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Today in Rock History – April 4

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beatles-cant_buy_me_love1964, The Beatles held the top five places on the US singles chart, with the fifth place – “Please Please Me,” at number four, “I Want To Hold Your Hand,” while at third was “Roll Over Beethoven.” In the second position, “Love Me Do,” and at the top spot, “Can’t Buy Me Love.” They also had another nine singles on the chart, bringing their total to fourteen singles on the Hot 100.

1966, The Who performed at Top Rank Suite in Reading, Berkshire, England.

1967, Jimi Hendrix was the special guest on the first edition of the UK BBC-TV’s Dee Time, along with Kiki Dee and Cat Stevens.

1968, The Temptations played at the Civic Center in Charleston, West Virginia.

1968, Jimi Hendrix, B.B. King, Buddy Guy, Joni Mitchell, Al Kooper and Ted Nugent met up for an all night blues, folk and rock session at The New Generation Club in New York after hearing the news of Martin Luther King’s assassination.

1969, Jethro Tull  appeared at The 13th Hour in Evansville, Indiana.

1970, Crosby Stills Nash & Young went to number one on the UK album chart with Deja Vu. They would be number one in America on May 16th.

1970, The Allman Brothers Band performed at Ludlow Garage, a venue which began life as an automobile shop, and later became a music club located in the Clifton neighborhood of Cincinnati, Ohio.

1970, Janis Joplin plays a reunion concert in San Francisco with her old outfit Big Brother & the Holding Company.

1970, Pink Floyd were at EMI Studios in London holding recording sessions for Atom Heart Mother.

1970, Led Zeppelin played at the Coliseum in Indianapolis, Indiana. Ticket prices ranged from $4 to $6 (£2.67 – £4.)

1971, The Grateful Dead perform at the Manhattan Center in New York.

1971, Black Sabbath appeared at the Alexandria Roller Rink, Alexandria, Virginia.

1972, Don McLean’s American Pie enters its seventh and final week atop the US album charts.

1973, The Supremes appeared at the Granada, Tooting, the last date on a 20-date UK tour. The group played two shows at every venue.

1973, In a press release, Atlantic Records announced that shipments of Led Zeppelin’s album Houses of the Holy, released on March 28, were large enough to qualify for gold status. The label also revealed plans for a thirty city tour commencing May 4th.

1974, KISS played at the Nordic Arena, Hartland, Michigan.

1975, Genesis appeared at the Circus Kröne, Munich, Germany during Peter Gabriel’s last tour with the band.

1976, The Sex Pistols played the first night of a residency at the El Paradiso club in Soho, London, England.

1978,  David Bowie performed at The Forum, Inglewood, California.

1980, ZZ Top appeared at the New Haven Coliseum, New Haven, Connecticut.

1981, Styx went to number one on the album chart with Paradise Theatre.

1982, “Layla” was on the UK singles chart. The re-released track originally featured on the Derek and the Dominos, album Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs  was released in November 1970. Inspired by Clapton’s then unrequited love for Pattie Boyd, the wife of his friend George Harrison, “Layla” is considered one of rock music’s definitive love songs, and features an unmistakable guitar figure played by Eric Clapton and Duane Allman.

1987, U2 entered the US album chart at number seven with The Joshua Tree, making it the highest chart new entry in America for seven years.

1999, The Corrs album Talk On Corners went to number one on the UK album chart for the 10th time. They also had the second position with Forgiven, Not Forgotten. Both albums had spent over a year on the chart. Talk on Corners was the UK’s biggest selling album of 1998 and the ninth best selling album of 1999.

2008, Beyonce Knowles married Jay-Z at his New York apartment. Coldplay’s Chris Martin and his then wife, actress Gwyneth Paltrow, along with Beyonce’s former bandmates in Destiny’s Child, Kelly Rowland and Michelle Williams, all attended the private ceremony.

2008, Procol Harum singer Gary Brooker won back full royalty rights to the band’s worldwide hit, “A Whiter Shade of Pale,” at London’s Court of Appeal. The decision overturned a 2006 ruling that organist Matthew Fisher was entitled to a 40% portion of royalties on the 1967 hit after he argued he had written the song’s organ melody. The court ruled there was an “excessive delay” in the claim being made, nearly 40 years after the song was recorded.

Born on April 4: Muddy Waters (1913); Clive Davis, producer, founder Arista Records (1932); Hugh Masekela (1939); Berry Oakley, Allman Brothers (1948); Pick Withers, English drummer, Dire Straits, Magna Carta (1948); Dave Hill, Slade; Gary Moore, Skid Row, Thin Lizzy (1952); Graeme Kelling, Scottish guitarist, Deacon Blue (1957); Craig Adams, English bass player, songwriter, The Sisters of Mercy, The Mission, The Alarm (1962); Mike Starr, American bass player, Alice in Chains, Sun Red Sun, and Days of the New (1966)

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Today in Rock History – April 3

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1964, Bob Dylan made his first entry on the UK charts with “The Times They Are A-Changin.”

1965, Sam the Sham & the Pharaohs release their garage classic “Wooly Bully.”

1966, Peter Tork opened a solo stint in Hollywood at The Troubadour. Tork had already auditioned for The Monkees, who he will join later in the year.

1967, Working on The Beatles Sgt Pepper album at Abbey Road studios in London, George Harrison recorded his lead vocal on his song “Within You Without You.” as well as a sitar part, and some acoustic guitar parts.

1969, The Doors’ Jim Morrison turned himself in to the FBI in Los Angeles. He was charged on six charges of lewd behavior and public exposure at a concert in Miami on March 2nd, 1969. He was later released on $2000 bail.

