1957: In response to several successful concerts and dance contests, Egypt bans rock and roll from public places and forbids the press from mentioning anything relating to as such; citing it as an “imperialistic plot,” and as a prime example of “Western degeneracy.”
1964: The British Invasion gets a taste of it’s own medicine when Roy Orbison becomes the first American to hit No. 1 in the U.K. in 47 weeks, scoring with his single, “It’s Over.”
1966:Neil Diamond makes his television debut, singing his hit, “Solitary Man,” on today’s broadcast of ABC-TV’s American Bandstand.
1966: Jackie Wilson’s performance tonight in a Port Arthur, Texas nightclub is so explosive, so effective in stirring up the crowd of 400, that he’s arrested for inciting a riot.
1967: The world’s first worldwide satellite broadcast entitled Our World, airs the live English portion of the program, as the Beatles introduce their new single, “All You Need Is Love.” Broadcast live from the Abbey Road Studios in London, it features the band singing and playing along to a per-recorded track. Joined in the studios as guests are Mick Jagger, Marianne Faithfull, Keith Richard, Eric Clapton, Keith Moon, Graham Nash and his wife, as well as others.
1970: The band Whole Oats, a duo consisting of Daryl Hall and John Oates, goes into the studios to record their first demo.
1977: Pink Floyd’s concert at Cleveland Stadium sets a single-concert record for attendance.
1980:Billy Joel becomes the first rock act to perform before 100,000 fans at the Madison Square Garden in New York City.
1984:Bruce Springsteen takes on a new backup singer named Patty Scialfa, who will eventually become his second wife after their affair leads up to the breakup of his first marriage to actress and model Julianne Phillips. Nine years later to the day, he becomes the last musical guest on the NBC-TV show Late Night With David Letterman.
2003:Boston’s mastermind, Tom Scholz, sues his record label for their failure to promote the band’s latest comeback album, ironically entitled, Corporate America.
2009: The music world is stunned when news is reported Michael Jackson died of cardiac arrest in his home in Los Angeles.
Deaths: 1975: Tim Buckley. 1988: Jimmy Soul. 2007: Hank Medress (The Tokens). 2009: Sky Saxton (The Seeds). 2009: Michael Jackson.
Recordings: 1961: “(Marie’s Her Name) His Latest Flame,” Elvis Presley. 1969: “Hot Fun In The Summertime,” Sly and the Family Stone. 1969: “(He Ain’t Heavy) He’s My Brother,” The Hollies.
Charts:1966: “Paperback Writer,” The Beatles, hit No. 1 on the charts. 1977: “Got To Give It Up,” by Marvin Gaye, hits No. 1.
Certifications: 1969:”These Eyes,” by the Guess Who, is certified gold by the RIAA.
And that’s just a few of the events which took place in pop music history, on this day…. JUNE 25.
Young teens Paul and John as the Quarrymen in 1957.
1957: Liverpool skiffle group the Quarrymen, later to morph into the Beatles, play their first major gig at a fete by performing on the back of a coal truck. Four years later to the day, the Beatles (with Pete Best on the drums) would have their first formal recording session, performing “My Bonnie,” and other numbers. The sessions, produced by Bert Kaempfert in Hamburg, Germany, also features “Ain’t She Sweet.”
1961:Elvis Presley’s seventh movie, a serious drama called Wild In The Country, opens nationwide in theaters across the country.
1964:Barbra Streisand signs a $200,000 ten-year contract with the CBS Television Network for a series of TV specials.
1968: The Jeff Beck Group makes it U.S. stage debut in New York’s Fillmore East Theater.
Bob Dylan and The Band: The Basement Tapes cover. (Click on image for larger view).
1968:Rolling Stone first reports on the existent of an unissued Bob Dylan album recorded with The Band during his extended convalescence at Woodstock, New York in 1967; it would finally see the light of day in 1975 as The Basement Tapes.
1975:Eric Clapton joins the Rollin Stones for a version of “Sympathy For The Devil” during the band’s Madison Square Garden concert in NYC.
1981:John Lennon’s murderer pleads guilty to his crime and is sentenced to 20 years to life in New York’s Attica State Prison. He has since been up for parole five times, and has been denied every time.
1988: Peter Tosh’s murderer, Dennis Lobban, is sentenced to hanging by a court in his native Jamaica. Lobban, who was known to Tosh, and two others had murdered the reggae star in his home the previous year after a failed robbery.
