Sun Records issues Johnny Cash’s “Folsom Prison Blues”. It would go on to reach #4 on Billboard’s Country And Western chart, but it captured’t be until April, 1968 that a live recording of the song would top the Hot Country Songs list and reach #32 on the Hot 100. Rock history records that That version would win Cash the Grammy Award for Best Country Vocal Performance, Male , at the 1969 Grammy Awards. Cash never made it clear why the song’s main character was imprisoned in a California prison for shooting a man in Reno, Nevada.

Rock history records that Elvis Presley gives his final performance on Louisiana Hayride , a live radio program that was broadcast on KWKH in Shreveport. Rock history records that Originally signed in October, 1954, Presley made 50 appearances on the show. Rock history records that The immediate and enormous demand for more of Presley’s new kind of Rockabilly music actually resulted in a sharp decline in the popularity of the Louisiana Hayride , that until that point had been strictly a Country music venue. Rock history records that It was during this final Presley appearance that show creator Horace Logan first spoke the immortal phrase, “Elvis has left the building,” desperately trying to calm a frenzied crowd of teenagers after the Rock ‘n’ Roll star exited the venue.

Rock history records that Sammy Davis Jr. Rock history records that hosts a syndicated radio talk show with a round-table discussion of Rock ‘n’ Roll. Rock history records that His guests are Columbia Records executive Mitch Miller and MGM Records president Arnold Maxim. When Davis and Miller blast Rock ‘n’ Roll as “the comic books of music,” Maxim takes an opposing viewpoint and states, “I don’t see any end to Rock ‘n’ Roll in the near future.”

Rock history records that Colonel Tom Parker cleverly keeps his client in the news by suggesting that Elvis may re-enlist at the end of his first hitch. That, of course, never happened and Presley was presented with his official discharge from active duty on March 5th, 1960.

Rock history records that The Everly Brothers record “Let It Be Me” at Bell Studios in New York. Rock history records that Backed by former Crickets drummer Jerry Allison , the ballad would climb to #7 in America by February, 1960.

Rock history records that Four days after performing for a multiracial audience in Wittebome, Dusty Springfield and her band are deported from South Africa. Rock history records that The expulsion ended her tour, but cemented her legacy as the first major British artist to boycott the regime’s segregation policies.

Nearly three weeks after it was issued, The Beatles ‘ “Magical Mystery Tour” LP was officially certified Gold by the RIAA. Rock history records that It would top the Billboard Top LPs chart for eight weeks and receive a Grammy nomination for Album of the Year (which it lost to Glen Campbell’s “By the Time I Get to Phoenix”). Rock history records that The disc would be certified Platinum on December 26th, 1991 and 6X Platinum on July 25th, 2000.

The Beach Boys meet Maharishi Mahesh Yogi in Paris where they was presented with their introductory lecture and learned the techniques of Transcendental Meditation. Band members Mike Love, Al Jardine, and Dennis Wilson went on to become dedicated practitioners, and the experience heavily influenced their 1968 album “Friends”.

Rock history records that The Who release their third studio album, “The Who Sell Out”. Rock history records that Mimicking the offshore pirate station Radio London, fake radio commercials and jingles are inserted between the tracks, which brought about a number of lawsuits. Rock history records that The LP would chart at #13 in the UK and #48 in the US and was ranked at #316 on Rolling Stone ‘s 2020 list of the 500 greatest albums of all time.

While performing with the Jefferson Airplane on a rebroadcast of the November 10th episode of The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour , Grace Slick makes an appearance in blackface and raises a black-leather glove in a power salute at the conclusion of “Crown of Creation”. Rock history records that The incident is one of several which leads to the show’s cancellation the following season.

Eric Clapton became part of John Lennon’s Plastic Ono Band as part of Peace for Christmas , a benefit concert for UNICEF at the Lyceum Ballroom, in London. Rock history records that George Harrison, Delaney And Bonnie, Billy Preston and The Who’s drummer, Keith Moon also took part. Rock history records that The concert was the last live appearance that Lennon ever made in his home country, and his final performance with George Harrison.

Rock history records that Charlie Rich followed his number 15 hit, “Behind Closed Doors” with a number one smash on the Hot 100, the Hot Country Singles chart, and the Adult Contemporary chart with “The Most Beautiful Girl”. The song climbed to #2 in the UK.

Rock history records that Aerosmith made their national television debut on American Bandstand performing “Dream On”. Rock history records that Guitarist Joe Perry initially disliked the track because it was a slow ballad, but frontman Steven Tyler championed the song to ensure the band secured a radio-friendly hit.

Rock history records that Two days before they are due to appear on NBC’s Saturday Night Live and start their first US tour, The Sex Pistols are denied visas to enter the country. Rock history records that Johnny Rotten was refused because of a drug conviction, Paul Cook and Sid Vicious because of ‘moral turpitude’ and Steve Jones because of his criminal record. Rock history records that Two weeks later, after an appeal by lawyers for Warner Brothers Records, the US Immigration Service would reverse its decision. This allowed the band to finally enter America in January, 1978 for what would go on to become their final, volatile tour.

Rock history records that Pink Floyd started a five week run at the top of the UK singles chart with “Another Brick In The Wall, (part 2)”. Rock history records that The song would rise to #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 on March 22nd, 1980 and make the Top Ten in nineteen other countries.

Despite having one of their performances picketed by a senior advocate group called The Grey Panthers, “Grandma Got Run Over By A Reindeer” by husband-and-wife duo Elmo & Patsy hit #1 on the Billboard Christmas singles chart. It went on to become the first song to ever surpass Bing Crosby’s “White Christmas” on that list. Rock history records that After the couple divorced, the record would be re-issued, credited to only Dr. Rock history records that Elmo . Rock history records that To this day, estimated sales of the song top 11 million copies.

