Music History - June 20

In 1948, Toast Of The Town, which would later be called the Ed Sullivan Show, premiered on CBS-TV. The first telecast was produced on a meager budget of $1,375. Only $375 was allocated for talent and $200 of that was shared by the young stars of that night's program, Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis.

In 1956, Elvis Presley guested on Wink Martindale's Memphis TV show to promote a benefit concert.

In 1959, the management of the Lido Club in Paris called Elvis Presley's hotel and demanded that the club's entire female chorus line be returned in time for that night's show. Elvis and his entourage were staying in Paris during his furlough from the U.S. Army while he was stationed in Germany.

In 1960, 17-year-old Annette Funicello entered the Billboard Pop chart with the Paul Anka penned "Train of Love." The song would become the fourth of her five Top 40 hits, eventually reaching #36.

Also in 1960, Coral Records released the Buddy Holly single "True Love Ways," 16½ months after the singer was killed in a plane crash.

In 1961, at Cosimo Recording Studios in New Orleans, Fats Domino recorded "Let The Four Winds Blow" and "You Win Again."

In 1962, in Hollywood, Rick Nelson recorded "Teenage Idol."

In 1963, Gerry and the Pacemakers were at #1 on the U.K. singles chart with "I Like It," the group’s second #1.

In 1963, at A&R Studios in New York City, the Angels recorded "My Boyfriend's Back." The song is a word of warning to a would-be suitor who, after the narrator of the song rebuffed his advances, went on to spread nasty rumours accusing the narrator of romantic indiscretions. Now, the narrator declares, her boyfriend is back in town and ready to settle the score, and she tells the rebuffed would-be suitor to watch his back. The inspiration for the song was when co-writer Bob Feldman overheard a conversation between a high school girl and the boy she was rebuffing. Rival girl groups the Chiffons and Martha and the Vandellas recorded covers shortly after The Angels' original release. The single spent three weeks at #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, and #2 on the R&B Billboard.

In 1965, the Beatles began a 14-day European tour with two performances at the Palais Des Sports in Paris.

In 1965, the Dave Clark Five performed "Glad All Over" and "I Like It Like That" on CBS-TV's "The Ed Sullivan Show."

In 1965, singer/songwriter/mandolin player/Country Music Hall of Famer Ira Louvin of the Louvin Brothers died at age 41 from injuries suffered when his car was hit by a drunk driver near Williamsburg, Missouri. Louvin's wife Anne was also killed.

In 1966, Billy Joe Royal, Unit Four Plus Two, and the Knickerbockers were the guest performers on ABC-TV's "Where the Action Is."

On June 20, 1966, the Beatles released the album 'Yesterday and Today' with the controversial "butcher" cover, showing the Beatles smiling amongst decapitated baby dolls. The original photo became a huge publicity problem for Capitol Records. It was quickly replaced by a more conventional cover, glued over the old one and resulting in one of the band's most prized collectibles. Negative reaction to the cover photo was so strong Capitol recalled 750,000 copies from distributors to replace the cover. The total cost to Capitol to replace the cover and promotional materials was $250,000, wiping out their initial profit. At the time, some of the Beatles defended the use of the butcher photograph. John Lennon said it was "as relevant as Vietnam" and Paul McCartney said that their critics were "soft." Ringo Starr said it was a commentary on how Capitol Records "butchered" their original albums. George Harrison said he thought the whole idea "was gross, and I also thought it was stupid. Sometimes we all did stupid things thinking it was cool and hip when it was naïve and dumb; and that was one of them."'Yesterday and Today' was the only Beatles record to lose money for Capitol.

In 1966, the Rolling Stones released the album 'Aftermath' in the US, a little more than two months after it was issued in the UK.

In 1967, the Buckinghams began recording "Susan" and "Hey, Baby (They're Playing Our Song)."

In 1969, Jimi Hendrix received the largest paycheck (to that time) for a single show when he earned $125,000 for one set at the Newport '69 Festival in Northridge, California. The three-day event also featured Joe Cocker, Creedence Clearwater Revival, Ike & Tina Turner, Jethro Tull, the Rascals, and Steppenwolf. A three day ticket to the festival cost $15.

