This Day in History: 2025-01-11

JANUARY 11^th

Released the previous October, “The Joker,” by the Steve Miller Band, is a gold record – on its way to multi-platinum status. 1974

Grunge arrives and it “Smells Like Teen Spirit!”  Nirvana’s “Nevermind” tops the Billboard 200.  1992

Cake’s “Showroom Of Compassion” drops. Frontman John McCrea says the album is “very different” from previous Cake records. It debuts at #1 on the Billboard 200 and Rock Albums charts. 2011

MORE TODAY IN ROCK…

The late Clarence Clemons, sax player for Bruce Springsteen’s E Street Band, is born. 1942

Victoria (‘Vicki’ for short) Peterson is born in the Northridge section of L.A. She is a founding member of The Bangles. 1958

L.A native and No Doubt guitarist, Tom Dumont, has a birthday. 1968

Kasabian vocalist Tom Meighan is born in Leicester England. 1981

Break out the flannel. With “Nevermind” #1 on the U.S. Billboard 200 Nirvana appear on “Saturday Night Live.” The band trashes their gear to end the performance. 1992

Sharon Osbourne resigns as the Smashing Pumpkins manager for ‘medical reasons.’ “(Frontman) Billy Corgan was making me sick,” says Osbourne, who was the group’s manager for less than four months. 2000

Ted Nugent cuts himself with a chainsaw while filming his VH1 reality series “Surviving Nugent: The Ted Commandments.” It takes 40 stitches to close the wound. The contest has city slickers living off the land and enduring Ted for a $100,000 prize. Big fun. 2004

Jefferson Airplane drummer, Spencer Dryden, dies of cancer at age 66. 2005

Vampire Weekend roll out their sophomore album, “Contra.” The set contains the lead single “Cousins.” It debuts at #1 on the Billboard 200 Album Chart. 2010

 After an assassination attempt on U.S. Representative Gabrielle Giffords (D) in Tuscon, AZ that left six people dead (including a nine-year old girl) and over a dozen wounded, the critically injured Congresswoman among them, Drowning Pool responds to widespread suggestions that their song “Bodies” inspired the nutcase shooter. In a statement they explain that the track was never intended to have a violent message. “‘Bodies’ was written about the brotherhood of the mosh pit and the respect people have for each other in the pit,” writes the band. “If you push others down, you have to pick them back up. It was never about violence.” 2011

Maroon 5 win the Favorite Band of the Year honor at the 38th annual People’s Choice Awards at the Nokia Theatre in L.A. 2012

The Velvet Underground file a lawsuit in a Manhattan federal court against the Andy Warhol Foundation over the iconic banana image on the cover of the band’s ’67 debut album, “The Velvet Underground And Nico.” Band leaders Lou Reed and John Cale claim the foundation has illegally licensed the image in an attempt to “deceive the public” into believing that the band has given their “sponsorship or approval” to the merchandise. The band seeks unspecified damages. 2012

U2 play “I Will Follow,” “Desire” and “Vertigo” at Sean Penn’s third annual Help Haiti benefit at the Montage Hotel in Beverly Hills. “It’s been a while since we played a hotel lounge,” frontman Bono says. “I think the last time was a bar mitzvah.” 2014

Food & Beverage magazine officially rename a Jack & Coke “The Lemmy” in honor of Mötörhead’s recently deceased bassist Ian ‘Lemmy’ Kilmister. He made the drink famous at the Rainbow Bar And Grill on the Sunset Strip. 2016

Pearl Jam and Rage Against The Machine’s Tom Morello sign an open letter urging action from the U.S. government to address the humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan where more than 23 million people are facing what the United Nations calls “acute food insecurity” and near famine-level conditions. The crisis follows the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan and the takeover by the Taliban. The letter is co-signed by nearly a dozen non-governmental organizations.  2022

“Orbit: Dave Grohl,” a comic book revolving around the Foo Fighters frontman, is released.  The book is part of TidalWave Productions’ “Orbit” series, which focuses on “personalities who impact the world.” David Bowie and John Lennon are among those previously profiled in the series.  2023