On this day in 1971, John Lennon and Yoko Ono released “Happy Xmas (War Is Over)”

After two years of peace activism, the couples efforts culminated in a new single.  Recognising that Imagine had been so successful due to putting the “political message across with a little honey” and Happy Xmas (War Is Over) aimed to continue this idea. 

Several demos for the song were produced in late October and it was quickly decided to bring in Phil Spector to produce and sessions were arranged, beginning on the 28th of October. Several of the session musicians hired to work on the song had performed as members of the Plastic Ono Band at some stage or another and were clearly used to working with the pair. Because of thistle recording was handled fairly quickly with the majority being done in one session and the B-side the following day. 

By the 31st the song was complete and ready for it’s launch in December to coincide with the Christmas period and the anniversary of the original War Is Over! poster campaign. However, the release was deemed late and as such the song received little promotion or airplay in the US, affecting its initial performance. The same could not be said of the UK as the song immediately  peaked at number 4 on the UK Singles Chart. Since then, Happy Xmas (War Is Over!) has become a Christmas classic and reentered the charts several times, all while demonstrating the power of music as an instrument to bring about social change. 

On this day in 1974, John Lennon and Elton John rehearse together

 Lennon had begun his so-called “Lost Weekend” that lasted from late 1973 through to early 1975. The period was defined by his temporary separation from Yoko Ono and frequent nightclub appearances. His partying and  drinking had reached new levels, but he also released three acclaimed albums during this time, showing his musical ability had certainly not been affected. 

Earlier in the summer, Elton John had bet Lennon that the song “Whatever Gets You Through The Night”, on which he had supplied piano and harmony vocals, would reach number one in the US. Lennon found this hard to believe as he had yet to have a solo US number one and it was agreed that if it did he would join John on stage to perform the song.

Lennon reportedly almost backed out of the agreement but ultimately came to New York and began rehearsing with John on the 24th of November. The sessions were ultimately successful and Lennon appeared at John’s 28th November Thanksgiving show, held at Madison Square Gardens. What no-one could foresee was that this would be Lennon’s last public performance as he focused on family life before his eventual murder in 1980.

On this day in 1980, John Lennon and Yoko Ono released Double Fantasy

After a five year hiatus from music to focus on family, Lennon decided it was time to return to the spotlight. Sessions were booked and took place at the Hit Factory in New York between August and October of 1980. Jack Douglas, who the pair had worked with previously, handled the production.

The album was planned to have a focus on marriage and the dialogue between husband and wife. The track listing alternated between performances from Lennon and Yoko Ono rather than collaborating on tracks and helping to reinforce their dialogue concept. The pair ended up recording enough songs to complete Double Fantasy as well as most of a follow-up that would become 1984’s Milk and Honey.

Upon release, Double Fantasy received mostly negative reviews from critics and a sluggish start to sales numbers, though singles from the album still had no trouble reaching the top ten. However, when news of Lennon’s tragic murder just a few weeks later, sales surged with singles reaching the top spot on various charts. Critics also began changing their minds and returned with praise for what would be the final album Lennon himself would work on. Double Fantasy would go on to win the 1981 Grammy Award for Album of the Year.

On this day in 1986, Gordon Lightfoot is inducted into the Canadian Hall of Fame

Lightfoot, a Canadian native, is credited with helping to define the folk-pop sound of the 1960s and 70s.  Some refer to him as Canada’s greatest songwriter, with a number of timeless songs. He has been covered countless times by artists such as Elvis Presley, Bob Dylan, Johnny Cash, Neil Young and Eric Clapton.

Bob Dylan called Lightfoot one of his favourite songwriters, continuing on to say that he couldn’t think of a Gordon Lightfoot song he didn’t like and that he considered him a mentor. He also said  that “every time I hear a song of his, it’s like I wish it would last forever”. Dylan would appear at the Hall of Fame ceremony in Ontario, personally giving Lightfoot his award.

The Hall of Fame award would not be the only honour coming for Lightfoot, as he was also inducted to the Canadian Country Music Hall of Fame and Canada’s Walk of Fame. In 2003 he was made a Companion of the Order of Canada, the highest civilian honour in the country. He has also been honoured outside of Canada, being inducted into the Songwriter’s Hall of Fame and just last year received the Golden Plate Award at the American Academy of Achievement. 

On this day in 1956, Elvis becomes the first artist to knock himself out of the number one spot

As  Elvis enjoyed his commercial breakout in 1956, he released a number of songs to solidify his position as the most popular male artist at the time. Hound Dog, backed with Don’t Be Cruel was released in July and enjoyed a 14 week run at the top spot on the Billboard chart. 

The next big hit would come when songwriter Ken Darby prepared lyrics for an adaptation of a classic Civil War song, Aura Lee. Soon after an agreement was struck to have Presley perform the song in exchange for half of the songwriting credit. Darby joined Elvis in the studio where he claimed Presley’s ear for production and arrangement was remarkably strong and that he really took control in the studio, despite not being credited as a producer.

The song was released on the 28th of September and debuted at the number two on the Best Sellers in Stores pop singles chart. It quickly rose through the Billboard charts to eventually knock Hound Dog from number one, making Presley the first artist to replace himself at the top. Presley’s talent and likelihood of being one of the top male artists for the 1950’s was becoming increasingly clear.

On this day in 1962, The Rolling Stones entered the studio to record their first demos

After some early gigs and a short tour, the band decided it was time to record some songs. They rented Sound Studio in Highbury, North London, paying for one hour. The studio’s owner, jazz guitarist Curly Clayton handled the production for the group.

This early session saw the recording of three songs, all of them covers of some of their favourite artists that they had been performing at shows. First  was  Muddy Waters’ Soon Forgotten, then Jimmy Reed’s Close  Together and finally You Can’t Judge A Book (By Looking At The Cover), a Willie Dixon song made famous by Bo Diddley.  The recordings featured no bass as Dick Taylor had just quit the band and a replacement was still to be found.

These early recordings found little success amongst the labels it was sent to. They were rejected, most without comment. A spokesperson for Decca Records informed them that “It’s a great band, but you’ll never get anywhere with that singer.” However, after seeing the band in early 1963, Decca Records were swayed into signing the band after a recommendation by The Beatles’ George Harrison.

On this day in 1976, Led Zeppelin release their documentary film, The Song Remains the Same

The film, primarily a concert movie, was filmed over three nights in the summer of 1973, all at Madison Square Garden in New York. Some additional footage was added that had been shot at Shepperton Studios and a soundtrack album of the same name was also released.

Plans had been discussed to film a Led Zeppelin concert as early as 1969, with their manager Peter Grant set on film rather than television due to the subpar sound quality of the latter. An attempt was made in 1970 but the group was unsatisfied with the recording, stating it seemed dated.

The film also featured footage of Peter Grant being driven to a police station to answer questions about the infamous theft of the takings from the band’s safe deposit box at the Drake Hotel, giving fans a behind the scenes look at the notorious incident. 

The film’s release opened at Cinema I in New York before reaching Beverley Hills the next day and London two weeks later. Critics were divided on the release while fans were more receptive. The release has kept its popularity with fans and has had two subsequent DVD releases.

On this day in 1963, The Beatles made their first appearance on a major TV show

1963 saw the bands popularity increase massively with the release of “Please, Please Me” as a single and later an album, as well as completing three regional tours. It was decided that their next big appearance should reach the field of television.

The show they decided to appear on was Val Parnell’s Sunday Night at the London Palladium, a variety entertainment programme that regularly drew massive British audiences, often up to 15 million people. Competition to appear on the show was fierce and The Beatles rehearsed heavily for the performance, determined to make a good impression.

They were introduced at the beginning of the program and returned with their performance to close out the hour-long show. They played two songs, From Me To You, followed by I’ll Get You. Paul McCartney introduced the songs, with some jovial interruptions from Lennon.

On this day in 1969, a Beatles song by George Harrison was included as an A-side for the first time

After playing with the band for over 10 years, it had become widely considered that the star-songwriters of the group were Paul McCartney and John Lennon, with the pair writing and composing around 200 songs throughout their careers.  However, in reality all of the band members were accomplished  composers and writers, though Harrison and Starr’s contributions were often considered as afterthoughts, included only on B-sides and albums.

This perception of the band would change when Harrison’s song Something was chosen as one part of a “double A-side single”, backed with Come Together. Harrison’s song was initially considered to be a love song to his wife, Pattie Boyd, although Harrison has since offered other inspirations for the track, including the Hindu deity Krishna.

Harrison’s bandmates and producer George Martin gave great praise the song, with Lennon stating it was the best song on Abbey Road. Evidently many agreed as by the late 1970’s the Songhai been covered by over 150 artists, making it the second most covered Beatles composition after Yesterday. The song went on to rank at 110th on Rolling Stone’s 2021 list of “The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.”

On this day in 1963, the Rolling Stones began their first tour of the UK

After a busy year in which the band began performing seriously at pubs and clubs in and around London, it was decided that the band needed to venture further out.  In mid-July the band headed 250 miles north to perform in Middlesborough, their  first gig away from their established base. The success of this performance led the band to decide to embark on their first tour.

The tour was a “package tour” featuring headline performances from the Everly Brothers and Bo Diddley and compered by British comedian Bob Bain. Later in the tour, the Everly Brothers were replaced by Little Richard.  Other acts included Mickie Most,The Flintstones and Julie Grant. At  the time, the tour was seen as a big opportunity for the newcomers to perform with some bigger crowds.

The Stones set in the packed line-up lasted barely 10 minutes, fitting around 4 songs. They chose “Poison Ivy”, “Fortune Teller”, “Money” and “Come On”. Later in the tour the songs “Roll Over  Beethoven”, “Route 66” and “Memphis Tennessee” were substituted at some shows, while “Come On” was dropped as the band did not particularly like the song.

The tour continued into early November and was considered a success, drawing significant crowds to be introduced to the music of the Rolling Stones.