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July in Music
History
This month in 1954 Memphis DJ Dewey Phillips played the record
"That's All Right (Mama)" by Elvis Presley for the first time,
irrevocably altering the course of pop music. Three years later, in 1957,
when Elvis made an appearance on TV's "Steve Allen Show", he
was ordered not to dance and sang "Hound Dog" to a basset hound
wearing tails. In 1957 Paul McCartney and John Lennon met at a church
event where Lennon's band, The Quarry Men, were playing. In 1969, former
Rolling Stone, Brian Jones was found face down in his swimming pool.
In 1971 Doors leader Jim Morrison died of an apparent heart attack in
his Paris bathtub. This month in 1978 distribution of the Stones' album
"Some Girls" was halted when celebrities such as Lucille Ball
who were depicted on the cover complained. In 1961 Gary U.S. Bond's raucous
hit "Quarter to Three" enjoyed its second month at the top of
the charts; the song was cut as an afterthought when Bond came up with
some impromptu lyrics to the instrumental "A Night With Daddy G."
This month in 1989 CDs began outselling vinyl records, pretty much putting
an end to 45RPM singles. In 1974 Greg Allman married Cher four days after
her divorce from Sonny Bono. Nine days later Cher announced she wanted
another divorce. The couple separated, but the divorce took three-plus
years to consummate. In 1978 David Bowie ended a 60-date tour at London's
Hammersmith Odeon theatre, and just before the encore he announced it
was his last gig ever and brught down the house with "Rock 'n' Roll
Suicide". His retirement ended less than a year later.
In 1992 Mick Jagger became a grandfather when his daughter Jade gives
birth to a girl. The following year, a track from White Zombie's album
"Sexorcisto: Devil Music One" was played at eardrum-rupturing
volume continuously for four hours outside Barbra Streisand's Malibu villa
during her marriage to James Brolin. The noise was intended to prevent
media people from getting soundbites.
This month in 1984 it wasn't Big Brother running the show...instead, the
artist then and currently known as Prince ruled the pop sphere with his
#1 hit "When Doves Cry". In 1999 Elton John collapsed and shortly
afterwards has a pacemaker installed. In 1972 Willie Nelson inaugurated
his annual Fourth of July picnic in Dripping Springs, Texas. This monthin
2000, nine people were trampled to death and another 24 were injured during
Pearl Jam's set at the Roskilde festival in Denmark. The stampede of fans
was blamed on a malfunctioning PA and fans crowding down front to hear
better.
 This
month in historic music-related headlines revealed a disturbing pattern
of rock perilson tour; during Woodstock 99, anarchy reigned with pizza
box-fueled fires breaking out during the Red Hot Chili Peppers set and
random acts of senseless violence took center stage. In 1998, Maidenheads
everywhere were torn up when it was announced that Iron Maiden's tour
was to be cut short due to vocalist Blaze Bayley's throat troubles. Also
in 1998, Aerosmith postponed the first thirteen dates of its U.S. tour
due to a gas station incident in which drummer Joey Krammer received second-degree
burns. This was the second tour disrupting incident for the band that
month. Eighteen earlier dates were canceled when Steven Tyler had knee
surgery. In 1996, Soundgarden guitarist Kim Thayil was busted for hitting
a picture-taking fan in a North Carolina hotel.
In1995, Public Enemy postponed the televising of their final British farewell
concert when Flava Flav broke his arm in a scooter accident. In 1993 a
bullet parted lead singer Eric Tallman's hairdo during rock band Erotic
Exotic's gig at the N.Y. Danceteria club. He was taken to Bellevue Hospital
and survived. In 1990 the BBC's Radio One service apologized profusely
to listeners following an expletive riddled live broadcast of a Madonna
concert.
