Category: Music

Today in 1967, Jimi Hendrix released “Purple Haze”:

Three years later, Hendrix made his last concert appearance in Great Britain at the Isle of Wight Festival, which also featured, for your £3 ticket …

The number one song in the U.S. today in 1978 was a song in a style unlike the movie from whence it came:

Birthdays start with Maurice Williams, who asks you to …

Richard Cowsill of the Cowsills:

Dan Vickrey played guitar for the Counting Crows:

Adrian Young plays drums, No Doubt:

Finally, a musical death of note (get it?): Those who played in high school bands (which are starting up right about now) probably played at least one of the works of British composer Ralph Vaughan Williams, who died at 85 today in 1958:

Does anyone find it a bit creepy that the number one song in Great Britain today in 1957 is about Paul Anka’s brother’s babysitter?

Three years later, the number one single across the sea required no words:

Two years later, the number one U.S. single was a dance that was easier than learning your ABCs:

Today in 1963, Paul McCartney was fined £31 and given a one-year suspended sentence for speeding. One wonders if the judge said that you, Mr. McCartney, are …

Today in 1967, the number one single was about an event that supposedly occurred on my birthday:

Back in rock music transportation news, today in 1973, Butch Trucks, drummer for the Allman Brothers Band, crashed his car and broke his leg, not far from where bandmate Duane Allman was killed in a motorcycle crash:

That was the same day (probably unrelated) that McCartney’s Wings guitarist, Henry McCullough, left the band …

… and that Bobby Darin performed his last concert in Las Vegas, four months before his death following heart surgery …

… and that the U.S. singles chart was topped by a one-hit wonder:

The number one U.S. single today in 1979:

Birthdays today start with a non-rock figure who nonetheless is one of the great composers of the 20th century:

Walter Williams of the O’Jays:

Gene Simmons of Kiss:

Who is Declan Patrick McManus? You know him better as Elvis Costello:

Vivian Campbell played guitar for Dio, Whitesnake and Def Leppard:

Today in 1963, Little Stevie Wonder became the first artist to have the number one pop single and album and to lead the R&B charts with his “Twelve-Year-Old Genius”:

Today in 1974 the rock charts were topped by one of the more dubious number-one singles:

Today in 1990, at the beginning of Operation Desert Shield, Sinead O’Connor refused to sing if the National Anthem was performed before her concert at the Garden State Arts Plaza in Homdel, N.J. Radio stations respond by pulling O’Connor’s music from their airwaves.

That was the same day that Iron Maiden won a lawsuit from the families of two people who committed suicide, claiming that subliminal messages in the group’s “Stained Class” album drove them to kill themselves.

Birthdays start with Fontella Bass:

John Cipollina of Quicksilver Messenger Service, who played …

… with David Freiburg, who later played with Jefferson Airplane and Jefferson Starship:

Joe Chambers was one of the Chambers Brothers:

Mike Derosier was the first full-time drummer for Heart:

Jim Capaldi of Traffic:

Ken Hensley of Uriah Heep:

Mollie Duncan of the Average White Band:

Jim Fox, drummer of the James Gang:

Mark Bedford of Madness:

In 1969, these were the number one single …

… and album in the U.S.:

Today in 1973, the first Reading Festival began, featuring Eric Burdon, Traffic and Focus:

Today in 1975, Paul Kossoff, guitarist for Free, was revived from death after a heart attack. One wonders if after he was revived he said he was …

Had Kossoff been listening to the radio before or after his heart attack, he would have heard this as the number one single:

Today in 1980 began the Heatwave Festival in Toronto, featuring Elvis Costello, the Pretenders, the Talking Heads and the B52s:

Birthdays start with Rudy Lewis, one of the numerous leads of the Drifters:

Keith Moon of the Who:

Steve Clark of Def Leppard:

Dean DeLeo of the Stone Temple Pilots:

Today in 1964, the Supremes reached number one by wondering …

Today in 1968, the Beatles briefly broke up when Ringo Starr quit during recording of their “White Album.” Starr rejoined the group Sept. 3, but in the meantime the remaining trio recorded “Back in the USSR” with Paul McCartney on drums and John Lennon on bass:

Today in 1970, the number one album in the U.S. was Creedence Clearwater Revival’s “Cosmo’s Factory” …

… while across the pond number one was the Moody Blues’ “A Question of Balance”:

The number one album today in 1981 was Foreigner’s fourth album, called “4”:

The number one song today in 1987:

Birthdays today start with Dale Hawkins, who wrote a song CCR later recorded:

Ian Mitchell of the Bay City Rollers:

Debbie Peterson, who played drums for the Bangles …

… was born the same day as Roland Orazabal of Tears for Fears:

Layne Staley of Alice in Chains:

We begin with two forlorn non-music anniversaries. Today in 1897, Oldsmobile began operation, eventually to become a division of General Motors Corp. … but not anymore.

