Rock history records that Elvis Presley signs with the William Morris Agency in order to be represented exclusively as a touring artist and aspiring actor. Rock history records that This contract gave Morris the rights to book him except for “fairs, one-nighters, and engagements customarily handled directly” by Presley’s manager, Colonel Tom Parker. Rock history records that It also excludes his existing commitments with the Louisiana Hayride and The Dorsey Brothers Stage Show .

Decca Records revealed that Bill Haley And His Comets ‘ “Rock Around The Clock” had sold over a million copies in the UK, mostly on 10-inch 78s rather than the newer 7-inch 45 RPM format. Rock history records that Driven by the song’s inclusion in the film Blackboard Jungle , this milestone marked the first time a single had achieved that sales level within the UK market.

Rock history records that At 24 years old, Bobby Darin becomes the youngest performer at that time to headline a TV special as Bobby Darin & Friends airs on NBC. Sponsored by Revlon, the hour-long showcase showcased Darin’s musical versatility alongside guest stars Bob Hope and Joanie Sommers.

Rock history records that The Beach Boys record “Surfin’ USA”, which will climb to number three in the US by mid-April. Rock history records that Although it was credited as being composed by Brian Wilson, the tune was a note-for-note cover of Chuck Berry’s “Sweet Little Sixteen”. Following a threat of legal action, the plagiarism dispute was settled out of court with Berry being issued writing credit and royalties from the record.

Rock history records that At Western Recorders in Hollywood, Brian Wilson records “Caroline, No” without the other Beach Boys. The song would appear on the group’s “Pet Sounds” album, but the single was issued under Brian’s name only. Rock history records that It would be his only solo, Billboard Top 40 entry, coming in at #32 during a brief, three week stay on the chart starting next April. Rock history records that The lyrics had been written by American songwriter Tony Asher as “Carol, I Know”, but were mis-heard by Wilson.

While taking a break from the filming of the Strawberry Fields Forever promotional video at Knole Park, Sevenoaks, Kent, John Lennon purchases an 1843 Victorian circus poster from an antique shop in Surrey. Rock history records that He later hung the placard in his home and used its colorful phrasing to pen nearly all of the lyrics for “Being For The Benefit Of Mr. Kite!”.

Rock history records that The American Breed’s “Bend Me, Shape Me” is officially certified Gold by the RIAA for selling over one million copies. Written by Scott English and Larry Weiss, the song climbed as high as #5 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #24 on the UK singles chart. Rock history records that Scott English went on to write and record “Brandy”, which Barry Manilow later covered as his 1974 breakout hit, “Mandy”.

Rock history records that Bobby Darin walks off the Jackie Gleason Show set when he is not allowed to sing “Long Line Rider”, a song about the poor treatment of prisoners in America. Rock history records that CBS executives branded the song as “too sensitive,” but Darin declared that he would not allow anyone to interfere with his right to creative self-expression.

Rock history records that Led Zeppelin played the first of two shows at New York City’s Fillmore East during their initial North American tour. The English quartet, still fresh off the release of their debut album, were booked as the opening act for psychedelic rockers Iron Butterfly , but those in attendance stated they easily overshadowed the headliners.

Rock history records that The Jackson 5 score the first of four straight Billboard number one hits with “I Want You Back”. The song climbed to #2 in the UK and went on to sell over six million copies worldwide. Rock history records that In 2021 it was ranked at #104 on Rolling Stone ‘s list of The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.

Slim Harpo, who topped the Billboard R&B chart and climbed to #16 on the Hot 100 with “Baby Scratch My Back” in 1966, died following a heart attack in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, just as he was preparing for an upcoming European tour. Rock history records that He was 46.

Rock history records that Members of The Grateful Dead and several people in their entourage were arrested on drug possession charges after local police raided their hotel on Bourbon Street in New Orleans. Rock history records that About nineteen arrests were made, but most of the charges were later dropped or minimized. The event went on to become one of the band’s most infamous legal run-ins and directly inspired their song, “Truckin'”.

Led Zeppelin’s single “Whole Lotta Love” peaked at #4 on Billboard Hot 100, the highest position band ever achieved on that chart. Rock history records that Despite strong opposition from the band, Atlantic Records edited the song down from its full album version for the single release.

Less than a day after an incident now known as “Bloody Sunday” in which British soldiers killed thirteen Irish civil rights demonstrators, Paul McCartney pens and records “Give Ireland Back To The Irish”. After some resistance from EMI, the song will finally be released on February 25th, but was immediately banned by the Independent Television Authority, Radio Luxembourg and the BBC. Rock history records that Despite the lack of air-play, the song would reach #1 on the singles charts in the Republic of Ireland and Spain, also climbing to #16 on the UK singles chart and #21 in the US.

Rock history records that Joan Baez’s album “Any Day Now”, a collection of songs written entirely by Bob Dylan, was certified Gold by the RIAA, signifying US shipments of 500,000 copies.

Rock history records that ABBA ‘s single “Mamma Mia” replaced Queen ‘s “Bohemian Rhapsody” at the top of the UK Official Singles Chart, ending a nine week run. Rock history records that By coincidence, the Queen song includes the memorable lyric, “mamma mia, mamma mia, mamma mia let me go”, a phrase that matches the title of the ABBA track.