In 1986, Van Halen's manager Ed Leffler was seriously beaten in a Dallas
hotel leading to his hospitalization. Several people passed out from heat
exhaustion during a Huey Lewis and the News set at the North Dakota State
Fair in 1984. In 1977 Elvis Costello was busted for busking outside a
Columbia Records do in a London Hotel. At the time he was signed by Stiff
Records but later went on to become a part of the Columbia roster. Also
in1977, Led Zepplin drummer, John Bonham, manager Peter Grant, and two
security guards were arrested at the Oakland Coliseum for allegedly beating
up members of producer Bill Graham's staff. The accused plead guilty to
misdemeanors and ultimately settled out of court for two million dollars.
During this month in 1972, Bobby
Ramirez, drummer with Edgar Winter's White Trash, died in a back-alley
knife fight in Chicago. Jimi Hendrix, playing his hometown of Seattle's
Sicks Stadium in 1970, demanded that the stage be covered in rubber to
prevent electrocution due to heavy rain. Later he chastised the crowd
for failing to recognize his brilliance earlier, forcing him to go to
Europe to make his name. Also in 1970, a Connecticut court at the last
minute banned the Powder Ridge Rock Festival even though 18,000 tickets
had already been sold for the show with headliners Led Zepplin, Janis
Joplin, and Chuck Berry.
The court decided that the
event would create a public nuisance. In 1968, a stagefright-stricken
Rod Stewart cowered behind a speaker cab during the Jeff Beck Group's
U.S. debut at New York's Fillmore East. Back in 1965, Bob Dylan's new
electric persona was greeted by a hostile, booing crowd at the Newport
Jazz Festival, and many saw Dylan's abandonment of acoustic instruments
as a betrayal of his folk roots. To those with members of his fanbase
with an IQ above 30,, the term "folk you"originated as a result.
During a 1964 Rolling Stones concert in Blackpool, England, concert fans
became boisterous, a riot erupted, and the bobbies were called in to prevent
the crowd from rioting.
This month in 1985 both Penthouse and Playboy magazines hit the news stands
with pictures of Madonna posing nude. Also this month in 1954 Elvis signed
on with Sun Records and quit his truck-driving day job. Four years later,
a Catholic youth magazine, Contacts, targeted Elvis' "Wear My Ring
Around Your Neck," for censure because it promoted going steady.
This month in 2000, Iron Maiden guitarist Janeck Gers fell off a stage
in Germany and landed squarely on his head...his multiple contusions and
stitches resulted in the cancellation of part of the tour...another cancellation
the year before, in 1999, involved Mary Chapin Carpenter who called off
her concert in Springfield, MO literally at the last minute in order to
fly home and attend to her sick dog. In 1967 Jimi Hendrix went on a national
tour as the opening act for the Monkees. In 1952, Vera Lynn topped the
charts with "Auf Wiedersehen Sweetheart".
Bill Haley and The Comets made the top of the charts with "Rock Around
the Clock" this month in 1956. In 1979 Chuck Berry did his own real-life
version of the "Jail House Rock," when he spent four months
in jail on charges of having bilked the Feds out of 200 grand in taxes.
In 1962 a band of blokes calling themselves the Rolling Stones--based
on the Muddy Waters tune "Rollin' Stone"--gave their debut live
performance at the Marquee Club in London...two years later "Satisfaction"
toped the charts for four months. In 1952, eight-year old Gladys Knight
won two thousand bucks on Ted Mack's Amateur Hour by singing "Too
Young".
In 1972, Paul McCartney took off for the first time with Wings in a 26-stop
European tour. This month just six years ago, Jerry Garcia gave his last
concert with the Grateful Dead at Chicago's Soldier Field. Chicago's other
big ballpark, Comiskey Park, hosted a "Disco Demolition Night"
this month in 1979 for which local radio stations encouraged fans to bring
disco records to be piled up and blown up...instead, the records were
thrown and burned...fans charge the field and tore it up forcing the home
team Sox to forfeit the second game of their double-header against the
Tigers.
 This
month in 1946, Petula Clark made her U.K. television debut at the age of
13. In 1953, Elvis made his first recording, "My Happiness,"
as a gift for his mother; a year later, Elvis appeared on the back of
a flatbed truck, performing for the grand opening of a Memphis drug store
as a member of The Blue Moon Boys, along with Bill Black and Scotty Moore.