1971, The Temptations scored their second number one with “Just My Imagination (Running Away With Me.”)

1971, Tom Waits appeared at the Heritage Coffee House, San Diego, California.

1972, Puerto Rico’s Mar y Sol Festival ends, having run out of its already meager supply of food. Hundreds of Americans who flew to Puerto Rico to see Emerson, Lake & Palmer are stranded at the San Juan airport.

1975, Steve Miller was charged with setting fire to the clothes of a friend, Benita Diorio. When police arrived at Miller’s house, Diorio was putting out the flames, Miller then got into a fight with some of the policemen and was charged with resisting arrest.

1978, B.B. King and lawyer F. Lee Bailey, chairmen of the Foundation for the Advancement of Inmate Rehabilitation and Recreation, visit Boston’s Norfolk Prison. King performs for the cons.

1983, after completing a 29-date UK tour, U2 appeared on BBC TV Top Of The Pops performing their latest single “Two Hearts Beat As One.”

1990, American jazz singer Sarah Vaughan died of lung cancer. She had the 1954 US number six single “Make Yourself Comfortable,” and released over 50 albums. March 27, is “Sarah Lois Vaughan Day” in both San Francisco and Berkeley, California in honor of the singer.

1993, Depeche Mode went to number one on the UK album chart with Songs Of Faith And Devotion, their first UK chart topper and their tenth album release.

2003, Stax records songwriter Homer Banks died aged 61. He penned “I Can’t Stand Up for Falling Down,” recorded by Sam & Dave and a UK hit for Elvis Costello. Rod Stewart, The Emotions, Isaac Hayes, Millie Jackson and Johnny Taylor all covered his songs.

2015, Bob Burns, the American drummer who was in the original line-up of the Southern rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd died in a car crash in Georgia when his car struck a mailbox and a tree with the front of the vehicle. Burns was the only occupant of the car and was not wearing a seat belt at the time of the crash

Born on April 3: Jan Barry, Jan & Dean (1941); Richard Manuel, The Band (1943); Tony Orlando (1944); Richard Thompson, Fairport Convention (1949)

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Today in Rock History – March 25

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1966, At a photo session with Bob Whitaker’s studio in London, The Beatles posed in white coats using sides of meat with mutilated and butchered dolls for the cover of their next American album, Yesterday and Today. After a public outcry, the album was pulled from stores and re-issued with a new cover. At the time, some of the Beatles defended the use of the Butcher photograph. Lennon said that it was “as relevant as Vietnam” and McCartney said that their critics were “soft.” However, this opinion was not shared by all band members. George Harrison said in The Beatles Anthology that he thought the whole idea “was gross, and I also thought it was stupid. Sometimes we all did stupid things thinking it was cool and hip when it was naïve and dumb; and that was one of them.”

1966, The Who play the Corn Exchange in Hertford, England.

1967, The Beatles perform “All You Need Is Love” during a global satellite broadcast.

1967, Jimi Hendrix played at the Gliderdrome Bingo Hall in Boston, Lincolnshire, England. The building was originally an open air skating rink. A roof was added just after the outbreak of World War II. The Gliderdrome was destroyed by fire on in May, 1959, but the “new” Glider was opened within a year on Wednesday, January 27 1960.

1967, The Turtles started a three week run at number one on the singles chart with “Happy Together.”

1967, The Who and Cream made their U.S. concert debut at RKO 58th Street Theatre, New York City as part of a rock and roll extravaganza promoted by DJ Murray the K.

1967, The Rolling Stones kicked off a three-week European tour in Orebro, Sweden. Arriving in Copenhagen for the tour the group were delayed after customs officers search all their luggage for drugs.

1967, Pink Floyd played three gigs in 24 hours. The appeared at the Ricky Tick Club at the Thames Hotel in Windsor, England, then headed for a late show at the New Yorker Discotheque in Swindon, with The Outer Limits as support. Lastly,  then played at the Shoreline Club at the Caribbean Hotel in Bognor Regis, as part of an Easter Weekend All-Nighter.

1968, The 58th and final episode of The Monkees TV series was broadcast in the US.

1969, John and Yoko started their week long “bed-in” in the presidential suite at The Amsterdam Hilton hotel. The couple invited the world’s press into their hotel room every day, to talk about promoting world peace.

1969, Yes appeared at Madam Toussauds Hall Of Kings, London.

1970, Led Zeppelin performed at the Denver Coliseum, Denver, Colorado.

1971, Grand Funk Railroad played at Memorial Auditorium, Buffalo, New York.

1971, The Allman Brothers Band appeared at the O’Shaughnessy Theater, St. Paul, Minnesota.

1972, America started a three week run at number one on the US singles chart with their debut hit “Horse With No Name.” The group scored eight other top 40 hits during the ’70s.

1972, Lindisfarne started a four-week run at number one on the UK album chart with their debut album Fog On The Tyne.

1973, King Crimson performed at Colston Hall, Bristol, England.

1973, Roxy Music appeared at Festival Hall, Torbay, England.

1974, Rolling Stone reports that concerts by Yes, Gregg Allman, and the Beach Boys have all been hit by streakers, no doubt inspired by Ray Stevens’ No. 1 hit “The Streak.” Meanwhile, Allman himself performs the last date of a solo tour. To reassure the audience that the Allman Brothers Band are not splitting up, the entire band comes out and performs a 90-minute encore.

1974, KISS performed at the Bayou Theater, Washington D.C.

