This Day in Music
On August 11, 1956, Elvis Presley released his double-sided single, “Don’t Be Cruel / Hound Dog.” The two songs not only hit No.1, but remained there for a record-breaking 11 weeks. Presley would hold the record until he was surpassed in 1992, by Boyz II Men’s “End of the Road.”
In 1966, John Lennon spoke at a press conference at Chicago’s Astor Towers Hotel, where he apologized for remarks he had made days earlier that The Beatles were “more popular than Jesus.” In his apology, Lennon explained that he was merely referring to fans’ intense infatuation with the band and not comparing himself or his band mates to Christ. Lennon’s original comments sparked outrage, protests, and bans against The Beatles’ music – particularly among Christian communities in the US.
In 1967, the Reading Festival (then in its seventh year) kicked off a weekend full of music. Among the performers were the Small Faces, Eric Burdon and the New Animals, Jeff Beck, Peter Green’s Fleetwood Mac, Donovan, and Cream.
In 1979, Led Zeppelin unknowingly played their final UK show to approximately 104,000 fans at England’s Knebworth House. While the group performed several stripped-down shows in Europe the following summer, they would part ways in December 1980, following the tragic death of drummer John Bonham.
In 1999 all four original members of KISS appeared in Los Angeles to unveil their star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Fans can visit it just outside of 7092 Hollywood Blvd.
…And in 2011, The Go-Go’s received their star on the Walk of Fame at 6652 Hollywood Blvd, the former location of The Masque – the legendary punk club where the all-female band got their start.
BORN ON AUGUST 11
1942: Mike Hugg (Manfred Mann)
1943: Kenneth Gamble (songwriter, producer, and co-founder of Philadelphia International Records)
1943: Dennis Payton (Dave Clark Five)
1949: Eric Carmen
1954: Joe Jackson
1976: Ben Gibbard (Death Cab for Cutie)
