cancellation led to a riot by the audience who overturned cars, smashed windows, looted local stores and set fires.

2007, The US National Musical Publishers’ Association joined other businesses in seeking to sue YouTube claiming songwriters were not being properly compensated when their music appeared on the site. The legal action had been combined with those of several other companies, including Viacom and Nickelodeon, Paramount Pictures and Comedy Central.

Born on August 8: Joe Tex (1933); John David, drums, Dr Hook (1942); Airrion Love, singer, The Stylistics (1949); Ali Score, A Flock Of Seagulls (1956); Christopher Foreman, guitar, Madness (1958);  Dave “The Edge” Evans, U2 (1961); Scott Stapp, singer, songwriter, Creed (1973)

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Today in Rock History August 6

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1965, The Beatles released their fifth album in the UK, the soundtrack to Help!, their second film. The US release took place on August 13. The album was produced by George Martin. It contains fourteen songs in its original British form. Seven of these, including the singles “Help!” and “Ticket to Ride”, appeared in the film and took up the first side of the vinyl album. The second side contained seven other releases including “Yesterday.”

1965, Decca records released The Small Faces debut single “Whatcha Gonna Do About It.” It peaked at number 14 on the UK chart, number 28 and Canada, and did not chart in the US.

1966, Paul Revere & the Raiders appeared at the Sports Arena in Toledo, Ohio.

1967, The Who spend two days at  Talentmasters Studio in New York. Al Kooper joins the band on organ to record two versions of “Mary Anne With The Shaky Hand.” One is released in the U.S. on the B-side of  “I Can See For Miles,” while the other remains 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, The Who perform at the Music Hall in Boston, Massachusetts.

1969, During a North American tour Led Zeppelin made their one and only appearance in Sacramento, California, playing at Memorial Auditorium.

1970, The 10th National Jazz, Blues and Pop four day Festival was held at Plumpton Racecourse in Sussex, England. Featuring, Family, Groundhogs, Cat Stevens, Deep Purple, Fat Mattress, Yes, Caravan, The Strawbs, Black Sabbath, Wild Angles, Wishbone Ash and Daddy Longlegs.

1970, Steppenwolf, Janis Joplin, Paul Simon, Poco and Johnny Winter all appeared at the Concert For Peace at New York’s Shea Stadium. The concert date coincided with the 25th anniversary of dropping an atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Japan.

1971, Pink Floyd made their first ever visit to Japan, playing three dates there. The first show was at Seikei Gakuen Jofundai, near Lake Ashi, in Hakone for the Hakone Aphrodite ’71 along with Buffy Sainte Marie, The 1910 Fruit Gum Company, Mops, Strawberry Path, Happenings Four, and several other Japanese acts.

1972, The Allman Brothers Band played at the Hollywood Bowl, Los Angeles, California.

1973, Stevie Wonder was seriously injured when the car he was riding in crashed into a truck on Interstate 85 near Winston-Salem, North Carolina, leaving him in a coma for four days. The accident also left him without any sense of smell.

1974, Abba scored their first US top ten hit when “Waterloo” went to number six. It was a chart topper in the UK, Norway, The Netherlands, Germany, and Ireland. The Swedish group were also on their first American tour.

1974, CSNY played at the Boston Garden, Boston, Massachusetts.

1975, The Rolling Stones appeared at the Hampton Coliseum, Hampton, Virginia.

1976, Robin Trower performed at the Mid-South Coliseum, Memphis, Tennessee.

1977, The Police appeared at The Red Cow, Hammersmith Road in London, admission was 60p ($1.10.)

1977, This week’s UK Top Five singles: No.5 “Fanfare For The Common Man,” ELP. No.4, “Pretty Vacant,” The Sex Pistols. No.3, “Angelo,” Brotherhood Of Man. No.2, “Ma Baker,” Boney M and No.1, “I Feel Love” by Donna Summer.

1978, Aerosmith performed at Giants Stadium, East Rutherford, New Jersey.

1979, Van Halen played at Barton Coliseum, Little Rock, Arkansas.

1980, Fleetwood Mac appeared at the Hollywood Sportatorium, Pembroke Pines, Florida.

