Nov 16th in Pop History

This day, November 16th, in…

• 1996 - The Beatles become the first act with three # 1 albums in the same year in the US, when their Anthology 3 compilation goes to the top.

The Beatles Anthology was a retrospective project consisting of a television documentary, a three-volume set of double albums, and a book describing the history of The Beatles. Beatles members Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr participated in the making of the works, which are sometimes referred to collectively as the Anthology project, while John Lennon appears in archival interviews.

To accompany the Anthology series, three albums were issued, each containing two CDs, two cassette tapes or three vinyl LPs of mostly never-before-released Beatles material (the exceptions being the Tony Sheridan-era material), although many of the tracks had appeared on bootlegs for many years prior.

Two days after the first television special in the series had aired, Anthology 1 was released to stores, and included music recorded by The Quarrymen, the famous Decca Records audition tapes, and various out-takes and demos from the band's first four albums. It also included the song Lend Me Your Comb, omitted from the collection Live at the BBC, released the previous year (1994). The song Free as a Bird was included at the very start. 450,000 copies of Anthology 1 were sold in its first day of release, the most sales for an album in a single day ever. The band's first drummer, Pete Best, replaced by Ringo Starr in 1962 before the Beatles recorded professionally for EMI, received his first substantial Beatles royalties from this album, for the inclusion of early demo tracks on which he played.

Anthology 2 was released on March 17, 1996. The second collection presented out-takes and demos from the Beatles' sessions for Help!, Rubber Soul, Revolver, Sgt.Pepper, and Magical Mystery Tour. These included selected early demos and takes for Lennon's Strawberry Fields Forever, previously available only to bootleg collectors. The new song Real Love – which, like Free as a Bird, was based on an unfinished Lennon recording – was also included in the two-CD collection.

Anthology 3 was released on October 28, 1996. The third collection featured out-takes and demos from The Beatles (White Album), Abbey Road and Let It Be, as well as several songs from Harrison and McCartney which later became post-Beatle tracks.

Also, on this day, November 16th, in:

• 1960 - Patsy Cline records I Fall To Pieces

After Brenda Lee had turned it down for being "too Country,” Patsy Cline records I Fall To Pieces for Decca Records in Nashville. The song will enter the US charts the following summer and rise to # 12.

Patsy Cline (born Virginia Patterson Hensley; 1932 – 1963) was an American singer. She is considered one of the most influential vocalists of the 20th century and was one of the first country music artists to successfully cross over into pop music. Cline had several major hits during her eight-year recording career, including two number-one hits on the Billboard Hot Country chart.

In 1957 however, Cline made her first national television appearance on Arthur Godfrey’s Talent Scouts. After performing Walk-in’ After Midnight, the single would become her first major hit on both the country and pop charts. The 1961 song I Fall to Pieces would become her first to top the Billboard country chart. As the song became a hit, Cline was severely injured in an automobile accident, which caused her to spend a month in the hospital. After recovering, her next single release Crazy would also become a major hit.

Between 1962 and 1963, Cline had hits with She’s Got You, When I Get Through with You, So Wrong, and Leavin’ on Your Mind. She also toured and headlined shows with more frequency. In March 1963, Cline appeared at a benefit show in Kansas City, Kansas. To return home, she boarded a plane along with country performers Cowboy Copas, Hawkshaw Hawkins, and manager Randy Hughes. Upon hitting rough weather, the plane crashed, outside of Camden, Tennessee killing all those on board.

Since her death, Cline has been cited as one of the most celebrated, respected and influential performers of the 20th century. Her music has influenced performers of various styles and genres. She has also been seen as a forerunner for women in country music, being among the first to sell records and headline concerts. In 1973, she became the first female performer to be inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame.

I Fall To Pieces

Enjoy this great video of Patsy Cline performing I Fall To Pieces live:

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Also, on this day, November 16th, in:

• 1954 - Perry Como records (There’s No Place Like) Home For The Holidays

The song was published in 1954. The best-known recordings and the original was by Perry Como, who recorded the song twice, both times accompanied by Mitchell Ayers’ Orchestra and the Ray Charles Singers. The first recording was released as a single for Christmas time 1954 by RCA Victor.🎄