Thursday, January 8, 2009

This Date In Music History-January 8

Birthdays:

In 1935, Elvis Aron Presley was born to Gladys and Vernon Presley in a two-room cabin on North Saltillo Road in East Tupelo, Mississippi.

David Robert Jones, a.k.a. David Bowie, was born in Brixton, London in 1947.

"Little" Anthony Gourdine is 68.

Shirley Bassey ("Goldfinger") turns 72.

Robby Krieger (The Doors) 1946

Terry Sylvester (Hollies) 1947

The Donnas’ drummer Torry Castellano (Donna C.) and bassist Maya Ford (Donna F.) are born in 1979.

Mike Reno (Loverboy) 1955


They Are Missed:

Bill Graham was born in Berlin, Germany in 1931 (died October, 1991).

Sara Carter, of the famed Carter Family of country singers, died in 1979 (age 79).

Steve Clark, guitarist for Def Leppard, died in 1991 from an accidental mixing of prescription drugs and alcohol at the age of 31.

Laura Webb of The Bobbettes died of cancer in 2001 at the age of 57. The R&B quintet scored a Billboard #6 hit with "Mr. Lee" in 1957.


History:


In 2004, on what would have been Elvis Presley's 69th birthday, it's announced that he's the biggest selling solo artist in American history. His label RCA says Presley has sold 117.5 million albums to date.

"Elvis Presley Day" was declared in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Kansas, North and South Carolina, Pennsylvania and Virginia in 1981.

An Elvis Presley stamp was issued by the U.S. Postal Service in 1993 and became its best-seller to this day, with over 500 million sold.

1955- Elvis Presley celebrates his twentieth birthday by performing his weekly spot on the KWKH radio show, Louisiana Hayride.

In 2007, officials from the National Archives announced that their most requested document is a photo of a cloaked and bejeweled Elvis Presley shaking hands with President Nixon at The White House on December 21st, 1970.

Nirvana’s last U.S. show was a hometown gig at the Seattle Center Arena in 1994.

The Canadian government names Rush the country’s “Ambassadors of Music” in 1979. Whatever happened to the Guess Who?

Tracy Chapman's self-titled debut achieved multi-platinum status in 1988.

The Who and the Kinks performed on the last "Shindig" show on ABC-TV in 1966.

The TV dance show "Hullabaloo" debuted on NBC in 1965.

In 1974, KISS gave a special dress rehearsal after being signed to Casablanca Records. It was their first recording contract.

Yoko Ono released Approximately Infinite Universe in 1973, a double album whose highlights included songs like "I Felt Like Smashing My Face in a Clear Glass Window." Ono explained she felt she should make a double LP because "if George Harrison can put out a triple album, then I can put out a double album." Uh, Yoko, you are no George Harrison.

Tickets for three Led Zeppelin concerts at Madison Square Garden went on sale in 1975. The box office had to call on other ticket outlets to help cope with demand and sold out their 60,000 tickets in four hours.

The Beatles started a six week run at #1 on the US album chart in 1966 with "Rubber Soul", the group's seventh US chart topper.

Queen went to #1 on the UK album chart in 1977 with "Day At The Races.” The album title was taken from 1937 Marx Brothers movie.

Lou Christie recorded the original, uncensored version of "Rhapsody In The Rain,” in 1966.

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