Today in Oldies Music History: June 3

Today In Oldies Music History: June 3

--

Births

1906: Josephine Baker
1927: Boots Randolph
1932: Dakota Staton
1942: Curtis Mayfield
1943: Michael Clarke (The Byrds)
1946: Eddie Holman
1946: Ian Hunter (Mott The Hoople)
1947: Dave Alexander (The Stooges)
1950: Suzi Quatro
1950: Florian Pilkington-Miksa (Curved Air)
1951: Deniece Williams
1952: Billy Powell (Lynyrd Skynyrd)
1954: Dan Hill

Deaths

1975: Ozzie Nelson
1981: Joe Santollo (The Duprees)

Events

1949: Elvis Presley, still an 8th grader, receives his final grades for the year at Humes High School, including an "A" in language but only a "C" in music. Four years later to the day, he would graduate.
1949: Hank Williams makes his last appearance on Shreveport's Louisiana Hayride.
1955: A car dealership in Lubbock, TX, holds a promotional autograph signing for two rising stars -- Buddy Holly and Elvis Presley.
1959: Billboard Magazine responds to the growing popularity of stereophonic recordings by splitting its album chart in two: one chart for mono, one for stereo.
1959: Stricken with tonsillitis while in the Army, Elvis Presley enters the base hospital in Germany and remains there for six days, during which a fruitless search is undertaken for a doctor who will operate on the famous throat. The inflammation is instead allowed to run its course.
1963: The mayor of Aurora, IN, declares today "Lonnie Mack Day" in honor of the native guitarist, recently on the charts with his famous instrumentals "Memphis" and "Wham!"
1964: The Rolling Stones perform their cover of Buddy Holly's "Not Fade Away" on tonight's episode of ABC-TV's musical variety show Hollywood Palace, hosted this week by Dean Martin.
1964: During a photo shoot for The Saturday Evening Post, an exhausted Ringo Starr collapses and is rushed to the hospital, where he is diagnosed with tonsillitis and pharyngitis. With the band scheduled to leave for a world tour in only 27 hours. producer George Martin and manager Brian Epstein agree on his replacement, session drummer Jimmy Nicol, who had already drummed on a Beatles covers album. Nicol is immediately rushed to the studio to rehearse six songs, and then joins the group on tour for eleven days. When John and Paul ask how he's doing on the tour, Nicol always replies with "It's getting better," which will eventually inspire the song "Getting Better" on Sgt. Pepper.
1967: A truly surreal edition of ABC-TV's American Bandstand features Jefferson Airplane performing "Somebody To Love" and "White Rabbit."
1970: With the BBC refusing to air the Kinks' new single, "Lola," due to its reference to "Coca-Cola" (brand names being a no-no for the corporation), lead singer Ray Davies is forced to fly all the way from London to New York to record the words "cherry cola" for a alternate release.
1972: With Martha Reeves and Stevie Wonder opening, the Rolling Stones kick off their Exile On Main Street tour in Vancouver, BC.
1982: Elvis Presley's fabled home, Graceland, is opened to the public.
1983: Already undergoing psychiatric treatment and suffering from, among other things, voices in his head, Derek and the Dominoes drummer Jim Gordon brutally murders his own mother with a hammer and knife in their home. Gordon, who co-wrote the band's biggest hit, "Layla," is sentenced to life in prison.
1991: To pay off his mounting back takes to the IRS, Willie Nelson releases a new album entitled Who'll Buy My Memories: The IRS Tapes.
2000: Allman Brothers guitarist Dickey Betts is arrested after allegedly trashing his house, threatening his wife's life, and then disappearing. He is captured and ordered to get psychiatric help.
2002: Paul McCartney and Aretha Franklin are the performers at Queen Elizabeth II's Golden Jubilee celebrating the 50th year of her reign.

Releases

1967: The Doors, "Light My Fire"
1972: The Eagles, "Take It Easy"
1972: Pink Floyd, Obscured By Clouds

Recording

1952: Frank Sinatra, "Birth Of The Blues"
1965: Gary Lewis and the Playboys, "Save Your Heart For Me"
1966: The Beatles, "I Want To Tell You"
1970: Bob Dylan: "Kingston Town (Jamaica)," "Can't Help Falling In Love With You," "Long Black Veil," "Lily Of The West," "One More Weekend"

Charts

1950: Perry Como's "Hoop-Dee-Doo" hits #1
1957: Pat Boone's "Love Letters In The Sand" hits #1
1967: Aretha Franklin's "Respect" hits #1
1972: The Staple Singers' "I'll Take You There" hits #1
1972: Jethro Tull's LP Thick As A Brick hits #1
1978: Johnny Mathis and Deniece Williams' "Too Much, Too Little, Too Late" hits #1

Certifications

none