December 13

Musical birthdays today include Christopher Plummer (84), composer Alvin Curran (75), guitarist Jeff Baxter (68), Ted Nugent (65), Tom Verlaine (64), Alabama lead singer Randy Owen (64), country singer John Anderson (59), Morris Day (56), saxophonist Eric Marienthal (56), Iggy & the Stooges drummer Toby Dammit (47), Franz Ferdinand guitarist Nick McCarthy (39), Blink-182 guitarist & singer Tom DeLonge (38), Evanescence lead singer Amy Lee (32), and Taylor Swift (24). 

Shoutout to the Great Beyond for flamenco guitarist Carlos Montoya, born on this day in 1903... for popular singer Harry Barris, who died today in 1962... and for Lovin' Spoonful lead guitarist Zal Yanovsky, who left us today in 2002. 

Also on December 13: Dickie Valentine is at no.1 in the UK with 'Christmas Alphabet'. It will still be at the singles chart on the 25th of December, making it the first Yuletide no.1 that is actually about Christmas (1955)... Jimi Hendrix makes his TV debut on ITV's 'Ready Steady Go!' [Marc Bolan is also on the program]. After the show, Hendrix goes into the studio with the Experience to record 'Foxy Lady' (1966)... Diana Ross takes the Latino Casino in Philadelphia to court for $27,500 for damages and emotional distress;  her two pet dogs died after eating cyanide tablets left by an exterminator in her dressing room... Bob Dylan appears on the cover of Rolling Stone magazine for the first time (1969)... Badfinger release Straight up (1971)... Bruce Hornsby & the Range go to no. 1 in America with 'The Way It Is' (1986)... Happy Mondays lead singer Shaun Ryder is ordered to pay £160,000 to his former management team over a dispute in his contract. Ryder told the court he was so high after smoking particularly potent joint that he hadn't bothered to read the fine print (1999)...  It is announced that after 74 years the UK music weekly Melody Maker is to close down. The Christmas edition will be the last issue before the publication merges with the New Musical Express to create a more sizeable broad-based magazine... Sir Paul McCartney holds his first-ever London book signing at Waterstone's in Piccadilly (2000).
 
 
 

December 12

Musical birthdays today include English composer and pianist Roy Douglas (106) [no, that's not a typo], jazz pianist and Schoolhouse Rock! composer Bob Dorough (90), Connie Francis (75), Dionne Warwick (73), former Allman Brothers Band guitarist Dickey Betts (70), Grand Funk Railroad guitarist Bruce Kulick (60), Sheila E. (56), a capella singer & arranger Deke Sharon (46), Hank Williams III (41), The Darkness guitarist Dan Hawkins (37), and country singer Katrina Elam (30). 

Shoutout to the Great Beyond for Frank Sinatra, born on this day in 1915... for Grover Washington, Jr., who would have been 70 today... for former MC5 bssist Rob Tyner, who would have been 69... for swing singer Mildred Bailey, who died on this date in 1951... for Rolling Stones pianist and road manager Ian Stewart, who died in 1985... and for Ike Turner, who left us today in 2007. 

