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Hear Today In Rock and Roll History
Today In R&R History May 25th
Daily Rock and Roll History, Birthday and short music clips.
A year long, day by day look back at this date in Rock History in 3-5 minute segments. Now airing WRGG in Greencastle, PA.
Rock and Roll Birthdays
May 25th
- May 25th Birthday, Drummer and original member of The Nice, Brian Davison, born in Leister, England in 1942.
- May 25th Birthday, Tokens vocalist Mitch Margo, born in Brooklyn, New York City in 1947.
- May 25th Birthday, Scorpions singer Klaus Meine, born in 1948 in Hanover, Germany.
- May 25th Birthday, Kansas singer and violinist Robby Steinhardt, born Robert Eugene Steinhardt in Lawrence, Kansas in 1950. He died on July 17th, 2021, aged 71.
- May 25th Birthday, Edgar Winter Band drummer Chuck Ruff, born in 1951 in Reno, Nevada. He died on October 14th, 2011, aged 60.
- May 25th Birthday, Singer songwriter and guitarist Paul Weller from The Jam, born in 1958 in Woking, Surrey, England.
Today In Rock and Roll History
May 25th
- May 25th, 1959 Keen Records release “Only Sixteen” backed with “Let’s Go Steady Again” by Sam Cooke on 45. “Only Sixteen” was written by Barbara Campbell and peaked at No. 28 on July 18th. “Let’s Go Steady Again” was reissued by RCA Records in 1966 and became Cooke’s final chart single, peaking at No. 97 on April 30th, 1966.
- May 25th, 1959 Checker Records release Bo Diddley’s first national chart record, “Crackin’ Up.” Willie Dixon played upright bass and Jerome Greene played maracas on the track. Written by Diddley under his real name, Ellis McDaniel, the 45 peaked at No. 62 on August 1st.
- May 25th, 1963 Laurie Records release “One Fine Day” by Bronx, New York City vocal quartet The Chiffons on 45. The song was co-written by Carole King and her husband Gerry Goffin. King and Goffin had Little Eva in mind for the recording but couldn’t find the right arrangement, so they passed it to The Tokens, who had produced The Chiffons’ “He’s So Fine.” Sensing a hit, The Tokens produced The Chiffon’s version. “One Fine Day” peaked at No. 5 on July 13th.
- May 25th, 1963 Dot Records pick up the independently released The Surfaris’ instrumental “Wipe Out” for national distribution. Originally released in January on DFS Records, the song was recorded at Pal Studios in Cucamonga, California, written on the spot by the band. The reissued single entered the charts in June reaching No. 2 on August 10th.
- May 25th, 1965 The Kinks guitar player Dave Davies is knocked unconscious when he falls into drummer Mick Avory’s cymbal during an onstage scuffle with the drummer at Cardiff’s Capital Theatre. Avory took exception to taunts from Davies during the show and punched him two songs into the set. The group canceled the remainder of their UK tour.
- May 25th, 1967 Stax Records release “Born Under A Bad Sign” by Albert King on 45. The song was co-written by Booker T. Jones with lyricist William Bell. King recorded the track at Stax Studios in Memphis, Tennessee.
- May 25th, 1968 “Tighten Up” by Archie Bell and The Drells is the No. 1 record in the US.
- May 25th, 1968 “Hold On” by Chicago, Illinois band The Radiants enters the singles charts on Chess Records, released in March as the B-side of “I’m Glad I’m The Loser.” Produced by Leonard Caston, co-written by Caston and Lloyd Cleveland Webber, the record went to No. 68 on July 20th, No. 35 R&B.
- May 25th, 1968 Dunhill Records release “Safe In My Garden” by The Mamas & The Papas. The record entered the charts in June and peaked at No. 53 on July 6th. On the same day, the self-titled “The Mamas & The Papas” LP enters the album charts. Recorded at the home studio of John and Michelle Phillips, session players on the record included Hal Blaine on drums and Larry Knechtel on keyboards. The record reached No. 15 on August 3rd.
- May 25th, 1968 Smash Records release “What’s Made Milwaukee Famous (Has Made A Loser Out Of Me)” by Jerry Lee Lewis on 45. Written by Glen Sutton and produced by Jerry Kennedy, the record entered the charts in July and peaked at No. 94 on July 20th.
