Today in Music History

The soundtrack album “The Sound of Music” began an extraordinary eighteen-week run at No. 1 in the United Kingdom.

The Who performed at the Imperial Ballroom in Nelson, Lancashire, England.

The BBC Radio 1 program “Top Gear”, hosted by John Peel and Pete Drummond, was broadcast for the first time. The first episode featured The Move, Traffic, Pink Floyd, Tim Rose, and Tomorrow with Keith West.

At RCA Studio B in Nashville, Elvis Presley recorded three songs for the soundtrack to the film “Stay Away Joe”. He was dissatisfied with the quality of the material and promised Felton Jarvis that none of the songs would ever be released.

Thieves broke into Mick Jagger’s London apartment while he was away and stole valuable jewelry and luxury furs belonging to his then-partner Marianne Faithfull.

Pink Floyd arrived in New York to begin their first tour of the United States.

Pink Floyd, together with Tomorrow, The Incredible String Band, and Tim Rose, performed two concerts as part of the Sunday At the Saville program at the Saville Theatre on Shaftesbury Avenue in London.

The Who appeared as the support act for Herman’s Hermits at the Mississippi State Coliseum in Jackson. In tribute to the location, they performed a one-off cover of Nancy Sinatra’s song “Jackson”. After the concert, Pete Townshend had to see a doctor after cutting his finger to the bone during his trademark guitar movement.

Traffic made their first stage appearance at the Saville Theatre in London.

John Sebastian officially left The Lovin' Spoonful and began a solo career. During his solo career, he released twelve albums, worked as a session musician, and composed music for children’s films and television. His greatest commercial success came in 1976 with the song “Welcome Back”, which reached No. 1 on the US Billboard chart.

Kevin Griffin, American singer, songwriter, vocalist, guitarist, and co-founder of the rock band Better Than Ezra, was born in Atlanta.

The Beatles’ eleventh studio album, “Abbey Road”, was released in the United States, one week after its UK release.

Colgems Records released The Monkees’ eighth studio album, “The Monkees Present Micky, David, Michael”. It was the group’s second album after Peter Tork’s departure and the last to feature Michael Nesmith until 1996. The album reached No. 100 in the United States, while the singles “Listen to the Band” and “Good Clean Fun” reached Nos. 63 and 82 respectively.

Curtis Mayfield left The Impressions to focus on a solo career and his own record label, Curtom Records, which he had co-founded with Eddie Thomas in 1968. Over the following five years, nine of his songs reached the Billboard Hot 100, including the million-selling hits “Freddie’s Dead” and “Superfly” from 1972.

Janis Joplin held her final recording session at Sunset Sound Recorders in Hollywood. During the session, she recorded an a cappella solo version of “Mercedes Benz”, which was later released on the posthumous album “Pearl”. According to one source variant, she also recorded a humorous version of “Happy Trails” during the same session as a birthday gift for John Lennon. She died three days later.

Cat Stevens released his fifth studio album, “Teaser and the Firecat”. The album reached No. 2 in both the USA and the UK, reached No. 1 in Australia, and sold more than four million copies. It also produced major hits including “Moonshadow”, “Morning Has Broken”, and “Peace Train”.

John Lennon’s album “Imagine” received a gold certification from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) in the United States. The certification was later upgraded to double platinum for more than two million copies sold in the USA.

The Allman Brothers Band performed at the Community Concourse Convention Hall in San Diego, California.

The Bee Gees performed at St. John Arena in Columbus, Ohio.

David Bowie performed at the Music Hall in Boston, Massachusetts.

Jon Mark lost his left ring finger, causing the remainder of the tour to be canceled.

The Eagles performed at the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa during their first tour.

King Crimson performed at the Ice Arena in Kalamazoo, Michigan.

Pink Floyd began recording the album “Wish You Were Here” at Abbey Road Studios in London.

Ringo Starr released the single “Photograph”.

Simon Park Orchestra reached No. 1 on the UK singles chart with “Eye Level”, the theme from the television series “Van der Valk”. According to the source, it was the first television theme to reach the top of the UK chart.

The Carpenters released the single “Top of the World”.

Elvis Presley performed at the Notre Dame Athletic and Convention Center in South Bend, Indiana. The concert began at 8:30 p.m., attracted 12,301 people, and Presley performed in a Chinese Dragon costume.

Irish singer and actor Keith Duffy was born in Dublin. He became famous as a member of the boy band Boyzone.

Olivia Newton-John reached No. 1 on the US Billboard chart with the song “I Honestly Love You”.

Roxy Music performed at De Montfort Hall in Leicester, England.

The Who released the album “Odds and Sods”, compiled from previously unreleased recordings and rarities. The selection was prepared by John Entwistle, while the liner notes were written by Pete Townshend.

David Bowie moved to West Berlin, or according to one version to West Germany, to escape Los Angeles and deal with his personal problems and drug addiction. This period laid the foundation for his Berlin Trilogy; Bowie also worked with Iggy Pop on the albums “The Idiot” and “Lust for Life” and with Brian Eno, while the song “Heroes” also came from this period.

English musician and songwriter Richard Oakes was born. He is best known as the guitarist of the band Suede.

Styx released the album “Crystal Ball”.

The Grateful Dead performed at Market Square Arena in Indianapolis, Indiana.

Elton John became the first non-sporting figure inducted into the Madison Square Garden Hall of Fame in New York, in recognition of the record attendance at his concerts in June 1977.

Meco’s “Star Wars Theme/Cantina Band” rose from No. 8 to No. 1 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and began a two-week run at the top. The approximately fifteen-minute disco version of music from the film “Star Wars” also included a sound effect resembling R2-D2 and became the best-selling single in the USA. The recording was led by producer and musician Domenico Monardo; both the single and the album “Star Wars and Other Galactic Funk” received platinum certification in the United States.

The Grateful Dead performed at the Paramount Theater in Portland, Oregon.

Golden Earring released their thirteenth studio album, “Grab It for a Second”. After the previous tour with Ted Nugent, the band wanted to make a hard rock album, but the record label chose producer Jimmy Iovine. It was also the band’s last album with second guitarist Eelco Gelling.

Rory Gallagher released his seventh solo studio album, “Photo-Finish”. The band was reduced to a power trio with drummer Ted McKenna of the Sensational Alex Harvey Band. Notable tracks on the album included “Shin Kicker”, “Shadow Play”, and “Overnight Bag”.

Yes performed at the Tarrant County Convention Center in Fort Worth, Texas.

Black Sabbath performed at the International Amphitheatre in Chicago during the tour supporting the album “Heaven and Hell”. The band featured Ronnie James Dio on vocals, with Blue Öyster Cult among the supporting acts.

The semi-autobiographical film “One Trick Pony”, starring Paul Simon, premiered in New York. The film was also released in US cinemas, and the soundtrack song “Late in the Evening” reached No. 6 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Rush performed at the Cumberland County Civic Center in Portland, Maine.

The Pretenders had to cancel the final part of their US tour after drummer Martin Chambers injured the tendons and arteries in his hand when he broke a window pane, or according to another source variant put his hand through a sheet of glass.

The first compact disc was released in the United States; it was a German-made reissue of Billy Joel’s 1978 album “52nd Street”.

John Cougar Mellencamp simultaneously topped the US album and singles charts with the album “American Fool” and the song “Jack and Diane”. He released the album under the name John Cougar, and “Jack and Diane” became his biggest hit.