Music History Today: October 14, 2022

October 14, 2003: Rod Stewart released As Time Goes By: the Great American Songbook, Volume II.

Thanks to Clive Davis, Rod Stewart found a career revival in 2002 with It Had to Be You: The Great American Songbook.

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He figured the public would believe Stewart could sing classic pop songs and he was right. The record sold and spawned a sequel, As Time Goes By: The Great American Songbook, Vol. 2. 

Read more: Allmusic

October 14, 1957: The Everly Brothers had their first Number 1 in the US with "Wake Up Little Susie."

"Wake Up Little Susie" by the Everly Brothers is about a young couple who fall asleep at the drive-in, realize they are out past curfew, and make up a story to tell Susie's parents.

The Everly Brothers

Some Boston radio stations banned this because of the lyrics, which imply that the young couple spent the night together. 

Read more: Songfacts

October 14, 1967: The comedian Bill Cosby peaked at Number 4 on the US music chart with "Little Ole Man." 

Bill Cosby was the first really famous comedian to have a Billboard-charting single. Cosby is less singing "Little Ole Man" and more telling a story joke that builds throughout the song. The music is a version of Stevie Wonder's Uptight (Everything's Alright)." 

Read more: Songfacts

October 14, 1975: KISS released "Rock and Roll All Nite (Live)."

KISS

Originally released a studio version, "Rock and Roll All Nite" peaked at Number 69 on Billboard's singles chart. The live version eventually reached Number 12 in early 1976, the first of six Top 20 songs for Kiss in the 1970s. 

Read more: Wikipedia

 

October 14, 1983: Cyndi Lauper, formerly a member of the group Blue Angel, issues her first solo album, She's So Unusual.

One of the most successful pop debuts ever, She’s So Unusual by New Yorker Cyndi Lauper, went on to spawn four top-five hits, a first for a debut album by a female artist. 

 

Released in late 1983, the album continued to chart and release singles through the mid 1980s and was an early peak of Lauper’s long sustained career. 

Read more: Classic Rock Review

 

Time After Time
Rod Stewart