Are you ready to learn some stuff? It’s July 13th and here’s what happened Today in Rock History!
Starting the day with a huge moment in rock history as Live Aid took place on this day in 1985. The benefit concert hosted at both Wembley Stadium in London and JFK Stadium in Philly, was used to help raise money towards the African famine relief. Broadcasted around the world via satellite to over 1.5 billion people in 160 countries, it became one of the largest live broadcasts ever known. On the Wembley side of the event, it gave us performances from the likes of U2, David Bowie, and the performance of a lifetime from Queen!
The Philly side gave us performances from a controversial Led Zeppelin reunion, Black Sabbath, and Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers!
Moving onto birthdays now, we have Roger McGuinn of The Byrds, Stephen Jo Bladd of the J. Geils Band, and Mark “The Animal” Mendoza of Twisted Sister!
It’s also film director and former Rolling Stone reporter Cameron Crowe’s birthday! Rock is a vital part of Crowe’s film journey, having created films like Singles and the semi-autobiographical Almost Famous!
We saw the release of The Beach Boys’ All Summer Long in 1964 and Queen’s self-titled debut record in 1973!
We lost Arthur Kane of the New York Dolls in 2004 just two hours after checking himself in to an LA emergency room with fatigue. He was quickly diagnosed with leukemia and died shortly after.
Black Sabbath performed their very first gig at a small club in Birmingham, England in 1968
And finally in 1897, a US patent is granted to inventor Guglielmo Marconi to transmit electrical signals. This patent would lead to the invention of the radio. PLAY THE RUSH SONG!
This has been Today in Rock History! Keep on Rocking, keep on Rolling! Check back tomorrow for your next rock history lesson!
