October 14th

 Musical birthdays today include Cliff Richard (85), jazz-rock bassist Colin Hodgkinson (80), Moody Blues frontman Justin Hayward (79), Nazareth lead singer Dan McCafferty (79), Boney M vocalist Marcia Barrett (77), bluesman Kenny Neal (68), Thomas Dolby (67), Twisted Sister drummer A.J. Pero (66), The Chicks lead singer Natalie Maines (51), and singer-songwriter Savannah Outen (33). 

Shoutout to the Great Beyond for New Orleans R&B singer Robert Parker, born on this day in 1930... for Bing Crosby, who died on this date in 1977... for Leonard Bernstein, who passed away in 1990... and for Freddy Fender, who left us today in 2006.

Also on October 14: Mendelssohn's overture for A Midsummer Night's Dream is performed for the first time at Potsdam for Frederick William IV, King of Prussia (1843)... The 16-year-old Stravinsky finishes his first surviving composition, an unpublished Tarantella for piano (1898)... BMI [Broadcast Music, Inc.] is founded to compete with ASCAP [American Society of Composers and Publishers] (1939)... The Everly Brothers have their first US № 1 with 'Wake up, Little Susie', and Elvis releases 'Jailhouse Rock' (1957)... Pink Floyd play their first ever 'underground' set, at All Saints Hall in Notting Hill (1966)... Joan Baez is arrested at a sit-in at the US Army induction center in Oakland, California (1967)... The Jackson Five make their national TV debut on ABC's variety show 'Hollywood Palace'... The New Jersey State Police issue an arrest warrant for Frank Sinatra in relation to his alleged Mafia connections (1969)... The music publishing firm Arco Industries file a $500,0o0 lawsuit against John Fogerty, claiming that the Creedence Clearwater Revival hit 'Travelin' Band' 'contains substantial material copied from' Little Richard's 'Good Golly Miss Molly'. The suit is eventually thrown out (1971)... Michael Jackson has his first solo US № 1 with 'Ben' (1972)... David Bowie releases Heroes (1977)... Cyndi Lauper releases her debut album She's So Unusual (1983)... Def Leppard become the first act in chart history to sell seven million or more copies of two consecutive LPs, as Hysteria. the follow-up to the 1983 hit Pyromania tops the album charts on both sides of the Atlantic (1987)... Eric Clapton is suspended from driving in France after being pulled over for speeding ~ at 210 km/hr (135 MPH) ~ on the A6 Autoroute near Merceuil in Burgundy. He is given a €750 fine and his UK license is confiscated. After paying his fine, Clapton poses for photographs with the members of the local gendarmerie and leaves again in the Porsche ~ with his personal assistant at the wheel (2004).

October 13th

 

Musical birthdays include Nana Mouskouri (91), Paul Simon (84), Chicago founding member & songwriter Robert Hamm (81), Sammy Hagar (78), Soft Machine saxophonist Alan Wakeman (78), John Ford Coley (77), operatic soprano Leona Mitchell (76), Fairport Convention multi-instrumentalist Simon Nicol (75), Marie Osmond (66), Anthrax lead singer Joey Belladonna (65), Broken Social Scene drummer Justin Peroff (48), Ashanti (45), and Korean pop singer Park Jimin (33).

Shoutout to the Great Beyond for Art Tatum, born on this date in 1909... for Yves Montand, born in 1921... for jazz percussionist Johnny Lytle, born in 1933... for Pharoah Sanders, who would have been 85... for Ed Sullivan, who died on this date in 1974... and for Earth, Wind & Fire founding member Wade Flemons, who left us in 1993.

Also on October 13: Six-year-old Wolfgang Mozart gives a recital for Empress Maria Theresa of Austria at the Schonbrunn Palace in Vienna. Also attending is Princess Maria Antonia [the future Marie Antoinette] (1762)...  The Beatles make their debut on ITV's 'Sunday Night at the Palladium', topping the bill in a show broadcast to an estimated 15 million viewers. An article promoting the appearance in today's 'Daily Mirror' also contains the first recorded appearance in print of the term 'Beatlemania' (1963)... The Who record 'My Generation' at Pye Studios in London (1965)... Janis Joplin's ashes are scattered on Stinson Beach in Marin County, CA in a small private ceremony (1970)... The Rolling Stones have the № 1 album in the US with Goats Head Soup (1973)... Neil Young has polyps removed from his vocal chords at a Los Angeles hospital (1975)... Led Zeppelin convene at Headley Grange to begin rehearsing the songs that will go on the In through the Out Door album (1978)... U2 score their first UK № 1 album with the Unforgettable Fire. In the US, Stevie Wonder's 'I Just Called to Say I Love You' tops the singles chart (1984)... Bob Dylan plays a show at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. True to form, he opens the show with 'Masters of War' (1990)... Billy Joel appears live on NPR's 'Performance Today' program to play his new sonata entitled 'Reverie' (1997)... UK tabloids report that Toni Braxton pulled out of this year's MOBO awards in the US because one of her breast implants ruptured. A spokesman for her Arista record label says "We don't comment on the personal lives of our artistes" (2000)... British rock group Muse files for an injunction to keep Celine Dion from going forward with plans to call her forthcoming Las Vegas review 'Muse'. Lead singer Matt Bellamy says "We don't want anyone to think that we're Celine Dion's backing band" (2002)... In a video message on his website, Ringo Starr announces that he no longer has time to sign autographs, and asks fans not to send him any mail at all. "No more fan mail, and no objects of any kind to be signed, please. Nothing" (2008).

