This is the week that was in matters musical…
1938, Annie Mae Bullock is born in Nutbush, Tennessee … she will later marry Ike Turner and become known to adoring fans as Tina Turner…
1961, blues shouter Howlin’ Wolf arrives in London as part of a lineup of American blues musicians who take Britain, and later the continent, by storm … a series of annual American Folk Blues Festivals follow, leading to a generation of Brits such as Clapton, Page, Watts, and Richards becoming blues devotees who during the mid-’60s introduce white America to its own roots-music heritage…
1964, Willie Nelson debuts at The Grand Ole Opry…
1966, the Jimi Hendrix Experience debuts at London’s Bag O’ Nails club … also in 1966, The Temptations’ “(I Know) I’m Losing You” enters the R&B chart and swiftly rises to the top slot … the tune will chart three more times with covers by Rare Earth, Rod Stewart, and Uptown…
1968, Cream plays its farewell gig at London’s Royal Albert Hall … the show is released as the album Goodbye Cream the following year…
1969, As a show of disdain for British foreign policy, John Lennon returns his MBE to Queen Elizabeth “in protest against Britain’s involvement in the Nigeria-Biafra thing and support of America in Vietnam,” … Lennon adds jokingly, “As well as ‘Cold Turkey’ slipping down the charts”…
1970, free jazz saxophonist Albert Ayler is found dead in New York’s East River … rumors circulate that he was murdered though the consensus seems to point to a suicide…
1971, following the death of Doors lead singer Jim Morrison, the surviving members tell Rolling Stone that the band will continue … it officially disbands two years later…
1974, John Lennon and Elton John duet on “I Saw Her Standing There” at Madison Square Garden…
1976, The Band bids adieu to its fans at San Francisco’s Winterland with a star-studded show that includes their former boss Ronnie Hawkins, Bob Dylan, Neil Young, Joni Mitchell, Van Morrison, Muddy Waters, The Staple Singers, Dr. John, Eric Clapton, and many more … Martin Scorsese is on hand to film the proceedings, resulting in the movie The Last Waltz–widely regarded as one of the best rock movies ever … in 2002 the film is reissued in DVD format with gloriously remixed 5.1 sound and lots of additional performances not seen in the theatrical release … one of the extras is an extended jam with Morrison, Clapton, Wood, et al, during which the motors in Scorsese’s cinema cameras melted down as they were not designed to handle the continuous shooting … the final part of the jam is an audio-only affair…
1981, a Grateful Dead/Allman Brothers Thanksgiving show at the Tangerine Bowl in Orlando, Florida, is canceled when only 10,000 of 60,000 seats are sold … apparently turkeys are a bigger draw that day…
1985, pre-bad Bobby Brown announces he is leaving New Edition to begin a solo career…
1994, Boyz II Men’s “I’ll Make Love to You” registers its 14th and final week at number one on the Billboard singles chart, tying Whitney Houston’s “I Will Always Love You” … Houston’s tune had displaced the earlier record-holder, Boyz II Men’s “End of the Road” … continuing this pattern of Houston/Boyz chart domination, “On Bended Knee” by the Boyz usurps “I’ll Make Love to You” in the No. 1 slot…
1997, Garth Brooks’ much-delayed seventh album, Sevens, is finally released … a day after its release the album sets a record by placing 12 of its 14 tracks in the Hot Country 100 Singles and Tracks chart, eclipsing the former record of eight tracks also set by Brooks with his album Fresh Horses…
1998, Craig Marks, an editor for Spin magazine, reports to police that he was roughed up by Marilyn Manson’s bodyguards at the Hammerstein Ballroom in New York … Marks says he was initially invited backstage to talk to Manson but things turned sinister when, according to Marks, the shock rocker warned him, “You know I can kill you, your family, and everyone you know”…
1999, influential indie rockers Pavement reach the end of the road when Steve Malkmus announces the band’s demise during a gig at London’s Brixton Academy…
2001, the man who wrote “All Things Must Pass” faces his destiny … George Harrison dies at the home of a friend in Los Angeles at 58 … Harrison had been battling lung cancer that had metastasized to his brain … following his death, his family releases the statement, “He left this world as he lived in it: conscious of God, fearless of death and at peace, surrounded by family and friends. He often said ‘Everything else can wait, but the search of God can’t wait; and love one another…”
2002, one year to the day following his death, The Concert for George, a tribute to George Harrison, takes place at Royal Albert Hall in London … the star-studded lineup includes Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, Jeff Lynne, Ravi Shankar, Billy Preston, and many more…
2004, U2 puts on an unannounced free show at the base of the Brooklyn Bridge … also this week in 2004, in discussing his impending wedding to partner David Furnish, Elton John says, “I don’t want a Jennifer Lopez wedding or anything like that.” … Craig Nicholls, vocalist with The Vines is diagnosed with Asperger’s Syndrome, a mild form of autism … the singer had been notorious for his bizarre behavior…
And that was the week that was.
Arrivals
November 23: Harpo Marx (1888), Betty Everett (1939), Bruce Hornsby (1954), Charlie Grover of Sponge (1966), Ken Block of Sister Hazel (1966), Kurupt of The Dogg Pound (1972)
November 24: Scott Joplin (1868), Pete Best (1941), Donald “Duck” Dunn (1941), Robin Williamson of The Incredible String Band (1943), Lee Michaels (1945), Clement Burke of Blondie (1955), Chris Hayes of Huey Lewis & The News (1957), John Squire of Stone Roses (1962), Chad Taylor of Live (1970)
November 25: Percy Sledge (1940), Bev Bevan of ELO (1946), Amy Grant (1960), Stacy Lattisaw (1966), Rodney Sheppard of Sugar Ray (1967)
November 26: Robert Goulet (1933), Tina Turner (1938), Alan Henderson of Them (1944), John McVie (1945), Matchbox 20’s Adam Gaynor (1963), Lil Fizz of B2K (1985)
November 27: Al Jackson of Booker T. and the MGs (1935), Jimi Hendrix (1942), Eddie Rabbitt (1944), Charlie Burchill of Simple Minds (1959), Charlie Benante of Anthrax (1962), Mike Bordin of Faith No More (1962), Fiachna O’Braonian of Hothouse Flowers (1965), Skoob of Das EFX (1970)
November 28: Motown Records founder Berry Gordy Jr. (1929), Randy Newman (1943), Beeb Birtles of the Little River Band (1948), Paul Shaffer (1949), Michael Dempsey of The Cure (1958), Soundgarden/Pearl Jam drummer Matt Cameron (1962), Dawn Robinson of En Vogue (1968), Apl.de.Ap of Black Eyed Peas (1974)
November 29: jazz composer, lyricist, and pianist Billy Strayhorn (1915), Merle Travis (1917), John Mayall (1933), Chuck Mangione (1940), Dennis Doherty of The Mamas and the Papas (1941), Felix Cavaliere of The Young Rascals (1943), Boston’s Barry Goudreau (1951), Michael Dempsey of The Cure (1958), Steve Scott of Bleach (1963), Wallace Buchanan of Jarimoquai (1965), Jonathan Knight of New Kids on the Block (1968)
Departures
November 23: Junior Walker (1995), Tommy Boyce (1994), Roy Acuff (1992), Tom Evans of Badfinger (1983)
November 24: Melanie Thornton of La Bouche (2001), Freddie Mercury (1991), Kiss drummer Eric Carr (1991), Big Joe Turner (1985)
November 25: blues singer-guitarist Fenton Robinson (1997), French chanteuse Barbara (1997), Albert Ayler (1970)
November 26: prison singer James Carter (2003), James Tapp AKA Soulja Slim (2003), Tommy Dorsey (1956)
November 28: Dave “Snaker” Ray of Koerner, Ray & Glover (2002), lyricist Kal Mann (2001), big band arranger and composer Ralph Burns (2001)
November 29: George Harrison (2001), David “Butch” McDade of The Amazing Rhythm Aces ( 1998), Giacomo Puccini (1924)