Today in Oldies Music History: January 3

Births

1909: Victor Borge
1915: Maxene Andrews (The Andrews Sisters)
1926: Sir George Martin
1941: Van Dyke Parks
1945: Stephen Stills (Buffalo Springfield, Crosby Stills Nash and Young)
1946: John Paul Jones (Led Zeppelin)

Deaths

1980: Amos Milburn
1995: Byron MacGregor

Events

1956: Elvis plays a show at the Von Theater in Booneville, MS, where he is advertised as "The Folk Music Fireball."
1960: Bobby Darin and Connie Francis perform as a duo on CBS' Ed Sullivan Show.
1964: Long before the group appears on The Ed Sullivan Show, NBC's The Jack Paar Show transmits a portion of a Beatles concert at The Winters Garden in Bournemouth, England. This is the first major exposure of the group on American television.
1966: The Beatles appear on NBC's Hullabaloo! in a taped performance of "Day Tripper" and "We Can Work It Out."
1967: Declaring himself a conscientious objector, the Beach Boys' Carl Wilson refuses to be sworn in after receiving an induction notice from the US Army.
1968: 30,000 copies of John Lennon and Yoko Ono's Two Virgins album are confiscated at New Jersey's Newark Airport. (The full-frontal nudity of the duo on the cover violated the state's obscenity laws.)
1970: Davy Jones announces that he's leaving the Monkees, essentially dissolving the group, which had dwindled to a duo.
1970: George Harrison, Paul McCartney, and Ringo Starr record "I Me Mine" at Abbey Road Studios. This is the last time more than one Beatle would record together under the group name until 1995. (John is on vacation.)
1974: Bob Dylan breaks eight years of seclusion to mount a 25-city, 39-day tour with The Band. This night's opening concert takes place at Chicago Stadium. Tour highlights are later released as Before The Flood.
1981: David Bowie finishes his Broadway run as the title character in the play The Elephant Man.
1987: Aretha Franklin becomes the first woman inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Other inductees this year include The Coasters, Eddie Cochran, Bo Diddley, Marvin Gaye, Bill Haley, Clyde McPhatter, Ricky Nelson, Roy Orbison, Carl Perkins, Smokey Robinson, and Jackie Wilson.

Releases

none

Recording

1940: Charlie Barnet and His Orchestra, "The Southland Shuffle"
1957: Fats Domino, "I'm Walkin'"
1970: The Beatles, "I Me Mine"

Certifications

1972: Don McLean's "American Pie" is certified gold
1974: Jim Croce's "Time in a Bottle" is certified gold

Charts

1970: B. J. Thomas' "Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head" hits #1
1976: The Bay City Rollers' "Saturday Night" hits #1
1976: Gary Wright's "Dream Weaver" enters the pop charts