The Top 100 R&B Songs of the 1970's Starts Tomorrow!

Stevie Wonder, the Jackson 5, the Spinners, Earth, Wind & Fire, the Temptations, Aretha Franklin, Gladys Knight & the Pips--all of the great R&B acts of the 70's will be front page in all their glory when Inside the Rock Era presents The Top 100 R&B Songs of the 1970's*.


Starting tomorrow!

This Date in Rock Music History: January 21

1956:  It was week number three at #1 on the R&B chart for "The Great Pretender" from the Platters.  And it wasn't even close to done.

1957:  Elvis Presley began filming his second movie Loving You.

1959:  The Coasters released the single "Charlie Brown".
1959:  Jimmie Rodgers was a guest on This Is Your Life on NBC-TV.
1962:  Jackie Wilson performed "My Heart Belongs To Only You" on The Ed Sullivan Show.

1962:  Gene Chandler made his U.S. television debut on American Bandstand.








1963:  The 4 Seasons released the single "Walk Like A Man".
1963:  The Beatles recorded "Please Please Me" and "Ask Me Why" at EMI House for the program The Friday Spectacular on Radio Luxembourg.  The program was broadcast January 25.
1965:  The Byrds finished recording the song "Mr. Tambourine Man" at the Columbia Recording Studios in Hollywood, California.  (Note:  websites list either January 20 or 21 as the date the song was recorded; the truth is that the Byrds spent both days on the song, according to the book 'Icons of Rock:  An Encyclopedia of the Legends Who Changed Music Forever' by Scott Schinder and Andy Schwartz.) 
1966:  George Harrison married Patricia Boyd at the Leatherhead Registry Office in Epsom, Surrey, England.  Boyd later left Harrison for so-called "friend" Eric Clapton.

1967:  Aaron Neville held a grasp on the #1 spot on the R&B chart with "Tell It Like It Is".





1967:  The Buckinghams were in business with "Kind Of A Drag", which moved from 42 to 15.
1967:  "I'm A Believer" by the Monkees continued to outdistance the competition, remaining at #1 for a fourth week.  
1967:  The Monkees, the debut album from the group, spent an 11th week at #1, at the time tying them for second with the album Meet the Beatles.  Only A Hard Day's Night by the Beatles (14 weeks) was ahead in most weeks at #1.






1968:  Jimi Hendrix recorded Bob Dylan's song "All Along The Watchtower", with help from Brian Jones of the Rolling Stones and Dave Mason of Traffic, at Olympic Studios in London.









1975:  Olivia Newton-John released the single "Have You Never Been Mellow".












1975:  Earth, Wind & Fire released the single "Shining Star".

1978:  Billy Joel remained at #1 on the Adult chart for a third week with "Just The Way You Are".
1978:  Newcomer Natalie Cole reached #1 on the R&B chart with "Our Love".








  
     They didn't make 'em much better than "Come Sail Away"...

1978:  Player continued to hold on to #1 with "Baby Come Back" in a great Top 10.  The Bee Gees were at #2 with "How Deep Is Your Love" with Dolly Parton's big hit "Here You Come Again" third and Rod Stewart remaining at #4 with "You're In My Heart".  Randy Newman has written a lot of great songs, and he decided to keep one for himself with "Short People", so his dues had paid off as the song rose from 15-5.  The rest of the Top 10:  "Slip Slidin' Away" from Paul Simon, although it was much higher in most markets, Shaun Cassidy had #7 with "Hey Deanie", Queen rose up with "We Will Rock You/We Are The Champions", Styx was at 9 with the great song "Come Sail Away" and the Bee Gees had another entry in the Top 10 with "Stayin' Alive".

1978:  Both the movie and Soundtrack to "Saturday Night Fever" were all the rage, and on this date the album rose from 10 to 1.  It would dominate the chart throughout the spring and at various times in the Rock Era, has been the #1 seller of all-time.
1979:  Robert Plant, lead singer of Led Zeppelin, and his wife Maureen celebrated the birth of son Logan.
1980:  Art Garfunkel was a guest on Laverne & Shirley on ABC-TV.

1982:  B.B. King donated his entire record collection, including about 7,000 rare blues records he had accumulated while working as a DJ, to the University of Mississippi's Center for the Study of Southern Culture.

1984:  Jackie Wilson died at age 49 in Mount Holly, New Jersey after being in a coma for eight years.  Wilson had suffered a massive heart attack in 1976 while performing for a  Dick Clark show at the Latin Casino in New Jersey .

   
    "Middle of the Road", as the Pretenders released one of the top albums of the year...

1984:  The Pretenders released the amazing album Learning To Crawl.
1984:  Tina Turner debuted on the chart with her first solo release "Let's Stay Together".
1984:  Howard Jones debuted on the chart with his first single called "New Song".







1984:  Yes achieved the only #1 of their career--"Owner Of A Lonely Heart".  











1984:  Thriller by Michael Jackson passed the Soundtrack to Saturday Night Fever with its 25th week at #1 on the Album chart.  That placed Jackson second at the time to Fleetwood Mac's Rumours (31 weeks).  Could Jackson hang on for six more weeks to get the record?
1987:  Aretha Franklin was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, the first woman so honored.  Also inducted were Marvin Gaye, Eddie Cochran, Jackie Wilson, Roy Orbison, Bill Haley, Bo Diddley, Carl Perkins, Clyde McPhatter, Ricky Nelson plus a whole lot of other people that have no business in a "Hall of Fame". 







1989:  Six days after his death, The Legendary Roy Orbison topped the U.K. Album chart.
1989:  Surprisingly, Phil Collins remained at #1 for a fifth week at #1 on the Adult Contemporary chart with "Two Hearts".  It was a time of little competition.






