January 4th

 Musical birthdays today include John McLaughlin (84), ex-Henry Cow drummer Chris Cutler (79), avant garde banjoist Eugene Chadbourne (72), former Talk Talk lead singer Mark Hollis (71), Wilco guitarist Nels Cline (70), Bernard Sumner (70), Patty Loveless (69), Michael Stipe (66), Cocteau Twins co-founder Robin Guthrie (64), Rammstein lead singer Till Lindemann (64), Portishead lead singer Beth Gibbons (61), former Pogues bassist Cait O'Riordan (61), country singer Deanna Carter (60), and Spanish pop singer María Isabel (31). 

Shoutout to the Great Beyond for jazz guitarist & singer Slim Gaillard, born on this day in 1916... for operatic soprano Grace Bumbry, who would have been 89 today... for folk & gospel singer-guitarist Precious Bryant, who would have been 83... for soul singer Arthur Conley, who would have been 79... for Thin Lizzy founder & frontman Phil Lynott, who died today in 1985 at the age of 36... for bandleader Les Brown, who passed away in 2001... and for Gerry Rafferty, who left us today in 2011. 

Also on January 4th: Das Reingold, the first opera in Wagner's Ring Cycle, has its American premiere at the Met in NYC (1889)... Billboard Magazine introduces the first pop music chart that ranks records on the basis of national sales; jazz violinist Joe Venuti has the first official US № 1 ever with 'Stop, Look and Listen' (1936)... RCA announce that they will begin producing 33 1/3 RPM records, following the example of Columbia, who first introduced the LP in 1948 (1950)... Elvis Presley has his pre-induction medical check up at Kennedy Veterans Hospital in Memphis, a preliminary to his call up from the US Army (1957)... The Fender Guitar Co. is bought by CBS for $13 million (1965)... The Doors release their eponymous debut album (1967)... The UCLA music department announces that all composition majors will henceforth have to study the songs of the Beatles and the Rolling Stones (1968)... The Beatles (minus John) re-record vocals and a new guitar solo on Paul's song 'Let It Be' at Studio Two, Abbey Road. This session will be the last studio appearance for The Beatles in any configuration. [The final date that all four Beatles were in the studio together was August 20, 1969] (1970)... Yes release the album Fragile (1972)... Bruce Springsteen plays the first of a three night run at Joe's Place in Cambridge, MA, with Peter Johnson & the Manic Depressives as the opening act. On the tickets is printed the proviso 'Because of the energy crisis all our outside lights except for one will be shut off' (1974)... Elton John has the № 1 single in America with his cover of 'Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds', John Lennon guesting on guitar (1975)... The Sex Pistols create yet another incident, spitting and vomiting whilst boarding a flight to Amsterdam at Heathrow Airport (1977)... Paul Simon becomes a father for the second time when wife Edie Brickell gives birth to their son Adrian (1993)... Madame Tussaud's waxworks in London reveals that Oasis singer Liam Gallagher came third in their poll to determine the 'Most Hated Characters' list of exhibits, behind Hitler and Slobodan Milosevic (2001)... Britney Spears has her surprise marriage annulled less than 55 hours after tying the knot at the Little White Wedding Chapel in Las Vegas with childhood friend Jason Alexander. The couple married on a Saturday morning after a night out in Las Vegas; her lawyers immediately filed for an annulment, however, saying Spears 'lacked understanding of her actions to the extent that she was incapable of agreeing to the marriage' (2004)... The house where Johnny Cash lived for 35 years is bought by Barry Gibb of the Bee Gees. The rustic house near Nashville went on the market in June 2005 with an asking price of $2.9 million. Gibb says he plans to preserve the house to honour the Cash memory. Unfortunately Gibb's ownership of the house will be short-lived ~ in April 2007, the house burns to the ground. Gibb is having the house renovated when a flammable spray sealer causes fire to break out during construction (2006)

January 3rd

 

Musical birthdays today include Van Dyke Parks (85), Stephen Stills (81), John Paul Jones (80), Dictators lead guitarist Ross the Boss Friedman (72), Slits original drummer Paloma 'Palmolive' McCardy (71), Daft Punk co-founder Thomas Bangalter (51), Lloyd (40), and KPop singer Kim Seol-hyun (31). 

