This Day in History: 2025-03-20

MARCH 20^th

Written by Kris Kristofferson, Janis Joplin’s version of “Me And Bobby McGee” is #1 on the U.S. singles survey. 1971

The track is featured on Joplin’s “Pearl” album (above).

Joan Jett has the #1 song on the pop chart with her classic, “I Love Rock N’ Roll.” 1982

The Jimi Hendrix revival is in full swing as “Valleys Of Neptune” debuts at #4 on the Billboard survey selling 95,000 copies in its first week. It’s the guitarist’s highest-charting album since ’71’s “The Cry Of Love,” also issued posthumously, peaked at #3. Four Hendrix albums also return to the Billboard listing. 2010

MORE TODAY IN ROCK…

Carl Palmer (Carl Frederick Kendall Palmer) enters the world. The drummer lends his name and talents to Emerson, Lake & Palmer and Asia. 1950

Guitarist Jimmie Vaughan (Fabulous Thunderbirds) starts his life in Dallas, TX. Yes, he’s the older brother of Stevie Ray Vaughan. 1951

Pays to be British. Eric Clapton and Buffalo Springfield’s Neil Young, Jim Messina and Richie Furay are busted for ‘being at a place where it is suspected marijuana is being used’. Clapton is later found innocent but Furay, Young, Messina and others have to pay a small fine. 1968

The ballad of John & Yoko. John Lennon and Yoko Ono tie the knot in Gibraltar. 1969

David and Angela Bowie are married. A match not exactly made in heaven. They met at a press reception for King Crimson’s “The Court Of King Crimson” album. 1970

Linkin Park’s lead vocalist, the late Chester Bennington, is born. 1976

All-American Rejects guitarist Nick Wheeler is born in Stillwater, OK. 1982

CBS Records loses its $20 million lawsuit against Boston’s Tom Scholz. The label claims Scholz failed to fulfill contract obligations (10 albums in 5 years). Of course, Scholz countersues for unpaid royalties. Next stop for Boston is MCA. 1990

Michael Stipe (R.E.M.) performs at the Bring ‘Em Home concert, marking the third anniversary of the United States-led invasion of Iraq. The event is held at New York’s Hammerstein Ballroom. 2006

During a concert in Glasgow, Velvet Revolver’s Scott Weiland announces to the audience that they are witnessing ‘the last tour’ by the group. Later, the vocalist argues with a sound person before storming off the stage. “(We) had a little band (turmoil) onstage as you probably all could tell,” writes drummer Matt Sorum in a blog post. Turns out Weiland is right, at least in regard to his involvement with the band. 2008

Smashing Pumpkins announce that drummer Jimmy Chamberlin has left the group. The departure leaves frontman Billy Corgan as the only remaining original member. “I can no longer commit all of my energy into something that I don’t fully possess,” Chamberlin writes online. “I won’t pretend I’m into something I’m not. I won’t do it to myself, you the fan or my former partner (Corgan).” 2009

A press conference to announce a KISS/Mötley Crüe co-headlining North American tour blasts R&B diva Rihanna. “We’re sick and tired of girls getting up there with dancers and karaoke tapes in back of them,” proclaims Simmons, implying that KISS and Crüe deliver a real concert experience. “No karaoke singers allowed. No fake bullsh-t. Leave that to Rihanna-Schimianna and everybody else whose name ends with an ‘A’.” 2012

Anthony Jude (AJ) Pero, drummer for Twisted Sister and Adrenaline Mob, dies of an apparent heart attack at age 55. 2015

Ringo Starr (The Beatles) is knighted by Prince William at a ceremony at Buckingham Palace. He says the honor “means a lot.” 2018

Invictus Strategies MD Corp., a recreational marijuana company in Canada, announces that KISS’ Gene Simmons, who is notoriously anti-drugs, has been recruited “to raise awareness of the company and eventually assist in brand strategy.”  “Gene Simmons is a branding and merchandising genius,” says Dan Kriznic, chairman and CEO of Invictus.  2018

Mötley Crüe bassist Nikki Sixx makes a guest appearance on an episode of “American Idol”. The segment presents auditions from the Sunset Strip (Hollywood) where Crüe got its start in the ‘80s. 2022

Guns N’ Roses debut album, “Appetite For Destruction,” is inducted into the Grammy Hall Of Fame.  2024

Elton John and Bernie Taupin receive the Library of Congress Gershwin Prize for Popular Song in Washington D.C. “Their careers stand out for the quality and broad appeal of their music and their influence on their fellow artists,” says Carla Hayden, the Librarian of Congress.   2024