         
                            Def Leppard was on fire...

1989:  "Two Hearts" by Phil Collins rose to #1, with Taylor Dayne' "Don't Rush Me" and "Armageddon It" by Def Leppard the closest challengers.  The hottest song in the Top 10 was Sheriff, rising 12 to 5--"When I'm With You".









1995:  Tony Bennett sang at half time of Super Bowl XXIX in Miami, Florida.










 
  The Eagles were back in a big way with "Get Over It".

1995:  The Hits from Garth Brooks remained #1 on the Album chart for a third week.  II by Boyz II Men was up to #2, trading placed with Pearl Jam's Vitalogy, while the Eagles had #4 with Hell Freezes Over.
1995:  For the seventh week, TLC dominated the R&B chart with "Creep".







                   Etheridge with her unique style...

1995:  Boyz II Men achieved a fourth straight week at #1 and sixth overall with "On Bended Knee".  Counting their previous hit "I'll Make Love To You", the group had spent 20 weeks at the top out of the last 22.  TLC was second with "Creep" while Real McCoy remained at #3 with "Another Night".  The top new entry was Melissa Etheridge, who jumped to #8 with "I'm The Only One".
1997:  Jesse Levine, songwriter who penned "Tie A Yellow Ribbon Round The Ol' Oak Tree" and "Knock Three Times" for Dawn, and was a renowned violinist and conductor, died of kidney failure after a long fight with pancreatic cancer in New Haven, Connecticut at age 68.
1997:  Colonel Tom Parker, manager of Elvis Presley, died of a stroke in Las Vegas at the age of 87.
1998:  James Brown was released from the hospital where he had received treatment for his addiction to painkillers.
1999:  Gary Glitter ("Rock and Roll, Part II from 1973) appeared in court in Bristol, England to face charges for eight sexual offenses dating back to 1976 and 50 charges related to indecent photographs of minors.

1999:  Charles Brown ("Please Come Home For Christmas") died of congestive heart failure in Oakland, California at the age of 76.

2002:  Peggy Lee ("Fever" from 1958) died at age 81 from complications of diabetes and a heart attack in Bel Air, California.









2005:  Journey was awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
2006:  The plane carrying Bon Jovi skidded off the runway at Hamilton International Airport in Canada.  Fortunately no one was hurt.
2007:  Omarion led the way on the Album chart with 21.

Born This Day:

1938:  Famous DJ Wolfman Jack (real name Bob Smith) and host of the television show Midnight Special that featured the top talent in the world performing live for many years, was born in Brooklyn, New York; died of a heart attack on July 1, 1995 in Belvedere, South Carolina.

1941:  Placido Domingo ("Perhaps Love" with John Denver), one of the top opera stars the world has ever known, was born in Madrid, Spain.

1941:  Richie Havens, who famously kicked off Woodstock with a two-hour performance, was born in Brooklyn, New York; died April 22, 2013 of a heart attack in Jersey City, New Jersey.
1941:  Keith Barbour of the New Christy Minstrels ("Sleigh Ride")







1942:  Mac Davis ("Baby Don't Get Hooked On Me" from 1972), who also wrote "In the Ghetto" and "Don't Cry Daddy" for Elvis Presley, was born in Lubbock, Texas.









1942:  Edwin Starr ("War") was born in Nashville, Tennessee; died April 2, 2003 of a heart attack in Bramcote, Nottinghamshire, England.
1945:  Chris Britton, guitarist of the Troggs, was born in Watford, Hertfordshire, England.
1947:  Jim Ibbotson of the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band ("Mr. Bojangles") was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

1950:  Billy Ocean (real name Leslie Sebastian Charles) was born in Fyzabad, Trinidad and Tobago.
1950:  Richie Ranno, guitarist with the highly-underrated Starz ("Cherry Baby" and "Sing It, Shout It"), was born in the Bronx, New York.
1956:  Rob Brill, drummer of Berlin ("Take My Breath Away" from 1986), was born in New York City.
1965: Jam Master Jay (real name Jason Mizell) of Run-DMC was born in Brooklyn, New York; murdered on October 30, 2002 in Queens, New York.
1970:  Mark Trojanowski, drummer of Sister Hazel ("All For You")  (Note:  we can find no credible sources for his birthdate, with websites showing January 21, 26 and 27.  Our best research shows he was born on January 21.)
1973:  Chris Kilmore, keyboardist of Incubus, was born in Dillsburg, Pennsylvania.




1976:  Emma Bunton, Baby Spice of the Spice Girls, was born in Finchley, London.
1979:  Nokio of Dru Hill

The Top 100 R&B Songs of the 1970's Starts Sunday!

This seemed like a great feature to do.  When we began researching the information and looking at the songs, it got even better.  There are a lot of great songs that didn't make the Top 100, and that's how you judge quality.  Every one of The Top 100 Songs* has a lot going for it, from #100 to #1.  The songs are all great.  Keep in mind that this is but one segment, one genre of the Rock Era.  There are some songs that were only big R&B songs and there are others that were bigger on the mainstream chart than they were on the R&B chart.  It's important to know that the songs were ranked on how they performed on the R&B chart and not the mainstream popular chart.

But any way you look at it, these 100 songs are fantastic.  Be sure to check in every day as we'll present 10 songs per day.

The Top 100 R&B Songs of the 1970's*--starting Sunday on Inside the Rock Era!

Etta James has died at age 73

Etta James, who had 28 hits in the 1960's, has died.  She had been battling leukemia.  Her biggest hit was "Tell Mama", which reached #23 in 1968. James won six Grammys in her career. Her other top hits were "At Last", "The Wallflower" and "Something's Got a Hold on Me".