In 1955, the rock era officially arrived as "Rock Around the Clock,"
by Bill Haley and the Comets hit number one. In1959, The Coasters record
"Poison Ivy" at Atlantic Studio in New York. This month in 1960,
Hank Ballard and the Midnighters released "The Twist," a full
year earlier than Chubby Checker, whose cover became a hit. In 1961, Billboard
reported that in Philadelphia, adults were taking up the Twist, which
had only been a teenage dance craze. Also in 1961, Motown released"Buttered
Popcorn," the Supreme's first single but it failed to chart.
In 1964, the Supreme's "Come See About Me" started a two month
stint atop the Hot 100. Also in 1964, Eric Clapton, Jack Bruce, and Ginger
Baker formed the band Cream. In 1967, The Who opened for Herman's Hermits
in their first full-scale U.S. tour. In 1968, "Yellow Submarine"
made it's debut in London. Also in 1968, Steppenwolf released"Born
to be Wild," giving bikers everywhere their own anthem. This month
in 1969, the Spencer Davis Group broke up. In 1972, Smokey Robinson performed
his last gig with the Miracles in Washington, D.C. In 1973, The Everly
Brothers split up, on stage, during a performance at Knott's Berry Farm.
In 1976, Loggins and Messina broke up, and also that same year, the Moody
Blues and the Allman Brothers broke up.
In 1980, Linda Ronstadt made her theatrical debut in "The Pirates
of Penzance". In 1985, Live-Aid concerts to help the starving of
Africa were held in Philadelphia and London, and were watched or listened
to by an audience of one and a half billion. In 1986, Columbia Records
dropped Johnny Cash after 28 years. In 1989, James Brown was moved to
a medium security cell after guards found forty grand in cash in his minimum
security cell. In 1990, Woody Guthrie's "This Land is Your Land"
received a Grammy Hall of Fame Award. In 1991, James Brown was honored
by his home state of Georgia for his comeback following his two-year prison
stint .
This month in 1991, drummer Steve Adler filed suit in L.A. against members
of his former band Guns N' Roses, for making him take drugs (heroin) and
for canning him when he went into rehab. In 1995, Elvis's former doctor,
Dr. George Nichopoulous, lost his medical license for being too liberal
in prescribing addictive drugs. In 1995, the oldest known musical instrument
in the world was found in the Indrijca River Valley in Slovenia - the
45,000 year-old relic is a bear bone flute with four holes along its length.
 This
month in1974, Lynard Skynyrd released"Sweet Home Alabama", also
this month in 1986 Queen became the first Western act to play in Budapest,
Hungary, since Louis Armstrong played there in 1964. During this month
in 1976 that John Lennon finally got a green card to remain in the U.S.
After four years of red tape...the same year brought on the breakup of
one of the greatestsoul/R&B duos when Tina filed for divorce from
Ike. In1984 the premier of Prince's film, "Purple Rain" took
place this month. In 1987 the Beatles sued Nike and Capitol records over
the use of "Revolution" in shoe commercials. Nineteen years
earlier in 1968, during the month in which they record "Hey Jude,"
the Beatles' anti-commercial sensibilities were not quite so sharp as
their Apple Boutique in London went bankrupt after generating loads of
debt. Alice Cooper's retail interest in an Indian art store in Phoenix
took a hit for $200,000 this month in 1979 when thieves absconded with
a bunch of artifacts and some of Cooper's gold records.
Tragedy struck in 1977 when Led Zepplin's U.S. tour was cut short by
the death of Robert Plant's six-year-old son due to a respiratory ailment;
four years earlier Zepplin's hotel deposit box got ripped off for $180,000.
