This Date in Rock Music History: July 12

1954:  Here's a case where someone did indeed "quit their day job" and it worked out fine.  Elvis Presley quit his job as a truck driver and signed a recording contract with Sun Records.
1957:  DJ Alan Freed began a 13-week Big Beat show on ABC television with the Everly Brothers, Connie Francis & Frankie Lymon.
1960:  Floyd Cramer recorded "Last Date".
1961:  Pat Boone began a 10-day tour of South Africa at the Ice Dome in Durban.
1962:  The Rolling Stones made their live debut at the Marquee Club in London.















1963:  The Crystals released their hit "Then He Kissed Me".
1964:  The Beatles performed at the Hippodrome Theatre in Brighton, England.
1965:  The Beach Boys recorded "Sloop John B" at Western Recorders in Hollywood, California.










1965:  The Beach Boys released the single "California Girls".
















1965:  The Righteous Brothers released "Unchained Melody" as a single.  (Note:  some websites naively say the song was released July 17.  "Unchained Melody" debuted on the charts on July 17.  It is physically impossible for a song to be mailed to radio stations, listened to by radio stations and added to playlists, reported to the trade papers, and printed and published by the trade papers, all in one day.  The single was released July 12.)









1965:  Monday fell on this date and the new single from the McCoys was released called "Hang On Sloopy".







1965:  The Turtles released their 45 "It Ain't Me Babe".
1968:  The Bee Gees recorded "I've Got To Get A Message To You".
1968:  Micky Dolenz of the Monkees married Samantha Juste.
1969:  Elvis Presley appeared on the cover of Rolling Stone magazine.










1969:  Blind Faith performed before a sellout crowd at Madison Square Garden in New York City in the first date of their North American tour.  (Note:  some websites claim that the group made their live debut at Madison Square Garden on August 12.  There are two problems with that:  1) their North American debut was July 12 at Madison Square Garden, and 2) the group performed for the first time at Hyde Park in London on June 7, according to the book '1969:  The Year Everything Changed' by Rob Kirkpatrick.)   1969:  We wish African-Americans could put out music like this now--we're starving!!!  On this date, Marvin Gaye was at #1 on the R&B chart for the sixth consecutive week with "Too Busy Thinking About My Baby".
1969:  Henry Mancini remained at #1 for the eighth straight week on the Easy Listening chart with the beautiful "Love Theme From 'Romeo & Juliet'".







         
                           Blood, Sweat & Tears in the runner-up position...


1969:  Previously unknown Zager & Evans fought through the crowd and after four weeks, had the #1 song with "In The Year 2525", which made one of  the biggest leaps to the top (8-1) in the Rock Era.  Blood, Sweat & Tears was solid at 2 with "Spinning Wheel" while Oliver moved up with "Good Morning Starshine" and the former #1 "Love Theme From 'Romeo & Juliet'" by Henry Mancini was #4.  Three Dog Night's classic "One" was #5 while Tommy James & the Shondells' "Crystal Blue Persuasion edged up to 6.

Henley (2nd from left), Leadon (3rd from left), Ronstadt, Frey, Meisner (4th from right)

 

1971:  Glenn Frey, Don Henley, Bernie Leadon and Randy Meisner performed together for the first time, as Linda Ronstadt's musicians, for a concert in Disneyland, California.  After the show, the four formed a new group, the Eagles.  (Note:  some websites claim the concert was on June 12, and some say July 15, but the correct date is July 12, according to the book 'Hotel California: The True-Life Adventures of Crosby, Stills, Nash, Young' by Barney Hoskyns.)











1972:  Michael Jackson released the single "Ben".
1973:  Hues Corporation recorded "Rock The Boat".  It wouldn't become a hit until a year later.
1975:  Johnny Nash had the #1 U.K. Song with "Tears On My Pillow".










1975:  One of the biggest groups of the mid-70's first charted on this date.  K.C. and the Sunshine Band first debuted on the chart with their first single, "Get Down Tonight".
1975:  Elton John's song "Someone Saved My Life Tonight" rose from 51 to 25 on this date.













1975:  Olivia Newton-John had control of the Adult Contemporary chart with "Please Mr. Please".
1975:  "The Hustle" by Van McCoy reached #1 on the R&B chart.













1976:  Orleans had a great single released on this date--"Still The One".
1979:  Ian Pace, drummer of Deep Purple, joined fellow Purple alums Jon Lord and David Coverdale in Whitesnake.










