Happy Independence Day!
RIP
On this day in 1977 Marvel Comics released the first ever Kiss comic book! (June 30)
In what was a stunning, quirky, and legendary marketing masterstroke, each member of the band had a vial of blood taken from their veins and poured it in to the red ink used to print the comic at the Marvel factory.
Very cool indeed...
Hey, if you can’t get excited by Kiss battling Dr Doom I’m afraid there’s no alternative but to relinquish your Kiss Army and Comic-Con memberships…
On this day in 1984, the Bruce Springsteen single “Dancing in the Dark” peaked at #2 on the US Billboard Hot 100 (June 30)
It was the first single released from his 1984 album “Born in the U.S.A.”, and became his biggest hit, helping the album become the best-selling album of his career.
"Dancing in the Dark" was also successful worldwide, becoming Australia's highest-selling single of 1984 (despite only peaking at #5), peaking at #1 in Belgium and the Netherlands, and charting in the Top 10 in many other countries, including the UK, Canada, Ireland, South Africa and Sweden.
The song is listed among the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll.
The recording also won Springsteen his first Grammy Award, picking up the prize for Best Rock Vocal Performance in 1985.
Directed by Brian DePalma, the video was filmed during Springsteen's live concert at the St. Paul Civic Center in Minnesota on the opening date of the Born in the U.S.A. Tour on June 29, 1984, after a pure video shoot the day before.
Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band performed the song twice during that show to allow De Palma to get all the footage he needed.
The video is famous as a breakthrough for a young professional actress brought in for the video from New York City, who had already played in “As the World Turns”, named Courtney Cox.
Cox is selected from the audience by Springsteen to come up on stage with him and dance during the song.
The video was Springsteen's first to get heavy airplay on MTV, and it introduced him to a new, mostly younger audience.
As for Cox, a few years later she landed a role on the sitcom Family Ties, and went on to star in the wildly popular TV series Friends.
At subsequent concerts throughout the years, the Boss continued to select an audience member to dance up on stage with him during the song, a la Courtney Cox in the video.
Click on the link below to watch:
On this day in 1979, the Dire Straits LP “Communiqué” debuted on the Billboard 200 Albums Chart at #53 (June 30)
Dire Straits’ second studio album was a worldwide hit, going all the way to #1 in Germany, Spain, New Zealand, and Sweden, #2 in Switzerland and Norway, #3 in France and the Netherlands, #5 in Australia and the UK, #11 in the US, and #14 in Canada.
The album featured the enduring Dire Straits classic single "Lady Writer," and was the last LP with the original lineup, with Mark Knopfler’s younger brother David later departing from the band during the making of their following album “Making Movies”.
Click on the link below to watch “Lady Writer”:
On this day in 1985, the Mental as Anything single “Live it Up” was at its peak of #2 on the Australian charts (July 1)
The Greedy Smith-penned track off the “Fundamental as Anything” LP peaked at #2 for three weeks behind Madonna's "Angel / Into the Groove", spending a total of 12 weeks in the Top 10, and becoming the fourth biggest-selling single of 1985 in Australia.
Smith did not initially think the song would be a hit when he wrote it, but became more confident as the song was completed; he explained,
“You know when I felt that was going to be a hit? When we finished mixing it.
It took about half an hour to write in my head.
But then two years to get it right.
We had no idea of how big it would be."
“Live it Up” also peaked at #2 in Ireland, #3 in the UK, #4 in Norway, #6 in Germany and New Zealand, #15 in Austria and #20 in Sweden.
Greedy Smith recalled,
“And I remember when 'Live It Up' went to number three in the UK… that was a special moment.
It had been a hit in Australia but nobody was interested over there and in Europe. Then, when ‘Crocodile Dundee’ came out, our record company over there said 'Let's put the poster on the single pack.
After that, it was a huge hit. So we were very grateful to have a bit of a go around there."
In 2020, the song became an unofficial anthem of Glasgow based soccer team Rangers FC, and the fans even began a campaign to get the song to #1 in the UK charts for Christmas that year.
"Live It Up" has been placed in the collection of the Australian National Film and Sound Archive.
The song also won Best Single at the 1985 Countdown Australian Music Awards.
Click on the link below to watch the clip:
On this day in 1978, Jeff Wayne's Musical Version of The War of the Worlds debuted on the UK Albums Chart at #24 (July 1)
This debut album by Jeff Wayne, retelling the story of the 1898 novel “The War of The Worlds” by H. G. Wells, is an absolute masterpiece.
Featuring the magnificent voice of Richard Burton as the narrator, and speaking parts and vocals from the likes of David Essex, Phil Lynott from Thin Lizzy and Justin Hayward from the Moody Blues, this LP is still brilliant to listen to.
