MasterCylinder
09-06-2005, 04:13 AM
This week in music..........................
BIRTHDAYS
September 2
1940 Jimmy Clanton
1943 Joe Simon
1957 Steve Porcaro (Toto)
September 3
1942 Al Jardine (The Beach Boys)
1948 Don Brewer (Grand Funk)
September 4
1945 Danny Gatton
September 5
1939 John Stewart
1945 Al Stewart
1946 Freddie Mercury
1946 Buddy Miles
September 6
1944 Roger Waters
September 7
1921 Arthur Ferrante (Ferrante & Teicher)
1936 Buddy Holly
1940 Ronnie Dove
1949 Gloria Gaynor
1951 Chrissie Hynde
September 8
1932 Patsy Cline
CHART ACTION
Paul Anka joined Alan Freed's Biggest Show of Stars tour in 1957. It was perfect timing as Diana had just hit number 1. The song was written about his family's babysitter, and would go on to become one of the best selling singles of all time. Also on the fall tour were Chuck Berry, The Everly Brothers, Buddy Holly, The Spaniels, The Drifters and others. A couple weeks after the tour ended on November 24th in Virginia, Anka began a series of dates in the U.K., where Diana had spent 9 weeks at the top, making it their biggest single of the year.
Tommy Roe had his first hit on his hands when Sheila went to number 1 in 1962. It was a re-recorded version of the song that was first released in 1960 when Roe was part of The Satins. He would have five more top 10 hits by the end of the decade. 1971's, Stagger Lee, was his last top 40 hit.
Freddie Scott spent his only week in the top 10 of the singles chart when Hey Girl hit number 10 in 1963. The song is one of those lost gems, which explains why Billy Joel resurrected the tune for a single and inclusion on his Greatest Hits Volume III album in 1997. Joel added a certain amount of polish to the soul tune, while Scott used a rougher sound on the original hit.
House of the Rising Sun, by U.K. blues band The Animals, hit number 1 in the U.S. in 1964. It was their only chart topping hit there, but other tracks such as We Gotta Get Out of This Place, It's My Life, Don't Bring Me Down and Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood were just as deserving.
Donovan hit number 1 in the U.S. for the only time with the single, Sunshine Superman, in 1966. The British Bob Dylan got some help on guitar from Jimmy Page. But due to legal problems, Sunshine Superman had to wait seven months before it could be released and Donovan settled in with his new manager.
The Youngbloods were given a second chance in 1969 when Get Together peaked inside the top 10 in the U.S. The single was from their 1967 self-titled album, but stalled at number 62 at the time. Get Together was re-issued and made the top 5 the second time around. Unfortunately, there was still no response in the U.K., so The Dave Clark Five recorded a version and made it their final top 10 single the next year. Also doing a decent cover of the track was Garth Brooks in 1999, on his In the Life of Chris Gaines album, under the title, Right Now.
The Undisputed Truth had their only success on the U.S. singles chart peak at number 3 in 1971. Smiling Faces Sometimes was written by Barrett Strong (of Money fame) and producer Norman Whitfield, who both worked full-time at Motown. The group had signed to Berry Gordy's Detroit label during the years when “The Motown Sound” was fading, and more sophisticated songs were beginning to appear. The Undisputed Truth also had several R&B hits, and were the first to record Papa Was a Rollin' Stone, a hit for The Temptations in 1972.
This week in 1976, Fleetwood Mac's self-titled album hit number 1 after being on the charts for over a year. Songs such as Over My Head and Rhiannon helped the album reach the 5 million mark in sales in the U.S. alone. And after group members heard a cover of Say You Love Me by Canadian artist, Shirley Eikhard, the band added a splash of guitar to their own version and released it as a single. It would go on to be the best charting song from the album.
Elvis had 27 albums and 9 singles in the Top 100 charts in the UK in 1977. His Moody Blue was the number 1 album while Way Down resided at the top of the singles chart. Albums also in the top 30 included 40 Greatest and Welcome to My World. Death sells.
