Tommy’s Coffee Break Calendar for December 22nd

Today we look at a great classic '60's single, a mind-numbing cheezy '70's single, and a birthday for a rather underrated guitarist/songwriter...

12/22/1962 (53 years ago today) - Before The Beatles, this was the first major hit from a U.K. band on the U.S. singles chart: The Tornadoes hit No. 1 for three-weeks-in-a-row with the pseudo-psychedelic instrumental "Telstar" (named after the communications satellite which went into orbit earlier in the year). Famously produced by head-case Joe Meek, who was a piece of work himself: by 1967, broke and depressed, Joe borrowed a fellow musicians shotgun, killed his landlady then turned the gun on himself. Happy Holidays!

12/22/1979 (36 years ago today) - We hate to bring it up, but y'all did buy this one big-time: Rupert Holmes starts a two-week run at No. 1 on the U.S. singles chart with the nauseatingly frustrating "Escape (The Pina Colada Song)". Thankfully it was his only hit. Still scary though...

12/22/1946 - Born on this date, one of our most-favorite semi-kooky rock legends: Happy Birthday to guitarist Rick Nielsen, 69 years old today. The Cheap Trick main-man remains one of rock's most under-appreciated talents, both as guitar-wiz and songwriter -- gotta face it, those first three Cheap Trick albums in particular are arguably the most ferociously solid 1-2-3 punch in the history of power-pop! Quite an off-beat lyricist as well, Rick's definitely "all right, he just seems a little weeeird..."

Yeah, well if you gotta share it with the Calendar, we're waiting: go for broke here on our web site and on the WBLM Facebook and Twitter pages with the hashtag #TommysCoffeeBreak.

"Mommy isn't one of those/I've known her all these years...", xoxo!