Saturday, July 21, 2012

This Date in Rock Music History: July 22

1963:  The Beatles released their first album Introducing the Beatles, the group's first U.S. album.




1963:  The Angels released "My Boyfriend's Back".
1963:  The Beatles began their tour of the U.K. with Gerry and the Pacemakers at Odeon Cinema in Weston-super-Mare, England.
1967:  Quicksilver Messenger Service and Big Brother & the Holding Company were at the Convention Hall of San Diego, California.
1967:  The Doors made their national television debut performing "Light My Fire" on American Bandstand.
1967:  Petula Clark's "Don't Sleep In The Subway" was #1 for a second week on the Adult chart.

1967:  The Bee Gees had the fastest-rising song on this date--79 to 42, with "To Love Somebody".
1971:  John Lennon and Yoko Ono began recording the promotional film for the song "Imagine".









1971:  Stevie Wonder released the single "If You Really Love Me".
 













1972:  The Carpenters moved from 68 to 38 with "Goodbye to Love".
1973:  Van Morrison performed at the Birmingham Town Hall in England.












1972:  "Where Is The Love" by Roberta Flack & Donny Hathaway was the new #1 song on the Adult chart.
1975:  The Eagles and Dan Fogelberg were in concert at Richfield Coliseum in Cleveland, Ohio.
1977:  Elvis Costello released his debut album My Aim Is True in the U.K.  He would wait until December to released the album in the United States.










1977:  Tony Orlando announced his retirement from show business while on stage in Cohasset, Massachusetts.
1978:  Cheap Trick debuted on the chart with their first hit "Surrender".
1978:  Roberta Flack topped the Adult Contemporary chart for the third week with "If Ever I See You Again".










   
                    "Spellbinder", one of the top tracks on 'Double Vision'...


1978:  The album Some Girls by the Rolling Stones topped the chart, but the Soundtrack to "Grease" moved from 8-2.  Gerry Rafferty was at 3 with City to City while Bob Seger was moving up with Stranger in Town.  The rest of the Top 10:  The Commodores with Natural High, Darkness on the Edge of Town from Bruce Springsteen was stuck at 6, Andy Gibb's Shadow Dancing was at #7, the Soundtrack to "Saturday Night Fever" was at 8 after 35 weeks, Foreigner moved into the Top 10 with their second album Double Vision and the Soundtrack to "Thank God It's Friday" was at #10.  





      
    "Grease" was hot in the summer of 1978 and for years afterward...


1978:  It was an outstanding Top 10--"Shadow Dancing" by Andy Gibb prevailed for a sixth week at #1, out-dueling "Baker Street" by Gerry Rafferty for the fifth week.  "Miss You", the Rolling Stones' disco hit, was up to #3 while Bob Seger moved up with "Still The Same".  The rest of the Top 10:  Donna Summer moved from 10 to 5 with "Last Dance", "Grease" was the word for Frankie Valli as he entered the Top 10, Heatwave had a hit with "The Groove Line", the O'Jays were on their way down with "Use Ta Be My Girl" as was ABBA's "Take A Chance On Me" at #9 and the Commodores raced up from 21 to 10 with "Three Times A Lady".
1979:  Little Richard, known by then as Reverend Richard Penniman, warned his congregation in North Richmond, California about the evils of rock & roll music.  He certainly would know about them having been on the inside.
1980:  A reunited Allman Brothers Band signed with Arista Records.
1983:  Making good on a promise, Diana Ross performed in front of several hundred thousand fans in New York City's Central Park.  She had performed the night before, but driving rain, wind and lightning forced her to cut the concert short and she told fans she would be back the next night.
1985:  The album Like a Virgin became the first album by a female artist to reach five million in sales.  (Some websites say that the album hit five million on August 10.  This is incorrect.  According to the official website of the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), 'Like a Virgin' was certified as a five-million seller on July 22.)
1989:  Simply Red rose to the top of the U.K. Album chart with A New Flame.












1989:  "Toy Soldiers" by Martika was #1 with Madonna's Express Yourself" remaining at #2.  Simply Red fell from #1 with "If You Don't Know Me By Now".
1989:  The great album Repeat Offender by Richard Marx moved into the Top 10.
2001:  Destiny's Child regained the #1 spot in the U.K. with their album Survivor.
















