This Day in Music
On this day in music, June 23, 1962, the film soundtrack to West Side Story topped the UK album chart, where it would remain for a total of 13 non-consecutive weeks. Featuring music and lyrics by Leonard Bernstein and Stephen Sondheim, the soundtrack broke records in the US, spending 54 weeks at No.1 – the longest stay of any album in history. One of the best-selling albums of the decade in the US, West Side Story later earned a Grammy Award for Best Soundtrack Album – Original Cast.
In 1990, Elton John scored his first UK No.1 hit as a solo artist with “Sacrifice/Healing Hands.” The feat arrived 14 years after he topped the chart alongside Kiki Dee with “Don’t Go Breaking My Heart.” In the US, the singer-songwriter had already racked up multiple solo No.1 hits, including “Bennie and the Jets,” “Crocodile Rock,” and a cover of The Beatles’ “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds,” among others.
In 1984, Duran Duran topped the Billboard Hot 100 for the first time with “The Reflex.” The song, which also hit No.1 in the UK, was a cut from the British group’s third album, Seven and the Ragged Tiger..
In 1965, The Miracles released their enduring hit, “The Tracks of My Tears.” The single, which has appeared on numerous lists, including the National Endowment for the Arts’ “Songs of the Century,” Rolling Stones’ 500 Greatest Songs of All Time, and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame’s 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll, was a top-seller for the Motown group, landing in the US Top 20 and peaking at No.2 on Billboard’s R&B chart. While the song did not find initial success in the UK, a 1969 reissue landed in the Top Ten.
In 1960, it was a moment of tragic irony when “Three Steps to Heaven,” by the late teen idol Eddie Cochran, topped the UK pop chart. The 21-year-old American singer and songwriter died three months earlier in a car accident while on tour in England.
In 1957, “Gamblin’ Man/Putting on the Style,” from “King of Skiffle” Lonnie Donegan, marked the final UK No.1 single to be released as a 78 rpm disc. The older format was quickly being overtaken by the more popular 45 rpm vinyl 7-inch.
BORN ON JUNE 23
1929: June Carter Cash
1940: Stuart Sutcliffe (The Beatles)
1962: Steve Shelley (Sonic Youth)
1965: Bonehead (Oasis)
1975: KT Tunstall
1984: Duffy
