The song "Brown Eyed Girl" by Northern Irish singer/songwriter Van
Morrison was released as a single in June 1967 on the Bang label,
peaking at No. 10 on the Billboard Hot 100. It featured The Sweet
Inspirations singing back-up vocals and is considered to be Van
Morrison’s signature song. It has remained a staple on classic rock
radio, and has been covered by hundreds of bands over the
decades.

Van Morrison (Sir George Ivan Morrison) will be 72 on August 31.

The Afro-Cuban music sound in “Groovin” included a conga, a Cuban-
influenced bass guitar line from ace session musician Chuck Rainey,
and a harmonica part, performed first for the single version by New
York session musician, Michael Weinstein, and later for the album
version by Gene Cornish.

The single became an instant hit in May of 1967, spending four weeks
atop the Billboard pop singles chart, but not four consecutive weeks
because the sequence was interrupted by Aretha Franklin‘s "Respect"
which spent a week at No. 1 in the middle of "Groovin’"’s run. The song
was RIAA–certified a gold record on June 13, 1967.

CARLATA BRADLEY

From left:  Egyptian President Anwar Sadat, U.S. President Jimmy
Carter, and Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin.

On this day in 1997.

Heaven’s Gate leader Marshall Applewhite.

Barbra Streisand and Sydney Chaplin starred
in the Original Broadway Production from
March 26, 1964 to July 1, 1967.

Diana Ross (Diane Ernestine Earle Ross) is 73 today. 

Diana Ross and her family lived near Smokey Robinson in Detroit when she
was eight. She originally dreamed of being a fashion designer.

Elvis Presley performed his last live show for the next eight years in Pearl
Harbor, Hawaii. The show raised $62,000 for the U.S.S. Arizona memorial
fund. He bought a $100 ticket for himself then bought dozens more to give
to staff and patients at a military hospital.

Elvis Presley helped raise money to build the USS Arizona Memorial.

Surfin’ U.S.A. is the second studio album by The Beach Boys. It reached
number two, lasting 78 weeks on the albums chart, eventually being
certified gold by the RIAA. The album marks the beginning of the practice
to double track vocals, resulting in a fuller sound.