ON THIS DAY IN MUSIC

November 20th

1961 - Bob Dylan

Bob Dylan started recording his debut album over two days at Columbia Recording Studios in New York City. John Hammond at Colombia had signed Bobby over a month earlier. 

“There was a violent, angry emotion running through me then,” Dylan said. “I just played played guitar and harmonica and sang those songs, and that was it. Mr. Hammond asked me if I wanted to sing any of them over again and I said no. I can’t see myself singing the same song twice in a row. That’s terrible.”

The album consisted mostly of songs from his live set with only two of his own compositions, “Talkin’ New York” and “Song to Woody."
The album failed to crack the Billboard charts and sold about 5,000 copies that year. Executives around Columbia referred to Dylan as “Hammond’s Folly.” Undeterred, Hammond brought Dylan back into the studio just one month after the album came out to begin work on his second LP. In the five months after the first album was recorded, Dylan had turned his attention towards political causes. He recorded “The Death of Emmett Till” and “Talkin’ John Birch Paranoid Blues” at the first session, and in July of 1962, he returned to Columbia Studio A with a new song called “Blowin’ In The Wind.” It had been a part of his live show for months, and by the next summer, it would completely transform his life. 

1966 - The Supremes

The Supremes were at No.1 on the US singles chart with 'You Keep Me Hanging On', the group's seventh US No.1 spent two weeks at the top of the charts was also a No.8 hit in the UK.

1967 - Strawberry Alarm Clock

Los Angeles-based psychedelic rock band Strawberry Alarm Clock were at No.1 on the US singles chart with 'Incense And Peppermints'. When recording the track the band expressed a dislike for the song's lyrics so the lead vocals were sung by a friend of the band, Greg Munford, who was attending the recording session as a visitor.

1968 - Monkees

The Monkees film 'Head' opened in six US cities. Reviews were harsh and the picture was a box office disaster. Produced and written by Jack Nicholson, Bob Rafelson (you know you can smoke too much of that stuff, Jack!) The film featured Victor Mature as "The Big Victor" and cameo appearances by Nicholson, Teri Garr, Carol Doda, Annette Funicello, Frank Zappa, Sonny Liston, Timothy Carey, Percy Helton and Ray Nitschke. Also appearing on screen in brief non-speaking parts are Dennis Hopper and film choreographer Toni Basil. Seen differently in retrospect as an aimless delightfully innocent work and currently receiving 75 % on Rotten Tomatoes. Mike (Nesmith) has said "by the time Head came out The Monkees were a pariah. There was no confusion about this. We were on the cosine of the line of approbation, from acceptance to rejection ... and it was basically over. Head was a swan song. We wrote it with Jack and Bob ... and we liked it. "

1971 - Isaac Hayes

Isaac Hayes started a two week run at No.1 on the US singles chart with 'Theme From Shaft', it made No.4 in the UK. Hayes won a Grammy award for Best Original Film Score with 'Theme From Shaft'.

1974 - Keith Moon

Drummer with The Who, Keith Moon collapsed during a concert after his drink was spiked with horse tranquilliser (possibly ketamine although it was rarer back then and it could have been simply Keith's appetite for human trancs combined with brandy). 19 year-old Scott Halpin who was in the audience, volunteered to replace him on drums for the remaining three numbers and quite successfully did so. Halpin sadly died in 2008 some thirty years after his hero.
.

1975 - The Bay City Rollers

The Bay City Rollers' Les McKeown was found not guilty of causing the death of a 76 year old woman that he had hit with his car the previous May. Witnesses said that Euphemia Clunie was walking across the road and had changed directions four times. McKeown was convicted of driving recklessly and fined £150 pounds and banned from driving for a year. 

1975 - The Who

The Who kicked off a month-long North American tour at The Summit in Houston. At a party afterwards drummer Keith Moon was arrested for disorderly conduct and spent the night in jail.

1976 - Paul Simon

Paul Simon hosted NBC's Saturday Night Live where he performed live with George Harrison on ‘Here Comes The Sun’ and ‘Homeward Bound’. Paul McCartney and John Lennon were both in New York City watching the show on TV. One of those tantalising coincidences that in retrospect show promise but come to nought

1984 - Michael Jackson

A large crowd of fans watched the unveiling of a Hollywood Walk of Fame Star for Michael Jackson in front of Mann's Chinese Theatre in Los Angeles. Jackson became star number 1,793 on the famed walk.

1998 - Led Zeppelin

A study comparing noise levels of rock music, found that older people rated rock music much higher on a loudness scale than younger people. The researchers carried out by Ohio University tested people age 18 to 21 and people ranging in age from 51 to 58. The study asked participants to rate the loudness of rock music played at nine intensities, ranging from 10 decibels to 90 decibels. Participants listened to ‘Heartbreaker’ by Led Zeppelin for 10 seconds at different intensities. At each intensity, the older subjects gave the music higher numerical ratings based on loudness than the younger subjects.