Imagine turning on your radio and finding out that the Soviet Union was invading your country. That’s what Radio Prague announced today in 1968.

Today in 1961,  Patsy Cline, using crutches after exiting a car through the windshield head first in a car crash, recorded Willie Nelson’s “Crazy”:

The Beatles had a busy day today in 1966. They performed a concert at Crosley Field in Cincinnati, rescheduled due to rain and the lack of grandstand cover. Then they flew to St. Louis to perform the regularly scheduled concert at Busch Stadium … in the rain. This day made Paul McCartney determine that the Beatles should not perform live anymore.

The number one song across the pond today in 1968:

Today in 1973, the Doobie Brothers’ “Toulouse Street” was named a gold record …

… as was the Allman Brothers’ “Brothers and Sisters”:

Musicians recognize today’s first birthday, Count Basie:

Kenny Rogers:

 Tom Coster of Santana:

Jackie DeShannon:

Joe Strummer of The Clash:

Steve Smith played drums for Journey:

Kim Sledge was one of Sister Sledge:

Finally, a death anniversary: Today in 2005, Dr. Robert Moog, inventor of the Moog Synthesizer, died. The Moog Synthesizer was the keyboard of choice throughout the 1970s and 1980s, perhaps to excess:

Today in 1965, the Rolling Stones released the song that would become their first number one hit, and yet Mick Jagger still claimed …

An august group of acts is represented in birthdays today, beginning with James Pankow, trombone player of Chicago:

Isaac Hayes:

Robert Plant of Led Zeppelin:

The late Phil Lynott of Thin Lizzy:

The late Doug Fieger of The Knack:

How much money would you have paid for tickets for this concert at the Cow Palace in San Francisco today in 1964: The Beatles, the Righteous Brothers, the Bill Black Combo, the Exciters and Jackie DeShannon:

The number one song in the U.S. today in 1967 is because, according to the Beatles …

Five years later, Chicago had the number one album, “Chicago V”:

What a group of birthdays we have today, beginning with Ginger Baker of Cream:

Johnny Nash, who says he …

Ian Gillan of Deep Purple:

John Deacon of Queen:

Two deaths of note: Today in 2008, saxophonist LeRoi Moore, a founding member of the Dave Matthews Band, died after a vehicle crash at his farm:

One year ago today, Michael Been, lead singer for The Call, died of a heart attack at a concert where he was his son’s band’s sound man:

How can two songs be the number one song in the country today in 1956? Do a Google search for the words “B side”:

(Those songs, by the way, were the first Elvis recorded with his fantastic backup singers, the Jordanaires.)

Today in 1962, the Beatles made their debut with their new drummer, Ringo Starr, following a two-hour rehearsal.

Four years later, the Beatles were at number one (again with the B side):

Diana Ross reached number one today in 1973 with her first post-Supremes hit:

The number one album that same day was, believe it or not …

The number one song today in 1979:

The number one song today in 1984:

Birthdays today begin with Johnny Preston:

Nona Hendryx of Labelle:

Dennis Elliott was the original drummer of Foreigner:

The Beatles were never known for having wild concerts. (Other than their fans, that is.) Today in 1960, the Beatles played their first of 48 appearances at the Indra Club in Hamburg, West Germany. The Indra Club’s owner asked the Beatles to put on a “mach shau.” The Beatles responded by reportedly screaming, shouting, leaping around the stage, and playing lying on the floor of the club. John Lennon reportedly made a stage appearance wearing only his underwear, and also wore a toilet seat around his neck on stage. As they say, Sei vorsichtig mit deinen Wünschen.

Four years later, the council of Glasgow, Scotland, required that men who had Beatles haircuts would have to wear swimming caps in city pools, because men’s hair was clogging the pool filters.

Today in 1968, the Doors had their only number one album, “Waiting for the Sun”:

Today in 1974, this 1½-hit wonder had the number one song in Britain:

(What do I mean by “1½-hit wonder?” The Three Degrees sang at the end of MFSB’s instrumental hit “The Sound of Philadelphia,” another great late Motown song.)

Birthdays today start with John Seiter of Spanky and Our Gang:

Gary Talley played guitar for the Box Tops:

Boston drummer Sib Hashian:

Kevin Rowlands sang for one-hit wonder Dexy’s Midnight Runners (hey, that rhymes):

Belinda Carlisle of the Go-Gos:

Drummer Steve Gorman of the Black Crowes:

Colin Moulding of XTC: