1958: Jerry Lee Lewis was granted a divorce from his second wife six months after marrying 14-year-old cousin Myra.
Saturday, May 12, 2018
Friday, May 11, 2018
This Date in Rock Music History: May 12
1958: The movie Let's Rock, starring Paul Anka, Danny & the Juniors and the Royal Teens opened to audiences.
Thursday, May 10, 2018
This Date in Rock Music History: May 11
1957: Buddy Holly & the Crickets auditioned for Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts television program at the KFDA studios in Amarillo, Texas but were rejected. So much for the opinion of Arthur Godfrey.
1957: The Everly Brothers appeared in concert for the first time on "Grand Ole Opry" in Nashville, Tennessee.
Wednesday, May 9, 2018
This Date in Rock Music History: May 10
1960: The Liverpool group the Beatals changed their name to the Silver Beetles. The group, which included Stu Sutcliffe on bass and drummer Tommy Moore, along with John Lennon, Paul McCartney, and George Harrison, auditioned to be the backing group for Billy Fury, Johnny Gentle or Duffy Power at the Blue Angel (formerly known as the Wyvern Social Club), a club owned by manager Allan Williams. Fury, Gentle, and Power were all looking for bands, and four other groups, including Gerry and the Pacemakers, auditioned the same day. Moore was late, so the group used Johnny Hutchinson, the drummer from the group the Cassanovas, another auditioning group. Despite the fact that the drummer had never practiced with them, the Silver Beetles were still the class of the five. Fury indicated that this was the band for him. Moore then came staggering through the door and took over on drums. Not too long afterwards, Fury abruptly decided that he didn't need a band, and the Silver Beetles were subsequently assigned to back Gentle on an upcoming tour of Scotland. (Note: some websites claim that the group changed their name to the Silver Beetles on May 20, but according to the book 'The Beatles As Musicians: The Quarry Men Through Rubber Soul' by Walter Everett, the name change occurred on May 10. Some websites say that the group changed their name from Johnny & the Moondogs to the Silver Beetles on this date. According to 'The Beatles Bible', the group stopped using the name Johnny & the Moondogs in January, and briefly called themselves the Beatals before switching to the Silver Beetles.)
1963: The Rolling Stones recorded their first songs, including their version of Chuck Berry's "Come On", at Olympic Studios in London.
1964: Dusty Springfield made her television debut singing "I Only Want To Be With You" on the CBS program The Ed Sullivan Show.
1965: The Beatles recorded "Dizzie Miss Lizzy" and "Bad Boy".
1965: The Rolling Stones recorded part of "Satisfaction" at Chess Studios in Chicago.
1966: Janis Joplin was invited to San Francisco by her friend Chet Helms. Helms wanted her to audition for a group he was managing--Big Brother and the Holding Company.
1967: British police arrested Mick Jagger, Keith Richard and Brian Jones for various drug offenses.
1968: Jim Morrison, seeing what he thought was abuse of audience members by policemen, incited a riot at a Doors concert at the Chicago Coliseum.
1969: Tricia Nixon, daughter of United States President Richard Nixon, invited the Temptations and the Turtles to perform at a White House Ball.
1969: She sang backup for Eric Clapton, Joe Cocker, Leon Russell and Delaney & Bonnie but on this date, Rita Coolidge debuted on the chart with her own first single--"Turn Around And Love You".
1969: On the Threshold of a Dream by the Moody Blues reached #1 on the U.K. Album chart.
Iron Butterfly had their first and only Top Ten album...
1969: The Soundtrack to "Hair" by the Original Cast was #1 on the Album chart for a third week, holding off the great debut from Blood, Sweat & Tears. Glen Campbell's Galveston was #3, Donovan's Greatest Hits came in fourth and Cloud Nine from the Temptations was #5. The rest of the Top 10: Nashville Skyline from Bob Dylan, In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida by Iron Butterfly remained at 7, Help Yourself from Tom Jones was #8, CCR came in at #9 with Bayou Country and another Glen Campbell entry, Wichita Lineman closed the Top 10.
