In 1956, after Bob Neal's management contract with Elvis Presley expired on March 15th, Colonel Tom Parker takes over. His position of personal representative and manager will pay him 25 percent of Presley's earnings.
Also in 1956, at Paramount Studios in Hollywood, Elvis Presley began three days of screen tests that included lip-syncing to his recording of "Blue Suede Shoes" and performing two scenes from "The Rainmaker," a movie then in production. Elvis was not chosen for that film, but because they were impressed with his screen presence, Paramount and director Hal Wallis signed Presley to a seven-year movie contract on April 25.
In 1957, Ricky Nelson records his first tunes for the Verve label. "A Teenager's Romance" will climb to #2 on the Billboard chart and "I'm Walkin'" which will reach #4. Over his fifteen year recording career, Rick will place 36 songs in the US Top 40.
In 1958, Dee Clark recorded "Hey Little Girl."
In 1958, at Decca Recording Studio A in the Pythian Temple, New York City, the Kalin Twins recorded "When."
In 1959, at the Atlantic Studios in New York City, the Coasters recorded "Along Came Jones."
In 1961, the Beatles performed at the Casbah Coffee Club, West Derby, Liverpool, their last performance before traveling to Hamburg, West Germany, for their second visit.
In 1962, Elvis Presley began work on his 11th feature film, "Girls! Girls! Girls!," co-starring Stella Stevens, Jeremy Slate, Laurel Goodwin, Robert Strauss, and Benson Fong.
In 1964, former Beatles drummer Pete Best appears on US TV's I've Got A Secret. It only took a handful of questions before the panel guessed his former occupation and when host Gary Moore asked him why he left the group, he said "I thought I'd like to start of group of my own and I thought at that time they weren't going to go as big as they are now."
In 1964, Brenda Holloway released the single "Every Little Bit Hurts."
Also in 1964, the original Broadway production of the musical "Funny Girl," starring Barbra Streisand, Sydney Chaplin, Jean Stapleton, Roger De Koven, and Kay Medford, opened at New York's Winter Garden Theatre for 1,348 performances.
In 1965, it was announced that Jeff Beck would take Eric Clapton's place in the Yardbirds.
In 1967, the Dave Clark Five sang "You Got What It Takes" on CBS-TV's "The Ed Sullivan Show."
In 1968, blues artist Little Willie John died in prison under mysterious circumstances after being convicted of manslaughter two years earlier. He had fourteen hits on the US R&B charts and the same number on the Pop charts, including "Fever,""Sleep," and "Talk To Me, Talk To Me."
In 1972, members of Mott The Hoople were ready to call it quits when friend of the band David Bowie offered to produce their next album, even offered them two new songs he'd written: "Suffragette City," which the band turned down, and "All The Young Dudes," the song that provided them with their breakthrough.
In 1973, country-folk music fiddler/Canadian Country Music Hall of Famer Don Messer, host of "Don Messer's Jubilee" for ten years on CBC-TV and four years in syndication, died at the age of 63.
In 1974, David Essex received a Gold record for the hit "Rock On," which made #5 in the US and #3 in the UK.
In 1976, one-man blues band Duster Bennett was killed in a car accident. 1970 album 'Smiling Like I'm Happy.' Worked with Alexis Korner, John Mayall's Bluesbreakers, Fleetwood Mac and B.B. King.
In 1976, in Memphis, Elvis Presley jumped out of his limo near the scene of a multi-car pileup, displayed his honorary Memphis police captain's badge, and assisted accident victims until police and rescue teams arrived.
.jpg)
In 1977, Daryl Hall And John Oates score the first of their six Billboard number one hits when "Rich Girl" reached the top. The song was not a hit in the UK.
In 1980, seven years after its release, Pink Floyd's 'The Dark Side of the Moon' breaks the record for the longest-charting Pop album, previously held by Carole King's 'Tapestry.' At the same time, their latest single "Another Brick In The Wall" was topping both the Cashbox Best Sellers chart and the Billboard Hot 100.
Also in 1980, Jon Paulos, drummer for The Buckinghams on their string of 1967 hits, including "Kind Of A Drag" and "Mercy, Mercy, Mercy", died of a drug overdose. He was 32.
In 1980, Van Halen released their third studio album, 'Women and Children First.'
In 1985, radio stations in South Africa banned all of Stevie Wonder's records after he dedicated the Oscar he had won the night before at The Academy Awards to Nelson Mandela.
In 1986, Guns N' Roses was signed to Geffen Records.
In 1992, Trisha Yearwood's self-titled debut album was certified Platinum.
In 1994, Soundgarden entered the US album chart at #1 with 'Superunknown.'
In 1995, London's Sunday Times reported that Yoko Ono and her son, Sean Lennon, visited Paul McCartney's recording studio during their weekend stay with the McCartney family. The newspaper suggested that the visit signified an end to decades of hostility between McCartney and Ono.
In 1998, Chuck Negron filed a suit against his former Three Dog Night bandmates, alleging they had breached a 1990 settlement agreement and interfered with his career.
In 2000, Santana started a two-week run at #1 on the UK album chart with 'Supernatural.'
In 2001, the toy figure of Eminem was facing a ban from UK shops. Woolworth's and Hamleys were refusing to stock the dolls. Psychologists warned parents who buy the dolls for children will be inadvertently giving their approval to bad language.
In 2002, Randy Castillo drummer with the Ozzy Osbourne band died of cancer aged 51. Worked with Osbourne during the 1980s and early 1990s. Also worked with Lita Ford and Motley Crue.
In 2002, Three Dog Night's original bass player, Joe Schermie, Jr., who played with the group from 1968-1973, died of a heart attack. He had just turned 55 a month earlier.
In 2005, CBC Radio One named Ian and Sylvia's "Four Strong Winds" the greatest Canadian song of all time.
In 2005, Australian drummer Paul Hester died aged 46, after he "attempted suicide" and died from strangulation after being found hanged in a park in Melbourne. He had been a member of Crowded House, Split Enz and Largest Living Things. After leaving Crowded House in 1994 Hester appeared on many TV and radio shows in Australia.
In 2006, readers of Total Guitar magazine voted the guitar solo by Jimmy Page in Led Zeppelin's 'Stairway To Heaven' as the greatest guitar solo of all time. The 1971 track was voted ahead of tracks by Van Halen, Queen, Jimi Hendrix and The Eagles. On the 20th anniversary of the original release of the song, it was announced via US radio sources that the song had logged up an estimated 2,874,000 radio plays - back to back, that would run for 44 years solid.
In 2009, a jumpsuit that Elvis Presley wore at a concert at New York's Madison Square Garden sold at an auction for $212,588.
In 2011, Carl Bunch, the drummer for Buddy Holly who was in the hospital with frostbite when Holly and other members of the Winter Dance Party Tour were killed in a 1959 plane crash, died of complications from diabetes at age 71.
