portrait of this blog's author - by Stephen Blackman 2008

Monday, May 27, 2019

ON THIS DAY IN MUSIC

1963 - Bob Dylan
The album The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan was released by Columbia in the USA. Establishing Bob Dylan as a leader in the singer-songwriter genre and a supposed spokesman for the youth-orientated protest movement, it reached No.22 in the US charts and No.1 in the UK charts. 'The Freewheelin’' Bob Dylan showcased Dylan's songwriting talent for the first time and propelled him to national and international fame. I loved this album with its more experimental and deeper exploration of Bob's imagination. After all the classics and the obvious mastery of 'Blowin' In The Wind' it has a hidden beauty in one of my favourite love songs 'Corrina, Corrina' written by Bo Carter of the Mississippi Sheoks back in 1928 Bob's styling and vocals here make it his own. It was issued as the B-side of the single "Mixed Up Confusion' which is another favourite and predates the electrification hoo-hah! November 14, 1962 and with an electric band consisting of Bob Dylan – vocal, guitar, harmonica, George Barnes – guitar, Bruce Langhorne – guitar, Dick Wellstood – piano, Gene Ramey – bass and Herb Lovelle – drums





1964 - The Rolling Stones' hair!
Eleven boys were suspended from a school in Coventry, England for having Mick Jagger haircuts. This seems an odd excuse to bully the school children as Mick was notorious for NOT having his haircut but any shoulder length 'do' would have caused ire amongst the establishment and school head teachers back in the day.
The Stones' more unkempt look made headlines in May of 1964, when the headmaster of a British school sent nearly a dozen students home and ordering them to get haircuts. The Rolling Stones: Off the Record quoted a news article about the incident, which said "a headmaster ruled yesterday: Beatle haircuts are IN – but Rolling Stones haircuts are OUT. The head, Mr. Donald Thompson, has suspended eleven of his boys from Woodlands Comprehensive School, Coventry, because they wear their hair like Mick Jagger and co. of the Rolling Stones pop group. 'Long and scruffy,' Mr. Thompson calls it. But yesterday he said they could return if they cut their hair neatly – like the Beatles."The BBC recalls that Thompson's decree was handed down roughly a month after the president of the U.K.'s National Federation of Hairdressers lambasted the Stones' haircuts as "the worst" of their peers and added, "One of them looks as if he has a feather duster on his head." Appearances can be deceiving, of course. Stones co-founder Brian Jones complained about the response to the band's image in an interview reprinted in Off the Record. "I know the image of us is that we are hooligans and unwashed layabouts, but as a matter of fact we're all very interested in clothes. I would love to be a fashion designer," Jones said. "On stage, we dress like we do because we feel more comfortable that way. They say we're dirty and scruffy because we've long hair. Short hair makes you clean, they say, but that doesn't follow at all."

1977 - Sex Pistols
The Sex Pistols single 'God Save The Queen' was released in the UK. Banned by TV and radio, high street shops and pressing plant workers refused to handle the record. It sold 200,000 copies in one week and peaked at No.2 on the UK charts behind Rod Stewart's 'I Don't Want to Talk About It'. There have been persistent rumours, (never confirmed or denied), that it was actually the biggest-selling single in the UK at the time, and the British Phonographic Industry conspired to keep it off the No.1 slot.

1983 - The Smiths
The Smiths were at No.1 on the UK independent chart with their debut single 'Hand In Glove.' The Smiths recorded the track after their manager Joe Moss paid £250 for a one-day recording session at Strawberry Studios in Stockport, England.
What you can get away with when you're young?! It feels especially apposite that they should have broken up and Steven Patrick Morrissey and his identifying with far right groups is especially depressing as he is banned from places and the list increases almost by the day

1990 - Stone Roses
The Stone Roses played at Spike Island, Widnes, Cheshire, England to a capacity crowd of 30,000. The event, considered a failure at the time due to sound problems and bad organisation, has become legendary over the years as a "Woodstock for the baggy generation."


1997 - Liam Gallagher
Oasis singer Liam Gallagher was left with cuts and bruises after a scuffle with a youth at the Tower Thistle Hotel in east London. Members of the band had been drinking at the bar when the fight broke out.

2008 - Paul McCartney
Sir Paul McCartney was awarded an honorary Doctor of Music degree from Yale University in the United States. Yale's president, Richard Levin, said; The former Beatle had 'awakened a generation, giving a fresh sound to rock and roll and to rhythm and blues'. A band played Hey Jude as Sir Paul, 65, walked on stage to accept his degree.

2013 - Mobile Phones
A report was published saying how many musicians were frustrated with fans filming gigs on their smartphones. Jack White and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs had both put up signs at their concerts asking people to leave their mobiles in their pockets.


2017 - The Allman Brothers Band

Gregg Allman, founding member of the The Allman Brothers Band died at the age of 69 at his home in Savannah, Georgia. Allman had suffered a recurrruence of liver cancer five years ago, died from complications of the disease. The band’s main songwriter early on, Allman contributed compositions like 'Dreams' and 'Whipping Post' to the Allman Brothers repertoire. Both songs became staples of their live shows; a cathartic 22-minute version of 'Whipping Post' was a highlight of their acclaimed 1971 live album, At Fillmore East.

BIRTHDAYS

1935 - Ramsey Lewis
Ramsey Lewis, American jazz composer, pianist and radio personality who had the 1965 US No.5 single 'The In Crowd', and the 1972 hit single 'Wade In The Water'.
I used to love this and was introduced to it by the family of my closest friends Leon and Leo Lewis and family (their Dad owned the album and played it a lot)

1956 - Neil Finn
Neil Finn, guitar, vocals, from New Zealand group Split Enz who had the 1980 UK No.12 single 'I Got You'. Split Enz had ten albums (including seven studio albums) reach the top ten of the Official New Zealand Music Chart. And with Crowded House had the 1992 UK No.7 single 'Weather With You' and a hit with 'It's Only Natural'. Check this out with another hero Roddy Frame of Aztec Camera snd I have all his solo works


1957 - Siouxsie Sioux
Susan Janet Ballion, (Siouxsie Sioux), vocals, Siouxsie And The Banshees, 1983 UK No.3 single 'Dear Prudence', plus over 15 other UK Top 40 singles). Also a member of The Creatures, (1983 UK No.14 single 'Right Now').






2 comments:

Jobe said...

Andy..are you not able to use my links? I love the fact that you always take the time to promote our blogs. Let me see if I can come up with a Squeeze show or two.

Jobe

Andy Swapp said...

Cheers Jobe! Don't worry and the issue is really just Zippyshare which has gone anti-UK and there are ways around that (I use a VPN if I need to) Using a Mac there's a number of issues with some other music blogs but you guys are the least of those problems man!
Thanks for the notification mind! If it causes me grief I will let you know of course but no sweat