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Today in Rock History – July 27

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1968, Bee Gee Robin Gibb collapsed, as the group were about to set out on their first US tour. The singer was suffering from nervous exhaustion.

1968, The Steve Miller Band appeared at the Grande Ballroom in Detroit, Michigan.

1968, Cass Elliot released her first solo single following the break up of The Mamas and Papas. “Dream a Little Dream of Me” had been around since 1931 and had been recorded by Frank Sinatra and Frankie Laine, among others. many others. Cass’ version would be the most successful when it peaked at number 12 on the charts.

1968, Jackie Wilson performed at the Civic Center in Charleston, West Virginia.

1969, Led Zeppelin and the Doors play the Seattle Pop Festival at Gold Creek Park in Woodinville, Washington.  Robert Plant remembers the following about Jim Morrison. “He hung on the side of the stage and nearly toppled into the audience and did all those things that I suppose were originally sexual things, but as he got fatter and dirtier and more screwed up they became more bizarre. So it was really sickening to watch.”

1972, Hawkwind played at the Pier Pavillon, Hastings, England.

1973, Led Zeppelin played the first of three nights at New York”s Madison Square Garden. Top ticket price was $7.50 (£5.00.)

1974, John Denver started a two week run at number one on the US singles chart with “Annie’s Song,” the singer’s second chart topper. The song was a tribute to his wife and was written in ten minutes while he was on a ski lift.

1974, Wings started a seven-week run at number one on the UK album chart with Band On The Run, featuring the title-track, “Jet” and the American hit “Helen Wheels.” The album sold over 6 million copies world-wide.

1974, Aerosmith performed at Veterans Memorial Coliseum, Madison, Wisconsin.

1974, Eric Clapton appeared at the Mississippi Valley Fairgrounds, Davenport, Iowa.

1974, The Grateful Dead played the Civic Center in Roanoke, Virginia.

1975, The Rolling Stones perform at Cobo Arena, Detroit, Michigan.

1976, After a four-year legal fight, John Lennon was awarded his Green card, allowing him permanent residence in the US.

1976, Bruce Springsteen sued his manager Mike Appel for fraud and breach of trust. The case dragged on for over a year, halting Springsteen’s career. An out of court settlement was reached the following year.

1976, Tina Turner filed for divorce from her husband Ike, ending their violent 16-year marriage and successful musical partnership.

1977, AC/DC appeared at Amarillo World Headquaters, Austin., Texas.

1978, Kansas played at the Pine Knob Music Theatre, in Clarkston, Michigan, just outside of Detroit.

1978, Joy Division performed at the Roots Club, Leeds, England.

1979, Blondie appeared at the Orpheum Theater, Memphis, Tennessee.

1980, Van Halen headlined at the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum, Uniondale, New York.

1981, Ozzy Osbourne played at Maple Leaf Gardens, Toronto, Ontario.

1985, Paul Young went to number one on the US singles chart with his version of the Daryl Hall song “Every Time You Go Away.”

1986, Queen became the first western act since Louis Armstrong in 1964 to perform in Eastern Europe when they played at Nepstadion in Budapest, Hungary. The gig was filmed and released as “Queen Magic in Budapest.”

1991, Jesus Jones went to number two on the US chart with “Right Here, Right Now. The failed to upend Bryan Adams’ “(Everything I Do), I Do It for You” from a seven week stay at the top position.

1996, The Spice Girls scored their first UK number one single with “Wannabe,” spending seven weeks at number one. The song won Best British-Written Single at the 1997 Ivor Novello Awards and Best Single at the 1997 Brit Awards.

2001, Leon Wilkeson, bass player with Lynyrd Skynyrd, was found dead in a hotel room in Florida aged 49.  Wilkeson had apparently been suffering from chronic liver and lung disease. His death was attributed to natural causes. He was also a member of the Rossington-Collins Band.

2012, The Beatles returned to the Top 40 of the Billboard albums chart with the iTunes-exclusive compilation Tomorrow Never Knows. The set included 14 classic songs by the band and marked the first time The Beatles released an album exclusively to iTunes that had never been previously issued.

Born on July 27: Nick Reynolds, The Kingston Trio (1933); Al Ramsey, Gary Lewis and the Playboys (1943); Bobby Gentry (1944);  Maurenn McGovern (1949); Michael Vaughn, guitar, Paper Lace (1950); Conway Savage, bass, Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds (1960); Rex Brown, bass, Pantera (1964); Juliana Hatfield, singer, songwriter (1967)

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Today in Rock History – June 21

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1967, Jimi Hendrix and the Jefferson Airplane perform at San Francisco’s Fillmore.