Also in 1969, David Bowie signed with Philips Records, then entered Trident Studios in London to record "Space Oddity," a song he wrote after seeing the 1968 Stanley Kubrick movie "2001: A Space Odyssey."Written about the launch of Major Tom, a fictional astronaut'. The tune will top the UK chart in November, 1975 and reach #15 in America.

In 1972, the Tallahatchie Bridge, made famous in Bobbie Gentry's "Ode To Billie Joe," collapsed into the Yazoo River. Although an article which appeared in the November 1967 issue of Life magazine showed a picture of Bobbie walking across it, she later said that she didn't have any particular span in mind when she wrote the song. It's also worth noting that Chocktaw Ridge, which is also referred to in the song, is located a hundred miles away on the east side of the I-55, and not anywhere near the Tallahatchie River as it passes through Leflore County.

In 1973, American Bandstand celebrated its 20th anniversary with a 90-minute ABC-TV special in which Neil Diamond, Little Richard, Paul Revere and the Raiders, Cheech & Chong, and Three Dog Night appeared.

In 1973, doo-wop singer ("Earth Angel") Bruce Tate, one of the original members of the group the Penguins, died at the age of 36.

In 1974, Bob Dylan and the Band released the live album 'Before The Flood.' The LP peaked at #3 on the Billboard 200, reached #8 on the popular album chart in the UK, and has been certified platinum by the RIAA.

In 1974, Van Morrison, the Allman Brothers, the Mahavishnu Orchestra, Tim Buckley, the Sensational Alex Harvey Band and the Doobie Brothers all appeared at Knebworth Park, Stevenage, England. A special PA system was used for the event, claiming to be the best ever for an outside show, weighing 12 tons and needing five technicians.

In 1975, in New York City, the Talking Heads performed their first show at the club CBGB.

In 1975, NBC-TV's "Midnight Special," with guest host Herb Alpert, featured performances by the Captain & Tennille, Supertramp, Billy Preston, and Phoebe Snow

In 1975, Neil Young released the album 'Tonight's The Night.' It peaked at #25 on the Billboard 200. In 2003, the album was ranked #331 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time.

In 1978, Foreigner released their second studio album 'Double Vision.' It features the band's signature song "Hot Blooded," which peaked at #3 on the Billboard Hot 100. The title track was also a major hit, peaking at #2.  It also included the song "Tramontane," which was also the band's only instrumental to be released on a Foreigner studio album.

In 1980, Fleetwood Mac played the first of six sold-out nights at Wembley Arena in London.

In 1980, NBC-TV's "Midnight Special" was hosted by Eddie Rabbitt and Kim Carnes. Guest performers included ABBA, Randy Van Warmer Jermaine Jackson, and Teena Marie.

In 1980, 'The Blues Brothers,' starring John Belushi and Dan Aykroyd, with appearances by Ray Charles, Aretha Franklin, James Brown, Cab Calloway, Steve Cropper, and Donald "Duck" Dunn, opened in US and Canadian movie theaters.

In 1980. the Rolling Stones released the LP 'Emotional Rescue.' It topped the charts in both the US and UK.  The album cover, designed by Peter Corriston, features a selection of thermographic photos taken by British-born, Paris-based artist Roy Adzak using a thermo camera, a device that measures heat emissions. The original release came wrapped in a huge colour poster featuring more thermo-shots of the band. 

In 1981, Stars on 45 went to #1 on the US singles chart, a medley of Beatles songs set to a disco beat. It was the start of a flood of 'Stars On' hits including Stars on Stevie Wonder, punk songs, Status Quo and Chas & Dave.

In 1983, Duane Eddy performs in San Francisco, kicking off his first US tour in fifteen years.

In 1985, "Heaven" by Bryan Adams was the #1 song in the US.

In 1986, at Wembley Arena in London, the fourth annual "Prince's Trust Rock Gala" featured performances by Paul McCartney, George Harrison, Elton John, Tina Turner, Phil Collins, Eric Clapton, Mark Knopfler, Bryan Adams, Midge Ure, Howard Jones, and Paul Young.

In 1987, in Dallas, Aerosmith began their 147-date Permanent Vacation world tour with a concert at the Cotton Bowl.

