This Day in Music
On September 4, 1954 – to coincide with the release of his second Sun Records single, “Good Rockin’ Tonight” – Elvis Presley, along with his backup musicians Bill Black and Scotty Moore, made their first appearances at The Grand Ole Opry. The audience’s reaction was so harsh that the Opry’s manager, Jim Denny, told Elvis that he should return to his day job of truck driving. Two weeks later, the trio appeared at a rival venue, the Louisiana Hayride (which also broadcast weekly shows on radio and TV), and inked a deal to appear on 52 Saturday night broadcasts, which effectively launched his career.
In 1962, The Beatles had their first formal recording session at EMI’s Abbey Road studios. While the band had committed several songs to tape on June 6, producer George Martin was not thrilled with the results, so he asked the band back into the studio to try again. This time, they recorded six songs, including “Love Me Do” and “Please Please Me.” In order to prepare for the event, the band arranged a three-hour practice in Studio Three, supervised by EMI’s Ron Richards, during which they ran through the six-song set over and over again. The occasion also marked drummer Ringo Starr’s first ever session with the band.
In 1969, the film Easy Rider – starring Jack Nicholson, Peter Fonda, and Dennis Hopper – opened at The Classic in London, England. The movie’s soundtrack featured songs from a handful of then-current acts, including The Band, The Jimi Hendrix Experience, and Steppenwolf.
In 1971, Paul and Linda McCartney topped the Billboard Hot 100 with “Uncle Albert / Admiral Halsey,” from their album Ram. Released only in the US, the track was McCartney’s first solo No.1 in the country. Paul would later explain that “Uncle Albert” was based on his real-life uncle: “He’s someone I recall fondly and when the song was coming, it was like a nostalgia thing.”
In 1976, The Bee Gees went to No.1 on the Billboard Hot 100 with “You Should Be Dancing.” The song, which would later be featured on the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack, launched the trio towards disco stardom and marked the group’s first chart-topper to feature their trademark falsetto vocals.
Across the Atlantic that same year, the Sex Pistols made their television debut by appearing on the Manchester-based Granada TV program, So It Goes.
In 1982, The Steve Miller Band began a two-week run at the top of the Billboard Hot 100 with “Abracadabra.
BORN ON SEPTEMBER 1
1942: Bubba Knight (The Pips)
1944: Gene Parsons (The Byrds)
1946: Ronald LePread (The Commodores)
1960: Kim Thayil (Soundgarden)
1975: Mark Ronson
1981: Beyoncé