1975, Aerosmith played at the War Memorial Coliseum in Fort Wayne, the first date on their 63 date North American Toys In The Attic Tour.

1976, US singer, songwriter Jackson Browne’s wife Phyllis Major committed suicide.

Elvis Costello – 1977

1977, Elvis Costello released his debut single “Less Than Zero.” It didn’t make the Top 40.

1978, 20 Golden Greats by Buddy Holly and The Crickets went to number one on the UK album chart, giving Holly his first ever chart topping, LP almost 20 years since his first release in 1959.

1978, Kansas performed at the Hammersmith Odeon, London.

1979, Van Halen played at Selland Arena, Fresno, California.

1981, Rush appeared at Maple Leaf Gardens, Toronto.

1982, The Police performed at Kemper Arena, Kansas City, Missouri.Rush

1983, Motown Records celebrated its 25 anniversary with a concert in Pasadena, featuring; The Supremes, Stevie Wonder, The Temptations, The Four Tops, Martha Reeves, Jr. Walker, The Commodores, Marvin Gaye, Smokey Robinson and The Jackson 5.

1993, The Grateful Dead performed at the Dean Smith Center at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

2002, Bono from U2 made a appearance at the air rage trial of R.E.M. guitarist Peter Buck, telling the court “I came to court because Peter is actually famously known for being a peaceable person. I once had to twist his arm to get him to a boxing match.” Buck was later cleared of all charges. He had been accused of attacking two cabin staff and covering them in yogurt, knocking over a cart and trying to steal a knife. Buck did not deny his behavior but claimed a Zolpiden sleeping pill reacted violently with alcohol, turning him into a “non-insane automaton”.

2005, Ozzy and Sharon Osbourne were forced to flee their Buckinghamshire mansion after a blaze broke out as they slept. Ozzy and his wife were roused by a fire alarm and ran to safety in the garden, rescuing their pets as they escaped.

2006, Buck Owens Jr. American singer and guitarist died. Pioneered the Bakersfield sound a reference to Bakersfield, California. He scored twenty No.1 hits on the Billboard country music charts.

2007, The Notorious B.I.G. was at number one on the US album charts with Greatest Hits. It was the rapper’s fourth album release after being killed by an unknown assailant in a drive-by shooting in Los Angeles, California on March 9, 1997.

Born on March 25: Johnny Burnette, American singer-songwriter, The Rock and Roll Trio (1934); Hoyt Axton (1938); Aretha Franklin (1942); Elton John (1947); Jack Hall, Charlie Daniels Band (1947); Chuck Greenberg, American saxophonist, songwriter, producer, Shadowfax (1960); Steve Norman, guitar, sax, Spandau Ballet (1960); Jeff Healy (1966); Frank Ferrer, American drummer, Guns N’ Roses, The Psychedelic Furs, Love Spit Love (1966); Ryan Lewis, American DJ,  producer, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis (1988)

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Today in Rock History – March 6

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rolling-stones-number-21965, The Rolling Stones Number 2 album went back to number one on the UK charts for six weeks.

1965, The Temptations went to number one on the singles chart with the Smokey Robinson penned song “My Girl,” making the group the first male act to have a chart topper for Motown.

1966, The Rolling Stones started recording sessions for their tenth single “Paint It Black” at RCA studios in Hollywood.

1967, The Beatles recorded sound effects onto the song “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band” at Abbey Road studios in London. The beginning audience murmurs and sounds of a band preparing for a performance are added, along with screams from a tape of the Beatles in concert at the Hollywood Bowl.

1970, Charles Manson released an album called Lie to help raise money for his defense in the Tate-LeBianca murder trial. The album jacket was made to look like a cover of Life magazine with the letter f removed from the word Life. In the mid sixties, Manson had been a wanna-be musician who befriended Beach Boys’ drummer Dennis Wilson, eventually talking the group into recording one of his songs, “Cease To Exist.” The title was changed to “Never Learn Not To Love” and was released as the B-side of the single “Bluebirds Over The Mountain,” which eventually climbed to number 61 in the US in early 1969.

1970, Canned Heat and Bloodrock appeared at The Warehouse in New Orleans, Louisiana.

1971, Led Zeppelin appeared at the National Boxing Stadium, Dublin, Ireland, the group’s first show in Dublin, where they played “Stairway To Heaven” live for only the second time.

1971, The Rolling Stones performed at the Coventry Theatre in Coventry, West Midlands, England.

1972, Pink Floyd played the first night on a 7-date tour of Japan at the Tokyo-To Taiikukan, in Tokyo, Japan.

1973, an attempt to bring Elvis Presley to the UK for shows at London’s Earl’s Court failed. Promoters had hoped that Elvis would be available during the summer but were told that Elvis now had US tour and filming commitments

1973, Slade had the number one single with “Cum On don't shoot-elton johnFeel The Noize,” the first single to enter the charts at number one since The Beatles “Get Back” in 1969. Elton John had the top album with Don’t Shoot Me I’m Only The Piano Player.

1974, Yes played at the International Amphitheater in Chicago.

1975 Genesis performed at the Pavilhao dos Desportos, Cascais. Portugal.

fleetwood-mac-fleetwoodmac1976, Fleetwood Mac release the Stevie Nicks-penned single “Rhiannon (Will You Ever Win).” It’s becomes their biggest hit so far, peaking at number 11.

1977, Rush appeared at The Palladium, New York.

1979, Roxy Music performed at the Congresgebouw, The Hague, Netherlands.

1982, King Crimson played at Alexander Hall, Princeton University, Princeton.

