Rock 'n' Roll History for
November 20


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1955 - ClassicBands.com

November 20
After the staff of The Ed Sullivan Show requested he sing "Sixteen Tons", Bo Diddley instead performs "Bo Diddley" live on the Sunday night TV show. Sullivan was so infuriated, Bo would never be invited back. The singer later recalled, "Ed Sullivan said that I was one of the first colored boys to ever double-cross him. Said that I wouldn't last six months." Diddley would prove Sullivan wrong, as he released 11 albums between 1958 and 1963 and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1987.

November 20
Colonel Tom Parker negotiates the sale of Elvis Presley's Sun Records contract to RCA, which includes his five Sun singles and other unreleased material. The price is $35,000, with a $5,000 bonus for Elvis.

1957 - ClassicBands.com

November 20
The Silhouettes' classic Doo-Wop hit, "Get A Job" is released. Lyricist Richard Lewis explained that after he got out of the military, he didn't seek employment right away. His mother finally said, "get a job", and that's where the idea for the song came from. It would reach #1 on the Billboard Top 100 and the R&B chart, eventually selling over a million copies.


1959 - ClassicBands.com

November 20
Rock and Roll disc jockey Alan Freed is fired from WABC television in New York for refusing to say that he never accepted payola. Eight days later he would be canned from WNEW-TV New York.

1961 - ClassicBands.com

November 20
With the Twist craze sweeping across North America, Billboard reports that WOR-TV, New York, has shot a series of one and five minute Twist lessons with Chubby Checker, to be shown hourly every day.

1965 - ClassicBands.com

November 20
"I Hear A Symphony" becomes The Supremes' sixth US number one single. The trio had their streak of five chart toppers in a row interrupted by "Nothing But Heartaches", which stalled at number 11.

November 20
Decca Records releases The Who's "My Generation" in America. Issued three weeks earlier in Great Britain, the song had become a sort of anthem for British teens, rising to number two on the UK chart. In the US however, despite performing the tune on The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour, the song will be mostly ignored and would get no higher than number 74 on the Billboard chart. "My Generation" was later named #11 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.

1971 - ClassicBands.com

Just three weeks after it was released, Isaac Hayes' "Theme From Shaft" hits #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 for the first of two weeks. It would also reach number two on the Billboard Soul Singles Chart, number six on the Easy Listening Chart and number four on the UK Singles Chart. At next year's Academy Awards, it would win for Best Instrumental Arrangement and Best Original Score Written For A Motion Picture Or A Television Special.

1972 - ClassicBands.com

MCA Records releases Elton John's "Crocodile Rock" in the USA. It will reach #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and be certified Gold in February of next year. The song would attain Platinum status on September 13th, 1995.

1973 - ClassicBands.com

November 20
During a concert at San Francisco's Cow Palace, The Who's drummer Keith Moon collapsed onstage after someone spiked his drink with horse tranquilizer. The first incident happened during the band's performance of "Won't Get Fooled Again", and the band was forced to complete the song without Moon. They then wrestled him back behind the drum kit, only to see him collapse again during "Magic Bus". The group then performed "See Me, Feel Me" (minus drums) before Pete Townshend asked the audience "Is there anyone out there who can play the drums"? 19-year-old Scott Halpin climbed onstage and filled in for the final three songs of The Who's set.

November 20
Comedian Allan Sherman, who reached #2 in America in 1963 with "Hello Muddah, Hello Faddah", died while entertaining friends at his home in Los Angeles, California. He was ten days shy of his 49th birthday.


1975 - ClassicBands.com

November 20
The Bay City Rollers' Les McKeown is found not guilty of causing the death of a 76 year old woman that he had hit with his car the previous May. Witnesses said that Euphemia Clunie was walking across the road and had changed directions four times. McKeown was convicted of driving recklessly and fined 150 pounds and prohibited from driving for a year.

November 20
The Who kick off a month-long American tour at The Summit in Houston. At a party afterwards, bassist John Entwistle is arrested for disorderly conduct and spends a few hours in jail.

1976 - ClassicBands.com

November 20
Paul Simon hosts NBC's Saturday Night Live where he duets with George Harrison on "Here Comes The Sun" and "Homeward Bound". Paul McCartney and John Lennon are both in New York and watching the show on TV.

1984 - ClassicBands.com

November 20
The largest crowd to see the unveiling of a Hollywood Walk-of-Fame star turned out as Michael Jackson got his piece of the sidewalk right in front of Mann's Chinese Theatre in Los Angeles. The Gloved One became star number 1,793 on the famed walk.

1991 - ClassicBands.com

November 20
The Rolling Stones sign a $45 million contract with Virgin Records, making them Rock's highest paid group. That record has since been eclipsed. Their deal called on the band to make three albums over six years.

November 20
Randy Jackson, of The Jackson 5, was sentenced to 30 days in a mental hospital for beating his wife Eliza Shaffy and their 7-month-old daughter Stevanna. Shaffy filed for divorce.

2001 - ClassicBands.com

November 20
Madonna's childhood home in Oakland County Michigan, sold at an auction in just 12 minutes. The house, along with a few items of Rock memorabilia, was purchased for $331,000.

2002 - ClassicBands.com

November 20
Stevie Wonder was said to be "highly upset" over his mother's book, Blind Faith: The Miraculous Journey of Lula Hardaway. In it, she wrote that Stevie lost his virginity to a prostitute, a story that had been printed elsewhere. The allegation was deleted from later editions of the book.


2003 - ClassicBands.com

November 20
Phil Spector, known for his creation of the Wall of Sound, was formally charged with murder in connection with the shooting of actress Lana Clarkson. Spector was first arrested on February 3rd, 2002 after police found Clarkson's body in a pool of blood at the entrance to Spector's mansion. He would be found guilty on April 13th, 2009 and was sentenced to 19 years to life in the California state prison system. Various appeals were unsuccessful in 2011, 2012, and 2016. He would die in an outside hospital on January 16th, 2021 at the age of 81.

November 20
Michael Jackson flew to Santa Barbara to be arrested. He was seen in handcuffs being taken into the police station. The singer had his mug shot and fingerprints taken before being freed on $3 million bail.

2013 - ClassicBands.com

November 20
Madonna topped Forbes list of the highest-paid musicians in the world with an estimated $125 million in earnings over the past year. Lady Gaga was second with $80 million, followed by Bon Jovi at $79 million, Toby Keith made $65 million, and Coldplay amassed $64 million.

2015 - ClassicBands.com

November 20
Jeff Lynne's ELO played their first real date in the US in over thirty years at New York's tiny Irving Plaza. The show, which sold out in seconds, was deemed an overwhelming success.

November 20
Fleetwood Mac's drummer Mick Fleetwood was granted a divorce from his wife of twenty years, Lynn Frankel Fleetwood.

2021 - ClassicBands.com

November 20
70-year-old Billy Hinsche, of Dino, Desi And Billy, died after a short battle with lung cancer. The group, whose biggest hit was 1965's "I'm a Fool", which peaked at #17 on the Billboard Hot 100, included Dean Paul Martin, the son of singer-actor Dean Martin, and Desi Arnaz Jr., the son of actor-musician Desi Arnaz and Lucille Ball.




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