1952: “Hound Dog” was first recorded by Willie Mae “Big Mama” Thornton at Radio Recorders Annex in Los Angeles. The song later became the first hit for songwriting team Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller, topping the Billboard R&B chart for seven straight weeks and selling nearly two million copies.

1956: Gene Vincent and His Blue Caps released their debut album, Bluejean Bop!.

1956: Bill Haley and His Comets released Rock ‘n Roll Stage Show, their fourth rock and roll album to include new, not previously released material.

1962: Aretha Franklin released her third studio album, The Tender, the Moving, the Swinging Aretha Franklin. Despite not producing a hit single, it was her first album to achieve any commercial success, reaching #69 on the Billboard pop chart.

1963: “Blowin’ in the Wind” backed with “Don’t Think Twice, It’s All Right” was released as the second single from Bob Dylan’s second studio album, The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan.

1964: The Supremes recorded “Baby Love” at Motown’s Hitsville U.S.A. studios in Detroit. The song topped the Billboard pop singles chart by the end of October.

1964: The Kinks entered the UK singles chart for the first time with “You Really Got Me.” Four weeks later, it became their first #1 record and reached #7 in the US.

1964: Manfred Mann topped the UK singles chart with their first #1, “Doo Wah Diddy Diddy.” In mid-October, the song became the group’s first US #1 when it topped the Billboard Hot 100.

1964: 17-year-old Marianne Faithfull debuted on the British singles chart with one of the first original compositions by Mick Jagger and Keith Richards, “As Tears Go By.” Faithfull had been offered the ballad by Rolling Stones manager Andrew Loog Oldham, and though it was originally recorded as a B-side, the song’s success caused her record company, Decca, to switch it to the A-side. The single reached #9 in September and launched Faithfull’s career as a major singer. By the end of November, it had entered the US Billboard Hot 100, where it later reached #22.

1965: The American version of the Beatles’ album Help! was issued by Capitol Records in both stereo and mono. Unlike the British version released a week earlier, the American release included selections from the Beatles film of the same name composed by Ken Thorne and performed by the George Martin Orchestra.

1965: Jefferson Airplane made its first public appearance at the opening night of The Matrix club in San Francisco’s Haight-Ashbury district. The venue had been a former pizza shop purchased by singer Marty Balin before he and fellow musician Paul Kantner put together the club’s house band that later became Jefferson Airplane. The Matrix played a key role in what became known as the San Francisco Sound, and hosted numerous acts through the sixties and early seventies such as Big Brother and the Holding Company, The Blues Project, The Paul Butterfield Blues Band, Country Joe and the Fish, the Doors, the Grateful Dead, John Lee Hooker, Johnny Winter, Moby Grape, New Riders of the Purple Sage, Quicksilver Messenger Service, Santana, and The Velvet Underground.

1966: “Black is Black,” the debut single by Spanish beat group Los Bravos entered the Billboard Hot 100. It was their most successful song on the charts, peaking at #4.

1966: The Supremes entered the Billboard Hot 100 with “You Can’t Hurry Love.” Four weeks later, the song became their seventh #1 on the Billboard and Cash Box pop charts as well as their fourth R&B #1.

1966: “God Only Knows” by the Beach Boys entered the Billboard Hot 100, where it later topped out at #39. On the Cash Box chart, the single peaked at #38. It became their third record to enter the top 3 on the UK chart, where it reached #2.

1966: The Lovin’ Spoonful had their first #1 single in the US when “Summer in the City” started three weeks at the top of the Billboard Hot 100 and two weeks at the top of the Cash Box chart.

1967: Fleetwood Mac made their stage debut at the seventh National Jazz and Blues Festival at England’s Royal Windsor Racecourse. Green and Fleetwood had named the group Fleetwood Mac to entice Bluesbreakers bassist John McVie, who’d refused to take the risk. They teamed up with guitarist Jeremy Spencer and bassist Bob Brunning for their debut as “Peter Green’s Fleetwood Mac, also featuring Jeremy Spencer.” Brunning only played a few gigs with the band, and within weeks of the show, McVie agreed to join as their permanent bassist. Also on the bill during the three-day festival were Cream, Jeff Beck, John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers, Ten Years After, Donovan, Pentangle, Small Faces, The Move, Arthur Brown, and Pink Floyd.

1969: The Guess Who recorded “American Woman” at RCA’s Mid-America Recording Center in Chicago. In May of 1970, the song became the band’s first US #1 and their fourth single to top the chart in their home country of Canada.

1971: Paul and Linda McCartney released “The Back Seat of My Car,” the second single from their Ram album.

1976: After their live debut opening for the Sex Pistols in July, the Clash decided not to perform publicly again until they’d tightened up their set. On August 13, the band played again at a rehearsal hall in a London suburb to a private audience of critics and friends.

1979: Chicago released Chicago 13, their eleventh studio album and final release to feature lead guitarist Donnie Dacus.

1982: Eagles drummer and vocalist Don Henley released his debut solo album, I Can’t Stand Still.

1985: After playing three “secret” shows at The Ritz in New York City at the end of February, Sting kicked of the North American leg of his first solo tour at the San Diego State University Amphitheater in San Diego, California.

1990: Pixies released their third studio album, Bossanova.

1991: Kid Creole and the Coconuts released their eighth studio album, You Shoulda Told Me You Were….

2002: James Taylor released October Road, his fifteenth studio album and last of original material until Before This World in 2015.

Birthdays Today

Jimmy McCracklin, blues and R&B pianist, vocalist, and songwriter, was born James David Walker Jr. in Elaine, AR in 1921.

Dave “Baby” Cortez, R&B organist and pianist best known for his 1959 hit “The Happy Organ,” was born in Detroit, MI in 1938.

Howard Tate, soul singer and songwriter, was born in Elberton, GA in 1939.

Scott Powell a.k.a. Tony Santini, musician and founding member of Sha Na Na, was born in Dallas, TX in 1948.

Dan Fogelberg, singer, songwriter, composer, and multi-instrumentalist, was born in Peoria, IL in 1951.

Tom Finch, multi-instrumentalist and guitarist with Big Brother and the Holding Company from 1997-2008, was born in Los Angeles, CA in 1969.