1988, Frank Zappa appeared at Veterans Memorial Auditorium, Columbus, Ohio.

2004, David Crosby was arrested and charged with criminal possession of a weapon and marijuana after leaving his bag in a New York hotel. The luggage was found by a hotel employee looking for identification, finding instead a handgun and marijuana. The employee called authorities, and Crosby, discovering the missing luggage himself, telephoned to say he would return for it. He was met by New York police, who arrested him

Born on March 6: Jerry Naylor, Buddy Holly & the Crickets (1939); Mary Wilson, vocals, The Supremes (1944); Hugh Grundy, The Zombies (1945); David Gilmour (1946); Kiki Dee (1947); and Chris Tomson,  Vampire Weekend (1984)

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Today in Rock History – February 23

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1965, Filming began on The Beatles follow up to A Hard Days Night on location in the Bahamas with the working title of Eight Arms To Hold You.

1966, During an 11-date tour of Australia and New Zealand The Rolling Stones played the first of four nights at the Palais Theatre, St Kida, Melbourne.

1967, Jimi Hendrix appeared at Worthing Pier in Worthing, West Sussex, England.

1967, Janis Joplin Performs “Amazing Grace” at the Invisible Circus/Rite of Spring event for Glide Memorial Church. Michael McClure, among others, participates.

1968, The Who performed at Winterland Ballroom in San Francisco.

1969, The Who take part in a charity event at the Roundhouse in London. Proceeds pay the legal fees of students who had staged a sit-in at the London School of Economics. Other performers include Feathers (David Bowie’s mime troupe), Cat Stevens, Pete Brown’s Battered Ornaments, the Third Ear Band, and Occasional Word Ensemble.

1970, Led Zeppelin played at Kulttuuritalo in Helsinki, Finland.

1970, Appearing at The Roundhouse Spring Festival in Camden, London, David Bowie and the Hype. It was the first live performance of the new band, along with Bachdenkel, Groundhog and Caravan.

1971, Black Sabbath headlined at The Forum, Inglewood, California.

elvis-priscilla1972, After nearly five years of marriage, Priscilla Presley moved out of Elvis’ California home and into a two bedroom apartment near the Pacific Ocean. Their divorce would be finalized on October 9, 1973, with Priscilla being awarded an outright cash payment of $725,000 as well as spousal support, child support, 5% of Elvis’ new publishing companies and half the income from the sale of their Beverly Hills home.

1973, David Bowie performed at War Memorial Auditorium, Nashville, Tennessee.

1974, Yes appeared at the Broome Country Veterans Memorial Arena, Binghamton, New York.

1975, Scottish group The Average White Band went to number one on the US singles chart with “Pick Up The Pieces.” The band’s album AWB also went to number one on the US charts.

1975, Roxy Music played at the Auditorium Theatre in Chicago.

1976, AC/DC shot the video clip for “It’s A Long Way To The Top, (If You Wanna Rock ‘n’ Roll)” for the Australian music television program Countdown. It featured the band’s then-current lineup, along with members of the Rats of Tobruk Pipe Band, on the back of a flat-bed truck traveling on Swanston Street in Melbourne, Australia.

1977, Pink Floyd performed at the Pavillion de Paris, Paris.

1977, Genesis appeared at Madison Square Garden in New York.

1978, Sid Vicious of The Sex Pistols and Nancy Spungen were arrested in New York for possession of drugs.

1978, Winners at the Grammy Awards included Fleetwood Mac, Album of the year for Rumours, The Eagles, Record of the year for “Hotel California” and Best Pop Vocal performance, The Bee Gees for “How Deep Is Your Love.”

1980, U2 appeared at The Moonlight Club, at The Railway Hotel in London, tickets cost £2 ($3.20).

1981, Bruce Springsteen performed at the Omni Coliseum in Atlanta, Georgia.

1985, Stevie Wonder was arrested during an antiapartheid demonstration outside the South African Embassy in Washington; he was released after being questioned by police.

smiths-meat-is-murder1985, The Smiths scored their first UK number one album with Meat Is Murder.

1986, Pete Townshend plays with The Rolling Stones at a private party at the 100 Club in London. The party is held to commemorate the death of the Stones’ long-time keyboardist Ian Stewart. Together Pete and the Stones play “Barefootin” and “Harlem Shuffle.”

1988, Michael Jackson played the first of two nights at Kemper Arena in Kansas City, Missouri. The first shows on the second leg of his Bad World Tour.

1991, Whitney Houston achieved her ninth US number one single in just over five years with her version of the Sister Sledge song “All The Man I Need.”

1995, American singer Melvin Franklin of The Temptations died of a brain seizure aged 52. He had the 1971 US number one and UK number eight single “Just My Imagination” and re-issued “My Girl,” a UK number two in 1992. In 1978 Franklin was shot in the hand and the leg when trying to stop a man from stealing his car.

2003, Howie Epstein, bassist with Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers died of a suspected drug overdose in New Mexico. He had replaced The Heartbreakers original bassist Ron Blair. Epstein also worked with Bob Dylan, Johnny Cash, Stevie Nicks, Roy Orbison, Carl Perkins, Linda Ronstadt and Del Shannon.

2003, Norah Jones cleaned up at the 45th Grammy Awards, held at Madison Square Garden, New York. The singer-songwriter won, Album of the Year and Record of the Year, with Don’t Know Why. Plus, Song of the Year, Best New Artist and Best female pop vocal for “Don’t Know Why.” Other winners included Best male pop vocal, John Mayer, “Our Body Is A Wonderland.” Best male rock vocal, Bruce Springsteen, The Rising, Best female rock vocal, Sheryl Crow, Steve McQueen, Best rock performance by group, Coldplay, “In My Place,” Best rap album, Eminem, The Eminem Show.