1979:  Minnie Riperton, who gave us the #1 "Lovin' You" in 1975, died four years later from breast cancer in Los Angeles.  She was 31 years old.
1980:  U2 was in concert at the Moonlight Club in West Hampstead, London.
1980:  Olivia Newton-John and ELO paced the U.K. chart with "Xanadu".










1980:  Pure Prairie League led the AC chart for the third week with "Let Me Love You Tonight".














1980:  Glass Houses was the top album for the fifth week, beating out Just One Night by Eric Clapton.  McCartney II was actually #3, the Soundtrack to "The Empire Strikes Back" came in fourth while Pete Townshend's solo effort Empty Glass was #5.  The rest of the Top 10:  Jermaine Jackson with Let's Get Serious, the Commodores at 7 with Heroes, the former #1 blockbuster Against the Wind by Bob Seger, the Soundtrack to "Urban Cowboy" which starred John Travolta and Debra Winger, and Lipps, Inc. had #10 covered with Mouth To Mouth.








1983:  Chris Wood, founding member and saxophone player for Traffic, died of pneumonia at the age of 39 in Birmingham, England.
1986:  The Moody Blues had scored a big comeback as "Your Wildest Dreams" was #1 again on the Adult Contemporary chart.











                      Kenny Loggins had a big hit from "Top Gun"...


1986:  Simply Red reached #1 with "Holding Back The Years" in its 15th week of release.  Genesis was up strong from 6 to 2 with "Invisible Touch" while the previous #1 from Billy Ocean--"There'll Be Sad Songs" fell to 3.  Janet Jackson's "Nasty" was song #4 and El DeBarge had a solo hit away from family with "Who's Johnny".  The rest of the Top 10:  Peter Gabriel with "Sledgehammer", Kenny Loggins with "Danger Zone", Howard Jones on his way down with "No One Is To Blame", the Moody Blues at 9 with "Your Wildest Dreams" and the Fabulous Thunderbirds entered the Top 10 with "Tuff Enuff".
1988:  Michael Jackson arrived in England for the first solo performances of his career.

1992:  The city of Dallas, Texas unveiled a memorial to Buddy Holly, who was from Lubbock.
1992:  Axl Rose was arrested at JFK International Airport in New York City on a St. Louis, Missouri warrant.  Rose was wanted on charges resulting from a disastrous 1991 Guns N' Roses concert in which Rose incited a riot.
1993:  Prince performed a concert at his Paisley Park Studios in Minneapolis, Minnesota to benefit a community radio station.
1996:  Jonathan Melvoin of the Smashing Pumpkins was found dead from drugs at the age of 34 in a New York City hotel.
1997:  Anthony Kiedis, lead singer of the Red Hot Chili Peppers, broke his wrist in a motorcycle accident in Los Angeles.  If I were driving in Los Angeles, I would want all the protection I could get, which certainly isn't on a motorcycle.






1997:  Shawn Colvin debuted at #8 with "Sunny Came Home".
1997:  The incredible album Pieces of You by Jewel re-entered the Top 10 after 72 weeks of release.
1998:  The Spice Girls backed out of a promise to perform a free concert at Toronto's City Hall, choosing instead to appear on the Canadian television show Much Music.
1999:  In today's segment of "Inmates Run Rap Music", DMX was arrested in Port-of-Spain, Trinidad in the middle of a concert for using obscene language.  Good to see some countries have held to their principles.
1999:  Fred Durst of Limp Bizkit wasn't a rapper, but had the same values system.  He was arrested in St. Paul, Minnesota for kicking a local security guard in the head during a Limp Bizkit performance.
2003:  Rob Halford of Judas Priest announced he had rejoined the group for their first album and tour in 13 years.
2003:  R.E.M., the Cardigans and the Proclaimers performed on the opening day of the two-day T in the Park Festival in Kincross, Scotland.










2007:  Rod Stewart received the Commander of the Order of the British Empire medal from Prince Charles at Buckingham Palace.
2008:  Ron Wood of the Rolling Stones left his wife of 23 years and took up with an 18-year-old Russian cocktail waitress.
2008:  Earl Nelson, who sang in the duo Bob and Earl and also sang backing vocals on Jackson 5 remake of "Rockin' Robin", died in Los Angeles.  Earl, who had suffered from Alzheimer's disease, was 79.  (Note:  some websites claim he died in Lake Charles, Louisiana, but according to the newspaper 'The Los Angeles Times', he died at this home in Los Angeles.)
2008:  George Martin, producer of the Beatles, was honored by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences as the most successful producer of all-time.
2010:  The state of California declared it "Pat Boone Day".
2010:  Gerry Marsden of Gerry & the Pacemakers received an honorary fellowship from Liverpool's John Moores University.
2011:  David Carr of the Fortunes died of a heart attack at the age of 67.


