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Featured Events
2016Joe Corré, the son of The Sex Pistols' manager Malcolm McLaren, sets fire to punk memorabilia from a boat on the River Thames to protest the mainstream appropriation of the genre.More
1994Boyz II Men make it 14 weeks at #1 with "I'll Make Love To You," tying Whitney Houston's "I Will Always Love You" for the longest-running #1 in Hot 100 history. The previous record was also held by Boyz II Men, with "End Of The Road" at #1 for 13 weeks.
1983Quiet Riot's Metal Health hits #1 in America, becoming the first heavy metal album to reach the top spot. It's one of just six albums to top the chart in 1983, as Thriller (22 weeks) and Synchronicity (17 weeks) breathe most of the air.
1969John Lennon works on a Beatles song for the last time when he mixes "You Know My Name (Look Up The Number)" at Abbey Road Studios. The song is used as the B-side of their "Let It Be" single.
1965After cleaning a church in Stockbridge, Massachusetts, where they had Thanksgiving dinner the day before, Arlo Guthrie and a friend clean up the place, but toss the trash down a hill when they can't find an open dump. They are arrested, fined $25 each, and forced to pick up the garbage. When they return to the church, Guthrie writes "Alice's Restaurant Massacree" about the incident, embellishing some details.More
1942Casablanca, starring Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman, premieres at the Hollywood Theatre in New York City. The World War II-era romance revives an old love song - "As Time Goes By" - and inspires the Al Stewart hit "Year of the Cat."More
1939Tina Turner is born Anna Mae Bullock in Nutbush, Tennessee.
26
In Music History
2016The Kensington, Prince Edward Island, police department makes a Facebook post threatening drunk drivers with Nickelback. "On top of a hefty fine, a criminal charge and a year's driving suspension we will also provide you with a bonus gift of playing the office's copy of Nickelback in the cruiser on the way to jail," it reads. The constable who posted it later apologizes.
2011English drummer Keef Hartley (of Rory Storm and The Hurricanes, John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers, Keef Hartley Band) dies at age 67.
2011Sugarland's lead vocalist, Jennifer Nettles, marries her boyfriend of two years, Justin Miller, at a chapel in the foothills of Tennessee's Smoky Mountains.
2010Duffy releases her second album, Endlessly, in the UK. Unlike her breakthrough debut Rockferry, it gets little attention, with no hit singles.More
2008Guns N' Roses' Chinese Democracy album fails to achieve massive first-week sales numbers, and Axl Rose points the finger at Dr. Pepper for not having honored its promise made back in March 2008, when the soda company had offered everybody in the US a free can of soda if Guns N' Roses released in 2008 the album which had been announced by Axl Rose for many years.
2008Atlantic Records becomes the first major label whose digital sales have surpassed its CD sales. Downloads of music and ringtones now account for more than half of Atlantic's US sales.
2006Tony "Panama" Silvester (of The Main Ingredient) dies after a six-year battle with cancer (multiple myeloma) at age 65.
2006Raul Velasco, longtime host and producer of the Mexican variety show Siempre en Domingo (Always On Sunday), dies of complications of Hepatitis C at age 73.
2003James Carter (of James Carter and the Prisoners) dies at age 77. His lead vocal on the prison work song "Po' Lazarus" earned him $20,000 when it was used in the film O Brother, Where Art Thou? in 2000, over 40 years after it was recorded.
2002After nearly 40 years, The Statler Brothers play their last concert ever at the Civic Center in Salem, Virginia.
2002Actor and major Elvis fan Nicolas Cage divorces the King's daughter, Lisa Marie Presley, after less than four months, citing "irreconcilable differences."
199998 Degrees melds music and commerce in a novel way when the teen act performs several of its songs and sells some exclusive band merchandise on the Home Shopping Network.
MTV Goes Acoustic With Unplugged
1989
MTV's acoustic showcase Unplugged premieres with an episode featuring Squeeze. Jules Shear hosts the first season.
Like so many things, we have Bon Jovi to thank for this. When Jon Bon Jovi and Richie Sambora sat down with their acoustic guitars to play "Wanted Dead Or Alive" at the 1989 MTV Video Music Awards, it proved the power of acoustic rock and gave MTV the idea for the Unplugged series. Early in the first season, performers include Graham Parker, Dr. John and Michael Penn. These acclaimed acts give the series some cachet, and by the end of Season 1, Aerosmith, Elton John and Don Henley have all appeared.
The first act to ride this wave to a hit is Tesla, whose live acoustic cover of "Signs" goes in rotation on MTV and sends the song to #8 in April 1991, giving them by far their biggest hit. In May, Season 2 performer Paul McCartney becomes the first to release an album from the series when he issues Unplugged (The Official Bootleg), which includes a smattering of Beatles songs. Over the next few years, the series becomes a sandbox where many big-name musicians come to play. All genres are welcome, including hip-hip, with a knockout performance by LL Cool J. Among the highlights:
Eric Clapton, whose mellow rendition of "Layla" at his 1992 appearance sends the song back to the charts. He also plays "Tears In Heaven," a song about his four-year-old son Conor who died the previous year. The resulting album sells over 10 million copies and wins the Grammy for Album of the Year.
10,000 Maniacs, the first act to appear twice on the show. Their 1993 performance is one of their last with Natalie Merchant. Their cover of "Because The Night" charts even higher than Patti Smith's original, reaching #11.
Nirvana, which stripped bare, offers haunting versions of "All Apologies" and "Come As You Are," along with a startling cover of David Bowie's "The Man Who Sold The World." The episode airs in December 1993; in April 1994, Kurt Cobain is found dead.
Jimmy Page and Robert Plant, reuniting in 1994 to play acoustic versions of Led Zeppelin classics like "Kashmir" and "Gallows Pole" with an Egyptian orchestra. The "Unledded" reunion is so successful, the pair go on a world tour and in 1998 issue the album Walking into Clarksdale.
Kiss, who bring Ace Frehley and Peter Criss back for the first time since 1980, reuniting their original lineup. There is no makeup or blood spewing, just ernest acoustic renditions of classics like "Rock And Roll All Nite," "Plaster Caster," and Criss' ballad, "Beth." Kiss tours with this configuration in 1996 and again in 1998 when they release their album Psycho Circus.
The series continues into the '00s with a mix of big names and lesser-known acts. By this time, the acoustic showcase format is ubiquitous.
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