Shoutout to the Great Beyond for Victor Borge, born 0n this day in 1909...  for Maxene Andrews, born in 1916... for George Martin, born in 1926... for R&B singer-songwriter Zulema Cusseaux, who would have been 79... for classical violinist and conductor János Fürst, who died in 2007... and for Gerry and the Pacemakers founder Gerry Marsden, who left us four years ago today. 

Also on January 3rd: The Symphonic Society of Boston gives the first performance of Brahms' 1st Symphony in America (1878)... Conductor Wilhelm Furtwängler makes his American debut, leading the NY Philharmonic in a performance of Beethoven's 5th and 7th Symphonies at Carnegie Hall (1925)... The Beatles are seen for the first time on US TV when a clip from the BBC's 'The Mersey Sound' showing the group playing 'She Loves You' is broadcast on 'The Jack Paar Show' (1964)... Carl Wilson of the Beach Boys refuses to comply with his draft notice from the US Army and  requests conscientious objector status (1967)... The Byrds release The Notorious Byrd Brothers (1968)... Appearing live on 'The Lulu Show' in the UK, Jimi Hendrix performs 'Voodoo Child', the first of two songs that he was scheduled to sing, then stops in the middle of 'Hey Joe', launching instead into a version Cream's 'Sunshine Of Your Love' as a tribute to the band, who had split a few days earlier. Hendrix then proceeds to continue jamming with the Experience, running over their allocated time slot on the live show, preventing hostess Lulu from closing the show properly (1969)... B.J. Thomas starts a month-long run at № 1 on the US singles chart with 'Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head'. In the UK, Syd Barrett's debut solo album The Madcap Laughs is released  (1970)... Pink Floyd begin two weeks of rehearsals for the forthcoming Dark Side Of The Moon tour at The Bermondsey in London [the club is  owned by The Rolling Stones] (1972)... In Chicago, Bob Dylan and the Band kick off a 39-date US tour. It is Dylan's first full-scale tour in 8 years ~ there were more than 5 million applications for the 660,000 tickets (1974)... The Bay City Rollers have the № 1 
single in America with 'Saturday Night'. Further down the chart is Bob Dylan's 'Hurricane', which is peaking at № 33 (1976)... David Bowie closes his run in the play 'The Elephant Man' on Broadway (1981)... Aretha Franklin becomes the first woman inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (1987)... Liam and Noel Gallagher top a poll of 'Celebrities you would least like to live next to', getting 40% of the vote. Readers of Britain's 'Your Home' magazine voted the brothers from Oasis as 'Neighbours From Hell' (2002).

January 2nd

 Musical birthdays today include classical clarinetist David Shifrin (76), singer-songwriter Christine Lavin (74), funk singer Dawn Silva (72), Tia Carrere (59), Taye Diggs (55), and jazzman Troy 'Trombone Shorty' Andrews (40). 

Shoutout to the Great Beyond for composer Sir Michael Tippett, born on this day in 1905... for cabaret singer Julius La Rosa, born in 1931... for Roger 'King of the the Road' Mitchell, who would have been 89... for cowboy balladeer Tex Ritter, who died on this date in 1974... for Erroll Garner, who passed away in 1977... for former Platters vocalist David Lynch, who died in 1981... and for Spirit guitarist Randy California, who drowned on this day in 1997 at the age of 45 while saving his young son from a rip current in waters off Molokai, Hawaii. 

