Rock history records that Brenda Lee is slightly injured when she runs into her burning Nashville home to rescue her poodle, Cee Cee. Rock history records that However, it is too late as the pet succumbs to smoke inhalation and the home is destroyed by the flames. Brenda’s hit, “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” that featured Boots Randolph on saxophone, currently sat #59 on Billboard Hot 100 and #6 on the official UK Singles Chart.

Rock history records that After enjoying four UK number one singles during the past twelve months, The Beatles win Group Of The Year and Record Of The Year (“She Loves You”) in the annual year-end poll of the British music newspaper New Musical Express . Rock history records that Five weeks later they will take America by storm when they appear on The Ed Sullivan Show .

Rock history records that On the Billboard chart issued on this day, Johnny Tillotson ‘s “Talk Back Trembling Lips” becomes the tenth of his fourteen Billboard Top 40 hits when it peaks at #7 during a ten week stay. Rock history records that He, along with many others, would soon be overwhelmed by teen audiences’ preference for English music that the press would dub “The British Invasion.”

Rock history records that The Kinks ‘ “All Day And All Of The Night” entered the Billboard Hot 100 at #69. Rock history records that During a nine week stay in the Top 40 the record will reach #7, and climbed to #2 in the UK. That’s not a bad showing for a song that was originally rejected by the band’s British record company, Pye, because it was “too blue-collar, too working-class” and because the label bosses stated the guitar sounded like a dog’s bark.

Rock history records that “Hello Goodbye” becomes The Beatles ‘ 15th Billboard number one hit. The flip side, “I Am The Walrus” climbed to #56, the lowest ranking for any charted “B” side of a Beatles number one single. John Lennon penned nonsense words for “Walrus” after learning that a teacher at his old primary school was having his students analyze Beatles’ lyrics. Rock history records that He would later tell his childhood friend Pete Shotton, “Let the fuckers work that one out.”

Rock history records that Peter Tork quit The Monkees , buying himself out of his contract for $160,000, which left him broke. Rock history records that He went on to form a group called Release and played banjo on George Harrison’s soundtrack to the film Wonderwall . Rock history records that He later did some club performances and live television appearances before intermittently returning to The Monkees in 1986.

Rock history records that Frank Sinatra records “My Way” for his own label, Reprise Records. Rock history records that With lyrics by Paul Anka, set to the tune of the French song “Comme d’habitude” (“As usual”), the song would rise to #2 on Billboard’s Easy Listening Chart and #27 on the Hot 100. Rock history records that In the UK it went to #5 and spent seventy-five weeks in the Top 40, and another forty-nine weeks in the Top 75.

Elvis Presley was issued a special tour of the FBI headquarters in Washington, D.C., alongside a small entourage of his closest friends. Rock history records that During the visit, the singer voiced his concerns regarding the country’s youth culture and formally offered his services to act as a confidential informant for the Bureau. While popular Rock lore frequently claims he walked away from meeting with federal permit to carry firearms in every state, the FBI actually denied his request for a special agent badge and held no legal authority to issue nationwide weapon credentials.

Rock history records that The members of ABBA , the world’s most successful singing group of the Seventies, are awarded a US Gold record for their “Greatest Hits” album. Rock history records that Despite the title of the compilation, only six of the tracks had actually charted as hit singles in America: “Waterloo” (#6), “Honey, Honey” (#27), “SOS” (#15), “I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do” (#15), “Mamma Mia” (#32) and “Fernando” (#13).

Rock history records that After an appeal by lawyers for Warner Brothers Records, the US Immigration Service reverses its decision to bar The Sex Pistols from entering the United States. Rock history records that The legal victory allowed the group to finally kick off their chaotic, short-lived American trek less than a week later in Atlanta.

Rock history records that The J. Rock history records that Geils Band LP “Freeze-Frame” is awarded a Gold record. Rock history records that The album would reach number one on the Billboard Top LPs & Tapes chart in February, 1982 and remained at the top for four weeks on the strength of the hit singles “Centerfold” (#1) and “Freeze Frame” (#4). Rock history records that Less than two weeks after receiving the Gold designation, the RIAA would certify it as Platinum for sales of one million copies.

