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Today in Rock History – July 7

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Alpha TV Studio – Birmingham UK July 1963 – Philip Townsend

1963, The Rolling Stones made their UK TV debut when they appeared on Thank Your Lucky Stars. Also seen on the show were Mickie Most, The Cadets, Helen Shapiro and Gordon Mills. The Stones made a total of 13 appearances on the show between 1963 and 1966

1965, The Who played at a gala opening of The Manor House club in London.

1966, The Kinks were at number one on the singles chart with “Sunny Afternoon,” the group’s third and last chart topper.

1966, The Who played at the Locarno Ballroom in London, England.

1967, The Monkees begin a nationwide tour, with Jimi Hendrix supporting.

1967, Dusty Springfield begins a three-week residency at New York’s Copacabana nightclub.

1968, The Yardbirds played their last gig before splitting up when they appeared in Luton, England.

1969, Arlo Guthrie and Joni Mitchell appeared in Edwardsville, Illinois.

1969, George Harrison recorded his new song “Here Comes the Sun” with just two other Beatles, Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr at Abbey Road in London. John Lennon was absent, recovering from a car crash in Scotland.

1970, The Who headline at the Tanglewood Music Amphitheater in Lenox, Massachusetts with Jethro Tull and It’s a Beautiful Day opening. It is one of The Who’s very best performances and is projected on a 15′ X 21′ television screen on the lawn outside the venue. The show is videotaped and intended for use on a Fillmore at Tanglewood television special that never airs. “Heaven and Hell”, “I Can’t Explain” and “Water” are later released on the first video edition of 30 Years Of Maximum R&B and the surviving section of the concert on YouTube in 2014.

1971, The Allman Brothers Band played at the Steel Pier in Atlantic City, New Jersey.

1971, Yes appeared at the Orlando Sports Stadium, also known as the Eddie Graham Sports Complex, an indoor venue which opened in 1967, and closed in 1995.

1971, 26-year-old pop star Bjorn Ulvaeus and 21-year-old Agnetha Faltskog married in Verum, Sweden. 3000 fans arrived and in the chaos a police horse stepped on the brides foot, causing her a slight injury.

1972, Chicago performed at the Indiana State Fairgrounds in Indianapolis, Indiana.

1973, Led Zeppelin appeared at Chicago Stadium, Chicago.

1973, Hawkwind played at the Sports Centre, Bletchley, England.

1973, Billy Preston started a two week run at number one on the singles chart with “Will It Go Round In Circles,” his first of two chart toppers.

1974, David Bowie performed at the Scope in Norfolk, Virginia.

1975, Paul McCartney & Wings release “Live and Let Die.”

1975, Keith Moon has “Happy Birthday Ringo” written in the sky above Los Angeles in honor of his fellow drummer’s 35th birthday. He then sends the bill to Ringo.

1976, Neil Young appeared at the Providence Civic Center, Providence, Rhode Island.

1978, The Grateful Dead played the first of four nights at the Red Rocks Amphitheater in Morrison, Colorado.

The Boomtown Rats
The Boomtown Rats

1979, The Boomtown Rats made a personal appearance at the opening of the new Virgin Megastore in London.

1980, Led Zeppelin played their last-ever concert when they appeared in West Berlin at the end of a European tour. They finished the show with a 17-minute version of “Whole Lotta Love.”

1980, The Who perform at Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge.

1984, Bruce Springsteen went to number one on the US album chart with Born In The USA. The album went on to spend a total of 139 weeks on the US chart. Its also one of three albums (Michael Jackson’s Thriller and Janet Jackson’s Rhythm Nation 1814) to produce seven Top-ten US singles.

1984, Prince started a five week run at number one on the US singles chart with “When Doves Cry,” his first US chart topper, which went on to sell over two million copies. It reached the fourth spot in the UK.

1989, It was announced that for the first time compact discs were out selling vinyl albums.

2001, Stereophonics, David Gray, The Dandy Warhols, The Proclaimers, Paul Weller, Texas, Coldplay, Beck, Toploader, Ash, Starsailor, Nelly Furtado, James, and Muse all appeared at  T In The Park festival, Scotland, weekend tickets, £64 ($109.)

2006, Pink Floyd co-founder Syd Barrett died from complications arising from diabetes aged 60. The official cause of death was listed as pancreatic cancer.  He joined Pink Floyd in 1965, and crafted most of the material from their first album, but only contributed one song for the second offering.  Barrett’s behavior became increasingly erratic and unpredictable, partly as a consequence of his reported heavy use of psychedelic drugs, most prominently LSD. By April 1968, he was kicked out of the band. Barrett released two solo albums before going into self-imposed seclusion lasting more than thirty years, with his mental deterioration blamed on drugs.

2007, The Live Earth concerts took place around the world with The Police closing the days events in New Jersey. The concerts were organized by former US Vice-President Al Gore, as part of his campaign to “heal the planet.” Rock stars from around the world performed to hundreds of thousands of fans to highlight climate change. Concerts were held in Washington, Rio de Janeiro, Johannesburg, London, Hamburg, Tokyo, Shanghai and Sydney. Madonna brought London’s Live Earth concert to a close, playing a song she had written for the event. Other major acts who appeared included; Snow Patrol, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Genesis, The Beastie Boys, James Blunt, The Foo Fighters, Duran Duran, UB40, Snoop Dogg, Enrique Iglesias, Crowded House & Joss Stone.

2009, Michael Jackson’s family and fans said farewell to the pop superstar at an emotional memorial service. The singer’s coffin was placed in front of the stage during the public event at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, after an earlier private funeral.

2010, Paul McCartney joined Ringo Starr onstage at a concert at New York’s Radio City Music Hall to help celebrate the former Beatle drummer’s 70th birthday.  Ringo’s All-Starr Band were joined by Yoko Ono, Joe Walsh, Angus Young and Steven Van Zandt, as Paul belted out “Birthday” and Ringo delivered “With A Little Help From My Friends.”

