Monthly Archive: March 2015

ROCK & ROLL HISTORY

The late Lawrence Payton (The Four Tops – ‘Standing In The Shadows Of Love’) was born in 1938.

The late Lou Reed (singer/songwriter/guitarist with The Velvet Underground – ‘Sister Ray’ and ‘Walk On The Wild Side’ as a solo artist) was born in 1942.

The late Tony Meehan (born Daniel Joseph Anthony Meehan – drummer with The Shadows – ‘Apache’) was born in 1943.
Rock Factoid: On January 1, 1962, Meehan was working in the A & R department of Decca Records when the Beatles turned up for their audition. The Beatles – as fans know all too well – failed the audition. Meehan didn’t make the actual decision (that was Dick Rowe), but he was the messenger. The episode is described very clearly in Brian Epstein’s autobiography A Cellarful Of Noise.
Rock Factoid #2: George Harrison would always bitterly resent the way the Beatles were treated by Decca. While he spoke often and with pleasure about how cocky he, John and Paul were, no matter their youth and inexperience, he held a grudge against Meehan for being arrogant and young. Despite all he’d achieved in The Shadows, Meehan was five days younger than George.
“Tony Meehan was really cocky,” George would say. “He was the star and he decided he could choose who would be on the label or not…and he was this kid!” George’s bitterness about Meehan would one day be manifested when he had the chance to tell Meehan, and at some length, just what he thought of him.” … Mark Lewisohn

The late Rory Gallagher (influential rock/blues guitarist who turned down a chance to join The Rolling Stones) was born in 1948.

The late Karen Carpenter of The Carpenters (‘Close To You’) was born in 1950.

Chris Martin (lead singer with Coldplay – ‘Clocks’) is 38.

Jon Bon Jovi (born John Bongiovi – lead singer/songwriter with Bon Jovi – ‘Wanted Dead Or Alive’ and ‘Blaze Of Glory’ as a solo artist) is 53.
Rock Factoid: Bon Jovi had a slight advantage when he recorded ‘Runaway’ as a demo in 1982. He was sweeping floors at legendary New York City recording studio The Power Station, which happened to be co-owned by his cousin, Tony Bongiovi. That connection got him inside the recording studio where he and studio musicians recorded the song.
Rock Factoid #2: After forming his band in1983, ideas were tossed around as to what to name it. The name originally selected was “Johnny Electric” but a friend of the band suggested they should follow the example of famous last name bands such as Van Halen and Dokken.

Mark Evans (original bass guitarist with AC/DC – ‘Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap’) is 59.
Rock Factoid: Evans played on AC/DC’s early albums; ‘T.N.T.’ (1975), ‘High Voltage’ (1976), ‘Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap’ (1976) and ‘Let There Be Rock’ (1977). He was fired from the band in late 1977 due to “musical differences” and personality clashes with lead guitarist Angus Young.
Rock Factoid #2: In November 2002, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame announced that AC/DC were to be inducted in 2003. Evans and late singer Bon Scott were both on the list. However six weeks later, Evans’ name was dropped without explanation.

John Cowsill (drummer with The Cowsills – ‘Hair’) is 59.
Rock Factoid: Cowsill – who has been married to Vicki Peterson of The Bangles since 2003 – began playing with the Beach Boys touring band (on keyboards) in 2000. He moved to the drums in 2008.
Rock Factoid: In 1981, Cowsill recorded with the band Tommy Tutone, playing percussion and singing back-up vocals on the band’s hit, ‘867-5309/Jenny’.

Jay Osmond (The Osmonds – ‘One Bad Apple’) is 60.

1955 – Bo Diddley recorded ‘Bo Diddley’ at Universal Recording Studios in Chicago.
Rock Factoid: The song is included in Rolling Stone magazine’s list of the “500 Greatest Songs of All Time,” and is also a part of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fames “500 Songs That Shaped Rock and Roll”. list.
Rock Factoid #2: In 1998, ‘Bo Diddley’ was given a Grammy Hall of Fame Award, and in 2012, it was added to the Library of Congress National Recording Registry list of “culturally, historically, or aesthetically important” American sound recordings.

1960 – Elvis Presley left Germany after serving two years in the Army. During a stop in Prestwick, Scotland to refuel the plane, Presley greeted fans through a fence.
Rock Factoid: At the time, Prestwick was home for the 1631 USAF unit and was a convenient stopover point for aircraft traveling from mainland Europe to North America. Despite the information about his visit and flight being restricted, rumors that Elvis was arriving in Scotland soon leaked out.
Rock Factoid #2: During the stopover, he briefly spoke to journalists, saying, “I kind of like the idea of Scotland. I’m going to do a European tour and Scotland will certainly be on my list.” The promised tour and the Scottish dates were, of course, never to happen. That stopover was the first and only time in his life he ever stood on British soil.