1968, The Who appeared at Durham University, Durham, England.

1969, Young David Bowie signs with Mercury Records. The label has to wait three years for him to produce a successful follow-up to “Space Oddity.”

1969, Jimi Hendrix plays the Newport Jazz Festival for a whopping $125,000. At the time it’s the largest fee ever for a concert appearance.

1973, On American Bandstand’s 20th anniversary show, Dick Clark welcomes Little Richard, Paul Revere & the Raiders, Cheech & Chong, and Three Dog Night.

1974, Bob Dylan and the Band release the live album “Before the Flood.”

1974, Van Morrison, The Allman Brothers, The Mahavishnu Orchestra, Tim Buckley, The Sensational Alex Harvey Band and The Doobie Brothers all appeared at Knebworth Park, Stevenage, England. A special PA system was used for the event, claiming to be the best ever for an outside show, weighing 12 tons and needing five technicians.

1975, Elton John, The Beach Boys, Joe Walsh, Rufus and The Eagles all appeared in front of 120,000 fans at Wembley Stadium, London. Tickets cost $5.95.

1975, Captain and Tennille started a four week run at number one on the singles chart with the Neil Sedaka song “Love Will Keep Us Together.”

1975, Guitarist Ritchie Blackmore quit Deep Purple to form his own group Rainbow.

1975, The Eagles and The Doobie Brothers both appeared at the Oakland Coliseum, California, Elton John made a surprise appearance with both groups during the concert.

1976, Touring North America for the first time Wings played the last dates of their 31-date tour with three nights at the Los Angeles Forum. Several songs from the June 23rd show appeared on the album Wings over America.

1976, The Grateful Dead played at the Tower Theater in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

1977, Aerosmith played at the Tarrant County Convention Center in Fort Worth, Texas, on their 81-date Draw The Line Tour.

1980, The Beach Boys, Santana, Mike Oldfield, Elkie Brooks, Lindisfarne and The Blues Band all appeared at Knebworth ’80, in Knebworth Park, England

1986, Phil Collins, Dire Straits, Tina Turner and Elton John all appeared at the fourth annual Prince’s Trust Rock Gala held in London.

1986, Genesis Invisible Touch became the band’s fourth UK number one album.

2001, John Lee Hooker, American blues singer and guitarist died in his sleep aged 83.  His songs have been covered by many artists including Cream, AC/DC, ZZ Top, Led Zeppelin, Jimi Hendrix, Van Morrison, The Yardbirds, The Doors and The White Stripes. He appeared and sang “Boom,Boom” in the 1980 movie The Blues Brothers.

2011, Maroon 5 released “Moves Like Jagger,” featuring Christina Aguilera.  The video featured old footage of Jagger and his iconic dance moves. The song was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance at the 54th Grammy Awards.

Born on June 21: Lalo Schifrin, composer, Mission Impossible theme, Cool Hand Luke, Bullit soundtrack (1932); Miguel Vicens, Los Bravos (1944); Ray Davies (1944); Greg Munford, Strawberry Alarm Clock (1949); Nils Lofgren (1951); and Michael Einziger, Incubus (1976)

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Song Of The Day by Eric Berman – “She’s My Baby” by Wings

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wingsatthespeedofsound

Song of The Day by Eric Berman – “She’s My Baby” by Wings

Wings At The Speed Of Sound, the 1976 album where this song is from is one of Paul McCartney’s slighter efforts recorded quickly to have a some product on the shelves in time for the Wings Over America tour of 1976. That said, it does have its charms…”Beware My Love,” “Time To Hide” and this breezy favorite.

Today in Rock History – June 2

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

 

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

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

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

1977, Supertramp appeared at Maple Leaf Gardens, Toronto.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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Today in Rock History – May 25

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1965, Blues harmonica player, singer and songwriter, Sonny Boy Williamson died in his sleep. Van Morrison, Aerosmith, The Who, The Animals, Yardbirds, and Moody Blues all covered his songs. According to the Led Zeppelin biography Hammer of the Gods, touring the UK in the 60’s, Sonny Boy set his hotel room on fire while trying to cook a rabbit in a coffee percolator.

1965, The Rolling Stones perform “How Many More Years” with their hero Howlin’ Wolf on ABC’s Shindig!

1967, Procol Harum’s “A Whiter Shade Of Pale,” entered the UK charts for the first time, it went on to be a number one hit. The first video for the song was shot in the ruins of Witley Court in Worcestershire, England. Directed by Peter Clifton whose insertion of Vietnam War newsreel footage caused it to be banned from airplay on the Top Of The Pops TV show. The band subsequently made another video.