Born on July 7: Mary Ford, American singer (1928); Joe Zawinul, pianist, Miles Davis band, Weather Report (1932); Ringo Starr (1940);  Peter Banks, Yes, Flash (1947); Rob Townsend, drummer, Family (1947); Lynval Golding, guitar, The Specials (1952); Mark White, bass, The Spin Doctors (1962)

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Today in Rock History – May 2

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1965, Although he swore he would never allow the band to appear on his show again, Ed Sullivan plays host to the Rolling Stones for a second time. To prevent any disturbances among the group’s fans, the Stones are locked in the Ed Sullivan Show studios for the entire day. They perform “The Last Time,” “Little Red Rooster,” “Everybody Needs Somebody,” and “2120 South Michigan Avenue.”

1967, Capitol Records announces that the Beach Boys have abandoned their sessions for the album Smile. It becomes one of the most fetishized lost albums in pop history.

1969, The Who gave a press preview of their new rock opera Tommy at Ronnie Scott’s in London, England.

1969, The Allman Brothers Band played at College Discotheque, Macon, Georgia.

1969, The Beatles recorded a re-make of the new George Harrison song “Something” at Abbey Road Studios in London. They recoded 36 takes of the song, which included Billy Preston on piano.

1969, Jimi Hendrix appears at Cobo Arena, Detroit, Michigan.

1969, Pink Floyd appeared at Manchester Chamber Of Commerce, England. The show was recorded for the forthcoming album Ummagumma.

1970, One hit wonder Norman Greenbaum was at number one on the singles chart with “Spirit In The Sky.”

1971, Hawkwind played at The Roundhouse, Chalk Farm, London.

1972, Bruce Springsteen auditioned for CBS Records A&R man John Hammond in New York. Springsteen played a short set for him in his office. Hammond was so impressed that he arranged a real audition that night at the Gaslight Club in New York for other Columbia executives.

1973, King Crimson played at Alpine Arena, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

1974, Genesis performed at Massey Hall, Toronto.

1975, Alice Cooper appears at Maple Leaf Gardens, Toronto.

1977, Eric Clapton records “Wonderful Tonight.”

1978, David Bowie performed at the Civic Centre Arena, Ottawa, Canada.

1978, Kate Bush was on the UK charts with her debut album The Kick Inside. The album which featured the singer’s number one hit “Wuthering Heights” and peaked at number three.

1979, Roxy Music played at De Montfort Hall, Leicester, England.

1980, Joy Division played what would be their last gig with singer Ian Curtis when they appeared at Birmingham University, England. Curtis committed suicide two weeks later.

1980, The Grateful Dead performed at the Coliseum in Hampton, Virginia.

1991, Nirvana booked time at Sound City Studios in Van Nuys, California for 16 days. With a modest budget of $65,000 and Butch Vig producing, the band started recording what would become the Nevermind album

Born on this day: Bing Crosby (1904); Engelbert Humperdinck (1936); Lesley Gore (1942); Lou Gramm, Foreigner (1950); Lilly Allen (1985)

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Today in Rock History – April 19

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1965, The film T.A.M.I. (Teen-Age Music International) Show featuring The Rolling Stones, Supremes Four Tops, James Brown, The Beach Boys and Smokey Robinson & The Miracles opened in London, England under the title Teenage Command Performance.

1965, The Beatles single “Ticket to Ride” was released on Capitol records in the US. The single’s label stated that the song was from the upcoming movie Eight Arms to Hold You, the original name for the movie Help!

1967, Jimi Hendrix, The Walker Brothers, Engelbert Humperdink and Cat Stevens, played two shows at The Odeon, Birmingham, England.

1968, John Lennon, George Harrison and their wives left the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi’s ashram in Rishikesh, India two weeks before their study was complete. Ringo and Paul had already left.

1968, Johnny Cash appeared at Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.


1968, Pink Floyd released their fourth UK single “It Would Be So Nice,” written by Richard Wright, with “Julia Dream” by Roger Waters on the B-side. Pink Floyd were on tour in Europe on this day, and played their second night at the Piper Club, in Rome, Italy.

1969, Ten Years After played at The Rock Pile in Toronto, Ontario.

1969, Smile (later to be known as Queen), appeared at the Revolution Club in London, England.

1971, Hawkwind performed at the Playhouse Theatre, London.

1972, Genesis appeared at the Teatro Mostra Mediterraneo, Naples, Italy.

1973, Yes played at the Georgia Tech Coliseum, Atlanta, Georgia.

1974, Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band appeared at the State Theatre in New Brunswick, New Jersey. The gig was unadvertised by its promoter, who gambled that word-of-mouth would be enough to fill the 550-seat venue, only 250 people attended. Tickets cost $4.50 and $5.50 in advance.

1974, While in New York, David Bowie sees Todd Rundgren’s band Utopia at Carnegie Hall, and attends the aftershow party.

1975, During a 29-date North American tour Pink Floyd appeared at the Tucson Community Center Arena, Tuscon, Arizona.

1975, Elton John fires his rhythm section, bassist Dee Murray and drummer Nigel Olsson. They would have to wait until the next decade for the pianist to rehire them.

1977, Led Zeppelin played at Riverfront Coliseum, Cincinnati, Ohio.

1978, Patti Smith releases her biggest hit, “Because the Night.” It was co-written by Bruce Springsteen.

1980, R.E.M. played their first gig as R.E.M. at the 11:11 Koffee Club, Athens, Georgia, to 150 people. The show ended at 2 AM when police closed it down due to the venue being unlicensed.

1980, Blondie went to number one on the US singles chart with ‘Call Me,” featured in the Richard Gere movie American Gigolo. The track was also a chart topper in the UK.

1980, 32 year old English singer Brian Johnson joined Australian group AC/DC, replacing Bon Scott who had died after a drinking binge in February 1980.

1982, The Grateful Dead appeared at the Civic Center in Baltimore, Maryland.

1984, King Crimson played at The Vogue Theatre, Indianapolis, Indiana.

1990, On this week’s BBC- TV’s French and Saunders show, Mark Knopfler, David Gilmour, Lemmy, Mark King (Level 42,) and Gary Moore all appeared in a comedy courthouse sketch. The sketch ended with all the guitarist’s jamming together.

