Eagle Classic Hitstory October 12 on birminghamseagle.com

On This Day in Eagle Classic Hitstory...

October 12

1935
Sam Moore of Sam & Dave is born.
Sam & Dave 1967 Interview

1942
The late Melvin Franklin of the Temptations is born.
The Temptations

1957
After a concert in Sydney, Australia, Little Richard announces he wants to give up rock and roll. "If you want to live for the Lord, you can't take rock and roll too. God doesn't like it." When his sax player, Clifford Burks, dares Richard to prove his "faith in God," Little Richard tosses four diamond rings, valued at $8,000, into Sydney's Hunter River. Richard flies to Los Angeles the next day to be baptized a Seventh Day Adventist and "to prepare for the end of the world."
Little Richard "Lucille" 1957

1959
Neil Sedaka's "Oh! Carol" enters the pop chart at #73. The song was written by Sedaka for his friend and Brill Building songwriting colleague Carole King. The tune spends 18 weeks on the charts topping at #9.
Neil Sedaka "Oh! Carol"

1962
Little Richard headlines a concert at New Brighton Towne, Liverpool. One opening act is the Beatles. The once peerless rocker and the soon-to-be peerless stars reportedly get along well.
Little Richard Meets The Beatles

1963
Billboard observes hot-rodding songs are the latest teen fad, replacing surfing songs. Foremost among the souped-up tunes is the Beach Boys' "Little Deuce Coupe," #15 on the pop charts. Capitol Records is supplying DJ's and record retailers with a book of hot-rod terms.
The Beach Boys "Little Deuce Coupe"

1964
No. 1 Hit: "Do Wah Diddy Diddy," Manfred Mann. The song was written by Jeff Barry and Ellie Greenwich, who also wrote "Da Doo Ron Ron." So can we also thank these two for "De Doo Doo Doo De Da Da Da" by The Police or "Doo Doo Doo Doo Doo (Heartbreaker)" by The Stones?
Manfred Mann "Do Wah Diddy"

1966
The Jimi Hendrix Experience is formed in London.

1968
John Sebastian leaves the Lovin' Spoonful to begin his solo career.

1969
A mysterious phone caller urges DJ Russ Gibb, at Detroit underground radio station WKNR, to listen to the Beatles' "Revolution #9" backwards. He does and listeners think they hear a voice saying, "Turn me on, dead man." Thus the "Paul is Dead" craze approaches Orson Welles' "War of the Worlds" radio broadcast as a great media hoax.
"Revolution #9" Backwards

1970
Jesus Christ Superstar is released with a presentation at St. Peter's Lutheran Church in New York where rock-opera composers Anrew Lloyd Weber and Tim Rice explain their project.
"Superstar" from Jesus Christ Superstar" 1973

1970
Bill Graham holds an auction of rock Memorabilia and artifacts at New York's Fillmore East to benefit peace candidates. Among the items on the block are a guitar smashed to bits by the Who's Pete Townshend, Ian Anderson's flute, a multi-colored bra tossed to the Grateful Dead's Jerry Garcia by an audience member and a spiral notebook with the original scrawled lyrics to Joni Mitchell's first album, Songs to a Seagull.

1971
Gene Vincent, who had a monster hit with "Be-Bop-a-Lula," dies of a bleeding ulcer at age 36.
Gene Vincent "Be-Bop-A-Lula" 1958

1973
Elton John gets a gold record for his two record set, Goodbye Yellow Brick Road. It's his third straight Number One album.
Elton John "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road"

1975
Rod Stewart and the Faces play their last gig together. The split occurs because of Stewart's solo success and his wanting to further it.
Rod Stewart & Faces "Stay With Me"

1976
Veteran soul group the Spinners earn another gold record. Off their sixth album, Happiness Is Being with the Spinners, comes their big hit single, "The Rubberband Man." It goes up to number two on the pop charts and Number One on the R&B.
The Spinners "Rubberband Man"

1978
Ex-Sex Pistol Sid Vicious' girlfriend Nancy Spungen is found dead of abdominal knife wounds in their room at Chelsea Hotel in New York. Vicious, nearly unconscious due to the effects of several different drugs, is charged with her murder, jailed, and then released. Months later, he dies of a heroin overdose before the case ever comes to trial.
Sid & Nancy Death Reports 1979

1979
At a Madison Square Garden concert, Ian Anderson of Jethro Tull suffers a minor eye injury when a fan throws a rose at him and one of the thorns pierces his eye. Two shows have to cancelled before Tull resumes the tour.
Ian Anderson "Orchestralung"

1982
The Clash open for the Who at Shea Stadium for the first of two New York City shows on what The Who call their "Farewell Tour."
The Clash "Train in Vain" Live

1985
B-52's guitarist and founding member Ricky Wilson dies of AIDS at age 32.
The B-52's "Rock Lobster" 1980

1995
Rap musician Tupac Shakur is released from prison on $1.4 million bail, just eight months after a judge sentenced him to a jail term of up to 4 years for sexual assault. Shakur, 23, is released pending an appeal of his conviction.

1996
The film documentary The Rolling Stones Rock and Roll Circus is released. It had been filmed in December 1968 but was put on the shelf for nearly 28 years, supposedly because the Stones were afraid that The Who upstaged them.
The Who "A Quick One" from Rock & Roll Circus 1968

1997
Singer/songwriter John Denver is killed in a plane crash, when the 2-seater he was piloting crashed into Monterey Bay.
John Denver "Rocky Mountain High"

1997
Spanish fans of the Backstreet Boys force the cancellation of a free open-air gig by the band. By midday, more than 7,000 fans - mostly teenage girls - turn up in a central Madrid square. After city hall doctors treat 300 girls who had fainted in the heat, officials call the event off. A turn out of no more than 5,000 had been expected.

1999
David Crosby, Stephen Stills, Graham Nash, and Neil Young appear at New York's Madison Square Garden to announce their forthcoming album and CSNY2K tour.
CSNY "Southern Man" Live 2000

1999
Juke joint bluesman Frank Frost, 63, dies at his home in Helena, Ark.

2001
Limp Bizkit guitarist Wes Borland quits the band. A post on the group's Web site states, "Limp Bizkit and Wes Borland have amicably decided to part ways. Both Limp Bizkit and Borland will continue to pursue their respective musical careers."

2002
More than 25 years after his death, Elvis Presley is once again the King. RCA Records' Elv1s 30 No. 1 Hits debuts at No. 1 with 500,325 units sold. This marks the first Elvis album to ever debut at the top of the U.S. chart.

2002
Ray Conniff, the Grammy-winning composer and conductor who pioneered the use of vocal elements in pop arrangements, dies at an Escondido, Calif., hospital after injuring his head in a fall. He is 85.

2003
Rapper 50 Cent takes home all five trophies for which he is nominated at the World Music Awards, held in Monaco. Russian teen duo t.A.T.u. picks up three awards, while Norah Jones and Eminem win two.

October 12 Birthdays