Category: Music

The number 14 single today in 1958 was this singer’s first entry on the charts, and certainly not his last:

Today in 1967, the Beatles’ “Hello Goodbye” promotional film (now called a “video”) was shown on CBS-TV’s Ed Sullivan Show. It was not shown in Britain because of a musicians’ union ban on miming:

One death of odd note, today in 1973: John Rostill, former bass player with the Shadows (with which Cliff Richard got his start), was electrocuted in his home recording studio. A newspaper headline read: “Pop musician dies; guitar apparent cause.”

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Today in 1969, John Lennon returned his Member of the Order of the British Empire medal as, in his accompanying note,  “a protest against Britain’s involvement in the Nigeria-Biafra thing, against our support of America in Vietnam and against ‘Cold Turkey’ slipping down the charts.”

The number one single today in 1972 should have been part of my blog about the worst music of all time:

Today in 1976, The Band gave its last performance, commemorated in Martin Scorsese’s film “The Last Waltz”:

The only birthday worth mentioning today is Percy Sledge:

There is no record I can find for the specific birthday, other than November, for Dennis Coffey. But Coffey wrote a ’70s instrumental that deserves his mention sometime this month:

One death of odd note today in 1974: Nick Drake, a 26-year-old singer/songwriter, of an overdose of an antidepressant. Two years before his death, Drake recorded an album, “Pink Moon,” that is apparently considered a classic in Britain. Twenty-six years after Drake’s death, Volkswagen used the title track, “Pink Moon,” in a TV ad, and within a month Drake had posthumously sold more records than he sold in the previous 30 years.

The number one single today in 1968:

The number one single today in 1973:

The number one British single today in 1976:

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Today in 1899, the world’s first jukebox was installed at the Palais Royal Hotel in San Francisco.

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Today in 1963, the Beatles released their second album, “With the Beatles,” in the United Kingdom.

That same day, Phil Spector released a Christmas album from his artists:

Given what else happened that day, you can imagine neither of those received much notice.

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The number one British single today in 1954:

Today in 1955, RCA Records purchased the recording contract of Elvis Presley from Sam Phillips for the unheard-of sum of $35,000.

The number one single today in 1960 holds the record for the shortest number one of all time:

The number one British single today in 1970 hit number one after the singer’s death earlier in the year:

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The number one British single today in 1955 …

… on the day Bo Diddley made his first appearance on CBS-TV’s Ed Sullivan Show. Diddley’s first appearance was his last because, instead of playing “Sixteen Tons,” Diddley played “Bo Diddley”:

The number one single today in 1965 could be said to be music to, or in, your ears:

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The Supremes became the first all-girl group with a British number-one single today in 1964:

The Supremes had our number one single two years later:

The number one album today in 1994 was Nirvana’s “MTV Unplugged in New York” …

… on the same day that David Crosby had a liver transplant to replace the original that was ruined by hepatitis C and considerable drug and alcohol use:

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Today in 1954, ABC Radio banned Rosemary Clooney’s “Mambo Italiano” for what it termed “offensive lyrics”  (decide for yourself):

The number one album today in 1978 was Billy Joel’s “52nd Street”:

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The number one single today in 1958:

The number one British single today in 1966:

The number one British single today in 1979:

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