Today In Oldies Music History: August 9
--Births
1934: Merle Kilgore1939: Billy Henderson (The Spinners)
1944: Vic Prince (The Pretty Things)
1946: John Parry (Bonzo Dog Doo Dah Band)
1946: Marinus Gerritsen (Golden Earring)
1947: Barbara Mason
1947: Benjamin Orr (The Cars)
Deaths
1995: Jerry Garcia (Grateful Dead)Events
1958: Cliff Richard, a seventeen-year-old who would become England's first homegrown rock star of note, signs his first recording contract with EMI.1963: ITV television in Britain premieres the legendary rock and roll variety show Ready! Steady! Go!, which would run until 1966. The first episode features co-host Dusty Springfield as well as musical guests The Searchers, Pat Boone, and The Tremeloes.
1964: Bob Dylan and Joan Baez share the stage for the first time, singing "With God On Our Side" at the Newport Folk Festival.
1964: The crowd of over three thousand at tonight's Rolling Stones gig in Manchester, England, prove hard to control, accidentally breaking the ribs of one policeman and causing another two to faint in the crush.
1967: At England's National Jazz and Blues Festival in Sunberry, Jerry Lee Lewis is kicked off the stage after the overenthusiastic crowd responds to his set with a near-riot.
1974: Four members of the jazz-rock group Chase, who'd scored a hit three years earlier with "Get It On," are killed in a plane crash near Jackson, MN, including leader Bill Chase.
1978: Muddy Waters performs at the Carter White House.
1985: After the massive success of the Motown 25 TV special on NBC, the network debuts the ill-fated Motown Revue variety series, which would only run for five weeks.
1986: Queen give what would prove to be their last live performance ever at the annual Knebworth Park Festival in England, closing as usual with "We Will Rock You / We Are The Champions" and "God Save The Queen."
1991: The 5th Dimension are awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk Of Fame.
2002: Lisa Marie Presley is married to actor Nicolas Cage, in a union that lasts less than four months.
2007: As the first Phil Spector / Lana Clarkson murder trial winds down, the legal teams visit the famed producer's Alhambra mansion in California to take a look at the scene of the crime.
Releases
1969: Sly and the Family Stone, "Hot Fun In The Summertime"1969: Three Dog Night, "Easy To Be Hard"
Recording
1932: Helen Morgan, "Bill"1960: Johnny Horton, "North To Alaska"
1968: The Beatles, "Mother Nature's Son"
Charts
1959: Lloyd Price's "Stagger Lee" hits #11975: The Bee Gees' "Jive Talkin'" hits #1
