The Musical Advent Calendar

The holidays are upon us... and being the good little elves that we are, we’ve prepared a music advent calendar to put you in the spirit. Not 24 days of chocolate nor toys, but a daily dose of musical history surprise!

From all of us at Karaoke Version, may your holidays be filled with surprise and wonder, peace, and love and of course, music!

DECEMBER 1, 1968

Big Brother & The Holding Company play with Janis Joplin for the last time in San Francisco.

DECEMBER 2, 1966

Donovan's "Sunshine Superman" is finally released ... Put to the side for a year, the album’s release was postponed no less than five times due to contractual disputes between Donovan and his label Pye Records.

DECEMBER 3, 1971

During a show in Sacramento, while The Rolling Stones perform "The Last Time," guitarist Keith Richards is electrocuted when his guitar comes in contact with the microphone. He loses consciousness for a few moments before coming to.

DECEMBER 4, 1956

The most famous jam session in rock history, known as the Million Dollar Quartet, is held at the Sun Studios in Memphis. Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis, Johnny Cash and Carl Perkins play together for the first time in their careers.

Bonus: The Montreux Casino in Switzerland, catches fire during a Frank Zappa concert. The incident was immortalized by Deep Purple in their 1973 hit, Smoke On The Water."

DECEMBER 5, 1987

The Scottish alternative rock band, The Jesus and Mary Chain, are refused air-time on an American musical television show. As soon as their name appeared on the screen, the show's telephone rang off the hook with complaints of blasphemy.

DECEMBER 6, 1988

American singer and songwriter Roy Orbison, 52, known for his hits "Oh, Pretty Woman," "Only The Lonely" or "Crying," died of a heart attack.

DECEMBER 7, 1962

The Rolling Stones audition bassist Bill Wyman, hired in part for the beautiful instruments on which he played, including a lovely amp.

DECEMBER 8, 1980

John Lennon is shot five times by Mark Chapman, 25, in front of the Dakota Building in New York where he lived with Yoko Ono.

DECEMBER 9, 1988

According to a survey conducted in the United States, Neil Diamond's music is named the best background track on which to make love, Beethoven comes in second and Luther Vandross in third.

DECEMBER 10, 1973

The CBGB club opens in New York, quickly becoming the headquarters of many New York punk rockers and new bands such as Blondie, Television or The Ramones.

DECEMBER 11, 1973

Kiss' guitarist, Ace Frehley, avoids being electrocuted during a Florida concert when he touches a lamp and causes a short circuit. He is rushed off the stage but returns jsut ten minutes later to finish the show.

DECEMBER 12, 1987

English artist, George Michael takes the lead on the American singles charts with Faith, from the album of the same name.

DECEMBER 13, 1997

The Teletubbies, characters of the hit children’s British show of the same name, are No. 1 on the British charts with Teletubbies Say: "Eh-Oh." The single spent a total of 32 weeks on the charts.

DECEMBER 14, 1977

A New York cinema releases the disco-inspired, John-Travolta-dancing, Saturday Night Fever. Pop culture takes full responsibility for the disco movement and the timeless soundtrack of the Bee Gees.

DECEMBER 15, 1984

"Do They Know It's Christmas?" played by Band Aid, lands at the top of the English charts at first place where it stays for five years. It became the best-selling British single of all time at the time, with more than 3.5 million in sales.

DECEMBER 16, 1996

Max Cavalera leaves Sepultura after the group chooses not to renew the management contract of his wife Gloria. A departure also due to the loss of his son-in-law, Dana, who died from mysterious circumstances.

DECEMBER 17, 2005

U2 made the most lucrative tour of 2005, according to US Billboard's year-end hit parade. More than three million people attended the 90 sold-out dates of the $260M Vertigo Tour.

DECEMBER 18, 1975

The Faces split is officially announced at a press conference in London. Rod Stewart continued his solo career while Ronnie Wood is announced as the new member of The Rolling Stones.

DECEMBER 19, 1976

In an interview in the Daily Mail, the mother of Paul Cook, of the Sex Pistols, says he is no longer welcome at home and turns his room into a dining room.

DECEMBER 20, 2009

With the intention to stop the hegemony of reality TV artists popping up on the music charts, Rage Against The Machine snatches the title of top single during the Christmas season, away from an X Factor show participant after "Killing In The Name" sells more than 500,000 downloads.

DECEMBER 21, 1970

President Nixon meets Elvis Presley, who offers his help the Chief of State in the fight against drugs. The meeting is unveiled by the Washington Post on January 27, 1972. It was also revealed that the King was given a badge by the President of the Narcotics Brigade.

DECEMBER 22, 2002

Former Clash singer and guitarist Joe Strummer dies in his home in Somerset, victim of undiagnosed congenital heart disease. His untimely death at the age of 50 shocks a generation of fans for whom he was an iconic personality.

DECEMBER 23, 2005

Geezer Butler, the bassist of Black Sabbath, offers 5,000 pounds for any information that would lead to the safe return of the three-month-old penguin stolen a few days earlier in a zoo on the Isle of Wight.

DECEMBER 24, 1954

Johnny Ace accidentally ends his life with a gun to the head behind at the City Auditorium in Houston, Texas. The 50s singer was toying with a revolver during a break in the show when an onlooker warned him to pay attention. He then replied: "It's good it’s not loaded... see?"

Published on: November 30, 2019