Tommy’s Coffee Break Calendar for June 20th

Classic '60's Fest where Jimi breaks the bank! -- A Dick Clark anniversary, straight from bizarre-o land! -- Major guitar star b'day!

6/20/1969 (51 years ago today) - Welcome to the first night of The Newport 69 Pop Festival, one of the largest live events of the era (a.k.a. 'The Woodstock Time Forgot') held in Newport, California (not to be confused with The Newport Jazz Festival held in Rhode Island) -- A three-day ticket cost $15, which may very well have been the bargain of the century; take a gander at the line-up: The Jimi Hendrix Experience, Johnny Winter, Ike & Tina Turner, Joe Cocker, Spirit, Jethro Tull, Creedence Clearwater Revival, Taj Mahal, Marvin Gaye, The Byrds, Booker T & The MG's, Steppenwolf, The Rascals, Poco, Janis Joplin, Arthur Lee's Love and Eric Burdon -- Hendrix received $125,000 for his set; at the time it was the highest fee ever paid to a rock act for a single show!

6/20/1973 (47 years ago today) - It's the 20th Anniversary show of Dick Clark's "American Bandstand" and the line-up of special guests included appearances from Neil Diamond, Little Richard, Cheech & Chong, Paul Revere & The Raiders and Three Dog Night. Some might say quaint, some might say otherwise...

6/20/1924 - Born on this day, guitarist extraordinaire Chester Burton "Chet" Atkins, whose signature picking style and musicianship brought him admirers from not just the country scene (where he was, perhaps, most famous), but also from all over the world! -- Chet was a producer in the studio too, having been at the helm for classic records by Elvis Presley, Dolly Parton, The Everly Brothers, Waylon Jennings and too many more to fit in here -- Winner of 14 Grammys, nine Country Music Association Instrumentalist Of The Year awards, inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame as well as the Country Music Hall Of Fame and the Musicians Hall Of Fame And Museum, No. 21 on Rolling Stone's 100 Greatest Guitarists Of All Time, and a huge, huge influence on George Harrison, Mark Knopfler and Keith Urban, so no slouch apparently -- For a starter set, "Chet Atkins' Workshop" LP from December, 1960 pretty much nails it. The man known as "Mr. Guitar" passed away on June 30, 2001, in Nashville at age 77. He was awesome indeed, take a look 'n listen:

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

"We're goin' hoppin' today...", xoxo!