Rock History

On this day...

2011 – Lady Gaga site Hacked on This Day in Rock! — 2011 – Lady Gaga site Hacked on This Day in Rock! Not to worry,  no passwords or financial information were taken from the site, but They did get a nice list [...]

2006 – Thom Yorke has more reasons to be unhappy. The Radiohead… — 2006 – Thom Yorke has more reasons to be unhappy. The Radiohead frontman’s solo disc The Eraser debuts at No. 2 in the U.S. album charts, right below hits compilation [...]

2003 – Thousands of mourners line the streets of Miami to view the body — 2003 – Thousands of mourners line the streets of Miami to view the body of Celia Cruz, the late Queen of Salsa. Be Sociable, Share! [...]

2003 – The troubled Lollapalooza tour with Jane’s Addiction and Audioslave… — 2003 – The troubled Lollapalooza tour with Jane’s Addiction and Audioslave cancels an upstate New York date, citing rising production costs. Be Sociable, Share! [...]

2003 – Jermaine Jackson tells the BBC that Michael Jackson… — 2003 – Jermaine Jackson tells the BBC that Michael Jackson will reunite with the Jackson Five for a new album and tour. Be Sociable, Share! [...]

2002 – Blues singer/guitarist “Little” Jimmy King … — 2002 – Blues singer/guitarist “Little” Jimmy King dies at his Memphis home of undetermined causes. He is 36. Be Sociable, Share! [...]

2000 – Creed accuse Limp Bizkit’s Fred Durst “of a mobster mentality… — 2000 – Creed accuse Limp Bizkit’s Fred Durst “of a mobster mentality” in his bid to get TapRoot signed to his label, Interscope. Durst said TapRoot would “be blackballed and [...]

1999 – “Weird Al” Yankovic kicks off his Running With Scissors… — 1999 – “Weird Al” Yankovic kicks off his Running With Scissors tour in Green Bay, Wis. Be Sociable, Share! [...]

1999 – They Might Be Giants release their new albu… — 1999 – They Might Be Giants release their new album “Long Tall Weekend” exclusively in the MP3 format. Visitors to e-tailer EMusic can download the entire album for $8.99 or [...]

1999 – The Artist Formerly Known As Prince steals … — 1999 – The Artist Formerly Known As Prince steals the show at the second annual Yahoo! Internet Life Awards, held at Studio 54 in New York. He wins best Internet-only [...]

1999 – Dr. Dre (Andre Young) files suit against Pr… — 1999 – Dr. Dre (Andre Young) files suit against Priority Records and Deaths Row Records, alleging that the recent Priority-distributed Deaths Row album “The Chronic Be Sociable, Share! [...]

1996 – Musician Emmanual Tettey Mensah dies at the… — 1996 – Musician Emmanual Tettey Mensah dies at the age of 77. Be Sociable, Share! [...]

1995 – Dr. George Nichopolous, the physician whose prescriptions… — 1995 – Dr. George Nichopolous, the physician whose prescriptions often left Elvis Presley higher than a lab rat, loses his medical license. He was charged with dispensing addictive drugs in [...]

1991 – Gloria Estefan gets her own wax effigy in Los Angeles… — 1991 – Gloria Estefan gets her own wax effigy in Los Angeles’ Movieland Wax Museum. Be Sociable, Share! [...]

1991 – Drummer Steve Adler files suit in Los Angel… — 1991 – Drummer Steve Adler files suit in Los Angeles against his former band, Guns N’ Roses. The 26-year-old claims band members pressured him to use heroin and then dropped [...]

1989 – After stacks of money are found inside James Brown’s cell… — 1989 – After stacks of money are found inside James Brown’s cell, the troubled Soul Brother No. 1 is moved from a minimum-security jail to a medium-security one. It was good [...]

1986 – No. 1 Chart Toppers Pop Hit: “Invisible Tou… — 1986 – No. 1 Chart Toppers Pop Hit: “Invisible Touch,” Genesis. Be Sociable, Share! [...]

1981 – In Odessa, Texas, it’s “Roy Orbison Day” this day… — 1981 – In Odessa, Texas, it’s “Roy Orbison Day” this day in rock history! Texas Rocks! Be Sociable, Share! [...]

