HC's Rock Rewind: April 10 - 23

HC's Rock Rewind

A look back at the past two weeks in Rock History

by Team HC

April 10th -16th

This week in rock music history was marked by abundance of significant events. One of the songs that launched rock and roll was recorded, one of contemporary music’s greatest bands announced their breakup, and, sadly, an R&B/funk giant performed his final show. A trove of classic albums was released as well, including landmark records by David Bowie, Lynyrd Skynyrd and The Cult. Read on for a look back at other noteworthy moments that shaped rock and roll during this historically eventful week.

Events

1954 – Bill Haley records “Rock Around the Clock.” A world-wide smash, the recording eventually achieves sales of 25 million.

1957 – Ricky Nelson performs his debut single, “I’m Walkin’,” on the TV show “The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet,” effectively launching his music career at age 16.

1961 – Bob Dylan performs his first New York City live gig, opening for John Lee Hooker at Gerde’s Folk City.

1966 – Buffalo Springfield make their live debut, performing at The Troubadour in Los Angeles.

1967 – Marvin Gaye records his version of “I Heard it Through the Grapevine.”

1968 – Janis Joplin makes her first American TV appearance, performing on “The Hollywood Palace” with Big Brother & the Holding Company.

1969 – The 5th Dimension’s recording of “Aquarius/Let the Sunshine In” tops the charts and remains in that spot for six weeks.

1970 – Paul McCartney issues a press release announcing the breakup of the Beatles. It later comes to light that John Lennon had decided to leave the Beatles much earlier than McCartney, but had kept his intentions secret from the press.

1970 – The Beatles’ Let It Be album tops the U.S. charts.

1970 – Led Zeppelin’s “Whole Lotta Love” is certified gold in the U.S.

1972 – Electric Light Orchestra make their live debut, performing at the Fox and Greyhound Pub in Croydon, England.

1975 – Ronnie Wood is announced as the replacement for recently departed Rolling Stones guitarist Mick Taylor.

1976 – Peter Frampton’s Frampton Comes Alive! album hits #1 on the U.S. charts. It goes on to occupy the top spot for 10 non-consecutive weeks, and remains on the chart for a total of 97 weeks.

1973 – Led Zeppelin’s Houses of the Holy album is certified gold.

1979 – Mickey Thomas—previously best known as the lead vocalist on Elvin Bishop’s “Fooled Around and Fell in Love”—becomes the new lead singer for Jefferson Starship.

1994 – More than 5,000 people attend a memorial service for Nirvana’s Kurt Cobain, held at the Seattle Flag Pavilion.

1994 – Oasis release their first single, “Supersonic.”

2002 – S.C. governor James Hodges declares singer James Brown the state’s “Godfather of Soul.”

2009 – Procol Harum’s “A Whiter Shade of Pale” is determined to be the most-played song in public places during the past 75 years, according to BBC Radio 2. Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody” comes in at Number Two.

2014 – REM’s Michael Stipe inducts Nirvana into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Stipe’s comments include the observation that Nirvana “spoke truth and a lot of people listened.”

2016 – Prince stages his final show, performing at the Fox Theatre in Atlanta. The last song he performs is “Purple Rain.”