1981, Stevie Nicks released her first solo album Bella Donna which contained four top 40 US hits.  They were “Stop Draggin’ My Heart Around,” a duet with Tom Petty, “Leather and Lace,” with Don Henley, “Edge of Seventeen,” and “After the Glitter Fades.”

1982, Pink Floyd’s The Wall starring Bob Geldof as “Pink”opened in movie theaters in New York. The film was conceived alongside the double album by Roger Waters.

1988, Appetite For Destruction, Guns N’ Roses debut album went to number one in the US, after spending 57 weeks on the chart and selling over 5 million copies. Singles from the album, “Sweet Child O’ Mine,” “Welcome to the Jungle,” and “Paradise City” were all US top ten hits. The album is the best-selling debut album of all-time in the US, beating Boston’s debut album Boston, which has gone 17x platinum.

1999, Dick Latvala died aged 56 after being in a coma caused by a heart attack. Latvala worked with The Grateful Dead since the early 80’s looking after their archives of live performances which became a series of Dick’s Picks albums.

2004, Rick James was found dead at his Los Angeles home. Known as “The King of Punk-Funk” James scored the 1981 US number three album Street Songs, and 1981 US number 16 single “Super Freak part 1.” In the late 60’s James worked as a songwriter and producer for Motown, working with Smokey Robinson and The Miracles.

2009, Willy DeVille died at the age of 58 following a battle with pancreatic cancer. The band he formed, Mink Deville, appeared at the legendary CBGB club in New York in the 1970s and scored the 1977 hit “Spanish Stroll.” Doctors discovered he had cancer earlier that year as he was preparing to undergo treatment for Hepatitis C.

Born on August 6: Andy Warhol, (1928); Judy Craig, singer, The Chiffons (1946); Allan Holdsworth, Soft Machine (1948); Pat McDonald, Timbuk 3 (1952); and Randy Debarge, Debarge (1958); Geri Halliwell, Spice Girls (1972)

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Today in Rock History – July 29

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1966, Eric Clapton, Jack Bruce and Ginger Baker made their unofficial live debut as Cream at The Twisted Wheel, Manchester, England. The official unveiling came two nights later at the Sixth Annual Windsor Jazz & Blues Festival.

1966, Bob Dylan was injured when his Triumph motorcycle crashed near his home in Woodstock, New York. Though the extent of his injuries was never disclosed, Dylan said that he broke several vertebrae in his neck. During his recovery, Dylan withdrew from public and, other than a few select appearances, did not tour again for almost eight years.

1966, Datebook published Maureen Cleave’s interview with John Lennon in which he said ‘We’re bigger than Jesus now.” American Christians reacted with outrage, organizing bonfires and burning the group’s records.

1966, The Grateful Dead played their first ever show outside the US when they appeared in Vancouver.

1967, The Doors started a three week run at number one on the US singles chart with “Light My Fire.” The song only reached number 49 in the UK.

1967, Pink Floyd played two shows. First, an early show supported by The Void at The Wellington Club, The Dereham Exchange in East Dereham.  Then, they appeared at the Love in Festival at Alexandra Palace, Muswell Hill in London. Also on the bill were Eric Burdon & The Animals, Brian Auger, Julie Driscoll & The Treinity, Crazy World of Arthur Brown, The Creation, Blossom Trees, Sam Gopal’s Dream, and Apostolic Intervention.

1968, Gram Parsons left The Byrds on the eve of a tour of South Africa, refusing to play to segregated audiences.

1968, Rehearsals and the first recording session of The Beatles’ “Hey Jude” took place at Abbey Road studios London. Paul was on piano and vocals, George on guitar, John played acoustic guitar, and Ringo was on drums. The McCartney song was written about John Lennon’s son Julian.  They would complete the recording at Trident Studios, which had eight-track recording facilities. Abbey Road still was a four-track studio.

1970, The Rolling Stones’ contract with Decca ends. The band informs manager Allen Klein that “neither he nor ABKCO Industries have any authority to negotiate recording contracts on their behalf.” They begin to consider starting their own label.

1971, The Who appear at the Forest Hills Tennis Stadium in New York.

1972, Gilbert O’Sullivan started the first four of a six-week run at number one on the singles chart with “Alone Again, (Naturally.)” It’s reign was briefly interrupted for a week by “Brandy” from The Looking Glass. O’Sullivan’s only chart topper was the follow up to “Clair,” which peaked in the second spot.

