Tommy’s Coffee Break Calendar for July 15th

Today it's "Charts and a Festival", which we think would make a good name for some kinda compilation LP...

7/15/1965 (55 years ago today) - It was a very good year, indeed: This week's Top Three U.S. singles -- No. 3, "Mr. Tambourine Man" - The Byrds; No. 2, "I Can't Help Myself (Sugar Pie, Honey Bunch)" - The Four Tops; No. 1, "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction" - The Rolling Stones. The charts just don't look {sound} like that anymore...

7/15/1972 (48 years ago today) - Definitely one of his two best albums, and we don't know what the other one is: Elton John starts a five week run at No. 1 on the U.S. album chart with (the nearly totally perfect) "Honky Chateau". A few of the titles on here: "Rocket Man", "Mona Lisas And Mad Hatters", "Salvation", "Honky Cat", "Hercules" -- No wonder it became Elton's first chart-topping LP in America. Still sounds great...

7/15/1973 (47 years ago today) - Lookit who was at the bottom of the bill: It's The Great Western Express Festival in West London starring The Edgar Winter Group, Sly & The Family Stone, Canned Heat, Lindisfarne and opening act....The Kinks!?!? This was not an especially good time for The Kinks in the U.K. -- With his wife walking out of their marriage and taking their young children with her, Ray Davies announces onstage that he is sick of the whole thing and retiring, after which he walks to a local hospital and collapses from on overdose of tranquilizers! Somehow, the band stays together and they would go on to record some of their finest work including the "Preservation Act" LP's along with -- not one, but two -- tragically underrated 1975 releases, "Schoolboys In Disgrace" and "Soap Opera". Not much left to say except God Bless The Kinks. Fantastic and rare live performance of "Village Green..." here, check out Ray and Dave's brotherly harmonies:

Share your hacks with the Calendar here on our web site and on the WBLM Facebook and Twitter pages with the hashtag #TommysCoffeeBreak.

"I thank the Lord there's people out there like you...", xoxo!