March 7: David Bowie releases Young Americans, Genesis and Tears for Fears release their debut albums

1962 – The Beatles record their first radio appearance at the Playhouse Theatre in Hulme, Manchester for the BBC radio show “Teenager’s Turn – Here We Go” in front of a live audience. This performance is also videotaped and marks the first time they wore their trademark collarless suits designed by Beno Dorn.

1966 – Brian Wilson releases “Caroline No,” the first solo single by a Beach Boy.

1969 – Genesis releases their debut album, From Genesis to Revelation.

1970 – Simon and Garfunkel’s album Bridge Over Troubled Water starts a ten week run at #1 on the US chart, longer than any other album that year. (The duo had already split up by the time of release.)

1973 – Columbia Records throws a party at Max’s Kansas City in NYC to celebrate the newest addition to the label’s roster: Bruce Springsteen. Columbia A&R giant John Hammond suffers a non-fatal heart attack at the celebration.

1975 – David Bowie releases Young Americans. “Fame” (co-written with Carlos Alomar and John Lennon) becomes Bowie’s first US #1 hit single.

1980 – The film Coal Miner’s Daughter, the biography of Loretta Lynn, opens. Sissy Spacek goes on to win the Academy Award for Best Actress for her portrayal of Lynn.

1983 – Tears for Fears release their debut album, The Hurting.

1985 – The song “We Are the World” is released and played on the radio for the first time. The song, written by Lionel Richie and Michael Jackson, is recorded for charity to help battle famine in Africa. Just some of the artists featured on the single are Stevie Wonder, Tina Turner, Diana Ross, Willie Nelson, Hall & Oates, Cyndi Lauper, Bob Dylan, and Ray Charles.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zi0RpNSELas

1987 – The Beastie Boys are the first rap act to have a #1 album in the US with their debut, Licensed To Ill.

1994 – The US Supreme Court rules that parodies making fun of original work are considered “fair use” and do not require permission from the copyright holder. The rap group 2 Live Crew is cleared in a case brought by the publisher of Roy Orbison’s music over their parody of Orbison’s “(Oh) Pretty Woman”. The publisher had denied the group permission to sample the song, so they did the parody instead, which stood up in court.

Information for this post was gathered from This Day in Music, The Music History Calendar, On This Day, and Wikipedia.