\\
Today in rock history: On this date in 1956, Elvis Presley made his national television debut when he appeared on the Dorsey brothers’ Stage Show program. Despite having toured the U.S. extensively alongside guitarist Scotty Moore and bassist Bill Black, Elvis was still virtually unknown throughout the country at the time. That changed on January 28, 1956, however, when viewers became either enthralled or outraged with the performance. The attention led Tommy and Jimmy Dorsey to invite Elvis back to the show five more times over the course of the next two months.
\\
Today in rock history: On this date in 1978,
The Doobie Brothers appeared as special guests on a two-part episode of the popular prime time sitcom,
What's Happening . The show’s subject matter touched on the evils of concert bootlegging and found one of the program’s main characters, Rerun, guilty of recording a Doobies concert.
\\
Today in rock history: On this date in 1984, Frankie Goes To Hollywood’s debut single, “Relax,” started a five-week run atop the U.K. singles chart. BBC Radio 1 DJ Mike Read openly expressed his distaste for both the record's suggestive sleeve and its lyrics, and even refused to play the record on air (despite the fact that the BBC had already decided that the song was not to be played on air anyway). The Trevor Horn-produced song was a huge worldwide success and all the controversy surrounding it only made the song more desirable for record buyers who kept the single on U.K. charts for 48 weeks.
\\
Today in rock history: On this date in 1984, Def Jam Recordings released “It’s Yours” by T La Rock and Jazzy Jay, the label’s first release ever. Def Jam went on to be regarded as the premier hip-hop label with artists like LL Cool J, Beastie Boys and Public Enemy.
This article appears in Jan 24-31, 2019.