1995, The Stone Roses played their first gig in five years when they appeared at The Rockefeller Club, Oslo, Norway.

2012, Levon Helm, died of throat cancer aged 71. A drummer, singer and multi-instrumentalist, Helm formed his own high school band, the Jungle Bush Beaters, at 17. He later joined The Hawks (who became Bob Dylan’s backing group) later changing their name to The Band. He sang on Band classics like ‘The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down,” “Up on Cripple Creek,” “Rag Mama Rag,” and “The Weight.”

Born on this day: Alexis Korner (1928); Alan Price, The Animals (1942); Bernie Worrell, keyboards, Parliament, Funkadelic (1944); Mark Volman, The Turtles, Flo and Eddie (1947); Rod Morgenstein, American drummer, Winger, Dixie Dregs, Platypus,  The Jelly Jam (1953);  Tony Martin, English singer-songwriter Black Sabbath, Giuntini Project, Empire (1957); Suge Knight, producer, co-founded Death Row Records (1965); Dar Williams, American singer-songwriter guitarist, Cry Cry Cry (1967)

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Today in Rock History – February 21

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1964, Three classic British singles were released, The Rolling Stones “Not Fade Away,” a UK number three, The Hollies “Just One Look,”a UK number two, and Billy J Kramer’s “Little Children,” a UK number one.

1964, New York band The Echoes recruited a new, young unknown piano player, named Billy Joel.

1967, Pink Floyd started their first sessions at the EMI Studios, St. John’s Wood, London on their debut album The Piper At The Gates Of Dawn, working on the song “Matilda Mother.” While Pink Floyd were recording their album with former Beatles engineer Norman Smith, The Beatles themselves were working in the studio next door, recording “Fixing A Hole” for their Sgt. Pepper’s album.

1968, Otis Redding had his first entry on the UK singles chart when “(Sittin’ On) The Dock Of The Bay” entered the chart. It went on to be a number three hit.

1968, The Who play the Civic Auditorium in San Jose, California. Sagittarius and Blue Cheer open. For this show, the first of a six-week North American tour, The Who introduce extended jams of “Shakin’ All Over,” “Relax” and “My Generation.”

1970, Alice Cooper played at the Uptown Palladium 12 Theatre‎ in Birmingham, Michigan.

simon-garfunkel-BOTW1970, Simon and Garfunkel went to number one on the album chart with Bridge Over Troubled Water. The album went on to stay on the chart for over 300 weeks, returning to the top of the charts on eight separate occasions and spending a total of 41 weeks at number one.

1970, Having been in release for only 15 weeks, Led Zeppelin II approaches sales of 2 million.

1971, Hawkwind appeared at Wake Arms, Epping, England.

1972, Yes played at Sunshine Inn, Asbury Park, New Jersey.

1972, Led Zeppelin released “Rock And Roll / Four Sticks” as a 7-inch single in the US, peaking at number 47 on the chart. The song came out of a spontaneous jam session, as the band were trying to finish “Four Sticks.””  Drummer John Bonham played the introduction to Little Richard’s “You Keep A-Knockin” and Page added a guitar riff, emulating a 12-bar blues melody, as the tapes were still rolling.  The basic song was finished fifteen minutes later.

1973, The Rolling Stones played at Memorial Drive Park, Adelaide, Australia.

1975, Genesis performed at the Folkoner Theatre, Copenhagen, Denmark.

1976, The Four Seasons were at number one on the UK singles chart with “December ’63 (Oh What A Night.”) The group’s only UK chart topper.

1976, David Bowie played Wings Stadium in Kalamazoo, Michigan.

1977, Fleetwood Mac released Rumours. The album went on to sell more than 15 million copies world-wide and spent 31 weeks at number one on the US chart.

1982, American DJ Murry The K died. Murray is thought to be the first person to play a Beatles record on the radio in America. During the early days of Beatlemania, he frequently referred to himself as “the Fifth Beatle.” He was married six times, and died of cancer a week after his 60th birthday.

1986, Metallica released their third album, the highly influential album, Master of Puppets, considered by many in the metal community to be the best metal album of all time. This was the last Metallica album with bassist Cliff Burton, who was killed when the group’s tour bus over-turned in southern Sweden while touring to promote the album.

1987, Ben E King was at number one in the UK singles chart with “Stand By Me.” The track was first released in 1961 and became a hit in 1987 after being featured in the film Stand By Me.

1991, ZZ Top performed at The Palace Of Auburn Hills, Auburn Hills, Michigan.

1998, Celine Dion went to No.1 on the UK singles chart with “My Heart Will Go On.” The song was the theme from the movie Titanic. The world’s best selling single of 1998.

2012, Five members of the Russian feminist punk rock group Pussy Riot staged a performance on the soleas of Moscow’s Cathedral of Christ the Savior, where their actions were stopped by church security officials. By that evening, they had turned the performance into a music video entitled “Punk Prayer – Mother of God, Chase Putin Away!” The women said their protest was directed at the Orthodox Church leader’s support for Putin during his election campaign. The following month, three of the group members were arrested and charged with hooliganism, and were were held in custody until their trial began in late July. The three members were convicted of “hooliganism motivated by religious hatred,” and each was sentenced to two years imprisonment.

2014, A crew member working on a biopic about Gregg Allman died after being hit by a train during filming. Police in south Georgia said the woman was struck after the crew for Midnight Rider placed a bed on the railway tracks in Doctortown. Wayne County Sheriff John Carter said several other people had been injured, two of them seriously.

Born on February 21: Nina Simone (1933); David Geffen, producer-executive (1943); Jerry Harrison, Talking Heads (1949); Vince Welnick, The Tubes, Grateful Dead (1951);  Mary Chapin-Carpenter (1958); Ranking Roger, The English Beat (1961)

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Today in Rock History – February 7

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beatles-please-please-me1963, The first Beatles single “Please Please Me” was released in the US on the Vee Jay label.

