This Date in Rock Music History: August 31

1957: Elvis Presley performed at Empire Stadium in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.

1959: Bobby Vee appeared on the music charts for the first time as "Suzie Baby" debuted.

1961:  Ray Charles released the single "Hit The Road Jack".
1963:  Little Stevie Wonder spent a fifth week at #1 on the R&B chart with "Fingertips - Pt. 2".
1963:  Peter, Paul & Mary remained at #1 on the Easy Listening chart with "Blowin' In The Wind".









1963:  The Angels sang that "My Boyfriend's Back", and it took them all the way to #1.  









1964:  J. Frank Wilson released the single "Last Kiss".










1964:  Manfred Mann released their first single "Do Wah Diddy Diddy".
1965:  The Beatles wrapped up their tour of North America with two shows at the Cow Palace in San Francisco, California.  The group performed before 11,700 and 17,000 fans, respectively.
1967:  The Beatles announced that they would manage their own affairs after the death of Brian Epstein.
1968:  Guitarist Danny Kirwan joined Fleetwood Mac.
1968:  Jefferson Airplane, the Move, T. Rex, Fairport Convention and The Crazy World of Arthur Brown performed at the first Isle of Wight Festival in England.
1968:  Mason Williams had the #1 Easy Listening song for the third week--"Classical Gas".
1968:  Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell's partnership paid off as they scored their second #1 R&B song of the year--"You're All I Need to Get By".
1968:  Wheels of Fire by Cream continued to set the pace on the album chart.  Time Peace/The Rascals' Greatest Hits was #2 and the Doors' release Waiting for the Sun was at position #3.  Aretha Now by Aretha Franklin was #4 with Johnny Rivers moving up to 5 with Realization.  Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass had an entry in the Top 10 (which they did nearly ever week of the 60's)--The Beat of the Brass.  The rest of the Top 10:  Bookends, the great album from Simon & Garfunkel was #7, the self-titled Steppenwolf made its way onto the list, Feliciano!  by Jose Feliciano, and Disraeli Gears, another album from Cream, was at #10.
1968:  Jeannie C. Riley's "Harper Valley P.T.A. set a Rock Era record on this date with the biggest jump of all-time, moving from #81 to #7.

1968:  Younger music fans ask why the 60's was such a great decade--show them this Top Five on this date.  All these songs were out at the same time.  The Rascals spent a fourth week at #1 with "People Got to Be Free", Steppenwolf was at #2 with "Born to Be Wild", Jose Feliciano edged up with "Light My Fire", the Doors were at #4 with "Hello, I Love You" and Cream had song #5--"Sunshine of My Love".
1969:  Bob Dylan appeared in concert for the first time since his motorcycle accident in 1966 at the Isle of Wight Pop Festival in England.

1969:  The Chicago Transit Authority, later shortened to Chicago, played for a second day at the Texas International Pop Festival at the Dallas International Motor Speedway.  Led Zeppelin, Santana, Sam & Dave, Delaney, Bonnie & Friends, and The Incredible String Band also performed.  Grand Funk and B.B. King did sets on all three days of the Festival.  Let me get this straight--Led Zeppelin didn't want to do Woodstock because "they would be just another band on the bill", but they did the Texas Pop Festival?   

1970:  R. Dean Taylor released the single "Indiana Wants Me".









1973:  The Rolling Stones released the album Goat's Head Soup.
1974:  The Partridge Family television show ended.
1974:  John Lennon testified in federal court that the Nixon administration tried to have him deported due to his anti-war demonstrations at the 1972 Republican convention in Miami, Florida.
1974:  Roberta Flack held on to #1 on the R&B chart for the fifth straight week with "Feel Like Makin' Love".

1974:  Paul Anka remained at #1 with "(You're) Having My Baby" while Eric Clapton's biggest career hit "I Shot the Sheriff" was at #2.  Rufus was a strong #3 with "Tell Me Something Good" while Paper Lace was down with their former #1 "The Night Chicago Died".  The rest of the Top 10:  Roberta Flack with "Feel Like Makin' Love", Donny & Marie Osmond had song #6--"I'm Leaving It (All) Up to You", Jim Stafford held steady with "Wildwood Weed", Andy Kim's great song "Rock Me Gently" was at #8, Barry White moved up from 15 to 9 with "Can't Get Enough of Your Love, Babe" and Helen Reddy's ninth career hit became her fourth Top 10--"You and Me Against the World".
1976:  A judge handed down his decision that George Harrison was guilty of "unconscious plagiarism" of the Chiffons song "He's So Fine" for his 1970 hit "My Sweet Lord".
1980:  Karen Carpenter married Thomas Burris in Beverly Hills, California.
1983:  Lionel Richie released the single "All Night Long".
1984:  Prince's movie Purple Rain opened in theatres.
1985:  Aretha Franklin made it five weeks at the top of the R&B chart for "Freeway of Love".

