Today in 1969, Leslie West and Felix Pappalardi created Mountain:
Birthdays today start with Paul Williams of the Temptations:
Roy Bittan of the E Street Band, which played mostly, but not exclusively, with Bruce Springsteen:
Joey Puerta of Ambrosia:
Today in 1963, the Beatles recorded “She Loves You,” yeah, yeah, yeah:
Four years later, the Beatles’ “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band” reached number one, and stayed there for 15 weeks:
Here’s an odd anniversary: Four days after Cher divorced Sonny Bono, she married Gregg Allman. Come back to this blog in nine days to find out what happened next.
Birthdays start with Florence Ballard of the Supremes …
Today in 1957, Iran banned rock music, proclaiming that rock dancing was “harmful to health.” The ban stayed until the 1990s, which is surprising … that it was ever lifted. (I’m guessing it remains a de facto ban.)
Proving that there is no accounting for taste, here is the number 17 song today in 1968:
Today in 1967, Mick Jagger and Keith Richards were sentenced on drug charges. Jagger was sentenced to one year in jail and Richards to three months after marijuana residue was found in Richards’ apartment. After a public outcry that included a London Times column, Richards’ charges were dropped and Jagger’s sentence was reduced to probation.
Of course, you could replace “1967” with any year and Jagger’ and Richards’ names with practically any rock musician’s name of those days.
Or other people: Today in 2000, Eminem’s mother sued her son for defamation from the line “My mother smokes more dope than I do” from his “My Name Is.”
Birthdays start with LeRoy Anderson, whose first work was the theme music for many afternoon movies, but who is best known for his second work (with which I point out that Christmas is less than six months away):
Today in 1957, Jerry Lee Lewis made his U.S. television debut:
Today in 1965 may have been why videocassette recorders (the precursor to TiVos, for younger readers) were invented. On ABC, Dick Clark premiered “Where the Action Is …”
… while on CBS New York DJ Murray the K hosted “It’s What’s Happening Baby!”
Today in 1968, this song was certified gold:
The number one single today in 1969:
Today in 1975, David Bowie found “Fame”:
Today in 1978, the UN named Kansas ambassadors of goodwill:
Two birthdays today are from the same group: Drummer Bobby Harrison was born two years before bassist Dave Knights of Procol Harum:
For some reason, the Beatles’ “Sie Liebt Dich” got only to number 97 on the German charts:
The English translation did much better, yeah, yeah, yeah:
Today in 1968, Elvis Presley started taping his comeback special:
Today in 1989, The Who performed its rock opera “Tommy” at Radio City Music Hall in New York, their first complete performance of “Tommy” since 1972:
This would have never happened in Madison, but … in Milwaukee today in 1993, Don Henley dedicated “It’s Not Easy Being Green” to President Bill Clinton … and got booed.
My German side should appreciate this: Today in 1870, Richard Wagner premiered “Die Valkyrie”:
Today in 1964, the Beatles released their album “A Hard Day’s Night”:
Today in 1975, Sonny and Cher decided they got you babe no more — they divorced:
(Interestingly, at least to me: Sonny and Cher revived their CBS-TV show after their divorce. Also, Cher did a touching eulogy at Sonny Bono’s funeral.)
Today in 1957, Egypt banned rock and roll music, calling it “an imperialist plot” and an example of “Western degeneracy.”
Today in 1966, Neil Diamond made his first TV appearance, on ABC-TV’s “American Bandstand”:
There seems to be a blue theme today, starting with the first birthday, Harold Melvin, who had Blue Notes:
Carly Simon:
Proving that there is no accounting for taste, I present the number six song today in 1972:
Twenty years later, Billy Joel got an honorary diploma … from Hicksville High School in New York (where he attended but was one English credit short of graduating due to oversleeping the day of the final):
Today in 1956, perhaps the first traffic safety song, “Transfusion,” reached number eight:
The number one album today in 1962 was Ray Charles’ “Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music”:
Today in 1970, Chubby Checker and three passengers were arrested in Niagara Falls, N.Y., after police discover marijuana and “unidentified capsules” in the car. None of the four were charged, however.
Today in 1975 was not a good day for Alice Cooper, who broke six ribs after falling off a stage in Vancouver:
That same day, Jefferson Starship released its “Red Octopus,” the best selling album by Jefferson Airplane, or Jefferson Starship, or Starship:
Today in 1979, the Knack released “My Sharona” …
… the same day as the first meal of the day was the number one album:
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