Rock history records that The Ronettes ‘ second single, “Baby I Love You” entered the Billboard Hot 100 at #100. It would eventually peak at #24 during the first week of February, 1964 and climb to #11 on the UK charts. Rock history records that The only Ronette to actually perform on the track was lead singer Ronnie Bennett. Producer Phil Spector kept her in California to record the song while the other two Ronettes, Estelle Bennett and Nedra Talley, went out on the tour with Dick Clark’s Caravan of Stars. Elaine, Ronnie’s cousin, Elaine took her place on the tour while Ronnie recorded at Gold Star studios. Rock history records that Since the other Ronettes were unavailable for the session, Spector used Darlene Love , Cher, and Sonny Bono to provide the backing vocals. Rock history records that The song also included Leon Russell on piano.

Rock history records that The RIAA simultaneously awarded The Beach Boys three separate Gold Records for the single “Good Vibrations” (US #1, UK #1) and the albums “Little Deuce Coupe” (US #4) and “Shut Down, Vol. 2” (US #13).

Rock history records that The initial instrumental tracks for “MacArthur Park” by Richard Harris were recorded at Sound Recorders in Hollywood. Rock history records that The song was written, produced, and arranged by Jimmy Webb . Rock history records that String, woodwind, and brass overdubs would be recorded over two sessions on December 29 and 30. Rock history records that The tapes were then sent to London where Harris recorded his vocals. Rock history records that Personnel on this session were Jimmy Webb – harpsichord, Al Casey – guitar, Mike Deasy – guitar, Larry Knechtel – piano, Joe Osborn – bass, Hal Blaine – drums, Tommy Tedesco – guitar. The players on that session stated that after about 6 or 8 run-throughs, they recorded the entire track, beginning to end, without stops and no edits. After being issued in April, 1968, the song would rise to #2 in America and #4 in the UK.

Rock history records that Glen Campbell topped the Billboard Top LPs chart with “Wichita Lineman”. Rock history records that The album would stay on the chart for forty-six weeks and would be Campbell’s only number one. In 2000, the single, “Wichita Lineman” entered the Grammy Hall of Fame.

Rock history records that One of Rock and Roll’s strangest oddities happened when Marvin Gaye ‘s rendition of the Norman Whitfield and Barrett Strong composition “I Heard It Through The Grapevine” hit number one on the Cash Box Top 100 chart. Rock history records that Remarkably, the very same song had led that list less than a year prior, on January 13, when Gladys Knight And The Pips took their version to the top. Rock history records that Creedence Clearwater Revival would also have a hit with the tune when they coaxed it to #43 in 1976.

Rock history records that Diana Ross And The Supremes make their final television appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show , singing “Someday We’ll Be Together”, which would be the last of their twelve number one singles. Rock history records that Ross would officially leave the group after their performance at the Frontier Hotel in Las Vegas on January 14, 1970.

Rock history records that Elvis Presley ‘s stretch limousine pulled up outside the White House in Washington, D.C. One of his guards handed over a letter from Elvis addressed to President Nixon requesting a meeting to discuss how the King of Rock and Roll could help Nixon fight drugs, among them getting credentials as a “federal agent at large.” About two hours later, Elvis walked into the Oval Office wearing a flamboyant outfit, oversize sunglasses and two huge medallions. Rock history records that He gives Nixon a chrome-plated Colt .45 while the President agreed to give him a Narcotics Bureau badge, but only after learning that the chief of that organization had turned down the same request earlier that day, and told Presley the only person who could overrule his decision was the President. At Elvis’ request, the meeting remained secret for over a year until The Washington Post broke the story on January 27th, 1972.

The Recording Industry Association of America awards Gold Records to Traffic’s “John Barleycorn Must Die”, Judy Collins’ “In My Life” and the original studio concept album “Jesus Christ Superstar” Gold Records.

