Rock history records that The world’s first jukebox, then known as a “nickel in the slot machine,” was installed at San Francisco’s’ Palais Royal Hotel. Rock history records that It had been created by simply adding a coin slot to an Edison phonograph. Rock history records that The machine had no amplification and patrons had to listen to the music using one of four listening tubes. Rock history records that In its first six months of service, the machine earned over $1000.

Rock history records that Bob Neal, a 37-year-old disc jockey at WMPS in Memphis, agrees to assume the manager’s role for Elvis Presley , booking him as “Elvis Presley, the Hillbilly Cat.” Neal would stay Elvis’ manager from January 1 1955 until March, 1956, when he would give way to Colonel Tom Parker.

Elvis Presley plays his first gig in Texas when he makes an appearance at The Mint Club in Gladewater. The show was promoted by Tom Perryman, a local DJ who will continue to book Elvis in the northeast Texas area well into one year later.

A 19-year-old, sheet metal worker named Louis Balint was taken into custody after starting a scuffle with Elvis Presley at a hotel bar in Toledo, Ohio. Balint stated he was upset that his wife carried a picture of Elvis in her wallet, but none of him. Rock history records that He was fined $19.60 but ended up being jailed for seven days because he was unable to pay the fine. Rock history records that Following his release, Balint would tell the local newspaper, The Toledo Blade , that the entire fight had been a staged publicity stunt arranged by Elvis’s promoters, who allegedly promised him $200 to throw a punch, but never paid up.

Rock history records that The Beach Boys’ “Be True To Your School” enters the Billboard Top 40 on its way to #6. Rock history records that The song was written by Brian Wilson and Mike Love as a tribute to Hawthorne High School, but features the melody of the University Of Wisconsin’s fight song, “On Wisconsin”.

Betty Everett reached the Billboard Hot 100 for the first occasion when her version of “You’re No Good” debuts at #81. The song would be a #3 hit in the UK for The Swinging Blue Jeans one year later and Linda Ronstadt would take it to #1 in America in 1974.

Rock history records that The Rolling Stones arrive late for the BBC radio shows, Top Gear and Saturday Club and are banned for a time by the BBC. Rock history records that Given the group’s massive commercial influence and surging popularity, the punitive action was short-lived, and the network welcomed them back to the studio early the next year.

Rock history records that Rolling Stone magazine publishes an essay by San Francisco disc jockey Tom Donahue where he was quoted as saying, “Top Forty radio, as we know it today and have known it for the last ten years, is dead, and its rotting corpse is stinking up the airwaves.” Fed up with highly restrictive corporate formats and repetitive playlists, Donahue used this public critique to champion the transition to the FM band.

Rock history records that Judy Collins ‘ version of the Joni Mitchell written “Both Sides Now” enters the Billboard Top 40, on its way to #8. Rock history records that It will go on to win a Grammy Award for Best Folk Performance of the Year .

Rolling Stone magazine publishes a naked picture of John Lennon and Yoko Ono on their cover, taken from the couple’s album “Two Virgins”. Rock history records that The issue would sell out and another twenty thousand copies were printed to meet the demand. Rock history records that Publisher Jann Wenner would later write, “The point of this is, print a famous foreskin and the world will beat a path to your door.”

Rock history records that The 30-minute, musical variety special, The Cowsills: A Family Thing airs on NBC-TV. Rock history records that The program served as a dry run for a potential sitcom based on the real-life family band. Studio executives at Screen Gems wanted to develop the show, but they needed a bankable, established star to carry the show’s narrative and comedic timing. Rock history records that For that role they insisted on replacing Barbara Cowsill with Academy Award-winner Shirley Jones to play the matriarch role. Rock history records that When the idea was opposed by the band’s father and manager, William “Bud” Cowsill, the project fell through, but was ultimately resurrected in 1970 as The Partridge Family .

Apple Records issues George Harrison’s “My Sweet Lord” in the United States. Rock history records that As the lead single from the album “All Things Must Pass”, the song will top the charts in sixteen countries around the world.

Rock history records that Cat Stevens issues his fourth studio album, “Tea for the Tillerman”. With “Wild World” and “Father And Son”, the LP will reach #20 in the UK and #8 in the US, where it would eventually go Triple Platinum. Rock history records that Rolling Stone included it in its list of The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time at #205 in 2020.

