This Day in History: 2024-03-11

MARCH 11^th

Neil Young’s fourth solo album “Harvest” tops both the U.S. and U.K. charts. Backing vocals on “Heart Of Gold” and “Old Man,” are provided by Linda Ronstadt. 1972

Conservative talk show host Glenn Beck singles out Bruce Springsteen’s “Born In The USA” as a perfect example of the progressive politics he says are destroying the country. On his radio show Beck reads the lyrics to the ’84 hit about the down and out experiences of a Vietnam era vet concluding that it’s time to “wake up out of the propaganda.” 2010“Us And The Night” is 3 Doors Down’s sixth full-length album.  2016

It goes to #2 on Billboard’s Top Rock Albums chart. Produced by Matt Wallace, the set was recorded in Nashville.

Machine Gun Kelly and Mod Sun take home the award for Worst Director at the 43rd annual Razzies (Golden Raspberry Awards) for their work in “Good Mourning,” a film about movie star London Clash (MGK) after he wakes up to what he believes is a “break-up text” from the love of his life and it goes downhill from there. 2023

MORE TODAY IN ROCK…

Mark Stein, keyboardist/vocalist for Vanilla Fudge, enters the world.  1947

Golden Earring guitarist George Kooymans is born. 1948

Pantera/Damageplan drummer Vinnie Paul (Vincent Paul Abbott) is born in Abilene, TX.  1964

“More Of The Monkees” keeps the Rolling Stones “Between The Buttons” out of the top spot on the U.S.  album chart. The record spends four-weeks parked at #2. 1967

Crosby, Stills & Nash win the Grammy for Best New Artist, beating out Chicago and Led Zeppelin (what?) 1970

Jim Morrison (The Doors) arrives in Paris to ditch his Rock star persona and write poetry.  He checks into the Hôtel George V with his girlfriend Pamela Courson. Morrison dies in Paris less than four months later.  1971

Identical twins, Joel (vocals) and Benji (guitar) Madden, of Good Charlotte, are born in Waldorf, MD. Benji is five minutes older than his brother. 1979

Paul McCartney is knighted by the Queen Elizabeth. And he still has his MBE too. 1997

Slipknot/Stone Sour singer Corey Taylor marries Scarlett Stone in Des Moines, Iowa, in front of a small gathering of friends and family. The couple has a son named Griffin who was born in ’02. 2004

Waffling. Kid Rock does a meet-and-greet at a Waffle House restaurant outside of Atlanta to raise money for the Nicholas House, a local homeless shelter. Rock faces misdemeanor charges resulting from an altercation months earlier at another Waffle House restaurant in Atlanta. “We just thought after that unfortunate incident we’d try to do something silly but something more positive,” explains Rock. 2008

All That Remains play a Tokyo show before 150 people. The small turn out is due to a massively destructive earthquake and tsunami earlier in the day. The quake interferes with train schedules which results in the small turn out. “The people that came to the show were really, really, really happy that we played for them,” says the band’s Phil Labonte. “They expected the show to be canceled and were glad it wasn’t.” 2011

Former Iron Maiden vocalist Paul Andrews (Paul Di’Anno) is jailed after being convicted of fraud. Having claimed that he suffered severe nerve damage to his back that prevented him from working, he was spotted in an ’06 YouTube video jumping around on stage. 2011

The anti-gay group Westboro Baptist Church protests a Kansas City Radiohead show. Picketers slam the British rockers with homophobic slurs. The Westboro website states that “(Radiohead are) freak monkey’s (sic) with mediocre tunes keeps you busy and focused by lightness. It changes nothing, God is undoing and digging up and throwing down this nation.” Happy thoughts to you too. 2012

Slipknot guitarist Mick Thomson is hospitalized after being stabbed in the head during a knife fight with his bother Andrew outside of the guitarist’s Clive, IA home. Both are intoxicated but suffer non-life-threatening wounds. The siblings are charged with assault. 2015

Killswitch Engage’s seventh album, “Incarnate,” is out. “The definition of incarnate is ‘in the flesh’. And this record is who we are right now,” says frontman Jesse Leach. The album debuts at #6 on the Billboard 200, becoming the band’s highest charting effort.  2016

Suffering from heart disease and depression associated with alcohol, Keith Emerson, keyboardist/vocalist for Emerson, Lake & Palmer, dies of a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head at age 71.  2016

Protesting the protesters. Lamb Of God’s Randy Blythe organizes a counter-protest against the Westboro Baptist Church in Richmond, VA. The Church condemns Danica Roem (Blythe’s friend), the first transgender person to be elected to a U.S. state legislature.  2019.

“Punk,” a four-part docuseries that aims to be the quintessential story of genre, premieres. Iggy Pop (The Stooges), Johnny Rotten (Sex Pistols), Marky Ramone (Ramones) Wayne Kramer (MC5) are among those heard or seen in the series.  2019

Disturbed’s David Draiman publicly criticizes Florida’s so-called “Don’t Say Gay” bill, which seeks to ban discussion of gender and sexuality issues with younger students. “This is f*cking ridiculous,” states Draiman.   Avenged Sevenfold’s M Shadows chimes in tweeting: “As a parent of a 7 and 9-year-old they have asked about sex and used the word ‘gay’ in derogatory fashion. Kids are aware at this age so I feel the quicker we explain and show empathy for all people the better… including in school.” The “Parental Rights In Education” bill passed in the Florida Senate with a 22-17 vote. 2022

Sheryl Crow attends the world premiere of Showtime’s documentary, “Sheryl,” at the SXSW Conference and Festival in Austin. The film covers Crow’s “musical career battling sexism, depression, perfectionism, cancer, and the price of fame.” 2022

Bad Omens score their first #1 on Billboard’s Mainstream Rock Airplay chart with “Just Pretend.” The track from the band’s third album, “The Death Of Peace Of Mind,” takes 27-weeks to reach the top.  2023

Alexisonfire’s “Otherness” wins the Rock Album of the Year honor at the Juno Awards (Canada’s Grammys).  Alexisonfire is selected over Nickelback (“Get Rollin’”) and Three Days Grace (“Explosions”), among others.  2023