Stevie Nicks hit number 1 on the U.S. albums chart with Bella Donna, in 1981. The solo debut was packed with successful singles such as Stop Draggin' My Heart Around (the Tom Petty duet), Leather and Lace (with Don Henley), Edge of Seventeen and After the Glitter Fades. The best song on the album, however, was probably How Still My Love. Unfortunately, it was left off of her 3 CD box set in 1998.
Fleetwood Mac's live album, The Dance, hit number 1 in 1997. It eventually sold 5 million copies in the U.S. after entering the charts at number 1. A short tour by the band followed. The Dance included a live version of the original B-side to the 1977 Go Your Own Way single, Silver Springs. The Stevie Nicks song was a gem, and this time around, made it to the A-side of a single.
SON, SIGN ON THE DOTTED LINE….RIGHT HERE. WE GONNA MAKE YOU A STAR
Eddie Cochran signed a one year contract with Liberty Records in 1956, after recording stints with the Ekko and Crest labels. Cochran would give Liberty four top 40 hits over the next several years. “Sittin' in the Balcony,” “Summertime Blues,” “Twenty Flight Rock” and “C'mon Everybody” earned him recognition as one of the pioneers of rock.
EXODUS FROM SIR PAUL
Guitarist Jimmy McCulloch left Wings in 1977 to help re-form The Small Faces. He had played with Paul McCartney's band on the “Venus and Mars” and “Wings At the Speed of Sound” albums, as well as on the Wings Over America tour. Drummer Joe English also left at this time, joining Sea Level.
A STRANGE FACT I DID NOT KNOW OR DID NOT REMEMBER…DID YOU?
Keith Moon (drummer of The Who) died on September 7th, 1978. He had just seen the movie, The Buddy Holly Story starring Gary Busey, and returned to his London apartment. It had previously been Harry Nilsson's pad, and the same one that watched Mama Cass Elliot die of a heart attack in 1974. Moon died of a drug overdose.
HOW TO LOSE MONEY ON $10MILLION IN THREE EASY DAYS
The three-day US Festival in San Bernardino, California, was held in 1982. Fleetwood Mac, Jackson Browne, The Police, The Cars, Santana, The Grateful Dead, Eddie Money, Talking Heads, Tom Petty and others performed at the event organized by Apple Computers. It was attended by over 400,000 people, and even though $10 million was taken in, it ended up losing money. Tom Petty and Stevie Nicks held the number 3 position on the U.S. singles chart at the time with their Stop Draggin' My Heart Around duet. The song would spend 6 weeks at this, its highest position, and was recorded for Nicks', Bella Donna album. Petty would later include it on his excellent 1995 box set, Playback.
CROSBY, STILLS, NASH &
Crosby, Stills and Nash released their After the Storm album in 1994. After 25 years, it would be their last album of new material for Atlantic Records. Highlights of the LP included the songs, Only Waiting for You and a cover of the best song ever written, according to a 1999 songwriters poll, In My Life.
YOUNG
Neil Young had his video for “This Note's for You” named Best Video of the Year by MTV at its sixth annual awards ceremony in 1989. The video was initially banned by the music video station because it mentioned corporate sponsors like Pepsi, which the song was putting down. Young reacted to the ban by describing its actions as “spineless.”
GRAND OPENING
The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame opened in Cleveland, Ohio, in 1995. Performers at the opening concert included Bob Dylan, Chuck Berry, Aretha Franklin, Heart, Jackson Browne and many others.
OK..BUT WHICH ONE IS MORE COLLECTABLE?
In 1996, Cat Stevens signed copies of his first album in 18 years. Most of the album was spoken-word and was titled, The Life of the Last Prophet. It was also released under his Muslim name, Yusuf Islam. His birth name in the summer of 1947 was Steven Demetre Georgiou, but chose Cat Stevens because he thought it was very distinctive, and a name that people would remember.
