Today in 1961, the Beatles made their debut as the house band of the Cavern Club in Liverpool, before they had recorded music of their own creation.
Birthdays start with Edward Pattern, one of Gladys Knight’s Pips …
… born one year before Doris Kenner of the Shirelles:
Today in 1964, the Beatles’ “A Hard Day’s Night” went to number one and stayed there for longer than a hard day’s night — two weeks:
If you are of my age, this was a big moment in 1981:
Today in 1964, a Rolling Stones concert in Ireland was stopped due to a riot, 12 minutes after the concert began.
Today in 1966, Alabamans burned Beatles products in protest of John Lennon’s remark that the Beatles were “bigger than Jesus.” The irony was that several years earlier, Lennon met Paul McCartney at a church dinner.
The number one album today in 1973 …
… was the number one selling rock box set until 1986, and remains the best selling four-album set of all time.
We begin with our National Anthem, which officially became our National Anthem today in 1931:
Today in 1958, a study by Esso (formerly one of the bazillion Standard Oil companies, now ExxonMobil) reported that drivers drove faster and therefore waste more gas when listening to rock music.
If a driver wastes (however you define that) gas, the oil companies sell more gasoline. It’s unclear to me why the oil companies would consider that to be a bad thing, particularly in the 1950s when cars got all of 12 or so mpg.
Today in 1968, Sly and the Family Stone failed to appear at a free concert in Chicago.
A riot ensued.
Today in 1977, John Lennon did not get instant karma, but he did get a green card to become a permanent resident, five years after the federal government (that is, Richard Nixon) sought to deport him. So can you imagine who played mind games on whom?
Today in 1965, the Rolling Stones were to release “Beggar’s Banquet,” except that the record label decided that the original cover …
… was inappropriate, and substituted …
… angering one member of the band on his birthday.
The number one single …
… and album today in 1975:
Today in 1964, the Beatles’ “A Hard Day’s Night” hit number one and stayed there for 14 weeks:
Today in 1965, Bob Dylan took the stage at the Newport Folk Festival and played with the Paul Butterfield Blues Band. The controversy was that Dylan played electric, not acoustic, guitar.
Contrary to myth, Dylan didn’t leave after three songs because he was upset at the crowd’s reaction. Dylan left after three songs because those were the only songs the band knew. He did return to play two acoustic songs at the behest of Peter, Paul and Mary.
Today in 1969, Crosby, Stills and Nash performed at the Fillmore in San Francisco.
The band asked Neil Young to join them at the end of the concert, and liked the result so much they asked him to join the band.
Young joined, then quit, then rejoined, then quit. (I am told by someone more conversant than me with CSNY that Young didn’t like merely being a member of the group.)
Today in 1964, a member of the audience at a Rolling Stones concert in the Empress Ballroom in Blackpool, England, spat upon guitarist Brian Jones, sparking a riot that injured 30 fans and two police officers.
The Stones were banned from performing in Blackpool until 2008.
Today in 1965, Bob Dylan released “Like a Rolling Stone,” which is not like said Rolling Stones:
Today in 1967, the Beatles and other celebrities took out a full-page ad in the London Times calling for the legalization of …
… marijuana.
Steve Prestegard.com: The Presteblog 