 
                       Newcomer Parr made a bid for #1...

1985:  Huey Lewis & the News returned for an encore week at #1 with "The Power of Love" from the movie Back to the Future.  Another movie song, "St. Elmo's Fire (Man in Motion)" from John Parr moved up to challenge while Aretha Franklin made a huge comeback as her 73rd career hit ("Freeway of Love") was her first Top 10 in 12 years.  Tina Turner's "We Don't Need Another Hero" was up to #4 and Bryan Adams was on the move with "Summer of '69".  The rest of the Top 10:  Tears for Fears and "Shout", Canada's Corey Hart with "Never Surrender", Kool & the Gang entered the Top 10 with the classic "Cherish", Billy Joel was up to #9 with his 27th hit "You're Only Human (Second Wind)" and Dire Straits had a hot song at #10--"Money for Nothing".

1987:  Billy Idol released his remake of the great Tommy James & the Shondells song "Mony Mony".
1987:  Michael Jackson released his video "Bad" on CBS-TV.
1987:  The album Bad set a Rock Era record when 2.25 million units were shipped to music stores.
1988:  Julianne Phillips filed for divorce from Bruce Springsteen.
1988:  Bob Seger and wife Annette filed for a divorce.

1989:  The Rolling Stones went on tour for the first time in eight years, performing at John F. Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
1991:  Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat was the #1 album in the U.K.
1991:  It used to be rare but by now it happened all the time as there weren't many great albums.  Metallica debuted at #1 with their self-titled release (commonly called "The Black Album").

1991:  The movie Robin Hood starring Kevin Costner was doing well and so was the song--"(Everything I Do) I Do It For You" by Bryan Adams was #1 for a fifth week on the Adult Contemporary chart.
1991:  Bryan Adams spent a sixth week at #1 with one of The Top 500 Songs of the Rock Era*--"(Everything I Do) I Do It For You".  Roxette was up to 2 with "Fading Like a Flower (Every Time You Leave)".  KLF had song #7--"3 A.M. Eternal" and the Scorpions were singing about a "Wind of Change" at #4.  The rest of the Top 10:  Paula Abdul's "The Promise of a New Day", Amy Grant was on her way down with the former #1 "Every Heartbeat", Hi-Five was up to 8 with "I Can't Wait Another Minute", Boyz II Men's first single release "Motownphilly" became their first Top 10 and C+C Music Factory entered the Top 10 with "Things That Make You Go Hmmmm".

1996:  "Macarena" by Los Del Rio had been out for 37 weeks, but it was just getting started, spending a fifth week at #1.  Donna Lewis had a strong #2 with "I Love You Always Forever".
1997:  James Brown became the first American artist to perform in Lebanon.
1997:  Oasis owned the top U.K. album with Be Here Now.
2000:  Harold Lee Clayton, who wrote "Take Your Time (Do It Right)" for the S.O.S. band, was killed in a hit-and-run accident in Los Angeles, California.
2003:  Poison was determined to continue their tour after a fire destroyed their instruments and stage equipment.
2003:  Darkness reached #1 on the U.K. album chart with Permission to Land.
2003:  Elton John had the top song in the U.K. with "Are You Ready for Love".
2004:  Carl Wayne, lead singer of the Move, died at the age of 61 from oesophageal cancer.
2006:  Panic! at the Disco won the Video of the Year at the MTV Video Music Awards for "I Write Sins Not Tragedies".
2008:  The Verve had the #1 album in the U.K. with Forth.



Born This Day:
1939:  Jerry Allison, drummer with the Crickets, was born in Hillsboro, Texas.
1940:  Wilton Felder, founding member, saxophone player and bassist with the Jazz Crusaders (which later became the Crusaders), who also played with the Jackson 5, Marvin Gaye, America, and Seals & Crofts, was born in Houston, Texas.

1945:  Van Morrison was born in Belfast, Northern Ireland.
1948:  Rudolf Schenker, guitarist and founder of the Scorpions, was born in Hannover, Germany.
1957:  Gina Schock, drummer of the Go-Go's, was born in Baltimore, Maryland.
1957:  Glenn Tilbrook of Squeeze ("Tempted" from 1981) was born in London.
1959:  Tony DeFranco of the DeFranco Family ("Heartbeat--It's a Lovebeat" from 1973) was born in Port Colborne, Ontario, Canada.
1963:  Larry Waddell, keyboardist of Mint Condition
1969:  Jeff Russo, founding member, songwriter, guitarist and vocalist with Tonic 

1970:  Debbie Gibson was born in Brooklyn, New York.