In 1987, in New York City, Dion DiMucci, the Five Satins, Brooklyn Bridge, the Del-Satins, and Carlo of the Belmonts performed at Radio City Music Hall.

In 1988, Chicago released the album 'Chicago 19.'

In 1989, Faith No More released their third studio album 'The Real Thing.' It was the first release by the band not to feature vocalist Chuck Mosley, instead the album featured Mike Patton. It is the band's most successful albums to date and is considered a classic metal album by fans and critics alike. Although released in mid-1989, 'The Real Thing' didn't enter the Billboard 200 until February 1990, after the release of the second single from the album, "Epic." The album eventually peaked at #11 on the chart in October 1990. It was certified platinum in US and Canada.

In 1992, Mariah Carey scored her sixth US #1 single with "I’ll Be There," a #2 hit in the UK. The song was also a US #1 for the Jackson Five in 1970.

In 1995, a judge in Los Angeles awarded ownership of the Kingsmen's recordings to the group itself and away from Scepter-Wand Records. The court ruled that the company breached its contract by not paying the Kingsmen their proper royalties. The main song in question was "Louie, Louie", recorded in 1963.

In 1995, Natalie Merchant released 'Tigerlily,' her first solo album after splitting from the 10,000 Maniacs. The album peaked at #13 on Billboard's Top 200 album chart and contained three pop hits, "Carnival" (#10), "Wonder" (#20), and "Jealousy" (#23).

In 1997, 59 year-old Lawrence Payton of the Four Tops died of liver cancer at his home in Southfield, Michigan.

In 1998, Black Sabbath, Foo Fighters, Korn, Pantera, Soulfly, Slayer, Fear Factory, Coal Chamber, Life of Agony, Limp Bizkit, Entombed, Human Waste Project, Neurosis, and Pitchshifter all appeared at Ozzfest, Milton Keynes Bowl, England.

In 2000, Mick Jagger was forced to reveal his financial worth and income to a New York court during his child support battle with the mother of his last child, Brazilian model Luciana Morad.

In 2004, Paul McCartney took to the stage as a professional musician for the 3000th time. He had performed 2,535 concerts with the Quarrymen and the Beatles, 140 with Wings and 325 solo shows.

In 2006, Claydes Charles Smith, a co-founder and lead guitarist of Kool and the Gang died after a long illness. He was 57.

In 2008, Jimmy Buffett announced that his Margaritaville Holdings had paired with New York gambling company Coastal Marina to buy the Trump Marina Hotel Casino for $316 million. His vast business empire also includes tequila, beer, frozen food, footwear, restaurants, a resort, a record label and a recording studio. In 2006, Rolling Stone magazine estimated Buffett's earnings, at $44 million - the seventh-most of any musician.

In 2009, Dave Matthews Band went to #1 on the US album chart with 'Big Whiskey and the GrooGrux King', the bands seventh studio album.

In 2011, guitarist Leslie West, former leader of Mountain and a 65-year-old diabetic, had his lower right leg amputated in order to stop a septic infection that had started in his foot.

In 2012, the Jacksons, Jackie, Jermaine, Marlon and Tito, hit the road together for the first time in almost three decades with a show at Casino Rama near Orillia, Ontario, about two hours north of Toronto. It was the first time they had performed as a group since 1984's Victory tour.

In 2013, Deep Purple's first studio album in eight years, 'Now What,' entered the Billboard 200 album chart where it would peak at #110. The LP fared better in Europe, reaching the Top Ten in 19 countries.

In 2013, New York State designated the entire length of Route 375/West Hurley Road in Woodstock as Levon Helm Memorial Boulevard, in honor of the late Band drummer/singer and Rock and Roll Hall of Famer. Helm, who lived in Woodstock for decades and had a recording studio there, died of cancer in April 2012.

birthdays today include (among others): Brian Wilson (72), Anne Murray (70), Dolores "La La" Brooks (Crystals) (67), Joey Molland (Badfinger) (67), Lionel Richie (65), Cyndi Lauper (61), Michael Anthony (Van Halen) (60), John Taylor (Duran Duran) (54) and Stone Gossard (Pearl Jam) (48)