1963 – The Four Seasons became the first group to have three consecutive #1 songs in the U.S. when ‘Walk Like A Man’ started a three week run at the top.
Rock Factoid: The first two had been ‘Sherry’ and ‘Big Girls Don’t Cry’

1963 – San Francisco’s Cow Palace held a “Limbo Party” hosted by ‘The Twist’ hit-maker Chubby Checker. Performers include Marvin Gaye, The Four Seasons, The Crystals, Lou Christie, Dick & Dee Dee, Paul & Paula, and Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass.

1964 – Vee-Jay Records in Chicago created the Tollie label and used it to release ‘Twist And Shout’ / ‘There’s A Place’ by The Beatles.

1964 – Elvis Presley recorded ‘Little Egypt’, ‘Poison Ivy’, ‘Hard Knocks’ and ‘It’s A Wonderful World’. All of the songs were featured in Presley’s filmRoustabout

1964 – Filming began on the Beatles’ A Hard Day’s Night. George Harrison met future wife Pattie Boyd on the set.

1965 – The Kinks released ‘Kinks-Size’ in the U.S.
Rock Factoid: It wasn’t a new album by any means. It was, for the most part, a collection of songs left off the band’s first American album and two new singles,
Differences in record company practices between the UK and U.S. in the early-to-mid1960s, such as the U.S. tending to issue shorter albums, featuring less original material and the comparative unpopularity of EPs (Extended Plays) in the U.S. all left American record companies with extra albums worth of material.

1966 – The Dave Clark Five released ‘Try Too Hard’ / ‘All Night Long’ in England. The single failed to register in the British charts, but when it was released in the U.S. the following month, it hit #12 on the Billboard singles chart.

1966 – The Kinks released ‘Till The End Of The Day’ / ‘Where Have All The Good Times Gone’. The single reached #8 on the British singles chart, but peaked at #50 in the U.S.

1967 – Frank Sinatra won Album of The Year (‘A Man And His Music’) at the 9th Grammy Awards.
Rock Factoid: Record of The Year: ‘Strangers In The Night’ by Frank Sinatra.
Song of The Year: John Lennon and Paul McCartney for ‘Michelle.
All awards were for recordings released the previous year.

1967 – The Supremes recorded ‘Reflections’ at Hitsville U.S.A., Studio A, in Detroit.
Rock Factoid: When the song was released as a single in July 1967, it was the first Supremes record released under the new billing, Diana Ross & The Supremes, and was among their last hit singles to be written and produced by Motown’s main production team of Holland-Dozier-Holland. They left due to royalty disputes and started their own label.
Rock Factoid: The song was the final single to feature Florence Ballard who recorded vocals for this song during one of her last studio sessions before she was fired.

1967 – John Lennon recorded his lead vocals for ‘Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds’, with harmony backing from Paul McCartney. They both manually double-tracked their performances, and then McCartney’s bass and George Harrison’s lead guitar were overdubbed.

1969 – Mary Hopkin recorded ‘Goodbye’ at Morgan Studios in London. The song was written and produced for her by Paul McCartney (even though it was credited to Lennon/McCartney).
Rock Factoid: Hopkin sang and played acoustic guitar, while McCartney played bass guitar, an acoustic guitar introduction and solo, along with percussion and drums.
Rock Factoid #2: While the single was a #2 hit in England and reached #13 in the U.S., Hopkin had – and continued to have – misgivings about recording it.
“Although I’m flattered that Paul wrote ‘Goodbye’ especially for me, it was, I believe, a step in the wrong direction for me. I’m so grateful that he chose ‘Those Were The Days’ as my first single. I think ‘Those Were The Days’ – being originally a Ukrainian folk song – has a timeless quality, but ‘Goodbye’ is set firmly in the sixties pop era.” … Mary Hopkin

1969 – Side 1 (‘Cambridge 1969’) of John Lennon and Yoko Ono’s ‘Unfinished Music No 2: Life With The Lions’ album was recorded in front of 500 Cambridge University students at Lady Mitchell Hall, Cambridge.
Rock Factoid: ‘Cambridge 1969’ was a 26-minute improvised piece featuring Ono on wailing vocals and Lennon – who remained near the back of the stage – coaxing numerous shades of feedback from his guitar amplifier. For the final six minutes they were joined by saxophonist John Tchicai and percussionist John Stevens, who continued playing for a time after Lennon and Ono left the stage.
Rock Factoid #2: The avant-garde show – called Natural Music – and intended to feature jazz musicians, was promoted by poet and percussionist Anthony Barnett. He invited Yoko to attend and perform the first set, and was shocked when she brought Lennon as her backing “group”.
Rock Factoid #3: Lennon’s appearance marked the first time any member of The Beatles had performed in concert away from the group.