In 1980, John Phillips,leader of The Mamas and The Papas, was arrested
by the FBI for coke possession, and to avoid a five-year sentence, he
lectured against drugs for 250 hours. Six years earlier his former band
mate "Mama" Cass Elliot died of a heart attack in London. Despite
stubborn myths to the contrary, her death has nothing whatever to do with
a ham sandwich. In 1987, the governor of Michigan announced "Four
Tops Day," an annual celebration of the band's contribution to American
music. In 1995 James Al Hendrix, Jimi's father, finally won the rights
to his son's name, likeness, and music. 600,000 fans showed up this month
in 1973 to watch the likes of the Grateful Dead, The Band, and the Allman
Brothers at the Watkins Glen raceway. Meanwhile, Grand Funk Railroad released
"We're an American Band". In 1967, Keith Richards' drug conviction
of the previous month was overturned for flimsy evidence. Mick Jagger
got off on related charges with probation and a stern reminder of his
responsibilities as a pop idol. Three years later the Stones turned over
"C**ksucker Blues" to finish their contract with Decca, leaving
them free to form Rolling Stones Records. Back in that fateful year of
1973, Jerry Garcia played a concert at Roosevelt Stadium with the Dead,
and to celebrate his 31st birthday a giant cake containing a naked woman
was wheeled out onto the stage, much to his avowed embarrassment. In1956,
"My Prayer" made the Platters the first black artists to have
a number one single on the pop charts.
BIRTHDAYS:
July 1: Willie Dixon (1915)
Harpmeister James Cotton (1935)
DeborahHarry (1945)
The B-52's Fred Schneider (1951)
Dan Aykroyd (1952)
July 2: Paul Williams of The Temptations (1939)
July 3: Fontella ("Rescue Me") Bass (1940)
Laura Branigan (1957)
July 4: Bill Withers (1938)
Jeremy Spencer of Fleetwood Mac (1948)
John Waite (1955)
July 5: N'awlins R&B shouter Smiley Lewis (1913)
The Band's RobbieRobertson (1944)
Huey Lewis (1950)
July 6: Bill Haley (1925)
Gene Chandler of "Duke of Earl" fame (1937)
July 7: Mary Ford (1924)
Joe Zawinul of Weather Report (1932)
Ringo Starr (1940)
July 6: Bill Haley (1925)
Gene Chandler of "Duke of Earl" fame (1937)
July 7: Mary Ford (1924)
Joe Zawinul of Weather Report (1932)
Ringo Starr (1940)
July 8: Louis Jordan (1908)
Billy Eckstein (1913)
Jai Johnny Johanson of the Allman Brothers Band (1944)
Andy Fletcher of Depeche Mode (1961)
July 9: Mitch Mitchell (1946)
Bon Scott of AC/DC (1946)
Courtney Love (1969)
July 10: Jerry Miller of Moby Grape (1943)
Arlo Guthrie (1947)
July 11: Tab Hunter (1931)
Jeff Hanna of the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band (1947)
Bonnie Pointer (1950)
Suzanne Vega (1959)
Richie Sambora (1960)
July 12: Christine Mc Vie (1943)
Eric Carr (1950)
July 13: Drummer Steven Jo Bladd of the J. Geils Band (1942)
Roger McGuinn (1942)
Louise Mandrell (1954)
Mark Mendoza of Twisted Sister (1956)
July 14: Woody Guthrie (1912)
Spencer Davis (1941)
Chris Cross (1952)
July 15: Millie Jackson (1944)
Peter Lewis of Moby Grape (1945)
Linda Ronstadt (1946)
Jeff Carlisi, guitarist for .38 Special (1952)
guitarist Joe Satriani (1956)
July 16: Desmond Dekker (1941)
Stewart Copeland (1952)
July 17: Composer Niccolo Castiglioni (1932)
Gail Garnett (1942)
Terry "Geezer" Butler of Black Sabbath (1949)
Nicolette Larson (1952)
July 18: Screamin' Jay Hawkins (1929)
Dion DiMucci (1939)