Classic Summer Songs: U2--"With Or Without You"

They put out the album of their career in 1987, and from the Summer of that year, U2:

Top Track: "I Cheat The Hangman"

This great song from the Doobie Brothers album Stampede is in the spotlight on Inside The Rock Era.

Top Unknown/Underratefd Song*: ELO's "Sweet Talkin' Woman"

One of ELO's career best apparently wasn't good enough for some radio station program directors.  The scores of unemployed or underemployed and those guys and gals had jobs--the nerve of it all!  (btw, the video featured was the best on YouTube, but unfortunately its author had the title wrong...)

 

"Sweet Talkin' Woman"

ELO

 

Where did you go?

I was searchin' searchin' on a one-way street,
I was hopin' hopin' for a chance to meet.
I was waitin' for the operator on the line.

She's gone so long what can i do?
Where could she be? no no no,
Don't know what i'm gonna do,
I gotta get back to you.

You gotta slow down slow down sweet talkin' woman slow down
You got me runnin' run run you got me searchin'.
Hold on hold on sweet talkin' lover hold on
It's so sad if that's the way it's over.

I was walkin' many days go by,
I was thinkin' thinkin' 'bout the lonely nights.
Communication breakdown all around.

She's gone so long what can i do?
Where could she be? no no no,
Don't know what i'm gonna do,
I gotta get back to you.

You gotta slow down slow down sweet talkin' woman slow down
You got me runnin' run run you got me searchin'.
Hold on hold on sweet talkin' lover hold on
It's so sad if that's the way it's over.

I've been livin' livin' on a dead end street,
I've been askin' askin' kindly everybody i meet.
Insufficient data coming through.

She's gone so long what can i do?
Where could she be? no no no,
Don't know what i'm gonna do,
I gotta get back to you.

Oh, slow down slow down sweet talkin' woman slow down
You got me runnin' run run you got me searchin'.
Hold on hold on sweet talkin' lover hold on
It's so sad if that's the way it's over.

Slow down slow down sweet talkin' woman slow down
You got me runnin', you got me searchin'.
Hold on hold on sweet talkin' lover hold on
It's so sad if that's the way it's over.

Slow down slow down sweet talkin' woman slow down
You got me runnin', you got me searchin'.
Hold on hold on sweet talkin' lover hold on
It's so sad if that's the way it's over. (repeat & fade out)


Classic Summer Songs: Simon & Garfunkel with "Mrs. Robinson"

From the movie The Graduate, Simon & Garfunkel's great Summer Song from 1968:

This Date in Rock Music History: August 30

1959:  Carole King married songwriting partner Gerry Goffin.

1961:  The Paris Sisters released the single "I Love How You Love Me".
1962:  The Beatles played at the Cavern Club in Liverpool, England in the afternoon and then joined Gerry and the Pacemakers at the Riverpark Ballroom in Chester.

1965:  Bob Dylan released the acclaimed album Highway 61 Revisited on Columbia Records.
1965:  The Beatles performed at the Hollywood Bowl in Hollywood, California, their third appearance there, having played August 23, 1964 and the previous night, August 29, 1965. 

1968:  The Byrds released their album Sweetheart of the Rodeo on Columbia Records.  (Note:  some websites report that the album was released July 22.  Johnny Rogan, in his book 'The Byrds:  Timeless Flight Revisited:  The Sequel' , states that the album was released August 30.)
1969:  Chicago (then called Chicago Transit Authority), Canned Heat, Janis Joplin, and Sam & Dave played on the opening day of the three-day Texas International Pop Festival at the Dallas International Speedway in Lewisville, Texas.  Grand Funk Railroad and B.B. King played all three days of the Festival. 
1969:  A crowd of over 150,000 enjoyed the Isle of Wight Festival.  The Moody Blues, the Who, Bob Dylan, the Band, Joe Cocker, Richie Havens, the Nice, Blodwyn Pig, Aynsley Dunbar, Pretty Things and Gypsy were among the performers.
1969:  Zager & Evans reached #1 in the U.K. with "In The Year 2525".























                                                                 The Archies with the #1 bubblegum rock song of all-time...


1969:  The Rolling Stones enjoyed a second week at #1 with "Honky Tonk Women".  Johnny Cash was still at 2 with "A Boy Named Sue" while the Archies moved from 14-3 with "Sugar, Sugar".  Jackie DeShannon was up to #4 with "Put A Little Love In Your Heart".  The rest of an excellent Top 10:  Neil Diamond with "Sweet Caroline", the Youngbloods had song #6 with "Get Together", CCR remained at seven with "Green River", Zager & Evans' former #1 "In The Year 2525" was #8, Bob Dylan achieved his fourth Top 10 record "Lay Lady Lay" (It would be his last) and Tommy James and the Shondell's big hit "Crystal Blue Persuasion" was at #10.
1970:  The Rolling Stones began a European tour at the Baltiska Hallen in Malmö , Sweden.




















1970:  Jimi Hendrix appeared on the final night at the Isle of Wight Pop Festival in England.  It was a star-studded finale that also featured the Moody Blues, Donovan, Jethro Tull, Joan Baez, Free, Leonard Cohen, Pentangle, and Kris Kristofferson (playing a second set at the Festival).  Richie Havens, the artist who opened Woodstock one year earlier, closed the Isle of Wight Festival.  Four-day attendance was estimated at between 600,000 and 700,000, and is cited as the largest crowd ever to attend a rock festival.

1972:  John Lennon and Yoko Ono performed in their "One To One" concert at Madison Square Garden in New York City.  Stevie Wonder, Roberta Flack and Sha Na Na joined them.  Lennon purchased $60,000 worth of tickets to the charity event to give to fund-raisers.
1973:  The Doors officially broke up.

1974:  The Eagles appeared at the Performing Arts Center in Saratoga Springs, New York.




















1975:  Her father had 60 career hits, but on this date Natalie Cole debuted with her first--"This Will Be".
1975:  Rod Stewart earned his fifth #1 album in the U.K. with Atlantic Crossing.
1975:  Hamilton, Joe Frank & Reynolds registered a #1 hit on the Easy Listening chart with "Fallin' in Love".
1975:  John Denver moved from 49 to 20 with "I'm Sorry".

























1975:  K.C. and the Sunshine Band reached #1 with their first release "Get Down Tonight".  Hamilton, Joe Frank & Reynolds fell dropped with "Fallin' In Love" while "Rhinestone Cowboy" by Glen Campbell was #3.  
1975:  Elton John's Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy, the first album to debut at #1, returned to that position after falling the week before.  

1980:  Cher made a surprise appearance with her band Black Rose at a concert in New York City's Central Park.



































1980:  Christopher Cross rode the wind to #1 with "Sailing".  Diana Ross was up to #2 with "Upside Down" while the previous #1 from Olivia Newton-John--"Magic" was third.  

1981:  It was a great conclusion to the annual Reading Rock Festival in the U.K.--.38 Special, the Kinks, the Thompson Twins and Wishbone Ash performed.









1983:  Huey Lewis and the News released the single "Heart And Soul".
1984:  A London auction of Beatles memorabilia at Sotheby's netted over $271 thousand.

1986:  Another great song first hit #1 on this date--"Higher Love" from Steve Winwood.  
1988:  Brenda Lee sued MCA Records for $20 million in unpaid royalties.  It was becoming all too common, as artists discovered, often years later, that their record companies had not been honest with them in reporting record sales.  
1988:  Papa Dee Allen of War died at the age of 57 after suffering a massive heart attack on stage in Solano County, California.
1989:  Billy Joel fired his manager Frank Weber, who was his former brother-in-law also.  An audit revealed serious discrepancies in Weber's work concerning in particular his bookkeeping, and Joel sued him later that year for $90 million.  (Note:  some websites report this happened on August 27.  According to the book 'Billy Joel:  The Life and Times of an Angry Young Man' by Hank Bordowitz, Joel fired Weber on August 30.1991:  Jan Berry of Jan & Dean married Gertie Filip onstage during a concert at the Stardust Convention Center in Las Vegas, Nevada.
1992:  Nirvana headlined the final day of the annual Reading Rock Festival in Reading, England.
1993:  Billy Joel was the first musical guest on the premiere of The Late Show with David Letterman on CBS-TV.
1994:  Usher released his self-titled debut album on LaFace Records.
1995:  James Taylor and Carly Simon (who divorced in 1983) reunited for their first concert together in 16 years at the scenic Martha's Vineyard in Massachusetts.
1999:  R.E.M. was in concert at the Chastain Park Amphitheatre in Atlanta, Georgia.
1999:  The Red Hot Chili Peppers headlined the final day of the Reading Festival in Reading, England.

