Thursday, January 13, 2022

THURSDAY BACKTRACK: Music and news from 60 years ago - week ending 14 January 1961

At #2: Cliff Richard's 'I Love You':



Giles cartoon (15 January but relating to December 1960): Electric train breakdowns


In November 1960 Glasgow's diesel-powered suburban trains began to be replaced by non-polluting, 'blue train' electric versions - brochure details and electrification program here.  
    Unfortunately there were soon accidents, on 13 and 17 December, leading to questions in Parliament and Ministry of Transport reports. 'The entire fleet was withdrawn for nearly a year after a train exploded because of transformer problems in December 1960, seriously injuring three people,' says a 2010 'Scotsman' retrospective

Cover of November 1960 introductory brochure from British Railways (Scotland)

Some memorable events (via Wikipedia):

7 January: Following a four-day conference in Casablanca, five African chiefs of state announced plans for a NATO-type African organization to ensure common defense. From the Charter of Casablanca emerged the Casablanca Group, consisting of Morocco, the United Arab Republic, Ghana, Guinea, and Mali.

8 January: In France, a referendum supported Charles de Gaulle's policies on independence for Algeria with a majority of 75% (17,447,669 to 5,817,775) in favour.

9 January: British authorities announced that they had discovered the Soviet Portland Spy Ring in London. Arrested on January 7 were Harry Houghton, Ethel Gee and Gordon Lonsdale.
    Also, In the former Belgian Congo, aides of jailed premier Patrice Lumumba formed the "Republic of Lualaba", in the valley of the Lualaba River.

10 January: The University of Georgia was forced to admit its first African-American students, after U.S. District Judge William Bootle ordered the U.Ga. to admit Charlayne Hunter and Hamilton E. Holmes.

11 January: Ukrainian SSR Communist Party Chief Nikolai Podgorny was berated by Soviet First Secretary Nikita Khrushchev after corn production fell short of goals set for 1960. In a session of the party's Central Committee in Moscow, Khrushchev accused Podgorny of lying to conceal theft and warned, "You will pay for this lack of leadership." Podgorny, along with Leonid Brezhnev and Alexei Kosygin, would be part of the troika that would overthrow Khrushchev in 1964.
    Also, The name Grampian Television was selected for independent television's new service covering the north of Scotland, replacing the name North of Scotland Television. The Grampian Mountains are one of three mountain ranges in Scotland.

13 January: General Cemal Gürsel, the President of Turkey since a May 27 coup, announced that the ban on political activity had been lifted and that parliamentary elections would be scheduled for October 15.

14 January: In the final week of his administration, U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower issued an Executive Order that closed a loophole that allowed American people and companies to own gold outside of the United States. Since 1933, persons and companies under American jurisdiction were barred from buying, selling or owning gold within the U.S., but were not prohibited from hoarding it outside of the country. The new order directed that all Americans who held gold coins, gold bars, and foreign gold securities and gold certificates, would have to dispose of their holdings no later than June 1. The move came after the U.S. trade deficit had grown by ten billion dollars over the previous three years.


UK chart hits, week ending 14 January 1961
Htp: Clint's labour-of love compilation https://www.sixtiescity.net/charts/61chart.htm

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