Born This Day:
1928:  Barbara Cowsill of the Cowsills ("Hair"), was born in Cranston, Rhode Island; died January 31, 1985 of emphysema in Tempe, Arizona.

1943:  Christine McVie (real name Christine Perfect) was born in Bouth, Cumbria, England.  (Note:  some websites claim she was born in Grenodd, Lancashire, England, and others say Birmingham, England.  According to 'Billboard', Christine was born in Bouth.)
1947:  Wilko Johnson, guitarist of Dr. Feelgood, was born in Canvey Island, Essex, England.

1948:  Walter Egan ("Magnet And Steel" and "Hot Summer Nights") was born in Jamaica, New York.
1950:  Eric Carr, drummer for KISS, was born in Brooklyn, New York; died November 24, 1991 of heart cancer in New York City.
1952:  Phil Kramer, bass guitarist for Iron Butterfly, was born in Youngstown, Ohio; his date of death was placed at February 12, 1995 after photographers found his body at the bottom of Decker Canyon near Malibu, California four years after he was reported missing (his death was ruled a probable suicide).
1952:  Liz Mitchell, singer of Boney M ("Rivers Of Babylon") was born in Clarendon, Jamaica.
1960  Ray Gillen, vocalist of Black Sabbath, was born in New York City; died December 1, 1993 in New York City of an AIDS-related disease.  (Note:  'AllMusic.com' got it wrong again, saying he was born in Cliffside Park, New Jersey.  Gillen was born in New York City and raised in Cliffside Park.)
1962:  Dan Murphy, guitarist of Soul Asylum, was born in Duluth, Minnesota.
1963:  Alan Duval of UB40
1976:  Tracie Spencer ("This House" from 1990) was born in Waterloo, Iowa.
1977:  Dominic Howard, drummer of Muse, was born in Stockport, Manchester, England.

What's Next on Inside The Rock Era...

With nearly 40 years of collecting data and 8 months of work producing The Top 500 Songs of the Rock Era* now completed...

First, there will be some rest!

After that, as promised, we will continue to sharpen the Calendar*, eliminating the items that cannot be verified by credible sources.  We have been doing this for quite some time, as longtime readers have probably noticed, to the point that, at least from September through April, the Music News* from Inside The Rock Era is the most accurate source in the world.  We have a couple months more to finish, and will be pointing out incorrect information on the World Wide Web.  After we have everything fine-tuned and polished, we will no longer do this, for if people haven't realized that Inside The Rock Era has the most accurate Calendar* of its type available, they're own their own, free to distribute inaccurate information!

Also as promised, we will find active YouTube videos for our Top Unknown/Underrated Songs*, Top Tracks*, and Top 5* features.  As we say numerous times, the best time to view these, as well as our music specials, is when they are presented.  We cannot control which videos remain active, although we will do our best to keep as many as possible active.

The next music special is another major one, The Top 100 Artists of the Rock Era*, which is set for sometime in the next six months.  We will let you know when we have a date set for that one!

In the meantime, enjoy all of our regular features, and thanks a million for checking us out!

The Top 500 Songs of the Rock Era*: The Complete Checklist*

With our latest (and many of you think greatest) music special in the books, here is a complete recap of the historical special which celebrated the 60th birthday of the Rock Era:


#500-491:

#490-481:

#480-471:

#470-461:

#460-451:

#450-441:

#440-431:

#430-421:

#420-411:

#410-401:

#400-391:

#390-381:

#380-371:

#360-351:

#350-341:

#340-331:

#330-321:

#320-311:

#310-301:


#300-291:

#290-281:

#280-271:

#270-261:

#260-251:

#250-241:

#240-231:

#230-221:

#220-211:

#210-201:

#200-191:

#190-181:

#180-171:

#170-161:

#160-151:

#150-141:

#140-131:

#130-121:

#120-111:

#110-101:

#100-91:

"90-81:

#80-71:

#70-61:

#60-51:

#50-41:

#40-31:

#30-21:

#20-11:

#10-1:





The Top 500* is infinitely more enjoyable if you listen to all the songs all the way through and read all of the stories.  But we also know that some people like to see a list, and, for all its blandness, you can read it after the jump...

This Date in Rock Music History: July 11

1960:  The Hollywood Argyles found themselves on top of the chart with "Alley-Oop".  15-year-old wonder Brenda Lee edged up with "I'm Sorry while Connie Francis tumbled from #1 with "Everybody's Somebody's Fool".
1962: Joe Meek wrote the instrumental "Telstar".
1964:  The Beatles performed live on the ABC television show Lucky Stars performing "A Hard Day's Night", "Long Tall Sally", "Things We Said Today" and "You Can't Do That".