Also on January 2nd: Richard Wagner's opera Der Fliegende Holländer [The Flying Dutchman] premieres in Dresden (1843)... The first issue of Melody Maker goes on sale in the UK priced at 3 shillings. The monthly magazine is for 'all who are interested in the production of popular music'. The first issue includes Dance Band News, and features on the ukulele and on how to read music by sight (1926)... Eddie Calvert tops the UK singles chart with 'O Mein Papa', the first № 1 to be recorded at Abbey Road Studios (1954)... The entire shipment of John and Yoko's album 'Two Virgins' is seized by  authorities at the port of Bayonne, NJ due to the full frontal nude photograph of the couple on the cover. The album will eventually make it to record stores wrapped in plain brown paper (1968)... Led Zeppelin finally earn stateside headline status, kicking off a four-night stand at the Whisky A Go-Go in Los Angeles with the Alice Cooper Band as their opening act... Filming of the Beatles rehearsing for their projected get Back album begins at Twickenham Studios (1969)... George Harrison's All Things Must Pass is the № 1 album in America, and will remain at the top of the chart for the next 7 weeks (1971)... Sid Vicious goes on trial in NYC on the charge of allegedly murdering his girlfriend Nancy Spungen three months earlier (1979)... Ron Wood marries his girlfriend Jo Karslake in Gerrards Cross, Buckinghamshire. Guests include Keith Richard, Bill Wyman, Charlie Watts, Ringo Starr, Rod Stewart and Jeff Beck (1985)... Brett Anderson of Suede is quoted in a Melody Maker interview as saying  "I honestly think lack of sex is vital to my writing process... I don't know if the same goes for Aerosmith" (1993)... Arrested Development announce that they have disbanded (1996)... Green Day have the № 1 album on both sides of the Atlantic with American Idiot (2005).

January 1st

 

Musical birthdays today include Country Joe McDonald (84), ex-Mott the Hoople keyboardist Morgan Fisher (76), Alpha Blondy (73), original Sonic Youth drummer Richard Edson (72), Grandmaster Flash (68), saxophonist & composer Chris Potter (55), and Judas Priest guitarist Richie Faulkner (46). 

Shoutout to the Great Beyond for vibraphonist Milt Jackson, born on this day in 1924... for choreographer Maurice Béjart, born in 1928... for jazz singer Susannah McCorkle, who would have been 79... for  rapper Tim Dog, who would have been 59... for Hank Williams, who died on this date in 1953... for Alexis Korner, who passed away in 1984... for Townes van Zandt, who died in 1997... for former Stooges guitarist Ron Asheton, who died in 2009... and for Patti Page, who left us today in 2013.

Also on January 1st: The hymn that will become known as 'Amazing Grace' [then known as 'I Chronicles 17:16,17] is first sung to accompany a sermon by its author John Newton in Olney, England (1773)... Franz Schubert's Missa Solemnis premieres in Vienna, 35 years after the composer's death (1863)... BBC TV airs the pilot episode of its first rock 'n roll show, 'Cool for Cats'. Host Ker Robertson will soon be replaced by Kent Walton, hitherto know chiefly as a wrestling  commentator (1957)... Johnny Cash gives his first prison concert, at the San Quentin penitentiary (1958)... The Beatles audition for Decca Records in West Hampstead, London. Producer Tony Meehan listens to the group's one hour set and then submits their demo to the label's upper management (1962)... The first edition of Top Of The Pops is transmitted from a church hall in Manchester. Introduced by DJ Jimmy Savile, acts lip synching to their latest releases include The Rolling Stones (I Wanna Be Your Man), The Dave Clark Five (Glad All Over), The Hollies (Stay), and The Swinging Blue Jeans (Hippy Hippy Shake). The first song played is Dusty Springfield's 'I Only Want To Be With You'. Also featured on disc and film are The Beatles (I Want to Hold Your Hand), Freddie & the Dreamers, Cliff Richard &  the Shadows, and Gene Pitney... The Hollies release their debut album Stay with the Hollies (1964)... Simon & Garfunkel go to № 1 on the Billboard singles chart with 'Sounds of Silence' (1966)... The Doors make their first live television appearance performing their debut single 'Break on Through' on 'Shebang', the pop music program presented by KTLA-TV Channel 5 in Los Angeles (1967)... Billboard Magazine reports that 1967 was the first year in which the total number of albums sold in the US was greater than the number of singles (1968)...  The Scottish group Marmalade are at № 1 on the UK singles chart with their version of 'Ob-La-Di Ob-La-Da' (1969)... Radio Luxembourg in the UK airs nearly 8 hours of continuous Beatles music to celebrate the group's tenth year in the music business. The marathon also includes tracks from the Fab Four's solo albums (1971)... The Clash are the first act to play at London's new Roxy Club (1977)... ABBA make their final live appearance as a group when they play a New Year's Day celebration in Stockholm (1982)... Breakdancers Rob Pilatus and Fabrice Morvan sign a contract with Boney M producer Frank Farian, and Milli Vanilli are born (1988)... Nirvana sign a one-year recording contract with Sub Pop records. The Seattle-based label began not as a record label but as a fanzine called Subterranean Pop (1989)... New radio station WKRL in Jacksonville, FL plays 'Stairway To Heaven' on a continuous loop for 24 hours, as a prelude to the launch of an all Zeppelin format (1990)... Eric Clapton marries 25-year old Melia McEnery, the mother of his baby daughter, at a secret ceremony at the 15th Century St Mary Magdalen Church in Ripley, Surrey (2002)... Chuck Berry cuts short a concert at the Congress Theater in Chicago after collapsing on stage an hour into the show. Berry slumped over a keyboard and did not move for a couple of minutes before being helped off stage ~ he returned 15 minutes later only to be forced off again almost immediately. The 84 year-old later re-emerges on stage but tells fans he has no strength to continue performing (2011).

