Rock 'n' Roll History for
March 6


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1955 - ClassicBands.com

March 6
Tennessee Ernie Ford topped the UK singles chart with what music historians believe is the first Country tune to do so, "Give Me Your Word". The single remained at the top of the list for seven weeks, but did not chart in America.

1957 - ClassicBands.com

March 6
The Diamonds become one of the first Canadian artists to have success in the United States when their version of "Little Darlin'" reaches #2 on the Billboard Top 100 chart and #3 on the R&B chart. The song was written by 16-year-old Maurice Williams, who would top the chart in 1960 with "Stay".

1958 - ClassicBands.com

March 6
The Everly Brothers record another Boudleaux Bryant tune, "All I Have To Do Is Dream", which will become their second US number one hit, after "Wake Up Little Susie". It will also top the UK chart.

1959 - ClassicBands.com

March 6
The Drifters record "There Goes My Baby", the first of their sixteen Billboard Top 40 hits. The song will reach #2 on that chart during a fourteen week run, and would top the Cashbox Best Sellers list and the Billboard R&B chart. In 2010, the tune was ranked #196 on Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.

1964 - ClassicBands.com

March 6
Elvis Presley's movie career took a turn for the worse when his film Kissin' Cousins is released. Completed in just 17 days, the picture was widely panned by critics, but as always, fans flocked to theaters to see their idol. Kissin' Cousins earned $3 million at the box office and finished at #26 on the year end list of the top-grossing movies of 1964.

1965 - ClassicBands.com

March 6
The Temptations went to #1 on the US singles chart with the Smokey Robinson penned "My Girl", making the group the first male act to have a chart topper for Motown Records. The single reached #43 in the UK.

1970 - ClassicBands.com

March 6
Charles Manson releases an album called "Lie" to help raise money for his defense in the Tate-LeBianca murder trial. The album jacket is made to look like a cover of Life magazine with the letter f removed from the word Life. In the mid sixties, Manson had been a wanna-be musician who befriended Beach Boys' drummer Dennis Wilson, eventually talking the group into recording one of his songs, "Cease To Exist". The title was changed to "Never Learn Not To Love" and was released as the "B" side of the single "Bluebirds Over The Mountain", which eventually climbed to #61 in the US in early 1969, giving Manson a hit record on Billboard's Hot 100.

1971 - ClassicBands.com

March 6
Mungo Jerry were at #1 on the UK singles chart with "Baby Jump", the group's second and final chart topper. The song failed to chart in America.

1973 - ClassicBands.com

March 6
John Lennon's visa extension is canceled by the New York Office of the US Immigration Department, just five days after it was granted.

March 6
An attempt to bring Elvis Presley to the UK for shows at London's Earl's Court failed when promoters were told that Elvis had US tour and filming commitments. The real reason was that Elvis' manager, Colonel Tom Parker, was an illegal US immigrant and would not leave the country for fear he would not be allowed back in.

1975 - ClassicBands.com

March 6
The Average White Band, a Scottish group playing Funk music, are awarded a Gold record for the instrumental "Pick Up the Pieces", which was #1 on the Cash Box Best Sellers chart this week.

March 6
Led Zeppelin is awarded a Gold record for the double disc album "Physical Graffiti". The LP would eventually be certified as 16 times Platinum for sales of over 8 million copies.

1976 - ClassicBands.com

March 6
England's EMI Records re-issues twenty-three Beatles singles, including "Yesterday", which had never been released as a 45 in the UK. All 23 records made the British chart.

March 6
After placing twenty-eight songs in the Top 40 of Billboard's Pop chart, The Miracles make the list for the last time when "Love Machine" went to the top. Their run included seven Top 10 hits and two number ones. "Love Machine" made it to #3 in the UK.

1981 - ClassicBands.com

March 6
Connie Francis' brother Georgie, who was a labor union lawyer, was murdered, gangland-style, in front of the Caldwell, NJ home he shared with his wife and two small sons.

