bmusic - Newsletter No. 223

In 1846, Adolphe Sax patented his invention - the saxophone. He had invented the instrument early in the decade, and by the time the patent was granted there were 14 different saxophones - seven designed for orchestras and seven for bands. The saxophones designed for bands are the ones in common use today.

In 1964, "It's All Over Now" by the Rolling Stones was released. The song, written by American soul singer Bobby Womack, was the first Stones' record to reach number one in Britain.

In 1965, the Byrds, the group which pioneered folk rock, hit number one on the Billboard Hot 100 with "Mr. Tambourine Man," written by Bob Dylan. The Byrds had met Dylan six months earlier, and he publicly endorsed the group. The recording of "Mr. Tambourine Man" was actually cut by studio musicians, with guitarist Roger McGuinn the only member of the Byrds actually playing on the record. The group did, however, provide the vocals.

In 1967, John Entwhistle, bass guitarist with the Who, married Alison Wise. Entwhistle told a London newspaper that he knew they would marry from their first date - when Alison carried his amplifier to a gig.

In 1968, the Jeff Beck Group, with Rod Stewart and Ron Wood, made its US live debut in New York City. Stewart was said to have had such a severe case of stage fright that he hid behind the speakers for the first couple of songs.

In 1969, Mick Taylor, who replaced Brian Jones as the Rolling Stones guitarist, made his first appearance with the group at the Coliseum in Rome. Jones would be found dead in the swimming pool of his home a week later.

In 1969, the three day Newport Festival began in Northridge, California, featuring such performers as Jimi Hendrix, Joe Cocker and Ike and Tina Turner. Hendrix was paid $135,000, at the time the most ever paid to a rock performer for a single performance. Like the notorious Altamont Festival later in the year, there were violent gate-crashing incidents and a motorcycle gang had been hired for security.

In 1970, Pete Townshend's use of the British slang term "bomb" to describe the success of the Who's rock opera "Tommy" caused him to be detained at the Memphis airport. FBI agents thought it was a bomb threat.

In 1970, Chubby Checker and three other people were arrested in Niagara Falls, Ontario and charged with possession of marijuana and hashish.

In 1973, Bread played their final concert before more than 13,000 people at the Salt Palace in Salt Lake City. A truck accident earlier in the day had destroyed the band's equipment, so they had to play with borrowed instruments and amps.

In 1975, Alice Cooper broke six of his ribs after he fell off the stage during a concert in Vancouver. Several dates on his "Welcome to My Nightmare" tour had to be cancelled.

In 1975, Jefferson Starship's "Red Octopus" was released. The album marked the return of singer Marty Balin, went to number one on the charts and became the band's biggest seller.

In 1975, Sonny and Cher Bono's divorce was made final by a court in Santa Monica, California. They had married in 1964. Four days after the divorce, Cher married Greg Allman of the Allman Brothers. That marriage lasted only a short time.

In 1975, guitarist Ritchie Blackmore quit Deep Purple to form Rainbow.

In 1977, Elvis Presley gave his last performance - at the Market Square Arena in Indianapolis. His final song - "Can't Help Falling in Love." Less than two months later, Presley was found dead in his bathroom at Graceland. The cause of death was at first given as congestive heart failure, but later investigation revealed that drug abuse may have played a part.

In 1978, the legendary power-rock trio Cream - Eric Clapton, Jack Bruce and Ginger Baker - reunited for a show at Baker's polo club. The three had not played together for ten years.

In 1979, disco singer Donna Summer captured the number one and number three positions on the Billboard Hot 100 chart with "Hot Stuff" and "Bad Girls." She was the first solo entertainer to hold two of the top three positions simultaneously.

In 1981, 25 year-old Mark David Chapman pleaded guilty to first-degree murder in the death of John Lennon. On December 8th, 1980, Chapman shot Lennon seven times in front of Lennon's New York apartment building just hours after Lennon had given him his autograph.

In 1984, the future Mrs. Springsteen, Patty Scialfa, joined Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band four days before "The Boss" began his "Born in the USA" tour.

In 1986, group Wham! drew a sellout crowd of 75,000 to their farewell concert at Wembley Stadium in London. Elton John duetted with Wham! member George Michael on "Candle in the Wind."

In 1988, Earl Falconer, the bassist for the British reggae band UB-40, was sentenced to six months in jail for causing his brother's death in a car accident.

In 1989, Paul Simon brought his "Graceland" tour to Moscow, playing the first of two concerts before 5,000 people in Gorky Park. It was Simon's first appearance in the Soviet Union.

In 1990, Donnie Wahlberg of New Kids on the Block suffered cuts and bruises after falling through a stage trap door during a concert in Saratoga Springs, New York. Teenage fans besieged the hospital where he was treated.

In 1990, actor Gary Busey, who played Buddy Holly in "The Buddy Holly Story," paid US$242,000 for one of Holly's guitars at an auction in New York.

In 1991, a brawl at an Atlanta nightclub led to charges of aggravated assault and battery against Run-DMC lead rapper Darryl McDaniels. He and two other members of the rap group, Raymond White and Michael Dobson, were charged with attacking two bouncers at the club. McDaniels later pleaded guilty to a reduced charge of disorderly conduct while intoxicated and was fined $600. White and Dobson were fined $400 each. The bouncers sued McDaniels for more than $1 million.

In 1992, a drunk Hank Williams Junior swore at the audience and walked off stage after stumbling through parts of four songs at the Sandstone Amphitheatre near Kansas City.

In 1995, Neil Young filled in for Pearl Jam at a concert in San Francisco after lead singer Eddie Vedder quit after six songs because of the flu. Young had already been scheduled to perform as a guest at the show. He played for 1.5 hours, mixing classics with songs from his latest album, "Mirror Ball." About half the crowd of 50,000 left after Vedder departed. The next day, Pearl Jam cancelled the remaining dates on its 15-city tour, citing scheduling difficulties caused by the band's dispute with Ticketmaster. Pearl Jam had accused the agency of price gouging.
They contended that the ticket giant held a monopoly and charged fans too big of a surcharge on concert tickets. Their argument went to the U.S. courts but Pearl Jam failed to make any impact on Ticketmaster's stranglehold on the industry. Since then Pearl Jam have abandoned their policy of playing non-Ticketmaster venues as almost all venues in America (and now across the world) are under Ticketmaster control. The band were setting up their own outdoor venues in cities with only Ticketmaster venues. This was an expensive exercise but one which the band did often so as not to play the Ticketmaster venues. However, since the Roskilde festival tragedy in Denmark Pearl Jam now only play seated venues, most of which Ticketmaster has control of.

In 1996, the Sex Pistols played in Britain for the first time in 19 years, performing before 30,000 people in London. The four members were rumored to have made as much as $1.5 million each for the series of reunion concerts that was dubbed "The Filthy Lucre Tour."

In 1996, Van Halen announced that lead singer Sammy Hagar had left the band and that it was working on a greatest hits album with former frontman David Lee Roth. The reunion with Roth would last only a matter of weeks and ended in a public trading of insults. Hagar said he left the band after a decade because of "creative differences."

In 1997, the Walt Disney Company pulled "The Great Malenko" by the rap group Insane Clown Posse from store shelves throughout the U.S. and Canada. Less than a week earlier, Disney's music division, Hollywood Records, had shipped 100,000 copies of the obscenity-laced album. The action came after the Southern Baptist Convention voted to boycott Disney for what it called anti-family product and policies. Disney denied the recall had anything to do with the boycott.

In 1999 Eric Clapton put 100 of his guitars up for auction in New York at Christie's to raise money for his drug rehab clinic, the Crossroads Centre in Antigua. His 1956 Fender Stratocaster, named Brownie, was sold for a record US$497,500. The guitar was used to record "Layla." The auction helped raise nearly US$5 million for the clinic.

In 2002, the Forbes Top 100 List named Britney Spears as the most powerful entertainer in showbiz.

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Births In 1910, Colonel Tom Parker, who managed Elvis Presley for much of his career, was born. Parker took over from Memphis disc jockey Bob Neal in 1955, signing a managerial contract with Presley for 25% of the singer's earnings. The contract lasted until well after Presley's death in 1977. In 1983, after 21 months of litigation, Parker turned over most of his interest in Presley's audio and video recordings to RCA and the Presley family in return for a large monetary settlement. Parker died of complications from a stroke on January 21st, 1997, in Las Vegas.

In 1936, singer, songwriter and actor Kris Kristofferson was born in Brownsville, Texas. His first success as a songwriter came when Roger Miller recorded "Me and Bobby McGee." That song was turned into a million-seller by Janis Joplin in 1971.

In 1940, country singer Diana Trask was born in Melbourne, Australia. Originally a pop vocalist, she was a regular on Mitch Miller's "Sing Along With Mitch" TV show after moving to the US in 1959. After returning to Australia and raising a family, Trask returned to the US in the late '60s and turned to country music. She had hits with "I Fall to Pieces" in 1969 and "Beneath Still Waters" in 1970. Trask came back to Australia in 1975.

In 1942, Brian Wilson, lead singer and main songwriter for the Beach Boys, was born in Hawthorne, California.

In 1942 Mick Fleetwood, Fleetwood Mac's drummer, was born.

In 1944, Ray Davies, lead singer and songwriter for the Kinks, was born in London. Formed in 1963 by Ray and his brother, Dave, the Kinks have gone through several musical changes. They began as a singles band, scoring hits with such songs as "You Really Got Me," "All Day and All of the Night" and "Well Respected Man." All these hits were written by Ray Davies, who then turned to more ambitious concept albums such as "(The Kinks Are) The Village Green Preservation Society" and "Lola Versus Powerman and the Moneygoround, Part One." The Kinks left concept albums behind in 1976, and three years later scored a gold album with "Low Budget." It was the group's first gold LP in 12 years. That was followed by several other hit albums, including 1983's "State of Confusion," which contained the Top 10 hit "Come Dancing."

In 1944, Jeff Beck, one of the great rock guitarists, was born in Surrey, England. Beck's first important band was the Yardbirds, where he was the replacement for Eric Clapton in 1964. In 1967, he formed the Jeff Beck Group with Rod Stewart and Ron Wood. The beginnings of heavy metal could be heard in the group's blues-based songs. The Jeff Beck Group broke up after only two albums, and Beck was then sidelined for 18 months with a fractured skull suffered in a car accident.
A new Jeff Beck Group put out two more LPs before Beck formed a band with two former members of Vanilla Fudge, Tim Bogert and Carmen Appice. But that group dissolved as well, in 1974. Beck then began playing fusion music, often in collaboration with keyboards player Jan Hammer. Jeff Beck has made only rare appearances since 1980, but his aggressive style has heavily influenced rock guitarists who followed him.

In 1945, Colin Blunstone, lead vocalist of the '60s British group the Zombies.

In 1945, singer Carly Simon was born in New York City, the daughter of publishing magnate Richard Simon of Simon and Schuster. She began singing with her sister Lucy when the two were in college. Simon began her solo career in 1969, and hit the top 10 two years later with "That's the Way I've Always Heard It Should Be." In 1972, her recording of "You're So Vain," featuring a guest appearance by Mick Jagger, hit number one. That year she married James Taylor, and the two combined in 1974 for the hit single "Mockingbird," a remake of a '60s R'n'B success by Inez and Charlie Foxx. Carly Simon suffers from stage fright and rarely appears in concert. In 1981, she filed for divorce from Taylor.

In 1946, Ian McDonald, rhythm guitarist with King Crimson and Foreigner.

In 1948, rock singer and keyboardist Patrick Moraz, formerly of Yes.

In 1948, producer and musician Todd Rundgren.

In 1949, John Illsey, bassist for the British rock band Dire Straits.

In 1950, Joey Kramer, drummer with Aerosmith.

In 1951, guitarist Nils Lofgren of Bruce Spingsteen's E Street Band.

In 1952, Tim Finn of Split Enz and Crowded House.

In 1953, rock singer Cyndi Lauper.

In 1953, country singer Pake McEntire, older brother of Reba McEntire.

In 1955, Mick Jones of the Clash and Big Audio Dynamite.

In 1955, Michael Anthony, bassist with Van Halen.

In 1955, Glenn Danzig, leader of the heavy-metal band that bears his name.

In 1957, Garry Beers, bassist with INXS.

In 1959, Andy McCluskey of Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark.

In 1960, Duran Duran bassist John Taylor.

In 1961, Curt Smith of Tears For Fears.

In 1961, Jimmy Somerville, formerly of the British groups Bronski Beat and the Communards.

In 1963, singer George Michael, one of the biggest rock stars of the late 1980's, was born in London. Michael and Andrew Ridgeley formed the pop duo Wham!, which hit the British chart in 1982 with "Young Guns (Go For It)."

In 1964, Mike Edwards, vocalist and guitarist with Jesus Jones.

In 1970, singer Glenn Medeiros.

In 1970, Steven Page, former lead singer of the Barenaked Ladies.

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Deaths In 1969, singer and movie star Judy Garland died in London at the age of 47.

In 1986, old-time country musician Joe Maphis died at the age of 65. Joe and his wife, Rose Lee, were among the most popular country performers in the years following the Second World War. Maphis played guitar on many early rock 'n' roll sessions in California, including Ricky Nelson's first recordings.

In 1987, Boudleaux Bryant, one of Nashville's most prolific songwriters, died of cancer at the age of 67. Bryant and his wife Felice wrote many of the Everly Brothers' hits, including "Bye Bye Love," "Wake Up Little Susie" and "All I Have to Do Is Dream." The husband and wife team also composed "Rocky Top," which became an anthem for the American state of Tennessee.

In 1987, Fred Astaire, the great American song and dance man, died in Los Angeles at the age of 88.

In 2001, Patricia Angadi, co-founder the Asian Music Circle, died. She is most well known for having introduced The Beatles to Ravi Shankar. She also drew sketches of The Beatles as they finished up their "Rubber Soul" LP and painted George Harrison and his then wife Pattie Boyd.

In 2001, Afro-Cuban Jazz performer Chico O'Farrill (Arturo O'Farrill) died from a blood disorder. He wrote "Undercurrent Blues" and "The Aztec Suite". Worked with Dizzy Gillespie, Machito, Count Basie, Orquesta Bellemar, Ringo Starr, Armando Oréfiche's Lecuona Cuban Boys, David Bowie, Los Newyorkers, Stan Getz and others.

In 2001, Karen Lamm died of heart failure. Lamm was born 1952. She co-wrote The Beach Boys' "Baby Blue" and was a backup vocalist and songwriter for her husband Dennis Wilson.

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