APRIL 21, 2010

HAPPY BIRTHDAYS!
1924 - Ira Louvin, singer, songwriter, guitarist, 2001 Country Music Hall Of Fame inductee, part of the Capitol Records duo The Louvin Brothers with his brother Charlie and a solo Capitol Records artist, is born Ira Lonnie Loudermilk in Rainsville,near Section, Alabama. Ira was inducted with his brother into the Alabama Hall of Fame in 1991 with a Lifework Award for Performaning Achievement. They have a great biography of the brothers on their website.
1968 - Michael Franti, poet, songwriter, musician, singer, member of the Island Records group The Disposable Heroes of Hiphoprisy and the Capitol Records group Spearhead, is born in Oakland, California

ON THIS DAY IN CAPITOL RECORDS HISTORY
60 Years Ago Today In 1949 - Mel Blanc starts recording tracks for the Capitol Record Reader "Bugs Bunny In Storyland" and will finish the next day. The sessions are produced by Alan Livingston, with music by Billy May. The story is by Tedd Pierce and Warren Foster with illustrations for the attached booklet by Robert McKimson and Richard Thomas. Also on the record, but uncredited, were Arthur Q. Bryan (Elmer Fudd) and June Foray. Jack Tatay maintains a great site about all the Capitol childrens records with Warner Brothers cartoon characters, with lots of images and sound clips.
1951 - Les Paul and Mary Ford's Capitol Records single "How High The Moon", with "Walkin' and Whistlin' Blues" on the flip side, is still #1 on the U.S. Pop singles chart and Capitol Records releases their single "Mockingbird Hill", with Les Paul's "Chicken Reel" on the flip side
1953 - The Ballet Theatre Orchestra, conducted by Joseph Levine, records the track "Undertow" written by William Schuman in New York City which Capitol Records will later release on album P-8238 with a recording of "Billy The Kid" (Ballet Suite) by Aaron Copland on the flip side
1968 - Merle Haggard's Capitol Records single "The Legend Of Bonnie And Clyde" with "I Started Loving You Again" on the flip side, is #1 on the U.S. Country Singles Chart
35 Years Ago Today In 1975 - Merle Haggard's Capitol Records single "Always Wanting You", with "I've Got A Yearning" on the flip side, is #1 on the U.S. Country singles chart
10 Years Ago Today In 2000 - Neal Matthews, singer with the Capitol Records group The Jordanaires, dies in Nashville, Tennessee at age 70

ON THIS DAY NOT QUITE IN CAPITOL RECORDS HISTORY
1908 - Alfred Lion, record producer and founder of Blue Note Records, is born in Berlin, Germany. Blue Note Records is currently a division of Capitol Music Group and its catalog is currently owned by Capitol's parent company, EMI Music Group
1931 - The Gramophone Company Ltd and The Columbia Gramophone Company Ltd merge and register a holding company - "Electric and Musical Industries Ltd". Alfred Clark (The Gramophone Company) becomes Chairman, and Louis Sterling (The Columbia Company) becomes Managing Director. In 1955 E.M.I., under the helm of then managing director Joseph Lockwood (later chairman Sir Joseph Lockwood), bought controling interest in Capitol Records for $3 million dollars, and Glenn Wallichs joined the board of E.M.I.. Lockwood was criticized for paying so much but, within 4 years, Capitol would be worth an estimated $85 million. The E.M.I. Group's website has a good history section.
55 Years Ago Today In 1955 - Capitol Records artist Bob Hope's NBC radio program airs its last segment
1963 - Future Capitol Records artists The Beatles and future Virgin Records artists The Rolling Stones meet for the first time at a Rolling Stones performance at The Crawdaddy Club, in Richmond, England

ON THIS DAY NOT IN CAPITOL RECORDS HISTORY
25 Years Ago Today In 1985 - Irving Mills, music publisher, dies in Palm Springs, California at age 91