1990: Billy Joel performs a concert in Yankee Stadium, the first rocker ever to do so.
1996:Diana Ross’ brother, Motown songwriter Arthur Ross, is murdered along with his wife by two robbers in his home in Detroit.
Deaths:1969: Judy Garland.1990: Kripp Johnson (Del Vikings).
Recordings:1967: “How Can I Be Sure,” The Young Rascals.
Charts:1959: “I’m A Tiger,” Fabian; enters the charts. 1963: “Fingertips (Pt. 1),” Little Stevie Wonder; enters the charts. 1968: “This Guy’s In Love With You,” Herb Alpert hits No. 1 on the charts. 1974: ‘Sundown,’ LP; Gordon Lightfoot hits No. 1 on the album charts.
And that’s just a few of the events which took place in pop music history, on this day…. JUNE 22.
1962: As part of manager Brian Epstein’s plan to get the band wider exposure by having them open for established acts, the Beatles open for Bruce Chanel of “Hey Baby!” fame at the Tower Ballroom in New Brighton, England.
The Stones in 1966. (Click on image for larger view).
1966: The Rolling Stones sue fourteen New York City hotels who have refused to admit the band during their North American tour, disingenuously accusing them of “discrimination on account of national origin.”
1967: San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park celebrates the Summer Solstice with a free concert with entertainment by the Grateful Dead, Big Brother and the Holding Company, and Quicksilver Messenger Service.
1968: Influenced by the recent assassination of Robert F. Kennedy, Steve Binder, director of Elvis Presley upcoming NBC-TV special, asks musical director Bones Howe to write a “socially conscience” song for Elvis’ closing number, which had been slated to be the standard, “I’ll Be Home For Christmas.” Howe writes the replacement song, “If I Can Dream,” that afternoon; after hearing it a half-dozen times, Elvis agrees the end with it.
1970: Who guitarist Pete Townsend, while waiting for his flight in Memphis, likens the band’s latest album, Tommy, to the atomic bomb, causing officials who misheard the remark to search the facilities for a real bomb.
1973: The band Bread, already having decided to break up, play their last live gig ever in Salt Lake City after one of its tour trucks flips over and destroys most of its gear and sound equipment.
1975:Deep Purple guitarist Ritchie Blackmore leaves the rock band to form Rainbow.
1981: After a number of lawsuits, deaths, and accidents, the band Steely Dan break up, not to fully reform onstage until 2000.
1988: The Rascals reunite onstage for the first time since 1970.
1990:Little Richard is awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk Of Fame at 6840 Hollywood Blvd. in Los Angeles.
2003:Johnny Cash makes a surprise appearance live on stage in Hiltons, Virginia, near the birthplace of his recently-deceased wife June Carter Cash, saying “I don’t hardly know what to say tonight about being up here without her… the pain is so severe, there’s no way in describing it.”
2007: After dating her for a full eighteen years, Tony Bennett marries teacher Susan Crow.
Deaths: 1980: Bert Kaempfert; 2001: John Lee Hooker.
Releases: 1955: “Hey Porter,” Johnny Cash. 1958: “Splish Splash,” Bobby Darin.
Recordings:1961: “Take Good Care Of My Baby,” Bobby Vee. 1966: “She Said She Said,” Beatles. 1967: “He’s Your Uncle, Not Your Dad,” Elvis Presley. 1968: “Revolution 1,” Beatles. 1968: “It Hurts Me,” “Little Egypt,” “Trouble,” “Sometimes I Feel Like A Motherless Child, “Where Could I Go But To The Lord?,” Elvis Presley.
Charts:1975: “Love Will Keep Us Together,” Captain and Tennille hits No. 1.
Certifications: 1972: “Outta Space,” Billy Preston, is certified gold.
And that just a few of the events which took place in pop music history, on this day….
The Beatles “Butchered Cover” LP, Yesterday And Today; 1966.
1966: Capitol Records executives made the decision to replace the original “butcher cover” of the US album Yesterday And Today — which featured the Fab Four posing with decapitated dolls and raw meat, to the horror of Beatles fans and record retailers — with a more tranquil, traditional band pose for their new LP.
1968: At Hollywood’s Western Recorder, Elvis Presley records the song, “Nothingville,” “Let Yourself Go,” Guitar Man,” and “Big Boss Man.” He will use these as guides for his upcoming NBC prime-time “comeback” television special.
