This Date in Rock Music History: January 15

1955:  The Penguins had the first new #1 R&B song of the Rock Era--"Earth Angel (Will You Be Mine)".
1957:  Elvis Presley recorded "(Let Me Be Your) Teddy Bear".  (Note:  some websites report that Elvis record this classic song on January 24--this is categorically wrong.  The sessions for the 'Loving You' soundtrack album were recorded between January 15 and January 18.  According to the official Graceland website, Presley recorded "Teddy Bear" on January 15.)
1958:  Elvis Presley recorded "Hard Headed Woman".
1958:  The Everly Brothers made their debut on British television with the rebroadcast of the U.S. show The Perry Como Show. 
1961:  The Supremes signed a recording contract with Motown Records.

1964:  The Beatles performed at the Cinema Cyrano in Versailles, France.
1964:  What people will do over money.  Capitol Records, which up until a few weeks previous didn't want anything to do with the Beatles, whom they thought would never make it in the United States, filed an injunction against Vee Jay Records, preventing it from manufacturing, distributing, or otherwise disposing of records by the Beates.  Vee Jay turned around and filed a lawsuit against Capitol and Swan Records over manufacturing and distribution rights to Beatles recordings.  The result?  Pretty much as it is today--the big corporation (Capitol) won. 







1965:  The Who released the single "I Can't Explain" in the U.K.
1966:  James Brown returned to #1 for a sixth week on the R&B chart with "I Got You (I Feel Good)".








         
          "Norwegian Wood" from 'Rubber Soul'...

1966:  After moving from #60 to #1 the previous week, Rubber Soul by the Beatles easily held on to #1 on the Album chart.  Former #1 "The Sound of Music" Soundtrack logged a fourth consecutive week at #2 while previous #1 Whipped Cream & Other Delights by Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass was still at #3.  The new Rolling Stones album December's Children (and everybody's) couldn't compete with those three and peaked at #4 while Going Places, the new album from Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass, was fifth.  The rest of the Top 10:  The Best of Herman's Hermits, My World from Eddy Arnold, the great album September of My Years by Frank Sinatra entered the Top 10, Golden Hits from Roger Miller was ninth, and My Name Is Barbra, Two by Barbra Streisand slipped to 10th.






1967:  Donovan was in concert at the Royal Albert Hall in London.
1967:  The Roy Orbison movie The Fastest Guitar Alive, co-starring Sam the Sham (of Sam the Sham & the Pharoahs) debuted in New York City.

1967 - The Rolling Stones performed on The Ed Sullivan Show and were forced to change their lyrics of "Let's Spend The Night Together" to "Let's Spend Some Time Together." 













1969:  Creedence Clearwater Revival released the single "Proud Mary".

1969:  George Harrison had a five-hour meeting with John, Paul and Ringo in which he made it clear that he was prepared to quit the group.  He wasn't happy with live performances or the Let It Be movie project.












1971:  The Carpenters released the single "For All We Know".

1971:  Chase recorded "Get It On".

1972:  Peter Grant, manager of Led Zeppelin, turned down a request for the group to play in Cannes, France.

1972:  Elvis Presley drew the largest audience in television history (an estimated one billion people) for his live, worldwide concert (Aloha from Hawai'i) from Honolulu, Hawai'i, broadcast the night before.  American audiences would have to wait until April 4 to see the concert on television.  In all, approximately 40 countries televised the event, seen by 1.5 billion people. 

1972:  Music from Stanley, Idaho's Carole King continued to top the Album chart for a third week.  American Pie by Don McLean moved to second followed by Chicago At Carnegie Hall and The Concert for Bangla Desh from George Harrison.  Led Zeppelin IV slipped to #5.

1972: Don McLean took over at #1 on the Adult chart with "American Pie".

1972: The great new instrumental "Joy" by Apollo 100 was sweeping up the chart (90 to 49).
1972:  "American Pie" by Don McLean became the new #1 song.












1973:  Deodata released the single "Also Sprach Zarathustra", his incredible arrangement to the mind-blowing futuristic movie 2001:  A Space Odyssey.







