1902: Orville Gibson founded the Gibson Mandolin-Guitar Manufacturing Company Ltd. in Kalamazoo, Michigan.

1958: Eddie Cochran recorded “C’mon Everybody.” The song became his first of two top 10 hit in the UK, peaking at #6, and was his last US top 40 hit, reaching #35. Cochran also recorded an alternate version called “Let’s Get Together,” the only difference the titular phrase. This alternate version was eventually released on a compilation album in the 1970s.

1962: “Monster Mash” by Bobby “Borris” Pickett and the Crypt-Kickers was banned by the BBC for being “too morbid.” Just over a week later, the single reached #1 in US. The BBC’s ban was reversed eleven years later.

1963: “Leader of the Pack” by the Shangri-Las entered the Billboard Hot 100 on its way to reaching #1 by the end of November.

1964: About a month after reaching #1 on the UK chart, London quintet the Honeycombs entered the US top 40 with their debut single, “Have I the Right?” The song later reached #5 in the States and sold over two million copies worldwide.

1966: “Georgy Girl” by The Seekers was released. It became the group’s highest charting single, reaching #1 on the Cash Box Top 100 and #3 on the Billboard Hot 100. The song’s success prompted the Seekers’ British album “Come the Day” to be re-titled “Georgy Girl” for its American release.

1966: The Beach Boys released “Good Vibrations.” Composed by Brian Wilson and with words by Mike Love, the single went to #1 in the US in December, topped the charts in several countries, and was nominated for song of the year at the 1967 Grammys. The making of “Good Vibrations” was unprecedented for any kind of recording, with a total production cost estimated between $50,000 and $75,000 (equivalent to $370,000 and $550,000 in 2016), and has been considered by music critics to be one of the most important compositions and recordings of the entire rock era and one of finest pop productions of all time. Due to his work on the song, Wilson is also credited with further developing the use of the recording studio as an instrument, revolutionizing rock music from live concert performances to studio productions which could only exist on record, thus heralding a wave of experimentation and the onset of psychedelic and progressive rock.

1966: The Monkees released their self-title debut album. It became the first of four consecutive US #1s for the group, taking the top spot on the Billboard chart for thirteen weeks, after which it was displaced by the band’s second album. The LP also topped the UK chart and was certified quintuple platinum, with sales of over five million copies.

1969: Frank Zappa released Hot Rats, his second solo album and first recording project after the dissolution of the Mothers of Invention. In his original sleeve notes, Zappa described the album as “a movie for your ears.”

1969: In the Court of the Crimson King, the debut album by King Crimson was released by Atlantic Records in the US and Island Records in England. The album largely combines blues influences with elements of jazz, classical, and symphonic music, and is considered one of the first and most influential of the progressive rock genre. It is the group’s highest charting album in the US, reaching a peak of #28 on the Billboard chart.

1969: The Kinks released their seventh studio album, Arthur (Or the Decline and Fall of the British Empire). Frontman Ray Davis created the concept album as the soundtrack to a Granada Television play and developed the storyline with novelist Julian Mitchell, however the program was never produced.

1970: Pink Floyd released their fifth studio album, Atom Heart Mother, in the US through Capitol Records following its earlier release in the UK in early October on the Harvest label. Recorded at Abbey Road Studios in London, it became the band’s first #1 album in the UK and peaked at #55 in the US.

1970: Neil Diamond achieved his first #1 single with “Cracklin’ Rosie.”

1970: The Jackson 5 started six weeks at the top of the Billboard R&B chart with “I’ll Be There.” It was the group’s fourth straight single to top the R&B chart and a week later became their fourth to reach the top of the Hot 100 pop chart.

1975: Deep Purple released their tenth studio album, Come Taste the Band. It was the group’s final studio record prior to their initial disbandment in 1976, making it the only album to feature Tommy Bolin, who replaced Ritchie Blackmore on guitar, and the final of three albums to feature David Coverdale on lead vocals and Glenn Hughes on bass, as none of the three would be involved with the reactivated Deep Purple in 1984.

1977: Former Fleetwood Mac guitarist Bob Welch’s “Sentimental Lady,” a song previously recorded by Fleetwood Mac, entered the Billboard Hot 100. Produced by former Fleetwood Mac bandmates John McVie and Lindsey Buckingham, the single reached #8 in the US.

1977: The Rolling Stones began recording “Beast of Burden” during sessions for their Some Girls album at Pathé Marconi Studios near Paris. Primarily written by Keith Richards, many of the song’s lyrics were improvised by Mick Jagger in the studio while Richards and Ronnie Wood traded off between lead and rhythm guitar.

