Timeline of Pop and Rock Music
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This day in
history: # 1 song: www.joshhosler.biz/NumberOneInHistory/SelectMonth.htm
1497
Robert Fayrfax (1464-1521), English royal composer,
wrote one of 2 Magnificats that survived to modern times. He was
considered the most prominent and influential composer during of the
reigns of Kings Henry VII and Henry VIII of England.
(SFC, 6/4/10,
p.F4)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Fayrfax)
1620 Thomas Tompkins (1572-1656),
English royal composer, wrote his madrigal “When David Heard.”
(SFC, 6/4/10, p.F4)
1873 Aug 18, Otto Harbach,
songwriter (Smoke Gets in Your Eyes), was born in, SLC, Utah.
(MC, 8/18/02)
1878 May 25, Bill "Bojangles"
Robinson was born and began his dancing career in childhood. The young
song-and-dance man learned his trade in beer gardens, traveling
companies and later on the vaudeville circuit. Robinson performed only
within the black community until he was 50 years old, when his unique
style of tap-dancing, including his signature "stair dance," crossed
over to white audiences. Robinson, who continued to perform into his
late sixties, made 14 Hollywood motion pictures, playing both
stereotypical black roles and a handful of leads. He died of a chronic
heart condition in 1949.
(WSJ, 5/19/98, p.A20)(HNPD, 5/26/99)
1878 Jul 3, George M. Cohan,
American entertainer, was born. He wrote the songs "Over There,"
"You're a Grand Old Flag" and "I'm a Yankee Doodle Dandy" and the play
"Yankee Doodle-Dandy."
(HN, 7/3/99)
1893 Mildred and Patty Hill wrote
a song called "Good Morning to All" as a welcome song for
schoolchildren. It later became the "Happy Birthday" Song with a 1935
copyright on the lyrics.
(SSFC, 10/5/03, Par p.24)
1898 Apr 15, Bessie Smith,
American blues singer, was born.
(HN, 4/15/01)
1901 Jul 28, Rudy Vallee, singer
(Vagabond Dreams, My Time Is Your Time), was born in Vermont.
(SC, 7/28/02)
1903 May 3, Bing Crosby (d.1977),
singer and actor, was born in Tacoma, Wa. The family soon moved to
Spokane where he grew up.
(HN, 5/3/98)(SSFC, 1/21/01, BR p.10)
1905 Aug 24, Arthur "Big Boy"
Crudup, blues singer, was born. He was a major influence on Elvis
Presley.
(HN, 8/24/00)
1906 Dec 2, Peter Carl Goldmark
(d.1977), engineer, was born in Budapest, Hungary. He developed the
first commercial color television and the long-playing phonograph
record.
(HN, 12/2/00)(AP, 12/2/06)
1907 May 1, Kate Smith (d.1986),
singer, was born in Washington, DC.
(AP, 5/1/07)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kate_Smith)
1909 Apr 1, Eddie Duchin, society
pianist, bandleader (Eddie Duchin Orch), was born in Mass.
(MC, 4/1/02)
1909 May 10, Maybelle Carter,
country singer (Johnny Cash Show), was born in Nickelsville, Va.
(MC, 5/10/02)
1909 Jun 1, Guido Deiro, European
vaudeville star, introduced the "fizarmonica systema piano" at the
Alaskan Exposition in Seattle, Washington. He was contracted by the
Ranco Antonio Accordion Company of Italy and is credited with naming
the instrument " piano accordion." His brother Pietro Deiro was the
first to play the accordion in San Francisco.
(www.guidodeiro.com)
1909 Aug 10, Leo Fender, inventor
of the first mass-produced electric guitar, was born.
(HN, 8/10/00)
1913 May 18, Perry Como (Pierino
Roland Como, d. 2001), singer, was born in Canonsburg, Pa. [maybe 1912]
(SSFC, 5/13/01, p.A27)(SC, 5/18/02)
1915 Apr 7, Billie Holliday, jazz
and blues legend, was born. She sang "God Bless the Child."
(HN, 4/7/99)
1915 Hans Leip, in training for
the Prussian Guard, authored the poem “Song of a Young Sentry.” It
reflected his recent meetings with two women named Lili and Marlene. In
1938 Norbert Schultze of Berlin put it to music. The composition was
then recorded by cabaret chanteuse Lale Anderson and became hugely as
the song “Lili Marlene.” In 2008 Liel Leibovitz and Matthew Miller
authored “Lili Marlene: The Soldier’s Song of World War II.”
(WSJ, 11/8/08, p.W8)
1916 Mar 15, Harry James (d.1983),
American band leader and trumpet player, was born, He is best
remembered for his hit "You Made Me Love You." He married Betty Grable
(HN,
3/15/99)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harry_James)
1916 Dec 2, Paolo Tosti,
Italian-born composer and music teacher, died at the Hotel Excelsior in
Rome. In 1894 Tosti joined the British Royal Academy of Music as a
professor. In 1906, he became a British citizen and was knighted two
years later by his friend, King Edward VII. In 1913 he returned to
Italy to spend his last years there. Tosti wrote a total of 360 songs
in his lifetime including: “Goodbye,” “Forever,” and “Mother.”
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paolo_Tosti)(www.bohemianopera.com/tosti.htm)
1917 Apr 1, Scott Joplin (48),
ragtime composer (Sting), died.
(MC, 4/1/02)
1917 Jun 17, Dean Martin, singer
and comedian, was born as Dino Crocetti in Steubenville, Ohio. He
worked with Jerry Lewis. His films included "My Friend Irma,"
"Hollywood or Bust," "Airport," "Bells are Ringing" and "Rio Bravo."
[see Jun 7]
(MC, 6/17/02)
1919 May 3, Pete Seeger, American
folksinger and songwriter, was born in NYC. Seeger helped to lay the
foundation for American protest music, singing out about the plight of
everyday working folks and urging listeners to political and social
activism.
(www.rutherford.org/oldspeak/Articles/Art/oldspeak-Seeger.html)
1921 Ted Snyder wrote the hit song
"Sheik of Araby."
(WSJ, 6/3/03, p.D5)
1923 Mar 10, Kenneth "Jethro"
Burns, country singer (Homer & Jethro), was born.
(MC, 3/10/02)
1923 Mar 23, Frank Silver and
Irving Conn released "Yes, We Have No Bananas."
(SS, 3/23/02)
1924 Mar 27, Sarah Vaughan, 'the
Divine One,' jazz singer, was born. She was famous for singing "What a
Difference a Day Makes."
(HN, 3/27/99)
1924 Jun 9, "Jelly-Roll Blues,"
was recorded by blues great, Jelly Roll Morton.
(MC, 6/9/02)
1924 Nov 4, Gabriel Faure
(b.1845), French composer, organist, pianist, and teacher, died in
Paris. He was the foremost French composer of his generation. His
musical style influenced many 20th century composers.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gabriel_Faur%C3%A9)
1925 Feb 28, "Tea For Two" by
Marion Harris hit #1.
(MC, 2/28/02)
1925 Apr 12, Tiny Tim, [Herbert
Khaury], singer (Tiptoe Through the Tulips), was born.
(MC, 4/12/02)
1926 Aug 3, Tony Bennett, singer,
was born in Queens, NY.
(SC, 8/3/02)
1926 Irving Berlin wrote his tune
“Blue Skies.”
(MT, Fall/99, p.24)
1927 Mar 1, Harry Belafonte,
calypso singer (Buck and the Preacher), was born in Harlem, NYC.
(SC, 3/1/02)
1927
Apr 1, The first automatic record changer was introduced by His
Master's Voice.
(OTD)
1927 Dec, In Nashville, Ten.,
after harmonica wizard DeFord Bailey played his "Pan American Blues,"
WSM Announcer Judge Hay got the idea to change the name of the show
from the "Barn Dance" to the "Grand Ole Opry."
(www.pbs.org/deford/timeline/index.html)
1928 Mar 1, Paul Whiteman and his
orchestra recorded "Ol' Man River" for Victor Records.
(SC, 3/1/02)
1928 May 3, James Brown, "The
Godfather of Soul," was born in Augusta, Georgia. The singer is best
remembered for the song "I Feel Good."
(HN, 5/3/99)(MC, 5/3/02)
1928 Aug 10, Eddie Fisher,
American singer, was born. His hits included "I'm Walking Behind You"
and "Oh! My Pa-Pa."
(HN, 8/10/99)
1928 James B. Davis (1916-2007)
organized the Dixie Hummingbirds from members of his church choir in
Greenville, SC. In 1973 the group backed Paul Simon in the hit “Loves
Me Like a Rock.” In 1999 the House of Blues released a Dixie
Hummingbirds album: “Music in the Air.”
(SFC, 4/30/07, p.B8)
1929 Apr 8, Jacques Brel (d.1978),
singer, actor, was born in Belgium.
(MC, 4/8/02)
1929 May 12, Burt Bacharach,
composer, was born in KC, Mo. His songs included "I’ll Never Fall in
Love Again."
(SC, Internet, 5/12/97)(MC, 5/12/02)
1929 Jun 23, Valerie June Carter
(d.2003) was born in Maces Springs, Va., to Mother Maybelle Carter, a
founding member of the Carter Family trio. She married Johnny Cash in
1968.
(SFC, 5/16/03, p.A24)
1929 Aug 12, Buck Owens, country
singer (Hee Haw), was born in Sherman, Texas.
(SC, 8/12/02)
1931 Sep 12, George Jones, country
singer, was born.
(HN, 9/12/00)
1931 The first electric guitar,
the Rickenbacker "frying pan," was made.
(NH, 6/97, p.64)(SSFC, 11/9/03, p.C5)
1932 Feb 26, Johnny Cash (d.2003)
country singer (I Walk The Line, Folsom Prison Blues, Boy Named Sue),
was born in Kingsland, Arkansas.
(NW, 9/22/03, p.98)
1932 Aug 12, Porter Wagoner,
country singer, discovered Dolly Parton (Y'All Come), was born.
(SC, 8/12/02)
1932 The Milton Ager and Jack
Yellen song “Happy Days Are Here Again” was used as the campaign song
for the election of Franklin Delano Roosevelt.
(SFC, 1/19/09, p.E1)
1933 Apr 30, Willie Nelson,
country singer who sang "On the Road Again" and "To All the Girls I’ve
Loved Before," was born.
(HN, 4/30/98)
1933 Sep 1, Conway Twitty [Harold
Jenkins], country singer (Hello Darlin'), was born in Miss.
(SC, 9/1/02)
1935 Feb 16, Salvatore Bono
(d.1998), vocalist (Sonny & Cher), (Rep-R-Ca, 1995-98), was born in
Detroit.
(SFC, 1/6/98, p.A11)(MC, 2/16/02)
1935 Mar 31, Herb Alpert,
bandleader, trumpeter (Tijuana Brass), CEO (A & M), was born.
(MC, 3/31/02)
1935 Apr 14, Loretta Lynn, singer
(Coal Miner's Daughter), was born in Butcher's Hollow, Ky. In 1948 she
married Doo Lynn (d.1996). She recorded her 1st single in 1960: "I’m a
Honky Tonk Girl."
(MC, 4/14/02)(SSFC, 1/26/03, Par p.8)
1935 Frances Langford (1913-2005),
singer and entertainer, made a hit with the song “I’m in the Mood for
Love” by Dorothy Fields and Jimmy McHugh.
(SFC, 7/12/05, p.B5)
1935 The Australian song
"Kookaburra" was penned by teacher Marion Sinclair for a Girl Guides
Jamboree. In 1990 music company Larrikin acquired the rights to
"Kookaburra." In 2010 the Australian band Men at Work were found guilty
of plagiarizing the children's ditty in their 1980s hit "Down Under"
after a court battle involving two of the nation's most iconic songs.
(AFP, 2/4/10)
1936 Mar 22, Roger Whittaker,
country singer (Durham Town), was born in Nairobi, Kenya.
(MC, 3/22/02)
1936 Apr 23, Roy Orbison, rocker
(Pretty Woman), was born in Vernon, Tx.
(MC, 4/23/02)
1936 May 14, Bobby Darin (d.1973),
singer (Mack the Knife), was born in the Bronx as Walden Robert
Cassotto.
(www.history-of-rock.com/bobby_darin.htm)
1936 Sep 7, Rock legend Buddy
Holly was born Charles Hardin Holley in Lubbock, Texas.
(AP, 9/7/97)
1937 Feb 1, Don Everly, was born.
(singer: group: The Everly Brothers with brother, Phil: Wake Up Little
Susie, Bye Bye Love, Cathy’s Clown, All I Have To Do Is Dream)
(440 Int'l, 2/1/1999)
1937 Apr 6, Merle Haggard,
American country musician, was born.
(HN, 4/6/01)
1937 May 15, Trini Lopez, singer,
guitarist (If I Had a Hammer), was born in Trinidad.
(MC, 5/15/02)
1937 Jun 4, Freddy Fender, singer,
was born as Baldemar Huerta. His songs included: Wasted Days and
Wasted Nights and Before the Next Teardrop Falls.
(www.napster.com/view/artist/index.html?id=11508506)
1937 Jul 11, George Gershwin
(b.1898 as Jacob Gershowitz), composer, died of a brain tumor at age 38
in Beverly Hills, Ca. His work included "Cuban Overture." He
wrote his first hit, "Swanee," in 1918 for the Broadway show, "Sinbad,"
starring Al Jolson. George Gershwin wrote the scores for such Broadway
shows as "Funny Face," "Porgy and Bess" and "Of Thee I Sing" (his first
musical to win a Pulitzer Prize [1932]). Gershwin played the piano at
the premiere of his widely acclaimed "Rhapsody in Blue" in 1924,
accompanied by the Paul Whiteman Orchestra. Gershwin’s song hits
included "The Man I Love," "’S Wonderful," "Summertime" and "Love Is
Here to Stay." The lyrics for many of his songs were written by his
brother Ira. He was born September 26, 1898 in Brooklyn, NYC, NY. to
Russian Jewish immigrants.
(SFC, 12/4/96, p.E1)(WSJ, 9/24/97, p.A20)(SFEC,
8/16/98, DB p.38)(www.gershwin.com/)
1937 Nov 7, Mary Travers, folk
singer (Peter, Paul and Mary), was born in Louisville, Ky.
(SSFC, 2/15/04, Par p.18)
1937 Orestes Lopez (Cuban pianist)
and his brother bassist Israel (Cachao) Lopez (1918-2008) formalized an
improvisation they called danzon mambo.
(SFEC, 9/19/99, DB p.37)(SSFC, 3/23/08, p.A2)
1938 Mar 22, Glen Campbell, singer
(By the Time I get to Phoenix, Galveston), was born.
(MC, 3/22/02)
1938 Apr 26, Duane Eddy,
guitarist, was born. His songs included: "Rebel-’rouser," "Forty Miles
of Bad Road," " Because they’re Young," " A Thunder of drums," "The
Wild Westerners," "The Savage Seven," and "Kona Coast."
(440 Int’l. Internet, 4/26/97, p.1)
1938 May 26, William Bolcom,
American composer, was born in Seattle. Washington. Bolcom won the
Pulitzer Prize for music in 1988 for 12 New Etudes for Piano. In the
fall of 1994, he was named the Ross Lee Finney Distinguished University
Professor of Composition at the University of Michigan.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Bolcom)
1938 May 31, Peter Yarrow, (Peter,
Paul & Mary-Puff the Magic Dragon), was born in NYC.
(MC, 5/31/02)
1939 Mar 7, Guy Lombardo and Royal
Canadians made the 1st recording of "Auld Lang Syne."
(MC, 3/7/02)
1939 Mar 25, Billboard Magazine
introduced the hillbilly (country) music chart.
(MC, 3/25/02)
1939 Apr 2, Marvin P. Gaye Jr,
singer (Sexual Healing), was born in Wash, DC.
(MC, 4/2/02)
1939 May 1, Judy Collins, singer
(Send in the Clowns, Clouds), was born in Seattle, Wash.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Judy_Collins)
1939 Jun 30, Frank Sinatra made
his first appearance with the Harry James' band.
(MC, 6/30/02)
1940 Feb 19, Smokey Robinson,
American singer and songwriter, was born. He was famous for his songs
"Tears of a Clown" and "Tracks of My Tears."
(HN, 2/19/99)
1940 Mar 25, Anita Bryant,
homophobe, singer (George Gobel Show), was born in Barnsdall, Okla.
(MC, 3/25/02)
1940 Apr 28, Glenn Miller and his
orchestra recorded "Pennsylvania 6-5000" for RCA Victor.
(AP, 4/28/97)
1940 May 8, Ricky Nelson, rock
star (Hello Mary Lou, It's Late, Garden Party), was born in NJ.
(MC, 5/8/02)
1940 May 23, Tommy Dorsey and His
Orchestra, the Pied Pipers and featured soloist Frank Sinatra recorded
"I'll Never Smile Again" in New York for RCA.
(AP, 5/23/97)
1940 The Spanish song
"Bésame Mucho" was written Mexican Consuelo Velázquez
before her sixteenth birthday. The phrase "besame mucho" can be
translated into English as "kiss me a lot". She wrote this song even
though she had never been kissed yet at the time. She was inspired by
the aria "Quejas, o la Maja y el Ruiseñor" from the Spanish 1916
opera Goyescas by Enrique Granados. The lyrics were translated into
English by Sunny Skylar.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/B%C3%A9same_Mucho)
1941 Jan 2, The Andrews Sisters
recorded what became a big hit for them, the Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy.
(www.history.com/this-day-in-history.do?action=Article&id=2811)
1941 Feb 7, Frank Sinatra and
Tommy Dorsey Orch recorded "Everything Happens to Me."
(MC, 2/7/02)
1941 Mar 14, Xavier Cugat and his
Orchestra recorded "Babalu."
(MC, 3/14/02)
1941 Mar 19, Jimmy Dorsey and
Orchestra recorded "Green Eyes" and "Maria Elena" for Decca Records.
(AP, 3/19/01)
1941 May 13, Ritchie Valens,
singer (Donna, La Bamba), was born.
(MC, 5/13/02)
1941 May 24, Bob Dylan (Robert
Allen Zimmerman), singer and songwriter, was born in Minnesota. He is
famous for his songs "Hard Rain's Gonna Fall," and "Blowin' in the
Wind."
(SFC, 8/26/97, p.E3)(HN, 5/24/99)
1941 May 29, Roy Crewsdon, rocker
(Freddie & The Dreamers), was born in Manchester.
(SC, 5/29/02)
1941 Jul 22, George Clinton,
American musician and the principal architect of P-Funk was born in
North Carolina. He was the mastermind of the bands Parliament and
Funkadelic during the 1970s and early 1980s.
(www.last.fm/music/George+Clinton)
1941 Aug 2, Buffy Sainte-Marie,
folksinger and songwriter, was born in Saskatchewan, Canada.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buffy_Sainte-Marie)
1942 Mar 25, Aretha Franklin,
American singer, the "Queen of Soul," was born in Memphis, Tenn.
(HN, 3/25/01)(SSFC, 6/30/02, Par p.30)
1942 Jan
10, Jim Croce, (d.1973) rock vocalist (Time in a Bottle, Workin' At The
Car Wash Blues), was born in Phila.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jim_Croce)
1942 Mar 30, Graeme Edge, rock
drummer (Moody Blues-Your Wildest Dreams), was born in England.
(MC, 3/30/02)
1942 Apr 26, Bobby Rydell
(Ridarelli), singer, was born. His songs included: "Wild One," "We Got
Love," and "Volare."
(440 Int’l. Internet, 4/26/97, p.1)
1942 May 5, Tammy Wynette, country
singer (Stand by your Man), was born in Redbay, Alabama.
(MC, 5/5/02)
1942 May 20, Glenn Miller and His
Orchestra recorded "(I've Got a Gal in) Kalamazoo" at Victor Studios in
Hollywood.
(AP, 5/20/02)
1942 May 29, Bing Crosby, the Ken
Darby Singers and the John Scott Trotter Orchestra recorded Irving
Berlin's "White Christmas" in Los Angeles for Decca Records.
(AP, 5/29/98)
1942 Jun 20, Brian Wilson (Beach
Boys), was born.
(MC, 6/20/02)
1942 Jun 24, Mick Fleetwood
(musician: drums: group: Fleetwood Mac: Dreams, Don't Stop), was born.
(MC, 6/24/02)
1942 Jul 31, At midnight the
record studios fell silent in a struggle with James Caesar Petrillo,
head of the American Federation of Musicians. Petrillo insisted that
the record industry pay a ¼ to ¾ cent royalty to the
musicians union. Decca signed an agreement in Aug, 1943, and Columbia
and Victor surrendered Nov 11, 1944.
(WSJ, 7/31/02, p.D10)
1942 Aug 1, Jerry Garcia, lead
singer of the Grateful Dead, was born.
(HN, 8/1/98)
1942 Aug 7, B.J. (Billy Joe)
Thomas, singer (Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head, Hooked on a
Feeling), was born.
(MC, 8/7/02)
1943 Feb 19, "Mama" Cass Elliot,
actress (Mamas & Papas-Monday Monday), was born.
(MC, 2/19/02)
1943 May 10, Donovan Leitch,
guitarist, folk singer (Mellow Yellow), was born in Scotland.
(MC, 5/10/02)
1943 Jul 25, Jim McCarty, rocker
(The Yardbirds-For Your Love), was born.
(SC, 7/25/02)
1943 Jul 26, In England Mick
[Michael Phillip] Jagger, musician, member of the Rolling Stones, was
born in Dartford, Kent.
(SFEM,11/9/97, p.9)(HN, 7/26/01)
1943 Jul 28, Mike Bloomfield,
blues musician (Analine), was born.
(SC, 7/28/02)
1943 Sep 23, Julio Iglesias De la
Cueva, Spanish singer (To All the Girls I’ve Loved Before…), was born
in Madrid.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Julio_Iglesias)
1944 Feb 7, Bing Crosby and the
John Scott Trotter Orchestra recorded "Swinging on a Star" for Decca
Records in Los Angeles.
(AP, 2/7/97)
1944 Mar 26, Diana Ross [Earle],
(Supremes, Lady Sings the Blues, Mahogany), was born Detroit, MI.
(SS, 3/26/02)
1944 Apr 3, Tony Orlando, singer
(& Dawn-Tie a Yellow Ribbon), was born in NYC.
(MC, 4/3/02)
1944 Jun 7, Clarence White,
guitarist (The Byrds-Turn! Turn! turn!), was born.
(SC, 6/7/02)
1944 Jun 8, Boz (William) Scaggs
(musician, singer: Lowdown, Lido Shuffle, Look What You've Done To Me),
was born.
(MC, 6/8/02)
1945 Feb 6, Bob Marley (d.1981),
reggae superstar, was born in Jamaica. He is best remembered for his
songs "Buffalo Soldier" and "Fire on the Mountain."
(HN, 2/6/99)(SFC, 12/14/04, p.E10)
1945 Feb 10, "Rum & Coca Cola"
by the Andrews Sisters hit #1.
(MC, 2/10/02)
1945 Feb 26, Mitch Ryder, rocker
(Mitch Ryder and the Detroit Wheels-Devil With the Blue Dress), was
born.
(SC, 2/26/02)
1945 Mar 27, Ella Fitzgerald and
the Delta Rhythm Boys recorded "It's Only a Paper Moon."
(MC, 3/27/02)
1945 Apr 25, Stu Cook, rock
bassist (Creedence Clearwater Revival-Proud Mary), was born.
(SS, 4/25/02)
1945 May 19, Peter Townshend,
England, rock guitarist, vocalist, composer (Who-Tommy), was born.
(MC, 5/19/02)
1945 Jul 28, Richard Wright,
rocker (Pink Floyd-The Wall), was born.
(SC, 7/28/02)
1945 Aug 31, Van Morrison, singer
(Here Comes the Night), was born in Belfast, Ireland.
(YN, 8/31/99)
1945 Sep 8, Jose Feliciano, blind
singer, was born in Lares, Puerto Rico.
(www.fact-index.com)
1945 Hadda Brooks (d. 2002 at 86)
sang the hit "Swingin’ With the Boogie," her 1st record.
(SFC, 11/23/02, p.A19)
1945 Richard Thomas Goldhahn
(d.2003 at 88), aka Dick Thomas, wrote "Sioux City Sue." Bing Crosby
recorded it in 1946 and made the Lucky Strike Hit Parade for 14 weeks.
(SFC, 11/29/03, p.A20)
1945 Wesley Tuttle (d.2003 at 85),
country singer, made a hit with the song "With Tears in My Eyes."
(SFC, 10/3/03, p.A20)
1946 Apr 26,
Popular music of the day included: "Oh, What It Seemed to Be" by the
Frankie Carle Orchestra with Marjorie Hughes; "Personality" by Johnny
Mercer; "Day by Day" by Frank Sinatra; and "Guitar Polka" by Al Dexter.
(440 Int’l. Internet, 4/26/97, p.1)
1946 May 10, Donovan, rocker
(Mellow Yellow), was born as Donovan Leitch in Scotland.
(http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=11:0ifqxqe5ldhe~T1)
1946 Jun 7, Bill Kreutzman,
drummer (Grateful Dead-Uncle John's Band), was born.
(SC, 6/7/02)
1946 Jun 17, Barry Manilow Grammy
Award-winning singer, was born as Barry Alan Pincus. His songs
included: I Write the Songs [1975], Mandy, Looks Like, Copacabana.
(MC, 6/17/02)
1946 Jul 15, Linda Ronstadt
(singer: group: The Stone Poneys: Different Drum; solo: Blue Bayou,
You're No Good, When Will I Be Loved, It's So Easy, Ooh Baby Baby, Hurt
So Bad; actress: Pirates of Penzance), was born.
(MC, 7/15/02)
1946 Jul 30, Jeffrey
Hammond-Hammond, rock bassist (Jethro Tull), was born.
(MC, 7/30/02)
1946 Sep 1, Barry Gibb, singer
(BeeGees-Stayin' Alive), was born.
(SC, 9/1/02)
1946 Les Paul (1915-2009) and the
Andrew Sisters recorded the hit song “Rumors Are Flying.”
(SFC, 8/14/09, p.D6)
1947 Mar 25, Elton John, [Reginald
Kenneth Dwight], English singer (Rocketman), was born.
(MC, 3/25/02)
1947 Jul 10, Arlo Guthrie, singer
(Alice's Restaurant, City of New Orleans), was born in Brooklyn.
(MC, 7/10/02)
1947 Jul 19, Bernie Leadon (The
Eagles: Take It Easy, Best of My Love, One of these nights), was born.
(MC, 7/19/02)
1947 Jul 19, Brian Harold May
(Queen: Crazy Little Thing Called Love, Another One Bites the
Dust), was born.
(MC, 7/19/02)
1947 Jul 20, Carlos Santana,
legendary guitar player, was born in Autlan, Mexico.
(SSFC, 10/14/07, Par p.18)
1947 Jul 21, Cat Stevens, rock
vocalist (Peace Train, Father & Son), was born as Yusaf Islam.
(MC, 7/21/02)
1947 Aug 10, Ian Anderson, rocker
(Jethro Tull-Bungle in the Jungle), was born in Scotland.
(MC, 8/10/02)
1947 Sep, Ahmet Ertegun
(1923-2006) and Herb Abramson formed Atlantic Records in New York City.
The new independent record label concentrated on gospel, jazz and
R&B music. The first recording sessions took place in November. In
2001 Ertegun authored his memoir "What’d I Say."
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ahmet_Erteg%C3%BCn)(WSJ, 7/6/01, p.W10)
1948 Apr 2, Emmylou Harris,
American singer, was born.
(HN, 4/2/01)
1948 Jun 19, The first
successfully produced microgroove 33 1/3 rpm, long-playing, records
were unveiled by Dr. Peter Goldmark of Columbia Records. Plans to phase
out 78's followed. Unlike the average record which held 8 minutes of
music, this new record could hold 45 minutes.
(Hartford Courant, 6/21/48, p.7)
1948 Aug 20, Robert Plant
(Honeydrippers: Rockin' at Midnight; Led Zeppelin: Stairway to Heaven,
etc.), was born.
(MC, 8/20/02)
1948 In Boston, Mass., Bess. L.
Hawes (1921-2009) and Jacqueline Steiner co-wrote the political hit
“Charlie on the MTA.’’ The song became a big hit for the Kingston Trio
in 1959.
(http://tinyurl.com/ygtrqh8)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M.T.A.)
1948 The Mills Brothers made a
minor hit with the song “You never miss the water till the well runs
dry.” Written by Paul Secon.
(WSJ, 3/10/07, p.A4)
1948 The Les Paul (1915-2009) song
“Lover” topped the record charts. He used a new self-developed
recording technique that combined 2 of his own versions of the song. It
was the first song to be recorded on 8 tracks.
(Econ, 8/22/09,
p.78)(http://oldies.about.com/od/jazz/p/lespaul.htm)
1948 Redd Stewart (d.2003)
co-wrote "Tennessee Waltz" with Pee Wee King to the melody of King's
"No Name Waltz," while on a road trip from Nashville to Texarkana. A
1950 recording by Patti Page sold a reported 3 million copies.
(SFC, 8/6/03, p.A18)
1948 Don Tosti (1923-2004), jazz
musician born as Edmundo Martinez Tostado, made the 1st million-selling
Latin song “Pachuco Boogie.”
(SFC, 8/4/04, p.B7)
1948 Paul Williams (d.2002 at 87)
recorded "The Huckelbuck." It was released in 1949 and was later
considered an important precursor of rock ‘n’ roll. It was written by
Andy Gibson and adopted without credit from Charlie Parker’s "Now’s the
Time."
(SFC, 10/7/02, p.A19)
1948 Congolese musician Antoine
Kolosay, aka Papa Wendo, wrote his song "Marie-Louise," a eulogy to the
sister of his guitarist.
(Econ, 12/20/03, p.66)
1949 Apr 25, Michael Brown,
keyboardist (Left Bank-Don't Walk Away Renee), was born.
(SS, 4/25/02)
1949 May 9, Billy Joel, Bronx,
rock vocalist (Piano man, Capt Jack, Bridge), was born.
(MC, 5/9/02)
1949 May 26, Hank Williams Jr.,
country singer (Honky Tonk), was born in Shreveport, La.
(MC, 5/26/02)
1949 May 29, Gary Brooker, rock
keyboardist (Procol Harum), was born in Essex, England.
(SC, 5/29/02)
1949 May 29, Francis Rossi,
guitarist, vocalist (Status Quo-Down Down, Picture of a Matchstick
Man), was born in London, England.
(SC, 5/29/02)
1949 Aug 12, Mark Knopfler,
guitar, vocals (Dire Straits-Sultans of Swing), was born.
(SC, 8/12/02)
1949 Country singer Hank Lochlin
(1918-2009) made a hit with “Send Me the Pillow You Dream On.”
(SFC, 3/12/09, p.B6)
1949 Margaret Whiting and Jimmy
Wakely had a million selling country music hit with "Slippin' Around,"
written by Floyd Tillman (d.2003 at 88).
(SFC, 8/25/03, p.B4)
1950 Feb 6, Natalie Cole, vocalist
(Pink Cadillac, Miss You Like Crazy, Mona Lisa), was born in LA, Calif.
