A calendar of rock history including birthdays, deaths, milestones, chart toppers, concerts, record releases, and other important events in music history.
Our sources include: Wikipedia, This Day in Music, This Day in Rock, Led Zeppelin.com, Classic Rock Concerts, The Concert Database, Live Music Archive, The Allman Brothers Band, Janis Joplin.net, The Who This Month, Setlist.fm, All The Songs: The Story Behind Every Beatles Release by Jean-Michel Guesdon & Phillipe Margotin (Black Dog & Leventhal Publishers,) Echoes – The Complete History of Pink Floyd by Glen Povey (Mind Head Publishing)
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1966, The Who go on vacation for two weeks. Keith, his wife Kim, John and his girlfriend Allison travel to Torremolinos in Spain. Newborn Mandy Moon is left behind with Keith’s parents. Pete travels to Israel. Roger stays in London, spending three days redecorating his apartment and the rest of the time fishing.
1968, During their second ever North American tour, Pink Floyd plays the first of three nights at San Francisco’s Avalon Ballroom. Supporting acts were … (read more…)
1964, “A Hard Day’s Night” went to the top of the charts giving The Beatles their fifth US number one single in seven months.
1964, Billboard Magazine reported that the harmonica was making a comeback in a big way thanks to its use by Stevie Wonder, The Rolling Stones, The Beatles and Bob Dylan.
1965, During a UK tour, The Rolling Stones appeared at the London Palladium supported by The … (read more…)
1965, In England, the Yardbirds with Jeff Beck perform at the Cleethorpes Jazz Festival.
1965, Beatles VI enters the fourth of its six weeks atop the US album charts. Beatles VI includes two tracks recorded specifically for the North American market, “Bad Boy” and “Dizzy Miss Lizzy,” both covers of Larry Williams songs.
1966, Cream play their first gig in Windsor, England.
1966, The … (read more…)
1966, The Beatles started a five week run at number one on the US album chart with “Yesterday…And Today,” the group’s 8th chart topping album.
1966, The Troggs started a two week run at number one on the singles chart with “Wild Thing.”
1967, The Who appeared at the Miami Beach Convention Hall, Miami, Florida.
1968, The Beatles closed their Apple Boutique in London after seven months of business, giving … (read more…)
1966, Eric Clapton, Jack Bruce and Ginger Baker made their unofficial live debut as Cream at The Twisted Wheel, Manchester, England. The official unveiling came two nights later at the Sixth Annual Windsor Jazz & Blues Festival.
1966, Bob Dylan was injured when his Triumph motorcycle crashed near his home in Woodstock, New York. Though the extent of his injuries was never disclosed, Dylan said that he broke several vertebrae in his neck. During his recovery, Dylan withdrew … (read more…)
1965, The Who pre-tape an appearance on Radio Luxembourg’s Ready Steady Radio! at The Marquee followed by a gig at the Pontiac Club in southwest London’s Putney, where the band’s PA blows up after the first set. The Who’s first live performance of “My Generation” may have taken place at this explosive set.
1965, Rolling Stone Charlie Watts buys a 16th century wooden mansion in Sussex, England. His father tells the press, “We can’t understand … (read more…)
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 … (read more…)
1968, The Jackson Five signed a one-year contract with Motown Records.
1968, Decca pulls the Rolling Stones’ Beggars Banquet from its release schedule, citing problems with the sleeve. The design features a graffiti-covered toilet. It’s one of the first disagreements between the band and the label, with Mick Jagger angrily pointing out that Decca released Tom Jones’ A-tom-ic Jones with a nuclear explosion printed on its … (read more…)
1964, The Beatles third album A Hard Day’s Night started a twenty-one week run at the top of the UK charts. This was the first Beatles album to be recorded entirely on four-track tape, allowing for good stereo mixes.
1965, Bob Dylan plugged in for his headlining set backed by the Butterfield Blues Band at The Newport Folk Festival in Newport, Rhode Island. Folk music purists try to boo him off the stage, while the rest of … (read more…)
1965, The Byrds were at number one on the UK singles chart with their version of the Bob Dylan song “Mr Tambourine Man.” It was the first Bob Dylan song to reach the top of the charts. Across the Atlantic, “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction” by The Rolling Stones began the third of it’s four week run at number one.
1966, The Who played at Brittania Pier in Great Yarmouth, … (read more…)
1964, The Beatles were atop the UK singles chart with “A Hard Days Night,” the group’s fifth. They would be number one on the US Billboard Hot 100 in August.
1964, The Beatles take part in the Night of a Hundred Stars at the London Palladium.
1965, The Kinks perform “You Really Got Me” on the TV show, Where the Action Is.
1965, The Dave Clark Five played at Independence … (read more…)
1963, The Beatles’ first US album, Introducing The Beatles was pressed by Vee-Jay Records, who thought they had obtained the legal rights from EMI affiliate, Trans-Global Records. When it was finally released in January, 1964, Capitol Records would hit Vee Jay with an injunction against manufacturing, distributing, advertising, or otherwise disposing of records by the Beatles. After a trial, Vee-Jay was allowed to release any … (read more…)