Tag: The Rolling Stones

Happy New Year From The College of Rock n’ Roll Knowledge: 1/1/2021

Well, here we are coming up on another fun year in Empire. Of course, that’s propaganda, but I can promise you one thing: It’ll be a fun year here in The Mermaid Lounge.

The Fab Four are big on January 1.

Here’s today’s lesson:

January 1, 1940: NBC begins regular FM transmission from New York’s Empire State Building on W2XDG. Edwin Armstrong, the inventor of FM (Frequency Modulation), first demonstrated the technology to RCA’s executives and engineers in 1933.

January 1, 1953: Hank Williams, only 29-years-old, died of heart failure, brought on by the abuse of pills and alcohol, on the way to a show in Canton, Ohio. Incredibly enough, Williams had the #1 song on the Country chart at the time. It was called I’ll Never Get Out of This World Alive.

January 1, 1956: RCA released Elvis Presley’s Heartbreak Hotel. In 1999, the song would be certified multi-platinum for a second time.

January 1, 1957: The Cavern Club in Liverpool opened its doors for the first time. It will forever be remembered as the place where The Beatles got their start.

January 1, 1960: Johnny Cash gave the first of many performances at San Quentin Prison. In the audience on this day was 19-year-old Merle Haggard who was serving 15 years for grand theft auto and armed robbery (he actually served just under three years).

January 1, 1961: Shop Around by The Miracles (soon to be Smokey Robinson & The Miracles) was #1 on the R & B chart.

January 1, 1962: The Beatles attend a New Year’s day audition for Decca Records where they record 15 songs. Decca would eventually reject the Beatles, telling Brian Epstein that guitar bands are “out.” Yeah. Kanye West is still saying that shit. Tell that to Eric Clapton, Mike Campbell, George Harrison, Jimmy Page, Keith Richards, and Stevie Ray Vaughan, for starters.

January 1, 1964: The Beatles played two shows at the Olympia Theatre in Paris. They also received word from the U.S. that their first single, I Want To Hold Your Hand, was selling 10,000 copies an hour in New York City alone. The rest, as they say, is history.

Also on this day, The Dave Clark Five (another great British invasion band) had the #1 single in the UK with Glad All Over.

And, as if all of this wasn’t enough, The British show Top of The Pops debuted with The Rolling Stones, Dusty Springfield, and the Dave Clark Five.

January 1, 1965: The Beatles had three albums in the Top 10 on this day: Beatles ’65 at #1, A Hard Day’s Night at #6, and The Beatles Story peaking at #7.

January 1, 1966: Simon & Garfunkel hit #1 with Sounds of Silence.

January 1, 1967: The Rolling Stones release the great song, Ruby Tuesday.

January 1, 1969: Put this on the list of shows I wish I’d been at: Creedence Clearwater Revival and early Fleetwood Mac (before Nicks & Buckingham) at The Fillmore West in San Francisco.

January 1, 1971: George Harrison had the #1 album with All Things Must Pass and the #1 song with My Sweet Lord on this day.

Meanwhile, Radio Luxembourg aired over seven straight hours of continuous Beatles music (as a band and solo) in celebration of their 10th year in music.

January 1, 1972: Three Dog Night becomes the first rock band to appear on a Tournament of Roses Parade float.

January 1, 1975: Paul McCartney & Wings arrive in New Orleans to record the album Venus & Mars.

January 1, 1988: George Harrison hits #1 with the song Got My Mind Set On You.

January 1, 1997: Singer-songwriter, tortured poet, Townes Van Zandt dies at the age of 52. His music has been covered by Bob Dylan, Lyle Lovett, Alison Krauss, Emmylou Harris, Gillian Welch, and many others. Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard both covered his amazing Pancho & Lefty and had #1’s. But hands down, the most beautiful version of that song was done by Emmylou Harris.

January 1, 2019: The Renton Highlands Post Office in Seattle, Washington, is renamed the James Marshall “Jimi” Hendrix Post Office. (I love this shit. I wish I lived there.)

Born on This Day

January 1, 1937: Bob Bogle, guitarist with The Ventures, was born in Wagoner, Oklahoma.

And that is all, my friends!

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.

The year that changed the world.

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!

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:

The Rolling Stones.

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!

Shhhh. It’s Kinda Quiet in The College of Rock n’ Roll Knowledge: 12/18/2020

Good Morning from the College! It’s a really kind of quiet day here, and your lesson will be smaller than usual. It was mostly an uneventful day in rock music history. But we do have some interesting events.

Sly & The Family Stone. Sly Stone was erratic, but this was a great band.

Here’s today’s lesson, You won’t have to strain your brain:

December 18, 1961: EMI Records rejected The Beatles. They later signed them after they realized what the fuck they had.

Also on this day, Sam Cooke, a man whose voice was made for R & B, recorded Twistin’ The Night Away.

December 18, 1962: The Beatles returned to Hamburg for the last time before hitting the big time, where they play a twelve-night run at The Star Club.

December 18, 1971: Sly & The Family Stone had the #1 album on the Billboard chart with There’s a Riot Going On. It was originally going to be called Africa Speaks To You, but the name was changed at the last minute to respond to Marvin Gaye’s album, What’s Going On.

Born On This Day

December 18, 1938: Chas Chandler (bassist for The Animals and later, manager of the Jimi Hendrix Experience), was born in Heaton, Newcastle upon Tyne, England.

December 18, 1941: Sam Andrews, guitarist for Big Brother & The Holding Company, was born in Taft, California.

December 18, 1943: Keith Richards, lead gutarist for The Rolling Stones, was born in Dartford, Kent, England.

And that is the lesson today from the College of Rock n’ Roll Knowledge! Stick around, Today’s line-up is coming!

Here’s Wednesday’s Lesson From The College of Rock n’ Roll Knowledge: 12/16/2020

It’s another fairly active day at the College. We’ve got all sorts of information of a musical historical nature for you, including some amazing CCR history!

The extraordinary Creedence Clearwater Revival, led by John Fogerty.

Here’s your mid-week lesson!

December 16, 1957: Sam Cooke remained at #1 on the R & B charts for a fourth week with the great song, You Send Me.

December 16, 1965: The Beatles’ We Can Work It Out and Day Tripper, released as a Double-A side 45, both hit #1 in the UK on this date.

December 16, 1966: The Jimi Hendrix Experience released Hey Joe (their first single release) in the UK.

December 16, 1967: The Rolling Stones announced that Marianne Faithful was the first artist signed to their new Mother Earth Records.

Also on this day, the Lemon Pipers release the single Green Tambourine. (There are just those sixties songs that stick with you. This is one of them. You know, like Incense & Peppermints.)

And also on December 16, 1967: Gladys Knight & The Pips remained at #1 on the R & B chart for a third week with I Heard It Through The Grapevine.

December 16, 1968: Bob Seger & The Silver Bullet Band released their first career single, Ramblin’ Gamblin’ Man.

December 16, 1970: Creedence Clearwater Revival was as good as any band of its time. They made some amazing music. On this day they were rewarded with five gold records for: Down On The Corner, Lookin’ Out My Back Door, Travelin’ Band, Bad Moon Rising and Up Around The Bend. They were also awarded 5 gold albums for the following LPs: Cosmo’s Factory, Willy & The Poor Boys, Green River, Bayou Country, and the self-titled, Creedence Clearwater Revival.

December 16, 1974: John Lennon released the single #9 Dream.

Also on this day, America released the single Lonely People.

December 16, 1986: Linda Ronstadt and James Ingram released the single Somewhere Out There.

December 16, 1995: The Beatles’ Free As A Bird peaks at #2 on the UK charts and #6 in the US. It was written and recorded as a demo by John Lennon shortly before his murder. The rest of the Beatles complete the single in Paul’s home studio.

December 16, 1997: Nicolette Larson, who had a hit with Neil Young’s Lotta’ Love, and who worked with Linda Ronstadt, The Doobie Brothers, The Beach Boys, and Jimmy Buffett, died in LA at the age of 45.

December 16, 2007: Singer-songwriter Dan Fogelberg died at his home in Deer Island, Maine, at the age of 56, after a three-year battle with prostate cancer.

Born On This Day

December 16, 1945: Tony Hicks, guitarist for The Hollies, was born in Nelson, Lancashire, England.

December 16, 1949: Billy Gibbons, lead singer, songwriter and guitarist for ZZ Top, was born in Houston, Texas.

And thus ends today’s lesson from The College of Rock n’ Roll Knowledge!

Mid-Month Sundays Bring Our Sixties Rotation, and Led Zeppelin Owns the Album of The Week, December 13, 2020

It’s Sunday Funday here in The Mermaid Lounge. We’re mid-month, which puts one of my favorite playlists into the rotation!

Today it’s The Sixties Rotation, Volume One!

Here’s your Sunday Funday line-up:

12:00 p.m. Album of The Week: Led Zeppelin IV by Led Zeppelin NEW!

Led Zeppelin IV was released by Atlantic Records on November 8, 1971, and was a massive critical and commercial success, shipping 37 million copies worldwide. All of the songs were written by the band, with the exception of the Memphis Minnie blues song, When The Levee Breaks.

3:00 p.m. The Sixties Rotation, Volume 1: Various Artists UPDATED!

Last time around, we gave you Volume 2; this time it’s the original volume, updated for your listening pleasure. This is basically 5+ hours of sixties open stream, no interruptions, no advertising. You can hear The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, The Kinks, Petula Clark, Lulu, The Hollies, Marvin Gaye, The Temptations, Bobbie Gentry, Johnny Rivers, The Dave Clark Five, The Box Tops, Dusty Springfield, Mary Wells and many more!

This brings us up just about 8:00 p.m., when you’ll hear…more Open Stream. And that’s because we run 24/7 and our Streaming Mermaid is always on top of things. Get it together and join the rest of the planet at:

www.tinyurl.com/Ungovernable-Radio

Happy Friday From The College of Rock n’ Roll Knowledge: 12/11/2020

Greetings from the College of Rock n’ Roll Knowledge, where we enrich your lives by making sure you have all the pertinent details required to win a musical trivia contest.

Little Richard performs during the halftime show on December 31, 2004, at the Liberty Bowl in Memphis, Tenn. The pioneering musician died on Saturday, May 9, 2020; he was 87. (Andy Lyons/Getty Images/TNS)

Here’s today’s lesson!

December 11, 1960: Aretha Franklin gives her first live performance at the Village Vanguard in New York city.

December 11, 1961: Motown Records has it’s first #1 hit on the Top 100 with Please Mr. Postman by the Marvelettes.

Also on this day, Elvis Presley’s Blue Hawaii goes to #1.

December 11, 1965: The Velvet Underground plays its first live gig when they open for a group called The Myddle Class in the auditorium of Summit High School in New Jersey.

December 11, 1966: Elton John’s band, Bluesology, opens for Little Richard in London. Elton would later say: “When I saw Little Richard standing on top of the piano, all lights, sequins, and energy, I decided there and then that I was going to be a rock and roll piano player.”

December 11, 1968: The Rolling Stones record their Rolling Stones Rock and Roll Circus TV special, then proceed to bury it for nearly 30 years.

December 11, 1970: John Lennon releases his first solo album, titled John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band.

December 11, 1972: Genesis plays its first US concert ever at Brandeis University in Waltham, Massachusetts.

December 11, 1988: Tom Petty, Bonnie Raitt, Graham Nash and Don Henley perform at a Roy Orbison tribute concert at the Wiltern Theatre in Los Angeles.

