Scottish psych-pop songsmith legend DONOVAN, who turned 80 last May, released
his 3rd LP, named SUNSHINE SUPERMAN, today 60 years ago on 26 August 1966
in the US alone.
It didn’t come out in the UK at that time because of a contractual dispute. In June 1967,
a compilation of tracks from this album and the follow-up Mellow Yellow was released as Sunshine Superman in the UK.
Weird thing in Donovan‘s career, once dubbed as the British Bob Dylan,
is the fact that he made it first in the US, and in the UK sometime later.
The album was one of his most successful, peaking at number 11 in
the US and remaining on the Billboard Chart for 6 months. The 1967
UK edition peaked at number 25.
Every day of this summer we go back to the same summer day somewhere in history
25 Aug 1926
Eminent singer-songwriter ELTON JOHN (79 now) made his US live debut when
he kicked off a 17-date tour at the 300-seat capacity Troubadour in Los Angeles
on 25 August 1970. He played there for a full week. In the audience that night were Don Henley (Eagles), Quincy Jones and Leon Russell.
Legendary singer-songwriter PAUL SIMON, who turns 85 next October, released
his 7th album, named GRACELAND, on 25 August 1986, today 40 years ago.
Organizations such as Artists United Against Apartheid criticized Simon for breaking
the cultural boycott on South Africa imposed for its policy of apartheid, while others
accused him of appropriating the music of another culture.
Simon responded that Graceland was a political statement that showcased collaboration between black and white people and raised international awareness of apartheid. Some praised him for helping popularize African music in the West.
The album became Simon‘s most successful album and his highest-charting album
in over a decade, with estimated sales of more than 16 million copies worldwide.
Rolling Stone said: “An album about isolation and redemption that
transcended ‘world music’ to become the whole world’s soundtrack.”
Every day of this summer we go back to the same summer day somewhere in history
24 August 2026
English dream pop duo EVERYTHING BUT THE GIRL (1982–2000,
2021–present) broke the all-time US chart stay record, today 30 years
ago, with their captivating, dancy hit Missing (more than 45 million
streams on Spotify) when it appeared on the Billboard Chart for the 55th week.
THE ROLLING STONES released their 16th LP, in the UK and their 18th in the US today 45 years ago, on 24 Augustus 1981. It topped the charts in the US, Canada, Australia and several European countries, and peaked at #2 in the UK.
Tattoo You is an album primarily composed of outtakes from previous recording
essions, some dating back a decade, with new vocals and overdubs. The Stones
put together this collection to have a new album to promote for their worldwide
American Tour 1981/European Tour 1982.
Richards:“The thing with Tattoo You wasn’t that we’d stopped writing new stuff, it was a question of time. We’d agreed we were going to go out on the road and we wanted to tour behind a record. There was no time to make a whole new album and make the start of the tour.”
The album title was originally planned to be simply Tattoo. Jagger claims to this day that even he has no clue how the ‘You’ became attached to the title. The title caused friction between the glimmer twins with Richards suspecting that Jagger had changed the title without seeking his input. The album cover had concept origination, art direction and design by Peter Corriston and illustration by Christian Piper.
The New York Times said at the time: “Remarkably, Tattoo You is something
special. None of the tracks are Chuck Berry retreads, none of them are disco, and
none of them are reggae. They are all rock-and-roll, with more than a hint of the
soul and blues influences that were so important in the band’s early work.
The new album’s lyrics are also a surprise. The Stones seem to have dropped
the studied decadence that was their most characteristic pose throughout the
70’s. The songs on Tattoo You seem to be by and about real people rather than
larger-than-life caricatures.”
Every day of this summer we go back to the same summer day somewhere in history
21 August 2026
THE ROLLING STONES played the historic green site of KNEBWORTH, UK on 21 August 1976, today 60 years ago, supported by other big names such as 10CC, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Todd Rundgren’s Utopia and Hot Tuna.
On 20 August 2004, Rob Tinsley, a man from Stoke-on-Trent, England, filed for divorce because his wife was madly in love with Canadian rock legend Bryan Adams.
For years, he spent trying to cope with his wife’s obsession with the singer. The man said he had to live with a 6-ft cutout of Adams that stood at the foot of the bed and posters on the bedroom walls.
Every day of this summer we go back to the same summer day somewhere in history
19 August 2026
Credit Phil Lynott Memorial Dublin
On 19 August 2005, a life-size bronze statue of PHIL LYNOTT (1949-1986), frontman/bassist of former Irish rock top dogs Thin Lizzy (1969-1983), was unveiled on Harry Street in Dublin.
The title is a reference to a biblical quote from the King James Version
of the Christian Bible, Acts 26, verse 14.
It’s a covers LP with their take on songs by John Lee Hooker, Johnny Cash,
Bill Roberts, Lou Reed, Jimmy Webb, Alex Harvey and more.
It topped the UK’s alternative album chart.
Cave: “It allowed us to discover different elements, to actually make and perform a variety of different sorts of music successfully. I think that helped subsequent records tremendously.
The songs were all done for different reasons. Basically a list of songs were made and we tried to play them. We tried songs by the Loved Ones and the Saints and all sorts of people that never got on the record.
Some songs were tributes, like the Tom Jones song “Sleeping Annaleah” other songs we didn’t think the song was ever done particularly well in the first place. Some songs had just kind of haunted my childhood, like “The Carnival Is Over”, which I always loved.
Every day of this summer we go back to the same summer day somewhere in history
17 August 2026
On 17 August 1991, today 35 years ago, the iconic video for NIRVANA
ironclad breakthrough single Smells Like Teen Spirit was shot at GMT
Studios in Culver City, CA.
Costing less than $50,000 (a bargain, when it came to
music videos at the time), the clip featured many fans.