October 12th

 Musical birthdays today include Sam Moore [of Sam & Dave] (90), Status Quo guitarist Rick Parfitt (77), The Damned frontman David Lett (69), jazz trumpeter Chris Botti (63), Dixie Chicks fiddle player Martie McGuire (56), and New Found Glory lead singer Jordan Pundik (46).

Shoutout to the Great Beyond for composer Ralph Vaughn Williams, born on this date in 1872... for James 'Sugar Boy' Crawford, New Orleans R&B pianist and songwriter, born in 1934... for Luciano Pavarotti, who would have been 90... for longtime Temptations vocalist Melvin Franklin, who would have been 83... for Smithereens lead singer Pat DiNizio, who would have been 70... for Gene Vincent, who died today in 1971 at the age of 46... for original B-52's guitarist Ricky Wilson, who passed away today in 1985 at 32... for John Denver, who died in an airplane crash today in 1997... for bandleader Ray Coniff, who died in 2002... and for Blue Cheer frontman Dickie Peterson, who left us today in 2009. 

Also on October 12: G.F. Handel completes his oratorio Samson (1742)... The Chrysler Corporation launches high fidelity record players for their 1956 line of cars. The unit measures 4 inches wide and just under a foot high and is mounted under the instrument panel. The 7-inch discs spin at 16 2/3 RPM and require 3 times as many grooves per inch as an LP. The players will be discontinued as an option in 1961 (1955)... During a tour Down Under, Little Richard gives a press conference in Sydney to announce that he has renounced rock 'n' roll and embraced God, telling the assembled journalists a story of dreaming of his own damnation after praying when one of the engines of a plane he was on caught fire. The singer will perform nothing but gospel for the next 5 years, but then returns to rock (1957)... Working on what will be the Rubber Soul album at Abbey Road, the Beatles lay down 'Run for Your Life' [John Lennon will later admit to lifting two lines from Elvis' 'Come on Baby, Let's Play House'] and 'Norwegian Wood', with the sitar making its debut on a western pop song in the hands of George Harrison (1965)... Big Brother and the Holding Company have the № 1 album in the US with Cheap Thrills (1968)... Jesus Christ Superstar premieres on Broadway (1971)... The Who release Odds & Sods (1974)... Rod Stewart makes his final appearance as frontman for The Faces in a show at Nassau Coliseum, NY (1975)... Sid Vicious stabs his girlfriend Nancy Spungen to death at the Chelsea Hotel (1978)... U2 release October, their second studio album (1981)... Jennifer Rush becomes the first to hit № 1 with the diva standard 'The Power of Love', topping the UK charts (1985)... Nirvana are the musical guests on Saturday Night Live (1991)... Pink Floyd play the first of a scheduled 15-night run at Earl's Court, London. A minute into 'Shine on You Crazy Diamond', a scaffolding stand holding 1,200 spectators collapses, hurling them 20 feet to the ground. It takes over an hour to free everyone from the wreckage ~ 36 will have to be hospitalised. The band send a free t-shirt and a handwritten note of apology to all those seated in the faulty bleachers, and the show is rescheduled (1994)... The Backstreet Boys are forced to cancel a show in Madrid after 7,000 fans show up for a 5,000 seat performance and a riot breaks out (1997)... Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young appear at Madison Square Garden to announce a forthcoming album and their 'CSNY2K' tour (1999)... Oasis go to № 1 on the UK album chart with Dig Out Your Soul, the group's final studio LP (2008).