1967, Pink Floyd appeared at the Gwent Constabulary (‘A’ Division) Spring Holiday Barn Dance, held at The Barn, Grosmont Wood Farm in Cross Ash, near Abergavenny,Wales, England. Support acts were Volume IV with MC Eddie Tattersall.

1967, Janis Joplin performed at the Carousel Ballroom i San Francisco with the Clara Ward Singers and H. P. Lovecraft.

1968, The Yardbirds appeared at Fillmore West in San Francisco.

1968, Pink Floyd performed at Mayfair Suite, The Belfry Hotel, Wishaw, Sutton Coldfield, near Birmingham, England. Support acts were Young Blood and Pineapple Incident. Admission included dinner.

1968, Simon and Garfunkel scored their second US number one album with Bookends.

1968, The Doors performed at Patio Gardens in Farmington, Utah.

1969, Jimi Hendrix played at the Santa Clara County Fairgrounds in San Jose, California.

1969, A benefit concert was held for Fairport Convention at The Roundhouse, London to raise money for the families of the bands drummer Martin Lamble, Richard Thompson’s girlfriend, and clothes designer Jeannie Franklyn who were all killed in an accident driving back from a gig. Also on the bill, Family, Pretty Things, Soft Machine and John Peel.

1969, The Who and Led Zeppelin appeared at the Merriweather Post Pavilion, Columbia, Maryland, USA. This was the only time the two group’s ever performed together, with Zeppelin opening the show. On the tickets Led Zeppelin was spelled Lead Zeppelin.

1971, King Crimson appeared at Free Trade Hall, Manchester, England.

1972, David Bowie played at Chelsea Village, Bournemouth, England.

1973, During a 21-date UK tour Wings played the first of three sold out nights at the Hammersmith Odeon in London.

Deep Purple

1973, Deep Purple’s single “Smoke On The Water” was released.

1974, Aerosmith performed at Cape Cod Coliseum, South Yarmouth, Massachusetts.

1974, Rick Wakeman became the first member of the group Yes to have a number one album when Journey To The Centre Of The Earth went to the top of the UK charts.

1975, Rush played at the Paramount Theatre, Seattle, Washington.

1976, The Who perform at the Palais Des Sports in Lyons, France.

1976, Bob Dylan appeared at the Salt Palace, Salt Lake City, Utah.

1976, The Rolling Stones performed at the Earls Court Exhibition Centre in London.

1977, The Broadway tribute Beatlemania opens at the Winter Garden Theater.

1977, The Grateful Dead appeared at The Mosque, in Richmond, Virginia.

1978, After seeing The Hype (soon to become U2) appearing at the Project Arts Centre, in Dublin, Paul McGuinness became their manager.

1979, Yes appeared at the Long Beach Civic Arena, Long Beach, California.

1980, Black Sabbath played at the Odeon, Birmingham, England.

1983, Roxy Music performed at Radio City Music Hall in New York.

1984, David Gilmour appeared at the Orpheum Theater, Boston, Massachusetts.

1985, Dire Straits scored their second UK number one album with Brothers In Arms, also a chart topper in the US and 24 other countries. Brothers In Arms was one of the first albums to be directed at the CD market, and was a full digital recording (DDD) at a time when most popular music was recorded on analog equipment.

1990, Fleetwood Mac played the first of 42 North American dates on their Behind The Mask world tour at the PNE Coliseum in Vancouver, Canada. Squeeze were the opening act.

1997, A report showed that Elvis Presley was now the world’s bestselling posthumous entertainer with worldwide sales of over one billion, over 480 active fan clubs and an estimated 250,000 UK fans who still buy his records. Ironically he had died owing $3 million (£1.76 million).

1998, Coldplay released their first ever record, an EP called Safety, which featured 3 tracks, “Bigger Stronger,” “No More Keeping My Feet on the Ground,” and “Such a Rush.” The EP was intended as a demo for record companies and is now such a rarity that it is known to fetch in excess of £2000 ($3000) on eBay.

2003, Marilyn Manson were at number one on the US album chart with The Golden Age of Grotesque, a number four hit in the UK and the bands second US chart topper.

2005, The Alameda County Sheriff’s Office in California announced that it was officially closing the stabbing case of Meredith Hunter, the 18-year-old American who was killed at the 1969 Rolling Stones Altamont Free Concert. Investigators, concluding a renewed two-year investigation, dismissed the theory that a second Hell’s Angel took part in the stabbing.