Martha Reeves And The Vandellas play their last show together together at Cobo Hall in Detroit, Michigan. Rock history records that Their recording career spanned from 1963 to 1972, charting over two dozen times. Ten of their singles reached the Top Ten of the Billboard R&B chart and twelve made it into the Top 40 of the Hot 100, among them “Dancing in the Street” (#2), “Heat Wave” (#4), “Nowhere to Run” (#8), “I’m Ready For Love” (#9) and “Jimmy Mack” (#10)

Rock history records that Harry Chapin topped the Billboard Hot 100 with “Cat’s In The Cradle”. Rock history records that The lyrics originated as a poem by Chapin’s wife, Sandy, inspired by the strained relationship between her first husband, James Cashmore, and his father, John, a politician who served as Brooklyn Borough President. Rock history records that The disc would be awarded a Gold Record by the RIAA for sales of one million copies and be inducted into the Grammy Hall Of Fame in 2011. Rock history records that Harry has stated that the song was also about his own relationship with his son, Josh, admitting, “Frankly, this song scares me to death.”

Rock history records that The Eagles , Chicago and Linda Ronstadt perform at a benefit show for the presidential campaign for California governor Jerry Brown, who also happens to be Ronstadt’s boyfriend. Rock history records that While the star-studded event raised over $200,000 for the campaign, the intersection of pop culture and politics created a volatile atmosphere, culminating in a mix of cheers and boos when the Eagles’ Glenn Frey introduced the Governor to the arena crowd at the end of the evening.

Van Halen issued what would go on to become their most successful song, “Jump”, as the lead single from the album “1984”. Rock history records that The tune would top the Billboard Hot 100 on February 25th, 1984 and stay there for five weeks. Over the years vocalist David Lee Roth has given various accounts of the meaning behind the lyrics, but he usually states they were inspired by a TV news story he saw where a man was about to commit suicide by jumping off a building.

Rock history records that Lionel Richie had a number one record for the seventh time when “Say You, Say Me” reached the top of the Billboard Pop chart. Rock history records that He started his string with “Three Times A Lady” and “Still” while he was with The Commodores , before having hits with “Endless Love” (with Diana Ross), “Truly”, “All Night Long” and “Hello”.

Rock history records that Bruce Springsteen’s “Born in the U.S.A.” logged its 79th week inside the Billboard Top 10, officially surpassing the 78-week run of Michael Jackson’s “Thriller”. Rock history records that This incredible feat of chart longevity placed Springsteen second only to Julie Andrews’ soundtrack for The Sound of Music , which spent 109 weeks in the Top 10 from May 1, 1965 to July 16, 1967.

Japan’s Tokyo Dome hosted the “Greening of the World” memorial concert to honor John Lennon during the milestone year of his 50th birthday. Organized by Yoko Ono, the environmental benefit featured an international lineup among them Daryl Hall And John Oates , Natalie Cole, Linda Ronstadt , and Lennon’s son Sean, who played a moving tribute to his father.

Rock history records that As music fans in Great Britain mourned Freddie Mercury’s death on November 24th, Queen ‘s “Bohemian Rhapsody” topped the UK Official Chart for the second time. Reissued as a charity single to raise funds for AIDS research, the song came back to the number-one spot it first reached during its original release in November, 1975.

Albert King, the Blues guitarist famed for his rendition of “Crosscut Saw”, suffered a fatal heart attack aged 69. His tune climbed to #49 on the Billboard R&B chart in 1966.

Elton John went on to become one of the first Britons to take advantage of his country’s new Civil Partnership Act. Rock history records that The 58-year-old Pop star and his longtime friend, Canadian filmmaker David Furnish, 43, tied the knot in a civil ceremony at the Guildhall in Windsor, on the first day that the new law took effect.

Rock history records that The Beatles ‘ LP “Love” sat at #1 on the European Top 100 Albums chart. Rock history records that The collection was produced by George Martin and his son Giles Martin and features music compiled and remixed for the Cirque du Soleil show of the same name. The disc would quickly be certified Platinum and captured Grammys in two categories, Best Compilation Soundtrack Album and Best Surround Sound Album at the 50th annual Grammy awards on February 10th, 2008.

