MAY 4, 2022

HAPPY BIRTHDAYS!

1928 - Maynard Ferguson, a musician (trumpet, trombone, other horns), bandleader, winner of DownBeat Magazine reader's poll for best trumpet in 1950, '51, and '52, member of the Capitol Records group Stan Kenton and His Orchestra, and a Capitol and Roulette Records solo artist, is born Walter Maynard Ferguson in Verdun, Quebec, Canada.

85 Years Ago Today In 1937 - Dick Dale, "King of the Surf Guitar" and Capitol Records artist (his first full-length album, "Surfer’s Choice", was picked up by Capitol Records in 1962 and distributed nationally), is born Richard Monsour in Boston, Massachusetts.

80 Years Ago Today In 1942 - Nickolas Ashford, a producer, songwriter, and singer in the Capitol Records duo Ashford & Simpson, is born in Fairfield, South Carolina.

70 Years Ago Today In 1952 - Jacob Miller, a motion picture actor, a singer with the Capitol Records group Inner Circle, and a solo artist is born in Madeville, Jamaica.

ON THIS DAY IN CAPITOL RECORDS HISTORY

1945 - Stan Kenton and His Orchestra, with June Christy on vocals, record the title "Tampico" which will be released as a single by Capitol Records and become the group's first million-selling record.

1946 - Andy Russell with Paul Weston and His Orchestra's Capitol Records single "Laughing On The Outside" enters Billboard's Best Selling Retail Records chart at #8.

70 Years Ago Today In 1952 - Hank Thompson's Capitol Records single "The Wild Side Of Life" is #1 on the U.S. Country singles charts.

1953 - Nat "King" Cole's Capitol Records single "Pretend" is #4 on The Billboard magazine's Best Selling Singles and Most Played By Jockeys charts and #5 on the magazine's Most Played In Juke Boxes chart.

1953 - Vocalist Margaret Whiting, with Nelson Riddle conducting his own arrangements to the orchestra (lineup unlisted), records the titles "Something Wonderful Happens", "Where Did He Go", "Mmm, It's Love", and "I Wish I Could Telephone Heaven" in Los Angeles, California. Capitol Records will issue "Something Wonderful" and "Where Did He Go" together as a single (Capitol 2489 on 10" shellac and F2489 on 7" vinyl) and has yet to issue the other two titles.

1953 - Vocalists Dean Martin and The Herman McCoy Singers (lineup unlisted), with Dick Stabile conducting His Orchestra (Bernie Mattinson on xylophone, Louis Brown on piano, Vince Terri on guitar, Phil Stephens on bass, Ray Toland on drums, and a string section with Leonard Atkins, Victor Bay, John Peter DeVoogt, Carl LaMagna, Nick Pisani, and Gerald Vinci on violins, Alan Harshman and Louis Kievman on viola, and Armand Kaproff on cello) using arrangements by Gus Levene, records the titles "'Til I Find You", "Don't You Remember?", "If I Could Sing Like Bing", and "Love Me, Love Me" at an extended session in Capitol Records' studios at 5515 Melrose Avenue in Hollywood, California between 8:00 PM and 12:00 AM. Capitol Records will issue "'Til I Find You" and "Love Me, Love Me" together as a single (Capitol 2485 on 10" shellac and F2485 on 7" vinyl) and "Don't You Remember" and "If I Could Sing Like Bing" together as a single (Capitol 2555 on 10" shellac and F2555 on 7" vinyl).

1956 - Vocalist Gene Vincent and His Blue Caps (Cliff Gallup on guitar, Ervin "Willie Williams on rhythm guitar, Jack Neal on bass, and Dickie Harrell on drums) record the titles "Race With The Devil", "Be-Bop-A-Lula", "Woman Love", and "I Sure Miss You" with producer Ken Nelson at Owen Bradley's Bradley Film & Recording Studio in Nashville, Tennessee. Capitol Records will issue "Race With The Devil" as a single (Capitol F3530) with "Gonna Back Up Baby" (recorded June 25, 1956) on the flipside, "Be Bop A Lula" and "Woman Love" together as a single (Capitol F3450, the label's first Rock 'N' Roll single), and "I Sure Miss You" on the group's eponymous album "Gene Vincent And His Blue Caps" (T 811). Capitol Records will rush-release "Be Bop A Lula" so that it will be in stores within two weeks and the group will perform the song before cameras for the film "The Girl Can't Help It". "Be-Bop-A-Lula" will influence generations of rockers around the world including John Lennon’s first band The Quarrymen and would be the first record bought by Paul McCartney.