2003:  Michael Jackson was in concert at the Orpheum Theater in Los Angeles to celebrate his birthday, which was the day before.
2003:  Michael Stipe of R.E.M. joined Radiohead onstage to perform "Karma Police" at Thunderbird Stadium in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
2003:  Blu Cantrell and Sean Paul had the top U.K. song with "Breathe".

2007:  The Meat Loaf documentary In Search of Paradise premiered at the Montreal Film Festival in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.

Born This Day:
1935:  Papa John Phillips was born in Paris Island, South Carolina; died of heart failure in Los Angeles on March 18, 2001.
1941:  John McNally, guitarist and a founding member of the Searchers, was born in Liverpool, Lancashire, England.
1944:  Charles Colbert of the American Breed ('Note:  several websites report that Charles was born in Chicago, Illinois.  According to the book 'Chicago Soul' by Robert Pruter, Colbert was born in Argo.)
1950:  Micky Moody, guitarist of Whitesnake, was born in Middlesbrough, Cleveland, England.  (Note:  some websites naively say Moody was born in Middlesbrough, North Yorkshire, England.  At the time of his birth in 1950, Middlesbrough was in the county of Cleveland.  In fact, Middlesbrough did not become a part of North Yorkshire until 1996, 46 years after he was born, and you will never find North Yorkshire listed as the county of Micky's birth on his official birth certificate.) 
1953:  Horace Panter, bassist of General Public, was born in Croydon, Surrey, England.
1954:  Ronald Beitle, drummer of Wild Cherry
1958:  Martin Jackson, drummer of Swing Out Sister, was born in Manchester, Lancashire, England. 
1963:  Paul Oakenfold was born in London.  (According to his agent, Global Talent Booking, Paul was born in Greenhithe, Kent, England.
1986:  George Ryan Ross III, lead guitarist for Panic!  at the Disco, was born in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Top Concert Facilities: Red Rocks Amphitheatre

Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Red Rocks Park (overlooking Denver, Colorado) is an amazing place--868 acres of deer, dinosaurs, geological wonders and spectacular vistas.  At 6,450 feet, the Amphitheatre is the only naturally-occurring, acoustically perfect Amphitheatre in the world.

The Amphitheatre consists of two 300-foot sandstone monoliths (Ship Rock and Creation Rock). 

In the early 1900's, John Brisben Walker had a dream of artists performing on a stage built into the surroundings of Red Rocks.  Walker produced several concerts between 1906 and 1910 on a temporary platform, and thus Red Rocks was born.

In 1927, the City of Denver purchased Red Rocks from Walker.  Denver architect Burnham Hoyt designed the Amphitheatre, completing his work in 1936, and the Amphitheatre was dedicated on June 15, 1941 (although construction continued over the next 12 years).  In 1947, the first annual Easter Sunrise Service took place, an awesome event that still takes place every year.

Within the walls of the Amphitheatre are dinosaur tracks and fossil fragments of a giant 40-foot sea serpent and a flying reptile.

These are just some of the artists that have performed at the pristine setting.  Basically, anybody who is anybody has played at Red Rocks:





Sting, Josh Groban, Barry Manilow, John Mayer, Steve Miller, Bruno Mars, Steely Dan, Fun, Earth, Wind & Fire, Nat King Cole, Beatles, Peter, Paul & Mary, Simon & Garfunkel, Jimi Hendrix, Aretha Franklin, Diana Ross & the Supremes, Dionne Warwick, Three Dog Night, Neil Diamond, the Carpenters, John Denver, Sonny & Cher, Helen Reddy, Seals & Crofts, Roberta Flack, 5th Dimension, Carole King, Joni Mitchell, Gordon Lightfoot, Eagles, America, Linda Ronstadt, Olivia Newton-John, James Taylor, Gladys Knight & the Pips, Dan Fogelberg, Neil Sedaka, George Benson, Kenny Loggins, Jackson Browne, Chicago, Santana, Little River Band, Beach Boys, Bonnie Raitt, Doobie Brothers, Journey, Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers, Christopher Cross, Air Supply, Bruce Springsteen, Pat Benatar, Jefferson Starship, Moody Blues, Crosby, Stills & Nash, Anne Murray, Police, Rick Springfield, Clash, Grateful Dead, Heart, Kool & the Gang, Elton John, Loverboy, Commodores, Bette Midler, Aerosmith, Eric Clapton, Alabama, U2, ZZ Top, Men At Work, Pretenders, Eurythmics, Toto, Amy Grant, Dire Straits, REO Speedwagon, Huey Lewis & the News, Bryan Adams, Don Henley, Diana Ross, Whitney Houston, Monkees, INXS, Stevie Nicks, B.B. King, Billy Ocean, Bob Dylan, Bangles, Kinks, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Def Leppard, Metallica, Kiss, Melissa Etheridge, Bruce Hornsby, Fleetwood Mac, Tracy Chapman, Paul Simon, Scorpions, Bon Jovi, Stone Temple Pilots, Yes, Soundgarden, Sheryl Crow, Dave Matthews Band, Sarah McLachlan, Megadeth, Iron Maiden, Allman Brothers Band, Blues Traveler, Pearl Jam, Rage Against The Machine, Celine Dion, Alanis Morissette, Boston, Queensyrche, No Doubt, Matchbox 20, Tool, Savage Garden, R.E.M., Willie Nelson, Motley Crue, Jewel, John Mellencamp, Neil Young, Guess Who, Godsmack, Radiohead, Deep Purple, Goo Goo Dolls, Weezer, Norah Jones, Mariah Carey, Coldplay, Incubus, Rush, Oasis, Michael McDonald, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, Nine Inch Nails, Smashing Pumpkins, Diana Krall, Cyndi Lauper, Foo Fighters, 3 Doors Down, Jethro Tull, Styx, Judas Priest, Boz Scaggs, Offspring, Alice In Chains, Train, Lionel Richie, John Legend