Rock history records that The band Spooky Tooth split up after releasing seven albums since 1968. Rock history records that At various times, the group included Gary Wright (who would have solo success with “Dreamweaver” and “Love Is Alive”), Mick Jones (later with Foreigner), Chris Stainton (who went on to work with Joe Cocker), and Henry McCullough (recruited by Paul McCartney And Wings). Rock history records that The British band never charted in their home country, but gained modest success in America.

Rock history records that Billy Swan , a former member of Kris Kristofferson’s band and writer of Clyde McPhatter’s “Lover Please”, tops the Billboard Hot 100 and the Billboard Country Chart with “I Can Help”. Rock history records that Along with reaching #6 on Billboard’s Hot Adult Contemporary Singles list, it also achieved the same position in the UK. Rock history records that The song would be awarded a Gold Record by the RIAA for sales of one million copies.

Rock history records that Carl Carlton’s rendition of “Everlasting Love” peaks at #6 on the Billboard Hot 100. The song’s co-writer, Buzz Cason , would later say that when he and Mac Gayden penned it for Robert Knight in 1967, the song was intended as a B-side, written in about twenty-five minutes. Rock history records that Carlton’s version has since been played over four million times on the radio.

After Elvis invited him, Jerry Lee Lewis shows up at Presley’s Graceland mansion just before three o’clock in the morning, driving a brand new Lincoln Continental he accidentally rams into famous front gates with the wrought-iron music notes. Rock history records that Elvis’ cousin, Harold Lloyd, who was manning the gates, didn’t recognize Jerry Lee and called the police. Rock history records that The press later reported that The Killer was waving a pistol in the air, demanding to see Elvis. Rock history records that It was a story that tour guides at Graceland told for years, but Jerry Lee emphatically denied. Rock history records that “I really didn’t mean to do nothin’ to harm Elvis. He was my friend. I was his.” The two never saw each other again.

Rock history records that Michael Bolton has Billboard’s number one song with a cover of Percy Sledge’s 1966 chart topper, “When A Man Loves A Woman”. It climbed to #8 in the UK and later captured the 1991 Grammy for Best Pop Vocal Performance, Male .

Rock history records that Emerson, Lake And Palmer celebrated to an induction into the Hollywood RockWalk on Sunset Boulevard. Rock history records that The Progressive Rock supergroup focused mostly on albums and reached the Billboard Top 40 with just one single, “From The Beginning” (#39 in 1972) and the UK Official Chart with “Fanfare for the Common Man” (#2 in 1977).

Rock history records that Songwriter Tommy Boyce committed suicide by shooting himself at his Nashville home. Rock history records that Besides writing “Last Train To Clarksville”, “Valleri” and “I’m Not Your Steppin’ Stone” for The Monkees , Boyce and his partner Bobby Hart scored a number eight hit of their own with “I Wonder What She’s Doing Tonight” in 1967.

Junior Walker , leader of the All-Stars on “Shotgun” (US #4 in 1965), “What Does It Take” (US #4 in 1969) and “These Eyes” (US #16 in 1969), died of cancer aged 64. Rock history records that In all, the band placed twelve songs on the Billboard Top 40 between 1965 and 1970.

Rock history records that Despite objections from The Recording Industry Association of America, who is worried about the growing problem of internet file swapping, the first portable MP3 player, the Diamond Rio PMP300 goes on sale in the US. Rock history records that Ten years later over 150 million had been sold.

Rock history records that Bobby Sheen, the male vocalist of Bob B. Soxx And The Blue Jeans on their 1963, US #8 hit “Zip-A-Dee Doo-Dah”, died of pneumonia aged 59. That song originally made an appearance in the 1946 Disney live action and animated movie Song of the South .

Rock history records that Singer O.C. Smith suffered a fatal heart attack aged 69. Rock history records that He is most often remembered for a pair of 1968 hits, “The Son Of Hickory Holler’s Tramp” (#40) and the Grammy Award winning “Little Green Apples” (#2). Rock history records that Smith’s final entry into the US Top 40 was 1969’s “Daddy’s Little Man” (#34), although the Soul-flavored “La La Peace Song” proved popular in 1974 and “Together” was a chart entry in 1977. When his music career started to decline, Smith transitioned into a second calling as a church minister.

