- Jan 5 "Carnival!" closes at Imperial Theater NYC after 719 performances
"Camelot"
Jan 5 Alan Jay Lerner and Frederick Loewe's musical "Camelot", starring Richard Burton, Julie Andrews, and Robert Goulet, closes at Majestic Theater, NYC, after 873 performances and winning 4 Tony Awards
Oliver!
Jan 6 Lionel Bart's musical "Oliver!", based on Charles Dickens' "Oliver Twist", and featuring a young Davy Jones, opens at Imperial Theater, NYC; runs for 774 performances, winning 3 Tony Awards
"Katharina Ismailova"
Jan 8 Dmitri Shostakovich' opera "Katharina Ismailova" premieres in Riga
- Jan 11 Beatles release single "Please Please Me" / "Ask Me Why"; peaks at #2 in UK, and #3 in US
- Jan 12 "Go Away Little Girl" by Steve Lawrence peaks at #1
- Jan 16 Los Angeles night club and music venue The Whiskey A-Go-Go opens (inducted into Rock and Roll Hall of Fame 2006)
- Jan 26 "Milk & Honey" closes at Martin Beck Theater NYC after 543 performances
- Jan 28 "Still" single released by Bill Anderson (Billboard No. 1 U.S. Hot Country Singles, 1963)
"What'd I Say"
Jan 31 Tony Sheridan & Beat Brothers (later known as The Beatles) record "What'd I Say" & "Ruby Baby"
Music History
Feb 23 Italian tenor Luciano Pavarotti makes his debut at the Vienna State Opera in Giuseppe Verdi's "La traviata"
Music History
Mar 7 John Coltrane and Johnny Hartman record their self-titled album "John Coltrane and Johnny Hartman" at Van Gelder Studio, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey
- Mar 9 Beatles began 1st British tour, supporting Tommy Roe & Chris Montez
Music History
Mar 12 Beatles perform as a trio, at Granada Cinema, in Bedford, England, as John Lennon is ill with a cold
Long Christmas Dinner
Mar 13 Paul Hindemith and Thornton Wilder's opera "Long Christmas Dinner" premieres in NYC
Music History
Mar 14 Musician Frank Zappa (22) tapes an appearance for syndicated "The Steve Allen Show" - he and the host 'play' bicycles as musical instruments along with the show's orchestra; program airs later in the month
- Mar 18 "Tovarich" opens at Broadway Theater NYC for 264 performances
- Mar 21 David Hendon & Douglas Cross' musical premieres in London
- Mar 22 The Beatles release their 1st album, "Please Please Me"
- Mar 23 8th Eurovision Song Contest: Grethe and Jorgen Ingmann for Denmark win singing "Dansevise" in London
- Apr 5 Beatles receive their 1st silver disc (Please Please Me)
- Apr 12 Beatles third single, "From Me To You" is released in UK
Music History
Apr 14 Quiet Beatle George Harrison is impressed by unsigned British blues band "Rolling Stones"
Sophie
Apr 15 Steve Allen's musical "Sophie", based on the life of American singer, and comic actress Sophie Tucker, opens at Winter Garden Theater, NYC; runs for 8 performances
- Apr 19 "Hot Spot" opens at Majestic Theater NYC for 43 performances
Ring of Fire
Apr 19 Johnny Cash releases single "Ring of Fire" written by his future wife June Carter and Merle Kilgore
- Apr 20 "Sophie" closes at Winter Garden Theater NYC after 8 performances
Music History
Apr 21 Beatles meet the Rolling Stones for the 1st time
- Apr 23 Jerry Bock and Sheldon Harnick's musical "She Loves Me", based on the film "The Shop Around the Corner", opens at Eugene O'Neill Theater, NYC; runs for 302 performances and a Tony Award for Jack Cassidy
- May 10 Decca Records sign The Rolling Stones on advice of Beatle George Harrison [1]
- May 11 "Puff (The Magic Dragon)" single by Peter, Paul & Mary hits #2; Peter Yarrow adapted a poem that college classmate Lenny Lipton had left behind after borrowing Yarrow's typewriter
Music History
May 12 Bob Dylan walks out of "The Ed Sullivan Show" over a dispute about his song choice
5th Grammy Awards
May 15 5th Grammy Awards: "I Left My Heart In San Francisco"; Robert Goulet win
