7 FEBRUARY
Featured Events
2016 Coldplay and football (the American kind) come together when the band headlines the halftime show of Super Bowl 50 between the Denver Broncos and Carolina Panthers. It is an odd pairing, but after a set that includes "Viva La Vida" and "Paradise," Bruno Mars appears, followed by halftime show savior Beyoncé, who blasts out her new song, "Formation."
1985 Frank Sinatra's "New York, New York" becomes the official anthem of New York City. The tune, which was introduced by Liza Minnelli in the movie of the same name, was a Top 40 hit for Sinatra in 1977.
1980 AC/DC appear on Top of the Pops, where they perform "A Touch Too Much." It's lead singer Bon Scott's last appearance with the band, as he drinks himself to death 12 days later.
1980 At the Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena, Pink Floyd stage the first production of The Wall, an immersive concert performance in which a giant wall is erected on stage as the band plays, representing the alienation between audience and performer.More
1976 Bob Dylan's album Desire, featuring the songs "Isis" and "Mozambique," hits #1 in America.
1970 The Dutch group the Shocking Blue hit #1 in America with "Venus." Sixteen years later, a cover version by Bananarama goes to the top.
1962 Garth Brooks is born Troyal Garth Brooks in Tulsa, Oklahoma; he's raised in Yukon, Oklahoma.More
7 FEBRUARY
In Music History
2012 Alicia Keys and Nas join Jay-Z at the second of two charity concerts he holds at Carnegie Hall in New York City. The concerts raise $3.5 million for the United Way and the Shawn Carter Scholarship Foundation.
2009 Jazz singer Blossom Dearie dies in her sleep at age 84.
2000 Rapper Big Pun, real name Christopher Lee Rios, dies at age 28 of a heart attack and respiratory failure.
2000 Dave Peverett (original lead vocalist for Foghat, guitarist for Savoy Brown) dies of cancer at age 56.
1997 Sarah McLachlan marries her drummer, Ashwin Sood, in Negril, Jamaica. They split in 2008.
1994 Polish composer Witold Lutoslawski dies of cancer at age 81.
1993 Neil Young records a live set on MTV's Unplugged. Fraught with trouble due to Young's displeasure over the performances of his backing band, it's still released as an album later that year.
1990 Primus release their first studio album, Frizzle Fry. Their mashup of progressive, punk and alternative is a winner, earning them an ardent fanbase that takes to affectionately screaming "Primus Sucks!" at concerts.
1989 The Georgia State Representative Billy Randall introduces a bill to make Little Richard's "Tutti Frutti" the official state rock song. It doesn't pass.
1981 ABC begins airing the first installment of the mini-series Elvis and Me, based on ex-wife Priscilla Presley's book of the same name.
1980 Twelve days before his death, Bon Scott goes to the UFO concert at the Hammersmith Odeon in London.
1979 The Clash, who have established themselves as leaders in the punk rock movement, play their first show in America when they perform at the Berkeley Community Theatre in California. Their opening act is blues legend Bo Diddley, who finds them quite loud.
1979 Stephen Stills records the first major-label album using all-digital equipment, but it's never released, which means that Ry Cooder's Bop Till You Drop will get the honor.
1976 Elvis Presley records "Blue Eyes Crying In The Rain."
1976 Paul Simon lands his first #1 American hit as a solo artist when "Fifty Ways To Leave Your Lover" claims the top spot. It's no "Bridge Over Troubled Water" - Simon calls it a "nonsense song" - but listeners love it and it stays on top for three weeks.
Beatlemania Comes To America
1964Thanks to media coverage and a publicity campaign by Capitol Records, thousands of screaming fans greet The Beatles when their plane lands in New York at 1:20 p.m. The scenes become iconic images of Beatlemania.
The Beatles have the #1 song in America - "I Want To Hold Your Hand" - and this is their first trip to the country. They are met with a frenzy of adulation, and the group is up to the task, charming reporters at a press conference held soon after the plane lands. Some of the exchanges: Reporter: Are you a little embarrassed by the lunacy you cause? Lennon: No, it's great.... We like lunatics. Reporter: In Detroit Michigan, they're handing out car stickers saying, 'Stamp Out The Beatles.' Paul: Well, we're bringing out a Stamp Out Detroit campaign. Reporter: Aren't you afraid of what the American Barbers Association is going to think of you? Ringo: Well, we run quicker than the English ones, we'll have a go here, you know. The Beatles live up to their hype, dominating the American charts throughout 1964, when "Can't Buy Me Love," "I Feel Fine," "She Loves You," "A Hard Day's Night" and "Love Me Do" all top the Hot 100.
Categories
©2024 Songfacts®, LLC
Comments
send your comment