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Saturday, June 11, 2011

Repeated Errors on Other Websites

I brought this up a few weeks ago but it bears repeating.  I have noticed other rock era web sites that claim to know the dates that singles were released.  They list them as being the date they debuted on the Billboard magazine chart.  Nothing could be further from the truth.

Anyone who has ever worked either in radio or in the music business knows that songs are released so that they may be on the desk of the Music Director/Program Director on Monday morning.  That person hopefully listens to them and considers adding the song to the radio station playlist.  They then report their "New Adds" as well as the popularity of the other songs they are playing to the trade papers, so that they can be printed for publication that weekend.  Obviously, if a single was released on the date Billboard was delivered to newsstands and subscribers, radio stations certainly couldn't add it, report it to Billboard and have Billboard print it on that day!  How would Billboard know how popular it was if was just released that day?

So please beware of any site that tells you that a single was released on the date the music chart came out, 'cause it's not true.  The truth is that there is no way to know for sure when a single was released if it happened years ago, but it certainly was never released on the date it debuted on the chart.

The #60 Album of All-Time in the Rock Era: "Eliminator" by ZZ Top

Some albums go like gangbusters at the time they are out and then die off.  Others are like fine wine.  This one has aged well.






 The #60 Album of All-Time in the Rock Era* is Eliminator from ZZ Top.  ZZ Top had been around for 12 years and put forth seven previous albums before Eliminator.  As most know, the Texas group is into their cars, and Eliminator was named after Billy Gibbon's customized 1933 Ford Coupe.
The album only reached #9 at the time and spent four weeks in the Top 10.  However, it was tough to knock this one off--it spent 183 weeks (3 1/2 years) on the album chart and has to date sold 10 million albums.  It has a solid track rating of 8.94; not the best of the 100 by any means but not the worst either.  ZZ Top scored with "Legs", their biggest career hit, "Gimme' All Your Lovin'" and "Sharp Dressed Man".  "TV Dinners" and "Got Me Under Pressure" received airplay on album rock stations.  Those same stations missed the boat by not playing"If I Could Only Flag Her Down"; it's another super cut.  The album got additional exposure in 2008 when "Thug" was featured as the background music for the video game "Grand Theft Auto IV.


"Legs" won an MTV Music Award for Best Group Video; "Sharp Dressed Man" was also nominated for that same award.  ZZ Top was nominated for Best Rock Vocal Group at the Grammies and Eliminator was nominated for International Album of the Year at the Juno Awards.  All of these are factored into the formula that decided The Top 100 Albums of All-Time in the Rock Era*.


Eliminator:
(All songs by Billy Gibbons, Dusty Hill and Frank Beard.)
1.    "Gimme All Your Lovin'" --4:03
2.    "Got Me Under Pressure" --4:02
3.    "Sharp Dressed Man" --4:12
4.    "I Need You Tonight" --6:13
5.    "I Got the Six" --2:53
6.    "Legs" --4:33
7.    "Thug" --4:19
8.    "TV Dinners" --3:50
9.    "Dirty Dog" --4:06
10.  "If I Could Only Flag Her Down" --3:39
11.  "Bad Girl" --3:13




ZZ Top is another band like Rush--you listen and wonder how that great sound could come from three musicians?  They are, in fact, a three-piece.  Billy Gibbons and Dusty Hill are the bearded guitarists who put on quite a show at concerts.  Billy plays guitar while Dusty bops along with bass and occasionally will play keyboards.  Frank Beard plays drums and percussion.

Eliminator was recorded during 1982 and produced by Bill Ham.  Terry Manning was the Engineer while Bob Ludwig mastered it.  The album was released March 23, 1983 on Warner Brothers Records.


It's the finest of their career--Eliminator from ZZ Top at #60.

Friday, June 10, 2011

This Date in Rock Music History: June 11



1957:  Elvis Presley released the single "(Let Me Be Your) Teddy Bear".  (Note:  several websites claim the song was released June 1.  According to the book 'Elvis Presley:  The King of Rock 'n' Roll' by Jean-Pierre Hornbach, it was released June 11.)
1960:  We have those two or three moments in our lives when we have to make an important decision, choose a fork in the road.  Drummer Tommy Moore had one of those moments on this date.  Tommy decided to return to his job as a forklift driver instead of continuing with the Beatles. 








1962:  Monday fell on June 25 and of course that meant new releases from rock artists.  Two great songs were both released on this day--"Breaking Up Is Hard To Do" from Neil Sedaka. 
1962:  The Beatles recorded a show for the BBC radio program "Here We Go" at the Playhouse Theatre in Manchester, England.  Many of the patrons of the Cavern Club were on hand who had become huge fans of the group.
1964:  Manfred Mann recorded "Do Wah Diddy Diddy".
1964:  The Rolling Stones held a press conference on Michigan Avenue in Chicago, Illinois before police broke it up.  The group wasn't smart enough to know you have to let authorities know about things like that in advance.






