January 7th was a busy day in music history:
Births
- Paul Revere, of Paul Revere and the Raiders fame, was born on January 7, 1938. Paul Revere of American Revolutionary War fame, was born on January 1, 1735.
- On this day in 1948: Kenny Loggins was born in Everett, Washington, but eventually settled with his family in Alhambra, California. Loggins is a singer, songwriter and one half of Loggins & Messina (1971-76). In 1984, his single “Footlose” from the film of the same name, went to US No.1 & UK No. 6
- In 1959, Kathy Valentine (bassist, guitarist for Go-Go’s) was born in Austin, Texas.
- In 1974, Carly Simon and James Taylor become the parents of their second child, Sarah Martin.
- Also in 1974, John Rich was born in Amarillo, Texas. After a stint with Lonestar, he re-emerged in 2004 as one-half of Big & Rich and as a solo artist. He also wrote hits for other acts, including Gretchen Wilson’s “Redneck Woman,” Faith Hill’s “Mississippi Girl” and Jason Aldean’s “Hicktown”
- In 2012, Beyoncé and Jay-Z had their first child: a daughter named Blue Ivy Carter.
Tours and Recording
- 1964, The Beatles recorded a seven-song appearance for the BBC Radio program Saturday Club. They played “All My Loving”, “Money”, “The Hippy Hippy Shake”, “I Want to Hold Your Hand”, “Roll Over Beethoven”, “Johnny B. Goode”, and “I Wanna Be Your Man”. The show was broadcast on February 15, while the Beatles were in the US.
- In 1970, Led Zeppelin kicked off an 8-date UK tour at Birmingham Town Hall. The set list included: “I Can’t Quit You Baby”, “Dazed And Confused”, “Heartbreaker”, “Since I’ve Been Loving You”, “Thank You”, “Moby Dick”, “How Many More Times”, “Whole Lotta Love” and “Communication Breakdown”.
- 1971, Black Sabbath released Paranoid their second studio album in the US. The album features the band’s best-known signature songs, including the title track, “Iron Man” and “War Pigs”. The album was originally titled War Pigs, but allegedly the record company changed it to Paranoid, fearing backlash from supporters of the ongoing Vietnam War.
- On this day in 1981, The Police played the first night of a North American tour at The University of Montreal, Quebec, Canada during their Zenyatta Mondatta World Tour.
- In 1993, R.E.M. played a Greenpeace Benefit show at the 40 watt Club, Athens, Georgia, for 500 people. The show was recorded on a solar powered mobile recording studio.
- In 1994, Oasis started recording their debut album Definitely Maybe at Monnow Valley Studio in South Wales. When released in August 1994, it became the fastest selling debut album of all time in the UK, (being surpassed in 2006 by Arctic Monkeys debut album Whatever People Say I Am, That’s What I’m Not). The album went on to sell over 12 million copies worldwide.
Charts and Awards
- On January 7, 1950 (yes, 2 weeks after Christmas) Gene Autry’s “Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer,” based on a children’s book written in 1939, hits #1 becoming the first number 1 hit of 1950.
- In 1955, ‘Rock Around the Clock’ by Bill Haley and his Comets, entered the UK chart for the first time, establishing a foothold for rock and roll in Britain. The original title of the song was ‘We’re Gonna Rock Around the Clock Tonight!’ and is often cited as the biggest-selling vinyl rock and roll single of all-time with sales over 25m.
- In 1978 Johnny Paycheck’s “Take This Job And Shove It” works its way to #1 on the Billboard country singles chart and becomes an anthem for disgruntled workers everywhere.
- In 1980, Led Zeppelin’s In Through The Out Door is certified platinum; it was the last Zep album issued while drummer John Bonham is alive.
- A year later in 1981, Eagles Live was certified platinum; it was 13 years until the next Eagles album is released.
- The Dixie Chicks and Alan Jackson each received four nods when the Grammy nominations were announced in 2003.
- At the 35th Annual People’s Choice Awards held at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles in 2009, Carrie Underwood was the night’s big winner, taking home the Favorite Female Singer, Country Song (“Last Name”) and Favorite Star Under 35 Awards. Rascal Flatts also picked up an award for Favorite Group.
- In 2010, According to Nielsen SoundScan’s final 2009 figures, Michael Jackson was the best selling artist of the year, moving 8,286,000 units. Forty years after their break-up, The Beatles were still the best selling group, thanks to their remastered catalog which sold 3,282,000 copies. Digital downloads however, were a different story. Lady Gaga was the queen of downloads, selling 15,297,000 digital tracks. The Black Eyed Peas, Michael Jackson and Taylor Swift all finished in the vicinity of 12 million digital units.
- In 2012, Katy Perry’s album Teenage Dream became the first album in history to have 7 songs from the same album reach #1 on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Songs chart. This was official as soon as the single “The One That Got Away” hit #1.
- Lady Antebellum, Carrie Underwood and Hunter Hayes won country trophies on CBS’ telecast of the People’s Choice Awards in 2015. Taylor Swift claims three pop honors.
News of the weird and other stuff that happened on January 7th
- A tornado ripped through Tupelo, Mississippi in 1946, forcing a ten-year-old Elvis Presley to hide in the cellar with his mother, Gladys.
- In 1987, Elton John underwent throat surgery at a hospital in Sydney, Australia, to remove nodules on his vocal cords. He cancelled his American tour, but was thrilled with the results, later claiming that his voice became stronger and more resonant after the procedure.
- In 1997, Prince appeared on the Rosie O’Donnell show.
- In 2013, Justin Bieber fans were targeted by an online trolling campaign. Members of the image board 4chan claimed to be raising an awareness campaign to encourage the pop star to say ‘no’ to drugs. The campaign’s premise was “cut for Bieber” where fans were encouraged to cut themselves and posts photos of the damage online accompanied by the #CutForBieber tag on Twitter. Several hoax accounts posted results in “response,” but it was felt that no actual Bieber fans fell for the ploy. Earlier in October, a similar troll campaign called “Bald for Bieber” encouraging fans to shave their heads for the pop star based on the false rumor that he had cancer, fizzled out too.
- That same year, in less dramatic news, The Zac Brown Band sang the national anthem before college football’s BCS Championship Game at Sun Life Stadium in Miami. The Alabama Crimson Tide dominated the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, 42-14
In the courts
- In 1962, Chubby Checker’s “The Twist” hits #1 — again. A year later in 1963, Chubby Checker got sued by Gary “U.S.” Bonds for copyright infringement to the tune of $100,000, claiming that Checker’s “Dancing Party” is a thinly veiled rewrite of Bonds’ recent hit “Quarter To Three.” The suit was eventually settled out-of-court for an undisclosed sum.
- In 1970, Max Yasgur, whose farm in upstate New York played host to the original Woodstock Festival, was sued for $35,000 in property damages by neighboring farmers.
- In 1976, former record exec Kenneth Moss is sentenced to 120 days in the Los Angeles County Jail and four years probation for his role in the accidental overdose death of Average White Band drummer Robbie McIntosh.