2006, Jamaican reggae singer, songwriter Desmond Dekker died of a heart attack at his home in London, England. Had one of the first international Jamaican hits in 1968, with the song “Israelites.”

2013, American rock and roll bassist, Marshall Lytle, died aged 79. He was best known for his work with the groups Bill Haley & His Comets and The Jodimars in the 1950s. He played upright slap bass on the iconic “Crazy Man, Crazy,” “Shake, Rattle and Roll,” and “Rock Around the Clock.”

Born on this day: Hal David (1921); Tom T. Hall, country music singer-songwriter (1936); Brian Davison, The Nice (1942); John Palmer, English keyboard player, Family (1943); Mitchel Margo, The Tokens (1947); Klaus Meine, German singer-songwriter, guitarist, The Scorpions (1948); Robert Steinhardt, American violinist, singer, Kansas (1950);  Paul Weller, English singer-songwriter, guitarist, The Jam, Style Council (1958); Glen Drover, Canadian guitarist, songwriter, Megadeth, Eidolon, King Diamond (1969); Joe King, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, The Fray (1980)

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Today in Rock History – May 22

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

1976, KISS appeared at The Olympia Theatre, Paris.

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

source: LedZeppelin.com

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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Today in Rock History – April 24

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1966, The Who performed at Birmingham Hippodrome in Birmingham, West Midlands, England.

1967, Pink Floyd appeared at Blue Opera Club, held at at The Feathers public house in London, England. A patron threw a penny a Roger Waters resulting in gash to his forehead.

1968,  Keith Moon, drummer with The Who, drove his Lincoln car into a Holiday Inn swimming pool while enjoying a wild birthday party.

1968, The Beatles’ new record label, Apple Records turned down the offer to sign new artist David Bowie. Apple later signed Mary Hopkin, James Taylor, Badfinger, and Billy Preston. Hopkin would go on to score a UK number one single, “Those Were The Days”.

1968, Louis Armstrong was at number one in the UK with the single “What A Wonderful World / Cabaret.” At 69 years of age, it made Armstrong the oldest act ever to score a UK chart topper.

1969, Paul McCartney publicly denies rumors that he is dead.

1969, Led Zeppelin played at Fillmore West in San Francisco. It is a popular bootleg concert.

1970, Grace Slick and Abbie Hoffman leave a White House party without having dosed young Tricia Nixon with LSD as planned. The Jefferson Airplane singer was invited to the bash by Tricia, and took along the outlaw Hoffman as her date. Hoffman was turned away at the gate. Slick went with him.

1970, The Allman Brothers Band performed at the Woodrose Ballroom, Deerfield, Massachusetts.

1971, Crosby Stills Nash & Young went to number one on the album chart with 4 Way Street.

1971, The Grateful Dead appeared at Wallace Wade Stadium, on the campus of Duke University, in Durham, North Carolina.

1972, Pink Floyd played at the Sports Arena, Toledo, Ohio.

1972, John Lennon’s controversial single, “Woman Is the Nigger of the World” was released in the US. The song peaked at number 57, despite virtually every radio station in the country refusing to play it. Yoko Ono said the phrase during a magazine interview in 1967 and Lennon later explained that he was making a point that women deserved higher status in society.

1973, King Crimson appeared at the State Fairgrounds, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.

1974, David Bowie releases Diamond Dogs.

1975, Peter Ham, British singer, songwriter with Badfinger committed suicide by hanging himself in the garage of his Surrey home, aged 27. Ham co-wrote “Without You,” with bandmate Tom Evans, who also later committed suicide. The song won an Ivor Novello award for Song Of The Year in 1973, and was a hit for Harry Nilson and Mariah Carey. Ham was a founding member of The Iveys, who later became Badfinger. They were signed to the Beatles’ Apple label. Their first hit “Come And Get It” was written by Paul McCartney.

1976, Led Zeppelin scored their sixth number one album with Presence.

1976, Wings At The Speed Of Sound went to number one on the album chart. Paul McCartney’s fifth solo chart topper after the breakup of The Beatles.

1976, David Bowie performed at Nya Masshallen, Helsinki, Finland.

1976, Paul and Linda McCartney spent the evening with John Lennon at his New York Dakota apartment and watched Saturday Night Live on TV. Producer of the show Lorne Michaels made an offer on air asking The Beatles to turn up and play three songs live. Lennon and McCartney thought about taking a cab to the studio, but decided they were too tired. This was the last time Lennon and McCartney were together.

