Sunday, March 2, 2008

This Day In Music History- March 2

In 1999, Dusty Springfield died of breast cancer on the day she was scheduled to receive the Order of the British Empire (OBE) from the queen of England and two weeks before her induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Edwin Starr hits #1 with "War" in 1970.

The late Karen Carpenter ("Close To You") was born in 1950.

Lou Reed
("Walk On The Wild Side") turns 64.

Eddie Money ("Two Tickets To Paradise") is 59.

John Cowsill of the Cowsills ("Hair") celebrates his 52nd birthday.

Filming begins on the Beatles movie, "A Hard Day's Night" in 1964.

Vee-Jay Records in Chicago creates the Tollie label in 1964 and released "Twist And Shout" by the Beatles on it.

Birthday wishes to Jon Bon Jovi who was born in 1962.

Today in 1963, the song "Walk Like a Man" by the Four Seasons topped the charts and stayed there for 3 weeks.

"Seasons in the Sun" by Terry Jacks topped the charts in 1974 and stayed there for 3 weeks. It was recommended by Jacks to The Beach Boys, who did record it, but declined to release it. Their decision worked out well for Jacks, who sold over eleven and a half million copies of the record.

In 1969, John Lennon and Yoko Ono perform at a jazz festival in Cambridge, England, where they record "Let's Go On Flying," "Snow Is Falling All the Time," "Don't Worry Kyoko," "Song for John," and "Cambridge 1969." It's the first time a Beatle has performed solo.

In 1960, Elvis Presley leaves Germany after having served two years in the Army. While the plane is refueling in Prestwich, Scotland, the King of Rock 'n' Roll greets fans through a fence. It's the only time he ever visited Britain.

Rory Gallagher, known for his ubiquitous plaid shirts, was born in Ballyshannon in 1949.

Influential flat-picking guitarist Doc Watson was born in Deep Gap, N.C. in 1923.

Missing Persons vocalist, Dale Bozzio (born Dale Frances Consalvi) has a birthday today. She’s a Playboy Bunny before pursuing a music career. She was born in 1955.

Coldplay’s frontman (and occasional lead guitarist and pianist), Chris Martin, entered the world in 1967.

Stevie Wonder’s Innervisions” scores five Grammys including Album of the Year in 1974.

Don’t Look Back In Anger” is the #1 song in the U.K. in 1996. The Oasis track debuts in the top spot.

Bo Diddley had his first recording session at Universal Recording Studio in Chicago in 1955, where he lays down "Bo Diddley", which will top the R&B chart by the following June.

In 1983, Sony, Philips and Polygram introduce a new digital audio system called a compact disc that contains up to 1 hour of music.

21 years after its initial release, "All Right Now" by Free reached #2 on the UK singles chart in 1991, when it was reissued to coincide with its use in a Wrigleys Chewing gum TV ad.

Hank Ballard, the writer and original performer of "The Twist", died March 2nd at his Los Angeles home after suffering from throat cancer. His exact age is uncertain as most biographies say he was 66, but friends say he was actually 75. He originally released "The Twist" on the B-side of his 1959 tune "Teardrops On Your Letter", but after Chubby Checker took the song to number one, Ballard re-released his version and had a top 30 hit with it as well in 1960. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1990.