1969: The Beatles scored one of the top debuts in rock history with "Get Back", which debuted at #10 on this date.
1972: Status Quo opened for Slade at Gt. George's Hall in Bradford, West Yorkshire, England.
1974: Eric Clapton recorded "I Shot The Sheriff".
1974: Led Zeppelin celebrated their new record label, Swan Song, with a dinner at the Bel Air Hotel in Los Angeles.
1974: The Who sold out four shows at Madison Square Garden in New York City (80,000 tickets).
1975: She studied songwriting under Paul Simon at the University School of the Arts in the early 1970's and sang backup for Bette Midler. She would go on to have 15 hits but she made a big impression with her first single, "Midnight Blue", which debuted on the chart on this date...for Melissa Manchester.
The great track "Shooting Star" from Bad Company...
1975: Chicago VIII remained atop the Album chart for a second week, with That's the Way of the World from Earth, Wind & Fire at #2. Led Zeppelin's Physical Graffiti fell to #3 in its ninth week on the chart, Have You Never Been Mellow from Olivia Newton-John was #4 and the posthumous release Crash Landing from Jimi Hendrix came in fifth. The rest of the Top 10: The Soundtrack to "Funny Lady", the Soundtrack to "Tommy" at #7, Straight Shooter from Bad Company was eighth, An Evening With John Denver came in at #9 and Alice Cooper's Welcome To My Nightmare was #10.
1975: Apple Records, the record company owned by the Beatles, dissolved.
1975: Stevie Wonder performed a free concert at the Washington Monument for 125,000 people in Washington, D.C. as part of "Human Kindness Day" in the nation's capital.
1979: Bob Dylan recorded the great track "Precious Angel" along with "When You Gonna' Wake Up" and "Slow Train" for his upcoming album Slow Train Coming at Muscle Shoals Sound Studio in Sheffield, Alabama.
1980: "Call Me" by Blondie beat back the competition for #1, but "Ride Like The Wind" was #2 for the third week in a row. Air Supply remained at 3 with their first hit "Lost In Love", Billy Preston & Syreeta hung in at 4 "With You I'm Born Again" and Pink Floyd was stuck at 5 with "Another Brick In The Wall". The rest of the Top 10: "Fire Lake" from Bob Seger, Billy Joel's "You May Be Right" at #7, "Sexy Eyes" from Dr. Hook at #8, "Don't Fall In Love With A Dreamer", the collaboration from Kenny Rogers and Kim Carnes, and Jimmy Ruffin's "Hold On To My Love" coming in at #10.
1982: In the "Should I Stay Or Should I Go" department: drummer Topper Headon of the Clash decided to go. (Note: some websites claim that Topper left the group on May 24, but the correct date is May 10, according to 'The Drum Channel'.)
1985: The Go-Go's, the most popular self-contained all-girl group in music history to that time (writing songs and playing their own instruments) announced they were breaking up.
1986: Paul Simon was the guest on Saturday Night Live. He performed "You Can Call Me Al", "Graceland" and "Homeless" from his landmark Graceland album.
1986: The Pet Shop Boys moved up to #1 with "West End Girls", taking over the spot occupied by Robert Palmer's "Addicted To Love". Whitney Houston was #3 with "Greatest Love Of All" and Van Halen came in fourth with "Why Can't This Be Love". The rest of the Top 10: Janet Jackson's "What Have You Done For Me Lately" at #5, the Outfield with "Your Love", Phil Collins' hit "Take Me Home" at #7, the Miami Sound Machine moving into the Top 10 with "Bad Boy", "Harlem Shuffle" from the Rolling Stones tumbling to #9 and "If You Leave" at #10, giving Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark their first Top 10.
1999: Shel Silverstein died of a heart attack at the age of 68 in Key West, Florida. Silverstein, who designed cartoons, wrote plays, poems and stories, also wrote songs such as "The Cover Of The Rolling Stone" and "Sylvia's Mother" for Dr. Hook, "A Boy Named Sue" for Johnny Cash and "The Unicorn" for the Irish Rovers.