1977, Pink Floyd performed at Tampa Stadium, Tampa, Florida.

1978, David Bowie appeared at the MECCA Arena, Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

1979, Ray Charles’ “Georgia On My Mind” was proclaimed the state song of Georgia. The music to the song was written in 1930 by Hoagy Carmichael who also recorded a version of the song in New York in the same year. Ray Charles, a native of Georgia, recorded it in 1960 on the album The Genius Hits the Road.

1980, ZZ Top performed at the Hammersmith Odeon, London.

1981, New Order started work on their first album at Strawberry studios in Stockport, England.

1982, Ozzy Osbourne appeared at the Capital Centre, Landover, Maryland.

1983, Bryan Adams, Sammy Hagar, Aerosmith, and Journey performed at the Miami Baseball Stadium.

1987, Deep Purple played at The Spectrum, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

1990, The road crew for Roger Waters discovered an unexploded World War II bomb while constructing the set for The Wall concert in Potsdamer Platz, Germany.

1992, David Bowie married Somali born supermodel and actress Iman in Switzerland. Iman first got married at the age of eighteen to a young Somali man. Then, in 1977, she wed American basketball player Spencer Haywood.

1995, Oasis released “Some Might Say” which went on to give the band their first UK number one single.

dixie-chicks-ew-cover2003, The Dixie Chicks launched a publicity campaign to explain their position after the controversy of Natalie Maines’ statement regading the Iraq war. During a prime-time interview with ABC TV personality Diane Sawyer, Maines said she remained proud of her original statement. The band also appeared naked, with private parts strategically covered, on the cover of Entertainment Weekly magazine, with slogans such as “Traitors”, “Saddam’s Angels”, “Dixie Sluts”, “Proud Americans”, “Hero”, “Free Speech”, and “Brave” printed on their bodies.

2007, The Arctic Monkeys sold 85,000 copies of their new album Favourite Worst Nightmare on its first day in UK shops, putting it on course to be the year’s fastest-selling new release.

2012, Sinead O’Connor cancelled the remaining dates of her world tour, saying she was still recovering from a “very serious breakdown”. In a statement on her official website, she said she had scrapped all concerts this year due to her bipolar disorder. Her website was also now being deleted along with her Twitter account.

Born on April 24: Barbra Streisand (1942); Richard Sterban, American singer, The Oak Ridge Boys (1943); St. Clair Lee, Hughes Corporation (1944); Doug Clifford, Creedence Clearwater Revival (1945);  Glen Cornick, Jethro Tull (1947); H. Ann Kelly, The Hues Corporation (1947); Nigel Harrison, British bass player, Blondie, Silverhead (1951); Jack Blades, American bass player, songwriter, Night Ranger, Rubicon, Damn Yankees (1954); Captain Sensible, English singer-songwriter, guitarist, The Damned, Dead Men Walking (1954);  David Jay, Bauhaus, Love & Rockets (1957); Boris Williams, drums, The Cure, Thompson Twins (1957);  Billy Gould, American bass player, songwriter, producer, Faith No More, Fear and the Nervous System, Jello Biafra and the Guantanamo School of Medicine (1963); Paula Frazer, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, Tarnation, Faith No More, Frightwig (1963); Paul Ryder, bass, Happy Mondays (1964); Brian Marshall, bassist, Creed (1974); Tyson Ritter, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, actor The All-American Rejects (1984)

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Today in Rock History – March 27

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1966, The Who appeared at the Central Pier, Morecambe, Lancashire, England.

1966, During an UK tour, Roy Orbison fell off a motorbike while scrambling at Hawkstone Park, Birmingham fracturing his foot. He played the remaining dates sat on a stool and walking on crutches.

1967, Fats Domino played his first ever UK date at London’s Saville Theatre, supported by The Bee Gees and Gerry And The Pacemakers.

1967, John Lennon and Paul McCartney were awarded the prestigious Ivor Novello award for”Michelle,” the most performed song in the UK in 1966.

1967, The Young Rascals record their future number one smash “Groovin’.”

1968, The Bee Gees kicked off a 24-date UK tour at London’s Royal Albert Hall. Also on the tour, The Foundations and Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick and Tich.

1968, The Who appear at The Forum in Montreal, Canada. Opening for them is The Troggs making their North American debut.

1968, The Beatles were at number one on the singles chart with “Lady Madonna,” the group’s 14th chart topper.

1969, Pink Floyd played at St. James’ Church Hall, Chesterfield, England, supported by King Mob Echo and Gandalf’s Garden. The set list:  Astronomy Domine / Careful With That Axe, Eugene / Interstellar Overdrive / Set The Controls For The Heart Of The Sun / A Saucerful Of Secrets.

