This Date in Rock Music History: April 19

1956: Elvis Presley performed at the Civic Center Music Hall in the Municipal Auditorium in Oklahoma City, Texas.
1956: Clyde McPhatter of the Drifters was released from the U.S. Armed Forces.












1961:  Bobby Lewis released the single "Tossin' And Turnin'" on Beltone Records.  (Note:  one website claims the single was released April 30.  "Tossin' And Turnin'" debuted on the Singles chart on April 24, 1961.  It is physically impossible for a song to be included on the Singles chart if it has not yet been released as a single.)















1961:  Ricky Nelson released the single "Travelin' Man" on Imperial Records.
1965: The movie Teenage Command Performance, featuring the Rolling Stones, the Beach Boys, the Supremes, the Four Tops, James Brown and Smokey Robinson & the Miracles opened in London.

 

1965: The Beatles released the single "Ticket To Ride" in the United States on Capitol records.
1969: Smile, the group that would later become Queen, appeared at the Revolution Club in London.
1969:  The Isley Brothers took over the top spot on the R&B chart with "It's Your Thing".

1969: "Galveston" by Glen Campbell spent a fourth out of six weeks at #1 on the Adult Contemporary chart.

1969:  Blood, Sweat & Tears remained at #1 on the Album chart with their self-titled album.

 
         
                                        Steppenwolf's third and final Top 10 song... 

 1969:  "Aquarius/Let The Sunshine In", one of The Top 20 Songs of the Rock Era* by the 5th Dimension, was #1 for the second out of six consecutive weeks. Blood, Sweat & Tears would have to settle for #2 because of the competition with "You've Made Me So Very Happy". The rest of the Top 10: The Isley Brothers at #3 with "It's Your Thing", Jerry Butler had #4 with "Only The Strong Survive", Tommy Roe was at 5 with his former #1 "Dizzy", Glen Campbell dropped to 6 with "Galveston", the Cowsills moved "Hair" up to #7, Edwin Starr had song #8 with "Twenty-Five Miles", the Zombies were at position #9 with "Time Of The Season" and Steppenwolf hopped into the Top 10 with "Rock Me".

1970:  Blues Image released the single "Ride Captain Ride".  (Note:  one website claims the song entered the charts on May 3--nope, it entered the charts on May 8. 
1974: Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band performed at the State Theater in New Brunswick, New Jersey. Only 250 people attended.
1975: Elton John fired bassist Dee Murray and drummer Nigel Olsson.  Bad move.  Elton brought them both back in 1980.
1975: The Stylistics had the #1 album in the U.K. with The Best Of the Stylistics. 
1975: The Captain & Tennille had their first single debut on the chart on this date with "Love Will Keep Us Together".
 1975: Tony Orlando & Dawn had the #1 Adult Contemporary song with "He Don't Love You (Like I Love You).
1975: Led Zeppelin remained at #1 on the Album chart for the fifth week with Physical Graffiti.

                                           Ben E. King with his great new song...

1975: Elton John ruled the charts with "Philadelphia Freedom", followed by B.J. Thomas at #2 with (Hey Won't You Play) Another Somebody Done Somebody Wrong Song", Minnie Riperton's "Lovin' You" and Ringo Starr at #4 with "No No Song". The rest of the Top Ten: "He Don't Love You (Like I Love You)" by Tony Orlando & Dawn moving from 23-5, Ben E King getting a Top 10 song with "Supernatural Thing", Sammy Johns' "Chevy Van" at #7, Barry White coming in at 8 with "What Am I Gonna' Do With You", Hot Chocolate with their first top ten "Emma" and Freddy Fender's "Before the Next Teardrop Falls" at #10.


1980: R.E.M. performed for the first time as a group at the 11:11 Koffee Club in Athens, Georgia before 150 people.
1980: Air Supply was #1 on the Adult Contemporary chart for the fourth out of six weeks with "Lost In Love".