October 11th

 

Musical birthdays today include country singer Gene Watson (82), Daryl Hall (79), Jean-Jacques Goldman (74), country singer Paulette Carlson (73), ex-Hanoi Rocks lead guitarist Andy McCoy (63), rock violinist Petra Haden (54), Limp Bizkit guitarist Mike Smith (52), and Mogwait bassist Dominic Aitchison (49). 

Shoutout to the Great Beyond for Art Blakey, born on this day in 1919... for jazzman Curtis Amy, born in 1929... for country legend Dottie West, born in 1932... for Marshall Tucker Band guitarist George McCorkle, who would have been 78... for composer Anton Bruckner, who died on this date in 1896... and for Werner von Trapp of the Trapp Family Singers [of The Sound of Music fame], who left us today in 2009. 

Also on October 11: In Warsaw, Chopin gives the first performance of his own Piano Concerto in e minor (1830)... Leopold Stokowski conducts the Philadelphia Symphony for the first time (1912)... Sam Phillips' Sun Records releases its first LP, Johnny Cash's debut album Johnny Cash with His Hot and Blue Guitar (1957)... The Beatles make their first appearance on the UK singles chart, as 'Love Me Do' cracks the top 40. It will eventually rise as high as № 4 (1962)... Marianne Faithfull records a version of 'Yesterday' at Decca Studios in London with Paul McCartney observing in the control booth (1965)... The Doors appear at Danbury High School in Connecticut. Before the group comes on stage, the school principal warns the audience that anyone leaving their seat during the performance will be escorted from the hall (1967)... George Harrison recruits six saxophonists to get the sound he wants on 'Savoy Truffle', as work on the White Album continues (1968)... Elvis and Priscilla Presley's divorce becomes final (1973)... The Police have the № 1 album in the UK today with Zenyatta Mondatta (1980)... Dave Grohl plays his first public show with Nirvana, as the band appear at the North Shore Surf Club in Olympia, WA (1990)... Elton John has the № 1 single in the US with the version of 'Candle in the Wind' re-written to commemorate Princess Diana's death... Across the Atlantic. the Verve go to the top of the UK album chart with Urban Hymns (1997)... Mojo magazine readers vote Elvis Presley's session for 'That's Alright' the most important moment in rock history. Coming in second is Bob Dylan's electric debut at Newport in 1965, and № 3 is the release of the Clash's eponymous debut album in 1977 (2003)... Bruce Springsteen, Dixie Chicks, R.E.M. and Pearl Jam wrap up the Vote for Change Tour at the MCI Center in Washington, D.C. (2004)... Radiohead release their latest album In Rainbows as a download via a pay-what-you-want model (2007). 

October 10th

 Musical birthdays today include song & dance man Ben Vereen (79), Radiators singer & keyboardist Ed Volker (79/span>), ex-Ultravox frontman James 'Midge' Ure (72), David Lee Roth (71), Tanya Tucker (67), Casbah Club frontman Simon Townshend [yes, he's related to Pete ~ he's his younger brother] (65), Spandau Ballet bassist Martin Kemp (64), ex-.38 Special Drummer Scott Hoffman (64), Crystal Waters (61), Rebecca Pidgeon (60), Goo Goo Dolls drummer Mike Malinin (60), classical pianist Evgenii Kissin (54), Collective Soul guitarist Dean Roland (53), Bluetones bassist Scott Morriss (52), and Marina Diamandis (40).

Shoutout to the Great Beyond for Giuseppe Verdi, born on this day in 1813... for R&B singer Ivory Joe Hunter, born in 1914... for Count Basie sideman Harry 'Sweets' Edison, born in 1916... for Thelonious Monk, born in 1917... for Edith Piaf, who died on this date in 1963... for song & dance man Eddie Cantor, who died in 1964... for Boyzone vocalist Stephen Gately, who passed away today in 2009 at the age of 33 from undetermined causes... and for operatic soprano Joan Sutherland, who left us today in 2010. 

