What Happened Today In Music

November 6th

1961 - Jimmy Dean

Jimmy Dean started a five week run at No.1 on the US singles chart with 'Big Bad John', a No.2 on the UK chart. Jimmy went on to present a prime time variety show on US TV.

1964 - Beach Boys

During their first promotional visit to the UK, The Beach Boysappeared live on ITV's Ready Steady Go! playing 'I Get Around' and 'When I Grow Up (To Be A Man)'. Ready Steady Go! was one of the UK's first rock/pop music TV programmes which ran from August 1963 until December 1966.

1965 - The Rolling Stones

The Rolling Stones started a two week run at No.1 on the US singles chart with 'Get Off Of My Cloud', the group's second US No.1. The song knocked The Beatles 'Yesterday' from the No.1 position. 

1967 - Bob Dylan

During a three hour session Bob Dylan recorded ‘All Along The Watchtower’ and ‘John Wesley Harding’ at Columbia Recording Studios in Nashville, Tennessee. The Jimi Hendrix Experiencelater recorded their version of ‘All Along the Watchtower' on January 21, 1968, at Olympic Studios in London after Hendrix had been given a tape of Dylan’s recording by publicist Michael Goldstein, who worked for Dylan’s manager Albert Grossman.

1967 - The Beatles

Working at Abbey Road studio in London, The Beatles mixed four songs, ‘Hello Goodbye’, ‘Your Mother Should Know’, ‘Magical Mystery Tour’ and ‘I Am the Walrus’. Due to the radio feed used in ‘I Am The Walrus’ being recorded in mono, the song changes from stereo to mono at the line "Sitting in an English garden".

1968 - Grateful Dead

The Grateful Dead and Jefferson Airplane played at the opening night of San Francisco's Fillmore West. Formerly known as the Carousel Ballroom it was briefly operated by a collective formed by the Grateful Dead, Jefferson Airplane, Quicksilver Messenger Service and Big Brother and the Holding Company as a social/musical "laboratory experiment". The venue Became famous under the direction of concert promoter Bill Graham from 1968 to 1971. 

1968 - Joe Cocker

Joe Cocker was at No.1 in the UK singles chart with his version of The Beatles song 'With A Little Help From My Friends'. The song was also a UK No.1 for Wet Wet Wet in 1988 and Pop Idol duo Sam and Mark in 2004.

1968 - The Monkees

The Monkees' three quarter of a million dollar feature film, Head opened in New York City. Instead of being aimed at their target audience of teeny boppers, the film contained a dark theme about the manipulation of the group with walk-on appearances by inappropriate guests and scenes of Vietnam War atrocities. Reviews were harsh and the picture was a box office disaster.

1970 - Aerosmith

Aerosmith performed their first ever gig when they played at Nipmuc Regional High School in Mendon, Massachusetts. Sometimes referred to as "The Bad Boys from Boston", Aerosmithbecame the best-selling American rock band of all time, having sold more than 150 million albums worldwide. They also hold the record for the most gold and multi-platinum albums by an American group.

1971 - Cher

Cher started a two week run at No.1 on the US singles chart with 'Gypsys, Tramps and Thieves', the singers first US solo No.1, it made No.4 in the UK.

1972 - Billy Murcia

During a UK tour, Billy Murcia of The New York Dolls died after choking on his coffee after an overdose of Mandrax. The influential American band formed in 1972 and made just two albums, the 1973 'New York Dolls' and 1974 'Too Much Too Soon'.

1973 - Gram Parsons

Michael Martin and Phil Kaufman were charged and fined $300 each for the theft of a coffin containing Gram Parsons body. The court heard that the two men were merely carrying out Parson's wishes to be cremated in the desert.

1975 - Sex Pistols

The Sex Pistols made their live debut at St Martin’s School Of Art in central London, supporting a band called Bazooka Joe, which included Stuart Goddard (the future Adam Ant). The Pistols’ performance lasts 10 minutes. 

1976 - Steve Miller

The Steve Miller Band went to No.1 on the US singles chart with 'Rock 'n' Me', the group's second US No.1, a No.11 in the UK.

1977 - Abba

ABBA started a four week run at No.1 on the UK single chart with 'The Name Of The Game', the group's 6th No.1. The song was first called 'A Bit Of Myself.'

1982 - Jennifer Warnes

Jennifer Warnes and Joe Cocker started a three week run at No.1 on the US with a song taken from the film 'An Officer And A Gentleman', 'Up Where We Belong'.

1982 - Soft Cell

Soft Cell's 'Tainted Love' achieved the longest unbroken run on the UK charts when it logged its 43rd week in the Top 100.

1993 - Meat Loaf

Meat Loaf was at No.1 on the US singles chart with 'I'd' Do Anything For Love (But I Won't Do That). The track was also a No.1 in over 25 other countries. 

1993 - Pearl Jam

Pearl Jam went to No.1 on the US album chart with 'Vs', selling 950,378 copies making it the highest sales in US album history in one week.

2000 - Madonna

Madonna played her first show in eight years when she performed a short 20 minute set at New York's Roseland Ballroom. Madonna wore a tight black vest bearing the sequinned name of 18 year-old Britney Spears.

2003 - Justin Timberlake

Winners at this years MTV awards included Christina Aguilera for Best female, Coldplay won Best group, Justin Timberlake won Best album for ‘Justified’, The Panjabi MC won best dance act. Best R&B act went to Beyonce. Eminem won the best hip-hop act award for the fifth year running. Reggae artist Sean Paul took the best new act award and best video was won by Sigur Ros. An estimated one billion people in 28 countries watched the show, which was held in Edinburgh, Scotland for the first time.