This Date in Rock Music History: January 20

1953:  Elvis Presley registered for the Selective Service System in the United States.  (Note:  numerous websites incorrectly report that Elvis received orders to report to military duty on January 20, 1958.  The only event that the date of January 20 refers to is the date Elvis registered for the draft, shortly after his 18th birthday.  On December 20, 1957, Elvis received his official draft notice.  He was able to get a deferment, then officially was inducted on March 24, 1958.  Some websites claim he received his draft notice on December 8, but it was the 20th, according to 'History.com' and the books 'Icons of Rock:  An Encyclopedia of the Legends Who Changed Music Forever' by  Scott Schinder and Andy Schwartz and Elvis for Kids:  A Biography of Elvis Presley Just for Kids!' by Sam Rogers.

1958:  An artist who would become one of the most successful in the early years of the Rock Era debuted on the chart with his first hit song on this date at the age of 18--"DeDe Dinah"...by Frankie Avalon.
1958:  Danny & the Juniors posted a third week at #1 on the R&B chart with "At The Hop".
1962:  Gene Chandler had a new song that was doing quite well, moving from #93 to #49 on this date--"Duke Of Earl".
1964:  The Beatles released the album Meet the Beatles in the United States, which served as their debut album in the States.

1964:  On the heels of their huge #1 "I Want To Hold Your Hand", the Beatles re-released the single "She Loves You" in the United States.
1965:  The Miracles recorded "Tracks Of My Tears".
1965:  The Rolling Stones, the Dave Clark Five, Petula Clark, Glen Campbell, the Kinks, Bobby Vee, Gerry & the Pacemakers and Bobby Sherman appeared on one heck of an episode of Shindig!  on ABC-TV.  







1965:  DJ Allan Freed, who coined the term "Rock & Roll" to describe the new music, died at the age of 43 in Palm Springs, California from uremia and cirrhosis brought on by alcoholism.











1966:  Staff Sergeant Barry Sadler released the single "The Ballad Of the Green Beret".  The song had originally been released only to the military on a small label, but when it became a big hit underground, RCA Records picked up the song and released it nationally.
1966:  Chad & Jeremy appeared on Laredo on NBC-TV.

1967:  Arthur Conley recorded "Sweet Soul Music".

1967:  Paul McCartney recorded his vocal for the Beatles' song "A Day In The Life".  He would later re-record the part on February 3.
1968:  The "Magical Mystery Tour" Soundtrack by the Beatles was the top album for a third week.  Disraeli Gears by Cream maneuvered from 15 to 7.





1968:  "Chain Of Fools" by Aretha Franklin was the new #1 on the R&B chart.
1968:  Paul Mauriat exploded from 84 to 47 with "Love Is Blue".
1968:  Jon Fred & His Playboy Band reached #1 with "Judy In Disguise (With Glasses)".
1969:  The Cowsills recorded "Hair" in New York City.
1969:  Elvis Presley recorded "In The Ghetto" at American Studios in Memphis, Tennessee.
1973:  Hot August Night by Neil Diamond entered the Top 10 on the Album chart.







1973:  Carly Simon moved to #1 on the Adult chart with "You're So Vain".
1973:  Stevie Wonder made it three weeks at #1 on the R&B chart with "Superstition".
1973:  Carly Simon had one of The Top Songs of the 70's* with "You're So Vain", #1 for a third week.  "Superstition" by Stevie Wonder was second.

1979:  Parliament's "Aqua Boogie (A Psychoalphadiscobetaaquadoloop) was #1 on the R&B chart.









     Foreigner proved they were for real with this album.

1979:  Barbra Streisand's Greatest Hits, Volume 2 was #1 for a third week on the Album chart.  Foreigner's second release, Double Vision, entered the Top 10.










1979:  "Le Freak", which had already spent three weeks at #1 before giving way to the Bee Gees' "Too Much Heaven", was back for a third time at the top for Chic.  "My Life" from Billy Joel remained third for the third week.  Olivia Newton-John entered the Top 10 with "A Little More Love" while Rod Stewart bounced from 22 to 10 with "Do Ya Think I'm Sexy?"
1982:  Ozzy Osbourne bit the head off of a bat in Des Moines, Iowa and the idiot was hospitalized to undergo a series of rabies shots.
1983:  Def Leppard released their breakthrough album--Pyromania.
1985:  Andy Gibb was on Punky Brewster on NBC-TV.
1986:  Stevie Wonder and Bob Dylan performed at a Martin Luther King Day concert at the John F. Kennedy Performing Arts Center in Washington, D.C.
1988:  A stellar class in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame--The Beatles, the Beach Boys, the Supremes, Bob Dylan, the Drifters and Berry Gordy, Jr., along with Les Paul, Woody Guthrie and Leadbelly.






1990:  Rod Stewart had the #1 Adult Contemporary song with "Downtown Train".
1990:  Michael Bolton reached #1 with "How Am I Supposed to Live Without You".  Technotronic was held out for another week with "Pump Up The Jam" while previous #1 "Another Day In Paradise" by Phil Collins was third.  Jody Watley moved to #4 with "Everything" and Rod Stewart had his 40th career solo hit but just his 11th Top 10 with "Downtown Train".  The rest of the Top 10:  "Rhythm Nation", the former #2 from Janet Jackson, Lou Gramm had a solo hit with "Just Between You And Me", Tom Petty crashed the list with "Free Fallin'", Seduction was up from 15-9 with "Two To Make It Right" and Tesla's "Love Song" was #10.