 
1980: Blondie began a six week run at #1 with "Call Me" from An American Gigolo. Pink Floyd was displaced and dropped to #2 with "Another Brick In The Wall", Christopher Cross's debut "Ride Like The Wind" had reached #3 and Billy Preston & Syreeta's "With You I'm Born Again" moved up to #4. The rest of the Top 10: "Special Lady" from Ray, Goodman & Brown, Air Supply's first hit "Lost In Love" moved from 12-6, Bob Seger entered the top ten with "Fire Lake", the Eagles rose to #8 with "I Can't Tell You Why", the Spinners were at #9 with "Working My Way Back To You/Forgive Me Girl" and Michael Jackson remained at #10 with "Off The Wall".

1981:  Joey Scarbury released the single "Theme From 'Greatest American Hero (Believe It Or Not)".  No really, he really did.












1982:  .38 Special released the single "Caught Up In You".







 

1986: George Michael reached #1 in the U.K. with "A Different Corner". He became only the second person (Stevie Wonder was the first) to reach #1 with a song that was written, sung, played, arranged and produced by the same person.

1986:  "Kiss" by Prince was the #1 R&B song for a third week.

1986: Whitney Houston dominated the Album chart, spending a ninth week (out of 14) at #1 with her self-titled debut.

 1986: "Overjoyed" by Stevie Wonder spent a second week atop the Adult Contemporary chart.

1988: Sonny Bono was inaugurated as Mayor of Palm Springs.

1993: Saxophonist Steve Douglas, who played on "Da Doo Ron Ron" by the Crystals and  the Ronettes' "Be My Baby", was warming up with Ry Cooder in a recording studio in Hollywood, California, when he collapsed and died at the age of 54 from heart failure.

1997:  "Un-Break My Heart" by Toni Braxton tied the 35-year-old Rock Era record held by Chubby Checker's "The Twist", as it remained in the Top 10 for a 25th week.

 

                                      Newcomers Savage Garden...

1997:  Puff Daddy & Mase had the top song for a fifth week with "Can't Nobody Hold Me Down".  Jewel moved to challenge with the superior song, "You Were Meant for Me" while the Spice Girls were at 3 with "Wannabe".  Other notable songs in the Top 10:  Monica with "For You I Will" at #4, Celine Dion's remake of the Eric Carmen song "All By Myself", Savage Garden with their first Top 10 "I Want You" at #6, Toni Braxton's former #1 "Un-Break My Heart" was still in the Top 10 after 26 weeks of release (25 of them in the Top 10) and Babyface had a hit with one he kept for himself, "Every Time I Close My Eyes".
2002: Layne Staley of Alice and Chains was found dead in his apartment in Seattle, Washington.  The official date of death was determined to be April 5 from heroin and cocaine.

Born This Day:


1928: Alexis Korner, who, if you followed this blog's story about the British Rock Family Tree, you know was a major force behind the birth of rock and roll in Britain as a member of Blues Incorporated, was born in Paris, France; he died of lung cancer in London January 1, 1984.
1942:  Larry Ramos, singer and guitarist with the Association and a member of the Vocal Group Hall of Fame, was born in Waimea, Hawai'i; died April 30, 2014 of metastatic melanoma in Clarkston, Washington.

 
1942: Alan Price, keyboardist with the Animals, was born in Fatfield, County Durham, England.  (Note:  some websites say Price was born in Fatfield, Washington, County Durham, England, or Sunderland, Tyne and Wear, England.  Price was born in the village of Fatfield, in County Durham.  The borough of Washington was not created until 1964, 22 years after Price was born, and the county of Tyne and Wear was not created until 1974, 32 years after Price was born.  Thus, it is impossible that Price could have been born in Washington (a city not yet created) or in Tyne and Wear (a county not yet created.) 
1943: Eve Graham, singer with the New Seekers ("I'd Like To Teach The World To Sing"), was born in Auchterarder, Perth and Kinross, Scotland.

1944: Bernie Worrell, a founding member and keyboardist for Parliament and Funkadelic, was born in Long Branch, New Jersey.

1947: Mark Volman, a founding member of the Turtles and a member of Mothers of Invention, who also worked with Bruce Springsteen and T. Rex, was born in Los Angeles.
1953: Rod Morgenstein, drummer of Winger, was born in New York City.