1969: Northridge, California host the Newport Rock Festival, featuring Creedence Clearwater Revival, The Rascals, Ike & Tina Turner,Steppenwolf, Joe Cocker, Jethro Tull and Jimi Hendrix, whose $125,000 fee is the highest ever paid to a rock act for one show.
1972: The Tallahatchie Bridge in Sidon, Mississippi, made famous by Bobbi Gentry’s “Ode To Billie Joe,” collapses. Today, motorists uses the newer bridge on County Road 512 to cross over the river.
1973:American Bandstand airs it’s 20th anniversary special on ABC-TV, featuring Little Richard, Paul Revere & The Raiders, Three Dog Night, Johnny Mathis, Annette Funicello, and Cheech and Chong. The special also features the first appearance of his many huge “all- star” rock jams.
1981: A disco medley of oldies hits called “Stars On 45” hits No. 1 in the U.S., becoming a national phenomenon. The medley, which originated in Dutch dance clubs, begins with re-creations of the Shocking Blue’s “Venus,” and The Archies’ “Sugar Sugar,” before segueing into an expert mimic of early Beatles hits.
Paul McCartney performed live in concert in St. Petersburg, Russia, 2004. (Click on image for large view).
1983: Twang king guitarist Duane Eddy performs his first concert in fifteen years with a show in San Francisco.
1987: Teddy Pendergrass marries his first and only wife, Karen Still.
1994: Beatles fans learn that the three surviving members of the group are working on a “new” song for their upcoming Anthology projects, as they overdub themselves onto a 1970s John Lennon demo-song titled, “Free As A Bird.”
1995: A Los Angeles judge ruled that the Kingsmen, and not their label Scepter, are sole owners of their 1963 smash hit, “Louie Louie,” and are entitled to royalties due the band (from the record label) the court ruled in the final judgment.
2004:Paul McCartney plays his 3,000 professional concert, performing in the Palace Square in St. Petersburg, Russia.
2008: Surrey University in England awarded Led Zeppelin’s Jimmy Page an honorary Doctorate in Music.
Deaths:Bruce Tate, The Penguins; 1973. Lawrence Payton, The Four Tops; 1994. Claydes Charles Smith, Kool & The Gang; 2006.
Releases:Bob Dylan with The Band, “Before The Flood,” 1974.
Recordings:1955: The Four Lads, “Moments To Remember.” 1962: Ricky Nelson, “Teenage Idol.” 1967: The Buckinghams, “Susan” and “Hey Baby They’re Playing Our Song.” 1968: Beatles, “Revolution 9.” 1969: David Bowie, “Space Oddity.”
And that’s just a few of the events which took place in pop music history, on this day…. JUNE 20.
Buddy Holly circa 1958. (Click on image for larger view).
1958: Buddy Holly records his first solo songs, “Early In The Morning,” and “Now We’re One,” at Decca’s Pythian Temple Studios in New York City.
1960: At the height of the folk-music boom, the Kingston Trio premiered their own self-titled weekday show on the CBS Radio Network.
1963: For the first time, Ringo Starr uses his new Ludwig drum set, complete with the famous Beatles logo onstage as the group performs at the London Playhouse Theater.
1965: The Kinks and the Moody Blues make their U.S. stage debut in the same show, held at New York’s Academy of Music.
1967: Answering questions about a controversial interview he’d recently given to the Daily Mirror,Paul McCartney shocks the British public by admitting on BBC television that he had taken LSD four times.
1973: A strange musical ode to sci-fi and fifties kitsch starring Tim Curry, The Rocky Horror Picture Show, opens as a stage show at the Royal Court’s Theater Upstairs in London.
1973: Roberta Flack’s first (and last) television special, Roberta Flack… The First Time Ever, also starring the Blossoms and Seals and Croft, airs on ABC Television.
Fan pandemonium at a 1976 Bay City Rollers concert at Chicago’s Uptown Theater. (Click on image for larger view).
1976: “Rollermania” hits the U.S. as the Bay City Rollers begin their first-ever American tour with a concert in Atlanta City.
1980:David Geffen’s new self-titled record label signs it’s first artist, disco diva Donna Summers.
2000: At Bob Dylan’s concert in Portland, Oregon, British sign-language expert Professor Patrick Ladd “signs” the folk-rocker’s lyrics for the hearing impaired.
2009: North Wilkesboro, NC, holds a festival in honor of their late great native son, singer Oliver of “Good Morning Sunshine” fame.