2003:  Coldplay were in concert for the second night at the Horden Pavilion in Sydney, Australia.
2004:  Arthur Crier, singer, songwriter and producer with The Four Tops, the Temptations, the Coasters, Little Eva, Johnny Nash and Ben E. King, died of heart failure at the age of 69 in Warsaw, North Carolina.
2004:  In today's episode of "Inmates Run Rap Music", C-Murder was indicted on charges of attempted second degree murder in Louisiana.  The person with no morals shot a Baton Rouge nightclub owner in 2001 and with any luck, that rap star will spend the rest of his life as an inmate.
2005:  John Densmore, drummer of the Doors, won a court ruling that prevented the other two surviving members, Ray Manzarek and Robby Krieger, from using the group's name as part of their show called "The Doors of the 21st Century".  
2005:  Eugene Record of the Chi-Lites died of cancer in Chicago, Illinois at the age of 64.
2006:  Johnny Cash had a posthumous #1 album with American V:  A Hundred Highways.
2007:  Paul Potts had the top U.K. album with One Chance.
2007:  We have a Part Two in our continuing series on "Dangerous Inmates Run Rap Music".  Ja Rule and Lil Wayne were arrested after a concert in Manhattan for carrying illegal firearms.
2009:  The Eagles performed at the Pavilhão Atlântico in Lisbon, Portugal.


Born This Day:
1924:  Margaret Whiting ("The Money Tree" from 1956) was born in Detroit, Michigan; died January 10, 2011 in Englewood, New Jersey.
1937:  Chuck Jackson ("Any Day Now" from 1962) was born in Latta, South Carolina.
1940:  George Clinton, leader of both Parliament and Funkadelic, was born in Kannapolis, North Carolina.
1941:  Thomas Wayne ("Tragedy" from 1959) was born in Batesville, Mississippi; died in a car accident at the age of 30 on August 15, 1971.

1943:  Bobby Sherman was born in Santa Monica, California.














1944:  Rick Davies, singer/songwriter/keyboardist and founder of Supertramp, was born in Swindon, Wiltshire, England.
1944:  Estelle Bennett of the Ronettes; died of colon cancer at her home in Englewood, New Jersey February 11, 2009.









1947:  Don Henley, founder, drummer, elite songwriter and co-lead singer of the Eagles, and a solo star, was born in Gilmer, Texas.
1961:  Keith Sweat was born in Manhattan, New York.  (Note:  several websites say Sweat was born in Harlem, New York.  Harlem is a neighborhood, not a city, and will never be included on an official birth certificate.  Cities, counties and states are the only locations listed on a birth certificate, and Keith's says he was born in Manhattan.)
1963:  Emily Sailers of the Indigo Girls was born in New Haven, Connecticut.
1964:  William Calhoun, drummer of Living Colour, was born in the Bronx, New York.  (Note:  Wikipedia reports Calhoun was born in Brooklyn.  'Drummerzone.com' states he was born in the Bronx.  The scale tilts towards Brooklyn in this case.)
1967:  Pat Badger, bass guitarist of Extreme, was born in Boston, Massachusetts.
1973:  Daniel Jones, vocalist and songwriter of Savage Garden and now a record producer, was born in Southend-on-Sea, Essex, England.
1973:  Rufus Wainwright, son of Loudon Wainwright III, was born in Rhinebeck, New York.

Friday, July 20, 2012

This Date in Rock Music History: July 21

1960:  Brian Hyland was the guest on the popular CBS television show To Tell the Truth.
1961:  The Everly Brothers reached #1 with "Temptation" in the U.K.

1962:  Bobby Vinton's "Roses Are Red" was the #1 song, followed by "The Wah Watusi" from the Orlons and the former #1 "I Can't Stop Loving You" from Ray Charles.













 
1965:  Barry McGuire released the single "Eve Of Destruction".
1965:  Sonny & Cher appeared in concert at The Power House in San Diego, California.
1967:  The Jimi Hendrix Experience played the first of three nights at the Café au -GoGo in New York City.
1969:  The Beatles began working on "Come Together" at Abbey Road Studios in London.
1973:  Canned Heat, Chuck Berry and Nazareth were among the acts at the Buxton Festival at the Booth Farm in Derbyshire, England.
1973:  Detroit, Michigan declared it "Mary Wilson & the Supremes Day".
1973:  The Carpenters made it three weeks in a row at #1 on the Adult Contemporary chart with "Yesterday Once More".








