JULY 28, 2017

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!
1901 - Rudy Vallee, singer, radio, motion picture, and television actor, leader of the Coast Guard band during the second World War, and a Capitol Records artist, was born Hubert Prior Vallée in Island Pond, Vermont.
1945 - Rick Wright, with the Capitol Records group Pink Floyd, is born

ON THIS DAY IN CAPITOL RECORDS HISTORY
75 Years Ago Today In 1942 - Jack McLean and His Orchestra (lineup unlisted), featuring Don Gilbert, records the titles "I Wanna Go Back To West Virginia" with vocals by Wayne Gregg, "You Can't Take Away My Dreams", "Full Moon And Empty Arms", and "I See It Your Eyes" with vocals by Don Gilbert" in Radio Recorders' studios at 932 North Western Avenue in Hollywood, California. Capitol Records will issue "I Wanna Go Back To West Virginia" and "I See It In Your Eyes" together as a single (Capitol 121) and have yet to issue the other two titles.
1945 - Johnny Mercer and The Pied Pipers (with Paul Weston and His Orchestra)'s Capitol Records single "On The Atchison, Topeka And The Sante Fe", with "Conversations While Dancing" (with Jo Stafford sharing vocals) on the flip side, is #1 on Billboard's Best Sellers in Stores chart
1956 - Capitol Records group Gene Vincent and The Blue Caps appears on "The Perry Como Show"
1958 - Capitol Records releases Nat "King" Cole's album "Cole Español" (W/DW 1031).
1971 - Capitol Records releases George Harrison's Apple Records single "Bangla Desh" with "Deep Blue" on the flipside in the United States
1973 - Capitol Records group The Band, following the Grateful Dead and before the Allman Brothers Band, perform before a crowd of over 600.000 Rock fans at the Watkins Glen Summer Jam held at the Watkins Glen Grand Prix Raceway outside Watkins Glen, New York.

2003 - Capitol Records releases The Dandy Warhols' two disc CD single. On the first disc are the tracks "You Were The Last High" with a remix of "We Used To Be Friends" by Brian Coates and Clark Stiles, and Tony Lash's remix of "Every Day Should Be A Holiday". The second disc contains another version of "We Used To Be Friends", along with the tracks "Jim" and a live version of "Good Morning" recorded at the KCRW studios in Santa Monica, California. Capitol also releases a 7" vinyl single of "You Were The Last High" with a version of "We Used To Be Friends", remixed by Kenn Richards, on the flip side.

ON THIS DAY NOT QUITE IN CAPITOL RECORDS HISTORY
1936 - Future Capitol Records artist Nat "King" Cole makes his recording debut at age 17 playing piano as part of his older brother's band, Eddie Cole's Solid Swingers (Kenneth Roane on trumpet, Tommy Thompson on alto and tenor saxophone, Bill Wright on tenor saxophone, Eddie Cole on bass, and Jimmy Adams on drums), recording "Honey Hush" with vocals by Eddie Cole, "Stompin' At The Panama (Skoller's Shuffle)", "Bedtime (Sleepy Moan)" and "Thunder" for Decca Records in Chicago, Illinois using Nat's arrangements. Decca will release "Thunder" and "Honey Hush" together as a single (Decca 7210) and "Bedtime (Sleepy Moan)" and "Stompin' At The Panama (Skoller's Shuffle)" together as a single (Decca 7215).
1938 - George Cummings, composer, lead guitarist and steel guitarist as a solo artist and for the bands Chocolate Papers and future Capitol Records artists Dr. Hook & The Medicine Show (whom he named and co-founded in Union City, New Jersey in 1968 but left in 1975 right before the band signed with Capitol with the shortened name Dr. Hook), is born in Meridian, Mississippi. If anyone knows his middle name, please leave a comment or contact me.
1941 - At age 19, future Capitol Records artist Judy Garland marries her first husband, composer and orchestra leader David Rose, whom she would divorce three years later in 1944
50 Years Ago Today In 1967 - The motion picture "The Family Way", with music by Paul McCartney (at the time part of the Capitol Records band The Beatles) and arranged by George Martin, released in the U.K. on December 18, 1966, premieres in New York City, New York
1999 - Simon "Mahlathini" Nkabinde, singer and Earthworks Records recording artist dies. Earthworks was distributed by Virgin Records America in the United States. Virgin is currently owned by EMI Music Group, Capitol Music Group's parent company. My wife and I went to one of his concerts when he and his band appeared at UCLA's Royce Hall and had the nicest, and most fun, time. Everyone in the audience got along and by the end were all up and dancing to the mighty roar of the Lion of Sowetto.

ON THIS DAY NOT IN CAPITOL RECORDS HISTORY
60 Years Ago Today In 1957 - Jerry Lee Lewis appears on national television for the first time when he appears on "The Steve Allen Show" on NBC-TV.