(MC, 2/6/02)
1950 Feb 26, Harry Lauder
(b.1870), notable Scottish entertainer, died. He was, at one time, the
highest-paid performer in the world, making the equivalent of
£12,700 a night plus expenses, and was the first British
performer to sell more than a million records.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harry_Lauder)
1950 Feb 11, "Rag Mop" by The Ames
Brothers hit #1.
(MC, 2/11/02)
1950 Mar 2, Karen Carpenter was
born. (drummer, singer: Grammy Award-winning group: The Carpenters:
Best New Artist, Group w/Vocal: Close to You [1970], We've Only Just
Begun, Top of the World, Please Mr. Postman)
(HC, Internet, 2/3/98)
1950 Apr 25, Steve Ferrone,
drummer (Average White Band), was born.
(SS, 4/25/02)
1950 May 13, Steveland Morris
Hardaway (AKA Stevie Wonder) was born prematurely, in Saginaw, Mi., as
Steveland Judkins. Too much oxygen in the incubator caused the baby to
become permanently blind. At the age of ten, Little Stevie Wonder, as
he was called by Berry Gordy at Motown, was discovered singing and
playing the harmonica. He had many hits during his teens including
"Fingertips" and as an adult he has earned an Oscar and at least 16
Grammy Awards. He has stood up for civil rights and campaigned against
cancer, AIDS, drunk driving and the plight of Ethiopians.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stevie_Wonder)
1950 Jun 8, Alex Van Halen,
drummer for the hard rock group Van Halen, was born.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alex_Van_Halen)
1950 Dec 31, Charles Koechlin
(b.1867), French composer, teacher and writer on music, died in France.
He visited the USA four times to lecture and teach in 1918-19, 1928,
1929 and 1937. On the second and third visits he taught at the
University of California, Berkeley.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Koechlin)
1950 Seymour Solomon (d.2002)
founded Vanguard Records with his brother Maynard. It became the
dominant label for American folk music.
(SFC, 7/22/02, p.B5)
1950s Lawrence Payton (d.1997 at
59) began singing with a group called the Four Aims (Payton, Levi
Stubbs, Abdul "Duke" Fakir, and Renaldo "Obie" Benson). They sang
backup for Billy Eckstine and signed with Motown Records, run by Berry
Gordy, in 1963. Their songs included: "Baby I Need Your Loving," "Reach
Out," and I Can’t Help Myself." In 2002 Geral Posner authored "Motown:
Music, Money, Sex, and Power."
(SFC, 6/21/97, p.A18)(SSFC, 1/12/03, p.M1)
1951 Feb 10, "John & Marsha"
by Stan Freberg peaked at #21.
(MC, 2/10/02)
1951 Apr 7, Janis Ian, [Janis Eddy
Fink], lesbian, folk rocker, was born in NYC.
(MC, 4/7/02)
1951 Les Paul and his wife Mary
Ford (1924-1977), born as Iris Colleen Summers, made a hit with their
recording of the 1940 song “How High the Moon.”
(SFC, 8/14/09, p.D6)
1951 Ike Turner (1931-2007),
R&B pioneer, presided over the recording of “Rocket 88,” frequently
cited as the first rock ’n’ roll record.
(SFC, 12/13/07, p.B5)
1952 Mar 21, The Moondog
Coronation Ball was held at the Cleveland Arena. It was promoted by
Alan Freed and was later cited as the 1st rock concert. The only band
to perform was one led by Paul Williams, before fire marshals
closed the show.
(SFC, 10/7/02, p.A19)
1952 Jul 16, Stewart Copeland,
drummer (Police: Fall Out, Every Breath You Take, LP: The Equalizer
& Other Cliffhangers), was born.
(MC, 7/16/02)
1952 Molly Bee (1939-2009),
country singer, made her first hit with “I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa
Claus.” The song, written by Tommy Connors, was also recorded by child
actor Jimmy Boyd (1939-2009).
(SFC, 2/12/09, p.B4)(SFC, 3/11/09, p.B8)
1952 Joni James (21), born as Joan
Babbo, made a hit with her song “Why Don’t You Believe Me.” It sold
over 2 million records. James recorded 42 albums in her career.
(SSFC, 9/11/05, Par p.2)
1953 Jan 1, Country singer Hank
Williams Sr. (29) died of a drug and alcohol overdose while enroute to
a concert date in Canton, Ohio. In 1998 Mercury Records released "The
Complete Hank Williams," with 225 recordings.
(AP, 1/1/98)(WSJ, 10/30/98, p.W9A)
1952 Aug 1, Jo Stafford
(1917-2008), pop star singer during the 1940s and 1950s, entered the
Billboard charts with the song “You Belong To Me.” It was her
greatest hit, topping the charts in both the United States and the
United Kingdom (the first song by a female singer to top the UK chart)
and remained on the chart for 24 weeks.
(SFC, 7/19/08,
p.B5)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/You_Belong_to_Me_(1952_song))
1953 Aug 3, Ian Bairnson,
guitarist (Alan Parsons Project, Pilot), was born in Shetland Isles,
Scotland.
(SC, 8/3/02)
1953 Aug 8, The song “Vaya con
Dios” recorded by Les Paul and his wife Mary Ford reached number one on
the Billboard magazine Best Seller Chart and stayed there for 9 weeks.
(SFC, 8/14/09, p.D6)
1953 In Los Angeles The Hi-Lo’s, a
vocal quartet, formed with Gene Puerling (1929-2008) singing
bass-baritone. The group became the most popular jazz-based vocal group
of the period.
(SFC, 4/3/08, p.B5)
1954 Feb 26, Michigan
Representative Ruth Thompson (R) introduced legislation to ban mailing
"obscene, lewd, lascivious or filthy" phonograph (rock and roll records.
(SC, 2/26/02)
1954 Apr 12, Bill Haley & the
Comets recorded "Rock Around the Clock" at NYC's Pythian Temple. It was
written by Max C. Freedman and Jimmy de Knight. Haley's "Rock Around
the Clock," was originally released as the B side of “Thirteen Women.”
Haley died in 1981.
(www.rockabillyhall.com/RockClockTribute.html)(WSJ,
4/8/04, p.D8)
1954 Apr 12, Joe Turner released
"Shake, Rattle & Roll."
(MC, 4/12/02)
1954 Jul 5, Elvis Presley's first
commercial recording session took place at Sun Records in Memphis,
Tenn.; the song he recorded was "That's All Right (Mama)."
(AP, 7/5/97)
1954 Ray Charles (1930-2004)
recorded “I’ve Got a Woman.” It was based on the hymn “My Jesus is All
the World to Me.”
(USAT, 6/11/04, p.7A)(Econ, 6/19/04, p.84)
1954 The Collins Kids of Oklahoma,
Lawrencine (b.1942) and Lawrence (b.1944), began performing as a
musical act on national TV.
(www.rockabillyhall.com/YouTubeCollinsKids.html)
1954 Bart Howard (1916-2004), born
in Iowa as Howard Joseph Gustafson, wrote the hit song "Fly Me To the
Moon." His initial title was "In Other Words."
(SFC, 2/28/04, p.A16)
1954 The Robins signed with Leiber
and Stoller and recorded such hits as "Riot in Cell Block 9," "Framed"
and "Smokey Joe’s Café."
(SFC, 11/20/02, p.A21)
1955 Feb 1, Top hits included:
Melody of Love Billy Vaughn/The Four Aces/David Carroll; Hearts of
Stone The Fontane Sisters; Earth Angel Penguins/Crew-Cuts; Open Up Your
Heart (and Let the Sun Shine In) Cowboy; Church Sunday School.
(440 Int'l, 2/1/1999)
1955 Feb 12, The McGuire Sisters'
"Sincerely" single went to #1 for 10 weeks.
(MC, 2/12/02)
1955 Mar 5, A truck driver from
Tupelo, Miss., made his first-ever TV appearance on this night. Elvis
Aron Presley was featured on "Louisiana Hayride". This prompted
promoters to send Elvis to New York City to audition for Arthur
Godfrey's immensely popular and career-making "Talent Scouts" program.
Talent coordinators and Godfrey are said to have passed on Elvis
appearing on the show. Not much later, he was tossed out of the Grand
Ole Opry as well, and told to "go back to driving a truck." In a little
over a year, however, the nation was caught up in Presley-mania which
continues even today.
(www.imdb.com/title/tt1087605/)(www.scottymoore.net/tourdates50s.html)
1955 Mar 26, "Ballad of Davy
Crockett" by Fess Parker became the #1 record in US.
(SS, 3/26/02)
1955 Apr 26, Popular music of the
day included: "Melody of Love" by Billy Vaughn; "Cherry Pink and Apple
Blossom White" by Perez Prado; and "In the Jailhouse Now" by Webb
Pierce. Jailhouse stayed at No. 1 for 21 weeks. Cherry Pink, sung by
Alan Dale (d.2002 at 73), stayed on the charts for 30 weeks.
(440 Int’l. Internet, 4/26/97, p.1)(SFC, 4/25/02,
p.A24)(SFC, 11/27/03, p.A24)
1955 Jul
5, By this day, a day before Bill Haley’s 30th birthday, "Rock Around
the Clock" topped the US billboards chart and stayed there for 8 weeks.
The film “Blackboard Jungle,” released in March, helped propel it to
the top.
(www.rockabillyhall.com/RockClockTribute.html)
1955 Aug 25, Elvis Costello
(Declan McManus), musician, songwriter (I'm Not Angry, Less than Zero,
Watching the Detectives, Clubland, Oliver's Army, Every Day I
Write the Book, I'm Your Toy, Party, Party, So Young), was born.
(MC, 8/25/02)
1955 The Coasters evolved from the
group the Robins. Carl Gardner and Bobby Nunn teamed with Billy Guy
(1936-2002) and Leon Hughes to form the group under producers Leiber
and Stoller. Their songs included "Charlie Brown," Yakety Yak" and
"Little Egypt."
(SFC, 11/20/02, p.A21)
1956 Jan 5, Elvis Presley,
truckdriver, began his 1st recording session for RCA. "Heartbreak
Hotel," written by Mae Boren Axton, was the first song recorded. It
became the first of his 45 records to sell over a million copies. The
second was "I Want You, I Need You, I Love You", and "I Was the One"
was the third. In 1971 Jerry Hopkins authored Elvis: A Biography.
(SFC,1/22/97, p.A20)(SFEC, 4/6/97, DB p.65)(WSJ,
1/11/99, p.R34)(SFC, 5/10/02, p.A31)
1956 Jan 27, Elvis Presley's
"Heartbreak Hotel" and "I Was the One" was released by RCA. It sold
over 300,000 copies in its first three weeks on the market.
(Internet)
1956 Jan 28, Elvis Presley
recorded his television debut for “Stage Show” hosted by Tommy and
Jimmy Dorsey.”
(SFC, 12/27/04,
p.C10)(www.elvisconcerts.com/liv1956.htm)
1956 Jan 30, Elvis Presley
recorded his version of "Blue Suede Shoes."
(MC, 1/30/02)
1956 Feb 7, Garth Brooks, country
vocalist (No Fences), was born in Tulsa, Okla.
(MC, 2/7/02)
1956 Feb 22, Elvis Presley's 1st
hit in Billboard's top 10: "Heartbreak Hotel."
(MC, 2/22/02)
1956 Mar 13, Elvis Presley
released his first album: "Elvis Presley."
(SFC, 8/11/97, p.A1)
1956 Apr 10, In Alabama singer Nat
Cole was attacked on stage at the Birmingham Municipal Auditorium by a
small group of white supremacists. Six local men were arrested for the
attack.
(http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa4113/is_200401/ai_n9350991/)(NYT,
4/11/1956, p.1)
1956 Apr 11, Elvis Presley's
"Heartbreak Hotel" went gold.
(SFC, 8/11/97, p.A1)
1956 Apr 21, Elvis Presley's 1st
hit record, "Heartbreak Hotel," became #1. [see Apr 25]
(MC, 4/21/02)
1956 Apr 25, Elvis Presley's
"Heartbreak Hotel" goes number one. [see Apr 21]
(HN, 4/25/98)(SFC, 1/20/98, p.A9)
1956 Apr 30, Richard Farina, folk
singer (Reflections in a Crystal Wind), was born.
(MC, 4/30/02)
1956 May 19, R.C., "(You've Got)
The Magic Touch" by The Platters peaked at #4 on the pop singles chart.
(DTnet, 5/19/97)
1956 Jul 1, Elvis Presley appeared
on Steve Allen Show wearing a tuxedo.
(MC, 7/1/02)
1956 Jul 2, Former truckdriver
Elvis Presley recorded "Hound Dog" by Lieber and Stoller and "Don't Be
Cruel." Presley, began Rock-n-Roll with his song "Don’t Be Cruel,"
written by Otis Blackwell (d.2002 at 70).
(SC, 7/2/02)(WSJ, 1/11/99, p.R34)(SFC, 5/10/02,
p.A31)
1956 Aug 3, Kirk Brandon, rocker
(Theatre of Hate, Spear of Destiny-Outland), was born.
(SC, 8/3/02)
1956 Aug 4, Elvis Presley released
"Hound Dog."
(MC, 8/4/02)
1956 Aug 11, Elvis Presley
released "Don't Be Cruel."
(MC, 8/11/02)
1956 Aug 18, Elvis Presley's
"Hound Dog" and "Don't Be Cruel" reached #1.
(MC, 8/18/02)
1956 Sep 9, Elvis Presley made the
first of three appearances on "The Ed Sullivan Show." By his third and
final appearance on the Sullivan show, due to a number of viewers, who
were outraged at his suggestive gyrations, Elvis was filmed from only
the waist-up.
(AP, 9/9/97)(MC, 9/9/01)
1956 Sep 28, RCA Records reported
Elvis Presley sold over 10 million records.
(MC, 9/28/01)
1956 Nov 16, "Love Me Tender," the
first Elvis Presley film, premiered in NYC.
(SFC, 8/11/97, p.A1)
1956 Johnny Cash (1932-2003)
recorded his hit tunes: "Folsom Prison Blues" and "I Walk the Line."
(SFC, 9/13/03, p.A12)
1956 Liam Clancy (1935-2009)
emigrated to the US from Ireland to join elder brothers Tom and Patrick
in NYC, who were singing on the side as they pursued careers as
Broadway actors. They recorded an album of Irish rebel songs and grew a
NYC following, together with Tommy Makem, as the Clancy Brothers. Their
appearance on the Ed Sullivan show in 1961 turned them into an
Irish-American folk phenomenon.
(SFC, 12/7/09, p.C4)
1956 Frankie Lymon (1942-1968) and
the Teenagers made a hit with their first single: "Why Do Fools Fall in
Love." The 1998 film "Why Do Fools Fall in Love" was a musical
comedy-drama with Halle Berry, Vivica A. Fox, Lela Rochon and Little
Richard. It was directed by Gregory Nava and set in the 1950s based on
the life of Frankie Lymon.
(SFC, 8/28/98, p.C1)(SFC, 9/2/98,
p.E1)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frankie_Lymon)
1956 Patti Page sang the song
"Mama From The Train." It was written by Irving Gordon (1915-1996). He
wrote the classic comedy routine used by Abbott and Costello known as
"Who’s on First." He also composed "Unforgettable."
(SFC, 12/4/96,
p.A17)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mama_From_The_Train)
1956 The Eurovision Song Contest,
the brainchild of French music producer Marcel Baison, began with 7
contestants.
(Econ, 5/14/05, p.57)
1957 Feb 25, Buddy Holly and the
Crickets recorded "That'll Be the Day."
(MC, 2/25/02)
1957 Mar 3, Corry Brokken won
Eurovision Song festival with "Just as then."
(SC, 3/3/02)
1957 Apr, Ricky Nelson sang his
version of “I’m Walkin” by Fats Domino on “The Adventures of Ozzie and
Harriet” TV show.
(SSFC, 1/15/06, p.C1)
1957 May 10, Sid Vicious, [John
Simon Ritchie], bassist (Sex Pistols), was born in England.
(MC, 5/10/02)
1957 Jun 12, Bandleader Jimmy
Dorsey (53) died in New York.
(AP, 6/12/07)
1957 Aug 5, "American Bandstand,"
a teenage dance show hosted by Dick Clark in Philadelphia, made its
network debut on ABC-TV.
(WSJ, 3/24/97, p.B1)(SFC, 11/10/99, p.E3)(AP, 8/5/07)
1957 The Coasters sang "Down in
Mexico" and "Searchin’" with lead by Billy Guy.
(SFC, 11/20/02, p.A21)
1957 Gene Allison (d.2004) made a
hit with "You Can Make It If You Try." The Rolling Stones used it on
their 1st album in 1964.
(SFC, 3/16/04, p.B7)
1958 Mar 2, Chart Toppers: Sweet
Little Sixteen, Chuck Berry; At the Hop, Danny & the Juniors; Oh
Julie, Crescendos; Don't, Elvis Presley.
(HC, Internet, 2/3/98)
1958 Mar 14, RIAA certified its
1st gold record: Perry Como's Catch A Falling Star.
(MC, 3/14/02)
1958 Mar 24, Rock 'n' roll singer
Elvis Presley was inducted into the Army in Memphis, Tenn. After nearly
six months of basic training at Fort Hood, Texas, Presley was posted to
Friedberg, West Germany; he was honorably discharged in 1960.
(AP, 3/23/08)
1958 Mar 27, CBS Labs announced
new stereophonic records.
(MC, 3/27/02)
1958 Aug 4, Billboard, founded in
1894, premiered its all-genre singles Hot 100 chart.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Billboard_Hot_100)
1958 Aug 16, Madonna [Ciccone],
entertainer and singer whose biggest record was "Like a Virgin," was
born.
(HN, 8/16/98)
1958 Aug 29, Michael Jackson
(d.2009), pop singer, entertainer, was born in Gary, Ind., the 7th of
nine children.
(SFC, 6/14/05, p.D6)(SFC, 6/26/09, p.A1)
1958 Bing Crosby and Rosemary
Clooney recorded "Fancy Meeting You Here." It was reissued in 2001.
(WSJ, 11/28/01, p.A16)
1958 Don Gibson wrote his songs "I
Can't Stop Loving You," and "Oh, Lonesome Me." Both songs made No. 1.
(SFC, 3/13/99, p.E6)
1958 Peggy Lee (1920-2002) made a
hit with her rendition of the rhythm-and-blues hit “Fever.”
(SFC, 5/18/10, p.E5)
1958 Domenico Modugno made a hit
with "Volare." The Italian song won the 1958 Eurovision contest.
(SFC, 11/30/02, p.D1)(Econ, 5/14/05, p.57)
1958 Johnny Otis, R&B writer
and producer, wrote "Willie and the Hand Jive." In 2000 the 3-CD boxed
set: The Johnny Otis Rhythm and Blues Caravan: The Complete Savoy
Recordings" was produced.
(SFC, 4/4/00, p.B2)
1958 The song “Endless Sleep,” by
Rockabilly singer and songwriter Ralph Joseph Reynolds, (d.2008 at 75)
sold over a million copies and kicked in the melodramatic teen tragedy
genre.
(SFC, 11/19/08, p.B7)
1958 Sharon Sheeley (1950-2002)
wrote the song "Poor Little Fool" and Ricky Nelson turned it into a hit.
(SFC, 5/25/02, p.A27)
1958 Ed Townsend (1929-2003) wrote
his hit song "For Your Love."
(SSFC, 8/17/03, p.A27)
1958 Sheb Wooley (d.2003 at 82)
recorded the hit song "Purple People Eater." He starred in a movie of
the same name in 1988.
(SFC, 9/18/03, p.A21)
1958 Link Wray recorded "Rumble,"
and showed the way for the "power cord," and the conception of the
electric guitar as a weapon.
(SFC, 7/7/97, p.E1)
1958 Jimmy Lyons directed the
first Monterey Jazz Festival and featured Louis Armstrong, Gerry
Mulligan, Turk Murphy, Billie Holiday, Duke Ellington and Dizzie
Gillespie. Radio host Jimmy Lyons and Chronicle jazz critic Ralph
Gleason came up with the idea. In 1997 William Minor and Bill Wishner
wrote: "Monterey Jazz Festival: Forty Legendary Years."
(SFC, 6/30/96, B9)(SFEM, 9/15/96,
p.6)(SFEC,12/14/97, BR p.7)
1958 The first "greatest hits"
album was produced: "Johnny’s Greatest Hits" featured the songs of
Johnny Mathis. It was on Billboard’s Top 100 chart for 9 years.
(SFC, 7/7/96, DB p.40)
1958 Faron Young sang his country
hit "Alone With You."
(SFC, 12/12/96, p.C8)
1959 Feb 2, Buddy Holly made his
last performance.
(MC, 2/2/02)
1959 Feb 3, A plane crash
near Clear Lake, Iowa, claimed the lives of rock- and-roll stars Buddy
Holly (22), Ritchie Valens (17) and J.P. "The Big Bopper" Richardson
(28). They had just finished performing at the Surf Ballroom in Clear
Lake. Buddy Holley and the Crickets had 2 hit songs "Oh Boy" and "Maybe
Baby," Valens had the 2-sided hit "Donna" and "La Bamba," Richardson
was popular for his song "Chantilly Lace."
(AP, 2/3/97)(WSJ, 2/25/99, p.A16)
1959 Apr 3, "Charlie Brown" by The
Coasters was banned by the BBC because it contained the word "spitball."
(AP, 4/3/03)
1959 May 4, Randy Travis, country
singer (Diggin' Up Bones), was born in Marshville, NC.
(MC, 5/4/02)
1959 Ray Charles made a hit with
"What’d I Say." His moaning and wailing suggested sexual play and was
banned on radio stations across America.
(SSFC, 7/28/02, Par p.20)(Econ, 6/19/04, p.84)
1959 Babatunde Olatunji (d.2003),
Nigerian drummer, pioneered African music in the US with his album
"Drums of Passion."
(SFC, 4/9/03, p.A31)
1959 Billy Mitchell (d.2002 at 71)
and the Clovers made a hit with the Lieber and Stoller song "Love
Potion No. 9."
(SFC, 11/15/02, p.A25)
1960 Feb 8, Congress opened
hearings into payola.
(MC, 2/8/02)
1960 Mar 5, Elvis Presley ended
his 2-year hitch in US Army.
(MC, 3/5/02)
1960 May 2, House investigating
committee looked into payola questions.
(MC, 5/2/02)
1960 May 19, DJ Alan Freed was
accused of bribery in radio payola scandal.
(MC, 5/19/02)
1960 May 29, Everly Brothers
"Cathy's Clown" hit #1.
(SC, 5/29/02)
1960 Aug 6, Chubby Checker debuted
his version of "The Twist" on the Dick Clark Show. Hank Ballard did the
original in 1958.
(http://lpintop.tripod.com/oldiesconnection/id41.html)
1960 Aug 8, The pop song "Itsy
Bitsy Teenie Weenie Yellow Polkadot Bikini", sung by Brian Hyland (16),
hit #1. The song was written by Paul Vance and Lee Pockriss.
(www.popculturemadness.com/Music/Pop-Modern/1960.html)(SFC, 9/28/06,
p.A2)
1960 Aug 12, Morty Black, heavy
metal rocker (TNT-7 Seas), was born.
(SC, 8/12/02)
1960 Aug 18, Beatles gave their
1st public performance at Kaiser Keller in Hamburg.
(MC, 8/18/02)
1960 Sep 13, The US Federal
Communications Commission banned payola. The scandal included Alan
Freed a popular DJ at WABC, he lost his job for allegedly accepting
gifts and money for playing certain records for money. There was
substantial evidence was uncovered to prove that the payola practice
was widespread.
(MC, 9/13/01)
1960 Sep 14, The "Twist" sung by
Chubby Checker (born as Ernest Evans in 1941) hit #1. It reached #1 a
2nd time in Jan. 1962.
(http://www.shsu.edu/~mus_rjm/MUS264/Lectures/Notes_Mar20.html)
1960 Ray Charles made a hit with
"Georgia on My Mind."
(SSFC, 7/28/02, Par p.20)
1960 Sam Cooke made a hit with his
song: "Wonderful World."
(SFEC, 1/10/99, BR p.9)
1960 Floyd Cramer (d.1997 at 64),
studio pianist, had a hit single with the song "Last Date." He also
wrote "San Antonio Rose," "Fancy Pants," and "On the Rebound."
(SFC, 1/1/98, p.A25)
1960 Bob Ferguson (d.2001 at 73)
wrote the country song "Wings of a Dove" for Ferlin Husky.
(SFC, 7/25/01, p.C2)
1960 Leonard Kwan (d.2000 at 69)
recorded "Slack Key," the world’s first all-instrumental slack key
album.
(SFC, 8/17/00, p.A27)
1960 John Lewis directed the
Monterey Jazz Festival and featured Ornette Coleman, John Coltrane, and
Eric Dolphy. Jimmy Lyons and many others in the crowd wailed that "that
stuff isn’t jazz." "Evolution of the Blues" by Joe Hendricks,
commissioned for the festival was first performed. Lalo Schifrin’s
"Gillespiana" suite was also preformed.
(SFC, 6/30/96, B9)(SFC, 9/23/96, D1)
1960 Country singer Hank Lochlin
(1918-2009) made a hit with his song “Please Help Me, I’m Falling.” It
was Billboard’s No. 1 song for 14 weeks.
(SFC, 3/12/09, p.B6)
1960 Loretta Lynn scored her first
hit with "I’m a Honky Tonk Girl."
(SFC, 8/24/96, p.A21)
1960 Rockin’ Robin Roberts
recorded a version of "Louie, Louie" with the Wailers. It became a
regional hit in the Seattle-Tacoma area.
(SFC, 1/25/97, p.A19)
1960s A payola scandal brought
down the empire of popular disk jockey Alan Freed after it was revealed
that he had accepted money from record companies to play their records.
(SFC, 2/12/00, p.A21)
1961 Jan 27, Mitch Miller
(1911-2010) debuted his TV show, “Sing Along With Mitch.” It continued
to 1964.
(SFC, 8/3/10, p.C3)(www.imdb.com/title/tt0054564/)
1961 Mar 9, Supremes released "I
Want A Guy" & "Never Again."
(MC, 3/9/02)
1961 Mar 25, Elvis Presley
performed live on the USS Arizona.
(MC, 3/25/02)
1961 Apr 11, Folk singer Bob Dylan
performed in New York City for the first time, opening for John Lee
Hooker. [see Sep 26]
(HN, 4/11/01)
1961 Apr 16, Selena, Latina singer
(Grammy-1994), was born in Texas.
(MC, 4/16/02)
1961 May 29, David Palmer, heavy
metal drummer (ABC, AC/DC), was born.
(SC, 5/29/02)
1961 Aug 12, Pete De Freitas,
rocker (Echo and the Bunnymen-Heaven Up Here), was born.
(SC, 8/12/02)
1961 Aug 12, Roy Hay, guitarist
(Culture Club-Do You Really Want to Hurt Me), was born.
(SC, 8/12/02)
1961 Sep 26, Nineteen-year-old Bob
Dylan made his New York singing debut at Gerde’s Folk City. [see April
11]
(HN, 9/26/00)
1961 Oct 21, Bob Dylan recorded
his first album in a single day at a cost of $400.
(HN, 10/21/00)
1961 Dec 27, Tony Bennett,
starring in the Venetian Room of the SF Fairmont Hotel, made his 1st
solo public performance of “I Left My Heart in San Francisco.”
(SSFC, 2/4/07, p.F1)
1961 Ray Charles made a hit with
"Unchain My Heart," written by Bobby Sharp and "Hit the Road Jack."
(SSFC, 7/28/02, Par p.20)(SFC, 4/19/04, p.E1)
1961 Country singer Jimmy Dean
(1928-2010) made a big hit with his song “Big Bad John.”
(SFC, 6/14/10, p.C4)
1961 Aretha Franklin (b.1942) sang
"Rock-a-Bye Your Baby With a Dixie Melody."
(SSFC, 6/30/02, Par p.30)
1961 Dave Fisher (1940-2010) and
the Highwaymen folk group made a hit with “Michael.”
(www.nytimes.com/2010/05/13/arts/music/13fisher.html)
1961 The Marvelettes sang "Please
Mr. Postman."
(SFC, 11/12/02, p.D1)
1962 Feb 17, Beach Boys introduced
a new musical style with their hit "Surfin."
(MC, 2/17/02)
1962 Mar 2, Jon Bon Jovi (John
Bongiovi) was born. (singer, musician, songwriter: You Give Love a Bad
Name, Living on a Prayer)
(HC, Internet, 2/3/98)
1962 Mar 30, M.C. Hammer, [Stanley
Kirk Burrell], rapper (Hammer Time), was born in Oakland, Ca.
(MC, 3/30/02)
1962 May 5, The West Side Story
soundtrack album went to #1 and stayed #1 for 54 weeks, more than 20
weeks longer than any other album.
(MC, 5/5/02)
1962 May 19, R.C., "Shout! Shout!
(Knock Yourself Out)" by Ernie Maresca peaked at #6 on the pop singles
chart.
(DTnet, 5/19/97)
1962 May 25, Isley Brothers
released "Twist & Shout."
(SC, 5/25/02)
1962 Aug 16, The Beatles dropped
Pete Best as their drummer. They took on Ringo Starr on Aug 17. Best
later authored the autobiography "Beatle! The Pete Best Story."
(SFC, 7/5/02, p.G5)(MC, 8/16/02)
1962 Aug 17, Beatles replaced Pete
Best with Ringo Starr.
(SC, 8/17/02)
1962 Aug 18, Peter, Paul and Mary
released their 1st hit "If I Had a Hammer."
(MC, 8/18/02)
1962 Oct 31, Bobby Pickett
(1938-2007) made a one-time hit with “Monster Mash,” as it reached No.
1 on Halloween.
(SFC, 4/27/07, p.B9)
1962 Ray Charles made a hit with
"I Can’t Stop Loving You."
(SSFC, 7/28/02, Par p.20)
1962 Bob Dylan (b. Robert
Zimmerman May 24, 1941) released his first album “Bob Dylan.” Zimmerman
legally changed his name to Bob Dylan in this year.
(SFC, 5/29/97, p.A3)(SFC, 9/26/05, C3)(SSFC,
11/20/05, Par p.4)
1962 Dave Fisher (1940-2010) and
the Highwaymen folk group made a hit with “Cotton Fields,” written by
blues musician Huddie Ledbetter, and its reverse side “The Gypsy Rover.”
(www.nytimes.com/2010/05/13/arts/music/13fisher.html)
1962 The Four Seasons with lead
singer Frankie Valli had No. 1 hits with “Sherry” and “Big Girls Don’t
Cry.”
(WSJ, 11/2/05, p.D12)
1962 John Lee Hooker sang "Boom
Boom."
(SFC, 11/12/02, p.D1)
1962 Mick Jagger, Keith Richards
and Brian Jones made their 1st appearance as the Rolling Stones at a
London jazz club.
(SFC, 12/13/03, p.A2)
1962 The Miracles sang "You’ve
Really Got a Hold on Me."