      
       A host of great tracks on 'Jagged Little Pill'...

1996:  The "Waiting to Exhale" Soundtrack moved to #1 on the Album chart.  Daydream by Mariah Carey slipped to #2 with Alanis Morissette's Jagged Little Pill still looming.  Hootie & the Blowfish were up to #4 after 78 weeks with Cracked Rear View and the new Garth Brooks album--Fresh Horses was fifth.  The rest of the Top 10:  The Greatest Hits Collection from Alan Jackson, Shania Twain entered the list with her breakthrough album The Woman In Me, CrazySexy Cool by TLC was still strong after 60 weeks, the Smashing Pumpkins had #9 with Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness and Bush couldn't get past 10 with Sixteen Stone.





        Everything But the Girl had a huge hit on their hands...

1996:  Mariah Carey & Boyz II Men had now spent eight weeks at #1 with "One Sweet Day".  Since dropping from #1, Whitney Houston had spent eight weeks at #2 with "Exhale (Shoop Shoop)".  LL Cool J was third with "Hey Lover", Everything but the Girl moved from 10-4 with "Missing" and Deep Blue Something had their one and only hit--"Breakfast At Tiffany's".  The rest of a solid Top 10:  "Name" from the Goo Goo Dolls, TLC's "Diggin' On You", Joan Osborne found the Top 10 with "One Of Us", Coolio's monster hit "Gangsta's Paradise" was now at #9 and Madonna collected her 36th career hit with "You'll See".
1999:  Scott Weiland of the Stone Temple Pilots, who was on probation for using heroin, was arrested for failing to provide a urine sample to his live-in drug treatment center.






2002:  Sting won the Golden Globe Award in Beverly Hills, California for the Best Song from a Motion Picture--"Until", from Kate & Leopold.
2004:  Terry Balsamo, guitarist of Cold, left the group to join Evanescence.

2012:  Larry Butler, keyboardist and vocalist with the Esquires and the Gentrys ("Keep On Dancin'"), songwriter (co-wrote "(Hey Won't You Play) Another Somebody Done Somebody Wrong Song" for B.J. Thomas) and producer for Kenny Rogers, Debbie Boone and Mac Davis, died in his sleep at the age of 69 in Pensacola, Florida.

2012:  Etta James died of leukemia at the age of 73 in Riverside, California.

Born This Day:
1922:  Ray Anthony ("Peter Gunn" from 1959) was born in Bentleyville, Pennsylvania.
1924:  Lee Pockriss, songwriter who penned three of the great songs early in the Rock Era--"Itsy Bitsy Teenie Weenie Yellow Polkadot Bikini" for Bryan Hyland, "Catch A Falling Star" for Perry Como and "Johnny Angel" for Shelley Fabares, as well as many more songs, was born in Brooklyn, New York; died November 14, 2011 of a long illness at his home in Bridgewater, Connecticut.
1931:  Earl Grant ("The End" from 1958) was born in Idabel, Oklahoma; died June 10, 1970 in a car accident in Lordsburg, New Mexico.

1933:  Ron Townson of the 5th Dimension was born in St. Louis, Missouri; died in Las Vegas, Nevada on August 2, 2001 of renal failure after a four-year battle with kidney disease.  (Note:  some websites report he died on August 3, but it was Thursday, August 2, according to 'The New York Times' and 'Billboard'.)
1942:  Billy Powell, a founding member of the O'Jays, was born in Canton, Ohio; died May 26, 1977 of cancer in Canton.  (Note:  some websites show his birth year as 1941, and others his birthday as December 9--according to both the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the Vocal Group Hall of Fame, Powell was born on January 20, 1942.)

  Evans on right, as one half of the duo Zager & Evans...


1943:  Rick Evans of Zager & Evans ("In The Year 2525" from 1969) was born in Lincoln, Nebraska.
1945:  Eric Stewart, guitars, keyboards and vocals for the Mindbenders ("Groovy Kind Of Love" from 1966) and 10 c.c., was born in Droylsden, Lancashire, England.
1946:  Jimmy Chambers of Londonbeat ("I've Been Thinking About You" from 1990) was born in Trinidad.

 

1952:  Paul Stanley (real name:  Stanley Eisen), guitarist for Kiss, was born in Manhattan, New York.
1958:  Ian Hill, founding member and bassist for Judas Priest, was born in West Bromwich, England.
1969:  Nicholas Allen Jones, lyricist and bassist of the Manic Street Preachers, was born in Woodfieldside, South Wales.  (Note:  some websites report his birthplace as Blackwood, South Wales, but Jones says he was born in Woodfieldside.) 
1971:  Gary Barlow, songwriter and pianist for Take That ("Back For Good" from 1995), solo artist ("Forever Love" from 1996), who has written songs for Donny Osmond, Charlotte Church and others, was born in Frodsham, Cheshire, England.  (Note:  some websites claim Barlow was born in Frosham; that is a misspelling; there is no such town in England as Frosham.)
1979:  Rob Bourdon, drummer of Linkin Park, was born in Calabasas, California.
1981:  Nathan Connolly, guitarist of Snow Patrol, was born in Belfast, Northern Ireland.

Hits List: Michael Jackson

He was, for many years, the young lead singer with the Jackson 5.  He released several solo singles, but it really wasn't until the Off the Wall album when we realized that he wasn't just a cute boy in his brothers' group but rather he was something special.  Then there was Thriller of course and the rest, as they say, is history, or perhaps that should be HIStory.