1973:  Jim Croce scored his first #1 song with "Bad, Bad Leroy Brown".  Billy Preston fell with "Will It Go 'Round In Circles" and the Carpenters had their 13th hit in four years ("Yesterday Once More"), with all but three of those going Top 10.  Three Dog Night's classic "Shambala" was at #4 and Paul Simon's "Kodachrome" was at 5.  The rest of the Top 10:  George Harrison with "Give Me Love (Give Me Peace On Earth)", Deep Purple with "Smoke On The Water", Bette Midler blasted into the Top 10 with "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy", Clint Holmes with "Playground In My Mind" and Bloodstone placed "Natural High" at #10.
1976:  The Eagles performed at the Center & Exhibition Hall in Louisville, Kentucky.
1977:  The Rolling Stones were joined onstage at the Tucson Community Center by Linda Ronstadt in her hometown of Tucson, Arizona, for "Tumbling Dice", which Ronstadt remade for her Simple Dreams album.
1979:  Tubeway Army owned the top U.K. album with Replicas.
1979:  "Bad Girls" by Donna Summer took over at #1 on the 
R&B chart.







1979:  Earth, Wind & Fire were exploding up the chart (68-46) with "After the Love Has Gone".
1980:  The Thompson Twins appeared at Hope & Anchor in London.
1980:  Keith Godchaux of Grateful Dead was critically injured in a car accident in Marin County, California, and lost his life two days later. 
1982:  Queen played at the Forum in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. 
1984:  Prince registered his fourth week at #1 on the R&B chart with "When Doves Cry". 
1984:  Born in the U.S.A. by Bruce Springsteen once again ruled the Album chart with Huey Lewis & the News trailing with Sports.  Prince moved up from 11 to 3 with Purple Rain while the Cars' great album Heartbeat City was at #4. 





           
                                                 Billy Idol was in the Top 5...

1984:  Prince made it three weeks in a row at #1 with "When Doves Cry", one of The Top 500 Songs of the Rock Era*.  Bruce Springsteen was stuck at 2 with "Dancing In The Dark" while Ray Parker, Jr. moved from 8 to 3 with "Ghostbusters".  Billy Idol had a huge hit at #4--"Eyes Without A Face".  The rest of the Top 10:  the Pointer Sisters with "Jump (For My Love)", the Jacksons moved into the Top 10 with "State Of Shock", Ann Wilson & Mike Reno were still at 7 with "Almost Paradise", ZZ Top was up to 8 with "Legs", Elton John moved from 16-9 with his 38th career hit "Sad Songs (Say So Much)" and Rod Stewart was right behind with "Infatuation".  
1987:  Guns n' Roses released their debut album Appetite for Destruction on Geffen Records.
1989:  UHF, the first movie starring Weird Al Yankovic, opened in theaters.
1990:  Roger Waters organized a production of "The Wall" at Potsdamer Platz (the Berlin Wall) in Germany.  Bryan Adams, Phil Collins, Cyndi Lauper, Van Morrison and Sinead O'Connor helped out in the benefit show.



     
                                                      Idol rocked 'em good..

1990:  Glenn Medeiros and Bobby Brown moved to #1 with "She Ain't Worth It" while En Vogue moved to challenge with "Hold On".  Billy Idol was at 3 with "Cradle Of Love".  Johnny Gill moved to #4 with "Rub You The Right Way" and Mariah Carey's first release "Vision Of Love" climbed from 14 to 5.
1990:  Lisa Stansfield had the #1 R&B song with "You Can't Deny It".
1995:  MC Hammer and his wife celebrated the birth of their third child.
1996:  Kim Thayil of Soundgarden was arrested for hitting a fan who was trying to take his picture at a hotel in Rockingham, North Carolina.  Man, it must be fun to be a fan of that group.
1996:  The Eagles were in concert at the Maritime Museum in Stockholm, Sweden.
1996:  Alanis Morissette's album Jagged Little Pill returned to #1 in the U.K.
1998:  Scott Weiland of Stone Temple Pilots was arrested in Los Angeles on a felony warrant.  Weiland was a no-show at a July 9 court ate.
1999:  MP3.com sold stock in an initial public offering.  The stock made spokeswoman Alanis Morissette worth $42 million.  The stock more than doubled on its first day of trading.
2001:  Madonna went out on tour for the first time in eight years, performing at the First Union Center in Philadelphia, 
Pennsylvania.
 
  2002:  Famed producer Gus Dudgeon, who worked with Elton John, the Beach Boys, David Bowie, Kiki Dee, XTC and Joan Armatrading, died in a car accident near Reading, Berkshire, England.  Dudgeon was 59.
2003:  Iron Maiden and Motorhead performed at Centrum Centre in Worcester, Massachusetts.
2003:  Coldplay performed the second of two concerts at the Hordern Pavilion in Sydney, Australia.  The recorded show would soon be their 
live CD and DVD.
2005:  Ashanti was found guilty of breach of contract and thus owed producer Genard Parker $630,000.  She promised Parker he could produce two songs on her debut if he released her from an earlier contract and then reneged.  The great thing about courts is that they hold you to your word even if you're not brought up to hold yourself to your
word.







