May 9th
1974 “I have seen the future of Rock and Roll and his name is Bruce Springsteen.”
Rock writer John Landau sees Bruce Springsteen in concert (opening for Bonnie Raitt) at the Harvard Square Theater in Cambridge, MA.
He not only writes about seeing the “future of Rock and Roll” he gives up his day job to become Springsteen’s manager and producer.
1992 Bruce Springsteen finally makes his live national T.V. debut on Saturday Night Live.
2012 Halestorm become the first female fronted band to score a #1 hit on the Active Radio charts.
They do it with “Love Bites (So Do I),” a single from their album, “The Strange Case Of…”
MORE TODAY IN ROCK…
1944 Buffalo Springfield guitarist Richie Furay is born.
1949 The Piano Man, Billy Joel, has a birthday.
1970 Ironically, it’s a Canadian group, the Guess Who, who have a #1 hit with “American Woman.”
1979 Party animal, Andrew W.K., has a birthday.
1989 R.E.M. drummer Bill Berry collapses due to a bronchial infection during the group’s European tour.
1993 Kurt Cobain is treated at a Seattle hospital for a drug overdose. He has a combination of heroin (self-inflicted) and bupreorphine (injected by his wife, Courtney Love).
1998 Led Zeppelin alum Jimmy Page and Robert Plant reunite for “Most High,” the #1 song on Billboard’s Mainstream Rock Songs chart.
1998 Jimmy Page (Led Zeppelin) performs with Puff Daddy on Saturday Night Live. Puff Daddy’s hit “Come With Me” used on the “Godzilla” soundtrack, samples Zeppelin’s “Kashmir” riff.
2004 A pastor at the New Hope Christian Reformed Church in Calgary, Canada, plays Metallica music and “The Unforgiven” video during his sermon. “Metallica are a lot like the Old Testament prophets who would rail against the crap that`s going on in the world,” says Pastor John Van Sloten. Previous services included tunes by Evanescence and U2.
2007 An undisclosed settlement is reached in the wrongful-death lawsuit filed by the relatives of ‘Dimebag’ Darrell Abbott against a Columbus, OH, nightclub. The Damageplan/Pantera guitarist and three others were killed by a deranged gunman during a Damageplan concert in December, ’04.
2008 Slash and Alice Cooper are honored in Hollywood. The Velvet Revolver guitarist receives the MusiCares From The Heart Award at the event, which raises money for the organization’s efforts to help musicians fighting addiction. Cooper is handed the Stevie Ray Vaughan Award for his dedication to and support of the MusiCares MAP Fund and his devotion to helping other addicts with the recovery process.
2008 Jon Bon Jovi and the Philadelphia Soul arena football team he co-owns lend their support to a $3.3 million initiative to construct 12 transitional housing units at a North Philly facility run by Project H.O.M.E. During the groundbreaking ceremony the Bon Jovi frontman is recognized for his contributions.
2011 A Los Angeles Times article claims that judges quote Bob Dylan more than any other songwriter when passing down their opinions. Apparently, judges identify Dylan with the principles that led them into jurisprudence.
2013 As I Lay Dying frontman Tim Lambesis pleads not guilty to a charge of solicitation of murder of his estranged wife. The judge sets bail at $3 million.
2013 Creed is named the worst band of the ’90s by the readers of Rolling Stone magazine. The Scott Stapp fronted group beats Nickelback, Limp Bizkit and Hanson for the dubious honor. “It’s no surprise Creed won this poll – it wasn’t even close,” writes Rolling Stone. “This is a band so hated that their own fans sued them after a famously bad show in Chicago in ’03.”
2013 Iron Maiden and Robinsons Brewery launch the band’s Trooper beer in select Robinsons pubs. Thanks to pre-sales, over a quarter of a million pints are produced for the U.K. alone. Robinsons employees have to work a six-day week to keep up with demand.
2014 Robinsons Brewery announces that Trooper Beer has sold 5-million pints in its first year.
2014 Peter Gabriel cancels a concert in Kiev, scheduled for the following day, due to security concerns. “Due to the on-going unrest in Ukraine it has become clear that the security of the touring personnel and equipment cannot be guaranteed during the planned visit to the country and this has presented us with significant logistical difficulties that we have been unable to resolve,” reads Gabriel’s statement. The Ukraine, riff with political and ethnic strife, is also under threat of a Russian invasion.
2015 Police in Queensland, Australia issues a joke BOLO (Be On the Look Out) for Nickelback citing “crimes against music.” The band is on their Down Under tour. The Queensland Police Service warn the public of the hazards of listening to the band’s music.
2017 Linkin Park’s Chester Bennington speaks out regarding changes in the band’s sound, especially the constant comparisons to the ’00 album “Hybrid Theory.” People should “move the f*ck on” says Bennington.
2019 Guns N’ Roses take legal action against Canarchy Craft Brewery and their Guns ’N’ Rosé beer. Legal documents state Canarchy “has refused to immediately and completely cease sales and marketing” for the GN’R inspired ale. To date, GN’R are one of only a few major groups without a signature beer.
2020 The makers of Ghost, the hand-crafted British ultra-premium vodka, claim to have received a threatening legal letter from the representatives of Ghost, the band, over the marketing and sale of their Ghost vodka brand which was introduced in 2015. They share a manipulated photo from the 2016 Grammy Awards that shows Ghost frontman Tobias Forge holding a Ghost vodka bottle instead of a Grammy. “Recently we were rather bemused to receive legal correspondence on behalf of the Swedish band Ghost and their lead singer, Tobias Fitta Forge, informing us of action they wish to take against us for…..um….making vodka,” writes the company.
2020 Little Richard (Richard Wayne Penniman), a founding father of Rock & Roll, dies at 87. He was best known for hit songs including “Tutti Frutti,” “Long Tall Sally,” “Rip It Up,” “Lucille” and Good Golly Miss Molly.” An incredible performer and singer Richard influenced generations.
2023 California judge Teresa A. Beaudet dismisses a large portion of Marilyn Manson’s defamation lawsuit against Evan Rachel Wood in a tentative order made final. Manson (Brian Warner) initially filed the suit against Wood and Ashley “Illma” Gore in ‘22 stating the pair publicly cast Manson as a rapist and abuser — which derailed his career. He is allowed to move forward with other parts of his suit.
2023 Imagine Dragons lead singer Dan Reynolds and guitarist Wayne Sermon perform for striking writers outside Netflix headquarters in L.A. “Writers deserve to be better compensated for creating and driving so much of the entertainment coming out of Hollywood,” says Reynolds.
2023 Slipknot’s Corey Taylor announces a partnership between The Taylor Foundation and the Puppy Jake Foundation during a stop at Puppy Jake’s training center in Urbandale, IA. Puppy Jake’s provides service dogs free of charge to veterans who struggle with physical or emotional scars from war.
2024 The four-day Welcome To Rockville festival gets underway. It officially becomes the biggest Rock festival in North America, hosting more than 200,000 people. There are 150 bands on five stages for the first time.
2024 Heart’s Ann Wilson joins Disturbed onstage at Rockville to perform their collaborative single, “Don’t Tell Me,” live for the first time. “It was like a dream sequence,” offered Disturbed guitarist Dan Donegan.
2024 Drummer Dennis “Machine Gun” Thompson, the last surviving original member of Detroit’s MC5, dies at age 75.
2025 Disturbed’s David Draiman proposes to his girlfriend, Sarah Uli, on stage during the band’s concert in Sacramento, CA. A surprised and emotional Uli says ‘yes’
