January 17th

 

Musical birthdays today include classical violinist Ulf Hoelscher (81), Chris Montez (80), Françoise Hardy (79), former Rolling Stones lead guitarist Mick Taylor (74), Yellow Magic Orchestra co-founder Ryuichi Sakamoto (71), jazz fusion bassist Jeff Berlin (70), Steve Earle (68), Paul Young (67), Susanna Hoffs (64), former Berlin guitarist John Crawford (63), Magnetic Fields lead singer Stephin Merritt (58), Richard Hawley (56), Kid Rock (52), and Kaiser Chiefs lead singer Ricky Wilson (45). 

Shoutout to the Great Beyond for Betty White [she sang, too!], who would have been 100 today... for Eartha Kitt, born on this day in 1928... for Dalida, who would have been 90... for Slits lead singer Ariane 'Ari Up' Forster, who would have been 61... for composer Tomaso Albinoni, who died on this date in 1751... for early country fiddler Blind Alfred Reed, who died in 1956... for scat singer Billy Stewart, who was killed in a road accident on this day in 1970 at the age of 32... for rock impresario & TV presenter Don Kirshner, who passed away in 2011... and for Johnny Otis, 'The Godfather of Rhythm and Blues', who left us today in 2012. 

Also on January 17th: Massenet's opera Manon premieres at the Opéra Comique in Paris (1884)...  The Beatles play at the Cavern Club at lunchtime and in the evening at the Majestic Ballroom, Birkenhead. The latter show sells out completely, leaving 500 disappointed fans waiting outside... The Rolling Stones are the first of two opening acts for The Velvets at London's Marquee Club ~ tickets at the door are 4 shillings [$0.56] (1963)... The Rolling Stones release their first EP, which includes ‘You Better Move On’, ‘Poison Ivy’, ‘Bye Bye Johnny’ and ‘Money’ (1964)... Simon & Garfunkel release the Sounds of Silence album... NBC buys The Monkees series, placing it on the autumn schedule (1966)... The Daily Mail runs a story about a local council survey in Blackburn, Lancashire that has found 4,000 potholes in the local roads ~ the article catches John Lennon's eye...  40-year-old London Symphony Orchestra member David Mason records the piccolo trumpet solo for The Beatles' 'Penny Lane' at Abbey Road Studios. He is paid £27, 10 shillings ($42) for his performance. In August, 1987, the trumpet he used sold at a Sotheby's auction for $10,846...  The Jimi Hendrix Experience record a session for Radio Luxembourg's program  'Ready Steady Radio'. The band run up a bar bill of £2.5 shillings, ($6.21), which they were unable to pay (1967)... The Beatles release the Yellow Submarine soundtrack album in Britain, and Led Zeppelin I comes out in America (1969)... A section of Bellevue Boulevard in Memphis is renamed Elvis Presley Boulevard. The remaining length of road keeps its original name after protests from the Bellevue Baptist Church (1972)... Bob Dylan & the Band release Planet Waves... Joni Mitchell releases Court and Spark... Dean Martin's son Dino is arrested after attempting to sell two AK-47 assault rifles to an undercover FBI agent (1974)... Barry Manilow has the № 1 single in the US with 'I Write the Songs' (1976)... Donny Osmond takes part in a charity boxing match held in Chicago against former Partridge Family member Danny Bonaduce ~ Donny is knocked out in the third round (1994)... A long-lost recording featuring John Lennon and Mick Jagger is set to spark a bidding war at a forthcoming London auction. The acetate record was recorded in 1974 with Jagger singing the blues song 'Too Many Cooks' and Lennon playing guitar. The track had never been released because the two artists were signed to different record companies (2003).