The chart numbers used or just for those countries that showed an early interest in Michael's solo work from the outset.  The vast majority of singles were hits in dozens of countries. 
1971:  "Got to Be There" (#4, #5 U.K., #3 Canada, #83 Australia)
1972:  "Rockin' Robin" (#2, #3 U.K., #13 Canada, #16 Australia, #16 New Zealand)
           "I Wanna' Be Where You Are" (#16, #57 Canada)
           "Ain't No Sunshine" (#7 U.K., #19 Switzerland, #16 Netherlands)
           "Ben" (#1, #7 U.K, #6 Canada, #1 Australia, #12 New Zealand, #2 Netherlands)
1973:  "With a Child's Heart" (#50, #60 Canada)
           "Morning Glow" (#98 Australia)
           "Music and Me" (#34 Netherlands)
           "Happy" (#52 U.K., #31 Australia, #21 New Zealand)
1975:  "Just a Little Bit of You" (#23, #43 Canada)
           "We're Almost There" (#54, #46 U.K., #79 Canada, #21 New Zealand, #61 Netherlands)

1978:  "Ease on Down the Road" (with Diana Ross) (#41, #45 U.K., #35 Canada, #47 Netherlands)

1979:  "You Can't Win" (#81)
           "A Brand New Day" (with Dian Ross & the Wiz Stars) (#1 Netherlands) 
           "Don't Stop 'til You Get Enough" (#1, #3 U.K., #1 Australia, #1 New Zealand, #2 Netherlands)
           "Rock with You" (#1, #7 U.K., #3 Canada, #4 Australia, #3 New Zealand)
           "Off the Wall" (#10, #7 U.K., #11 Canada, #94 Australia, #14 New Zealand, #23 Netherlands)
1980:  "She's Out of My Life" (#10, #3 U.K., #15 Canada, #17 Australia, #6 New Zealand, #19 Netherlands)
           "Girlfriend" (#41 U.K., #49 New Zealand)
1981:  "One Day in Your Life" (#55, #1 U.K., #48 New Zealand, #1 Netherlands)

1982:  "The Girl Is Mine (with Paul McCartney) (#2, #8 U.K., #8 Canada, #4 Australia, #3 New Zealand, #12 Netherlands)
1983:  "Billie Jean" (#1, #1 U.K., #1 Canada, #1 Australia, #2 New Zealand, #2 Netherlands)
           "Beat It" (#1, #3 U.K., #1 Canada, #2 Australia, #1 New Zealand, #1 Netherlands)
           "Wanna' Be Startin' Somethin'" (#5, #8 U.K., #1 Canada, #25 Australia, #35 New Zealand, #1 Netherlands)
           "Human Nature" (#7, #62 U.K., #11 Canada, #63 Australia, #33 New Zealand, #14 Netherlands)
           "P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing" (#10, #11 U.K., #17 Canada, #40 Australia, #13 Netherlands)
           "Say Say Say" (with Paul McCartney) (#1, #2 U.K., #1 Canada, #4 Australia, #10 New Zealand, #4 Netherlands)
1984:  "Thriller" (#4, #10 U.K., #3 Canada, #3 Australia, #6 New Zealand, #3 Netherlands)
           "Farewell My Summer Love" (#38, #7 U.K., #46 Canada, #68 Australia, #35 New Zealand)
           "Girl You're So Together" (#33 U.K.)

1987:  "Twenty-Five Miles"
           "I Just Can't Stop Loving You" (with Siedah Garrett) (#1, #1 U.K., #2 Canada, #10 Australia, #3 New Zealand, #1 Netherlands)
           "Bad" (#1, #3 U.K., #5 Canada, #4 Australia, #2 New Zealand, #1 Netherlands)
           "The Way You Make Me Feel" (#1, #3 U.K., #7 Canada, #5 Australia, #2 New Zealand, #6 Netherlands)
1988:  "Man in the Mirror" (#1, #2 U.K., #3 Canada, #8 Australia, #4 New Zealand, #16 Netherlands)
           "Dirty Diana" (#1, #4 U.K., #5 Canada, #26 Australia, #5 New Zealand, #2 Netherlands)
           "Another Part of Me" (#11, #15 U.K., #28 Canada, #44 Australia, #14 New Zealand, #10 Netherlands)
           "Smooth Criminal" (#7, #8 U.K., #16 Australia, #29 New Zealand #1 Netherlands)
1989:  "Leave Me Alone" (#2 U.K., #37 Australia, #9 New Zealand, #6 Netherlands)
           "Liberian Girl" (#13 U.K., #50 Australia, #31 New Zealand, #15 Netherlands)

1991:  "Black or White" (#1, #1 U.K., #1 Canada, #1 Australia, #1 New Zealand, #3 Netherlands)
1992:  "Remember the Time" (#3, # U.K., #2 Canada, #6 Australia, #1 New Zealand, #3 Netherlands)
           "In the Closet" (#6, #8 U.K., #16 Canada, #5 Australia, #5 New Zealand, #9 Netherlands)
           "Jam" (#26, #13 U.K., #29 Canada, #11 Australia, #2 New Zealand, #9 Netherlands)
           "Who Is It" (#14, #10 U.K., #6 Canada, #34 Australia, #16 New Zealand, #15 Netherlands)
           "Heal the World" (#27, #2 U.K., #21 Canada, #20 Australia, #3 New Zealand, #6 Netherlands)--underrated.
1993:  "Give In to Me" (#2 U.K., #4 Australia, #1 New Zealand, #3 Netherlands)
           "Will You Be There" (#7, #9 U.K., #6 Canada, #42 Australia, #2 New Zealand, #3 Netherlands)
           "Gone Too Soon" (#33 U.K., #76 Australia, #6 New Zealand, #31 Netherlands)