2001 - Madonna

Madonna's childhood home in Oakland County Michigan, sold at an auction in just 12 minutes. The house, along with a few items of Rock memorabilia was purchased for $331,000.

2004 - Liam Gallagher

Oasis singer Liam Gallagher was fined £40,000 after a fight in a German hotel. Gallagher was arrested along with drummer Alan White and three other members of the band's entourage after the brawl in Munich in December 2002. Gallagher lost two front teeth in the fight, which led to the band abandoning their German tour.

Don't think The Beatles advocated being violent yobs?

or being a bellend!?

2005 - Robbie Williams

Robbie Williams smashed a Guinness World Record by selling more than 1.6 million tickets for his 2006 World Tour in one day. The tickets, snapped up on the first day of sale, were valued at an estimated £80 million.

2007 - Radiohead

Radiohead frontman Thom Yorke admitted he was among the thousands of people who paid nothing to download the band's latest album In Rainbows. Speaking to BBC 6 Music's Steve Lamacq, Yorke said: "There wasn't any point. I just move some money from one pocket to the other." According to one survey, three in five people paid nothing at all for it. Yorke added that no one was allowed to have copies of the master recording in case it was leaked beforehand.


2012 - The Nashville Teens

Mick Dunford lead guitarist with British group The Nashville Teens died of a cerebral hemorrhage. The Nashville Teens are best known for their 1964 hit single 'Tobacco Road', a top 10 UK hit and a top 20 hit in the United States.


2015 - Paul Weller

Associated Newspapers lost its challenge to a High Court decision to award £10,000 ($15,000), privacy damages to Paul Weller. The singer and his wife won the damages in 2014 after pictures of his three youngest children were featured on The Mail Online in 2012.

the gorgeous Mrs Weller

Invasion of privacy of the stars is considered fair game. Their children?  Immoral IMHO

BIRTHDAYS

1981 - Kimberley Walsh

For some reason I like her 

Kimberley Walsh, from English-Irish pop girl group Girls Aloud, which was created through the ITV talent show Popstars: The Rivals in 2002. They scored the 2002 UK No.1 single 'Sound Of The Underground' and over 20 UK Top 20 singles. They hold the record for "Most Consecutive Top Ten Entries in the UK by a Female Group.

The rest of Girls Aloud not so much esp that one in the grey dress [KW on the left]

1962 - Gail Ann Dorsey

Gail Ann Dorsey, American bass guitarist and vocalist. Worked with David Bowie from 1993-96, recorded and toured with Tears for Fears and has also worked with Bryan Ferry, Boy George, Gwen Stefani and Seal.

All about the bass . . . . 

Gail and David

1947 - Joe Walsh

Joe Walsh, guitarist, singer, songwriter, who led The James Gang. He joined the Eagles in 1975 who scored the 1977 US No.1 & UK No.8 single 'Hotel California', plus 5 US No.1 albums. As a solo artist under the name Barnstorm he had the 1973 breakthrough album The Smoker You Drink, the Player You Get featuring the single, 'Rocky Mountain Way' and had the 1978 UK No.14 single 'Life's Been Good'.

Didn't care for The Eagles MOR soft rock but Joe well . . . . he was Joe
Here's a favourite

1946 - Ray Stiles

Ray Stiles, bass player, from English glam rock band Mud who had the 1974 UK No.1 single 'Tiger Feet' which was the UK's best-selling single of 1974 plus 14 other UK Top 40 singles.
I hated Mud . . .  I REALLY HATED 'TIGER FEET'! But you have to appreciate the bass player . . . . . . . how DO you play this stuff over and over every night?!

Ray in The Hollies middle back centre

1946 - Duane Allman

Duane Allman, guitarist, and co-founder and leader of The Allman Brothers Band who released the classic album Eat a Peach in 1972 and had the 1973 US No.12 single 'Ramblin Man'. Allman was killed in a motorcycle accident on 29th October 1971 in Macon, Georgia, when he collided with the rear of a flatbed truck that had turned in front of him. I guess I appreciated Greg and Duane Allman , Dicky Betts and the rest but their music never or rarely got to me much. More virtuosity for virtuosity's sake for these ears
This one I liked . . . . 

1942 - Norman Greenbaum

Norman Greenbaum, singer, songwriter, guitarist, and One Hit Wonder with the 1970 UK No.1 & US No.3 single 'Spirit In The Sky'.

1940 - Jim Horn

American saxophonist, woodwind player, and session musician Jim Horn. He played on solo albums by three members of the Beatles, forming a long association with George Harrison after appearing at the latter's Concert for Bangladesh benefit in 1971. Horn also played flute and saxophone on the Beach Boys' album Pet Sounds and also played flute on the Rolling Stones' album Goats Head Soup. I am ashamed to say I didn't know of Horn's work and would just add look at that lineup of people he worked with!




Jim Horn - Take Away The Sadness . . . . . . indeed!


with kind acknowledgements to On This Day in Music