Classic Summer Songs: Gotye's "Somebody That I Used To Know"

From three Summers ago, we salute this great song from Gotye:

The Top 100 Adult Songs of the 70's*--Starts Monday on Inside The Rock Era

The 70's were great in many ways, and one of them is the emergence of Adult Contemporary radio.  The growth of the format is reflected on a simple level from "Easy Listening", as it was called in the early part of the decade, to Adult Contemporary in 1978.  Radio stations realized that Baby Boomers dominated listeners across the country and the world, and the ones that would be successful had to play music that Adults, not teeny-boppers, loved. 

That group grew up on rock and roll as it was originally defined, not what it grew into.  They had evolved, matured, and settled down, and Adult Contemporary music suited them perfectly.  Adult music really came into its own by the time the decade was over in many ways.  Since the format had grown by leaps and bounds as the 70's progressed, our rankings of The Top 100 Adult Songs of the 70's* reflect that change, giving more weight to songs that were released when Adult Contemporary began to dominate.

Nevertheless, there are still plenty of early Adult favorites from the Carpenters, Anne Murray, Olivia Newton-John, and John Denver.  Add in the AC favorites from Billy Joel, Roberta Flack, Neil Diamond, the Bee Gees, Barbra Streisand, Barry Manilow, Poco, and England Dan & John Ford Coley that were out during the high growth time of the format, and you have quite a special.

Be sure to tune in beginning Monday on Inside The Rock Era for the start of The Top 100 Adult Songs of the 70's*.

Classic Summer Songs: "Ode To Billie Joe" by Bobby Gentry

Earlier this summer, we revealed that "Ode To Billie Joe" is The #12 Song of the 60's*.  As we get ready to say goodbye to summer, we remember the great Summer of 1967:
 

This Date in Rock Music History: August 29

1958:  Alan Freed's  Big Beat Show 4th anniversary concert premiered at the Fox Theater in Brooklyn, New York after being turned down by the Paramount.  Frankie Avalon, Bill Haley & the Comets and Jimmy Clanton performed.

1959:  The Quarrymen got a break when the Les Stewart Quartet got into a clash amongst themselves and refused to play at the Casbah Coffee Club in Liverpool.  George Harrison, John Lennon and Paul McCartney played in their place and after the show, the group was hired by owner Mona Best to play regular Saturday night gigs.
1960:  "Kiddio" by Brook Benton, which would go on to become one of the biggest R&B hits of the 60's, took over at #1.

1960:  Elvis Presley switched directions musically but it didn't matter--his #1 song "It's Now Or Never" was #1 for a third week.  "Walk--Don't Run" from the Ventures was second followed by "The Twist" from Chubby Checker. 
1962:  The Elvis Presley movie Kid Galahad opened in theaters.
1964:  Dean Martin's hit "Everybody Loves Somebody" spent a fifth week at #1 on the Easy Listening chart.
1964:  The Supremes remained at #1 on the R&B chart with "Where Did Our Love Go".
1966:  The Youngbloods recorded one of The Most Important Songs of the Rock Era*--"Get Together".  It didn't fare well initially--it took over a year before the song was back and became a big hit.
1966:  Paul Anka hosted the final Hullabaloo show on NBC-TV with guests Peter & Gordon, Lesley Gore and the Cyrkle.