1995:  "Scream" (with Janet Jackson) (#5, #3 U.K., #12 Canada, #1 New Zealand, #3 Netherlands)
           "Childhood" (#5, #3 U.K., #73 Canada, #1 New Zealand, #3 Netherlands)
           "You Are Not Alone" (#1, #1 U.K., #11 Canada, #7 Australia, #1 New Zealand, #6 Netherlands)
           "Earth Song" (#1 U.K., #40 Canada, #15 Australia, #4 New Zealand, #4 Netherlands)
1996:  "They Don't Care About Us" (#30, #4 U.K., #16 Australia, #9 New Zealand, #4 Netherlands)--highly underrated.
           "Stranger in Moscow" (#91, #4 U.K., #14 Australia, #6 New Zealand, #9 Netherlands)
1997:  "Blood on the Dance Floor" (#42, #1 U.K., #4 Canada, #5 Australia, #1 New Zealand, #4 Netherlands)
           "HIStory/Ghosts" (#5 U.K., #43 Australia, #29 New Zealand, #16 Netherlands)

2001:  "You Rock My World" (#10, #2 U.K., #2 Canada, #4 Australia, #13 New Zealand, #3 Netherlands)
           "Cry" (#25 U.K., #43 Australia)
2003:  "One More Chance" (#83, #5 U.K., #23 Netherlands)
2008:  "The Girl Is Mine" (with will.i.am) (#32 U.K., #76 Canada, #60 Australia, #17 Netherlands)
           "Wanna' Be Startin' Somethin' 2008" (with Akon) (#81, #69 U.K., #32 Canada, #8 Australia, #4 New Zealand, #48 Netherlands)
2010:  "Hold My Hand" (with Akon) (#39, #10 U.K., #16 Canada, #37 Australia, #6 New Zealand, #28 Netherlands)
2011:  "Hollywood Tonight" (#54 Netherlands)
           "Behind the Mask"

Michael's solo chart record looks like this:  47 hits, with a great number of those, 33, going Top 10 and 13 #1's.  Remarkable.

This Date in Rock Music History: January 19

1957:  Democratic U.S. presidents all have their own superstars to invite to play at their inaugurations.  Pat Boone was the big star to sing at the presidential inauguration of Republican U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower.

1957:  "Since I Met You Baby" by Ivory Joe Hunter remained #1 for a third week on the R&B chart.
1959:  The Platters achieved a #1 song with "Smoke Gets In Your Eyes".  "My Happiness" by Connie Francis was next, and previous four-week #1 "The Chipmunk Song" by the Chipmunks (David Seville) was third.  Ritchie Valens moved from 15 to 4 with "Donna" and the Crests were up nice (12-5) with "16 Candles".  The rest of the Top 10:  "A Lover's Question" from Clyde McPhatter, Billy Grammer with "Gotta' Travel On", Fats Domino was tumbling with "Whole Lotta' Loving", Lloyd Price moved from 21 to 9 with "Stagger Lee" and the Teddy Bears' big hit "To Know Him Is To Love Him" was at #10.





1962:  Jackie Wilson held on to #1 on the R&B chart for a sixth week with "Lonely Teardrops".
1962:  Steve Lawrence logged a sixth week at #1 on the Easy Listening chart with "Go Away Little Girl".
1963:  The Beatles made their first national television appearance in the U.K., performing "Please Please Me" on Thank Your Lucky Stars.
1963:  Frankie Avalon married Kathryn "Kay" Diebel .
1963:  The Rooftop Singers had a big hit as "Walk Right In" moved from #35 to #11.
1967:  The Beatles began recording "A Day In The Life" at Abbey Road Studios in London, doing the rhythm track, John Lennon's lead vocal and recording the clock alarm sound that was used in the song. 
1967:  Pink Floyd and Marmalade played a bill at the Marquee Club in London.





1967:  Lesley Gore starred as Catwoman's sidekick, Pussycat, on the popular Batman on ABC-TV.
1967:  The Monkees ruled the U.K. chart with "I'm A Believer".

















1973:  The Moody Blues released "I'm Just A Singer (In A Rock & Roll Band)".
1974:  Barbra Streisand remained at #1 on the Adult chart with "The Way We Were".









                       "Goodbye Again" from John Denver...

1974:  Jim Croce again topped the Album chart with You Don't Mess Around with Jim.  The Carpenters' former #1 compilation The Singles 1969-1973 was right behind with another album from Croce, I Got a Name, at #3.  Elton John was finally headed downward with Goodbye Yellow Brick Road while The Joker from Steve Miller Band was #5.  The rest of the Top 10:  The self-titled Bette Midler, the Soundtrack to "Jonathan Livingston Seagull" from Neil Diamond, John Denver's Greatest Hits moved from 12-8, the great album Band on the Run by Paul McCartney & Wings was #9 and Muscle of Love from Alice Cooper came in 10th.



1974:  The great song "Show And Tell" from Al Wilson reached #1, overtaking "The Joker" from Steve Miller.  Brownsville Station edged one step closer with "Smokin' In The Boy's Room".  The rest of the Top 10:  Gladys Knight & the Pips with "I've Got To Use My Imagination", Ringo Starr with "You're Sixteen", Jim Croce was down with his former #1 "Time In A Bottle", Barbra Streisand entered the Top 10 with "The Way We Were", Stevie Wonder's great song "Living For The City" was at position #8, Olivia Newton-John remained at #9 with "Let Me Be There" and Barry White's Love Unlimited Orchestra moved from 13-10 with one of The Top 10 Instrumentals of the Rock Era*--"Love's Theme".
1976:  The Beatles turned down a $30 million offer from promoter Bill Sargent to play together again.  The lost people of the world think it's all about money.
1977:  Pink Floyd played their album Animals for the press at Battersea Power Station in London.