Releases

1970 – Elton John: Elton John

1972 – Raspberries: Raspberries

1972 – Creedence Clearwater Revival: Mardi Gras

1972 – Stephen Stills and Manassas: Manassas

1973 – The J. Geils Band: Bloodshot

1973 – David Bowie: Aladdin Sane

1973 – Bob Marley & The Wailers: Catch a Fire

1974 – Lynyrd Skynyrd: Second Helping

1975 – The Beach Boys: Spirit of America

1976 – Bob Seger & The Silver Bullet Band: Live Bullet

1978 – Various Artists: Grease: The Original Soundtrack from the Motion Picture

1979 – Thin Lizzy: Black Rose: A Rock Legend

1980 – Judas Priest: British Steel

1980 – Iron Maiden: Iron Maiden

1981 – Public Image Ltd.: The Flowers of Romance

1982 – John Cougar: American Fool

1982 – Van Halen: Diver Down

1983 – R.E.M.: Murmur

1983 – David Bowie: Let's Dance

1984 – Rush: Grace Under Pressure

1987 – Fleetwood Mac: Tango in the Night

1988 – Iron Maiden: Seventh Son of a Seventh Son

1988 – Neil Young and the Bluenotes: This Note's for You

1988 – Cheap Trick: Lap of Luxury

1989 – The Cult: Sonic Temple

1989 – Garth Brooks: Garth Brooks

1990 – Lou Reed and John Cale: Songs for Drella

1991 – Temple of the Dog: Temple of the Dog

1994 – Hole: Live Through This

1998 – Widespread Panic: Light Fuse, Get Away

1999 – Shelby Lynne: I Am Shelby Lynne

2002 – Sheryl Crow: C'mon C'mon

2003 – ZZ Top: Mescalero

2003 – Fleetwood Mac: Say You Will

Deaths

Stuart Sutcliff – April 10, 1962

Josephine Baker – April 12, 1975

Sam Kinison – April 10, 1992

Anthony Newley – April 14, 1999

Skip Spence – April 16, 1999

Joey Ramone – April 15, 2001

Little Eva – April 10, 2003

Ritchie Cordell – April 13, 2004

Johnnie Johnson – April 13, 2005

June Pointer – April 11, 2006

Mississippi Slim – April 14, 2010

Jesse Winchester – April 11, 2014

Percy Sledge – April 14, 2015

Births

Henry Mancini – April 16, 1924

Loretta Lynn – April 14, 1935

Dusty Springfield – April 16, 1939

Herbie Hancock – April 12, 1940

John Kay (Steppenwolf) – April 12, 1944

Jack Casady (Jefferson Airplane) – April 13, 1944

Dave Edmonds – April 15, 1944

Lowell George – April 13, 1945

Ritchie Blackmore – April 14, 1945

Al Green – April 13, 1946

Bunny Livingston – April 10, 1947

Lee Kerslake (Uriah Heep) – April 16, 1947

Fred Smith (Television) – April 10, 1948

June Millington (Fanny) – April 14, 1949

Eddie Hazel (Funkadelic) – April 10, 1950

David Cassidy – April 12, 1950

Max Weinberg – April 13, 1951

Peter Garrett (Midnight Oil) – April 16, 1953

Jimmy Destri (Blondie) – April 13, 1954

Vince Gill – April 12, 1957

Stuart Adamson (Big Country) – April 11, 1958

Brian Setzer – April 10, 1959

Amy Ray (Indigo Girls) – April 12, 1964

Dave Pirner (Soul Asylum) – April 16, 1964

Ed O’Brien (Radiohead) – April 15, 1968

April 17th - 23rd

A trove of memorable events occurred during this week in rock and roll history. An iconic alternative-rock band performed in public for the first time, sessions for a landmark ‘70s album began in San Francisco, and an unlikely rock opera (not by The Who) opened on Broadway. Read on for a look back at other significant moments that shaped rock and roll during this historically eventful week.

Events

1951 – Les Paul and Mary Ford’s “How High the Moon” hits Number One.

1963 – The Beatles and The Rolling Stones meet for the first time, at the Crawdaddy Club in Richmond, Surrey.

1965 -- The legendary “T.A.M.I. Show” film opens in London under the title “Teenage Command Performance.” The film features The Rolling Stones, The Supremes, James Brown, the Four Tops and Smokey Robinson and the Miracles.

1967 – The Beatles wrap up recording sessions for Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band.

1968 – Deep Purple make their debut stage appearance, in Kastrup, Denmark.

1969 – The Who perform Tommy in its entirety for the first time, at a show in Dolton, England.

1969 – John Lennon officially changes his full name from John Winston Lennon to John Winston Ono Lennon.

1969 -- The Band perform their first solo concert, staging a show in San Francisco, California.

1970 – Elton John makes his solo stage debut, opening for Spooky Tooth, T.Rex and Jackie Lomax at The Roundhouse in London.

1970 – Santana begin sessions for their breakthrough album, Abraxas. Upon its release in September, the album tops the U.S. album charts.

