February 3rd

February 3rd


1959 Buddy Holly (pictured), The Big Bopper, and Ritchie Valens are killed in a plane crash while on the Winter Dance Party Tour.

The day the music died.


1973 Going retro, Elton John holds the #1 spot on the U.S. pop survey with “Crocodile Rock.”

The song, from the album “Don’t Shoot Me I’m Only The Piano Player,” is John’s first U.S. chart-topper.


1998 Pearl Jam release their “Yield” album.

The set debuts at #2, behind the “Titanic” soundtrack, on the Billboard 200.


2004 Incubus roll out “Crow Left Of The Murder.”

The band’s fifth studio album marks the first appearance of bassist Ben Kenney following the departure of founding member Dirk Lance.

The album debuts at #2 on the U.S. Billboard 200 and goes on to sell 1.9 million copies.


2018 Fall Out Boys earn their fourth #1 album on the Billboard 200 chart with “MANIA.” 

MORE TODAY IN ROCK…

1947 Ray Davies’ kid brother and Kinks collaborator, Dave, is born.

1956 Guitarist Lee Renaldo (Sonic Youth) is born.

1959 The Cure’s Laurence Tolhurst has a birthday. He was born in Horley, Surrey, England.

1964 Amid The Beatles onslaught, “Fun, Fun, Fun” by the Beach Boys is released. The single gets to #5.

1969 “You Never Give Me Your Money.” Following the death of Brian Epstein, The Beatles select Allen B. Klein as their business manager (a formal contract is signed a couple of months later). The Beatles’ business affairs, already in disarray, get far worse.

1996 “The World I Know” (Collective Soul) is #1 on Billboard’s Mainstream Rock Songs chart.

2002 U2 performs a three-song set at halftime during the Super Bowl.  During “Where The Streets Have No Name” the names of the victims of the 9-11 attacks are projected onto a screen behind the stage.   At the song’s conclusion, frontman Bono opens his jacket to reveal an American flag printed into the lining. 

2002 Led Zeppelin’s “Rock And Roll” is used in a Cadillac commercial that debuts during the Super Bowl. It’s the first Zep song licensed for a commercial.

2003 Wall of Sound producer Phil Spector is arrested in connection with the shooting death of actress Lana Clarkson at his Alhambra home. Spector is later convicted.

2008 Tom Petty & The Heartbreaker is the halftime entertainment for Super Bowl XLII in Glendale, AZ. They open with “American Girl,” then roll through “I Won’t Back Down,” “Free Fallin'” and “Runnin’ Down A Dream.” The New York Giants pull a major upset defeating the heavily favored, and previously unbeaten, New England Patriots.

2008 Alice Cooper and exercise guru Richard Simmons appear in a Bridgestone Tire commercial that airs during the Super Bowl. Cooper is dark and menacing but Simmons steals the spot.

2012 Dubious honor? Mötley Crüe is the first Hard Rock band to have a Las Vegas residency when ” Mötley Crüe in Sin City” opens at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino. “Vegas is based on big, big shows,” says frontman Vince Neil. In honor of the band’s milestone, Las Vegas Mayor Carolyn Goodman proclaims it Mötley Crüe Day.

2019 Maroon 5 headline the Pepsi Super Bowl LIII Halftime Show in Atlanta. The show augments an uneventful first half (New England Pats – the eventual winners – are leading the L.A. Rams 3-0). Prior to the game, Maroon 5 and the NFL announce a $500,000 donation to Big Brothers Big Sisters of America.

2019 Singer Josh Kiszka’s laryngitis forces Greta Van Fleet to cancel the remaining dates on their Australian tour. They scrap a concert in Brisbane before calling off the rest of the tour.

2022 All That Remains bring back Matt Deis who was the band’s bassist during the early ‘00s. He replaces Aaron Patrick who left by way of a mutual and amicable agreement after eight years with the band.