1964: "Under the Boardwalk" was the fastest-rising song on this date, moving up from 62 to 31 for the Drifters.











 

1964: "People" by Barbra Streisand remained #1 for the third week on the Adult Contemporary chart.
1964: "I Get Around" by the Beach Boys held on to #1 for a second straight week. Johnny Rivers moved into position with "Memphis", but the 4 Seasons were closing fast (8-3) with "Rag Doll". Gerry & the Pacemakers held steady at #4 with "Don't Let the Sun Catch You Crying" and the Dave Clark Five moved from 10 to 5 with "Can't You See That She's Mine".  The rest of the Top 10: Millie Small fell with "My Boy Lollipop", Barbra Streisand dropped to #7 with "People", Peter & Gordon were at #8 with "A World Without Love", Stan Getz and Astrud Gilberto moved into the Top 10 with the great song "The Girl From Ipanema" and Chuck Berry moved up to #10 with his 21st hit but first Top 10 in six years--"No Particular Place To Go".













.
1967: Following his departure from the New Christy Minstrels the day before, Kenny Rogers formed the First Edition with Rogers' mates in the Christy Minstrels Thelma Camacho, Mike Settle and Terry Williams. 














1969:  The Rolling Stones released the single "Honky Tonk Women".












1969:  David Bowie released "Space Oddity" in the U.K., timing the release with the Apollo moon landing.
1970: Bread moved up from 44 to 20 with the first single of their career, "Make It with You".
1970: The Jackson 5 spent a sixth week at #1 on the R&B chart with "The Love You Save".
1970: "Close To You" by the Carpenters took over at #1 on the Adult Contemporary chart.









1970: Three Dog Night saw their fourth Top 10 in their last five releases go to #1, when "Mama Told Me (Not To Come)" hit the top. The Jackson 5 fell with "The Love You Save" and the Temptations remained at 3 with "Ball Of Confusion", Blues Image were up to 4 with "Ride Captain Ride" and Freda Payne rolled up to position #5 with "Band Of Gold". The rest of the Top 10: Melanie with "Lay Down (Candles In The Rain)", the Carpenters roared up from 14 with "Close To You", the Beatles had another double-sided hit, at #8 with their 63rd and 64th hits in seven years--"The Long And Winding Road" and "For You Blue" while Vanity Fare were on their way down with "Hitchin' A Ride".
1971:  The Bruce Springsteen Band appeared with Humble Pie at the Sunshine Inn in Asbury Park, New Jersey.
1974:  "The Mac Davis Show", a summertime replacement show, premiered on television.
1976: Frank Sinatra married Barbara Marx.
1979: The concert film Rust Never Sleeps debuted at the Bruin Theater in Westwood, California.
1981:  Cliff Richard's Love Songs was the top album in the U.K.


1981: Pablo Cruise had the fastest-rising song of the week, rising from 75 to 55 with "Cool Love".
1981: Kenny Rogers topped the Adult Contemporary chart with "I Don't Need You".












1981: "Bette Davis Eyes" by Kim Carnes, which was #1 for five weeks before slipping to #2, was #1 again for the third straight week, making a total of eight. George Harrison remained at 2 with "All Those Years Ago" and Air Supply ("The One That You Love") and Rick Springfield ("Jessie's Girl") held suit as well. The rest of the Top 10: Hall & Oates with the fourth hit for their album Voices--"You Make My Dreams", the Oak Ridge Boys found themselves at 6 with "Elvira", the former #1 "Medley" from Stars on 45 was #7, Joey Scarbury hit #8 with "Theme From 'Greatest American Hero' (Believe It or Not)" , Kenny Rogers moved up to 9 with 'I Don't Need You" and the Pointer Sisters made a move into the Top 10 with "Slow Hand".
1982:  Phil Collen replaced Pete Willis at guitar for Def Leppard.











1987: Heart's sixth hit in the last two years, "Alone", reached #1. Kim Wilde had to relinquish the spot with "You Keep Me Hangin' On". Lisa Lisa & Cult Jam held on to #3 with "Head To Toe", Genesis was at 4 with "In Too Deep" and Whitney Houston had song # 5 with "I Wanna' Dance With Somebody (Who Loves Me)". The rest of the Top 10: "The Lady In Red" from Chris DeBurgh, Bon Jovi had #7--"Wanted Dead Or Alive", Herb Alpert had his 39th hit with "Diamonds", U2 was down to 9 with their former #1 "With Or Without You" and Smokey Robinson moved into the Top 10 with "Just To See Her".







