This Day In Music - July 16

 This Day In Music – 16 July

1927 - Joe Guercio born Buffalo, New York, U.S.A. Musical director and conductor of Elvis Presley's band from 1970 until the legend's death in 1977. He conducted most Elvis concerts, and also worked with Diana Ross, Patti Page and many others. Guercio died on 4 January 2015.

1938 - Tony Jackson is born in Dingle, Liverpool, England. Playing bass, vocalist with The Searchers, (1964 No.1, No. 2 & No.13 single 'Needles And Pins'). Jackson on died 18th August 2003. Conflicting sources suggest 1940 is his birth year - https://youtu.be/X3aLTl1pa9c .

1941 - Desmond Dekker born in Saint Andrew Parish, Jamaica. Jamaican singer, (with The Aces, 1969 No.1, No. 7 & No.9 single 'Israelites'). Died May 25, 2006 - https://youtu.be/HA1ZRIQuHy4 .

1947 - Thomas Boggs born in Wynne, Arkansas, but is raised mostly in Memphis, Tennessee. Drummer with The Box Tops, (1967 No.1, No. 3 & No.5 single 'The Letter') - https://youtu.be/pyq3PUTnpd0 .

1952 - Stewart Copeland is born in Alexandria, Virginia. He spends his youth in Lebanon and then England. He was a member of Curved Air who had 1971 No.4 single 'Back Street Luv'. As a member of The Police, he scored the 1983 & No.1 single 'Every Breath You Take' ( No. 3) plus four other No.1 singles - https://youtu.be/GO5utuvcZps .

1952 - - Mark McEntee born in Perth, WA. Australian musician and former guitarist for the Australian rock band, Divinyls who had the 1991 No. 1, the No.4 & No.10 single, 'I Touch Myself'. McEntee also worked with Australian band Air Supply - https://youtu.be/c8mgxv7Dn9g .

1955 - Elvis Presley made his first appearance on the national charts when 'Baby, Let's Play House' entered the Cash Box country charts at No.15 ( #21 in 1957). Written by Arthur Gunter and recorded by him in 1954, Presley's version differs greatly from the original: Elvis started the song with the chorus, where Gunter began with the first verse, and he replaced Gunter's line "You may get religion" with the words "You may have a Pink Cadillac", referring to his custom-painted 1955 Cadillac that had been serving as the band's transportation at the time - https://youtu.be/Lsd_zR3dOHA .

1962 - The Beach Boys signed to Capitol Records in the which has already released the group's single "Surfin' Safari. It was their first hit, in September of this year. Written by Brian Wilson and Mike Love, The Beach Boys first recorded the song at World Pacific Studios on February 8, 1962 in what was the band's second ever recording session - https://youtu.be/KrPDLxmfWPM .

1966 - A supergroup is born in London, as former Yardbirds guitarist Eric Clapton teams up with bassist Jack Bruce and drummer Ginger Baker of the Graham Bond Organization to form Cream. They break up just three years later but leave some classic recordings including 'Sunshine of Your Love,' 'Badge,' 'Strange Brew,' and 'White Room, earning them induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1993 - https://youtu.be/y_u1eu6Lpds .

1966 - Tommy James and the Shondells' "Hanky Panky" hits #1 for the first of two weeks (it peaks at #4 in ) - https://youtu.be/bsgKZb9jQ1s .

1967 - Arlo Guthrie debuts "Alice's Restaurant Massacree" at the 1967 Newport Folk Festival. The song runs 18 minutes long and tells a true (but greatly exaggerated) story about how he was arrested one Thanksgiving morning for illegal dumping. The ticket later made him ineligible for the draft, keeping him out of the Vietnam War. Joni Mitchell, Leonard Cohen, Judy Collins, Janis Ian, and Tom Paxton also play the festival this day.

1969 - During recordings for their Abbey Road album, The Beatles worked on two new George Harrison songs, 'Here Comes The Sun' and 'Something.' Harrison was inspired to write 'Here Comes The Sun' when taking a day off from Apple business and spending the day walking around the garden at Eric Clapton's house - https://youtu.be/GKdl-GCsNJ0 .

1971 - Edward Joel Kowalczyk born in York, Pennsylvania. Singer from American rock band Live who achieved worldwide success with their 1994 album Throwing Copper, which sold eight million copies in the US.

1976 - After six years, Kenny Loggins and Jim Messina decide to split up their partnership, which had three big hits in "Thinking Of You," "My Music," and "Your Mama Don't Dance." - https://youtu.be/VTu4yQH8KBs .

1980 - Donna Summer marries Bruce Sudano, former member of Brooklyn Dreams, who appeared on her 1979 hit "Heaven Knows." Within the next two years, they welcome two daughters: Brooklyn and Amanda Sudano - https://youtu.be/YoSMyI0jrMU .