1972, Roxy Music performed at the Crystal Palace in London.

1973, Led Zeppelin lost $203,000 in cash when a thief made off with their safe deposit box from two Madison Square Garden concerts in New York City. The theft took place at The Drake Hotel in New York where the group were staying. Tour manager Richard Cole who discovered the theft was arrested as a suspect and questioned by police but was later released.

1974, Mamas And The Papas singer Cass Elliot died in her sleep from a heart attack after playing a sold out show in London, England. She was staying at Harry Nilson’s London flat when she died. Her only solo hit was “Dream a Little Dream of Me,” which also featured the rest of The Mamas and The Papas.

1974, Grateful Dead played at the Capital Centre, Landover, Maryland.

1975, Kansas appeared at the Mid-South Coliseum, Memphis, Tennessee.

1976, Eric Clapton kicked off a 12-date UK tour at The Pavilion, Hemel Hempsted, London.

1978, Prince appeared on the US charts for the first time with “Soft and Wet.”

1978, Genesis plays at Madison Square Garden in New York.

1978, The Allman Brothers Band performed at the Convention Center, Dallas, Texas.

1978, The film soundtrack to Grease featuring John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John went to number one on the US album chart.

1980, Van Halen played at the International Amphitheater, Chicago.

1981, Blue Oyster Cult appeared at the Salt Palace, Salt Lake City, Utah.

1986, English songwriter, producer and manager Gordon Mills died of stomach cancer. Worked with Engelbert Humperdinck, Tom Jones and Gilbert O’Sullivan. Wrote the 1963 number four UK hit “I’ll Never Get Over You,” for Johnny Kidd and the Pirates, and “I’m The Lonely One” a hit for Cliff Richard.

1991, During their Use Your Illusion Tour, Guns n’ Roses played the first of four nights at the Great Western Forum in Inglewood, California.

2004, Keyboard player Huby Heard died from heart problems. He was a member of Billy Preston’s The God Squad, and worked with Teddy Pendergrass, Ray Charles, Little Bootsy Collins, The Brothers Johnson, The Rolling Stones and Bill Wyman.

2006, Pamela Anderson married for the second time to US rapper Kid Rock, on a yacht off the French resort of St Tropez. The 39-year-old former Baywatch star divorced from rock star Tommy Lee in 1998, had recently got back together with Kid Rock, after a brief engagement ended in 2003. Anderson and Rock split after four months of marriage.

Born on July 29: Neal Doughty, keyboards, REO Speedwagon (1946); Geddy Lee, Rush (1953); Patty Scialfa, singer, guitar, E-Street Band (1953); John Sykes, Thin Lizzy, Whitesnake (1959); Woody Weatherman, guitarist, songwriter, Corrosion of Conformity (1965); Wanya Morris, singer, Boyz II Men (1973); Danger Mouse, American keyboard player, drummer, producer, Gnarls Barkley, Broken Bells, Danger Doom (1977); Ben Koller, American drummer, Converge, United Nations, All Pigs Must Die (1980)

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Today in Rock History – July 21

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1967, The Jimi Hendrix Experience played the first of three nights at the Cafe-a-Go-Go in New York City.

1968, The Who appeared at Virginia Beach Dome in Virginia Beach, Virginia.

1969,  The Beatles started work on the John Lennon song “Come Together” at Abbey Road studios in London. The track became the opening song on The Beatles Abbey Road album and was later released as a double A-sided single with “Something,” their twenty-first single in the UK and twenty-sixth in the US where it reached the top of the charts.

1969, Led Zeppelin played the Schaefer Music Festival held at the 5000-seat Wollman Skating Rink Theater in Central Park, New York City.

1969, The Doors release their fourth album, The Soft Parade.

1970 The Allman Brothers appeared at the Wolman Skating Rink in Central Park, New York. They would return exactly a year later.

1971, Creedence Clearwater Revival played the Mid-South Coliseum, Memphis, Tennessee.

1972, The Rolling Stones performed at The Spectrum, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

1973,  Jim Croce started a two week run at number one on the singles chart with “Bad, Bad Leroy Brown.”  Croce was killed in a plane crash three months later.

1973,  Canned Heat, Chuck Berry, Nazareth, Edgar Broughton Band, Groundhogs, Sensational Alex Harvey Band, Medicine Head, all appeared at the Buxton Festival in Derbyshire, England. Hell’s Angels arrived in force and proceeded to drink the site dry. Initially they paid for the booze, but when the money ran out a deputation was sent into the audience to collect donations of 10p per person. About 20 minutes into his set Chuck Berry was showing one of the Angels how to do his duck-walk properly. He did a magnificent one from one end of the stage to the other and disappeared into the wings. The band played on, the Angels bopped, and Chuck bolted to his car and drove off at high speed, never to return.

1973, Carlos Santana and John McLaughlin crack the album top 20 charts with Love, Devotion, Surrender.

1974, The Grateful Dead played at the Hollywood Bowl, in Hollywood, California.

1975, Yes played at the Spectrum in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

1976, AC/DC appeared at the Glädjehuset, Stockholm, Sweden.

1977, Despite protests, The Sex Pistols made their first appearance on the UK music show Top Of The Pops, where they lip-synched to their third single, “Pretty Vacant.”

1977, In Tucson, Arizona Linda Ronstadt joins the Rolling Stones onstage to perform “Tumbling Dice.”

1978, Aerosmith appeared at Memorial Coliseum, Portland, Oregon.

1980, Former Grateful Dead keyboardist Keith Godchaux’s car collides with a flatbed truck in Marin County, Calif. He died two days later.

1987, Guns N’ Roses released their debut album on Geffen Records, Appetite for Destruction. It featured the singles “Welcome to the Jungle,” “Sweet Child o’ Mine,” and “Paradise City.” The album has exceeded worldwide sales of 28 million, 18 million of which are in the US, making it the best-selling debut album of all time there.

1990, Roger Waters’ held a performance The Wall  at the Berlin Wall in Potzdamer Platz, Berlin. Over 350,000 people attended and the event was broadcast live throughout the world. Van Morrison, Bryan Adams, Joni Mitchell, The Scorpions, Cyndi Lauper, Sinead O’Connor and others took part.

1994 Oasis played their first ever American show as part of the New Music Seminar at Wetlands in New York City.

1996, Alanis Morissette started a second run at number one on the UK album chart with Jagged Little Pill, which stayed at the top for eight weeks. Overall, the album has sold over 33 million copies worldwide.

2001, Madonna kicked off the North American leg of her 47-date Drowned World Tour at the First Union Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was the singers first world tour in eight years, following The Girlie Show in 1993.

2002, Producer Gus Dudgeon, who worked with artists including Elton John, David Bowie, The Beach Boys, Kiki Dee, The Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band, The Strawbs, XTC, and Joan Armatrading, was killed in a car accident near Reading, England, together with his wife Sheila. He was 59 years old.

2004, Composer Jerry Goldsmith died after a long battle with cancer aged 75. Created the music for scores of classic movies and television shows Star Trek, Planet of the Apes, The Man from U.N.C.L.E. and Dr. Kildare.

2005, British singer Long John Baldry died of a chest infection. He was one of the founding fathers of British Rock ‘n’ Roll in the 1960s performing with Blues Incorporated, and Cyril Davies’ R&B All Stars. He later fronted the Hoochie Coochie Men, with Rod Stewart and then Steam Packet with Brian Auger and Julie Driscoll. Also a member of Bluesology with Elton John. He also narrated on Winnie The Pooh recordings for Disney and was the voice for Robotnik on the Sonic The Hedgehog computer game.

2007, Sharon Osbourne’s music mogul father Don Arden died in a Los Angeles nursing home at the age of 81. Dubbed the “Al Capone of Pop” for his uncompromising business practices, he steered The Small Faces, Black Sabbath, and ELO to stardom.

2008, The Police played the first of two nights at the Red Rocks Amphitheater in Morrison, Colorado during the final leg of their 152-date world Reunion tour. The tour became the third highest grossing tour of all time, with revenues reaching over $340 million.

Born on July 21: Northern Ireland guitarist, Henry McCullough, Wings (1943); Barry Whitwam, drums, Herman’s Hermits (1946); Cat Stevens (1947); Howie Epstein, bass, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers (1955); Jim Martin, guitar, Faith No More (1961)

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