January 6th in Rock & Roll History
The late Earl Scruggs (Flatt & Scruggs –‘Foggy Mountain Breakdown‘) was born in 1924
The late Wilbert Harrison (‘Kansas City’) was born in 1929
Some sources use January 5 as his birth date but his gravestone says January 6
The late Doris Troy (‘Just One Look’) was born in 1937
The late Van McCoy (‘The Hustle’) was born in 1940
The late Syd Barrett (Pink Floyd founder and original guitarist – ‘Arnold Layne’) was born in 1946
The late Sandy Denny (lead singer with Fairport Convention – ‘Meet On The Ledge’) was born in 1947
Mark O’Toole (bass guitar with Frankie Goes To Hollywood – ‘Relax’) is 51
Kathy Sledge (Sister Sledge – ‘We Are Family’) is 56
Neil Simpson (bass guitar with the Climax Blues Band – ‘Last Chance Saloon’) is 56
Malcolm Young (rhythm guitarist/songwriter with AC/DC – ‘Thunderstruck’) is 62
Rock Factoid: In 2014, Young left the band he co-founded in 1973 due to dementia.
Kim Wilson (lead singer with The Fabulous Thunderbirds – ‘Wrap It Up’) is 64
Nino Tempo (born Antonino LoTempio – ‘Deep Purple’ with sister April Stevens) is 80
Elvis Presley performed at T.A. Futrall High School (in the gymnasium) in Marianna, AR—1956
Lonnie Donegan’s version of ‘Rock Island Line’ entered the charts in England. The song’s success ignited what would become known as the “skiffle craze”—1956
Rock Factoid: The song was first recorded by John Lomax in 1934 as sung by inmates in an Arkansas State Prison, and later popularized by Lead Belly in 1937.
Rock Factoid #2: Donegan received no royalties from Decca for record sales, beyond his original session fee of $25, but he received considerable music publishing royalties from the song by claiming the British copyright on an unregistered song which was considered to be in the Public Domain. That meant that any cover of ‘Rock Island Line’ released in England from 1956 on showed the song composition credited to Donegan.
Elvis Presley was filmed from the waist up on his third and final appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show—1957
Chuck Berry recorded ‘Sweet Little Sixteen’—1958
The Rolling Stones began their first UK tour as a headline act in Harrow, England. The Ronettes were the opening act—1964
Gene Pitney released ‘That Girl Belongs To Yesterday’. Written by Mick Jagger and Keith Richards, it was the first song composed by the duo to become a Top 10 hit in Britain—1964
Dick & Dee Dee released ‘When Blue Turns To Grey’ / ‘Some Things Just Stick In Your Mind’—1965
Rock Factoid: Both songs were written by Mick Jagger and Keith Richards. Dick & Dee Dee’s vocals were overdubbed onto backing tracks recorded by the Rolling Stones with Mick Jagger’s vocals removed.
The Young Rascals, Sopwith Camel and The Doors appeared at the Fillmore West—1967
Happening ’68’ premiered. The Dick Clark produced program lasted less than two years—1968
Led Zeppelin fans rioted before a Boston concert, causing $30,000 in damages. Boston Mayor Kevin White canceled the concert—1975
Pink Floyd began recording the ‘Wish You Were Here’ album—1975
Peter Frampton released the legendary ‘Frampton Comes Alive!’ in the U.S. The album would be certified gold less than eight weeks after its release—1976
Rock Factoid: It was the best-selling album of 1976, and was still #14 on Billboard’s 1977 year-end album chart. It remains the biggest-selling live album of all time.
EMI Records formally released the Sex Pistols from their contract due to their rowdy public behavior. The Sex Pistols were given a $68,000 payout for the early release—1977
Georgeanna Tillman of The Marvelettes (‘Please Mr. Postman’) died (sickle cell anemia)—1980
Polydor Records released John Lennon’s ‘Nobody Told Me’ in the U.S.—1984
Rock Factoid: Recorded (but uncompleted) shortly before his death in 1980, the song was later completed in 1983 and released as the first single from the Lennon and Yoko Ono album ‘Milk And Honey’.
Rock Factoid #2: Lennon’s original recording was actually a demo because he had written the song for Ringo Starr’s 1981 album, ‘Stop And Smell The Roses’. The two had set a date of January 14, 1981 to record Starr’s version of the song (with Lennon producing) but we all know why that never happened.
Bob Dylan recorded ‘Handy Dandy’, ‘God Knows’, ‘10,000 Men’ and ‘Cat’s In The Well’—1990
Jazz legend John Birks ‘Dizzy’ Gillespie died (pancreatic cancer)—1993
James Brown’s wife, Adrienne, collapsed and died two days after undergoing cosmetic surgery in Beverly Hills—1996
Lou Rawls (‘You’ll Never Find Another Love Like Mine’) died (cancer)—2006
Alex St. Clair (guitarist with Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band – ‘Plastic Factory’) died (heart attack)—2006
‘Sneaky’ Pete Kleinow (pedal steel guitarist with The Flying Burrito Brothers – ‘Closer To You’) died (Alzheimer’s disease)—2007
Ron Asheton (guitarist/songwriter with The Stooges – ‘I Wanna Be Your Dog’) died (heart attack)—2009
Asheton’s body was found on January 6th, but his actual date of death is not known.
Tom Ardolino (drummer with NRBQ – ‘Green Lights’) died (prolonged illness)—2012
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