- May 25th, 1968 Steppenwolf’s “Born To Be Wild” is released on Dunhill Records. The song was written by Canadian songwriter Dennis Edmunton, known professionally as Mars Bonfire, the brother of Steppenwolf’s drummer Jerry Edmunton. Dennis Edmunton was a member of the Sparrows, the band that became Steppenwolf. The group’s recording of the song was featured in the counter-culture film Easy Rider. The single entered the charts in July and went No. 2 on the Pop Singles charts on August 24th.
- May 25th, 1970 Pacific Jazz Records release “King Kong” by Jean Luc-Ponty. Five of the six songs on the album were written by Frank Zappa. George Duke, Artie Tripp III and Ian Underwood from The Mothers Of Invention play on the album. Zappa plays guitar on the song “How Would You Like To Have A Head Like That.”
- May 25th, 1973 CBS Records in Britain release “Honaloochie Boogie” by Mott The Hoople on 45. It was the band’s follow-up to the hit “All The Young Dudes.” Written by Ian Hunter, the song was from the album “Mott.” Andy Mackay from Roxy Music played sax on the track and Paul Buckmaster played cello. The single reached No. 12 in Britain.
- May 25th, 1973 Mooncrest Records in England release “Razamanaz,” the third album by Nazareth. Recorded in Jamestown, Scotland with the Pye Mobile Unit from December 1972 through March 1973, the record came out on A&M Records in the US in July. It was the first Nazareth LP to chart in the states, peaking at No. 157 on October 6th.
- May 25th, 1973 Mike Oldfield’s “Tubular Bells” LP is released in Britain. The album wouldn’t be issued in the US until September. The main theme of the record would be used as the theme song for the movie The Exorcist. Oldfield, who was nineteen years old when it was recorded, played almost all the instruments himself. Vivian Stanshall from The Bonzo Dog Doo Dah Band makes a speaking appearance on the record. In America, “Tubular Bells” earned a Gold Record award for a million copies sold on March 26th. Oldfield received a Grammy Award for the Best Instrumental Composition in 1975. “Tubular Bells,” the album, peaked at No. 3 on March 30th, 1974.
- May 25th, 1973 Carole King’s Sunset Concert at New York’s Central Park draws one hundred thousand people. At that time, it was the largest crowd ever to gather there for a concert. Fifty years later, highlights from the show were released on CD and film footage from the show was made into the documentary Home Again: Carole King Live In Central Park.
- May 25th, 1974 Sire Records release “Turn Of The Cards” the fifth studio album by Renaissance. The album was recorded at De Lane Lea Studios with Renaissance co-producing with Dick Plant. Richard Gottehrer, the co-owner of Sire Records, was given production credit but only had a hand in mixing one of the tracks on the LP. In Britain, it was the first album released by Miles Copeland’s BTM Records label. In America, the album peaked at No. 94 on October 2nd.
- May 25th, 1974 “Shock Treatment,” the fourth studio album by Edgar Winter and the second by The Edgar Winter Group, enters the album charts on Epic Records, released as both stereo and quadraphonic albums. The LP had two charting singles, “Easy Street” and “River’s Risin’.” “Shock Treatment” peaked at No. 13 on August 17th.
- May 25th, 1974 “King Of Nothing” by Seals and Croft enters the Pop Singles charts on Warner Brothers Records, released earlier in the month of May. Written by Jim Seals and sung by Dash Crofts, sessions for the track featured an A-list of LA studio musicians, including guitarist Louis Shelton, steel guitarist Buddy Emmons and three future members of Toto, David Paich on keyboards and string and horn arrangements, bassist David Hungate and drummer Jeff Porcaro. The record peaked at No. 60 on June 22nd.
- May 25th, 1974 EMI Records release “Silly Milly” by Blue Swede on 45. Co-written by Christian Bruhn, Harald Braschoss and Harmut Priess, the record entered the singles charts in June and peaked at No. 71 on June 29th.
- May 25th, 1974 “Kissin’ Time” by Kiss enters the singles charts on Casablanca Records. The song was co-written by Bernie Lowe and Kal Mann from the self-titled first Kiss album. It was the band’s first chart single, peaking at No. 83 on June 22nd.
- May 25th, 1974 Capricorn Records release the title track of Wet Willie’s third LP “Keep On Smiling” on 45. The song was credited collectively to the five members of the band, Jimmy and Jack Hall, Lewis Ross, Ricky Hirsh and John David Anthony. Produced by Tom Dowd, the single charted at No. 10 on May 25th, the band’s biggest hit.
- May 25th, 1978 Keith Moon plays his last show with The Who in London. The occasion was a film shoot at Shepperton Film Studios in front of a private audience to shoot the closing footage for their movie documentary The Kids Are Alright. The band’s final studio album with Moon, “Who Are You” was set for release in August. Moon died on August 18th.
