2011 – Steve Jobs, Apple Computers, Disney, Pixar, and iTunes died today on This Day in Rock! Jobs, most notably known for the iPhone in recent years, contributed to the computer and music world. iTunes being the most notable and influential music download service in the known universe. At one time apple battled over the name ‘Apple’ with the Beatles who own the same name, but in different industries… until iTunes.
Steve… you will be missed. We equate it to the passing of Walt Disney.
All the facts about rock hisory you need in one easy place. With a database of over 25,000 records and growing daily, we update posts about Elvis, the Beatles, Led Zeppelin, Jimi Hendrix, the Doors, Jet, My Chemical Romance and many more. We include Video from YouTube, lyrics, and all the juicy facts that happen to your favorite stars. Tell you friends, leave comments, and enjoy history.
2010 – In the UK, Led Zeppelin were voted nation’s fav band by the BBC’s “I’m in a Rock ‘n’ Roll Band” on This Day in Rock! The mighty Zep beat out the Beatles and Queen in the phone in vote. John Bonham also won top honors as Fav drummer, but Jimi Hendrix was voted Fav Guitarist, and Freddie Mercury was voted Fav singer. Tough competition.
2010 – RIAA, say Beatles still on top! Utilizing Nielsen SoundScan data, which dates to 1991, Guns N’ Roses have totaled 24,914,000 albums sold in the U.S. 1991′s “Use Your Illusion 2″ leads with 5,587,000 units, followed closely by “Use Your Illusion 1,” at 5,502,000.
In that span, Metallica has sold 52,271,000 albums in the U.S., led by 1991′s “Metallica” with sales to date of 15,525,000.
According to the Recording Industry of America (RIAA), whose data encompasses the bands’ entire careers, Metallica leads Guns N’ Roses, 59 to 43.5 million. Among all artists, Metallica ranks 18th, Guns N’ Roses 30th.
It does help Metallica that the band has released more albums. The band has placed 14 titles on the Billboard 200, compared to G N’ R’s eight.
As for why the bands’ totals are so much closer using RIAA data as opposed to SoundScan’s, Guns N’ Roses’ opus “Appetite for Destruction” was released in 1987, four years before the advent of SoundScan information. Since 1991, the set has sold 5,008,000 copies. The RIAA, however, has certified the album with sales of 18 million dating to its release.
How does the RIAA stack up the U.S.’ top-selling rock groups of all-time? The list looks like this:
Rank, Artist, Certified Units (in millions)
1, the Beatles, 170
2, Led Zeppelin, 111.5
3, Eagles, 100
4, Pink Floyd, 74.5
5, AC/DC, 71
6, Aerosmith, 66.5
7, the Rolling Stones, 66
8, Metallica, 59
9, Van Halen, 56.5
10, U2, 51.5
11, Fleetwood Mac, 48.5
12, Journey, 47
13, Guns N’ Roses, 43.5
14, Santana, 43
15, Bob Seger and the Silver Bullet Band, 41
Finnegan’s Wake
What happens when a dearly loved Irishman passes on? Well, it’s time to celebrate his wake. This song is dedicated, no doubt, to the Irishman’s love of funerals and whiskey, “Finnegan’s Wake” supplied the theme for James Joyce’s famous novel of the same name.
The Unicorn Song
This “Irish song” is not really Irish at all, but the Irish Rovers found it and turned it into a St. Patrick’s Day classic.
Whiskey in the Jar
Metallica tried to turn it into a rock song, but it will always be a classic Irish tale of love and betrayal with a great chorus!
ABOUT:
Saint Patrick is believed to have been born in the late fourth century, and is often confused with Palladius, a bishop who was sent by Pope Celestine in 431 to be the first bishop to the Irish believers in Christ.
Saint Patrick was the patron saint and national apostle of Ireland who is credited with bringing christianity to Ireland. Most of what is known about him comes from his two works, the Confessio, a spiritual autobiography, and his Epistola, a denunciation of British mistreatment of Irish christians. Saint Patrick described himself as a “most humble-minded man, pouring forth a continuous paean of thanks to his Maker for having chosen him as the instrument whereby multitudes who had worshipped idols and unclean things had become the people of God.”
Saint Patrick is most known for driving the snakes from Ireland. It is true there are no snakes in Ireland, but there probably never have been – the island was separated from the rest of the continent at the end of the Ice Age. As in many old pagan religions, serpent symbols were common and often worshipped. Driving the snakes from Ireland was probably symbolic of putting an end to that pagan practice. While not the first to bring christianity to Ireland, it is Patrick who is said to have encountered the Druids at Tara and abolished their pagan rites. The story holds that he converted the warrior chiefs and princes, baptizing them and thousands of their subjects in the “Holy Wells” that still bear this name.
There are several accounts of Saint Patrick’s death. One says that Patrick died at Saul, Downpatrick, Ireland, on March 17, 460 A.D. His jawbone was preserved in a silver shrine and was often requested in times of childbirth, epileptic fits, and as a preservative against the “evil eye.” Another account says that St. Patrick ended his days at Glastonbury, England and was buried there. The Chapel of St. Patrick still exists as part of Glastonbury Abbey. Today, many Catholic places of worship all around the world are named after St. Patrick, including cathedrals in New York and Dublin city
Why Saint Patrick’s Day?
Saint Patrick’s Day has come to be associated with everything Irish: anything green and gold, shamrocks and luck. Most importantly, to those who celebrate its intended meaning, St. Patrick’s Day is a traditional day for spiritual renewal and offering prayers for missionaries worldwide.