DON'T DO THE CRIME, IF YOU CAN'T DO THE TIME
The largest music bootleg bust in U.S. history was made in 1999. It was estimated that this one operation alone was responsible for $100 million in lost revenues. Recording equipment valued at $250,000 was confiscated, as were almost 100,000 CDs, over 110,000 cassettes, 300,000 blank CDs and 4 million CD and cassette labels. Artists are very aware of the bootleg business, and some like Aerosmith, Paul McCartney and Roy Orbison have issued their own “authorized” bootlegs.
WHY SECOND OPINIONS ARE IMPORTANT
Andy Williams got his singing voice back in 2000 after getting a second opinion about his condition. A node was found on his throat the previous fall, causing the crooner to cancel a recent tour. Bing Crosby and Julie Andrews both had surgery for similar conditions, but Crosby's voice came out lower, while Andrews had to stop singing entirely. Williams took a second doctor's advice to wait and see if the node would disappear, and it did. He began the ninth season performing at his own Moon River Theatre with his voice intact. The very next day, Andrews settled her lawsuit with the New York doctors that ruined her singing career.
A HELPING HAND
The Frankie Miller tribute concert was held in 2002, at the Glasgow Barrowlands. Money was being raised for the Drake Music Project, a music therapy charity helping Miller and many others with debilitating injuries. The Sensational Alex Harvey Band, Nazareth, Gallagher & Lyle, Hamish Stuart, former Thin Lizzy guitarist Brian Robertson, ex-Genesis singer Ray Wilson and Joe Walsh gave their all for Miller, as did newer and more local acts like Clare Grogan and The McCluskey Brothers. Walsh was heard on the classics, Desperado, Life's Been Good, Rocky Mountain Way and Amazing Grace. Miller attended the show, but was still recovering from a 1994 brain hemorrhage, and so was unable to join in. The studio tribute CD, Something Old, Something New, Something Borrowed but Most Definitely Blues was released a couple of months after the seven hour concert.
PASSINGS
September 3
1985 Johnny Marks (songwriter of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer)
2000 Robert H. Harris (The Soul Stirrers)
September 4
1990 Dottie West
September 6
1990 Tom Fogerty (CCR)
September 7
1978 Keith Moon
1997 Derek Taylor (The Beatles assistant)
2003 Warren Zevon
BIRTHDAYS
September 2
1940 Jimmy Clanton
1943 Joe Simon
1957 Steve Porcaro (Toto)
September 3
1942 Al Jardine (The Beach Boys)
1948 Don Brewer (Grand Funk)
September 4
1945 Danny Gatton
September 5
1939 John Stewart
1945 Al Stewart
1946 Freddie Mercury
1946 Buddy Miles
September 6
1944 Roger Waters
September 7
1921 Arthur Ferrante (Ferrante & Teicher)
1936 Buddy Holly
1940 Ronnie Dove
1949 Gloria Gaynor
1951 Chrissie Hynde
September 8
1932 Patsy Cline
CHART ACTION
Paul Anka joined Alan Freed's Biggest Show of Stars tour in 1957. It was perfect timing as Diana had just hit number 1. The song was written about his family's babysitter, and would go on to become one of the best selling singles of all time. Also on the fall tour were Chuck Berry, The Everly Brothers, Buddy Holly, The Spaniels, The Drifters and others. A couple weeks after the tour ended on November 24th in Virginia, Anka began a series of dates in the U.K., where Diana had spent 9 weeks at the top, making it their biggest single of the year.
Tommy Roe had his first hit on his hands when Sheila went to number 1 in 1962. It was a re-recorded version of the song that was first released in 1960 when Roe was part of The Satins. He would have five more top 10 hits by the end of the decade. 1971's, Stagger Lee, was his last top 40 hit.
Freddie Scott spent his only week in the top 10 of the singles chart when Hey Girl hit number 10 in 1963. The song is one of those lost gems, which explains why Billy Joel resurrected the tune for a single and inclusion on his Greatest Hits Volume III album in 1997. Joel added a certain amount of polish to the soul tune, while Scott used a rougher sound on the original hit.
House of the Rising Sun, by U.K. blues band The Animals, hit number 1 in the U.S. in 1964. It was their only chart topping hit there, but other tracks such as We Gotta Get Out of This Place, It's My Life, Don't Bring Me Down and Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood were just as deserving.