1964, The Beatles’ Pan Am flight was greeted by over 5,000 as it arrived at New York’s JFK airport. This was the Fab Four’s first US visit.

1967, Robin, Maurice and Barry Gibb of The Bee Gees returned to the UK after living in Australia for nine years.

1967, Mike Nesmith and Mickey Dolenz from The Monkees appeared on UK TV’s Top Of The Pops.

1969, John and Yoko were featured on the cover of Rolling Stone magazine, on sale for 35 Cents. John was named as Rolling Stone’s “Man Of The Year.”

1969, Vanilla Fudge, Led Zeppelin, and Jethro Tull play the first of two nights at the Kinetic Playground in Chicago. Admission was $5 (£3.33).

1969, The Who play the Top Rank Suite at the University in Bath, England.

1969, Doors singer Jim Morrison was arrested for drunk driving and driving with no license in Los Angeles, California.

1969, George Harrison enters London’s University College Hospital to have an operation on his infected back molar and tonsils.

1970, Ian Anderson of Jethro Tull married record company secretary Jennie Franks.

1970, In London, Yes performed at Royal Festival Hall, while Pink Floyd appeared at Royal Albert Hall.

1970, Led Zeppelin scored their first number one album with Led Zeppelin II. Featuring the single “Whole Lotta Love,” it went on to stay on the chart for 138 weeks, selling over 6 million copies in the US.

1970, The Allman Brothers Band played at Pappaliski’s in Dayton, Ohio.

 

shocking-blue-venus1970, One hit wonders from Holland, The Shocking Blue went to number one on the US singles chart with “Venus,” making them the first Dutch act to top the US charts. It made it to number eight in the UK. Bananarama also took the song to number 8 on the UK chart in 1986.

1971, Edgar Winter and Grin appear at the Terrace Ballroom in Salt Lake City, Utah.

1973, Hawkwind played at Wandsworth Prison in London.

1975, The Jackson Five appeared at the Radio City Music Hall in New York City.

1975, Led Zeppelin performed at Madison Square Garden in New York. Tickets were $7.50 and $8.50.

1976, Paul Simon started a three week run at number one on the singles chart with “50 Ways To Leave Your Lover,” the singer’s first solo chart topper.

1977, Genesis performed at Kiel Auditorium, St. Louis.

1979, Stephen Stills became the first rock performer to record on digital equipment at the Record Plant Studio in Los Angeles.

1980, After three weeks of full production rehearsals, Pink Floyd played the first of seven sold out shows performing The Wall at the Los Angeles Sports Arena.  The first night’s show was halted during “What Shall We Do Now” while crew extinguished flames caused by the pyrotechnics that caught the stage drapes on fire.

1981, John Lennon was at number one on the UK singles chart with “Woman,” an ode to his wife Yoko Ono. It was Lennon’s third number one in seven weeks after his death on December 8, 1980.

1981, Kool & The Gang started a two week run at number one on the US singles chart with “Celebration,” the group’s first chart topper and eighth top 40 hit in America. It was a number seven hit in the UK.

1984, Neil Young and Crazy Horse played at The Catalyst, Santa Cruz, California.

1999, Blondie went to number one on the UK singles chart with “Maria,” giving the group their 6th UK number one single, 20 years after their first. At the age of 54, lead singer Debbie Harry became the oldest female to make a chart topping hit.

2000, English guitarist and singer Dave Pevertt died from kidney cancer aged 56. He had been a member of Savoy Brown and Foghat who had the 1970’s hit singles “My Babe,” and “Slow Ride.”

2001, U2 played a secret show at London’s Astoria. Stars attending the show included actor John Hurt, Queen’s Roger Taylor, Mick Jagger, Bob Geldof, Chris Evans, and members of Toploader.

2008, Amy Winehouse was told she could not perform at this year’s Grammy awards ceremony because her US visa application has been rejected by the embassy in London. The singer was arrested for marijuana possession in Norway in 2007. Winehouse had been nominated for six Grammy awards.

Born on February 7: Earl King, blues guitarist (1934); Jimmy Greenspoon, Three Dog Night (1948); Alan Lancaster, Status Quo (1949);  Steve Bronski, Bronski Beat (1960); Garth Brooks (1962); David Bryan, keyboards, Bon Jovi (1962); Wes Borland, guitarist, Limp Bizkit (1975)

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Today in Rock History – January 28

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Moody-Blues-Go-Now1965, The Moody Blues were at number one on the UK singles chart with “Go Now!”

1965, The Who made their first appearance on UK TV show Ready Steady Go! To project the desired image, the hand-picked audience consisted only of teens dressed in the current “Mod” fashion.

1966, The Cavern Club in Liverpool closes, having run up debts of 10,000 pounds. The club became world famous as one of The Beatles’ earliest venues.

1967, The Four Tops appeared at The Royal Albert Hall, London. Also on the bill, The Dakotas, Madeline Bell, The Remo Four and Johnny Watson.

1968, Jim Morrison of The Doors was arrested and charged with public drunkenness after harassing a security guard at a Las Vegas adult movie theater.

1969, After the Beatles cut versions of “Get Back” and “Don”t Let Me Down” for single release, John Lennon and Yoko Ono meet Allen Klein for the first time at London’s Dorchester Hotel.

1969, Marmalade were at number one on the UK singles chart with their version of The Beatles song “Ob-La-Di Ob-La-Da.”

1970, Jimi Hendrix performed at Madison Square Garden, New York.

1970, The Who played at the Theater des Westens in Berlin, Germany.

1971, Genesis appeared at St. George’s Hall, Bradford, England.

1972, Pink Floyd played at Town Hall in Leeds, England.

1972, Deep Purple performed at Swing Auditorium in San Bernardino, California.

1973, Bruce Springsteen appeared at Villanova University appearing to an audience of 25 people.

1974, Hawkwind took the stage at Civic Hall, Wolverhampton, England.

1975, Genesis performed at Civic Hall, Phoenix, Arizona.

