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Rock and Roll Birthdays

Today's Rock and Roll Birthdays

September 19th

September 19th Birthday, R&B Singer Brook Benton, born Benjamin Franklin Peay in Lugoff, South Carolina in 1931. Benton died in New York on April 9th, 1988 at the age of 56.

September 19th Birthday, The Beatles manager Brian Epstein, born in 1934 in Liverpool, England. He passed away on August 27th, 1967 at the age of 32.

September 19th Birthday, The Righteous Brothers singer and songwriter Bill Medley, born in 1940 in Santa Ana, California.

September 19th Birthday, Pop singer and songwriter Paul Williams, born in 1940 in Omaha, Nebraska.

September 19th Birthday, Mama Cass Elliot, born Ellen Naomi Cohen in 1941 in Baltimore, Maryland. She died on July 29th, 1974 at the age of 32.

September 19th Birthday, R&B singer and actress Freda Payne, born in Detroit, Michigan in 1942.

September 19th Birthday, Singer, songwriter, guitarist, fiddler David Bromberg, born in 1945 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

September 19th Birthday, Lyricist Keith Reid from Procol Harum, born in 1946 in Welwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire, England. He passed away on March 23rd, 2023 at the age of 76.

September 19th Birthday, A founding member of 10cc, guitarist, singer, songwriter and record producer Lol Creme, born in 1947 in Prestwich, Lancashire, England.

September 19th Birthday, The Elton John Band percussionist, record producer and prominent session player Ray Cooper, born in 1947 in Watford, Hertfordshire, England.

September 19th Birthday, Pop singer and fashion model Twiggy, born Lesley Hornby in Neasden, Middlesex, England in 1949.

September 19th Birthday, Record producer and solo artist Daniel Lanois, born in 1951 in Hull, Quebec, Canada.

September 19th Birthday, Chic bassist, songwriter and record producer Nile Rodgers, born in New York City in 1952.

September 19th Birthday, The Runaways guitarist and solo artist Lita Ford, born in London, England in 1958.

Today In Rock and Roll History

September 19th

September 19th, 1960 Chubby Checker’s “The Twist” is the No. 1 song in the country.

September 19th, 1960 Legrand Records release “New Orleans,” the debut single by U.S. Bonds, later billed as Gary U.S. Bonds, whose real name was Gary Anderson. The track was produced by Frank Guida, who co-wrote the song with Joseph Royster. The backing band on the session were The Church Street Five. The record was Bond’s first hit, peaking at No. 6 on December 3rd.

September 19th, 1960 Motown Records release the first single by Mary Wells, “Bye Bye Baby” on 45. Written by Wells, the track was recorded at United Sound Systems in Detroit, Michigan with Berry Gordy producing. The song went to No. 8 on the R&B charts nationally, No. 45 on the Pop Singles charts on April 15th, 1961.

September 19th, 1966 The Yardbirds, now featuring Jeff Beck on lead guitar and Jimmy Page on rhythm, arrive in New York City to start their first American tour.

September 19th, 1967 Atco Records release “Rock ‘n’ Roll Women” by Buffalo Springfield on 45. The song was written by Stephen Stills and co-produced by Stills and Neil Young. Session guitarist Doug Hastings played on the track. The record peaked at No. 44 on October 21st.

September 19th, 1967 Gary Puckett and The Union Gap release their debut single “Woman, Woman.” The song was co-written by Jay Paine and Jim Glaser and was produced by Jerry Fuller with Al Kapps arranging the studio session. The record entered the charts in November, hit No. 4 on January 13th, 1968 and was certified a Gold Record for a million copies sold in February.

September 19th, 1968 The Beatles record the rhythm track for the George Harrison song “Piggies” at EMI Studio Two in London with Chris Thomas producing. Thomas played harpsichord on the track. Harrison began writing the song in 1966 as a social commentary on the rich upper class. Preproduction work was recorded as a demo at George’s Esher home in May. The backing track was completed in eleven takes and copied to eight track tape the next day for overdubs as take twelve. Although John Lennon did not play on the song, he sang backing vocals and compiled the pig grunting sound effects used in the song.

September 19th, 1969 Creedence Clearwater Revival scored their only UK No. 1 single with “Bad Moon Rising.”

September 19th, 1969 Reprise Records release “Then Play On,” the last Fleetwood Mac LP with guitarist Peter Green and the band’s first with guitarist Danny Kirwin. The band self-produced the record at CBS and De Lane Lea Studios in London, their first to utilized overdubbing. Their previous two LP’s had been recorded live in the studio. The album featured the hit “Oh Well,” which had been a non-LP single that followed the release of the album in England. When “Oh Well” charted in America, “Then Play On” was reissued to include the song. The album peaked at No. 109 on March 21st, No. 6 in Britain.

September 19th, 1970 “After The Gold Rush” by Neil Young enters the album charts on Reprise Records. The LP was recorded during the winter of 1969 and spring 1970 at Sunset Sound, Hollywood, California, Sound City, Van Nuys, Los Angeles and Redwood Studios in Topanga, California. Members of the band Crazy Horse, an eighteen-year-old Nils Lofgren of the Washington, DC based band Grin and Stephen Stills played sessions for the record. “After The Gold Rush” peaked at No. 8 on October 17th.

September 19th, 1970 Pentagram Records release “Games” by Los Angeles, California band Redeye. The group released two albums in the early 1970’s and had two charting singles, “Games” and “Redeye Blues.” “Games” was written by Redeye guitarist and singer Dave Hodgkins and produced by Al Schmitt. The record entered the singles charts on November 7th and went to No. 27 on January 23rd.

