Politics

Eighteen political protesters are killed and over 400 are injured in The Peterloo Massacre at St Peter's Field, Manchester, UK, when British cavalry charge into a crowd of 60 – 80,000 people that have gathered to demand the reform of parliamentary representation. This infamous incident will inspire the song Ned Ludd Part 5 on electric folk group Steeleye Span's 2006 album Bloody Men, and the song Peterloo by The Oldham Tinkers.

Pete Seeger plays at Oberlin College, Oberlin, Ohio, USA.

The Berlin Wall is erected overnight, closing off the Western part of Berlin, Germany, Europe, from the Eastern part. This action will inspire the song West Of The Wall, by Toni Fisher which will reach No1 in the Australian Top Twenty singles chart in 1962.

Highlights of the first Monterey Folk Festival, which begins on this day in Monterey, California, USA, are sets from Bob Dylan, Joan Baez, Pete Seeger and Peter Paul And Mary.

Anthony Newley, Leslie Bricusee, Peter Sellers, Joan Collins and others record the LP Fool Britannia for London Records in New York City, USA. The album features skits based on the recent Profumo Scandal which rocked the British political establishment. In the studio watching the recording are celebrities including Sammy Davis Jr, Vivien Leigh and Roddy McDowell. The album will peak at No10 in the charts.

Basic tracks for the songs We Shall Overcome and Trouble In This Land are recorded in Hitsville Studio, Detroit, Michigan, USA. Liz Lands and The Voices Of Salvation gospel group will complete their vocal parts at Greystone Ballroom in Detroit four days later.

Dan Blocker and John Mitchum record The Battle Hymn Of The Republic and Charles in RCA Victor Studio, 6363 Sunset Blvd., Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA.

National Country Music Week, a nation-wide observance of country music proclaimed by an Act Of Congress, comes to a close in the USA.

The Journeymen, The Halifax Three, Joe Mapes, The Geezinslaw Brothers and Gelnn Yarbrough play in the Hootenanny USA Show at the Veteran's Memorial Auditorium, Columbus, Ohio, USA.

The Hollies record Too Many People and I've Been Wrong at EMI's Abbey Road Studios in London, England, UK.

Jim Kweskin And His Jug Band, Phil Ochs, Koerner, Ray And Glover, Len Chandler and Dave Van Ronk play in The Yong Folk Show at The Arie Crown Theater, McCormick Place, Chicago, Illinois, USA.

Pete Seeger, Memphis Slim and Willie Dixon play at The Village Gate, Greenwich Village, New York City, USA.

The Fugs, Kaleidoscope and Dr. P. H. Martin's Magic Medicine Show [a light show], play at The Crystal Ballroom, Portland, Oregon, USA.

Harry Belafonte plays at the Garden State Arts Center, Holmdel, New Jersey, USA.

Country Joe And The Fish play the first of three nights at the Fillmore West, San Francisco, California, USA.

Pete Seeger plays a benefit concert for congressional candidate Phil Drath at The Mount Tamapais Theatre, Mount Tamalpais State Park, Marin County, California, USA.

US Congressman Birch Bayh begins a speech in Congress with the words. "Mr President, I desire to pay tribute to a family of five young black musicians and singers from Gary, Indiana." His speech goes on to praise the Jackson 5's contribution not only to music but to the status of black Americans generally, and ends with the words, "Indiana and the nation are proud of the Jackson Five."

The U.S. Justice Department gives illegal immigrant John Lennon sixty days to leave the country voluntarily or face deportation. John will appeal the ruling.

Jello Biafra of anarcho-punk-rock band The Dead Kennedys suffers defeat in the attempt to be elected as Mayor Of San Francisco, California, USA. Dianne Feinstein, chair of San Francisco's Board of Supervisors gets 46.63% of the vote, while Senator Quentin Kopp gets 44.72%.

When black children in South Africa adopt Another Brick In The Wall by Pink Floyd as their anthem, censorship rears its ugly head - the single is banned by the apartheid regime.

In China, the People's Music Press publishes a guide entitled, How To Distinguish Decadent Music, singling out Elvis Presley as an example of the 'expression of confused, blind, excitement' and directing right-thinking Chinese folks towards such wholesome home-grown songs as The Nightsoil Collectors Are Descending The Mountain.

The US Senate passes a bill, inspired by a campaign started by Stevie Wonder, to have civil right campaigner Dr Martin Luther King's birthday recognized as a national holiday in the USA. The bill is passed by a majority of 78 votes to 22.

Redgum play at The King's Head, Fulham, London, England, UK, Europe.

Three days of riots begin in the Handsworth area of Birmingham, West Midlands, UK. The riots will inspire the songs Handsworth Riot by Pato Banton and Handsworth Revolution by Steel Pulse.

Attila The Stockbroker plays at Pennyies, Norwich, England, UK, Europe, supported by The Neutroics.

Johnny Cash is honoured with the Shalom Peace Award from the Jewish National Fund at a testimonial dinner held in The Peabody Hotel, Memphis, Tennessee, USA.

Glastonbury CND Festival, a three-day event, at Worthy Farm, Pilton, Somerset, England, UK, attracts 60,000 fans whose £21 ticket enables them to see Elvis Costello, Robert Cray, New Order, Paul Brady, Michelle Shocked and Van Morrison. A W.O.M.A.D. stage is also introduced at this festival. £130,000 is raised for CND and local charities.

Doc Dart, anarchist punk rock vocalist with The Crucifucks, finishes last of three candidates in the city primary election for mayor of Lansing, Michigan, USA. Dart manages to secure 5% of the vote.

Midnight Oil release their seventh LP, Blue Sky Mining, on Columbia Records in Australia. The album's title track address the tragedy of the asbestos-related illnesses contracted by workers at The Wittenoom Asbestos Mine.

In the wake of the World Trade Center attack, 1200-station US radio network Clear Channel Communications bans all music by Rage Against The Machine and issues a don't-play list of 150 songs, ranging from Nena's hit 99 Red Balloons to John Lennon's Imagine, which includes the lyric, "I hope someday you'll join us/And the world will live as one."

R.E.M., Bruce Springsteen, John Fogerty and Bright Eyes play a concert in support of US Presidential candidate John Kerry at the Xcel Energy Center, St Paul, Minnesota, USA.

A train is named Gracie Fields in honour of the world-famed singer and actress from Rochdale, Lancashire, England, UK, Europe. The new nameplate on the Northern Rail Class 156 train is is unveiled at Manchester Victoria Station by Gracie Fields' nephew, Douggie Wakefield, in the presence of the mayors of Rochdale and Manchester.

Russian rocker Yury Shevchuk, leader of Russian band DDT, clashes openly with Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin at a charity literary-musical evening for children with cancer and leukemia in St. Petersburg, Russia, Europe.

John Rich of Big And Rich earns $20,000 for St. Jude Children's Research Hospital as the winning project manager for a four-page Donald Trump Collection advertising presentation on NBC tv's The Celebrity Apprentice in the USA.

Bruce Johnston of The Beach Boys is harshly critical of US President Barack Obama while signing autographs for fans in New York City, USA. Johnson reputedly describes the president as "a socialist asshole".

It is reported that British Culture Minister Matt Hancock is to raise concerns with London Mayor Sadiq Khan over the Metropolitan Police's use of the controversial Form 696 which requires venues in London, England, UK, Europe, to supply the names, stage names, addresses and phone numbers of all promoters and artists participating in an event - particularly if a night "predominantly features DJs or MCs performing to a backing track". Originally introduced in London, the form has since been adopted by sixteen other police authorities, and fears are widespread that it has racist implications and is intended particularly to target black and Asian musics such as Grime and hip-hop.

On their DCX MMXVI World Tour, The Dixie Chicks play the first of two nights at Rod Laver Arena, Melbourne, Australia, Oceania.

Because Britney Spears is playing in Yarkon Park, Tel Aviv, Israel, during her Live In Concert tour, the Israeli Labour Party cancels its election for a new chairperson, fearing that voters might choose to attend the concert rather than the ballot box. In the event, Spears attracts 60,000 people.

In an interview published today by entertainment media outlet Vulture, Eryka Badu claims that she can see the "good" in Adolf Hitler and other controversial figures, including Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan. Her comment swiftly draws criticism from Anti-Defamation League chief Johnathan Greenblatt who calls on her to issue an immediate publiuc apology.