The album originated when Wayne was touring with singer-songwriter David Essex, for whom he also worked as his producer and musical director.
Wayne felt the composing side of his career "had diminished" by this time, and started looking for a story "to get passionate about" and interpret musically, to which his father Jerry suggested the science-fiction novel “The War of the Worlds” by H. G. Wells.
The story instantly caught Wayne's imagination, and he finished the book in a single read.
In January 1975, Wayne and his father acquired the rights to adapt the work from Wells's estate, which at the time was overseen by Wells's son Frank.
Wayne spent three months locating Frank Wells, and found his ideas were well received because it was the first adaptation that stayed true to the story.
British art designer John Pasche, best known for designing the famous Rolling Stones' tongue and lips logo, designed the logo on the front cover of “War of the Worlds”, and directed the overall design of the record's sleeve which features paintings from three artists: Geoff Taylor, Mike Trim, and Peter Goodfellow.
It was a #1 album in Australia (for seven weeks), #2 in the Netherlands and New Zealand, #5 in the UK, #10 in Germany, #16 in Sweden, #76 in Canada, and #94 in the US.
As of 2018, it was the UK's 32nd best-selling studio album of all time, and has sold an estimated 15 million copies worldwide.
Click on the link below to re-live the magic:
Blondie singer, songwriter, and co-founder Debbie Harry was born Angela Trimble in Miami, Florida, on this day in 1945 (July 1)
In the No Exit tour book, she says:
“You know, when I woke up this morning I had a realization about myself.
I was always Blondie.
People always called me Blondie, ever since I was a little kid.”
The bleach-blonded focal point of what was one of the most influential New Wave bands riding the wave of the explosion of punk in the mid to late 70s, Debbie Harry was an icon of the era, who effortlessly managed to simultaneously convey both self-conscious naivety and brash street savvy in her stage presence.
Interestingly, Blondie’s first world commercial success occurred in Australia in 1977, when “Countdown” mistakenly played their video "In the Flesh", which was the B-side of their current single "X-Offender".
Keyboard player Jimmy Destri later credited Molly Meldrum for their initial success, commenting that "we still thank him to this day" for playing the wrong song.
In a 1998 interview, drummer Clem Burke recalled seeing the episode in which the wrong song was played, but he and Chris Stein suggested that it may have been a deliberate subterfuge on the part of Molly...
Click on the link below to watch:
This week in 1979, The Knack’s LP “Get The Knack” debuted on the US Billboard 200 Albums Chart at #93 (June 30)
At the time, the album was one of the most successful debut albums in history, selling over one million copies in less than two months and spending five weeks at #1 on the Billboard 200 album chart.
It also went to #1 in Australia and Canada, and #2 in New Zealand.
The hype in Australia was off the charts, with rock guru Molly Meldrum suggesting at the time that the band could end up as big as the Beatles!
How did it all start?
Well, The Knack formed in Los Angeles in May 1978, and after shopping their demo tape to various record labels without success, the band began playing the local club circuit beginning in June, playing over 50 gigs in the next six months.
The band quickly gained a following as word of mouth spread about their energetic shows and musicians such as Ray Manzarek, Tom Petty and Bruce Springsteen came to their shows and joined the group on stage.
By December, thirteen record labels, including some that previously rejected them, were offering recording contracts and the group signed with Capitol Records in January 1979.
Get the Knack was recorded in just two weeks at a cost of only $18,000, an extremely quick and inexpensive recording at a time when many established artists were spending months and several hundred thousand dollars to record an album.
The album was produced by Australian record producer and songwriter Mike Chapman, who had created a string of hit singles for artists including The Sweet, Suzi Quatro, Smokie, and Racey with business partner Nicky Chinn, and most recently produced Blondie's breakout album “Parallel Lines”.
The lead single, "My Sharona" (inspired by singer and guitarist Doug Fieger’s girlfriend Sharona Alperin) also met with immediate success, becoming Capitol's fastest selling debut single since the Beatles' "I Want to Hold Your Hand", staying at #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 for six weeks, and also topping the charts in Australia and Canada.
It ranked #75 on the Billboard Hot 100 All-Time Top Songs and #16 on the Top Billboard Hot 100 Rock Songs.
Sharona Alperin posed for the single's picture sleeve holding a copy of “Get the Knack”….
Click on the link below to watch “My Sharona” on Countdown, WITH THE EXTENDED GUITAR SOLO:
The B-52’s frontman, songwriter, and co-founder Fred Schneider was born Frederick William Schneider III in Newark, New Jersey, on this day in 1951 (July 1)
His quirky, half-spoken vocal delivery and unique stage presence and out-there style were crucial components contributing to the rise of The B-52’s in the exploding new music scene of the post-punk 70s, and into the 80s….
