Today we bring you part three of a four part series on music trivia to get you through your May Humpdays. Today we have facts 51-75, where youll learn why Martin made only 404 of John Mayers signature OM-28 acoustic, the name of Fred Dursts pet dog, the first band to play behind what was once called the Iron Curtain and much more really fascinating stuff... No Really. 101 facts you never knew about music: part 3 51. Between 1948 and 1960, blues legend John Lee Hooker released over 100 singles. 52. The intro to Eddie Floyds Knock On Wood is the same as the intro to In The Midnight Hour, but the chord progression is played backwards. Both songs were co-written by guitarist Steve Cropper. Economical work, Mr Cropper! 53. Oasiss Noel Gallagher and Status Quos Francis Rossi share a birthday: 29 May. The creative forces of guitar boogie are strong on that day, obviously. 54. The drum machine part on the recording of New Orders Blue Monday - acknowledged as the best-selling 12-inch single of all time - had to be reprogrammed after the original was lost when the power lead was knocked out. The band have said that the first beat was better. 55. Funk bass legend Bootsy Colllins famously appears in the video for Deee-Lites dance anthem Groove Is In The Heart, but he contributes only additional vocals. The bassline is actually sampled from Herbie Hancocks Bring Down The Birds. 56. Martins OM-28 John Mayer signature acoustic was limited to a production run of 404. Why, you ask? Its the area code of his Atlanta hometown. 57. Stevie Wonder partially lost his sense of smell in a 1973 car crash. 58. Snow Patrol were originally called Polar Bear. They changed their name in 1995. 59. Michael Jackson is said to have spent three weeks working on the bassline for Billie Jean. 60. David Gilmour recorded the last two Pink Floyd albums on his Surrey, UK, houseboat studio, the Astoria. The boat can accommodate a 90-piece orchestra on the top deck and was built by Fred Karno: inventor of the custard-pie-in-the-face gag and manager of Charlie Chaplin. 61. Lemmy of Motorheads first band were called The Rockin Vickers. They were the first British band to play behind the so-called Iron Curtain when they visited Yugoslavia in 1965. 62. Arab Straps third album is called Elephant Shoe. Elephant Shoe is a phrase mumbled by nervous teenagers who dont want to say I love you to girls. Say it out loud and youll see it makes the same mouth shapes. Clever huh? 63. Orville Gibson, founder of The Gibson Guitar Corporation in Kalamazoo, Michigan in the late 1890s, only registered one design patent. It was for the first archtop mandolins he made. 64. At Woodstock, Neil Young skipped most of Crosby, Stills and Nashs acoustic set (the exceptions being Youngs own Mr Soul and Wonderin) but he did play their electric set. You can hear Youngs Sea Of Madness on the Woodstock LP but it wasnt actually filmed there - it was recorded a month later at the Fillmore East. 65. REM play Its The End Of The World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine) in The Simpsons episode Homer The Moe. If you want to sing along, Homer sings Leonid whats-his-name/Herman Munster Motorcade/Birthday party/Cheetos/Pogo sticks and lemonade/You symbiotic stupid jerk/Thats right, Flanders/I am talking about you! 66. Island Records was founded in Jamaica in 1959 by Chris Blackwell and Graeme Goodall. The label was named after 1955 Alec Waugh novel, Island In The Sun (later a hit song for Harry Belafonte). The company moved to the UK in May 1962 and, until Blackwell sold the label to PolyGram in 1989, was the largest indie record label in history. 67. Founded in 1962 in Japan by Tsutomu Kato and Tadashi Osanai, Korg was originally known as Keio Electronic Laboratories because its fledgling offices were located near the Keio train line in Tokyo and Keio can be formed by combining the first letters of Kato and Osanai. 68. Elvis Presleys house Graceland was named after original owner SE Toofs daughter, Grace. It is the second most visited private residence in the United States outside the White House. 69. When Liverpool FC fan John Peel married his girlfriend Sheila The Pig Gilhooly in August 1974, they walked down the aisle to Youll Never Walk Alone with Peel dressed in Liverpool red. Their sheepdog Woggle served as bridesmaid. 70. Richard David James (Aphex Twin) was born in Limerick, Ireland, before his family relocated to Lanner, Cornwall, England. His first two DJ residencies as a teenager were at The Shire Horse in St Ives and The Bowgie Inn in Crantock (with Tom Middleton). He now records under several aliases. 71. Before settling on ex-Scream member Dave Grohl, Nirvana went through five drummers: Aaron Burckhard (1987-1988), Dale Crover (1988 and 1990), Dave Foster (1988), Chad Channing (1988-1990) and Dan Peters (1990). 72. According to all-known recorded sales data, the harmonica is the worlds best-selling musical instrument. 73. Angel And The Snakes Debbie Harry renamed her band Blondie for two reasons. The first is builders wolf-whistling Hey, Blondie! at her. The second is they were named after Hitlers German Shepherd, Blondi. The band allegedly toured as Hitlers Dog but still play as Blondie to this day. Blondi wasnt so lucky - she joined Hitler in the bunker and was given a dose of cyanide just before The Führer committed suicide. 74. Speaking of dogs, Fred Durst has a pet bulldog called Bizkit. 75. Gene Simmons Rock School champion Lil Chris went to the same Lowestoft, England, high school as Justin and Daniel Hawkins of The Darkness. Fact. Stay tuned for the final installment of 101 Facts About Music next Humpday Wednesday, where youll find out what David Bowie has tattooed on his ankle, the various pseudonyms used by Paul McCartney, whose favourite tipple is called Nuclear Waste, and which martial arts film star claims to have jammed with John Lennon. Hmm... And just remember this: Friday is the day after tomorrow!
Posted on: Wed, 21 May 2014 18:44:34 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015