Rock 'n' Roll History for
September 12


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1956 - ClassicBands.com

September 12
Screamin' Jay Hawkins re-records his 1955 song, "I Put A Spell On You" for Columbia's Okeh Records. Hawkins would later admit that both he and the entire band were intoxicated during the session. Despite being banned from most radio stations for its outrageous style, the record nevertheless sells over a million copies and would be named one of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs That Shaped Rock and Roll. Amazingly, the song didn't crack Billboard's Pop or R&B charts.


1964 - ClassicBands.com

September 12
Manfred Mann's "Do Wah Diddy Diddy" enters Billboard's Hot 100, where it will reach number one just five weeks later.

1966 - ClassicBands.com

September 12
The Monkees television show premieres on NBC. Producers Bert Schneider and Bob Rafelson decided to emulate the zany, madcap humor of the Beatles' A Hard Day's Night for the small screen. When they placed an ad in Variety for four Folk and Rock musicians to appear in a TV series, over 400 applied for the job, including Stephen Stills, John Sebastian, Harry Nilsson and Danny Hutton (later of Three Dog Night), but as it turned out, only one of the four winners, guitarist and songwriter Michael Nesmith, actually saw the ad. Micky Dolenz (who would play drums), Davy Jones (who would sing), and Peter Tork (bass) found out about the opportunity from other sources. Nesmith and Tork had experience in the Folk scene; Dolenz and Jones were primarily actors, although Nesmith and Jones had already made some obscure solo recordings. Some have claimed that Charles Manson also applied, but he was in prison at the time and would not be paroled until March 21, 1967.

September 12
The Roger Miller Show debuts on NBC. It lasted for just thirteen weeks, coming to an end on December 26th.

1969 - ClassicBands.com

September 12
The Rolling Stones' second greatest hits compilation, "Through the Past, Darkly" is released on London Records in the US and Decca Records in the UK. The LP would rise to #2 on the UK Official Albums Chart and did the same on the Billboard 200 chart in America, where it would reach Platinum status for sales of over one million copies. It is the first, and probably the last album to be issued with an eight-sided sleeve.

1972 - ClassicBands.com

September 12
Gary Glitter's instrumental, "Rock and Roll Part 2" reached its peak at number seven on the Billboard Pop chart. The song was a standard at sporting events for years until he was arrested on child pornography charges in England in 1997. Many pro sports organizations quit playing the song after a technician fixing Glitter's computer found indecent images of young children on his hard drive. Glitter, whose real name is Paul Gadd, was discovered living in Cambodia in April, 2002, and was deported to Thailand. He was released from a Vietnamese prison where he served a three year sentence for committing "obscene acts with children" involving girls aged 10 and 11, and returned to England in August, 2008. On June 5th, 2014, Glitter was charged with eight counts of sexual offences committed against two girls aged 12 and 14 between 1977 and 1980. He would be convicted of those charges on February 5th, 2015 and sentenced to 16 years in prison. He was paroled in February, 2023, but returned to jail about five weeks later for parole violations.

1975 - ClassicBands.com

September 12
Pink Floyd issue their ninth studio album, "Wish You Were Here". Most of the LP is taken up by "Shine On You Crazy Diamond", a nine-part tribute to founding member Syd Barrett, who left the band seven years earlier due to mental health issues. With advance sales of 250,000 in Great Britain and 900,000 in America, it would top the charts in both countries, becoming Pink Floyd's fastest-selling album ever.


1980 - ClassicBands.com

September 12
Geraldo Rivera anchored an hour-long program for ABC's 20/20 titled "The Elvis Cover-Up", which established that Elvis was dependent on prescription drugs.

1987 - ClassicBands.com

September 12
Michael Jackson's "Bad" debuts at #1 on the UK album chart just as he kicks off his first solo world tour in Yokohama, Japan. The sixteen month concert series, which includes an entourage of 250 people, will play before a total audience of 4.4 million and take in over $125 million.

1990 - ClassicBands.com

September 12
Christine McVie and Stevie Nicks both announce that they'll no longer perform with Fleetwood Mac. A little over two years later, they reunited with the group to sing at President Clinton's inauguration.

1991 - ClassicBands.com

September 12
Although Hall And Oates' career was on the down swing in The United States, the pair played to a sold out show at the Mexico National Auditorium in Mexico. Their single "So Close" had made it to number eleven in the Fall of 1990. Even though their more recent efforts haven't done as well as their earlier material, Hall and Oates are still the best selling Rock duo of all time.

2000 - ClassicBands.com

September 12
CMC International releases Lynyrd Skynyrd's eleventh studio album, "Christmas Time Again". It features a mix of well-know Holiday favorites like "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer", "Santa Claus Is Coming to Town" and "Greensleeves", as well as original Lynyrd Skynyrd tunes like "Christmas Time Again" and "Classical Christmas". The LP managed to climb to #38 on the Billboard 200 chart.


2002 - ClassicBands.com

September 12
The son of rocker Rod Stewart was sentenced to 90 days in jail and ordered to undergo drug rehabilitation after pleading no contest to attacking a man outside a Malibu, California restaurant. Sean Stewart, 22, was arrested Dec. 5th, 2001, after he was seen kicking the man in the face and stomach. Stewart was also sentenced to five years of probation and ordered to pay nearly $5,600 to the victim. He could've faced four years in state prison.

2003 - ClassicBands.com

September 12
Johnny Cash, "The Man in Black" who became a towering figure in American music with such hits as "Folsom Prison Blues", "I Walk the Line", and "A Boy Named Sue", died at the age of 71. During his career, Cash won 11 Grammys, most recently in 2003, when "Give My Love To Rose" earned him honors as Best Male Country Vocal Performance. He also notched fourteen number 1 Country music hits. He was elected to the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1980 and inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1992. Two of his most popular albums were recorded live at Folsom Prison in 1968 and at San Quentin in 1969. Many people wrongly thought he had served prison time himself. He never did, although he did spend the odd night in jail during his youth and battled addictions to pills on and off throughout his life.

2007 - ClassicBands.com

September 12
Led Zeppelin announced that they would reform for one night only at London's 18,000-capacity O2 arena. The event was a tribute to Atlantic Records co-founder and chairman Ahmet Ertegun, who died December 14th, 2006, at the age of 83.

2008 - ClassicBands.com

September 12
Despite demands from pro-Palestinian groups to cancel a return concert in Israel, Paul McCartney promised Israeli fans he'll go on with his September 25th concert in Tel Aviv. "I was approached by different groups and political bodies who asked me not to come here. I refused. I do what I think, and I have many friends who support Israel."

2011 - ClassicBands.com

September 12
Although he is suffering from the effects of Alzheimer's disease, Glen Campbell makes an appearance on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, where he performs "It's Your Amazing Grace". Campbell gets through the performance by reading the lyrics from a teleprompter.

2012 - ClassicBands.com

September 12
Michael Jackson's former concert promoter, AEG Live, withdrew a $17.5m (10.9m Pound) insurance claim with Lloyd's of London over the singer's cancelled comeback gigs because it had been reimbursed by the singer's estate.

September 12
Bob Dylan brushed off critics who say he stole lyrics from various obscure poets. The 71-year-old musician told Rolling Stone magazine, "Wussies and pussies complain about that stuff."

2013 - ClassicBands.com

September 12
Ray Dolby, the US engineer who founded Dolby Laboratories and pioneered noise reduction in audio recordings, died of leukemia at the age of 80.

2020 - ClassicBands.com

September 12
The Rolling Stones' 1973 album "Goats Head Soup" returned to the #1 spot on the UK's Official Albums Chart by selling 800 more copies than its closest rival by Declan McKenna. The Official Charts Company confirmed that The Stones set a new record, becoming the first band in their history to score a chart topping album in six different decades.

2022 - ClassicBands.com

September 12
Renowned Jazz pianist Ramsey Lewis died in his sleep at his Chicago home at the age of 87. He is most often remembered for leading The Ramsey Lewis Trio on the instrumental hits "The 'In' Crowd" (#5 in 1965), "Hang On Sloopy" (#13 in 1965) and "Wade In The Water" (#19 in 1966). Over the course of his career, he earned three Grammy awards and seven Gold Records.




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