Week in Music History

Detroit station 8MK began broadcasting. In October 1921 it received a commercial license and became station WBL; on March 3, 1922, its call sign was changed to WWJ after it became apparent that WBL could easily be misheard when received. The station broadcasts at 950 AM and is described as the first American radio station to begin regular broadcasting.

American country and pop singer and songwriter Jim Reeves was born in Galloway, Texas. He was among the first country artists to achieve significant success in pop as well. He became known for the 1957 hit “Four Walls”; in 1960 he had the U.S. No. 2 hit “He'll Have To Go”, and in 1966 the UK No. 1 hit “Distant Drums”. He died on July 31, 1964, in a single-engine aircraft crash in dense fog.

Roland Janes, an American rockabilly guitarist and music producer, was born. From 1956 to 1963 he worked with Sun Records and became a regular session guitarist on recordings by Jerry Lee Lewis, Charlie Rich, Sonny Burgess and others. He died on October 18, 2013, aged 80.

Jazz singer Joya Sherrill was born in Bayonne, New Jersey. She became known, among other things, for the song “I'm Beginning to See the Light” with the Duke Ellington Orchestra.

Jazz trombonist Frank Rosolino was born in Detroit, Michigan.

Jazz drummer Francis Cappuccio, known as Frank Capp, was born in Worcester, Massachusetts.

Paul Robi, a member of the American vocal group The Platters, was born in New Orleans, Louisiana. The Platters had the UK and U.S. No. 1 hit “Smoke Gets in Your Eyes” in 1959 and were among the first African-American groups to establish themselves as major chart artists. Robi died of cancer on February 1, 1989.

Country-rock musician, songwriter and steel guitarist Peter “Sneaky Pete” Kleinow was born in South Bend, Indiana. He was one of the original members of The Flying Burrito Brothers, alongside The Byrds' Chris Hillman and Gram Parsons. He also worked with John Lennon and Joni Mitchell. He died on January 6, 2007, aged 72.

Country singer and songwriter Justin Tubb, son of Texas Troubadour Ernest Tubb, was born in San Antonio, Texas.

Orrin Tucker recorded the song “Oh, Johnny, Oh, Johnny, Oh!”.

John Lantree, bassist and drummer with The Honeycombs, was born in Newbury, Berkshire, England. The Honeycombs had the UK No. 1 hit “Have I The Right” in 1964.

Leon Trotsky was attacked in exile in Mexico by Stalin's agent Jaime Ramón Mercader del Río, who struck him with an ice axe. Trotsky died in a Mexican hospital the following day from his brain injuries. His assassination was later commemorated in The Stranglers' song “No More Heroes”.

Singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist David “Dave” Brock was born in Isleworth, Middlesex, England. He became known as one of the founders and the leading figure of the space-rock band Hawkwind, which had the No. 3 UK hit “Silver Machine” in 1972.

American singer, songwriter, composer and actor Isaac Hayes was born in Covington, Tennessee. He became known, among other things, for the songs “Soul Man” and “Theme from Shaft”, which reached No. 1 in the U.S. and No. 4 in the UK in 1971. In 1998, as Chef, he reached No. 2 on the British chart with “Chocolate Salty Balls”. He died on August 10, 2008, aged 65.

Jon Povey, keyboard player with The Pretty Things, was born in London, England.

Michael B. Tretow, a Swedish music producer, sound engineer and musician best known for his work with the Swedish group ABBA, was born. He worked as a studio manager at Polar Studios. He died on May 20, 2025, aged 80.

Blues drummer “Uncle John” Turner, who performed with Johnny Winter's backing band, was born in Beaumont, Texas.

Ralf Hütter, German musician, multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, singer and co-founder of the electronic group Kraftwerk, was born in Krefeld, Germany. Kraftwerk are regarded as pioneers of electronic music, with major albums including “Autobahn”, “Trans-Europe Express”, “The Man-Machine” and “Computer World”. Their music combined electronic sounds with pop melodies, sparse arrangements and repetitive rhythms.

David Lasley, an American session singer, songwriter and musician, was known for his work as a backing vocalist and songwriter for artists including Bonnie Raitt, James Taylor, Luther Vandross, Chic, Aretha Franklin, Dionne Warwick, Dusty Springfield and Boz Scaggs. He died on December 9, 2021, aged 74.

Trombonist, songwriter and co-founder of the rock band Chicago James Pankow was born in St. Louis, Missouri. Chicago was formed in Chicago in 1967 as The Chicago Transit Authority and shortened its name in 1970. In 1976, the band had the UK and U.S. No. 1 hit “If You Leave Me Now”.

Robert Plant, founding member and frontman of Led Zeppelin, was born in West Bromwich, England. After discovering the music of Elvis Presley, he became deeply involved in rock'n'roll and went on to become one of rock's most distinctive singers. Led Zeppelin had the No. 4 U.S. single “Whole Lotta Love” in 1969, and their fourth album “Led Zeppelin IV” from 1971 included “Stairway to Heaven” and sold more than 37 million copies. Plant had the 1983 solo hit “Big Log” and also performed with The Honeydrippers. With Alison Krauss, he won a Grammy for the 2007 album “Raising Sand”, which won the Grammy for Album of the Year.