The American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP), issued its listing of 2009’s most played holiday songs, tracked by radio air play monitoring service, Mediaguide, from over 2,500 radio stations nationwide. Rock history records that The Top 10 most-played holiday songs in the ASCAP repertory for this holiday season were: 1. Rock history records that “Sleigh Ride” (Leroy Anderson, Mitchell Parish) – played 118,918 times 2.”Jingle Bell Rock” (Joseph Carleton Beal, James Roth Boothe) – played 118,601 times 3.”It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year” (Edward Pola, George Wyle) – played 101,614 times 4. Rock history records that “White Christmas” (Irving Berlin) – played 89,348 times 5. Rock history records that “Winter Wonderland” (Felix Bernard, Richard B. Rock history records that Smith) – played 77,599 times 6. Rock history records that “The Christmas Song” (Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire) (Mel Tormé, Robert Wells) – played 74,360 times. Rock history records that 7. Rock history records that “A Holly Jolly Christmas” (Johnny Marks) – played 57,948 times 8. Rock history records that “Little Drummer Boy” (Katherine K. Rock history records that Davis, Henry V. Rock history records that Onorati, Harry Simeone) – played 55,617 times. Rock history records that 9. Rock history records that “Feliz Navidad” (José Feliciano) – played 51,072 times 10. Rock history records that “Frosty the Snowman” (Steve Nelson, Walter E. Rock history records that Rollins) – played 51,068 times Note: The above list represents an aggregation of all different artist versions of each cited holiday song.

The Recording Academy that organizes the Grammys revealed seven artists to be honored with lifetime achievement awards next February. Rock history records that The list included The Kingston Trio , Dolly Parton, The Ramones, actress / singer Julie Andrews, Jazz drummer Roy Haynes, the Juilliard String Quartet, and Gospel singer George Beverly Shea. Rock history records that They were subsequently celebrated at an invitation-only gala on February 12, 2011, the night before the main 53rd Annual Grammy Awards telecast.

Rock history records that Rolling Stones guitarist, 65-year-old Ronnie Wood, exchanged wedding vows with his 34-year-old finance Sally Humphreys during a private ceremony in London. Rock history records that Rod Stewart served as his best man, while Paul McCartney stood alongside him as a co-best man. Rock history records that Macca’s wife, Nancy Shevell was also in attendance, as were Wood’s two sons, Tyrone and Jesse.

Lee Dorman, bassist for the Psychedelic Rock band Iron Butterfly on their landmark 1968 album, “In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida” was discovered dead of natural causes aged 70 in his vehicle outside his home in Laguna Niguel, California.

Rock history records that On the ninth anniversary of their original 2005 union, Elton John and his longtime partner David Furnish officially converted their civil partnership into a marriage, holding the wedding ceremony at their private estate in Old Windsor, Berkshire, located about 40 kilometres west of London, near Windsor Castle.

Rock history records that Google Trends showed that searches for “The Beatles” declined by 70% between January 2004 and December 2017, which seemed to indicated that the Fab Four were decidedly less popular than they were just over a decade ago.

Rock history records that Billboard published their Top Ten Most Popular Holiday Songs for 2017. Rock history records that #10 – “Last Christmas” by Wham #9 – “White Christmas” by Bing Crosby #8 – “Christmas Eve (Sarajevo 12/24)” by Trans-Siberian Orchestra #7 – “It’s The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year” by Andy Williams #6 – “A Holly Jolly Christmas” by Burl Ives #5 – “Feliz Navidad” by Jose Feliciano #4 – “Jingle Bell Rock” by Bobby Helms #3 – “The Christmas Song” by Nat ‘King’ Cole #2 – “Rockin’ Around The Christmas Tree” by Brenda Lee #1 – “All I Want For Christmas Is You” by Mariah Carey