Also on October 10: The Gibson Mandolin & Guitar Company is incorporated (1902)... Porgy and Bess opens on Broadway at the Alvin Theater (1935)... The real Eleanor Rigby dies in her sleep of undetermined causes at the age of 44. Paul McCartney's first draft of the song was called 'Miss Daisy Hawkins', but he changed it after spotting Ms. Rigby's name on a tombstone during a nostalgic walk around the cemetery of St. Peter's Parish Church in Liverpool, where he and John Lennon first met in 1957 (1939)... Elvis Presley's 'Love Me Tender' enters the Billboard Hot 100 ~ it will stay on the charts for 19 weeks, and become the King's first national no.1 for 5 (1956)... The Beatles appear at De Monfort Hall, Leicester, on their current UK tour. Ringo, who has just taken delivery of a new Vagel Vega sportscar, drives himself to the gig from Liverpool, running late. By his account, the drummer will reach speeds of up to 140 MPH during the trip (1964)... The Monkees release their eponymous debut LP... The Beach Boys release the 'Good Vibrations' single (1966)... King Crimson release their debut album, In the Court of the Crimson King (1969)...  The Carpenters enter the US top 10 with 'We've Only Just Begun', which Richard Carpenter originally wrote as a jingle for a local savings bank (1970)... Jesus Christ Superstar premieres on Broadway (1971)... Steve  Tyler and Joe Perry suffer minor injuries after a cherry bomb is tossed on stage during an Aerosmith gig in Philadelphia. The band will perform behind a protective fence for the remainder of the tour (1978)... The Rose, starring Bette Midler [in her screen debut] as a character transparently based on Janis Joplin, has its world premier in Los Angeles (1979)... John Bonham is laid to rest in the cemetery of St. Michael's Church  in his hometown of Rushock, Worcs. (1980)... R.E.M. have the no. 1 album on both sides of the Atlantic with 'Automatic for the People' (1992)... Britney Spears makes her live debut in the UK when she plays the first of three sold out dates at Wembley Stadium (2000)... The latest issue of Blender contains the results of a poll the magazine conducted to determine the worst rock lyricist of all time. Rounding out the top of the list are: 1) Sting [for such transgressions as name-checking Vladimir Nabokov, and quoting bumperstickers, Chaucer, St. Augustine and Shakespeare] 2) Rush drummer Neil Peart 3) Creed frontman Scott Stapleton and 4) Oasis guitarist Noel Gallagher ['He seems incapable of following a metaphor through a single line, let alone a whole verse', according to the publication] (2007)... Paul McCartney marries New Yorker Nancy Shevell in a civil ceremony at Old Marylebone Town Hall, London (2011).

October 9th

 

Musical birthdays today include Nona Hendryx (81), Indian sarod master Amjad Ali Khan (80) Jackson Browne (77), ex-Iron Maiden guitarist Dennis Stratton (73), Pogues accordionist James Fearnley (71), Ministry frontman Al Jourgensen (67), P.J. Harvey (56), Sean Lennon (50), and ex-Westlife vocalist Nicky Byrne (47). 

Shoutout to the Great Beyond for composer Camille Saint-Saëns, born on this date in 1835... for John Lennon, who would have been 85 today... for John Entwistle, who would have been 81... for France Gall, who would have been 78... for Belgian chansonnier Jacques Brel, who died on this date in 1978... for Modern Jazz Quartet vibraphonist Milt Jackson, who passed away in 1999... and for Marilyn Manson collaborator Brad 'Gidget Gein' Stewart, who left us today in 2009.

Also on October 9: 12-year-old Clara Wieck [the future Mrs. Robert Schumann] plays for Goethe, who places a pillow on the piano stool so that she can sit higher (1831)... Thelonious Monk and sidemen enter the studio to record what will become the album Brilliant Corners. It is the pianist's first album for Riverside to contain his own compositions, the difficulty of which will lead to tempestuous and problem-plagued sessions (1956)... Eddie Cochran records 'C'mon Everybody' (1958)... Ray Charles hits № 1 on the Billboard singles chart with 'Hit the Road, Jack' (1961)... The № 1 single in the US today is the Beatles' 'Yesterday' (1965)... For the first time in the history of the show, the producers of the BBC's Top of the Pops refuse to air the № 1 song in Britain, as 'Je t'aime, moi non plus' by Serge Gainsbourg and Jane Birkin is rejected. The song has been so widely castigated as obscene that Fontana, the label on which the single was originally released, have already disavowed it... The Carpenters release their debut album Ticket to Ride (1969)... The Who play a show at the University of Surrey in Guildford, with John Sebastian of the Lovin' Spoonful joining in on 'Magic Bus' on harmonica. It was the only time that an outside musician has jammed with the band in front of an audience. Backstage after the show, there is a party for John Entwistle's 27th birthday (1971)... The Sex Pistols sign with EMI Records for £40,000. The label will drop them three months later and delete the single 'Anarchy in the UK' from its catalogue after a series of controversies and public incidents... One hit wonders Walter Murphy and the Big Apple Band have the top single in the US today with 'A Fifth of Beethoven' (1976)... Prince opens for the Rolling Stones at the L.A. Memorial Coliseum on the Tattoo You tour. Wearing only leopard-print bikini briefs and a trench coat, the diminutive guitarist runs off stage after 15 minutes due to the crowd booing him and pelting him with beer cans and other objects (1981)... Marking what would have been her late husband's 45th birthday, Yoko Ono formally opens the 3 1/2 acre garden at the Strawberry Field site in New York's Central Park. The area is planted with trees, shrubs and flowers from around the world, and is endowed with a $1 million donation from Yoko (1985)... The Phantom of the Opera has its world premiere at her majesty's Theatre in London's West End (1986)... Nirvana's In Utero, the group's third and final studio album, enters the US charts at № 1. Kurt Cobain had originally wanted to call the collection I Hate Myself and I Want to Die (1993)... Barry White shares lessons from several decades of lovemaking with the students of Oxford University when he addresses their debating union (2000)... Michael Stipe, Bono and Moby make surprise appearances at the second of two anti-violence benefit concerts in NYC organized by The Beastie Boys (2001)... For the first time in the history of the Billboard singles chart, all of the top 10 places are occupied by black artists; at № 1 are Beyoncé and Sean Paul with 'Baby Boy' (2003)... Paul McCartney, a vegetarian for 30 years, is reported as having been furious upon learning that a Liverpool branch of McDonald's is displaying pictures of him in its windows, supposedly to attract customers. Sir Paul is quoted as saying "What sort of morons do McDonald's suppose Beatles fans are?" (2008).