Deaths:Bobby Helms; 1997.
Releases:“Long Tall Sally,” by the Beatles; U.K.
Recordings:1961: “You Must Have Been A Beautiful Baby,” Bobby Darin. 1962: “Ramblin’ Rose,” Nat King Cole. 1967: “All You Need Is Love,” Beatles.
Charts:1961: “Moody River,” by Pat Boone hits No. 1. 1965: “I Can’t Help Myself (Sugar Pie Honey Bunch) by The Four Tops hit No. 1. 1965: “You Turn Me On,” by Ian Whitcomb enters the charts. 1971: “It’s Too Late,” by Carole King hits No. 1.
Certifications:1973: The Edgar Winter Group’s “Frankenstein” certified gold by the RIAA.
And that’s just a few of the events which took place in pop music history, on this day…. JUNE 19.
1966: The No. 1 song on the R&B charts is “Hold On, I’m Coming,” by Sam and Dave.
Jimi Hendrix torches his Fender guitar after his set-performance at the 1967 Monterey Pop Music Festival (Click on image for larger view)
1967: After wresting the coveted closing spot for the Who, Jimi Hendrix wows concert-goers at the Monterey Pop Music Festival by setting his guitar on fire during his performance.
1967: Apple Records is formed.
1974: Rare Earth drummer (also lead singer for the band) Peter Hoorelbeke is arrested for throwing his drumsticks into the crowd at the end of the band’s concert.
1975:Elvis Presley enters Memphis’ Mid-South Hospital, ostensibly for an “extensive eye-examination;” reports persist, however, that the King is actually having his ‘crow’s feet’ removed from his aging face.
1987: After only two years of marriage, Bruce Springsteen is separated from his first wife, model and actress Julianne Phillips.
1993: Having sold their label to Polygram three years earlier for a reported $500,000 million dollars, A&M Records founder Herb Alpert and Jerry Moss announce their intention to leave the company entirely. Begun in 1962, A&M was one of the first artist-owned labels, and the first successful independent label.
The A&M Records logo
2002: Billy Joel is admitted to Connecticut’s Silver Hill Hospital for ten days in order to control his commonly known compulsive and habitual-drinking problems.
2004: Ray Charles’ funeral is held in Los Angeles at the First AME Church, featuring performances by Stevie Wonder, Glen Campbell, Wynton Marsalis and Willie Nelson.Non-performing attendees included Little Richard, Clint Eastwood, and Berry Gordy, Jr.
Birthdays: 1942: Paul McCartney (The Beatles, Wings); 1942: Carl Radle (Derek and the Dominoes); 1942: Richard Perry; 1947: Sandy Posey; 1952: Ricky Gazda (Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes); 1953: Jerome Smith (KC and the Sunshine Band)
Deaths:Danny Cedrone (Bill Haley and the Comets), 1954; Hank Medress (The Tokens); 2007.
Recordings:1958: “Stupid Cupid,” Connie Francis; 1959: “I Want To Walk You Home,” Fats Domino.
Charts: Fleetwood Mac’s “Dreams” hits No. 1 on the charts. James Taylor’s “Handy Man” enters the charts.
Certification: Electric Light Orchestra’s ‘OLE ELO’ (LP); certified gold by the RIAA.
And that’s just a few of the events which took place in pop music history, on this day . . . . J U N E 1 8.
1956: Vee-Jay Records announces it has signed the legendary R&B doo-wop group Sonny Til and the Orioles to it’s label.
1960: Billboard magazine report that Detroit’s own Berry Gordy plans to create three record labels, including one called Motown.
Tony Bennett, photographed rehearsing “I Left My Heart In San Francisco” at Columbia Records in 1962. (Click on image for larger view).
1963: At this year’s Grammy Awards ceremony in Los Angeles, Tony Bennett’s “I left My Heart In San Francisco” wins Record Of The Year and Best Male Vocal honors, while Ray Charles win the Best R&B Recording with “I Can’t Stop Loving You.” In a strange twist after all considerations, Bent Fabric wins in the Best Rock And Roll Record with their instrumental hit, “Alley Cat.”
1965: The Rolling Stones limo is mobbed and attacked by female fans on their way back to their motel after a concert in Long Beach, California. Reports indicated that numerous females were seen standing on the roof in numbers causing the roof to cave-in. In desperation, while the band attempted to hold up the roof with their hands, the chauffeur accelerates the limo, leaving fans rolling off, bouncing off unto the road as they sped away.
