JUNE 16, 2009

HAPPY BIRTHDAYS!
Keith Mitchell, drummer with the Capitol Records group Mazzy Star, is born in Long Beach, California. If anyone knows what year, please leave a comment.
90 Years Ago Today In 1919 - Al Viola, guitarist and mandolin player (mandolin solo in the theme for the motion picture "The Godfather"), motion picture performer, member of The Page Cavanaugh Trio, session musician on many of Frank Sinatra's Capitol Records recordings and Julie London's Liberty Records recordings, is born in New York City, New York
85 Years Ago Today In 1924 - Eli "Lucky" Thompson, tenor and soprano saxophone player, songwriter, song publisher, band leader, who recorded as part of Capitol Records group Stan Kenton and His Orchestra, is born in Detroit, Michigan
70 Years Ago Today In 1939 - Billy "Crash" Craddock, Capitol Records artist (1978-1983) is born William Wayne Craddock in Greensboro, North Carolina
1941 - Lamont Dozier, songwriter (solo and as part of the team Holland-Dozier-Holland), record producer, recording artist and co-founder of the Capitol Records subsidiary Invictus Records and Hot Wax Records, is born in Detroit, Michigan

ON THIS DAY IN CAPITOL RECORDS HISTORY
1945 - The Pied Pipers (with Paul Weston and His Orchestra)' Capitol Records single "Dream" is #8 on Billboard's Best Selling Retail Records chart and Johnnie Johnston (with orchestra conducted by Paul Baron)'s Capitol Records single "Laura" (whose lyrics were written by Capitol Records co-founder Johnny Mercer) is #9
1950 - Peggy Lee, with Dave Barbour and His Orchestra, records the tracks "The Cannonball Express" (which will be released by Capitol Records as a single with "That Ol' Devil Won't Get Me", recorded on February 8, 1951, on the flip side), "Show Me The Way To Go Out Of This World", which will be released by Capitol Records as a single with "Happy Music" (which was the next track recorded) on the flip side, "Don't Give Me A Ring On The Telephone" (unreleased!), and "Lover, Come Back To Me" (which will be releases as a single by Capitol Records with "Helpless", recorded March 13, 1950, on the flip side) at Capitol Records' Melrose Avenue studios in Hollywood, California
1951 - Nat "King" Cole's Capitol Records single "Too Young" is #1 on Billboard's Best Selling Retail Records chart, knocking Les Paul and Mary Ford's Capitol Records single "How High The Moon" out of the top spot to #2 for the first time in nine weeks. and Les Paul and Mary Ford's Capitol Records single "Mockin' Bird Hill" is #9
1956 - Les Baxter and His Orchestra's Capitol Records single "Poor People Of Paris" is #18 on Billboard's Best Selling Retail Records chart, Dean Martin's Capitol Records single "Standing On The Corner" is #32, The Four Freshmen's Capitol Records single "Graduation Day" is #33, and Joe "Fingers" Carr's Capitol Records single "Portuguese Washerwoman" enters the top 40 tied at #40 with Georgia Gibbs' single "Kiss Me Another"
1957 - Dave Guard, Nick Reynolds, and Bob Shane form The Kingston Trio in Palo Alto, California
1958 - Dean Martin's Capitol Records single "Return To Me" is #5 down from #4 on Billboard's Top 100 singles chart, Nat "King' Cole's Capitol Records single "Looking Back" is #6 up from #9, The Four Prep's Capitol Records single "Big Man" is #13 down from #7, Laurie London's Capitol Records single "He's Got The Whole World In His Hands" is #15 down from #14, and Ed Townsend's Capitol Records single "For Your Love" is #18 up from #20
50 Years Ago Today In 1959 - The Four Freshmen (Bob Flanigan on vocals, trombone and bass; Don Barbour on vocals and guitar; Ross Barbour on vocals and drums; and Ken Albers on vocals, trumpet, mellophone and bass) with arranger Dick Reynolds conducting the studio orchestra (Tommy Tedesco, Al Hendrickson, Howard Roberts, Bobby Gibbons, Bill Pitman, George Van Eps on guitar; Red Mitchell on bass; Jack Sperling on drums; Larry Bunker on vibraphones, bells, congas, and bongos) record the tracks "I Never Knew", "Invitation", and "Rain" at the Capitol Tower Studios in Hollywood, California with producer Lee Gillette for their Capitol Records album "The Four Freshmen And Five Guitars"
50 Years Ago Today In 1959 - Buck Owens records "Under Your Spell Again" at The Capitol Tower Studios in Hollywood, California. Capitol Records would release the track as a single with "Tired Of Living" on the flip side, on July 13, 1959. I wonder if Owens and The Four Freshmen met that day during breaks in recordings or sat in on each other's sessions in the booth.
1963 - The Kingston Trio, with John Stewart on vocals, records the tracks "Rider" and "Those Who Are Wise" (penned by Stewart) for their Capitol Records album "Sunny Side"
1967 - Captiol Records artist Lou Rawls performs at the opening day of The Monterey Pop Festival
1967 - Wynn Stewart's Capitol Records single "It's Such A Pretty World Today", with "Goin' Steady" on the flip side, hits #1 on U.S. Country singles charts where it will stay on top for two weeks
1967 - Capitol Records releases Twiggy's first single, "When I Think Of You", with "Over and Over" on the flip side
1969 - The Beatles' Apple Records single "The Ballad of John & Yoko", distributed by Capitol Records in the United States, is certified Gold by the R.I.A.A.
1976 - The Beatles' Capitol Records album "Rock 'N' Roll Music" is certified Gold by the R.I.A.A.
1991 - Garth Brooks' Liberty Records (later renamed Capitol Records Nashville) single ""The Thunder Rolls" is #1 on the U.S. Country singles charts
5 Years Ago Today In 2004 - Grand Royal Records, with distribution being handled by Capitol Records, releases The Beastie Boys album "To The Five Boroughs"

