Rock 'n' Roll History for
September 26


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1887 - ClassicBands.com

September 26
Emile Berliner, a 36 year old German immigrant living in Washington DC, applies for a patent on his invention, the gramophone. The machine was the first to play flat discs as opposed to Thomas Edison's wax cylinder apparatus. The patent would be granted in November.

1928 - ClassicBands.com

September 26
Operations began at Chicago's new Galvin Manufacturing Corporation, where work would take place on the first mass-produced, commercial car radio. In 1930, Galvin would introduce the Motorola to the Radio Manufacturers Association's annual meeting in Atlantic City. .

1956 - ClassicBands.com

September 26
Tupelo, Mississippi declares September 26th as Elvis Presley Day in honor of their home town boy.

September 26
Fats Domino's version of "Blueberry Hill" enters the Billboard Pop chart where it will reach number two. The song had been written in 1940 and was recorded by several artists including The Glenn Miller Orchestra who took it to #1 in 1941.


1960 - ClassicBands.com

September 26
Connie Francis becomes the first female singer in the Rock and Roll era to have two consecutive number one singles when "My Heart Has a Mind Of Its Own" went to the top of the Billboard chart. It followed "Everybody's Somebody's Fool".

1964 - ClassicBands.com

September 26
Roy Orbison's "Oh, Pretty Woman" reaches the top of the Billboard Hot 100. It would be the last of a string of nine straight Top Ten records for The Big O.

September 26
The Newbeats enjoy their biggest hit when "Bread And Butter" tops out at #2 in the US and #15 in the UK. They will go on to reach #16 with "Everything's Alright" later in the year as well as having two more US Top 40 hits with "Break Away (From That Boy)" (#40) and "Run, Baby, Run (Back Into My Arms)" (#12) next year.

September 26
Herman's Hermits were at the top of the British singles chart with "I'm Into Something Good", the group's only UK #1. The song was recorded earlier in the year by Earl-Jean McCrea, who had been the lead singer of the R&B vocal group The Cookies. Her version peaked at #38 in the US.

1968 - ClassicBands.com

September 26
Dusty Springfield enters a recording studio in Memphis to lay down tracks for what will prove to be the critically acclaimed LP "Dusty In Memphis", which will include her US #10 hit, "Son Of A Preacher Man".

1969 - ClassicBands.com

September 26
The Beatles release their 13th album in the UK, "Abbey Road", which debuts at #1 and will stay there for eleven straight weeks. It is issued in the US a week later and will top the Billboard album chart for twelve weeks. It has since gone on to sell over 31 million copies world wide. The album cover, showing the band crossing the street just outside the recording studio, will become one of the most imitated in recording history. The zebra crossing itself has become so popular with Beatle fans, it has its own webcam.

1970 - ClassicBands.com

September 26
Tamla-Motown Records announces that The Jackson 5 sold 10 million singles world wide in nine months with "I Want You Back", "ABC" and "The Love You Save".

1974 - ClassicBands.com

September 26
John Lennon releases "Walls and Bridges", an LP that will prove to be his last album of new material for nearly six years. It will reach #1 in the US and #6 in the UK.


1976 - ClassicBands.com

September 26
Boulder, Colorado's Firefall saw their song "You Are The Woman" enter the Billboard chart on its way to #9. They would place five more songs in the Top 40, including "Just Remember I Love You" (#11 in 1977) and "Strange Way" (#11 in 1978).

1981 - ClassicBands.com

September 26
Hall And Oates' "Private Eyes" LP enters the Billboard chart. The album will go Platinum and contains two #1 hits: "Private Eyes" and "I Can't Go For That", as well as the Top Ten hit "Did It in a Minute".

1987 - ClassicBands.com

September 26
The Grateful Dead's "Touch Of Grey" peaks at #9 on the US singles chart, becoming their only Billboard chart hit.

2003 - ClassicBands.com

September 26
Robert Palmer, who reached number 14 in the US in 1979 with "Bad Case Of Loving You", died of a heart attack at the age of 54. He found success both in his solo career and in the supergroup Power Station, and had Top 10 songs in both the US and the UK.

2007 - ClassicBands.com

September 26
Following five months of testimony, a mistrial was declared in the murder case of music producer Phil Spector. After deliberating for twelve days, the jury told Superior Court Judge Larry Paul Fidler that they were deadlocked 10 to 2 on whether Spector murdered actress Lana Clarkson more than 4 1/2 years ago.


2008 - ClassicBands.com

September 26
After a 43-year wait, Paul McCartney performed his first concert in Tel Aviv, kicking it off with the Beatles' song "Hello, Goodbye" to the joy of tens of thousands of cheering fans.

2013 - ClassicBands.com

September 26
In a poll by the BBC, the theme from Star Wars was voted Britain's favorite film soundtrack, followed by "The Good, The Bad and the Ugly" and "West Side Story".

2015 - ClassicBands.com

September 26
Two original members of The Box Tops, bassist Bill Cunningham and guitarist Garry Talley, announced that they were reforming the band. The group had reunited in the late '80s and, on occasion, from 1996 until original lead singer Alex Chilton died on March 17, 2010.

2016 - ClassicBands.com

September 26
Kenny Rogers announced his retirement from music after his current tour ends in April, 2017. Telling members of the press that he had accomplished everything he set out to do, the Country music legend said he wanted to spend more time with his wife and their twelve-year-old twin sons.

September 26
Universal, Warner Brothers, Sony and several other record labels filed a law suit against the operators of YouTube-mp3.org, a service that allows its users to remove audio from videos streamed on YouTube. The court action, launched against a German company, alleged that "tens, or even hundreds, of millions of tracks are illegally copied and distributed by stream ripping services each month."

2021 - ClassicBands.com

September 26
George Frayne, best known by his alias, Commander Cody of Commander Cody And His Planet Lost Airmen, died of cancer at the age of 77. The band enjoyed a Billboard #9 hit in 1972 with "Hot Rod Lincoln".

September 26
Alan Lancaster, bassist for the English band Status Quo, died after a long battle with Multiple Sclerosis. The band reached #12 on the Hot 100 in 1968 with "Pictures Of Matchstick Men".



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