MAY
May 1 1973: Bachman Turner Overdrive release their self-titled debut lp. The band had recorded two albums under the name Brave Belt earlier in the decade. BTO took six months to hit the charts, and over a year before "Let It Ride" cracked the top 25. 1989: Geddy Lee of Rush is in a Winnipeg studio and cameos on Dr. Licks' STANDING IN THE SHADOWS OF MOTOWN. Geddy plays the speaking part of the Yiddish nephew, Grshn Lzr. 1999: Jason McCoy marries his longtime sweetheart Terrine Barnes. 2007: Rush releases their 19th studio lp, SNAKES AND ARROWS.
May 2 2006: Unable to use the name "The Guess Who" due to a sticky legal situation with bassist Jim Kale, Randy Bachman and Burton Cummings release THE BACHMAN CUMMINGS SONGBOOK, a greatest hits package of their material with the group, as well as a few BTO and solo Burton classics. A hugely successful cross-Canada tour that summer ensues, without Kale or the rest of the band.
May 3 1970: The Guess Who top Billboard's chart with "American Woman." 1971: Gordon Lightfoot is the first Canadian non-classical act booked to play New York's Philharmonic Hall at Lincoln Center. 1971: Ocean receive a gold record from the Recording Industry Association of America for their lp PUT YOUR HAND IN THE HAND. 1972: "Old Man," by Neil Young, peaks at #31 on the pop chart. It is the third time Neil Young cracks the Top 40. 1978: Along with The Eagles, Steely Dan, Steve Miller, Billy Joel and Warren Zevon, Neil Young is among the performers on the soundtrack to the film FM, the story of the struggles of a radio station. The film debuted in Los Angeles, but more people bought the soundtrack than saw the film. 1991: The Tragically Hip are in The Roxy Theatre in Los Angeles. The show is filmed and becomes the basis to the "New Orleans Is Sinking" video.
May 4 1982: The Nylons make their concert debut in Toronto at Massey Hall. 1983: Lee Aaron makes her debut in the UK at London's Marquee Club.
May 5 2000: A $1.8 million civil fraud lawsuit is filed against Neil Young in Los Angeles when he allegedly blocks publication of a book about him by a former Village Voice writer. 2004: Rush open up their 30th anniversary tour with a show in Charlotte, NC. Montreal and Toronto are the only Canadian dates.
May 6 1957: Jerry Fielden of Arapacis is born in Montreal.
1997: Joni Mitchell is inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame at the twelfth annual induction dinner. Shawn Colvin is her presenter. 2005: Kim Mitchell releases FILL YOUR HEAD WITH ROCK, a CD and DVD box set. 2008: Barenaked Ladies release the kids album SNACK TIME.
May 7 2004: Rudi Maugeri of The Crew Cuts died of pancreatic cancer. 2005: Klaatu releases the SUN SET 1973-1981 box set, full of outtakes and rarities.
May 8 1988: Bobby Curtola is awarded the Order Of Canada. 2006: Trooper's Ra McGuire launches his new book "Here For A Good Time," at Vancouver's Roxy Nightclub. 2007: "Cribs" features Lee Aaron's home in an episode on MTV Canada. 2007: Blue Peter releases BURNING BRIDGES as well as the re-release of FALLING, both compilations from previous EPs and bonus tracks.
May 9 1914: Hank Snow is born in Liverpool, NS as Clarence Eugene Snow. 1970: The Guess Who become the first Canadian group to hit #1 on Billboard, with "American Woman"/"No Sugar Tonite," where it remains for three weeks. 1979: Rush play in Holland for the first time, appearing at the Pink Pop Music Festival in Gelleen. 1990: Alannah Myles becomes the first and only Canadian to appear on The Arsenio Hall Show. 1996: The members of Rush are individually made Officers of the Order of Canada.
May 10
May 11 2008: Original Rush drummer John Rutsey dies in his Toronto home of complications from kidney problems.
May 12
May 13
May 14 1953: Tom Cochrane is born in Lynn Lake, MB 1969: Lighthouse play their first gig in Toronto at the Rock Pile. 1974: Ian Thomas perform with the Hamilton Philharmonic, in the wake of his hit, "Painted Ladies." 1996: The Tragically Hip release TROUBLE AT THE HENHOUSE.
2002: Bryan Adams releases BEST OF ME, the same day the soundtrack to Spirit - Stallion of the Cimmaron, to which he did the music, is released.
May 15 1971: Neil Young, as part of CSN&Y hits #1 on Billboard's album charts with FOUR WAY STREET, their sophomore lp. 2008: The third annual We All Need Love - A Tribute to Domenic Troiano music festival takes place at Toronto's Palais Royale Ballroom. On the schedule are Bernie LaBarge, Motherlode, Paul DeLong, and Troiano's bandmates for many years Roy Kenner and Prakash John, among many others.
May 16 1970: Randy Bachman leaves The Guess Who for the first time, following a show at The Fillmore East in New York, one week after they became the first Canadian group to have a gold record and top Billboard's Top 100. 1995: Barney Bentall releases GIN PALACE. 2005: David Clayton-Thomas releases IN CONCERT - A MUSICAL BIOGRAPHY.
May 17 1966: Bob Dylan and the Hawks, later renaming themselves The Band perform at the Free Trade Hall in Manchester, England. Dylan is booed by folk purists who object to his appearing with an electric band. 1999: Producer Bruce Fairbairn (Loverboy, Bon Jovi, KISS, Aerosmith, etc) dies of natural causes at his home in Vancouver at age 49. 2004: Terri Clark takes home top female vocalist at the Academy of Country Music Awards. Shania Twain and Billy Currington are nominated for top vocal event of the year with "Party For Two," but lose.
