Rock 'n' Roll History for
January 9


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1956 - ClassicBands.com

January 9
A trio known as Buddy Holly And The Two Tones (Sonny Curtis & Don Guess) kick off a two week tour of the Southern United States as a supporting act for George Jones and Hank Thompson.

1959 - ClassicBands.com

January 9
Dion And The Belmonts perform their newest recording, "Teenager In Love", on American Bandstand. When released the following March 30th, the song will reach #5 in the US, #2 in Canada, and #28 in the UK.

1961 - ClassicBands.com

January 9
Orchestra leader Bert Kaempfert knocked Elvis Presley out of the number one spot on the US charts after six weeks with a sleepy instrumental called "Wonderland By Night". Later in the year, Kaempfert would hire The Beatles to back Tony Sheridan on their first commercial recording, "My Bonnie".

January 9
Bob Newhart's comedy LP "The Button Down Mind Strikes Back!" topped the Billboard Monophonic Action Albums chart, just as "The Button-Down Mind of Bob Newhart" did the previous year. With advance orders of 150,000, it would later be certified Gold for sales of 500,000 copies in the US.

1963 - ClassicBands.com

January 9
21-year-old Charlie Watts leaves the Jazz ensemble Blues Incorporated to join The Rolling Stones, replacing Tony Chapman as their drummer. He would stay with the band for fifty-eight years, until his death on August 24th, 2021.

1964 - ClassicBands.com

January 9
The Temptations record "The Way You Do The Things You Do" for Detroit's Motown Records. The single will become The Temps' first Billboard Top 40 hit, peaking at #11. It also went to #1 on the Cashbox R&B chart

1965 - ClassicBands.com

January 9
The Beatles started a nine week run at the top of the Billboard Hot 200 album chart with "Beatles 65", the group's fourth US #1 LP. The record jumped from #98 the week before, making the biggest gain in chart history to that point.

January 9
The UK music show Juke Box Jury, a program where four panelists review new Pop music, turns thumbs down on The Righteous Brothers' latest release, "You've Lost That Lovin' Feeling", calling it "a miss." It will prove to be one of the most talked about miscalculations in the show's history, as the tune would go on to top both the UK and US charts.

1967 - ClassicBands.com

January 9
The Monkees' second album, "More Of The Monkees" was released on Colgems Records. It would displace the band's debut album at the top of the Billboard 200 chart and remained at #1 for eighteen weeks, the longest of any Monkees album. The LP also topped the UK chart and has been certified 5X Platinum by the RIAA with sales of more than five million copies. The main single released from the album was "I'm A Believer (#1) backed with "I'm Not Your Steppin' Stone" (#20).

1969 - ClassicBands.com

January 9
Glen Campbell records the instrumental tracks for the song "Galveston" with the help of members of The Wrecking Crew, Hal Blaine - drums, Al Casey - acoustic guitar, Leon Russell - piano, Joe Osborn - bass guitar. The record would top the Billboard Easy Listening chart and reach #4 on the Hot 100.

1973 - ClassicBands.com

January 9
Mick Jagger is refused a Japanese visa because of a 1969 drug bust, putting an end to the Rolling Stones' plans to tour the Orient. Asked by a reporter about his personal drug use, Jagger replied, "I don't take drugs. I don't approve of drugs and I don't approve of people taking drugs... unless they're very careful."

1975 - ClassicBands.com

January 9
After years of delays, The Beatles & Company partnership is formally dissolved in a private hearing at London's High Court. It will take effect on April 9.

1979 - ClassicBands.com

January 9
A fund-raising concert for UNICEF, the world hunger organization, was held in New York at the United Nations General Assembly. Performers included Rod Stewart, ABBA, The Bee Gees, Andy Gibb, Rita Coolidge, Olivia Newton-John, Earth, Wind And Fire, Kris Kristofferson, John Denver and others. The show raised about half a million dollars, but an album of the concert was a flop.

1980 - ClassicBands.com

January 9
Carl White, a member of The Rivingtons and co-writer of "Papa Oom Mow Mow" and "The Bird Is The Word", died of acute tonsillitis at the age of 47. A group called The Trashmen combined his two songs into "Surfin' Bird" and gained a #4 hit in 1964.

1981 - ClassicBands.com

January 9
Jazz drummer Cozy Cole, known for the 1958 hits "Topsy" (US #27) and "Topsy II" (US #3, UK #29), died of cancer at age 71.

1988 - ClassicBands.com

January 9
Whitney Houston led the Billboard singles chart with "So Emotional", her sixth consecutive number one song. Up to that point, only The Beatles and The Bee Gees had scored six straight chart toppers.

1998 - ClassicBands.com

January 9
Cher gives an emotional eulogy at Sonny Bono's funeral in Palm Springs, California, where she praised the man who had been a husband, friend, partner, father figure and rival, calling him "the most unforgettable character I've ever met." The event was broadcast live to millions of people on CNN.

2002 - ClassicBands.com

January 9
Elton John was honored in London by the UK Coalition of People Living with HIV and AIDS, which presented the artist with its Hero award. The honor acknowledged his contributions to the fight against HIV and AIDS through the Elton John AIDS Foundation.

2009 - ClassicBands.com

January 9
Dave Dee, of the British Pop Rock group Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick & Tich, died following a three year battle with cancer at the age of 67. In the late '60s the band spent more time on the UK charts than The Beatles, scoring a number one single in 1968 with "The Legend of Xanadu".

2012 - ClassicBands.com

January 9
Former CCR front man John Fogerty told Billboard.com that contrary to his 2011 overture about a reunion with his former band mates, "I've heard through the grapevine the other fellas were really upset or something over that. So I sent back, 'Oh. I guess there's no reunion then.'"

January 9
Aretha Franklin revealed that she had a cancerous tumor removed during an operation that forced her to cancel a series of concerts in 2010. She told CNN, "I had a tumor and that was taken care of. It's behind me and thank God it's behind me." Sadly, the Queen Of Soul would die of pancreatic cancer on August 16th, 2018 at the age of 76.

2016 - ClassicBands.com

January 9
Motorhead's Lemmy Kilmister was laid to rest at Forrest Hills Cemetery in Los Angeles. Some of the biggest names in Rock and Metal spoke at the service, including his bandmate, Mikkey Dee, Foo Fighters' Dave Grohl, Guns N' Roses' Slash, Robert Trujillo, and Lars Ulrich from Metallica, Judas Priest's Rob Halford, and Anthrax front man Scott Ian.



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