1988:  Michael Jackson released the single "Another Part of Me".
1991: Prolific songwriters Burt Bacharach and Carole Bayer Sager filed for divorce. 
1991:  Roger Christian, lyricist who wrote for the Beach Boys and Jan and Dean, died at the age of 57 of complications from kidney and liver failure.
1992:  A line of eight ties designed by Jerry Garcia went on sale in the United States, selling millions.
1992: "Tennessee" by Arrested Development was the #1 
R&B song. 






                  
                                               The Peppers reached #3...



1992: "Baby Got Back" spent a second week at #1 on the less-important "popular chart" by Sir Mix-A-Lot. Mariah Carey was at 2 with "I'll Be There", Red Hot Chili Peppers remained at 3 with their great song "Under The Bridge" and Celine Dion had #4--"If You Asked Me To".
1992: No Fences by Garth Brooks, which had already been a dominant #1 album and fell out of the Top 10 in June, re-entered the Top 10 on this date after 95 weeks on the album chart.
1992:  Herbert Kenny of the Ink Spots died of cancer at the age of 77 in Columbia, Maryland.
1993:  Neil Young, Pearl Jam and Booker T & the MG's appeared at Finsbury Park in London.
1995: Mike Mills of R.E.M. had to have emergency intestinal surgery in Germany. The group canceled seven concert dates.
1999:  Ricky Martin topped the chart in the U.K. with "Livin' La Vida Loca".
1999:  Limp Bizkit had the top album in the United States with Significant Other.

2000: Lars Ulrich of Metallica was the first witness to testify at a United States Senate Judiciary Committee hearing concerning free sharing of music files on the Internet.

2001:  New Orleans named its airport after Louis Armstrong.  (Note:  some websites report that the airport was renamed July 12, and some say it was in August.  According to the New Orleans Shuttle and 'Airwaysnews.com', the name change occurred July 11.)
2001:  The Eagles were in concert at the Festhalle in Frankfurt, Germany.
2002:  Green Day and No Doubt played on day two of the four-day Move Festival  on the Old Trafford Cricket Grounds in Manchester, England.
2002:  St. Edward's Church in Stow-on-the-Wold, in the Cotswolds of England, hosted the funeral for John Entwistle, bass player of the Who.
2004: Lionel Richie, Avril Lavigne, Alanis Morisette, Lenny Kravitz, Nelly Furtado and the Corrs played the Prince's Trust concert in London's Hyde Park.
2004:  Franz Ferdinand, the Chemical Brothers, the Strokes, Snow Patrol and Massive Attack appeared at the second day of the T in the Park Scottish Festival.
2004:  Lloyd Banks owned the top album with Hunger for More.
2004: Bobby Brown turned himself in to Georgia police to face assault and battery charges. The idiot was accused of hitting wife Whitney Houston in December. And ruining her life, her career, etc., etc., etc.

2004: Usher topped all others on the U.K. Album chart with Burn.
2006:  Dennis Yost, great lead singer of Classics IV, suffered brain trauma when he fell down two flights of stairs at his home in Cincinnati, Ohio.
2006:  Bill Miller, pianist for Frank Sinatra for over 40 years, died at the age of 91 from complications following a heart attack in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
2009:  The Eagles performed at the MEN in Manchester, England.
2009:  "I Gotta' Feeling" by the Black Eyed Peas began a 14-week at #1 ending the 12-week stay by the group's "Boom Boom Pow".  It was just the fourth time in the Rock Era that an artist had replaced themselves at #1.  The others were the Beatles, Boyz II Men and Outkast.  No one, though had ever been at the top of the chart for half a year consecutively, 26 weeks.
2011:  Rob Grill, lead singer of the Grass Roots, died in Orlando, Florida at the age of 67 after being in a coma for several weeks following a stroke. 

