It was a crazy week in Rock History:
The Beatles had a WILD week:
In 1962, John Lennon married Cynthia Powell. They got divorced in November 1968.
in 1965, The album Help! is certified gold in 1965
Two women threatened to jump off the roof of the Americana Hotel in New York unless Paul McCartney, who was with the other Beatles, agreed to meet them in 1966. The girls were brought down by the police
In 1966, they performed their last concert on a tour
The Beatles
Their manager, Brian Epstein, was found dead in his London apartment from an overdose of sleeping pills in 1967
In 1968, they released “Hey, Jude”
Ringo Starr quit during the White Album sessions when the constant bickering and tension became too much for him in 1968. He rejoined the band on September 3, 1968. After Ringo walked out, the remaining Beatles recorded ‘Back In the USSR’, with Paul on drums and John playing bass
In 1981, Mark David Chapman, John Lennon’s murderer, is sentenced to 20 years
Other releases and accolades occurred:
The Supremes’ Where Did Our Love Go, reached #1 in 1964
In 1964, Roy Orbison released Oh, Pretty Woman
Jimi Hendrix releases Purple Haze in 1967
In 1969, Honky Tonk Women by The Rolling Stones’ hit #1
Brandy (You’re a Find Girl) by Looking Glass hit #1 in 1972
In 1974, You’re Having My Baby by Paul Anka hit #1
The album “Born to Run” by Bruce Springsteen was released in 1975
In 1976, Boston release their self-titled debut album, which despite being mostly recorded in Tom Scholz’ basement studio, becomes one of the best-selling debuts of all time
Grease by Frankie Valli hit #1 in 1978
My Sharona by The Knack hit #1 in the US in 1979
Huey Lewis and the News’s The Power of Love hit #1 in 1985
In 1986, Tina Turner receives a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
In 1987, Who’s That Girl by Madonna hits #1
La Bamba by Los Lobos hits #1 in 1987
In 1991, Pearl Jam release their debut album, Ten, which launches them to stardom and puts them in the forefront of the Seattle grunge movement
A legendary rocker graduated:
Brian May earned a PhD in astrophysics from London’s Imperial College
In 2007, Brian May of Queen gets a degree from London’s Imperial College. He earned a PhD in astrophysics
A few legends tied the knot:
Ric Ocasek (The Cars) married model Paulina Porizkova in 1989
In 2018, Neil Young and Daryl Hannah get married in a secret ceremony in Atascadero, California. It’s Young’s third marriage, her first
One famous couple called it quits:
Billy Joel and Christie Brinkley divorced in 1994
A few legends retired:
Bobby Darin plays his final concert at the Hilton in Las Vegas in 1973
Bobby Darin
In 2009, Oasis finally split up
There was accidents and controversy:
in 1987, Mötley Crüe lead singer Vince Neil suffers a mustard-related injury when he angrily breaks a jar of Gulden’s before a show in Rochester, New York (he wanted Frenchie’s). The show is cancelled, and Neil is airlifted to Baltimore, where surgeons work to repair nerve and tendon damage in his hand
Jimmy Buffett swims to safety after crashing his seaplane while trying to take off in Nantucket in 1994
Barenaked Ladies frontman Ed Robertson emerges unscathed after he crashes his Cessna 206 float-plane near Bancroft, Ontario in 2008. Three other passengers, including wife Natalie, are also miraculously uninjured
George Michael plead guilty to driving under the influence of drugs in 2010
In 2021, Thirty years after appearing as a baby grasping for a dollar bill on Nirvana’s Nevermind album cover, Spencer Elden sues the band and others associated with the photo shoot, claiming it caused him “extreme and permanent emotional distress.”
And we lost quite a few legends:
in 1990, Stevie Ray Vaughan died in a helicopter crash in Wisconsin.
Aaliyah died in a plane crash in the Bahamas in 2001
in 2004, Laura Branigan, who sang Gloria, died due to an aneurism
Rolling Stones rocker Charlie Watts passed away after a battle with cancer in 2021
