Birthdays:
Percy Sledge ("When A Man Loves A Woman") turns 67.
Folk/rocker Bob Lind, who went to #5 with "Elusive Butterfly" in 1966, was born in 1944.
Christian pop singer Amy Grant was born in Augusta, Georgia in 1960.
They Are Missed:
Dancer Bill "Bojangles" Robinson (inspiration for the song "Mr. Bojangles") died in 1949.
Jazz saxophonist Albert Ayler was discovered drowned in the Hudson River in 1970. His death at age 34 soon becomes the stuff of legend, with some speculating he committed suicide, while others claim he was tied to a jukebox.
In 1974, 26 year-old Nick Drake, an English singer, songwriter and musician best known for his acoustic tunes, died from an overdose of amitriptyline, a type of anti-depressant. Although he failed to find a wide audience during his lifetime, Drake's work has grown steadily in stature, to the extent that he is now widely considered one of the most influential English singer-songwriters of the last 50 years.
History:
Miles Davis made his first recordings as part of Charlie Parker's band in 1945.
John Lennon returned his MBE to the queen. The attached note reads, "Your Majesty, I am returning this MBE in protest against Britain's involvement in the Nigeria-Biafra thing, against our support of America in Vietnam, and against 'Cold Turkey' slipping down the charts. With love, John Lennon of Bag."
The Band's final concert in 1976, called The Last Waltz, was given at San Francisco's Winterland. It included appearances by Bob Dylan, Van Morrison, Eric Clapton, Joni Mitchell, Neil Young, Ringo Starr, Emmylou Harris, Muddy Waters, Ronnie Hawkins and Neil Diamond.
The Beatles' "White Album" was released in 1968.
In London in 1965, Harrod's department store stayed open for two hours so the Beatles could do their Christmas shopping.
In 1966, Jimi Hendrix was introduced to the British press when the Experience play London's Bag O'Nails club.
"Incense and Peppermints" by The Strawberry Alarm Clock hit the top of the Billboard Pop chart in 1967. The recording was initially intended as a 'b-side' and the lead vocal is actually that of a friend of the band, 16 year old Greg Munford, who was just hanging around during the session. Munford was not even a regular band member, but ended up singing a tune that would become a Rock and Roll standard and sell over a million copies. Despite this success, Munford never actually joined the group and drummer Randy Seol sang the song in concert (the single didn't chart at all in the UK).
In 1968, over 10,000 fans saw Cream play their final two concerts at the Royal Albert Hall in London. During the shows, the crowd chanted "God save the Cream."
In 1986, for the first time in Billboard chart history, the top three spots were occupied by female artists. #1 is Cyndi Lauper's "True Colors", #2 is Tina Turner with "Typical Male" and #3 is Janet Jackson's "When I Think Of You".
The Beatles' album simply titled "1", a collection of their UK and US chart toppers, reached number one in Great Britain in 2000. It will top the US chart a week later and will become the best selling album in a total of 28 countries worldwide.
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