2003 - Metallica

Metallica kicked off their 137-date Madly in Anger with the World Tour at Yoyogi Taiikukanin Tokyo, Japan. The Madly in Anger with the World tour was the fourth-highest grossing tour of 2004, reaping $60,500,000 in ticket sales.

2005 - Madonna

Madonna scored her 36th Top Ten single with ‘Hung Up’, equaling the record with Elvis Presley for the most Top Ten singles. ‘Hung Up’ was also Madonna's 47th Top Forty single, the most for any female artist. The track sampled the instrumental riff from ABBA's 'Gimme, Gimme, Gimme'.

2005 - Robbie Williams

The Official UK Charts announced that Robbie Williams had sold the most albums in the UK so far this century with sales of 6.3m. Coldplay were at number two, with sales of 6.2m albums and Dido was in third place 5.7m albums sold. The figures were based on albums sold in the UK from 1st January 2000 to 11th October 2005 excluding greatest hits, live albums and downloads.

2005 - 50 Cent

Clear Channel agreed to remove posters with 50 Cent holding a gun in one hand and a microphone in the other in the Los Angeles area after a rally was held in protest, the company also agreed to remove 21 posters in Philadelphia. The posters were plugging the rapper’s forthcoming film 'Get Rich or Die Tryin.' "The message could be 'rob to get rich' said Bilal Qayyum, a leader of the anti violence group Men United for a Better Philadelphia.

2007 - Meat Loaf

Meat Loaf cancelled his European tour after being diagnosed with a cyst on his vocal cords. The 60-year-old had already scrapped two gigs on doctor's orders. Speculation had surrounded the tour after he cut short a gig in Newcastle, telling the audience it is "the last show I may ever do in my life".

2014 - Taylor Swift

Taylor Swift's latest album 1989 debuted at No.1 on America's Billboard albums chart selling 1.287 million copies in its first week, the largest sales week for an album since Eminem's The Eminem Show which was released 12 years ago. Swift was now the only act to earn three million-selling weeks with an album. Before 1989, Red sold 1.208 million in it's first week, while Speak Now clocked up 1.047 million sales.

2014 - Rick Rosas

American musician Rick Rosas died aged 65. He was one of the most sought after studio session musicians in Los Angeles. Throughout his career, he played with Neil Young, Joe Walsh, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, Jerry Lee Lewis, Ron Wood and many others. In 2014, Rosas joined Neil Young and Crazy Horse on their European tour, following Billy Talbot's inability to tour due to a stroke - making Rosas the only bassist to have played with three of Young's major band-based projects, Buffalo Springfield, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young and Crazy Horse.

2018 - Hugh McDowell 

English cellist Hugh McDowell died of cancer on aged 65. McDowell performed with the first live line-up of ELO in 1972 while only 19 years old. He also worked with Roy Wood in Wizzard. 

Born Today In Music

November 6th

1894 - Adolph Sax

Adolph Sax, inventor of the saxophone.

1941 - Guy Clark

Guy Clark, singer, songwriter, wrote songs for Johnny Cash, Ricky Skaggs, 1997 album 'Essential Guy Clark'. Clark died May17th 2016 in Nashville following a lengthy battle with lymphoma.

1942 - Doug Sahm

Doug Sahm, Tex Mex Singer, songwriter, guitarist, Sir Douglas Quintet, (1965 US No. 13 single ‘She’s About A Mover’). Died 18th November 1999.

1946 - George Young

Scottish-Australian musician, songwriter and record producer George Young. With The Easybeats he had the 1966 UK No.6 & 1967 US No. 16 single 'Friday On My Mind'. After the band broke up in 1969, Young and fellow member Harry Vanda embarked on a songwriting career that saw the pair produce dozens of hits. They became two of Australia's best-known songwriters, with Young's work including 'Love Is In The Air' and 'Yesterday's Hero' both hits for John Paul Young. Vanda and Young were also the producers of early work by AC/DC, formed by his younger brothers Malcolm and Angus Young. George Young died on 22 October 2017 at the age of 70, three weeks before his brother Malcolm Young (of AC/DC) died. 

1947 - John Wilson

John Wilson, drummer with the Northern Irish band Them who had the 1965 UK hits 'Baby, Please Don't Go' and 'Here Comes The Night' with Van Morrison on lead vocals. Morrison quit the band in 1966 and went on to a successful career as a solo artist.

1948 - Glenn Frey

Glenn Frey, guitar, vocals, the Eagles, (1977 US No.1 & UK No.8 single 'Hotel California', plus 5 US No.1 albums. ‘Greatest Hits 1971-1975’ is the second biggest selling album in the world with sales over 30m). Solo (1985 UK No.12 single 'The Heat Is On'). Frey died on 18 Jan 2016 died at the age of 67 in New York City from complications arising from rheumatoid arthritis, colitis and pneumonia.

1950 - Chris Glen

Chris Glen, bassist from the Sensational Alex Harvey Band who had the 1975 UK No.7 single 'Delilah, and the 1975 album Next.

1961 - Craig Goldy

Craig Goldy, guitarist, Dio.

1963 - Paul Brindley

Paul Brindley, guitarist with English alternative rock band The Sundays. Their first album, Reading, Writing and Arithmetic, was released in 1990 and was a UK Top 5 hit along with the single 'Here's Where the Story Ends'.

1964 - Corey Glover

Corey Glover, Living Colour, (1991 UK No.12 single 'Love Rears Its Ugly Head').

1966 - Paul Gilbert

Paul Gilbert, guitarist, with American hard rock supergroup Mr. Big, who had the 1992 US No.1 & UK No.3 single 'To Be With You'.

1979 - Trevor Penick

Trevor Penick, from American boy band O-Town, who were the winners of US TV show 'Making The Band' They scored the 2001 US No. 3 single 'All Or Nothing'.