 
2005:  Mariah Carey had her biggest hit in over a decade with "We Belong Together", which remained at #1 for the 
fourth week.












2005:  Long John Baldry of Blues Incorporated, intertwined with so many other artists in rock's beginnings in England, died in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada at the age of 64 after battling a chest infection for four months.  Baldry discovered both Rod Stewart and Elton John.
2006:  Herb Kalin of the Kalin Twins ("When" from 1958) died of a heart attack at the age of 72 in Waldorf, Maryland.
 2007:  Nancy Sinatra was given the Excellence in Arts award by the Vietnam Veterans of America at their national convention in Springfield, Illinois.
2008:  The Eagles were in concert at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto, Ontario.
2008:  The Police performed the first of two concerts at Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Morrison, Colorado.

Born This Day:
 
1922:  Kay Starr, who gave us one of the great songs of the Rock Era ("Rock And Roll Waltz", a #1 song for six weeks in 1955), was born in Dougherty, Oklahoma.
1931:  Plas Johnson, studio saxophone player on hits such as "The Pink Panther Theme" by Henry Mancini, "The Great Pretender" by the Platters, "Purple People Eater" by Sheb Wooley and "My Special Angel" by Bobby Helms, was born in Donaldsonville, Louisiana.
1939:  Kim Fowley, singer and producer who produced the song "Alley-Oop" and worked with the Beach Boys, Frank Zappa, Slade, and the Runaways, was born in Los Angeles; died January 15, 2015 of bladder cancer in Hollywood, California.
1946:  Barry Whitwam, drummer of Herman's Hermits, was born in Manchester, England.
1947:  Rosie Hamlin of Rosie & the Originals ("Angel Baby", a #5 hit in 1960 that Hamlin wrote at the age of 14) was born in Klamath Falls, Oregon.  (Note:  some websites insist Rosie was born in San Diego, California.  Rosie and her family did not move to San Diego until she was 11--she was born in Klamath Falls, according to her official website.)
 
1948:  Cat Stevens was born in London.
1953:  Eric Bazilian, singer/songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, arranger and producer of the Hooters, was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
1955:  Howie Epstein, bass guitarist of the Heartbreakers, was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin; died February 23, 2003 from drugs in Santa Fe, New Mexico.
1955:  Taco (last name Ockerse--"Puttin' On The Ritz" from 1983) was born in Jakarta, Indonesia.
1961:  Jim Martin, guitarist of Faith No More, was born in Oakland, California.
1969:  Emerson Hart, lead singer and songwriter of Tonic, was born in Washington, Pennsylvania.  ('Billboard', 'Allmusic.com', and several other websites claim he was born in South Orange, New Jersey.  According to the newspaper 'News-Times' in Connecticut, Hart was born in Washington, Pennsylvania and grew up in New Jersey.)
1981:  Blake Lewis ("How Many Words") was born in Redmond, Washington.

Thursday, July 19, 2012

This Date in Rock Music History: July 20

1954:  Elvis Presley, with Scotty Moore and Bill Black as the Blue Moon Boys, gave his first concert in the flat bed of a truck in Memphis, Tennessee.


1959:  Lloyd Price scored another week at #1 on the R&B chart, his fourth, with "Personality".
1963:  The Beatles performed at the Ritz Ballroom in Rhyl, North Wales.
1963:  The Rolling Stones got down at the Wisbech Corn Exchange in Wisbech, Cambridgeshire, England.









1963:  The Essex had the top R&B song with "Easier Said Than Done". 
1965:  Bob Dylan released the single "Like A Rolling Stone". Bob's still a little hesitant about having his music played on this new thing we call the Internet, so we'll honor his request about not having his song played.
1965:  Frank Sinatra left his handprints in front of Grauman's Chinese Theater in Hollywood to promote his new film Von Ryan's Express, which opened the following day. 
1968:  Jane Asher announced that Paul McCartney broke off their engagement.







 
                           Mason Williams was going somewhere in a hurry on the chart...

