Jan 30th: The Rooftop Concert
Since 1969, rooftops are viewed in a different way. Red Hot Chilli Pepper did it as well in their “The Adventure Of The Rain Dance Maggie,” and even U2 had their moment in 1987 at the Apple Studios in Los Angeles to follow the trend of the rooftop concerts. However, there is only one that remained in the pop culture memory and history: The Beatles’ Rooftop Concert.
Unannouced, the concert took place on the roof of the Apple Corps building in London on January 30, 1969. At the time, in those studios the band was recording their latest album, Let It Be. The band was in fact very close to their break up, and the concert became their last live performance as a group.
Fans ran to get their place and gathered together to the unique event. Among both love and critiques for the noise – which led to the arrival of the police and the forced ending of the show, the Fab Four played 42 minutes of new music. Keyboardist Billy Preston joined the group as well. In the set list, the celebre “Get Back” and “Don’t Let Me Down,” and the Let It Be extracts “I’ve Got A Feeling,” “The One After 909,” and “Dig A Pony” were included.
The historical event was later represented in the 2021 documentary “The Beatles: Get Back.” In the Disney Plus movie, the band is portrayed while recording their last success, Let It Be. The organisation and preparation of The Rooftop Concert are included as well.
Jan 31st: The Jackson Five Land Their First No.1
On January 31, 1970, The Jackson Five scored their first No.1 hit on the Billboard Hot 100 with “I Want You Back.”
The single was released in October of the previous year. Since then it has become the most famous and defining single of the group. The upbeat tune, the light vibes, the choreography and the incredible voice of the young Michael Jackson made the single memorable.
Before granting “I Want You Back” to The Jackson Five, the single was originally written for two other acts. These were Gladys Knight & the Pips and Diana Ross. However, no better choice could have been made. “I Want You Back” is now the best representation of the energy of the group. It also opened the way to the future King Of Pop, Michael Jackson.
Feb 1st: Call Me
On February 1, 1980, American new wave Blondie released “Call Me.” The song is one of the band’s main singles and to date one of the most famous songs from the early 80s. “Call Me” was the main theme song of the 1980 film “American Gigolo,” and peaked at No. 1 for six weeks. It also became the top-selling single of the year in the United States.
Just few days after, on February 3 of the previous year, Blondie’s their second most famous single, “Heart Of Glass,” hit the No. 1 position in The UK. The song was the first of their five UK No.1 singles. The second would have been “Call Me.” The song was part of the third studio album, Parallel Lines. It was first recorded in 1975 under the name “Once I Had a Love,” and only later published.
Feb 2nd: Janet Jackson’s Deserved An Apology
On February 2nd, 2004, TV network CBS released a public apologise for Janet Jackson. The apologies followed its broadcast of the American Bowl. In fact, during this notorious, singular moment of the Super Bowl, the artist was left exposed when Justin Timberlake ripped her top.
The fact that the event was broadcast live, and that the Super Bowl is one of the most-watched shows in the entire United States, surely didn’t help cover up what Justin Timberlake insists was a mistake. In fact, he repeated, publicly apologised to Jackson, defying the mistake a “wardrobe malfunction.”
However, fans have been speculating over the credibility of Timberlake’s words. They in particular noticed how Janet Jackson the one who suffered the most from what happened – both directly and indirectly. The singer, in fact, received a lot of backlash and critiques following the mistake. Timberlake, fans accuse, wasn’t and still isn’t held as much responsible as he should be.