Click on the link below to watch “Rock Lobster” on Countdown:
RIP
On this day in 1977 Marvel Comics released the first ever Kiss comic book! (June 30)
In what was a stunning, quirky, and legendary marketing masterstroke, each member of the band had a vial of blood taken from their veins and poured it in to the red ink used to print the comic at the Marvel factory.
Very cool indeed...
Hey, if you can’t get excited by Kiss battling Dr Doom I’m afraid there’s no alternative but to relinquish your Kiss Army and Comic-Con memberships…
On this day in 1984, the Bruce Springsteen single “Dancing in the Dark” peaked at #2 on the US Billboard Hot 100 (June 30)
It was the first single released from his 1984 album “Born in the U.S.A.”, and became his biggest hit, helping the album become the best-selling album of his career.
"Dancing in the Dark" was also successful worldwide, becoming Australia's highest-selling single of 1984 (despite only peaking at #5), peaking at #1 in Belgium and the Netherlands, and charting in the Top 10 in many other countries, including the UK, Canada, Ireland, South Africa and Sweden.
The song is listed among the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll.
The recording also won Springsteen his first Grammy Award, picking up the prize for Best Rock Vocal Performance in 1985.
Directed by Brian DePalma, the video was filmed during Springsteen's live concert at the St. Paul Civic Center in Minnesota on the opening date of the Born in the U.S.A. Tour on June 29, 1984, after a pure video shoot the day before.
Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band performed the song twice during that show to allow De Palma to get all the footage he needed.
The video is famous as a breakthrough for a young professional actress brought in for the video from New York City, who had already played in “As the World Turns”, named Courtney Cox.
Cox is selected from the audience by Springsteen to come up on stage with him and dance during the song.
The video was Springsteen's first to get heavy airplay on MTV, and it introduced him to a new, mostly younger audience.
As for Cox, a few years later she landed a role on the sitcom Family Ties, and went on to star in the wildly popular TV series Friends.
At subsequent concerts throughout the years, the Boss continued to select an audience member to dance up on stage with him during the song, a la Courtney Cox in the video.
Click on the link below to watch:
On this day in 1979, the Dire Straits LP “Communiqué” debuted on the Billboard 200 Albums Chart at #53 (June 30)
Dire Straits’ second studio album was a worldwide hit, going all the way to #1 in Germany, Spain, New Zealand, and Sweden, #2 in Switzerland and Norway, #3 in France and the Netherlands, #5 in Australia and the UK, #11 in the US, and #14 in Canada.
The album featured the enduring Dire Straits classic single "Lady Writer," and was the last LP with the original lineup, with Mark Knopfler’s younger brother David later departing from the band during the making of their following album “Making Movies”.
Click on the link below to watch “Lady Writer”:
On this day in 1985, the Mental as Anything single “Live it Up” was at its peak of #2 on the Australian charts (July 1)
The Greedy Smith-penned track off the “Fundamental as Anything” LP peaked at #2 for three weeks behind Madonna's "Angel / Into the Groove", spending a total of 12 weeks in the Top 10, and becoming the fourth biggest-selling single of 1985 in Australia.
Smith did not initially think the song would be a hit when he wrote it, but became more confident as the song was completed; he explained,
“You know when I felt that was going to be a hit? When we finished mixing it.
It took about half an hour to write in my head.
But then two years to get it right.
We had no idea of how big it would be."
“Live it Up” also peaked at #2 in Ireland, #3 in the UK, #4 in Norway, #6 in Germany and New Zealand, #15 in Austria and #20 in Sweden.
Greedy Smith recalled,
“And I remember when 'Live It Up' went to number three in the UK… that was a special moment.
It had been a hit in Australia but nobody was interested over there and in Europe. Then, when ‘Crocodile Dundee’ came out, our record company over there said 'Let's put the poster on the single pack.
After that, it was a huge hit. So we were very grateful to have a bit of a go around there."
In 2020, the song became an unofficial anthem of Glasgow based soccer team Rangers FC, and the fans even began a campaign to get the song to #1 in the UK charts for Christmas that year.
"Live It Up" has been placed in the collection of the Australian National Film and Sound Archive.
The song also won Best Single at the 1985 Countdown Australian Music Awards.
Click on the link below to watch the clip:
On this day in 1978, Jeff Wayne's Musical Version of The War of the Worlds debuted on the UK Albums Chart at #24 (July 1)
This debut album by Jeff Wayne, retelling the story of the 1898 novel “The War of The Worlds” by H. G. Wells, is an absolute masterpiece.
Featuring the magnificent voice of Richard Burton as the narrator, and speaking parts and vocals from the likes of David Essex, Phil Lynott from Thin Lizzy and Justin Hayward from the Moody Blues, this LP is still brilliant to listen to.
