November 4

Musical birthdays today include bluesman Delbert McClinton (73), trumpeter Chuck Mangione (73), ex-Supremes vocalist Scherrie Payne (69), Throbbing Gristle multi-instrumentalist Cosey Fanni Tutti (62), Chris Difford (59), Dream Theater keyboardist Jordan Rudess (57), Sean 'P Diddy ' Combs (44), and The Mars Volta frontman Cedric Bixler-Zavala (39). 

Shoutout to the Great Beyond for hymn writer Augustus Toplady [best remembered for 'Rock of Ages'], born on this date in 1740... for pop singer Dickie Valentine, who would have been 84... for Irish folkie Tommy Makem, who would have been 81... for ex-Pretenders guitarist James Honeyman-Scott, who would have been 57... for former No use for a Name frontman Tony Sly, who would have been 43... for composer Felix Mendelssohn, who died today in 1847... for French composer Gabriel Fauré, who died in 1924... for Ink Spots founder member Ivory Watson, who passed away in 1969... and for former MC5 guitarist Fred 'Sonic' Smith, who left us today in 1994. 

Also on November 4: Mozart's 36th Symphony is performed for the first time, in Linz, Austria (1783)... Bob Dylan makes his Carnegie Hall debut before an audience of 53 in the Chapter Hall rehearsal space (1961)... The Beatles top the bill at The Royal Variety Show at The Prince Of Wales Theatre, London. With the Queen Mother and Princess Margaret in the audience, John Lennon makes his famous quip "In the cheaper seats you clap your hands. The rest of you, just rattle your jewellery". The show will be broadcast on UK television on the 10th (1963)... The Rolling Stones are at no. 1 on both sides of the Atlantic with 'Get offa My Cloud' (1965)... The Beach Boys 'Good Vibrations' enters the British singles chart. It will go on to be a UK & US No.1 hit single. As a child, Brian Wilson's mother told him that dogs could pick up 'vibrations' from people, so that the dog would bark at 'bad vibrations'. Wilson turned this into the general idea for the song (1966)... Pink Floyd record ‘Point Me at the Sky’ and ‘Careful with That Axe, Eugene’ at Abbey Road Studios (1968)... Johnny Nash goes to no. 1 in the US with 'I Can See Clearly Now' (1972)... Martin Scorsese's The Last Waltz, his film of The Band's 1976 farewell concert, has its world premiere in NYC (1977)... Bob Marley is baptised at the Ethiopian Orthodox Church in Kingston, Jamaica, converting to Christian Rastafarianism and taking on the new name Berhane Selassie (1980)... Prince plays the first of seven nights at the Joe Louis Arena in Detroit, Michigan at the start of his 87-date North American Purple Rain tour. The outing also marks the live debut of his new band The Revolution (1984)... Bobby 'Blue' Bland, Booker T. & The M.G.s, Johnny Cash, Jimi Hendrix, The Isley Brothers, Sam & Dave and The Yardbirds are all elected to the Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame (1991).

November 3

Musical birthdays today include Lulu (65), Chrome frontman Helios Creed (60), Adam Ant (59), Porcupine Tree multi-instrumentalist Steven Wilson (46), Onyx rapper Sticky Fingaz (42), Slipknot guitarist Mick Thomson (40), and Rise Again lead singer Tim McIlrath (35). 

Shoutout to the Great Beyond for film score composer John Barry, who would have been 80 today... for singer-songwriter Bert Jansch, who would have been 70... for R&B singer Chris Bender, shot to death in Brooklyn at the age of 19 today in 1991... for Leon Theremin, inventor of the instrument tyhat bears his name, who died in 1993... for Lonnie Donegan MBE, the 'King of Skiffle', who passed away in 2002... and for former April Wine bassist Jim Clench, who left us 3 years ago today. 

Also on November 3: Sun Records releases 'Great Balls of Fire' by Jerry Lee Lewis (1957)... Elvis Presley goes on field maneuvers for the first time with the US Army's 32nd Armoured Regiment, near the German-Czech border (1958)... Elvis tops the charts on both sides of the Atlantic with 'It's Now or Never', his first post-army no. 1 (1960)... During the Rolling Stones' North American tour, a 17 year-old fan falls from the balcony during a gig in Cleveland, Ohio. Mayor Ralph S. Locher bans all future pop concerts, saying: "Such groups do not add to the community's culture or entertainment" (1964)... The filming for The Beatles Magical Mystery Tour is completed, ending with a sequence at Ringo's country house in Weybridge, Surrey. BBC television buy the rights to broadcast the film twice; the first broadcast, in black-and-white, is scheduled for December 26, 1967. The second showing, on the colour channel BBC2 [which is not yet available to all Britons] is set for January 5, 1968 (1967)... James Taylor and Carly Simon are married in a civil ceremony at the latter's Manhattan apartment (1972)... David Bowie's Pinups is the no. 1 album in the UK (1973)... Following  concert t the Empire Pool, Wembley, Elton John announces his retirement from live performance (1977)... The Jam release All Mod Cons (1978)... One-hit wonder M tops the Billboard singles chart with 'Pop Music' (1979)... 'Ice Ice Baby', by Vanilla Ice became the first rap record to top the US singles chart, [and later also a UK No.1 as well] (1990)...  Rage against the Mchine release their eponymous debut alvbum (1992)... Metallica reach an out of court settlement with a fan who claims he lost his sense of smell after being dropped on his head by fans at one of their shows four years earlier (1997)... EMI Records announce that they have dropped Simple Minds. The Scottish band sold over 30 million albums during the 1980's (2000)... P Diddy runs in the New York City Marathon, finishing the race in 4 hours and 18 minutes and and raising $2,000,000 for the public education system of New York (2003)... A man who had been stalking Hilary Duff is arrested for threatening to kill her. According to the court papers, Maksim Miakovsky of St. Petersburg, Russia went to the U.S. 'for the sole purpose of meeting and becoming romantically involved with Ms. Duff'. He will later be sentenced to 4 months in jail and 5 years probation after pleading no contest to the charges (2006). 

November 2

Musical birthdays today include Blue Note Records recording engineer Rudy van Gelder [worked on Kind of Blue, among many other classics] (89), jazzman Phil Woods (82), Jay and the Americans lead singer Jay Black (75), Shadows guitarist Bruce Welch OBE (72), Keith Emerson (69), J.D. Souther (68), ex-Fariport Convention and Jethro Tull bassist Dave Pegg (66), former Go-Betweens drummer Lindy Morrison (62), Dave Matthews Band drummer Carter Beauford (56), k.d. lang (52), Poison bassist Bobby Dall (50), Korn bassist Reginald Arvizu (44), Nelly (39), Death Cab for Cutie guitarist Chris Walla (38), and Big Time Rush singer Kendall Schmidt (23). 

Shoutout to the Great Beyond for swing trumpeter Bunny Berigan, born on this date in 1908... for Cadillacs lead singer Earl Carroll, who would have been 76 today... for legendary soprano Jenny 'The Swedish Nightingale' Lind, who died today in 1887... for bluesman Mississippi John Hurt, who passed away in 1966... and for singer Eva Cassidy, who died of melanoma at the age of 33 today in 1996.

Also on November 2: Peter, Paul & Mary hit no. 1 on the US singles chart with their cover of Bob Dylan's 'Blowin' in the Wind' (1963)... The Konrads, featuring a young lead singer named David Jones making his public debut [he will soon rechristen himself David Bowie], appear at Shirley Parish Hall, in Croydon, Surrey (1963)... The Beatles complete recording their next single ‘Hello Goodbye’ at Abbey Road studios with a second Paul McCartney bass line. The McCartney song had been selected for the A-side for The Beatles next single, the flip side to be John Lennon’s ‘I Am the Walrus' (1967)... George Harrison became the first Beatle to undertake a solo world tour, kicking off 30-night outing with a show in Vancouver (1974)... The Rev Marvin Gaye Sr. is sentenced to five years in prison on a charge of manslaughter in the death of his son (1984)... Foo Fighters release their third studio album, There Is Nothing Left to Lose; the album marks the first appearance of drummer Taylor Hawkins (1999)... Eric Clapton collects his CBE from Buckingham Palace for his services to music (2004)... Led Zeppelin's eagerly-awaited reunion concert in London is postponed for two weeks after guitarist Jimmy Page breaks a finger (2007).

 

 

November 1

Musical birthdays today include saxophonist and former Thelonious Monk sideman Lou Donaldson (87), Kinky Friedman (69), Kool & the Gang saxophonist Ronald Bell (62), Lyle Lovett (56), Manfred Mann's Earth Band lead singer Robert Hart (55), Red Hot Chili Peppers frontman Anthony Kiedis (51), A-ha keyboardist Magne Furuholmen (51), Def Leppard drummer Rick Allen (50), Geto Boys rapper Willie D (47), Sophie B. Hawkins (46), and ex-Destiny's Child vocalist LaTavia Robertson (32). 

Shoutout to the Great Beyond for Staff Sergeant Barry Sadler [of 'Ballad of the Green Berets' fame] who would have been 73 today... for former Family and Blind Faith bassist Ric Grech, who would have been 67... for ex-America multi-instrumentalist Dan Peek (63)... for former Stereolab guitarist Mary Hansen, who would have been 47... for rapper Ma Dre, shot to death at age 34 on this day in 2004... and for session drummer Jimmy Carl Black, who left us today in 2008.

Also on November 1: R&B group The Famous Flames, led by singer James Brown, cut their first demo of ‘Please, Please, Please’ at a radio station in Macon, Georgia. It will lead to their signing with King Records (1955)... Elvis Presley buys a new Harley Davidson, and spends the day riding around Memphis on his acquisition with actress Natalie Wood (1956)... George Harrison releases his first solo album, Wonderwall Music, on the Apple label. The songs, which are mostly Harrison instrumentals, feature Eric Clapton, Ringo Starr and an uncredited banjo contribution by Peter Tork of The Monkees (1968)... Elvis hits no. 1 on the US singles chart with 'Suspicious Minds'. On the album chart, the Beatles score their 13th US no. 1 with Abbey Road (1969)... The Grateful Dead release American Beauty (1970)... Paul McCartney & Wings kick off their first Australian tour with a show at the Entertainment Centre in Perth (1975)... Bruce Springsteen tops the Billboard album chart for the first time with The River (1980)... Flavor Flav of Public Enemy is arrested and charged with the attempted murder of his neighbour. Flav claims that the man had had sex with his (Flav's) girlfriend (1993)... Danish dance-pop act Aqua are at no. 1 on the UK charts with 'Barbie Girl'. The single will sell over 8 million copies worldwide (1997)... Organizers of the MTV Europe Awards recruit 500 'screamers' to attend this year's event. The music lovers are selected at an audition held in Edinburgh's Princes Street Gardens. About 1,500 pop-mad teenagers and adults scream themselves hoarse in a bid to get their hands on a ticket to the exclusive event (2003)... Metal Hammer magazine publishes a list of the 'Top ten rock and heavy metal moustaches…Ever'. The list, which includes moustaches worn by the likes of Frank Zappa, all the members of Black Sabbath, (except Ozzy Osbourne), James Hetfield, and Lemmy place Freddie Mercury at the top (2012). 

  

October 31

Musical birthdays today include Tom Paxton (76), Supertramp drummer Bob Siebenberg (64), Guided by Voices frontman Robert Pollard (56), singer-songwriter Kate Campell (52), Larry Mullen, Jr. (52), Motörhead drummer Mikkey Dee (50), Johnny Marr (50), My Bloody Valentine drummer Colm Ó Cíosóig (49), country singer Darryl Worley (49), Adam 'Ad-Rock' Horovitz (47), ex-Bow Wow Wow lead singer Annabella Lwin (47), Napalm Death guitarist Mitch Harris (44), former Ace of Base lead singer Linn Berggren (43), Fabulous Thunderbirds guitarist Johnny Moeller (43), Blind Melon guitarist Rogers Stevens (43), Less Than Jake bassist Roger Manganelli (39), and ex-My Chemical Romance guitarist Frank Iero (32). 

Shoutout to the Great Beyond for singing cowgirl Dale Evans, born on this date in 1912... for pioneering R&B saxophonist Illinois Jacquet, born in 1922... for saxophonist and Mingus sideman Booker Ervin, who would have been 83 today... for Ali Farka Touré, who would have been 74... and for producer and Chic bassist Bernard Edwards, who would have been 61.

Also on October 31: St. Louis-based pianist Johnnie Johnson hires a 26-year-old hairdresser named Chuck Berry as a guitarist in his band. While playing evening gigs in the area, Berry keeps his day job for the next three years (1955)...The Quarry Men decide to change their name to Johnny and the Moondogs. The band are in Liverpool auditioning for the Carrol Levis radio show (1959)... The Beatles return to London from Sweden and are greeted by hundreds of screaming fans as well as a mob of photographers and journalists. Ed Sullivan is at Heathrow waiting for a flight to New York as the Fab Four arrive, and is struck by the sight of Beatlemania in full swing; he makes a note to look into getting this group to appear on his television program (1963)... The Who make their first and only appearance at the Cavern Club in Liverpool (1965)... Led Zeppelin hold the UK launch for their new record label Swan Song at Chislehurst Caves, Surrey on Halloween night. Drinks are served by nuns in suspenders, a naked woman is lying in a coffin covered in jelly and naked male wrestlers cavort in recesses of the caves. Label mates Bad Company, The Pretty Things and Maggie Bell also attend. The launch also ties in with the releases of The Pretty Things new album Silk Torpedo. The label was named after an unreleased Zeppelin instrumental track (1974)... Roger Waters files an injunction went to try and stop David Gilmour and Nick Mason from using the name 'Pink Floyd' for future touring and recording (1986)... The first MTV Unplugged show is recorded in New York, with guests Squeeze. The program will be aired on the 26th of November (1989)... During a gig in Seattle, Billy Idol dumps 600 dead fish in Faith No More's dressing room. They respond by walking on stage naked during Idol's set (1990)... James Brown is arrested in Aiken, South Carolina for assaulting his 47 year old wife Adrienne, who alleges that her husband hit her with a mirror. The assault charges against Brown will be dropped when Adrienne dies in January, 1996 (1995)... Slash announces that he is leaving Guns N' Roses. The guitarist says that Axl Rose and he have only been civil to each other on two occasions since 1994 (1996)... Cher starts a seven week run at No.1 on the UK singles chart with 'Believe', taken from her twenty-third studio album. It makes Cher (who is 52) the first female artist to have a No.1 single over the age of 50. The song will top the charts in 23 countries (1998)... The white suit worn by John Lennon on the cover of the Beatles' Abbey Road album sells for $118,000 (£66,385) at an auction in Las Vegas, while an Austin Princess hearse driven by the late star in the documentary Imagine sells for $150,000 (£84,388). A portion of the proceeds from the sale of the items goes to Amnesty International (2005). 

 

  

October 30

Musical birthdays today include Motown songwriter Eddie Holland (74), Grace Slick (74), Temptations vocalist Otis Williams (72), Manfred Mann drummer Chris Slade (67), ex-Eagles bassist Timothy B. Schmit (66), Bush frontman Gavin Rossdale (48), Billy Talent guitarist Ian D'Sa (38), and Saturdays vocalist Vanessa White (24). 

Shoutout to the Great Beyond for country singer Patsy Montana, born on this date in 1908... for jazz trumpeter Clifford Brown, who would have been 83 today... for Jam Master Jay, shot to death in a Jamaica, Queens recording studio today in 2002 at the age of 37... for longtime Pink Floyd manager Steve O'Rourkem who passed away in 2003... for singer Robert Goulet, left us today in 2007... and for Linda Stein, former co-manager of the Ramones, who on the same day was found beaten to death at her Manhattan apartment. 

Also on October 30: Two days after Beatles fan Raymond Jones asked for The Beatles' German single ‘My Bonnie’ (recorded with Tony Sheridan) at Brian Epstein's NEMS record store in Liverpool, two girls request the same song. Epstein's has difficulty in locating the record because he is unaware that the record was released, not by the Beatles, but by Tony Sheridan and 'the Beat Brothers' ['Beatles' resembles an offensive slang word in German, so the Beatles' name was changed for this release] (1961)... Jim Morrison is fined and sentenced to six months in jail after being found guilty of exposing himself during a Doors gig in Miami (1970)... John Lennon and The Plastic Ono Band go to No.1 on the UK album chart with Imagine. Meanwhile, in the US, Pink Floyd release their sixth studio album 'Meddle'. The album features One Of These Days and the 23-minute track Echoes which takes up all of side 2 on the vinyl record. The cover image was photographed by Bob Dowling. The image represents an ear underwater, collecting waves of sound represented by ripples in the water (1971)... Stevie Wonder releases Journey through the Secret Life of Plants (1979)... Men at Work have the no. 1 song in the US with 'Who can It Be Now?' (1982)... An up and coming local band called Nirvana provide the entertainment at a dorm party at Evergreen State College in Olympia, Washington (1988)... All four original members of Black Sabbath reunite to play 'Paranoid' on Late Night with David Letterman (1998)... A new web site is launched to help teach young people basic physics. www.britneyspears.ac features the singer illustrating mathematical equations. Visitors could access physics theories generously interspersed with photos of Britney (2000)... Michael Jackson releases Invincible, his 10th and final studio album (2001). 

October 29

Musical birthdays today include opera singer Jon Vickers (87), Cuban jazz singer Omara Portuondo (83), ex-Wings guitarist Denny Laine (69), Melba Moore (68), Peter Green (67), former Alan Parsons Project guitarist David Paton (64), The Cure keyboardist Roger O'Donnell (58), Randy Jackson (52), ex-Sugarcubes trumpeter Einar Örn (51) and Vampire Weekend bassist Chris Baio (29). 

Shoutout to the Great Beyond for jazzman Zoot Sims, who would have been 88... for former Quiet Riot lead singer Kevin DuBrow, who would have been 58... for classical pianist William Kapell, who died in a commercial airliner crash on this day in 1953 at the age of 31... for jazz bassist and Louis Armstrong sideman George 'Pops' Foster, who passed away in 1969... and for Duane Allman, killed in a motorcycle accident today in 1971 at the age of 24. 

Also on October 29: Mozart's opera Don Giovanni has its world premiere in Prague (1787)... The Beach Boys release their debut album Surfin' Safari (1962)... The Who release the single 'My Generation' in the UK. The song came in at no. 11 when Rolling Stone magazine compiled their list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time, and 13th on VH1's list of the 100 Greatest Songs of Rock & Roll. It reached No. 2 in the UK, the Who's highest charting single in their home country but only No. 74 in America (1965)... The Belgian National Tourist Board issue a summons against the Sex Pistols, claiming the sleeve to the band's single 'Holidays In The Sun' infringes copyright of one of its brochures (1977)... 'Islands In The Stream' gives Dolly Parton and Kenny Rogers a No.1 on the US singles chart. The song was written by The Bee Gees and co-produced by Barry Gibb. Meanwhile, Pink Floyd's 'Dark Side of the Moon' marked its 491st week on the album chart, surpassing the previous record holder, 'Johnny's Greatest Hits' by Johnny Mathis (1983)... David Bowie played the first of the 15 dates on the Australia/New Zealand leg of his Glass Spider Tour at the Boondall Entertainment Centre in Brisbane (1987)... The Memphis, TN City Council name a section of the I-55 interstate running through town the B.B. King Freeway (1991)...  Manchester band The Stone Roses split up. Singer Ian Brown says "Having spent the last ten years in the filthiest business in the universe, it's a pleasure to announce the end of The Stone Roses" (1996)... U2 perform for the first time on The Late Show with David Letterman (2001)... Research in the US finds that songs get stuck in our heads because they create a 'brain itch' that can only be scratched by repeating a tune over and over. Songs such as the Village People's 'YMCA' and the Baha Men's 'Who Let The Dogs Out' owe their success to their ability to create a 'cognitive itch', according to Professor James Kellaris, of the University of Cincinnati College of Behavioral Science (2003)... A set of waxwork heads of The Beatles from their Sgt. Pepper album cover sell for £81,500. The 'pepperheads' are auctioned off after recently being discovered in a back room at Madame Tussaud's. They were used in 1967 by artist Sir Peter Blake in the backdrop of the 'Lonely Hearts Club Band' album with the actual Beatles posing at the front (2005).