Oldies Daysheet: Wednesday, January 27

MUSIC NEWS:

Funeral arrangements have been announced for one of the original members of the Chi-Lites. Robert "Squirrel" Lester died on Friday at the age of 67. He will be remembered by friends and family during services next Thursday, February 4th at the Third Baptist Church of Chicago. Lester was the second tenor for the Windy City-based singing group whose hits included 1971's "Have You Seen Her" and 1972's "Oh Girl."

BIRTHDAYS:

J. Geils Band keyboardist Seth Justman is 59.


The Ronettes' Nedra Talley is 64.

Thin Lizzy drummer Brian Downey is 59.
 
MUSIC HISTORY:

1956: Elvis Presley released the single "Heartbreak Hotel."

1958: Little Richard retired from music after the plane he was on caught fire in mid-flight. In gratitude for surviving the incident, Richard gave up music, enrolled in Oakwood Bible College in Huntsville, Alabama, and became a minister in order to serve God. He revived his music career six years later.

1958: Elvis Presley's "Don't" broke into the Top 40.

1962: Joey Dee and the Starlighters' "Peppermint Twist - Part 1" hit number one on the pop singles chart.

1962: Barbara George's "I Know (You Don't Love Me No More)" peaked at number three on the pop singles chart.

1962: Gene Chandler's "Duke of Earl" broke into the Top 40.

1962: Four of Chubby Checker's albums were in the top ten of the Billboard 200 albums chart, including "For Twisters Only, " "Your Twist Party," "Let's Twist Again," and "Bobby Rydell/Chubby Checker."

1962: Elvis Presley's single "Can't Help Falling In Love" was certified Gold.

1963: Neil Sedaka was a guest on "The Ed Sullivan Show."

1964: The Beatles' album "Introducing The Beatles" was released in UK.

1964: The Rolling Stones appeared on the British TV show "Juke Box Jury."

1967: The Beatles signed a nine year international contract with EMI Records.

1967: The first single credited to Smokey Robinson and the Miracles, "The Love I Saw In You Was Just A Mirage," was released.

1968: The Bee Gees played their first concert in the U.S., performing at the Convention Center in Anaheim, California.

1968: The American Breed's "Bend Me, Shape Me," peaked at number five on the pop singles chart.

1968: The Buckinghams' "Susan" peaked at number eleven on the pop singles chart.

1968: The Small Faces' "Itchycoo Park" peaked at number 16 on the pop singles chart.

1968: The Temptations released the single "Cloud Nine."

1968: Otis Redding's single "Sittin' on the Dock of the Bay" was released, just six weeks after he was killed in a plane crash.

1968: The Bee Gees played their first American concert at the Anaheim Convention Center.

1969: Peter, Paul, and Mary's album "Album 1700" was certified Gold.

1970: Ringo Starr made a guest appearance on the TV show "Laugh-In."

1971: David Bowie made his first visit to the U.S. He didn't perform, but received attention because he wore a dress in Texas and Louisiana.

1972: The New Seekers' single "I'd Like To Teach The World To Sing" was certified Gold.

1973: Stevie Wonder's "Superstition" hit number one on the pop singles chart.

1973: Loggins & Messina's "Your Mama Don't Dance" peaked at number four on the pop singles chart.

1973: The Raspberries' "I Wanna Be With You" peaked at number 16 on the pop singles chart.

1973: The O'Jays' "Love Train" broke into the Top 40.

1976: David Bowie sued his former attorney Michael Lippan, charging that the lawyer took more than the customary ten-percent agent's fee, and withheld 475-thousand-dollars after Bowie fired him.

1982: The Kinks' album "Give The People What They Want" was certified Gold.

1984: The John Lennon album "Milk and Honey" was released.

1986: Bruce Springsteen, Tina Turner, and Chicago were among the winners at the Grammy Awards ceremony.

1990: It was declared Tom Petty Day in Gainesville, Florida.

1990: Rod Stewart's "Downtown Train" peaked at number three on the pop singles chart.

1990: Billy Joel's "I Got To Extremes" broke into the Top 40.

1998: James Brown was arrested for drug and weapons possession charges, based on what police officers saw at his home in South Carolina a couple weeks earlier when deputies came to take him to the hospital.

2002: The daughter of Gerry and the Pacemakers frontman Gerry Marsden was injured in a car accident in South Florida.

2003: Songs by Bob Dylan and Elvis Presley were among the first recording picked for inclusion to the National Recording Preservation Board's National Recording Registry.

2005: A funeral for Ray Peterson was conducted at the Smyrna Assembly of God Church in Smyrna, Tennessee. Peterson, best remembered for the hits "Tell Laura I Love Her" and "Corrina, Corrina," died two days earlier. He was 65.

2007: The late Mamas and the Papas singer Denny Doherty was laid to rest with a funeral in a church near his childhood home of Halifax, Nova Scotia. Michelle Phillips, the last surviving member of the group, was among those who spoke at the service. Doherty died on January 19th from complications following surgery for a stomach aneurysm. He was 66.

2007: Blues great B.B. King was released from a Galveston, Texas hospital after spending two days in the facility. He had been admitted with a low-grade fever brought on by the flu. His condition forced him to cancel four concerts.

DISTANT REPLAY:
 
1967: Astronauts Virgil "Gus" Grissom, Roger Chaffee, and Edward White were killed in a launch pad fire aboard their Apollo 1 spacecraft.