On This Day In Music History August 13

Here are the key events in music history for 13 August.

On This Day In Music History August 13

• 1952 – Blues singer Big Mama Thornton recorded the original version of “Hound Dog”, written just a day earlier by Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller. Her version would go on to dominate the R&B charts for seven weeks and sell nearly two million copies.
• 1965 – Jefferson Airplane gave their first public performance at The Matrix club in San Francisco.
• 1966 – The Beatles released their album Revolver, which began a seven-week run at No. 1 on the UK Albums Chart and spent three weeks at the top in the U.S.
• 1967 – Fleetwood Mac performed live for the first time at the National Jazz and Blues Festival in Windsor, sharing the stage with Cream, Small Faces, Pink Floyd, Donovan, and Jeff Beck.
• 1971 – Paul & Linda McCartney released the single “Back Seat of My Car.”
• 1977 – Randy Bachman left the band Bachman–Turner Overdrive, leading to the group’s disbandment.
• 1990 – Tragedy struck at a Brooklyn concert when lighting equipment collapsed on Curtis Mayfield, leaving him paralyzed from the neck down.
• 1994 – The second day of Woodstock ’94 kicked off, bringing together acts like Aerosmith, Metallica, Nine Inch Nails, The Cranberries, Joe Cocker, and Crosby, Stills & Nash — in addition to iconic original performers — and plenty of rain and mud.
• 2011 – The 25th-anniversary Farm Aid concert took place in Kansas City, featuring Willie Nelson, John Mellencamp, Neil Young, Dave Matthews, and more.
• 2013 – Luke Bryan released his successful album Crash My Party, later named Billboard Album of the Year in 2014.

Additional Milestones & Releases

• 1876 – The Ring Cycle by composer Richard Wagner premiered in its complete form at the Bayreuth Festspielhaus on August 13.
• 1924 – Vernon Dalhart recorded “The Prisoner’s Song,” which became the first country music record to sell one million copies — with estimates rising to as high as seven million.
• 1930s – Robert Johnson played at a roadhouse near Greenwood, Mississippi; some speculated he was poisoned shortly after (though his death occurred days later).
• 1966 – Lovin’ Spoonful’s “Summer in the City” hit No. 1 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart.
• 1969 – The Guess Who recorded “American Woman”, which would go on to top both Canadian and U.S. singles charts after its 1970 release.
• 1973 – Lynyrd Skynyrd released their debut album, “Pronounced ‘Lĕh-‘nérd ‘Skin-‘nérd”, which featured hits like “Free Bird” and “Simple Man.”
• 1977 – Yes topped the UK Albums chart with “Going for the One”, a gold-certified album and Top-10 U.S. hit.
• 1982 – Singer Joe Tex died, succumbing to a heart attack at age 49.
• 1983 – KC and the Sunshine Band hauled their first UK No. 1 with “Give It Up”, which also hit the Top 3 in several countries and No. 18 in the U.S.
• 1988 – Def Leppard’s album Hysteria returned to number one on the U.S. Billboard 200.
• 2009 – Legendary guitarist and inventor Les Paul passed away at age 94.
• 2014 – Canadian band Magic! hit No. 1 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 with their debut single “Rude.”

Notable Musician Birthdays (August 13)

• Dan Fogelberg (1951) – Singer-songwriter.
• Hughie Thomasson (1952) – Guitarist and member of Outlaws, later Lynyrd Skynyrd.
• Fergal Sharkey (1958) – Lead singer of The Undertones.
• James Morrison (1984) – English singer-songwriter famous for “Undiscovered.”

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Tagged as: 13 August, music history, this day in music