65 Years Ago Today In 1957 - Ferlin Husky's Capitol Records single "Gone" is #5 on Billboard's Best Selling Retail Records chart, Tommy Sands' Capitol Records single "Teenage Crush" is #13 in a three way tie with Harry Belafonte (with Bob Corwin and His Orchestra)'s single "Mama Look-A Boo Boo", and Jimmy Dorsey and His Orchestra (with The Arthur Malvin Singers)'s single "So Rare".

1959 - Capitol Records releases Judy Garland's album "The Letter" which has recently been re-released by GRP Records.

1959 - The first Grammy Awards are presented by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences. Capitol Records artists Louis Prima and Keely Smith win Best Group or Chorus Vocal Performance with the single "That Old Black Magic", The Kingston Trio win Best Country and Western Performance with the single "Tom Dooley", Billy May wins Best Orchestra Performance with the album "Billy May's Big Fat Brass", Meredith Wilson wins Best Original Cast Album - Broadway or Television with "The Music Man", Felix Slatkin conducting The Hollywood Bowl Symphony wins Best Classical Performance - Orchestra with "Gaite Parisienne", The Hollywood String Quartet wins Best Classical Performance - Chamber Music with "Beethoven: Quartet No. 13", Roger Wagner Chorale win Best Classical Performance - Operatic or Choral with "Virtuoso", Stan Freberg wins" Best Documentary or Spoken Word Recording with "The Best Of The Stan Freberg Show", and Frank Sinatra wins "Best Album Cover" with his art direction of his album "Only The Lonely".

1959 - The Kingston Trio's Capitol Records single "Tijuana Jail" is #21 on Billboard's Best Selling Retail Records chart.

1963 - The Beach Boys' Capitol Records album "Surfin' USA" debuts on the US album charts.

1963 - The Beach Boy's Capitol Records single "Surfin' USA" is #8 on Billboard's Hot 100 Singles chart, The Kingston Trio's Capitol Records single "Reverend Mr. Black" is #14, and Al Martino's Capitol Records single "I Love You Because" is #29.

1963 - Nat "King" Cole's Capitol Records album "Ramblin' Rose" is #54 and his album "Dear Lonely Hearts" is #74 on Billboard magazine's Top LPs - 150 Best Sellers - Monaural chart. Also, Nat "King" Cole's Capitol Records single "All Over The World" is #73 on Cash Box magazine's Top 100 Singles chart, and his single "Those Lazy-Hazy-Crazy Days Of Summer" is #1 on the magazine's Singles-Looking Ahead chart.

1964 – Capitol Records releases The Beatles' single "Can’t Buy Me Love" and The Kingston Trio's last album for the label, "Back In Town", recorded during a stint at hungry i in San Francisco that started on March 23, 1964.

1968 - Jackie Gleason and His Orchestra (featuring Mike Deasy on sitar with the rest of the lineup unlisted) record the titles "Moon River" and "Can't Take My Eyes Off Of You" in Los Angeles, California. Capitol Records will issue both titles on Gleason's album "The Now Sound For Today's Lovers" (SW 2935).

1969 - Merle Haggard's Capitol Records single "Hungry Eyes" is #1 on the U.S. Country singles charts.

1971 - Buck Owens records the titles "Corn Likker (Corn Liquor)", "Rollin' In My Sweet Baby's Arms",  and "I Know You're Married But I Love You Still" at Buck Owens Studios in Bakersfield, California. Capitol Records will issue the first two titles together as a single (Capitol 3164) and all three titles on Buck Owens and The Buckaroos' album "Ruby" (ST-795).

1974 - Grand Funk Railroad's cover single of "Loco-motion" is still #1 on Billboard's Hot 100 Singles chart for the second of a two-week stay.

45 Years Ago Today In 1977 - Capitol Records releases The Beatles live album "The Beatles At The Hollywood Bowl".

1979 – A congratulatory ad for “Phantasm” star Angus Scrim (The Tall Man) from Capitol Records appears in the Hollywood Reporter. Angus Scrim is the screen name for Rory Guy, Grammy-winning writer of liner notes for Angel and Capitol Records, whose office was on the 5th floor of The Capitol Tower. Ron Waite has a great article online about a visit to Rory/Angus in the Tower with a young fan of the movie.

