Are you ready to learn some stuff? It’s August 23rd and here’s what happened Today in Rock History!
Starting off, it’s Keith Moon’s birthday! And in 1967, Moon celebrated his birthday with pure chaos at a Holiday Inn! Police were called, Moon tried to sneak away in a Lincoln Continental Limo but in his drunken stupor, Mad Moon released the car’s handbrake, and it rolled backwards into the Holiday Inn’s pool.
Other birthdays include Paul Langlois of The Tragically Hip, Jimi Jamison of Survivor, Dean DeLeo of Stone Temple Pilots and Julian Casablancas of The Strokes
Moving onto releases, we got Big Brother & the Holding Company’s self-titled debut in 1967 and 1988’s Nothing’s Shocking from Jane’s Addiction!
We also got THREE albums on the same day in 1994: Rubberneck from Toadies, Without a Sound by Dinosaur Jr, and Jeff Buckley’s Grace!
In 1970, The Velvet Underground performed together for the last time at the New York club Max’s Kansas City. The show was informally recorded and released two years later as Live at Max’s Kansas City. The original lineup would not perform together until the early 1990’s until member Sterling Morrison’s death in 1995.
While performing at the 1991 Reading Festival in England, Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain dove headfirst into drummer Dave Grohl’s drum kit. A month later, their album Nevermind catapulted the band to new heights and the following year, Nirvana would headline the same festival.
In 1974, John Lennon claimed to have seen a UFO from his NYC apartment. Lennon described it as an archetypal flying saucer that was surrounded by lights. He would make note of the event in the booklet of his next album Walls and Bridges.
In 2007, Brian May earned his PhD in astrophysics from London’s Imperial College. He would have gotten it in the early 70’s, but he was a little busy at the time being the guitarist in Queen.
And finally in 1993, while testifying in court against his former Guns N Roses bandmate, Steve Adler, Duff McKagen was asked about “The Spaghetti Incident.” The band found this hilarious and decided to name their next album after it.
This has been Today in Rock History! Keep on Rocking, keep on Rolling! Check back tomorrow for your next rock history lesson!
