On This Day
We take you back into classic rock’s history and legacy to note important events that happened on this date as well as celebrate the birthdays of major musical artists and mourn their passing.
August 30, 1976: City Riots Inspire Clash Song
Joe Stummer and Paul Simonon of the punk band The Clash get caught up in the Notting Hill Carnival Riot on this day, and it inspires their first single.
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August 29, 1987: Los Lobos Hits #1 with ‘La Bamba’
Three weeks atop the Hot 100 with their soundtrack single from the Ritchie Valens biopic helped boost the profile of one of American music’s finest bands
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August 29, 2016: Phil Collins Performs at US Open
“I can now tell people I’ve played the US Open,” the longtime Genesis singer-drummer joked. It soon led to a burst of new tours
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When Bob Dylan Got The Beatles High
Dylan didn’t just have a musical influence on The Beatles. When they first met, he also turned them onto marijuana. “We got high and laughed our asses off.”
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Remembering Stevie Ray Vaughan
Recently sober and enjoying a creative and personal blossoming, the guitarist, singer and songwriter died in a helicopter accident at just 35
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August 26, 1970: Hendrix’s Electric Lady Studios Opens
Jimi Hendrix wanted to build a recording studio that was designed with the needs, comfort and spirit of creative musical artists in mind. He succeeded.
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Aug 25, 1970: Elton John Plays First U.S. Concert
The artist now known as Sir Elton John made his U.S. debut with a big splash at The Troubadour club in Los Angeles with several rock stars in attendance
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Aug 24, 2021: Charlie Watts, Rolling Stones Drummer, Dies at 80
The news arrived 3 weeks after the surprise announcement that he had a “completely successful” medical procedure that prevented him from touring that fall
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August 24, 1975: Queen Begin ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’
Queen’s nearly six-minute long-song hit the upper reaches of the U.S. and U.K. singles charts not once but twice. Things you didn’t know about their masterpiece
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Aug 24, 2019: Jackie Wilson’s Widow Dies on Eve of His Hollywood Star Honor
Known as “Mr. Excitement,” Wilson had been honored with inductions into the Roll Hall and R&B Music HoF. Harlean Wilson had hoped to attend the ceremony
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