1963 in music

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Events

• January 1 - The Beatles start a 5 day tour in Scotland to support the release of their new single, "Love Me Do".
• January 4 - At Cortina d'Ampezzo in Italy, Dalida receives a Juke Box Global Oscar for the year's most-played artist on juke boxes.
• 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
  • "Please Please Me" is released in the United Kingdom by The Beatles, with "Ask Me Why" as the B-side. It would be the first Beatles' single to reach #1 (on most record charts) in the UK.
  • The Whisky a Go Go night club in Los Angeles, the first disco in the USA, opens.
• 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
  • 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 Kansas City, Missouri at the height of her career.
• March 17 - The Kinks form.
• March 23 - The 8th Eurovision Song Contest is held in two studios at the BBC Television Centre, London. After much confusion regarding the results of the Norwegian jury, Denmark snatches victory from Switzerland after a close run. The Danish husband-and-wife duo Grethe and Jørgen Ingmann take the prize with "Dansevise".
• 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.
• May 15 - Opening of the National Academic Theatre of Opera and Ballet of Mongolia.
• The Beatles record their first album, Please Please Me
• Dalida is rejected by Decca in the UK. Again.
• The Righteous Brothers begin performing together.
• The Rolling Stones first single "Come on" is released in the UK and reaches #21
• 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

• Annie Get Your Gun - Doris Day
• As Long as She Needs Me - Gladys Knight and the Pips
• Bill Haley and His Comets - Bill Haley & His Comets
• Bill Henderson with the Oscar Peterson Trio - Bill Henderson
• Black Fire - Andrew Hill
• The Black Saint and the Sinner Lady - Charles Mingus
• Blood, Sweat and Tears - Johnny Cash
• Bo Diddley's Beach Party - Bo Diddley
• Carnaval de Ritmos Modernos - Bill Haley & His Comets
• The Christmas Spirit - Johnny Cash
• Chuck Berry on Stage - Chuck Berry (live)
• The Composer of Desafinado, Plays - Antonio Carlos Jobim
• The Concert Sinatra - Frank Sinatra
• Conversations With Myself - Bill Evans
• Dion Sings "Love Came to Me" - Dion DiMucci
• Ella and Basie! - Ella Fitzgerald and Count Basie
• Ella Sings Broadway - Ella Fitzgerald
• Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Jerome Kern Songbook - Ella Fitzgerald
• Elvis' Golden Records Volume 3 - Elvis Presley
• The End of the World - Julie London
• Eux - Dalida
• Follow the Boys - Connie Francis
• For Your Sweet Love - Ricky Nelson
• The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan - Bob Dylan
• Fun in Acapulco (OST) - Elvis Presley
• Getz/Gilberto - Stan Getz and João Gilberto
• Have You Heard? - Dick Morrissey Quartet
• The Hits of Jo Stafford - Jo Stafford
• I Left My Heart in San Francisco - Tony Bennett
• In Dreams - Roy Orbison
• It Happened at the World's Fair - Elvis Presley
• Joan Baez in Concert, Part 2 - Joan Baez
• Laughing on the Outside - Aretha Franklin
• Latin in a Satin Mood - Julie London
• Little Deuce Coupe - The Beach Boys
• Live at the Apollo - James Brown
• Live at Birdland - John Coltrane
• Live at the Harlem Square Club, 1963 - Sam Cooke (recorded but not released until 1985)
• Love Him - Doris Day
• Love – Rosemary Clooney
• Love on the Rocks - Julie London
• Madison - Bill Haley & His Comets
• Mingus Mingus Mingus Mingus Mingus - Charles Mingus
• Mingus Plays Piano - Charles Mingus
• On My Way and Shoutin' Again! - Count Basie
• Oscar Peterson and Nelson Riddle - Oscar Peterson
• Page One - Joe Henderson
• The Patsy Cline Story - Patsy Cline
• Peace in the Valley - Jo Stafford and Gordon MacRae
• Please Please Me - The Beatles
• Los Relámpagos del Norte - Los Relámpagos del Norte
• Ring of Fire: The Best of Johnny Cash - Johnny Cash
• Rock Around the Clock King - Bill Haley & His Comets
• Rosemary Clooney Sings Country Hits From the Heart – Rosemary Clooney
• Ruby Baby - Dion DiMucci
• Seven Steps to Heaven - Miles Davis
• Sinatra's Sinatra - Frank Sinatra
• The Songs I Love - Perry Como
• Surfin' USA - The Beach Boys
• Surfer Girl - The Beach Boys
• Surfin' With Bo Diddley - Bo Diddley
• These Are the Blues - Ella Fitzgerald
• With the Beatles - The Beatles
• The Wonderful World of Julie London - Julie London

Biggest hit singles

The following singles achieved the highest chart positions in 1963.

#	Artist	Title	Year	Country	Chart Entries
1	The Beatles	She Loves You	1963		UK 1 - Aug 1963, US BB 1 - Feb 1964, Canada 1 - Dec 1963, Norway 1 - Oct 1963, Australia 1 of 1963, US CashBox 2 of 1964, South Africa 2 of 1963, TOTP 2, DDD 2 of 1963, RYM 4 of 1963, Germany 7 - Mar 1964, Scrobulate 18 of oldies, US BB 20 of 1964, POP 20 of 1964, Italy 29 of 1964, Global 33 (5 M sold) - 1963, Rolling Stone 64, Acclaimed 119, Germany 332 of the 1960s, WXPN 335, OzNet 913
2	Kingsmen	Louie Louie	1963		Canada 1 - Nov 1963, DDD 1 of 1963, POP 1 of 1963, US BB 2 - Nov 1963, US BB 3 of 1963, Peel list 3 of 1964, RYM 5 of 1963, US CashBox 6 of 1964, Acclaimed 10, 19 in 2FM list, UK 26 - Jan 1964, Rolling Stone 55, RIAA 57, Party 139 of 1999
3	Paul & Paula	Hey Paula	1963		US BB 1 - Jan 1963, Canada 1 - Dec 1962, Australia 1 for 2 weeks Sep 1962, Norway 2 - Mar 1963, Italy 4 of 1963, UK 8 - Feb 1963, Australia 9 of 1963, US CashBox 14 of 1963, Germany 16 - May 1963, South Africa 16 of 1963, US BB 33 of 1963, POP 33 of 1963, RYM 123 of 1962
4	Lesley Gore	It's My Party	1963		US BB 1 - May 1963, US BB 1 of 1963, Canada 1 - May 1963, Australia 1 for 2 weeks Dec 1962, POP 3 of 1963, UK 9 - Jun 1963, RYM 22 of 1963, US CashBox 30 of 1963, DDD 30 of 1963, RIAA 229, Acclaimed 1286
5	The Ronettes	Be My Baby	1963		US BB 2 - Sep 1963, Canada 2 - Sep 1963, RYM 2 of 1963, UK 4 - Oct 1963, DDD 5 of 1963, Norway 9 - Dec 1963, Acclaimed 15, Rolling Stone 22, Scrobulate 22 of oldies, US BB 30 of 1963, POP 30 of 1963, US CashBox 44 of 1963, 99 in 2FM list, RIAA 253, WXPN 412

Selected American and/or British Hit Singles

• "Please Please Me" - The Beatles
• "Ring of Fire" - Johnny Cash
• "She Loves You" - The Beatles
• "Love Me Do" - The Beatles
• "I Want to Hold Your Hand" - The Beatles
• "From Me to You" - The Beatles
• "Like I Do" - Maureen Evans
• "Say Wonderful Things - Ronnie Carroll
• "In Dreams" - Roy Orbison
• "How Do You Do It?" - Gerry and the Pacemakers
• "Do You Want to Know a Secret?" - Billy J. Kramer and the Dakotas
• "Come On" - The Rolling Stones
• "From a Jack to a King" - Ned Miller
• "I Like It" - Gerry and the Pacemakers
• "Sweets for My Sweet" - The Searchers
• "From Me to You" - The Beatles
• "Bad to Me" - Billy J. Kramer and the Dakotas
• "Sugar and Spice" - The Searchers
• "You'll Never Walk Alone" - Gerry and the Pacemakers
• "I Wanna Be Your Man" - The Rolling Stones
• "I'll Keep You Satisfied" - Billy J. Kramer and the Dakotas
• "Blue Bayou" - Roy Orbison
• "Mean Woman Blues" - Roy Orbison
• "Hey Paula" - Paul & Paula
• "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
• "Sweet Dreams" - Patsy Cline
• "Twenty-Four Hours From Tulsa" - Gene Pitney
• "Be My Baby" - The Ronettes
• "Wipeout" - The Surfaris
• "I Want To Stay Here" - Steve Lawrence and Eydie Gormé
• "If I Had A Hammer" - Trini Lopez
• "Da Doo Ron Ron" - The Crystals
• "Pipeline" - The Chantays
• "Walk Like A Man" - The Four Seasons
• "(Love is Like a) 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
• "Wonderful Summer" - Robin Ward
• "I Only Want to Be With You" - Dusty Springfield
• "The Folk Singer" - Tommy Roe
• "The Night Has a Thousand Eyes" - Bobby Vee

See also: Hot 100 No. 1 Hits of 1963 (USA)

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"      Alex Zanetis
• "Call Me Irresponsible" w.Sammy Cahn m. Jimmy Van Heusen from the film Papa's Delicate Condition
• "Charade"     w. Johnny Mercer m. Henry Mancini. From the film of the same name.
• "Da Do Ron Ron"     w.m. Phil Spector, Ellie Greenwich & Jeff Barry
• "Detroit City"     w.m. Mel Tillis & Danny Dill
• "Distant Drums"     w.m. Cindy Walker
• "Dominique"     Singing Nun
• "Don't Talk To Him"     Cliff Richard, Welch
• "Don't You Forget It"     w. Al Stillman m. Henry Mancini
• "Every Time I Think About You"     w.m. Claude Demetrius
• "Flash! Bang! Wallop!"     w.m. David Heneker. Introduced by Tommy Steele in the London production of the musical Half a Sixpence. Steele also performed the song in the Broadway production in 1965 and the 1967 film version (with modified lyrics).
• "Forget Him" w.m. Mark Anthony (a pseudonym of Tony Hatch)
• "From Me to You"     w.m. John Lennon & Paul McCartney
• "From Russia with Love w.m. Lionel Bart
• "Good Morning, Good Day"     w. Sheldon Harnick m. Jerry Bock
• "Half A Sixpence"     w.m. David Heneker
• "Hello, Dolly!"     w.m. Jerry Herman. Introduced by Carol Channing in the musical Hello, Dolly!
• "Higitus Figitus", w.m. Richard M. Sherman and Robert B. Sherman, from the Walt Disney film The Sword and the Stone
• "How Do You Do It?"     w.m. Mitch Murray
• "I Call Your Name"     w.m. John Lennon & Paul McCartney
• "I Like It"     Mitch 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
• "If I Ruled the World" w. Leslie Bricusse m. Cyril Ornadel. Introduced by Harry Secombe in the musical Pickwick
• "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
• "Martian Hop"     w.m. Steven Rappaport, John Spirt, Robert Rappaport
• "Move Over Darling"     Hal 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 Hilliard & Mort Garson
• "The Pink Panther Theme"     w. Johnny Mercer m. Henry Mancini
• "Pretty Paper"     Willie Nelson
• "Reverend Mr Black"     Billy Edd Wheeler, Jed Peters
• "Ring of Fire" w.m. Merle Kilgore & June Carter
• "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
• "When Joanna Loved Me" w. Robert Wells m. Jack Segal
• "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"     Mitch Murray

Classical music

• Benjamin Britten - Nocturnal after John Dowland, op. 70, for guitar
• Francis Poulenc - Sept répons des ténèbres
• Giacinto Scelsi - String Quartet No. 3
• Igor Stravinsky - Abraham and Isaac
• William Walton - Variations on a Theme by Hindemith, for orchestra
• Iannis Xenakis - Eonta

Opera

• Richard Rodney Bennett - The Mines of Sulphur
• Carlisle Floyd - The Sojourner and Molly Sinclair
• Malcolm Williamson - Our Man in Havana

Musical theater

• Oliver! (Music, Lyrics and Book: Lionel Bart) - Broadway production opened at the Imperial Theatre on January 6 and ran for 744 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
• Here's Love (Music, Lyrics and Book: Meredith Willson). Broadway production opened at the Shubert Theatre on October 3 and ran for 334 performances
• 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
• 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
• Carnival (Music and Lyrics: Bob Merrill Book: Michael Stewart). London production opened at the Lyric Theatre on February 8 and ran for 34 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.
• 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
• 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.
• 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
• At the Drop of Another Hat ( Music and Lyrics: Michael Flanders and Donald Swann). London revue opened at the Haymarket Theatre on October 2
• 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 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

Musical films

• Bye Bye Birdie
• Fun in Acapulco
• Summer Holiday
• Summer Magic starring Hayley Mills, Burl Ives, Dorothy McGuire and Eddie Hodges

Births

• January 26
  • Jazzie B, Soul II Soul
  • 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
• March 18 - Vanessa Williams, singer and actress
• March 27 - Dave Koz, saxophonist
• April 8 - Julian Lennon, son of John Lennon
• May 5 - Prince Ital Joe, reggae singer (d. 2001)
• May 21 - Gilles Apap, violinist
• June 7 - Roberto Alagna, tenor
• June 20 - Amir Derakh orgy, Julien-K
• June 25 - George Michael
• June 30 - Yngwie J. Malmsteen, guitar performer
• July 7 - Vonda Shepard, singer and musician
• July 22 - Emily Saliers, Indigo Girls
• August 3 - James Hetfield, Metallica
• August 9 - Whitney Houston, singer and actress
• August 12 - Sir Mix-A-Lot
• August 19 - Joey Tempest, Europe
• August 22
  • Tori Amos
  • James DeBarge, DeBarge
• October 13 - Kemi Olusanya, Kemistry & Storm
• October 14 - Alessandro Safina, operatic tenor
• October 26 - Natalie Merchant
• October 30 - Jerry DeBorg, Jesus Jones
• November 1 - Rick Allen, Def Leppard
• December 26 - Lars Ulrich, Metallica
• December 31 - Scott Ian, Anthrax

Deaths

• January 2 - Dick Powell, actor and singer
• January 6 - Lina Barbanell, German singer and actress
• January 24 - Otto Harbach, lyricist
• January 30 - Francis Poulenc
• February 19 - Benny Moré, Cuban singer
• February 20 - Ferenc Fricsay, conductor
• March 5 - Patsy Cline, American country/pop singer, in a plane crash
• March 17 - Lizzie Miles, singer
• March 31 - Harry Akst, US composer and pianist
• April 12 - Herbie Nichols, jazz musician
• May 6 - Ted Weems, 61, US bandleader
• May 10 - Irving Aaronson, bandleader and composer
• September 3 - Frico Kafenda, Slovak composer
• September 12 - Modest Altschuler, cellist, conductor and composer
• October 11 - Édith Piaf, French singing superstar
• November 1 - Elsa Maxwell, songwriter, "the hostess with the mostest"
• November 19 - Carmen Amaya, flamenco dancer and singer
• November 26 - Amelita Galli-Curci, operatic soprano
• November 29 - Ernesto Lecuona, Cuban composer, pianist and bandleader
• December 5 - Karl Amadeus Hartmann, composer
• December 14 - Dinah Washington, singer
• December 28 - Paul Hindemith, composer
• date unknown - Naftule Brandwein, clarinettist

Awards

Grammy Awards

• Grammy Awards of 1963

Eurovision Song Contest

• Eurovision Song Contest 1963

Leeds International Piano Competition

• Michael Roll

See also

• Hot 100 No. 1 Hits of 1963

External Charts

• Pop Culture Madness 1963 Pop Music Chart