December 11, 1990: Led Zeppelin IV is certified Diamond with sales of 10 million in the US.

Born On This Day

December 11, 1926: Willie Mae “Big Mama” Thornton was born in Anton, Alabama. Willie Mae was the first to record Hound Dog, the song that would later be made famous by Elvis Presley.

And that is just about it from the College of Rock n’ Roll Knowledge for this fine day!

Today in Music History From The College of Rock n’ Roll Knowledge: 12/10/2020

Well, children, here we are again in The Mermaid Lounge, home of The College of Rock n’ Roll Knowledge where we work hard to impart our special brand of education.

Antoine “Fats” Domino, a musical monster. There is no denying his contribution to rock n’ roll.

Here is your curriculum for today:

December 10, 1927: The Grand Ole Opry made its first radio broadcast ever from Nashville, Tennessee.

December 10, 1949: Fats Domino recorded eight tracks during his first recording session at Cosimo Matassa’s J & M Studios, including his first single, Detroit City Blues backed by The Fat Man. The B-side became the hit, and it was one of many for Fats Domino.

December 10, 1965: The Grateful Dead played their first concert, and only their second overall, at the Fillmore Auditorium in San Francisco.

December 10, 1966: The Rolling Stones released the album Got Live If You Want It in the US.

And also on this day, Good Vibrations by The Beach Boys hits #1.

December 10, 1967: Otis Redding, just 26 years old, is killed when the plane he is touring in crashes into a Wisconsin lake. His touring band, The Bar-Kays, also perish except for trumpet player Ben Cauley, the sole survivor. One month later, (Sittin’ On) The Dock of The Bay is released, becoming the first #1 song released after the artist’s death.

Also on this day, The Steve Miller Blues Band signs its first contract with Capitol Records for $759,000. The band immediately dropped “Blues” from their name.

December 10, 1976: The album Wings Over America was released on this day.

Also on December 10, Queen released A Day At The Races in the UK (it is released in the US on December 18). LIke their previous album, A Night at The Opera, the title is taken from a Marx Brothers movie. The Queen single Somebody To Love is also released on this day.

December 10, 2016: Bob Dylan accepts The Nobel Prize for Literature.

Born On This Day

December 10, 1941: Chad Stuart of Chad & Jeremy, was born David Stewart Chadwick in Windermere, Cumbria, England.

December 10, 1946: Ace Kefford, bass guitarist for The Move, was born in Moseley, Birmingham, England. The lead singer of the Move? That was Jeff Lynne, before ELO and The Traveling Wilburys.

December 10, 1948: Jessica Cleaves, lead singer for Friends of Distinction (great, little-known band), was born in Los Angeles.

There you have today’s lesson, my friends! Use your knowledge wisely!

Goooood Morning From The College of Rock n’ Roll Knowledge: 12/8/2020

We’re back at the salt mines today with the general buying public, so we’re off to an early start this morning. I don’t have to tell true Beatles fans what happened on this day all those years ago.

Everything that has to be said about this day of infamy has been said.

Here’s today’s lesson from The Mermaid Lounge:

December 8, 1961: The Supremes begin recording their third single, Your Heart Belongs To Me, written by Smokey Robinson.

December 8, 1967: The Beatles release the Magical Mystery Tour double EP in the UK.

Also on this day, Traffic released their debut album, Mr. Fantasy.

And, The Rolling Stones’ Their Satanic Majesties Request album was released in the UK, which carried the hit She’s a Rainbow.

December 8, 1968: Graham Nash leaves The Hollies and begins working with David Crosby (ex-Byrds) and Stephen Stills (ex-Buffalo Springfield). Crosby, Stills, and Nash would release their self-titled debut album during the summer of 1969.

December 8, 1969: The Beatles record the Ringo Starr composition, Octopus’s Garden.

