In 2016, Drake set a new UK chart record for the digital age when “One Dance” feat. Wizkid & Kyla became the longest-running No.1 single since downloads and streams were included in the ranking. The song, which appeared on the Canadian rapper, singer, and songwriter’s fourth studio album, Views, spent 11 weeks on the chart, while it also marked Drake’s first No.1 hit as a lead artist in 15 countries, including the US, Australia, and Canada.
In 2007, The White Stripes topped the UK chart with their seventh and final album, Icky Thump. The release marked their second No.1 LP in the UK (following 2003’s Elephant) while across the Atlantic, Icky Thump earned the duo their third Grammy for Best Alternative Music Album.
In 1965, The Hollies scored their first No.1 hit in the UK with “I’m Alive.” The song, which spent three weeks in the top position, was one of 25 Top 40 singles for the long-running group.
In 1967, Procol Harum’s “A Whiter Shade of Pale” began its run on the Billboard Hot 100. The enduring Baroque pop tune, which has been covered more than 1,000 times, peaked at the No.5 position, while it would top the UK pop chart. One of the world’s best-selling singles of all time, the song would later be inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame and included on Rolling Stone’s 500 Greatest Songs of All Time ranking.
In 1965, John Lennon released his second book, A Spaniard in the Works. A follow-up to his 1964 debut, “In His Own Write,” the book’s title was a play on the saying “a spanner in the works.” Much like its predecessor, it featured a variety of drawings and nonsensical stories by The Beatle.
BORN ON JUNE 24
1944: Jeff Beck
1944: Chris Wood (Traffic)
1944: Arthur Brown
1945: Colin Blunstone (The Zombies)
1947: Mick Fleetwood (Fleetwood Mac)
1949: John Illsley (Dire Straits)
1957: Astro (UB40)
1961: Curt Smith (Tears for Fears)
1967: Richard Zven Kruspe (Rammstein)
1986: Solange
Litchfield Golf and Community Partners is organizing a 4-person Golf Scramble on July 18th at 10 a.m. with registration from 8-to-9:30 that morning. It’s limited to 36 teams and people should get signed up as soon as possible.
Scott Nelson says the golf scramble will help Litchfield Golf and Community Partners raise money for youth events – mainly golf. He says one of the things that they do is help to cover a portion of Community Education golf classes for youth so that they only pay about one-fourth of what it would normally cost.
Nelson says the fee per person for the golf scramble is $80 if you have a cart and $100 per person if you need to rent a cart. He says they also have a giant skins game and mulligans as part of the golf scramble on July 18th.
Nelson says the cash prize for the first place team is $600, and it’s $400 for second and $200 for third place and then a random team is drawn to win $100. He says the event also includes lunch, a 50-50 raffle, and there is a silent auction with some 18-hole golf and hotel packages at several northern Minnesota golf clubs and other great items to bid on.
Nelson says you can register at the Pro Shop at the Litchfield Golf Club and you can find more details on their Facebook page. He says the deadline to register is July 16th, but they would appreciate it if you can get registered as soon as possible. There’s also an opportunity for businesses to sponsor a hole for just $75 and if you cannot attend the golf scramble, cash donations are also welcome. For more information, call Scott at 320-290-7395.
The Litchfield High School Marching Band took GRAND CHAMPION and first place in Class AA last night at the Rose Fest Parade in Roseville. Next parade is Friday evening in Sauk Rapids.
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