1971 – Three Dog Night’s recording of “Joy to the World” hits the Number One spot, where it remains for six weeks.

1973 – The original Alice Cooper’s Billion Dollar Babies album hits the Number One spot in the U.S.

1975 -- Alice Cooper’s first TV special, “Welcome to My Nightmare: The Making of a Record Album,” airs on network television in America.

1978 – Bob Marley appears as headliner at the One Love Peace Concert in Jamaica. It’s the reggae legend’s first public appearance in his home country since the attempt on his life two years earlier.

1980 – R.E.M. perform their first show under the name R.E.M., at a small, unlicensed venue in Athens, Georgia.

1981 – Prog-rockers Yes disband temporarily when Chris Squire and Alan White leave to begin rehearsing with Robert Plant and Jimmy Page. The intended “supergroup” fails to materialize, however, and Yes later reforms to release the hugely successful 90125 album.

1990 – In Rio de Janeiro, a record crowd of 184,000 turn out to see the final show of Paul McCartney’s 330-city tour.

1991 – Small Faces and Humble Pie frontman Steve Marriott dies tragically, when a fire sweeps through his home in Arkesden, Essex. He is just 44 years old.

2010 – Green Day’s “American Idiot” rock opera opens on Broadway, one year after its debut at the Berkeley Repertory Theatre.

2015 – Ringo Starr becomes the last of The Beatles to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a solo artist.

Releases

1957 -- Ricky Nelson:  “I’m Walkin’” (single)

1965 -- The Beatles:  “Ticket to Ride” (single)

1966 -- The Troggs: “Wild Thing” (single)

1968 -- The Zombies:  Odessey and Oracle

1970 – Paul McCartney:  McCartney

1970 -- Jethro Tull:  Benefit

1971 -- The Doors:  L.A. Woman

1971 -- The Rolling Stones:  Sticky Fingers

1973 – Eagles: Desparado

1974 – Robin Trower: Bridge of Sighs

1975 -- ZZ Top:  Fandango!

1976 – The Rolling Stones: Black and Blue

1976 -- The Ramones:  Ramones

1980 -- Pete Townshend: Empty Glass

1982 – Laurie Anderson: Big Science

1985 – Prince: Around the World in a Day

1988 – The Jesus and Mary Chain:  Barbed Wire Kisses

1989 – Pixies: Doolittle

1993 – Shania Twain:  Shania Twain

1993 – Aerosmith:  Get a Grip

1998 -- Jimmy Page and Robert Plant:  Walking Into Clarksdale

2002 – Paul Westerberg:  Stereo

2002 – Wilco:  Yankee Hotel Foxtrot

Deaths

Eddie Cochran – April 17, 1960

Sandy Denny (Fairport Convention) -- April 21, 1978

Felix Pappalardi – April 17, 1983

Steve Marriott -- April 20, 1991

Johnny Thunders -- April 23, 1991

Johnny Shines -- April 20, 1992

Bernard Edwards (Chic) -- April 18, 1996

Linda McCartney – April 17, 1998

Earl King – April 17, 2003

Nina Simone -- April 21, 2003

Danny Federici (E Street Band) – April 17, 2008

Levon Helm -- April 19, 2012

Storm Thorgerson (album designer) -- April 18, 2013

Richie Havens -- April 22, 2013

Births

Clarence “Gatemouth” Brown -- April 18, 1924

Don Kirshner – April 17, 1934

Paul Rothchild (Producer) -- April 18, 1935

Glen Campbell -- April 22, 1936

Roy Orbison -- April 23, 1936

Skip Spence -- April 18, 1946

Iggy Pop -- April 21, 1947

Jan Hammer – April 17, 1948

Paul Davis -- April 21, 1948

Peter Frampton -- April 22, 1950

Luther Vandross -- April 20, 1951

Paul Carrack -- April 22, 1951

Pete Shelley (Buzzcocks) – April 17, 1955

Robert Smith (The Cure) - April 21, 1959

Steve Clark (Def Leppard) -- April 23, 1960

Liz Phair – April 17, 1967

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