1955: CBS talent scout Arthur Godfrey turned down Elvis Presley for a recording contract, opting to sign Pat Boone instead. Big mistake, Arthur.
1955: Elvis Presley was interviewed on The Jimmy Dean television show.
1956: The movie Rock Around the Clock, starring Billy Haley, premiered in Washington, D.C. It was the second movie to include the song "Rock Around The Clock", the first being Blackboard Jungle a year earlier. (Note: you will see several dates all over the Internet for the opening. Inside The Rock Era investigates discrepancies, strives to use the most reliable sources for our Calendar*, and publishes who those sources are. Some websites say the premiere was on March 17, and others on March 21, but according to the book 'Rock Around the Clock: The Record that Started the Rock Revolution!' by Jim Dawson, the movie premiered on March 14.)
1958: The Recording Industry of Association of America (RIAA) announced awards for sales. A single selling a million copies would be awarded a Gold disc, a single selling over two million would get a Platinum record. A Gold album would signify sales over 500,000 copies and a Platinum album signified album sales over one million. (Note: some websites report the awards began March 13, but according to the official website for the RIAA, they began on March 14, 1958.)
1958: The first Gold record was awarded to Perry Como for his single "Catch A Falling Star".
1960: Sam Cooke began a tour of the West Indies in Montego Bay, Jamaica.
1960: For the sixth week, Dinah Washington & Brook Benton had the top R&B song with "Baby (You've Got What It Takes)".
1960: "The Theme From 'A Summer Place'" by Percy Faith was on the way to becoming one of The Top 500 Songs of the Rock Era*, posting its fourth straight week at #1.
1963: The Beatles performed at the Gaumont Cinema in Wolverton, West Midlands, England.
1964: The Searchers had one of the hottest songs as "Needles And Pins" moved from 75 to 46.
1964: The Beatles made history by being the first act in the Rock Era to own the top three songs for a week--they were on top for the seventh straight week with "I Want To Hold Your Hand", remained second with "She Loves You" and "Please Please Me" moved to #3. No one has ever been able to match that feat, although the Bee Gees came close in 1978.
1965: Petula Clark appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show on CBS-TV.
1966: Boise, Idaho's Paul Revere & the Raiders released the single "Kicks".
1968: The Beatles' promotional clip for "Lady Madonna" was shown on Top of the Tops on BBC-TV.
1969: Several great songs released on This Day in Rock Music History*. Stevie Wonder released the single "My Cherie Amour". The song debuted on the Singles chart on May 31, 1969.
1970: Mary Ann Ganser of the Shangri-Las ("Leader Of The Pack") did not heed the words of Paul Revere & the Raiders and died of drugs in Queens, New York at the age of 22. (Note: Mary Ann's death is shrouded in myth. Some websites say that Mary Ann died in 1971, some say she died on March 16, 1970, and most websites state that Mary Ann died of encephalitis from a mosquito bite, but according to the newspaper 'The Los Angeles Times', Mary Ann in fact died on March 14, 1970 from a drug overdose. The date of March 16 was the date that Mr. Ganser identified Mary Ann's body, but according to the newspaper 'The New York Times', Mary Ann was found dead on Sunday afternoon, March 15, and an official Coroner's report showed that she died on March 14. )
1970: Brook Benton reached #1 on the R&B chart with "Rainy Night In Georgia".
1970: "Bridge Over Troubled Water" from Simon & Garfunkel was the #1 song on the Adult chart for a third week.
Santana showed they would be a force for some time...
1970: Simon & Garfunkel remained at #1 for the third week with "Bridge Over Troubled Water". CCR's double-sided "Travlin' Band"/"Who'll Stop The Rain" was the closest challenger with the Jaggerz moving from 7 to 3 with "The Rapper". Brook Benton held steady with "Rainy Night In Georgia". The rest of the Top 10: the Tee Set and "Ma Belle Amie", Chairmen of the Board were at 6 with "Give Me Just A Little More Time", "Thank You" from Sly & the Family Stone, Eddie Holman dropped with "Hey There Lonely Girl", the Hollies edged up with "He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother" and Santana vaulted up with "Evil Ways".
1972: Linda Jones ("Hypnotized" from 1967) collapsed into a diabetic coma backstage after a performance at the Apollo Theatre in Harlem, New York and died shortly afterwards.
Blondie had one of the first (and one of the only good) rap songs...