1968:  "Grazing In The Grass" by Hugh Masekela became the new #1 song.  Gary Puckett (from Twin Falls, Idaho) and the Union Gap rose to #2 with their latest "Lady Willpower" while the Rolling Stones remained at 3 with "Jumpin' Jack Flash".  Herb Alpert fell from #1 with "This Guy's In Love With You".  The rest of the Top 10:  Cliff Nobles & Company fell from 2-5 with "The Horse", the 5th Dimension with "Stoned Soul Picnic", Donovan was the first of three strong movers (12-7) with "Hurdy Gurdy Man", Mason Williams moved from 29 to 8 with "Classical Gas", the Doors climbed from 22-9 with "Hello, I Love You" and the Cowsills remained at 10 with "Indian Lake".  Three instrumentals are part of the Top 10 on this date; it is one of the only times in the Rock Era that this occurred.
1969:  Roy Hamilton, one of several artists who had a hit with "Unchained Melody", died after suffering a stroke at the age of 40 in New Rochelle, New York.
1970:  The Carpenters were guest bachelor and bachelorette on the ABC television show The  Dating Game.









1971:  The Carpenters premiered their NBC television summer series Make Your Own Kind of Music, with guests Herb Alpert and Mark Lindsay, the lead singer of Paul Revere & the Raiders from Boise, Idaho.
1974:  Drummer Joey Ramone became the lead singer for the Ramones.
1974:  The Doobie Brothers, Van Morrison and the Allman Brothers performed at the Knebworth Festival at Knebworth Park (on the grounds of the Knebworth House) in Knebworth, Hertfordshire, England (about 29 miles (47 kilometers) north of London).
1974:  George McCrae and Rufus were on American 
Bandstand.






 
1974:  John Denver captured the #1 spot on the Adult Contemporary chart for the third week with "Annie's Song". 







 

1974:  George McCrae remained at the #1 slot with "Rock Your Baby", a song that would go on to sell 11 million copies--the top-selling song of the 70's!  "Annie's Song" by John Denver was #2 while the Righteous Brothers made their move (10-3) with "Rock And Roll Heaven", their 19th hit and sixth Top 10.  Elton John was up to 4 with "Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me".  The rest of the Top 10:  "On And On" from Gladys Knight & the Pips, Steely Dan had a winner with "Rikki Don't Lose That Number", up 13 to 7, Anne Murray remained at 8 with "You Won't See Me", the Hollies were at 9 with "The Air That I Breathe" and Olivia Newton-John reached the Top 10 for the second time in her career with "If You Love Me 
(Let Me Know)".
1975:  The Rolling Stones were in concert at Hughes Stadium in Fort Collins, Colorado, where Elton John joined them onstage.  (Note:  several websites erroneously say the concert was in Denver, Colorado, and some say it was on July 19, but it was in Fort Collins on July 20, according to the newspaper 'The Fort Collins Coloradoan'.)
 
1975:  Steven Van Zandt performed in concert for the first time as one of the members of Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band at the Palace Theatre in Providence, Rhode Island.
1976:  The Eagles were at Olympic Stadium in Detroit, Michigan.
1977:  Gary Kellgren, famous engineer, drowned in a swimming pool at age 38 in Hollywood, California.  Kellgren worked on Jimi Hendrix's album Electric Ladyland, albums by John Lennon, George Harrison and Barbra Streisand, and was the operator of the Record Plant studio in Los Angeles.















1979:  ELO released what would turn out to be the biggest hit of their career--"Don't Bring Me Down".   ELO purchased advertisements in several trade papers dedicating the release of "Don't Bring Me Down" to the NASA space station Skylab, which re-entered the Earth's atmosphere over Australia and the Indian Ocean on July 11.   (Note:  some websites report that the group released the song on July 21.  While there are no credible sources for either date, it is highly likely and makes the most sense that the group timed the advertisements to run the day that the single was released to radio stations.)



1979:  Herb Alpert released the single "Rise".
1985:  DeBarge completed the climb to #1 on the AC chart with "Who's  Holding Donna Now".











1985:  Songs from the Big Chair by Tears for Fears was #1 again on the Album chart with No Jacket Required from Phil Collins still at #2.  Bryan Adams was at #3 in his 35th week with the great album Reckless.  Prince & the Revolution held down #4 with Around the World in a Day and Bruce Springsteen's album Born in the U.S.A. was at #5 after 57 weeks.  The rest of the Top 10:  The Soundtrack to "Beverly Hills Cop", The Power Station at 7 with their self-titled album, Madonna was at #8 with Like a Virgin, the Eurythmics found their album Be Yourself Tonight at #9 and Ratt finished the list with Invasion of Your Privacy. 
1986:  Carlos Santana played a concert with the original members of his band on his 39th birthday. 
1987:  Prince completed work on his third movie, Sign O' the Times in Minneapolis, Minnesota. 
1990:  Madonna played at Wembley Stadium in
London, the first of three nights at Wembley.





           
                                              "Right Now" from Van Halen...