Also on December 12: In Vienna, the 21-year-old Ludwig van Beethoven begins lessons in composition with Franz Josef Haydn (1792)... Johnny Cash, Carl Perkins and Elvis Presley appear on the same bill at the National Guard Armory in Vicksburg, MS (1955)... Not yet divorced from his first wife Jane Mitcham, Jerry Lee Lewis secretly marries his 13-year old second cousin Myra Gale Brown (1958)... The Beatles go to no. 1 on the UK singles chart with 'I Want to Hold Your Hand' (1963)... Brian Jones is given 3 years probation and a £1,000 fine for drug offences. Three court-appointed psychiatrists agree that Jones is 'an extremely frightened young man with suicidal tendencies' (1967)... Smokey Robinson & the Miracles have the no. 1 song in America with 'Tears of a Clown'... The Doors play what will prove to be their last live show with Jim Morrison, at the Warehouse in New Orleans (1970)... The Clash release the 3 LP set Sandinista! (1980)... Mick Jagger becomes a Sir after being knighted by Prince Charles at Buckingham Palace. Jagger's 92-year-old father is at the Palace to see his son receive the distinction (2003)... A copy of John Lennon's book A Spaniard in the Works containing a lock of the author's hair pressed inside it sells at Gorringes Auction House for £24,000, ($48,000). Lennon gave the book and the hair to Betty Glasgow, the Fab Four's hairdresser in 1965. He wrote on the title page, 'To Betty, Lots of Love and Hair, John Lennon xx'. The strands of hair and book had been expected to sell for between £2,000 and £4,000 (2007)... The Rolling Stones, The Who, Michael Stipe, Chris Martin, Bruce Springsteen and Roger Waters play at Madison Square Garden and raised over $30m (£18.6m) at a benefit gig for those affected by superstorm Sandy, which had caused the deaths of 120 people when it hit the Caribbean and US in October of this year. The surviving members of Nirvana, Dave Grohl and Krist Novoselic, also join Sir Paul McCartney on stage to perform (2012). 

 

 

December 11

Musical birthdays today include Rita Moreno (82), McCoy Tyner (75), former Bread lead singer David Gates (73), Jermaine Jackson (59), Mötley Crüe bassist Nikki Sixx (55), Tangerine Dream composer & producer Paul Haslinger (51), film score composer Jon Brion (50), Del Amitri frontman Justin Currie (49), singer-songwriter Cosy Sheridan (49), N.W.A founding member DJ Yella (46), Mos Def (40), Avenged Sevenfold guitarist Zacky Vengeance (32), and pop singer Tiffany Alvord (21). 

Shoutout to the Great Beyond for composer Hector Berlioz, born on this day in 1803... for tango singer Carlos Gardel, born in 1890... for composer Elliott Carter, born in 1908... for Big Mama Thornton, who would have been 87 today... for J. Frank Wilson, who would have been 72... for Sam Cooke, who was shot to death at the age of 33 on this day in 1964... for jazz singer Lee Wiley, who died in 1975... for Penguin Cafe orchestra founder Simon Jeffes, who passed away in 1997... and for Ravi Shankar, who left us one year ago today. 

Also on December 11: In his first recording session for the Sterling label, Hank Williams records 'Wealth Won't Save Your Soul', 'Calling You', 'Never Again', and 'When God Comes and Gathers His Jewels' (1946)... Lucille Ball debuts in her only Broadway musical, Coleman & Leigh's 'Wildcat' (1960)... The Marvelettes go to no. 1 on the Billboard singles chart with 'Please Mr. Postman' (1961)...  Filming begins for The Rolling Stones' Rock & Roll Circus. In addition to clowns and acrobats, John Lennon and Yoko Ono perform as part of a supergroup called The Dirty Mac, along with Eric Clapton, Mitch Mitchell, and Keith Richards. The Who, Jethro Tull, Marianne Faithfull and Taj Mahal are also on the bill... The show was originally meant to be aired on the BBC, but the Rolling Stones withheld it because they were unhappy with their performance. The film was eventually released in 1996 (1968)... John Lennon releases the John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band album, and King Crimson release Lizard, their third LP (1970)...  James Brown is arrested after a show in Memphis, TN for trying to incite a riot. Brown threatens to sue the city for $1 million, and the charges are later dropped (1972)... One-hit wonder Toni Basil has the no. 1 single in America with 'Mickey'... In the UK, the Jam play their last gig as a band in Brighton (1982)... Manic Street Prechers bassist Nicky Wire is quoted by the New Musical Express as saying "I hope Michael Stipe goes the same way as Freddie Mercury" (1992)... The character Mr Blobby as featured on UK TV's 'The Noel Edmunds House Party' starts a one-week run as the country's No.1 single with the novelty song 'Mr Blobby'. In 1999, the tune will receive the dubious honour of being voted the most irritating Christmas No.1 single of all time in an HMV poll (1993)... David Soul wins a lawsuit against Matthew Wright, a London music critic who panned Soul's performance at a nightclub without even hearing it. Wright's column in the Times had made reference to a Monday performance, when in fact the club was closed on Mondays (2001)... Bobby Brown is charged with assault & battery after allegedly hitting wife Whitney Houston in the face. Brown turned himself in to the police three days after a reported domestic dispute at the couple's home in Atlanta. Houston, who accompanies her husband to court, says they are trying to work out their problems "privately" (2003). 

