2020

Good Morning, Music Trivia Buffs! We’re getting a jump on the day because it’s an “opening” shift this morning on Truck Day. Here’s everything you need to know to impress your friends.

***Tom Petty said of Bo Diddley: “Remember, Elvis is King, but Diddley is Daddy.”***

Here’s today’s lesson:

December 30, 1957: Sam Cooke’s You Send Me finished the year as the #1 R & B song where it spent the previous six weeks.

December 30, 1961: This year it was the Marvelettes finishing up a seventh week at #1 on the R & B chart with Please Mr. Postman.

December 30, 1962: The Chiffons released the single He’s So Fine.

December 30, 1965: The Who, The Hollies, The Kinks, Gerry & The Pacemakers, Manfred Mann, and Georgie Fame performed on the popular TV show, Shindig.

December 30, 1967: The Beatles were still tearing up the charts. Their new album release, Magical Mystery Tour, climed from #157 to #4 in one week.

As if that wasn’t enough, The Beatles also had their 51st hit, their 25th Top 10 song in four years, and 15th #1 with the song Hello Goodbye.

December 30, 1968: The Turtles released the single You Showed Me.

December 30, 1969: Santana released the single Evil Ways.

December 30, 1972: Seventh Sojurn by the Moody Blues remained at the #1 position on the Album chart for a fourth week.

Also on this day, Kenny Loggins and Jim Messina cracked the Top 10 with Your Mama Don’t Dance.

December 30, 1974: Bob Dylan recorded Tangled Up in Blue (a personal all-time favorite), Lily, Rosemary and the Jack of Hearts, and If You See Her, Say Hello.

December 30, 1979: Emerson, Lake & Palmer announced their break up.

Born On This Day

December 30, 1928: R & B and Rock n’ Roll icon Bo Diddley (vocalist, guitarist, songwriter) was born Ellas Otha Bates (add McDaniels at the end from his adoptive family) in McComb, Mississippi. He grew up on the South Side of Chicago where he and his friends sang on street corners. Rumor has it that his nickname, Bo Diddley came from the diddley bow, a one-stringed African guitar popular in the Mississippi Delta region.

December 30, 1931: Country singer Skeeter Davis was born Mary Frances Penick in Dry Ridge, Kentucky. She is actually best known for her crossover hit, The End Of The World.

December 30, 1934: Del Shannon (Runaway) was born Charles Weedon Westover in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

December 30, 1937: Bluegrass, folk, and country multi-instrumentalist and singer John Hartford was born in New York City.

December 30, 1937: Folk singer-songwriter Paul Stookey (Peter, Paul & Mary) was born in Baltimore, Maryland.

December 30, 1939: R & B singer Kim Weston was born Agatha Nathalia Weston in Detroit, Michigan. She would sign with Motown in 1961.

December 30, 1939: Felix Pappalardi, bassist and vocalist for Mountain, was born in The Bronx, New York.

December 30, 1940: Punk rock queen Patti Smith was born in Chicago.

And that, my friends, is it from the College of Rock n’ Roll Knowledge!

Happy Tuesday Bluesday From The College of Rock n’ Roll Knowledge: 12/29/2020

Good Morning, Students! Yes. It’s true I return to retail hell today. I must say I enjoyed the five solid days in the DJ chair. If this job paid, I’d take it.

***Antoine “Fats” Domino. Was anybody playing rock n’ roll before him?***

Here’s your lesson for today:

December 29, 1956: Fats Domino spends his 11th week at the top of the R & B chart with his song Blueberry Hill.

December 29, 1958: Lonely Teardrops by Jackie Wilson was #1 on the R & B chart.

December 29, 1962: Bob Dylan played the Troubadour folk club in London.

December 29, 1964: The Liverpool Youth Employment Services announced that some applicants were having difficulties getting jobs because their Beatle haircuts and clothing was unacceptable to employers. Oh, puhleeeze.

December 29, 1966: The Jimi Hendrix Experience made their TV debut on the UK show Top of the Pops where they performed Hey Joe.

Also on this day, The Beatles began recording Penny Lane.

December 29, 1967: Singer, songwriter, and guitarist Dave Mason leaves the popular and successful band Traffic for a solo career. Rumor had it that he did not enjoy sharing co-writing duties with Steve Winwood.

