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July 31 It was 20 years ago today ... or maybe a little longer. But if it happened in rock, you'll find it here in the Rock Clock, our daily diary of the births, deaths, and moments that changed music forever. 1923 Atlantic Records' sophisticated boss, Ahmet Ertegun is born in Istanbul, Turkey. 1927 The Carter Family drive from their Maces Spring, Va., home to Bristol, Tenn., to meet with a Victor Records talent scout. The group passes its audition and goes on to rescue Appalachian country music with its definitive recordings. 1933 Perry Como marries his wife, Roselle. 1942 Singer/songwriter Daniel Boone ("Beautiful Sunday") is born in England as Peter Lee Stirling. 1946 Guitarist Bob Welch, a member of Fleetwood Mac from 1971 to 1974, is born in Los Angeles. 1956 Elvis Presley is given a ticket for speeding in Hattiesburg, Miss. 1958 Drummer Bill Berry of R.E.M., who survived a brain aneurysm on the Monster tour only to leave the band in October 1997, is born in Duluth, Minn. 1959 Neil Sedaka records "Oh! Carol." The song, written for Carole King, later peaks at No. 9 on the singles chart. 1963 Norman Cook, aka that guy in the Housemartins aka Beats International aka Freak Power aka Pizzaman aka Fatboy Slim, is born in Bromley, England. 1964 Country singer Jim Reeves dies when his private plane crashes in Tennessee. He was voted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1967. A Rolling Stones concert in Belfast, Northern Ireland, is stopped after only 12 minutes when violence breaks out in the audience. Martha & the Vandellas release "Dancing in the Street," which later goes to No. 2. 1965 In England, the Yardbirds with Jeff Beck perform at the Cleethorpes Jazz Festival. 1966 In Birmingham, Ala., a Beatles record-burning session is held to protest John Lennon's "bigger than Jesus" remark. Cream play their first gig in Windsor, England. 1967 After a public outcry, a London Appeals Court drops drug charges against Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richards. Mick Jagger, also busted for drugs, has his jail sentence reduced to a conditional discharge. The Stones record "We Love You" to commemorate the event. 1968 At Abbey Road, the Beatles record "Hey Jude." Their London Apple Boutique closes. Seems their Marxist approach of giving the clothes away was bad for profits. 1969 A day before beginning his reputation-making stand at Las Vegas' International Hotel, Elvis Presley plays a private concert for press and friends like Wayne Newton, Dick Clark, and Burt Bacharach. According to Moscow police, telephone booths in the Soviet capital are being vandalized by youth scavenging equipment to turn their acoustic guitars into electric ones. Despite this spirit of larcenous enterprise, the USSR has yet to produce a single good rock band. 1970 After Decca Records demands a final single from the Rolling Stones to make them fulfill their contract, Richards and Jagger deliver the unreleasable "Cocksucker Blues." The single becomes the title of a Stones documentary that the band decides is also unreleasable. John Lennon's ex-wife, Cynthia, marries Roberto Bassanini. 1971 Big day in Stones history: At London's Rialto cinema, the documentary Gimme Shelter premieres. The film includes footage from the infamous concert at Altamont. At a Who concert in Forest Hills, N.Y., a security guard is stabbed. Pink Floyd leave England to set out on their first tour of the Far East. No. 1 on the charts is James Taylor's "You've Got a Friend." Bob Dylan appears at George Harrison's Concert for Bangladesh at Madison Square Garden. It's his only major live appearance this year. 1976 Blue Oyster Cult release "(Don't Fear) the Reaper." The single becomes the band's biggest hit, peaking at No. 12. 1979 James Taylor plays New York's Central Park for free to show his support for a campaign to restore the park's Sheep Meadow. Is inviting a huge crowd to trample over the meadow the most proactive way of doing that, we wonder? 1980 John Phillips, formerly of the Mamas & Papas, is arrested for allegedly dealing drugs out of his New York summer home. 1984 Eric Clapton leaves Roger Waters' Pros and Cons of Hitch Hiking tour in Canada after two weeks. 1995 Courtney Love cuts short a Hole performance at Lollapalooza in Pittsburgh after an audience member throws a shotgun shell onstage. Aerosmith fire their manager Tim Collins after 12 years of service. Selena goes to No. 1 on the albums chart with her posthumous Dreaming of You, making her the first Latino artist to debut at the top of the chart. 1999 Ol' Dirty Bastard is arrested on charges of possession of 20 vials of crack cocaine. 1993 Saxophonist Don Myrick of Earth, Wind & Fire dies. |
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