Donovan hit number 1 in the U.S. for the only time with the single, Sunshine Superman, in 1966. The British Bob Dylan got some help on guitar from Jimmy Page. But due to legal problems, Sunshine Superman had to wait seven months before it could be released and Donovan settled in with his new manager.
The Youngbloods were given a second chance in 1969 when Get Together peaked inside the top 10 in the U.S. The single was from their 1967 self-titled album, but stalled at number 62 at the time. Get Together was re-issued and made the top 5 the second time around. Unfortunately, there was still no response in the U.K., so The Dave Clark Five recorded a version and made it their final top 10 single the next year. Also doing a decent cover of the track was Garth Brooks in 1999, on his In the Life of Chris Gaines album, under the title, Right Now.
The Undisputed Truth had their only success on the U.S. singles chart peak at number 3 in 1971. Smiling Faces Sometimes was written by Barrett Strong (of Money fame) and producer Norman Whitfield, who both worked full-time at Motown. The group had signed to Berry Gordy's Detroit label during the years when “The Motown Sound” was fading, and more sophisticated songs were beginning to appear. The Undisputed Truth also had several R&B hits, and were the first to record Papa Was a Rollin' Stone, a hit for The Temptations in 1972.
This week in 1976, Fleetwood Mac's self-titled album hit number 1 after being on the charts for over a year. Songs such as Over My Head and Rhiannon helped the album reach the 5 million mark in sales in the U.S. alone. And after group members heard a cover of Say You Love Me by Canadian artist, Shirley Eikhard, the band added a splash of guitar to their own version and released it as a single. It would go on to be the best charting song from the album.
Elvis had 27 albums and 9 singles in the Top 100 charts in the UK in 1977. His Moody Blue was the number 1 album while Way Down resided at the top of the singles chart. Albums also in the top 30 included 40 Greatest and Welcome to My World. Death sells.
Stevie Nicks hit number 1 on the U.S. albums chart with Bella Donna, in 1981. The solo debut was packed with successful singles such as Stop Draggin' My Heart Around (the Tom Petty duet), Leather and Lace (with Don Henley), Edge of Seventeen and After the Glitter Fades. The best song on the album, however, was probably How Still My Love. Unfortunately, it was left off of her 3 CD box set in 1998.
Fleetwood Mac's live album, The Dance, hit number 1 in 1997. It eventually sold 5 million copies in the U.S. after entering the charts at number 1. A short tour by the band followed. The Dance included a live version of the original B-side to the 1977 Go Your Own Way single, Silver Springs. The Stevie Nicks song was a gem, and this time around, made it to the A-side of a single.
SON, SIGN ON THE DOTTED LINE….RIGHT HERE. WE GONNA MAKE YOU A STAR
Eddie Cochran signed a one year contract with Liberty Records in 1956, after recording stints with the Ekko and Crest labels. Cochran would give Liberty four top 40 hits over the next several years. “Sittin' in the Balcony,” “Summertime Blues,” “Twenty Flight Rock” and “C'mon Everybody” earned him recognition as one of the pioneers of rock.
EXODUS FROM SIR PAUL
Guitarist Jimmy McCulloch left Wings in 1977 to help re-form The Small Faces. He had played with Paul McCartney's band on the “Venus and Mars” and “Wings At the Speed of Sound” albums, as well as on the Wings Over America tour. Drummer Joe English also left at this time, joining Sea Level.
A STRANGE FACT I DID NOT KNOW OR DID NOT REMEMBER…DID YOU?
Keith Moon (drummer of The Who) died on September 7th, 1978. He had just seen the movie, The Buddy Holly Story starring Gary Busey, and returned to his London apartment. It had previously been Harry Nilsson's pad, and the same one that watched Mama Cass Elliot die of a heart attack in 1974. Moon died of a drug overdose.