1969: Jack Casady, bassist for the Jefferson Airplane, is arrested in New Orleans for possession of marijuana and is given a suspended sentence of 2.5 years.
1969: During a Who concert at the Fillmore East in New York, a plainclothes policeman rushes on stage to tell the audience a fire has broken out, but guitarist Pete Townsend, thinking out he must be a rabid fan, kicks him off the stage instead. Literally. Townsend is arrested on stage and is fined $30.00 for his spontaneous derelict reaction.
Bachman Turner Overdrive; Randy Bachman, top right.
1970: Randy Bachman leaves the Guess Who to produce an album for Winnipeg band Brave Belt, which he eventually joins. At the suggestion of Neil Young, Bachman recruits fellow Winnipeg bassist and vocalist C. F. Turner, and the band Bachman-Turner Overdrive is born.
1970: Marty Balin of the Jefferson Airplane is arrested in his Bloomington, MN. hotel, after police, responding to a noise complaint call, find the singer smoking marijuana and having sex with teenage girls. His sentence is eventually reduced to a small fine.
1975: Tonight’s showing of NBC-TV’s The Midnight Special is a retro-tribute hosted by Chubby Checker and features musical-performances by Bo Diddley, The Drifters, The Angels, Lesley Gore, The Tymes, and Danny and the Juniors.
Dayton’s very own funksters, The Ohio Players, in the mid-1970s.
1976: Mayor James H. McGee declares today “Ohio Players Day” in the band’s hometown of Dayton, Ohio.
1980: The Carpenters hosts their last television special, Music, Music, Music which airs on ABC-TV.
1980: Brian May of Queen collapses onstage during a concert and is rushed to the hospital, where he is diagnosed (for the second time) with hepatitis.
1980: Elvis Presley’s personal doctor, George Nichopoulous, is brought before the Memphis medical board and is officially charged with 14-counts of abusing his right to prescribe medication. Though he will be acquitted in November, his case will be reopened twelve-years later, when his license will be revoked.
1983: The Temptations and the Four Tops made their appearances on Motown’s 25th anniversary special, and Smokey Robinson and the Miracles are re-united for the show, which aired on NBC-TV. The Supremes (Diana Ross, Mary Wilson, Cindy Birdsong) also reunited for the event, and sang, appropriately, “Someday We’ll Be Together.” Stevie Wonder also performed, singing “You Are The Sunshine Of My Life.”
1985: Manager Ken Kragen — who developed the idea for the We Are The World Recording project to raise money for Africa Hunger Relief — was handed a check for $6.5 million dollars in royalties from Columbia Records President Al Teller. The song’s merchandising rights and album would go on to raise in excess of $50 million.
Johnny Paycheck peering behind bars after being jailed for shooting a man in 1986. Notice this photo looks like it was an LP cover, circle looks like an album ring. (Click on image for larger view).
1986: Johnny Paycheck is convicted of shooting a man when a misunderstanding occurring inside a bar in Hillsboro, OH. The fan was only grazed by the bullet, and Paycheck is pardoned after serving a 22-month prison term.
1987: David Crosby marries his long-time Jan Dance in Los Angeles, with bandmate Stephen Stills giving away the bride and Graham Nash renewing his vows with wife Susan.
1989: Janet Jackson is harassed by fans when she took a VIP tour of Universal Studios in Florida. Adding insult to injury, the fans believed they were hounding her brother Michael, while he was with the tour, was not recognized wearing a disguise.
1998: Keith Richards of the Rolling Stones reaches for several of his books of artistic nudes in his personal library at his home in Connecticut, falls from a ladder, breaks a few ribs, while forcing to band to cancel their upcoming scheduled tour.
2003: While undergoing dialysis, Barry White suffers a stroke, though his sister publicly claims he will perform again, it proves to be the end of White’s public life.
Recordings: Beatles: “Taxman,” “For No One.” Frank Sinatra: “Summer Wind.” Tony Joe White: “Polk Salad Annie.”
Charts: Bill Haley and His Comets: “Crazy, Man, Crazy” enters the charts, 1953; Mary Wells: “My Guy” hits No. 1. 1964; Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young’s LP, Deja Vu, hit No. 1 on the charts.
And that’s just a few of the events which took place in pop music history, on this day….
Five Beatles in 1960. Pete Best on drums. On the right, Stuart Sutcliffe wearing shades. (Click on image for larger view).
