Throwback Thursday: This Week In History
This week in history – all you need to know about this week’s musical past lives. 1957, The Elvis Presley classic, ‘Jailhouse Rock’ was released. It became his ninth US number one single and stayed on the Billboard chart for nineteen weeks. The film clip from...
This week in history – all you need to know about this week’s musical past lives.
1957, The Elvis Presley classic, ‘Jailhouse Rock’ was released. It became his ninth US number one single and stayed on the Billboard chart for nineteen weeks. The film clip from the movie where he sang the song is considered by many historians to be the first rock video.
1962, In between their lunchtime and night shows at the Cavern Club in Liverpool, The Beatles travelled to Granada TV Centre in Manchester to make their television debut. They appeared live, performing two songs: ‘Some Other Guy’ and ‘Love Me Do’.
1965, Jimi Hendrix signed his first recording contract in the UK, where he would received 
$1 and a 1% Royalty on all of his recordings.
1967, Folk singer Joan Baez was arrested, along with 123 others, for blocking the entrance to an Armed Forces Induction Center in Oakland, California.
1970, The Jackson Five started a five-week run at No.1 on the US singles chart with ‘I’ll Be There’. The group’s fourth No.1 of 1970, it made No.4 in the UK. Motown records claimed the group had sold over 10 million records during this year.
1974, TV host Ed Sullivan died. Leader of the Ed Sullivan Singers and Orchestra. Introduced The Beatles and other UK acts to America via his Ed Sullivan TV show, from New York City. The Beatles appearance on February 9th 1964 is considered a milestone in American pop culture and the beginning of the British Invasion in music. The broadcast drew an estimated 73 million viewers.
1979, Abba played their first concert in North America when they appeared in Vancouver, Canada.
1986, Keith Richards, Eric Clapton and Robert Cray joined other artists on stage in St Louis, for Chuck Berry’s 60th birthday concert, as featured in the film ‘Hail Hail! Rock & Roll.’
1987, The Bee Gees became the only group to have a UK No.1 single in each of the three decades, (60’s, 70’s & 80’s), when ‘You Win Again’ went to No.1 on the UK singles chart. The brothers fifth and last No.1.
1996, Motley Crue drummer Tommy Lee was charged with assault for attacking a cameraman who was trying to take pictures of Lee and his wife Pamela Anderson Lee 
outside an L.A. club. After pleading no contest, Lee was sentenced to four months in prison.
1998, UK newspaper the Daily Star ran a story claiming that R.E.M. singer Michael Stipe had admitted that he was gay during an MTV interview shown in the US. Stipe was voicing his disgust at the killing of a young gay student in the US.
1999, BBC radio DJ Johnny Walker was convicted of possessing cocaine and fined £2,000. Walker was set up by The News Of The World who filmed the DJ taking the drug in a London hotel. BBC Radio 2 suspended him after the incident later reinstated him.
1999, It was reported that Michael Jackson had played a secret gig at a martial arts exhibition in Barnstaple, England. The man who had arrived in the white stretch limo was Navi, a Londoner who claims to be the world’s number one Jako impersonator.
2002, UK rock band Muse took legal action against Celine Dion after she announced her forthcoming Las Vegas show would be called ‘Muse’. Singer Matt Bellamy from the band said ‘We don’t want anyone to think we’re Celine Dion’s backing band.’
2006, CBGB, the legendary New York punk club credited with discovering Patti Smith and The Ramones, closed after a final gig by Smith herself. Blondie and Talking Heads also found fame after performing at the club, which helped launch US punk music.
2007, Madonna signed a ground-breaking recording and touring contract with concert promoter Live Nation becoming the first major star to choose an all-in-one agreement with a tour company over a traditional record contract. The deal reported to be worth $120m (£59m) over 10 years, would give Live Nation rights to all her music-related projects – including new albums, tours, merchandise, websites, DVDs, sponsorship, TV shows and films.
Not to mention this weekend in history!
1956, 21-year-old Elvis Presley pulled into a Memphis gas station where he started to attract a small crowd of autograph seekers. After repeatedly asking Elvis to move on so he could resume normal business, station manager Ed Hopper slapped Presley on the head and found himself on the receiving end of a punch in the face from Elvis.
1966, The Yardbirds arrived in New York for their first US tour with Jeff Beck and Jimmy Page on lead guitars. After two dates of the tour, Beck developed acute tonsillitis and quit the group.1969, The Temptations scored their second US No.1 single with ‘Can’t Get Next To You’. A No.13 hit in the UK.
1973, During their ‘Burnin’ North American tour, Bob Marley and The Wailers played the first of two nights at The Matrix Club, San Francisco, California.
1979, Buggles were at No.1 on the UK singles chart with ‘Video Killed The Radio Star.’ A studio band featuring producer Trevor Horn. Famously, it was the first ever music video shown on MTV in North America
1989, During a gig at The Los Angeles Coliseum, California, (opening for the Rolling Stones), Guns N’ Roses front man Axl Rose announced that this would be the last Guns N’ Roses concert unless the band members “got their shit together.” He was referring to their use of heroin.
1991, Oasis played The Boardwalk in their hometown Manchester, the group’s first gig with Noel Gallagher in the group.
2005, An image of a naked John Lennon, taken on the last day of his life, was named the top US magazine cover of the past 40 years. The Rolling Stone front cover, taken by Annie Leibovitz and showing Lennon curled around Yoko Ono, was picked by editors, artists and designers.2008, Adele appeared on Saturday Night Live along with then US vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin. The show earned its highest ratings in 14 years with a total of 17 million viewers.
This week’s musical BIRTHDAYS:
1926, Chuck Berry, singer, songwriter and guitarist, who wrote the 1963 UK No. 6 single ‘Let It Rock’ plus many other classic songs. He also had surprise hit in 1972 with the UK and US No.1 single ‘My Ding A Ling’. A major influence on The Beatles and Rolling Stones, Berry’s ‘Johnny B. Goode’ was one of the examples of music from Earth sent out to space. Berry was one of the pioneers of rock and roll music
1938, Nico, singer, Velvet Underground, (1968 song ‘White Light, White Heat’). Nico died on 18th July 1988 of a brain haemorrhage having falling off her bicycle while on holiday in Ibiza.
1941, Paul Simon, singer, songwriter, (1970 UK & US No.1 single with Simon and Garfunkel, ‘Bridge Over Trouble Water.’ The duo’s 1970 album ‘Bridge Over Trouble Water’ spent 307 weeks on the UK chart).
1953, Tito Jackson, The Jackson Five, (1970 US No.1 & UK No.2 single ‘I Want You Back’), The Jacksons, (1977 UK No.1 single ‘Show You The Way To Go’).
1977, John Mayer, US singer, songwriter, 2003 Grammy award winner for ‘Our Body Is A Wonderland’, 2004 US No.1 single ‘Daughters’).
1978, Usher, singer, (1998 UK No.1 single ‘You Make Me Wanna’, 1998 US No.1 single, ‘Nice & Slow’. His 2004 album Confessions sold over a million copies in the US in its first week of release, selling the greatest amount of records in one week for any R&B artist).
facts via