Wednesday, August 27, 2008

This Date In Music History- August 27

Birthdays:

Tommy Sands ("Teen-Age Crush") turns 71.

"Captain" Daryl Dragon of the Captain & Tennille ("Love Will Keep Us Together") is 66.

Bassist Tim Bogert, who played with Vanilla Fudge, Cactus and Beck Bogert & Appice, was born in Richfield, N.J. in 1944.

Bad Company drummer Simon Kirke was born in Shrewsbury, England in 1949.

Rush guitar genius Alex Lifeson celebrates a birthday (1953).

Born on this day in 1942, B.J. Thomas, singer, (1970 US No.1 & UK No.38 single 'Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head').

History:

Beatles manager Brian Epstein died of an accidental overdose of barbiturates mixed with brandy in 1967. Epstein was 32. The New York Times eulogizes him as "the man who revolutionized pop music in our time." John Lennon later claims he knew the Beatles were over when Epstein died.

Jackson Browne recorded "Stay" and "Running On Empty" in concert in Columbia, Maryland in 1977.

In 2001, Seattle's Pearl Jam - formerly known as Mookie Blakelock - released their blockbuster debut Ten. With its hits "Alive," "Even Flow," "Jeremy" and "Black," the album sails to No. 2 in the Billboard 200 and alters the grunge template forever.

At an auction in 1992, the handwritten lyrics to the Beatles' "Day in the Life" sold for $87,000.

Bob Dylan's second electric album, "Highway 61 Revisited," was released in 1965.

Fats Domino hits #1 on the R&B chart and #10 on the pop chart with "Ain't That A Shame" in 1955.

In 1965, The Beatles spent the evening talking and playing music with Elvis Presley at his Bel air home. The get-together, which included an un-recorded jam session, lasted four hours. While their clients got to know each other, managers Col. Tom Parker and Brian Epstein played pool in the next room. It was an awkward meeting, leaving The Beatles with the impression that Presley's personality was decidedly "unmagnetic". John Lennon remarked soon after, “Where’s Elvis? It was like meeting Engelbert Humperdinck.”

The Association's "Cherish" was released in the US in 1966, where it will reach #1 a month later.

Four days before its official release date in 1987, Michael Jackson's new album, "Bad" was previewed by an L.A. radio station. Advance orders for the album topped 2.2 million.

Stevie Ray Vaughan was killed in 1990, when the helicopter he was flying in hit a man-made ski slope while trying to navigate through dense fog. Vaughn had played a show at Alpine Valley Music Theatre, East Troy, Wisconsin with Robert Cray & His Memphis Horns, and Eric Clapton. Vaughan was informed by a member of Clapton's crew that three seats were open on a helicopter returning to Chicago with Clapton's crew, it turned out there was only one seat left; Vaughan requested it from his brother, who obliged. Three members of Eric Clapton's entourage were also killed. In 2003, Rolling Stone magazine ranked Stevie Ray Vaughan #7 in its list of the 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time.

Tracy Chapman went to No.1 on the US album chart in 1988 with her self-titled album.