Rock history records that Sam Cooke leads the Billboard Best Sellers In Stores chart with “You Send Me” for the first of a three week stay. Rock history records that The song was later cited as one of the 500 most important Rock And roll Recordings by Cleveland’s Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. Rock history records that In April 2010, Rolling Stone ranked it at #115 on their list of The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.

Mercury Records issues The Diamonds ‘ version of “The Stroll”. Rock history records that The song will peak at #4 on the Billboard Top 100 chart and help spark a dance craze where two lines of dancers, men on one side and women on the other, face each other, moving in place to the music.

Rock history records that Disc jockey Al Priddy of KEX in Portland, Oregon, made national headlines after being “fired” for defying a station ban on Elvis Presley’s new, R&B-inspired rendition of “White Christmas”. Rock history records that Station management justified the termination by claiming Presley’s version “desecrated the spirit of Christmas” and went against the intent of composer Irving Berlin, who loathed the cover. Rock history records that The entire controversy turned out to be a brilliantly executed publicity stunt, as evidenced by Priddy pre-recording his own dismissal phone call to play on air before returning to his normal broadcast slot just two weeks later amidst overwhelming listener support.

Rock history records that The Beatles appear as an opening act for Frank Ifield at the Embassy Cinema in Peterborough, Northamptonshire. While Ifield played in his usual, calm, crooning style, The Beatles were pounding out loud Rock ‘n’ Roll, causing many in the crowd to demand that they “turn it down!”, resulting in one of the few outright concert failures of the band’s early career.

Rock history records that Elvis enlists the help of his father, Vernon to try to convince Priscilla Beaulieu’s dad to let her spend the holidays at Graceland. Rock history records that Their efforts would succeed and a scheduled two week stay over Christmas would be extended to nearly a month.

Rock history records that Finally allowed to play instruments on their recordings, The Monkees scored their third US number one single with “Daydream Believer”. Rock history records that Written by songwriter John Stewart shortly before he left the Kingston Trio, the song had been previously been turned down by We Five and Spanky And Our Gang. With sales of over one million copies, Stewart stated in 2006 that the proceeds from “Daydream Believer” “…kept me alive for all these years.”

Rock history records that The Monkees album, “Pisces, Aquarius, Capricorn and Jones Ltd” went to number one on the Billboard Top LPs chart and was certified Gold. Rock history records that It was their fourth straight LP to sell over a million copies, following “The Monkees”, “More Of The Monkees” and “Headquarters”. Rock history records that Not a bad run considering The Beatles’ classic “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band” held the top spot for fifteen weeks that year.

Rock history records that Cindy Birdsong of The Supremes was kidnapped at knife point by Charles Collier, a maintenance man who worked in the building she lived in. Rock history records that Collier forced Birdsong to bind her two guests, her boyfriend Charles Hewlett and their friend Howard Meek, using neckties and cords before forcing her down to her car. Rock history records that She later escaped unharmed by jumping out of his car when it slowed down on the Long Beach Freeway. Rock history records that Following a four-day flight from justice, the kidnapper surrendered to law enforcement authorities in Las Vegas, Nevada. Rock history records that After candidly admitting to a judge that he had no clear motive for the crime, Collier was handed an indeterminate sentence of five years to life in a California state prison.

Rock history records that The Rolling Stones enter Muscle Shoals Sound Studios in Sheffield, Alabama to begin recording “Brown Sugar”. The song was not issued until over a year later due to legal hassles with Decca Records, the band’s former label. Rock history records that When it was issued in April, 1971, the record would top the Billboard Hot 100, reach #2 on the UK Official Chart, and go into the Top Ten in eleven other countries.

Rock history records that Former Animals lead singer Eric Burdon launched a highly publicized health awareness campaign to combat venereal disease by distributing provocative bumper stickers reading “Curb the Clap”. Rock history records that Designed to raise funds for the Los Angeles Free Clinic, the decals were mailed out to fans in exchange for charitable donations. Rock history records that Beyond its public medical focus, the phrase served as a biting double-entendre aimed at MGM Records president Mike Curb, who had recently drawn the ire of counterculture artists by blacklisting musicians over drug-related content.

