Rock 'n' Roll History for
December 26


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1963 - ClassicBands.com

December 26
Capitol Records, the EMI-affiliated company which rejected the US rights to every Beatles record that they were offered until then, finally releases "I Want to Hold Your Hand" backed with "I Saw Her Standing There". The song was currently topping the UK chart with "This Boy" on the flip side. Within five weeks the record will rise to number one in the US, where it would stay for seven weeks. The song was recorded the previous October and the hit version was take number 17.

1964 - ClassicBands.com

December 26
With long hair for men now in fashion, The Rolling Stones place a notice in Britain's Rock 'n' Roll magazine, New Musical Express, wishing starving hairdressers a Merry Christmas.

December 26
The Beatles led the Billboard Pop chart and the Cashbox Best Sellers list with "I Feel Fine", a song that John Lennon would claim was the first Rock 'n' Roll record to use feedback. The flip side of the single, "She's A Woman" sat at #4.

1967 - ClassicBands.com

December 26
The Beatles movie, The Magical Mystery Tour was shown in black and white by BBC-TV on Boxing Day. The concept was to load the band into a bus, drive around for a while and see what happened. Unfortunately, nothing did. Audiences were mystified, critics were either disappointed or contemptuous, and The Beatles suffered their first flop. The negative reaction was so strong that a US television deal for broadcasting the movie was canceled. A Daily Express critic wrote that he had never seen "such blatant rubbish."

1968 - ClassicBands.com

December 26
Led Zeppelin kick off their first North American tour in Denver as the opening act for Vanilla Fudge and Spirit. At that point, Atlantic Records' release of the band's debut album was still about three weeks away.

1970 - ClassicBands.com

December 26
George Harrison's "My Sweet Lord" becomes the first Beatles solo single to top the Billboard Hot 100. Five years later a New York state judge would find Harrison guilty of copyright infringement for plagiarizing the Chiffon's 1963 hit, "He's So Fine". The ruling would result in a legal battle that would carry on until 1998, with Harrison paying out $587,000.

1991 - ClassicBands.com

December 26
Phil Spector's son, 9-year-old Phillip Jr., died of lymphatic leukemia on his father's 52nd birthday. Phil Sr. would later say that when he lost his son, he'd lost his best friend, and in some ways, his grip on reality.

1999 - ClassicBands.com

December 26
After a decade of ill health, Soul singer Curtis Mayfield died at the age of 57. While a member of The Impressions he recorded the Top 20 hit "For Your Precious Love" in 1960. He also released a handful of solo efforts and spent time playing guitar in Jerry Butler's touring band and provided Jerry with his first R&B hit, "He Will Break Your Heart".

2006 - ClassicBands.com

December 26
Michael Jackson filed a lawsuit against his former accountants, claiming they withdrew $2.5 million a year from his bank accounts but did not properly pay his bills. Jackson hired the Los Angeles-based firm in 2003 for bookkeeping, opening bank accounts and filing personal, corporate and real estate taxes.

2010 - ClassicBands.com

December 26
Bernie Wilson, the baritone voice of Harold Melvin And The Blue Notes, died following a stroke and a heart attack. He was 64. The group enjoyed the 1972, Hot 100 #3 hit, "If You Don't Know Me by Now".

December 26
Teena Marie, known as the "Ivory Queen of Soul", as she was Motown Records' first White act, passed away at the age of 54. As well as scoring two Platinum albums, she reached #37 on the Billboard Pop chart in 1981 with "I Need Your Lovin'" and #4 in 1985 with "Lovergirl".

2012 - ClassicBands.com

December 26
Fontella Bass, who topped the Billboard R&B chart in 1965 with "Rescue Me", died from complications following a heart attack at the age of 72. Over the course of her career she recorded eight albums and enjoyed seven Top 40 hits on Billboard's R&B chart.

2018 - ClassicBands.com

December 26
Andy Kim was inducted into Canada's Walk Of Fame in Toronto, along with Leonard Cohen, astronaut Chris Hadfield and several others. As he reflected on his career, Andy said that he was "surprised" and "excited" to be given the award. Between 1968 and 1974 he had placed nine songs on Canada's Top 40 and seven on the Billboard chart, including "Baby, I Love You" and "Rock Me Gently".

2019 - ClassicBands.com

December 26
Les Chadwick, the original bassist for Gerry And The Pacemakers, died of brain cancer at the age of 76. The band put seven songs on the Billboard Top 40 in 1964 and 1965, including "Don't Let The Sun Catch You Crying" (#4) and "Ferry Cross The Mersey". (#6) They enjoyed nine Top 40 hits in the UK.

December 26
Figures released by Pollstar showed that The Rolling Stones' No Filter tour was the top grossing tour in North America in 2019, bringing in $177.8 million for sixteen shows.

December 26
According to Nielsen Music, weekly vinyl album sales surpassed 1 million copies for the first time since the company began electronically tracking music sales in 1991. Bolstered by last-minute Christmas shopping, a total of 1.243 million vinyl LPs were sold in the week that ended December 26, a new record high.

2023 - ClassicBands.com

December 26
Tommy Smothers, one half of the Comedy/Folk duo The Smothers Brothers, passed away at the age 86 following a bout with cancer. His brother, Dick Smothers issued a statement that said, "I am forever grateful to have spent a lifetime together with him, on and off stage, for over 60 years. Our relationship was like a good marriage, the longer we were together, the more we loved and respected one another. We were truly blessed." Between 1962 and 1968, the pair put eight albums on the Billboard Pop Albums chart, including "Curb Your Tongue, Knave!", which reached #13 in 1964.



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