This Week In Rock – February 18 – February 24
BORN THIS WEEK IN ROCK HISTORY:
Yoko Ono: February 18, 1933
Dennis DeYoung: February 18, 1947 (Vocals, Styx)
2/19/1940 – Smokey Robinson
2/19/1948 – Tony Iommi (guitar, Black Sabbath)
2/19/1948 – Mark Andes (bass, Canned Heat)
2/19/1965 – Jon Fishman (drums, Phish)
2/20/1950 – Walter Becker (bass/guitar, Steely Dan)
2/20/1967 – Kurt Cobain (lead vocals and guitar, Nirvana)
2/21/1933 – Nina Simone (roots music vocalist)
2/21/1943 – David Geffen (founder, Asylum Records, Geffen Records)
2/23/1944 – Johnny Winter (blues rock guitarist and vocalist)
2/23/1952 – Brad Whitford (guitar, Aerosmith)
2/24/1942 – Paul Jones (vocals and harmonica, Manfred Mann, The Blues Band)
2/24/1944 – Nicky Hopkins (pianist/organist, worked with The Rolling Stones, Jeff Beck, The Beatles, The Who)
2/24/1947 – Lonnie Turner (bass, Steve Miller Band)
DIED THIS WEEK IN ROCK HISTORY
2/19/1980 – Bon Scott (lead vocals, AC/DC)
2/19/207 – Larry Coryell (jazz fusion guitarist)
2/22/1989 – Andy Warhol (manager, The Velvet Underground)
2/23/1997 – Tony Williams (jazz drummer)
2/23/2003 – Howie Epstein (bass, Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers)
2/24/1994 – Papa John Creech (violin, Jefferson Airplane)
MUSIC RELEASES AND TOP OF THE CHARTS
2/19/1949 – John Lee Hooker’s “Boogie Chillen” at #1 on the R&B charts
2/19/1985 – Mick Jagger releases his first solo album
2/20/1979 – George Harrison puts out his 8th self-title album
2/21/1979 – Dire Straits by The Dire Straits goes gold
2/21/1964 – The Rolling Stones release “Not Fade Away” a Buddy Holly cover
2/21/1966 – The Beatles release “Nowhere Man”
2/21/1981 – Hi Infidelity by REO Speedwagon reaches #1 in America
2/22/1969 – The Beatles record “I Want You (She’s So Heavy)”
2/23/1970 – Morrison Hotel by The Doors goes gold (their fifth album in a row to do so)
2/24/1975 – Led Zeppelin releases Physical Graffiti
2/24/1976 – Their Greatest Hits (1971-1975) by The Eagles is the first ever platinum album
THIS WEEK IN ROCK HISTORY
2/19/1965 – Rod Stewart plays with the band The Soul Agents at a club in Harrow England, which is his first major performance.
2/19/1987 – Taj Mahal plays a concert at the Palomino Club in Hollywood and is joined onstage by George Harrison, John Fogerty, and Bob Dylan for an impromptu jam session. Some of the songs played by this who’s who of rock, included Fogerty’s “Proud Mary,” Dylan’s “Watching the River flow” as well as some classics of rock ‘n’ roll including “Blue Suede Shoes,” and “Peggy Sue.”
2/19/1974 – KISS makes their first television appearance on the show Don Kirshner’s Rock Concert, aired on ABC.
2/20/1975 – Lost Angeles declares that it is “Johnny Cash Day”
2/20/2009 – The White Stripes play on the last episode of Late Night With Conan O’Brien, which is also their final gig as a band. They perform the song “We’re Going To Be Friends.” The performance is intimate and with a slightly different musical arrangement form the traditional way it is performed. Additionally, it features Meg White coming out from her drum kit to join Jack White on guitar and sing some lines in unison.
2/21/2001 – Johnny Cash wins his tenth Grammy award, for the song “Solitary Man” in the category of “Best Male Vocal Country Performance.” The song is a 1966 Neil Diamond hit that Cash recorded for his LP American III: Solitary Man, a mostly covers album that was produced by mega-producer Rick Rubin.
2/21/1961 – The Beatles make their first appearance at Liverpool’s Cavern Club. They will play regular lunchtime gigs there.
2/21/1958 – Gibson ships their first “Flying V.” The shipment was from a Kalamazoo, Michigan factory. The unique shape of the guitar created an almost mystical allure around the instrument, appealing to early adopters like Albert King and Lonnie Mack, as well as later guitar heroes like Jimi Hendrix, Johnny Winter, Billy Gibbons, and even Lenny Kravitz.
2/22/1974 – Great blues band Ten Years After play their final live show in London
2/22/1989 – The first Grammy award for the “Best Hard Rock/Metal Performance” category is awarded to Jethro Tull. They beat Metallica. Wrap your head around that…
2/22/1994 – Prince officially is given the trademark on the symbol he had been using instead of an actual name.
2/23/1971 – Dire Straits embark on their very first US tour.
2/23/1993 – Little Richard is presented with a Lifetime Achievement Grammy
2/23/2000 – Mule Variations by Tom Waits wins the “Best Contemporary Folk Album” Grammy. The album’s guests included Les Claypool on bass, and John Hammond and Charlie Musselwhite playing the blues harp.
2/23/2000 – Carlos Santana wins eight Grammy Awards for the highly popular album Supernatural
2/24/1969 – Jimi Hendrix’s Experience play their final show in the UK at the Royal Albert Hall.
2/24/1976 – The Eagles’ Greatest Hits album is the first album certified Platinum by the RIAA
2/24/1993 – Eric Clapton wins big at the Grammy Awards, taking three awards for “Tears In Heaven” two more for his album Unplugged, and Best Rock Song for his acoustic version of “Layla.”
And that’s all we got for you this week. So long, till next time rock fans!