1963: Bob Dylan walked out of rehearsals for the US TV Ed Sullivan show after being told he couldn't perform his song Talking John Birch Paranoid Blues due to it mocking the US military and segregation. CBS officials asked Dylan to substitute it for another song, but the singer reportedly said: 'No, this is what I want to do. If I can't play my song, I'd rather not appear on the show'.
1967: Pink Floyd appeared at the Queen Elizabeth Hall, London, giving a special concert Games For May - Space Age Relaxation For The Climate Of Spring. This was reportedly the first show to include loudspeakers placed at the back of the hall to give a 'sound in the round', ie quadraphonic, effect. The sound system, developed by EMI technicians, was stolen after the show and not recovered for some years. They composed a song for the Games of May event, which would later become “See Emily Play”.
1958: The Everly Brothers started a four-week run at No.1 in the US with 'All I Have To Do Is Dream'. Written by the husband and wife songwriting team Felice and Boudleaux Bryant, the track was recorded in just two takes.
1961: The Beatles in Hamburg, West Germany, signed a recording contract with producer Bert Kaempfert. That evening they played at The Top Ten Club, Reeperbahn, Hamburg.
1967: 'Are You Experienced', the debut album by The Jimi Hendrix Experience was released in the UK. It is widely regarded as one of the greatest debuts in the history of rock music. The album features Jimi Hendrix's innovative approach to songwriting and electric guitar playing which soon established a new direction in psychedelic and hard rock music.
1967: Archie Bell (Drells) was drafted into the U.S. military for a tour of Vietnam.
1972: The Rolling Stones released the album "Exile on Main St."
1977: "Hotel California" earned a gold record for the Eagles.
1971: Jerry Lee Lewis was granted a divorce from his cousin Myra.
1964: The Beach Boys started a four week run at No.1 on the US album chart with 'Beach Boys Concert', the group's first US No.1.
1965: Wilson Pickett recored the soul classic 'In the Midnight Hour' with studio musicians Steve Cropper and Al Jackson of the Stax Records house band, including bassist Donald "Duck" Dunn. The song was composed by Pickett and Steve Cropper at the historic Lorraine Motel in Memphis where Martin Luther King, Jr. would later be assassinated in April 1968.
2002: Tom Hamilton's (Aerosmith) home in Cape Cod was destroyed by a fire. The house was under construction at the time.
2000: Thieves stole the gates to Liverpool, England’s Strawberry Fields, the landmark later immortalized in The Beatles’ song. A scrap dealer later returned the gates to the police. They were put into storage and duplicate gates installed.
2008: Neil Young had a spider named after him. Biologist Jason Bond discovered a new species of trapdoor spider the previous year in Alabama and named it Myrmekiaphila neilyoungi due to being a fan of Young’s music & track record on sociopolitics.
1968: Jimi Hendrix was arrested by police on his way to Toronto for possession of hashish and heroin. Hendrix claimed the drugs had been planted on him.
1968: Brian Jones made his final live appearance with The Rolling Stones when they appeared at the New Musical Express Poll Winners Concert at the Empire Pool, Wembley, England. Jones drowned while under the influence of drugs and alcohol after taking a midnight swim in his pool, on 3rd July 1969 aged 27.
1971: Rolling Stone Mick Jagger married Bianca Macias at St Tropez Town Hall. The guest list included the other members of the Rolling Stones, Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, Eric Clapton and Stephen Stills. The couple separated in 1977.
1973: Led Zeppelin started a three-week run at No.1 on the US album chart with their fifth album Houses Of The Holy. The group's third US No.1 album went on to spend 39 weeks on the US chart. Houses Of The Holy has now been certified 11 times Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for US sales in excess of 11 million copies.
1975: Jefferson Starship gave a free concert in New York's Central Park in front of 60,000 fans. The band and concert sponsor, WNEW-FM, were forced to pay $14,000 for cleaning up and damage done to the park after the event.
1977: Led Zeppelin received the outstanding contribution to British music at the second Ivor Novello Awards held at the Grosvenor Hotel, London.
2001: American singer and TV presenter Perry Como died aged 88. He scored fourteen US No.1 singles, from 150 US chart hits and over 25 UK chart hits, including the single 'Magic Moments' and 'Catch A Falling Star.' Como was once the highest-paid performer in the history of television.
2004: Barry and Robin Gibb from The Bee Gees were both presented with honorary degrees from Manchester University. They also picked up a posthumous award for their brother Barry. The brothers had once lived in Manchester, England.
♫ They Say It's Your Birthday, Happy Birthday To You ♫
1928: American composer, songwriter, record producer, pianist, and singer Burt Bacharach. With Hal David he wrote many classic songs including, 'Close To You', '24 Hours From Tulsa', 'Make It Easy On Yourself', 'Magic Moments', 'I Say A Little Prayer'. He won two Oscars for the film score to Butch Cassidy And The Sundance Kid, and for the song 'Raindrops Keep Fallin' On My Head'. Bacharach's songs have been recorded by more than 1,000 different artists and as of 2014, he had written 73 US and 52 UK Top 40 hits.
1940: Norman Whitfield, American songwriter and producer, best known for his work with Berry Gordy's Motown. Collaborated with Barrett Strong on such hits as, 'I Heard It Through the Grapevine', ‘Ain't Too Proud to Beg’, ‘(I Know) I'm Losing You’, ‘Cloud Nine’, ‘War’, ‘Papa Was a Rolling Stone’ and ‘Car Wash’. He died on September 16, 2008.
1943: David Walkes, from American 1960s era pop and rock group Gary Lewis and the Playboys who scored the 1965 US No.1 single 'This Diamond Ring' and 11 other US Top 40 hits.
1946: English keyboard instrumentalis Ian McLagan, Small Faces who had the 1967 UK No.3 & US No.17 single 'Itchycoo Park', and the 1968 UK No.1 album 'Ogden's Nut Gone Flake'. With The Faces, had the 1971 UK No.6 & US No.17 single 'Stay With Me'. Also worked with The Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan, Bonnie Raitt, Joe Cocker, Billy Bragg and Bruce Springsteen. He died on 3rd Dec 2014 died aged 69, due to complications from a stroke.
1948: English musician Steve Winwood, who with the Spencer Davis Group had the 1966 UK No.1 single 'Keep On Running', with Traffic the 1967 UK No.2 single 'Hole In My Shoe', Blind Faith, (with Eric Clapton, Ginger Baker and Ric Grech), 1969 UK & US No.1 album. Winwood played Hammond organ on the Jimi Hendrix Electric Ladyland album track 'Voodoo Chile'. He also had a successful solo career with hits including 'While You See a Chance', 'Valerie', 'Back in the High Life Again' and during the late 80s two US No.1 hits 'Higher Love' and 'Roll with It'.
1950: American rock musician Billy Squier, who had the 1982 hit 'The Stroke', 1984 US No.15 single 'Rock Me Tonight'.
1954: Barry Borden, from American Southern rock/hard rock band Molly Hatchet who had the 1980 album 'Beatin' The Odds and their hit song 'Flirtin' with Disaster'.
1956: American keyboardist, singer-songwriter, and musical director Greg Phillinganes. He has toured with Stevie Wonder, Eric Clapton, David Gilmour, Karen Carpenter, Paul McCartney, Stevie Nicks and Toto, and served as musical director for Michael Jackson contributing to every one of Jackson's solo albums.
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