This Day in History: 2023-10-19

ROCKTOBER 19^th

Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers release their breakthrough album “Damn The Torpedoes,” which sells two million copies in the U.S. 1979

Journey’s “Evolution” goes platinum.  1979

The band’s first album with drummer Steve Smith (replacing Aynsley Dunbar) contains their first Top 20 hit “Lovin’, Touchin’. Squeezin’

The set goes to #20 on the Billboard 200 eventually selling over 3-million copies in the U.S.

“Vs.,” Pearl Jam’s second studio album, arrives.  The band’s first collaboration with producer Brendon O’Brien, and their first album with drummer Dave Abbruzzese, occupies the #1 spot on the Billboard 200 chart for five weeks.  1993

Nirvana’s live “From The Muddy Banks Of The Wishkah” enters the U.S. chart at #1. 1996

The album has the ‘hits’ (“Smells Like Teen Spirit” and “Heart Shaped Box”) and also features the explosive “Aneurysm.”  1996

Greta Van Fleet release their debut album “Anthem Of The Peaceful Army. 2018

” It goes to #3 on the Billboard 200 with first week sales of 87,000 copies. 2018

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Doobie Brothers’ Patrick Simmons starts his life. 1945

Procol Harum’s Keith Reid is born.  He composed the lyrics for the band’s hit “A Whiter Shade Of Pale.”  1946

The Band’s “Stage Fright” album goes gold. 1970

The Steve Miller Band uncork “The Joker” album. The record gets to #2. 1973

Bachman-Turner Overdrive’s “Not Fragile” is #1 on the U.S. album chart.   1974

Chevelle’s lead guitarist and vocalist, Pete Loeffler, is born in Grayslake, IL. 1976

Lynyrd Skynyrd’s original line-up play their last show together in Greenville, SC prior to the plane crash that kills vocalist Ronnie Van Zant, guitarist Steve Gaines and back-up singer Cassie Gaines. 1977

Still angry over the previous night’s less than stellar Guns N’ Roses performance in L.A., vocalist Axl Rose states “these will be the last Guns N’ Roses shows you’ll ever f***ing see” if band members don’t clean up their act.” 1989

Alice Cooper’s Glen Buxton dies from pneumonia at age 49. The guitarist co-wrote “School’s Out,” “Elected,” and “I’m Eighteen.”  1997

“Words & Music: John Mellencamp’s Greatest Hits” is out. The set covers Mellencamp’s career from ‘79 – ‘04. 2004

Melissa Etheridge reports, via her website, that she is recuperating at her L.A. home following two surgical operations to treat breast cancer.  The operations are termed a success.  2004

Red Hot Chili Peppers’ vocalist Anthony Kiedis publishes his autobiography, “Scar Tissue.” 2004

Bono (U2) goes to Capitol Hill to address a group of House Democrats about his concerns over debt relief for impoverished nations and the ongoing global AIDS crisis. In his spare time, he and his bandmates perform a pair of D.C. concerts. 2005

Carlos Santana’s wife, Deborah, initiates divorce proceedings against the guitarist, citing irreconcilable differences. The couple, married for 34 years, have three children together. A representative for Carlos says the split is “a private matter.” 2007

Alice Cooper receives the Rock Immortal honor at the Scream Awards (Spike TV’s celebration of horror, sci-fi, comics and fantasy) in L.A. Also, Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richards nabs the Best Cameo Award (for “Pirates Of The Caribbean: At World’s End”). 2007

“Abbey Road” is released for download to The Beatles: Rock Band video game. It’s the first Beatles album available for downloadable purchase in the game’s music store. 2009

New York’s Empire State Building is bathed in psychedelic lights to give it a tie-dye appearance in honor of the Grateful Dead. The light show precedes “The Grateful Dead: Now Playing” exhibit at the New York Historical Society. The display features “an array of original art and documents related to the band, its members, performances, and productions.” 2009

Kings Of Leon’s “Come Around Sundown” is released in North America. The album goes to #1 on the Rock Albums chart and #2 on the Billboard 200.  2010

Just days after Aerosmith released their tribute to the New England Patriots, Lenny Kravitz’s “Like A Jet” is available for download. The song is part of the NFL Anthems program, a national campaign that features musicians recording anthems for their home teams. “Writing a custom song for my New York Jets is something I could only dream of growing up steps from Joe Namath (the Jet’s legendary QB),” says Kravitz. 2012

A day after Pearl Jam is nominated for induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, one-time Pearl Jam drummer Dave Abbruzzese publicly asks the band to advocate for his inclusion in the ceremony. Abbruzzese, who was in the group from ’91 –’94, was left off the band member list.  2016

Mötley Crüe’s Vince Neil dodges jail time on a misdemeanor battery charge related to an incident where he allegedly assaulted an autograph seeker. Neil’s lawyers plead guilty to misdemeanor battery. Neil is ordered to pay $1,000 and spend 6-months on informal probation. He’s also ordered to undergo impulse control counseling. 2016

Mastodon and Mikkeller Brewing San Diego introduce ‘Sultan’s Curse’, an imperial stout named after a song on the band’s album “Emperor Of Sand.” It’s the group’s second beer.  ‘Mastodon Mother Puncher’, an IPA, was the first.  2017

Green Day’s Billie Joe Armstrong and tattoo artist/model Kat Von D co-launch the unisex Basket Case eyeliner.  “Basket Case” is the title of a Green Day song. The eyeliner line arrives a couple months later.  2017

Mötley Crüe bassist Nikki Sixx gives the world his memoir “The First 21: How I Became Nikki Sixx.” The book details how Frank Feranna eventually became Sixx in the musician’s formative period — before his Rock star hedonism. 2021

“Metallica: The Black Album In Black & White,” an official coffee table book developed by Metallica and photographer Ross Halfin, arrives.  It’s a “celebration of one of the best-selling albums of all time, featuring classic and previously unpublished photographs.” 2021