1966:  The Beatles closed their American tour at Candlestick Park in San Francisco California.  As events would unfold, it would be their last public concert.  The last song played by the Fab Four?  Little Richard's "Long Tall Sally".
1969:  Bob Seger filed for divorce from his wife of ten months.
1970:  The Isle of Wight Festival was breaking attendance records, even those set by the famous Woodstock Festival, and on day four, the Who, the Doors, Sly & the Family Stone, Joni Mitchell, Emerson, Lake & Palmer, Miles Davis, Melanie, John Sebastian, and Lighthouse (performing a second set at the Festival) thrilled the crowd.
1970:  Led Zeppelin, Iron Butterfly, Chilliwack, the Youngbloods and Ides of March performed at the Man-Pop Festival in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada.
1970:  Anne Murray's first hit "Snowbird" took over at #1 on the Easy Listening chart.
1970:  Cosmo's Factory produced a #1 album for CCR. 

1970:  Probably no coincidence that "War" by Edwin Starr became a #1 song and soon after, American involvement in Vietnam ended.  That generation didn't just whine and complain, they made a stand and got things done.
1976:  Spirit played a reunion concert in Santa Monica, California.  Bassist Mark Andes invited Neil Young on stage for the encore, but a jealous Randy California objected and shoved Young when he hopped on stage.
1977:  Three people were arrested in Memphis, Tennessee for trying to steal the body of Elvis Presley.  As a result, the body was moved to Graceland Mansion in Meditation Garden.
1978:  The Eagles performed at the Miami Baseball Stadium in Miami, Florida.

1981:  Billy Squier closed the second night of the three-day Reading Rock Festival in Reading, England.
1981:  U2, Wang Chung (known then as Huang Chung), Ian Dury and the Blockheads, Elvis Costello and the Attractions, Doctor Feelgood and Lindisfarne performed at the two-day Rock on the Tyne Festival in Gateshead, England.
1981:  ELO posted their second #1 album in the U.K. with Time.









                                                 The great album Escape...


1981:  4 by Foreigner was #1 for the second straight week.  Bella Donna from Stevie Nicks took runner-up while Escape by Journey was #3.  Pat Benatar's Precious Time was #4, the Moody Blues stayed at #5 with Long Distance Voyager and Billy Squier was #6 with Don't Say No.








                                    One of rock's greatest classics entered the Top 10 on this date...

1981:  Diana Ross & Lionel Richie reached three weeks at #1 with "Endless Love".  They weren't close to done.  The Pointer Sisters edged up with "Slow Hand" while Joey Scarbury slipped down with the "Theme From 'Greatest American Hero' (Believe It Or Not)".  Stevie Nicks and Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers had #4--"Stop Draggin' My Heart Around".  The rest of the Top 10:  "Jessie's Girl" from Rick Springfield, newcomer Juice Newton was up with "Queen Of Hearts", Ronnie Milsap had a crossover with "(There's) No Gettin' Over Me", Foreigner's great "Urgent" moved from 15 to 8, the Commodores had song #9 with "Lady (You Bring Me Up)" and Journey entered the Top 10 with "Who's Crying Now".
1982:  Dave Edmunds, the Michael Schenker Group, Twisted Sister, Spider, Marillon, and Y&T closed out the three-day Reading Rock Festival in Reading, England.
1984:  U2 began the Unforgettable Fire World Tour at the Town Hall Auditorium in Christchurch, New Zealand.

1986:  The former studio of American Bandstand in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania at 4548 Market Street was placed on the National Register of Historic Places of the United States.
1987:  "Never Gonna' Give You Up" by Rick Astley reached #1 in the U.K.
1987:  Hysteria hit #1 in the U.K. for Def Leppard.










1987:  Los Lobos hit #1 with their remake of the Ritchie Valens' song "La Bamba".
1987:  Michael Jackson & Siedah Garrett had the top AC hit with "I Just Can't Stop Loving You".










                            The most successful album of their career...


1987:  Whitney by Whitney Houston had been the #1 album every week of its release, which now added up to 10.  Whitesnake's self-titled release was at 2 followed by Bigger and Deffer by L.L. Cool J.  La Bamba from Los Lobs was Fourth with Bad Animals by Heart taking the fifth position.  The rest of the Top 10:  In the Dark by Grateful Dead, U2 was at 7 with The Joshua Tree, Motley Crue's Girls, Girls, Girls was #8, Hysteria from Def Leppard jumped from 36 to 9 and the Soundtrack to "Beverly Hills Cop II" came in #10.
1988:  Michael Jackson was in concert at Roundhay Park in Leeds, England.
1990:  Elton John checked into a rehab center in Chicago Illinois to be treated for bulimia, drinking and drugs.  Good for him--most people don't have the wisdom and the fortitude to recognize when they need assistance.
1991:  Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers kicked off their national tour at Fiddlers Amphitheatre in Denver, Colorado.
1992:  The Smashing Pumpkins, Public Enemy, and the Manic Street Preachers performed on the second day of the Reading Rock Festival in Reading, England.
1992:  U2 became the second rock act to perform at Yankee Stadium (Billy Joel was the first), with two shows at the legendary baseball venue.
1992:  Elton John spent a sixth week at #1 on the Adult Contemporary chart with "The One", his 43rd hit on that chart.

