The number one single today in 1961 was based on the Italian song “Return to Sorrento” …

… on which was also based:

Today in 1964, the Beatles appeared on the BBC’s “Ready Steady Go!”

During the show, Billboard magazine presented an award for the Beatles’ having the top three singles of that week.

Today in 1968, Eric Clapton, Neil Young, Richie Furay and Jim Messina were all arrested by Los Angeles police not for possession of …

… but for being at a place where marijuana use was suspected.

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Today in 1965, Britain’s Tailor and Cutter Magazine ran a column asking the Rolling Stones to start wearing ties. The magazine claimed that their male fans’ emulating the Stones’ refusal to wear ties was threatening financial ruin for tiemakers.

To that, Mick Jagger replied:

“The trouble with a tie is that it could dangle in the soup. It is also something extra to which a fan can hang when you are trying to get in and out of a theater.”

Jagger is a graduate of the London School of Economics. Smart guy.

Today in 1974, Jefferson Airplane …

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Today in 1965, the members of the Rolling Stones were fined £5 for urinating in a public place, specifically a gas station after a concert in Romford, England.

Today in 1967, Britain’s New Musical Express magazine announced that Steve Winwood, formerly of the Spencer Davis Group, was forming a group with the rock and roll stew of Jim Capaldi, Chris Wood and Dave Mason, to be called Traffic …

… which made rock fans glad.

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This being St. Patrick’s Day, we should have a bit o’ the Irish, including a video I first watched while eating corned beef at an Irish bar in Cuba City today in 1993 …

… plus Van Morrison …

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The number one British single today in 1959:

Today in 1964, the Beatles set a record for advance sales, even though with 2.1 million sales the group would argue …

The number one single today in 1967:

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Since today is the Ides (Ide?) of March, let’s begin with the Ides of March …

… an outstanding example of brass rock.

Today in 1955, Elvis Presley signed a management contract with Andreas Cornelis van Kuijk, an illegal immigrant from the Netherlands who named himself Colonel Tom Parker.

The number two single that day:

The number one British album today in 1969 was Cream’s “Goodbye,” which was, duh, their last album:

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The texting shorthand term “smh” (“shakes my head”) didn’t exist in 1955 because texting didn’t exist in 1955.

But surely “smh” was invented for things like this: Today in 1955, CBS talent scout Arthur Godfrey made a signing decision between Elvis Presley and Pat Boone.

Godfrey chose Boone.

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The number one single on both sides of the Atlantic today in 1960:

Today in 1965, Eric Clapton quit the Yardbirds because he wanted to continue playing the blues, while the other members wanted to sell records, as in …

The number one single today in 1965:

Today in 1967, the Beatles hired Sounds, Inc. for horn work:

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The number one single today in 1966 (which means that it predated the movie by two years):

The Beatles had an interesting day today in 1969. Paul McCartney married Linda Eastman …

… while George Harrison and wife Patti Boyd were arrested on charges of possessing 120 marijuana joints.

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The number one British single today in 1965:

The number one single today in 1967:

Today in 1968, this song went gold after its singer died in a plane crash in Lake Monona in Madison:

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