Irish singer, songwriter, bassist and producer Phil Lynott, founding member and frontman of the hard rock band Thin Lizzy, was born in West Bromwich, England. With the group, he had the No. 6 UK hit “Whiskey in the Jar” in 1973, and under his leadership Thin Lizzy became one of Ireland's most important rock bands. Lynott contributed to major songs including “Whiskey in the Jar”, “The Boys Are Back in Town” and “Jailbreak”. He died on January 4, 1986, from heart failure and pneumonia after being in a coma for eight days following a drug overdose. In 2005, a life-size bronze statue of him was unveiled in Dublin.

American singer, songwriter and guitarist Douglas “Doug” Fieger was born in Oak Park, Michigan. He became known as a member of the rock band The Knack. Their first single, “My Sharona”, became an international No. 1 hit in 1979; Fieger wrote the song for Sharona Alperin, who later became his girlfriend. He died of cancer on February 14, 2010, aged 57.

American singer, songwriter, guitarist, pianist and multi-genre musician John Hiatt was born in Indianapolis, Indiana. His songs were recorded by artists including Bob Dylan, The Searchers, Ry Cooder, Linda Ronstadt, Bonnie Raitt, Eric Clapton, B.B. King, Willie Nelson, Three Dog Night, Joan Baez and Iggy Pop.

Country singer and guitarist Rudy Gatlin of The Gatlin Brothers was born in Olney, Texas.

Elvis Presley performed at the Municipal Auditorium in Shreveport, Louisiana, as part of the Louisiana Hayride. The show began at 8:00 p.m.

Sun Records released the song “I Forgot to Remember to Forget”. Billboard published a review of it and predicted that it would receive considerable attention. The song reached No. 1 on the Billboard National Country Music Chart and No. 4 on the Billboard Most Played By Jockeys chart in February 1956, bringing Elvis his first nationwide publicity and success.

“Maybellene” by Chuck Berry debuted on the charts.

Connie Francis began work on her acting debut when MGM began filming the movie “Where the Boys Are” in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. The film became a box-office success, but the planned sequel “Where the Girls Are” was never made.

Elvis Presley filmed a dance scene for the song “C'mon Everybody” at the University of Nevada gymnasium in Las Vegas for the film Viva Las Vegas.

Shirley Bassey recorded “Goldfinger” in London for the upcoming James Bond film of the same name.

Davy Jones & The Lower Third released the single “You've Got a Habit of Leaving”, the last song David Bowie, then still performing under his birth name David Jones, released before changing his name. He made the change to avoid confusion with Davy Jones of The Monkees. It was also the first of two singles he recorded with The Lower Third after leaving his previous group, The Manish Boys.

The Rolling Stones' manager Andrew Loog Oldham and his partner Tony Calder founded Immediate Records. Its first release was “Hang On Sloopy” by The McCoys. Mick Jagger, Eric Clapton and Nico attended the launch party. The label later became home to The Small Faces, The Nice, Amen Corner and Chris Farlowe, and the young producer and guitarist Jimmy Page also worked with it.

The Rolling Stones released the single “(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction” in the U.S.

Darrell Abbott, known as Dimebag Darrell, co-founder and guitarist of the heavy metal band Pantera, was born in Ennis, Texas. Pantera had the No. 19 UK hit “I'm Broken” in 1994. Dimebag Darrell was shot dead on December 8, 2004, during a performance by Damageplan at the Alrosa Villa club in Columbus, Ohio.

14,000 fans filled the Forest Hills Music Festival in Queens, New York, where The Supremes, Stevie Wonder and The Temptations performed. It was a major showcase of Detroit soul at a venue best known for tennis championships and major folk and rock events.

During their final U.S. tour, The Beatles had to cancel and postpone their appearance at the open-air Crosley Field stadium in Cincinnati. Heavy rain and the lack of a roof meant that performing would have posed an almost certain risk of electric shock.

Cleveland group The Outsiders returned to the Billboard Top 40 following the success of their million-selling hit “Time Won't Let Me” with a cover of “Respectable” by The Isley Brothers. The song climbed to No. 15. The band had a total of four songs on the main Billboard chart and another four in the Bubbling Under category, but none of their recordings made a significant impact in Britain.

“You Can't Hurry Love” by The Supremes climbed from No. 66 to No. 28 on the chart.

Bobby Darin sold his music publishing company for one million dollars.

Andy Williams' album “Happy Heart” was certified gold.

Elvis performed an evening and midnight show at the International Hotel in Las Vegas. The evening show began at 8:15 p.m., had a capacity of 2,200 and included, among others, “Blue Suede Shoes”, “I Got A Woman”, “All Shook Up”, “Love Me Tender”, “Jailhouse Rock”, “Hound Dog”, “Mystery Train”, “Tiger Man”, “Are You Lonesome Tonight?”, “It's Now Or Never”, “Yesterday”, “Hey Jude”, “In The Ghetto”, “Suspicious Minds” and “Can't Help Falling In Love”. The midnight program is not listed on the source.

Frank Zappa temporarily disbanded The Mothers of Invention shortly after an eight-day tour of Canada. He said he was tired of playing for people who applauded for all the wrong reasons, as he felt audiences often overlooked the compositional complexity of the music and responded instead to the band's image and superficial eccentricities. He re-formed the group several months later.

Led Zeppelin performed at The Aerodrome in Schenectady, New York.