Events in 1966
- Comedian and satirist Lenny Bruce died at the age of 40 from a morphine overdose.
- The Rolling Stones began a nine-day recording session at RCA Studios in Hollywood for the album “Between the Buttons.” The session continued through August 11.
- Andy Henderson, drummer with Echobelly, was born.
- The controversy over John Lennon’s remark that The Beatles were “more popular than Jesus Christ” spread throughout the United States. Several radio stations began boycotting the group’s music, followed by protests and record burnings.
- The Troggs reached No. 1 on the UK singles chart with “With a Girl Like You.” It was their only UK No. 1 hit.
- The Temptations released the Gordy single “Beauty Is Only Skin Deep.” The song later reached No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100, No. 1 on the R&B chart, and No. 18 in the UK.
- Jennifer Finch, an American musician and photographer best known as the bassist of the punk rock band L7, was born in Los Angeles, California.
- The Beatles released their seventh studio album, “Revolver,” in the UK on Parlophone. The album reached No. 1 on the UK Record Retailer chart and later topped the U.S. Billboard Top LPs, where it spent six weeks at No. 1. It topped the UK chart for seven weeks. The U.S. release followed three days later.
- Paul Revere & the Raiders performed at Sports Arena in Toledo, Ohio.
- Sam The Sham and the Pharaohs reached No. 1 on the Cashbox Best Sellers chart with “Lil’ Red Riding Hood.” The song reached No. 2 on Billboard and the following week received an RIAA Gold Record for sales exceeding one million copies.
- The Beatles' manager Brian Epstein interrupted his vacation and flew to New York for a television press conference defending John Lennon over his remark that The Beatles were “bigger than Jesus.” He said Lennon's comment had been taken out of context and that Lennon had not intended to boast about the band's fame.
- The Troggs achieved the unusual feat of having simultaneous Top 10 hits in the UK and U.S. with two different songs. “With a Girl Like You” topped the main UK charts, while “Wild Thing” reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the U.S. Both songs were recorded in just two takes each because of limited studio time.
- Americká zpěvačka, skladatelka a kytaristka Kristin Hersh ze skupin Throwing Muses a 50FootWave se narodila v Atlantě ve státě Georgia.
- The Beatles released the album “Revolver”, which marked a major development in their studio work. The album reached No. 1 on the Billboard 200 and spent a total of 77 weeks on the chart. It included, among others, the psychedelic track “Tomorrow Never Knows” and the song “Taxman”.
- The Beatles released the double A-side “Eleanor Rigby” / “Yellow Submarine”.
- In response to John Lennon's remark that The Beatles were bigger than Jesus Christ, the South African Broadcasting Corporation banned all Beatles recordings from radio broadcasts. Sales of their records in stores remained permitted, and the ban lasted nearly five years.
- The South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) banned the broadcasting of The Beatles' recordings on August 8, 1966, in response to John Lennon's statement that the group was “more popular than Jesus.” His words sparked widespread controversy, and SABC subsequently banned the broadcasting of The Beatles' music. The ban was lifted on March 3, 1971.
- Elvis Presley reached No. 6 on the UK singles chart with “Love Letters.”
- John Lennon apologized at a press conference at the Astor Towers Hotel in Chicago for his remark that The Beatles were “more popular than Jesus.” The remark was originally published by the London Evening Standard. Lennon explained that he was talking about the intense obsession of fans with the group and that he could have mentioned television, cinema or automobiles instead—anything popular. His remark sparked protests, bans and Beatles record burnings in the US, especially among some Christian communities.
- The Beatles arrived at O'Hare Airport in Chicago to begin their final tour of the United States.
- At a press conference in Chicago, John Lennon explained his controversial remark that The Beatles were “more popular than Jesus” and clarified that he had intended to describe the group’s influence on young people in England at the time.
- The Beatles began the American leg of their final concert tour with a performance at the International Amphitheatre in Chicago.
- “They're Coming To Take Me Away, Ha-haaa” reached No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100. It then quickly fell to the bottom of the Top 40 after several radio stations banned the song out of concern that its lyrics could be perceived as insensitive toward people with mental illness.
- KLUE-AM radio station in Longview, Texas, held a “Beatles Bonfire” event at which Beatles records and other items were destroyed in response to John Lennon's controversial statement that The Beatles were “more popular than Jesus Christ”. The following morning, lightning struck the station's transmission tower, interrupting the broadcast and knocking the news director unconscious.
- “Summer In The City” reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and Cashbox Best Sellers List, beginning a three-week run at the top of the US chart. The song features car horns and jackhammer sounds that create the atmosphere of a summer city.
- Little Anthony & The Imperials, The Shadows and The Castiles, with Bruce Springsteen on vocals, performed at the Surf ’n’ See Club in Seabright, New Jersey.
- The London Catholic newspaper The Catholic Herald published an editorial calling John Lennon's recent statement that the group was “bigger than Jesus” generally accurate but “arrogant”. Meanwhile, the Vatican newspaper L’Osservatore Romano accepted Lennon's public apology.
- They performed at Cleveland Stadium in Cleveland, Ohio. It was the first concert held at the stadium. The Rolling Stones, The Beach Boys, Pink Floyd and Aerosmith also performed there later.
- During their US tour, they performed at D.C. Stadium in Washington before more than 32,000 fans. Five members of the Ku Klux Klan, led by the Imperial Wizard of Maryland, protested against the concert.
- Jack Bruce, Ginger Baker and Eric Clapton formed the band Cream. Although the group existed for only two years, it made a significant mark on music history.
- During their US tour, The Beatles performed at John F. Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, playing their set during a severe electrical storm.
- The Byrds played the first of two concerts at the Fillmore Auditorium in San Francisco.
- Colgems Records released The Monkees' debut single "Last Train to Clarksville", almost a month before the premiere of the band's television series. Micky Dolenz sang the lead vocal, while studio musicians including guitarist Louie Shelton provided the instrumental backing. The lyrics tell the story of a man called to fight in the Vietnam War who wonders whether he will ever return home.
- Singer and bassist Jill Cunniff, a member of the alternative group Luscious Jackson, was born in New York.
- American DJ, radio host and music producer Calvin LeBrun, known as Mister Cee, was born. He worked as an associate and executive producer on The Notorious B.I.G.'s debut album Ready to Die.
- The Beatles played two concerts at Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto during their final concert tour. The afternoon performance was attended by 15,000 people and the evening performance by 17,000. The opening acts were The McCoys, Bobby Hebb, The Cyrkle and The Ronettes.
- At a press conference in Toronto, The Beatles supported Americans refusing military service who were moving to Canada and expressed their opposition to war and killing for any reason.
- The Monkees released their debut single “Last Train to Clarksville”, which soon became a major summer hit.
- Paul Jones left Manfred Mann just as the song “Pretty Flamingo” was climbing the US chart. He was replaced by singer Mike d'Abo, who took the lead vocal on the group's next hit, “The Mighty Quinn,” written by Bob Dylan.
- The Beatles began a four-week reign at No. 1 on the UK singles chart with the single “Yellow Submarine” / “Eleanor Rigby.”
- The Doors officially signed a seven-album contract with Elektra Records. The band also reluctantly agreed to release “Break On Through” as their first single. The lyric “She gets high” was changed to “She gets” for radio airplay.
- Country singer and songwriter Lee Ann Womack was born in Jacksonville, Texas.
- As a follow-up to her previous hit “Born A Woman”, Sandy Posey recorded “Single Girl” for MGM Records at Fred Foster Sound Studio in Nashville, Tennessee. Like “Born A Woman”, the song reached No. 12 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and No. 15 on the UK singles chart.