December 31st

 

Musical birthdays today include Guru Guru drummer Mani Neumeier (85), ex-Police guitarist Andy Summers (83), former Guess Who lead singer Burton Cummings (78), Aerosmith bassist Tom Hamilton (74), Replacements frontman Paul Westerberg (66), Anthrax guitarist Scott Ian (62), Embrace lead singer Danny McNamara (55), New Kids on the Block vocalist Joey McIntyre (53), and Bryce 'The Rocket Summer' Avary (43). 

Shoutout to the Great Beyond for jazz trumpeter Jonah Jones, born on this day in 1909... for Odetta, born in 1930... for rockabilly singer Alvis Wayne, who would have been 88... for John Denver and original Kinks bassist Pete Quaife, both of whom would have been 82.. for Donna Summer, who would have been 77... for Michael Hedges, who  would have been 72... for songwriter Bert Berns ['Twist and Shout', 'Hang on Sloopy' and 'Brown-eyed Girl'], who died on this date in 1967... for Ricky Nelson, who was killed in a plane crash in 1985... and for Cutting Crew guitarist Kevin MacMichael, who left us today in 2002. 

Also on December 31: Gilbert & Sullivan's The Pirates of Penzance has its NYC premiere (1879)... The Metropolitan Opera performs Beethoven's Fidelio with Gustav Mahler conducting the orchestra (1907)... The Beach Boys make their  live debut at the Long Beach Civic Auditorium (1961)... Bob Dylan appears in the live BBC TV drama 'The Madhouse on Castle Street' (1962)... The Kinks make their live debut as the house band for the New Year's festivities at the Lotus Restaurant in London... Jerry Garcia and Bob Weir meet for the first time at a New Year's Eve party in Palo Alto, CA (1963)... Paul McCartney files suit against the other 3 Beatles to dissolve their partnership (1970)... The Band play a concert at the New York Academy of Music that is recorded, and will be released as the Rock of Ages album (1971)... AC/DC make their live debut at the Chequers Bar in Sydney (1973)... David Bowie plays a solo acoustic guitar version of 'Ashes to Ashes' on 'Kenny Everett's New Year's Show' on ITV (1979)... E Street band guitarist Miami Steve van Zandt marries Maureen Santora in Montclair, NJ, with Bruce Springsteen as best man... Legendary NYC venue Max's Kansas City closes (1982)... Def Leppard drummer Rick Allen loses his left arm as the result of an accident on the A57 road near Sheffield (1984)... Pearl Jam, Nirvana and the Red Hot Chili Peppers all appear on the same bill at the Cow Palace in San Francisco... Ted Nugent donates 200 pounds of venison to a Salvation Army soup kitchen in Detroit with the message 'I kill it, you grill it' (1991)... Barbra Streisand gives her first paid concert since 1971, performing for a sellout crowd at the MGM Grand Garden in Las Vegas (1993)... Paul McCartney officially becomes a 'Sir' after the announcement of his knighthood appears in the Queen's Honours List for the year (1996)... Manic Street Preachers perform before 57,000 fans at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff. The Guinness Book of Records confirms that the concert has set a new record for the biggest indoor show ever staged in Europe (1999)... Natalie Imbruglia marries Silver Chair lead singer Daniel Johns (2003)... George Michael receives a reported £1.5 million for a one hour concert at a Russian oligarch's New Year's party. The unnamed businessman paid for Michael to entertain his 300 guests on his private estate 20 miles outside Moscow. The singer had just finished the British leg of his 'Twentyfive' tour which included a free concert for nurses in London (2006).