1978: The Cars released “My Best Friend’s Girl,” the second single from their self-titled debut album. The song went to #35 in the US and became their first top 10 hit in Britain, reaching #3.

1980: Manfred Mann’s Earth Band released their tenth studio album, Chance.

1981: UB40 released Present Arms in Dub, an album of remixed instrumental versions of tracks from their previous album, Present Arms. It was the first album of dub music, which typically is an instrumental version that emphasizes drum and bass, to hit the UK top 40.

1983: Culture Club released their second studio album, Colour by Numbers. The LP became the group’s only #1 on the UK chart and their highest reaching album in the US, peaking at #2.

1988: U2 released their hybrid studio/live album Rattle and Hum. A companion to the concert film of the same name directed by Phil Joanou, the album includes recordings at Sun Studios in Memphis and collaborations with Bob Dylan and B.B. King. It became U2’s second #1 album in the US and their fourth straight #1 in the UK.

1988: The Moody Blues released “No More Lies,” the second single from their thirteenth studio album, Sur la Mer.

1989: After its initial release in Canada in 1987, Indigo Girls’ first studio album, Strange Fire, was released in the US.

1992: R.E.M. topped the UK chart with their eighth studio album, Automatic For the People. In the US, the LP reached #2.

1995: Jack Bruce released his eleventh studio album, Monkjack.

1995: Fleetwood Mac released their sixteenth studio album, Time, which features a unique lineup with additional guitarist Dave Mason and vocalist Bekka Bramlett. It was the first and last Fleetwood Mac album since Heroes Are Hard to Find in 1974 to not feature vocalist Stevie Nicks, and Lindsey Buckingham, who had left the band in 1987, provided backing vocals on a single track.

1995: Peter Frampton released Frampton Comes Alive! II, a sequel to his 1976 live album, Frampton Comes Alive.

2004: R.E.M. had their sixth and penultimate #1 LP on the UK chart with their thirteenth studio album, Around the Sun. In the US, the album peaked at #13.

2006: Jimmy Buffett released his twenty-sixth studio album, Take the Weather with You.

2006: James Taylor released his seventeenth studio album and second Christmas album, James Taylor at Christmas.

2006: Sting released his eighth studio album, Songs form the Labyrinth, a classical album featuring compositions by John Dowland in collaboration with Bosnian lutenist Edin Karamazov.

2007: Radiohead self-released their seventh studio album, In Rainbows, as a pay-what-you-want download. It received a physical release internationally in December and in North America in January.

2011: Peter Gabriel released New Blood, his ninth studio album that consists of orchestral re-recordings of various tracks from throughout Gabriel’s career.

2012: Following a tour of the US with Devo, Blondie simultaneously released a trio of free singles: “Dead Air,” “Bride Of Infinity,” and a cover of David Essex’s “Rock On.”

Birthdays Today

Maybelle Carter, country musician best known as a member of the Original Carter Family, was born Maybelle Addington in Nickelsville, VA in 1909.

Ivory Joe Hunter, rhythm-and-blues singer, songwriter, and pianist, was born in Kirbyville, TX in 1914.

Thelonious Monk, influential jazz pianist and composer, was born in Rocky Mount, NC in 1917.

Jules Chaikin, trumpet player and session musician who recorded with Jefferson Airplane, the Carpenters, Kris Kristoferson, Paul Anka, Chicago, the Turtles, Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass, Dionne Warwick, Aretha Franklin, Kenny Rogers, Lou Rawls, Manhattan Transfer, Nina Simone, Nancy Wilson and Johnny Mathis, was born in Brooklyn, NY in 1934.

Jerry Lacroix, singer and saxophone player who worked with Blood, Sweat & Tears, Edgar Winter’s White Trash, Rare Earth, and Boogie Kings, was born in Alexandria, LA in 1943.

Alan Cartwright, bassist for Procol Harum, was born in Berkshire, England in 1945.

John Prine, country and folk singer-songwriter, was born in Maywood, IL in 1946.

Cyril Neville, percussionist and vocalist with the Meters and the Neville Brothers, was born in New Orleans, LA in 1948.

Midge Ure, singer-songwriter, producer, Ultravox frontman, and musician with Slik, Thin Lizzy, Rich Kids, and Visage, was born James Ure in Cambuslang, Lanarkshire, Scotland in 1953.

Tanya Tucker, country music singer and songwriter, was born in Seminole, TX in 1958.

Kirsty MacColl, singer-songwriter, was born in Croydon, Surrey, England in 1959.

Simon Townshend, guitarist, singer and songwriter, and younger brother of Who guitarist Pete Townshend, was born in Chiswick, Greater London, England in 1960.

Martin Kemp, actor, director, and Spandau Ballet bassist, was born in Islington, London, England in 1961.