1977, Pink Floyd’s tenth studio album Animals entered the UK charts at number two. The sleeve concept was that of Roger Waters, who lived at the time near Clapham Common, and regularly drove past Battersea Power Station. A view of the imposing, but disused former power station building was chosen for the cover image, complete with massive inflatable pig suspended between two of the towers.

1978, The Fleetwood Mac album Rumours went to number one on the album chart.  The album sold over 15 million copies worldwide and spent over 440 weeks on the album chart.

1982, AC/DC appeared at the Lakeland Civic Center, Lakeland, Florida.

1983, The first Narara Music Festival was held near Somersby, New South Wales over the Australia Day weekend, the line-up included Men At Work, The Church, The Choirboys, Cold Chisel and INXS.

1984, Frankie Goes To Hollywood started a five-week run at number one on the UK singles chart with “Relax!”

1985, The recording took place for “We Are The World,” the US equivalent of “Band Aid” at A&M Studios in Hollywood, Los Angeles. Written by Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie, the all star cast included Stevie Wonder, Tina Turner, Bruce Springsteen, Diana Ross, Bob Dylan, (who contributed four lines to the charity single), Ray Charles, Daryl Hall, John Oates, Cyndi Lauper, Steve Perry and Bob Geldof. The session was produced by Quincy Jones.

1987, The Grateful Dead played at the Civic Center in San Francisco.

1988, Eleven years after it was released, The Sex Pistols album Never Mind The Bollocks, Here’s The Sex Pistols went Gold in the US with sales over 500,000.

1994, Paul and Linda McCartney attended the premiere of Wayne’s World II in London. The couple then went on to Hard Rock Cafe, where the film star Mike Myers presented them with a check for LIPA (the Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts) for £25,000 ($42,500) from the sale of Linda’s vegetarian burgers.

1998, Oasis guitarist Noel Gallagher played a 20-minute solo gig at the King Head, an English pub in Santa Monica in front of 250 fans.

2000, Saxophonist and bandleader Thomas “Beans” Bowles died of prostate cancer aged 73. He played on many Motown sessions including Marvin Gaye’s “What’s Going On,” Martha and the Vandellas’ “Heat Wave,” and The Supremes “Baby Love.” Bowles wrote the melody on Stevie Wonder’s “Fingertips Pt. 2.”

2001, Limp Bizkit started a two-week run at number one on the UK album chart with Chocolate Starfish.

2005, English drummer and singer songwriter Jim Capaldi died of stomach cancer aged 60. He was a member of Traffic,  and had the solo 1975 UK number four single “Love Hurts.” Capaldi also worked with Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton, and George Harrison.

2009, Lynyrd Skynyrd keyboard player Billy Powell died at the age of 56 of a suspected heart attack in Florida. Powell called police saying he was having trouble breathing and emergency services tried to resuscitate him, but he was pronounced dead an hour later.

2015, Sly Stone was awarded $5m (£3.3m) in missed royalties by a Los Angeles court. The singer claimed his former manager, Gerald Goldstein, and lawyer, Glenn Stone, had cheated him out of earnings dating back more than 20 years. In 2011, it was reported he was homeless and living in a camper van after falling on hard times, and fighting drug addiction problems.

Born on January 28: Ronnie Scott, jazz musician London club owner (1927); Dick Taylor, The Pretty Things (1943); Robert Wyatt, Soft Machine (1945); William Nelson, Funkadelic (1951); Dave Sharpe, guitarist and singer, The Alarm (1959)

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Today in Rock History – January 26

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Petula-Clark-Downtown1965, “Downtown” by Petula Clark was at number one on the US singles chart. A young Jimmy Page had played as a session guitarist on the track, giving him his first US number one hit, as well as a number two hit in the UK.

1965, during a Rolling Stones tour of Australia and New Zealand, guitarist Keith Richards had his shirt torn off after 50 fans invaded the stage during the gig at The Town Hall in Brisbane.

1966, The Who played at the Locarno Ballroom in Stevenage, Hertfordshire, England.

1967, Jack Newfield’s article “Brecht of the Jukebox, Poet of the Electric Guitar,” about Bob Dylan, was published in the Village Voice today.

1968, Pink Floyd played in the Old Refractory, at the Student’s Union at Southampton University, Highfield, Southampton, England. Also on the bill was Tyrannosaurus Rex and The Incredible String Band. Members of Floyd decided not to pick up Syd Barrett on the way to the show due to his ongoing troubles and a mere two weeks after David Gilmour officially became a member of the band. That was the end of Syd Barrett as part of Pink Floyd.

1969, Led Zeppelin played the last of three nights at Boston Tea Party in Boston.

1970, Elvis Presley played the first night of a four-week engagement playing 2 shows every night at The International Hotel in Las Vegas.

1970, The Who play the Stadt Opera House in Cologne, Germany. Their $2500 salary for the two nights is donated to the Save The Children Fund and the taxes on their shows are also excused as the German government declares The Who to be a “cultural attraction.” Both German President Heinemann and Chancellor Willie Brandt attend the show and visit The Who backstage afterwards.

1970, John Lennon wrote, recorded and mixed his new single “Instant Karma” all in one day.

1971, Elvis Presley played the first night of a 31-date run at The Hilton Hotel in Las Vegas. Elvis played a 8:30 pm and midnight shows on most days.

1972, Hawkwind played at the Rex Ballroom, Bognor, Regis, England.

1973, John Entwistle and his new solo band Rigor Mortis release the single “Made In Japan” backed with “Hound Dog” in the UK. The launch party is held in a Japanese steak house in Soho. The single fails to chart.

1974, Ringo Starr went to number one on the singles chart with his version of the Johnny Burnette 1960 hit “Your Sixteen.”

1974, Genesis appeared at the Forest National, Brussels, Belgium.

1975, The BBC Omnibus documentary Cracked Actor, a film about David Bowie was shown on UK TV

1975, In Austin, Texas, Bob Dylan makes a surprise guest appearance at a Joni Mitchell concert.

1976, The Beatles’ nine-year contract with EMI expires.

1977, former Fleetwood Mac guitarist Peter Green was committed to a mental hospital following an incident when he threatened his accountant Clifford Adams with an air rifle when he was trying to deliver a £30,000 ($51,000) royalty check to him.