(SFC, 11/12/02, p.D1)
1962 Vinicius de Moraes, inspired
by the stroll of a young woman (18) headed for Copacabana, wrote a poem
that became known as “The Girl of Ipanema.” It was put to music by Jaoa
Gilberto and Stan Getz and sung by Gilberto’s wife, Astrud. The song
won a Grammy for Record of the Year in 1964. The young woman, Heloisa
Eneida Menezes Paes Pinto, never made a dime off the song but opened a
modeling agency and a clothing store near the site.
(SSFC, 9/30/07, p.G3)
1962 The 4 Osmond brothers, under
the direction of their father, George Osmond (1917-2007), debuted on
the Andy Williams show. Donny Osmond, at age 6, joined the group a year
later. Marie Osmond joined the group in 1973. In 1976 the Donny and
Marie show began on ABC.
(SFC, 11/9/07, p.B7)
1962 Mary Wells sang "You Beat me
to the Punch."
(SFC, 11/12/02, p.D1)
1962 Cuban bassist Israel Lopez
(1918-2008), known as “Cachao,” left Cuba for Spain and soon relocated
to NYC, where he performed with leading Latin bands.
(SSFC, 3/23/08, p.A2)
1963 Mar 5, A private plane crash
near Camden, Tenn., claimed the lives of country music performers
Patsy Cline (30), "Cowboy" Copas and "Hawkshaw" Hawkins, as well as
pilot Randy Hughes, Cline's manager.
(AP, 3/5/08)
1963 Apr 8, Julian Lennon, John
Lennon’s son, singer (Too Late for Goodbyes), was born.
(MC, 4/8/02)
1963 May 11, "Puff The Magic
Dragon" by Peter, Paul and Mary hit #2.
(MC, 5/11/02)
1963 May 15, Peter, Paul &
Mary won their 1st Grammy (If I Had a Hammer).
(MC, 5/15/02)
1963 May 18, "If You Wanna Be
Happy" by Jimmy Soul hit #1.
(SC, 5/18/02)
1963 Jun 7, The Rolling Stones
made their 1st TV appearance.
(SC, 6/7/02)
1963 Aug 3, Allan Sherman released
"Hello Mudda, Hello Fadda."
(SC, 8/3/02)
1963 Aug 3, Beatles made a final
performance the Cavern Club in Liverpool.
(SC, 8/3/02)
1963 Aug 23, Beatles released "She
Loves You" in UK.
(MC, 8/23/02)
1963 Sep 7, The Beatles made their
1st US TV appearance on ABC’s Big Night Out.
(MC, 9/7/01)
1963 Sep 7, American Bandstand
moved to California and aired once a week on Saturday.
(MC, 9/7/01)
1963 Oct 11, Edith Piaf (b.1915),
French singer (No, I don't regret anything), died of cancer. In 2007
the biopic film “La Vie en Rose,” with Marion Cotillard as Piaf, was
produced.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C3%89dith_Piaf)
1963 Dec 10, Walter Cronkite
re-aired a CBS News report from London on the Beatles. It had been 1st
filed on Nov 22, the day JFK was assassinated.
(SSFC, 2/8/04, Par p.18)
1963 The Beatles made it big with
the song "She Loves You."
(TMC, 1994, p.1963)(SFC, 12/14/96, p.E3)
1963 The first edition album
"Introducing the Beatles" was produced and sold for $9,600 in 1997.
(SFC, 7/25/97, p.D5)
1963 Sandy Bull (d.2001 at 60)
released his 1st album "Fantasias for Guitar and Banjo." It became an
underground classic.
(SFC, 4/13/01, p.D6)
1963 Johnny Cash recorded his hit
tune: "Ring of Fire."
(SFC, 9/13/03, p.A12)
1963 Keith Colley made a hit with
"Enamorado."
(SFC, 11/30/02, p.D1)
1963 The Crystals made a hit with
their songs “Da Doo Ron Ron” and “Then He Kissed Me” written by Ellie
Greenwich (1940-2009) in collaboration with producer Phil Spector and
her husband Jeff Barry.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Then_He_Kissed_Me)
1963 Koerner, Ray & Glover
released their landmark album: "Blues, Rags and Hollers." Dave "Snaker"
Ray, guitarist, died in 2002.
(SFC, 11/30/02, p.A23)
1963 Del McCoury became a
full-time member of the Blue Grass Boys under Bill Monroe.
(WSJ, 1/8/04, p.D10)
1963 Bob Merrill wrote the hit
song "People."
(WSJ, 2/2/00, p.W8)
1963 "Deep Purple" by Nino Temple
& April Stevens won the Grammy best rock-n-roll recording.
(SFEC, 2/21/99, DB p.38)
1963 John Corigliano composed his
4-movement Violin Sonata.
(SFC, 11/18/98, p.E3)
1963 Gunship pilot James P. 'Bull'
Durham (1927-2004), balladeer of the Vietnam War, recorded 10 songs
about SAC in the Vietnam era. In 1971 he recorded 12 songs collected
during his Vietnam tour of duty.
(www.historynet.com/james-p-bull-durham-true-balladeer-of-the-vietnam-war.htm)
1963 Bob Dylan’s 2nd album, "The
Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan," was released. Four songs were removed for the
officially released version. Nat Hentoff wrote the liner notes.
(SFC, 7/16/97, p.E1)(WSJ, 12/29/04, p.D8)
1963 The Herbie Hancock song
"Watermelon Man" became a hit with a version by Mongo Santamaria
(d.2003).
(SFC, 2/5/03, p.A22)
1963 Bob Gibson (1932-1996)
co-wrote "Abilene" with J.D. Laudermilk, Lester Brown and Albert
Stanton.
(SFC, 10/12/96, p.A21)
1963 The Kingston Trio made a hit
with "Greenback Dollar" written by Hoyt Axton (d.1999 at age 61).
(SFC, 10/27/99, p.C4)
1963 The Kingsmen recorded their
hit song "Louie, Louie." It became a major hit in 1964. It was written
in 1955 by Richard Berry and recorded by Berry with the Pharaohs in
1957. The Kingsmen sold their rights in 1968 for a percentage of future
licensing fees. The fees were not paid and the band filed suit in 1993.
They won a 1995 judgement and a 1998 appeal.
(SFC, 1/25/97, p.A19)(SFC, 4/11/98, p.C5)
1963 Sonny Bono, songwriter, met
Cherilyn (Cher) Sarkasian La Piere, singer, at a Hollywood coffee shop.
The pair went on to record "I Got You Babe," The Beat Goes On," and
"All I Ever Need Is You." Bono wrote the Jackie DeShannon hit of this
year "Needles and Pins."
(SFC, 1/6/98, p.A11)
1963 Marvin Gaye sang "Hitch Hike."
(SFC, 11/12/02, p.D1)
1963 Al Hirt (1922-1999), New
Orleans trumpet player, made a hit with his instrumental "Java." He won
a 1964 Grammy best nonjazz instrumental for the tune.
(SFC, 4/27/99, p.C4)
1963 Martha and the Vandellas sang
"Heat Wave."
(SFC, 11/12/02, p.D1)
1963 Curtis Mayfield (b.1942) and
the Impressions had a hit with the song "It's All Right."
(SFC, 12/28/99, p.C1)
1963 Roy Nichols (d.2001 at 68)
joined Merle Haggard’s band the Strangers. He helped create the
Bakersfield sound.
(SFC, 7/5/01, p.D2)
1963 Jack Nitzsche (d.2000) made
his solo recording "The Lonely Surfer." He went on to compose over 30
film scores.
(SFEC, 9/10/00, p.49)
1963 The Ronettes singing trio
made a hit with "Be My Baby," written by Ellie Greenwich (1940-2009) in
collaboration with producer Phil Spector and her husband Jeff Barry. It
epitomized the famed "wall of sound" technique of its producer, Phil
Spector.
(AP,
2/13/09)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ellie_Greenwich)
1963 Ruby and the Romantics had a
hit with “Our Day Will Come,” co-written by Mort Garson (1924-2008) and
Bob Hilliard.
(SFC, 1/16/08, p.B9)
1963 The Singing Nun made a hit
with "Dominique." The song praised the 13th century crusade against the
Cathars. It was written by Noel Regney. His 1962 poem "Do You Hear What
I Hear" was recorded by Bing Crosby.
(SSFC, 6/17/01, p.T10)(SFC, 11/28/02, p.A30)
1963 Dusty Springfield recorded "I
Only Want to Be With You."
(SFC, 3/4/99, p.C6)
1963 Stevie Wonder sang
"Fingertips (Part 2)."
(SFC, 11/12/02, p.D1)
1963 Jazz saxophonist Joe
Henderson began recording for Blue Note.
(SFEC, 1/5/97, DB p.32)
1963 Miles Davis heard Tony
Williams playing drums with saxophonist Jackie McLean and hired him.
Williams stayed with Davis until 1969. Their recording included
"E.S.P.," "Nefertiti and "Filles de Kilamanjaro."
(SFC, 2/25/97, p.B2)
1963 Frank Zappa wrote his rock
opera "I Was a Teenage Maltshop."
(SSFC, 3/17/02, p.M3)
1963 Clement Dodd opened his
record studio at 13 Brentford Road, Kingston, Jamaica, and soon began
recording Bob Marley and the Wailers.
(Econ, 5/22/04, p.80)
1964 Jan 18, Beatles 1st appeared
on Billboard Chart at #35 for "I Want to Hold Your Hand." The song hit
No. 1 by the end of the month.
(MC, 1/18/02)(SSFC, 2/8/04, Par p.18)
1964 Jan, The Beatles made their
North America TV debut on the Jack Paar Show. [see Feb 9, 1964]
(SFC, 1/28/04, p.A1)
1964 Feb 1, Top hits included:
Anyone Who Had a Heart: Dionne Warwick; Um, Um, Um, Um, Um, Um: Major
Lance; Stop and Think It Over: Dale and Grace.
(440 Int'l, 2/1/1999)
1964 Feb 1, Indiana Governor
Mathew Walsh tried to ban "Louie Louie" for obscenity.
(MC, 2/1/02)
1964 Feb 3, "Meet the Beatles"
album went Gold.
(MC, 2/3/02)
1964 Feb 9, The Beatles made their
first live American television appearance on "The Ed Sullivan Show."
[see Jan, 1964]
(AP, 2/9/99)
1964 Feb 11, The Beatles 1st live
appearance in US was in the Washington, DC Coliseum.
(MC, 2/11/02)
1964 Feb 16, The Beatles made
their 2nd appearance on the "Ed Sullivan Show."
(MC, 2/16/02)
1964 Mar 30, Tracy Chapman, US
singer, songwriter (Freedom Now, I Got a Fast Car), was born.
(MC, 3/30/02)
1964 Apr 26, Popular music of the
day included: "Can’t Buy Me Love" by The Beatles; "Twist and Shout" by
The Beatles; Do You Want to Know a Secret" by The Beatles; and
"Understand Your Man" by Johnny Cash."
(440 Int’l. Internet, 4/26/97, p.1)(SFC, 9/13/03,
p.A12)
1964 Jun 2, Rolling Stones made
their 1st US concert tour debut in Lynn, Mass.
(SC, 6/2/02)
1964 Jun 26, Beatles released "A
Hard Day's Night" album.
(MC, 6/26/02)
1964 Jul 2, Celia Black recorded
Beatle's "Its For You" with McCartney on piano.
(SC, 7/2/02)
1964 Jul 4, The song "I Get
Around" by the Beach Boys topped the charts and stayed there for 2
weeks. Sales went on to exceed a million records.
(DataDragon)(Maggio, 98)(SFEC, 2/8/98, p.D8)
1964 Jul 10, The Four Tops
released "Baby I Need Your Loving" on the Motown label. In 1967 Johnny
Rivers also recorded a hit version.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baby_I_Need_Your_Loving)
1964 Jul 25, Beatles' "Hard Day's
Night, A," album went #1 and stayed #1 for 14 weeks.
(SC, 7/25/02)
1964 Aug 1, Beatles' "Hard Day's
Night" single went #1.
(MC, 8/1/02)
1964 Aug 11, Beatles' "A Hard Days
Night" opened in NYC.
(MC, 8/11/02)
1964 Aug 19, The Beatles performed
a concert at the Cow Palace in Daly City, Ca. They returned there for
another concert in 1965.
(www.rarebeatles.com/photopg7/sf81964.htm)
1964 Johnny Hathcock (d.2000 at
81) wrote the song "Welcome To My World." It became the theme song for
entertainer Eddy Arnold.
(SFC, 1/2/01, p.B4)
1964 The song "Devil with the Blue
Dress" was composed by W. Stevenson and F. Long and became a hit for
Mitch Rider and the Detroit Wheels.
(SI-WPC, 1997)
1964 The Dixie cups made a hit
with “Chapel of Love” written by Ellie Greenwich (1940-2009) in
collaboration with producer Phil Spector and her husband Jeff Barry.
(SFC, 8/28/09,
p.D5)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chapel_of_Love)
1964 Bob Dylan released his 3rd
album "The Times They Are A-Changing." In 1996 he sold rights to the
Bank of Montreal for its marketing campaign.
(SFC, 10/18/96, C12)(SFEC, 9/28/97, p.A3)
1964 Bob Dylan released his 4th
album "Another Side of Bob Dylan."
(SFC, 9/26/05, C3)
1964 The Four Seasons with lead
singer Frankie Valli had top hits with “Dawn” and “Rag Doll.”
(WSJ, 11/2/05, p.D12)
1964 Martha and the Vandellas sang
"Dancing in the Streets."
(SFC, 11/12/02, p.D1)
1964 Curtis Mayfield and the
Impressions had a hit with the song "Amen."
(SFC, 12/28/99, p.C1)
1964 The British duo Peter and
Gordon made a hit with the song “A World Without Love,” written by Paul
McCartney. The group broke up in 1968 after 9 top 20 records. Gordon
Waller died in 1964 at age 64.
(SFC, 7/24/09, p.D6)
1964 Roy Orbison came out with the
song "Pretty Woman."
(SFC, 8/24/96, p.E3)
1964 "Walk Don’t Run" by the
Ventures became a hit. The drummer was Mel Tyler (1934-1996).
(SFC, 8/14/96, p.D2)
1964 Beatle singer Paul McCartney
was "turned on to pot" by Bob Dylan.
(SFC, 9/27/97, p.E3)
1964 Kyu Sakamoto made a hit with
"Sukiyaki."
(SFC, 11/30/02, p.D1)
1964 Simon and Garfunkel made
their debut with "Wednesday Morning 3 AM."
(USAT, 3/24/99, p.5E)
1964 The Supremes sang "Where Did
Our Love Go," "Baby Love," and "Come See About Me."
(SFC, 11/12/02, p.D1)
1964 Porter Wagoner recorded the a
country song "Green Green Grass of Home", written by Claude
"Curly" Putman Jr. Bobby Bare recorded a version in 1965 and by Tom
Jones in 1966 when it reached number one in the UK Singles Chart on 1
December staying there for a total of seven weeks.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Green_Green_Grass_of_Home)
1964 Mary Wells sang "My Guy."
(SFC, 11/12/02, p.D1)
1964 The British group Zombies
with guitarist Paul Atkinson (d.2004), made a hit with "She's Not
There."
(SFC, 4/7/04, p.B6)
1964 The Newport Jazz Festival
introduced Hamza El Din, the father of Nubian music, to Western
audiences.
(SFEC, 6/27/99, DB p.15)
1964 Founder Randy Sparks sold his
interest in The New Christy Minstrels singing group for $2.5 million.
John Denver and Kenny Rogers were singers in the group. Songs by the
group included "Today," "Green, Green," and "Saturday Night."
(SFEC, 9/26/99, DB p.36)
1964 The Academy of Country Music
was founded in Los Angeles.
(SFEC,10/19/97, Par p.2)
1965 Feb 15, Nat King Cole (49),
singer (Unforgettable, Mona Lisa), died.
(MC, 2/15/02)
1965 Mar 3, Temptations' "My Girl"
reached #1.
(SC, 3/3/02)
1965 Mar 22, Columbia Records
released Bob Dylan’s album "Bringing It All Back Home."
(SFC, 9/26/05, C3)
1965 Apr 13, Beatles recorded
"Help."
(MC, 4/13/02)
1965 May 1, Spike Jones (53),
composer (Spike Jones Show), died.
(MC, 5/1/02)
1965 May 13, Rolling Stones
recorded "Satisfaction,"
(SS, Internet, 5/13/97)
1965 May 22,
"Super-cali-fragil-istic-expi-ali-docious" hit #66.
(MC, 5/22/02)
1965 May 25, Mark Knight, rock
guitarist (Bang Tango-Dancin' on Coals), was born in California.
(SC, 5/25/02)
1965 Jun 26, "Mr. Tambourine Man"
by The Byrds reached the number one spot on the pop music charts.
(SFC, 9/26/06, p.D7)
1965 Jul 25, Folk-rock began when
Dylan used electricity at the Newport Folk Festival, RI.
(SC, 7/25/02)
1965 Jul 29, Beatles movie "Help"
premiered and Queen Elizabeth attended.
(MC, 7/29/02)
1965 Aug 13, In SF the Jefferson
Airplane made its first public performance opening at the new Matrix
club on Fillmore. The band held an ownership interest in the club.
(SFEC, 5/23/99, Z1 p.4)(SFC, 11/17/08, p.E4)
1965 Aug 14, The Beatles taped an
appearance for the Ed Sullivan Show.
(MC, 8/14/02)
1965 Aug 14, Sonny and Cher's "I
Got You Babe" hit #1.
(MC, 8/14/02)
1965 Aug 15, Beatles played to
55,000 at Shea Stadium.
(MC, 8/15/02)
1965 Aug 28, Bob Dylan was scorned
at a concert in NY's Forest Hills.
(www.punkhart.com/dylan/tapes/65-aug28.html)
1965 Aug 30, Columbia Records
released Bob Dylan’s album "Highway 61 Revisited."
(SFC, 9/26/05,
C3)(www.ddg.com/LIS/glenn/DYLANWEB.HTM)
1965 Aug 31, The Beatles returned
to the Cow Palace in Daly City, Ca., for another concert.
(www.geocities.com/bratbear_51/cowpalacebeatles.html)
1965 Oct 16, The world’s first
acid rock dance was held at Longshoreman’s Hall. Top band on the bill
was the Charlatan’s with Dan Hicks, a house band from the Red Dog
Saloon in Virginia City. The Jefferson Airplane also made its first
concert appearance. Alton Kelley (1940-2008) and 3 other people, under
the name Family Dog, staged the dance concert.
(www.chickenonaunicycle.com/FD%20Shows%20Full%20List.htm)(SFC, 6/3/08,
p.B5)
1965 Dec 11, Sam Cooke (b.1931),
pop singer, was shot to death by a motel manager in Los Angeles after a
prostitute stole his clothes and money. His hits included “You Send
Me,” “Cupid,” and “Chain Gang.” In 2005 Peter Guralnick authored
“Dream Boogie: The Triumph of Sam Cooke.”
(SSFC, 10/16/05,
p.M3)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sam_Cooke)
1965 Louis Armstrong sang "Hello
Dolly." The song was written by Jerry Herman for the remake of the
Thornton Wilder play "Matchmaker." The name of the play was changed to
"Hello, Dolly!" after the song became a hit before the play opened.
(SFEC, 12/1/96, BR p.1)
1965 Syd Barrett (1946-2006)
co-founded Pink Floyd with Roger Waters, Nick Mason and Rick Wright,
and wrote many of the band's early songs. Barrett became mentally
unstable from the pressures of drugs and fame and had to leave the band
in 1968, five years before Pink Floyd's most popular album, "Dark Side
of the Moon."
(AP, 7/11/06)
1965 James Brown (1928-2006), the
dynamic "Godfather of Soul," produced his classic song “I Got You (I
Feel Good),” later considered one of the all-time greatest in rock’s
cannon.
(SFC, 12/26/06, p.A7)
1965 The SF-based Beau Brummels
and lead singer Sal Valentino made a hit with “Laugh Laugh.”
(SFC, 2/22/06, p.E1)
1965 Sonny Bono and Cher had a hit
with their song "I Got You Babe."
(SFC, 1/7/98, p.E1)
1965 Bob Dylan (23) did a tour of
England that was chronicled in the film "Don’t Look Back" by D.A.
Pennebaker.
(SFEC, 2/8/98, p.D5)
1965 John Fogarty and his band,
the Golliwogs, had a hit with the song "Brown-Eyed Girl. Under
direction from Saul Zaentz of Fantasy Records they soon changed their
name to Creedence Clearwater Revival.
(SFEM, 3/23/97, p.28)
1965 Jerry Garcia and The Grateful
Dead began playing.
(SFC, 7/5/96, p.E4)
1965 Marvin Gaye sang "Ain’t That
Peculiar."
(SFC, 11/12/02, p.D1)
1965 Bud Shank (1926-2009),
innovative jazz musician, played the 33-second flute solo on the hit
“California Dreamin,” by the Mamas and Papas.
(SFC, 4/10/09, p.B5)
1965 Curtis Mayfield and the
Impressions had a hit with the song "People Get Ready."
(SFC, 12/28/99, p.C1)
1965 The Miracles sang "Tracks of
My Tears."
(SFC, 11/12/02, p.D1)
1965 Lou Reed co-founded the music
group Velvet Underground.
(SFEC, 1/26/97 Par, p.2)
1965 Frank Sinatra won a Grammy
award for his song, "It Was a Very Good Year."
(SFC, 5/16/98, p.E7)
1965 The Supremes sang "Stop! In
the Name Love," Back in My Arms Again," and "I Hear a Symphony."
(SFC, 11/12/02, p.D1)
1965 The Lynyrd Skynyrd rock and
roll band was formed. Their 1973 debut album included "Free Bird."
Their hit songs included "Sweet Home Alabama."
(SFEC, 8/17/97, DB p.69)(WSJ, 3/17/05, p.A1)
1965 Folk-rock edged in next to
Rock-n-roll.
(TMC, 1994, p.1965)
1965 Ray Repp made his
groundbreaking album: "Mass for Young Americans."
(WSJ, 9/16/96, p.B8)
1965 The Righteous Brothers
released their song: "You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feeling." It was produced
by Phil Spector. Boby Hatfield, half of the team, died in 2003 at age
63.
(SFEC, 10/20/96, DB, p.65)(SFEC, 10/5/97, DB
p.74)(SSFC, 12/28/03, p.E9)
1965 The Sir Douglas Quintet with
Doug Sahm had a hit with the song "She's About a Mover."
(SFC, 11/20/99, p.A22)
1965 Junior Walker & the All
Stars played "Shotgun."
(SFC, 11/12/02, p.D1)
1965 Stevie Wonder sang "Uptight
(Everything’s Alright)."
(SFC, 11/12/02, p.D1)
1965 In Britain The Who made 3
consecutive hits with "I Can’t Explain," "Anyway Anyhow Anywhere," and
"My Generation." The group included bassist John Entwistle (d.2002),
drummer Keith Moon (d.1978), singer Roger Daltrey, and guitarist Pete
Townshend.
(SFC, 6/28/02, p.A2)
1965 Nov 6, Edgar Varese (b.1883),
French-born pioneer of musical modernism, died. He moved to the US in
1915. Varese was the inventor of the term "organized sound", a phrase
meaning that certain timbres and rhythms can be grouped together,
sublimating into a whole new definition of music.
(SFC, 4/16/10,
p.F6)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edgard_Var%C3%A8se)
1966 Mar 3, Rock group Buffalo
Springfield formed with Steven Stills, Neil Young, et al.
(SC, 3/3/02)
1966 Mar 3, "Lightnin' Lou"
Christie was striking gold this day for his hit "Lightnin' Strikes".
Christie was born Lugee Sacco and joined a group called The Classics
before making his first recording in 1960. In 1961, he recorded under
the name Lugee & The Lions until changing to Lou Christie for a
string of hits beginning in 1963. Other notable tunes from Christie's
Top 40 appearances include: "The Gypsy Cried", "Two Faces Have I",
"Rhapsody in the Rain" and "I'm Gonna Make You Mine" – all displaying
his trademark falsetto voice, similar to that of Frankie Valli of The
Four Seasons. "Lightnin' Strikes" was Christie's only million seller.
(HC, Internet, 3/3/98)
1966 Mar 4, John Lennon said: "We
(Beatles) are more popular than Jesus." Radio stations in the
Netherlands and in Spain quickly banned the playing of Beatle records
as did the South African Broadcasting Corporation, stating that "The
Beatles' arrogance has passed the ultimate limit of decency. It is
clowning no longer."
(www.beatles.ws/1966.htm)
1966 Apr 12, Jan Berry (1942-2004)
of the "Jan and Dean" duo was involved in a car crash that left him in
a month-long coma. Their hit songs from 1960-1966 included: "Little Old
lady from Pasadena," "Deadman’s Curve," and "Surf City."
(SFEC, 7/13/97, DB p.63)(SSFC, 3/28/04, p.B5)
1966 May 1, Last British concert
by Beatles was at Empire Pool in Wembley.
(MC, 5/1/02)
1966 May 13, Rolling Stones
released "Paint it Black."
(SS, Internet, 5/13/97)
1966 Jun 10, Mamas & Papas won
a gold record for "Monday, Monday."
(MC, 6/10/02)
1966 Jul 11, "I Am A Rock" by
Simon & Garfunkel peaked at #3.
(MC, 7/11/02)
1966 Jul 25, Supremes released
"You Can't Hurry Love."
(SC, 7/25/02)
1966 Jul 29, Bob Dylan was hurt in
motorcycle accident near Woodstock, NY.
(www.wilburys.info/insbob.html)
1966 Aug 5, Beatles released their
"Revolver" album in US.
(MC, 8/5/02)
1966 Aug 5, Beatles released
"Yellow Submarine" and "Eleanor Rigby" in UK.
(MC, 8/5/02)
1966 Sep, In SF the Jefferson
Airplane played the band’s last show at the Matrix, the first night
that Grace Slick sang with the band.
(SFC, 11/17/08, p.E4)
1966 The Beach Boys sang "Good
Vibrations," and sales exceeded a million records.
(SFEC, 2/8/98, p.D8)
1966 The Capitols sang "Cool Jerk."
(SFC, 11/12/02, p.D8)
1966 The song "Winchester
Cathedral" by the New Vaudeville Band won the Grammy best contemporary
recording category.
1966 Chas Chandler, bass player
for the Animals, spotted Jimi Hendrix playing at the Cafe Wha in New
York and invited him to London. He later produced the first 2 Hendrix
albums.
(SFC, 7/18/96, p.A22)
1966 Arlo Guthrie wrote the song
"Alice’s Restaurant," and it became the anti-
draft fight song.
(TMC, 1994, p.1966)
1966 The Four Tops sang "Reach Out
I’ll Be There" and "Standing in the Shadows of Love."
(SFC, 11/12/02, p.D8)
1966 Don Ho (1930-2007), a
Vietnamese-American singer, released his most famous song, "Tiny
Bubbles", which charted on both the pop (#8 Billboard) and easy
listening charts and caused the subsequent Tiny Bubbles LP to remain in
the album Top 20 for almost a year.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Don_Ho)
1966 Junior Walker and the All
Stars sang "How Sweet It Is."
(SFC, 11/12/02, p.D8)
1966 Arthur Lee (1945-2006)
fronted the band Love and established himself as the 1st black rock
star in the post Beatle’s era. The group’s debut album, “Love,” was the
1st rock record released by Electra Records.
(SSFC, 8/6/06, p.B6)
1966 The Mamas and Papas released
their debut single "California Dreamin." The group broke up in 1968.
(SFC, 3/19/01, p.A19)
1966 Sergio Mendes and Brasil ‘66
made a hit with "Mas Que Nada."
(SFC, 11/30/02, p.D1)
1966 Jimmy Ruffin sang "What
Become of the Broken-hearted."
(SFC, 11/12/02, p.D8)
1966 The Sandpipers made a hit
with "Guantanamera."
(SFC, 11/30/02, p.D1)
1966 Simon and Garfunkel sang
"Scarborough Fair."
(SFEC, 12/22/96, Z1 p.2)
1966 Frank Sinatra made a hit with
"Strangers in the Night." The song won a Grammy as record of the year.
(SFC, 5/16/98, p.E7)
1966 Nancy Sinatra sang "These
Boots Are Made for Walking," written by Lee Hazlewood (1929-2007).
(SFEC, 12/22/96, Z1 p.2)(SFC, 8/7/07, p.D9)
1966 Percy Sledge made a hit with
his song "When a Man Loves a Woman."
(SFC, 8/14/96, p.E2)
1966 Phil Spector produced “River
Deep – Mountain High” with Ike and Tina Turner. The pair split in 1976.
(SFC, 12/13/07, p.B5)
1966 Dusty Springfield recorded
"You Don't Have to Say You Love Me."
(SFC, 3/4/99, p.C6)
1966 The Standells song “Dirty
Water,” an ode to Boston and its polluted waterways, reached No. 11 on
the Billboard’s Top 40 chart. In 2006 the group filed a suit against
Anheuser-Busch for illegal use of the song in commercials.
(SFC, 6/12/06, p.D11)
1966 The Supremes sang "You Can’t
Hurry Love" and "You Keep Me Hanging On."
(SFC, 11/12/02, p.D8)
1966 The Young Rascals had a No. 1
hit with “Good Lovin’.”
(SFC, 6/27/06, p.B5)
1966 The Blue Note jazz label of
Alfred Lion was sold to Liberty Records. It was later transferred to
EMI.
(WSJ, 10/3/97, p.A8)
1966 Jeff Hanna and Jimmie Fadden
founded their "Nitty Gritty Dirt Band."
(SFEM,10/19/97, DB p.61)
1966 The Jimi Hendrix Experience
formed and played together for 3 years. Noel Redding (d.2003 at 57) was
the bass player. The band produced 3 albums of psychedelic rock: "Are
You Experienced," "Axis: Bold as Love," and "Electric Ladyland."
(SFC, 5/14/03, p.A17)
1967 Jan 14, Sonny and Cher’s "The
Beat Goes On" peaked at #6 on the pop charts. In 1999 the TV special
“And the Beat Goes On: The Sonny and Cher Story,” written by Sonny Bono
(1935-1998), was produced.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Beat_Goes_On)(www.imdb.com/title/tt0185155/)
1967 Jan 15, The Rolling Stones
appeared on the Ed Sullivan Show.
(www.crazyabouttv.com/edsullivanshow.html)
1967 Feb 17, Beatles released
"Penny Lane" & "Strawberry Fields." Strawberry Fields was a
children’s home run by the Salvation Army. It was closed in 2005.
(http://www.jpgr.co.uk/r5570.html)(SFC, 6/2/05, p.E8)
1967 Feb 20, Kurt Cobain, Nirvana
grunge band musician, was born in Aberdeen, Washington. He was found
dead at his Lake Washington home on April 8, 1994, of suicide committed
about April 5.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kurt_Cobain)
1967 Feb 20, Elvis Presley
released his album "How Great Thou Art." The song “How Great Thou Art”
is a Christian hymn based on a Swedish poem written by Carl Gustav
Boberg (1859-1940) in Sweden in 1885.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/How_Great_Thou_Art_(album))
1967 Mar 2, At the 9th Grammy
Awards: “Strangers in Night” by Frank Sinatra won Record of the Year
and “Michele” by the Beatles won Song of the Year.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grammy_Awards_of_1967)
1967 Mar 7, The Los Angeles-based
Doors made their 2nd trip to SF and performed for a mid-week engagement
at the Matrix ahead of a weekend performance at the Avalon. Peter
Abrams, co-owner of the Matrix, recorded the show with a recently
installed tape recorder.
