This Day in History: 2023-11-02

NOVEMBER 2^nd

Rage Against The Machine unleash “The Battle Of Los Angeles” album. 1999

“There’s Nothing Left To Lose” by the Foo Fighters, is released. Their third studio album contains “M.I.A.” and “Ain’t It The Life.” 1999

Pearl Jam’s “Lightning Bolt” debuts at #1 on the U.S. Billboard 200 album chart with opening week sales of 166,000 copies. It’s their fifth chart topper. 2013

The Queen biopic “Bohemian Rhapsody” is in U.S. theaters.  Rami Malek stars as singer Freddie Mercury.  2018 

MORE TODAY IN ROCK…

Keith Emerson, keyboardist for Emerson, Lake & Palmer, is born Todmorden, Yorks (England). 1944

J. D. Souther (John David Souther) is born.  He co-wrote (with The Eagles Don Henley and Glenn Frey) “Best Of My Love,” “New Kid In Town” and “Heartache Tonight”), among others. He scores his biggest hit as a performer in ’79 with the song “You’re Only Lonely.” 1945

Jethro Tull’s’s Dave Pegg starts his life. The multi-instrumentalist is from Acocks Green, Birmingham, England. 1947

A Fats Domino concert in Fayetteville, NC, turns into a riot. While there’s a multi-racial audience (during a racially charged time), Domino claims the trouble is caused by a combination of “the beat and the booze.” 1956

The East German government sends 15 young people to prison for publicly showing their devotion to Elvis Presley (and speaking ill of the East German regime). 1959

Carter Beauford, of the Dave Matthews Band, is born in Charlottesville, VA. The drummer is one of the group’s founding members. 1957

Poison’s Bobby Dall (Robert Harry Kuy Kendall) has a birthday. The bassist hails from Miami (the stated date of Dall’s birth ranges from ’58 to ’65, so ’63 seems like a good compromise). 1963

During a Madison Square Garden concert on their farewell tour, Cream is awarded a platinum disc for their “Wheels Of Fire” album. 1968

Bassist Reginald ‘Fieldy’ Arvizu (KoЯn) is born in Bakersfield, CA. 1969

The Band’s double-live “Rock Of Ages” goes gold. 1972

“So Far,” a Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young ‘best of’ compilation, tops the Billboard 200.  1974

The blistering “You Haven’t Done Nothin'” is #1. Stevie Wonder beats out Elton John (“The Bitch Is Back”), Bachman-Turner Overdrive (“You Ain’t Seen Nothing Yet”) and Bad Company (“Can’t Get Enough”) to claim the top spot on the U.S. pop survey. 1974

George Harrison tours for the first time in eight years and appears on stage for the first time in three years in Vancouver, B.C. The tour is so wrenching Harrison practically gives up the idea of performing live as a solo artist. 1974

Death Cab For Cutie guitarist, Chris Walla, is born in Bothell, WA (northeast of Seattle). 1975

The Who release “Quadrophenia” in the U.S. The film features the acting debut of Sting (The Police), who plays Ace Face. 1979

“Daughter” is the second single from Pearl Jam’s second album “Vs.” With lyrics by vocalist Eddie Vedder and music primarily written by guitarist Stone Gossard, the song goes on to top both the Billboard Mainstream Rock chart. 1993

“Recovering The Satellites” by Counting Crowes tops the Billboard 200.  The double platinum set (2-million sales) features the song “A Long December.”  1996

In Hong Kong, Sting denounces the U.S. led invasion of Iraq, and urges the world to help reconstruct the war-ravaged nation. 2003

My Chemical Romance nab Woodie of the Year (Artists of the Year) at the student-selected mtvU Woodie Awards held in New York. 2005

Bruce Springsteen debuts the song “Workin’ On A Dream” in front of 80,000 people in Cleveland during a final rally in support of Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama. “Help us rebuild our house big enough for the dreams of all our citizens,” Springsteen requests of the future president following a six-song set. 2008

Detroit Lions fans launch an online petition to replace Nickelback as the halftime entertainment during football team’s Thanksgiving Day game against the Green Bay Packers. The petition organizers state that Detroit has many great performers (Bob Seger, Aretha Franklin, Alice Cooper, Kid Rock, etc.) to showcase the city’s musical legacy and don’t think a performance by a Canadian band is appropriate. 2011.

Bruce Springsteen, Billy Joel, Bon Jovi and Sting perform during a televised benefit concert titled “Hurricane Sandy: Coming Together: on NBC for victims of the hurricane. NBC’s Matt Lauer hosts the show which is a fundraiser American Red Cross. 2012

Five Finger Death Punch bassist Chris Kael donates his bass guitar to The Riff bar and cafe in Helsinki, Finland after playing a show earlier in the evening to kick off of the band’s European headlining tour. 2015

“The First 21: How I Became Nikki Sixx,” by Mötley Crüe and Sixx: AM founder Nikki Sixx debuts at #8 on the New York Times Best Seller Hardcover and #11 on the Combined Print And e-book lists. It’s his fourth time on the Best Seller List. The other three are “The Heroin Diaries,” “This Is Gonna Hurt” and the Crüe biography “The Dirt: Confessions Of The World’s Most Notorious Rock Band.”  2021

Måneskin earn a U.S. platinum record for the single “Beggin’,” (a song first popularized by the Four Seasons in ‘67) is the band’s first Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) certification for sales of a million units. 2021

Fans start a bonfire during an open-air Slipknot concert in Phoenix.  The blaze, fed by lawn chairs and other burnable material, halts the show for approximately 30 minutes and abbreviates Slipknot’s set.  The fire department shows up and later investigates the incident.  2021