1977:  Charlie Daniels and the Marshall Tucker Band played at the inauguration of U.S. President Jimmy Carter.

1977:  Aretha Franklin sang "God Bless America" at the inaugural concert for President-elect Carter.



1980:  "Brass In Pocket" by the Pretenders was the new #1 song in the U.K.










1980:  Dionne Warwick's comeback was well underway and she moved to #1 on the Adult Contemporary chart with "Deja Vu".
1980:  Michael Jackson made it three weeks in a row at #1 on the R&B chart with "Rock with You".









1980:  It had been eight years since "Ben", but Michael Jackson finally had his second solo #1 with "Rock With You". The Captain & Tennille challenged with "Do That To Me One More Time", Rupert Holmes relinquished after having one of the top songs of 1979 with "Escape (The Pina Colada Song)" and Kenny Rogers was up strong with "Coward Of The County".  Stevie Wonder was on the way down with "Send One Your Love" but Tamla labelmate Smokey Robinson was up from 12-6 with "Cruisin'".  The rest of the Top 10:  Cliff Richard's second Top 10 in the U.S.--"We Don't Talk Anymore", Kool & the Gang with "Ladies Night", K.C. and the Sunshine Band with their big hit "Please Don't Go" and Little River Band slipped into the Top 10 with "Cool Change".




            
       
                             Pink Floyd's "Hey You...

1980:  Pink Floyd first reached #1 on the Album chart with The Wall after just six weeks of release.  On the Radio-Greatest Hits-Volumes I & II from Donna Summer was second with The Long Run from the Eagles #3.  Previous #1 Bee Gees Greatest was on its way down but the solid Damn the Torpedoes from Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers was up to #5.  The rest of the Top 10:  Stevie Wonder's Journey Through the Secret Life of Plants, Kenny from Kenny Rogers came in #7, Michael Jackson was up to 8 with Off the Wall, Styx was down with Cornerstone and Tusk from Fleetwood Mac was still in the Top 10.
1981:  Styx released the album Paradise Theater.






1981:  Hall & Oates released the single "Kiss On My List".  (Note:  some websites list the date of release as January 24, the date it debuted on the charts.  It is physically impossible for a song to be sent to radio stations, added by stations to their playlists, reported to the trade papers, and the trade papers be printed and published all on the same day.)
1983:  Lamar Williams, bassist of the Allman Brothers Band, died of cancer in Los Angeles at age 34.

1985:  AC/DC, the Scorpions, Ozzy Osbourne and Whitesnake performed at the Rock in Rio festival in Brazil in front of an estimated 342,000 fans.






       Adams was still churning out hits from 'Reckless'...

1985:  Madonna ruled #1 for a fifth week with "Like A Virgin".  Jack Wagner remained second with "All I Need" with Chicago closing to #3 with "You're The Inspiration".  Foreigner climbed from 11 to 4 with their great song "I Want To Know What Love Is".  The rest of a dynamite Top 10:  "Easy Lover" from Philip Bailey of Earth, Wind & Fire with help from Phil Collins, Bryan Adams was up to #6 with "Run To You", Duran Duran headed down with "The Wild Boys", Pat Benatar with "We Belong", Bruce Springsteen with "Born In The U.S.A." and Wham!  was up from 20 to 10 with "Careless Whisper".

1985:  Here we have one of the most incredible stories of the Album chart in the history of the Rock Era.  Bruce Springsteen had spent four weeks at #1 way back in July with Born in the U.S.A. when the album was first released.  Prince's Purple Rain took over on August 4 and spent the next 23 weeks at #1 until January 12, 1985.  The album that finally toppled the Purple One?  Unbelievable, but it was Born in the U.S.A., which had continued to challenge week after week since it fell from #1, with 20 of those weeks at #2!












1986:  Falco released the single 'Rock Me Amadeus".  (Note:  some websites erroneously list the worldwide release date as March 28--it was released in Germany in 1985.  The release date to the rest of the world is physically impossible, since "Rock Me Amadeus" debuted on the Singles chart on February 8.  A song cannot make the Singles chart if it has not been released as a single.)    







1987:  Europe released the single "The Final Countdown".

1988:  Metallica began recording their fourth album And Justice for All at the One on One studio in Los Angeles.

1988:  Doc McGhee, manager of Bon Jovi and Motley Crue, pleaded guilty to importing more than 40,000 pounds of marijuana into the United States.  (Note:  there are numerous websites which claim that Doc McGheep, the manager of Bon Jovi and Motley Crue, pleaded guilty to this offense, but there is no such person.  The man's name is Doc McGhee.)








1991:  Enigma had the #1 U.K. song--"Sadness, Part One".
1991:  Surface moved to #1 on the R&B chart with "The First Time".









                            C+C had the dance floors filled...

1991:  Janet Jackson landed her fifth career #1 and seventh consecutive Top 10 with "Love Will Never Do (Without You)". C&C Music Factory was up to #6 with "Gonna' Make You Sweat".
1993:  Fleetwood Mac reunited just so they could play at U.S. President Bill Clinton's inauguration.  The lineup for the occasion was a virtual Who's Who in Rock Music:  Barbra Streisand, Michael Jackson, Stevie Wonder, Aretha Franklin, Don Henley, Glenn Frey, Linda Ronstadt, Bob Dylan and Peter, Paul & Mary.
1994:  The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inducted Elton John, John Lennon, Rod Stewart, the Animals, the Grateful Dead, Bob Marley and the Band.
1997:  Madonna won a Golden Globe award for Best Actress for her role in Evita.






