November 23rd, 2018

1956, Sheet metal worker Louis Balint was arrested after punching Elvis Presley at a Hotel in Toledo. Balint claimed that his wife’s love for Elvis had caused his marriage to break up. He was fined $19.60 but ended up being jailed because he was unable to pay the fine.

1962, The Beatles travelled to St. James’ Church Hall, London, for a ten-minute audition with BBC Television. The audition came about when Beatles fan, David Smith of Preston, Lancashire wrote to the BBC asking for The Beatles to be featured on BBC television. Assuming that Smith was The Beatles’ manager, the BBC wrote back to him, offering The Beatles an audition. Smith brought his letter to NEMS Enterprises, and Clive Epstein (Brian’s brother) arranged for audition to take place. Four days later, Brian Epstein received a polite “thumbs-down” letter from the BBC.

1965, Marc Bolan appeared live on the UK TV show Five O’Clock Funfair, performing ‘The Wizard’.

1967, A 16 date UK package tour played its 7th night at the Sophia Gardens Pavilion, Cardiff. Featuring The Jimi Hendrix Experience, Pink Floyd, The Move, The Nice, The Outer Limits, The Eire Apparent and Amen Corner, the entourage performed twice nightly. In 1974, Pink Floyd returned to the venue, which has since been demolished, to be replaced by the ‘Really Welsh Pavilion’.

1974, One Hit Wonder Billy Swan started a two week run at No.1 on the US singles chart with ‘I Can Help’. The song was a hit throughout most of Europe and also reached No.1 in Australia. It was so successful in Norway that it charted for 37 weeks on the Norwegian charts making it the 4th best-performing single of all time in that country.

1974, The Rolling Stones scored their fifth US No.1 album with ‘It’s Only Rock ‘N Roll’. The album which was the last Stones album for guitarist Mick Taylor peaked at No.2 in the UK.

1975, Queen started a nine-week run at No.1 on the UK singles chart with Bohemian Rhapsody. The promotional video that accompanied the song is generally acknowledged as being the first pop video and only cost £5,000 to produce. When the band wanted to release the single various record executives suggested to them that, at 5 minutes and 55 seconds, it was too long and would never be a hit.

1976, Ten hours after his last arrest, Jerry Lee Lewis was nicked again after brandishing a Derringer pistol outside Elvis Presley’s Graceland’s home in Memphis, demanding to see the ‘King’. When police arrived they found Lewis sat in his car with the loaded Derringer pistol resting on his knee.

1979, Keith Richard’s girlfriend Anita Pallenburg was cleared by a court of shooting a man found dead at her home. A 17-year-old, Scott Cantrell, had shot himself in the head with a gun owned by Keith Richards, while in Pallenberg’s bed, at the South Salem, New York house shared by Richards and Pallenberg. Cantrell had been employed as a part-time groundskeeper at the estate and was involved in a sexual relationship with Pallenberg.

1979, Pink Floyd released ‘Another Brick In The Wall (Part 2)’ which rapidly topped the charts in the UK, followed by the US and a further 9 countries. Featuring children from Islington Green School in North London, close to Floyd’s Britannia Row Studios, it was the group’s first UK single since Point Me At The Sky in 1968, and their first chart hit since See Emily Play in 1967.

1985, American blues artist Big Joe Turner died of a heart attack aged 75. Wrote ‘Shake Rattle and Roll’, (a hit for Bill Haley and His Comets) and ‘Sweet Sixteen.’

1991, Genesis scored their 5th UK No.1 album with ‘We Can’t Dance’, featuring the singles ‘Jesus He Knows Me’ and ‘I Can’t Dance’.

1991, Michael Jackson had his fourth UK No.1 single with ‘Black or White’ which featured Slash on guitar. Also a No.1 hit in the US.

1992, American country music singer Roy Acuff died aged 89. Known as the “King of Country Music,” he was the first living artist elected to the Country Music Hall Of Fame. Acuff started his career in 1932 working for Dr. Hauer’s medicine show, hired as one of its entertainers to draw a crowd to whom Hauer could sell medicines.

1994, Tommy Boyce, singer, songwriter, committed suicide. (1968 US No. 8 single with Bobby Hart, ‘I Wonder What She’s Doing Tonite’, also wrote ‘Last Train To Clarksville’, ‘I’m Not Your Stepping Stone’ and ‘Scooby- Doo Where Are You.’ Sold over 40m records.

1995, American soul singer and saxophonist Junior Walker died of cancer aged 64. Had the 1966 US & UK Top 20 single ‘How Sweet It Is’, and the
1969 US No.4 single ‘What Does It Take, To Win Your Love’. Walker also played sax on Foreigner’s 1981 hit ‘Urgent.’

2001, Singer O.C. Smith died aged 65. Famous for his 1968 US No.1 single ‘Little Green Apples’ and 1968 UK No.2 single ‘The Son Of Hickory Holler’s Tramp’. Smith became pastor and founder of The City Of Angels Church in Los Angeles, California.

2002, Otis Reddings’ widow and his former manager filed a lawsuit against the author of a biography written in 2001 about the R&B legend, claiming the book was filled with lies. The lawsuit, filed in Atlanta’s Fulton County, sought $15 million in damages and claimed that the book detailed rumors about the singer’s drug use, extramarital affairs and divorce, causing “harm to the plaintiffs.” It also cites rumors that Otis’ manager plotted with the Mafia to kill Otis by causing the plane to crash in order to claim $1 million in life insurance.

2005, Dan McTeague a Toronto MP tried to have 50 Cent barred from entering Canada to perform a series of concerts later this year. McTeague had sent a letter to Immigration Minister Joe Volpe claiming that the controversial rapper shouldn’t be permitted to cross the border because he promotes gun violence.

2008, Leona Lewis was at No.1 on the UK album chart with her debut album ‘Spirit’. The album held the record for the biggest digital album sales in a week ever for a new artist and was the 6th biggest selling of 2008 in the world. It has gone on to sell over seven million copies worldwide.

2008, 15 years after their last album, Guns N’ Roses released Chinese Democracy in the US, exclusively via the electronics retailer Best Buy. Nine years previously, Geffen Records had reportedly paid Axl Rose $1 million to finish the album, with a further $1 million if he handed it in to them by March 1, 1999.

2012, According to a new list of the 200 rarest records published in Record Collector magazine, the original acetate of the pre Beatles demo by the Quarrymen of ‘That’ll Be The Day’ was worth £200,000 ($320,630). Several other Beatles records figured in the top 20. Low-numbered copies of The Beatles The White Album was said to be worth £7,000 ($11,222), though a copy of a mono White Album #0000005 sold for £19,201 ($30,782) in 2009.

2015, Taylor Swift dominated the American Music Awards, winning three prizes, including album of the year and song of the year. One Direction were named favourite group and artist of the year, for the second year in a row and Ariana Grande was the surprise winner of best female, beating Taylor Swift.

2016, Joe Esposito, a close friend and aide of Elvis Presley died at the age of 78. Esposito was Presley’s professional assistant and a member of his inner circle, known as the “Memphis Mafia”. He was one of two best men at the star’s wedding to Priscilla in 1967 and a pallbearer at his funeral in 1977.

(This Day in Music)