2010, London’s Abbey Road studios was made a listed building, protecting it from plans to radically alter it. Culture Minister Margaret Hodge listed the studios on the advice of English Heritage saying it had “produced some of the very best music in the world.” The Beatles used Abbey Road for 90% of their recordings, naming an album after the studios in 1969.

Born on February 22: Johny Winter (1944);  Harvey Mason,  drums, Fourplay, The Headhunters (1947); Steve Priest, Sweet (1950); Brad Whitford, Aerosmith (1952); Howard Jones (1955); Michael Wilton, Queensrÿche, Soulbender (1962);  Rob Collins, The Charlatans (1963); Bradley Nowell, American singer-songwriter, guitar,  producer, Sublime (1968)

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Today in Rock History – December 25

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beatles-xmas-19641964, The Beatles Christmas Day Concert took place at the Hammersmith Odeon in London. The evening’s events opened with The Mike Cotton Sound’s performance of Georgie Fame’s current single “Yeh Yeh,” before singer Michael Haslam joined them to sing “Scarlet Ribbons.” Next, The Yardbirds took to the stage followed by a pantomime sketch featuring The Beatles dressed as Antarctic explorers, searching for the Abominable Snowman. The opening frame closed with Freddie And The Dreamers performing “Rip It Up,” “Bachelor Boy,” and “Cut Across Shorty.”  Elkie Brooks opened the second half, followed by a short set from Sounds Incorporated. Jimmy Savile then introduced The Beatles, who closed the show with performances of 11 songs: Twist And Shout, I’m A Loser, Baby’s In Black, Everybody’s Trying To Be My Baby, Can’t Buy Me Love, Honey Don’t, I Feel Fine, She’s A Woman, A Hard Day’s Night, Rock And Roll Music and Long Tall Sally.

1964, The Supremes, Marvin Gaye, The Temptations, The Miracles, Stevie Wonder and The Marvelettes all appeared at The Fox Theatre, Brooklyn, New York.

1965, Dave Clark Five went to number one on the singles chart with “Over And Over.” They became the 7th UK act of 1965 to score a chart topping single.

1965, The Beatles sixth album Rubber Soul started a nine-week run at number one on the album chart. It spent a total of 42 weeks on the chart.

1967, MC5 appeared at the Grande Ballroom, Detroit, Michigan.

1968, Led Zeppelin arrived in the United States for the very first time in preparation of their debut North American tour. The group were paid an average of $1,500 (£937.50) for each show.

1971, Melanie started a three week run at number one on the singles chart with “Brand New Key.”

1974, Rush played at The Agora, Cleveland, Ohio.

1976, The Eagles started a eight-week run at number one on the album chart with Hotel California.

1976, Johnny Mathis was at number one on the UK singles chart with “When A Child Is Born,”  the singer’s only UK chart topper and the Christmas hit of 1976.

1978, John Lydon’s new group Public Image Ltd played their first live gig at the Rainbow Theatre, London.

1981, The J. Geils Band performed a Christmas Day concert at the Norfolk Correctional Center outside of Boston. During the concert, singer Peter Wolf told the inmates “We wanna be the first to buy you all a free drink on the outside.”

1981, Michael Jackson phoned Paul McCartney and suggested they write and record together, with the first result being “The Girl Is Mine.”

1982, David Bowie had a number three UK hit  dueting with Bing Crosby on “Peace On Earth – Little Drummer Boy.”

1982, The Who’s “Eminence Front” backed with “One At A Time” hits the U.S. charts. Despite heavy play on MTV, the single peaks at number 68 in Billboard and number 77 in Cash Box. It is the last Who single to appear on either chart.

1995, Singer, actor and TV host Dean Martin died. He had the 1956 UK & US number one single “Memories Are Made Of This” plus over 15 other Top 40 singles including “That’s Amore,” “Everybody Loves Somebody,” and “Mambo Italiano.” In 1965, Martin launched his weekly NBC comedy-variety series, The Dean Martin Show.

1998, Bryan MacLean, guitarist with Love, died of a heart attack aged 62 while having Christmas dinner with a young fan who was researching a book about the band. Love had the 1966 US number 33 single “7 And 7 Is,” and the 1968 album Forever Changes.

2006, James Brown, the “Godfather of Soul,” died at the age of 73 after being diagnosed with severe pneumonia. Brown went to his dentist in Atlanta the previous day who told him something was wrong, and sent him to a doctor immediately.

2008, American actress, singer, and cabaret star Eartha Kitt died from colon cancer at her Weston, Connecticut home at the age of 81. Best known for her 1953 Christmas song “Santa Baby.”

Born on December 25: O’Kelly Isley, The Isley Brothers (1937); Phil Spector (1940); Trevor Lucas, Fairport Convention (1943); Henry Vestine, guitar, Canned Heat (1944); Noel Redding, The Jimi Hendrix Experience (1945); Jimmy Buffett (1946); Annie Lennox,  The Tourists,  Eurythmics; Robin Campbell, UB40 (1954); and Noel Hogan, guitar, The Cranberries (1971)

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Today in Rock History – December 5

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1965, The Beatles played their last ever show in their hometown of Liverpool when they appeared at The Liverpool Empire during the group’s final UK tour. Only 5,100 tickets were available, but there were 40,000 applications for tickets.

1965, The Rolling Stones played two shows at the Convention Hall in San Diego, California on the last night of a 37-date North American tour.