(SFC, 11/17/08, p.E1)(http://tinyurl.com/mxky7j)
1967 Mar 11, British psychedelic
group Pink Floyd released “Arnold Layne,” their 1st single song.
(http://pinkfloydhyperbase.dk/albums/arnold.htm)(SFC, 9/26/06, p.D6)
1967 May 1, Elvis Presley (32)
married Priscilla Beaulieu (20) in Las Vegas at the Aladdin Hotel. They
divorced in 1973. They had met when she was 14 in West Germany.
(AP, 5/1/97)(SFEM, 1/25/98, p.66)
1967 May 20, BBC disc jockey Kenny
Everett gave the official preview of Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club
Band on the radio show Where It's At, broadcast on the BBC Light
Program. He was unable to play the final track "A Day in the Life,"
which the BBC had banned a day earlier due to drug references.
(www.beatlesbible.com/1967/05/20/the-bbc-bans-a-day-in-the-life/)
1967 Jun 1, "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely
Hearts Club Band," was released in the U.K. and the following day in
the U.S. and was certified "gold" the same day of release. It topped
the charts all over the world, holding the number one slot in Britain
for 27 weeks and for 19 in America. It received four Grammys including
Best Album.
(AP, 6/1/97)
1967 Jun 7, Three Moby Grape
members were arrested on Mt. Tamalpais, following a concert at the
Avalon Ballroom in SF, for having sex with underage girls.
(www.rockument.com/scenes_sf1.html)
1967 Jun 18, The 3-day Monterey
Pop Festival featured Pete Townshend and The Who on the Sunday finale.
They nearly stopped the show with the destruction of guitars, drums and
microphones on stage. They were immediately followed by Jerry Garcia
and The Grateful Dead. The festival also featured Janis Joplin, Jimi
Hendrix and Otis Redding.
(WSJ, 8/11/95,
p.A-7)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monterey_Pop_Festival)
1967 Jun 19, Beatle Paul
McCartney, having admitted in Queen Magazine that he had taken LSD,
repeated the admission on television.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_McCartney)
1967 Jun, The theme song from the
film "The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly" by Hugo Montenegro (1925-1981)
reached No. 2 on the US record charts.
(http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0599359/bio)
1967 Jul 1, Beatles' "Sgt Pepper's
Lonely Hearts Club Band," went #1 for 15 weeks.
(MC, 7/1/02)
1967 Jul 7, Beatles' "All You Need
is Love" was released.
(MC, 7/7/02)
1967 Aug 19, Beatles' "All You
Need is Love," single went #1.
(MC, 8/19/02)
1967 Aug 25, Beatles went to Wales
to study TM with Maharishi Mahesh Yogi.
(MC, 8/25/02)
1967 Aug 27, Brian Epstein,
manager of the Beatles, was found dead in his London flat from an
overdose of sleeping pills.
(AP, 8/27/97)
1967 Sep 11, Charles Manson
(b.1934) recorded his album "Lie," which was produced by Dennis Wilson
(b.1944), drummer for the Beach Boys.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lie:_The_Love_and_Terror_Cult)
1967 Nov 9, Rolling Stone
Magazine, co-founded by Jann Wenner in SF, published its debut issue
with a press run of 40,000 copies. Ralph J. Gleason, SF jazz critic,
helped Wenner fund the 1st issue. In 1998 "Rolling Stone: The Complete
Covers 1967-1997" was edited by Holly George-Warren. In 1977 the
company moved its headquarters to NYC.
(SFC,10/28/97, p.E1)(SFEC, 6/21/98, BR p.12)(SFC,
12/23/04, p.E16)(SFC, 4/18/09, p.C1)
1967 Nov 27, The Beatles' "Magical
Mystery Tour," album was released in Britain.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magical_Mystery_Tour_(album))
1967 Dec 10, Singer Otis Redding
(26) and 6 others died in the crash of his private plane in Lake
Monona, Wisconsin. He had recently recorded “Sittin’ on the Dock of the
Bay,” which became a big hit in 1968.
(SFC, 4/25/06, p.B5)(AP, 12/10/07)
1967 Dec 26, BBC-1 television
aired "Magical Mystery Tour," the Beatles' critically drubbed one-hour
special.
(AP, 12/26/07)
1967 Dec 27, Singer Bob Dylan
(b.1941 as Robert Allen Zimmerman) released his "John Wesley Harding"
album.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Wesley_Harding_(album))
1967 Glen Campbell made a hit with
"Gentle On My Mind," written by John Hartford (d.2001 at 63).
(SFC, 6/6/01, p.A19)
1967 Bob Dylan and The Band
recorded "The Basement Tapes" in West Saugerties, N.Y., in a ranch
house dubbed Big Pink, rented by Rick Danko (d.1999). In 1997 Greil
Marcus, wrote "Invisible Republic," an exploration of the recordings.
Other band members included Garth Hudson, Richard Manuel, Robbie
Robertson and Levon Helm.
(SFEC, 5/25/97, DB p.52)(SFC, 12/1/97, p.E4)(WSJ,
12/15/99, p.A20)
1967 The 5th Dimension released
the Jimmy Webb tune "Up, Up and Away." The group included Ron Townson
(d.2001 ay 68), Florence LaRue, Marilyn McCoo, and Billy Davis.
(SFC, 8/4/01,
p.E2)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Up,_Up_and_Away)
1967 The Four Tops sang
"Bernadette."
(SFC, 11/12/02, p.D8)
1967 Aretha Franklin (b.1942)
recorded "Chain of Fools."
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chain_of_Fools_(song))
1967 Aretha Franklin (b.1942) sang
"Respect," "Baby I Love You" and "I Never Love a Man (the Way I Love
You)."
(SSFC, 6/30/02, Par p.30)
1967 Arlo Guthrie recorded the
18.5 minute ballad "Alice’s Restaurant." It was about his arrest for
dumping garbage that had piled up at the former Episcopal Church where
Alice and Ray Brock lived in Great Barrington, Mass. Guthrie bought the
building in 1991 for $300,000 and set up a foundation to promote
understanding among religious traditions. "It’s a bring your own god
church."
(SFC, 1/5/02, p.A2)
1967 The Irish Rovers released
their album “The Unicorn.” They had formed in Canada and released their
album in California.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Unicorn)
1967 Miriam Makeba (1932-2008),
South African folk singer and anti-apartheid activist, released her hit
single “Pata Pata.”
(SFC, 11/11/08, p.B5)
1967 Sly & the Family Stone
released the first of their 8 albums. The group was led by Sylvester
Stewart, aka Sly Stone, an African American from Vallejo, Ca. In 2008
Jeff Kaliss authored “I Want To Take You Higher: The Life and Times of
Sly & the Family Stone.”
(SFC, 11/24/08, p.E2)
1967 Zal Yanovsky (d.2002 at 57)
left the Lovin’ Spoonful. The group’s hits had included "Do You Believe
in Magic" and "Summer in the City."
(SFC, 12/17/02, p.A23)
1967 The rock group Moby Grape
made its debut album "Moby Grape."
(SFC, 6/29/96, p.E1)
1967 Procol Harum’s "A Whiter
Shade of Pale" became a psychedelic classic. It was later voted one of
the greatest pop songs of all time. In 2006 the High Court in London
awarded organist Matthew Fisher a 40% right to the song. Singer Gary
Brooker had claimed he was the sole writer.
(AFP, 12/20/06)
1967 The rock group Traffic was
founded by drummer Jim Capaldi (1945-2005), keyboardist Winwood,
guitarist Dave Mason and saxophonist-flutist Chris Wood.
(SFC, 2/1/05, p.B9)
1967 Grace Slick and the Jefferson
Airplane (b.1965) burst out of SF with their songs "Somebody To Love"
and "White Rabbit." In 1998 Slick and Andrea Cagan wrote "Somebody To
Love? A Rock-and-Roll Memoir." A 1980 biography of Slick was written by
Barbara Rowe of the NY Times. In 2003 Jeff Tamarkin authored "Got a
Revolution: The Turbulent Flight of Jefferson Airplane."
(SFEC, 9/6/98, BR p.3)(SSFC, 6/22/03, p.M6)
1967 "Songs of Granite and Men" by
SF composer Walter Tolleson (d. 1997 at 72) was performed at Carnegie
Hall.
(SFC,10/31/97, p.A24)
1967 Gladys Knight and the Pips,
already an established singing group, joined the Motown record label.
Their hits included "I Heard It Through the Grapevine." In 1997 Gladys
Knight wrote "Between Each Line of Pain and Glory: My Life Story."
(SFC,11/19/97, p.E4)
1967 The Miracles sang "I Second
That Emotion."
(SFC, 11/12/02, p.D8)
1967 In Cuba the Orquesta de
Musica Moderna, a government sponsored group, was formed. It was the
basis for the later jazz group Irakere.
(SFC, 6/16/96, BR p.42)
1967 Rod Stewart emerged as the
vocal sensation in the Jeff Beck Group.
(USAT, 3/24/99, p.5E)
1967 The Supremes sang "Love Is
Here and Now You’re Gone" and "The Happening."
(SFC, 11/12/02, p.D8)
1967 Jackie Wilson sang "Higher
and Higher."
(SFC, 11/12/02, p.D8)
1968 Feb 16, Beatles George
Harrison & John Lennon flew to India with their wives for
transcendental meditation with the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi.
(www.beatles.ws/1968.htm)
1968 Feb 27, Frankie Lymon
(b.1942), American singer died. He was an African-American rock and
roll/rhythm and blues singer, best known as the boy soprano lead singer
of a New York City-based early rock and roll group called the
Teenagers. Their first single, "Why Do Fools Fall in Love" (1956), was
also their biggest hit. The 1998 film "Why Do Fools Fall in Love" was a
musical comedy-drama with Halle Berry, Vivica A. Fox, Lela Rochon and
Little Richard. It was directed by Gregory Nava and set in the 1950s
based on the life of Frankie Lymon.
(SFC, 8/28/98, p.C1)(SFC, 9/2/98,
p.E1)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frankie_Lymon)
1968 Feb 29, At the Grammy Awards,
the Fifth Dimension's "Up, Up and Away" won record of the year for
1967, while album of the year honors went to the Beatles for "Sgt.
Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band."
(HN, 2/29/00)(AP, 2/29/04)
1968 Mar 1, Singers Johnny Cash
(36) and June Carter (38) wed.
(SFC, 9/13/03, p.A12)
1968 Apr, Simon & Garfunkel
released their song "Mrs. Robinson."
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mrs._Robinson)
1968 May 14, The Beatles in NYC
announced the formation of their Apple Corp.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apple_Corps)
1968 May 24, The Rolling Stones,
an English rock band, released "Jumping Jack Flash" in England. The US
release was on June 1.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jumpin%27_Jack_Flash)
1968 Jun 13, Johnny Cash performed
a live concert at California’s Folsom Prison. Applause from the inmates
was dubbed into his "At Folsom Prison" album.
(WSJ, 11/26/97, p.CA4)(Econ, 9/18/04, p.88)
1968 Jun 29, "Tip-Toe Thru' The
Tulips With Me" by Tiny Tim (1932-1996), aka Herbert Khaury, peaked at
#17.
(SFC, 12/2/96,
p.A4)(www.dreamsville.net/index.php?paged=2)
1968 Jul 1, The Band released
their "Music From Big Pink" album. It features one of their best-known
songs, "The Weight."
(WSJ, 12/15/99,
p.A20)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Music_from_Big_Pink)
1968 Jul 31, The Beatle's recorded
Hey Jude.
(http://oldies.about.com/od/thebeatlessongs/a/heyjude.htm)
1968 Sep 28, Beatles' "Hey Jude"
single went #1 and stayed #1 for 9 weeks.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hey_Jude)
1968 Oct 14, The Beatles "White
Album" was completed at the Abbey Road Studios.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Beatles_(album))
1968 Nov 22, Beatles released
their "Beatles," (White Album) their only double album.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Beatles_(album))
1968 Nov 28, In London, England,
John Lennon and Yoko Ono appeared at the Marylebone Magistrates' Court.
John pleaded guilty to possession of cannabis resin and was fined 150
pounds plus 20 guineas costs.
(http://tinyurl.com/qjbdgb)
1968 Nov, The album “Astral Weeks”
by Irish-born singer and song-writer Van Morrison was released. In 1999
it was given a Grammy Hall of Fame award.
(WSJ, 4/14/07, p.P14)
1968 Dec 7, The Rolling Stones
released their album "Beggar’s Banquet" in the US, one day after it was
released in the UK. They soon filmed a concert performance right after
the Who’s performance of "A Quick One" that the Stones did not match
and the film was shelved. In 1996 it was planned to release the film
where Jethro Tull and Taj Mahal are also featured. The album included
the song "Sympathy for the Devil."
(SFC, 8/16/96, p.D11)(SFC, 10/23/00,
p.F3)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beggars_Banquet)
1968 Dec 28, The Beatles' "White
Album," went #1 in the US, beginning this week, and stayed at the top
for 9 weeks.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Beatles_(album))
1968 The Delfonics soul singing
group of Philadelphia recorded their hit "La-la Means I Love You."
(SFEC, 1/25/98, DB
p.45)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Delfonics)
1968 Graham Nash (b.1942) left the
Hollies to join David Crosby (b.1941) and Stephen Stills (b.1945). The
first Crosby, Stills & Nash album was released in 1969.
(www.rockhall.com/inductee/crosby-stills-and-nash)
1968 The song "Just Dropped In (to
See What Condition My Condition Was In) was the 1st charted single for
Kenny Rogers, who was with the First Edition. The song was written by
Texas songwriter Mickey Newbury (d.2002 at 62).
(SFC, 10/3/02, p.A20)
1968 Aretha Franklin (b.1942)
recorded "Since You’ve Been Gone" and “Think.”
(http://tinyurl.com/oe3cmp)(http://tinyurl.com/obhjaj)
1968 Marvin Gaye recorded "I Heard
It Through the Grapevine."
(SFC, 11/12/02,
p.D8)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I_Heard_It_Through_the_Grapevine)
1968 Edwin Hawkins recorded his
arrangement of “Oh Happy Day” on a 2-track tape machine for the
Northern California State Youth Choir. An album was made with Century
Records to help finance a trip to a church youth conference in
Washington DC. In 1969 Abe Kesh at KSAN-FM began playing the song,
which featured the voice of Dorothy Morrison. The album was soon
re-issued by Buddah Records.
(SFC, 10/23/09, p.F1)
1968 The Iron Butterfly recorded
their 17-minute classic "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida," with Erik Braunn (d.2003
at 52) on lead guitar. Doug Ingle, Ron Bushy and Lee Dorman completed
the band.
(SFC, 7/29/03, p.A17)
1968 Janis Joplin and Big Brother
and the Holding Company band recorded their album "Cheap Thrills" in
New York.
(SFC, 5/19/96, DB,
p.39)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cheap_Thrills)
1968 The Moody Blues released
their album "Days of Future Past” in the US. It had been released in
Britain in November 1967.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Days_of_Future_Passed)
1968 Laura Nyro (1947-1997)
released her song suite album "Eli and the Thirteenth Confession." her
biggest songs were "When I Die," "Stoned Soul Picnic," "Wedding Bell
Blues," "Sweet Blindness," and "Eli’s Coming."
(SFE, 4/10/97,
p.A23)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eli_and_the_Thirteenth_Confession)
1968 The song “Sittin’ on the Dock
of the Bay” by Otis Redding (1941-1967) became a smash hit. It was the
first posthumous single in US chart history.
(SFC, 4/25/06, p.B5)
1968 The "Rolling Stones Rock and
Roll Circus" was shot for home video but not released until 1996. The
62 minute TV special featured the Stones, John Lennon, Yoko Ono, Eric
Clapton, the Who, Marianne Faithfull, Taj Mahal and Jethro Tull.
(SFC, 10/15/96, p.B1)
1968 The singing group Sha Na Na
began singing together at Columbia Univ. as the Columbia Kingsmen.
Their first gig in Manhattan paid $50 for the 12 members. They sang
"Let’s Go to the Hop" at Woodstock and did a TV show from 1977-1980.
(SFC, 6/26/98, p.C13)
1968 The Supremes released their
album "Love Child."
(SFC, 11/12/02,
p.D8)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Love_Child_(The_Supremes_album))
1968 Johnnie Taylor (d.2000 at 62)
had his 1st No. 1 R&B hit with "Who’s Making Love."
(SFC, 6/2/00, p.D5)
1968 Stevie Wonder made a hit with
the song "For Once in My Life."
(SFC, 11/12/02,
p.D8)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/For_Once_in_My_Life)
1968 Tammy Wynette (1942-1998),
country singer, recorded her hit song "Stand by Your Man." In 2003 it
was rated the No. 1 top country song.
(SFC, 6/6/03,
p.D22)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stand_By_Your_Man)
1969 Jan 3, police in Newark, NJ,
confiscated 30,000 copies of the John Lennon, Yoko Ono album, Two
Virgins. A nude photo of John and Yoko on the cover violated
pornography laws in Jersey.
(www.goatview.com/january03.htm)
1969 Feb 17, Bob Dylan &
Johnny Cash recorded an album that was never released.
(http://hnn.us/blogs/entries/57340.html)
1969 Feb 19, Elvis Presley
recorded the Eddie Rabbit song "Kentucky Rain."
(www.anelvisfan2001.com/KentuckyRain.html)
1969 Mar 1, Jim Morrison (d.1971),
lead singer for the Doors, was arrested for exposing himself at Dinner
Key Auditorium in Miami before 10,000 people.
(SC, 3/1/02)(SFC, 12/24/02, p.A13)
1969 Apr 12, Simon and Garfunkel
released "The Boxer."
(www.radiowest.ca/forum/viewtopic.php?t=3300&sid=72232d290dfd00e819b5932236c4c632)
1969 May 23, The Who released
their rock opera "Tommy."
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tommy_(album))
1969 May 31, John Lennon and Yoko
Ono recorded "Give Peace a Chance" during their “Bed-In” at the Queen
Elizabeth’s Hotel in Montreal.
(http://digitaldreamdoor.nutsie.com/pages/lyrics2/givepeace.html)
1969 Jun 7, The Johnny Cash Show
premiered on ABC from the Grand Ole Opry with special guest Bob Dylan
and regular cast: Tennessee Three, June Carter and Carter Family,
Statler Brothers, and Carl Perkins, stepping in for Luther Perkins, who
has just died accidentally in tragic fire. The series ran through 1971.
(www.johnnycashonline.com/biography)
1969 Jun 7, Tommy James & the
Shondells released "Crystal Blue Persuasion."
(www.cashboxmagazine.com/archives/60s_files/1969.html)
1969 Jul 11, David Bowie (b.1947),
British musician, released his single “Space Oddity," supposedly in
conjunction with the July 20 Apollo 11 moon landing.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Space_Oddity)
1969 Jun 27, The 3-day Denver Pop
Festival opened. The peak attendance was estimated at 50,000.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Denver_Pop_Festival)
1969 Jul 2, Barbra Streisand
(b.1942) opened for a 4-week engagement at the Las Vegas International
Hotel.
(www.barbrafile.com/6169.htm)
1969 Jul
3, Brian Jones (27), founder of the Rolling Stones (1962), was found
dead at the bottom of Cotchford Farm swimming pool.
(www.hotshotdigital.com/WellAlwaysRemember.4/BrianJones.html)
1969 Jul 4, "Give Peace a Chance"
by Plastic Ono Band was released in UK.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Give_Peace_a_Chance)
1969 Jul 4, 140,000 attended
Atlanta Pop Festival featuring Led Zeppelin & Janis Joplin.
(Maggio, 98)
1969 Jul 25, Some 70,000 attended
the Seattle Pop Festival. The music festival, organized by Boyd
Grafmyrem, was held at the Gold Creek Park, Woodinville, Washington,
from July 25 to July 28, 1969.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seattle_Pop_Festival)
1969 Jul, The rock group Mountain
with Leslie West and Felix Pappalardi released their album Windfall
4500.
(www.mp3.com/albums/17361/reviews.html)
1969 Aug 2, Bob Dylan made a
surprise appearance at the Minn. Hibbing High School 10-year reunion.
(http://oldies.about.com/od/oldieshistory/a/august2.htm)
1969 Aug 15, The Woodstock Music
and Art Fair opened in upstate New York. 400,000 young people gathered
at Max Yasgur's dairy farm in the Bethel hamlet of White Lake, N.Y. for
the Woodstock music festival. Wavy Gravy (Hugh Romney) and companions
from the Hog Farm Commune handled security and ran a free kitchen and
"bad trips tent." The performers included Joan Baez; Crosby, Stills and
Nash; Creedence Clearwater; the Grateful Dead; Jimi Hendrix; the
Jefferson Airplane; Janis Joplin; Canned Heat and Ravi Shankar.
(TMC, 1994,
p.1969)(SFC,5/17/96,p.E-1)(WSJ,10/22/96,p.A20)(SFEC,1/26/97, p.A14)(AP,
8/15/97)(SFC,10/27/97, p.C2)(SFC, 2/3/99, p.E1)
1969 Aug 16, Canned Heat performed
"Let's Work Together" live Woodstock.
(www.chromeoxide.com/canned.htm)
1969 Aug 18, Two concert goers
died at the Woodstock Music and Art Fair in Bethel, New York, one from
an overdose of heroin, the other from a burst appendix. The Woodstock
Music and Art Fair ended in Sullivan County, NY, with a mid-morning set
performed by Jimi Hendrix.
(HN, 8/18/99)(AP, 8/18/07)
1969 Aug 20, Arlo Guthrie released
"Alice's Restaurant."
(www.imdb.com/title/tt0064002/)
1969 Sep 1, John Lennon returned
his OBE medal. He said it is to protest the British government’s
involvement in Biafra, its support of the US in Vietnam and the poor
chart performance of his latest single, “Cold Turkey.”
(www.rockhall.com/inductee/john-lennon)
1969 Sep 13, John Lennon and his
wife, Yoko Ono, presented the Plastic Ono Band in concert for the first
time at the Toronto Peace Festival (Lennon's first in four years). The
1st hit by the new group, "Give Peace a Chance," made it to number 14
on the charts.
(www.musicdirect.com/product/83704)
1969 Sep 26, The Beatles last
album, "Abbey Road," was released in the United Kingdom. The last hit
LP for the "fab four" zoomed quickly to the #1 spot on the charts and
stayed there for 11 weeks.
(www.johnlennon.com/html/history.aspx)(HN,
9/26/99)(Beat. For., 1995, p. 58)
1969 Nov 28, The Rolling Stones,
English rock band, released its "Let It Bleed" album.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Let_It_Bleed)
1969 Dec 3, Andrew Lloyd Weber and
Tim Rice offered John Lennon the role of Jesus Christ in Jesus Christ
Superstar, but the offer was withdrawn the next day.
(http://tinyurl.com/7bvup8)(http://oldies.about.com/od/oldieshistory/a/december3.htm)
1969 Dec 6, The Rolling Stones
staged a rock concert at the Altamount Speedway in Livermore, Ca. for
some 300,000 fans. The Stones hired the Hells Angels for security. Fans
were beaten and one person, Meredith Hunter, was stamped and stabbed to
death by a Hell's Angel during the show. Alan Passaro (21) was tried
and found not guilty because Hunter was carrying a gun. One man drowned
in a nearby canal and2 people were crushed to death by a runaway car.
The 1970 documentary film “Gimme Shelter” was about the Rolling Stones
concert at Altamount.
(SFEC, 5/23/99, Z1 p.4)(AP, 12/6/99)(SFC, 6/10/00,
p.B5)(SFC, 5/26/05, p.B2)
1969 Dec 14, The Jackson 5
appeared on the Ed Sullivan Show. Michael Jackson was 11.
(SFC, 6/14/05, p.D6)
1969 Dec 20, Peter, Paul &
Mary's "Leaving on a Jet Plane" reached #1. It was written by John
Denver in 1967.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leaving_on_a_Jet_Plane)
1969 Dec 21, Diana Ross and the
Supremes make their final television appearance on The Ed Sullivan
Show, singing "Someday We'll Be Together", which would be the last of
their 12 number one singles.
(http://forums.w3oc.com/showthread.php?p=1967)
1969 Credence Clearwater Revival
put out its "Willy and the Poorboys" LP. The cover featured a photo of
the band in front of the Duck Kee Market in Oakland. Creedence had a
hit this year with "Oh! Lord, I'm stuck in Lodi again.
(SFC, 9/12/98, p.A19)(WSJ, 7/21/99, p.CA1)
1969 The Flying Burrito Brothers
released their first album. The group included Gram Parsons (1946-1973)
and Chris Hillman (b.1944) of the Byrds, and pedal steel guitar player
Pete Kleinow (1934-2007).
(SFC, 1/16/07, p.B5)
1969 Merle Haggard (b.1937) made a
hit with his song "Okie From Muskogee" and "The Fightin’ Side of Me."
(SSFC, 12/10/00, Par
p.7)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Merle_Haggard)
1969 The Iron Butterfly rock group
scored a hit with the 17-minute tune "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida."
(SFC, 5/31/99, p.A20)
1969 The group It's A Beautiful
Day recorded "White Bird."
(SFEC, 12/19/99, DB p.41)
1969 Kenny Rogers (b.1938) made a
hit with his song "Don’t Take Your Love to Town."
(SSFC, 5/20/01, Par
p.22)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kenny_Rogers)
1969 Oliver, born as William
Oliver Swofford (1945-2000), recorded the hits "Jean" and "Good Morning
Starshine."
(SFC, 2/16/00,
p.C2)(www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=20124)
1969 The album “The Stooges” spent
11 weeks on the Billboard album chart peaking at No. 106. It included
the song “I Wanna Be Your Dog,” which became the group’s signature
number. The punk band formed in Michigan in 1967 and included guitarist
Ron Asheton (1948-2009), drummer Scott Asheton, singer Iggy Pop (born
as Jim Osterberg) and bassist Dave Alexander. In 2007 Paul Trynka
authored “Iggy Pop: Open Up and Bleed.”
(SFC, 1/8/09, p.B5)
1969 Warner Bros. released the
Bernie Krause album "In a Wild Sanctuary." It was an album of nature
oriented sounds. In 1999 Krause authored "Into a Wild Sanctuary: A Life
in Music and Natural Sound."
(SFEC, 5/16/99, BR p.4)
1969 San Francisco guitarist
Carlos Santana (b.1947) and his band recorded their first album
featuring such tunes as "Evil Ways." Other members included Jose
Chepito Areas (percussionist), Michael Carrabello (percussionist),
David Brown (bassist), Gregg Rolie (keyboardist) and Michael Shrieve
(drums). The band was inducted in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in
1998.
(SFC, 1/12/98,
p.E1)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carlos_Santana)
1969 Shel Silverstein (1930-1999)
wrote the song "A Boy Named Sue," which became a hit for Johnny Cash.
Silverstein, a playwright and cartoonist, established himself as a
children's writer and published the classic "The Giving Tree" in 1964.
(SFC, 5/11/99,
p.A19)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shel_Silverstein)
1969 Skip Spence (1946-1999), the
original drummer for the Jefferson Airplane and founding
guitarist-member of Moby Grape, recorded his folk-psychedelic solo
album, "Oar." He gave the Bay Area band, Pud, a new name - the Doobie
Brothers. He recorded the "Oar" album fresh from involuntary commitment
at New York's Bellevue Hosp. In 1999 the album "More Oar - A Tribute to
the Skip Spence Album" was released.
(SFC, 4/17/99, p.A19)(WSJ, 9/20/99,
p.A26)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skip_Spence)
1969 Dusty Springfield (d.1999),
English pop singer, recorded her album "Dusty in Memphis."
(SFC, 3/4/99,
p.D2)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dusty_Springfield)
1969 Rod Stewart (b.1945), English
singer, made his solo debut with "The Rod Stewart Album."
(USAT, 3/24/99,
p.5E)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rod_Stewart)
1969 Neil Young (b.1945, Canadian
singer and songwriter, produced his solo album with the title track
"Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere."
(WSJ, 4/28/99,
p.A16)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neil_Young)
1969 Frank Zappa recorded a song
entitled "Electric Aunt Jemima" on his album Uncle Meat.
(www.tranglos.com/marek/yes/tr_146.html)
1969 In Fremont, New Hampshire,
Austin Wiggin led his 3 daughters, named The Shaggs, to record
"Philosophy of the World." The recording became an underground legend
and in 1999 RCA Victor released a CD version. Writer Irwin Chusid
devoted a chapter to the group in his 1999 book "Songs in the Key of Z."
(WSJ, 3/2/99, p.A17)
1970 Jan 7, Woodstock, NY, farmers
sued Max Yasgur (1919-1973) for $35,000 for damages caused by the
"Woodstock" rock festival.
(www.woodstockpreservation.org/pastpresent/maxtribute.html)
1970 Feb 17, Joni Mitchell
(b.1943) held a concert at London’s Royal Albert Hall.
(http://tinyurl.com/3etl9t)
1970 Feb 26, Beatles released
"Beatles Again," aka the "Hey Jude" album.
(www.dmbeatles.com/disk.php?disk=54)
1970 Mar 6, The Beatles released
"Let it Be" in UK.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Let_It_Be_(song))
1970 Mar 26, Peter Yarrow
(b.1938), of the singing trio Peter, Paul & Mary, pleaded guilty to
taking "immoral liberties" with a minor, referring to an incident
between Mr. Yarrow and a 14-year old. He served 3 months in jail;
11 years later he was pardoned by President Carter.
(http://theawarenesscenter.org/yarrow_peter.html)
1970 Apr 9, Paul McCartney
announced the official split of the Beatles.
(HN, 4/9/98)
1970 Apr 11, The Beatles' "Let It
Be" single was released in the US and quickly went to #1.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Let_It_Be_(song))
1970 Apr 25, Freda Payne released
"Band of Gold."
(SS, 4/25/02)
1970 Apr, Melanie Safka (b.1947)
made a hit with her song "Lay Down.” It became part of her Candles in
the Rain album released in May 1970.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Melanie_Safka)
1970 May 11, The song "Long &
Winding Road" by the Beatles was released in the US. It was their last
American release.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Long_and_Winding_Road)
1970 May 13, Beatles movie
"Let it Be" premiered.
(SS, Internet, 5/13/97)
1970 May 20, The Beatles movie
"Let it Be" premiered in Britain. The documentary film was about a
Beatles’ recording session.
(SFEC, 3/8/98, DB
p.47)(www.imdb.com/title/tt0065976/)
1970 Jun 7, The Who's Tommy was
performed at NY's Lincoln Center.