December 29, 1969: Sly & The Family Stone release the single Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Again).

December 29, 1970: Norman Greenbaum (native of Malden, Massachusetts) released the great song Spirit in The Sky, a sixties anthem if there ever really was one.

December 29, 1971: America released it’s self-titled first album.

December 29, 1973: Jim Croce’s Time in a Bottle tops the Hot 100, the second of three posthumous hits for the late singer/songwriter.

Also on this day, Elton John’s fine album Goodbye Yellow Brick Road was #1 on the Album chart for a third week.

December 29, 1980: Singer-Songwriter Tim Hardin was found dead in his apartment of a heroin overdose at the age of 39. He is best known for If I Were A Carpenter (a hit for Bobby Darin in 1966; the Four Tops in 1968), as well as Reason To Believe (a hit for Rod Stewart in 1971).

Born On This Day

December 29, 1941: Ray Thomas, singer, composer and flautist for The Moody Blues was born on Stourport-on-Severn, England.

December 29, 1942: Rick Danko, co-lead singer and bassist for The Band was born in Green’s Corner, Ontario, Canada.

December 29, 1946: Marianne Faithful was born in Hamsted, London.

And that is your lesson from the College of Rock n’ Roll Knowledge for today!

It’s Another Merry Monday in The College of Rock n’ Roll Knowledge: 12/28/2020

It’s an odd day in the College of Rock n’ Roll Knowledge today. Aside from two entries, all of the events seem to have happened in 1968. It was, as Frank Sinatra said, a very good year musically. Devastating in others.

Here’s today’s lesson:

December 28, 1968: The Doors released Touch Me. Believe it or not, the song’s opening guitar riff was inspired by the opening of C’mon Marianne by The Four Seasons. I shit you not. (And I think that’s probably the only song I like by The Four Seasons, come to think of it.) Touch Me would peak at #3 in America.

These other musical events also happened on this day:

The Beatles’ ninth studio album, The Beatles (aka, The White Album), hits #1 in the US.

The Rolling Stones‘ Beggars Banquet debuts at #3 on the Album chart.

Pink Floyd, Jethro Tull, Jeff Beck and The Pretty Things appeared at the Flight to Lowlands Paradise II festival at the Margriethal-Jaarbeurs in Utrecht, Netherlands.

Marvin Gaye remained at #1 on the R & B chart with I Heard It Through The Grapevine. I’ll say it again, he remade Gladys Knight’s version, which was released in 1967. Hers also went to #1. I love Marvin, but the record needs to be set straight.

In what could be viewed as a dry run for Woodstock, Joni Mitchell, Three Dog Night, The Turtles, Fleetwood Mac, Marvin Gaye, The Grass Roots, Chuck Berry, Steppenwolf, The Box Tops, Canned Heat, Jr. Walker & The All Stars, Procol Harum, The Grateful Dead, Jose Feliciano, The Paul Butterfield Blues Band and others performed at the Miami Pop Festival at Gulfstream Park in Hallandale, Florida.

Whew.

December 28, 1970: John Lennon released the song Mother.

December 28, 1983: Depressed by mounting debt and his personal problems, Dennis Wilson of The Beach Boys drowned while diving near his boat in Marina Del Rey, California. Brian Wilson, dealing with his own issues, did not attend the funeral.

Born On This Day

December 28, 1914: Roebuck “Pops” Staples, songwriter/guitarist/singer for The Staple Singers (I’ll Take You There, Respect Yourself) was born in Winona, Mississippi.

December 28, 1938: Charlie Neville (The Neville Brothers) was born in New Orleans, Louisiana.

December 28, 1946: Edgar Winter, multi-instrumentalist, leader of The Edgar Winter Group, and younger brother of Johnny, was born in Beaumont, Texas.

December 28, 1948: Joseph “Ziggy” Modeliste, drummer for The Meters, was born in New Orleans, Louisiana.

And that is today’s lesson from the College of Rock n’ Roll Knowledge!

It’s Sunday Here in The College of Rock n’ Roll Knowledge: 12/27/2020

Good Morning, Musicologists! Here we are with today’s lesson from the college, where nobody ever really sleeps much these days.