1970, Led Zeppelin performed at The Forum in Inglewood, California.

1971, New York radio station WNBC banned the song “One Toke Over the Line” by Brewer & Shipley because of its alleged drug references. Other stations around the country followed.

1971, Bruce Springsteen & Friendly Enemies opened for The Allman Brothers Band at the Sunshine In, Asbury Park in New Jersey, tickets cost $4.00. Springsteen had just disbanded his group Steel Mill and within a few weeks would form Dr Zoom & The Sonic Boom with Steve Van Zandt.

1972, Elvis Presley recorded what would be his last major hit, “Burning Love,” a number two hit.

1973, Jerry Garcia from The Grateful Dead was arrested when police found cocaine and LSD in his car after being busted for speeding in New Jersey.

1973, Rolling Stone magazine reported that after becoming a disciple of Sri Chinmoy, Carlos Santana had changed his name to “Devadip,” which means “the lamp of the light of the Supreme.”

1975, Lynyrd Skynyrd played at the Bayfront Center Arena, St. Petersburg, Florida.

1976, Genesis appeared at Memorial Auditorium, Kitchener, Ontario.

1976, Paul McCartney and Wings were forced to postpone forthcoming US tour for three weeks after guitarist Jimmy McCulloch fell in his hotel bathroom and broke a finger.

1977, Genesis played at the Sports Arena, San Diego, California.

rutles-all-u-need-is-cash1978, The Beatles parody All You Need Is Cash featuring The Rutles was shown in the UK on BBC-TV.

1978, Bob Dylan performed at the Entertainment Centre, Perth, Australia.

1979, Eric Clapton married Patti Harrison, the former wife of George, at Temple Bethel, Tucson, Arizona. Patti applied for a divorce in 1988.

1980, Rush appeared at Memorial Arena, Victoria, British Columbia.

1981, Eric Clapton performed at Mid-South Coliseum, Memphis, Tennessee.

1982, Former Small Faces and Faces bass player Ronnie Lane was admitted to hospital for treatment for multiple sclerosis.  Lane succumbed to the disease in 1997.

1984, Bryan Adams went into Little Mountain Sound, Vancouver, Canada to record “Run To You” for his fourth studio album, Reckless. It was the first single released from the album and gave Adam’s his first UK hit, peaking at number 11. The music video shot in London and Los Angeles was nominated for the 1985 MTV Video Music Awards in five different categories.

1986, Van Halen kicked off a 112-date North American tour at the Hirsch Memorial Coliseum in Shreveport, Los Angeles. This was the band’s first tour with Sammy Hagar on lead vocals.

1987, U2 performed from the roof of a store in downtown Los Angeles to make the video for “Where The Streets Have No Name.” The commotion attracted thousands of spectators and brought traffic to a standstill. The police eventually stop the shoot.

1988, The Grateful Dead played at the Hampton Coliseum in Hampton, Virginia.

2000, Singer, songwriter, poet and actor, Ian Dury died after a long battle with cancer aged 57. Dury had been disabled by polio as a child, formed Kilburn and the High Roads during the 1970’s. His first album New Boot’s And Panties became a punk classic spending 90 weeks on the UK chart, featured the 1979 UK number one single “Hit Me With Your Rhythm Stick.”

2012, David Bowie’s landmark album Ziggy Stardust was celebrated with a blue plaque in central London. Former Spandau Ballet star Gary Kemp, unveiled a plaque at the spot where the cover of the 1972 release was shot. The location in Heddon Street, just off Regent Street, is now a pedestrian area featuring bars and restaurants.

Born on March 27:  Sarah Vaughn, jazz singer (1934); Andy Bown, bass, songwriter, Status Quo, The Herd, Judas Jump (1946); Tony Banks, Genesis (1950); Paul Wickens, multi-instrumentalist, Paul McCartney, Styx, David Gilmour, others (1956); Andrew Farriss, INXS (1959); Johnny April, bass, Staind (1965); Brendan Hill, drummer, Blues Traveler,  Stolen Ogre (1970);  Fergie, The Black Eyed Peas (1975)

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Today in Rock History – January 1

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simon-and-garfunkel1966, Simon and Garfunkel started a two week run at number one on the singles chart with “The Sounds Of Silence.”

1967, The Doors made their first live television appearance lip-synching their first single “Break on Through” on Shebang, on KTLA-TV Channel 5 in Los Angeles. The single peaked number 126 on the chart mainly due to lack of airplay after censors objected to the drug use implied by the line “she gets high,” which is repeated in the middle section of the song.