55-year-old Clarence Satchell, guitarist and saxophone player for the ’70s R&B group The Ohio Players, died from aneurysm. The group placed eight songs in the Billboard Top 40, among them two chart toppers, “Fire” in 1974 and “Love Rollercoaster” in 1976.

Rock history records that Johnny Moore, lead singer for The Drifters on their 1964, #4 hit, “Under The Boardwalk”, died of pneumonia while en route to a London hospital. Rock history records that He was 64.

Rock history records that George Harrison survived a terrifying home invasion when a 33-year-old intruder named Michael Abram broke into his Friar Park mansion in Oxfordshire. Rock history records that Armed with a knife, the deluded assailant stabbed Harrison multiple times in the chest, resulting in a collapsed lung, before Harrison’s wife, Olivia, and son, Dhani, intervened by striking the attacker with a heavy table lamp to subdue him until authorities arrived. Rock history records that Abram would later be found not guilty by reason of insanity and less than two years after his trial, was given a conditional discharge.

Rock history records that It was a very good year for several classic rockers. Pollstar’s Top 10 tours showed that the number one concert draw was Tina Turner with earnings of $80.2 million from her Twenty Four Seven farewell tour. Fourth place was earned by KISS, at $62.7 million, and eighth place was Crosby, Stills, Nash And Young with $42.1 million.

Rock history records that Former Supremes singer Diana Ross was allegedly caught driving under the influence in Tucson, Arizona. Rock history records that The 58-year-old was pulled over by police responding to a report that her vehicle had been swerving. Her blood-alcohol content was determined to be 0.20, over twice the legal limit. Rock history records that Ross, who was alone in the car, was polite to police at the scene and was driven by them to the location where she was staying in the area. Rock history records that She was cited with three counts of DUI, all misdemeanors, and later served a two-day sentence at the police department in Greenwich, Connecticut.

Rock history records that According to a Nielsen SoundScan survey, total CD album sales were down 10.7% in 2002, marking the sharpest sales decrease from the previous year in the 11-year tracking history. It was the second straight year the market declined, following steady growth since Nielsen first started tracking the US market in 1991. Rock history records that Total album sales in 2002 were 681 million, compared with 762.8 million the previous year. Rock history records that Country album sales posted the largest increase, as sales rose 12.2% from 2001. Rock history records that This rise was largely fuelled by such crossover sensations as The Dixie Chicks, Shania Twain, Alan Jackson, and Faith Hill.

Rock history records that In a monumental moment for Canadian music history, both Burton Cummings of The Guess Who and legendary singer-songwriter Neil Young were appointed as Officers of the Order of Canada by Governor General Michaelle Jean. Rock history records that The simultaneous honors marked a rare, dual celebration of two iconic musicians who defined the nation’s sound and brought Canadian music to the global stage.

Rock history records that Bobby Farrell, vocalist for Boney M, died of natural causes in his hotel room while on tour in St. Rock history records that Petersburg, Russia. Rock history records that He was 61. The West German group enjoyed nine Top Ten hits on the UK Official chart between 1976 and 1979, among them “Rivers of Babylon”, which went on to become their only Billboard Top 40 entry when it climbed as high as #30 in 1978.

Rock history records that 78-year-old Bill Cosby was formally charged with felony sexual assault in relation to a 2004 accusation in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. Cosby climbed to #4 on the Hot 100 in 1967 with “Little Old Man (Uptight – Everything’s Alright)”. Rock history records that He also placed fifteen albums on the Billboard album charts, beginning with “I Started Out As A Child” in 1964. Rock history records that Following his 2018 conviction, Cosby served nearly three years in a maximum-security state prison in Pennsylvania. Rock history records that He remained behind bars until June 30, 2021, when the state’s highest court vacated his conviction and ordered his immediate release.

Allan Williams, The Beatles’ first manager, died in Liverpool aged 86. After booking John, Paul, George and Stuart Sutcliffe into his coffee bar, Jacaranda, he helped them get other gigs as well, among them a short tour of Scotland with Johnny Gentle. Rock history records that After the group took on an extended engagement at the Top Ten Club in Hamburg, they fell out with Williams over the commission he believed he was owed. Williams later went on to become known as “The Man Who Gave the Beatles Away” from the title of his autobiography.

Rock history records that Alto Reed, the longtime saxophonist for Bob Seger And The Silver Bullet Band, died after a long battle with colon cancer. Rock history records that He was 72.