1991:  Van Halen remained at #1 on the Album chart with For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge but Natalie Cole was challenging with Unforgettable with Love.  Skid Row fell with Slave to the Grind and Paula Abdul was at 4 with Spellbound.  The rest of the Top 10:  Gonna' Make You Sweat from C + C Music Factory, Luck of the Draw by Bonnie Raitt, the Soundtrack to "Robin Hood:  Prince of Thieves" debuted at #7, R.E.M. was at #8 with their album Out of Time, EFIL4ZAGGIN by N.W.A. was #9 and Garth Brooks was still in the Top 10 after 44 weeks with No Fences.








1991:  EMF reached #1 in their 15th week of release with "Unbelievable". 
1991:  Paula Abdul made it four weeks in a row at #1 on the Adult Contemporary chart with "Rush Rush".
1996:  Kim Thayil of Soundgarden was arrested for assault. 
1996:  Gary Barlow had the #1 song in the U.K. with "Forever Love". 
1999:  The Rolling Stones reported an income of $337 million for two years of touring. 
2005:  R. Kelly had the top album with TP.3 Reloaded. 
2015:  Wayne Carson, songwriter of 2 of The Top 500 Songs of the Rock Era*--"The Letter" by the Box Tops and "Always On My Mind" by Willie Nelson, died Monday at the age of 72.  Carson also produced, and played piano, guitar, bass, and percussion.  In addition to the two monster hits listed above, he wrote "Soul Deep" for the Box Tops and also worked with Brenda Lee, Glen Campbell, Alabama, B.J. Thomas, the Pet Shop Boys, and Ike & Tina Turner, just to name a few.



Born This Day:
1933:  Buddy Knox ("Party Doll" in 1957) was born in Happy, Texas; died February 14, 1999 of lung cancer in Bremerton, Washington.


 Dennis Yost
1943:  Dennis Yost, the great lead singer of the Classics IV, was born in Detroit, Michigan; died December 7, 2008 of respiratory failure (had been hospitalized since December of
2006 with a brain injury). 









1945:  John Lodge, bassist, singer and songwriter for the Moody Blues, was born in Birmingham, Warwickshire, England.  (Note:  some websites claim Lodge was born in Erdington, Birmingham, England.  Erdington is a suburb of Birmingham, but Lodge states that he was born in Birmingham on his official website.  In 1945, when John was born, Birmingham was part of the county of Warwickshire.) 











1946:  Kim Carnes was born in Los Angeles.











1947:  Carlos Santana was born in Autlán de Navarro, Mexico.
1952:  Jay Jay French, guitarist of Twisted Sister, was born in New York City.
1956:  Paul Cook, drummer of the Sex Pistols and later producer of Bananarama, was born in London.
1957:  Merlina DeFranco, drummer with the DeFranco Family
1958:  Michael MacNeil, keyboardist and songwriter of Simple Minds, was born in Isle of Barra, Scotland.
1962:  Dig Wayne (real name Timothy Ball) of the JoBoxers, was born in Cambridge, Ohio. 
1964:  Chris Cornell, lead singer for Soundgarden and Audioslave, was born in Seattle, Washington.
1966:  Stone Gossard, rhythm guitarist of Pearl Jam, was born in Seattle, Washington.
1972:  Vitamin C (real name Colleen Ann Fitzpatrick), who had the hit "Graduation (Friends Forever)", was born in Old Bridge Township, New Jersey.
1978:  Elliott Yamin, former "American Idol" contestant ("Wait For You"), was born in Los Angeles .

Wednesday, July 18, 2012

This Date in Rock Music History: July 19

Elvis Presley That's All Right Original 45 Record
1954:  Elvis Presley released his first single on Sun Records--"That's All Right".
1957:  Bobby Darin, Andy Williams, Chuck Berry and Frankie Lymon performed on Alan Freed's television show The Big Beat on ABC.
1958:  Manager George Treadwell fired all of the original Drifters and inserted the Five Crowns in their place.
1960:  Brian Hyland sang "Itsy Bitsy Teeny Weeny Yellow Polka Dot Bikini" on the popular television show American Bandstand








1963:  Frank Ifield enjoyed another #1 in the U.K. with "Confessin'".
1964:  The Rolling Stones performed at the Hippodrome in Brighton, England.











1965:  The Beatles released the single "Help" in the United States.
1966:  Frank Sinatra, age 50, married Mia Farrow, 21 years old.  Hey, she was legal.
1967:  Elvis Presley began work on his 27th movie, Speedway co-starring Nancy Sinatra, at the MGM Soundstage in Hollywood, California.
1967:  The Beatles charted at #1 in the U.K. with "All You Need Is Love".
1968:  Bo Diddley performed at the Hippodrome in San Diego, California.
1969:  The Spencer Davis Group broke up.