The album originated when Wayne was touring with singer-songwriter David Essex, for whom he also worked as his producer and musical director.
Wayne felt the composing side of his career "had diminished" by this time, and started looking for a story "to get passionate about" and interpret musically, to which his father Jerry suggested the science-fiction novel “The War of the Worlds” by H. G. Wells.
The story instantly caught Wayne's imagination, and he finished the book in a single read.
In January 1975, Wayne and his father acquired the rights to adapt the work from Wells's estate, which at the time was overseen by Wells's son Frank.
Wayne spent three months locating Frank Wells, and found his ideas were well received because it was the first adaptation that stayed true to the story.
British art designer John Pasche, best known for designing the famous Rolling Stones' tongue and lips logo, designed the logo on the front cover of “War of the Worlds”, and directed the overall design of the record's sleeve which features paintings from three artists: Geoff Taylor, Mike Trim, and Peter Goodfellow.
It was a #1 album in Australia (for seven weeks), #2 in the Netherlands and New Zealand, #5 in the UK, #10 in Germany, #16 in Sweden, #76 in Canada, and #94 in the US.
As of 2018, it was the UK's 32nd best-selling studio album of all time, and has sold an estimated 15 million copies worldwide.
Click on the link below to re-live the magic:
Blondie singer, songwriter, and co-founder Debbie Harry was born Angela Trimble in Miami, Florida, on this day in 1945 (July 1)
In the No Exit tour book, she says:
“You know, when I woke up this morning I had a realization about myself.
I was always Blondie.
People always called me Blondie, ever since I was a little kid.”
The bleach-blonded focal point of what was one of the most influential New Wave bands riding the wave of the explosion of punk in the mid to late 70s, Debbie Harry was an icon of the era, who effortlessly managed to simultaneously convey both self-conscious naivety and brash street savvy in her stage presence.
Interestingly, Blondie’s first world commercial success occurred in Australia in 1977, when “Countdown” mistakenly played their video "In the Flesh", which was the B-side of their current single "X-Offender".
Keyboard player Jimmy Destri later credited Molly Meldrum for their initial success, commenting that "we still thank him to this day" for playing the wrong song.
In a 1998 interview, drummer Clem Burke recalled seeing the episode in which the wrong song was played, but he and Chris Stein suggested that it may have been a deliberate subterfuge on the part of Molly...
Click on the link below to watch:
This week in 1979, The Knack’s LP “Get The Knack” debuted on the US Billboard 200 Albums Chart at #93 (June 30)
At the time, the album was one of the most successful debut albums in history, selling over one million copies in less than two months and spending five weeks at #1 on the Billboard 200 album chart.
It also went to #1 in Australia and Canada, and #2 in New Zealand.
The hype in Australia was off the charts, with rock guru Molly Meldrum suggesting at the time that the band could end up as big as the Beatles!
How did it all start?
Well, The Knack formed in Los Angeles in May 1978, and after shopping their demo tape to various record labels without success, the band began playing the local club circuit beginning in June, playing over 50 gigs in the next six months.
The band quickly gained a following as word of mouth spread about their energetic shows and musicians such as Ray Manzarek, Tom Petty and Bruce Springsteen came to their shows and joined the group on stage.
By December, thirteen record labels, including some that previously rejected them, were offering recording contracts and the group signed with Capitol Records in January 1979.
Get the Knack was recorded in just two weeks at a cost of only $18,000, an extremely quick and inexpensive recording at a time when many established artists were spending months and several hundred thousand dollars to record an album.
The album was produced by Australian record producer and songwriter Mike Chapman, who had created a string of hit singles for artists including The Sweet, Suzi Quatro, Smokie, and Racey with business partner Nicky Chinn, and most recently produced Blondie's breakout album “Parallel Lines”.
The lead single, "My Sharona" (inspired by singer and guitarist Doug Fieger’s girlfriend Sharona Alperin) also met with immediate success, becoming Capitol's fastest selling debut single since the Beatles' "I Want to Hold Your Hand", staying at #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 for six weeks, and also topping the charts in Australia and Canada.
It ranked #75 on the Billboard Hot 100 All-Time Top Songs and #16 on the Top Billboard Hot 100 Rock Songs.
Sharona Alperin posed for the single's picture sleeve holding a copy of “Get the Knack”….
Click on the link below to watch “My Sharona” on Countdown, WITH THE EXTENDED GUITAR SOLO:
The B-52’s frontman, songwriter, and co-founder Fred Schneider was born Frederick William Schneider III in Newark, New Jersey, on this day in 1951 (July 1)
His quirky, half-spoken vocal delivery and unique stage presence and out-there style were crucial components contributing to the rise of The B-52’s in the exploding new music scene of the post-punk 70s, and into the 80s….
Click on the link below to watch “Rock Lobster” on Countdown:
