1948, Toast Of The Town, which would later be called The Ed Sullivan Show, premiered on CBS-TV. The first show was produced on a budget of $1,375. Only $375 was allocated for talent and $200 of that was shared by the young stars of that night’s program, Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis.
1953, Eddie Fisher was at No.1 on the UK singles chart with ‘I’m Walking Behind You’. The American singer had a variety television series, Coke Time with Eddie Fisher on NBC from 1953 – 1957.
1963, Gerry And The Pacemakers were at No.1 on the UK singles chart with ‘I Like It’, the group’s second No.1.
1965, The Beatles began a 14-day European tour with two performances at the Palais Des Sports in Paris, France. The Beatles’ set list for this tour: ‘Twist and Shout’, ‘She’s a Woman’, ‘I’m a Loser’, ‘Can’t Buy Me Love’, ‘Baby’s In Black’, ‘I Wanna Be Your Man’, ‘A Hard Day’s Night’, ‘Everybody’s Trying to Be My Baby’, ‘Rock and Roll Music’, ‘I Feel Fine’, ‘Ticket to Ride’, and ‘Long Tall Sally’.
1969, David Bowie recorded ‘Space Oddity’ at Trident Studios London. The track went on to become a UK No.1 when re-released in 1975. Written about the launch of Major Tom, a fictional astronaut; Bowie would later revisit his Major Tom character in the songs ‘Ashes to Ashes’ and ‘Hallo Spaceboy’.
1969, The first of a three day Festival in Newport, California, featuring: Ike And Tina Turner, Marvin Gaye, Creedence Clearwater Revival, The Byrds, The Rascals, Steppenwolf, The Jimi Hendrix Experience, Janis Joplin, Johnny Winter, Eric Burdon and Love. A three day ticket cost $15. Hendrix received $125,000 for his appearance, at the time it was the highest fee ever paid to a rock act for a single appearance.
1971, On this week’s UK singles chart, No.5, Tammi Lynn, ‘I’m Gonna Run Away From You’, No.4, Blue Mink, ‘The Banner Man’, No.3, Tony Christie, ‘I Did What I Did For Maria’, No.2, Dawn, ‘Knock Three Times’, and at No.1, Middle Of The Road ‘Chirpy Chirpy Cheep Cheep’, the Scottish group’s only No.1 hit.
1973, Neil Diamond appeared on the 20th anniversary show of American Bandstand. The US TV show also featured Little Richard, Cheech and Chong, Paul Revere and the Raiders and Three Dog Night.
1974, Van Morrison, The Allman Brothers Band, The Mahavishnu Orchestra, Tim Buckley, The Sensational Alex Harvey Band and The Doobie Brothers all appeared at Knebworth Park, Stevenage, England. A special PA system was used for the event, claiming to be the best ever for an outside show, weighing 12 tons and needing five technicians.
1981, Stars on 45 went to No.1 on the US singles chart, a medley of Beatles songs set to a disco beat. It was the start of a flood of ‘Stars On’ hits including Stars on Stevie Wonder, punk songs, Status Quo and Chas & Dave.
1986, Phil Collins, Dire Straits, Tina Turner and Elton John all appeared at the fourth annual ‘Prince’s Trust Rock Gala’ held in London.
1987, The Firm were at No.1 on the UK singles chart with ‘Star Trekkin’, a novelty song parodying the characters of Star Trek.
1987, Aerosmith appeared at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas, Texas, the first night on their Permanent Vacation 147 date world tour. Over the years the venue has been the home to the Texxas Jam, which has featured Deep Purple, Boston, Journey, Ted Nugent, Scorpions, Cheap Trick, Van Halen, Blue Öyster Cult, Sammy Hagar, Rush, Nazareth, Styx, Foghat, Santana and The Eagles. Eric Clapton notably held his first massive 3-day Crossroads Guitar Festival here in 2004.
1992, Mariah Carey scored her sixth US No.1 single with ‘I’ll Be There’, a No.2 hit in the UK. The song was also a US No.1 for The Jackson Five in 1970.
1995, Jeff Buckley played the first night of a UK tour at The Queens Hall, Edinburgh.
1997, Lawrence Payton of The Four Tops died from liver cancer aged 59. (1965 US No.1 single ‘I Can’t Help Myself’, 1967 UK No.6 single ‘Standing In The Shadows of Love’).
1998, Black Sabbath, Foo Fighters, Korn, Pantera, Soulfly, Slayer, Fear Factory, Coal Chamber, Life of Agony, Limp Bizkit, Entombed, Human Waste Project, Neurosis, and Pitchshifter all appeared at Ozzfest, Milton Keynes Bowl, England.
1998, Baddiel, Skinner & Lightning Seeds went to No.1 on the UK singles chart with ‘Three Lions ’98’ released for the football World Cup 98.
1999, Jamiroquai went to No.1 on the UK album chart with ‘Synkronized’, the group’s second No.1 album.
1999, Dutch-based dance act The Vengaboys went to No.1 on the UK singles chart with ‘Boom, Boom, Boom, Boom!’
2000, The Ronettes were awarded $2.6 million in back earnings from Phil Spector. New York judge Paula Omansky ruled that the legendary producer had cheated them out of royalties.
2004, Britney Spears went to No.1 on the UK singles chart with ‘Everytime’, the singers fifth UK No.1. Velvet Revolver were at No.1 on the US album chart with ‘Contraband.’
2004, Organisers at a Paul McCartney gig hired three jets to spray dry ice into the clouds so it wouldn’t rain during the concert. The gig in Petersburg, Russia, was McCartney’s 3,000 concert appearance. He had performed 2,535 gigs with the Quarrymen and The Beatles, 140 gigs with Wings and 325 solo shows.
2006, Claydes Charles Smith, co-founder and lead guitarist of Kool & the Gang died aged 57 after a long illness. They had the 1981 US No.1 & UK No.7 single ‘Celebration’ and 15 other Top 40 hits.
2008, American singer songwriter Jimmy Buffett announced that his Margaritaville Holdings has partnered with New York gambling company Coastal Marina to buy the Trump Marina Hotel Casino for $316 million. His vast business empire also included tequila, beer, frozen food, footwear, restaurants, a resort, a record label and a recording studio. In 2006, Rolling Stone magazine estimated Buffett’s earnings at $44 million.
2009, Dave Matthews Band went to No.1 on the US album chart with ‘Big Whiskey and the GrooGrux King’, the bands seventh studio album.
2014, Songs by Elvis Presley, ABBA and the Spice Girls were among those being used in research that hoped to unlock the secret of how our memory works. Researchers from the University of Amsterdam had created an online game in an attempt to shed light on why some tunes get stuck in your head. Fans were asked to identify song clips and compare them by their catchiness.
2016, Lawyers for Led Zeppelin asked a judge to throw out a case accusing the band of stealing the riff for ‘Stairway To Heaven’. Singer Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page and Warner Music argued that the claimants had failed to make their case after three days of testimony. The band were accused of basing Stairway on the 1968 Spirit song, Taurus.
(This Day in Music)