Here’s today’s lesson from The Lounge:

December 27, 1958: Buddy Holly makes his first appearance in his home town of Lubbock, Texas, since becoming a major star.

December 27, 1960: The Beatles played to a welcome home crowd at the Litherland Town Hall in Liverpool, after completing a residency in Hamburg, Germany. They played with a sit-in drummer, as Pete Best remained in Germany and would, actually, never return to the group. As a result of the crowd’s reaction to their performance at this event, the Beatles finally believed in themselves. The rest, as they say, is fucking history, people.

December 27, 1963: The Animals performed for the first time on a BBC radio broadcast called Saturday Club. This would lead to a contract with Columbia.

December 27, 1964: The Supremes make their first of 16 appearances on The Ed Sullivan Show.

December 27, 1967: Bob Dylay released the album John Wesley Harding.

December 27, 1969: The Supremes’ final release with Diana Ross, Someday We’ll Be Together, becomes the final #1 hit of the sixties.

Also on this day, Led Zeppelin II, goes to #1 on the Album charts, replacing Abbey Road after eight weeks.

December 27, 1974: Bob Dylan recorded Idiot Wind and You’re a Big Girl Now on this day.

December 27, 1975: Faces announced their break-up (unfortunately). Rod Stewart focuses on his solo career (I have a love-hate with this guy) and Ron Wood joins the Stones.

December 27, 1980: Weeks after his murder, John Lennon’s Just Like Starting Over goes to #1 in both the US and the UK. It was chosen as the release not because Lennon considered it the best song on the album, but because he thought it was appropriate after a five-year hiatus from recording. It was his only #1 solo release.

Born On This Day

December 27, 1944: Mick Jones, great guitarist and songwriter with Spooky Tooth and co-founder of Foreigner, was born in Somerton, Somerset, England.

December 27, 1948: Larry Byrom, guitarist for Steppenwolf, was born in Huntsville, Alabama.

December 27, 1951: Karla Bonoff, singer-songwriter, solo artist, and back-up vocalist for Linda Ronstadt was born in Santa Monica, California. She wrote several songs for Ronstadt’s Hasten Down The Wind album, and also wrote All My Life, the Linda Ronstadt-Aaron Neville duet which won a 1991 Grammy.

And that is it for today, my friends. We will be back with the line-up shortly.

Happy Boxing Day From The College of Rock n’ Roll Knowledge: 12/26/2020

Hell, we’re a global radio station and it’s Boxing Day, the official Christmas, of many of our compadres. So, we wish you a very happy holiday indeed.

***The Spencer Davis Group with a very young Steve Winwood on your left.***

Here’s today’s rock n’ roll lesson:

December 26, 1960: Elvis Presley’s Are you Lonesome Tonight was at $1 for a fifth week.

December 26, 1963: The Beatles release their first hit single in the US, I Want To Hold Your Hand backed by I Saw Her Standing There. It’s their first single released by Capitol Records; within months Beatlemania will be full-blown in the States.

December 26, 1964: The Beatles score another #1 with I Feel Fine. They finish the year with six #1 songs and own the top spot on the chart for 18 weeks.

December 26, 1966: The Spencer Davis Group release the single Gimme’ Some Lovin‘ which was written by seventeen-year-old Steve Winwood.

Also on this day, Jimi Hendrix wrote the words to Purple Haze in his dressing room between shows at London’s Uppercrust Club.

December 26, 1967: The Beatles’ Magical Mystery Tour film debuts on BBC-TV.

Also on this day, The Doors and Chuck Berry open a weeklong series of concerts at The Fillmore West in San Francisco.

December 26, 1968: Led Zeppelin’s first US tour begins in Denver, Colorado, where they are the opening act for Vanilla Fudge.

Also on this day, D.A. Pennebaker’s documentary, Monterey Pop, which chronicles the 1967 Monterey International Pop Music Festival, opened in theaters. This was the concert where The Who smashed their instruments and Hendrix lit his guitar on fire.

December 26, 1970: George Harrison becomes the first ex-Beatle to top the Hot 100 as a solo act as My Sweel Lord hits #1.

Also on this day, a new singer from Canada named Gordon Lightfoot enters the charts for the first time with If You Could Read My Mind. He will make some great music in his time.