1965:  It was announced that the Beatles would receive the "Most Excellent Order of the British Empire" awards from Queen Elizabeth in a ceremony later in the year.   (Note:  some websites say the Beatles received their awards on this date, while others say the announcement was made June 12.  The announcement was made June 12, and the group did not receive the awards until October 26, according to 'Beatlesbible'.)
1966:  Elvis Presley began filming his 26th movie Double Trouble.  (Note:  some websites insist filming began July 11, but the correct date is June 11, according to the book 'The Man Who Made the Jailhouse Rock:  Alex Romero, Hollywood Choreographer' by Mark Knowles.) 

1966:  The Beatles had a super high debut with "Paperback Writer"--#28.







1966:  "Paint It Black" became the new #1 song for the Rolling Stones.  Lovin' Spoonful closed to #2 with "Did You Ever Have to Make Up Your Mind?" while Simon & Garfunkel challenged with "I Am A Rock". 
1967:  Country Joe and the Fish, the Sons of Champlin, Every Mother's Son, Tim Buckley, the Seeds, the Byrds, Jefferson Airplane, the Grass Roots, the Steve Miller Band and the 5th Dimension performed at the Fantasy Fair and Magic Mountain Music Festival in Marin County, California.
1968:  John Lennon recorded "Revolution 9" in one studio at Abbey Road while Paul McCartney recorded "Blackbird" in another for their upcoming LP which became known as The White Album.
1968:  While the Rolling Stones were recording their upcoming album Beggars Banquet, Olympic Studio in London caught fire.  Now that's hot music.
1969:  "The Ballad Of John And Yoko" became the 17th number one song for the Beatles in the U.K.










1973:  Helen Reddy released the single "Delta Dawn".
1976:  The Carpenters released the album A Kind of Hush.
1976:  Fleetwood Mac performed on The Midnight Special with guest host Helen Reddy.





                                          Foreigner was on their way...

1977:  "I'm Your Boogie Man" by K.C. and the Sunshine Band unseated "Sir Duke" by Stevie Wonder, who took one of the biggest falls from #1 in the Rock Era, descending all the way to #9.  Fleetwood Mac was at #2 with "Dreams", Marvin Gaye edged up to #3 with "Got To Give It Up" while Bill Conti was at 4 with the second-best version of "Gonna' Fly Now".  The rest of the Top 10:  Foreigner's first hit "Feels Like The First Time" moved from 9 to 5, Kenny Rogers had song #6--"Lucile", former Linda Ronstadt backup singer Andrew Gold's "Lonely Boy" was #7, Alan O'Day's one and only hit "Undercover Angel" reached the Top 10 and Climax Blues Band fell to 10 with "Couldn't Get It Right".
1979:  Chuck Berry pleaded guilty to charges of income tax evasion and was sentenced to four months in prison.
1979:  The Knack released the album Get the Knack.



1983:  Loverboy had the highest debuting song with "Hot Girls In Love".
1983:  Alex Van Halen, drummer for the group Van Halen, married Valeri Kendall in Los Angeles.  Alex's brother Eddie was best man.
1983:  "My Love" by Lionel Richie was #1 for the fourth straight week on the Adult Contemporary chart.







1983:  Irene Cara was halfway through her run at #1 (three weeks already) with "Flashdance...What A Feeling".  David Bowie was stuck at 2 with "Let's Dance" while Culture Club edged up to 3 with "Time (Clock of the Heart)".  Men At Work dropped with "Overkill" with Lionel Richie's "My Love" moving up to #5.  The rest of the Top 10:  Michael Jackson's former #1 "Beat It" remained at 6, Thomas Dolby slipped to #7 with "She Blinded Me With Science", Naked Eyes scored a Top 10 with "Always Something There To Remind Me", Styx moved from 14-9 with "Don't Let It End" and Rick Springfield had his 11th hit--"Affair Of The Heart".



1986:  Madonna released the single "Papa Don't Preach" in the United States.
1988:  Stevie Wonder, Whitney Houston, Phil Collins, Dire Straits, Eric Clapton, George Michael, the Eurythmics, Simple Minds and UB40 performed at the 70th birthday tribute for Nelson Mandela at Wembley Stadium in London.  The tribute was broadcast to 40 countries with an estimated audience of 1 billion people.

                                              Carlisle enjoyed another solo hit...

1988:  There were three new songs in the Top 10--"Dirty Diana" by Michael Jackson, "Circle In The Sand" from former Go-Go Belinda Carlisle and "The Valley Road" from Bruce Hornsby & the Range.
1988:  George Michael remained at #1 on the Adult Contemporary chart for the third week with "One More Try".
1988:  George Michael's album Faith had been bumped from #1 three times on the Album chart and each time, it returned to the top spot, a remarkable achievement.  On this date, it was in week #11 at #1.  

1990:  Olivia Newton-John was named an environmental ambassador of the United Nations.
1993:  The film biography of Ike and Tina Turner What's Love Got To Do With It opened in theaters.  (Note:  some websites report the movie opened June 9.  It was on June 11, according to 'New York Magazine'.
1994:  "Any Time, Any Place" by Janet Jackson was the new #1 song on the R&B chart.
1996:  Metallica's gig at a small San Francisco, California club was broadcast live via the Internet.