(www.bigozine2.com/archive/ARrarities/ARwhoortommy.html)
1970 Jun 13, Beatles' "Let It Be,"
album went #1 & stayed #1 for 4 weeks.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Let_It_Be)
1970 Jul 4, Casey Kasem (b.1932)
debuted his "American Top 40" on LA radio.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Casey_Kasem)
1970 Jul 18, Arthur Brown
(b.1942), English rock singer, was arrested for stripping on stage in
Palermo, Sicily.
(www.godofhellfire.co.uk/60s.htm)
1970 Sep 18, Jimi Hendrix (27),
rock star guitarist, died in London of drug overdose. Hendrix had
performed briefly as an opening act for the Monkeys as well as behind
the Isley Brothers and Little Richard. In 1978 David Henderson authored
the biography “Scuse me While I Kiss the Sky.” In 2005 Charles R. Cross
authored “Room Full of Mirrors: A Biography of Jimi Hendrix.”
(WSJ, 1/9/97, p.A8)(AP, 9/18/97)(WSJ, 4/16/99,
p.W13C)(SSFC, 8/21/05, p.F1)
1970 Sep, 19, The 1st Glastonbury
Fair attracted some 1,500 revelers. The first festival at Worthy Farm
was the Pilton Festival, mounted by Michael Eavis, and attended by
1,500 people. The first act to perform was the group Stackridge; the
headline act was T.Rex. The larger free festival at the summer solstice
in June the next year was the first to attract nationwide interest, and
the event became an important precursor of the later Glastonbury
Festivals. In 2004 some 115,000 were expected for what had become
Britain’s biggest pop festival.
(Econ, 6/26/04,
p.61)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glastonbury_Festival#1970s)
1970 Sep, The Who, an English rock
band, released "See Me, Feel Me," the finale of its Tommy album, as a
single in the US.
(www.connollyco.com/discography/who/)
1970 Oct 4, Janis Joplin (b.1943)
was found dead in a seedy Hollywood motel of a heroin overdose at age
27. Her classic songs included: "Down on Me," "Ball and Chain," and
"Piece of My Heart." In 1992 Laura Joplin authored “Love, Janis.”
(WSJ, 1/9/97, p.A8)(SFEC, 3/16/97, Z1 p.4)(SSFC,
8/21/05, p.F1)
1970 Oct 6, Elvis Presley recorded
"You Don't Have To Say You Love Me."
(http://oldies.about.com/od/elvispresleyhistory/a/elvis1970.htm)
1970 Oct, "Engine Number 9" by
Wilson Pickett (d.2006) peaked at #14 on the pop singles chart.
(www.superseventies.com/singlesbymonth70.html)
1970 Nov 6, Augustin Lara
(b.1897), Mexican composer, died. At the time of his death, Lara had
written more than 700 songs.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agust%C3%ADn_Lara)
1970 Nov 11, Stevie Wonder sang
"Heaven Help Us All" on the Johnny Cash show.
(www.imdb.com/title/tt0063919/episodes)
1970 Nov 23, George Harrison
released "My Sweet Lord" in the US.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/My_Sweet_Lord)
1970 Nov 27, George Harrison
released his solo album "All Things Must Pass." He became the 1st
Beatle to have a solo No. 1 hit with "My Sweet Lord."
(SFC, 12/1/01,
p.D1)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/All_Things_Must_Pass)
1970 Nov 28, "I Hear You Knocking"
by Dave Edmunds" peaked at #1 on the U.K. pop singles chart and stayed
there for seven weeks.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I_Hear_You_Knocking)
1970 Nov 28, "Montego Bay" by
Bobby Bloom peaked at #8 on the pop singles chart.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_1970s_one-hit_wonders_in_the_United_States)
1970 Dec 21, A meeting took place
between Elvis Presley and President Nixon as Elvis sought to get the
credentials of a Federal Agent to help Nixon fight drugs. The meeting
remained secret until The Washington Post broke the story on Jan. 27,
1972.
(AP, 1/8/07)
1970 Dec 31, Paul McCartney filed
a lawsuit to dissolve the Beatles’ partnership.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_McCartney)
1970 Dec, Derek and the Dominos,
featuring Eric Clapton, released their “Layla” album.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Layla)
1970 Johnny and June Carter Cash
won a Grammy for the song "If I Were a Carpenter" written by Tim Hardin.
(SFC, 5/16/03, p.A24)
1970 Santana made a hit with "Oye
Como Va." It was written and composed by Latin jazz and mambo musician
Tito Puente in 1963 and popularized by Santana's cover of the song on
their album Abraxas.
(SFC, 11/30/02,
p.D1)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oye_Como_Va)
1970 Edwin Starr (d.2003 at 61),
Nashville-born soul singer, hit No. 1 with "War."
(SSFC, 12/28/03,
p.E5)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_(Edwin_Starr_song))
1971 Jan 3, At the top of the
record charts: "My Sweet Lord and Isn’t It" a Pity by George Harrison;
"Knock Three Times" by Dawn; "Black Magic Woman" by Santana; and "Rose
Garden" by Lynn Anderson.
(www.mbgtop40.com/chartreviews/1971/week10of1971.html)
1971 Jan 15, George Harrison’s "My
Sweet Lord" was released in the UK. The US release was in 1970.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/My_Sweet_Lord)
1971 Jan 29, "My Sweet Lord" by
George Harrison hit #1 on UK pop chart.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UK_No.1_Hits_of_1971)
1971 Mar 3, South African
Broadcasting Corp lifted its ban on the Beatles.
(www.southafrica.to/history/history1948.htm)
1971 Apr 23, The Rolling Stones
released their Sticky Fingers album. Following the release of Sticky
Fingers, the Stones left England after allegations by the UK Inland
Revenue service of unpaid income tax.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sticky_Fingers)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Rolling_Stones)
1971 Apr 29, Bill Graham announced
the close of the Fillmore in SF and the Fillmore East in NYC along with
his retirement from concert promotion. He was angered by his perceived
greed of rock bands and the anger and distrust of his audience. He soon
relented and put on shows with Led Zeppelin, the Allman Brothers, Pink
Floyd, the Who and the Grateful Dead. The final concert at Fillmore
East took place on June 27.
(SFC,12/13/97,
p.A15)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fillmore_East)
1971 Jun 19, The song "Rainy Days
And Mondays" by the Carpenters peaked at #2 on the pop singles chart.
(http://tinyurl.com/5caxet)
1971 Jun 19, R.C., "It's Too Late"
by Carole King peaked at #1 on the pop singles chart and stayed there
for five weeks.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/It's_Too_Late_(Carole_King_song))
1971 Jun 20, A 5-day Glastonbury
Fair opened at Worthy Farm near Glastonbury, England. Arabella
Spencer-Churchill (1949-2007), granddaughter of former PM Winston
Churchill, helped found the fair. It featured Hawkwind, Traffic,
Melanie, David Bowie, Joan Baez and Fairport Convention, and attracted
some 12,000 people. Revived as a three-day festival in 1979, it had
grown by 2007 to draw 153,000 people to hear acts including Coldplay,
Brian Wilson, Kaiser Chiefs and Elvis Costello.
(AP,
12/21/07)(www.efestivals.co.uk/festivals/glastonbury/1971/)
1971 Jul 3, James Douglas Morrison
(b.1943), singer for the Doors rock group, died of an apparent heart
attack in Paris, France. Jim Morrison (27) was buried at the Pere
Lachaise cemetery.
(SFC, 7/4/96, p.D2)(AP, 7/3/97)
1971 Jul 6, Louis Armstrong
(b.1900), jazz and blues musician widely known as "Satchmo," died. His
innovations of early day blues and Dixieland music inspired the swing
eras of the 1920s and 1930s. He invented skat, a technique of singing
jazz improvisations. Louis spoke out against the US government during
the 1957 Little Rock, Ark. school troubles. "The way they are treating
my people in the South, the government can go to hell." A 32 cent
memorial stamp was issued by the Post Office in 1995. Armstrong smoked
marijuana every day of his adult life, was unfaithful to each of his
four wives, was arrested 4 times and consorted freely with prostitutes,
pimps and mobsters. His biographies include: "Louis Armstrong: An
American Genius" by James Lincoln Collier (1983); "Satchmo" by Gary
Giddins (1988); and "Louis Armstrong: An Extravagant Life" by Laurence
Bergreen (1997). In 1999 Joshua Berrett published "The Louis Armstrong
Companion."
(WSJ, 9/27/95, p.A-16)(WSJ, 6/26/97, p.A16)(WSJ,
3/10/99, p.A20)
1971 Aug 1, The Concert For
Bangladesh, two benefit concerts organized by George Harrison and Ravi
Shankar, played to a total of 40,000 people at Madison Square Garden.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Concert_for_Bangladesh)
1971 Aug 3, Paul McCartney
announced the formation of his group Wings.
(www.rockhall.com/inductee/paul-mccartney)
1971 Aug 31, John Lennon left UK
for NYC, never to return.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Lennon)
1971 Sep 9, John Lennon released
his mega hit "Imagine" album in the US. It was released in Britain on
October 8. A film was made of his recording work and in April 2000 a
version titled "Gimme Some Truth" was released on DVD.
(www.cduniverse.com/productinfo.asp?pid=1109009)
1971 John Denver (1943-1997)
released his album "Poems, Prayers and Promises," that contained the
song "Take me Home, Country Roads."
(SFC, 10/14/97,
p.A10)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Denver)
1971 John Duffey (1934-1996)
formed his Seldom Scene bluegrass group. He had played with Charlie
Waller and the Country Gentlemen.
(SFC, 12/12/96,
p.C8)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Seldom_Scene)
1971 Marvin Gay (1939-1984)
released his classic R&B album “What’s Going On.”
(WSJ, 11/25/06,
p.P16)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marvin_Gaye)
1971 Carole King (b.1942) won 4
Grammys for her album "Tapestry."
(SFC, 2/25/99,
p.D1)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carole_King)
1971 The rock group Three Dog
Night made a hit with "Joy to the World," written by Hoyt Axton
(1938-1999). It held the #1 slot for 6 weeks.
(SFC, 10/27/99,
p.C4)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hoyt_Axton)
1971 Faron Young (1932-1996),
American country music singer, made a country hit with "It’s 4 in the
Morning," written by Jerry Chessnut (b.1931).
(SFC, 12/12/96,
p.C8)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jerry_Chesnut)
1971 The Electric Light Orchestra,
commonly abbreviated ELO, a symphonic rock group from Birmingham,
England, released their first of studio album. By 1986 they released 10
more and another album in 2001. The ELO was one of the most innovative
bands of the era.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electric_Light_Orchestra)(SFC, 7/7/96, DB
p.50)
1972 Jan 27, Mahalia Jackson
(b.1911), Grammy Award winning gospel singer, died.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mahalia_Jackson)
1972 Feb 25, Wings released "Give
Ireland Back to the Irish." Paul and Linda McCartney wrote the song in
response to the events of Bloody Sunday in Northern Ireland on January
30, 1972. It was soon banned by the BBC.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Give_Ireland_Back_to_the_Irish)
1972 Jun 2, Dion & the
Belmonts held a reunion concert at Madison Square Garden.
(www.softshoe-slim.com/lists/d/dion.html)
1972 Jun 3, The Rolling Stones
began their US tour and concluded it on July 26. They hired Robert
Frank to film a documentary. The result was the film "C-Blues." In 1999
Dora Loewenstein authored "The Rolling Stones: A Life on the Road."
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Rolling_Stones_American_Tour_1972)(SFEC,
4/12/98, DB p.56)(SFEM, 1/17/99, p.6)
1972 Jun 6, David Bowie, English
rock musician, released his album "The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust
and the Spiders From Mars."
(SFC, 8/20/98,
p.E3)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ziggy_Stardust)
1972 Jun 24, The song "I Am
Woman," by Helen Reddy, was released by Capitol Records.
(http://440.com/twtd/archives/jun24.html)
1972 Harold Melvin & the Blue
Notes released its first single, “I Miss You.” The group included Teddy
Pendergrass (1950-2010), who quit the group in 1975 and embarked on a
solo career in 1976. Pendergrass went on to record 5 consecutive
multiplatinum albums.
(SFC, 1/14/10, p.A4)
1972 Barcelo de Carvalho, aka
"Bongo," recorded the album "Angola 72" in the Netherlands. The music’s
predominant rhythm is semba, described as the origin of Brazil’s Samba.
The album was smuggled into Angola and became very popular but was
banned by the government. It was re-released in the US in 1997. One of
its songs was featured in the 1997 French film "When the Cat’s Away."
(SFC,10/24/97, p.E1)
1972-1975 Soul music peaked in Philadelphia. In 2004
John A. Jackson authored “A House on Fire: The Rise and Fall of
Philadelphia Soul.”
(SSFC, 11/7/04, p.M3)
1973 Jan 6, “You’re So Vain”
by Carly Simon peaked in the top 10 singles.
(http://goodyoldies.com/billboard/1973.htm)
1973 Feb 2, Crocodile Rock by
Elton John peaked in the top 10 singles.
(http://goodyoldies.com/billboard/1973.htm)
1973 Mar 3, In the 15th Grammy
Awards winners included: “The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face” sung by
Roberta Flack.
(www.metrolyrics.com/1973-grammy-awards.html)
1973 Apr 21, The song "Tie a
Yellow Ribbon Round the Old Oak Tree" by Dawn featuring Tony Orlando
reached the top of the charts.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hot_100_number-one_hits_of_1973_%28USA%29)
1973 May 25, George Harrison
released "Give Me Love" in UK.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Give_Me_Love_(Give_Me_Peace_on_Earth))
1973 May 29, Columbia Records
fired president Clive Davis for misappropriating $100,000 in funds.
Davis went on to start Arista records.
(http://tinyurl.com/5959o4)
1973 Jun 1, Paul McCartney &
Wings released "Live & Let Die"
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Live_and_Let_Die_(song))
1973 Jul 21, "Bad, Bad Leroy
Brown" reached the top spot on the "Billboard" pop-singles chart,
becoming Jim Croce’s first big hit. He died in a plane crash on
September 20.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bad,_Bad_Leroy_Brown)
1973 Jul 28, Bill Graham produced
a rock festival in Watkins Glen, NY, that featured the Allman Brothers,
the Band, and the Grateful Dead. The concert drew some 650,000 people,
the single largest paying crowd in concert history.
(www.superseventies.com/watkinsglen.html)(SFC,12/13/97, p.A15)
1973 Sep 15, Victor Jara (b.1932),
one of the best-known members of Latin America's "New Song" folk
movement, died. He had been arrested after the Chilean military coup
that overthrew Allende and taken to a soccer stadium used as a
detention camp. Court papers indicate Jara was tortured, his hands
smashed with rifle butts, and then was shot to death. In 2008 a court
charged retired Col. Mario Manriquez in the case, saying he was
"responsible" for the death. In 2009 Jara’s body was exhumed for a
proper autopsy. Army draftee, Jose Paredes, later described the murder
and named the officers he said were responsible. Paredes told
interrogators that a lieutenant known as "El Loco," the Crazy One, held
Jara against a dressing room wall and played Russian roulette until a
bullet blasted through the singer's skull.
(AP,
5/15/08)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Victor_Jara)(AP, 11/26/09)
1973 Sep 19, Gram Parsons (26),
rock band leader, died from a drug overdose at the Joshua Tree Inn, Ca.
His bands included the Byrds and the Flying Burrito Brothers with the
young singer Emmylou Harris. Phil Kaufman hijacked Parson’s body and
burned it in Joshua Tree. In 1991 Ben Fong-Torres published "Hickory
Wind," a biography of Parsons. In 1999 the album "Return of the
Grievous Angel - A Tribute to Fram Parson" was released. In 2006 the
film documentary “Fallen Angel” was produced.
(WSJ, 7/18/97, p.A13)(SFC, 9/9/98, p.E1)(WSJ,
9/20/99, p.A26)(SFC, 6/9/06, p.E5)
1973 Sep 20, Jim Croce (b.1943),
American singer-songwriter, died in an airplane crash near
Natchitoches, La., just as he was beginning to capitalize on his
success. Maury Muehleisen and four others also died as their plane
crashed into a tree while taking off for a concert in Sherman, Texas.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jim_Croce)(AP, 9/20/98)
1973 Oct 9, Sister Rosetta Tharpe
(b.1915), pioneering gospel singer and recording artist, died. She
became the first great recording star of Gospel music in the late 1930s
and also became known as the "original soul sister" of recorded music.
In 2007 Gayle F. Wald authored “Shout, Sister, Shout: The Untold story
of Rock-and-Roll Trailblazer Sister Rosetta Tharpe.”
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sister_Rosetta_Tharpe)(AH, 10/07, p.68)
1973 Oct 19, Peter Townshend and
The Who, an English rock group, released the rock opera album
"Quadrophenia."
(WSJ, 7/12/96, p.A9)
1973 Dec 5, Paul McCartney
released his "Band on the Run" album.
(www.amazon.com/Band-Run-Paul-McCartney-Wings/dp/B000002UCL)
1973 Dec 20, Bobby Darin (b.1936),
singer, died during open heart surgery in LA.
(www.history-of-rock.com/bobby_darin.htm)
1973 David Bowie (b.1947), English
rock singer, had a hit with "Life on Mars."
(SFC, 8/9/96,
p.D8)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Bowie)
1973 Dr. Hook and the Medicine
Show had a hit with their song "The Cover of the Rolling Stone."
(SFEC, 6/21/98, BR p.12)
1973 Elton John (b.1947), English
singer and pianist, and lyricist Bernie Taupin wrote the song "Candle
in the Wind" as an ode to Marilyn Monroe on the album "Goodbye Yellow
Brick Road." The song was adopted by Elton John in 1997 for the funeral
of Princess Diana.
(SFC, 9/24/97,
p.E1)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elton_John)
1973 The Grateful Dead hit gold
with their album “The Adventures of Panama Red.”
(SFC, 1/13/05, p.B6)
1973 Maria Muldaur had a hit with
her song "Midnight at the Oasis."
(SFEC, 2/8/98, DB p.7)
1973 Pink Floyd released their
album "Dark Side of the Moon." It spent a record 591 weeks on the
Billboard charts.
(SFC, 6/5/97, p.E1)
1973 The Pointer Sisters of
Oakland, Ca., released their first album. June Pointer died in 2006 at
age 52.
(SFC, 4/13/06, p.B7)
1973 The Stealers Wheel had a hit
with "Stuck in the Middle With You."
(SFC, 7/7/97, p.E3)
1974 Jan 3, Following eight
years of inactivity, Bob Dylan and The Band began his 2-month concert
tour in Chicago, IL. The tour was recorded and later released as a
double-LP set titled, “Before the Flood.”
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bob_Dylan_and_The_Band_1974_Tour)
1974 Feb 2, Barbra Streisand made
her 1st #1 hit, "The Way We Were."
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hot_100_number-one_hits_of_1974_(USA))
1974 Mar 2, In the 16th Grammy
Awards Roberta Flack won for the song “Killing Me Softly” & Bette
Midler won as Best New Artist. Stevie Wonder got five Grammy Awards for
his album, "Innervisions" and his hit songs, "You Are The Sunshine of
My Life" and "Superstition".
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grammy_Awards_of_1974)
1974 May 18, "The Streak" by Ray
Stevens hits #1.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Streak)
1974 May 25, Pam Morrison
(b.1946), wife of Door's vocalist Jim, died of drug overdose in Los
Angeles.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pamela_Courson)
1974 Jun 1, The song "Midnight At
The Oasis" by Maria Muldaur peaked at #6 on the pop singles chart.
(http://goodyoldies.com/billboard/1974.htm)
1974 Jun 1, The song "Oh Very
Young" by Cat Stevens peaked at #10 on the pop singles chart.
(http://goodyoldies.com/billboard/1974.htm)
1974 Jul 29, Cass Elliot (b.1941),
singer (Mamas and Papas), was found dead in London from an apparent
heart attack.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cass_Elliot)
1974 Aug 9, Trumpeter Bill Chase
(b.1934) and 3 members of the Chase Band died in a plane crash while
enroute to a performance in Minnesota. Lead guitarist Angel South (aka
Lucien Gondron d. 1998 at 55) had struck out on his own solo career.
(http://jazzworks.wordpress.com/2007/11/02/bill-chase-1934-1974/)
1974 Aug 16, The Ramones 1st
performed at the CBGB in NYC. Dee Dee Ramone (d.2002) had formed the
Ramones punk rock band in the Forest Hills neighborhood of Queens along
with Jeffrey Hyman, John Cummings (aka Johnny Ramone, d.2004) and Tom
Erdelyi.
(SFC, 6/8/02, p.D4)(Econ, 9/25/04, p.100)
1974 Nov 5, The Eagles hit, "Best
of My Love", was released. It did not reach #1 spot until March 1, 1975.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Best_of_My_Love_(Eagles_song))
1974 Nov 8, Singer Connie Francis
(b.1938) was raped in her hotel room after a concert at the Westbury
Music Fair on Long Island, NY.
(SFC, 9/1/96, Par.
p.2)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Connie_Francis)
1974 Nov 25, Nick Drake (b.1948),
English musician and composer, died from an overdose of prescription
drugs. His albums included "Five Leaves Left" (1969), "Bryter Layter,"
and "Pink Moon" (1971). Paul Humphries in 1997 authored the biography
"Nick Drake: A Biography."
(WSJ, 2/10/99,
p.A20)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nick_Drake)
1974 Nov 28, John Lennon
(1940-1980) made what would become his last concert appearance at an
Elton John concert at New York's Madison Square Garden. Lennon joined
Elton John to sing "Whatever Gets You Through the Night", "Lucy In The
Sky With Diamonds", as well as "I Saw Her Standing There". Backstage,
Lennon has a brief reunion with Yoko Ono, from whom he'd been separated
for over a year.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Lennon)
1974 The group Abba of Sweden won
the Eurovision song contest with their song “Waterloo.”
(Econ, 5/14/05, p.57)
1974 Bob Dylan released his album
"Blood on the Tracks." In 2004 Andy Gill and Kevin Odegard authored "A
Simple Twist of Fate: Bob Dylan and the Making of "Blood on the Tracks."
(SSFC, 3/21/04, p.M4)
1974 Stan Getz, tenor sax, and the
Bill Evans Trio with Eddie Gomez on bass and Marty Morell on drums
recorded 2 sessions. A CD was re-issued in 1996 titled "But Beautiful."
(SFEM, 7/21/96, p.4)
1974 Waylon Jennings (1937-2002)
released his “The Ramblin’ Man” album, which included his song "Amanda."
(www.slipcue.com/music/country/countryartists/waylon.html)
1974 Billy Joel broke into the
charts with his song "Piano Man."
(USAT, 3/24/99, p.5E)
1974 Joni Mitchell released her
album "Court and Spark."
(SFEM, 11/1/98, p.6)
1974 Mocedades made a hit with
"Eres Tu."
(SFC, 11/30/02, p.D1)
1974 Wayne Shorter recorded his
"Native Dancer" album that featured Herbie Hancock and introduced the
Brazilian singer Milton Nascimento.
(SFEC, 8/31/97, DB p.35)
1974 John Whelan, button
accordionist, recorded his first solo album in England: "Pride of
Wexford."
(WSJ, 3/17/97, p.A16)
1974 The German group Kraftwork
recorded "Autobahn."
(SFEC, 1/3/99, DB p.28)
1974 Greg Shaw (1949-2004),
pioneer of the independent record label, founded Bomp! Records to
release a single by the SF band the Flaming Groovies.
(SSFC, 10/24/04, p.B7)
1975 Jan 31, The 1974 song "Mandy"
by Barry Manilow (b.1943 as Barry Alan Pincus) went gold.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mandy_%28song%29)(www.barrynet.com/bn22sngl.html)
1975 Mar 1, 17th Grammy Awards: I
Honestly Love You, Marvin Hamlisch won.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grammy_Awards_of_1975)
1975 Mar 1, Eagles' "Best of My
Love" reached #1.
(www.joshhosler.biz/NumberOneInHistory/03/0301.htm)
1975 Mar 26, The film "Tommy"
premiered in London.
(www.imdb.com/title/tt0073812/combined)
1975 Jun 1, The Rolling Stones
opened their North American Tour in Baton Rouge, Louisiana with Ron
Wood (b.1947) replacing Mick Taylor (b.1949) as the lead guitarist.
Other cities they played in included, Kansas City, Milwaukee, St. Paul,
Cleveland, Buffalo, Toronto, New York, Philadelphia, Memphis, Dallas,
Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle, Chicago, Detroit, Atlanta, and
Jacksonville.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1975_in_music)
1975 Apr 26, The top Billboard
song was "(Hey Won’t You Play) Another Somebody Done Somebody Wrong
Song" by B.J. Thomas.
(www.joshhosler.biz/NumberOneInHistory/04/0426.htm)
1975 May 29, Melanie Janine Brown
"Scary Spice", British vocalist (Spice Girls), was born in Leeds.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Melanie_Brown)
1975 Nov 28, Wings release "Venus
& Mars/Rock Show" medley.
(http://beatles.ncf.ca/paul.html)
1975 Freddy Fender’s “Before the
next Teardrop Falls” climbed to No. 1 as did his song “Wasted Days and
Wasted Nights.” Fender had recorded Wasted Days in 1960 but got stuck
in prison in Angola, La., for 3 years for marijuana possession.
(SFC, 10/16/06, p.B6)
1975 Freddie Mercury (d.1991) and
the rock group Queen made a hit with "Bohemian Rhapsody." The song
became a hit a 2nd time when Mercury died. In 2002 a British poll voted
it the greatest hit of the last 50 years.
(SSFC, 11/10/02, p.A2)
1975 Gary Stewart (28) had a No. 1
country hit with his song "She's Actin' Single (I'm Drinkin' Doubles)."
Stewart committed suicide in Ft. Pierce, Fla., in 2003 at age 59.
(SSFC, 12/21/03, p.A31)
1976 Jan 17, "I Write the Songs"
by Barry Manilow (b.1944) hit #1.
(http://tinyurl.com/36ufh8)
1976 Mar 26, Paul McCartney and
Wings released "Wings at the Speed of Sound" album.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wings_at_the_Speed_of_Sound)
1976 Apr 9, Phil Ochs (b.1940),
American protest singer and musician, committed suicide.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phil_Ochs)
1976 Jul 4, The Ramones, a US punk
rock group managed by Danny Fields and Linda Stein (1945-2007), held a
concert in England that sparked the young British punk scene.
(SFC, 11/2/07, p.E2)
1976 Aug 31, George Harrison
(1943-2001) was found guilty of plagiarizing "My Sweet Lord."
(www.imdb.com/name/nm0365600/bio)(http://nfo.net/calendar/aug31.htm)
1976 Nov 19, George Harrison
(1943-2001) released his album "Thirty Three & 1/3."
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thirty_Three_%26_1/3)
1976 Nov 28, Bill Graham presented
the Band and guests in "The Last Waltz" at Winterland plus a turkey
dinner for the capacity crowd. The last concert of The Band took place
at Winterland and was made into a film by Martin Scorsese that included
Bob Dylan, Neil Diamond and Muddy Waters.
(SFC,12/13/97, p.A15) (SFEC, 6/28/98, DB p.52)
1976 Nov 28, Elvis Presley
preformed a concert at the Cow Palace in Daly City, Ca.
(www.elvispresleymusic.com.au/pictures/1976_nov_28.html)
1976 Gordon Lightfoot’s song “The
Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald” went to #2 on the pop charts.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Wreck_of_the_Edmund_Fitzgerald)
1976 The B-52 band formed in
Athens, Georgia. Cindy Wilson, Keith Strickland, Fred Schneider, Kate
Pierson and Ricky Wilson formed the band following a rum-buzzed jam
session.
(SSFC, 8/10/03, p.C10)
1976 The rock band U2 initially
formed in Dublin when Larry Mullen Jr. posted a message on a high
school bulletin board asking for fellow musicians to form a band. Paul
Hewson, David Evans, Adam Clayton and Dick Evans responded to the ad
and it was at this stage along with Larry Mullen Jr. that the band
'Feedback' was formed.
(WSJ, 12/28/04,
p.D8)(http://homepages.ihug.co.nz/~omzig/u2_the_band.htm)
1977 Mar 26, Elvis Costello
released his 1st record "Less Than Zero."
(www.pugetsoundradio.com/forum/b-radiohistory/m-1174918300/)
1977 Apr 26, NY's famed disco
Studio 54 opened. It closed in March, 1986.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Studio_54)
1977 May 9, Pink Floyd opened a
2-night stand at the Oakland Coliseum.
(http://concerts.wolfgangsvault.com/dt/pink-floyd-concert/2923-5541.html)
1977 Jun 11, ELO’s "Telephone
Line" reached #7 in the US, giving the band its first gold single.
(http://private.peterlink.ru/vlad/dates70.htm)
1977 Aug 16, Elvis Presley
(b.1935), The "King" of rock-n-roll, died in the upstairs bedroom suite
at Graceland Mansion in Memphis, Tenn. of a drug overdose at 42. Elvis
died of heart failure after years of substance abuse. In 1994 Peter
Guralnick published "Last Train to Memphis," the first of a 2-part
biography on Elvis. In 1998 Guralnick published "Careless Love." More
than 150 books were in print on Elvis in 1997. In 1998 Ernest Jorgensen
published "Elvis Presley: A Life in Music. The Complete Recording
sessions."
(SFEC, 2/9/97, Par p.7)(SFEC, 8/3/97, DB p.33)(AP,
8/16/97)(SFEC, 8/16/98, p.D7)(WSJ, 1/7/98, p.W1)
1977 Aug 20, The song "Best of My
Love", by the Emotions, topped the US pop charts.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Best_of_My_Love_(The_Emotions_song))
1977 Nov 5, Guy Lombardo (b.1902),
Canada-born orchestra leader, died in Houston, Texas.
(www.imdb.com/name/nm0518456/)
1977 Dec 7, Peter Carl Goldmark
(b.1906), Hungarian-born engineer, died in the US. He developed the
first commercial color television and the long-playing phonograph
record. Goldmark's LP records were introduced by Goddard Lieberson
(1911-977), who later became president of Columbia Records (1956-1971
and 1973-1975).
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_Carl_Goldmark)
1977 The Bee Gees released their
"Saturday Night Fever" album. The group included twins Maurice (d.2003)
and Robin Gibb, older brother Barry and younger brother Andy.
(SSFC, 1/12/03, p.A2)
1977 The British punk group Clash
released its 1st single "White Riot."
(SFC, 12/24/02, p.A2)
1978 Jan 1, US copyright law of
2007 held that the rights to songs written before this date expire 75
years after they were published. US songs written after 1978 would hold
their copyright for 50 years after the death of the songwriter.
(WSJ, 10/30/97, p.B1,11)(www.pdinfo.com/copyrt.htm)
1978 Jan 21, The Bee Gees'
"Saturday Night Fever" album, released in November, 1977, went #1 for
24 weeks following the release of the Saturday Night Fever film in Dec
1977.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Number-one_albums_of_1978_(U.S.))
1978 Apr 26, A version of Mark
Twain’s "The Prince and the Pauper" appeared on TV with former Beatle,
Ringo Star.