September 19th, 1970 Warner Brothers Records release the soundtrack album, “Performance.” The movie starred Mick Jagger. The LP featured music by Randy Newman, Merry Clayton, Ry Cooder, Jack Nitzche, Buffey Saint-Marie, The Last Poets and a solo Mick Jagger.

September 19th, 1972 Warner Brothers Records release “Ventura Highway” by America on 45. Written by group guitarist Dewey Bunnell, the session for the song was self-produced by the band. “Ventura Highway” entered the charts in October and peaked at No. 8 on December 9th.

September 19th, 1974 Billy Preston’s “Nothing From Nothing” hits No. 1 on the US singles charts.

September 19th, 1975 “Warner Bros. Presents Montrose,” the third studio album by the band Montrose is released by Warner Brothers Records. Produced by Ronnie Montrose at The Record Plant in Los Angeles and Sausalito, California, the record peaked at No. 79 on November 15th.

September 19th, 1978 Asylum Records release “Living In The USA” by Linda Ronstadt. Produced by Peter Asher and engineered by Val Garay, the record peaked at No. 1 on November 4th, Ronstadt’s third bestselling album and her sixth consecutive million selling LP.

September 19th, 1981 The Rolling Stones’ album “Tattoo You” started a nine-week run at No. 1 on the US album charts.

September 19th, 1983 Virgin Records in Britain release “Love On A Farmboy’s Wages” by XTC on 45. The song was written by Andy Partridge and was co-produced by the band and Steve Nye during the sessions for the XTC “Mummer” LP. The record peaked at No. 50 on the UK singles charts.

September 19th, 1988 Mercury Records release “New Jersey” by Bon Jovi. The band recorded the album from May through July at Little Mountain Sound in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada with producer Bruce Fairbain. The album peaked at No. 1 on October 15th.

September 19th, 1989 Rykodisc Records release David Bowie’s “Sound + Vision” box set. The compilation featured hits and previously unreleased rarities. The record peaked at No. 97 on November 4th.

September 19th, 1994 Island Records in Britain release “Zombie” by The Cranberries on 45. The song was written by singer Delores O’Riordan and produced by Stephen Street. The single reached No. 14 in Britain, No. 3 in Ireland.

Miscellaneous September

September 1965 Muriel Records release “Lookie There” backed with “Wail Baby Wail” by Tommy Louis with Marshall and The Versatiles on 45. Ike Turner plays guitar on the tracks.

September 1967 CBS Records in Britain release “Love Chronicles,” the second album by Al Stewart. “Love Chronicles” was issued in the US in September. The album was issued in America in January 1969 on Epic Records. The LP was co-produced by Roy Guest, John Wood and Al Stewart. Session musicians included Jimmy Page, John Paul Jones and four members of Fairport Convention, Simon Nicol, Richard Thompson, Martin Lamble and Ashley Hutchings. Songs on the record were orchestrated by Alexander Faris.

September 1970 Liberty Records release “Love Is A Game” backed with “Takin’ Back My Name” by a solo Ike Turner on 45. “Love Is A Game” was written by Tina Turner’s sister Ailllene Bullock. “Takin’ Back My Name” was credited to Leah Graham, an alias for Ike Turner, who produced and arranged the tracks as well.

September 1973, RCA Records in Britain release “The Tra La La Days Are Over” by Neil Sedaka. Recorded at Strawberry Studios in the Spring with Eric Stewart producing and 10cc as the backing band, the LP produced “Love Will Keep Us Together.” The song, co-written by Sedaka with Howard Greenfield, would become a huge hit for The Captain And Tennille in 1976.

September 1975 A&M Records release “White Punks On Dope” by the Tubes on 45. The song was co-written by Bill Spooner, Roger Steen and Michael Evans and produced by Al Kooper from the band’s eponymous first album. The single was edited to omit the curse word in the lyrics.

September 1977 DEVO release their second single on their own Booji Boy label. “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction” was a cover version of The Rolling Stones song. “(I Saw My Baby Getting) Sloppy” was co-written by DEVO. The 45 was produced by the group. “Satisfaction” was rerecorded by DEVO and released as their major label debut for Warner Brothers Records a year later.

September 1979 Reprise Records release “Rust Never Sleeps (Hey Hey, My My [Out Of The Blue])” by Neil Young on 45. The A-side was the acoustic version of the song. The flip side was the full band version, recorded with the band Crazy Horse and both from the “Rust Never Sleeps” LP.

September 1979 CBS Records in Ireland issue the seven-inch EP “Out Of Control” backed with “Stories For Boys” & “Boy/Girl,” the first release by U2. All three songs were written collectively by the band and co-produced by U2 and Chas De Whalley.

September 1981 David Bowie records the five songs written for Bertolt Brecht’s Baal. Bowie appeared in the BBC television production of Baal. The play was transmitted in Britain on March 2nd, 1982. The tracks were co-produced by David Bowie and Tony Visconti, who also played bass on the recordings. The EP was released in September 1982, reaching No. 29 in Britain.

September 1981 Island Records in Britain release “Gloria” by U2 on 45. The second single released from the group’s second album “October,” the song was written collectively by U2. “Gloria” was recorded during July and August sessions with producer Steve Lillywhite at Windmill Lane Studios in Dublin, Ireland. The record peaked at No. 55 in Britain.

September 1986 Warner Brothers Records release “Summer Of Love” by The B-52’s on 45. The song was co-written Keith Strickland, Rocky Wilson, Cindy Wilson and Kate Pierson, produced by Tony Mansfield from the LP “Bouncing Off The Satellites.” The single had a unique remix with additional production by Shep Pettibone.