1996:  Carl Perkins was awarded a spot on Hollywood's Rock Walk.
1998:  Scott Weiland of the Stone Temple Pilots missed a scheduled court date and checked himself into a drug rehabilitation center.
1999:  Ricky Martin appeared on the NBC-TV show Today in New York City.
2000:  Aaliyah hit #1 with "Try Again".
2001:  Depeche Mode played at the Pepsi Center in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada.
2001: Sir Paul McCartney married Heather Mills at St. Salvator's Church in Ireland.
2002:  The Bee Gees released their live album One Night Only on CD.  The album was originally released September 7, 1998.
2005:  Destiny's Child announced they would break up following their world tour.  (Note:  some websites claim the announcement was made June 15, yet according to 'MTV', the newspaper 'The Chicago Tribune' and 'People' magazine, the announcement was made June 11 during a concert in Barcelona, Spain.)
2006:  Nelly Furtado was on top in the U.K. with "Maneater".


Born This Day:
1936:  Jud Strunk ("Daisy A Day") was born in Jamestown, New York; died October 5, 1981 when he suffered a heart attack while taking off in his private plane in Carrabassett Valley, Maine.

1940:  Joey Dee (leader of the Starliters who had the #1 "Peppermint Twist" in 1961) was born in Passaic, New Jersey.
1943:  Reg Presley, lead singer of the Troggs, was born in Andover, Hampshire, England; died February 4, 2013 in Andover after a year-long battle with lung cancer.
1946:  Mentor Williams, who wrote the classic "Drift Away", which Dobie Gray turned into a #1 song in 1973, and also wrote for Jackie DeShannon, Alabama and the Ventures, was born in Omaha, Nebraska; died November 16, 2016 of lung cancer in Taos, New Mexico.







1947:  Glenn Leonard of the Temptations was born in Washington, D.C.
1947:  Richard Palmer-James, lyricist for Supertramp and King Crimson, was born in Bournemouth, Hampshire, England.  (Note:  some websites insist Richard was born in the county of Dorset, but Bournemouth did not become part of Dorset until after the 1974 Local Government Reorganization Act.  Since Palmer-James was born in 1947, 27 years before the change took place, it is physically impossible for him to have been born in the county of Dorset and you will never see Dorset listed as the county of birth on his official birth certificate.  At the time of his birth, Bournemouth was located in the county of Hampshire.)







1949:  Frank Beard, the only member of ZZ Top who doesn't have a beard, was born in Frankston, Texas.












1950:  Graham Russell of Air Supply was born in Nottingham, Nottinghamshire, England.  (Note:  some websites claim Russell was born on June 1.  They are missing a digit; he was born on June 11, according to Russell on Air Supply's official website.)  








1952:  Donnie Van Zant, lead singer and guitarist with .38 Special, was born in Jacksonville, Florida.
1964:  Penny Ford, who sang the lead vocal for Snap on "The Power" was born in Cincinnati, Ohio.  (Note:  some websites show her birthday as November 6, but her talent agency, CA International Artists, indicates that it was on June 11.)
1969:  Dan Lavery of Tonic

Hits List: Olivia Newton-John

Olivia Newton-John has had several different styles of music and different images through her 45 years in the music business.  Here is a complete list of her hits:

1966:  "Till You Say You'll Be Mine"
1971:  "If Not For You" (#25, #1 Adult Contemporary, #7 UK, #3 Canada)
           "Banks of the Ohio" (#94, #34 AC, #6 UK, #66 Canada)
1972:  "What Is Life" (#34 AC, #16 UK)
           "My Old Man's Got a Gun"
1973:  "Take Me Home, Country Roads" (#15 UK)
           "Let Me Be There" (#6, #3 AC, #2 Canada)



1974:  "Long Live Love" (#11 UK)
           "If You Love Me (Let Me Know)" (#5, #2 AC, #3 Canada)
           "I Honestly Love You" (#1, #1 AC, #22 UK, #1 Canada)
1975:  "Have You Never Been Mellow" (#1, #1 AC, #1 Canada)
           "Please Mr. Please" (#3, #1 AC, #1 Canada)
           "Something Better To Do" (#13, #1 AC, #26 Canada)
           "Let It Shine" (#30, #1, #17 Canada)
           "He Ain't Heavy...He's My Brother"
1976:  "Come On Over" (#23, #1 AC, #22 Canada)
           "Don't Stop Believin'" (#33, #1 AC, #37 Canada)
           "Every Face Tells a Story" (#55, #6 AC, #58 Canada)
1977:  "Compassionate Man"
           "Sam" (#20, #1 AC, #6 U.K., #24 Canada)
           "Making a Good Thing Better" (#87, #20 AC)
           "I Honestly Love You" (Re-release) (#48, #49 AC, #55 Canada)
           "Sad Songs"