1982 - ClassicBands.com

March 6
Billboard Magazine tells us that Dick Clark has donated the podium he stood behind on the original American Bandstand to the national museum at the Smithsonian.

1994 - ClassicBands.com

March 6
78-year-old Frank Sinatra collapsed face down on stage while singing "My Way" during a concert in Richmond, Virginia. He recovered quickly and waved to the crowd as he was wheeled off stage and taken to a hospital.

2000 - ClassicBands.com

March 6
Eric Clapton was inducted into The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame for the third time, after receiving previous honors as a member of The Yardbirds and Cream.

2001 - ClassicBands.com

March 6
Led Zeppelin was named as "the most bootlegged band" when 422 illegal albums were counted. The Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan and The Beatles were next in line with over 350 unauthorized titles available.

March 6
Mike "Smitty" Smith, the original drummer for Paul Revere And The Raiders died of natural causes at his home in Hawaii at the age of 58.

2007 - ClassicBands.com

March 6
According to Dr. Bill Bass, a forensic anthropologist hired by the son of J.P. Richardson, The Big Bopper suffered massive fractures and likely died immediately in the 1959 plane crash that also killed Buddy Holly and Ritchie Valens. Jay Richardson had hired Dr. Bass, of the University of Tennessee, to look into rumors that a gun may have been fired on board the plane and that the Big Bopper might have survived the crash and died while trying to get help. Dr. Bass' report says that those rumors are groundless. "There was no indication of foul play. [He] died immediately. He didn't crawl away." Jay Richardson was pleased with the findings, saying "I was hoping to put the rumors to rest."

2011 - ClassicBands.com

March 6
David Cassidy was the first to go on the fourth season of NBC's Celebrity Apprentice. Referring to contestants Richard Hatch and Jose Canseco, Donald Trump told Cassidy, "I have more respect for you than either of these guys, but you're fired."

2013 - ClassicBands.com

March 6
Yoko Ono gave producers of the NBC comedy The New Normal permission to use John Lennon's "Beautiful Boy" during the season finale.

March 6
"Stompin'" Tom Connors, a Canadian icon who recorded hundreds of songs about his native country, died in his sleep of natural causes at the age of 77. Hockey fans fondly remember him for "The Hockey Song", played in rinks across North America.

March 6
Alvin Lee, the founder of Ten Years After died unexpectedly from complications following a routine surgical procedure. He was 68. The album oriented band burst to stardom with a memorable Woodstock performance and reached the Billboard Top 40 with "I'd Love To Change The World" in 1971. Lee was born Graham Anthony Barnes.

2014 - ClassicBands.com

March 6
Adam Lambert and Queen announced that they were teaming up for a 19-date North American tour. Lambert rose to fame in 2009 after finishing as runner-up to Kris Allen on the eighth season of American Idol.

2016 - ClassicBands.com

March 6
Reports began appearing that Graham Nash made comments to the Dutch publication Lust For Life that indicated that the end of the line had come for Crosby, Stills And Nash. He was quoted as saying "You asked me if there's more of CSN? My answer is no, and that's very sad, because we're pretty good. But I don't like David Crosby right now. He's been awful to me these last two years, just fucking awful."

March 6
Lana Rae Meisner, wife of former Eagles' bassist Randy Meisner, died after she accidentally shot herself while looking for something in a closet. Although the couple had a history of domestic incidents, police immediately cleared Randy of any wrongdoing whatsoever.

2021 - ClassicBands.com

March 6
Lou Ottens, the Dutch engineer who is credited with the invention of the audio cassette tape, passed away at the age of 94. Ottens and his team developed the world's first portable tape recorder while working for electronics manufacturer Phillips and introduced the first cassette tape at the Berlin Radio Show electronics fair in 1963. His design went on to become the standard cassette used around the world despite competition from imitators. Since then, an estimated 100 billion have been sold. Ottens would go on to play a key role in Phillips and Sony's joint development of the compact disc, first made available to the public in 1982.



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