1967,  The Grateful Dead and Big Brother & the Holding Company perform at the New Year’s Wail/Whale in San Francisco. Hell’s Angels hosts the bash to thank Haight-Ashbury hippies for bailing Angel Chocolate George from jail.

1968, Billboard magazine reported that for the first time albums had outsold singles in the US with album sales reaching over 192 million units.

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 and the Band of Gypsys appeared at the Fillmore East in New York.

1971, Radio Luxembourg aired over seven hours of continuous Beatles music to celebrate the group’s tenth year in the music business. Every track played was a single or LP track by The Beatles plus tracks from solo albums.

1972, Carole King started a three week run at number one on the US album chart with Music, her second chart topper.

1972, Marc Bolan signed a deal with EMI to release records in the UK on his own T Rex Wax co. label.

1973, The Allman Brothers Band performed at The Warehouse in New Orleans, Louisiana.

1974, Hawkwind played at King George Hall, Blackburn, England.

1976, Procol Harum, John Miles, Barclay James Harvest, Baker Gurvitz Army and Snafu all appeared at the Great British Music Festival, London.

1976, Led Zeppelin singer Robert Plant walks unassisted for the first time since his August 1975 car accident in Greece. “I’m going to need physiotherapy so I should think it’ll be the beginning of the next soccer season before I’m running about again,” Plant tells reporters.

1977, Genesis played the first of three nights at the new-look Rainbow Theatre, London,

The Clash
The Clash

1977, The Clash played the opening night at punk’s first real venue, The Roxy Club in London.

1977, Wings were at number one on the singles chart with “Mull Of Kintyre.”

1982, Black Sabbath played at the Hammersmith Odeon, London.

1984, Alexis Korner died of lung cancer aged 55. He was known as “the Founding Father of British Blues”, he was a major force behind the UK early 60’s R&B scene. Formed Blues Incorporated; members at various times included Jack Bruce, Ginger Baker, Long John Baldry, Graham Bond and Charlie Watts. Had hits with CCS, including a version of Led Zeppelin’s ‘Whole Lotta Love’ which was used as the theme for BBC’s Top Of The Pops for several years. Became a radio presenter in the ’70s.

1988, Prince played an after midnight New Years Eve charity gig in aid of the homeless in Minnesota. Miles Davis joined him on stage.

1989, Nirvana signed a one-year recording contract with Sub Pop records. The Seattle based label began not as a record label but as a fanzine (called Subterranean Pop), in the early 80’s. They are also notable for having signed Soundgarden and Mudhoney.

2008, The British Phonographic Industry (BPI) reported that the number of music downloads sold in the UK in the final week of 2007 was double the total of 12 months earlier. In total there were 2.95 million downloads in seven days, the highest ever recorded for any weekly period. And when the whole of the year was taken into account, 77.5 million downloads were sold in the UK in 2007.

2013, Patti Page, one of the most popular artists of the 1950s, died at the age of 85. She recorded four US chart topping hits, including “Tennessee Waltz” and the novelty record “(How Much Is That) Doggie In The Window.” Page recorded her first hit single, “Confess” in 1947. Because of a strike, background singers were not available to provide harmony vocals for the song, so instead, Page decided to overdub her own, thus, Page became the first pop artist to overdub her vocals on a song.

Born on January 1st: Country Joe McDonald (1942);  Jim Gordon, drummer (co-wrote “Layla”) (1945); Andy Johns, producer and engineer (1952); and Joseph Saddler, aka Grandmaster Flash (1958)

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Today in Rock History – December 3

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1964, The Rolling Stones had their second UK number one single with their version of “Little Red Rooster.” The Stones had recorded the song at Chess Studios in Chicago, the same studios where Howlin’ Wolf, Muddy Waters and Little Walter had recorded their blues classics.

1965, Rolling Stone Keith Richards was knocked unconscious by an electric shock on stage at the Memorial Hall In Sacramento, California, when his guitar made contact with his microphone.

1965, The Beatles set out on what would be their last ever UK tour at Glasgow’s Odeon Cinema. Also on the bill, The Moody Blues, The Koobas, and Beryl Marsden. The last show was at Cardiff”s Capitol Cinema on  December 12th.

1966, British act The New Vaudeville Band started a three-week run at number one on the singles chart with “Winchester Cathedral.” It was a number four hit in the UK.

1966, Ray Charles was given a five year suspended prison sentence and a $10,000 (£6,250) fine after being convicted of possessing heroin and marijuana.

