Are you ready to learn some stuff? It’s February 2nd and here’s what happened Today in Rock History!
Happy Groundhog Day! Let’s get this out of the way first.
Now that we’ve got that out of the way, let’s start things off with releases! First up is 1976’s Gimme Back My Bullets from Lynyrd Skynyrd!
Other releases include Killers from Iron Maiden in 1981, Lita Ford’s self-titled third album in 1988, and Inflammable Material from the Stiff Little Fingers in 1979!
Sid Vicious of the Sex Pistols was found dead in 1979 at the age of 21 after overdosing on heroin at the NYC apartment of Michelle Robinson. This would be just one day after being released on bail from Riker’s Island for the murder of his girlfriend Nancy Spungen. He had just completed a detox program at the prison.
We also lost Wayne Kramer of MC5 in 2024 at the age of 75 from pancreatic cancer and Ivan Kral of the Patti Smith Group in 2020 at the age of 71 from cancer.
The Beatles claimed the Best Rock Performance Grammy in 2025 for their song Now and Then. The song is also the first AI-assisted song to win a Grammy and the group’s fourth post-breakup Grammy.
In 1968, Ian Anderson’s new band played the Marquee Club in London without a name. After cycling through a variety of interesting names, they settled on one that would stick with them for the rest of Anderson’s career: Jethro Tull
Birthdays today feature Ross Valroy of Journey, Graham Nash of Crosby Stills & Nash and Robert DeLeo of Stone Temple Pilots!
NBC’s The Midnight Special debuted on this day in 1973
And finally, The White Stripes called it quits in 2011. The band’s website released a statement saying, “The reason is not due to artistic differences or lack of wanting to continue, nor any health issues as both Meg and Jack are feeling fine and in good health. It’s for a myriad of reasons, but mostly to preserve what is beautiful and special about the band and have it stay that way.”
This has been Today in Rock History! Check back tomorrow for your next rock history lesson!
