Are you ready to learn some stuff? It’s March 18th and here’s what happened Today in Rock History!
Starting it off as always with releases, we have The Beatles’ Anthology 2 in 1996, Iggy Pop’s debut solo record The Idiot in 1977, and Rush’s debut record in 1974!
The Clash also released their first single White Riot in 1977.
One birthday today and that belongs to Jerry Cantrell of Alice in Chains.
In 2004, Courtney Love appears on Late Night with David Letterman and, trying to do her best Drew Barrymore impression, stands on Letterman’s desk and flashes the host while singing Danny Boy. (NO I’M NOT INCLUDING THE VIDEO. Find it yourself, if that’s your thing.) Hours later, Love performed at a surprise show at the Plaid nightclub in Manhattan, where she was later arrested after she allegedly threw a microphone stand into the crowd and injured a man. She was charged with assault and reckless endangerment.
In 2019, Slipknot announced that percussionist Chris Fehn departed the band after Fehn launched legal action over a financial dispute.
In 1965, members of The Rolling Stones were each fined 5 Euros for urinating in a public place
In 1996, after not touring together for years, Johnny Rotten reunited with the Sex Pistols for the band’s 20th anniversary tour aka the Filthy Lucre Tour. Rotten, who once vowed to never reunite with the group, said “We have found a common cause to bring us back together again, and it’s your money.” The punk icons would tour again in 2002 and 2007.
In 1978, Cal Jam II, the largest festival of the late ’70s, took place at the Ontario Motor Speedway outside Los Angeles. Performers include Aerosmith, Ted Nugent, and Foreigner and performed in front of an estimated 350,000 fans. The LA Times reported that 700 of those attendees were treated for overdoses of Angel Dust.
And finally in 2002, the 17th Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony took place. Inductees included Talking Heads, who played live together for the first time since 1984, The Ramones, and Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers.
This has been Today in Rock History! Keep on Rocking, keep on Rolling! Check back tomorrow for your next rock history lesson!