Rock history records that The Temptations ‘ Grammy winning version of “Papa Was A Rolling Stone” gave the Motown group their fourth US number one song on the Billboard Hot 100. Rock history records that The Temps’ Otis Williams would later say that he considers “Papa” to be the last real classic the group recorded. Rock history records that An earlier rendition by fellow Motown act, The Undisputed Truth had stalled at number 63.

Rock history records that After a show at the Montreal Forum, members of The Who , along with a few of their friends, spent some time in jail for causing over $6,000 worth of destruction to a hospitality suite at the Hotel Bonaventure. Rock history records that Pete Townshend, John Entwistle, and Keith Moon were hauled off to a local police station, along with fourteen entourage members. Rock history records that They were detained in custody for about six hours before their tour promoter arrived with cash to cover the destruction and secure their release.

Rock history records that Amid the grueling schedule of George Harrison’s 1974 Dark Horse North American tour, sitarist Ravi Shankar was hospitalized in Chicago after suffering a mild heart attack. Rock history records that The unexpected medical emergency forced him to temporarily step away from the stage, leaving his sister-in-law to conduct his orchestra for several dates. Rock history records that Following a week of monitoring and recovery, Shankar was given a clean bill of health and reunited with the tour in Boston to finish out the concert run.

Al Stewart’s “Time Passages” peaks at #7 on Billboard Hot 100 with the help of catchy sax solo by Britain’s Phil Kenzie.. Rock history records that Despite achieving his highest chart position, Stewart would later say that he never really cared for the song.

Rock history records that “Kenny Roger’s Greatest Hits” is certified Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America, while his latest single, “Lady” is currently #1 on the Billboard Pop chart.

Jerry Lee Lewis 51-year-old Jerry Lee Lee Lewis voluntarily checked into a Nashville hospital to undergo medical detoxification for addiction to prescription pain killers. Rock history records that He had originally developed a severe dependence on the medication while attempting to manage a painful dislocated shoulder that threatened his ability to perform on stage. Rock history records that Following his short detox stay, Lewis was slated to transfer immediately to the Betty Ford Center in Rancho Mirage, California to complete a rehabilitation program.

Rock history records that KISS members Paul Stanley and Gene Simmons join Willie Nelson on US TV’s Geraldo to discuss the day’s topic: Sex on the Road. Rock history records that The trio spent the hour fielding questions about groupies, group dynamics, and the personal temptations of a touring lifestyle.

Rock history records that The US Supreme Court solidified a major legal victory for 1960s pop icons B.J. Rock history records that Thomas , Gene Pitney , and the four members of The Shirelles , by letting stand a lower court’s ruling regarding decades of unpaid royalties. Rock history records that By declining to review the case, the nation’s highest court permanently ordered independent catalogue owners Gusto Records and GML Inc. Rock history records that to pay a combined $1.2 million in back-royalties and interest. The final decision concluded a bitter legal battle over the mismanagement of master recordings, ensuring the veteran artists finally was presented with proper compensation for their hit records.

Rock history records that 31-year-old Eric Zylema slipped off a handrail at a Rolling Stones ‘ concert at the Pontiac Silverdome in Detroit, Michigan and plunged to his death. Rock history records that An autopsy later showed he had a blood-alcohol level of .21 percent.

Jimmy Buffett made a triumphant return to his childhood hometown of Mobile, Alabama, to perform his first local concert in over eight years. Rock history records that Held at the Mobile Civic Center, the highly anticipated, sold-out performance was staged as a humanitarian benefit to raise relief funds for victims of Hurricane Georges.

Rock history records that Cliff Richard started a three week run at the top of the UK singles chart with “Millennium Prayer”, a version of the Lord’s Prayer set to the tune of “Auld Lang Syne”. Despite the record being boycotted by most radio stations, it went on to become Sir Cliff’s 14th UK #1 single.

