September 19th, 2017

1957, 16 year-old UK singer Cliff Richard, still known by his real name, Harry Webb, joined the Dick Teague Skiffle Group.

1960, Former chicken plucker Chubby Checker went to No.1 on the US singles chart with ‘The Twist’. It made No.14 in the UK in 1962, version with The Fat Boys made No.2 in the UK in 1988.

1960, Hank Ballard and The Midnighters had the honour of being the first group to have three songs in the US Top 100 at the same time. ‘Finger Poppin’ Time,’ ‘Let’s Go Let’s Go Let’s Go’ and ‘The Twist’ all made the Top 30. Ballard refused to perform ‘The Twist’ on a highly rated US TV show, so Chubby Checker picked it up at the insistence of Dick Clark, and Checker’s version of the song was number 1 this week in 1960.

1964, Oxfam printed half a million Christmas cards in the UK of a drawing by John Lennon called the Fat Budgie, which was taken from his book A Spaniard in the Works. All profits from the cards went to help raise money for charity. Oxfam re-printed the cards in 2007 as a limited edition card which again sold thousands.

1969, Creedence Clearwater Revival scored their only UK No.1 single with ‘Bad Moon Rising’ a US No.2 hit. Also on this day the group started a four-week run at No.1 on the US album chart with ‘Green River.’

1970, The first UK Glastonbury Festival took place featuring Marc Bolan, Ian Anderson, Keith Christmas, Quintessence, Amazing Blondel and Sam Apple Pie.

1970, Diana Ross started a three week run at No.1 on the US singles chart with ‘Ain’t No Mountain High Enough’. The singers first solo No.1 since leaving The Supremes a No.6 in the UK.

1973, Country rock singer, songwriter 26-year-old Gram Parsons formerly of The Byrds and The Flying Burrito Brothers, died under mysterious conditions in Joshua Tree, California. His death was attributed to heart failure but later was officially announced as a drug overdose. His coffin was stolen by two of his associates, manager Phil Kaufman and Michael Martin, a former roadie for The Byrds, and was taken to Cap Rock in the California desert, where it was set alight, in accordance to Parson’s wishes. The two were later arrested by police.

1979, The No Nukes concert was held at New York’s Madison Square Garden. Performers included Stephen Stills, David Crosby, Jackson Browne, Bonnie Raitt, The Doobie Brothers, Poco, Tom Petty, Carly Simon, James Taylor and Bruce Springsteen.

1981, Simon and Garfunkel reunited for a concert in New York’s Central Park. Over 400,000 fans attend the show. The performance was recorded for a record and video release.

1981, The Rolling Stones album ‘Tattoo You’ started a nine-week run at No.1 on the US chart, the band’s ninth US No.1.

1990, Kylie Minogue’s ‘Better The Devil You Know’ gave producers Stock, Aitken and Waterman their 100th UK chart entry.

1992, The Shamen started a four-week run at No.1 on the UK singles chart with ‘Ebeneezer Goode’. One of the most controversial UK chart toppers due to its perceived subliminal endorsement of recreational drug use. The song was initially banned by the BBC.

1992, Radiohead filmed the video for their new single ‘Creep’ during a show at the Venue, in Oxford, England. During its initial release, ‘Creep’ was not a chart success. However, upon re-release in 1993, it became a worldwide hit.

1993, Pearl Jam released their second studio album Vs. The album set the record for the most copies of an album sold in its first week, a record it held for five years, despite the fact that the group declined to produce music videos for any of the album’s singles.

1995, P.M. Dawn’s DJ JC Eternal was arrested on charges of sexual assault and child abuse after an alleged affair with his 14 year-old cousin. He was released on $10,000 bail.

1998, Robbie Williams scored his first solo UK No.1 single with ‘Millennium’, taken from his from his second album, I’ve Been Expecting You.

1999, Edward Cobb died of Leukaemia aged 61. Singer songwriter & producer, member of The Four Preps (1958 US No.3 & UK No. 2 single ‘Big Man’), wrote ‘Tainted Love’ a hit for Soft Cell in 1981.

2002, James Brown was being sued by his own daughters for more than £650,000 of song royalties they said they were owed. Deanna Brown Thomas and Dr Yamma Brown Lumar, a Texas physician, said Brown had withheld royalties on 25 co-written songs because of a family grudge. The lawsuit claimed that Brown had held a grudge against his daughters since 1998, when Ms Thomas had her father committed to a psychiatric hospital to be treated for addiction to painkillers.

2003, Police were investigating reports that Paul McCartney scuffled with a photographer when the singer went to see magician David Blaine, who was in a plastic box dangling over the River Thames. The London Evening Standard said one of its photographers had clashed with McCartney resulting in a scuffle.

2004, Canadian singer Celine Dion extended her Las Vegas show for another year. Dion was reportedly being paid $100m for the original three-year run of five 90-minute concerts a week.

2005, Research published by Guinness World Records showed that Status Quo have had more hit singles than any other band in UK chart history. The band had scored 61 chart successes, dating from ‘Pictures of Matchstick Men’ in 1968 to ‘You’ll Come Around’ in 2004. Queen came second with 52 hits, with The Rolling Stones and UB40 with 51 hits each.

2008, American drummer Earl Palmer died. Worked with The Beach Boys, Little Richard (‘Tutti Frutti’), Frank Sinatra, Ike And Tina Turner (‘River Deep, Mountain High’), The Monkees, Fats Domino (‘I’m Walkin’), Neil Young, Elvis Costello, Tom Waits, The Righteous Brothers (‘You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feelin’), and Randy Newman, Tom Waits, Bonnie Raitt, Tim Buckley, Little Feat and Elvis Costello.

2008, George Michael was arrested in a public toilet in the Hampstead Heath area of London for possession of Class A and C drugs. He was taken to a local police station and cautioned for controlled substance possession.

2010, John Lennon’s son Julian told the press that he has ended his long-running feud with his half-brother Sean and his step-mother Yoko Ono, which started after the former Beatle was murdered in December, 1980. The trio battled in court for a share of the singer’s estate, but Julian now said “Things are good between us. Whenever I’m in New York, we all get together.”

2014, A dance choreographer sued Cher for racial discrimination claiming the singer stopped him hiring any more black dancers. Kevin Wilson alleged Cher told him the tour had “too much colour” already. Mr Wilson and two other dancers had also alleged they were fired for reporting a sexual assault on a female fan by another dancer. Cher’s long-running North American D2K (Dressed to Kill) was ranked one of the top 10-grossing tours of 2014 by Pollstar.
(This Day in Music)