1963 in music - Definition and Overview

See also: 1962 in music, other events of 1963, 1964 in music, 1960s in music and the list of 'years in music'

Events

• January 1 - The Beatles start a 5 day tour in Scotland to support the release of their new single, "Love Me Do".
• January 7 - Gary U.S. Bonds files a $100,000 lawsuit against Chubby Checker, claiming that Checker stole "Quarter to Three" and turned it into "Dancin' Party." The lawsuit is later settled out of court.
• January 11 - The Whisky A Go-Go night club in Los Angeles, the first disco in the USA, is opened.
• January 12 - Bob Dylan portrays a folk singer in The Madhouse of Castle Street, a radio play for the BBC in London.
• February 16 - The Beatles receive their first #1 hit single, when "Please Please Me" tops the charts in the UK
• February 16 - Paul Anka marries Marie-Ann DeZogheb
• February 22 - The Beatles form Northern Songs Publishing Company.
• March 5 - Patsy Cline is killed in small plane crash near Camden, Tennessee, while on her way to Nashville, Tennessee from St. Louis, Missouri.
• April 29 - 19 year old Andrew Loog Oldham signs a contract with The Rolling Stones, becoming their manager. Oldham had seen the band in concert the previous day at the Crawdaddy Club in London.
• The Beatles record their first album, Please Please Me
• The Righteous Brothers begin performing together;
• Lonnie Mack begins his musical career;
• The Kinks form
• Herman's Hermits form
• Philips introduce the Musicassette at the Berlin Funkaustellung
• Coxsone Dodd opens the first black-owned recording studio in Jamaica, named Studio One
• Lord Shorty's "Clock and Dagger" is widely considered the first soca recording

Albums released

• Please Please Me - The Beatles
• Follow The Boys - Connie Francis
• Getz/Gilberto - Stan Getz and Joao Gilberto
• Mingus Mingus Mingus Mingus Mingus - Charles Mingus
• In Dreams - Roy Orbison

Top hits on record

• "Please Please Me" - The Beatles
• "She Loves You" - The Beatles
• "Love Me Do" - The Beatles
• "I Want To Hold Your Hand" - The Beatles
• "From Me To You" - The Beatles
• "In Dreams" - Roy Orbison
• "Blue Bayou" - Roy Orbison
• "Pretty Paper" - Roy Orbison
• "He's So Fine" - The Chiffons
• "Bo Diddley" - Buddy Holly
• "Brown Eyed Handsome Man" - Buddy Holly
• "Surf City" - Jan & Dean
• "It's My Party" - Lesley Gore
• "Twenty Four Hours From Tulsa" - Gene Pitney
• "Be My Baby" - The Ronettes
• "Wipe Out" - The Surfaris
• "If I Had A Hammer" - Trini Lopez
• "Da Doo Ron Ron" - The Crystals
• "Pipeline" - The Chantays
• "Walk Like A Man" - Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons
• "Heat Wave" - Martha & the Vandellas
• "Up On The Roof" - The Drifters
• "I Can't Stay Mad At You" - Skeeter Davis
• "Only In America" - Jay & the Americans
• "Who Stole The Keeshka?" - Matys Brothers
• "Wonderful Summer" - Robin Ward
• "I Only Want to Be With You" - Dusty Springfield
• "The Folk Singer" - Tommy Roe

