Author: Jim Feliciano

From the MCRFB music calendar:

Events on this date: MARCH 20

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1959: Philadelphia’s Dick Clark introduces Philadelphia’s own Bobby Rydell on American Bandstand. By then a singing protege after having first been discovered by Clark, the sensational Phillie teen-idol makes his first appearance on the ABC-TV national teen-dance show.

1961: Elvis Presley begins filming Blue Hawaii while on location there. It is Presley’s ninth movie thus far.

1964: The Beatles make their first appearance on the British television variety show Ready Steady Go! After singing three numbers on the show, “Can’t Buy Me Love,” ” It Won’t Be Long,” and “You Can’t Do That.” The band’s debut appearance on the show retains the highest ratings ever for the UK television program.

1965: The No. 1 song in the Britain Isles on this day is “The Last Time” by the Rolling Stones.

1965:  Motown’s very first British tour begins at Finsbury Park Astoria, in London. The UK entourage features many of the top Motown recording acts, such as the Supremes, Little Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye, Martha and the Vandellas, and the Miracles.

1968: Eric Clapton is arrested in Los Angeles along with three members of the Buffalo Springfield, namely Neil Young, Jim Messina, and  Richie Furray. All four were charged with “being in a place where it is suspected marijuana was being used.” Clapton is later found innocent, while the Buffalo Springfield band members, their names disclosed, are all penalized with a small fine.

1969: John Lennon marries Yoko Ono at the Rock of Gibraltor, Spain, a parcel of land still owned by the English. Later, in the Beatles song, “The Ballad Of John And Yoko,” Lennon describes the location as “Gibraltor, near Spain,” setting off an international furor at the time, as England and Spain were currently at odds over ownership of the area.

1976: Alice Cooper marries his first and only wife, Sheryl Goddard, a-19-year-old dancer who was on his Welcome To My Nightmare Tour.

1977: T-Rex plays what is to be their last concert before the untimely death of lead singer Marc Bolan in an automobile accident, a gig at a club named The Locarno, situated in Portsmouth, England.

1989: After 37 years on the air, Dick Clark announces he will discontinue his creation for television, ABC-TV’s American Bandstand. The show continues with another host, but didn’t last too long after Clark had exited.

1991:  Eric Clapton’s son Conor, four years of age, dies after falling from the 53rd story window from his mother’s apartment in New York City. Clapton was staying at a hotel at the time not far away, having taken his son to a circus the night before. Clapton later writes his hit song “Tears In Heaven” as a way to help overcome his personal grief over his son’s tragic death.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And that’s just a few of the events which took place in pop music history, on this day…. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

From the MCRFB music calendar:

Events on this date: MARCH 19

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1957: Although he wouldn’t finalize the deal in six more days, Elvis Presley puts down a deposit to secure the 14-acre estate with a two-story colonial at 3734 Highway 51 South, Memphis, Tennessee, later know as Graceland.

1958: As Tom and Jerry, Simon and Garfunkel release their third single, a ditty named, “Our Song.”

1964: British Prime Minister Harold Wilson, who would later be satirized in the band’s song “Taxman,” presents the Beatles for being “Show Business Personalities Of 1963” At the Variety Club of Great Britain Annual Show Business Award.

1965: Britain’s Tailor and Cutter runs an article by tie makers asking the Rolling Stones to start wearing ties with their suits, a fashion which had gone out of style among the youth. Mick Jagger responds, diplomatically, that ties would only give screaming female fans something else they can grab unto in a mob-crowd.

1966: The Walker Brothers’ Gary Lewis undergoes a fake abduction by college students as a charity stunt.

1966: Lesley Gore guest stars as herself on the final “Byline — Jeffrey Stone” episode of ABC-TV’s The Donna Reed Show.

1968: Donovan goes to India to study under the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. Dean Martin’s Reprise’ album Houston is certified gold.

1970: David Bowie marries his first wife, model Angela Barnett, in Kent, England, who became the eventual subject of the Rolling Stone’s 1974 titled hit, “Angie.”

1974: Jefferson Airplane reforms with their core of original members, although this time they renamed the group as Jefferson Starship.

1980: Elvis Presley’s autopsy is entered into proceedings held by the Tennessee Board of Medical Examiners against Dr. George Nichopoulos, better known to his clients — including Elvis — as “Dr. Nick.” The doctor will eventually be found guilty of over-prescribing the drugs that led to Presley’s death and will have his license revoked, even though he repeatedly took measures to help cure Elvis of his addiction through prescribed detoxification.

1988: Michael Jackson begins construction on his 2,800-acre ranch and private amusement park in Santa Barbara, California. Jackson will name it “Neverland,” namely after a fantasy location he had taken while reading his favorite book , Peter Pan, and according to the book, it is a place where children will never grow up.

2004: After she had an allergic reaction to prescribed antibiotics, Aretha Franklin is admitted to Detroit’s Sinai-Grace Hospital.

 

 

 

 

 

And that’s just a few of the events which took place in pop music history, on this day…. 