1966, The Monkees made their live debut at the International Arena, Honolulu.

1967, Pink Floyd performed two shows at the Theatre Royal in Nottingham, England. Syd Barrett missed the first show, and Davy O’List of the The Nice stepped in and ad-libbed with the Floyd before Barrett arrived in time for the second performance.

1969, The Rolling Stones recorded “Brown Sugar” at Muscle Shoals studios. The single went on to be number one. The song was written by Mick Jagger with Marsha Hunt in mind. Hunt was Jagger’s secret girlfriend and mother of his first child Karis.

1971, Yes played at the Civic Auditorium in Akron, Ohio.

1972, Pink Floyd appeared at the Palais des Sports, Caen, France as part of the Dark Side of the Moon tour.

1973, The Beach Boys and Billy Joel appeared at Kiel Auditorium in St. Louis, Missouri.

1974, the first of three nights of Pink Floyd concerts at the Hippodrome in Birmingham, England. The setlist at all three performances was Shine on You Crazy Diamond / Raving and Drooling / Gotta Be Crazy // Dark Side of the Moon/ encore: Echoes.

1975, Ronnie Wood’s wife Krisse was arrested for alleged possession of cannabis and cocaine after a raid on the couple’s house in Richmond. Krissie’s friend Audrey Burgon was also arrested, newspapers reported that the two women were found sleeping together.

1976, A giant forty foot inflatable pig could be seen floating above London, England after breaking free from its moorings. The pig, nicknamed Algie, was being photographed for the forthcoming Pink Floyd Animals album cover. The Civil Aviation Authority issued a warning to all pilots that a flying pig was on the run, and the pig eventually crashed into a barn in Godmersham, Kent, where the farmer complained of his cows being scared by the incident.

1976, An attempt was made on Bob Marley’s life when seven gunmen burst into his Kingston home injuring Marley his wife Rita and manager Don Taylor, the attack was believed to be politically motivated.

1977, Wings started a nine-week run at number one with “Mull Of Kintyre.” The first single to sell over 2 million copies in the UK.  It was co-written by Denny Laine who sold his rights to the song when he became bankrupt.

1978, The Philadelphia Furies, a soccer team co-owned by Peter Frampton, Paul Simon, and Mick Jagger, lost their first match in the North American League, 3-0 to the Washington Diplomats.

1979, A concert by The Who at The Riverfront Coliseum, Cincinnati, turned to disaster when eleven members of the audience were trampled to death after a stampede to claim unreserved seats. Another 26 fans were injured. The concert was using “festival seating” where seats are available on a first come-first served basis. When the waiting fans outside the Coliseum heard the band performing a late sound check, they thought that the concert was beginning and tried to rush into the still-closed doors.

1980, Frank Zappa appeared at the Terrace Ballroom, Salt Lake City, Utah.

1981, Black Sabbath played at the Capital Centre, Landover, Maryland.

1982, Rush performed at Madison Square Garden, New York.

1983, Duran Duran scored their first UK number one album with their third release, Seven And The Ragged Tiger, which also peaked at number eight on the US chart.

1994, Boyz II Men knocked themselves off the No.1 position on the US singles chart when “On Bended Knee” started a six week run at number one. The group’s “I’ll Make Love To You” had been at number one for a record breaking 14 weeks.

2001, American session guitarist Grady Martin died aged 72. He was a member of the legendary Nashville A-Team, playing guitar on hits ranging from Roy Orbison’s “Oh, Pretty Woman,” Marty Robbins’ “El Paso,” and Loretta Lynn’s “Coal Miner’s Daughter.” During a 50-year career, Martin backed such names as Elvis Presley, Buddy Holly, Woody Guthrie, Arlo Guthrie, Johnny Cash, Patsy Cline, Joan Baez and JJ Cale.

2008, Composer, keyboardist and arranger Derek Wadsworth died in Oxfordshire, England. As a musician he worked with Georgie Fame, Alan Price, George Harrison, Mike Oldfield, Diana Ross, Tom Jones, Dionne Warwick, Simply Red. Arranger for David Essex, Dusty Springfield, Nina Simone, Judy Garland, Kate Bush, Cat Stevens, Rod Stewart, The Small Faces, The Rolling Stones and Manfred Mann.

Born on December 3: Andy Williams (1928); John Cale, Velvet Underground (1940); Ozzy Osbourne (1948); Mickey Thomas, Jefferson Starship (1949); and Duane Roland, guitar, Molly Hatchet (1952)

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