The late LaVern Baker (born Delores Williams – ‘Jim Dandy’) was born in 1929
The late Hank Garland (session guitarist) was born in 1930
Rock Factoid: Garland played on hundreds of hit records by the likes of The Everly Brothers, Roy Orbison, Brenda Lee and more but is best known for his work with Elvis Presley (‘Little Sister’, ‘I Got Stung’, ‘Are You Lonesome Tonight?’, ‘It’s Now Or Never’ and ‘A Big Hunk O’Love’).
The late Opal Courtney, Jr. (The Spaniels – ‘Goodnite Sweetheart, Goodnite’) was born in 1936
The late Roger LaVern (keyboards with The Tornados – ‘Telstar’) was born in 1938
Mic Michaeli (born Gunnar Mathias Michaeli – keyboards with Europe – ‘Carrie’) is 52
Mike Mesaros (bass guitar with The Smithereens – ‘A Girl Like You’) is 57
Ian Marsh (synthesizer with Human League – ‘Don’t You Want Me’ and Heaven 17 – ‘Temptation’) is 58
Marshall Crenshaw (‘Someday, Someway’) is 61
Paul Cowsill (The Cowsills – ‘The Rain, The Park & Other Things’) is 63
Jim Peterik (lead singer and keyboards with The Ides of March – ‘Vehicle’ and keyboardist with Survivor – ‘Eye Of The Tiger’) is 64
Pat Daugherty (bass guitar with Black Oak Arkansas – ‘Jim Dandy’) is 67
Vince Martell (guitarist with Vanilla Fudge – ‘You Keep Me Hangin’ On’) is 69
Chris Dreja (rhythm guitarist with The Yardbirds – ‘Heart Full Of Soul’) is 69
Mose Allison (‘Parchman Farm’ and a direct influence on The Rolling Stones, Yardbirds, John Mayall, J. J. Cale, Van Morrison and The Who) is 87
Frank Sinatra signed with Columbia Records—1944
Hank Ballard & The Midnighters recorded the original version of ‘The Twist’ in King Studios, Cincinnati—1958
Joan Baez played her first major headlining concert, opening at New York’s Town Hall in a sold-out, critically acclaimed show—1961
Brian Epstein and Ed Sullivan negotiated three appearances by The Beatles on Sullivan’s Sunday night program—1963
Billy J. Kramer with The Dakotas released ‘I’ll Keep You Satisfied’—1963
Tom Jones recorded ‘It’s Not Unusual’—1964
Velvet Underground made their performance debut at a high school dance in Summit, NJ. They weren’t paid for their appearance—1965
The Rolling Stones recorded ‘Connection’ and ‘Cool, Calm, Collected’—1966
The Beatles recorded ‘Wait’ and ‘Girl’—1965
Rock Factoid: The sharp intake of breath during the chorus of ‘Girl’ was either an approximation of lascivious heavy breathing, or a none-too-subtle reference to marijuana smoking. Much of ‘Rubber Soul’ was recorded during The Beatles’ heaviest pot-smoking phase, and by late 1965 they had become adept at inserting drug references into their songs.
“My main memory is that John wanted to hear the breathing, wanted it to be very intimate, so George Martin put a special compressor on the voice.” … Paul McCartney
The Supremes released ‘In And Out Of Love’—1967
John Lennon and Yoko Ono released their first album (‘Unfinished Music No. 1: Two Virgins’)—1968
Rock Factoid: We have used the alternate cover. This was the suggested album cover by Capitol but John refused to use because it “wasn’t honest enough.” We decided not to use the actual cover, not because we dislike “honesty” but rather because we’re pretty sure everyone has seen it before … and frankly, neither Lennon or Ono were all that visually spectacular in the nude.
Rock Factoid #2: When Capitol Records refused to release the album with John’s “honest” photo, it was picked up by Tetragrammaton, a small label previously known for spoken word releases. Tetragrammaton issued ‘Two Virgins‘ in a brown paper sleeve, with a cutaway through which Lennon and Ono’s faces could be seen.
Rock Factoid #3: Quantities of the album were seized in several U.S. jurisdictions, including 30,000 copies in New Jersey. Nonetheless, it managed to reach #124 in the U.S. charts.
Elvis Presley released ‘Don’t Cry Daddy’ / ‘Rubberneckin’—1969
The Beach Boys recorded ‘At My Window’—1969
Bob Dylan’s first novel (Tarantula) was published—1970
The concert film, ‘Elvis: That’s The Way It Is’ premiered—1970
Berry Oakley (bass guitar with The Allman Brothers Band – ‘Ramblin’ Man’) died (motorcycle accident)—1972
Rock Factoid: Oakley’s accident took place within three blocks of where Duane Allman had died in a motorcycle accident thirteen months earlier. Oakley said he was okay after the accident, declined medical treatment, and went home. Three hours later, he was rushed to the hospital but died of cerebral swelling caused by a fractured skull.
Rock Factoid #2: Both men were 24 when they died. Allman and Oakley remain together. They are buried side-by-side in Macon’s Rose Hill Cemetery.
KISS released their ‘Rock And Roll Over’ album—1976
Wings released ‘Mull Of Kintyre’. It would eventually reach #1 in the UK for eight weeks. It only went to #45 in the U.S.—1977
Patrick ‘Paddy’ Clancy (The Clancy Brothers & Tommy Makem – ‘Finnegan’s Wake’) died (cancer)—1998
M’hammed Soumayah, bodyguard for Liza Minelli, sued the singer for $100 million for allegedly forcing him to have sex with her or be fired from his $238,000-a-year job. The matter was settled out of court five years later—2004
Billy Joel kicked off his first tour in eight years—2005
John Petersen (drummer with The Beau Brummels – ‘Laugh Laugh’ and Harpers Bizarre – ‘The 59th Street Bridge Song…Feelin’ Groovy’) died (heart attack)—2007
Bob Beckham (‘Just As Much As Ever’ and later a country music publishing legend) died (natural causes)—2013
Billy Adamson (drummer with The Searchers from 1970-1998 – ‘Hearts In Her Eyes’) died (pneumonia, after a fall)—2013
Arash Farazmand (drummer with The Yellow Dogs – ‘New Century’) died (shot in New York City by a fellow musician)—2013
Soroush Farazmand (guitarist with The Yellow Dogs – ‘New Century’) died (shot in New York City by a fellow musician)—2013
Rock Factoid: The Yellow Dogs originated in Tehran, Iran. In 2009, they had applied to the American Consulate for visas to perform a concert tour in the United States, and members were interviewed by the U.S. government at the U.S. Embassy in Istanbul, Turkey.
“Though their music is not overtly political or oppositionist, the Yellow Dogs described the risks of playing any kind of rock and roll in Iran, recounting several occasions in 2007-8 when police raided closed-door concerts they were holding (typically in sound-proofed basements or warehouses in isolated neighborhoods). One raid led to the detention of one band member under official charges of ‘Satan worship.’ A combination of bribes and parental pleading got him released after two weeks in detention.” … U.S. Embassy interview notes
Rock Factoid #2: “They didn’t want to change the world, they just wanted to play music. They were great kids who people just loved. They looked cool and they played great music. They never bothered anyone” …Martin Greenman, local fan
Compiled by Ray Lemire ©2014 RayLemire.com. All Rights Reserved.
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