October 8th

 Musical birthdays today include Impressions vocalist Fred Cash (85), country singer Susan Raye (81), ex-Average White Band guitarist & songwriter Hamish Stuart (76), Kool & the Gang frontman Robert 'Kool' Bell (75), former Lounge Lizards trumpeter Steven Bernstein (64), gospel singer CeCe Winans (61), Chris 'C.J. Ramone' Ward (60), Prodigy keyboardist Leroy Thornhill (57), Evanescence guitarist Terry Balsamo (53), Modest Mouse lead guitarist Jim Fairchild (52), Shiny Toy Guns guitarist & singer Gregori Chad Petree (46), and Bruno Mars (40). 

Shoutout to the Great Beyond for proto-country and bluegrass guitarist Dick Burnett, born on this date in 1883... for Johnny Ramone, who would have been 77 today... for bluesman Lonnie Pitchford, who would have been 70.. and for Procol Harum drummer B.J. Wilson, who left us today in 1990 at the age of 43 after a long illness. 

Also on October 8: Gustav Mahler is named director of the Vienna Opera by Emperor Karl Joseph I (1897)... Ringo Starr passes his driving test, Afterwards, he joins his fellow Beatles at Abbey Road to record their new single 'She's a Woman' in seven takes plus five overdubs (1964)... Cream drummer Ginger Baker collapses backstage at a gig at Sussex University after playing  25-minute solo. He later recovers at a local hospital (1966)... Led Zeppelin II enjoys its 100th week in the UK album charts (1971)... In a meeting with journalists at the Swan Song label offices, Jimmy Page derides rumours that Zeppelin are going to split. He also ridicules reports that he has been dabbling in black magic (1977)... Talking Heads release Remain in Light (1980)... Cats opens on Broadway (1982)... The three members of ZZ Top make advance bookings for seats on the first commercial flight to the Moon. To date, they are still waiting for confirmation... Chuck Berry is awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. The documentary about his life and career Hail, Hail, Rock and Roll! also premieres (1987)... U2 score their first UK № 1  single with 'Desire' from the Rattle & Hum soundtrack... Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon finally leaves the Top 200 Billboard album chart after a record-setting 741 weeks (1988)... An environmental benefit concert in Jacksonville, OR featuring Bonnie Raitt and Jackson Browne turns ugly when protesters supporting the local logging industry and the  harvesting of old growth redwoods begin revving chainsaws and throwing firecrackers. No one is seriously injured (1996)... Radiohead's Kid A becomes the group's first album to debut at № 1 in the US (2000)... Britney Spears announces that she has decided not to renew her contract with manager Larry Rudolph, who has been guiding her career since she was 13... After nearly 60 years of recordings, Ray Charles posthumously earns his first platinum record, for the single 'Genius Loves Company' (2004)... Bill Berry reunites with his former R.E.M. bandmates to play an 8-song set at the wedding reception for one of the group's roadies at Kingpins Bowl & Brew in Atlanta, GA (2005)... A Weezer anti-fan launches an online campaign to stop the band from releasing another album. James Burns of Seattle says that he is hoping to raise $10 million as an inducement to the band to cease and desist from making music. Burns claims that he was inspired by friends who are fans of the 'Buddy Holly' rockers but who have been disappointed by the group's recent offerings, which he says have not come close to living up to the standard set by their 1996 hit album Pinkerton (2010).