Music History
May 15 Folksinging trio Peter, Paul & Mary win their 1st Grammy for cover version of Pete Seeger's song "If I Had a Hammer"
Meeting of Interest
May 24 Barbra Streisand performs "Happy Days Are Here Again" at White House Press Correspondents Dinner, and meets US President John F. Kennedy
Mr. President
Jun 8 Irving Berlin's final musical "Mr. President" closes at St James Theater, NYC, after for 265 performances
- Jun 9 Barbra Streisand appears, for her third time, on "The Ed Sullivan Show"
- Jun 15 "Sukiyaki" sung by Japanese singer Kyu Sakamoto, hits #1
The Sound of Music
Jun 15 Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II's musical "The Sound of Music", closes at Lunt Fontanne Theater, NYC, after 1443 performances
- Jun 20 Beatles form "Beatles Ltd" to handle their income
Fingertips
Jun 22 "Little" Stevie Wonder aged 13 releases his first single "Fingertips" (first live non-studio recording to go to No. 1 on Billboard)
Music History
Jul 15 Paul McCartney is fined £17 for speeding
- Jul 30 American singer Barbra Streisand opens for pianist Liberace at the International Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada
- Aug 1 Beatles Book is sold out on its 1st day of sale
- Aug 3 Beatles final performance at Cavern Club in Liverpool, England
- Aug 3 Richard Rodgers' musical drama "No Strings", starring Diahann Carroll and Richard Kiley, closes at Broadhurst Theater, NYC, after 580 performances and 3 Tony Award wins
- Aug 3 Warner Bros. Records releases single of Allan Sherman's novelty song "Hello Muddah, Hello Fadduh (A Letter from Camp)", set to music of Amilcare Ponchielli's "Dance of the Hours" from his 1876 opera "La Gioconda"
- Aug 8 Kingsmen release "Louie, Louie", radio stations label it obscene
- Aug 23 Beatles release single "She Loves You" in the UK
- Aug 25 Paul McCartney is fined 31 pounds & given a 1 yr suspended license for speeding
Music History
Sep 1 Cliff Richard and the Shadows 1st British rock group to perform in Israel
Contract of Interest
Sep 6 Rocker Jerry Lee Lewis leaves Sun Records as his contract expires, and signs with Smash Records
- Sep 15 The Beatles headline The Great Prop Prom at Royal Albert Hall, London; The Rolling Stones are one of the opening acts [1]
- Sep 28 "Little Deuce Coupe" single by The Beach Boys peaks at #15
- Sep 28 "Nick Teen & Al K. Hall" by Rolf Harris peaks at #95
- Sep 28 "Sally, Go 'Round The Roses" by Jaynetts, a one-hit wonder from the Bronx, NYC, peaks at #2
- Sep 28 "Surfer Joe" by Surfaris peaks at #62
- Sep 28 Novelty song "Martian Hop" by The Ran-Dells, from Villas, New Jersey, peaks at #16
- Sep 28 NYC DJ "Murray The K" plays The Beatles "She Loves You" on the radio
The Judy Garland Show
Sep 29 "The Judy Garland Show" debuts on CBS-TV
1st Rolling Stones Tour
Sep 29 Rolling Stones 1st tour, as opening act for Bo Diddley & the Everly Brothers
- Sep 30 Rick Besoyan's musical "Student Gypsy" opens at 84th St Theater, NYC; runs for 16 performances
- Oct 3 Meredith Wilson's musical "Here's Love", based on the film "Miracle on 34th Street", opens at Shubert Theater, NYC; runs for 338 performances
- Oct 5 Little Richard joins Everly Brothers Tour
- Oct 6 Barbra Streisand appears on "The Judy Garland Show"
- Oct 7 The Rolling Stones record the Lennon-McCartney song "I Wanna Be Your Man" at Kingsway Sound Studio in London
- Oct 12 Rick Besoyan's musical "Student Gypsy" closes at 84th St Theater, NYC, after 16 performances
- Oct 13 The term "Beatlemania" is coined after Beatles appear at the London Palladium
Music Premiere
Oct 17 Arthur Schwartz and Howard Dietz's musical "Jennie", starring Mary Martin, opens at the Majestic Theater, NYC; runs for 82 performances
- Oct 17 The Beatles record "I Want to Hold Your Hand" at EMI Studios in London