1998:  Pat Boone was awarded the first annual Michael the Archangel Award by the National Association of Chiefs of Police.










1998:  Carl Perkins died from throat cancer in Nashville, Tennessee at age 65.
1999:  Bizzy Bone of Bone Thugs-N-Harmony went on trial in Columbus, Ohio, for dragging a student barber down a flight of stairs.
1999:  Jean-Michel Jarre delivered a petition to the European Parliament signed by hundreds of European recording artists asking for better legal protection against music piracy on the Internet.
1999:  The Republican-controlled U.S. Supreme Court refused to hear a 1998 lawsuit brought by ticket buyers against Ticketmaster, which charged that the firm engaged in anti-competitive behavior and price-fixing with promoters.

2001:  Christina Aguilera performed at the Caracas Pop Festival in Venezuela.
2001:  After huge sales from the Beates' compilation albums, Paul McCartney became the first billionaire music artist, reportedly worth $1.233 billion.
2002:  In today's Dangerous Inmates Run Rap Music segment, C-Murder, whose real name is the very plain Corey Miller, was arrested in the shooting death of 16-year-old Steve Thomas at a nightclub on January 12.






          "Don't Know Why", from Norah's great album...

2003:  Come Away with Me by Norah Jones outdistanced all challengers to score the #1 album.
2004:  Jimmy Dean ("Big Bad John") was dropped by Sara Lee as the spokesman for Jimmy Dean sausages after decades of pitching the product.

2006:  Wilson Pickett ("In The Midnight Hour") died in a hospital near his home in Reston, Virginia from a heart attack at age 64.  (Note:  some websites mistakenly report his death as being in Ashburn, Virginia.  He lived in Ashburn, but died in a hospital in Reston, according to the newspaper 'The Washington Post'.)

2006:  Kristen Hall, guitarist of Sugarland, announced she was leaving the group to concentrate on songwriting.

2007:  Denny Doherty, former member of the Mamas and the Papas, died at the age of 66 of a second abdominal aortic aneurysm at his home in  Mississauga, Ontario, Canada.

2008:  John Stewart, who was with the Kingston Trio, wrote "Daydream Believer" for the Monkees, and was a successful solo artist ("Gold" from 1979), died after a massive stroke at age 68 in San Diego, California. 
2010:  Phoebe Snow suffered a hemorrhagic stroke at her home in New Jersey and required emergency brain surgery.
2011:  Gwen McRae ("Rockin' Chair" from 1975) underwent successful surgery to remove her gall bladder.

Born This Day:
1932:  Richard Lester, director of the Beatles' movie A Hard Day's Night, was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
1935:  Bob Engemann of the Lettermen was born in Highland Park, Michigan; died January 20, 2013 in Provo Utah from complications of heart bypass surgery.

1939:  Phil Everly of the Everly Brothers was born in Chicago, Illinois; died of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (a combination of emphysema and bronchitis) after a lifetime of smoking in Burbank, California on January 3, 2013.  (The Country Music Hall of Fame claims Phil was born in Chicago, Illinois, but the book '1950s American Style:  A Reference Guide by Daniel Niemeyer says he was born in Brownie, Kentucky.  Photographer Jerry Spies, who grew up across the street from the Everlys, said that older brother Don was born in Brownie, but the family moved to Chicago soon after, and Phil was born in Chicago.)1939:  Sam T. Brown, session guitarist for James Brown among others, was born in St. Louis, Missouri; died December 28, 1977 in Bloomington, Indiana.

1943:  Janis Joplin was born in Port Arthur, Texas; died October 4, 1970 in Hollywood, California from drugs.

1944:  Shelley Fabares ("Johnny Angel") was born in Santa Monica, California.
1944:  Laurie London ("He's Got The Whole World In His Hands" from 1958) was born in Bethnal Green, East London.









1945:  Rod Evans, original lead singer of Deep Purple, was born in Edinburgh, Scotland.  (Note:  some websites report that Rod was born in Slough, England, but according to the book 'Smoke on the Water:  The Deep Purple Story' by Dave Thompson, Evans was born in Edinburgh, then moved to Slough with his family.)










1946:  Dolly Parton was born in Locust Ridge, Tennessee.  (Note:  some websites report his birthplace as the less specific Sevier County, Tennessee.  According to the official 'Dollywood' website, Dolly was in fact born in Locust Ridge.)
1948:  Harvey Hinsley of Hot Chocolate was born in Northampton, England.

1949:  Robert Palmer was born in Batley, Yorkshire, England; died of a heart attack September 26, 2003 in Paris, France.
1950:  Francis Buchholz of the Scorpions was born in Hannover, Germany.  (Note:  you will see some websites spell his birthplace as Hanover--that is the English spelling; the correct German spelling is Hannover.)









1951:  Dewey Bunnell of America was born in Harrogate, Yorkshire, England.
1952:  Eric Leeds, multi-instrumentalist who worked with Prince, was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.  (Note:  some websites report his birthplace as Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.  According to the official websites for both Leeds and Prince, Eric was born in Milwaukee before his family moved to Pittsburgh.)









1953:  Michael Boddicker, film composer and session musician who played synthesizer on the albums Thriller, Bad and Dangerous from Michael Jackson, was born in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. 
1957:  Mickey Virtue, keyboardist and founding member of UB40, was born in Birmingham, England.  
1963:  Caron Wheeler of Soul II Soul was born in London.  
1969:  Trey Lorenz ("Someone To Hold" from 1992) was born in Florence, South Carolina.
1971:  John Wozniak, lead singer, songwriter and guitarist of Marcy Playground, was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota.