This Day in Rock History: February 2nd

Time to take a look back into this day in rock history: February 2

1957
Fats Domino sings “Blueberry Hill” and “Blue Monday” on the Perry Como TV show.

1959
Back to back hits from Frankie and Annette! First, Frankie’s “Venus” hits number one on the pop charts, but also reaches #10 in Billboard’s R & B chart. You figure it out.

Then, on the same day, his on-screen squeeze and former Mousketeer Annette Funicello posts a number seven hit on the Billboard charts with “Tall Paul”, one of the shortest songs of its type ever at 1 minute 38 seconds. It was written by Richard and Robert Sherman, who would later work for Disney and win Oscars for their work on Mary Poppins.

1968
A Grammy and Record of the Year award for Simon and Garfunkel’s “Mrs. Robinson”, which is included on The Graduate soundtrack. It includes the phrase “coo-coo-ca-choo” which Paul Simon would later say was a nod to the Beatles’ “I Am the Walrus”.

1979
Sadly, this came as no surprise. After a seven week jail stay for assaulting Patti Smith’s brother at Max’s Kansas City, former Sex Pistol Sid Vicious injects a fatal overdose of heroin that his mother allegedly bought for him. He was awaiting trial for the stabbing death of his girlfriend Nancy Spungen at the Chelsea Hotel the previous October. It happened at a party celebrating his release, and the autopsy shows Vicious died from an accumulation of fluid in the lungs consistent with a heroin overdose. His works were found near his body.

Vicious was attempting to start a solo career. He kicked it off with a few club shows and shot a video of Sinatra’s “My Way” that shows him committing a mass murder.