This Day in History: 2023-09-14

SEPTEMBER 14^th

Judas Priest roll out their 12th album “Painkiller.” The set, which marks the debut of drummer the debut of drummer Scott Travis, enters the Billboard album chart at #26 on its way to moving more than 2-million units worldwide.  1990

“No Code” is #1 on the Billboard 200.  Pearl Jam’s fourth studio album has a two-week run at the top.  1996

Jet release their debut album, Get Born, which would go on to sell over three-million copies. 2003

 Tool’s “Fear Inoculum” has first week sales of 270.000 copies to land at #1 on the Billboard 200.  2019

MORE TODAY IN ROCK…

Lynyrd Skynyrd guitarist Steve Gaines is born. 1949

Guitarist Fred “Sonic” Smith (MC5) enters the world.  1949

Paul Kossoff, guitarist for Free, begins his life.  1950

Craig Montoya, Everclear’s bassist, is born in Spokane. 1970

John Lennon authors a letter to the New York Times disputing journalist Craig McGregor’s claim that The Beatles copped material from Black artists without acknowledgment or thanks. “We didn’t sing our own songs in the early days – they weren’t good enough – the one thing we always did was to make it known that there were Black originals, we loved the music and wanted to spread it in any way we could… many kids were turned on to Black music by us,” writes Lennon. 1971

I shot the sheriff, but I did not shoot the deputy. Eric Clapton’s cover of Bob Marley’s “I Shot The Sheriff” is #1 in the U.S. 1974

Jeff Beck’s jazz-fusion album “Wired” goes gold. 1976

The Dead play amongst the dead for the living. The Grateful Dead play the first of three shows in the shadow of the Great Pyramid in Giza. Proceeds go to the Egyptian Department of Antiquities and the Faith & Hope Society for the Handicapped. 1978

“Quadrophenia,” the film based on The Who’s ’73 Rock opera, premieres in Toronto, Canada, Sting plays “Ace Face.” 1979

Billy Joel issues “Songs In The Attic.” It’s the first digitally recorded live album and makes it to #8 on the Billboard 200. 1981

The Cars win Video of the Year for “You Might Think” at the first ever MTV Video Music Awards.  1984

Paul McCartney’s handwritten lyrics for The Beatles’ “Getting Better” are auctioned off by Sotheby’s in London. The winning bid is $249,000. 1995

Bob Dylan is accused of lifting passages from the work of a 19th-century U.S. poet named Henry Timrod and using them as lyrics for his “Modern Times” album. “No doubt about it, there has been some borrowing going on,” claims Walter Brian Cisco, a Timrod expert. 2006

Avenged Sevenfold’s “Hail To The King” tops the Billboard 200 selling 159,000 copies in its first week. 2013

Faith No More announce the cancellation of a planned fall tour due to vocalist Mike Patton’s mental health issues. “I don’t feel I can give what I should at this point and I am not going to give anything less than 100 percent,” states Patton.  The band expresses disappointment but supports Patton. 2021

Soilwork guitarist David Andersson dies at age 47. Andersson joined Soilwork in ’12. 2022