1981: Dolly Parton topped the chart with "9 To 5", heading off REO Speedwagon's bid with "Keep On Loving You". John Lennon remained third with "Woman" while Styx was up with "The Best Of Times". The rest of the Top 10: Eddie Rabbitt's former #1 "I Love A Rainy Night", Don McLean had another hit with "Crying", Blondie responded with a 12 to 7 move for "Rapture", ABBA and "The Winner Takes It All", Neil Diamond had hit #47 with "Hello Again" and Kool and the Gang's former #1 "Celebration" was 10th.
1982: Metallica made their live debut at Radio City in Anaheim, California.
1983: Jon Bon Jovi, Richie Sambora and Alec John Such formed the group Bon Jovi.
1984: Rainbow played live for the last time at the Budokan in Japan.
1987: The Very Best of Hot Chocolate rose to the top of the U.K. Album chart.
1987: Janet Jackson moved to #1 on the R&B chart with "Let's Wait Awhile".
1955: Elvis Presley was interviewed on The Jimmy Dean television show.
1956: The movie Rock Around the Clock, starring Billy Haley, premiered in Washington, D.C. It was the second movie to include the song "Rock Around The Clock", the first being Blackboard Jungle a year earlier. (Note: you will see several dates all over the Internet for the opening. Inside The Rock Era investigates discrepancies, strives to use the most reliable sources for our Calendar*, and publishes who those sources are. Some websites say the premiere was on March 17, and others on March 21, but according to the book 'Rock Around the Clock: The Record that Started the Rock Revolution!' by Jim Dawson, the movie premiered on March 14.)
1958: The Recording Industry of Association of America (RIAA) announced awards for sales. A single selling a million copies would be awarded a Gold disc, a single selling over two million would get a Platinum record. A Gold album would signify sales over 500,000 copies and a Platinum album signified album sales over one million. (Note: some websites report the awards began March 13, but according to the official website for the RIAA, they began on March 14, 1958.)
1958: The first Gold record was awarded to Perry Como for his single "Catch A Falling Star".
1960: Sam Cooke began a tour of the West Indies in Montego Bay, Jamaica.
1960: For the sixth week, Dinah Washington & Brook Benton had the top R&B song with "Baby (You've Got What It Takes)".
1960: "The Theme From 'A Summer Place'" by Percy Faith was on the way to becoming one of The Top 500 Songs of the Rock Era*, posting its fourth straight week at #1.
1963: The Beatles performed at the Gaumont Cinema in Wolverton, West Midlands, England.
1964: "Java" by Al Hirt led the way on the Adult chart for the fourth week.
1964: Meet the Beatles! was the #1 album for the fifth consecutive week. 1964: The Searchers had one of the hottest songs as "Needles And Pins" moved from 75 to 46.
1964: The Beatles made history by being the first act in the Rock Era to own the top three songs for a week--they were on top for the seventh straight week with "I Want To Hold Your Hand", remained second with "She Loves You" and "Please Please Me" moved to #3. No one has ever been able to match that feat, although the Bee Gees came close in 1978.
1965: Petula Clark appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show on CBS-TV.
1966: Boise, Idaho's Paul Revere & the Raiders released the single "Kicks".
1968: The Beatles' promotional clip for "Lady Madonna" was shown on Top of the Tops on BBC-TV.
1969: Several great songs released on This Day in Rock Music History*. Stevie Wonder released the single "My Cherie Amour". The song debuted on the Singles chart on May 31, 1969.
1970: Mary Ann Ganser of the Shangri-Las ("Leader Of The Pack") did not heed the words of Paul Revere & the Raiders and died of drugs in Queens, New York at the age of 22. (Note: Mary Ann's death is shrouded in myth. Some websites say that Mary Ann died in 1971, some say she died on March 16, 1970, and most websites state that Mary Ann died of encephalitis from a mosquito bite, but according to the newspaper 'The Los Angeles Times', Mary Ann in fact died on March 14, 1970 from a drug overdose. The date of March 16 was the date that Mr. Ganser identified Mary Ann's body, but according to the newspaper 'The New York Times', Mary Ann was found dead on Sunday afternoon, March 15, and an official Coroner's report showed that she died on March 14. )
1970: Brook Benton reached #1 on the R&B chart with "Rainy Night In Georgia".
1970: "Bridge Over Troubled Water" from Simon & Garfunkel was the #1 song on the Adult chart for a third week.
Santana showed they would be a force for some time...
1970: Simon & Garfunkel remained at #1 for the third week with "Bridge Over Troubled Water". CCR's double-sided "Travlin' Band"/"Who'll Stop The Rain" was the closest challenger with the Jaggerz moving from 7 to 3 with "The Rapper". Brook Benton held steady with "Rainy Night In Georgia". The rest of the Top 10: the Tee Set and "Ma Belle Amie", Chairmen of the Board were at 6 with "Give Me Just A Little More Time", "Thank You" from Sly & the Family Stone, Eddie Holman dropped with "Hey There Lonely Girl", the Hollies edged up with "He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother" and Santana vaulted up with "Evil Ways".
1972: Linda Jones ("Hypnotized" from 1967) collapsed into a diabetic coma backstage after a performance at the Apollo Theatre in Harlem, New York and died shortly afterwards.
1980: Quincy Jones received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
1981: Eric Clapton had bleeding ulcers and was admitted to United Hospital in St. Paul, Minnesota.
1981: Yarbrough & People reigned for the third week on the R&B chart with "Don't Stop The Music".
1981: Barbra Streisand & Barry Gibb rose to #1 on the Adult Contemporary chart with their duet--"What Kind Of Fool".
Blondie had one of the first (and one of the only good) rap songs...
1982: Metallica made their live debut at Radio City in Anaheim, California.
1983: Jon Bon Jovi, Richie Sambora and Alec John Such formed the group Bon Jovi.
1984: Rainbow played live for the last time at the Budokan in Japan.
1987: The Very Best of Hot Chocolate rose to the top of the U.K. Album chart.
1987: Janet Jackson moved to #1 on the R&B chart with "Let's Wait Awhile".
1987: Huey Lewis & the News scored their third career #1 with "Jacob's Ladder", although stations that didn't have "I Want a New Drug" at #1 in 1984 missed the boat. Starship had a big comeback going as "Nothing's Gonna' Stop Us Now" entered the Top 10.
1988: Johnny Hates Jazz released the single "Shattered Dreams" in the United States.
1990: Heart released the single "All I Wanna' Do Is Make Love To You".
1990: Michael Jackson received the Artist of the Decade honor at the Soul Train Awards.
1991: Doc Pomus, who wrote several hits with Mort Shuman including "This Magic Moment" for the Drifters, died of lung cancer at the age of 65 in New York City.
1992: R. Kelly first appeared on the chart with his first single "She's Got That Vibe".
1992: Forty-thousand people attended Farm Aid in Irving, Texas. It was the fifth annual event and featured Paul Simon, John Mellencamp, Neil Young and Willie Nelson.
1988: Johnny Hates Jazz released the single "Shattered Dreams" in the United States.
1990: Heart released the single "All I Wanna' Do Is Make Love To You".
1990: Michael Jackson received the Artist of the Decade honor at the Soul Train Awards.
1991: Doc Pomus, who wrote several hits with Mort Shuman including "This Magic Moment" for the Drifters, died of lung cancer at the age of 65 in New York City.
1992: R. Kelly first appeared on the chart with his first single "She's Got That Vibe".
1992: Forty-thousand people attended Farm Aid in Irving, Texas. It was the fifth annual event and featured Paul Simon, John Mellencamp, Neil Young and Willie Nelson.
1992: Mr. Big had the #1 song for a third week with "To Be With You".
1992: Garth Brooks once again ruled the Album chart for a 16th week with Ropin' the Wind.
1998: Celine Dion returned to #1 in the U.K. with "My Heart Will Go On".
1998: Will Smith had the #1 song in the United States of America with "Gettin' Jiggy Wit It".
1998: The Soundtrack to "Titanic" was #1 on the Album chart for the eighth week.
2002: Alicia Keys played a show at a suite in the House of Commons in London.
1992: Garth Brooks once again ruled the Album chart for a 16th week with Ropin' the Wind.
1998: Celine Dion returned to #1 in the U.K. with "My Heart Will Go On".
1998: Will Smith had the #1 song in the United States of America with "Gettin' Jiggy Wit It".
1998: The Soundtrack to "Titanic" was #1 on the Album chart for the eighth week.
2002: Alicia Keys played a show at a suite in the House of Commons in London.
2005: The Cars announced they were reforming with Todd Rundgren as their lead vocalist instead of Ric Ocasek.
2005: U2 and frankly several other artists who don't belong in a "hall of fame" were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame at a ceremony in New York City. Since the Hall has poisoned themselves, it's time for a legitimate Rock Era Hall of Fame.
2008: Peter MacBeth, formerly bassist with the Foundations ("Build Me Up Buttercup", was jailed for child sex offenses.
2011: James Taylor broke a leg and injured his shoulder while skiing in Park City, Utah.
2011: Ronnie Hammond, lead singer of the Atlanta Rhythm Section, died of a heart attack in Forsyth, Georgia at the age of 60.
Born This Day:
1922: Les Baxter, who had one of the big early Rock Era hits--"Poor People Of Paris", was born in Mexia, Texas; died January 15, 1996 of a massive heart attack in Newport Beach, California. (Note: Some websites claim the cause of death was "heart and kidney problems". 'Allmusic.com reports that Baxter died in Palm Springs, California. More credible sources, such as the books 'American Big Bands' by William F. Lee, and 'Billboard Book of Number One Hits' by Fred Bronson, state that Baxter died of a heart attack in Newport Beach.)1926: Phil Phillips ("Sea Of Love" from 1959) was born in Lake Charles, Louisiana.
1933: Quincy Jones, arranger for Frank Sinatra, award-winning producer for Michael Jackson and others, conductor, arranger and trumpeter, was born in Chicago, Illinois.
1943: Jim Pons, bassist of the Turtles and Mothers of Invention, was born in Santa Monica, California.
1945: Walter Parazaider, saxophone player for Chicago, was born in Chicago, Illinois.
1945: James O'Rourke, guitarist and singer with John Fred & His Playboy Band ("Judy In Disguise (With Glasses)").
1945: Michael Murphey, who gave us the classic "Wildfire" in 1975, was born in Dallas, Texas.
1950: Rick Dees, famous disc jockey for KIIS-FM in Los Angeles who had the hit "Disco Duck" in 1976, was born in Jacksonville, Florida.
1969: Michael Bland, drummer for Prince who has also worked for Soul Asylum, was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
1970: Kristian Bush of Sugarland was born in Knoxville, Tennessee.
1983: Taylor Hanson of Hanson was born in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
1989: Colby O'Donis ("Just Dance" with Lady GaGa) was born in Queens, New York.
2005: U2 and frankly several other artists who don't belong in a "hall of fame" were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame at a ceremony in New York City. Since the Hall has poisoned themselves, it's time for a legitimate Rock Era Hall of Fame.
2008: Peter MacBeth, formerly bassist with the Foundations ("Build Me Up Buttercup", was jailed for child sex offenses.
2011: James Taylor broke a leg and injured his shoulder while skiing in Park City, Utah.
2011: Ronnie Hammond, lead singer of the Atlanta Rhythm Section, died of a heart attack in Forsyth, Georgia at the age of 60.
1922: Les Baxter, who had one of the big early Rock Era hits--"Poor People Of Paris", was born in Mexia, Texas; died January 15, 1996 of a massive heart attack in Newport Beach, California. (Note: Some websites claim the cause of death was "heart and kidney problems". 'Allmusic.com reports that Baxter died in Palm Springs, California. More credible sources, such as the books 'American Big Bands' by William F. Lee, and 'Billboard Book of Number One Hits' by Fred Bronson, state that Baxter died of a heart attack in Newport Beach.)1926: Phil Phillips ("Sea Of Love" from 1959) was born in Lake Charles, Louisiana.
1933: Quincy Jones, arranger for Frank Sinatra, award-winning producer for Michael Jackson and others, conductor, arranger and trumpeter, was born in Chicago, Illinois.
1943: Jim Pons, bassist of the Turtles and Mothers of Invention, was born in Santa Monica, California.
1945: Walter Parazaider, saxophone player for Chicago, was born in Chicago, Illinois.
1945: James O'Rourke, guitarist and singer with John Fred & His Playboy Band ("Judy In Disguise (With Glasses)").
1945: Michael Murphey, who gave us the classic "Wildfire" in 1975, was born in Dallas, Texas.
1950: Rick Dees, famous disc jockey for KIIS-FM in Los Angeles who had the hit "Disco Duck" in 1976, was born in Jacksonville, Florida.
1969: Michael Bland, drummer for Prince who has also worked for Soul Asylum, was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
1970: Kristian Bush of Sugarland was born in Knoxville, Tennessee.
1983: Taylor Hanson of Hanson was born in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
1989: Colby O'Donis ("Just Dance" with Lady GaGa) was born in Queens, New York.
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