 

                   The beautiful instrumental title track...

1977:  ABBA swept to #1 on the U.K. Album chart with their excellent Arrival.  ABBAalso was at #2 with their Greatest Hits package.

1977:  "I Wish" by Stevie Wonder became the new #1 on the R&B chart.

1977:  10cc had one of the hottest songs on this date--"The Things We Do For Love" jumped from 86 to 63.

1977:  Leo Sayer scored his first #1 with "You Make Me Feel Like Dancing".  Stevie Wonder moved to challenge with "I Wish" while two other popular R&B entries--"Car Wash" from Rose Royce and "You Don't Have To Be A Star" by Marilyn McCoo & Billy Davis, Jr. were next.  The rest of the Top 10:  "Dazz" from Brick, Rod Stewart's former #1--"Tonight's The Night", Elton John slipped to 7 with "Sorry Seems To Be The Hardest Word", the Sylvers dialed in with "Hot Line", Engelbert Humperdinck placed at 9 with "After The Lovin'" and Burton Cummings with "Stand Tall".

1977:  Barbra Streisand had the new Adult #1 with "Love Theme From 'A Star Is Born' (Evergreen)".

 
      "Try and Love Again", a great reason why 'Hotel California' is so special...

1977:  Hotel California by the Eagles reached #1 on the Album chart, finally toppling the great Stevie Wonder album Songs in the Key of Life, which had been #1 every week of its release (13).  Wings Over America by Paul McCartney & Wings edged up, swapping spots with Boston.  ELO was still strong in the midst of that great competition with A New World Record while Best of the Doobies by the Doobie Brothers was #6.  The rest of the Top 10:  Frampton Comes Alive!  was now moving up again after 51 weeks, Greatest Hits from Linda Ronstadt, the Steve Miller Band remained ninth with Fly Like An Eagle while A Night on the Town by Rod Stewart experienced a precipitous fall.

1979:  The Doobie Brothers released the single "What A Fool Believes".

1982:  Backed by the Go-Go's, the Police began a world tour at the Boston Garden in Massachusetts.

1982:  Harry Casey, keyboardist and lead singer of K.C. and the Sunshine Band, was partially paralyzed on the right side of his body as a result of a head-on car accident in Hialeah, Florida.  It took a year for him to recover.

1983:  Rick Wakeman, ex-Yes keyboardist, co-hosted a new pop music show Gastank on Channel 4 TV in the U.K.

1983:  Phil Collins hit #1 in the U.K. with his version of the Supremes song "You Can't Hurry Love".

1983:  Business As Usual by Men At Work spent a 10th week at #1 on the Album chart while Built for Speed by the Stray Cats was #2 for an eighth week.  New Wave had successfully brought rock and roll back to the forefront and was a significant story in Rock Era history.  The Clash, another New Wave act, had Combat Rock at #9 as well.

          
                       1983--a great time in music...

1983:  Men At Work climbed to #1 with "Down Under, leaping over "The Girl Is Mine" from Michael Jackson & Paul McCartney.  Don Henley remained third with "Dirty Laundry", Hall & Oates slipped with their former #1 "Maneater" and Marvin Gaye remained at #5 with "Sexual Healing".  The rest of a solid Top 10:  "Mickey" from Toni Basil, Toto moved from 12-7 with "Africa", Patti Austin and James Ingram were up with "Baby, Come To Me", the Clash entered the Top 10 with "Rock The Casbah" and Dionne Warwick reached #10 with "Heartbreaker".

1985:  Sheena Easton married record company executive Rob Light at the Biltmore Hotel in Los Angeles.  And aspiring grooms around the world were out of luck.

1991:  Sean Lennon recorded a remake of Dad John's peace anthem "Give Peace A Chance".  It was released to coincide with the United Nation's deadline for Iraq to withdraw from Kuwait.  Since the world had given peace a chance but Iraq leader Saddam Hussein didn't want peace, war was the only option.

