2000 - October 18, 2000 - AMERICAN singer and actress Julie London died today, after suffering a massive stroke. Ms. London scored the 1956 worldwide hit, Cry Me A River, which was also featured in the 1956 film The Girl Can't Help It. Ella Fitzgerald was originally supposed to have sung this song in the movie, Pete Kelly's Blues, but it was rejected. The character of Ella in the movie was that of a singer of the 20's, and the producer, clearly in a racist manner, asked the composer, Arthur Hamilton, to substitute the word 'plebeian' in the lyrics, because he was sure the audience would never believe that a black woman would or could use that word in the 20's. The composer rightfully refused to do it, and the song was subsequently rejected. In December of the same year, 1955, Julie London recorded it, and in 1956 performed it in the movie The Girl Can't Help It, in a classic, timeless renditions. Ms London recorded 32 albums during her career, played the role of nurse Dixie McCall, in the television series Emergency! This video is with the Bobby Troup Quintet, recorded live in Japan in 1964.
1935 - Tommy Dorsey was one of the grand greats of the swing, big band, orchestra era of the thirties and forties, and on this day way back in 1935 he and his orchestra recorded one of that era's standard classics, I'm Getting Sentimental Over You. This the famous orchestra - albeit without its namesake - playing that very tune, and from recent times, with the name of The World Famous Glenn Miller Orchestra, and under the direction of Larry O'Brien. This is taken from their 1983 Japanese Tour. Following is a rare homemade video by one of the band members, which catches the orchestra in concert as well as in rehearsal and travel.
1957 - It was on this day that Paul McCartney made his first ever appearance with John Lennon's band, The Quarrymen, at Liverpool's Norris Green. And just to prove that the Beatles were not always great, check out this following tune. This song was the very first recording by John Lennon, Paul McCartney and George Harrison, made on 14th July, 1958 at Percy Phillips' Studio, in Liverpool, along with their version of Buddy Holly's That'll Be The Day. In Spite Of All The Danger was The Quarrymen's only original song at the time, co-written by Paul McCartney and George Harrison, aged 15. John Lennon sings lead, John "Duff" Lowe is playing piano, and Colin Hanton on drums. This is a bona fide classic gem.
1964 - Following the so-called British music invasion, led by the global success of Beatles, many fellow-Brit beat groups followed to make their fortune in America. One of them was the Animals, and this is the date the band began, with this song, which became the theme song for many vietnam soldiers in 1968.
1966 - This was the date that The Jimi Hendrix Experience played its debut concert in Paris, and should you want to see a video of this performance, just go to our *MUSICBACKTRACK* search engine for archives, type in Jimi Hendrix and that will take you to many mentions and vids of Hendrix. On the same day in 1967, with global success under their belt, individual members of the Beatles began thinking about branching out into other spin-off career moves, and this was one of the first, as the movie How I Won the War, starring John Lennon, premiered in London. Here are a few snippets and scenes from the movie.
1968 - A year after Lennon's movie debut, he and Yoko Ono were arrested and charged with possession of marijuana, when Ringo Starr's apartment was raided by police. On the same day in 1969, the Jackson Five joined many American musical acts who made their TV debuts on Hollywood Palace. Here's their US tele debut on that show, introduced by Diana Ross, with a little nod from legend, Sammy Davis Junior.
1974 - After throwing a pot of boiling grits all over Al Green as he was emerging from his bathtub, his female friend, Mary Woodson, is said to have shot herself. A year after the tragedy, on the same night, Paul Simon was the main guest on Saturday night live, and on the show he and former musical partner Art Garfunkel reunited. Here's the New Yorker's promo for the new York show.
1990 - Pop culture's stage show time capsule from 1975 was a well tempered delirium with a splash of doom, high camp, low tragedy, and The Rocky Horror Picture Show then became of the greatest motion pictures ever made. And on this day, the City of Los Angeles declared Rocky Horror Picture Show Day on this day. Any excuse for another slab of suspender belt, transexual pop, and this was the largest Time Warp performance of all time.
1997 - Believe it or not, three-piece boy band Hanson sang the national anthem at the opening game of the World Series, and it was a good version, dear reader, and that was 14 years ago.
1957 - It was on this day that Paul McCartney made his first ever appearance with John Lennon's band, The Quarrymen, at Liverpool's Norris Green. And just to prove that the Beatles were not always great, check out this following tune. This song was the very first recording by John Lennon, Paul McCartney and George Harrison, made on 14th July, 1958 at Percy Phillips' Studio, in Liverpool, along with their version of Buddy Holly's That'll Be The Day. In Spite Of All The Danger was The Quarrymen's only original song at the time, co-written by Paul McCartney and George Harrison, aged 15. John Lennon sings lead, John "Duff" Lowe is playing piano, and Colin Hanton on drums. This is a bona fide classic gem.
1964 - Following the so-called British music invasion, led by the global success of Beatles, many fellow-Brit beat groups followed to make their fortune in America. One of them was the Animals, and this is the date the band began, with this song, which became the theme song for many vietnam soldiers in 1968.
1966 - This was the date that The Jimi Hendrix Experience played its debut concert in Paris, and should you want to see a video of this performance, just go to our *MUSICBACKTRACK* search engine for archives, type in Jimi Hendrix and that will take you to many mentions and vids of Hendrix. On the same day in 1967, with global success under their belt, individual members of the Beatles began thinking about branching out into other spin-off career moves, and this was one of the first, as the movie How I Won the War, starring John Lennon, premiered in London. Here are a few snippets and scenes from the movie.
1968 - A year after Lennon's movie debut, he and Yoko Ono were arrested and charged with possession of marijuana, when Ringo Starr's apartment was raided by police. On the same day in 1969, the Jackson Five joined many American musical acts who made their TV debuts on Hollywood Palace. Here's their US tele debut on that show, introduced by Diana Ross, with a little nod from legend, Sammy Davis Junior.
1974 - After throwing a pot of boiling grits all over Al Green as he was emerging from his bathtub, his female friend, Mary Woodson, is said to have shot herself. A year after the tragedy, on the same night, Paul Simon was the main guest on Saturday night live, and on the show he and former musical partner Art Garfunkel reunited. Here's the New Yorker's promo for the new York show.
1990 - Pop culture's stage show time capsule from 1975 was a well tempered delirium with a splash of doom, high camp, low tragedy, and The Rocky Horror Picture Show then became of the greatest motion pictures ever made. And on this day, the City of Los Angeles declared Rocky Horror Picture Show Day on this day. Any excuse for another slab of suspender belt, transexual pop, and this was the largest Time Warp performance of all time.
1997 - Believe it or not, three-piece boy band Hanson sang the national anthem at the opening game of the World Series, and it was a good version, dear reader, and that was 14 years ago.