December 26, 1979: Paul McCartney held the first of three concerts at Hammersmith Odeon in London to benefit relief efforts in war-torn Kampuchea. He was joined by The Who, The Clash, Queen, Elvis Costello, and Rockpile.

Born On This Day

December 26, 1935: Duke Fakir of the Four Tops was born Abdul Fakir in Detroit, Michigan.

December 26, 1940: Famed record producer and despicable human being, Phil Spector, was born in The Bronx, New York.

December 26, 1946: Bob Carpenter, keyboardist and accordionist for the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

And that is today’s less here at the College of Rock n’ Roll Knowledge!

Good Morning From the College of Rock n’ Roll Knowledge: 12/24/2020

Greetings and Salutations from The College this morning. Yes, here we are in New England, where it will go to 50 degrees today, and where we will have a massive rain storm with thunder and winds tomorrow. Where the actual fuck am I?

***The Beatles. They changed everything.***

Here’s today’s pre-Christmas lesson:

December 24, 1965: Once again, The Beatles own the #1 album at Christmas with Rubber Soul. This is their third year in a row. In 1964, it was Beatles For Sale, and in 1963, it was With The Beatles. They would repeat this feat again in 1968 with The Beatles (read: The White Album), and in 1969 with Abbey Road.

December 24, 1966: On Christmas eve 1966, Tommy James & The Shondells record I Think We’re Alone Now. It will become the band’s fourth #1 song in the US, selling over a million copies.

Also on this day, (I Know) I’m Losing You by the Temptations take over the #1 spot on the R & B charts, replacing You Keep Me Hanging On by The Supremes.

December 24, 1972: Meanwhile, in Miama, the police shut down a concert by Manfred Mann’s Earth Band because of a noise complaint, resulting in a full-fledged riot. During this shitshow, the band hid in a dressing room. The riot went on for two hours. So much for all that noise.

December 24, 1974: James Taylor, Carly Simon, Linda Ronstadt and Joni Mitchell are spotted on the streets of Los Angeles singing Christmas carols. Can you imagine having the four of them stop in front of your house?

December 24, 1976: The Eagles‘ Hotel California, their sixth album, goes Platinum and begins the first of eight non-consecutive weeks at #1. It was their first album with Joe Walsh on lead guitar and their last with Randy Meisner on bass guitar.

December 24, 1977: Simple Dreams was the biggest album of Linda Ronstadt’s brilliant career. On this day it remained at #1 for a fourth week.

Born On This Day

December 24, 1920: Dave Bartholomew, co-writer and producer of Fats Domino’s Ain’t It A Shame and Blue Monday was born in Edgard, Louisiana.

December 24, 1924: Lee Dorsey, famous for his 1961 song Ya Ya, was born in New Orleans, Louisiana.

December 24, 1968: Doyle Bramhall II, guitarist and songwriter who worked with Freddie King and Stevie Ray Vaughan, was born in Dallas, Texas.

And that’s today’s lesson from the College of Rock N’ Roll Knowledge! We’ll be back with today’s line up shortly!

Getting a Jump On The Day At The College of Rock n’ Roll Knowledge: 12/23/2020

It’s getting closer and closer to Christmas. The shorter the time gets, the nastier the shoppers get. The pressure’s on to make sure they buy enough, or just the right thing, or whatever the fuck. Give it up.

***The first transistor radios. Undoubtedly, man’s finest invention.***

Here’s today’s musical lesson:

December 23, 1947: Three scientists from Bell Labs in New Jersey demonstrate the transistor, which leads to the invention of small, portable transistor radios. They would win the Nobel Prize for their work in 1956.

December 23, 1957: A new act called Tom & Jerry appear on the chart for the first time with their new song Hey Schoolgirl. They were just sixteen years old. Today, we know them as Simon & Garfunkel, and they have sold 105 million albums.

December 23, 1961: The Marvelettes spent their sixth week at #1 on the R & B chart with Please Mr. Postman.

Also on December 23, the Beach Boys make their live debut, performing two songs during intermission of surf guitarist Dick Dale’s concert at the Rendezvous Ballroom in Newport Beach, California.

December 23, 1962: Bob Dylan did a show at the King and Queen Pub in London.

December 23, 1963: Lesley Gore released the single, You Don’t Own Me.