1978, Rush played at the MECCA Arena, Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

1980, Prince made his TV debut on American Bandstand.

1984, Blue Oyster Cult performed at Friedrich Ebert Halle, Ludwigshafen, Germany.

1986, Allen Collins, guitarist from Lynyrd Skynyrd crashed his car, paralyzing him from the waist down and killing his girlfriend Debra Jean Watts. Collins had survived the infamous plane crash in 1977 that killed singer Ronnie Van Zant, guitarist Steve Gaines, vocalist Cassie Gaines, and assistant road manager Dean Kilpatrick.

1989, Bon Jovi kicked of the North American leg of their New Jersey Syndicate Tour at the Reunion Arena in Dallas, Texas.

1989, Singer Donnie Elbert died of a stroke aged 52. He had the 1972 US number 22 & UK number 11 single “I Can’t Help Myself,” “Sugar Pie Honey Bunch,” “Where Did Our Love Go?,” and “A Little Piece of Leather.”

1991, Queen had their second UK number one with “Innuendo.” At 6 minutes 30 seconds, it exceeded their epic “Bohemian Rhapsody” by 35 seconds and became the third longest UK number song of all time, behind The Beatles’ “Hey Jude” and Simple Minds’ “Belfast Child,” At a later date, “All Around The World” by Oasis, at 9 minutes 38 seconds took over the top slot and demoted “Innuendo” to fourth place). For ‘Innuendo’s’ flamenco guitar solo, Brian May was joined by Yes guitarist Steve Howe.

1993, The Grateful Dead appeared at the Oakland-Alemeda County Coliseum in Oakland, California.

2003, Justin Timberlake went to number one on the UK album chart with his debut solo album Justified, which went on to spend over a year on the UK charts.

2007, The Rolling Stones topped the US music rich list for the second year running after making $150.6 million (£76.2m) in 2006. Tim McGraw and Faith Hill were second in the poll with a combined fortune of $132m (£67.2m) and American country band Rascal Flatts appeared third, having earned $110.5m (£56.2m) in the past year.

2008, Alicia Keys was at number one on the US album chart with her third album As I Am. The album sold over 742,000 copies in its first week, the largest ever first week sales for any female R&B artist.

Born on January 26: Huey “Piano” Smith (1934); Ashley Hutchings, bassist, Fairport Convention (1945); Corky Laing, drummer, Mountain (1948); Derek Holt, Climax Blues Band (1949); David Briggs, Little River Band (1951); Eddie Van Halen (1957); Anita Baker (1958); Andrew Ridgeley, singer, Wham! (1963)

singer Ronnie Van Zant, guitarist Steve Gaines, vocalist Cassie Gaines, assistant road manager Dean KilpatrickRead More: 36 Years Ago: Lynyrd Skynyrd’s Plane Crashes, Killing Three Band Members | http://ultimateclassicrock.com/lynyrd-skynyrd-plane-crashes/?trackback=tsmclip
singer Ronnie Van Zant, guitarist Steve Gaines, vocalist Cassie Gaines, assistant road manager Dean KilpatrickRead More: 36 Years Ago: Lynyrd Skynyrd’s Plane Crashes, Killing Three Band Members | http://ultimateclassicrock.com/lynyrd-skynyrd-plane-crashes/?trackback=tsmclip

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Today in Rock History – January 23

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searchers-needles-and-pins1964, The Searchers were at number one on the singles chart with the Sonny Bono song “Needles And Pins.”

1965, The Who play the Corn Exchange at Chelmsford and then an all-night rave at the Club Noreik in Tottenham. Opening for The Who at the all-night rave is The Muleskinners featuring future Small Faces’ keyboardist, Ian McLagan.

1966, Big Brother & the Holding Company play their first gig on the second day of the Trips Festival at San Francisco’s Longshoreman’s Hall, this show did not include Janis Joplin, who would join the band in June of that year.

1966, The Who appeared at Coop Hall in Warrington, Cheshire, England.

1967, Pink Floyd spent the first of three days recording the Syd Barrett songs “Arnold Layne” and “Candy And A Current Bun” at Sound Techniques Studios, Chelsea, London with Joe Boyd as producer. According to Roger Waters, “Arnold Layne” was based on a real person, a transvestite whose primary pastime was stealing women’s clothes and undergarments from washing lines in Cambridge.

1968, John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers performed at the Grande Ballroom in Detroit, Michigan

1969, Working at Apple studios in London, The Beatles, with Billy Preston on keyboards, recorded ten takes of a new song called “Get Back.” Alan Parsons makes his debut as the Beatles’ engineer.

1969, Led Zeppelin played at Boston Tea Party in Boston, Massachusetts.

1969, Jimi Hendrix performed at the Sportpalast, Berlin, Germany.

1970, Yes appeared at King’s Hall, Stoke, England.

1971, Steel Mill played their final show when they appeared at the Upstage Club, Asbury Park, New Jersey. Singer Bruce Springsteen formed new bands during the rest of the year, known under such names as the Bruce Springsteen Jam, Dr. Zoom and the Sonic Boom, and finally the Bruce Springsteen Band.

1971, George Harrison became the first solo Beatle to have a number one when “My Sweet Lord”‘ went to the top of the singles charts. The song from his All Things Must Pass album stayed at number one for five weeks.

1971, Dawn started a three week run at number one on the singles chart with “Knock Three Times,” the group’s first chart topper.

1972, Pink Floyd performed Dark Side of The Moon at Guildhall, in Southampton, England. The entire show was filmed by the BBC in an effort to test some new equipment.  However, the film was not supposed to be broadcast, and the tapes were wiped clean.

1974, Bob Dylan and The Band played at the Mid-South Coliseum, Memphis, Tennessee.

1975, Hawkwind appeared at Kings Hall, Derby, England.

1976, The Sex Pistols played at Watford College, Watford, England. The first of 65 gigs for band in 1976.

1976, Roxy Music performed at Konserthaus in Stockholm., Sweden.

1977, Patti Smith broke her vertebrae when she fell off the stage at a gig in Tampa, Florida.

CHicago-Terry-Kath1978, Terry Kath, guitarist with Chicago accidentally shot himself dead while cleaning what he believed was an unloaded gun. Kath’s last words were “Don’t worry it’s not loaded” as he put the gun to his head and pulled the trigger. The guitarist and singer was killed instantly.

1979, Rush played at the Carrier Dome, Syracuse, New York.

1980, Marvin Gaye appeared at the Liverpool Philharmonic, England, with Edwin Starr as support.

1982, The Allman Brothers Band appeared on Saturday Night Live, playing “Midnight Rider,” “Southbound,” and “I’m Leaving.” It was to be their last performance until 1986.

1984, Blue Oyster Cult performed at Sporthalle, Augsburg, Germany.

1986, Ray Charles was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame at the first induction dinner, held in New York City.

1988, Nirvana recorded a 10-song demo with Seattle producer Jack Endino. Sub Pop records boss Jonathan Poneman hears the tape and offers to put out a Nirvana single.

1990, Allen Collins guitarist from Lynyrd Skynyrd died of pneumonia after being ill for several months. Collins who was one of the founding members also co-wrote most of the band’s songs, including “Free Bird,” with late front man Ronnie Van Zant. He survived a plane crash in 1977 that killed two other band members. Collins was behind the wheel in a car accident in 1986 that killed his girlfriend and left him paralyzed from the waist down. He later pleaded no contest to vehicular manslaughter as well as driving under the influence of alcohol.

1994, Rage Against The Machine headlined the Rock For Choice benefit at The Palladium, Hollywood, California. Also appearing were Screaming Trees, Eddie Vedder, Mary’s Danish, 7 Year Bitch, and Green Apple Quick Step.

2000, Santana started a three week run at number one on the US album chart with Supernatural, the album which went on to win eight Grammy awards spent a total of nine weeks atop the charts during this year.

Born on this day: Django Reinhardt, jazz guitarist (1910); Anita Pointer,  The Pointer Sisters (1948); Danny Federici, keyboard, E Street Band (1950); Pat Simmons, guitarist,  The Doobie Brothers (1950); Robin Zander, vocals, Cheap Trick (1953); Earl Falconer, bassist, UB40 (1959); and Nick Harmer, bass guitarist,  Death Cab for Cutie (1974)

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Today in Rock History – January 17

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rolling-stones-first-ep1964, The Rolling Stones released their first EP, which included, “You Better Move On,” “Poison Ivy,” “Bye Bye Johnny,” and “Money.” It peaked at number 15 on the UK chart.

1966, NBC-TV  bought The Monkees series, placing it on their 1966 autumn schedule.

1967, The Daily Mail ran the story about a local council survey finding 4,000 holes in the road in Lancashire inspiring John Lennon’s famous contribution to The Beatles song “A Day In The Life.”

1967, Big Brother and the Holding Company played at the Matrix in San Francisco.

1967, The Jimi Hendrix Experience recorded a session for Radio Luxembourg’s Ready Steady Radio. The band ran up a bar bill of £2.5 shillings, ($6.21), which they were unable to pay.

1967, 40-year-old David Mason recorded the piccolo trumpet solo for The Beatles’ “Penny Lane” at Abbey Road Studios in London. He was paid £27, 10 shillings ($42) for his performance. In August, 1987, the trumpet he used was sold at a Sotheby’s auction for $10,846.

1968, Pink Floyd were in recording sessions for Saucerful of Secrets at Studio 2, EMI Studios, Abbey Road, St. Johns Wood, in London.

1969, In an interview, John Lennon warns that Apple will soon tank due to its enormous financial losses.

1969, Led Zeppelin I, the band’s debut album, was released in the US, coinciding with the band’s first headlining US concert tour. It was to peak at number ten in the US chart, and at number six in the UK. The RIAA in the US has now certified it as having sold over 10 million copies in the US alone.  The band played at the Grande Ballroom in Detroit on this night.

1969, The Who performed at King’s College in London.

1970, R&B singer Billy Stewart and three of his band were killed when the car they were traveling in crashed off a bridge. He had the 1966 US number ten single “Summertime.”

1970, The Allman Brothers Band appeared at the Fillmore West in San Francisco.

1970, The Doors played the first of four shows at the Felt Forum in New York City. The shows were recorded for the bands forthcoming Absolutely Live album.

1971, Neil Young performed at the Masonic Temple Theater in Detroit, Michigan.

1972, a section of Bellevue Boulevard in Memphis was renamed Elvis Presley Boulevard. The remaining length of road kept its original name after protests from the Bellevue Baptist Church.

1973, Genesis appeared at Jahrhunderthalle Hoechst, Frankfurt, Germany.

1974, Hawkwind played at Town Hall, Cheltenham, England.

1975, Bob Dylan releases Blood on the Tracks, arguably his most important album of the seventies.

1975, KISS played at Long Beach Civic Arena, Long Beach, California.

1977, Bob Seger & the Silver Bullet Band performed at Cobo Arena, Detroit, Michigan.

1980, Rush appeared at Aitken University Centre, Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada.

1981, Motley Crue formed when bass guitarist Nikki Sixx left the band London and began rehearsing with drummer Tommy Lee and vocalist, guitarist Greg Leon, who later left. Sixx and Lee then added guitarist Bob “Mick Mars” Deal. Vince Neil accepted an offer to join three months later, after initially turning them down.

1983, Van Halen played at the Caracas Polyhedron, Caracas, Venezuela.

1986, David Bowie, Tom Donahue, The Jefferson Airplane, Gladys Knight And The Pips, Little Willie John, Pink Floyd, Pete Seeger, The Shirelles and The Velvet Underground were all inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

2003, A long-lost recording featuring John Lennon and Mick Jagger was set to spark a biding war at a London auction. The acetate record was recorded in 1974 with Jagger singing the blues song ‘Too Many Cooks” and Lennon playing guitar. The track had never been released because the two artists were both signed to different record companies.