(www.guba.com/watch/2000907534)(440 Int’l., 4/26/97,
p.3)
1978 Jun 9, The Rolling Stones'
"Some Girls" album was released. Shortly after, some of the girls on
the LP's cover--Lucille Ball, Raquel Welch, Liz Taylor--threatened to
sue. After several months, Atlantic caved in and changed the cover.
(www.nolifetilmetal.com/rollingstones.htm)
1978 Jul 15, Bob Dylan performed
before some 200,000 fans at Blackbushe Airport, England, in the largest
open-air concert audience at the time (for a single artist).
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blackbushe_Airport)
1978 Jul 24, The Beatles’ animated
film "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" premiered in the US.
(www.imdb.com/title/tt0078239/)
1978 Aug 11, “Le Freak” by Chic
was released. In October it topped the US hot 100 chart.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/C'est_Chic)
1978 Sep 7, Keith Moon (b.1946),
English drummer for "The Who" rock group, died of drug OD at 31.
(SFC, 10/17/96,
E3)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keith_Moon)
1978 Sep 16, The Grateful Dead
performed at the Great Pyramid of Giza. Hanza El Din (1930-2006),
Nubian oud virtuoso, first played with the Grateful Dead.
(SFC, 5/26/06,
p.B9)(www.archive.org/details/gd78-09-16.sbd.orf.2319.sbeok.shnf)
1978 Oct 12, Nancy Spungen
(b.1958), girlfriend of Sex Pistols bassist Sid Vicious, was found dead
on the bathroom floor of their NYC hotel room.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nancy_Spungen)
1978 Oct 23, CBS raised long
playing vinyl album prices to $8.98.
(http://www.440.com/twtd/archives/oct23.html)
1978 Oct 23, Maybelle Carter
(b.1909), Virginia-born country singer, died in Nashville, Tenn. She
was a member of the original Carter Family, which was formed in 1927 by
her brother-in-law, A. P. Carter, who was married to her cousin, Sara,
also a part of the trio.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maybelle_Carter)
1978 Dec 2, Streisand and
Diamond's "You Don't Bring Me Flowers," went #1.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/You_Don't_Bring_Me_Flowers)
1978 Plastic Bertrand, Belgian
musician, made a hit with "Ca Plane Pour Moi."
(SFC, 11/30/02,
p.D1)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plastic_Bertrand)
1978 Jello Biafra (b.1958), born
as Eric Reed Boucher in Boulder, Colo., moved to San Francisco, took on
a new name and co-founded the Dead Kennedys, a punk band that soon
played at the Mabuhay Gardens.
(SFC, 6/14/08, p.E3)
1978 Devo, a new wave band from
Akron, Ohio, recorded "Are We Not Men?" The group played on the theme
of de-evolution and was led by Mark Mothersbaugh.
(SFEC, 9/27/98, DB p.41)
1978 Molly Hatchet, a Southern
rock band, went platinum with their self-titled album. Lead singer
Danny Joe Brown died in 2005 at age 53.
(SFC, 3/15/05, p.B5)
1978 Waylon Jennings and Willie
Nelson made a hit with their duet: "Mammas Don’t Let Your Babies Grow
Up to Be Cowboys."
(SFC, 2/14/02, p.A2)
1978 Billy Joel (b.1949),
American singer, recorded his song “My Life.” It became the theme song
for the TV sitcom “Bosom Buddies,” (1980-1982).
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Billy_Joel)
1978 Nicolette Larson (d.1997 at
45) recorded "Lotta Love" by Neil Simon. She was named best female
singer by Rolling Stone magazine.
(SFC,12/18/97, p.C16)
1978 Los Lobos released their
first album: "Just Another Band from East L.A."
(SFEM, 5/11/97, p.20)
1978 The Plasmatics punk band made
their debut in New York City clubs. Wendy O. Williams (d.1998 at 48),
the lead singer, was charged a number of times for simulated sex acts
on stage.
(SFC, 4/8/98, p.B2)
1978 Charles Sawtelle (d.1999 at
52) helped found the Hot Rize bluegrass group, named after an
ingredient in the Martha White Self-Rising Flour. The Hot Rize product
had been promoted for years by bluegrass legends Lester Flatt and Earl
Scruggs.
(SFC, 3/25/99, p.C3)
1978 The Sex Pistols performed at
Winterland in San Francisco and broke up shortly after.
(SFC, 6/9/96, DB p.34)
1978 The Rockets, a Texas blues
band, was founded by guitarist Anson Funderburgh. The group was joined
by Sam Myers in 1986.
(SFEC,11/2/97, DB p.17)
1978 The Cuban jazz band Irakere
performed at the Newport Jazz Festival.
(SFC, 6/16/96, BR
p.42)(www.apassion4jazz.net/newport.html)
1979 Jan 9, The Bee Gees performed
“Too Much Heaven,” released in late 1978, as their contribution to the
"Music for UNICEF" fund. It became part of their 13th album and topped
the record charts.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Too_Much_Heaven)
1979 Feb 2, John Simon Ritchie
(b.1957), better known as Sid Vicious, the bassist for the British Sex
Pistols rock group, overdosed from heroin in NYC.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sid_Vicious)
1979 Mar 23, Paul McCartney and
Wings released "Goodnight Tonight."
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Goodnight_Tonight)
1979 Apr 9, The 51st Academy
Awards were held at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in LA. "Deer Hunter"
won as the best film. Jon Voight won as best actor in “Coming Home.”
Jane Fonda won as best actress in “Coming Home.” Lacy J. Dalton won the
Academy of Country Music’s Best New Female Vocalist Award.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/51st_Academy_Awards)(SFC, 7/7/96, DB
p.28)(SFC, 3/20/02, p.D1)
1979 Apr 24, The hit song "Georgia
on My Mind," written in 1930 with lyrics by Stuart Gorrell and music by
Hoagy Carmichael, was declared the state song of Georgia. Georgia-born
singer Ray Charles (1930-2004) made the song famous.
(www.promotega.org/vsu00011/georgia_book.htm)
1979 May 1, Elton John and Ray
Cooper performed the first of 5 concerts in Israel. They performed 3
times in Jerusalem and twice in Tel Aviv ending in Tel Aviv on May 6.
(www.vex.net/~paulmac/elton/ej1979.html)
1979 May 5, The recording "In The
Navy" by The Village People reached #9 on the pop singles chart.
(www.1050chum.com/index_chumcharts.aspx?chart=1166)
1979 May 19, The recording "Shake
Your Body (Down To The Ground)" by The Jacksons peaked at #5 on the pop
singles chart.
(www.1050chum.com/index_chumcharts.aspx?artist=8900)
1979 Jun 1, Paul McCartney and
Wings released "Old Siam, Sir” on its Back to the Egg album,
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Old_Siam,_Sir)
1979 Jun 7, Rocker Chuck Berry
(b.1926) was charged with tax evasion. He performed at the White House
at the request of President Jimmy Carter on June 1. A month later he
began a five-month sentence for income tax evasion.
(www.rockhall.com/inductee/chuck-berry)(http://tinyurl.com/3aqzze)
1979 Jul 6, The B-52s, a New Wave
band based in Athens, Georgia, released "Planet Claire."
(SFEC, 1/3/99, DB
p.29)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_B-52's_(album))
1979 Jul 12, Pop singer Minnie
Riperton (b.1947), famed for her three-octave range, died of cancer.
”Lovin’ You,” Riperton’s international blockbuster, topped the
Billboard Hot 100 in 1975. She was a member of Stevie Wonder's backup
group, Wonderlove, in 1973.
(http://tinyurl.com/dd5q3)
1979 Aug 10, Michael Jackson (21)
launched his solo career with “Off the Wall.”
(WSJ, 6/8/05,
p.A1)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Off_the_Wall)
1979 Aug 18, In Los Angeles singer
Nick Lowe married singer Carlene Carter, the stepdaughter of Johnny
Cash.
(http://tinyurl.com/2s4gxj)
1979 Aug 20, Bob Dylan proclaimed
his new born-again Christianity with his album "Slow Train Coming." The
album won a Grammy award.
(SFEC, 9/28/97,
p.A3)(www.bobdylan.com/albums/slowtrain.html)
1979 Sep 18, The Who played the
5th of their 5 concerts at Madison Square Garden.
(www.thewholive.de/konzerte/zeige_konzert.php?GroupID=1&Status=0&Jahr=1979)
1979 Oct, The Sugar Hill Gang
released "Rapper's Delight," later claimed as the beginning mark for
the Hip-Hop culture.
(SFC, 8/18/99,
p.D3)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rapper's_Delight)
1979 Dec 3, In Ohio 11 people were
killed in a crush of fans at Cincinnati's Riverfront Coliseum, where
The Who, a British rock group, was performing.
(AP, 12/3/97)(HN, 12/3/98)
1979 Doug Fieger (1952-2010),
leader of the power pop band The Knack, sang on the hit "My Sharona."
Fieger, a Detroit-area native, formed The Knack in Los Angeles in 1978.
(AP,
2/15/10)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doug_Fieger)
1979 Elmo and Patsy of Sonoma,
Ca., (the Homestead Act) recorded "Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer."
The lyrics were written by Randy Brooks of San Francisco and it was
first played on KSFO radio. In 1984 it topped the yuletide record
charts for the 2nd year in a row.
(SSFC, 12/6/09, DB p.50)
1979 The song "We Are Family" by
Sister Sledge became a hit. It was made the theme song for the 1979
Pittsburgh Pirates.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/We_Are_Family_%28song%29)
1979 The British punk group Clash
released its “London Calling” album.
(WSJ, 12/21/04, p.D8)
1980 Jan 16, Paul McCartney was
arrested in Tokyo for marijuana possession. He was released and
deported on Jan 25.
(www.taima.org/en/hemplib3.htm#mccartney)
1980 May 18, Ian Curtis (b.1956),
English rock vocalist (Joy Division), committed suicide. His death was
later ruled as accidental.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ian_Curtis)
1980 Jul 2, Grateful Dead's Bob
Weir (b.1947) & Mickey Hart (b.1943) were arrested in San Diego for
suspicion of inciting a riot following their interference in a drug
related arrest.
(www.eskimo.com/~recall/bleed/0702.htm)
1980 Sep 22, John Lennon signed
with Geffen Records. The Lennon LP, "Double Fantasy", was released on
Geffen. Lennon was assassinated on December 8, 1980.
(www.jpgr.co.uk/k99131.html)
1980 Oct 27, Steve Peregrin Took
(b.1949), English musician (T-Rex) born as Stephen Ross Porter, died
when he choked on a cocktail cherry.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steve_Peregrin_Took)
1980 Dec 8, John Lennon, musician
and one of the Beatles, was shot and killed by Mark David Chapman
outside his New York City apartment building. Chapman was a
schizophrenic with the delusion that he himself was John. In 1984 Prof.
Jonathan M. Wiener wrote a book on Lennon and later got the FBI to
surrender its secret files on Lennon.
(SFC, 9/25/97, p.A2)(AP, 12/8/97)
1980 Dec 14, Fans around the world
paid tribute to John Lennon, six days after he was shot to death in New
York City.
(AP, 12/14/98)
1980 The grunge rock group Alice
in Chains produced their debut album "Facelift." One track was titled
"We Die Young." In 2002 Layne Staley (34), lead singer for Alice in
Chains, was found dead in Seattle with obvious signs of drug use.
(SSFC, 4/21/02, p.A28)
1980 Jim Carrol (1949-2009)
released his first album “Catholic Boy.” The single “People who Died”
became a punk classic.
(SFC, 9/16/09, p.D5)
1981 Feb 6, Beatles McCartney,
Starr & Harrison recorded "All Those Years Ago," a tribute to John
Lennon.
(www.440.com/twtd/archives/feb06.html)
1981 Feb 9, Bill Haley (b.1925),
vocalist (Rock Around Clock), died of heart attack. Haley was
posthumously inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1987.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Haley)
1981 Feb 19, George Harrison was
ordered to pay ABKCO Music $587,000 for "subconscious plagiarism" in
"My Sweet Lord" with "He's So Fine." The word plagiarism derives from
Latin roots: plagiarius, an abductor; and plagiare, to steal. An
example of plagiarism would be copying this definition and pasting it
straight into a report. Plagiarism is a very ancient art. Shakespeare
stole most of his historical plots directly from Holinshed. Laurence
Sterne and Samuel Taylor Coleridge were both accused of plagiarism.
Oscar Wilde was repeatedly accused of plagiarism, hence the celebrated
exchange with Whistler: "I wish I'd said that, James." "Don't worry,
Oscar, you will."
(http://digital-law-online.info/cases/221PQ490.htm)(Nature News from
Jake Sigg, 9/10/09)
1981 May 11, Bob Marley (36),
Jamaican reggae artist, died of brain cancer in Miami.
(AP, 5/11/97)(SFEC, 2/14/99, p.T7)
1981 May 25, Roy James Brown
(b.1925), RB singer, died of a heart attack. His hits included “Good
Rockin' Tonight” (1947).
(http://shopping.yahoo.com/p:Roy%20Brown:1927000246:page=biography)
1981 Jun 5, George Harrison's
"Somewhere in England" album was released.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Somewhere_in_England)
1981 Jul 16, Singer Harry Chapin
(38) was killed when his car was struck by a tractor-trailer on New
York’s Long Island Expressway.
(AP, 7/16/01)
1981 Aug 1, The US rock music
video channel MTV, founded by Bob Pittman, made its debut. The first
music video shown on the rock-video cable channel was, "Video Killed
the Radio Star", by the Buggles. In 2007 Saul Austerlitz authored
“Money for Nothing: A History of the Music Video From the Beatles to
the White Stripes.”
(WSJ, 3/24/97, p.B1)(AP, 8/1/97)(SSFC, 3/18/07,
p.M2)(Econ, 11/22/08, p.78)
1981 Aug 24, Mark David Chapman
(b.1955) was sentenced in New York to 20 years to life in prison for
the murder of rock star John Lennon.
(AP,
8/24/97)(www.jfkmontreal.com/john_lennon/app_c_sentencinghearing.htm)
1981 Sep 19, Simon & Garfunkel
reunite for a NYC Central Park concert.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Simon_and_Garfunkel)
1981 Nov 5, Dr. George Nichopoulas
of Tennessee was acquitted of over prescribing addictive drugs for
Elvis Presley.
(http://tinyurl.com/397gkf)
1981 Dec 12, "Waiting For A Girl
Like You" by Foreigner hit #1 on the pop singles chart and stayed there
for 3 weeks.
(www.rockonthenet.com/artists-f/foreigner.htm)
1981 Dec 27, Hoagy Carmichael
(b.1899), US actor, songwriter (Stardust), died in California at age
82. His songs included "Stardust" and over 600 other melodies.
(WSJ, 9/9/99, p.A24)(SFC, 11/25/99,
p.C22)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hoagy_Carmichael)
1981 Duran Duran released its
self-titled debut, which featured the hits "Planet Earth" and "Girls on
Film." Members included Nick Rhodes, John Taylor, Roger Taylor, Simon
Le Bon and Andy Taylor.
(SFC, 9/18/03, p.E2)
1981 Brett Gurewitz, guitarist,
founded Epitaph Records. Epitaph's breakthrough came with the
phenomenal success of such California-bred, neo-punk bands as the
Offspring and Rancid in the mid-'90s. In 1999 Epitaph's sister label
Anti- signed Tom Waits (b.1949).
(Reuters, 1/19/07)
1982 Feb 1, Top hits
included: Can’t Go for That (No Can Do) Daryl Hall and John
Oates; Waiting for a Girl Like You Foreigner; Hooked on Classics The
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra; The Sweetest Thing I’ve Ever Known Juice
Newton.
(440 Int'l, 2/1/1999)
1982 Feb 21, Murray Kaufman
(b.1922), NYC DJ also known as Murray the K, died. During the early
days of Beatlemania, he was frequently referred to as "the Fifth
Beatle."
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murray_the_K)
1982 Mar 26, Paul McCartney and
Stevie Wonder released "Ebony & Ivory" in the UK.
(SS, 3/26/02)
1982 Apr 26, Popular music of the
day included: "I Love Rock ‘n’ Roll" Joan Jett and the Blackhearts; "We
Got the Beat" by the Go-Go’s" "Chariots of Fire" by Vangelis; and
"Crying My Heart Out over You" by Ricky Scaggs.
(440 Int’l. Internet, 4/26/97, p.1)
1982 Apr 26, Rod Stewart was
mugged. A gunman stole his $50,000 Porsche.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1982_in_music)
1982 Jun 1, The Rolling Stones
released their "Still Life" album.
(www.amazon.com/Still-Life-Rolling-Stones/dp/B0000084AS)
1982 Jul 2, DeFord Bailey
(b.1899), harmonica wizard and star of the Grand Ole Opry, died. He was
the first black musician to join the Opry’s regular cast.
(AH, 10/07,
p.74)(www.pbs.org/deford/timeline/index.html)
1982 Aug 28, LeAnn Rimes, country
pop singer, was born in Jackson, Miss.
(SSFC, 1/23/05, Par p.14)
1982 Nov 30, Michael Jackson
(12958-2009) released “Thriller,” his 6th studio album. It became
the best-selling album of all time.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thriller_(album))
1982 Dec 8, Marty Robbins,
American singer, died. His songs included “El Paso” (1959), “Devil
Woman” (1962), and “My Woman, My Woman, My Wife” (1970). He was
inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1975.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marty_Robbins)
1983 Feb 4, Singer-musician Karen
Carpenter (32) died in Downey, Ca.
(AP, 2/4/08)
1983 Feb 26, Michael Jackson's
"Thriller" album went to #1 and stayed #1 for 37 weeks.
(SC, 2/26/02)
1983 Apr 6, Saying rock 'n' roll
bands attracted "the wrong element," Interior Secretary James Watt
declined to invite the Beach Boys to perform at a Washington Fourth of
July celebration -- a stand he later reversed.
(AP, 4/6/98)
1983 Apr 30, McKinley Morganfield
(68), better known as Muddy Waters, died at his suburban home in
Westmont, Illinois. The US blues singer and guitarist (Mad Love) was
known as the King of the Blues. The Mississippi-born guitarist
revolutionized the genre in Chicago in the 1940s and 50s with his
electric blues.
(www.muddywaters.com/bio.html)
1983 Jul 5, Harry James (b.1916),
American band leader and trumpet player, died, He is best remembered
for his hit "You Made Me Love You." In 1999 Peter J. Levinson authored
“Trumpet Blues: The Life of Harry James.”
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harry_James)(SFC,
11/18/08, p.B4)
1983 Dec 28, Dennis Wilson
(b.1944), a founding member of the Beach Boys, died in a swimming
accident (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dennis_Wilson).
(SFEC, 2/8/98, p.D8)
1983 The Quiet Riot band produced
its Metal Health album. Their song “Cum on Feel the Noize,” featuring
lead singer Kevin DuBrow (1955-2007), was considered to be the first
metal band to reach No. 1 on the Billboard chart.
(SFC, 11/27/07, p.B5)
1984 Jan 15, Police raided the
vacation home of Paul and Linda McCartney (1941-1998) following a tip.
Both were arrested on possession of cannabis.
(http://leftofcentrist.blogspot.com/2007_01_01_archive.html)
1984 May 8, The album "Legend,"
the greatest hits by Bob Marley (1945-1981) and the Wailers, was
released. It became the best-selling reggae record of all time.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Legend_(album))
1984 Jul 12, Madonna's "Like a
Virgin" video premiered on MTV and became an instant hit.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Like_a_Virgin_%28song%29)
1984 Aug 11, Percy Mayfield
(b.1920), songwriter and blues artist, died. His songs included "Hit
the Road Jack" and "Please Send Me Someone to Love."
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Percy_Mayfield)
1984 Ray Charles recorded “Seven
Spanish Angels” as a duet with Willie Nelson.
(USAT, 6/11/04, p.7A)
1984 The song "Born In The USA,"
released by Bruce Springsteen, peaked at #9 in late 1984.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Born_in_the_U.S.A._%28song%29)
1985 Feb 9, Madonna's album "Like
a Virgin," released in 1984, reached #1.
(http://tinyurl.com/2vfje9)
1985 Feb 26, In the 27th Grammy
Awards Tina Turner’s "What's Love Got to Do With It" won as record and
song of the year. Cyndi Lauper won as best new artist.
(www.rockonthenet.com/archive/1985/grammys.htm)
1985 Mar 2, Country singer, Gary
Morris hit #1 on the country charts for the first time with "Baby Bye
Bye" from his album, "Faded Blue".
(HC, Internet, 2/3/98)
1985 Mar 2, Chart Toppers:
Careless Whisper, Wham! featuring George Michael; California Girls,
David Lee Roth; Can't Fight this Feeling, REO Speedwagon; Baby Bye Bye,
Gary Morris.
(HC, Internet, 2/3/98)
1985 May 18, "One Night In
Bangkok" by Murray Head hit #3.
(SC, 5/18/02)
1985 Jun 1, The song "Axel F" by
Harold Faltermeyer peaked at #3 on the pop singles chart.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Axel_F)
1985 Jul 13, Live Aid, an
international rock concert in London, Philadelphia, Moscow and Sydney,
took place to raise money for Ethiopia and Africa's starving people. It
was organized by Bob Geldof of Ireland.
(TMC, 1994, p.1985)(AP 7/13/97)(Econ, 6/4/05, p.56)
1985 Sep 22, Rock and country
music artists participated in FarmAid, a concert staged in Champaign,
Ill., to help the nation's farmers. The first Farm Aid concert was held
to support problems facing US farmers and their families.
(SFEC, 10/13/96, p.A9)(AP, 9/22/05)
1985 Oct 6, Nelson Riddle,
American bandleader, died. In 2001 Peter J. Levinson (1934-2008)
authored “September in the Rain: The Life of Nelson Riddle.”
(SFC, 11/18/08,
p.B4)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nelson_Riddle)
1985 Dec 23, James Vance (20)
& Raymond Belknap (18), committed suicide, sparking their families
to sue rock group Judas Priest for subliminal messages. Mr. Belknap
died instantly. Mr. Vance was seriously injured and lived in pain until
his death three years later.
(http://tinyurl.com/29rwhh)
1985 Dec 31, Singer Rick Nelson
(45) and six other people were killed when fire broke out aboard a DC-3
that was taking the group to a New Year's Eve performance in Dallas.
(AP, 12/31/97)
1985 The Isley Brothers had a No.
1 R&B hit with the gospel-inspired “Caravan of Love.”
(SFC, 6/9/10,
p.C10)(www.youtube.com/watch?v=foFK6q7kF9Y)
1986 Jun 7, Madonna's "Live to
Tell," single went #1.
(SC, 6/7/02)
1986 Jul 3, Rudy Vallee (b.1901),
singer (Vagabond Dreams), died.
(www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=4143)
1986 Sep 1, Paul McCartney
released his "Press to Play" album.
(SC, 9/1/02)
1986 Sep 6, Some 300 invitees paid
$5,000 to hear Barbra Streisand's benefit concert. Streisand launched
her concert One Voice, in part, as a protest against Reagan-era nuclear
arms proliferation in the late Cold War.
(http://tinyurl.com/y6urea)
1987 Jan 3, At the top of the
record charts included: Walk Like an Egyptian by the Bangles; Everybody
Have Fun Tonight by Wang Chung; Notorious by Duran Duran; Mind Your Own
Business by Hank Williams, Jr.
(www.440.com/twtd/archives/jan03.html)
1987 Jan 3, The first woman
inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame was ‘Lady Soul’: Aretha
Franklin (b.1942). Bill Haley was among the 14 others inducted.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aretha_Franklin)(http://tinyurl.com/mn5j6)
1987 Feb 26, British stores
released the 1st Beatles compact discs.
(www.guardian.co.uk/thebeatles/story/0,,606496,00.html)
1987 Jul 4, Bill Graham took
Santana, the Doobie Brothers and Bonny Rait to Moscow for an
American-Soviet peace concert.
(SFC,12/13/97, p.A15)
1987 Aug 15, Thousands of people
marched past the grave of Elvis Presley in Memphis, Tenn., as they
began an all-night vigil marking the 10th anniversary of his death.
(AP, 8/15/97)
1988 Mar 10, Pop singer Andy Gibb
died in Oxford, England, at age 30 of heart inflammation.
(AP, 3/10/98)
1988 Jun 19, Michael Jackson led a
rock concert in West Berlin.
(AP, 7/30/09)
1988 Dec 16, Sylvester James
(b.1947), disco superstar, died of AIDS-related causes.
(SFC, 10/10/98,
p.E1)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sylvester_%28singer%29)
1989 May 25, Weird Al Yankovic
recorded "She Drives Like Crazy."
(SC, 5/25/02)
1989 Jul 2, In West Berlin,
Germany, the Love Parade festival was begun to celebrate techno music.
About 150 people cavorted down Ku’damm to the blare of techno music
from a single Volkswagen bus. It was started by the Berlin underground
at the initiative of Matthias Roeingh (also known as "Dr Motte") and
his then girlfriend Danielle de Picciotto.
(SFC, 8/18/97,
p.E4)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Love_Parade)
1989 Aug 27, Chuck Berry performed
his tune Johnny B. Goode for NASA staff in celebration of Voyager II's
encounter with the planet Neptune.
(HN, 8/27/98)
1990 Apr 12, James Brown moved to
a work-release center after serving 15 months.
(MC, 4/12/02)
1990 Apr 14, The hip-hop group
Salt-N-Pepa hit the top #40 on the pop singles chart with "Expression."
(www.rockonthenet.com/archive/1990/04-14.htm)
1990 Apr 25, In the 25th Academy
of Country Music Awards Clint Black and Kathy Mattea won.
(SS, 4/25/02)
1990 May 19, The tune "Vogue" by
Madonna peaked at #1 on the pop singles chart.
(www.onmc.iinet.net.au/top/1990.htm)
1990 Jun 23, The tune "That's The
Way Of The World" by D'Mob with Cathy Dennis hit #1 on Billboard
magazine’s Hot Dance Music/Club Play.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Number-one_dance_hits_of_1990_(USA))
1990 Jul 13, 2 Live Crew released
"Banned in the USA."
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Banned_in_the_USA)
1990 Aug 27, Texan blues guitarist
Stevie Ray Vaughan (35) was killed in a helicopter crash after
performing at a concert in Wisconsin.
(Reuters, 8/28/01)
1991 Feb 20, Quincy Jones’ "Back
on the Block" was named album of the year at the 33rd Annual Grammy
Awards.
(AP, 2/20/01)
1991 Mar 2, Serge Gainsbourg
(b.1928), French singer-songwriter, actor and director, died of a heart
attack. His extremely varied musical style and individuality make him
difficult to categorize. His legacy has been firmly established, and he
is often regarded as one of the world's most influential popular
musicians.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Serge_Gainsbourg)
1991 Mar 14, Doc Pomus (b.1925),
American blues singer and songwriter, died. He collaborated with
pianist Mort Shuman to write the hit songs: "Teenager in Love"; "Save
The Last Dance For Me"; "Hushabye"; "This Magic Moment"; "Turn Me
Loose"; "Sweets For My Sweet"; "Can't Get Used To Losing You"; "Little
Sister"; "Suspicion"; "Surrender"; "Viva Las Vegas"; and "His Latest
Flame (Marie's The Name)." In 2007 Alex Halberstadt authored “Lonely
Avenue: The Unlikely Life and Times of Doc Pomus.”
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doc_Pomus)
1991 Mar 16, A plane crash killed
7 members of Reba McIntire's band.
(MC, 3/16/02)
1991 May 13, The album "Michael
Jackson: The Magic & the Madness" went on sale.
(SS, Internet, 5/13/97)
1991 May 25, "People Are Still
Having Sex" by LaTour hit #35.
(SC, 5/25/02)
1991 Jun 1, "Silent Lucidity" by
Queensryche peaked at #5 on the pop singles chart.
(www.rockonthenet.com/archive/1991/06-01.htm)
1991 Jun 15, The song "Love Is A
Wonderful Thing" by Michael Bolton (b.1953) reached #3 on the pop
singles chart.
(www.rockonthenet.com/archive/1991/06-15.htm)
1991 Aug 15, Some 750,000 attended
Paul Simon's free concert in Central Park. The event was recorded and
became available on video.
(http://tinyurl.com/rdhv8)
1991 Oct 17, Tennessee Ernie Ford
(b.1919), country singer (16 Tons), died in Reston, Va.
(AP, 10/17/01)(www.ernieford.com/Bio.htm)
1991 Nov 24, Freddie Mercury (45),
Zanzibar-born rock singer, died in London of pneumonia brought on by
AIDS. Mercury and the rock group Queen made the 1975 hit "Bohemian
Rhapsody."
(AP, 11/24/01)(SSFC, 11/10/02, p.A2)
1991 Dec 4, The Judds’ final
concert took place in Nashville.
(www.wynonna.com/?em653=22855_0__0_~0_-1_3_2006_0_0&content=judds)
1991 Jon Savage (b.1953) authored
“England’s Dreaming,” a history of the Sex Pistols.
(SFC, 4/9/10,
p.C7)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jon_Savage)
1991 Perry Farrell, lead singer of
Jane's Addiction, started the alternative-rock extravaganza called
Lollapalooza.
(SFC, 8/21/03, p.E1)
1991 The American punk group
Nirvana released its “Nevermind” album.
(WSJ, 12/21/04, p.D8)
1991 The rock group Talking Heads
disbanded. The group had formed in 1974 in NYC. The band comprised
David Byrne (b.1952), Chris Frantz, Tina Weymouth and Jerry Harrison,
but auxiliary musicians frequently made appearances in concert and on
the group's albums.
(WSJ, 1/30/08,
p.D9)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talking_Heads)
1992 Feb 2, IRS and Willie Nelson
settled on $9M tax bill (of $16.7M).
(MC, 2/2/02)
1992 May 17, Lawrence Welk (89),
conductor and accordionist, died in Santa Monica, Calif.
(AP, 5/17/97)(SFC, 8/19/99, p.E2)(MC, 5/17/02)
1992 Jul 4, The song "Baby Got
Back" by Sir Mix-A-Lot topped the charts and stayed there for 5 weeks.
(DataDragon)
1992 Jul 26,
Singer Mary Wells died in Los Angeles at age 49.
(AP, 7/26/97)
1992 Oct 3, Sinead O'Connor, Irish
rock singer, ripped up a picture of Pope John Paul II on Saturday Night
Live.
(www.notbored.org/sinead.html)
1993 Apr 23, Peter Townshend's
rock musical "Tommy," premiered in NYC.
(MC, 4/23/02)
1993 Dec 4, Frank Zappa (52), rock
musician and composer, died in Los Angeles. In 2004 Barry Miles
authored “Frank Zappa: A Biography.”
(AP, 12/4/98)(SFC, 12/25/04, p.E2)
1994 Apr 5, Kurt Cobain (b.1967),
singer-musician for the grunge band Nirvana, committed suicide in
Seattle. [see Apr 8]
(NW, 10/28/02,
p.68)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kurt_)
1994 Apr 8, Kurt Cobain (b.1967),
singer-musician for the grunge band Nirvana, was found dead in Seattle
of an apparently self-inflicted gunshot wound; he was 27.