- During their US tour, The Beatles performed at Sam Houston Coliseum in Memphis, Tennessee, where they played two concerts for more than 25,000 fans. Tickets cost $5. Because of opposition to John Lennon’s remark that The Beatles were “more popular than Jesus”, local members of the Ku Klux Klan protested against the group, and the group faced an assassination threat. Shortly before the first performance, they received an anonymous phone call warning that one or all of the group’s members would be shot on stage that evening. Tension peaked during the second, evening concert, when a loud firecracker landed on stage during “If I Needed Someone”. Despite the interruption, the group finished the song, reportedly at a much faster tempo, and then performed the entire concert set. The evening passed without further incidents.
- Darrell Abbott, known as Dimebag Darrell, co-founder and guitarist of the heavy metal band Pantera, was born in Ennis, Texas. Pantera had the No. 19 UK hit “I'm Broken” in 1994. Dimebag Darrell was shot dead on December 8, 2004, during a performance by Damageplan at the Alrosa Villa club in Columbus, Ohio.
- 14,000 fans filled the Forest Hills Music Festival in Queens, New York, where The Supremes, Stevie Wonder and The Temptations performed. It was a major showcase of Detroit soul at a venue best known for tennis championships and major folk and rock events.
- During their final U.S. tour, The Beatles had to cancel and postpone their appearance at the open-air Crosley Field stadium in Cincinnati. Heavy rain and the lack of a roof meant that performing would have posed an almost certain risk of electric shock.
- Cleveland group The Outsiders returned to the Billboard Top 40 following the success of their million-selling hit “Time Won't Let Me” with a cover of “Respectable” by The Isley Brothers. The song climbed to No. 15. The band had a total of four songs on the main Billboard chart and another four in the Bubbling Under category, but none of their recordings made a significant impact in Britain.
- “You Can't Hurry Love” by The Supremes climbed from No. 66 to No. 28 on the chart.
- During their final US tour, The Beatles performed in two cities after a concert the previous day had been cancelled because of rain. They first performed at Crosley Field in Cincinnati, Ohio. They then flew to St. Louis, Missouri, where they played at Busch Stadium under a tarpaulin because of heavy rain. The conditions were extremely unpleasant, and this concert convinced Paul McCartney that The Beatles should stop touring and concentrate on studio work.
- Jim Morrison failed to appear for The Doors' performance at the Whisky a Go Go club in Los Angeles. The band played the first set without him and then picked him up from his apartment, where he was under the influence of LSD. After returning to the club, The Doors played “The End” and Morrison improvised Oedipal verses. This led to them being fired from the club, but it also produced the final lyrics that later appeared in the recording of the song on their debut album.
- Two New York teenagers, Carol Hopkins and Susan Richmond, climbed onto a second-floor hotel ledge and threatened to jump unless they were allowed to meet The Beatles. Police eventually persuaded them to climb down.
- Founding member of the hip-hop group Wu-Tang Clan, Gary Earl Grice, professionally known as GZA and also as The Genius, was born in New York.
- Jerry Lee Lewis was cast as Iago in the film “Catch My Soul”, a rock version of Shakespeare's “Othello”.
- The Beatles' album “Revolver” received gold certification.
- The Beatles played a concert at Shea Stadium in New York, which became their final performance as part of their American concert tour.
- The Beatles performed for the second time at Shea Stadium in New York during their final US tour. Unlike the previous year, the concert was not sold out, with 11,000 tickets remaining unsold out of the total capacity of 55,600. The opening acts were The Remains, Bobby Hebb, The Cyrkle and The Ronettes. The Beatles performed eleven songs and received $189,000 for the appearance, more than for their previous performance at the stadium. The concert also marked the end of their live performing career in the US.
- The Beatles were at number one on the UK singles chart with the double A-side “Yellow Submarine – Eleanor Rigby”, their eleventh number-one single. Paul McCartney said that he took the name Eleanor from actress Eleanor Bron, who appeared with The Beatles in the film “Help!”, while Rigby came from the name of a shop in Bristol, Rigby & Evens Ltd, Wine & Spirit Shippers.
- The Doors began recording their self-titled debut album at Sunset Sound Recording Studios on West Sunset Boulevard in Los Angeles. They had already been developing the material through live performances, particularly at the Whisky a Go Go. The album was released in January 1967, contained the full version of their breakthrough single „Light My Fire“ and reached No. 2 on the Billboard Top LPs chart.
- The Youngbloods recorded „Get Together“ at RCA Studios in New York. The single originally stalled at No. 62, but its 1969 reissue reached No. 5; The Dave Clark Five later took their cover version into the U.K. Top 10.
- American DJ Norman Lee Rogers, known by his stage name Terminator X, was born in New York City. He became known as a member of hip-hop group Public Enemy, which was formed in Roosevelt, New York, in 1985. In the late 1990s he joined the family business and began raising African black ostriches on a farm in North Carolina.
- During their final US tour, The Beatles played two concerts at the Coliseum in Seattle, Washington. The 3:00 p.m. afternoon concert attracted only 8,000 fans in the 15,000-capacity arena, while the evening concert was sold out.
- American musician Daniel “Dan” Vickrey was born in Walnut Creek, California. He became known as the lead guitarist of the alternative rock band Counting Crows. The group had the UK hit “Mr Jones” in 1994 and the US No. 1 album “Recovering The Satellites” in 1996. In 2004, they received an Academy Award nomination for the song “Accidentally in Love” from the film “Shrek 2”.
- Scottish singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Shirley Manson was born in Edinburgh. She later founded the group Angelfish, whose video for “Suffocate Me” attracted the attention of Butch Vig, Duke Erikson and Steve Marker, who persuaded her to join their new group Garbage. Garbage's 1995 debut album sold more than four million copies.
- The song “Sunny”, written by Bobby Hebb, reached No. 1 on the Cash Box chart and No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 and became the best-selling single in the USA. Its success led Hebb to tour the United States and Canada with The Beatles.
- “Summer In The City” by Lovin' Spoonful remained at No. 1 on the US chart for a third week. Bobby Hebb was at No. 2 with “Sunny” and “See You In September” by The Happenings was at No. 3.
- Petula Clark reached No. 1 on the US Easy Listening chart with “I Couldn't Live Without Your Love”.
- Stevie Wonder's version of “Blowin' In The Wind” reached No. 1 on the US R&B chart.
- “Cherish” by The Association entered the Billboard Hot 100 and reached No. 1 a month later. Although the song was actually longer, the record label listed its length as three minutes so that radio programmers would not reject it as too long. The recording later received a gold record for sales of more than one million copies and, according to BMI, was the 22nd most-played song of the 20th century.
- “God Only Knows” by The Beach Boys reached No. 2 on the UK singles chart. The song was among the first commercial recordings to feature the word “God” in the title and was groundbreaking in many ways. Capitol Records feared a reaction from US radio programmers, so in the USA it placed the song on the B-side of the single “Wouldn't It Be Nice”, while in the UK it was accepted as the A-side. Brian Wilson used a range of unusual instruments during the recording, including French horns.
- The Beatles performed a concert at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles on August 28, 1966, before 45,000 spectators, as part of their final US tour. After the concert, they attempted to leave the stadium in an armored vehicle, but the main gate was locked, forcing them to wait inside the vehicle for two hours before they could leave. On the same day, they performed their final official live concert at Candlestick Park in San Francisco.
- The television variety show "Hullabaloo" aired its final episode on NBC. The program was hosted by Paul Anka, with Peter & Gordon, Lesley Gore, and The Cyrkle among the guests.
- The Beatles played their final paid public concert in front of 25,000 fans at Candlestick Park in San Francisco. They performed 11 songs in just over half an hour, opening with "Rock & Roll Music" and closing with "Long Tall Sally". John Lennon and Paul McCartney, who knew it would be their final concert, took photographs during the performance. Although the album "Revolver" had been released only a few weeks earlier, not a single song from it was performed.
- The Beatles released the single "Day Tripper" / "We Can Work It Out", which was among the songs commemorated as part of the musical anniversaries for August 29.
- Peter Cunnah of the Northern Irish pop and dance group D:Ream was born in Derry, Northern Ireland. In 1994, the group had the UK No. 1 single “Things Can Only Get Better”.
- The Mamas and the Papas’ second album was their self-titled album, released by Dunhill Records. It contained the singles “I Saw Her Again”, which reached No. 5 in the US and No. 11 in the UK, and “Words of Love”, which reached No. 5 in the US and No. 47 in the UK. The album reached No. 4 in the US and No. 24 in the UK.
- The Who began two days of recording at IBC Studios and Pye No. 2 Studio in London. During these sessions, the group recorded “Barbara Ann” by The Regents, “Man with Money” by The Everly Brothers, “Heatwave” by Martha and the Vandellas and the theme tune from the then-popular television series Batman. The recordings were intended for a new album with the working title “Jigsaw Puzzle”. The producer was Kit Lambert and the sound engineer was Paul Clay.
- The Byrds played the first of eleven consecutive concerts at the Whisky-a-Go-Go in Hollywood, California.
- Elvis Presley completed his work on the soundtrack for Double Trouble.
- Actress Salma Hayek was born. She also worked in musical theatre.
- The Who performed at the Locarno Ballroom in Basildon, Essex, England.
- Donovan reached No. 1 on the US singles chart with “Sunshine Superman”, his only US single to top the Billboard Hot 100. John Paul Jones played bass and Jimmy Page played lead guitar on the recording; in the United Kingdom, the song later reached No. 3.
- Elvis Presley’s album Paradise Hawaiian Style reached No. 7 in the United Kingdom.
- The album What Now My Love became the third album by Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass to reach No. 1, out of a total of six albums released by the group.
- Michigan garage-rock group Question Mark And The Mysterians made their national chart debut when “96 Tears” entered the Billboard Hot 100 at No. 75. The song’s raw Vox organ sound helped it climb to No. 1 on October 29.
- ABC broadcast the final episode of The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet in prime time, ending its historic fourteen-year run. The series helped make teenage Rick Nelson famous and became the first live-action series on American network prime-time television to run for more than ten years.
- New Jersey vocal group The Happenings first reached the Billboard chart with “See You in September”, which peaked at No. 3. The group later had four more Top 40 hits, including “I Got Rhythm”, which also reached No. 3 in 1967.
- The Supremes were at No. 1 on the R&B chart with “You Can’t Hurry Love”.
- John Lennon flew from London to Hanover, Germany, to begin work on his role as Private Gripweed in Richard Lester's film How I Won the War, which was filmed in Spain. The glasses worn by his character later became a defining part of Lennon's look.
- Singer and founding member of the vocal group En Vogue, Terry Ellis was born in Houston. She later became a member of En Vogue.
- The Monkees released the single “Last Train to Clarksville,” which later reached number one in the US.
- The Who began a week-long engagement at The Palais in Ilford, Essex, England. Later that day, they recorded performances of "I'm A Boy" and "Heatwave" for the British television program "Ready, Steady, GO!"
- English drummer and songwriter Christopher “Chris” Acland was born in Lancaster. He became known as a member of the British alternative rock band Lush, who had the UK hit “Single Girl” at No. 21 in 1996. Acland died by suicide by hanging on September 7, 1996.
- Filming began on The Fastest Guitar Alive, a comedy set during the American Civil War featuring Roy Orbison and Sam the Sham.
- WGN-TV in Chicago broadcast the half-hour special “An Evening with Gary Lewis and the Playboys”. The group performed its most successful songs, including material from seven consecutive Top 10 hits, as well as a cover of The Beatles’ “Run for Your Life”. During “Time Stands Still”, Gary Lewis imitated his father, comedian Jerry Lewis.
- Jimi Hendrix performed live in the United Kingdom for the first time when he joined Cream during their concert at London Polytechnic. His official UK debut with The Jimi Hendrix Experience followed a month later.
- The soundtrack album “The Sound of Music” began an extraordinary eighteen-week run at No. 1 in the United Kingdom.
- The Who performed at the Imperial Ballroom in Nelson, Lancashire, England.
- The Zombies released the song "She's Not There" in the USA.
- Bobby Hebb received a gold record for the song “Sunny,” which reached number 2 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and number 12 in the UK.
- The Byrds played the first of a series of thirteen concerts at The Village Gate club in New York City.
- The Vince Guaraldi Trio recorded music at Desilu's Gower Street Studio in Hollywood for the Halloween television special It's The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown. The session included a new arrangement of “Linus and Lucy” featuring prominent flute parts by Ronald Lang.
- Jimi Hendrix, Mitch Mitchell and Noel Redding played together for the first time, forming The Jimi Hendrix Experience. All three were living in London at the time. Their first joint performance took place just over a week later, on October 13, in Évreux, France.
- British rocker Johnny Kidd was killed in a car accident in Manchester at the age of 26. He had several UK hits and was also known as the writer of “Shakin' All Over,” which was recorded by The Guess Who in 1965.
- The Jimi Hendrix Experience made their first official appearance. Jimi Hendrix was introduced on stage with bassist Noel Redding and drummer Mitch Mitchell. The band was introduced by former Animals bassist Chas Chandler, who discovered Hendrix in New York and persuaded him to try his luck in the UK.
- Tommy Stinson, American bassist, guitarist, singer and songwriter, was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota. He became known for his work with The Replacements, Guns N' Roses, Bash & Pop and Perfect.
- New Orleans R&B singer and guitarist Smiley Lewis, born Overton Amos Lemons, died at the age of 53 from stomach cancer. He recorded and wrote the song “One Night,” later made famous by Elvis Presley, and also wrote “I Hear You Knocking.”
- The Rolling Stones made their final appearance on the British television program Ready Steady Go!
- Cream drummer Ginger Baker collapsed during a concert at Sussex University in England after an approximately 20-minute drum solo in “Toad.” He was taken to a local hospital, where he recovered, and then continued touring with the band.
- British rock singer Johnny Kidd died at the age of 30 in a car accident in Lancashire, England. Although he never broke through on the U.S. charts, he had several hits in the UK, and his song “Shakin' All Over” became The Guess Who's first major hit in 1965.
- “The Association's “Cherish” remained at No. 1 on the US singles chart for a third week.
- The Beatles' album Revolver spent its fifth consecutive week at No. 1 on the album chart.
- “The Temptations' “Beauty Is Only Skin Deep” spent its third week at No. 1 on the R&B chart.
- Roger Williams remained at No. 1 on the Easy Listening chart with "Born Free."
- Simon and Garfunkel released the classic album Parsley, Sage, Rosemary & Thyme.
- The Beach Boys released "Good Vibrations," described by the source as the most expensive 45 ever produced.
- The Seekers released the song "Georgy Girl."
- Elvis Presley filmed exterior scenes at the Long Beach Naval Station.
- The duo Simon & Garfunkel released the album Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme.
- The Monkees' debut album, titled The Monkees, was released.
- The Who performed at Bath Pavilion in Bath, Somerset, England.
- The Four Tops' song "Reach Out I'll Be There" reached No. 1 on the US Billboard pop chart.
- Singer and songwriter Todd Snider was born in Portland, Oregon. He became known for humorous, story-driven songs such as "Talkin' Seattle Grunge Rock Blues" and "Beer Run." He built a loyal fan base while avoiding the mainstream.
- Irish singer-songwriter Brian Kennedy is born. He has worked with Van Morrison’s band and also performed as a solo artist. In 2006, he represents Ireland at the Eurovision Song Contest.
- The Jimi Hendrix Experience perform at the Olympia Theatre in Paris before an audience of 14,500. The British press describes Hendrix as the “wild man of pop.”
- The Moody Blues break up, and Denny Laine signs a solo deal with Deram Records. A month later, the group reforms with new members Justin Hayward and John Lodge.
- The Jimi Hendrix Experience played their first live show in France. The concert took place during the band’s first few days of existence, less than a week before their UK debut.