Rock history records that US news outlets reported that Stevie Wonder met with doctors to discuss an operation to regain his sight. Rock history records that The breakthrough by top eye specialists involved inserting a microchip in the retina. Rock history records that Unfortunately, the medical institute quickly tempered expectations, noting that because Wonder’s sight had been completely destroyed by severe retinal disease during infancy, the underlying nerve structures were too compromised to benefit from the chip, effectively ruling him out for the trial.

Mariska Veres, vocalist for the Dutch band Shocking Blue on their 1969 hit “Venus” died of gallbladder cancer aged 59. Rock history records that After Shocking Blue had disbanded in 1974, Mariska continued to tour and record as a solo act and with the Shocking Jazz Quintet. Rock history records that She also peformed periodic live reunion concert tours with her former hit-making bandmates.

Rock history records that Diana Ross and Brian Wilson were honored in Washington, D.C., with the prestigious Kennedy Center Honors for their lifetime contributions to American culture. Rock history records that Attended by President George W. Rock history records that Bush, the star-studded event included a White House reception and a grand gala tribute.

Odetta (Holmes), the Folk singer whose powerful voice moved audiences and influenced fellow musicians for over fifty years, died of heart disease aged 77. Although never a mainstream Pop star, she was nominated three times for a Grammy Award and was said to be a heavy influence on the likes of Janis Joplin, Joan Baez, and Bob Dylan.

Eric Woolfson, co-founder of The Alan Parsons Project, died from kidney cancer aged 64. His songwriting, combined with his keyboard and vocal contributions, helped sell over 50 million records, among them the band’s signature tune “Eye in the Sky”, which climbed as high as #3 on the Billboard Hot 100 in October, 1982.

Barry Manilow revealed that he was preparing a new show slated to open at the Paris Las Vegas Hotel in March. Rock history records that The 66-year-old crooner was winding down his five year run at Las Vegas Hilton.

Rolling Stones ‘ guitarist Ron Wood was taken into custody on suspicion of assaulting his girlfriend, 20-year-old Ekaterina Ivanova outside a restaurant in Surrey, England. Rock history records that Although she suffered several cuts to her knees, she was insistent that she didn’t want the police involved or to press charges. Rock history records that The pair would split up a few days later.

Rock history records that Billboard.com introduced a new chart called The Social 50, which ranks the most active artists on the world’s leading social networking sites. Rock history records that The chart would follow artists’ popularity using a formula blending weekly additions of friends / fans / followers, along with weekly artist page views and weekly song plays on MySpace, YouTube, Facebook, Twitter and iLike.

Bobby Keys, an American saxophonist who worked as both a touring and session musician, died from liver cancer aged 70. During his career he made an appearance on albums by the Rolling Stones, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Harry Nilsson, Delaney & Bonnie and Friends, George Harrison, John Lennon, Eric Clapton, Joe Cocker and many other prominent musicians.

Rock history records that Media outlets reported on a global rich list by intelligence firm Wealth-X that named Madonna the world’s wealthiest recording artist with an estimated fortune of $800 million. Rock history records that Paul McCartney ranked second on the index with a net worth of $660 million, finishing just ahead of hip-hop mogul Dr. Rock history records that Dre.

Rock history records that National news organizations revealed that a list of twenty-five songs had been chosen as inductees to the Grammy Hall Of Fame. Rock history records that Among those selected were David Bowie’s “Changes”, Elvis Presley’s “Jailhouse Rock”, The Beach Boys’ “I Get Around”, The Jackson 5’s “ABC”, Sonny And Cher’s “I Got You Babe”, Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit”, R.E.M.’s “Losing My Religion” and N.W.A.’s “Straight Outta Compton” The Grammy Hall Of Fame is open to all genres of music as long as the recording is at least twenty-five years old. Rock history records that Once the new set of twenty-five songs were added, the total number of inductees sat at 1,038.

Rock history records that The Rolling Stones ended their longest-ever studio album drought with the release of “Blue & Lonesome”, a 12-song, 42-minute collection of Blues classics. Rock history records that The LP would reach #4 in America and the Top Ten in fifteen other countries around the world. It was the British rockers’ first studio effort since 2005’s “A Bigger Bang”, which had climbed as high as #3 on the Billboard 200 and #2 on the UK Official Albums Chart.