 

 

December 10

Musical birthdays today include singer-songwriter Chad [of Chad & Jeremy] Stuart (72), Wang Chung lead singer Jack Hues (59), former Pepsi & Shirlie vocalist Helen 'Pepsi' Demacque (55), Dinosaur Jr. lead guitarist J Mascis (48), Placebo lead singer Brian Molko (41), Meg White (39), classical violinist Sarah Chang (33), and Raven-Symoné (28). 

Shoutout to the Great Beyond for composer César Franck, born on this day in 1822... for composer Olivier Messiaen, born in 1908... for Ewanya 'Puff' Johnson, who would have been 41 today... for Otis Redding, who died in a plane crash today in 1967 along with four members of his band the Bar-Kays,  Jimmy King, Carl Cunningham, Ronnie Caldwell and Phalon Jones... for singer-songwriter Kate Wolf, who died in 1986... for Ladysmith Black Mambazo vocalist Headman Shabalala, who passed away in 1991... for singer and philanthropist Alice Tully, who died in 1993... and Rick Danko, who left us today in 1999. 

Also on December 10: Antoine Domino records his first tracks for Imperial Records. One of the songs is called ‘The Fat Man’, which later results in the nickname 'Fats' that will stick with him (1949)... Four male members of The Platters are found not guilty of charges of aiding and abetting prostitution, lewdness and assignation after an incident on August 10th in Cincinnati. Despite the acquittal, the scandal effectively finishes the group as a commercial force... The Beatles appear at Hambleton Hall, Huyton, Liverpool after returning to their hometown from their first live performances in the south of England and London. The group arrive so late for their appearance that they only have time to play for 15 minutes. The promoters, who had to pay the Beatles their full £15 fee, are very unhappy (1961)... The Beach Boys hit no. 1 on the US singles chart with 'Good Vibrations' (1966)... The Byrds open an 8-night residency at the Whisky-a-go-go in West Hollywood (1967)... Playing the first of two nights at London's Rainbow Theatre, Frank Zappa is pushed off stage by a disturbed audience member named Trevor Howell. Zappa falls onto the concrete-floored orchestra pit ~ in the immediate aftermath, the band think that Zappa has been killed. He suffers serious fractures, head trauma and injuries to his back, leg, and neck, as well as a crushed larynx, which ultimately causes his voice to drop a third after healing. The incident accident will require Zappa to use a wheelchair for an extended period, forcing him off the road for over half a year (1971)... CBGB opens (1973)... The Jam release their final album, Dig the New Breed (1982)... Paul McCartney and Michael Jackson start a 6-week run at no. 1 in the US with 'Say Say Say' (1983)... Fine Young Cannibals release their eponymous debut album (1985)... A war of words breaks out between Cliff Richard and George Michael after the latter describes Richard's hit 'Millennium Prayer' as 'vile'. Cliff responds that his single is a Christian celebration (1999)... Coldplay lead singer Chris Martin marries Gwyneth Paltrow in Santa Barbara, CA (2003)...  Led Zeppelin play their first show in 19 years, at London's 02 Arena as part of the Ahmet Ertegun Tribute Concert. Original band members Jimmy Page, Robert Plant and John Paul Jones are joined on stage by Jason Bonham, the son of their late drummer. More than one million people had taken part in a ballot for the 20,000 tickets available for the show with all proceeds going to Ahmet's own charity. Zeppelin perform 16 songs including two encores. Among those attending the gig are Dave Grohl, Paul McCartney, Jeff Beck, Brian May, David Gilmour, The Edge, Peter Gabriel, Mick Jagger, Kate Moss, Naomi Campbell, Jerry Hall, Priscilla Presley and Paris Hilton (2007)... The Associated Press reports that the US military has been using loud music to 'create fear and disorientation, and to prolong capture shock' for prisoners at military detention centers at Guantanamo Bay. Among the songs blasted 24 hours a day were 'Born In The USA' by Bruce Springsteen, 'Hell's Bells' by AC/DC, 'White America' by Eminem, 'The Theme From Sesame Street' and 'I Love You' from the Barney and Friends children's TV show (2008)... The original hand-written lyrics to Bob Dylan's 'The Times They Are A-Changin' sell at a New York auction for $422,500. Hedge fund manager and art collector Adam Sender outbids five others placing telephone bids (2010)... A copy of The Beatles ‘Love Me Do’ 1962 demo record sells for $17,339.31 after a 10-day eBay auction (2011). 