1960: A group from Liverpool named the Beatals (sic) changes it’s name to the Silver Beatles after local scenester Brian Cassner declares the first name ridiculous. The five-piece band — at this point includes Stu Sutcliffe on bass (and Tommy Moore on drums) audition to become singer Billy Fury’s backing group. though they don’t get the main gig, they do score backing up fellow Liverpudllian Tommy Quickly on a Scottish tour.
1963: The Rolling Stones recorded their first recordings for Decca Records, including the Chuck Berry cover “Come On,” but were all critically rejected by the label as significantly “dreadful.”
1964: Dusty Springfield makes her first U.S. television appearance on CBS-TV’s Ed Sullivan Show, singing “I Only Want To Be With You.”
1965: “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction” is recorded today by the Rolling Stones.
1965: The Beatles record two hits today, “Dizzy Miss Lizzie,” and Ringo sings lead in the second number, “Bad Boy.”
Janis Joplin performing at the Filmore East in March 1968. (Click on image for larger view).
1966: Struggling singer Janis Joplin, back home in her native Texas, is invited back out to San Francisco by her friend Chet Helms, who invites her to audition with a group he’s managing called Big Brother and Holding Company.
1968: Reacting to alleged abuse of concert attendees by the police, Doors bad-boy Jim Morrison incites a riot at the Chicago Coliseum.
1969: Tricia Nixon, daughter of the U.S. President, invites the Temptations and the Turtles to perform at a White House ball. For some apparent reason, Turtle guitarist Mark Volman keeps falling off the stage; rumors started to run amuck that he and several members (unamed) of the group allegedly snorted coke before the gig on Lincoln’s desk.
1972: Slade begins their first tour as headliners, performing at St. George’s Hall in Bradford with the Status Quo as the opening act.
1974: Eric Clapton records today, “I Shot The Sheriff.”
1974: The Main Ingredient is awarded a gold record by the RIAA for their million-seller, “Just Don’t Want To Be Lonely.”
The Commodores.
1974: Led Zeppelin launches their new record label, Swan Song, with a swank dinner at the Bel Air Hotel in Los Angeles that quickly resorts into a food fight.
1975: The Commodores “Slippery When Wet” charted, becoming their first top 40 hit at No. 19 and their first No. 1 R&B hit. The group began their carreer playing the club circuit, but unlike other acts, it wasn’t the local club circuit. The group made their start in French resorts like St. Tropez.
2004: Glen Campbell is sentenced to 10 days in jail after he pleads guilty for drunk driving and leaving the scene of an accident involving another vehicle the previous November in Phoenix. That’s him mugging a mean one on the left.
And that’s just a few of the events which took place in pop music history, on this day…. MAY 10.
1954: The BBC bans Johnny Ray’s latest single, “Such A Night,” from airplay due to it’s somewhat suggestive lyrics. It would later become a hit for Elvis Presley.
1961: Teen idol Ricky Nelson turns 21 and, eager to shed his teeny-bop image, changes his professional first name to “Rick,” which he would insist upon being called for the rest of his career.
1963: Chicago R&B great Major Lance records “The Monkey Time.”
1962: Beatles manager Brian Epstein, already discouraged somewhat from the Decca records rejection, runs into engineer Ted Huntley while at the HMV Record Store in London. Huntley suggest sending the bands’s demo to a producer at EMI by the name of George Martin.
George Martin with Brian Epstein at the Beatles’ EMI studio in 1966.
1967: During filming of what would become the documentary Don’t Look Back, Bob Dylan gets the idea to make a short film of his single, “Subterranean Homesick Blues,” featuring him standing in an alley next to London’s Savoy Hotel. The film features Dylan with the company of his two friends, Allen Ginsberg and Bob Neuwirth flipping cue cards with the lyrics of the Dylan song on them.
1967: Gerry and the Pacemakers, increasingly out of step with changing rock trends, announce their disbandment.
1969: The Beatles sign a contract making Allen Klein their manager (through his company ABKCO). Paul, pointedly, refuses to show up and sign the agreement, a decision that will eventually lead the group to dissolve as a band.
1972: Following promoter’s Sid Bernstein’s decision to reinvent Radio City Music Hall in New York as a rock venue, Billy Preston becomes the first rock performer to headline at the famous landmark.
1976: John Sabastian’s “Welcome Back” hits No. 1 on the Billboard chart.