1992:  Dee Murray, the accomplished bassist who played for Elton John on Tumbleweed Connection, Goodbye Yellow Brick Road and the masterpiece Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy, died at age 45 in Nashville, Tennessee after suffering a stroke.

1994:  Harry Nilsson, great singer-songwriter who gave us "Without You", "Everybody's Talkin'" and so many others, died in his sleep from heart failure in Agoura Hills, California at age 52.

1994:  Jodeci took over at #1 on the R&B chart with "Cry For You".

          Janet Jackson had her 11th consecutive Top 10...

1994:  "Hero" by Mariah Carey was still #1 for a fourth straight week.  "All For Love" by Bryan Adams, Rod Stewart & Sting provided the closest competition, with "All That She Wants" by Ace of Base, Janet Jackson's "Again" and "Breathe Again" from Toni Braxton trailing.

1998:  James Brown checked into a hospital for treatment for his addiction to painkillers.

1998:  Junior Wells, harmonica player who worked with the Rolling Stones, Carlos Santana, Van Morrison and Bonnie Raitt, died in Chicago, Illinois at age 63.




2000:  Four thousand people went to see Christina Aguilera at a department store in Schaumburg, Illinois. 
2001:  The Brit Awards committee announced that U2 would receive an Outstanding Contribution to Music award at the February 26 ceremony in London.
2002:  Adam Ant was admitted to a mental hospital after pulling a gun on the staff of a London pub.  Of course, many wonder why he wasn't admitted 20 years previously.

2004:  In today's episode of Dangerous Inmates Run Rap Music, Mystikal was sentenced to six years behind bars for sexual battery.  And moral compass-challenged rap fans continue to wonder why it matters which music they buy and which concerts they go to.
2006:  Shayne Ward continued at #1 in the U.K. for the fourth week with "That's My Goal".





2006:  James Blunt continued to own the top U.K. album with his debut Back to Bedlam, which had been the #1 album for the year 2005.

2008:  Ronnie Wood, guitarist for the Rolling Stones, had an operation for a hernia he sustained while the group was on tour.  Those are the hazards the Rolling Stones endure at their ages.
2010:  Charlie Daniels suffered a mild stroke while on a snowmobiling trip in Durango, Colorado.

Born This Day:

1893:  Ivor Novello, songwriter & actor and the person the annual British music awards are named after, was born in Cardiff, Wales; died March 6, 1951 of coronary thrombosis in London.

1941:  Don Van Vliet (known as Captain Beefheart was born in Glendale, California); died December 17, 2010 of complications from multiple scerlosis.
1942:  Edward Bivins of the Manhattans ("Kiss And Say Goodbye") was born in Macon, Georgia; died of kidney complications due to cancer on December 3, 2014.  (Note:  some websites claim Edward was born in 1936, but 'Allmusic.com' and other credible sites place his birth as 1942.)

1945:  Joan Johnson of the Dixie Cups was born in New Orleans, Louisiana; died October 5, 2016 of congestive heart failure.  (Note:  some websites report Johnson was born in 1944.  According to the book 'Motown Encyclopedia' by Graham Betts, she was born in 1945.)

1947:  Pete Waterman, producer and a member of the famed Stock, Aitken & Waterman team, was born in Coventry, Warwickshire (now West Midlands), England.  Waterman produced Kylie Minogue, Rick Astley and Bananarama, signed Musical Youth and Nik Kershaw and booked the first tour for the Bay City Rollers.

1948:  Ronnie Van Zant, lead singer of Lynyrd Skynyrd, was born in Jacksonville, Florida; died October 20, 1977 in a plane crash in Gillsburg, Mississippi with other members of the group and their entourage.

1951:  Martha Davis of the Motels ("Only the Lonely") was born in Berkeley, California.

1952:  Melvyn Gale, cello player of ELO, was born in London.

1953:  Douglas Elwin Erikson, founding member and guitarist of Garbage, was born in Lyons, Nebraska.

1965:  Adam Jones, guitarist of Tool, was born in Park Ridge, Illinois.

1967:  Lisa Velez, lead singer of Lisa Lisa & Cult Jam ("Head To Toe"), was born in New York City.