Born This Day:
1911: Mitch Miller, leader of the Mitch Miller Gang and A&R head of Columbia records, was born in Rochester, New York; died July 31, 2010 in New York City after a short illness.
1931:  Tab Hunter ("Young Love") was born in New York City.
1931: Thurston Harris ("Little Bitty Pretty One") was born in Indianapolis, Indiana; died April 14, 1990 of acute alcoholism and heart failure at his sister's home in Pomona, California.
1946:  John Lawton, vocalist of Uriah Heap, was born in Halifax, West Riding of Yorkshire, England.  (Note:  several websites incorrectly list Lawton's county of birth as West Yorkshire.  West Yorkshire didn't become a county until 1974, and, since Lawton was born in 1946, it is impossible for him to have been born there.  At the time of John's birth, Halifax was located in the county of West Riding of Yorkshire.)
1947:  Jeff Hanna, singer, songwriter and guitarist of the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, was born in Detroit, Michigan.
1950:  Bonnie Pointer of the Pointer Sisters and a solo performer ("Heaven Must Have Sent You" from 1979), was born in Oakland, California.
1953:  Peter Brown ("Dance With Me" from 1978) was born in Blue Island, Illinois.
1954:  Benny DeFranco of the DeFranco Family ("Heartbeat--It's A Lovebeat" from 1973) was born in Port Colborne, Ontario, Canada.
1959: Suzanne Vega ("Luka") was born in Santa Monica, California.


1959: Richie Sambora, The #85 Guitarist of the Rock Era* from Bon Jovi, was born in Perth Amboy, New Jersey.  (Note:  some websites claim Sambora was born in Woodbridge, New Jersey.  He was born in Perth Amboy and raised in Woodbridge, according to the book 'Bon Jovi Style - A Timeline of Trivia About Your Favorites Band' by Melony Osterhoudt.)1965:  Scott Shriner, bassist of Weezer, was born in Toledo, Ohio.
1966:  Melanie Appleby of Mel and Kim was born in Hackney, London; died at the age of 23 of pneumonia following treatment for metastatic paraganglioma in Westminster, London, on January 18, 1990.
1975:  Lil' Kim (Kimberley Jones) was born in Brooklyn, New York.  (Note:  some websites claim Jones was born in New York City or in Hackensack, New Jersey.  According to the 'Encyclopedia of African-American Actresses in Film and Television' by Bob McCann, she was born in Brooklyn.) 

Calendar* Clarification: Dewey Phillips' Playing of Elvis Presley's "That's All Right (Mama)"

Some websites report that Memphis disc jockey Dewey Phillips of WHBQ premiered Elvis Presley's "That's All Right (Mama)" on July 7, 1954. 

According to the book Elvis In Texas:  The Undiscovered King 1954-1958 by Stanley Oberst and Lori Torrance, Phillips premiered "That's All Right (Mama)" on July 10. 

Calendar* Correction: Neil Young's 'Rust Never Sleeps'

Some websites report that Neil Young released the album Rust Never Sleeps on July 11.  The correct date is July 2, according to the Canadian Music Hall of Fame.

This Date in Rock Music History: July 10

1958:  The Everly Brothers recorded "Devoted To You".



1961:  "Tossin' And Turnin'" moved to #1 for Bobby Lewis.  "The Boll Weevil Song" from Brook Benton was #2, followed by the former #1 "Quarter To Three" by Gary U.S. Bonds and Dee Clark's "Raindrops" at #4.
1963:  "Tie Me Kangaroo Down, Sport" by Rolf Harris had a hold on #1 on the Easy Listening chart.












1964:  The Beatles released the album A Hard Day's Night worldwide and the single "A Hard Day's Night" in the U.K.  The single was released July 13 in the United States.








1964:  Another Motown act released the song that would become their first big hit on this date--the Four Tops sent "Baby, I Need Your Loving" to radio stations.
1964:  Over 200,000 people lined the streets as the Beatles were en route to a reception in Liverpool, England to attend the premiere of their movie A Hard Day's Night at the Odeon Cinema.








1965:  The popular duo Sonny & Cher were unheard of until  their first single debuted on the chart July 10 and people began to take notice.  They would score 20 hits over the next eight years.  (Note:  some websites naively say that "I Got You Babe" was released either July 9 or July 10.  The song debuted on July 10.  It is physically impossible for a song to be released as a single, mailed to radio stations, listened to and added by stations to their playlists, reported to the trade papers, and printed and published, all in one day, much less the same day.  The song was released July 5 and debuted on the chart July 10.)
1965:  Herman's Hermits made an incredible move from 42 to 13 with "I'm Henry VIII, I Am".










1965:  The Four Tops racked up a sixth week at #1 on the R&B chart with "I Can't Help Myself".













1965:  The Rolling Stones hit #1 for the first time with "Satisfaction", knocking the Four Tops to 2 with "I Can't Help Myself".  
1966:  The Stones appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show in a rerun of their February 13 performance.
1966:  The Shangri-Las, Johnny Tillotson, the Tymes, the Jive Five and the Castiles (with vocalist Bruce Springsteen) performed at the Surf 'n See Club in Seabright, New Jersey.

1967:  The Monkees released the single "Pleasant Valley Sunday".
1967:  Bobbie Gentry recorded "Ode To Billie Joe" in Studio C in the Capitol Tower in Hollywood, California.
1968:  Guitarist Eric Clapton announced that Cream would split after a farewell tour.
1968:  What a show this was--the Supremes and Stevie Wonder at the San Diego Sports Arena in California.
1969:  The Temptations TV special aired on syndicated television.
1969:  Brian Jones, former member of the Rolling Stones, was buried at Priory Road Cemetery in Cheltenham, England, following a funeral at the Hatherly Road Parish Church in Cheltenham attended by the Rolling Stones (except lead singer Mick Jagger, who was filming the movie Ned Kelly in Australia).
1971:  Smokey Robinson and the Miracles performed "The Tears Of A Clown" on American Bandstand.







1971:  Carole King of Stanley, Idaho (above) remained at #1 for the fourth straight week with "It's Too Late"/"I Feel The Earth Move".  The Raiders, from Boise, Idaho, held on to #2 with hit #19 for that great group--"Indian Reservation".  Cornelius Brothers & Sister Rose were still at 3 with "Treat Her Like A Lady" followed by the Carpenters and "Rainy Days And Mondays".  The rest of the Top 10:  Hamilton, Joe Frank & Reynolds at #5 with "Don't Pull Your Love", "You've Got A Friend" by James Taylor, Jean Knight moved from 12-7 with "Mr. Big Stuff", the Honey Cone were at 8 with "Want Ads", Jerry Reed remained at #9 with "When You're Hot, You're Hot" and Carly Simon entered the Top 10 with "That's the Way I've Always Heard It Should Be".






1971:  Carole King made it three weeks in a row at #1 on the Adult chart with "It's Too Late".
1971:  Tapestry by Carole King was #1 on the Album chart for a fourth consecutive week.  She was just getting rolling.  The self-titled Carpenters album was runner-up while Sticky Fingers by the Rolling Stones was stuck at 3.  Paul & Linda McCartney held down #4 with Ram while the Soundtrack to "Jesus Christ Superstar" placed #5.  The rest of the Top 10:  James Taylor with Mud Slide Slim and the Blue Horizon, Jethro Tull's Aqualung at 7, Aretha Live at Fillmore West, 4 Way Street from CSNY at #9 and Marvin Gaye's great album What's Going On reached the Top 10.







1972:  Nilsson released the album Son of Schmilsson, with the contributions of ex-Beatles George Harrison and Ringo Starr, in the United States.  The album was released July 28 in the U.K.
1972:  Chicago released the album Chicago V on Columbia Records.
1974:  Gladys Knight & the Pips starred in a summer series on NBC-TV that ran for four episodes.
1974:  The United States Office of Immigration and Naturalization Services ordered John Lennon to leave the country within 60 days. 
1975:  Cher filed for a divorce from Gregg Allman of the Allman Brothers Band, only 10 days after their marriage.
1976:  Rod Stewart's A Night on the Town paced the U.K. Album chart.
1976:  The Carpenters hit #1 on the Adult chart with "I Need To Be In Love".







1976:  Starland Vocal Band reached #1 with their first single "Afternoon Delight".  "Kiss And Say Goodbye" from the Manhattans moved from 9-2 and would threaten.  The Brothers Johnson were right behind, moving from 8-3 with "I'll Be Good To You".  The Captain & Tennille had #4--"Shop Around".  The rest of the Top 10:  Andrea True Connection had song #5--"More, More, More", Wings fell to 6 with their former #1 ("Silly Love Songs"), Dorothy Moore was at 7 with "Misty Blue", Gary Wright was following up "Dream Weaver" with another Top 10--"Love Is Alive", Hall & Oates fell to position #9 with "Sara Smile" and the Beatles registered their 31st Top 10 song, six years after their breakup, with "Got To Get You Into My Life".
1979:  Chuck Berry received a four month sentence in prison for income tax evasion.
1980:  U2 was in concert at the Clarendon Hotel in London.
1981:  Jerry Lee Lewis had an emergency operation on his stomach to repair a massive abdominal infection.  He had been operated on in June of 1984 and would go under the knife again in 1985.
1986:  Jerry Garcia of the Grateful Dead went into a diabetic coma.  He came out of it five days later.
1987:  John Hammond, producer and record company executive for Columbia Records, died at the age of 76 after a series of strokes in Manhattan, New York.  Hammond signed Bruce Springsteen, Bob Dylan, Aretha Franklin and Stevie Ray Vaughan and produced Benny Goodman, Billie Holliday and Count Basie.