December 30th

 

Musical birthdays today include Paul Stookey (88), Patti Smith (79), original Jethro Tull drummer Clive Bunker (79), Jeff Lynne (77), coloratura soprano June Anderson (72), opera director Graham Vick (72), country singer Suzy Bogguss (69), Tracey Ullman (66), BMX Bandits frontman Duglas T. Stewart (61), Jamiroquai lead singer Jay Kay (56), former Faithless keyboardist Ayalah 'Sister Bliss' Bentovim (55), rapper Kastro (49), Tyrese Gibson (47), Black Sabbath drummer Tommy Clufetos (46), and Ellie Goulding (39). 

Shoutout to the Great Beyond for choral composer and conductor David Willcocks, born on this day in 1919... for Bo Diddley, born in 1928... for country singer Skeeter Davis, born in 1931... for Del Shannon, born in 1934... for fiddle and banjo virtuoso John Hartford, who would have been 88... for former Cream producer and Mountain bassist Felix Pappalardi, who would have been 86...for Mike Nesmith, who would have been 83... for Davy Jones, who would have been 80... for composer Richard Rodgers, who died on this date in 1979... for former Drifters vocalist Johnny Moore, who passed away in 1998... for swing clarinetist & bandleader Artie Shaw, who died in 2004... and for Boney M's Bobby Farrell, who left us in 2010. 

Also on December 30: Henry Purcell's opera Dido and Aenas receives its first performance at the Josias Priest School for Girls in Chelsea, London (1688)... Cole Porter's Kiss Me, Kate opens on Broadway at the New Century Theater. It will run for 1,077 performances and become the first winner of the Tony for Best Musical (1948)... The Kinks, The Who, Manfred Mann, The Hollies and Gerry and the Pacemakers all appear on tonight's episode of the US TV pop show 'Shindig!' (1965)... Pink Floyd and Soft Machine play a double bill at The Blarney Club in London (1966)... The Beatles score their 15th US № 1 with 'Hello Goodbye', while Gladys Knight and the Pips are at № 2 with 'I Heard It Through The Grapevine' and The Monkees are at № 3 with 'Daydream Believer' (1967)... Led Zeppelin continue as the opening act for Vanilla Fudge on the latter's current US tour. Today's stop is at Gonzaga University in Spokane, WA, where posters advertising the show bill the newcomers from England as 'Len Zefflin'... Peter Tork quits The Monkees, buying himself out of his contract [which leaves him virtually broke].  He will go on to form a group called Release, and play banjo on George Harrison's soundtrack to the film Wonderwall (1968)... Elvis Presley is given a private tour of FBI headquarters in Washington DC. The King requests and is granted a permit to carry a concealed firearm in every US state (1970)... Emerson, Lake and Palmer officially announce their breakup (1978)... Nirvana bassist Krist Novoselic marries his longtime girlfriend Shelli Dilly in Olympia, WA (1989)... George Harrison and his wife Olivia are attacked when an intruder breaks into their home in Henley-on-Thames, Oxfordshire. Olivia beats off the attacker with a fireplace poker and a heavy lamp. Harrison, who was stabbed in the chest, is admitted to hospital and treated for a collapsed lung and various minor puncture wounds. Olivia is treated for cuts and bruises she suffered in the struggle with the assailant... Mark Knopfler is awarded the OBE (1999)...  Diana Ross is arrested for DWI by the Arizona highway patrol after a motorist called to report a swerving vehicle. When asked to walk in a straight line, Ross fell over, and could not count to 30 or balance on one foot. Police report that the singer was twice over the drink drive limit with a blood-alcohol of 0.2... In London, Joe Strummer's funeral takes place (2002)... Neil Young is made an Officer of the Order of Canada (2009).

 

December 29th

 

Musical birthdays today include former Moody Blues winds player Ray Thomas (84), singer-songwriter Yvonne Elliman (74), Jesus and Mary Chain lead singer Jim Reid (64), Offspring lead singer Dexter Holland (60), Six Feet Under lyricist & singer Chris Barnes (59), Biohazard bassist Evan Seinfeld (58), Toad the Wet Sprocket frontman Glen Phillips (55), rapper Asheru (51), film score composer Ryan Shore (51), Hard-Fi drummer Steve Kemp (47), country singer Jessica Andrews (42), and Alexa Ray Joel (40). 

Shoutout to the Great Beyond for cello virtuoso Pablo Casals, born on this day in 1876... for jazz pianist Billy Tipton, born in 1914... for doo wop singer Virgil Johnson, who would have been 90 today... for Rick Danko, who would have been 83... for Marianne Faithfull, who would have been 79... for drummer Cozy Powell, who would have been 78... for one hit wonder Roger 'Get Used to It' Voudouris, who would have been 701 for rapper Pimp C, who would have been 52... for bandleader Paul Whiteman, who died on this date in 1967... for singer-songwriter Tim Hardin, who passed away in 1980... and for jazz trumpeter Freddie Hubbard, who left us today in 2006. 

Also on December 29:  Elvis Presley makes chart history by having 10 songs on Billboard's Hot 100 for the week ending December 29th (1956)... Steve Lawrence and Eydie Gormé
 wed in Las Vegas (1957)... The latest stop on Bob Dylan's tour of small London clubs is The Troubador in Holborn (1962)... The Liverpool Youth Employment Service announce that some school leavers are finding it difficult to get jobs because their 'Beatle' style haircuts and clothing are unacceptable to employers (1964)... Zubin Mehta conducts the Metropolitan Opera orchestra for the first time (1965)... The Jimi Hendrix Experience make their debut on Top Of The Pops performing 'Hey Joe'... Working at Abbey Road studios, Paul McCartney begins work on his new song ‘Penny Lane’, recording six takes of keyboard tracks and various percussion effects. The song's title was derived from the name of a street near John Lennon's house. McCartney and Lennon would meet at Penny Lane junction in the Mossley Hill area to catch a bus into the centre of Liverpool... Pink Floyd and Syn (featuring bassist Chris Squire who will soon join the nascent Yes), appear at The Marquee in Wardour Street (1966)... Guitarist and singer Dave Mason quits Traffic after a series of differences of musical opinion. Mason wrote 'Hole in My Shoe', a psychedelic pop song that became a hit in for the band earlier this year (1967)... Grand Funk Railroad release their eponymous debut album (1969)... Jim Croce scores a posthumous US № 1 with 'Time in a Bottle'. The singer-songwriter was killed in a plane crash on the 20th of September (1973)... A set of commemorative postage stamps in memory of Bob Marley is issued in Jamaica (1982)... Madonna is at № 1 on the Billboard chart with 'Like a Virgin' ~ across the Atlantic, the top spot is occupied by Band Aid's 'Do They Know It's Christmas?' (1984)... Three ferrets named Beckham, Posh Spice and Baby Spice are used to lay power cables for a New Year's Eve concert being held in Greenwich, London, workers having been forbidden to dig up the turf at the Royal Park. Organizers found that rods could not push the cables through the tiny tunnels, which frequently bend and dog-leg. The ferrets were eased into tiny nylon harnesses with wires which were then attached to a rope; the animals ran into a series of ducts which were dug under the stage like rabbit runs, leading the cables with them. Ferrets instinctively make for any hole in the ground and can be enticed to the end of a duct by a slab of decaying meat. The concert features Simply Red, Eurythmics and Bryan Ferry (1999).