(AP, 4/8/97)(SFEC, 2/2/97, DB. p.52)
1994 May 26, Michael Jackson and
Lisa Marie Presley were married in the Dominican Republic. The marriage
ended in 1996.
(AP, 5/26/99)
1994 Aug 12, Woodstock '94 opened
in Saugerties, N.Y.
(AP, 8/12/97)
1995 Apr 14, Actor-singer Burl
Ives died in Anacortes, Wash., at age 85.
(AP, 4/14/00)
1995 Jul 5, More than 100 Grateful
Dead fans were injured when a deck on which they were gathered
collapsed at a campground near Wentzville, Missouri.
(AP, 7/5/00)
1995 Aug 9, Jerry Garcia,
guitarist and lead singer of the Grateful Dead, died in San Francisco
of a heart attack at age 53. In 1999 Blair Jackson authored "Garcia: An
American Life." In 2002 Dennis McNally authored "A Long Strange Trip:
The Inside History of the Grateful Dead."
(WSJ, 8/11/95, p.A7)(AP, 8/9/97)(SFEC, 8/29/99, BR
p.1)(SSFC, 8/11/02, p.M1)
1995 Sep 1, A ribbon-cutting
ceremony was held for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland,
Ohio.
(AP, 9/1/00)
1995 Nov 21-1995 Nov 28, In one
week of sales, `The Beatles Anthology 1' beat sales record in the US:
855,473 copies. Previous record: Michael Jackson's `History', 391,000
copies.
(www.4reference.net/encyclopedias/wikipedia/The_Beatles.html)
1996 May 20, The song Blue
composed by Bill Mack in 1963 for Patsy Cline was finally recorded by
14-year-old LeAnn Rimes.
(WSJ, 8/29/96, p.B1)
1996 Jul 21, There was a review of
"Please Kill Me" by Legs McNeil and Gillian McCain, a historical
chronicle of the American punk-rock movement.
(SFC, 7/21/96, p.B7)
1994 Nov 30, Rapper and actor
Tupac Shakur (1971-1996) was shot five times during a robbery outside a
New York recording studio. Two days later a jury found him guilty of
sexually abusing a woman, but acquitted him of more serious sex and
weapons charges.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tupac_Shakur#September_1996_shooting)(AP,
11/30/04)
1996 Sep 4, The Smashing Pumpkins
rock group won 7 MTV music awards including Best Video for “Tonight,
Tonight,” and Best Alternative Music Video for 1979.
(SFC, 9/5/96, p.B4)
1996 Sep. 7, Rapper Tupac Shakur
was shot on the Las Vegas Strip; he died six days later.
(AP, 9/7/97)
1996 Sep 13, Rap star Tupac Shakur
(b.1971) died of gun shot wounds in Las Vegas after he was wounded Sep
7 in a drive-by shooting as he was leaving a Mike Tyson fight in Las
Vegas. He had just finished filming "Gang Related" later retitled
"Criminal Intent." He was buried at Stone Mountain, Georgia.
(SFC, 9/14/96, p.A1)(AP,
9/13/97)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tupac_Shakur)
1996 Oct 14, Pop singer Madonna
gave birth to a daughter, Lourdes Maria Ciccone Leon.
(AP, 10/14/97)
1996 The group Los Del Rio made a
hit with "Macarena."
(SFC, 11/30/02, p.D1)
1997 Jan 1, Townes Van Zandt
(1944-1997) Texas songwriter, died. His work included the 1983 song
”Pancho and Lefty,” sung by Merle Haggard and Willie Nelson.
(SFC, 1/3/97, p.A26)(SFC, 1/4/97, p.E1)(WSJ,
6/25/03, p.D8)
1997 Jan 21, Irwin Levine (58),
composer (Tie a Yellow Ribbon), died in New Jersey.
(http://tinyurl.com/afxk9)
1997 Mar 9, In Los Angeles black
Gangsta rapper Christopher G. Wallace (24), The Notorious B.I.G. or aka
Biggie Smalls, was shot and killed in a drive-by shooting. He had been
accused of being involved in a 1994 robbery in which Tupac Shakur was
shot and robbed of $40,000. In 1999 Amir Muhammad, aka Harry Billups,
was named as the suspected gunman. Muhammad was suspected to have been
hired by former LAPD officer David A. Mack. In 2005 a judge declared a
mistrial when large numbers of LAPD documents were found that hadn’t
been turned over to the court.
(SFC, 3/10/97, p.A8)(SFC, 12/9/99, p.A11)(SFC,
7/7/05, p.A3)(AP, 3/9/07)
1997 Mar 10, LaVern Baker (67),
rhythm and blues singer, died. She had been discovered as a teenager by
Fletcher Henderson in Chicago singing as "Little Miss Sharecropper."
Her hits included "Tweedle Dee," "Go Jim Dandy" and "See See Rider."
(SFC, 3/12/97, p.A9)
1997 Apr 8, Singer and songwriter
Laura Nyro (b.1947) died in Danbury, Conn., at age 49 of ovarian cancer.
(SFC, 4/10/97, p.A23)(AP, 4/8/98)
1998 Feb 6, Carl Wilson (51), a
founding member of The Beach Boys, had died in Los Angeles from
complications of lung cancer.
(SFEC, 2/8/98, p.D8)(AP, 2/7/99)
1998 Feb 7, Falco (40), Austrian
born pop singer, died while on vacation in an auto crash in the
Dominican Republic. His hits included "Der Kommissar," "Rock Me
Amadeus," and "Vienna Calling."
(SFEC, 2/8/98, p.D8)
1998 Feb 25, At the Grammy Awards,
Bob Dylan won best album and best contemporary folk album for "Time Out
of Mind" while Shawn Colvin won song and record of the year for "Sunny
Came Home."
(AP, 2/25/99)
1998 Apr 6, Tammy Wynette (55),
country singer, died at her Nashville, Tenn., home. Her songs included
the 1968 hit "Stand by Your Man."
(SFC, 4/798, p.A7)(AP, 4/6/99)
1998 May 12, Singer Ray Charles
and sitar master Ravi Shankar received the Polar Music Prize, $133,000,
from King Carl Gustav XVI in Sweden. The award was established by Stig
Anderson, manager of the Abba pop group.
(SFC, 5/15/98, p.C5)
1998 May 14, Frank Sinatra, singer
and actor, died of a heart attack in LA at age 82. Shortly thereafter
Brian Gunn published "Rat Pack Confidential: Frank, Dean, Sammy, Peter,
Joey & the Last Great Show Biz Party," a biography of Frank
Sinatra, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis Jr., Peter Lawford and Joey Bishop.
In Dec the FBI released a 1,300 page Sinatra file that had been put
together over a 40-year period. In 2000 Tom and Phil Kuntz edited "The
Sinatra Files." In 2005 Anthony Summers and Robbyn Swan authored
“Sinatra: The Life.”
(SFC, 5/16/98, p.A1)(SFEC, 7/5/98, BR p.5)(WSJ,
6/13/00, p.B1)(Econ, 7/16/05, p.82)
1998 May 31, Singer Geri
Halliwell, also known as "Ginger Spice" of the Spice Girls, confirmed
she was leaving the group.
(AP, 5/31/99)
1998 Aug 20, The German
heavy-metal band Rammstein was reported to be making a hit in the US
with their "Sehnsucht" (yearning) album.
(WSJ, 8/21/98, p.B1)
1999 Mar 2, In England Dusty
Springfield (59), pop-soul singer, died from breast cancer. Her hits
included ""You Don't Have to Say You Love Me," "I Just Don't Know What
to Do With Myself" and "Son of a Preacher Man."
(SFC, 3/4/99, p.D2)
1999 Mar 15, Bruce Springsteen,
Paul McCartney, Billy Joel and Dusty Springfield were inducted into the
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
(AP, 3/15/00)
1999 cApr 12, BoxCar Willie,
country singer, died at age 67. He was born as Lecil Martin in Starett,
Texas, and spent 22 years in the Air Force.
(SFC, 4/13/99, p.A19)
1999 Apr 27, Al Hirt, "The King of
the Trumpet," died in New Orleans at age 76.
(SFC, 4/28/99, p.C4)
1999 Jul 23, The 3-day Woodstock
'99 music festival began at the decommissioned Griffiss Air Force Base
in Rome, NY, with some 225,000 people. The $35-38 million production
ended in chaos with hundreds of concertgoers burning fires, looting and
vandalizing.
(USAT, 7/26/99, p.1D,5D)(SFC, 7/26/99, p.E3)(SFC,
7/27/99, p.A3)
1999 Oct 6, Amalia Rodrigues
(b.1920), Portuguese actress and fado singer, died at age 79.
(SFC, 10/11/99,
p.A24)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Am%C3%A1lia_Rodrigues)
1999 Aretha Franklin (b.1942), the
Queen of Soul, authored "Aretha: From These Roots."
(SSFC, 6/30/02, Par p.30)
2000 Mar 6, Eric Clapton was
inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame for the third time; among
the newest honorees were James Taylor, Bonnie Raitt and Earth, Wind and
Fire.
(AP, 3/6/01)
2000 Mar 7, Country singer Frank
"Pee Wee" King died in Louisville, Kentucky, at age 86.
(AP, 3/7/01)
2000 Jul 26, Napster Inc. was hit
with a preliminary injunction to halt all illegal song swapping over
the Internet. A temporary stay was granted on appeal 2 days later.
(SFC, 7/27/00, p.A1)(SFC, 7/29/00, p.A1)
2000 Jul, In Serbia’s Vojvodina
province the Exit music festival was started by three University
students from Novi Sad.
(www.southeast-europe.eu/index.php?id=780)
2001 Mar 18, John Phillips, who
co-founded the Mamas and the Papas and wrote its biggest hits,
including "California Dreamin" and "Monday," died in Los Angeles at age
65.
(SFC, 3/19/01, p.A19)(AP, 3/18/02)
2001 Apr 15, Joey Ramone, punk
rock icon, died of cancer in NYC at age 49. The Ramones punk rock group
released their 1st album "Ramones" in 1976. Joey Ramone’s "Don’t Worry
About Me" album was released in 2002. Ramone was born in 1951 as
Jeffrey Hyman.
(AP, 4/15/02)(SFC, 4/17/01, p.C2)(WSJ, 2/22/02,
p.W7)(NW, 12/31/01, p.111)
2001 May 12, Perry Como, singer,
died at age 88 in Jupiter, Fla. His Perry Como Show ran on TV for 15
years (1948-1963).
(SSFC, 5/13/01, p.A27)
2001 Jul 18, Mimi Farina,
folksinger and founder of the Bread and Roses charity, died at age 56.
She was the sister of Joan Baez. She and Richard Farina (d.1966), her
1st husband, wrote the song "Pack Up Your Sorrows."
(SFC, 7/19/01, p.A25)
2001 Oct 3, Apple introduced the
iPod, a breakthrough MP3 music player that packs up to 1,000 CD-quality
songs into an ultra-portable, 6.5 ounce design that fits in your
pocket, at a cost of $399.
(www.apple.com/pr/library/2001/oct/23ipod.html)(Econ, 10/4/08, p.14)
2001 Nov 29, George Harrison (58),
lead guitarist for the Beatles, died of cancer in LA. His ashes were
scattered in the Ganges Dec 4.
(SFC, 11/30/01, p.A1)(SFC, 12/4/01, p.A2)
2002 Feb 10, Dave Van Ronk,
folksinger and mentor to Bob Dylan, died in NY at age 65.
(WSJ, 2/11/02, p.A1)
2002 Feb 27, Alicia Keys won in 5
categories at the 44th annual Grammy Awards. Train won for best rock
song: "Drops of Jupiter," U2 won for best record of the year: "Walk
On," and Various Artists won the album of the year: "O Brother, Where
Art Thou."
(SFC, 2/28/02, p.A1)
2002 Apr 25, Lisa "Left Eye" Lopes
(30), top female singer in the trio TLC, was killed in a car crash in
Honduras. Her albums included "Crazysexycool" (1994).
(SFC, 4/26/02, p.A2)(NW, 5/6/02, p.8)
2002 Jun 18, Raymond Lubow (82),
creator of the special effects Morley pedals, died. The "Morley Man"
logo was a wailing, long-haired rocker.
(SFC, 7/4/02, p.A21)
2002 Aug 14, Larry Rivers (78),
pop artist pioneer, died in Southampton, N.Y.
(AP, 8/14/03)
2002 Oct 12, Ray Conniff (85),
band leader of "easy-listening" hits, died in Escondido, Ca.
(WSJ, 10/15/02, p.A1)
2002 Oct 30, DJ Jam Master Jay,
rap artist, was shot to death in Queens, NYC.
(SFC, 11/1/02, p.A1)
2002 Nov 3, Lonnie Donegan (71),
British musician, died. His hits included "Does Your Chewing Gum Lose
its Flavor on the Bed Post Overnight" and "Rock Island Line" which
inspired John Lennon and George Harrison.
(SFC, 11/6/02, p.A34)
2002 Nov, Artisan Pictures
released "Standing in the Shadows of Motown," a tribute to the Funk
Brothers, the studio musicians behind the Motown hits. They included
pianist Earl Van Dyke, bassist James Jamerson, vibes player Jack
Ashford, and pianist Joe Hunter.
(WSJ, 11/26/02, p.D8)
2002 Dec 22, In Britain Joe
Strummer (50), singer-songwriter for Clash, died.
(SFC, 12/24/02, p.A2)
2002 The Spanish pop song
"Asereje" (The Ketchup Song), by the Munoz sisters (Lola, Lucia and
Pilar Munoz) became a hit.
(SFC, 11/30/02, p.D1)
2002 Jun, The Bonnaroo music
festival began in Manchester, Tennessee.
(Econ, 7/25/09, p.31)
2002 Zach Niles, Banker White and
Chris Veland, novice American filmmakers, visited Guinea and discovered
a group of musicians in the Sembakounya Refugee Camp called the Refugee
All Stars. Members had left Sierra Leone in 1999. Niles and White made
a film of the group, which gained int’l recognition and by 2006
organized a tour for the group in the US.
(SFC, 7/13/06, p.E1)
2002 Bill Sagan, a Minneapolis
entrepreneur, spent over $5 million to buy rock ‘n’ roll memorabilia
from the archives of Bill Graham Presents. The collection was later
found to contain audio and video recordings from 1966-1999.
(WSJ, 12/13/05, p.B1)
2003 Jan 12, Maurice Gibb (53),
member of the Bee Gees musical group, died in Miami following surgery
for a blocked intestine. The group’s work included the 1977 "Saturday
Night Fever" album.
(SSFC, 1/12/03, p.A2)
2003 Jan 13, Rock musician Pete
Townshend was arrested in London on suspicion of possessing indecent
images of children. Townshend acknowledged using an Internet Web site
advertising child pornography, but said he was not a pedophile and was
only doing research for an autobiography dealing with his own suspected
childhood sexual abuse; he was eventually cleared of possessing
pornographic images of children.
(AP, 1/13/08)
2003 Feb 3, Phil Spector (62),
rock-n-roll producer, was arrested in LA for murder after Lana Clarkson
(40) was found dead in his mansion.
(SFC, 2/4/03, p.A1)
2003 Feb 18, Johnny
Paycheck (64), American country singer, died in Nashville, Tenn. In
1977 he had a big hit with the David Allan Coe song "Take This Job and
Shove It."
(SFC, 2/20/03, A18)(AP, 2/18/04)
2003 Feb 23, In the 45th US
Grammy’s in NYC Norah Jones won 3 awards as did Bruce Springsteen for
his 9/11-inspired album "The Rising."
(SFC, 2/24/03, p.D1)
2003 Apr 22, Felice Bryant (77),
bluegrass song writer, died in Gatlinburg, Tenn.. She and her late
husband wrote such tunes as "Bye Bye Love" and other Everly Brothers
hits and "Rocky Top" (1968).
(SFC, 4/23/03, A21)(AP, 4/22/08)
2003 May 15, June Carter Cash
(73), the Grammy-winning scion of one of country music's pioneering
families and the wife of Johnny Cash, died of complications from heart
surgery.
(AP, 5/16/03)
2003 Jul 16, Celia Cruz (77),
Cuban-born Latin music singer, died in Fort Lee, NJ.
(SFC, 7/17/03, p.A21)
2003 Sep 7, Warren Zevon (56),
songwriter, died in West Hollywood. His work included the 1970s rock
hit "Werewolves of London."
(AP, 9/8/03)(WSJ, 9/9/03, p.D6)
2003 Sep 8, The Recording Industry
Association of America (RIAA), the music industry's largest trade
group, filed 261 copyright lawsuits across the country against Internet
users for trading songs online.
(SFC, 9/9/03, p.A1)(AP, 9/8/08)
2003 Sep 12, Johnny Cash (71),
singer, died. His rough, unsteady voice championed the downtrodden and
reached across generations with songs like "Ring of Fire," "I Walk the
Line" and "Folsom Prison Blues."
(AP, 9/12/03)(SFC, 9/13/03, p.A12)
2003 Sep 14, Lt. Gen. Ricardo
Sanchez, the US military commander in Iraq, authorized the use of loud
rock music, "to create fear, disorient ... and prolong capture shock."
The tactic became common in the US war on terror, with forces
systematically using loud music on hundreds of detainees in Iraq,
Afghanistan and Guantanamo Bay.
(AP, 12/10/08)
2003 Nov 5, Bobby Hatfield (63),
the tenor half of The Righteous Brothers, who made "You've Lost That
Lovin' Feeling" a worldwide hit, was found dead in a Kalamazoo, Mich.,
hotel. An autopsy revealed that his death was triggered by acute
cocaine intoxication.
(AP, 11/6/03)(SFC, 1/8/04, p.E5)
2003 Nov 20, Michael Jackson
turned himself over to police in Santa Barbara, Ca., on an arrest
warrant alleging multiple counts of child molestation. He posted a $3
million bail bond. Jackson was later acquitted at trial.
(AP, 11/20/08)
2003 Nov 21, Teddy Randazzo (68),
songwriter, died. His hits included "Goin' Out of My Head," "Hurt So
Bad," and I'm On the Outside (Looking In)."
(SSFC, 12/28/03, p.E10)
2003 Dec 12, In London, England,
Mick Jagger (b.1943) of the Rolling Stones was knighted.
(SFC, 12/13/03, p.A2)
2003 Dec 18, Michael Jackson was
formally charged with child molesting and administering an intoxicating
agent.
(WSJ, 12/19/03, p.A1)
2003 Dec 21, Dave Dudley (75),
pioneer of truck-driving country songs, died. His hits included "Six
Days on the Road."
(SSFC, 12/28/03, p.E10)
2003 Anthony Bozza authored
"Whatever You Say I Am: The Life and Times of Eminem." Eminem, born as
Marshall Mathers (aka Slim Shady), shopped his 1st demo record in 1997.
(WSJ, 10/30/03, p.W8)
2003 Luke Crampton and Dafydd Rees
authored "Rock & Roll Year by Year."
(SSFC, 11/16/03, BR p.10)
2003 Arthur Kempton authored
"Boogaloo: The Quintessence of American Popular Music."
(SSFC, 6/8/03, p.M6)
2003 Gordon Sumner, better known
as Sting, authored "Broken Music: A Memoir."
(Econ, 12/13/03, p.83)
2004 Jan 21, The recording
industry sued 532 computer users it said were illegally distributing
songs over the Internet.
(AP, 1/21/05)
2004 Feb 1, In Texas a breast
belonging to entertainer Janet Jackson escaped after singer Justin
Timberlake ripped off one of her chest plates during the halftime Super
Bowl performance in Houston. New England Patriots fans turned rowdy
after their team's 32-29 win over the Carolina Panthers.
(AP, 2/1/04)(SFC, 2/2/04, p.A2)(Econ, 2/7/04, p.55)
2004 Mar 15, The Rock and Roll
Hall of Fame inducted Prince, Bob Seger, Jackson Browne and George
Harrison along with ZZ Top, Traffic and the Dells.
(SFC, 3/16/04, p.A2)
2004 Mar 26, Jan Berry (62),
pioneering California rock musician, died in LA. He rode the wave of
the surf music trend in the 1960s as one half of the popular duo Jan
& Dean.
(Reuters, 3/28/04)
2004 Jun 10, Ray Charles (b.1930),
rhythm ‘n’ blues piano player and singer best known for "Hit the Road
Jack" and "Georgia on My Mind," died in Beverly Hills.
(USAT, 6/11/04, p.1A)
2004 Aug 6, Rick James (56), Funk
legend born as James A. Johnson, died. He was best known for the 1981
hit "Super Freak" before his career disintegrated amid drug use and
violence that sent him to prison.
(AP, 8/6/04)(SFC, 8/7/04, p.B7)
2004 Aug 26, Laura Branigan
(b.1957), a Grammy-nominated pop singer best known for her 1982
platinum hit "Gloria," died.
(AP, 8/29/04)(SFC, 8/30/04, p.B4)
2004 Sep 15, Johnny Ramone (55),
guitarist and co-founder of the seminal punk band "The Ramones," died
of cancer in Los Angeles.
(AP, 9/16/04)(Econ, 9/25/04, p.100)
2004 Sep 22, The FCC fined CBS
$550,000 for Janet Jackson’s Feb 1 breast exposure.
(SFC, 9/23/04, p.A7)
2004 Nov 13, Russell Jones, better
know as rapper O.D.B. (old dirty bastard) died at age 35 inside a NYC
recording studio.
(SFC, 11/15/04, p.B3)
2004 Nov 19, Terry Melcher (62),
record producer and son of Doris Day, died. He co-wrote the Beach Boy
song “Kokomo” and produced his mother’s “The Doris Day Show”
(1968-1972).
(SSFC, 11/21/04,
p.A25)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terry_Melcher)
2005 Jan 11, Spencer Dryden (66),
former drummer for the Jefferson Airplane (1967-1970), died in
Petaluma, Ca. Dryden also played with the Grateful Dead (1971-1978),
whose albums included “The Adventures of Panama Red” (1973).
(SFC, 1/13/05, p.B6)
2005 Feb 8, Keith Knudsen (56),
Doobie Brothers drummer who was part of the band during a string of
hits that included "Taking it to the Streets" and "Black Water," died
of pneumonia.
(AP, 2/9/05)
2005 Feb 13, Ray Charles' final
album, "Genius Loves Company," won a leading eight Grammy awards,
including album of the year, record of the year for "Here We Go Again"
with Norah Jones, and pop vocal album.
(AP, 2/14/05)
2005 Mar 2, Martin Denny, creator
of the tiki lounge music called “exotica,” died in Honolulu. His 38
albums reflected a fusion of Asian, South Pacific, American jazz ,
Latin American and classical music.
(SFC, 3/8/05, p.B5)
2005 Mar 9, Chris LeDoux (56),
rodeo star and country singer, died in Wyoming from complications of
liver cancer.
(SFC, 3/10/05, p.B7)
2005 Apr 13, Johnie Johnson
(b.1924), pianist who worked with Chuck Berry, died in St. Louis.
Johnson had initially hired Berry as a replacement in his
rhythm-and-blues trio.
(SFC, 4/16/05, p.B4)
2005 Jun 22, Consuelo Velazquez
(b.1916), Mexican pianist and composer, died. Her music included Besame
Mucho, first recorded in 1941 by Emilio Tuero. It was the romantic
vision of a chaste, convent-educated teenager growing up in 1930s
Mexico, and was inspired by the sight of a smooching couple in the
street.
(www.guardian.co.uk/news/2005/jan/26/guardianobituaries.artsobituaries1)
2005 Jul 25, Sony BMG Music
Entertainment agreed to pay $10 million to non-profit entities and to
stop paying radio stations to feature its artists. A 1960 federal law
barred record companies from offering payola, undisclosed financial
incentives for airplay.
(SFC, 7/26/05, p.D3)
2005 Nov 5, Link Wray (b.1929),
North Carolina-born rock guitar master, died in Denmark. His hits
included the 1958 instrumental “Rumble” and 1959 “Rawhide.” Wray was
three-quarters Shawnee and was said to have inspired many other rock
musicians.
(SFC, 11/22/05, p.B4)
2005 Nov 22, Winners were
announced at the 33rd annual American Music Awards in LA. In the
Pop-Rock category winners included Male artist: Will Smith; Female
artist: Gwen Stefani; Band, duo or group: The Black Eyed Peas; Album:
"American Idiot," Green Day.
(AP, 11/23/05)
2005 Jammie Thomas-Rasset, a
single mother from Minnesota, was accused of sharing 24 songs using
KaZaA, an Internet file sharing program. In 2007 a jury ruled against
her and awarded record companies almost $10,000 per song in statutory
damages. She was found guilty again in a 2nd trial in 2009 in which the
jury awarded damages of $80,000 per song.
(Econ, 9/5/09, TQ p.4)
2006 May 19, Freddie Garrity (69),
lead singer of the 1960s British pop band Freddie and the Dreamers,
died in Wales.
(AP, 5/19/07)
2006 Jun 2, Vince Welnick (55),
Grateful Dead pianist, died in California of apparent suicide. He had
taken over as the Grateful Dead's keyboard player in 1990 after a
succession of predecessors met untimely deaths.
(Reuters, 6/4/06)(SSFC, 6/4/06, p.B6)
2006 Jul 7, Syd Barrett (60), a
founding member of the rock group Pink Floyd, died at his home in
Cambridge, England. The band’s first album was “The Piper at the Gates
of Dawn.”
(Reuters, 7/11/06)(SFC, 7/12/06, p.B7)(Econ,
7/22/06, p.83)
2006 Aug 3, Arthur Lee (61), rock
pioneer, died in Memphis. He fronted the band Love and established
himself as the 1st black rock star in the post Beatle’s era. The
group’s debut album, “Love,” was the 1st rock record released by
Electra Records.
(SSFC, 8/6/06, p.B6)
2006 Sep 23, Etta Baker (93),
blues guitarist, died in Fairfax, Va. In 1991 she won a Folk Heritage
Fellowship from the National Endowment for the Arts. Her albums
included a 2004 recording with Taj Mahal.
(SFC, 9/26/06, p.D6)
2006 Oct 14, Freddy Fender
(b.1937), Tex-Mex singer born as Baldemar Huerta, died in San Benito,
Texas. His hit songs included “Wasted Days and Wasted Nights” and
“Before the Next Teardrop Falls” (1975).
(SFC, 10/16/06, p.B6)
2006 Nov 20, Dirk Dirksen
(b.1937), the godfather of San Francisco punk rock, died. He moved to
SF in 1974 and soon began presenting late-night events at the Mabuhay
Gardens in North Beach, where punk rock found a home.
(SFC, 11/22/06, p.B7)
2006 Dec 14, Ahmet Ertegun (83),
the founder of Atlantic Records (1947), died. He helped define American
music on the label that popularized the gritty R&B of Ray Charles,
the classic soul of Aretha Franklin and the British rock of the Rolling
Stones.
(AP, 12/15/06)
2006 Dec 25, James Brown (b.1928),
the dynamic "Godfather of Soul," died early Christmas. His
revolutionary rhythms, rough voice and flashing footwork influenced
generations of musicians from rock to rap. His 1965 song “I Got You (I
Feel Good)” is considered one of the all-time greatest in rock’s cannon.
(AP, 12/25/06)(SFC, 12/26/06, p.A7)
2007 Jan 6, Pete Kleinow, film
effects artist and guitarist for the Flying Burrito Brothers, died in
Petaluma, Ca.
(SFC, 1/16/07, p.B5)
2007 Jan 16 Pookie Hudson (72),
lead singer for the Spaniels doo-wop group, died in Capitol Heights, Md.
(AP, 1/16/08)
2007 Jan 19, Denny Doherty (66),
one-quarter of the 1960s folk-rock group the Mamas and the Papas, died
at his home in Ontario, Canada. The group was known for their soaring
harmony on hits like "California Dreamin’" (1966) and "Monday, Monday."
(AP, 1/19/07)
2007 Feb 2, Joe Hunter (79),
Motown’s first bandleader, died in Detroit, Mich.
(SSFC, 2/4/07, p.B6)
2007 Feb 2, Billy Henderson (67),
singer in the band called the Spinners, died in Florida. His songs
included “I’ll Be Around” (1972) and other hits. The 5-member band had
formed in 1954 in Ferndale, Mich.
(SSFC, 2/4/07, p.B6)
2007 Feb 2, Eric von Schmidt (75),
guitarist and painter, died in Connecticut. He was a mentor for Bob
Dylan, who wrote the liner notes for Schmidt’s 1969 album: “Who Knocked
the Brains Out of the Sky.”
(SFC, 2/5/07, p.B4)
2007 Feb 15, Ray Evans (b.1915),
songwriter and longtime partner with Jay Livingston (d.2001), died.
Their songs included “Whatever Will be, Will Be (Que Sera, Sera)” and
“Mona Lisa,” as well as the themes for the TV series “Bonanza” and “Mr.
Ed.”
(SSFC, 2/18/07, p.D7)
2007 Mar 6, In Ghana singer Stevie
Wonder introduced pianist Kofi Vordzorgbe (13) to dignitaries
celebrating 50 years of independence from British rule. Kofi was later
brought to San Francisco, Ca., to continue his music studies.
(SFC, 6/6/09, p.E1)
2007 Mar 9, Brad Delp (55), lead
singer of the rock band Boston, died at his home in New Hampshire. The
group’s self-titled debut album in 1976 was one of the fastest selling
I rock history.
(SSFC, 3/11/07, p.B6)
2007 Mar 12, R.E.M. and Van Halen
were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
(AP, 3/12/08)
2007 May 15, Kenny Chesney
collected his third consecutive entertainer of the year trophy from the
Academy of Country Music.
(AP, 5/15/08)
2007 Jun 18, Hank Medress (68),
singer, died in Manhattan of lung cancer. His vocals with the doo wop
group the Tokens helped propel their irrepressible single "The Lion
Sleeps Tonight" to the top of the charts in 1961. He also produced hits
with other groups.
(AP, 6/23/07)
2007 Jun 26, A CD of the Russian
National Orchestra performing Dead Symphony No. 6: An Orchestral
Tribute to the Grateful Dead, was released in the US. The work was
directed by composer Lee Johnson.
(SFC, 6/27/07, p.E3)
2007 Jun 29, George McCorkle (60),
a founding member of the Marshall Tucker Band, died.
(AP, 6/29/08)
2007 Jul 4, Bill Pinkney (81), the
last survivor of the original members of the musical group The
Drifters, died.
(AP, 7/5/07)
2007 Jul 6, Australia kicked off a
round-the-world series of Live Earth music concerts designed to
highlight climate change with a traditional Aboriginal welcome
ceremony. Former US vice-president Al Gore appeared on video screens to
launch the worldwide initiative.
(AFP, 7/6/07)
2007 Jul 7, The 24-hour Live Earth
music marathon reached the Western Hemisphere with rappers, rockers and
country stars taking the stage at Live Earth concerts to fight climate
change.
(SSFC, 7/8/07, p.A4)(AP, 7/7/08)
2007 Aug 1, Tommy Maken (74),
Irish-American folk musician who performed for years with the Clancy
Brothers, died in Dover, NH.