1967, This was the final night of a 16-date UK package tour with Jimi Hendrix, Pink Floyd, The Move, The Nice, The Outer Limits, The Erie Apparent, and Amen Corner at Green’s Playhouse, Glasgow. All performances had two shows per night, in this case at 6.15pm, with the second at 8.45pm. Jimi Hendrix had the curtains closed on him halfway through his set, after the management at the venue regarded his movements with his guitar as having sexual overtones.

1968, The release of The Rolling Stones’ new album Beggar’s Banquet, was celebrated at a party in London. A food fight with custard pies was the highlight of the event that went on without an ill Keith Richards. The original cover for the LP was in the form of a plain white invitation, but was later changed.

1969, The Temptations played at the Civic Center in Charleston, West Virginia.

1970, “Amazing Grace” by Judy Collins entered the singles chart for the first of eight times, it spent a total of 67 weeks on the chart never making the number one position. “Amazing Grace” is a Christian hymn with lyrics written by the English poet and clergyman John Newton, which was first published in 1779.

1970, The Allman Brothers Band performs at the Music Factory in Greenville, North Carolina.

1970, Abraxas by Santana enters its second week atop the US album charts.

1971, The Who are at the Coliseum in Denver, Colorado. John Swenson interviews all four members at length for the magazine Crawdaddy.

1971, Yes appeared at SUNY College Gymnasium, Plattsburgh, New York.

1972, Pink Floyd performed at the Sport Palais Vorst Nationaal in Brussels, Belgium.

1972, The Who begin three days of rehearsal for the upcoming live performance of the orchestral Tommy. During a break, Pete tells Roy Carr of New Musical Express that he is working on a new rock opera he calls “Jimmy.” The main protagonist of 1973’s Quadrophenia is named Jimmy.

1973, Paul McCartney released Band On The Run in the USA, his fifth solo album since his departure from The Beatles. Two hit singles from the album, “Jet” and “Band on the Run,” made it McCartney’s most successful album. The majority of Band on the Run was recorded at EMI’s studio in Lagos, Nigeria, as McCartney wanted to make an album in an exotic location. McCartney went into the studio with just his wife Linda and Denny Laine, doubling on drums, percussion and most of the lead guitar parts himself as well as bass.The UK release took place on December 7th.

1973, Hawkwind played at the Shrine Auditorium, Los Angeles.

1974, Aerosmith appeared at the Orpheum Theater, Boston, Massachesetts.

1975, KISS performs at the Omni Coliseum, Atlanta, Georgia.

1976, Music weekly NME reviewed the Sex Pistols debut single “Anarchy In The UK” saying “Johnny Rotten sings flat, the song is laughably naive, and the overall feeling is of a third-rate Who imitation.”

1977, Rush performs at the Tomorrow Club, Youngstown, Ohio.

1979, The Grateful Dead played the last of three nights at the Uptown Theater in Chicago.

1987, Belinda Carlisle went to number one on the US singles chart with ‘Heaven Is a Place on Earth’, the ex Go-Go’s member first solo chart topper. It also a number one hit in the UK. The promotional video was directed by Academy Award-winning actress Diane Keaton, and features an appearance of Carlisle’s husband Morgan Mason.

1987, The Jesus And Mary Chain were banned from appearing on a US music TV show after complaints of blasphemy when the group’s name was flashed across the screen. The CBS show asked the band to be called JAMC but the group didn’t agree.

1987, Fat Larry James, drummer, singer and leader of Fat Larry’s Band died of a heart attack aged 38. He had the 1982 UK number two single “Zoom.” The opening drum break from Down On The Avenue, from the band’s first album, Feel It has been sampled by N.W.A. Ice-T, Jungle Brothers, and Run-D.M.C.

1992, Whitney Houston started a ten-week run at number one on the UK singles chart with “I Will Always Love You.” It was the longest ever run at the top of the charts for a female artist. The Dolly Parton penned song appears on the Bodyguard soundtrack.

1993, Co-founder of Gin Blossoms, Doug Hopkins, died of self-inflicted gunshot wound at age 32. The guitarist and songwriter was in a detox unit of St. Luke’s Hospital in Phoenix, Arizona when he snuck out and bought a .38 caliber pistol. The next day Hopkins committed suicide.

2004, U2 started a two week run at number one on the UK album chart with How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb, the band’s ninth UK chart topping album. The band also went to number one on the US album chart, giving them their sixth US number one album.

2004, Band Aid 20 started a four week at number one on the UK singles chart with a new version of Do They Know It’s Christmas? The third time the song had reached the top of the charts. The new version featured, Joss Stone, Busted, Chris Martin, Bono, Justin Hawkins, Dizzee Rascal, Tom Chaplin, Ms Dynamite, Beverly Knight, Will Young, Jamelia, Fran Healy, Sugababes, Dido and Robbie Williams.

2006, Beatles lyrics handwritten by Sir Paul McCartney to an early version of Maxwell’s Silver Hammer sold for $192,000 (£128,000) at Christie’s auction in New York. A guitar owned by Jimi Hendrix fetched $168,000 (£112,000), a notebook containing lyrics written by Bob Marley sold for $72,000 (£48,000) and a poem penned by Jim Morrison netted $49,000 (£32,666.)

2009, Phish played the final show of their Fall Tour at the John Paul Jones Arena at the University of Virginia.

2011, After spending 45 weeks at the top end of the UK charts, singer Adele’s second album 21 become the biggest selling LP in Britain this century, surpassing the late Amy Winehouse’s 2006 LP Back to Black.

