Are you ready to learn some stuff? It’s April 3rd and here’s what happened Today in Rock History!
Starting off with birthdays, we have Mike Ness of Social Distortion, Richard Manuel of The Band, and Sebastian Bach of Skid Row
It’s also Jamie Hewlett’s birthday. Hewlett’s a comic book artist and is the co-creator of Gorillaz.
It’s ALSO Sam Kiszka of Greta Van Fleet’s birthday today!
We lost Bob Burns of Lynyrd Skynyrd in 2015. Burns was Skynyrd’s original drummer who played on their first albums, but after a mental breakdown on a European tour he left the band in 1974. He disappeared from the public eye altogether and only made a few public appearances before his death, including performances to promote Freebird: The Movie and when Skynyrd was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2006.
Speaking of Skynyrd, on this day in 1973, the band recorded two of their biggest hits for their first album (Pronounced ‘Lĕh-‘nérd ‘Skin-‘nérd): Tuesday’s Gone and Free Bird.
We saw the release of Simon & Garfunkel’s classic Bookends in 1968.
In 1995, the RealAudio Player was introduced. The player would allow users to stream audio on the internet for the first time. It would also be used by artists to post songs on their websites.
In 1994, Pearl Jam offered to broadcast their concert at the Fox Theatre in Atlanta for free on radio stations across the country. About 300 stations accept the offer and goes so well, the band does similar broadcasts over the next few years.
In 1998, Lollapalooza was cancelled due to many key Alternative acts declining to headline the festival. Lolla returned as a touring festival in 2003 and then became a festival season mainstay in America at Grant Park in Chicago in 2005. It has also expanded to other countries as well, including Germany, India, and Argentina
While stopping in Memphis on their first US tour in 1980, Pretenders frontwoman Chrissie Hynde was arrested for disorderly conduct at a bar. While being taken to jail, she kicked out the window of the police cruiser she was in. After spending the night in jail, the group performed the next night at Poet’s Music Hall.
In 1969, Jim Morrison of The Doors turned himself in to the FBI in L.A. Morrison was charged on six counts of lewd behavior and public exposure during a Doors gig in Miami a month prior. He was released on $2,000 bail.
And finally in 2007, Keith Richards denied the comments he made in an interview with NME magazine that he snorted his late father’s ashes. His manager stated the remarks were made ‘in jest’. The NME interviewer was convinced that Richards wasn’t joking saying, ‘He did seem to be quite honest about it. There were too many details for him to be making it up.’
This has been Today in Rock History! Keep on Rocking, keep on Rolling! Check back tomorrow for your next rock history lesson!
