Elvis Presley ended his first 12 months with RCA Records in 1956 after selling over 10 million records. Songs like "Heartbreak Hotel," "I Want You I Need You I Love You," "Hound Dog" and "Don't Be Cruel" led the way to the bank. RCA bought Elvis from Sun Records in 1955.

Bad Company had their only number 1 album in the U.S. when their debut LP hit the top for a week in 1974. The success came on the strength of songs like "Can't Get Enough," "Rock Steady," "Ready for Love" and the title track. Paul Rodgers and Simon Kirke had come out of Free, while Mick Ralphs had played guitar with Mott the Hoople and Boz Burrell was bass player for King Crimson before the group formed in 1973. They produced six albums together before disbanding in 1983. After reforming a few times over the years, and with various members, the original Bad Company briefly reunited in 1998 to record four new songs for their latest compilation, The Original Bad Co. Anthology, which also included some B-sides and outtakes.

Seven minutes and eleven seconds of "Hey Jude" were number 1 in 1968. The song about Julian Lennon was their biggest, staying at the top for eight weeks. "Hey Jude" was also the number 1 song of the 1960s. Initially, George Harrison wanted to mimic Paul McCartney's vocals at the beginning of the song, but Macca told him that less was more. And when the recording of the song started, Ringo was using the facilities, but made it back just in time to add his drums to the track.

It was announced in 1968 that Janis Joplin would be leaving Big Brother and The Holding Company at the end of the year. They had been together since 1965, and their last appearance together on December 7^th in Hawaii. Janis would soon be backed by the Kozmic Blues Band.

The Rolling Stones began their first U.K. tour in 1963. They played 32 dates, opening for acts like The Everly Brothers, Bo Diddley and Little Richard. “Poison Ivy,” a recent single and the follow-up to “Come On,” had just been cancelled.

Grand Funk’s, “We’re An American Band” made it to number 1, in 1973. They would repeat the success in 1974. Many long-time fans were sorry to hear the new commercial sound of the band. Grand Funk spent the next couple of years releasing top 10 singles. A live version of “We’re An American Band” can be found on 1997’s, Bosnia.

Jackie Wilson went into a coma in 1975. It was brought on by a stroke he suffered while on stage. Wilson clung to life in a hospital for another nine years before he died in 1984. Mr. Excitement, as he was known, was the ultimate stage performer from which many other artists learned their moves. He made Michael Jackson look like a statue.

The U.K.’s national radio network, BBC Radio One, began broadcasting in 1967. The first record they spun was The Move’s, “Flowers in the Rain.” The song would soon peak at number 2 in the U.K. and was from their debut album, Move.

1965 - Donovan made his U.S. television debut on the show "Shindig!"
1971 - Yes started their first tour with Rick Wakeman in England.

1987 - Roy Orbison recorded "A Black And White Night Live" at the Coconut Grove in Los Angeles, CA.
1988 - John Lennon received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

1989 Tina Turner had her Foreign Affair album debut in the U.K. at number 1. Included the popular singles, “The Best” and “Steamy Windows.” The album only made it to number 31 in the U.S. but achieved gold status two months late