October 16

2008: Britney Spears’ Womanizer debuts at #1. It’s her second #1.  Baby One More Time topped the charts in 1999.

2004: Ciara’s Goodies is #1.

1982: Hall & Oates release their album H2O. It includes the hit Maneater.

1976: Rick Dees’ novelty song Disco Duck hits #1. 

1971: Isaac Hayes releases his theme from the movie Shaft.  It goes to #1 and wins an Oscar for best song.  Here’s the official trailer for the 1971 movie version: Video.

1966: Grace Slick makes her first stage appearance with Jefferson Airplane at the Fillmore Auditorium San Francisco.

1965: The Beatles record Day Tripper.

1965: The Great Society, featuring Grace Slick, open for Jefferson Airplane at a dance/concert at San Francisco’s Longshoremen’s Hall.  The band originated White Rabbit and Somebody To Love, later big hits for the Airplane.

1964: Composer Cole Porter dies at seventy-one.  He wrote the classics Night And Day and Anything Goes.

1962: Red Hot Chili Peppers bassist Flea (Michael Balzary) is born.   Dani California is the band’s biggest hit.

1957: Singer Sam Cooke releases You Send Me, his biggest hit.

1956: Elvis Presley’s first film, Love Me Tender, premieres.

1947: Singer-guitarist Bob Weir of Grateful Dead is born.  He sings many of the band’s songs, including Sugar Magnolia.

1911: Gospel singing star Mahalia Jackson is born.  Known as “the Queen of Gospel”, her version of Amazing Grace is her best-known song.

Songs of The Day:

Sugar Magnolia (Grateful Dead); Amazing Grace (Mahalia Jackson); Night And Day (Fred Astaire); White Rabbit (Jefferson Airplane); Daytripper (Beatles); Disco Duck (Rick Dees); Womanizer (Britny Spears); Shaft Theme (Isaac Hayes); Goodies (Ciara); Dani California (Red Hot Chili Peppers)