Barefoot in the Park
Oct 23 Neil Simon's stage play "Barefoot in the Park" starring Robert Redford and Elizabeth Ashley opens at the Biltmore Theatre, NYC; runs for 1530 performances
- Oct 24 N. Richard Nash, Harvey Schmidt and Tom Jones' musical "110 in the Shade" opens at Broadhurst Theater, NYC, runs for 330 performances
- Oct 25 The Beatles begin their 1st full foreign tour in Karlstad, Sweden, performing twice at a secondary school auditorium
- Oct 29 "Meet the Beatles" booklet is published
The Beatles on Ed Sullivan
Oct 31 Ed Sullivan witnesses Beatlemania firsthand at London's Heathrow Airport as the Beatles are greeted by their fans upon returning from Sweden
- Nov 2 "Tambourines to Glory" opens at Little Theater NYC for 24 performances
- Nov 4 John Lennon utters his famous quip at a Royal Variety Performance "For our last number, I'd like to ask your help. The people in the cheaper seats clap your hands? And for the rest of you, if you’ll just rattle your jewelry…" at the Prince of Wales Theatre in London
- Nov 9 Lee Pockriss and Anne Croswell's musical "Tovarich" closes at Winter Garden Theater, NYC, after 264 performances
The Beatles
Nov 11 Brian Epstein and Ed Sullivan sign a 3 show contract for appearances by The Beatles
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
Nov 13 Dale Wasserman's stage play "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest", adapted from the novel by Ken Kesey, starring Kirk Douglas, Ed Ames; Joan Tetzel, and Gene Wilder, opens at Cort Theatre, NYC; runs for 82 performances
- Nov 22 The Beatles release their second album "With the Beatles" in UK
- Nov 23 "Tambourines to Glory" closes at Little Theater NYC after 24 performances
- Nov 28 The Beatles "She Loves You" unusually, returns to #1 in UK record chart and reaches 1 million copies sold
- Nov 29 "I Want to Hold Your Hand" single released by the Beatles in the United Kingdom
Johnson's 31 Medal Recipients
Dec 6 President Lyndon B. Johnson confers Presidential Medal of Freedom on 31 recipients selected by JFK, including: contralto Marian Anderson; diplomat Ralph Bunche; cellist Pablo Casals; Supreme Court Justice Felix Frankfurter; labor leader George Meaney; architect Mies van der Rohe; pianist Rudolf Serkin; writers E. B. White and Thorton Wilder; and painter Andrew Wyeth; as well as posthumously to JFK himself, and Pope John XXIII
- Dec 6 The Beatles begin a tradition of releasing a Christmas record for fan club members
- Dec 8 "Girl Who Came to Supper" opens at Broadway Theater NYC for 112 performances
Donny Osmond Debut
Dec 10 6-year old Donny Osmond's singing debut on Andy Williams Show
Kaddish
Dec 10 Leonard Bernstein premieres his Third Symphony "Kaddish" with the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, in Tel Aviv, Israel
- Dec 13 Capital records signs right of first refusal agreement with The Beatles
The Pink Panther
Dec 18 "The Pink Panther" film premieres, directed by Blake Edwards, and starring Peter Sellers and David Niven, with theme music composed by Henry Mancini
- Dec 26 "Double Dublin" opens at Little Theater, NYC; runs for 4 performances
- Dec 26 The Beatles release "I Want To Hold Your Hand" and "I Saw Her Standing There" in the US
- Dec 28 "Double Dublin" closes at Little Theater, NYC, after 4 performances
- Dec 28 Arthur Schwartz and Howard Dietz's musical "Jennie", starring Mary Martin, closes at the Majestic Theater, NYC, after 82 performances
"Sing a Sad Song"
Dec 28 Merle Haggard's 1st appearance on country music chart with "Sing a Sad Song"
Garcia, Weir Play for First Time
Dec 31 Jerry Garcia and Bob Weir of The Grateful Dead play music together for the 1st time at Dana Morgan's Music Store in Palo Alto, California
Country Singers
Jazz Musicians
Opera Singers
Pop Stars
Rappers
Rockers