This Week in Music History

November 14th, 1975 – Queen plays the first of two nights at the Empire Theatre in England to kick off the first night of their 78-date ‘A Night at the Opera’ world tour.

November 15th, 1980 – Blondie has their fifth No.1 single in the UK with ‘The Tide Is High,’ written by reggae star John Holt. It’s their third UK No.1 of this year and also a No.1 in the US.

November 16th, 1974 – John Lennon hits No.1 on the singles chart with ‘Whatever Gets You Through The Night.’ Elton John played on the session and had made a deal with Lennon that they would have to play live together if the song ever reached No.1. Lennon kept his promise and later played three songs live with Elton: ‘I Saw Her Standing There,’ ‘Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds’ and ‘Whatever Gets You Through the Night.’

November 17th, 1985 – Wham! were at No.1 on the singles chart with ‘Wake Me Up Before You Go Go’. George Michael’s inspiration for the song was a scribbled note left by his Wham! partner Andrew Ridgeley intended for Andrew’s parents, which read “wake me up before you go” but with “up” accidentally written twice. Ridgeley used the typo as inspiration to add an extra “go.”

November 18th, 1975 – Bruce Springsteen makes his live debut in the UK at London’s Hammersmith Odeon. The set list would included Thunder Road, 10th Avenue Freeze-out, Born To Run, The ‘E’ Street Shuffle, Jungleland, 4th of July, and Asbury Park just to name a few.

November 19th, 1968 – The Supremes perform in London for members of the royal family. Diana Ross exercises her diva rights by interrupting the show to ask the world to embrace racial understanding.The crowd responds to her speech with a two-minute ovation.

November 20th, 1984 – Michael Jackson becomes star # 1,793 on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. A large crowd of fans forms to witness the unveiling of the brand new star in front of Mann’s Chinese Theatre in Los Angeles.