December 9

Musical birthdays today include country singer-songwriter Billy Edd Wheeler (81), ex-Charlatans drummer Mike Hicks (72), Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band frontman Neil Innes (69), Joan Armatrading (63), Donny Osmond (56), former Christian Death guitarist Rikk Agnew (55), ex-Crowded House bassist Rick Seymour (55), Rammstein guitarist Paul Landers (49), Weezer guitarist Brian Bell (45), Jakob Dylan (44), songwriter & producer Kara DioGuardi (43), Green Day drummer Tré Cool (41), and Imogen Heap (36). 

Shoutout to the Great Beyond for operatic soprano Elisabeth Schwarzkopf, born on this day in 1915... for jazz trumpeter Donald Byrd, who would have been 81 today... for blues harmonica virtuoso Junior Wells, who would have been 79... for ska and reggae singer Clancy Eccles, who would have been 73... for Hanoi Rocks drummer Nick 'Razzle' Dingley, killed in a road accident at the age of 24 today in 1984... for former Waitresses lead singer Patty Donahue, who died in 1996... and for classical pianist György Sándor, who left us in 2005. 

Also on December 9: Richard Strauss' opera 'Salome' premieres in Dresden (1905)... John Coltrane's quartet goes into the Van Gelder Studio in Englewood Cliffs, NJ to record A Love Supreme (1964)... Cream release their debut studio album Fresh Cream in the UK. The trio of Eric Clapton, Jack Bruce and Ginger Baker also release their second single 'I Feel Free' today (1966)... The Doors appear at the New Haven Arena, New Haven, CT. Before the show a policeman finds Jim Morrison making out with an 18 year-old girl in a backstage shower, and after an argument the policeman sprays mace in Morrison’s face. Once on stage Morrison tells the story of the backstage episode and starts taunting the police, who drag him off the stage and arrest him. The crowd riots, leaving the venue in disarray, and many arrests are made. Later, over 100 protesters gather outside the police station to stage a demonstration and more are taken into custody (1967)... Chic start a seven week run at No.1 on the US singles chart with 'Le Freak.' Nile Rodgers later recounts that the song was devised on New Years Eve, 1977, as a result of him and bassist Bernard Edwards being refused entrance to NYC's Studio 54, where they had been invited by Grace Jones, who had neglected to notify the nightclub's staff. He said the lyrics of the refrain were originally 'Fuck off!' rather than 'Freak out!' (1978)... 
According to a poll published in the US tabloid The National Enquirer, the music of Neil Diamond was favoured as the best background music for sex; Beethoven was the second choice, and Luther Vandross was voted third (1988)... Billy Joel hits no. 1 on the US singles chart with 'We Didn't Start the Fire' (1989)... U2 make their first ever appearance on Saturday Night Live, performing 'Beautiful Day' and 'Elevation' (2000)... Channel 4 apologises to viewers after Madonna says 'motherfucker' during live UK TV coverage at the Tate Gallery, London. Madonna was presenting a prize to artist Martin Creed. A TV spokesman said they did have a bleeper system but that they missed the offending word (2001)... Joss Stone, Lemar and Ms. Dynamite backed by the African Children's Choir and 1,200 school children set a new world record for the most children singing simultaneously. The ‘Big Sing’ is held at the Royal Albert Hall. The singers lead a performance of ‘Lean On Me’ which is broadcast to more than half a million people (2005). 

December 8

Musical birthdays today include folk singer Jean Ritchie (91), former Impressions lead singer Jerry Butler (74), flautist James Galway (74), Hollies drummer Bobby Elliott (72), Gregg Allman (66), ex-Gentle Giant multi-instrumentalist Ray Shulman (64), former Utopia bassist Kasim Sulton (58), Duran Duran guitarist Warren Cuccurullo (57), Def Leppard co-lead guitarist Phil Collen (56), former Megadeath guitarist Marty Friedman (51), Sinéad O'Connor (47), Slipknot lead singer Corey Taylor (40), Yeah Yeah Yeahs guitarist Nick Zinner (39), Ingrid Michaelson (34), Chrisette Michele (31), and Nicki Minaj (31). 

Shoutout to the Great Beyond for composer Jean Sibelius, born on this day in 1865... for composer Bohuslav Martinů, born in 1890... for Sammy Davis, Jr., who would have been 88 today... for former John Mayall and Ike & Tina Turner drummer Soko Richardson, who would have been 74... for Jim Morrison, who would have been 70... for former Edgar Winter Group lead singer Dan Hartman, who would have been 63... for former Uriah Heep bassist Gary Thain, who died of a drug overdose at the age of 27 today in 1975... for country singer Marty Robbins, who died in 1982... for John Lennon, who left us today in 1980... for bossa nova composer and performer Antônio Carlos Jobim, who passed away in 1994... for Buena Vista Social Club pianist Rubén González, who died in 2003... for guitarist 'Dimebag Darrell' Abbott, shot to death along with 4 others while performing live with Damageplan at the age of 38 today in 2004... and for big band singer Martha Tilton, who died in 2006. 

Also on December 8: In Vienna, Beethoven's 7th Symphony is performed for the first time (1813)...  The Beach Boys' first single 'Surfin' is released on Candix Records, a small label based in Los Angeles. On the strength of the song’s performance in the Southern California market, Capitol Records will sign the group the following July (1961)... Frank Sinatra Jr is kidnapped at gunpoint from a hotel in Lake Tahoe. He is released two days later after his father pays out the $240,000 ransom demanded by the kidnappers, who are later captured, and sentenced to long prison terms. In order to communicate with the kidnappers via a payphone, Sinatra Sr. carried a roll of dimes with him throughout the ordeal; it became a lifetime habit, and the singer is said to have been buried with a roll of dimes (1963)... Working at Abbey Road Studios, Paul McCartney overdubs his lead vocal for ‘When I'm Sixty-Four’. The Beatles then return to work on John Lennon's song ‘Strawberry Fields Forever', which had earlier been set side when progress on it stalled (1966)... The Rolling Stones release Their Satanic Majesties Request (1967)... Graham Nash announces that he has left The Hollies to start work with David Crosby and Stephen Stills (1968)...  Mick Jagger is quoted by Melody Maker as saying "I don't really like singing very much. I enjoy playing the guitar more than I enjoy singing, and I can't play the guitar either" (1969)... This week's Top selling 8-Track cartridges in America are: 5) Frank Sinatra's Greatest Hits Vol 2 4) Tapestry by Carole King 3) Bridge Over Troubled Water by Simon & Garfunkel 2) Motown Chartbusters Vol. 6 and 1) Imagine by John Lennon (1971)... Lou Reed releases Transformer (1972)... Roxy Music have their first UK No.1 album when Stranded goes to the top, where it will stay for one week (1973)... Courtney Love appears on the ABC TV show '10 Most Fascinating People', telling the presenter that she wishes she had done 'eight thousand million things differently' to have prevented the death of her late husband Kurt Cobain (1995)... Sting's star is unveiled on the Walk of Fame in Hollywood (2000).

