This is the week that was in matters musical…
1721, the six Brandenburg Concertos are published in Germany by Johann Sebastian Bach…
1827, Ludwig van Beethoven enters the grave in which he will later do so much rolling over…
1964, John Lennon receives Foyle’s literary prize for his first book, In His Own Write, published the same day … his acceptance speech is, “Thank you very much, you’ve got a lucky face.”…
1965, the infamous blue flame strikes again, knocking Bill Wyman unconscious when he touches a mic stand on the first date of the Rolling Stones’ anniversary tour…
1968, “The Dock of the Bay” hits the top of the charts … alas, Otis Redding is not around to enjoy the success, having been killed in a plane crash three months earlier…
1970, Peter Yarrow of Peter, Paul, and Mary admits to “taking immoral liberties” with a 14-year-old girl…
1973, Roberta Flack mesmerizes fans with her number-one hit “Killing me Softly with His Song” … the song will win Grammys for Best Female Pop Vocal and Record of the Year … it earns writers Norman Gimbel and Charles Fox an award for Song of the Year … the Fugees will score a top-ten hit with the tune in 1996…
1973, Rolling Stone reports that Carlos Santana has a new handle … the guitar god has changed his name to Devadip, as bestowed by his guru Sri Chinmoy … Chinmoy counts among his disciples fusion greats Mahavishnu John McLaughlin, Narada Michael Walden, and Turiya Alice Coltrane…
1973, Rolling Stone runs a picture of Dr. Hook on the cover after being pressured into it by the band’s hit “Cover of The Rolling Stone” … this tongue-in-cheek lament is penned by poet-humorist Shel Silverstein, who wrote several Dr. Hook hits and Johnny Cash’s big hit, “A Boy Named Sue”…
1973, a butt-muncher at a concert in Buffalo blasts past the stage guards and screams “LEATHER!” before champing on Lou Reed’s derriere, causing genuine pain and getting himself tossed from the show…
1979, as the scourge of disco maintains its grip on the pop psyche, the Bee Gees continue to rule the airwaves with “Tragedy,” their fifth number one single in a row…
1980, a man holds up the New York offices of Elektra/Asylum Records with a gun, demanding to see Jackson Browne and the Eagles … he surrenders after it is explained to him that both acts live in California…
1981, Blondie’s “Rapture” tops the charts … it is the first rap song to do so…
1982, David Crosby is cruising around L.A. pumped up on cocaine with a pocket full of Quaaludes, a bunch of drug paraphernalia, and a concealed .45 automatic when he sees those flashing red lights in his rear view … the man takes Crosby to the can…
1985, an Oscar for Best Original Score goes to Prince for his work in Purple Rain…
1988, Mick Jagger does the first gig of his first solo tour in Japan … in previous years, the Stones had been banned from playing there due to their too-public involvement with illegal substances…
1990, Motley Crue drummer Tommy Lee (long known for judicious behavior) is busted for mooning the crowd at a concert in Augusta, Georgia…
1991, The Black Crowes lose a tour gig opening for ZZ Top after repeatedly dissing Miller Beer in public … Miller is a sponsor of the tour…
1991 one of the New Kids on the Block, Donnie Wahlberg, is charged with first-degree arson relating to a fire at the historic Seelbach Hotel in Louisville, KY … allegedly, Wahlberg poured vodka on the carpet and torched it … he sings onstage later the same night after posting five grand in bail money…
1992, making absurd theater of the American court system, a Chicago judge awards $3 per plaintiff in a class action suit against Milli Vanilli, who didn’t sing on their own album … nobody explains why they would rather have had an album with bad singers on it…
1995, Pearl Jam’s Eddie Vedder is enjoying the waves in New Zealand when a rip tide sweeps him offshore, necessitating an embarrassing rescue…
1995, Tupac Shakur becomes the first rap artist to debut at #1 on the charts with “Me Against the World” … unfortunately, the world is winning at the time of the debut … Shakur is in the slam on sexual assault charges…
1998, after being sued for using unlicensed pop hits in its video-taped sales pitches, Amway Corp. announces that it has agreed to fork over nine million bucks to settle…
1999, Pope John Paul II hits pop stardom with 50,000 sales the first DAY his Abba Pater CD is released … it features 11 tracks in which the pontiff chants and prays in Latin with a heavenly musical accompaniment…
1999, 27-year-old Lost Boyz rapper Freaky Tah (AKA Raymond Rogers) takes a cap to the head when a gunman attacks him as he leaves the Four Points Sheraton Hotel at 4:00 a.m …. Tah breathes his last…
1999, it becomes known that rapper Master P has recently donated half a million dollars to keep his old grammar school, St. Monica Elementary, from closing…
2002, Lyle Lovett is trying to help his uncle, who’s just been tossed off the back of an angry bull when the Brobdingnagian bovine stomps Lovett’s leg, busting it up good…
and that was the week that was.
Arrivals
March 23: Ric Ocasek of The Cars (1949), Chaka Khan born Yvette Marie Stevens (1953), Marti Pellow of Wet Wet Wet (1966), Clarence Collins of Little Anthony & the Imperials (1939), Damon Albarn of Blur (1968)
March 24: “Fat Boy” Billy Stewart (1937), Mike Kellie of Spooky Tooth (1947), Lee Oskar of War (1948), Dougie Thompson of Supertramp (1951)
March 25: Hoyt Axton (1932), Aretha Franklin (1942), Elton Hercules John born Reginald Kenneth Dwight (1947), Nick Lowe (1949), Steve Norman of Spandau Ballet (1960)
March 26: Ludwig van Beethoven (1827), Al Jolson born Asa Yoelson (1886), R&B legend Rufus Thomas (1917), Diana Ross (1944), Steven Tyler of Aerosmith (1948), Richard Tandy of ELO (1948), Fran Sheehan of Boston (1949), Teddy Pendergrass (1950), James Iha of Smashing Pumpkins (1968), Kenny Chesney (1968)
March 27: Sarah Vaughan (1924), Tony Banks of Genesis (1950), Andrew Farris of INXS (1959), Derrick McKenzie of Jamiroquai (1964), Mariah Carey (1970), Brendan Hill of Blues Traveler (1970)
March 28: rockabilly Johnny Burnette (1934), John Evan of Jethro Tull (1948), Milian Williams of The Commodores (1948), Reba McEntire (1954), Salt of Salt-N-Pepa (1969)
March 29: Vangelis (1943), Chad Allan of Guess Who? (1943), Toto’s Bobby Kimball (1947), Perry Farrell of Jane’s Addiction (1959), John Popper of Blues Traveler (1967)
Departures
March 23: swamp blues songwriter-producer J. D. Miller (1996), Turtles drummer Don Murray (1996), guitarist of Flash Cadillac Lynn V. Phillips (1993), “Big Al” Sears (1990), Bo Diddley’s drummer Frank Kirkland (1973)
March 24: Harold Melvin (1997), pianist Kenny Moore (1997), Elmore James (1963)
March 25: Kenny Moore (1997), folkie Tom Jans (1984), Duster Bennett (1976)
March 26: Ozzy Osbourne’s drummer Randy Castillo (2002), Ananda Shankar (1999), rapper Eric Wright a.k.a. Eazy-E (1995), The Buckinghams’ John Paulus (1980), Noel Coward (1973), Little Willie John (1968)
March 27: Ian Dury (2000), Clifford Jordan (1993)
March 28: Russian composer Sergei Rachmaninoff (1943), rapper Raymond Rogers “Freaky Tah” (1999), Arthur “Big Boy” Crudup (1974)
March 29: jazz pianist John Lewis (2001), Joe Williams (1999), schlockmeister Mantovani (1980)