HOW TO LOSE MONEY ON $10MILLION IN THREE EASY DAYS
The three-day US Festival in San Bernardino, California, was held in 1982. Fleetwood Mac, Jackson Browne, The Police, The Cars, Santana, The Grateful Dead, Eddie Money, Talking Heads, Tom Petty and others performed at the event organized by Apple Computers. It was attended by over 400,000 people, and even though $10 million was taken in, it ended up losing money. Tom Petty and Stevie Nicks held the number 3 position on the U.S. singles chart at the time with their Stop Draggin' My Heart Around duet. The song would spend 6 weeks at this, its highest position, and was recorded for Nicks', Bella Donna album. Petty would later include it on his excellent 1995 box set, Playback.
CROSBY, STILLS, NASH &
Crosby, Stills and Nash released their After the Storm album in 1994. After 25 years, it would be their last album of new material for Atlantic Records. Highlights of the LP included the songs, Only Waiting for You and a cover of the best song ever written, according to a 1999 songwriters poll, In My Life.
YOUNG
Neil Young had his video for “This Note's for You” named Best Video of the Year by MTV at its sixth annual awards ceremony in 1989. The video was initially banned by the music video station because it mentioned corporate sponsors like Pepsi, which the song was putting down. Young reacted to the ban by describing its actions as “spineless.”
GRAND OPENING
The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame opened in Cleveland, Ohio, in 1995. Performers at the opening concert included Bob Dylan, Chuck Berry, Aretha Franklin, Heart, Jackson Browne and many others.
OK..BUT WHICH ONE IS MORE COLLECTABLE?
In 1996, Cat Stevens signed copies of his first album in 18 years. Most of the album was spoken-word and was titled, The Life of the Last Prophet. It was also released under his Muslim name, Yusuf Islam. His birth name in the summer of 1947 was Steven Demetre Georgiou, but chose Cat Stevens because he thought it was very distinctive, and a name that people would remember.
DON'T DO THE CRIME, IF YOU CAN'T DO THE TIME
The largest music bootleg bust in U.S. history was made in 1999. It was estimated that this one operation alone was responsible for $100 million in lost revenues. Recording equipment valued at $250,000 was confiscated, as were almost 100,000 CDs, over 110,000 cassettes, 300,000 blank CDs and 4 million CD and cassette labels. Artists are very aware of the bootleg business, and some like Aerosmith, Paul McCartney and Roy Orbison have issued their own “authorized” bootlegs.
WHY SECOND OPINIONS ARE IMPORTANT
Andy Williams got his singing voice back in 2000 after getting a second opinion about his condition. A node was found on his throat the previous fall, causing the crooner to cancel a recent tour. Bing Crosby and Julie Andrews both had surgery for similar conditions, but Crosby's voice came out lower, while Andrews had to stop singing entirely. Williams took a second doctor's advice to wait and see if the node would disappear, and it did. He began the ninth season performing at his own Moon River Theatre with his voice intact. The very next day, Andrews settled her lawsuit with the New York doctors that ruined her singing career.
A HELPING HAND
The Frankie Miller tribute concert was held in 2002, at the Glasgow Barrowlands. Money was being raised for the Drake Music Project, a music therapy charity helping Miller and many others with debilitating injuries. The Sensational Alex Harvey Band, Nazareth, Gallagher & Lyle, Hamish Stuart, former Thin Lizzy guitarist Brian Robertson, ex-Genesis singer Ray Wilson and Joe Walsh gave their all for Miller, as did newer and more local acts like Clare Grogan and The McCluskey Brothers. Walsh was heard on the classics, Desperado, Life's Been Good, Rocky Mountain Way and Amazing Grace. Miller attended the show, but was still recovering from a 1994 brain hemorrhage, and so was unable to join in. The studio tribute CD, Something Old, Something New, Something Borrowed but Most Definitely Blues was released a couple of months after the seven hour concert.
PASSINGS
September 3
1985 Johnny Marks (songwriter of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer)
2000 Robert H. Harris (The Soul Stirrers)
September 4
1990 Dottie West
September 6
1990 Tom Fogerty (CCR)
September 7
1978 Keith Moon
1997 Derek Taylor (The Beatles assistant)
2003 Warren Zevon