December 23, 1964: Brian Wilson of The Beach Boys suffered a breakdown on a flight from LA to Houston. As a result, he decided to retire from performing live, in spite of the fact that their Beach Boys Concert was #1 at the time. Glen Campbell was a temporary replacement for Wilson, until Bruce Johnston joined the group.

December 23, 1966: London’s premier psychedelic hangout, The UFO Club, opens on Tottenham Court, with Pink Floyd as the house band.

December 23, 1969: Elton John met with Bernie Taupin for the first time, along with arranger Paul Buckmaster, and producer Gus Didgeon, to begin work on his first (and best, in my opinion) album.

December 23, 1970: Joni Mitchell earned her first Gold with her third album, Ladies of The Canyon.

December 23, 1972: The Moody Blues had another big album with Seventh Sojurn, which spent a third week at #1.

Born On This Day

December 23, 1940: Jorma Kaukonen, guitarist with Jefferson Airplane and Hot Tuna, was born in Washington, D.C.

December 23, 1941: Folk musician Tim Hardin, who wrote If I Were A Carpenter, was born in Eugene, Oregon.

December 23, 1946: Ariel Bender, guitarist for Mott The Hoople, was born in Evesham, Worcestershire, England.

December 23, 1964: Eddie Vedder, lead singer, guiarist, and songwriter of Pearl Jam, was born in Evanston, Illinois.

And that’s it for today’s lesson!

Here’s Your Tuesday (Bluesday) Lesson From The College of Rock n’ Roll Knowledge: 12/22/2020!

Yes, it’s Tuesday Bluesday in The Mermaid Lounge, and the lesson is lighter than usual today. Seems it’s not a very eventful day in music history, unless you’re talking about shit we don’t play.

***The Beatles Live at The Empire Theatre, Liverpool, December 22, 1963.***

Here’s today’s musical lesson:

December 22, 1956: Elvis Presley finished the year with 17 hit songs, a record that would stand until the year 1964 — when The Beatles had 30. (Yes, I said 30.)

December 22, 1962: Bob Dylan played at the Singer’s Club Christmas Party in London.

Also on this day, one of the greatest instrumental songs ever recorded, Telstar by the Tornadoes, went to #1. And yes it was a tribute to the satellite.

December 22, 1963: The Beatles performed at the Empire Theatre in Liverpool.

December 22, 1972: Led Zeppelin performed at Alexandra Palace in London.

December 22, 1973: Elton John moved to #1 on the UK Album chart with Goodbye Yellow Brick Road.

December 22, 1978: Kenney Jones, formerly of Faces, was chosen as the new drummer for The Who. He replaced Keith Moon, who had passed away a couple of months earlier.

December 22, 1979: The Pretenders performed at the Marquee Club in London.

December 22, 1980: Linda Ronstadt debuted on Broadway in the Gilbert & Sullivan production of The Pirates of Penzance at the Uris Theatre.

Also on this date, Pat Benatar’s first hit — Heartbreaker — debuted on the charts.

Born On This Day

December 22, 1939: James Gurley, guitarist for Big Brother & The Holding Company, was born in Detroit.

December 22, 1944: Barry Jenkins, drummer for The Animals, was born in Leicester, England.

And that signals the end of today’s lesson. We’ll be back with the Tuesday Bluesday line-up in just a bit.

It’s a Day of Rest, But Not Here in The College of Rock n’ Roll Knowledge: 12/20/2020

Good Morning, Students! It’s Sunday here in the College of Rock n’ Roll Knowledge, and we’ve got a great day lined up. But first, your lesson.

***Jethro Tull was formed on this day in 1967.***

Here’s all the news that’s fit to print:

December 20, 1956: Elvis Presley was making musical chart history with ten songs on Billboard’s Top 100.

December 20, 1958: John Lennon, Paul McCartney, and George Harrison appear as The Quarrymen at the wedding reception of George’s older brother, Harry.

December 20, 1965: Wicked Wilson Pickett records the fucking great song, 634-5789, with Booker T & The MG’s. Booker was missing on that day, but his keyboards were handled nicely for him by none other than Isaac Hayes.

Also on this day in 1965, The Beach Boys released the single Barbara Ann.

December 20, 1966: The Big O, Otis Redding, played the Fillmore West in San Francisco.