From the MCRFB music calendar:

Events on this date: MARCH 18

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1958: Jerry Lee Lewis becomes the first musician to appear on American Bandstand actually singing and not lip-synching through his performance. Singing “Great Balls Of Fire,” “Whole Lotta Shakin’ Goin On,” and “Breathless” live, he also becomes the first guest to perform three songs on the D.C. program.

1959: EMI announces its intentions to halt productions of 78 rpm records.

1965: In a scandal that further marred their reputations as a “bad boys” band,  the Rolling Stones are arrested for publicly urinating on a side wall of a gas station after a concert in Essex, England.

1967: The Beatles “Penny Lane” spends its sole week at No. 1 in the U.S.

1970: Brook Benton is certified gold by the RIAA for his (over) one million-selling hit, “A Rainy Night In Georgia.”

1972: Ringo Starr, in his first directing role, is behind the camera filming tonight’s T-Rex concert in Wembley, for his upcoming Marc Boland documentary Born To Boogie.

1973: At Earl’s Court in London, Pink Floyd perform their just-released album On The Dark Side Of The Moon in its entirety for the first time.

1975: The Who is immortalized on stage by the band’s movie version of Tommy. The play premiered in New York City in “Quintophonic Sound.”

1978: Barry Gibb of the Bee Gees occupies the top three spots on the Billboard charts as a writer and producer: Samantha Sang’s “Emotion” at No. 3, younger brother’s Andy Gibb’s “(Love Is) Thicker Than Water” No. 2, and the Bee Gees’ own “Night Fever” is at the top spot at No. 1 for the first of eight solid weeks on the charts.

1982: Returning from a Philadelphia ’76ers basketball game, Teddy Pendergrass is permanently paralyzed from the waist down when the brakes on his Roll Royce fails, causing the vehicle to swerve unto oncoming traffic and crash into a tree. Miraculously, Pendergrass returns to the stage two years later in 1984.

1992: Donna Summers is awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk Of Fame at 7000 Hollywood Blvd.

1994: Darryl Jones replaces longtime bassist Bill Wyman in the Rolling Stones.

2002: In New York, Issac Hayes, Brenda Lee, and Gene Pitney (among others) are inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And that’s just a few of the events which took place in pop music history, on this day . . . .  M  A  R  C  H   1  8

From the MCRFB music calendar:

Events on this date: MARCH 17

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1956: Carl Perkins made his television debut on the ABC-TV variety show Ozark Jamboree.

1957: Elvis Presley purchases Memphis’ Graceland mansion, featuring 23 rooms and 10,000 square feet of space on 13.8 acres, for $102,500.

1962: According to today’s edition of Billboard magazine, Ray Charles starts his own artist-owned record label, Tangerine Records.

1968: The Bee Gees make their first U. S. television appearance, performing “To Love Somebody” and “Words” on CBS-TV’s The Ed Sullivan Show.

1975: At the height of her popularity, Cher graces the cover of Time magazine on this date.

1976: Boxer Rubin “Hurricane” Carter murder case is re-opened, largely due to the attention brought to it by Bob Dylan’s recent hit song, “Hurricane.”

1990: That’s What Friends Are For, an AIDS benefit concert at the Radio City Music Hall that also serves to celebrate 15 years of the Arista record label, features perfomances by the label’s own Barry Manilow, Dionne Warwick, Daryl Hall and John Oates, and Whitney Houston.

2004: Ray Davis of the Kinks is awarded a Commander of the British Empire medal from Queen Elizabeth II at Buckingham Palace.

2006: Beset by legal and financial woes, Michael Jackson closes his Neverland Ranch in California.

2008: Eight years to the day their romance became public, model and activist Heather Mills is awarded $48.6 million in her divorce settlement from Paul McCartney.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And that’s just a few of the events which took place in pop music history, on this day . . . .  M  A  R  C  H   1  7

From the MCRFB calendar:

Events on this date: MARCH 16

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1959: The first American record artists package tour is announced for the United Kingdom. The ’59 UK tour will feature Bobby Darin, Duane Eddy, Conway Twitty, Dale Hawkins, and the Poni Tails.

1964: The final nail in legendary DJ Alan Freed’s career is pounded in when Freed is indicted for tax evasion. The IRS evasion charges were brought about because of findings from the “payola scandal” investigations from 1959. By then unemployed, penniless and broke, he dies in 1965.

1968: On this day, Otis Redding hits the No. 1 Billboard spot for his soul hit, “Sittin’ On The Dock Of The Bay.”

1970: On this day, the Beatles release their album Let It Be. Also on this day, Tammi Terrell dies during brain surgery. It was her eighth and her final surgery for an undisclosed brain disorder in the past eighteen months.

1971: At tonight’s Grammy Awards ceremony in Los Angeles, the Beatles take Best Original Score for their Let It Be tracks, while Simon and Garfunkel swept the stage with six Grammies for their song and album Bridge Over Troubled Waters. The six Grammy Awards for the duo fell under these categories: Record Of The Year, Album Of The Year, Song Of The Year, as well as Best Arrangement, Engineering, and Best Contemporary Song.

1974: Elvis Presley returns to Memphis to play his first gig there since 1961. Presley was booked for a one performance show at the Midsouth Coliseum.