Published popular songs

• "18 Yellow Roses"     Bobby Darin
• "Abilene"     w.m. John D. Loudermilk, Lester Brown, Bob Gibson, Albert Stanton
• "All My Loving"     w.m. John Lennon & Paul McCartney
• "Another Saturday Night"     w.m. Sam Cooke
• "As Usual"     Zanetis
• "Charade"     w. Johnny Mercer m. Henry Mancini
• "Da Do Ron Ron"     w.m. Phil Spector, Ellie Greenwich & Jeff Barry
• "Detroit City"     w.m. Mel Tillis & Danny Dill
• "Dominique"     Soeur Sourire
• "Don't Talk To Him"     Richard, Welch
• "Don't You Forget It"     w. Al Stillman m. Henry Mancini
• "Flash! Bang! Wallop!"     w.m.David Heneker
• "From Me To You"     w.m. John Lennon & Paul McCartney
• "Good Morning, Good Day"     w. Sheldon Harnick m. Jerry Bock
• "Half A Sixpence"     w.m.David Heneker
• "Hello, Dolly!"     w.m. Jerry Herman
• "How Do You Do It?"     w.m. Mitch Murray
• "I Call Your Name"     w.m. John Lennon & Paul McCartney
• "I Like It"     Murray
• "I Saw Her Standing There"     w.m. John Lennon & Paul McCartney
• "I Want To Hold Your Hand"     w.m. John Lennon & Paul McCartney
• "I Will Follow Him"     w. (Eng) Norman Gimbel & Arthur Altman m. J. W. Stole & Del Roma
• "I'll Get You"     w.m. John Lennon & Paul McCartney
• "It Won't Be Long"     w.m. John Lennon & Paul McCartney
• "It's My Party"     w.m. Herb Wiener, Wally Gold & John Gluck Jnr
• "Kissin' Cousins"     w.m. Fred Wise & Randy Starr
• "Losing You"     w.(Eng) Carl Sigman m. Jean Renard
• "Make The World Go Away"     w.m. Hank Cochran
• "Move Over Darling"     Kanter
• "On Broadway"     w.m. Cynthia Weil, Barry Mann, Jerry Leiber & Mike Stoller
• "On The Beach"     Welch, Marvin, Richard
• "Our Day Will Come" w.m. Bob Hillard & Mort Garson
• "The Pink Panther"     w. Johnny Mercer m. Henry Mancini
• "Pretty Paper"     Willie Nelson
• "Reverend Mr Black"     Billy Edd Wheeler, Jed Peters
• "She Loves Me" w. Sheldon Harnick m. Jerry Bock. Introduced by Daniel Massey in the musical She Loves Me
• "She Loves You"     w.m. John Lennon & Paul McCartney
• "Surf City"     w.m. Jan Berry & Brian Wilson
• "Surfer Girl"     w.m. Brian Wilson
• "Talk Back Trembling Lips"     w.m. John D. Loudermilk
• "This Boy" w.m. John Lennon & Paul McCartney
• "The Times They Are A-Changin' "     w.m. Bob Dylan
• "The Ugly Bug Ball" w.m. Richard M. Sherman and Robert B. Sherman, from the film Summer Magic
• "Viva Las Vegas"     Doc Pomus & Mort Shuman
• "Washington Square" w.m. Bob Goldstein & David Shire
• "Will He Like Me?" w. Sheldon Harnick m. Jerry Bock. Introduced by Barbara Cook in the Broadway production of She Loves Me. Performed by Anne Rogers in the 1964 London production.
• "Wives And Lovers"     w. Hal David m. Burt Bacharach
• "You Were Made For Me"     Murray

Classical music

• Benjamin Britten - Nocturnal after John Dowland, op. 70 (guitar)
• Francis Poulenc - Sept répons des ténèbres
• Giacinto Scelsi - String Quartet No. 3
• Igor Stravinsky - Abraham and Isaac
• Iannis Xenakis - Eonta