ON THIS DAY NOT QUITE IN CAPITOL RECORDS HISTORY
1955 - Walt Disney Pictures releases the animated feature movie "Lady And The Tramp", with lyrics and vocals by Capitol Records artist Peggy Lee. Capitol Records will later release a childrens record album based on the movie.
1956 - Fats Domino's Imperial Records single "I'm In Love Again" is #8 on Billboard's Best Selling Retail Records chart and its flip side, "My Blue Heaven", is #29
1957 - Curtis Fuller (on trombone, with Hank Mobley on tenor saxophone, Bobby Timmons on piano, Paul Chambers on bass, and Arthur Taylor on drums) records the tracks "Lizzy's Bounce" (which will be released by Blue Note Records on the album "The Opener"), "Soon", "A Lovely Way To Spend An Evening" "Here's To My Lady" (without tenor saxophone), "Oscalypso", and "Hugore" (all of which will be unreleased until the appeared on the 1996 Mosaic Records box set "The Complete Blue Note/UA Curtis Fuller Sessions") with producer Alfred Lion and recording engineer Rudy Van Gelder at The Van Gelder Studio in Hackensack, New Jersey
1958 - Dave Seville's Liberty Records single "Witch Doctor" is still #3 on Billboard's Hot 100 singles chart and Dion and The Belmonts' Laurie Records single "I Wonder Why" is #42. EMI Music Group, Capitol Music Group's parent company, currently owns Liberty and Laurie Records' catalog.
1962 - Dion's Laurie Records single "Lovers Who Wander" is #6 on Billboard's Hot 100 singles chart, Bobby Vee's Liberty Records single "Sharing You" is #19, Walter Brennan's Liberty Records single "Old Rivers" is #29, and Jay and The American's United Artists Records single "She Cried" is #32. EMI Music Group, Capitol Music Group's parent company, currently owns the Laurie, Liberty, and United Artists Records catalogs.
1986 - CBS Records announces that former Capitol Records mailroom employee (1969), 36 year old Don Ienner, is the newest, and youngest ever, president of Columbia Records
1990 - Roxette's EMI America Records single "It Must Have Been Love" is #1 on Billboard's Hot 100 singles chart
1998 - Jack McFadden, manager of Capitol Records artist Buck Owens for over three decades and the talent coordinator for the television show "Hee Haw" dies at age 71

ON THIS DAY NOT IN CAPITOL RECORDS HISTORY
1890 - Stan Laurel, motion picture actor as a headliner and as part of the duo Laurel and Hardy, is born Arthur Stanley Jefferson in Ulverston, Cumbria, England
70 Years Ago Today In 1939 - Chick Webb (born William Henry Webb), drummer and band leader, dies in John Hopkins Hospital, Balitmore Maryland after a major operation. The year of his birth is still not confirmed, so he may have been anywher from 30 to 37 years of age at the time of his death.
50 Years Ago Today In 1959 - George Reeves, TV's Superman, dies of a gunshot wound to the head in his bedroom in Beverly Hills, California at age 45
1971 - Tupac Amaru Shakur is born Lesane Parish Crooks in Brooklyn, New York