2008, The Police played the first nine dates in Australian and New Zealand at the Westpac Stadium in Wellington, New Zealand, on their 152-date Reunion tour.

2011, Don Kirshner, the songwriter, manager, publisher and music executive who helped launch the careers of Neil Diamond, Bobby Darin, Carole King, Neil Sedaka, The Monkees, The Archies and Kansas, died of heart failure at the age of 76.

Born on January 17: Eartha Kitt (1927); Mick Taylor (1948);  Steve Earle (1955); Paul Young, singer (1956); Susanna Hoffs, guitar vocals, The Bangles (1959); Andy Rourke, bass, The Smiths (1963); Robert James Ritchie, aka Kid Rock (1971)

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Today in Rock History – January 13

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bob-dylan-band-19651965, The first day of recording sessions for Bob Dylan’s Bringing It All Back Home album were held at Studio A, Columbia Recording Studios in New York City. Dylan recorded “Subterranean Homesick Blues,” and “It’s All Over Now, Baby Blue.”

1966, George Harrison and his girlfriend Patti Boyd met up with Mick Jagger and Chrissie Shrimpton at Dolly’s nightclub on Jermyn Street in London’s west End.

1966, Ringo Starr and John Lennon leave England for a vacation in Trinidad.

1967, Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr both went to the Bag O’Nails Club, London, England to see the Jimi Hendrix Experience.

1967, Pink Floyd plays the UFO, at The Blarney, Tottenham Court Road, in London with Marilyn Monroe films and Dave Tomlin’s The Giant Sun Trolley.  The set was filmed by Peter Whitehead.

1968, Johnny Cash played a show, which was recorded, for his forthcoming live album at Folsom Prison, near Sacramento, California in front of 2,000 inmates. When released, the lead single, “Folsom Prison Blues,” an update of his 1956 hit, became one of the most famous recordings of his career.

1969, Elvis Presley began a ten day recording session that would produce his final US number one record, “Suspicious Minds.”The tracks were laid down at American Sound Studios in Memphis and marked the first time Presley had recorded in his hometown since his Sun Records days in 1956.

1970, Led Zeppelin played at Guildhall, in Portsmouth, England.

1970, Steel Mill, featuring Bruce Springsteen, played at The Matrix in San Francisco, California. Boz Scaggs was the scheduled headliner but he cancelled at that last minute due to illness. Rock critic Philip Elwood, who turned up intending to review Scaggs ended up writing a highly favorable review of Steel Mill for The San Francisco Examiner.

1971, Yes appears at Greens Playhouse, Glasgow, Scotland.

1973, Pete Townshend drags Eric Clapton back into the limelight with two shows at The Rainbow Theatre in London. Pete had discovered Clapton’s heroin addiction the previous August and devises a scheme with Clapton’s girlfriend’s father, Lord Harlech, to force Clapton to work so he can escape his narcotic-induced reclusion. Backing Clapton onstage is not only Pete, but Ron Wood, Steve Winwood, Jim Karstein. Jim Capaldi and Rick Grech. Clapton is late but manages to make it through both shows. They are recorded by Glyn Johns and later released on album.

1973, Slade scored their first number one album with Slayed.

1974, Genesis performs at the Hippodrome, Bristol, England.

1975, Hawkwind appears at Town Hall, Watford, England.

1976, Black Sabbath plays at the Hammersmith Odeon, London.

1977, Queen kicked off a 59-date world tour at Dane County Coliseum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Opening act was Thin Lizzy.

Police1978, With a budget of only £1,500 ($2,400) borrowed from Stewart Copeland’s brother Miles Copeland III, The Police started recording their debut album at Surrey Sound Studios, Surrey, England with producer Nigel Gray. The album Outlandos d’Amour was released in November of that year.

1980, Bob Dylan appears at the Paramount Northwest Theatre, Seattle, Washington.

1984, BBC Radio 1 announced a ban on “Relax” by Frankie Goes To Hollywood, after DJ Mike Read called it ‘obscene’, a BBC TV ban also followed. The song went on to become a UK number one, and spent a total of 48 weeks on the UK chart.

1986, Sex Pistol members John Lydon, Steve Jones and Paul Cook, as well as the mother of Sid Vicious, sued former manager Malcom McClaren for £1 million ($1.6 million). They settled out of court.

1990, New Kids On The Block had their second and last number one UK single with “Hangin’ Tough.” They had a further seven top 10 hits by the end of 1991. They broke up after that, but set the scene for numerous boy bands throughout the ’90s.

2005, A report showed that more songs had been written about Elvis Presley than any other artist. It listed over 220 songs including “Graceland” by Paul Simon, “A Room At The Heartbreakhotel” by U2, “Calling Elvis,” Dire Straits, “Happy Birthday Elvis,” Loudon Wainwright III, ‘There’s A Guy Works Down The Chip Shop Swears He’s Elvis,” Kirsty MacColl, “I Saw Elvis in a UFO,” Ray Stevens. “Elvis Has Left the Building” by Frank Zappa, and “My Dog Thinks I’m Elvis” by Ray Herndon.

2010, Soul singer Teddy Pendergrass died at the age of 59 following a difficult recovery from colon cancer surgery. Pendergrass enjoyed early success with Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes, whose hits included “If You Don’t Know Me By Now,” before going solo in 1976. He was the first black male singer to record five consecutive multi-platinum albums in the US.

2010, A plaque of The Beatles’ iconic yellow submarine, which was stolen six months ago from Liverpool’s Albert Dock, was set to be replaced by a new creation. The five foot design featured the faces of John Lennon, Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr and George Harrison peering through its portholes. The new submarine would hang outside the museum dedicated to the band, The Beatles Story. The former plaque has never been found and the thieves had never been caught.

Born on January 13:  John Lees, Barclay James Harvest (1948); Trevor Rabin, Yes (1954) and Don Snow, Squeeze (1957); Jim Paris, bass, Carmel (1957); James LoMenzo, bass, Megadeth, White Lion (1959); Graham McPherson, aka Suggs, Madness (1961); Wayne Coyne, guitar, Flaming Lips (1961)

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