So, why is it celebrated on March 17th? One theory is that that is the day that St. Patrick died. Since the holiday began in Ireland, it is believed that as the Irish spread out around the world, they took with them their history and celebrations. The biggest observance of all is, of course, in Ireland. With the exception of restaurants and pubs, almost all businesses close on March 17th. Being a religious holiday as well, many Irish attend mass, where March 17th is the traditional day for offering prayers for missionaries worldwide before the serious celebrating begins.
In American cities with a large Irish population, St. Patrick’s Day is a very big deal. Big cities and small towns alike celebrate with parades, “wearing of the green,” music and songs, Irish food and drink, and activities for kids such as crafts, coloring and games. Some communities even go so far as to dye rivers or streams green!
2010 – U.K. Declares Abbey Road A Historic Site
February 23, 2010
2010 – With all the talk about EMI possibly selling Abbey Road Studios, the U.K. government has stepped in and declared it a historic site so that no radical changes can be made. Culture Minister Margaret Hodge declared the iconic venue a “Grade II” listed building, which means that although changes to its interior are permitted, any proposed alterations must respect the character and preservation of the site. In a statement, Hodge said the listing had been granted “overwhelmingly on the historic merit of the studios” and because “it has huge cultural importance and a very special place in the hearts of recording artists and music lovers alike.”
“The Abbey Road Studios have been listed in acknowledgement of their outstanding cultural interest and to ensure that recording artists for generations to come can continue to make and record music in the same rooms as musical icons of years gone by,” said Hodge’s statement. “Music – of whichever genre – is the thread that follows us through all our lives and Abbey Road Studios have produced some of the very best music in the world. It’s a testament to both the importance of music in people’s lives as well as the passion this kind of issue stirs up, that so much interest has been generated by the perceived threat to the future of Abbey Road.”
Among those calling for the studios to be saved were Sir Paul McCartney and Andrew Lloyd Webber, who signaled that he was a potential buyer. However, EMI said over the weekend that it did not want to sell Abbey Road, although it was talking to other parties about revitalizing the site. EMI said it had been in discussions since November 2009 to find ways to regenerate the studios.
“EMI confirms that it is holding preliminary discussions for the revitalization of Abbey Road with interested and appropriate third parties,” the company said in the statement. “We believe that Abbey Road should remain in EMI’s ownership.”
2009 – Yahoo annouced Yesterday, December 3rd, that Michael Jackson’s Death was the most searched term for there search engine on the Internet. A record Previously held by Britney Spears.
2009 – The death of Boyzone singer Stephen Gately was the most searched for topic on Google’s UK site in 2009. It was closely followed by the rise of Britain’s Got Talent runner-up Susan Boyle Microsoft revealed that the death of Michael Jackson dominated its Bing search engine results during the year.
2009 – Bon Jovi has added a performance at the 20th anniversary celebration for the fall of the Berlin Wall in Germany to what’s already a jammed promotional schedule for its new album, “The Circle.”
The group is currently slated to be the only entertainment act at the Nov. 9 ceremony, performing “The Circle’s” first single “We Weren’t Born to Follow.” Jon Bon Jovi tells Billboard.com that he “wrote a fan letter, ‘to whom it may concern,’ stating about how we’ve had such a relationship with Germany for all these years and how relevant the song is to the situation and how I was there chipping away a piece of the wall 20 years ago when it came down.”
The German government responded with an invitation. “They heard the lyric and got it and said ‘yeah,’” Bon Jovi notes. “It’s a pretty big deal.”
With “The Circle” coming out Nov. 10, Bon Jovi is also gearing up for its Artists in Residence partnership with NBC, which will kick off with a Nov. 4 “Today” show interview from London, where the group is currently promoting the album. The quintet will appear on the show Wednesday during November, with outdoor plaza performances on Nov. 11 and 25 and an in-studio interview on Nov. 18.
Also on the docket are appearances on the “NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams,” participation in the network’s The More You Know public service campaign and an episode of the NBC-owned Bravo channel’s “Inside the Actor’s Studio.” “James Lipton, Christ almighty, that guy’s crazy,” Bon Jovi says with a laugh. “He made us sit there for four hours! He wouldn’t stop asking questions. But it worked. I think it’s gonna make for an interesting program.”
Bon Jovi’s music, meanwhile, will also be used for Notre Dame football and NFL broadcasts; the Nov. 15 prime-time game between the New England Patriots and Indianapolis Colts will feature “This is Our House,” one of three new songs Bon Jovi recorded for greatest hits album that’s slated to be released in late 2010.
While all this is going on, Bon Jovi is gearing up for a world tour that kicks off Feb. 19 in Seattle and is expected to last two years, covering 30 countries. Over the weekend the group sold out the first 10 of its 20-show residence next June at London’s O2 Arena as well as three concerts at the New Meadowlands Stadium in New Jersey. Bon Jovi says more shows will be added to the latter stand.
“We’re gonna go out for quite while,” Bon Jovi says, “but it’s what I like to call a gentleman’s tour. We take long breaks. I actually told the guys…’Get used to it; we’re actually gonna rehearse for a change.’ They were like, ‘Oh, no…’ We’re not big on pre-production, y’know?”
2007 – The mighty Led Zeppelin’s eagerly-awaited reunion concert in London was postponed for two weeks after guitarist Jimmy Page broke a finger. The tribute concert in honour of late Atlantic Records founder Ahmet Ertegun scheduled for 26 November would now take place on 10 December. More than a million fans applied for the 20,000 tickets available, which cost £125 each, about $260 US. Profits from the show would go towards scholarships in Ertegun’s name in the UK, USA and the country of his birth Turkey.
2009 - Forbes Magazine reported that Michael Jackson had earned about 72 million dollars since his death on June 6th. That was good enough for third place on their list of dead celebrities making the most money. Fashion designer Yves Saint Laurent came in first at $350 million, songwriters Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein were second with $235 million and Elvis Presley was fourth, earning $55 million.
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