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January 5 -
Alexander Dubček is elected leader of the Communist Party in
Czechoslovakia.
Alexander Dubček
(November 27, 1921 – November 7, 1992) was a Slovak politician and
briefly leader of Czechoslovakia (1968-1969), famous for his attempt
to reform the Communist regime. Later, after the overthrow of the
Communist government, he was speaker of the federal Czechoslovak
parliament.
January 13 -
Johnny Cash records "Live at Folsom Prison".
At Folsom Prison
is a live album by Johnny Cash, recorded on January 13, 1968 at
Folsom State Prison in Folsom, California. Also on the album are
June Carter, Carl Perkins, and Cash's band, the Tennessee Three.
The final song, "Greystone Chapel", was written by an inmate,
Glen Sherley. Johnny Cash had never sung the song until the night
before the Folsom visit. A Reverend asked Cash to listen to an audio
tape of Sherley singing the song. After hearing the tape Cash rushed
to include the song on the live album the next night.
Throughout the album Cash seems to empathize with the plight of the
prisoners. The inmates for their part had a great deal of respect
for Cash and his works, though some of the sounds that seemed to be
from the inmates (cheering and shouting) were actually dubbed in
after the recording.
On the original LP release, the song order was changed and several
songs were cut, probably for space reasons. The version released on
CD in 2000 still does not contain the entire concert, but rather
with added tracks from the concert that day. Four additional tracks
were performed that day but not included on the re-release: "I'm Not
in Your Town to Stay," "I've Got a Woman," "Long Legged Guitar
Picking Man," and an alternate performance of "Greystone Chapel."
In 2003, it was one of 50 recordings chosen that year by the Library
of Congress to be added to the National Recording Registry.
In 2006, it ranked #3 on CMT's
40 Greatest Albums in Country Music.
At Folsom Prison
is considered one of the best live recordings ever recorded, along
with its sister album, At San
Quentin.
January 15 - An
earthquake in Sicily kills 231 and injures 262.
January 17 -
Lyndon B. Johnson calls for the non-conversion of
US Dollar.
January 19 - At a White House conference on crime,
singer and actress Eartha Kitt denounces the
Vietnam War directly to President Lyndon Johnson.
January 21 - A U.S. B-52 Stratofortress
crashes in Greenland, discharging 4 nuclear bombs
January 22 -
Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In
debuts on NBC.
January 23 - North Korea seizes the
USS Pueblo,
claiming the ship violated its territorial waters while spying. See
USS Pueblo.
January 25 - The Israeli submarine
INS Dakar
sinks in the Mediterranean Sea (69 dead).
January 27 - A French submarine sinks in the
Mediterranean Sea with 52 men.
January 30 - Vietnam War: The Tet Offensive
begins, as Viet Cong forces launch a series of surprise attacks
across South Vietnam.
January 31 - Viet Cong soldiers attack the
United States Embassy in Saigon.
January 31 - Nauru's president
Hammer DeRoburt declares independence from Australia.
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