1979: Paul McCartney’s concert film Wings Over America gets it first television airing on CBS-TV.

1999: The RIAA gives their first Diamond Award Certification to the Eagles’ Greatest Hits 1971 – 1975 album, honoring 10,000,000 LP copies sold.

2005: Billy Joel enters rehab for the second time, ostensibly for “gastrointestinal distress” but in reality to cure him for alcoholism.

 

 

And that’s just a few of the events which took place in pop music history, on this day . . . . 

M  A  R  C  H   1  6

From the MCRFB music calendar:

Events on this date: MARCH 15

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1958: Elvis Presley performs his last concert before leaving for the Army, a show at Memphis’ Russwood Park. Aside from two benefit shows in 1961, this would be the last Presley concert until 1969.

1966: Tonight’s winner at the Grammy Awards in New York City; Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass for their smash single, “A Taste Of Honey” (Record Of The Year), Frank Sinatra for his latest album, September Of My Years (Album Of The Year), and “The Shadow Of Your Smile,” (Song Of The Year).

1969: John Lennon and Yoko Ono, attempting to marry in Paris, are caught “standing in the dock at Southampton/Trying to get to Holland or France,” as later documented in the Beatles song, “The Ballad Of John And Yoko.” Passport problems keep them from boarding.

1971: CBS-TV announces it will cancel The Ed Sullivan Show, then the longest-running TV show in history, after 23 years.

1972: After Los Angeles radio station KHJ broadcasts Donny Osmond’s version of “Puppy Love” for 25 1/2 half hours straight, worried callers summons the L.A. police, who break into the studios. Turned out to be it was just a publicity stunt, and not taken over by parties involved any sort of criminal act, as some callers had speculated to police.

1975: Stoner Mick Jagger settles his paternity suit with (the beautiful) singer Marsha Hunt out of court.

1978: The Alan Freed biopic American Hot Wax, widely acclaimed as one of the best rock and roll movies of all time, premiers in New York City. The movie features performances by Jerry Lee Lewis, Chuck Berry, and Screamin’ Jay Hawkins.

1979: Elvis Costello gets in an infamous argument with Stephen Stills and Bonnie Bramlett of Delaney and Bonnie fame, at an after-party affair following Stills’ show in Columbus, Ohio. Reportedly, Costello made racist remarks to Bramlett to disgust her, in order to get her to stop her constant arguing. In retort, a very-drunk Costello refers to James Brown “as a jive-ass ……(delete N-word)” and Ray Charles “as a blind, ignorant …… (delete N-word).”

On the following day during a press conference, Costello went on to say that, “It became necessary for me to outrage these people with about the most obnoxious and offensive remarks that I could muster.”  According to the story, Bramlett then responded at the bar by punching Costello in the face. Elvis later apologized to James Brown and Ray Charles personally, and, in his efforts to show his sincerity, Costello does some work with the Rock Against Racism project.

1989: The Rolling Stones sign a contract for $70 million dollars — the largest ever amount during that time — for their anticipated tour of the U.S., as had been long planned.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And that’s just a few of the events which took place in pop music history, on this day . . . .  M  A  R  C  H   1  5

From the MCRFB music calendar:

Events on this date: MARCH 14

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1955: Popular country star Jimmy Dean interviews Elvis Presley on his Washington D. C. television show Town and Country Time. A nervous Elvis answers every question with a “yep” or “nope.”

1956: The Alan Freed film, Rock Around The Clock, starring The Platters and of course, Bill Haley and the Comets, premiers in New York City.

1958: The RIAA awards its first-ever gold record for sales of a million copies that year, the honor going to Perry Como’s, “Catch A Falling Star.”

1963: Gerry Marsden of the Pacemakers sneaks a custom-made guitar purchased in Germany through British customs and is fined 60 pounds.

1964: The Beatles “Twist And Shout” enters the Billboard charts on this day.

1965: Petula Clark makes her American TV debut on CBS-TV’s Ed Sullivan Show singing “Downtown” and “I Know A Place.”

1968: The BBC-TV program Top Of The Pops broadcasts the Beatles new promotional video for “Lady Madonna,” which, oddly enough, is made up entirely of clips from the band’s recording of “Hey Bulldog.”

1970: On this date, the Supremes (without Diana Ross) enters the Billboard charts with “Up The Ladder To The Roof.”

1972: At tonight’s Grammys Awards, Carol King’s massively popular Tapestry LP is awarded the Album Of The Year honors.

1980: On the occasion of his forty-seventh birthday, Quincy Jones is awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk Of Fame at 1500 Vine.

1981: Bleeding ulcers forces Eric Clapton to cancel the remainder of his 60-date US tour. Clapton checks himself in a hospital in St. Paul, Minnesota.

2005: The New York Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame inducts Percy Sledge, The O’Jays, U2, Buddy Guy and the Pretenders.

2008: In London, ex-Foundations member Peter MacBeth is sentenced to six years in prison on pedophilia and sexual assault charges.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And that’s just a few of the events which took place in pop music history, on this day . . . .  M  A  R  C  H   1  4