1969:  "Marrakesh Express" by Crosby, Stills & Nash debuted on the chart.












1969:  The Soundtrack to "Hair" was #1 on the Album chart in its 51st week while another soundtrack--"Romeo & Juliet" was #2.  Blood, Sweat & Tears had the #3 album, followed by The Age of Aquarius from the 5th Dimension.  The rest of the Top 10:  This is Tom Jones, A Warm Shade of Ivory by Henry Mancini & His Orchestra, Tommy from the Who at #7, Bob Dylan's Nashville Skyline coming in at #8, In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida by Iron Butterfly at #9 and the debut from Crosby, Stills & Nash entered the Top 10 in its fourth week of release.
1969:  Jr. Walker & the All-Stars landed at #1 on the R&B chart with "What Does It Take (To Win Your Love)".
1969:  Henry Mancini's "Love Theme From 'Romeo & Juliet' was number one on the Easy Listening chart for a sixth week.
1972:  Drummer Bill Bruford left Yes to join King Crimson.









1973:  Paul Simon released the single "Loves Me Like A Rock".












1973:  Clarence White, guitarist of the Byrds, was laid to rest.  White had been killed by a drunk driver at the age of 29.
1974:  The Eagles headlined the Ozark Mountain Festival at the Missouri County Fairgrounds in Sedalia, Missouri.  It was probably one of the Top 10 Festivals in history, with over 350,000 people attending.  Among the acts performing over the three days were Aerosmith, Bob Seger & the Silver Bullet Band, America, REO Speedwagon, Bachman-Turner Overdrive, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Boz Scaggs,  Joe Walsh, Blue Oyster Cult, the Charlie Daniels Band, the Marshall Tucker Band, the Ozark Mountain Daredevils, the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Spirit, and the Souther Hillman Furay Band.  
1975:  The Bay City Rollers were on top in the U.K. with "Give A Little Love".
1975:  The Isley Brothers owned the #1 R&B hit with "Fight the Power Part 1".
1975:  Olivia Newton-John's "Please Mr. Please" was the #1 Adult Contemporary song.







 
                                      10cc made a big move on the chart...


1975:  Wings scored at #1 with "Listen to What the Man Said".  Van McCoy remained at 2 with "The Hustle" while the British group 10cc moved from 10-3 with "I'm Not in Love".  The Eagles were racing up as well with "One of These Nights" and Olivia Newton-John moved "Please Mr. Please to #5.  The rest of the Top 10:  "Magic" from Pilot, Frankie Valli at position #7 with "Swearin' To God", the Captain & Tennille took a tumble with their former #1 "Love Will Keep Us Together", the Bee Gees had their 22nd hit and fifth Top 10 with "Jive Talkin'" and Gwen McCrae's "Rockin' Chair" was at #10.
1976:  Deep Purple split up.

















1979:  Michael Jackson released the first single from his new solo album Off the Wall--"Don't Stop ('Til You Get Enough)".
1980:  An art exhibit featuring paintings from Joni Mitchell, John Mayall, Ron Wood of the Rolling Stones and Commander Cody opened at Vorpal Gallery in Laguna Beach, California.
1980:  Queen had the top U.K. album with The Game.










                                             Jermaine had a Top 10 of his own...


1980:  Billy Joel earned his first Gold single--"It's Still Rock And Roll To Me", which also hit #1 on this date.  "Coming Up" from Paul McCartney & Wings slipped to #2 and Elton John had hit #29 with "Little Jeannie".  The Spinners' "Cupid/I've Loved You For A Long Time" was fourth followed by the Manhattans, which rose up from 11 to 5 with the great song "Shining Star".  The rest of the Top 10:  Robbie Dupree's "Steal Away", "Magic" from Olivia, Bette Midler's "The Rose"
at #8, Jermaine Jackson with "Let's Get Serious" and Pure Prairie League at 10 with "Let Me Love You Tonight".
1980:  David Bowie made his theatrical debut as the title character in The Elephant Man at the Denver Center of Performing Arts in Denver, Colorado. 
1980:  Olivia Newton-John rejoiced as "Magic" was the #1 Adult Contemporary hit.
1981:  Odessa, Texas celebrated "Roy Orbison Day", giving Orbison keys to the city.
1986:  The Timex Social Club had the #1 R&B song with "Rumors".





1982:  Monday was the day for new single releases to radio stations and on this day, John Cougar (Mellencamp) released the follow-up to "Hurts So Good"--"Jack & Diane".