1978:  "Jolene"
           "You're the One That I Want" (with John Travolta) (#1, #23 AC, #1 UK, #1 Canada)
           "Hopelessly Devoted To You" (#3, #7 AC, #2 UK, #1 Canada)
           "Summer Nights" (with John Travolta) (#5, #21 AC, #1 UK, #4 Canada)
           "A Little More Love" (#3, #4 AC, #4 UK, #5 Canada)
1979:  "Deeper Than the Night" (#11, #4 AC, #64 UK, #18 Canada)
           "Totally Hot" (#52, #92 Canada)
           "Dancin' Round and Round" (#82, #25 AC)
           "Rest Your Love On Me" (with Andy Gibb)
1980:  "Don't Cry For Me, Argentina"
           "Magic" (#1, #1 AC, #32 UK, #1 Canada)
           "Xanadu" (with ELO) (#8, #2 AC, #1 UK, #6 Canada)
           "Suddenly" (with Cliff Richard) (#20, #4 AC, #15 UK, #60 Canada)



1981:  "Physical" (#1, #29 AC, #7 UK, #1 Canada)
1982:  "Make a Move On Me" (#5, #6 AC, #43 UK, #4 Canada)
           "Landslide"(#52, #18 UK)
           "Heart Attack" (#3, #46 UK, #2 Canada)
1983:  "I Honestly Love You" (re-release in Britain) (#52 UK)
           "Tied Up" (#38, #43 Canada)
           "Twist of Fate" (#5, #57 UK, #4 Canada)
           "Take a Chance" (#3 AC)
1984:  "Livin' in Desperate Times" (#31, #43 Canada)
1985:  "Soul Kiss" (#20, #20 AC, #25 Canada)
1986:  "Toughen Up"
1988:  "The Rumour" (#62, #33 AC, #50 Canada)
           "Can't We Talk It Over in Bed"
1990:  "Reach Out For Me" (#32 AC)
           "Grease Megamix" (#3 UK, #50 Canada)



1991:  "Grease Dream Mix" (#47 UK)
1992:  "I Need Love" (#96, #75 UK)
1994:  "No Matter What You Do"
1998:  "You're the One That I Want" (with John Travolta--re-release) (#4 UK)
           "I Honestly Love You" (#67, #18 AC)
           "Back with a Heart"
2005:  "Phenomenal Woman"
2006:  "Instrument of Peace" (#30 AC)
2007:  "Christmas on My Radio"

           "Every Time It Snows" (with Jon Secada)



2008:  "Angel in the Wings" (with Jann Arden)
2011:  "Magic" (remix)

By my count, she has had 34 hits in the United States, 14 of those Top 10 with 5 #1's, 30 hits on the Adult Contemporary chart, with 19 going Top 10 and 9 to #1, 23 hits, 8 Top 10's and 3 Number Ones in the U.K., and 31 hits in Canada, with 16 of those going Top 10 and 7 #1 songs.  Amazing success.

Best Five Songs: The Turtles

This California group was on fire in the 60's.  They had 18 hits, but here are the Best Five:
1.  "Happy Together"

 
2.  "She's My Girl"

 
3.  "You Showed Me"

 
4.  "It Ain't Me Babe"

 
5.  "She'd Rather Be With Me"

The #61 Album of All-Time in the Rock Era: "In Through the Out Door" by Led Zeppelin

This album reached #1 in just its second week and tied Led Zeppelin II for the group album with the most weeks at #1 (7).  It also spent three weeks at #2 and two at #3.  The album was on the chart for 41 weeks and has sold 6 million copies to date.  It has shown great longevity and has two important factors in its corner--tremendous airplay and a 9.14 Track Rating*.  You will note that to be one of the highest among the Top 100 Albums of All-Time*.


Not only was this album #1, but its strength brought the entire Led Zeppelin catalog up to the point where every Led Zeppelin album was in the Top 200 at the same time! It was also #1 in the U.K., Canada and New Zealand.


"Fool in the Rain" was the only single, but every song on this album received considerable airplay from album rock stations, Top 40 stations and even country stations (which played "Hot Dog").  "In the Evening" has already been featured here as one of the outstanding "Underrated/Unknown" songs of the Rock Era.  "All My Love" was a big hit throughout the nation despite not being released as a single.  "Sound Bound Saurez" is a great rocker and "I'm Gonna' Crawl" is exemplary of famous Led Zeppelin blues rock.





As it turned out, In Through the Out Door would be the last studio album Led Zeppelin would ever do. Because of drummer John Bonham's untimely passing, the three surviving members decided the group would not continue without him. That was a very respectable thing to do. In Through the Out Door represented some of Led Zep's best work.

The album sleeve was unique, in that the outer sleeve looked like a plain brown paper bag and the inner sleeve featured black and white artwork. The interesting thing was that if you washed that inner sleeve with water, it would be permanently colored. There were six different sleeves with a different pair of photos and with the brown sleeve, you would not know which one you were getting until you opened the album. The pictures all show a bar scene taken from a different point of view. The bar happens to be the Absinthe Bar at 400 Bourbon Street in New Orleans, Louisiana.

