Today in Music History

The Beach Boys performed at Patio Gardens in Farmington, Utah.

The Crazy World Of Arthur Brown album and the single “Fire”, with “Rest Cure” as the B-side, were released in the US. The single reached No. 2 on both the Billboard and Cash Box charts. Pete Townshend is credited as a co-producer on both recordings and played rhythm guitar on the B-side.

The Doors played the first of two nights at The Roundhouse in London during their first visit to the UK. They played twice each night, and the sold-out concerts were filmed by Granada TV. The footage was later broadcast under the title “The Doors Are Open”. Members of The Rolling Stones and Traffic were among those in attendance.

The Doors reached No. 1 on the US Billboard 200 with their third studio album Waiting for the Sun. The album contained their first No. 1 single, “Hello, I Love You”, which contributed significantly to its success. The group decided to include the song on the album after abandoning plans to devote the entire first side to Morrison's poetic work “Celebration of the Lizard”.

Jimmy Page, Robert Plant, John Paul Jones and John Bonham performed publicly together for the first time as The New Yardbirds at the Teen Club in Gladsaxe near Copenhagen. Approximately 1,200 young people attended the concert. The New Yardbirds were the forerunners of Led Zeppelin and changed their name to Led Zeppelin approximately six weeks later.

American magazine Eye published the lyrics to three Pete Townshend songs: “Party Piece from Rael”, a song from the unfinished rock opera that led to “Rael” from The Who Sell Out; “Joker James”, later recorded for the Quadrophenia soundtrack; and “Join My Gang”.

King Crimson performed at the Victoria Ballroom in Chesterfield, England.

The half-hour Saturday morning animated series “The Beatles” aired its final episode. The series premiered on September 25, 1965.

Elvis Presley performed at the International Hotel in Las Vegas at 8:15 p.m. and again at midnight; approximately 2,200 people attended the two shows.

The International Hotel presented Elvis Presley with a wide gold belt inscribed “World’s Championship / Attendance Record / Las Vegas Nevada / International Hotel”, reportedly worth around $10,000.

Chad Sexton, drummer and percussionist with 311, was born in Lexington, Kentucky.

Simon & Garfunkel released the song “El Condor Pasa” from the album Bridge Over Troubled Water.

David Bowie began recording material at London's Trident Studios that would later become the concept album The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders From Mars. The character of Ziggy was initially inspired by British rock'n'roll singer Vince Taylor.

Iggy Pop first met David Bowie at Max's Kansas City, a club and restaurant in New York City. They quickly became friends, and the following day Pop signed a recording contract with manager Tony DeFries's MainMan company on Bowie's recommendation.

Led Zeppelin performed at Boston Garden in Boston, Massachusetts. Their setlist included “Immigrant Song”, “Heartbreaker”, “Since I’ve Been Loving You”, “Black Dog”, “Dazed and Confused”, “Stairway to Heaven”, “Celebration Day”, “That’s the Way”, “Going To California”, “What Is and What Should Never Be”, “Moby Dick”, “Whole Lotta Love” (medley), “Communication Breakdown”, “Organ solo / Thank You” and “Rock and Roll”.

David Bowie performed at the Top Rank in Hanley, Stoke-on-Trent, England, during his 1972 Ziggy Stardust tour.

Curtis Mayfield's album Super Fly received a gold RIAA certification after reaching the top of the Billboard album chart. It was driven by two million-selling hits, “Freddie's Dead”, which reached No. 4, and the title track “Super Fly”, which reached No. 8. The album is one of the few soundtracks to earn more money than the film for which it was made.

Slade interrupted their current US tour due to a contractual obligation and flew from San Francisco back to London to headline at the newly opened Sundown Theatre on Mile End Road in East London. Their current hit “Mama Weer All Crazee Now” reached No. 1 on the UK chart two days later.

Elton John performed at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles; actress Linda Lovelace introduced him.

The Grateful Dead performed at Nassau Coliseum in Uniondale, New York.

The Rolling Stones began their nine-date UK tour at Empire Pool in London. Tickets cost £2.20.

Aerosmith performed at the Wollman Skating Rink Theater in New York City.

Barry White reached No. 1 on the Billboard R&B chart with “Can’t Get Enough of Your Love, Babe.”