Meanwhile, at his trial in the Toronto Supreme Court for possession of hash and heroin, Jimi Hendrix testified that he had “outgrown” drugs. He was found not guilty after eight hours of deliberation.

December 8, 1972: Carly Simon’s album No Secrets is certified gold.

December 8, 1980: A day that will live in infamy. Mark David Chapman pumps five bullets into John Lennon outside The Dakota Apartments in New York City, killing him. It is reported in some outlets that he tries to get into his apartment to see his son before he collapses and dies. Later, Chapman would say the lure of the fame this event would bring was something he couldn’t resist. Fucker. RIP, John Lennon. The world misses you.

We put John Lennon In The Spotlight this evening.

Born On This Day

December 8, 1939: Jerry Butler (lead singer of The Impressions) was born in Sunflower, Mississippi. He moved to Chicago where he sings in a choir with his future Impressions bandmate, the great Curtis Mayfield.

December 8, 1941: Bobby Elliot, drummer for The Hollies, was burn in Burnley, Lancashire, England.

December 8, 1943: Jim Morrison, leader of The Doors, was born James Douglas Morrison in Melbourne, Florida.

December 8, 1947: Gregg Allman of The Allman Brothers Band was born in Nashville, Tennessee. Much is made of Duane Allman, and he was the initial leader of the band before his death, and played that guitar like no other. But Gregg Allman was the guy who wrote the songs and had that great singing voice.

And that is today’s lesson from The College. We’ll be back with today’s line-up soon!

More News From The College of Rock N’ Roll Knowledge: 12/6/2020

Good Morning, Students! We have a great musical day lined up for you, so let’s dispense with all this knowledge we have here.

Paul Simon, another brilliant singer-songwriter loved in The Mermaid Lounge.

Here’s today’s lesson from the College:

December 6, 1965: The Beatles released We Can Work It Out with Day Tripper on the flip side.

Also on this day in 1965, the Beatles released the magnificent album, Rubber Soul.

Smokey Robinson & The Miracles released Going To A Go-Go.

And if all of this wasn’t enough for you on December 6, 1965, The Rolling Stones recorded 19th Nervous Breakdown and Mother’s Little Helper at RCA’s Hollywood Studios in LA.

December 6, 1968: James Taylor released his self-titled first album in the UK.

December 6, 1969: The Rolling Stones released Beggars Banquet (and we told you about the actual pre-release banquet itself yesterday).

Also on this day, Led Zeppelin’s Whole Lotta Love enters the Billboard Pop chart. It peaked at #4 and was the first of six Top 40 hits for Zep.

December 6, 1970: Gimme Shelter, a documentary about The Rolling Stones’ 1969 US tour, opened in theaters.

December 6, 1975: The album Still Crazy After All These Years by Paul Simon hit #1 on the US Album chart. The album resulted in four Top 40 US hits, Gone At Last, My Little Town, 50 Ways To Leave Your Lover (#1), and the title track.

December 6, 1977: Jackson Browne released Running On Empty, a live album of performances at various stops on his summer tour.

December 6, 1988: After spending the day with his sons and his mother, Rob Orbison has a fatal heart attack and dies at the age of 52. During his career, the Caruso of rock n’ roll had 23 Top 40 hits. He had recently regained a huge fan following as a member of The Traveling Wilburys with George Harrison, Tom Petty, Bob Dylan, and Jeff Lynne. Orbison’s new album, Mystery Girl, is completed posthumously and released in January 1989.

December 6, 1994: Tower Records released Live At The BBC, a 69-track compilation of Beatles songs recorded for shows like Top Gear, Easy Beat, the Saturday Club, and Pop Go The Beatles. The double-album set goes straight to #1 in the UK, selling 600,000 copies by the end of the year, and 2,000,000 in the US four weeks later.

Born On This Day

December 6, 1943: Mike Smith, lead singer of Paul Revere & The Raiders, is born in Edmonton, North London, England.

And that is it for this fine Sunday from the College of Rock n’ Roll Knowledge.