Born on December 5: Sonny Boy Williamson (1899); Little Richard (1932); JJ Cale (1938); Eduardo Delgado, ? & The Mysterians (1945); Jim Messina (1947);  Johnny Rzeznik, singer, guitarist, Goo Goo Dolls (1965); Craig Gill, drummer with Inspiral Carpets (1971);

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Today in Rock History – November 10

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1963, The Yardbirds, with Eric Clapton on guitar, appeared at The Crawdaddy Club, Richmond, Surrey, England.

1966, The Who go into CBS Studios in London and record their next single “Happy Jack” in at least two versions. Sometime during this session Roger and Pete go off to a pub and John and Keith stay behind to record the B-side, a new Entwistle composition called “I’ve Been Away.”

1967, The Beatles filmed three promotional films for their new single “Hello Goodbye” at the Saville Theatre in London. Each of the three film clips featured different costumes and Beatle antics. In the first film they wear their “Sgt. Pepper” uniforms, for the second The Beatles are wearing everyday clothes, the third film clip features shots from the first two films, plus additional shots of The Beatles, especially John, doing the twist. A Musician’s Union ban on lip-sync broadcasts prevented the film being used on British television.

1967, The Moody Blues release “Nights in White Satin, ” the first single from Days of Future Passed. The London Festival Orchestra provided the orchestral accompaniment for the introduction, the final rendition of the chorus, and the “final lament” section, all of which were in the original album version. It reached number 19 on the UK singles chart.

1968, Buddy Guy Blues Band played at the Grande Ballroom, Detroit, Michigan.

1969, The Rolling Stones performed at the San Diego Sports Arena, San Diego, California.

1970, The Kinks appeared at the Civic Auditorium, Santa Monica, California.

1971, Pink Floyd played at the Pavillon de la Jeunesse, Quebec City, Canada.

1972, Alice Cooper appeared at Playhouse in Glasgow, Scotland during a UK tour.

1973, Elton John started a eight week run at number one on the album chart with Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, the singers third chart topper.

1973, Eddie Kendricks, former lead singer with The Temptations, started a two week run at number one on the singles chart with “Keep On Truckin.”

1974, Black Sabbath performed at Hordern Pavilion, Sydney, Australia.

1975, David Bowie was at number one on the singles chart with “Space Oddity,” the track was first released in 1969 to coincide with the Apollo 11 moon landing. Rick Wakeman, former keyboard player with Yes, provided synthesizer backing. Bowie would later revisit his Major Tom character in the songs “Ashes to Ashes” and “Hallo Spaceboy.”

1976, AC/DC appeared at the Hammersmith Odeon, London.

1977, Rush performed at Memorial Auditorium, Buffalo, New York.

1978, Bob Dylan played at Hec Edmondson Pavilion, on the University of Washington campus in Seattle.

1979, Fleetwood Mac scored their second UK number one album with Tusk.

1979, The Eagles went to number one on the singles chart with “Heartache Tonight,” the group’s fifth chart topper.

1981, King Crimson performed at the Park West, Chicago.

1984, After setting a new record for advanced orders, 1,099,500 copies, Frankie Goes To Hollywood went to number one on the UK album chart with their debut LP Welcome To The Pleasure Dome. Also, Frankie Goes To Hollywood made their debut TV appearance on Saturday Night Live performing “Two Tribes” and “Born To Run.”

1984, Former Rufus singer Chaka Khan was at No.1 on the UK singles chart with ‘I Feel For You.’ Written by Prince, the song featured Stevie Wonder on harmonica and the rap was by Grandmaster Melle Mel. The repetition of Khan’s name by rapper Mel at the beginning of the song was originally a mistake made by producer Arif Mardin, who then decided to keep it.

1992, U2, Public Enemy and the Sugarcubes all appeared at Jack Murphy Stadium, San Diego, California.

1997, American session guitarist Tommy Tedesco died of lung cancer aged 67. Described by Guitar Player magazine as the most recorded guitarist in history, he was part of “The Wrecking Crew” of session musicians in Hollywood.  Tedesco recorded with The Beach Boys, Everly Brothers, The Supremes, The Monkees, The Association, Barbra Streisand, Elvis Presley, Ella Fitzgerald, Frank Zappa, Sam Cooke, Cher, and Nancy and Frank Sinatra, and played on many TV themes including Bonanza, The Twilight Zone, M*A*S*H and Batman.

2008, Coldplay were declared the biggest-selling act of 2008 at the World Music Awards held in Monaco. The band picked up the prize along with the Rock Act Of The Year award, after their current album Viva La Vida Or Death And All His Friends topped charts around the globe. Other winners at the awards included Leona Lewis for Best Pop Female, and Best New Artist, Amy Winehouse was the winner in the Female Pop/Rock award, while Alicia Keys was named best in the R&B category. Lil’ Wayne bagged the Hip-Hop/Rap Artist award, while Akon was declared the Biggest Internet Artist Of The Year.

Born on November 10:  Screaming Lord Sutch, singer-songwriter (1940); ; Greg Lake (1947); Peter Bramall, aka, Bram Tchaikovsky, singer, The Motors (1950); Drew McConnell, bass,Babyshambles, Mongrel (1978); Miranda Lambert (1983)

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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 – August 17

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today in rock history
The Byrds circa 1965

1965, The Byrds were forced to cancel a concert during their UK tour at The Guildhall, Portsmouth when only 250 of the 4,000 tickets had been sold.

1966, During a North American tour The Beatles played two shows at Maple Leaf Gardens, Toronto, Canada. The attendance for each show was 18,000.

1967, The Who’s manager Kit Lambert was at Columbia Recording Studio in Hollywood, California mixing the mono masters for “Mary Anne With The Shaky Hand” (U.S. single version,) “Summertime Blues,” “Someone’s Coming,” and “Relax.

1967, Herman’s Hermits, Neil Diamond, and The Who performed at Memorial Auditorium in Chatanooga, Tennessee.

1968, Wheels of Fire by Cream enters its second week at number one on the US album charts.

1968, The Who perform at Phoenix Municipal Stadium in Phoenix, Arizona.

1968, The Rascals (formally the Young Rascals), started a five week run at number one on the singles chart with “People Got To Be Free.” The group had thirteen top 40 hits.

1969, The final day of the three day Woodstock festival took place at Max Yasgur’s farm in Bethel, New York. Acts who appeared included Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young, The Who, Jimi Hendrix, Ten Years After, John Sebastian, Sha Na Na, Joe Cocker, Country Joe and the Fish, The Band, Ten Years After, Johnny Winter and Paul Butterfield Blues Band. Over 186,000 tickets had been sold but on the first day the flimsy fences and ticket barriers had come down. Organizers announced the concert would be a free event, prompting thousands more to head for the concert. There were two deaths, a teenager was killed by a tractor as he lay in his sleeping bag and another died from a drug overdose.

1969, During a North American tour Led Zeppelin appeared at Oakland Musical Theatre in Wallingford, Connecticut.

1970, Led Zeppelin performed at the Hampton Roads Coliseum, Hampton, Virginia. The concert was rescheduled from August 10th.

1971, The Allman Brothers Band played at the Boston Commons in Boston, Massachusetts. Duane played “Soul Serenade” on slide guitar in tribute to King Curtis, who died four days earlier.  J. Geils played on “Stormy Monday.” Wet Willie opened.

1972, Deep Purple performs the last of three shows at the Nippon Budokan arena in Tokyo. These recordings were used in the Made in Japan live album.

1973, Former Temptations singer Paul Williams was found dead in his car, after shooting himself. He owed $80,000 in taxes and his celebrity boutique business had failed.

1973, KISS appeared at The Daisy, Amityville, New York.

1974, Eric Clapton started a four-week run at number one on the album chart with 461 Ocean Boulevard

1974, UK group Paper Lace scored their only US number one single with “The Night Chicago Died.” It climbed to the third spot in the UK.

1974, Aerosmith played at the Civic Center, Charleston, West Virginia.

1975, Blue Oyster Cult appeared at the Capital Centre, Landover, Maryland.

1976, Yes performed at Cobo Arena, Detroit, Michigan.

1977, Rush headlined at RKO Orpheum Theatre, Davenport, Iowa.

1979, The New York Post reported that Anita Pallenberg, the wife of Keith Richards, was linked to a witches coven in South Salem, New York where Richards owned a house. A policeman claimed he was attacked by a flock of black-hooded, caped people and a local youth claimed he had been invited by Pallenburg to take part in “pot smoking sex orgies.” Locals also claimed they found “ritualistic stakes” and small animals that had been sacrificed near the house.

1980, The Grateful Dead appeared at Municipal Auditorium Arena in Kansas City, Missouri.

1982, ZZ Top played at Maple Leaf Gardens, Toronto, Ontario.

1983, David Bowie performed at Veterans Memorial Coliseum, Phoenix, Arizona.

1984, Bruce Springsteen appeared at Brendan Byrne Arena, East Rutherford, New Jersey.

1987, Session drummer Gary Chester died of cancer. He had been a member of The Coasters and played on many major hits for other acts including “Brown Eyed Girl,” “Under The Boardwalk,” “Walk On By,” “It’s My Party.”

1991, Nirvana shot the video for “Smells Like Teen Spirit” at GMT Studios in Culver City, California, costing less than $50,000 (£31,250) to make, the shoot features real Nirvana fans as the audience. The video won Nirvana the Best New Artist and Best Alternative Group awards at the 1992 MTV Video Music Awards.

1999, Led Zeppelin topped a chart of Britain’s most bootlegged musicians, compiled by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI), after identifying 384 bootleg titles featuring Led Zeppelin performances. The bootleg chart was complied from the BPI’s archive of some 10,000 recordings seized over the past 25 years. The Beatles, came in second with 320 entries, other acts listed included The Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan and Pink Floyd.

2002, Nelly featuring Kelly Rowland held the number one position on the US singles chart with “Dilemma.” The UK number one album was By The Way by The Red Hot Chili Peppers and the US chart topping album was The Rising by Bruce Springsteen.

2008, Jackson Browne was suing US Republican presidential candidate John McCain for using one of his songs without permission. Browne claimed the use of his song “Running on Empty” in an ad was an infringement of copyright and would lead people to conclude he endorses McCain. Browne was seeking more than $75,000 (£40,000) in damages.

2012, Three members of the Russian feminist punk rock protest group Pussy Riot were sentenced to two years imprisonment after they had staged a performance on the soleas of Moscow’s Cathedral of Christ the Savior in a protest directed at the Orthodox Church leader’s support for President Putin during his election campaign.

Born on August 17: John Seiter, Spanky And Our Gang (1944); Gary Talley guitar, The Box Tops (1947); Sib Hashian, drums, Boston (1949); Kevin Rowland, singer, Dexy’s Midnight Runners (1953); Colin Moulding, XTC (1955); Belinda Carlisle (1958); and Steve Gorman, drums, The Black Crowes (1965)

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