This Date In Music History- August 23

Birthdays:

Rick Springfield ("Speak To The Sky") turns 59.

Jimy Sohns of the Shadows of Knight ("Gloria") is 62.

Tony "Spaghetti" Micale, lead singer of the Reflections ("Just Like Romeo And Juliet") is 66.

History:

Drifters vocalist Rudy Lewis was born in Philadelphia in 1936. His tenure with the group ended tragically sometime on the night of May 20, 1964 -- the following morning, he was found dead in his bed; some accounts say the cause was a drug overdose, while others who knew him say that Lewis, who was a binge eater, choked to death in his sleep. The group's other lead singer, Johnny Moore, stepped into the breach that same morning on the scheduled session for "Under The Boardwalk", and was the Drifters' lead vocalist for the remainder of their tenure on Atlantic and beyond.

The Beatles performed at the Hollywood Bowl in 1964 (the performance was finally released 13 years later).

Today in 1969 the song "Honky Tonk Woman" by the Rolling Stones topped the charts and stayed there for 4 weeks. Released the day after Brian Jones’ funeral, it’s the group's first hit with guitarist Mick Taylor (Jones’ replacement).

In 1975, Fleetwood Mac's self-titled album entered the charts. It's the former blues band's first record with pop-oriented songwriters Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham on board.

The late Keith Moon of the Who ("Pinball Wizard") was born in 1947.

The Looking Glass hit the top of the Billboard singles chart in 1972 with "Brandy (You're a Fine Girl)."

The Beatles' movie "Help!" premiered in the U.S. in 1966.

The self titled-debut, "Blind Faith," entered the U.S. album chart in 1969, eventually reaching #1.

Killer Queen. “Queen's Greatest Hits” was released in Iran in 2004. Queen is the first Rock band to receive the official seal of approval in Iran even though Western music is strictly prohibited and homosexuality is considered a serious crime. Queen`s late singer, Freddie Mercury, who died of AIDs in `91, was of Iranian ancestry and bootlegged albums have been available for years.

Ringo Starr quit The Beatles during the recording sessions for "The White Album" in 1968, after finding that Paul had been erasing his drum tracks and replacing them with his own. During his absence, Paul fills in on drums for the taping of "Back In The USSR". He did return.

In 1969, Johnny Cash started a four-week run at #1 on the US album chart with "Johnny Cash At San Quentin.”

In 1987, there was big trouble at a Grateful Dead concert, celebrating the 20th anniversary of the Summer of Love, when police killed an escaped drug addict who had shot one of the officers. The band's "In the Dark" album was sitting at number 6 in the US and its single, "Touch of Grey", was still climbing toward the Top Ten.

Oasis' "Be Here Now" sold 696,000 copies in its first two days of release in the UK in 1997, setting a record for the fastest selling album ever. It will top the chart the following week and reach #2 in the US in September.

In 1978, comedian Steve Martin was awarded a gold record for "King Tut", which had reached #17 on the Billboard chart.

A fan surreptitiously taped a Velvet Underground set on an ordinary cassette recorder in 1970. It turns out to be Reed's last night with the band and was later released as Velvet Underground - "The Velvet Underground Live at Max's Kansas City.'