Elton John reached No. 1 on the US chart with “Bennie and the Jets”.

Elton John received a gold record for the single “Don’t Let The Sun Go Down On Me”, which spent four weeks at No. 2 on the Hot 100.

Paul Anka spent his third week at No. 1 on the US singles chart with “(You're) Having My Baby”, before Eric Clapton was expected to replace him with “I Shot The Sheriff”.

Rufus scored their biggest career hit with “Tell Me Something Good”, which reached No. 3.

The 101ers made their first public appearance at the Telegraph pub in Brixton. The pub rock group featured singer and guitarist Joe Strummer, who later became a member of The Clash.

Steve Anderson set a record for guitar playing. At the age of 22, he played for 114 hours and 7 minutes, beating the previous record by more than four hours.

The Eagles released the single “Lyin’ Eyes”.

The Guess Who played their final concert at the Montreal Forum. In 1987, they temporarily reunited for The Guess Who Juno Special. Later, a dispute arose among the original members because Jim Kale and Garry Peterson continued using the band's name with new musicians. In 2023, Burton Cummings and Randy Bachman regained the right to use the name The Guess Who, and in 2026 they began touring again.

ABBA reached No. 1 on the UK singles chart with “Dancing Queen”, their fourth UK No. 1 and their only US single to reach the top. The song reached No. 1 in more than a dozen countries and remained at the top of the Swedish chart for 14 weeks.

The first Buddy Holly Week was held in the UK, organized by his fans in London. Holly had visited the UK only once, during a tour in March 1958.

The Memphis Press Scimitar published an article headlined “Fat and Forty” about Elvis Presley, which enraged him.

Elvis Presley performed at the Convention Center in Pine Bluff, Arkansas, before approximately 7,500 people. The concert began at 8:30 p.m., and Elvis wore the blue Bicentennial suit.

Paul McCartney launched “Buddy Holly Week” in the UK to mark the 40th anniversary of Buddy Holly's birth.

Dutch house DJ and producer Fedde Le Grand was born. In 2006, his single “Put Your Hands Up For Detroit” reached No. 1 in the UK.

Rush performed at Winnipeg Arena in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada.

The Who drummer Keith Moon died in London on September 7, 1978, at the age of 32. He was born on August 23, 1946, at Central Middlesex Hospital in London. He died after overdosing on Heminevrin, a sedative prescribed to treat alcohol-related problems. Moon died in apartment No. 12 at 9 Curzon Place in London's Mayfair, which belonged to singer Harry Nilsson. Exactly four years earlier, Cass Elliot of The Mamas & The Papas had died in the same bedroom. The post-mortem found 32 tablets in his body, 26 of which remained undissolved. The previous evening, Moon had attended a party hosted by Paul McCartney to mark the release of The Buddy Holly Story. Moon played on all of The Who's albums from their 1965 debut My Generation through Who Are You in 1978, which was released two weeks before his death. After his death, he was replaced in The Who by Kenney Jones of Faces.

Yes performed at Madison Square Garden in New York City.

Blue Oyster Cult performed at the Omni Coliseum in Atlanta, Georgia.

Cliff Richard released his 22nd studio album “Rock 'n' Roll Juvenile”, which included the internationally successful hit “We Don't Talk Anymore” (No. 7 in the US, No. 1 in the UK), as well as “Hot Shot” (No. 46 in the UK) and “Carrie” (No. 4 in the UK).

Gary Numan released the album “The Pleasure Principle” in the UK.

The Bee Gees performed the first of three nights at Madison Square Garden in New York.

Black Sabbath performed at Jai Alai Fronton Hall in Miami, Florida.

Van Halen performed at Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Phoenix, Arizona.

Madonna released her first single, “Holiday”.

INXS played the first of two concerts in Guam after a three-month tour of the United States. After the Guam shows, they continued to Japan.

Eighteen-year-old Janet Jackson secretly married 21-year-old James DeBarge of the group DeBarge. Most of her family, including her parents, were on the Victory tour with The Jacksons at the time. The marriage ended eight months later. Janet Jackson subsequently enjoyed a highly successful career, placing 39 songs on the Billboard Hot 100 between 1986 and 2008.