In 1980, Hipgnosis was nominated for a Grammy Award for the best album package and the American Music Awards nominated In Through the Out Door as Favorite Pop Album.


In Through the Out Door:

Side one
1. "In the Evening" (John Paul Jones, Jimmy Page, Robert Plant) --6:49
2. "South Bound Saurez" (Jones, Plant) --4:12
3. "Fool in the Rain" (Jones, Page, Plant --6:12
4. "Hot Dog" (Page, Plant) --3:17

Side two
1. "Carouselambra" (Jones, Page, Plant) --10:32
2. "All My Love" (Jones, Plant) --5:51
3. "I'm Gonna' Crawl" (Jones, Page, Plant) --5:30





Led Zeppelin's lineup was Jimmy Page on acoustic and electric guitar, Robert Plant on lead vocals, John Paul Jones on bass and John Bonham on drums. 

    The album was recorded over a two month period in November and December of 1978 at ABBA's Polar Studios  and Stockholm Country in Sweden.  Jimmy Page mixed the album at his home in Plumpton, England and produced the album along with executive producer Peter Grant.  Leif Mases was the engineer and Barry Diament mastered it.    The album was released August 15, 1979 on Swan Song Records.


    Led Zeppelin's superb album checks in at #61--In Through the Out Door.

    Thursday, June 9, 2011

    This Date in Rock Music History: June 10

    1964:  The Rolling Stones recorded tracks for their upcoming album 12 x 5 at Chess Studios in Chicago.


     1966:  The Beatles became the first act to feature reversed tape in the background of the song "Rain", which was released on this date in the U.K.
    1967:  Bob Dylan and the Band began recording The Basement Tapes.
    1967:  "Casino Royale" was #1 on the Easy Listening chart for a second week for Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass


    Best Five Songs: Pretenders

    The Pretenders were one of the best of the "New Wave" groups of the 80's.  Chrissie Hynde has to be considered as one of the top women in rock and roll.  Chrissie & the group are featured today in this segment. By the way, four of these songs are on the great album Learning To Crawl.
     
    1.  "Middle of the Road"

     
    2.  "My City Was Gone"

     
    3.  "Back on the Chain Gaing"

     
    4.  "Thumbelina"

     
    5.  "Brass In Pocket"

    The #62 Album of All-Time in the Rock Era: "The Wall" by Pink Floyd

    In case you just joined us in the countdown, greatest hits packages are out in the search for the greatest albums.  Similarly, live albums in which the songs performed were familiar ones and soundtracks that contained work by more than one artist are ineligible.  I looked for creations in the studio, and preferably concept albums.  Those are the true great ones and we have one here.


    The Wall was the 11th studio album from Pink Floyd.  It spent 15 weeks at #1, 3 at #2 and 4 at #3.  It was #1 in the United States, France, Austria, New Zealand, Germany, Switzerland and Norway.  Again that doesn't affect the methodology of this list but it certainly will influence the Top 100 Albums of All-Time in the World.  The album spent 27 weeks in the Top 10, which is a little low for the albums remaining, but 123 total weeks on the chart, which makes up for it.  Again, you will see 23 million in sales as certified by the RIAA, but keep in mind that double albums are counted twice.  I don't agree with this policy, an album is an album and should be judged as such.  The choice to release a double album is that of the performer and should not be counted twice as much as a single album.  The album is judged on its entirety.







    Speaking of, it bears repeating that it is much harder to come up with a double album's worth of material.  The Track Rating* of 8.29 doesn't mean the album doesn't have great tracks (It absolutely does!); it just means the average track isn't as strong as most of the other Top 100 Albums of All-Time*.I


    Concept albums require some thought rather than just assembling a hodgepodge of songs to include.  The Wall dealt with abandonment and isolation.  The album is based on a fictional character named Pink, loosely based on the experiences of Pink Floyd bassist and lyricist Roger Waters.  Pink loses his father during World War II, is abused by his teachers and sees his marriage fall apart.  To deal with all of this, Pink builds a metaphorical wall between himself and the world.  The Wall was later made into the movie "Pink Floyd the Wall".


    The band was not in good financial shape as they had invested what money they had in an ill-advised investment company.  They needed to make an album just to pay the bills, even though they had been around for years.  Waters brought in producer Bob Ezrin to help him with the project.  They kept the good stuff that Waters had already worked on and through away the rest.  The character Pink goes through several crises, before performing a hallucinatory concert in which he has men take care of fans he considers unworthy.  Nevertheless, Pink feels guilty and puts himself on trial.  The album then hints at the cycle repeating itself, as Waters himself became alienated by the behavior of fans at Pink Floyd concerts.



    The Wall:
    (All songs written by Roger Waters, except where noted.)

    Side one
    1.  "In the Flesh?" --3:19
    2.  "The Thin Ice" --2:27
    3.  "Another Brick in the Wall Part 1" --3:21
    4.  "The Happiest Days of Our Lives" --1:46
    5.  "Another Brick in the Wall Part 2" --4:00
    6.  "Mother" --5:36

    Side two
    1.  "Goodbye Blue Sky" --2:45
    2.  "Empty Spaces" --2:10
    3.  "Young Lust" (Waters, Gilmour) --3:25
    4.  "One of My Turns) --3:35
    5.  "Don't Leave Me Now" --4:16
    6.  "Another Brick in the Wall Part 3" --1:14
    7.  "Goodbye Cruel World" --1:13

    Side three
    1.  "Hey You" --4:40
    2.  "Is There Anybody Out There?" --2:44
    3.  "Nobody Home" --3:26
    4.  "Vera" --1:35
    5.  "Bring the Boys Back Home" --1:21
    6.  "Comfortably Numb" (Gilmour, Waters) --6:24

    Side four
    1.  "The Show Must Go On" --1:36
    2.  "In the Flesh" --4:13
    3.  "Run Like Hell" (Gilmour, Waters) --4:19
    4.  "Waiting for the Worms" --4:04
    5.  "Stop" --0.30
    6.  "The Trial" (Waters, Ezrin) --5:13
    7.  "Outside the Wall" --1:41





    The lineup on The Wall included David Gilmour (guitars, vocals, synthesisers, clavinet and sound effects), Nick Mason on percussion, Roger Waters on vocals, guitars, synthesiser and sound effects and Richard Wright (organ, piano, Rhodes electric piano, synthesisers and bass pedals).
    Bob Ezrin played organ, piano, synthesiser and contributed backing vocals.  James Guthrie played percussion, synthesiser and helps with sound effects, Jeff Porcaro from Toto played drums, Joe Porcaro, Blue Ocean and 5 others played snare drums, Lee Ritenour played guitar and Ron di Blasi played classical guitar.  Fred Mandel helped out with the Hammond organ and Bobbye Hall played congas and bongos.  Frank Marrocco played the concertina, Larry Williams the clarinet and Trevor Veitch the mandolin.  The 
    New York Orchestra contributed to The Wall as well.

    Backing vocals were provided Bruce Johnston of the Beach Boys, Toni Tennille, Joe Chemay, Jon Joyce, the Islington Green School, the New York Opera, "Vicki & Clare" and an unnamed children's choir from New York.  Chris Fitzmorris provides the male telephone voice, Harry Waters is the child's voice on the album, Trudy Young does the voice of the groupie and Phil Taylor contributed sound effects.

    The epic double album was recorded during most of 1979 at several locations--Super Bear Studios and Studio MiravalEzrin, David Gilmour, James Guthrie and Roger Waters and engineered by Guthrie, Nick Griffiths, Patrice Quef, Brian Christian and Rick Hart.  Gerald Scarfeand released November 30, 1979 on Columbia Records.


    Pink Floyd's monumental The Wall checks in at #62 All-Time.

    Wednesday, June 8, 2011

    This Date in Rock Music History: June 9

    1958:  Jerry Lee Lewis and producer Sam Phillips bought a full-page ad in Billboard Magazine to explain his second divorce and third marriage to 14 year-old cousin Myra.
    1959:  Bobby Darin made debut in Las Vegas, Nevada; he opened for George Burns at the Sahara.
    1962:  A new artist appeared on the music charts for the first time on this date.  Bobby Vinton's first song "Roses Are Red" debuted and he would achieve the tough feat of achieving #1 with his first release.

    1962:  The Beatles performed at the Cavern Club in Liverpool after a successful stint at the Star Club in Hamburg.
    1962:  Tony Bennett performed at Carnegie Hall for the first time.
    1963:  Barbra Streisand performed on The Ed Sullivan Show. 1963:  Andy Williams was the mystery guest on the popular television show What's My Line.





    1963:  The Beatles were on top for a seventh week in the U.K. with "From Me To You".
    1964:  Bob Dylan recorded the album Another Side of Bob Dylan.
    1966:  Elvis Presley's movie Paradise Hawai'ian Style opened nationally in theaters.  (Note:  The official Graceland website is wrong in saying the movie opened in theaters July 6 and another website claims it opened June 9, as 'Variety' magazine printed a review of the movie on June 8.  Although there are no reputable sources for the exact opening date, our best research indicates that there was a sneak preview in Memphis, Tennessee on June 9 and the movie premiered in theaters nationwide on June 15.)
    1967:  The Monkees opened their 1967 tour at the Hollywood Bowl in Hollywood, California.
    1969:  Brian Jones announced that he was saying "Goodbye" to the Rolling Stones because he didn't agree with the direction the band was going.  While this was the public account of the split, the truth is that he was asked to leave the group by the other members.
    1970:  Bob Dylan received an honorary Doctorate in Music from Princeton University in New Jersey.




    1972:  Bruce Springsteen signed a recording contract with Columbia Records.
    1972:  Elvis Presley performed in the first of four sold-out shows at Madison Square Garden in New York City.  An album was released of the shows--Elvis as Recorded at Madison Square Garden.
    1973:  The Spinners scored their second R&B #1 of the year (following "Could It Be I'm Falling In Love") with "One Of A Kind (Love Affair)".




    1973:  The Doobie Brothers were rolling up the chart (22-10) with "Long Train Runnin'".
    1973:  Red Rose Speedway by Paul McCartney & Wings continued to set the pace on the Album chart, holding off The Beatles' 1967-1970 collection.  They Only Come Out At Night by the Edgar Winter Group peaked at #3 with Houses of the Holy by Led Zeppelin falling to #4 after just 9 weeks.  The rest of the Top 10:  The Beatles also had #5 with their 1962-1966 package, The Best of Bread was at #6, Diamond Girl from Seals & Crofts moved up to #7, Focus had #8 with Moving Waves, Pink Floyd slipped to #9 with Dark Side of the Moon after just 13 weeks while Deep Purple closed out the group with Made in Japan.
    1978:  The Rolling Stones released the album Some Girls.  It took several weeks to chart, however.
    1979:  "We Are Family" was top dog on the R&B chart.









    1979:  Breakfast in America locked down the #1 spot on the Album chart as Supertramp's breakthrough.  2 Hot! by Peaches & Herb held at #2 while Donna Summer's solid Bad Girls album was #3.  The rest of the Top 10:  Sister Sledge edged up to 4 with We Are Family, Rickie Lee Jones' impressive debut was at #5, the Doobie Brothers slipped to 6 with their former #1 album Minute By Minute, Van Halen II was at #7, Cheap Trick's live winner Cheap Trick At Budokan was #8, Bad Company was at 9 with Desolation Angels and the Bee Gees' finest studio album Spirits Having Flown reached the Top 10.






      1979:  It was a magical time in music.  The Bee Gees landed their sixth consecutive #1 ("Love You Inside Out") to break the 14 year-old record of five by the Supremes.  Donna Summer had to take a back seat with "Hot Stuff".  (Note:  several websites incorrectly claim that the Beatles held the record of six.  Those websites are undoubtedly referring to the period from of 1964 to 1966, when the Beatles scored six #1 singles in a row.  However, the flip sides of those 45's also charted--"She's A Woman" at #4, "I Don't Want To Spoil The Party" at #39, "Yes It Is" at #46 and "Act Naturally" at #47.  This chart record does not show six consecutive #1 songs--not even close to it.  It shows six consecutive #1 singles and that is the correct way to state it.  But the Beatles never had no more than two #1 songs in this stretch.  If one is to count those other songs as hits, which rightly should be counted as hits, than those peaks shown above interrupt the group's streak of #1 songs.  They had six straight #1 singles, but not six straight #1's.)








    1980:  Christopher Cross released the beautiful song "Sailing".  (Note:  one website naively says the song was released June 15.  "Sailing" debuted on the Singles chart on June 14.  It is physically impossible for a song to make the Singles chart if it has not yet been released as a single.  In fact, the cut-off for making the Singles chart is the Wednesday before it comes out (on Saturday).  "Sailing" was released June 9.)
    1982:  Linda Ronstadt, James Taylor and Jackson Browne played at Nassau Coliseum in Long Island, New York during Peace Week.

    1984:  "Time After Time" by Cyndi Lauper reached #1 with Deniece Williams falling to #2 with "Let's Hear It For The Boy" from the great Soundtrack to "Footloose".  Steve Perry edged up to 3 with his first solo hit "Oh Sherrie".  The rest of the Top 10:  "The Reflex" from Duran Duran, "Sister Christian" at 5 for Night Ranger, Huey Lewis & the News continuing to enjoy success with "The Heart Of Rock & Roll", the former #1 "Hello" from Lionel Richie at #7, Irene Cara moving up to 8 with "Breakdance", Laura Branigan climbing to 9 with "Self Control" and the Pointer Sisters enjoying their 18th career hit with "Jump (For My Love)".

      1986:  Steve Winwood released the single "Higher Love".  (Note:  one website naively says the single was released June 20, the same day as the album 'Back in the High Life'.  "Higher Love" debuted on the Singles chart on June 14.  It is physically impossible for a song to make the Singles chart if it has not yet been released as a single.  "Higher Love" was released as a 45 in advance of the album, on June 9.)
    1986:  Bob Dylan and Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers played at the Sports Arena in San Diego, California.
    1988:  Fleetwood Mac played at the Waldbühne in West Berlin, West Germany.






    Phil Collins
    1990:  "Do You Remember?" by Phil Collins maintained its spot at #1 for a second week on the Adult Contemporary chart.










    1990:  Wilson Phillips had the new #1 song with "Hold On" from their great debut album sending "Vogue" by Madonna to #2.  Bell Biv DeVoe's "Poison" moved up to 3 while Heart's former strong #2 "All I Wanna' Do Is Make Love To You" slid down to 4.  The rest of the Top 10:  Roxette's "It Must Have Been Love" from the great movie Pretty Woman, Janet Jackson's "Alright" at #6, Linear had song #7 with "Sending All My Love", New Kids on the Block moved from 16 to 8 with "Step By Step", M.C. Hammer remained at #9 with "U (sic) Can't Touch This" and Sinead O'Connor's former #1 "Nothing Compares 2 (sic) U (Sic)" at #10.
    1993:  Glenn Frey released his video Live in Dublin.  (Note:  One website reports the video was released July 2, 1993 and one says it was released on September 15 of 1992.  'This Day in Eagles History' reports that the release date was June 9, 1993.)
    1993:  The United States Postal Service unveiled its Legends of American Music stamp collection.  Elvis Presley, Buddy Holly, Bill Haley, Otis Redding, Ritchie Valens, Clyde McPhatter and Dinah Washington were featured in the set on this date in their Rock & Roll/Rhythm & Blues series.

                                           Michael Bolton scored a Top 10 album...

    1990:  Back when a Rap album was actually decent, M.C. Hammer became the first Rap act to reach #1 with Please Hammer Don't Hurt 'Em, taking over from Sinead O'Connor's. I Do Not Want What I Haven't Got.  Brigade from Heart remained at 3 with the Soundtrack to "Pretty Woman" holding steady at 4.  The rest of the Top 10:  Poison from Bell Biv DeVoe, Soul Provider, the great album by Michael Bolton at #6, Depeche Mode moving up with Violator, Janet Jackson's Rhythm Nation 1814 at #8, Shut Up and Dance by Paula Abdul at 9 and Wilson Phillips moving into the Top 10 with their debut.


    1991:  Amy Grant released the single "Every Heartbeat".  (Note:  some websites naively say the single was released June 13, the same date as the album 'Heart in Motion'.  "Every Heartbeat" debuted on the Singles chart on June 14.  It is physically impossible for a record company to mail a single to radio stations, be received by the radio stations, listened to and added to radio station playlists, reported to the trade papers and be printed and published by the trade papers, all on the same day.  "Every Heartbeat" was released on June 9 in advance of the album.)
    1993:  Arthur Alexander, who had a hit with "You Better Move On" in 1962, died of a heart attack at the age of 53.
    1994:  Lisa "Left-Eye" Lopes of TLC set fire to her boyfriend's (Andre Rison of the Atlanta Falcons) house.
    1997:  The Spice Girls began filming Spice World.
    1997:  Carl Perkins underwent surgery in Memphis, Tennessee to clear blocked arteries in his neck.
    1998:  The Ronettes appeared in the New York State Supreme Court to testify in their lawsuit against producer Phil Spector.  The group charged that Spector, his record label and successive labels breached their contract by not paying royalties since 1963.  The suit was originally filed in 1988.
    2001:  The Eagles were in concert at Earls Court in London, England for the first of four shows.
    2004:  Britney Spears was hospitalized for arthroscoptic surgery after falling during a video shoot for her single "Outrageous".
    2004:  Usher's Confessions returned to #1 on the Album chart.
    2006:  Robbie Williams was in concert at Croke Park in Dublin, Ireland.
    2007:  George Michael played the first of two shows at the new Wembley Stadium in London.
    2010:  The Black Eyed Peas released the album The E.N.D.  (Note:  several websites report the album was released June 3.  It was released June 9, according to 'Billboard'.)


    Born This Day:
    1929:  Johnny Ace was born in Memphis, Tennessee; died playing Russian roulette on December 25, 1954 in Houston, Texas.

    1934:  Jackie Wilson was born in Detroit, Michigan; suffered a heart attack on stage at a New Jersey nightclub in 1975 that put him in a coma; he died January 21, 1984 in Mount Holly, New Jersey.






    1941:  Jon Lord, elite Deep Purple keyboardist, was born in Leicester, Leicestershire, England; died of a pulmonary embolism in London on July 16, 2012 after battling pancreatic cancer.
    1946:  Stuart Edwards of Edison Lighthouse 
    1949:  George Bunnell of Strawberry Alarm Clock was born in Lawrence, Massachusetts.
    1950:  Trevor Bolder, songwriter and bassist of Uriah Heap, was born in Kingston upon Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire, England; died of cancer May 21, 2013 in Cottingham, Northamptonshire, England.
    1951:  Terry Uttley, a founding member of Smokie ("If You Think You Know How To Love Me")
    1954:  Peter Byrne, lead singer of Naked Eyes and later Climie Fisher, was born in Bath, Somerset, England.
    1967:  Dean Felber, bassist of Hootie & the Blowfish, was born in Bethesda, Maryland.
    1967:  Dean Dinning, bassist of Toad the Wet Sprocket, was born in Santa Barbara, California.
    1970:  Ed Simons, keyboard player for the Chemical Brothers, was born in Herne Hill, London.  (Note:  one website reports he was born in Dulwich, London while another says he was born in Herne Hill, London and others lazily say he was born in London.  London is both a city and a county so saying someone was born in London implies they were born in the city.  Simons was born in Herne Hill in the county of London.)
    1978:  Matthew Bellamy, vocalist and guitarist for Muse, was born in Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, England.