1992:  Boyz II Men continued to have the top R&B song with "End Of The Road".
1994:  Oasis released their debut album Definitely Maybe.
1995:  The pilot of a helicopter and the cameramen shooting the Meat Loaf video "I'd Lie For You" were killed in the Sequoia National Forest about 150 miles north of Los Angeles.
1996:  Isaac Hayes, co-writer of the song "Soul Man", mailed a letter to presidential candidate Bob Dole requesting that he cease using his song, which supporters had changed to "I'm A Dole Man".  Don't these people realize that you have to have permission to use someone's song?
1999:  Cher was in concert at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada for a live HBO special.



1999:  Lou Bega topped the chart with "Mambo No. 5".
2000:  These aren't the kind of people you invite to your house for fancy dinners.  After winning Best Single and Best International Live Act at the Kerrang! Awards in London, the members of Slipknot attacked each other, smashed their glasses and set fire to the table.  It's called the regressing of mankind.







2003:  Metallica gave a show at the Bowery Ballroom in New York City for members of their fan club only.
2003:  Bobby Brown was released from the DeKalb County Jail after he served his seven days in jail for violating parole, but he would remain under house arrest for 60 days.
2003:  Thom Yorke of Radiohead joined R.E.M. onstage at Thunderbird Stadium in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada for the songs "E-Bow The Letter" and "It's The End of the World As We Know It".  How prophetic was R.E.M.?
2004:  OutKast captured MTV Video Music Awards for Video of the Year, Best Hip-Hop Video, Special Effects and Art Direction for their video "Hey Ya".
2004:  Green Day, 50 Cent, Placebo, and the Lostprophets performed on the final day of the Reading Festival in Leeds and Reading, England.
2004:  Natasha Bedingfield owned the top song in the U.K. with "These Words".
2005:  Josh Homme of Queens of the Stone Age collapsed from exhaustion during a concert in Hamburg, Germany.
2006:  Jumpin' Gene Simmons ("Haunted House") died in his hometown of Tupelo, Mississippi at the age of 73.  
2007:  The Police began their reunion tour at Globe Arena in Stockholm, Sweden.



Born This Day:
1924:  Dinah Washington ("Baby (You Got What It Takes)" with Brook Benton), was born in Tuscaloosa, Alabama; died of drugs December 14, 1963 in Detroit, Michigan.
1924:  Billy Myles ("The Joker" from 1957) was born in Manhattan, New York; died October 9, 2005 in Greenville, North Carolina at the age of 81.  (Note:  some websites say Myles was born in Harlem, New York.  Harlem is a neighborhood in Manhattan and will never be listed on an official birth certificate.)
1942:  Sterling Morrison, guitarist and one of the founding members of Velvet Underground, was born in East Meadow, New York; died August 30, 1995 of non-Hodgekin's lymphoma in Poughkeepsie, New York at the age of 53.  (Note:  some sources report Morrison's birthday as August 28, but official news reports, as well as the book  'The Velvet Underground Companion: Four Decades of Commentary', show his birth as August 29.)
1943:  Dick Halligan, trombonist and a founding member of Blood, Sweat & Tears, was born in Troy, New York.
1945:  Chris Copping, bass guitarist and organist of Procol Harum, was born in Southend-on-Sea, Essex, England.  (Note:  some websites report Chris was born in Middleton, Lancashire, England, but according to the official website for Procol Harum, Copping was born in Southend-on-Sea.)
1953:  Rick Downey, drummer of Blue Oyster Cult

1958:  Michael Jackson was born in Gary, Indiana; died June 25, 2009 in Los Angeles from homocide at the age of 53 after being administered the drugs propofol and lorazepam by his doctor.
1970:  Carl Martin of Shai
1975:  Kyle Cook, lead guitarist of Matchbox 20, was born in Frankfort, Indiana.
1980:  David Desrosiers, bassist of Simple Plan, was born in Sept-Îles, Quebec, Canada.