1989:  The Monkees were awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
1991:  Pearl Jam were at the Avalon in Boston, Massachusetts.
1993:  Bob Seger married Juanita Dorricott.

1993:  SWV (Sisters With Voices) took over at #1 with "Weak", replacing Janet Jackson's "That's the Way Love Goes" after eight weeks.  UB40 moved to #4 with "Can't Help Falling In Love" and H-Town's "Knockin' Da Boots" was #5.  The rest of the Top 10:  Robin S with "Show Me Love", Rod Stewart's 47th hit--"Have I Told You Lately" was at #7, "Dre Day" by Dr. Dre remained at 8, Expose was up to 9 with "I'll Never Get Over You (Getting Over Me)" and Duran Duran closed out the list with "Come Undone".
1997: Chrissie Hynde of the Pretenders married Lucho Brieva.
1998: Sheena Easton was available. She filed for divorce from husband Timothy Delarm.
2002: Dolly Parton began a tour, her first major tour in 10 years, at the Irving Plaza in New York City.
2004:  Pink, the Black Eyed Peas, the Darkness, and Muse helped kick off the T in the Park Festival in Balado, Scotland.
2008:  Beatles memorabilia fetched a pretty penny at Christie's Memorabilia auction in London.  The drum skin that was featured on the cover of the Sgt. Pepper album sold for $1.1 million, John Lennon's handwritten lyrics to "Give Peace a Chance" sold for $832,257 (421,250 pounds) and a pair of Lennon's prescription tinted sunglasses fetched $79,000.  A rare reel-to-reel master recording of Jimi Hendrix Experience's performance at the Woburn Music Festival in 1968 attracted a buyer at $95,000, Hendrix's Marshall amplifier at that concert raised $50,000 and a pair of his flashy flared pants brought in $49,000.

2009:  Robert Plant was honored with a Commander of the Order of the British Empire medal by Prince Charles of England at Buckingham Palace.


Born This Day:
1937:  Sandy Stewart ("My Coloring Book" in 1963) was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
1937:  Gene Simmons ("Haunted House" from 1964) was born in Tupelo, Mississippi; died August 29, 2006 in Tupelo after a long illness.  Gene Simmons of KISS chose his stage name in tribute to the singer.  (Note:  one website claims Jumpin' Gene died August 28.  He died Tuesday, August 29 according to the newspaper 'The Los Angeles Times'.)
1943:  Jerry Miller of Moby Grape was born in Tacoma, Washington.

1947:  Arlo Guthrie, son of Woody and singer of the story "Alice's Restaurant" and "The City Of New Orleans", was born in Brooklyn, New York.  (Note:  some websites say Guthrie was born in Coney Island, New York.  Coney Island is not a city, but rather a section of Brooklyn, and Coney Island will never be shown on an official birth certificate for Guthrie.  He was born in Brooklyn.  Some websites say he was born June 10, while others say he was born August 10.  Arlo was born July 10, according to 'MTV'.)
1949:  Dave Smalley of the Young Rascals and the Raspberries, was born in Oil City, Pennsylvania. (Note:  some websites report Smalley was born in Franklin, Pennsylvania.  The newspaper 'The News-Herald' was located in Franklin, but it reported Smalley's birth in Oil City.)
1949:  Ronnie James Dio, lead singer of Black Sabbath, was born in Portsmouth, New Hampshire; died of stomach cancer May 16, 2010 in Houston, Texas.  (Note:  some websites report Dio was born in Cortland, New York.  According to 'Billboard', he was born in Portsmouth and moved with his family to Cortland when he was very young.  Numerous websites report he died in Los Angeles.  Ronnie died at the M.D. Anderson Hospital in Houston where he had been treated for about six months.)








1949:  Greg Kihn ("Jeopardy" and "The Breakup Song") was born in Baltimore, Maryland.  (Note:  some websites report Greg was born in 1950.  While there are no reputable sources on his birth year, our best research indicates that he was born in 1949.)
1954:  Neil Tennant  of the Pet Shop Boys was born in West Lothian, Scotland.  (Note:  some websites claim Tennant was born in Gosforth, England, while others say he was born in North Shields, England, North Shields, Tyne and Wear, England, or North Shields, Northumberland, England.  According to the newspapers 'The Independent' and 'The Guardian',  Neil was born in West Lothian.)
1959:  Sandy West, drummer of the all-girl group the Runaways, was born in Long Beach, California; died of lung cancer in San Dimas, California October 21, 2006.
1970:  Jason Orange, singer for Take That, was born in Crumpsall, Manchester, England.







1980:  Jessica Simpson was born in Abilene, Texas.