May 18 1971: The Band begin their first European tour in Rotterdam, Holland. 1973: Chantal Kreviazuk is born in Winnipeg, MB as Jennifer Chantal Kreviazuk. 1979: Max Webster play for the first time in Belgium, in Poperinge-Mackeblijde. 1995: Luba releases CHAIN REACTION from 1979 on CD. 1997: Randy Bachman and Burton Cummings performed together for the first time in fourteen years in front of over 40,000 at The Forks in Winnipeg for a Red River flood relief benefit concert organized by Tom Jackson. A number of other Canadian performers took the stage, including Chantal Kreviazuk.
May 19 2000: The Guess Who perform in their home town of Winnipeg, leading to a reunion tour. Along with Randy Bachman and Burton Cummings are Jim Kale, Donnie McDougall and Garry Peterson. Kale would be replaced by another former member, Bill Wallace, before the first show. 2005: Gordon Lightfoot made a triumphant return to the stage at Massey Hall in Toronto. It was the first show in over two years, following his near fatal bout with an abdominal aneurysm. Greeted by a standing ovation, he quipped, "Sorry I'm late." 2009: Universal Music releases the US compilation NEVER TOO LATE from Hedley.
May 20 1981: Loverboy is honoured with a party on 52 St in NY by Columbia Records in recognition of their debut lp selling over half a million copies in the US. 1989: Promoters in Montreal announced the cancellation of a July 5th reunion concert by the Who because of poor ticket sales. There was heavy demand for tickets for the other 25 dates on the tour. 2007: Geddy Lee from Rush makes a guest appearance on the CBC's 25th anniversary of Bob & Doug McKenzie's Strange Brew.
May 21
May 22 1979: Max Webster plays their first Norweigan gig ever in Oslo. 2008: The Trews debut the video for "Paranoid Freak" on MuchMusic.
May 23 1996: Lee Aaron's 1987 self-titled album is re-released on CD. 2008: David Kuntz, former drummer for 80s Ontario bar band Majestic is arrested for speeding in Brantford, ON. This isn't news, because no one's heard of him or the band. But he told the cops he was David Lee Roth (who he happens to look like), and suffering from an allergic reaction. He was fined for speeding and impersonating a has-been.
May 24 1994: Lee Aaron releases the BODYROCK lp. 1997: Rush records their Dallas, TX show for the DIFFERENT STAGES album. 2005: Triumph releases the anthology LIVIN' FOR THE WEEKEND in the UK through Castle Music. 2006: The Tragically Hip are presented with an Honourary Fellowship by the Royal Conservatory of Music during a gala in Toronto. 2007: Q 107's 30th anniversary concert and live radio special at The Dock in Toronto features the reunion of Max Webster, as well as performances by Goddo, The Salads, Honeymoon Suite, David Wilcox, Alannah Myles and Sass Jordan.
May 25 2005: Domenic Troiano of Mandala, The James Gang, Bush, Black Market and The Guess Who dies of prostate cancer. 2006: Styx, featuring Lawrence Gowan, perform with the Contemporary Youth Orchestra & Choir at the Blossom Music Centre in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio. The show is released later on DVD as ONE WITH EVERYTHING.
May 26 1945: Garry Peterson, drummer of The Guess Who is born in Winnipeg. 1995: Neil Young's MIRROR BALL, an album recorded in Seattle with Pearl Jam, is released to rave reviews. 2004: Celine Dion returns to Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas for the first time since a neck injury led her to cancel two weeks' worth of gigs. No one cares, but it's rumoured the neck injury came as a result of a swelled head.
May 27 1970: Only five months after his debut album, Neil Young releases EVERYBODY KNOWS THIS IS NOWHERE, the first of many albums featuring his on-again, off again backup band Crazy Horse. 1979: Max Webster plays in Germany for the first time ever, in Nuremburg. 1996: BROKEN ARROW, which reunites Neil Young with Crazy Horse, is released. 1997: Volcano Records releases The Nylons' HITS OF THE 60s - A CAPALLA STYLE. 2006: Prism plays in Cold Lake. Alan Harlow, former bassist, is now singer and guitarist. There are now no original members left in the group.
May 28 2004: Paramount Pictures announce plans to turn Avril Lavigne's teeny bopper anthem "Sk8er Boi" into a motion picture. Life as we know it has ended. 2007: The Police kick off their reunion in Vancouver, supported by Sting's son Joe Sumner's band, Fiction Plane.
May 29 1988: Bob Dylan makes a guest appearance at a Levon Helm concert at New York's Lone Star Cafe. The two perform "The Weight" and Chuck Berry's "Nadine." 1989: Trooper releases MONEY TALKS. 2006: Saga releases The Very Best of Saga today. 2007: The second annual 'Tribute To Domenic Troiano - We All Need Love' cancer fundraiser is held in Toronto, featuring a who's who of the past, present and future of Canadian music, including many artists Troiano worked with during his 30 year career before succumbing to cancer in 2005. Money raised was donated to the Toronto East General Hospital.
May 30 1997: Neil Young cancels his European tour after cutting his finger open while slicing a ham sandwich. 2004: Avril Lavigne's second album UNDER MY SKIN enters the UK album charts at No. 1. 2006: Lee Aaron releases THE VIDEO COLLECTION on DVD.
May 31 1962: Corey Hart is born in Montreal. 1986: At the Cow Palace in San Francisco, Bryan Adams opens Amnesty International's "A Conspiracy of Hope Tour," along with U2, Sting, Peter Gabriel and Lou Reed. |