December 7

Musical birthdays today include Tom Waits (64), singer-songwriter Ron Hynes (63), former Bucks Fizz vocalist Mike Nolan (59), Psychedelic Furs bassist Tim Butler (55), ex-The Fall guitarist Craig Scanlon (53), former Juniper multi-instrumentalist Damien Rice (40), Muse drummer Dominic Howard (36), ex-Kumbia Kings singer Frankie J (35), Sara Bareilles (34), and Aaron Carter (26). 

Shoutout to the Great Beyond for trumpeter & singer Louis Prima, born on this day in 1910... for fiddler Jean Carignan, born in 1916... for Harry Chapin, who would have been 71 today... for Dr. Peter Carl Goldmark, inventor of the microgroove LP vinyl record, who died on this date in 1977... for punk rocker Darby Crash, who took his own life today in 1980 at the age of 22... and for country singer Jerry Scoggins, who left us today in 2004. 

Also on December 7: The Royal Opera House at Covent Garden opens (1732)... The Beatles second album 'With The Beatles' starts a 21-week run at No.1 on the UK album chart. It replaces their first album 'Please Please me' which has been at the top of the charts since its release 30 weeks previously. Also today, all four Beatles appeared on BBC TV's 'Juke Box Jury'. Some of the songs group judge are ‘Kiss Me Quick’ by Elvis Presley, ‘The Hippy Hippy Shake’ by the Swinging Blue Jeans. ‘Did You Have a Happy Birthday’ by Paul Anka and ‘Where Have You Been All My Life’ by Gene Vincent... In America, Jeanine Deckers, AKA The Singing Nun, is at no. 1 with 'Dominique' (1963)... Brian Wilson marries Marilyn Rovell in Los Angeles... In Britain, Jerry Lee Lewis ~ on his first tour of the country ~ plays the Town Hall in Birmingham with the Yardbirds as his opening act (1964)... Otis Redding goes into the studio to record '(Sittin' On) The Dock Of The Bay'. The song goes on to be his biggest hit... Redding wrote the first verse of the song, under the abbreviated title 'Dock of the Bay', on a houseboat at Waldo Point in Sausalito, California, a short time after his appearance at the Monterey Pop festival. Redding's familiar whistling, heard before the song's fade was the singer fooling around ~ he had intended to return to the studio at a later date to add words in place of the whistling. When he is killed in a plane crash three days later, the single is mixed as is and rushed into pressing... In London, the Beatles' Apple boutique at 94 Baker Street W1 opens its doors (1967)... One-hit wonder Carl Douglas starts a two week run at No.1 on the US singles chart with 'Kung Fu Fighting'. The song, which was recorded in 10 minutes, went on to sell over 10 million copies (1974)... Mariah Carey's MTV Unplugged EP becomes the first Sony MiniDisc to be released in the US (1992)... The MBE medal that John Lennon returned to the Queen is found in a royal vault at St James' Palace. Lennon sent back the decoration in November, 1969 with an accompanying letter  saying, 'Your Majesty, I am returning my MBE as a protest against Britain's involvement in the Nigeria-Biafra thing, against our support of America in Vietnam and against Cold Turkey slipping down the charts. With Love, John Lennon'. Historians call for the medal to be put on public display (2005).