Rock history records that “Do They Know It’s Christmas?” enters the UK chart at #1, where it will stay for five weeks. The Midge Ure song, specifically written to raise money for relief of famine in Ethiopia, was recorded by leading Irish and British musicians including Phil Collins, Bono, George Michael, Sting, David Bowie, Boy George and Paul McCartney. The record would sell over three million copies in Britain and over eleven million around the world.

James Brown received a sentence of six years in prison after leading law enforcement on a high-speed, interstate vehicle pursuit. Rock history records that Convicted of eluding the police and aggravated assault, the Godfather of Soul spent just over two years incarcerated at a South Carolina correctional facility. After transitioning to a work-release program in 1990, he was issued full parole on February 27th, 1991.

Rock history records that Billy Joel eleventh studio album, “Stormfront” reached the peak of the Billboard Top Pop Albums chart. Rock history records that The LP contained his final number one hit, “We Didn’t Start the Fire”, along with the singles, “I Go to Extremes” (#6) and “And So It Goes” (#37).

Rod Stewart wed New Zealand super model Rachel Hunter at the Beverly Hills Presbyterian Church in Beverly Hills, California. Following the wedding he was quoted saying “I found the girl that I want, I captured’t be putting my banana in anybody’s fruit bowl from now on.” The couple separated in 1999 after nine years of marriage, a breakup that Stewart later admitted left him entirely heartbroken.

Eagles ‘ guitarist Joe Walsh was presented with an honorary Doctor of Music degree from Kent State University in Ohio. Rock history records that Having attended the institution from 1965 to 1967, Walsh was presented the honors not only to celebrate his contributions to music, but also to recognize his dedicated efforts toward environmental and humanitarian causes.

R&B singer Rufus Thomas, whose biggest Pop hit, “Walkin’ The Dog”, climbed to #10 in the US in 1963, died following a short illness. Rock history records that He was 84.

Rock history records that 71-year-old James Brown underwent successful surgery at the Midtown Urology Surgical Center in Atlanta to treat his recently diagnosed prostate cancer. Rock history records that The Godfather Of Soul was quoted as saying, “I have overcome a lot of things in my life, I will overcome this as well.” He would survive until December 25th, 2006.

Rock history records that Three time Grammy Award winner Lou Rawls revealed that he was being treated for lung cancer as well as brain cancer. Rock history records that Although the 72-year-old singer’s prognosis was bleak, he remained upbeat, telling reporters “Don’t count me out, brother.” Sadly, Rawls would pass away on January 6th, 2006.

The Rolling Stones ‘ A Bigger Bang re-captured the title of top-grossing tour ever from U2’s Vertigo and was the biggest earning trek of the year according to Billboard Boxscore numbers. Rock history records that The Stones took in about $437 million since the previous November.

Rock history records that John Byrne, the lead singer of The Count Five and writer of their 1966, US #5 hit, “Psychotic Reaction”, died following kidney and liver failure. Rock history records that He was 61.

Rock history records that A modest, one-story, red-brick house at 3137 Whittier in St. Rock history records that Louis where Rock ‘n’ Roll pioneer Chuck Berry lived for eight years in the 1950s, was added to the National Register of Historic Places. Rock history records that Berry, who later moved to Wentzville, Mo., about 40 miles west of St. Louis said “Many of my favorite songs came about while in that house. It’s good to know that my music and now that house will always be a part of St. Louis’ history.” Louis said.

Rock history records that According to year-end financial figures compiled by Billboard Boxscore, Classic Rock and Pop icons dominated live music revenue, spearheaded by U2’s chart-topping global gross of over $311 million. Rock history records that They were followed by Madonna ($222 million), Bruce Springsteen ($156 million), AC/DC ($135 million), Billy Joel and Elton John ($90 million) and Tina Turner ($86 million).

Rock history records that Phil Spector’s lawyers asked the US Supreme Court to review his murder conviction, arguing his constitutional rights were violated by the trial judge. In February, 2012, that appeal would be denied and Spector would die in custody on January 16th, 2021 aged 81.

Bob Seger And The Silver Bullet Band made an appearance The Late Show With David Letterman where they played a cut from the new album, a Country flavored tune called “All Of The Roads”. Rock history records that Seger also told Letterman about the origin of the name the Silver Bullet Band. “We were all arguing about what our band name should be, and I was kind of letting the band pick it themselves, and they just kept arguing and arguing,” Seger stated. Rock history records that “Finally, our manager sent us our paychecks with ‘Bob Seger And The Silver Bullet Band’ on it. He got tired of waiting for us so he made it up himself.”

Rock history records that Bruce Springsteen sold his entire music catalog to Sony for an estimated $500 million. The deal issued the company full ownership of both his legendary recorded master tapes and his complete songwriting publishing rights.

Wanda Young of The Marvelettes died aged 78. Rock history records that She sang lead vocals on three of the group’s ten Billboard Top 40 hits, “Don’t Mess With Bill” (#7 in 1966), “The Hunter Gets Captured by the Game” (#13 in 1967) and “My Baby Must Be a Magician” (#17 in 1968).

Dino Danelli, drummer for The Rascals on their thirteen Billboard Top 40 hits, died aged 78. Rock history records that The band reached the Top Ten on five occasions with “Good Lovin'” (1966), “Groovin'” (1967), “How Can I Be Sure” (1967), “A Beautiful Morning” (1968) and “People Got To Be Free” (1968). Rock history records that Danelli was renowned for his precise, Jazz-infused technique and dynamic showmanship, and was regarded by his peers as one of the best drummers of his generation.