December 20, 1967: Vocalist and master flute player Ian Anderson and bassist Glenn Cornick leave The John Evans Blues Band to form Jethro Tull, naming the band after an inventor of farm implements. John Evans would later join Tull himself as the keyboardist.

December 20, 1969: The Beatles’ masterpiece, Abbey Road, remained at the top of the charts for an eighth week on this day.

December 20, 1971: The album from George Harrison’s Concert For Bangladesh (the very first musical event of its kind in history) was released. It would win the Grammy Award for Best Album.

December 20, 1972: The O’Jays recorded the great song Love Train.

December 20, 1975: Joe Walsh officially replaced Bernie Leadon in The Eagles, moving them into a harder rock frame. He had previously been with The James Gang, a great band, by the way. However, on this day, my love affair with The Eagles ended, as much as I love Joe Walsh. I continued to listen, and their catalogue is in our rotation, but I prefer their earlier feel.

December 20, 1980: Twelve days after being shot dead by a fucking psychopath who just wanted his time in the spotlight, John Lennon had his first #1 solo hit with Just Like Starting Over.

Born On This Day

December 20, 1939: R & B singer Kim Weston was born in Detroit, Michigan.

December 20, 1944: Bobby Columby, drummer for Blood, Sweat & Tears, was born in New York.

December 20, 1947: Little Stevie Wright, lead singer of The Easybeats (Friday On My Mind) was born in Leeds, England. He would, however, be raised in Australia. During their six-year career, The Easybeats had 15 Top 10 hits in Australia, no slight feat regardless of where you were raised. The Easybeats are in our daily standard rotation.

December 20, 1948: Alan Parsons of The Alan Parson’s Project (Games People Play, I Wouldn’t Want To Be Like You), was born in London. He began his musical career as an engineer at Abbey Road Studios, working on Abbey Road and Let It Be for The Beatles, Dark Side of The Moon for Pink Floyd, and Wild Life by Paul McCartney & Wings (their actual first album as a band). The Alan Parsons Project is in our daily standard rotation.

And that is it from The College for this morning. Our line-up will be posted soon!

Good Saturday Morning From the College of Rock n’ Roll Knowledge: 12/19/2020

Good Morning, Students! Here’s today’s lesson from the college:

December 19, 1955: Carl Perkins recorded Blue Suede Shoes two days after writing it. Although it is generally the Elvis Presley version we hear, that version peaked at #20 on Billboard’s Top 100, while Perkins’ original version went to #2 and spent 17 weeks on the charts.

December 19, 1964: The Beatles’ fourth album, Beatles For Sale, begins a seven-week run at the top of the UK album charts by knocking off The Beatles’ A Hard Day’s Night. It stayed in the Top 20 for an amazing 46 weeks.

Also on this day, Come See About Me by the Supremes became their third straight #1 single.

New singer Petula Clark makes her debut on the chart with her single, Downtown.

December 19, 1968: Led Zeppelin performed at the Exeter City Hall in England for 125 pounds. They had to bill themselves as The New Yardbirds to attract an audience.

December 19, 1969: The Rolling Stones moved to #1 in the UK with their album, Let It Bleed.

December 19, 1970: Elton John’s first US hit, Your Song, enters the Billboard Hot 100, where it will peak at #8.

December 19, 1974: Guitarist Ron Woods joined the Rolling Stones.

December 19, 1993: Michael Clarke, original drummer for The Byrds, died of liver failure at the age of 47 after decades of alcohol abuse. After The Byrds, he played for the Flying Burrito Brothers (1969-1973) and Firefall (1974-1981).

Born On This Day

December 19, 1918: Blues singer Henry Roeland “Roy” Byrd, better known as Professor Longhair, was born in Bogalusa, Louisiana.

December 19, 1944: Zalman (Zal) Yanovsky, lead guitarist and found of The Lovin’ Spoonful, was born in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

Also on December 19 1944: Alvin Lee, great guitarist of Ten Years After and who worked with George Harrison, John Mayall, Steve Winwood, and Bo Diddley (among others), was born in Nottingham, England.

December 19, 1945: John McEuen, founding member of The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, was born in Garden Grove, California.

That is it from the college. We’ll be back with the line-up soon!