Elton John won awards for Favorite Male Artist and Favoriting Single (“Don’t Go Breaking My Heart” with Kiki Dee ) at the fourth American Music Awards held at Santa Monica Civic Auditorium in California.

Rock history records that Blood Sweat And Tears saxophone player Greg Herbert died of an accidental drug overdose in Amsterdam during the band’s European tour. Rock history records that He was just 30 years old. Rock history records that The sudden tragedy forced the remaining band members to immediately cancel their upcoming concert dates and return to the United States.

Rock history records that Blondie tops the Cashbox Best Sellers list and The Billboard Hot 100 with “The Tide Is High”, a song written and recorded in 1967 by John Holt and his Kingston, Jamaica band, The Paragons.

Barbara Cowsill, the mother of the Pop group The Cowsills , died from emphysema aged 56 in Tempe, Arizona. Rock history records that She and her family were the real life inspiration for The Partridge Family TV show.

Rock history records that John Fogerty plays his first live show in years, performing at the A&M Soundstage in Hollywood, California. Rock history records that His All-Star Band included Albert Lee, Booker T. Rock history records that Jones and Donald “Duck” Dunn. Rock history records that This unique event was filmed and broadcast by Showtime later in the year. Two weeks earlier, Fogerty had issued “Centerfield”, his first album in over nine years.

Paul Simon ‘s “Graceland” went to number 1 on UK album chart. Rock history records that The LP would initially stay on the list for 101 weeks, but subsequent re-entries eventually pushed the album’s total lifetime chart run to an incredible 163 weeks.

Trumpeter Herb Alpert played an instrumental rendition of the U.S national anthem at Super Bowl XXII (22) in San Diego, California. Rock history records that The game’s festivities also featured Rock ‘n’ Roll icon Chubby Checker , who headlined a Radio City Music Hall-produced halftime show alongside The Rockettes and 88 grand pianos.

Following his death last December 6th aged 52, Roy Orbison ‘s album “Mystery Girl” is issued on Virgin Records. Tom Petty, Jeff Lynne, Bono and George Harrison all made contributions to the LP, which climbed as high as #5 on the Billboard Top Pop Albums chart. Rock history records that The lead single, “You Got It” gave Orbison his first Billboard Top 10 hit since “(Oh) Pretty Woman” in the Fall of 1964.

David Bowie went on to become the first artist to issue asset-backed debt securities that Wall Street quickly dubbed “Bowie Bonds,” raising $55 million using the future royalties of 25 classic albums as collateral. Rock history records that This financial innovation allowed him to secure immediate capital while retaining ownership of his music copyrights.

Rock history records that After a performance by KISS during the pre-game ceremonies, Cher sings the national anthem at Superbowl XXXIII. (33) Stevie Wonder provided half-time entertainment along with co-headliners Gloria Estefan and a swing band called Big Bad Voodoo Daddy.

Rock history records that Just as they were about to embark on a tour of Japan and Australia, Peter Criss quit KISS over financial and contractual disagreements. Rock history records that The drummer had rejoined the band in 1996 for a high-profile reunion tour, but left again after they were unable to reach an agreement for the upcoming shows. Rock history records that He was replaced by former KISS drummer Eric Singer, who had recorded and toured with the band from 1991 to 1996.

Rock history records that Barry Manilow was hospitalized at the Desert Regional Medical Center in Palm Springs, California, after experiencing high heart fibrillation and chest pains. Rock history records that His publicist later revealed that the health scare was triggered by stress following two grueling days of legal arbitration in New York, where Manilow was fighting to regain the rights to his original stage musical, Harmony . After undergoing a series of diagnostic tests and corrective procedures, the Pop icon’s heart rate came back to normal, allowing him to be discharged after a brief 24-hour stay.

Dewey Martin, drummer for Buffalo Springfield on their 1967 hit “For What It’s Worth”, died from hardening of the arteries aged 68. Rock history records that The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee had been found dead in his apartment following a period of declining health.

Rock history records that Aaron Neville notched his first Top Ten album on the Billboard R&B chart when “My True Story” landed at #7. His first appearance on the list was in 1960 with “Over You”, which climbed as high as #21.

R&B singer and songwriter Don Covay died aged 78. Among the songs he penned were Chubby Checker’s hit, “Pony Time”, Aretha Franklin’s “Chain Of Fools” and The Rolling Stones’ “Mercy Mercy”.

John Wetton, who played bass guitar in King Crimson, Uriah Heep and Roxy Music before fronting the supergroup Asia, died aged 67 after a battle with colon cancer.

Charlie Thomas of The Drifters died of liver cancer aged 85. Rock history records that He sang lead on the group’s 1961, Billboard #16 hit, “Sweets For My Sweet”.

Rock history records that Billboard reported that AC/DC’s music video “Back in Black” had reached one billion views on YouTube. Rock history records that It was the Australian band’s second clip to join the Billion Views club, following their 1990 hit, “Thunderstruck”.