Category: Music

Today in 1956, Elvis Presley had his first number one song:

Today in 1965, Ford Motor Co. began offering eight-track tape players in their cars. Since eight-track tape players for home audio weren’t available yet, car owners had to buy eight-track tapes at auto parts stores.

Today in 1970, Vice President Spiro Agnew said in a speech that the youth of America were being “brainwashed into a drug culture” by rock music, movies, books and underground newspapers.

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Today in 1968, ABC-TV premiered “The Archies,” created by the creator of the Monkees, Don Kirshner:

The number one single today in 1974 is a confession and correction:

Stevie Wonder had the number one album today in 1974, “Fulfillingness First Finale,” which wasn’t a finale at all:

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Britain’s number one song today in 1963, yeah, yeah, yeah:

Today in 1966, NBC-TV premiered a show about four Beatle-like musicians:

Britain’s number one song today in 1979:

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Today in 1962, the BBC banned playing the newly released “Monster Mash” by Bobby “Boris” Pickett on the grounds that it was offensive. To use today’s vernacular, really?

Eleven years later, the BBC banned the Rolling Stones’ “Star Star,” but if you play the clip you can hear why (really):

The Kinks had the number one song today in 1964:

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Today in 1956, Harry Belafonte’s “Calypso” went to number one for the next 31 weeks:

Today in 1965, Daily Variety included this ad:

Madness! Running parts for four Insane Boys age 17-21.

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Today in 1963, ABC-TV’s “American Bandstand” moved from every weekday afternoon in Philadelphia to Saturdays in California:

The number one album today in 1968 was the Doors’ “Waiting for the Sun,” their only number one album:

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The number one single in the U.K. todayyyyyyy in 19677777777 …

One yearrrrrr laterrrrrr, the Beatles recorded Eric Clapton’s guitar part for “While My Guitar Gently Weeps,” making him the first non-Beatle on a Beatle record:

The number one song in the U.S. today in 1975:

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