2000: Bobby Brown was arrested at Newark International Airport in New Jersey for violating his probation.
2000: Michael Bolton lost an appeal against a court ruling that he stole part of his 1991 song "Love Is a Wonderful Thing" from an Isley Brothers song.
2003: American Life by Madonna was the new #1 album.
2003: Paul McCartney performed a benefit concert in Rome, Italy. Proceeds went to Adopt-a-Minefield and to a restoration project for the Colosseum.
2004: Glen Campbell pleaded guilty to driving under the influence and leaving the scene of a car wreck the previous November in Phoenix. He was sentenced in June to 10 days in jail.
2005: Seal married German supermodel Heidi Klum on a beach in Mexico near Seal's home on the Costa Careyes.
2007: A concert was held at the Barbican Centre in London in tribute to ex-frontman Syd Barrett of Pink Floyd, who had recently passed away.
2008: The Bee Gees were honored with a Blue Plaque that was placed at the former London home of Robert Stigwood, the band's long-time manager and producer.
2010: The Eagles played the second night at the General Motors Place in Vancouver, British Columbia as part of the highly-successful Long Road Out Of Eden Tour.
Born This Day:
1946: Donovan was born in Glasgow, Scotland.
1963: The Rolling Stones recorded their first songs, including their version of Chuck Berry's "Come On", at Olympic Studios in London.
1964: Dusty Springfield made her television debut singing "I Only Want To Be With You" on the CBS program The Ed Sullivan Show.
1965: The Beatles recorded "Dizzie Miss Lizzy" and "Bad Boy".
1965: The Rolling Stones recorded part of "Satisfaction" at Chess Studios in Chicago.
1966: Janis Joplin was invited to San Francisco by her friend Chet Helms. Helms wanted her to audition for a group he was managing--Big Brother and the Holding Company.
1967: British police arrested Mick Jagger, Keith Richard and Brian Jones for various drug offenses.
1968: Jim Morrison, seeing what he thought was abuse of audience members by policemen, incited a riot at a Doors concert at the Chicago Coliseum.
1969: Tricia Nixon, daughter of United States President Richard Nixon, invited the Temptations and the Turtles to perform at a White House Ball.
1969: She sang backup for Eric Clapton, Joe Cocker, Leon Russell and Delaney & Bonnie but on this date, Rita Coolidge debuted on the chart with her own first single--"Turn Around And Love You".
1969: On the Threshold of a Dream by the Moody Blues reached #1 on the U.K. Album chart.
Iron Butterfly had their first and only Top Ten album...
1969: The Soundtrack to "Hair" by the Original Cast was #1 on the Album chart for a third week, holding off the great debut from Blood, Sweat & Tears. Glen Campbell's Galveston was #3, Donovan's Greatest Hits came in fourth and Cloud Nine from the Temptations was #5. The rest of the Top 10: Nashville Skyline from Bob Dylan, In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida by Iron Butterfly remained at 7, Help Yourself from Tom Jones was #8, CCR came in at #9 with Bayou Country and another Glen Campbell entry, Wichita Lineman closed the Top 10.
1969: The Beatles scored one of the top debuts in rock history with "Get Back", which debuted at #10 on this date.
1972: Status Quo opened for Slade at Gt. George's Hall in Bradford, West Yorkshire, England.
1974: Eric Clapton recorded "I Shot The Sheriff".
1974: Led Zeppelin celebrated their new record label, Swan Song, with a dinner at the Bel Air Hotel in Los Angeles.
1974: The Who sold out four shows at Madison Square Garden in New York City (80,000 tickets).
1975: She studied songwriting under Paul Simon at the University School of the Arts in the early 1970's and sang backup for Bette Midler. She would go on to have 15 hits but she made a big impression with her first single, "Midnight Blue", which debuted on the chart on this date...for Melissa Manchester.
The great track "Shooting Star" from Bad Company...