Opera

• Malcolm Williamson - Our Man in Havana

Musical theater

• 110 In The Shade(Music: Harvey Schmidt Lyrics: Tom Jones Book: N. Richard Nash). Broadway production opened at the Broadhurst Theatre on October 24 and ran for 331 performances
• At The Drop Of Another Hat( Music and Lyrics: Michael Flanders and Donald Swann). London revue opened at the Haymarket Theatre on October 2
• The Boys From Syracuse (Music: Richard Rodgers Lyrics: Lorenz Hart Book: George Abbott). London production opened at the Drury Lane Theatre on November 7 and ran for 100 performances
• Carnival(Music and Lyrics: Bob Merrill Book: Michael Stewart). London production opened at the Lyric Theatre on February 8 and ran for 34 performances
• A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Forum(Music and Lyrics: Stephen Sondheim Book: Burt Shevelove and Larry Gelbart). London production opened at the Strand Theatre on October 3 and ran for 762 performances
• The Girl Who Came To Supper (Music and Lyrics: Noël Coward). Broadway production opened at the Broadway Theatre on December 8 and ran for 112 performances
• Half A Sixpence(Music and Lyrics: David Heneker Book: Douglas Cross). London production opened at the Cambridge Theatre on March 21 and ran for 677 performances
• Here's Love(Music, Lyrics and Book: Meredith Willson). Broadway production opened at the Shubert Theatre on October 3 and ran for 334 performances
• How To Succeed In Business Without Really Trying(Music and Lyrics: Frank Loesser Book: Abe Burrows, Jack Weinstein and Willie Gilbert). London production opened at the Shaftesbury Theatre on March 28 and ran for 520 performances.
• Oh! What a Lovely War(Music and Lyrics: Various Book: Charles Chilton). Opened at the Theatre Royal, Stratford East on March 19 and transferred to Wyndham's Theatre, London on June 20 for a total run of 501 performances.
• Oliver! (Music, Lyrics and Book: Lionel Bart) - Broadway production opened at the Imperial Theatre on January 6 and ran for 744 performances
• On The Town(Music: Leonard Bernstein Lyrics and Book: Betty Comden and Adolph Green). London production opened at the Prince Of Wales Theatre on May 30 and ran for 53 performances
• Pickwick(Music: Cyril Ornadel Lyrics: Leslie Bricusse Book: Wolf Mankowitz). London production opened at the Saville Theatre on July 4 and ran for 694 performances
• She Loves Me(Music: Jerry Bock Lyrics: Sheldon Harnick Book: Joe Masteroff). Broadway production opened at the Eugene O'Neill Theatre on April 23 and ran for 302 performances

Musical films

• Bye Bye Birdie
• Fun In Acapulco
• Summer Holiday

Births

• January 4 - Robin Guthrie, Cocteau Twins
• January 26 - Jazzie B, Soul II Soul
• January 26 - Andrew Ridgeley, Wham!
• January 28 - Dan Spitz, Anthrax
• February 2 - Eva Cassidy
• February 19 - Seal
• March 1 - Dan Michaels, producer, saxophonist, member of the rock band The Choir and also The Swirling Eddies, owner of Galaxy21 Music.
• March 4 - Jason Newsted, Metallica
• March 10 - Jeff Ament, Pearl Jam
• March 15 - Bret Michaels, Poison
• April 8 - Julian Lennon, son of John Lennon
• May 21 - Gilles Apap, violinist
• June 7 - Roberto Alagna, tenor
• June 25 - George Michael
• June 30 - Yngwie J. Malmsteen, guitar preformer
• July 7 - Vonda Shepard,singer and musician
• July 22 - Emily Saliers, Indigo Girls
• August 3 - James Hetfield, Metallica
• August 12 - Sir Mix-A-Lot
• August 22 - Tori Amos
• August 22 - James DeBarge, DeBarge
• October 26 - Natalie Merchant
• October 30 - Jerry DeBorg, Jesus Jones
• November 1 - Rick Allen, Def Leppard
• November 2 - Bobby Dall, Poison
• December 26 - Lars Ulrich, Metallica
• December 31 - Scott Ian, Anthrax

Deaths

• January 6 - Lina Barbanell, German singer and actress
• January 24 - Otto Harbach, lyricist
• January 30 - Francis Poulenc
• March 5 - Patsy Cline, American country singer, in a plane crash
• March 31 - Harry Akst, US composer and pianist
• May 6 - Ted Weems, 61, US bandleader
• May 10 - Irving Aaronson, bandleader and composer
• October 11 - Edith Piaf, French singing superstar
• November 22 - John Fitzgerald Kennedy, United States President
• November 26 - Amelita Galli-Curci, Operatic soprano
• November 29 - Ernesto Lecuona, Cuban composer, pianist and bandleader
• December 5 - Karl Amadeus Hartmann, composer
• December 28 - Paul Hindemith

Awards

Grammy Awards

• Grammy Awards of 1963

Eurovision Song Contest

• Eurovision Song Contest 1963