1980 – production of The Elephant Man starring David Bowie opens in Denver. — 1980 – production of The Elephant Man starring David Bowie opens in Denver. Be Sociable, Share! [...]

1976 – Deep Purple split up for the first time this day… — 1976 – Deep Purple split up for the first time this day in rock history! Be Sociable, Share! [...]

1976 – No. 1 Chart Toppers Pop Hit: “Kiss and Say … — 1976 – No. 1 Chart Toppers Pop Hit: “Kiss and Say Goodbye,” Manhattans. Be Sociable, Share! [...]

1975 – The Rolling Stones are joined onstage by Elton John… in Denver, Colorado US. on This Day in Rock! — 1975 – The Rolling Stones are joined onstage by Elton John… in Denver, Colorado US. on This Day in Rock! So… Goodbye Norma Jean… You can’t get no Satisfaction… Hollywood [...]

1975 – Riding high on the American singles chart, it’s Wings… — 1975 – Riding high on the American singles chart, it’s Wings with “Listen to What the Man Said.” Bubble gum rock… at its finest. Be Sociable, Share! [...]

1974 – David Bowie wraps up his tour supporting Diamond… — 1974 – David Bowie wraps up his tour supporting Diamond Dogs in New York. Be Sociable, Share! [...]

1973 – Byrds guitarist Clarence White is buried after being killed… — 1973 – Byrds guitarist Clarence White is buried after being killed by a drunk driver. He was 29. Clarence White (born Clarence LeBlanc) (June 7, 1944 – July 15, 1973) was [...]

1969 – Having just turned 28, Spencer Davis decides to break up… — 1969 – Having just turned 28, Spencer Davis decides to break up the Spencer Davis Group. Be Sociable, Share! [...]

1968 – No. 1 Chart Toppers Pop Hit: “Grazing in th… — 1968 – No. 1 Chart Toppers Pop Hit: “Grazing in the Grass,” Hugh Masekela. A version of the song by The Friends of Distinction reaches No. 3 in 1969. Be Sociable, [...]

1966 – Frank Sinatra marries Mia Farrow in Las Vegas. Of course. — 1966 – Frank Sinatra marries Mia Farrow in Las Vegas. Of course. Be Sociable, Share! [...]

1963 – Another setback for the still-struggling Rolling Stones. On their… — 1963 – Another setback for the still-struggling Rolling Stones. On their way to perform at the coming-out party of the daughter of an English lord, Brian Jones falls ill. The [...]

1960 – Brian Hyland schools American Bandstand’s audience… — 1960 – Brian Hyland schools American Bandstand‘s audience about that “Itsy Bitsy Teeny Weeny Yellow Polka Dot Bikini.” Be Sociable, Share! [...]

1958 – It’s bye bye to the original Drifters as manager George Treadwel… — 1958 – It’s bye bye to the original Drifters as manager George Treadwell fires the entire vocal group. He then hires the Five Crowns – whose number include Ben E. [...]

1957 – If you’re watching ABC tonight, performing on Alan Freed… — 1957 – If you’re watching ABC tonight, performing on Alan Freed’s The Big Beat are Chuck Berry, Andy Williams, Frankie Lymon, and Bobby Darin. Be Sociable, Share! [...]

1954 – Elvis Presley’s first single, “That’s All R… — 1954 – Elvis Presley’s first single, “That’s All Right Mama,” is released by Sun Records. After its phenomenal reception on Memphis radio, Sun Records releases Elvis Presley’s debut single, “That’s [...]

1947 – Queen guitar king Brian May is born in Twickenham, England. — 1947 – Queen guitar king Brian May is born in Twickenham, England. Brian Harold May, CBE (born 19 July 1947) is a musician and astrophysicist most widely known as the lead [...]

1948 – Grateful Dead keyboardist Keith Godchaux (1973-79)… — 1948 – Grateful Dead keyboardist Keith Godchaux (1973-79) is born in San Francisco. Be Sociable, Share! [...]

1946 – Alan Gorrie of Average White Band is born i… — 1946 – Alan Gorrie of Average White Band is born in Perth, Scotland. The group’s only No. 1 song is the million-selling single “Pick Up the Pieces.” The song is [...]

1932 – Singer and guitarist Buster Benton is born…. — 1932 – Singer and guitarist Buster Benton is born. Be Sociable, Share! [...]