1975: Chicago VIII remained atop the Album chart for a second week, with That's the Way of the World from Earth, Wind & Fire at #2. Led Zeppelin's Physical Graffiti fell to #3 in its ninth week on the chart, Have You Never Been Mellow from Olivia Newton-John was #4 and the posthumous release Crash Landing from Jimi Hendrix came in fifth. The rest of the Top 10: The Soundtrack to "Funny Lady", the Soundtrack to "Tommy" at #7, Straight Shooter from Bad Company was eighth, An Evening With John Denver came in at #9 and Alice Cooper's Welcome To My Nightmare was #10.
1975: Apple Records, the record company owned by the Beatles, dissolved.
1975: Stevie Wonder performed a free concert at the Washington Monument for 125,000 people in Washington, D.C. as part of "Human Kindness Day" in the nation's capital.
1979: Bob Dylan recorded the great track "Precious Angel" along with "When You Gonna' Wake Up" and "Slow Train" for his upcoming album Slow Train Coming at Muscle Shoals Sound Studio in Sheffield, Alabama.
1980: "Call Me" by Blondie beat back the competition for #1, but "Ride Like The Wind" was #2 for the third week in a row. Air Supply remained at 3 with their first hit "Lost In Love", Billy Preston & Syreeta hung in at 4 "With You I'm Born Again" and Pink Floyd was stuck at 5 with "Another Brick In The Wall". The rest of the Top 10: "Fire Lake" from Bob Seger, Billy Joel's "You May Be Right" at #7, "Sexy Eyes" from Dr. Hook at #8, "Don't Fall In Love With A Dreamer", the collaboration from Kenny Rogers and Kim Carnes, and Jimmy Ruffin's "Hold On To My Love" coming in at #10.
1982: In the "Should I Stay Or Should I Go" department: drummer Topper Headon of the Clash decided to go. (Note: some websites claim that Topper left the group on May 24, but the correct date is May 10, according to 'The Drum Channel'.)
1985: The Go-Go's, the most popular self-contained all-girl group in music history to that time (writing songs and playing their own instruments) announced they were breaking up.
1986: Paul Simon was the guest on Saturday Night Live. He performed "You Can Call Me Al", "Graceland" and "Homeless" from his landmark Graceland album.
1986: The Pet Shop Boys moved up to #1 with "West End Girls", taking over the spot occupied by Robert Palmer's "Addicted To Love". Whitney Houston was #3 with "Greatest Love Of All" and Van Halen came in fourth with "Why Can't This Be Love". The rest of the Top 10: Janet Jackson's "What Have You Done For Me Lately" at #5, the Outfield with "Your Love", Phil Collins' hit "Take Me Home" at #7, the Miami Sound Machine moving into the Top 10 with "Bad Boy", "Harlem Shuffle" from the Rolling Stones tumbling to #9 and "If You Leave" at #10, giving Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark their first Top 10.
1999: Shel Silverstein died of a heart attack at the age of 68 in Key West, Florida. Silverstein, who designed cartoons, wrote plays, poems and stories, also wrote songs such as "The Cover Of The Rolling Stone" and "Sylvia's Mother" for Dr. Hook, "A Boy Named Sue" for Johnny Cash and "The Unicorn" for the Irish Rovers.
2000: Bobby Brown was arrested at Newark International Airport in New Jersey for violating his probation.
2000: Michael Bolton lost an appeal against a court ruling that he stole part of his 1991 song "Love Is a Wonderful Thing" from an Isley Brothers song.
2003: American Life by Madonna was the new #1 album.
2004: Glen Campbell pleaded guilty to driving under the influence and leaving the scene of a car wreck the previous November in Phoenix. He was sentenced in June to 10 days in jail.
2005: Seal married German supermodel Heidi Klum on a beach in Mexico near Seal's home on the Costa Careyes.
2007: A concert was held at the Barbican Centre in London in tribute to ex-frontman Syd Barrett of Pink Floyd, who had recently passed away.
2008: The Bee Gees were honored with a Blue Plaque that was placed at the former London home of Robert Stigwood, the band's long-time manager and producer.