Brian Auger (1939)
Martha Reeves (1941)
Phoebe Snow (1952)
Chet McCracken of the Doobie Brothers (1952)
July 19: Guitarist/Singer Buster Benton (1932)
Vikki Carr (1941)
Alan Gorrie of Average White Band (1946)
Bernie Leadon, guitarist for the Flying Burritio Brothers and the Eagles
(1947)
Queen guitarist Brian May (1947)
Keith Godchaux, keyboard player for the Grateful Dead (1948)
Allen Collinsof Lynyrd Skynyrd (1952)
July 20: Kim Carnes (1945)
John Lodge of The Moody Blues (1945)
Carlos Santana (1947)
Jay Jay French of Twisted Sister (1954)
Van Halen's Michael Anthony (1955)
Sex Pistol Paul Cook (1956)
Chris Cornell of Soundgarden (1964)
July 21: Kay Starr (1922)
R&B saxologist Plas Johnson (1931)
Cat Stevens born Steven Georgiou (1947)
July 22: Charles "Chuck" Jackson of theDel-Vikings (1937)
George Clinton (1940)
Estelle Bennett of The Ronettes (1944)
Richard Davies of Supertramp (1944)
Don Henley (1947)
July 23: Cleveland "Cleve" Duncan of the Penguins (1935)
Swamprocker Tony Joe White (1943)
Dino Danelli of The (Young) Rascals (1945)
Andy Mackay of Roxy Music (1946)
Martin Gore of Depeche Mode (1961)
July 24: Lynval Golding of The Specials (1951)
Mick Karn of Japan (1958)
July 25: The Yardbirds' Jim McCarty (1943)
Steve "City of New Orleans" Goodman (1948)
Earth Wind and Fire's Verdine White (1951)
July 26: Bobby Hebb (1941)
Mick Jagger (1943)
Queen's Roger Taylor (1949
July 27: Bobby Gentry (1944)
July 28: Mike Bloomfield (1944)
Rick Wright (1945)
Simon Kirke of Bad Company (1949)
July 29: Charlie Christian (1916)
Neal Doughty of REO Speedwagon(1946)
Geddy Lee (1953)
July 30: Buddy Guy (1936)
Paul Anka (1941), David Sanborn (1945)
Kate Bush (1958)
July 31: Bob Welch (1946)
Gary Lewis (1946)
Bill Berry R.E.M. (1958)
August 1: Piano Slim (1928)
Ramblin' Jack Elliot (1931)
Jerry Garcia (1942)
Geoff Britton (1943)
Tommy Bolin (1951)
Robert Cray (1953)
Joe Elliot (1959)
OBITUARIES:
July 1: Reggae star Dennis Brown (1999)
DJ Wolfman Jack (1995),
Rushton Moreve of Steppenwolf (1981)
July 2: Mark Sandman of Morphine (1999)
July 3: Jim Morrison (1971), Brian Jones (1969)
July 4: Donald McPherson of The Main Ingredient (1971)
July 6: Roy Rogers (1998)
Louis Armstrong (1971)
July 8: Nico of the Velvet Underground (1988)
July 10: John Hammond Sr. (1987)
Arthur Fiedler (1979)
"Jellyroll" Morton (1941)
July 11: Helen Forrest (1999)
George Gershwin (1937)
July 12: Jimmie Driftwood (1998)
Minnie Riperton (1979)
July 13: Philippe Wynne, lead singer of the Spinners (1984)
July 15: John Coltrane (1967)
Bobby Day (1990)
July 16: Harry Chapin (1981)
Styx drummer John Panozzo (1996)
July 17: Billie Holiday (1959)
Clarence White of the Byrds (1973)
July 18: Bobby Fuller, the leader of the Bobby Fuller Four, was found
dead in his car in Los Angeles (1966)
Haroon Shamsher of Joi (1999)
July 19: Emmanual Tettey (E.T.) Mensah (1996)
July 23: Grateful Dead keyboardist Keith Godchaux (1980)
July 25: Jazz guitarist Tal Farlow (1998)
Willa Mae "Big Mama" Thornton (1984)
July 26 "Chico" Ryan of Sha Na Na (1998)
soul singer Mary Wells (1992)
Jimmy Keyes of The Chords (1995)
July 27: Harry "Sweets" Edison (1999)
Lightniní Slim (1974)
July 28: Simon "Mahlathini" Nkabinde (1999)
July 29: Anita Carter of the Carter Sisters (1999)
"Mama" Cass Elliot (1974)
July 31: Jim Reeves and his manager Dean Manuel (1964)
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