Rock 'n' Roll History for
September 2


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1956 - ClassicBands.com

September 2
Along with a handful of other tunes, Elvis Presley records "Too Much" at Radio Recorders in Hollywood, California. RCA Victor would release it as a single on January 4th, 1957, and Presley would sing it on The Ed Sullvian Show two days later. The song would top the Billboard Top 100 chart, the Cashbox Best Sellers list, and reach #3 on the Billboard R&B chart.

1965 - ClassicBands.com

September 2
The Beatles receive a Gold record for John Lennon's biographical composition, "Help!", which was still rising up the charts.

September 2
The Beatles release "Yesterday", on which only Paul is actually playing. Although it was nominated for Song of the Year at the 1966 Grammy Awards, it lost out to Tony Bennett's "The Shadow of Your Smile". More than 2,500 cover versions of "Yesterday" exist, making it one of the most recorded songs in history. In 2012, the BBC reported that it was the fourth-most-successful song of all time in terms of royalties paid, having earned a total of £19.5 million in payments.

1968 - ClassicBands.com

September 2
The Doors are forced to perform as a trio at a concert in Amsterdam after lead singer Jim Morrison collapses while dancing during the Jefferson Airplane's performance.

1971 - ClassicBands.com

September 2
The Grateful Dead's second live LP is given the unimaginative title of "Grateful Dead", but Rolling Stone magazine reports that leader Jerry Garcia originally wanted to call it "Starfuck". It would become the band's first Billboard Top 25 album.

September 2
The Grateful Dead track down Lenny Hart, the group's ex-manager, and have him arrested for embezzling $70,000 from the group.

1978 - ClassicBands.com

September 2
35-year-old George Harrison marries 30-year-old Olivia Trinidad Arias, a secretary at his Dark Horse record company. Arias had given birth to the couple's son Dhani on August 1st.

September 2
Teddy Pendergrass, the former lead singer of Harold Melvin And The Blue Notes, promotes his latest album "Life Is A Song Worth Singing" by performing a concert for women only. The gimmick is so successful, further shows of similar nature play to sold out audiences.

1989 - ClassicBands.com

September 2
Paula Abdul had the number one song in the US with "Cold Hearted". In the UK however, the record stalled at #46.

September 2
Ozzy Osbourne was charged with threatening to kill his wife, Sharon. He was released on the condition that he immediately enter into detox and the case was latter dropped when the couple decide to reconcile.

1995 - ClassicBands.com

September 2
The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame opened in Cleveland, Ohio, with Bob Dylan, Chuck Berry, Aretha Franklin, Al Green, Booker T and the MGs, Little Richard, The Allman Brothers, Boz Scaggs, James Brown and Martha Reeves making contributions.

September 2
Michael Jackson's "You Are Not Alone" becomes the first song to debut at #1 on the Billboard Hot 100. It would only stay on top for one week before being pushed to #2 by "Gangsta's Paradise" by American rapper COOLIO Featuring L.V.

2000 - ClassicBands.com

September 2
Madonna's eighth studio album, "Music", rises to number one in England, making her the first female to top the UK album chart ten times. (the other two were soundtracks) The LP, which debuted at number one in twenty-three countries, sold over three million copies worldwide in its first week of release.

2004 - ClassicBands.com

September 2
66-year-old Tyrone Davis, who scored a number one R&B hit in 1970 with "Turn Back the Hands of Time", suffered a stroke and was admitted to Mount Sinai Hospital in Chicago, after feeling ill at a Labor Day weekend concert in New Orleans. He would never recover and died on the 9th of February, 2005.

2012 - ClassicBands.com

September 2
Starship guitarist Mark Abrahamian died after suffering a heart attack following a concert performance in Nebraska. The musician, who joined the band eleven years previous, was just 46 years old.

2013 - ClassicBands.com

September 2
Elton John received the first-ever Brits Icon award for artists who have had a "lasting impact" on UK culture. Rod Stewart presented the citation to Sir Elton, calling him "the second best Rock singer ever."

2016 - ClassicBands.com

September 2
"Eagles, Their Greatest Hits 1971-1975" returned to the Billboard 200 album chart thanks to a 99-cent sale price in the Google Play store. The LP, released in 1976, was already the largest selling album in history in the US.

2017 - ClassicBands.com

September 2
Dave Hlubek, lead guitarist and founding member of the Southern Rock band, Molly Hatchet, passed away at the age of 66. Over the course of his career, Hlubek was awarded seven Gold and Platinum-selling albums with sales totaling approximately $24 million.

2024 - ClassicBands.com

September 2
James Darren, who placed five songs on the Billboard Top 40 in the early and mid-1960s, passed away at the age of 88. Two of his songs, "Goodbye Cruel World" (#3) and "Her Royal Majesty" (#6) cracked the Top 10. Along with his singing career, Darren also starred in several films, including The Guns of Navarone, The Gene Krupa Story, All the Young Men and Because They're Young. Moving into television, he starred in the series The Time Tunnel before appearing on numerous other programs including Love, American Style, Fantasy Island, The Love Boat and T.J. Hooker.



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