Friday, March 24, 2023

Music History Today: March 25, 2023

March 25, 1985: Prince won an Oscar for Best Original Score for the soundtrack for Purple Rain. As well as the Number 2 title track featured two US chart-topping singles, "When Doves Cry" and "Let's Go Crazy."

Purple Rain soundtrack cover art
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March 25, 1955: Blackboard Jungle opened in the US, with "Rock Around the Clock" by Bill Haley and His Comets under the opening credits. The song's inclusion in the film marked a turning point for rock 'n' roll.

Blackboard Jungle movie poster


March 25, 1972: Commander Cody and His Lost Planet Airmen debuted on Billboard's Hot 100, on the way to Number 9, with "Hot Rod Lincoln."

Commander Cody and His Lost Planet Airmen Hot Rod Lincoln
Initially written by Charlie Ryan and released by Charlie Ryan and The Livingston Brothers in 1955,  "Hot Rod Lincoln" tells the second half of the story that starts with "Hot Rod Race," recorded in 1951 by Arkie Shibley and his Mountain Dew Boys. While the song tells of a race between a Lincoln and a Cadillac on the Grapevine grade in California, the actual location was on the Lewiston grade in Idaho. 
Read more: Secondhand Songs

March 25, 1995: Blues Traveler's "Run-Around" entered the Billboard Hot 100 single chart. It peaked at Number 8.
Blues Traveler's first hit,  "Run-Around" shot them to stardom after seven years of touring and three previous albums. All that touring primed the band for their success, and they did very well on the many TV appearances they earned as a result of this song. In particular, David Letterman became a huge fan and had the band on several times, often bantering with John Popper during the show. 
Read more: Songfacts

March 25, 2000: Red Hot Chili Peppers entered the top 40 section of the US singles chart with "Otherside." It eventually reached  Number 14.
In the book Scar Tissue, songwriter Anthony Kiedis explains that "Otherside" is about his drug addiction. The "slide" is how far he will get back into his drug addiction since he would stop doing drugs for a time, then get right back into it. "I don't believe it's bad" refers to how he doesn't regret doing drugs. 
Read more: Songfacts 

Let's Go Crazy
Prince

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