1986:  Patti LaBelle registered her only #1 album in Winner in You, toppling Janet Jackson's Control after two weeks.  So from Peter Gabriel, the Soundtrack to "Top Gun" and Invisible Touch by Genesis followed.  The rest of the Top 10:  Billy Ocean's Love Zone, the self-titled Whitney Houston, Like a Rock from Bob Seger & the Silver Bullet Band, The Other Side of Life by the Moody Blues at #9 and 5150 from Van Halen.








1986:  Genesis reached #1 with "Invisible Touch" and former Genesis member Peter Gabriel had #2--"Sledgehammer".  Janet Jackson's "Nasty" held down position #3 while Kenny Loggins was at 4 with "Danger Zone".









1986:  Peter Cetera moved into the #1 slot on the Adult Contemporary chart with "Glory Of Love".
1987:  Bruce Springsteen performed in East Germany in front of 300,000 people.
1989:  James Brown was switched to a medium security cell after $40,000 in cash and checks was discovered in his minimum security cell.
1990 - Vikki Carr opened the ceremonies for dedication of the The Nixon Library. She sang in front of four Presidents, President Nixon, President Ford, President Reagan and President Bush, all which she had performed for at the White House during their terms. Henry Kissinger, Alexander Haig and Gene Autry were also present. 







1991:  A wax effigy of Gloria Estefan was presented at the Movieland Wax Museum in Buena Park, California.













1993:  Billy Joel released the single "River Of Dreams".
1995:  George Nichopoulos, former doctor for Elvis Presley, lost his medical license 19 years after it made any difference to Presley, for being "too liberal" when prescribing addictive drugs.
1997:  Oasis reached #1 on the U.K. chart with "D'You Know What I Mean".
2001:  Soul and gospel singer Judy Clay, who sang with the Sweet Inspirations and worked with Ray Charles, Wilson Pickett, Billy Vera and William Bell, died at the age of 62 in Fayetteville, North Carolina, two weeks after suffering severe injuries in a car accident.
2001:  In today's episode of "Inmates Run Rap Music", Russell Jones, rapper of Wu Tang Clan, was sentenced to 2-4 years behind bars for drug possession.
2005:  James Blunt led the way in the U.K. with "You're Beautiful".
2006:  Thom Yorke debuted at #2 with his solo album The Eraser.
2008:  In today's episode of "Inmates Run Rap Music", DMX was arrested at a mall in Phoenix, Arizona for giving a false name to get out of paying for hospital expenses.  (Note:  some websites, which got their information from a story in the newspaper 'The Los Angeles Times', report that DMX was arrested July 20, 2008.  The common person understands that newspapers report events that happened the previous day, but even if the website owners did not know this, the story says that DMX was arrested Saturday.  Saturday in 2008 was on July 19.) 


Born This Day:
1937:  George Hamilton IV ("A Rose And A Baby Ruth" from 1956) was born in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.
1941:  Vicki Carr ("It Must Be Him") was born in El Paso, Texas.
1944:  George Frayne IV (Commander Cody), who sang and played piano in Commander Cody & His Lost Planet Airmen ("Hot Rod Lincoln") was born in Boise, Idaho.
1946:  Alan Gorrie, guitarist, keyboardist and vocalist of the Average White Band ("Pick Up The Pieces" from 1975), was born in Perth, Scotland.

1947:  Bernie Leadon of the Eagles was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota.







1947:  Brian May, elite guitarist of Queen, was born in Twickenham, England.  (Note:  some websites claim May was born in Twickenham, England.  According to the book 'The Queen Chronology:  The Recording & Release History of Queen' by Patrick Lemieux and Adam Unger, Brian was born in Hampton, Middlesex, England.

1948:  Keith Godchaux, keyboardist of Grateful Dead, was born in San Francisco; died in a car crash in Marin County, California July 23, 1979.  ('Billboard' reports that Godchaux was born in San Francisco, California, 'The American Book of the Dead' by Oliver Trager states that Keith was born in Concord, California, and the book 'The Grateful Dead FAQ:  All That's Left to Know About the Greatest Jam Band...' by Tony Sclafani shows him born in Seattle, Washington.  Our best research indicates that Keith was born in Seattle and moved to Concord, California with his family.)  









1952:  Allen Collins, elite guitarist of Lynyrd Skynyrd and later the Rossington-Collins Band, was born in Jacksonville, Florida; died July 23, 1990 in Jacksonville at the age of 37 from chronic pneumonia resulting from a 1986 alcohol-related car accident in which his girlfriend was killed and Collins was paralyzed from the waist down.
1960:  Kevin Haskins of Love & Rockets was born in Northampton, Northamptonshire, United Kingdom.