40 Years Ago Today In 1982 – Duran Duran's second album, “Rio”, produced by Colin Thurston, was released worldwide with Capitol Records' subsidiary Harvest Records initially handling distribution in the United States.

1988 - Dave Edmunds, with unlisted others, records the title "Sincerely" at an unlisted studio. Capitol Records will issue the title on Edmunds' album "Closer To Fame" (C1-90372 on 12" vinyl and C2-90372 on CD).

30 Years Ago Today In 1992 - Dudu Zulu, a principal member of the Capitol Records group Johnny Clegg & Savuka, was shot and killed on May 4, 1992 in his native Zululand as he was en route to his home.

1998 - Capitol Records releases Robbie Williams' first U.S. album "The Ego Has Landed", culled from his first 2 UK albums.

2011 - Gary West (aka Speedy West, Jr.), guitarist and son of Capitol Records artist Speedy West, dies in Oklahoma City of complications from lung cancer at age 58. A memorial service is set for 3 p.m. May 11 at St. Luke's United Methodist Church in Oklahoma City under the direction of Buchanan Funeral Service of Oklahoma City.

ON THIS DAY NOT QUITE IN CAPITOL RECORDS HISTORY

75 Years Ago Today In 1947 – Capitol Records co-founder and artist Johnny Mercer sings "Huggin' and Chalkin'" on the Armed Forces radio show "Command Performance".

65 Years Ago Today In 1957 - Fats Domino's Imperial Records single "I'm Walkin'" is #8 on Billboard's Best Selling Retail Records chart and Eddie Cochran's Liberty Records single "Sittin' In The Balcony" is #21.

1959 - Liberty Records artist David Seville wins Best Comedy Recording and Best Recording for Children with "The Chipmunk Song" and Ted Keep wins Best Engineered Recording - Novelty with "The Chipmunk Song" at the first Grammy Awards presentation.

1959 - The Fleetwoods' Dolton (originally Dolphin) Records single "Come Softly" is #3 on Billboard's Best Selling Retail Records chart, Martin Denny's Liberty Records single "Quiet Village" is #19, Rick Nelson's Imperial Records single "Never Be Anyone Else But You is #26 and its flipside, "It's Late", is #29.

1963 - Bobby Vee's Liberty Records single "Charms" is #15 on Billboard's Hot 100 Singles chart, Lou Christie's Roulette Records single "Two Faces Have I" is #23, and Jan and Dean's Liberty Records single "Linda" is #28.

1983 - EMI America purchases the masters to Kate Bush's title "Un Baiser D'Enfant (The Infant Kiss) (French Lyric)" with Bush singing in French and will issue the title on Bush's self-titled 7" mini-album "Kate Bush" (4LP-19004).

1986 - The Pet Shop Boys' EMI America single "West End Girls" is #1 on Billboard's Hot 100 Singles chart.

ON THIS DAY NOT IN CAPITOL HISTORY

1886 - Chichester Bell and Charles S. Tainter are granted a patent on the gramophone.

1929 - Audrey Hepburn, Academy Award-winning actress, who introduced the Johnny Mercer/Henry Mancini song “Moon River” in the film “Breakfast At Tiffany’s”, is born Edda Kathleen van Heemstra in Brussels, Belgium.

1945 - Miles Davis records for the first time in a session with a band led by Herbie Fields.

1958 - Keith Haring, an artist, is born in Reading, Pennsylvania.

1970 – Students Allison Krause, Sandra Lee Scheuer, Jeffrey Glenn Miller, and William K. Schroeder were shot down by National Guard members during an anti-Vietnam War demonstration on the Kent State University Campus in Ohio.

1975 - Moe Howard, a vaudeville, Broadway, motion picture and television actor, comedian, and member of The Three Stooges, dies at age 77.

45 Years Ago Today In 1977 - "Star Wars" debuts in movie theatres.

2006 - I saw actor Kent McCord working on his website on a 12" iBook outside a coffee shop next to the Virgin MegaStore on Sunset and Crescent Heights. He appeared on "Ozzie and Harriett" as one of Rick Nelson's friends before going on to co-star on "Adam 12" and making appearances on "Farscape"..