1974 – At the 16th Grammy Awards, Stevie Wonder won the Grammy for Album of The Year (‘Innervisions’).
Rock Factoid: Record of The Year: ‘Killing Me Softly With His Song’ by Roberta Flack.
Song of The Year: Charles Fox and Norman Gimbel for ‘Killing Me Softly With His Song’.
Rock Factoid #2: Wonder had a very good night. In addition to Album of The Year, he won Best R&B Male Vocal Performance (‘Superstition’), Best R&B Song (‘Superstition’), and Best Male Pop Vocal Performance (‘You Are The Sunshine Of My Life’).
All awards were for recordings released the previous year.

1984 – This Is Spinal Tap premiered in theaters. The mock documentary chronicled a fictional heavy metal band with exploding drummers and, of course, an amp that went to 11.
Rock Factoid: Although the film received a lukewarm reception when it was released, it was deemed “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant” by the Library of Congress and was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry.

1985 – ‘Sugar Walls’ reached #9 on Billboard’s R&B Singles chart, making Sheena Easton the first and still only recording artist to score top-10 singles on all five major Billboard singles charts: Pop, Country, Dance, Adult Contemporary and R&B.
Rock Factoid: For the record, the hits that helped Sheena Easton achieve her five-way Billboard record were, in order of release: hit Morning Train (9 to 5)’ (1981 Pop hit and Adult Contemporary hit); ‘Telefone (Long Distance Love Affair)’ (1983 Dance hit); ‘We’ve Got Tonight’ (duet with Kenny Rogers, a 1983 Country hit); and ‘Sugar Walls’ (1985 R&B hit).
Rock Factoid #2: ‘Sugar Walls’ also appeared on a very different chart in 1985: The so-called “Filthy 15” chart of the most objectionably dirty popular songs in existence, as chosen by Tipper Gore and her Parents Music Resource Council. The PMRC found the song’s unsubtle metaphors objectionable enough to give ‘Sugar Walls’ the #2 spot on the Filthy 15, second only to Prince’s even less subtle ‘Darling Nikki’.
Rock Factoid #3: By the way, Prince wrote both ‘Sugar Walls’ and ‘Darling Nikki’.

1988 – At the 30th Grammy Awards, U2 won Album of The Year honors (‘The Joshua Tree’).
Rock Factoid: Record Of The Year: ‘Graceland’ by Paul Simon.
Song of The Year: Barry Mann, Cynthia Weil and James Horner for ‘Somewhere Out There’.
Best New Artist: Jody Watley
All awards were for recordings released the previous year.

1991 – 21 years after its original release, ‘All Right Now’ by Free hit #8 in the UK singles chart after being re-issued to coincide with its use in a Wrigley’s Chewing gum TV commercial.

1999 – Dusty Springfield (‘I Only Want To Be With You’) died at 59 of breast cancer.
Rock Factoid: She died in Henley-on-Thames on the day she had been scheduled to go to Buckingham Palace to receive her award of Officer, Order of the British Empire. Before her death, officials of Queen Elizabeth II had given permission for the medal to be presented to her in the hospital in the company of a small party of friends and relatives.
Rock Factoid #2: Springfield passed away 10 days before she was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

2002 – Jerry Lee Lewis refused to attend his induction to the Delta Music Hall of Fame because he didn’t like the plane sent to pick him up.
Rock Factoid: Lewis was scheduled to be on stage in his hometown of Ferriday, LA with cousins Jimmy Swaggart and Mickey Gilley. He was promised a jet plane for the event but would not ride on the twin-engine plane sent to pick him up because he had never ridden on that type of plane before.
That excuse didn’t impress one Tennessee official.
“We had a plane, but it wasn’t suitable. It’s suitable enough for the governor, but it wasn’t for Jerry Lee Lewis,” said Secretary of State Fox McKeithen, who added that the plane sent to get Lewis in Memphis, Tenn. was a jet prop plane donated for use.

2003 – Hank Ballard (‘Let’s Go, Let’s Go, Let’s Go’) died at 75 of cancer.
Rock Factoid: Ballard wrote and recorded (with his group The Midnighters) the original version of ‘The Twist’.

2008 – Jeff Healey (blues/rock guitarist – ‘Angel Eyes’) died at 41 of cancer.
Rock Factoid: When he was almost one year old, Healey lost his sight to retinoblastoma, a rare cancer of the eyes. His eyes had to be surgically removed, and he was given ocular prostheses.
Rock Factoid #2: Healey underwent surgery to remove metastatic tissue from both lungs. In the previous eighteen months, he had two sarcoma removed from his legs.

2009 – Ernie Ashworth (the first to record ‘Talk Back Trembling Lips’) died at 80 of natural causes.

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