December 4, 1971 - LED Zeppelin started a mammoth run in charts around the world, today, with their Four Symbols album, which featured the eight minute song, Stairway To Heaven, featured a few days ago in a version from Frank Zappa. The album stayed on some world charts for almost five years, selling over 11 million copies. On the same day, another song entered the charts, and would become a classic, too; Don McLean's American Pie made its first entry into world charts, the song eventually selling more than four million copies. Here are both those classics.
1956 - ELVIS Presley, Carl Perkins, Jerry Lee Lewis and Johnny Cash recorded together today, the session later to be dubbed the Million Dollar Quartet. The session was not released until a quarter century later. These impromptu recordings made on Tuesday December 4, 1956, in the Sun Record Studios in Memphis, Tennessee is quite probably the first real rock supergroup.
1961 - GENE Chandler's Duke of Earl was released today, the song becoming one of the rock'n'roll greats. Chandler was for evermore known as 'the Duke of Earl, or simply 'the Duke'. Chandler was an American R&B and soul singer-songwriter, producer and record executive, and one of the front-runners of the 1960s Chicago soul scene. Chandler was one of the few artists to chart hit records during the Doo-Wop, R&B, Soul, and Disco eras, with 30 chart hits. This was his biggest.
1965 - THE BYRDS started a three week run at #1 on the US singles chart with Turn! Turn! Turn!, the group's second hit, a Pete Seeger adaptation of a traditional melody, with some lyrics taken directly from the Biblical book of Ecclesiastes.
1976 - TOMMY Bolin died of a drug overdose at the age of 25, today, aged just 25. one of the most endearing and talented musicians i have ever met, the American-born guitarist first played with Zephyr, from 1969 to 1971, then the James Gang. from 1973 through 1974, and finally Deep Purple, from 1975 to 1976, in addition to doing solo work. He was found dead today from a heroin overdose in Miami, Florida, (the day after opening a show for Jeff Beck. This is a clip which features Deep Purple Mk 4 in Maryland, after that it goes to another gig- Jan 16 '76 Pittsburgh PA, according to one source- and some stills from the video. A slideshow of some still shots from the Liverpool gig fill out the remaining audio. The audio is from Long Beach, Deep Purple Mk 4 with Jon Lord, keyboards- Ian Paice, Glenn Hughes, Tommy Bolin, and David Coverdale vocals. Following that, an interview and short footage of his funeral. One of the great unheralded guitar players, was Tommy Bolin.
1980 - JIMMY Page, Robert Plant and John Paul Jones made the announcement, today, of their decision not to re-form Led Zeppelin in the wake of the death of drummer John 'Bonzo' Bonham. Following are excerpts from a doco, a rare interview with Scottish comedian Billy Connolly, and a drum solo.
1987 - MADONNA filed for divorce from actor Sean Penn, today, then changed her mind, then filed again a month later. This is silent, untouched 100 per cent bootlegged footage of the couple's marriage.
1988 - ROY Orbison gave his final concert in Akron, Ohio today. He died two days later. Check back on December 6 for our tribute to Roy Orbison. This is footage of rehearsals of today's concert, from 23 years ago, followed by rough edits of that night's final concert.
1991 - PAULA Abdul was awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, today, and Michael Jackson appeared with legendary mime Marcel Marceau at a New York news conference promoting a Jackson special airing on HBO.
1993 - MULTI-INSTRUMENTALIST, producer and composer, Frank Zappa died of prostrate cancer today. Zappa recorded many albums with The Mothers Of Invention and solo including the 1969 album Hot Rats and 1974 album Apostrophe. Zappa recorded one of the first concept albums, Freak Out. He married Adelaide Gail Sloatman, in 1967, they had four children: Moon Unit, Dweezil, Ahmet Emuukha Rodan and Diva Thin Muffin Pigeen. Without a shadow of a doubt, Zappa remains one of the greatest contemporary musicians of our time, a genius in our midst. Following is one of his final interviews, and a short doco on his death. R.I.P Zappa.
1956 - ELVIS Presley, Carl Perkins, Jerry Lee Lewis and Johnny Cash recorded together today, the session later to be dubbed the Million Dollar Quartet. The session was not released until a quarter century later. These impromptu recordings made on Tuesday December 4, 1956, in the Sun Record Studios in Memphis, Tennessee is quite probably the first real rock supergroup.
1961 - GENE Chandler's Duke of Earl was released today, the song becoming one of the rock'n'roll greats. Chandler was for evermore known as 'the Duke of Earl, or simply 'the Duke'. Chandler was an American R&B and soul singer-songwriter, producer and record executive, and one of the front-runners of the 1960s Chicago soul scene. Chandler was one of the few artists to chart hit records during the Doo-Wop, R&B, Soul, and Disco eras, with 30 chart hits. This was his biggest.
1965 - THE BYRDS started a three week run at #1 on the US singles chart with Turn! Turn! Turn!, the group's second hit, a Pete Seeger adaptation of a traditional melody, with some lyrics taken directly from the Biblical book of Ecclesiastes.
1976 - TOMMY Bolin died of a drug overdose at the age of 25, today, aged just 25. one of the most endearing and talented musicians i have ever met, the American-born guitarist first played with Zephyr, from 1969 to 1971, then the James Gang. from 1973 through 1974, and finally Deep Purple, from 1975 to 1976, in addition to doing solo work. He was found dead today from a heroin overdose in Miami, Florida, (the day after opening a show for Jeff Beck. This is a clip which features Deep Purple Mk 4 in Maryland, after that it goes to another gig- Jan 16 '76 Pittsburgh PA, according to one source- and some stills from the video. A slideshow of some still shots from the Liverpool gig fill out the remaining audio. The audio is from Long Beach, Deep Purple Mk 4 with Jon Lord, keyboards- Ian Paice, Glenn Hughes, Tommy Bolin, and David Coverdale vocals. Following that, an interview and short footage of his funeral. One of the great unheralded guitar players, was Tommy Bolin.
1980 - JIMMY Page, Robert Plant and John Paul Jones made the announcement, today, of their decision not to re-form Led Zeppelin in the wake of the death of drummer John 'Bonzo' Bonham. Following are excerpts from a doco, a rare interview with Scottish comedian Billy Connolly, and a drum solo.
1987 - MADONNA filed for divorce from actor Sean Penn, today, then changed her mind, then filed again a month later. This is silent, untouched 100 per cent bootlegged footage of the couple's marriage.
1988 - ROY Orbison gave his final concert in Akron, Ohio today. He died two days later. Check back on December 6 for our tribute to Roy Orbison. This is footage of rehearsals of today's concert, from 23 years ago, followed by rough edits of that night's final concert.
1991 - PAULA Abdul was awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, today, and Michael Jackson appeared with legendary mime Marcel Marceau at a New York news conference promoting a Jackson special airing on HBO.
1993 - MULTI-INSTRUMENTALIST, producer and composer, Frank Zappa died of prostrate cancer today. Zappa recorded many albums with The Mothers Of Invention and solo including the 1969 album Hot Rats and 1974 album Apostrophe. Zappa recorded one of the first concept albums, Freak Out. He married Adelaide Gail Sloatman, in 1967, they had four children: Moon Unit, Dweezil, Ahmet Emuukha Rodan and Diva Thin Muffin Pigeen. Without a shadow of a doubt, Zappa remains one of the greatest contemporary musicians of our time, a genius in our midst. Following is one of his final interviews, and a short doco on his death. R.I.P Zappa.