(SFC, 8/4/07, p.B5)
2007 Aug 4, Lee Hazlewood
(b.1929), songwriter, died in Henderson, Nev. His songs included “These
Boots Are Made for Walkin’,” sung by Nancy Sinatra in 1966.
(SFC, 8/7/07,
p.D9)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lee_Hazlewood)
2007 Aug 25, SF held its 2nd
annual Jug Band Festival at the Golden Gate Park band shell.
(eyewitness)
2007 Aug 25, In Germany more than
1 million revelers, many scantily dressed, danced their way through the
streets of Essen to sound of whistles blowing and techno music for the
Love Parade's debut in its new home, western Germany's industrial Ruhr
region.
(AP, 8/25/07)
2007 Sep 9, In the 2007 MTV Music
Video Awards the winners included: Video of the Year: Rihanna,
"Umbrella," featuring Jay-Z; Male Artist of the Year: Justin
Timberlake; Female Artist of the Year: Fergie. Britney Spears performed
her new single "Gimme More" in a much-criticized comeback attempt at
the event in Las Vegas.
(AP, 9/10/07)(AP, 9/9/08)
2007 Oct 18, Teenage pop star
Belinda (18), who starred in the Disney Channel's "Cheetah Girls 2,"
won the video of the year award at the MTV Video Music Awards Latin
America in Mexico City. The native of Madrid, Spain, who grew up in
Mexico, also won best solo artist.
(AP, 10/19/07)
2007 Oct 18, South African reggae
star Lucky Dube (43) was shot in an apparent carjacking attempt in
Johannesburg's southern Rosettenville suburb. He died as he tried to
drive away and crashed into a car and a tree. On Oct 21 police arrested
five men in the killing. His albums included “Rastas never Die” (1984)
and “Slave” (1987). In 2009 three men were sentenced to life in prison
for the botched carjacking and murder.
(AP, 10/19/07)(AP, 10/21/07)(Econ, 10/27/07,
p.102)(AP, 4/2/09)
2007 Oct 28,
Porter Wagoner (80), country singer, died. He was known for a
string of country hits in the '60s, perennial appearances at the Grand
Ole Opry in his trademark rhinestone suits, and for launching the
career of Dolly Parton. The Missouri-born Wagoner signed with RCA
Records in 1955 and joined the Opry in 1957. His syndicated TV show,
"The Porter Wagoner Show," ran for 21 years, beginning in 1960.
(AP, 10/29/07)
2007 Oct 31,
Physicists at UC Berkeley said they had produced the world’s
smallest radio out of a single carbon nanotube, 10,000 times thinner
than human hair. They had it play “Layla” by Derek and the Dominos and
said it could also function as a transmitter.
(SFC, 11/1/07, p.C1)
2007 Nov 6, Hank Thompson (82),
country singer, died in Texas of lung cancer. Between 1948 and 1975 he
had 29 songs in the top ten including “A Six Pack to Go” and “The Wild
Side of Life” (1952). Kitty Wells (b.1919) sang her 1952 Honky Tonk
Angels song, which was written by J.D. Miller in response to Thompson’s
Wild Side of Life.
(SFC, 11/9/07, p.B7)
2007 Nov 7, Kenny Chesney won as
entertainer of the year and Carrie Underwood won as best female
vocalist at the annual Country Music Association Awards in Nashville.
(SFC, 11/8/07, p.A2)
2007 Nov 8, Dominican
singer-songwriter Juan Luis Guerra swept the Latin Grammy Awards,
taking home five musical honors including album of the year, record of
the year and song of the year.
(AP, 11/8/08)
2007 Nov 18, MTV Arabia, an Arab
version of the pop-culture channel, began broadcasting from Dubai.
(AP, 11/18/08)(www.freemuse.org/sw29678.asp)
2007 Nov 25, Kevin Dubrow (52),
lead singer for the 1980s heavy metal band Quiet Riot, died in Las
Vegas from an accidental cocaine overdose.
(AP, 12/11/07)
2007 Dec 2, In Mexico Sergio
Gomez, lead performer for the top-selling group K-Paz de la Sierra, was
abducted, tortured and strangled to death. His body was found the next
day. A day earlier Zayda Pena of the group Zayda and the Guilty Ones
was killed execution-style at the hospital where she was recovering
from neck surgery for a shooting on Nov 30, in which 2 other people
were killed. Fears rose that singers, whether they have any links
to drug cartels or not, get routinely "adopted" by drug gangs, which
post Internet videos showing their members torturing and executing
rivals to soundtracks of popular tunes.
(AP, 12/5/07)(SFC, 12/5/07, p.E3)
2007 Dec 4, Pimp C (33), born as
Chad Butler, was found dead in an upscale hotel in Los Angeles. He had
spun searing tales of Texas street life into a key role in the rise of
Southern hip-hop.
(AP, 12/5/07)
2007 Dec 10, In London Led
Zeppelin performed their first full concert in nearly three decades.
Three surviving members, singer Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page and
bassist-keyboardist John Paul Jones, were joined by the late John
Bonham's son Jason on drums.
(AP, 12/11/07)
2007 Dec 10, American blues
guitarist "Philadelphia" Jerry Ricks (67), who mastered the sound of
the 1930s' Delta Blues, died in a clinic in Croatia.
(AP, 12/10/07)
2007 Dec 12, Ike Turner (b.1931),
R&B pioneer and former husband of Tina Turner, died due to a
cocaine overdose at his home outside San Diego. He presided over the
1951 recording of “Rocket 88,” frequently cited as the first rock ’n’
roll record. In 1966 Phil Spector produced “River Deep – Mountain High”
with Ike and Tina. The pair split in 1976. In 1989 Ike went to prison
on drug charges and was still there when he was inducted into the Rock
and Roll Hall of Fame in 1991.
(SFC, 12/13/07, p.B5)(Econ, 12/22/07, p.142)(SFC,
1/17/08, p.A7)
2007 Dec 16, Dan Fogelberg (56),
the singer and songwriter, died at his home in Maine after battling
prostate cancer. His hits "Leader of the Band" and "Same Old Lang Syne"
helped define the soft-rock era.
(AP, 12/17/07)
2007 Dec 20, Lydia Mendoza (91), a
pioneer of Mexican American music, died in San Antonio, Texas.
(SFC, 12/31/07, p.B7)
2007 Mick Brown authored “Tearing
Down the Wall of Sound: The Rise and Fall of Phil Spector. Spector was
arrested in 2003 for the murder of actress Lana Clarkson.
(SFC, 6/27/07, p.E1)
2007 Wilfrid Sheed authored “The
House That George Built: With a Little Help from Irving, Cole, and a
Crew of About Fifty,” a look back at the top tunesmiths of Tin Pan
Alley, Broadway and Hollywood.
(WSJ, 6/30/07, p.P6)
2007 MTV India, launched in 1996,
came to America.
(Econ, 1/2/10,
p.46)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MTV_India)
2008 Jan 4, Mort Garson (b.1983),
Canadian-born composer and arranger, died in SF. He co-wrote the 1963
hit “Our Day Will Come,” performed by Ruby and the Romantics. He also
fused the Moog synthesizer with orchestral music and composed music
that was used by CBS-TV in 1969 in film footage of NASA spaceflights as
Neil Armstrong stepped on the moon.
(SFC, 1/16/08, p.B9)
2008 Jan 19, John Stewart (68),
singer and songwriter, died in San Diego. He wrote the Monkees' hit
"Daydream Believer" and became a well-known figure in the 1960s folk
music revival as a member of The Kingston Trio.
(AP, 1/20/08)
2008 Jan 19, Andy Palacio (47),
Belize musician, died in Belize City. His 2007 album “Watina” was
acclaimed as one of the best world music releases of the year.
(SFC, 1/22/08, p.B5)
2008 Feb 4, Tata Guines (b.1930),
Cuban conga drummer, died. His six decade career helped popularize
Afro-Cuban rhythms worldwide.
(AP, 2/5/08)
2008 Feb 9, A stampede at an
Indonesian punk rock concert left 10 people dead and dozens more
injured, most of them teenagers.
(AP, 2/10/08)
2008 Feb 10, In the Grammy Awards
Amy Winehouse won five of the six awards for which she was nominated.
Album of the Year went to jazzman Herbie Hancock for his Joni Mitchell
tribute album. Barack Obama won best spoken word album for the audio
version of his book "The Audacity Of Hope: Thoughts On Reclaiming The
American Dream."
(AP, 2/11/08)
2008 Feb 26, Buddy Miles (60),
former drummer with Jimi Hendrix, Carlos Santana and other popular rock
musicians, died in Texas. Over his career he appeared in over 70 albums.
(SFC, 2/29/08, p.A2)
2008 Mar 15, Vytautas Kernagis
(57), popular Lithuanian singer, died of cancer.
(www.lzinios.lt/lt/2008-03-17.html)
2008 Mar 16, Ola Brunkert (62), a
former drummer for 1970s Swedish pop group ABBA, was found dead after
an apparent accident in his house in Mallorca. He first played with
ABBA on the group's first single, "People Need Love," and toured with
the band in 1977, 1979 and 1980.
(AP, 3/17/08)
2008 Mar 22, Israel Lopez, Cuban
bassist and composer known as “Cachao,” died in Miami. He is credited
with pioneering the mambo style of music (1937). In 1993 Andy Garcia, a
Cuban American actor, made a documentary of Cachao’s career.
(SSFC, 3/23/08, p.A2)
2008 Apr 17, Danny Federici (58),
the longtime keyboard player for Bruce Springsteen, died. His stylish
work helped define the E Street Band's sound on hits from "Hungry
Heart" through "The Rising."
(AP, 4/18/08)
2008 May 8, Eddy Arnold, country
singer, died, days short of his 90th birthday. His mellow baritone on
songs like "Make the World Go Away" made him one of the most successful
country singers in history.
(AP, 5/8/08)
2008 May 23, Utah Phillips
(b.1935), a seminal figure in American folk music, died of congestive
heart failure in Nevada City, California. Born Bruce Duncan Phillips in
Cleveland, Ohio, he had performed extensively and tirelessly for
audiences on two continents for 38 years.
(www.utahphillips.org/)
2008 May 24, Russia won the
Eurovision song contest in Belgrade with "Believe", sung by Dima Bilan,
giving an eastern European nation victory for the third time in five
years.
(AFP, 5/25/08)
2008 Jun 2, Bo Didley (b.1928),
rhythm and blues pioneer, died in Florida. He had been born as Ellas
Bates in McComb, Mississippi. His 1955 debut recording of “Bo Didley”
landed him a spot on the Ed Sullivan Show.
(SFC, 6/3/08, p.B5)
2008 Jun 29, Britain’s Glastonbury
music festival, begun in 1970, wrapped up with a double bill of golden
oldies following controversy over its first ever hip-hop headliner,
Jay-Z, and troubled star Amy Winehouse.
(AFP, 6/29/08)
2008 Jul 19, In Germany more than
1.5 million revelers danced through the streets of Dortmund at the
annual Love Parade techno music festival.
(AP, 7/19/08)
2008 Jul 28, Lebanese singer
Suzanne Tamim (30) was found stabbed and her throat slashed in Dubai.
On August 8 Egypt banned news coverage of the brutal slaying following
media reports in other papers that said a wealthy Egyptian businessman
ordered 3 men to carry out the killing. On Sep 2 Hisham Talaat
Moustafa, an Egyptian lawmaker and business tycoon, was arrested in the
death Tamim. He was accused of paying a former police officer $2
million to kill her. On May 21, 2009, Moustafa was sentenced to death
for ordering Tamim’s death. Former officer, Mohsen el-Sukkary, was also
convicted and sentenced to death.
(AP,
8/13/08)(www.allaboutjazz.com/php/news.php?id=21342)(AP, 9/2/08)(AP,
5/21/09)
2008 Aug 3, Lou Teicher (b.1924),
pianist, died in North Carolina. He was half of the popular piano duo
Ferrante & Teicher whose movie themes and love songs earned them
wide popularity in the 1960s. Together they recorded some 150 albums.
(SFC, 8/7/08, p.B5)
2008 Aug 10, Isaac Hayes (b.1942),
singer, died in Memphis. The baldheaded, baritone-voiced soul crooner
laid the groundwork for disco. His 1971 "Theme From Shaft" won both
Academy and Grammy awards.
(AP, 8/11/08)
2008 Aug 11, Don Helms (81), steel
guitarist, died in Nashville. Helms had played on over 100 Hank
Williams songs.
(SSFC, 8/17/08, p.B4)
2008 Aug 16, Dorival Caymmi
(b.1914), Brazilian composer, died. He had composed over 100 songs and
catapulted to fame when Carmen Miranda performed one of his songs in
1938.
(AP, 8/17/08)
2008 Aug 19, LeRoi Moore (46),
versatile saxophonist, died of complications from injuries he suffered
in an all-terrain vehicle accident. His signature staccato fused jazz
and funk overtones onto the eclectic sound of the Dave Matthews Band.
(AP, 8/20/08)
2008 Aug 19, Vietnamese
authorities freed British glam rocker Paul Gadd, aka Gary Glitter,
after nearly three years in prison on child molestation charges, then
moved immediately to deport him.
(AP, 8/19/08)(Econ, 8/36/08, p.36)
2008 Sep 1, Jerry Reed (71), US
singer and actor, died of complications from emphysema. He became a
good ol' boy actor in car chase movies like "Smokey and the Bandit."
(AP, 9/2/08)
2008 Sep 7, At the MTV Video Music
Awards on the show's 25th anniversary, the network threw its full
support behind Britney Spears' comeback. Spears won a leading three
awards, including video of the year for "Piece of Me."
(AP, 9/8/08)
2008 Sep 10, Ruedi Rymann (75), a
farmer and cheesemaker and renowned yodeler, died at his home in
Giswil, Switzerland. In 2007 Viewers of a Swiss television series
devoted to popular national music voted Rymann’s “Dr Schacher Seppli”
as the greatest Swiss hit of all.
(SFC, 10/9/08,
p.B8)(www.youtube.com/watch?v=fmsy6wA-T0o)
2008 Sep 15, Richard Wright (65),
a founding member of the rock group Pink Floyd, died. Pink Floyd's
spokesman, Doug Wright, who is not related to the artist, said Wright
died after a battle with cancer at his home in Britain. The band
released a series of commercially and critically successful albums
including 1973's "Dark Side of the Moon," which has sold more than 40
million copies.
(AP, 9/16/08)
2008 Sep 19, Former Blink-182
drummer Travis Barker and celebrity DJ AM were critically injured in a
fiery Learjet crash in South Carolina that killed four people just
before midnight.
(AP, 9/20/08)
2008 Sep 22, It was reported that
SanDisk, a maker of flash memory, was teaming with 4 top music labels
to roll out a new music medium based on its microSD cards, which would
feature pre-loaded albums and additional content and compete with the
declining CD market.
(SFC, 9/22/08, p.D1)
2008 Oct 17, Levi Stubbs (72),
Four Tops frontman, died. His dynamic and emotive voice drove such
Motown classics as "Reach Out (I'll Be There)" and "Baby I Need Your
Loving."
(AP, 10/17/08)
2008 Oct 19, Hal Kant (b.1931),
lawyer for the Grateful Dead (1971-2001), died in Reno, Nev. He led the
Grateful Dead to incorporate, making it one of the first rock bands to
offer health benefits and pensions.
(WSJ, 10/25/08, p.A4)
2008 Oct 19, Dee Dee Warwick (63),
a soul singer who won recognition for both her solo work and her
performances with her older sister Dionne Warwick, died in New Jersey.
(AP, 10/20/08)
2008 Oct 25, Muslim Magomayev
(66), an Azeri-born Soviet-era opera and pop singer, died in Moscow.
His fame was at its peak in the 1960s and 70s.
(AP, 10/25/08)
2008 Nov 10, Miriam Makeba
(b.1932), the South African folk singer and anti-apartheid activist
fondly known as "Mama Africa," died in southern Italy after performing
at a concert against organized crime.
(AP, 11/10/08)(SFC, 11/11/08, p.B5)
2008 Nov 12, Mitch Mitchell (61),
English drummer for the legendary Jimi Hendrix Experience of the 1960s
and the group's last surviving member, was found dead in his hotel room
in Portland, Oregon, the last stop on the West Coast part of a tour.
(AP, 11/13/08)(SFC, 11/13/08, p.B4)
2008 Nov 17, Guy Peellaert
(b.1934), Belgian painter and collagist, died. His work included the
book “Rock Dreams” (1974), published in collaboration with British rock
journalist Nik Cohn.
(SSFC, 11/23/08, p.B8)
2008 Nov 22, In Abuja, Nigeria,
MTV launched its first-ever music award program for Africa, with acts
from across the world's poorest continent nominated for prizes in the
capital.
(AP, 11/22/08)
2008 Dec 2, Odetta Holmes
(b.1930), African-American folk singer, died. Her fame peaked in 1963
when she marched with martin Luther King and performed for Pres.
Kennedy.
(SFC, 12/3/08, p.A4)
2008 Dec 15, A spokeswoman in
London said Madonna has settled her divorce with ex-husband Guy Ritchie
by parting with at least 50 million pounds ($76 million).
(AP, 12/16/08)
2008 Dec 28, Delaney Bramlett
(b.1939), singer, song writer and producer, died in Los Angeles. His
songs included “Let It Rain” (1969), which he wrote with Bonnie
Bramlett and Eric Clapton.
(SFC, 1/1/09,
p.B5)(www.songfacts.com/detail.php?id=1360)
2009 Jan 28, Billy Powell (56),
Lynyrd Skynyrd keyboard player, died in Florida. He played on such hits
as "Sweet Home Alabama" and survived the Oct 20, 1977, plane crash that
killed three band members.
(AP, 1/29/09)
2009 Feb 7, Molly Bee (1939),
country singer and TV and film star, died in San Diego County. Her
recordings included “I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus” (1952). She
worked on TV’s Pinky Lee Show and in the films “Chartroose Caboose”
(1960) and “The Young Swingers” (1963).
(SFC, 2/12/09, p.B4)
2009 Feb 8, Coldplay’s “Viva la
Vida” won the Grammy for song of the year. Robert Plant and Alison
Krauss' unorthodox partnership yielded rich rewards on Grammy night, as
the pair nabbed five awards for their haunting "Raising Sand,"
including record and album of the year honors.
(WSJ, 2/9/09, p.A1)(AP, 2/9/09)
2009 Feb 9, In Cuba Orlando
"Cachaito" Lopez (b.1933), considered the "heartbeat" of Cuba's
legendary Buena Vista Social Club for his internationally acclaimed
bass playing, died of complications from prostate surgery.
(AP, 2/9/09)
2009 Feb 11, Estelle Bennett (67),
one of the Ronettes, was found dead at her home in Englewood, N.J. She
was part of the singing trio whose 1963 hit "Be My Baby" epitomized the
famed "wall of sound" technique of its producer, Phil Spector.
(AP, 2/13/09)
2009 Feb 21, A South Korean
housewife broke a world record in marathon singing after crooning for
more than 76 hours without stopping at a Seoul karaoke bar.
(AFP, 2/21/09)
2009 Mar 8,
Country singer Hank Lochlin (b.1918) died at his home in Brewston,
Alabama. His 70 charted singles included “Send Me the Pillow You Dream
On” (1949 & 1958) and “Please Help Me, I’m Falling” (1960).
(SFC, 3/12/09, p.B6)
2009 Apr 13, In California a jury
found Phil Spector (69), former rock-n-roll producer, guilty of
second-degree murder in the 2003 shooting death of actress Lana
Clarkson (40).
(AP, 4/14/09)
2009 May 16, Norway’s
fiddle-wielding Alexander Rybak (23), dubbed 'Alexander the Great' by
Norwegian media, won a landslide victory in the Eurovision Song Contest
in Moscow for his song "Fairytale," gaining the most points in
Eurovision's 53-year history.
(AP, 5/17/09)
2009 May 29, Phil Spector (69),
former music producer, was sentenced in Los Angeles to 10 years to life
in prison for the 2003 murder of actress Lana Clarkson.
(SFC, 5/30/09, p.A4)
2009 May 30, Susan Boyle (48),
Scottish singing sensation, was been beaten in the televised finals of
"Britain's Got Talent," by the street dance group "Diversity," who
jumped, kicked and shook their way to victory against her. "Diversity"
mesmerized audiences with a frenetic but perfectly choreographed dance
routine.
(AP, 5/31/09)
2009 Jun 15, Virgin Media, the
cable TV operator owned by entrepreneur Richard Branson, launched a new
kind of music download subscription service with Universal, the world's
largest music company.
(AP, 6/15/09)
2009 Jun 18, Ali Akbar Khan (87),
Indian-born master of the 25-string Sarod, died at his home in San
Anselmo, Ca.
(SFC, 6/20/09, p.B3)
2009 Jun 25, Michael Jackson
(b.1958), pop superstar, died at age 50 in Los Angeles. His 1982 album,
"Thriller," is the best-selling album of all time, with an estimated 50
million copies sold worldwide. Jackson was awash in about $400 million
in debt and on the cusp of a final comeback after well over a decade of
scandal. On Aug 28 the office of the LA coroner confirmed that
Jackson’s death was ruled a homicide caused by a mixture of propofol
and lorazepam administered by Dr. Conrad Murray.
(AP, 6/26/09)(SFC, 6/26/09, p.A11)(SFC, 8/29/09,
p.A5)
2009 Jul 4, Drake Levin (b.1946),
blues guitarist and former lead guitarist for Paul Revere and the
Raiders, died of cancer in SF.
(SFC, 7/17/09, p.D5)
2009 Jul 31, A jury ordered Joel
Tenenbaum (b.1983), a student at Boston Univ., to pay damages of
$675,000 for sharing 30 songs over the Internet.
(Econ, 9/5/09, TQ
p.4)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joel_Tenenbaum)
2009 Aug 1, In Canada a fierce
thunderstorm caused an outdoor stage to collapse at the Big Valley
Jamboree in Camrose, a country music festival in central Alberta. One
person was killed and up to 40 others injured.
(AP, 8/2/09)
2009 Aug 13, Legendary guitarist
and inventor Les Paul (94), who pioneered the design of solid body
Gibson electric guitars that bore his name, died at a New York hospital
of complications from pneumonia. Paul was born as Lester William
Polsfuss in Waukesha, Wisconsin, on June 9, 1915. He created one of the
first solid-body electric guitars in 1941, but it took nearly 10 years
before he, working with Gibson Guitar Corp., perfected it.
(Reuters, 8/13/09)
2009 Aug 26, Ellie Greenwich
(b.1940), songwriter, died. Her string of hits in the 1960s included
“Da Doo Ron Ron” (1963), “Chapel of Love” (1964) and “Be My Baby”
(1963). Many of her songs were done in collaboration with producer Phil
Spector and her husband Jeff Barry.
(SFC, 8/28/09, p.D5)
2009 Aug 26, In Bucharest,
Romania, fans at first politely applauded the Roma performers sharing a
stage with Madonna. Then the pop star condemned widespread
discrimination against Roma, or Gypsies, and the cheers gave way to
jeers. Official Romanian data put the local Roma population at 500,000.
(AP, 8/27/09)
2009 Sep 11, Jim Carrol (60),
poet, addict and author, died in Manhattan following a heart attack.
His books included “Basketball Diaries” (1978), which was turned into a
1995 movie. His 1980 song “People who Died” became a punk classic.
(SFC, 9/16/09, p.D5)
2009 Sep 20, Cubans in their
multitudes flocked to sprawling Revolution Plaza for a massive open-air
"peace concert" headlined by Colombian rocker Juanes, an event
criticized by some Cuban-Americans who say the performers are lending
support to the island's communist government simply by showing up.
(AP, 9/20/09)
2009 Sep 21, Coca Cola chose the
hip-hop song “Wavin’ Flag” by Somali-born singer K’naan (31) as the
anthem for the coming World Cup in South Africa. Born Keynaan Warsame
in Somalia’s seaside capital, Mogadishu, he is now a citizen of Canada.
(www.thecoca-colacompany.com/presscenter/nr_20090921_fifa_world_cup.html)
2009 Oct 2, In San Francisco the
Hardly Strictly Bluegrass 9 free music festival, financed by investment
banker Warren Hellman. The 3 day event drew some 750,000 people.
(SSFC, 10/4/09, p.C2)(SFC, 10/6/09, p.C2)
2009 Oct 4, Mercedes Sosa (74),
Argentine singer, died. Her music was banned after the generals seized
power in 1976. She had released over 70 albums and turned the songs of
others into great anthems of the left.
(Econ, 10/10/09, p.42)
2009 Oct 10, Stephen Gately (33),
a singer with the Irish boy band Boyzone, died while visiting Spain’s
island of Mallorca. He made headlines a decade ago when he came out as
gay. An autopsy revealed that he died of excess fluid in his lungs due
to acute pulmonary edema.
(AP, 10/11/09)(AFP, 10/13/09)
2009 Oct 27, Four months after
Michael Jackson's death, red carpets were rolled out for 18
simultaneous screenings on five continents for "This Is It," culled
from more than 100 hours of footage taken from rehearsals for the pop
icon's comeback.
(AFP, 10/28/09)
2009 Oct 30, Norton Buffalo (58),
harmonica virtuoso and long time member of the Steve Miller Band, died
of cancer in Paradise, Ca.
(SFC, 11/2/09, p.C1)
2009 Nov 22, Country crossover
star Taylor Swift overshadowed the late Michael Jackson at the American
Music Awards, winning five prizes including artist of the year.
(AP, 11/23/09)
2009 Nov 27, Bess. L. Hawes
(b.1921), co-writer of the political whimsical hit “Charlie on the
MTA’’ (1948), died in Portland, Ore. The song became a big hit for the
Kingston Trio in 1959.
(http://tinyurl.com/ygtrqh8)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bess_Lomax_Hawes)
2009 Dec 7, Rick Hendricks (54),
SF-based composer and steel guitar player, passed away of brain cancer
as a huge gathering of the musical cohorts and many friends assembled
at the Amnesia club, San Francisco's home of bluegrass and roots music,
on Valencia Street.
(www.cbaontheweb.org/read.asp?messageid=39821&search)
2009 Dec 25, Vic Chestnutt
(b.1964), singer and songwriter, died in Athens, Georgia, following an
intentional overdose. He had been paralyzed in a 1983 car accident, but
retained limited use of his arms and hands.
(SSFC, 12/27/09, p.C8)
2009 Jack Boulware and Silke Tudor
authored “Gimme Something Better: The Profound, Progressive, and
Occasionally Pointless History of Bay Area Punk From Dead Kennedys to
green Day.”
(SSFC, 9/27/09, Books p.F1)
2009 Barney Hoskyns, British music
writer, authored “Lowside of the Road: A Life of Tom Waits.”
(SSFC, 5/31/09, p.J4)
2009 In Kinshasa, Congo, the music
group Staff Benda Bilili, all victims of polio, released their first
album entitled “Tres, Tres Fort.”
(Econ, 10/3/09,
p.60)(www.crammed.be/staffbendabilili/)
2010 Jan 13, R&B singer Teddy
Pendergrass (b.1950) died of colon cancer in suburban Philadelphia. He
was one of the most electric and successful figures in music until a
1982 car crash left him in a wheelchair.
(AP, 1/14/10)
2010 Jan 18, Kate McGarrigle (63),
Canadian folk singer, died of cancer at her home in Montreal. She
performed with her sister Anna as the McGarrigle Sisters. Their songs
included “Heart Like a Wheel.”
(SFC, 1/20/10, p.C7)
2010 Jan 31, Beyonce, pop's
reigning diva, earned six Grammys, more than any woman on a single
night of the 52-year-old awards show.
(AP, 2/1/10)
2010 Feb 14, Doug Fieger (57),
leader of the power pop band The Knack, died in southern California. He
sang on the 1979 hit "My Sharona." Fieger, a Detroit-area native,
formed The Knack in Los Angeles in 1978.
(AP, 2/15/10)
2010 Mar 17, Alex Chilton (59),
singer and guitarist, died in New Orleans. His song “The Letter”
(“Gimme a ticket for an airplane…”) reached the top of the charts in
1967.
(SFC, 3/19/10, p.C5)
2010 Mar 23, Jim Marshall
(b.1936), legendary rock and roll photographer, died in a NYC hotel.
(SFC, 3/25/10, p.A1)
2010 Apr 8, Malcolm McLaren (64),
the former British manager of the Sex Pistols, died in
Switzerland. McLaren was a seminal figure of the punk rock era.
(SFC, 4/9/10, p.C7)
2010 Apr 13, Somali radio stations
stopped playing music after hardline militants called it un-Islamic and
ordered stations to take songs off the air. Somalis in Mogadishu could
still listen to music on two stations: one that the government controls
and another funded by the UN.
(AP, 4/13/10)
2010 Apr 20, Two Somali radio
stations said the government has ordered them to close for obeying a
week-old order by an Islamic militant group to stop playing music.
Officials at Somaliweyn and Tusmo radio stations said they won't obey
the government order to resume playing music and shut down.
(AP, 4/20/10)
2010 May 7, Dave Fisher (b.1940),
lead singer for the Highwaymen folk group, died at his home in Rye, NY.
In 1958 Fisher connected with Bob Burnett, Steve Butts, Chan Daniels
and Steve Trott, at Wesleyan Univ. in Connecticut to form the Clansmen,
a name they picked for the Irish and Scottish folk music influences
they drew upon. As soon as their music started to build a following in
the Northeast, their manager came up with the name the Highwaymen, a
nod to the early 20th century poem by Alfred Noyes. Their hit songs
included “Michael” (1961), “Cotton Fields” (1962), written by blues
musician Huddie Ledbetter, and its reverse side “The Gypsy Rover.” The
group disbanded in 1964.
(www.nytimes.com/2010/05/13/arts/music/13fisher.html)
2010 May 29, The 55th annual
Eurovision song competition was expected to be watched by more than 120
million viewers in 39 European countries as well as in Burma, Australia
and New Zealand. Norway's public broadcaster NRK spent 200 million
kroner (25 million euros, 30 million dollars) to host the show.
(AFP, 5/29/10)
2010 Jul 10, In Jamaica Sugar
Minott (b.1956), a smooth-voiced singer and producer who helped to
popularize reggae music, died.
(AP, 7/11/10)
2010 Aug 3, Time magazine reported
on that Haitian-American music star Wyclef Jean (37) will announce his
bid for president of earthquake-ravaged Haiti this week. A three-time
Grammy award-winner, Jean was a founding member of the hip-hop trio The
Fugees and won wider fame for his collaboration with Colombian pop star
Shakira. He released a song two years ago called "If I Was President".
Haiti’s ruling Unity party nominated ousted ex-Prime Minister
Jacques-Edouard Alexis to lead the earthquake-ravaged nation.
(Reuters, 8/4/10)(AP, 8/4/10)
2010 Philip Ball authored “The
Music Instinct: How Music works and Why We Can’t Do Without It.”
(Econ, 2/6/10, p.90)
2010 Alice Echols authored “Hot
Stuff: Disco and the Remaking of Popular Culture.”
(SSFC, 4/4/10, p.G1)
Go to http://www.timelinesdb.com
Subject = Pop&Rock
End of file