1976: On stage during Bob Dylan’s Rolling Thunder Revue in Houston, Willie Nelson joins Dylan for a stirring rendition of the country standard, “Will The Circle Be Unbroken,” dedicated (as is the concert itself) to freeing wrongfully convicted ex-boxer Rubin “Hurricane” Carter from his murder sentence.
For refusing — fired — Radio One deejay Johnny Walker.
1976: BBC’s Radio One fires deejay Johnny Walker after he refuses to promote the teeny-bop group Bay City Rollers’ “Saturday Night” on the station.
1990: Tom Waits wins his $2.5 million lawsuit against snack giant Frito Lay for using a Waits “sound-alike” in a television commercial promoting their product.
1991: 55 year-old Rolling Stones’ bassist Bill Wyman divorces his second wife, 21 year-old model Mandy Smith, after three years of marriage.
1998: The three former Beatles, along with Yoko Ono, win an injunction stopping the re-release of the band’s live 1962 “Star Club” tapes, recorded in Hamburg at the famous venue.
2006: Apple Computers wins a long, long legal battle over rights to sell music over the internet without violating the trademark of the Beatles’ Apple label.
2006: Former MC5 bassist Michael Davis is badly injured in a motorcycle accident while riding in his hometown in Detroit, Michigan.
And that’s just a few of the events which took place in pop music history, on this day…. MAY 8
1955: Ray Charles breaks through with his first No. 1 R&B hit, “I’ve Got A Woman,” a revamped version from a gospel standard called, “It Must Be Jesus.”
1958: The Champs appear on Dick Clark’s American Bandstand and perform their No. 1 instrumental hit, “Tequila.”
The incredibly shrinking-Paul in Help! (Click on image for another view).
1965: At London’s Twickenham Studios, the Beatles film scene in Help! entitled “The Exciting Adventure of Paul On The Floor,” where a suddenly-shrunken Paul McCartney tries to hide his newly-naked body.
1966: Simon & Garfunkel’s “I Am A Rock” enters the charts.
1966: The Mamas and The Papas “Monday Monday” hits No. 1 on the Billboard chart.
1967: During Moscow’s May Day celebrations, several teens dance the twist in outright violation of the Ministry Of Culture’s orders against Western decadence.
1967: Breaking his self-imposed exile after a motorcycle accident the previous year, Bob Dylan gives his first post-crash interview to the New York Daily News.
1968: Singer-songwriter Reginald Dwight changes his name legally to Elton Hercules John, the first and last names taken from his former bandmates in Bluesology, Elton Dean and Long John Baldry.
1972: Tom Jones’ Special London Bridge Special, featuring the Carpenters and Engelbert Humperdinck and celebrities alike including Kirk Douglas to Charlton Heston, airs on the BBC.
1978: Bob Dylan’s upcoming series of concerts at London’s Wembley Empire sells out all 90,000 tickets in just under eight hours.
1982: Diana Ross is awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk Of Fame at 6712 Hollywood Blvd.
The Wicked Mr. Pickett lived up to his name with several drunken-driving arrests, as booked in his hometown Englewood, NJ, police dossier.
1991, In his hometown of Englewood, NJ, Wilson Pickett is arrested for insisting on driving over the lawn of his neighbor, Donald Aronson, who just happens to be the town’s mayor. After finding a knife and a baseball bat in his vehicle, attempted murder is added to the charges. Pickett is inexplicably let off with a charity concert and a years’ probation.
1991: Rolling Stone bassist Bill Wyman, 54, ends his two-year marriage to Mandy Smith, 21, whom he had begun dating at age 13. Despite in only spending two months total with Wyman during their marriage, she receives a settlement of $6.5 million.
2002: London authorities wrap up their four-month investigation of Who guitarist Pete Townsend, charged with downloading child-pornography in 1999. Townsend, who claimed he was researching a book he was writing about his own childhood sexual abuses, was not jailed but was placed on a national sex offender registry.
Deaths: Ron Wilson (The Surfaris), 1989; Eddie Rabbitt, 1998; Alphonso Howell (The Sensations), 1998; Rudy Maugeri (The Crew Cuts), 2004; Dave Fisher (The Highwaymen), 2004.
And that’s just a few of the events which took place in pop music history, on this day…. MAY 7.
From the MCRFB music calendar:
2003: Boston’s mastermind, Tom Scholz, sues his record label for their failure to promote the band’s latest comeback album, ironically entitled, Corporate America.