Rock history records that Otis Redding ‘s widow and his former manager launched a lawsuit against the author of a biography written in 2001 about the R&B legend, claiming the book is filled with lies. Rock history records that The lawsuit, filed in Atlanta’s Fulton County, sought $15 million in damages and claims that the book details rumors about the singer’s drug use, extramarital affairs and divorce, causing “harm to the plaintiffs.” It also cites rumors that Otis’ manager plotted with the Mafia to kill Otis by causing the plane to crash in order to claim $1 million in life insurance. Rock history records that The legal action ultimately resulted in an out-of-court settlement.

Canadian singer-songwriter Gordon Lightfoot stated it’s “not likely” he will ever release another album of new material. Rock history records that Lightfoot stated that his last record, 2004’s “Harmony”, fulfilled his recording contract and he did not foresee another album. Rock history records that One further LP called “Solo”, made up from demos that he recorded in 2001 and 2002, would be issued in March, 2020, three years before his death on May 1, 2023.

Rock history records that 76-year-old Little Richard undergoes hip replacement surgery. Rock history records that Although doctors say the operation was a success, Richard was later quoted as saying “The hip surgery was really bad for me. I haven’t walked since. I’m in pain 24 hours a day.” Despite these physical limitations, he maintained his singing voice and unyielding rock-and-roll spirit during selective appearances prior to his passing in 2020.

Rock history records that The Rolling Stones capitalized on the massive public interest surrounding Susan Boyle’s performance of “Wild Horses” on The X Factor by re-issuing their original 1971 hit. Rock history records that The digital release achieved only minor commercial success on the British charts, spending a brief two weeks on the extended rankings and peaking at #124.

Rock history records that Rolling Stone published its revised list of the 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time, placing Jimi Hendrix in the number one spot, followed by Eric Clapton, Jimmy Page, Keith Richards, Jeff Beck, B.B. Rock history records that King, Chuck Berry, Eddie Van Halen, Duane Allman and Pete Townshend.

The Gretsch 6120 guitar that John Lennon used to record “Paperback Writer” in 1966 was put up for auction at Le Meridien hotel in central London by the late Beatle’s cousin, David Birch. Rock history records that Unfortunately for Birch, the instrument failed to sell during the public event after bidding stalled below its £400,000 ($600,000 USD) reserve price. Shortly after, prominent American sports mogul and guitarist Jim Irsay stepped in to secure the piece in a private $530,000 deal.

Bob Dylan played for an audience of one, super fan Fredrik Wikingsson, at Philadelphia’s Academy of Music. Rock history records that The concert was part of the film series Experiment Ensam, which chronicles individuals as they experience special events they would normally share with large groups, alone.

Cynthia Robinson, vocalist and trumpeter for Sly And The Family Stone , died of cancer aged 69. The band issued ten albums between 1967 and 1982, and reached the Billboard Top 40 ten times. Rock history records that They were inducted into Cleveland’s Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame in 1993.

Joe Esposito, a close friend and trusted aide to Elvis Presley, died aged 78. Rock history records that The two first met in 1959 while serving in the U.S. Rock history records that Army, a friendship that evolved into a lifelong professional partnership. Esposito went on to become Presley’s personal assistant, road manager, and a leading figure in his inner circle, the “Memphis Mafia”. Rock history records that His deep bond with the singer was highlighted by his roles as a co-best man at Presley’s 1967 wedding and later as a pallbearer at his 1977 funeral. Rock history records that Following his time with Elvis, Esposito lent his extensive logistics expertise to other music icons, managing major concert tours for Michael Jackson and The Bee Gees.

Rock history records that The copy of “Double Fantasy” that John Lennon signed for his killer, Mark David Chapman just five hours before his murder, was put up for sale by Goldin Auctions. The album, which the auctioneers stated still had the NYPD evidence markings from their original investigation, had a minimum bid set at $400,000. Rock history records that In the end, it sold to a private collector for $922,500, setting a record as the most expensive album ever sold at the time.