2010: The Eagles played the second night at the General Motors Place in Vancouver, British Columbia as part of the highly-successful Long Road Out Of Eden Tour.
Born This Day:
1938: Henry Fambrough, an original vocalist with the Spinners, was born in Detroit, Michigan. (Note: some websites report Henry was born in 1935, but 'Billboard' magazine indicates he was born in 1938.)
1946: Dave Mason, elite guitarist with Traffic and a solo artist, was born in Worcester, England. ('Billboard' magazine reports Mason was born in 1944, but the book 'Legends of Rock Guitar: The Essential Reference of Rock's Greatest Guitarists' by Pete Prown and Harvey P. Newquist says that Mason was born in 1946, and his talent agency, Richard De La Font Agency, confirms the 1946 date.)
1946: Dave Mason, elite guitarist with Traffic and a solo artist, was born in Worcester, England. ('Billboard' magazine reports Mason was born in 1944, but the book 'Legends of Rock Guitar: The Essential Reference of Rock's Greatest Guitarists' by Pete Prown and Harvey P. Newquist says that Mason was born in 1946, and his talent agency, Richard De La Font Agency, confirms the 1946 date.)
1946: Donovan was born in Glasgow, Scotland.
1946: Graham Gouldman, songwriter and guitarist of 10cc, was born in Broughton, Northamptonshire, England. (Note: the Songwriters Hall of Fame and 'Allmusic.com' report he was born in Manchester, but according to 'The Manchester Evening News' and 'The Manchester Beat', Gouldman was born in Broughton.)
1947: Jay Ferguson, songwriter and lead singer of Spirit and later a solo artist, was born in Burbank, California.
1951: Ron Banks, founder and lead singer of the Dramatics, was born in Detroit, Michigan; died March 4, 2010 of a heart attack in Detroit, Michigan.
1952: Lee Brilleaux (Dr. Feelgood), was born in Durban, South Africa; died April 7, 1994 of lymphoma in Leigh-on-Sea, Essex, England.
1952: Sly Dunbar, session drummer for Joe Cocker, Jimmy Cliff and Robert Palmer, was born in Kingston, Jamaica.
1952: Sly Dunbar, session drummer for Joe Cocker, Jimmy Cliff and Robert Palmer, was born in Kingston, Jamaica.
1957: Sid Vicious (real name: John Simon Ritchie), bassist of the Sex Pistols; died February 2, 1979 from drugs while awaiting a trial for murder.
1960: Bono (Paul Hewson), lead singer of U2, was born in Dublin, Ireland.
1961: Danny Carey, drummer for Tool, was born in Lawrence, Kansas.
1967: Young MC (real name: Marvin Young) was born in Neasden, London, England. (Note: some websites claim he was born in London. According to the official website for Young MC, he was born in Neasden, a small town near London.)
1968: Richard Patrick, guitarist and vocalist of Filter and once a member of Nine Inch Nails, was born in Needham, Massachusetts.
1971: Craig Mack was born in Trenton, New Jersey.
1961: Danny Carey, drummer for Tool, was born in Lawrence, Kansas.
1967: Young MC (real name: Marvin Young) was born in Neasden, London, England. (Note: some websites claim he was born in London. According to the official website for Young MC, he was born in Neasden, a small town near London.)
1968: Richard Patrick, guitarist and vocalist of Filter and once a member of Nine Inch Nails, was born in Needham, Massachusetts.
1971: Craig Mack was born in Trenton, New Jersey.
Tuesday, May 8, 2018
This Date in Rock Music History: May 9
1958: Disc Jockey Alan Freed quit radio station WINS in New York City after they refused to stand behind him in the wake of recent charges of inciting a riot at a Boston concert.
Monday, May 7, 2018
This Date in Rock Music History: May 8
1961: Ricky Nelson had a hot new song. "Hello Mary Lou" moved from 73 to 27.
Sunday, May 6, 2018
This Date in Rock Music History: May 7
1955: Elvis Presley performed at the Peabody Auditorium in Daytona Beach, Florida.