1981 - singer-songwriter Harry Chapin, who had success in the 70s with 'Taxi', 'W-O-L-D' and a No. 1 'Cat's In The Cradle' ( #6), was killed aged 38 suffering a cardiac arrest while driving on a New York expressway. He was on his way to a benefit concert when his car was hit from behind by a tractor-trailer, causing the gas tank to explode - https://youtu.be/KUwjNBjqR-c .

1995 - At North Carolina's Duke University Medical Centre, Wayne Osmond of The Osmonds undergoes an operation to remove a brain tumour.

1996 - Styx drummer John Panozzo dies at age 47 when his liver fails after years of drinking.

1996 - - Luke Hemmings born. Guitarist and lead vocalist for the Australian rock band 5 Seconds of Summer. The Australian rock band achieved the biggest first-week sales for a debut album by a group since Daughtry's self-titled album in 2006. 5 Seconds of Summer were also the first Australian act to achieve a No.1 album with their debut album.

2000 - Coldplay went to No.1 on the album chart with their debut release Parachutes. The release spawned the hit singles 'Shiver', 'Yellow' ( #3), 'Trouble', and 'Don't Panic' and won the Grammy Award for Best Alternative Music Album in 2002 - https://youtu.be/yKNxeF4KMsY .

2000 - Matchbox 20 went to No.1 on the singles chart with 'Bent' ( #17) The single was taken from their second album Mad Season - https://youtu.be/2QzqFImaLFw .

2008 - Jo Stafford, whose "You Belong To Me" made her the first female artist to hit #1 ( #1 in 1952) on the Chart, dies of congestive heart failure at age 90 - https://youtu.be/mJvwzZZkb4M

2011 - "Party Rock Anthem" by LMFAO hits #1 after first appearing on the Hot 100 on February 12 at #78. Thanks to a captivating video, the song starts the "shufflin'" dance craze and spends a staggering 68 weeks on the chart (six at #1), which is longer than any other chart-topper. "Party Rock Anthem" becomes the centrepiece of the duo's Sorry For Party Rocking album and is their first #1 on the Hot 100, surpassing Adele's "Rolling In The Deep" and Pitbull's "Give Me Everything (Tonight)." With a whopping 68-week chart run, the song breaks the record for longest run on the Hot 100, previously held by Jewel's 1998 hit "Foolish Games" at 65 weeks (a feat matched by "Rolling in the Deep") - https://youtu.be/KQ6zr6kCPj8 .

2012 - Jon Lord, the former keyboard player with Deep Purple, died of a pulmonary embolism while suffering from pancreatic cancer, aged 71. Lord was a co-founder of Deep Purple in 1968 and co-wrote many of the group's songs including Smoke On The Water. He also played with bands including Whitesnake - https://youtu.be/zUwEIt9ez7M .

2012 - Hungarian American bassist, Bob Babbitt died aged 74, from brain cancer. He is most famous for his work as a member of Motown Records' studio band, the Funk Brothers, from 1966 to 1972. Babbitt's most notable bass performances include 'Signed, Sealed, Delivered I'm Yours' by Stevie Wonder, 'War' by Edwin Starr, 'The Tears of a Clown' by Smokey Robinson & the Miracles, 'Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology)' and 'Inner City Blues' by Marvin Gaye, 'Band Of Gold' by Freda Payne, 'Ball of Confusion (That's What the World Is Today)', and 'Just My Imagination (Running Away With Me)' by The Temptations - https://youtu.be/01-2pNCZiNk .

2012 - Queen's 1975 classic Bohemian Rhapsody was voted as the "Favourite No. 1 Single," narrowly beating out Michael Jackson's 'Billie Jean' for the top spot. The poll conducted by the Official Charts Company had The Beatles 'Hey Jude' at No.5, with Adele's hit 'Someone Like You' at No.3 - https://youtu.be/fJ9rUzIMcZQ .

2014 - Blues guitarist Johnny Winter died at the age of 70 in Zurich, just days after playing at the Lovely Days Festival in Austria. Winter, who was instantly recognisable by his long white hair, worked with some of the greatest bluesmen, producing several albums for his childhood hero Muddy Waters - with whom he won several Grammys.

2020 - Drummer Jamie Oldaker, whose career included stints alongside Eric Clapton and Peter Frampton, died of cancer at the age of 68. In 1974, Oldaker played on Clapton's 461 Ocean Boulevard, the first of 11 Clapton albums to feature Oldaker on drums. Oldaker also played alongside Leon Russell and Bob Seger, with Ace Frehley and Peter Frampton, and appeared on recordings with artists as diverse as the Bee Gees, Stephen Stills and the Bellamy Brothers - https://youtu.be/xH7cSSKnkL4 .