- May 25th, 1985 Eurythmics’ fifth album “Be Yourself Tonight” enters the charts on RCA Records. The album was recorded in Paris, Detroit and Los Angeles from November 1984 through January 1985. The record featured guest performances by Aretha Franklin, Stevie Wonder and Elvis Costello. Produced by David A. Stewart, the LP peaked at No. 9 on July 20th.
- May 25th, 1992 Private Records release the first new Ringo Starr single in ten years “Weight Of The World.” The song was co-written by Brian O’Doherty and Fred Velez and taken from the Don Was produced sessions for Ringo’s “Time Takes Time” LP.
Miscellaneous May
- May 1949 “Back Home Blues” backed with “Rock Awhile” by Goree Carter and His Hep Cats is released as a 78 rpm record on the Freedom Records label. Influenced by the guitar work of T Bone Walker, “Rock Awhile” stakes a legitimate claim as the first rock and roll record released. Eighteen years old when he recorded the song, the overdriven guitar tone and pentatonic lead predated rock and a style similar to Chuck Berry.
- May 1966 White Whale Records release “If You Gotta Go, Go Now” backed with “I’ll Go On,” the second single by Lyme & Cybelle, the folk rock duo of Warren Zevon and Violet Santangelo. Bob Dylan wrote “If You Gottsa Go, Go Now,” and the B-side was a Zevon/Santangelo co-write. The record was produced by Bones Howe.
- May 1968 Parlophone Records in Britain release “(The Autobiography Of) Mississippi Hobo,” the second single by Hans Christian. Hans Christian was future Yes singer Jon Anderson. The single was arranged and produced by Paul Korda.
- May 1970 Viking Records press promotional copies of “From Denver To L.A.” on 45. Credited with a vocal by “Elton Johns,” it was taken from the movie soundtrack from the 20thCentury Fox film The Games. Original copies of the record are considered one of the rarest Elton John singles.
- May 1972 Bearsville Records release “Wonder Girl,” the debut single by Sparks. Written by Ron Mael, the record was produced by Todd Rundgren. Rundgren signed the band to Bearsville and produced their first album when the band was known as Halfnelson. The band changed its’ name to Sparks after the LP came out in October 1971. The name change led to a new cover and re-release of the album in February 1972.
- May 1973 Chrysalis Records release “Grand Hotel” by Procol Harum on 45. Co-written by Keith Reid and Gary Brooker, the song served as the title track of Procol Harum’s sixth studio LP, produced by Chris Thomas.
- May 1975 Harvest Record release “HQ,” the eighth studio album by Roy Harper. Recorded in March at Abbey Road Studios in London with producer Peter Jenner, when the LP came out in America, the cover art and the title changed to “When An Old Cricketer Leaves The Crease.” David Gilmour, Chris Spedding, Bill Bruford and John Paul Jones played sessions on the LP.
- May 1976 MCA Records release “Gimme Back My Bullets” by Lynyrd Skynyrd on 45. The song was co-written by Gary Rossington and Ronnie Van Zant. The studio track was produced by Tom Dowd.
- May 1977 CBS Records in Britain release “Ian Hunter’s Overnight Angels” album. Recorded at several different studios in the US, Canada and England with producer Roy Thomas Baker, Hunter’s US label, Columbia Records refused to release the LP with Hunter’s business management in disarray and no tour scheduled to support the album. Featured on the album sessions were guitarist Earl Slick.
- May 1984 Passport Records release “Russians & Americans,” the tenth studio album by Al Stewart. The LP was produced by Mike Flicker at four different studios, three in California and Abbey Road Studios in London. British and US issues on the record had different tracks. A 2007 reissue collected all the songs on one CD.
- May 1985 EMI Records in Britain release remixed versions of “Loving The Alien” backed with “Don’t Look Down” on 45, originally from from the David Bowie LP “Tonight.” Bowie wrote the AS-side. “Don’t Look Down” was a song co-written by David Bowie and The Stooges’ guitarist James Williamson.
- May 1985 Legacy Records in Britain release “Under Fire” backed with “On Top Of The World” by Roy Wood on 45. Both songs were written and produced by Roy Wood from the LP “Starting Up.”
This Week In Rock and Roll History
This Week In Rock and Roll History week of May 24th
This Week In Rock and Roll History is a weekly one hour look back at the songs, the artists, and the stories behind the music of the rock and roll era.
The Cool Song Of The Week
Cool Song Of The Week 5/24 The Turtles
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