Today in Headbanger History

October 19, 1979 – Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers release their breakthrough album Damn the Torpedoes.  It goes on to sell two million copies in the U.S. October 19, 1977 – Lynyrd Skynyrd play their last show together in Greenville, South Carolina, prior to the plane crash that would kill three of their members. Nazareth is the opening act.  This was the […]

October 18, 1974 – Al Green‘s ex-girlfriend bursts into his bathroom and pours a pot of boiling grits in the tub, burning him badly, before going to the next room and killing herself with his gun. It leaves Green with severe burns that require months of hospitalization, and also spurs him to focus his career on Gospel music and preaching […]

October 17, 1980 – Bruce Springsteen releases The River, a double album.  It sells over 5 million copies. October 17, 1964 – The Rolling Stones release  their second album, 12 X 5.  It sells over 500,000 copies in the U.S., and features only three originals – the rest are covers. October 17, 2000 – Black Sabbath guitarist Tony Iommi releases his debut […]

October 16, 2010 – Auburn University researcher Justin Havird names a new species of fish “Lepidocephalichthys zeppelin” because the pectoral fin reminds him of the double-neck guitar used by Jimmy Page. “I’m a big Led Zeppelin fan, and I was listening to them while I was working on the fish,” Havird says. “The structure that makes this species […]

October 15, 2006 – Patti Smith headlines the final night of the infamous club, CBGB in New York City, which closes due to $300,000 owed in unpaid back rent.  She says, “CBGB is both the scrappy symbol of rock’s promise and a temple that no one wanted to see go.”  With an open booking policy, […]

October 14, 1988 – Def Leppard become the first act in chart history to sell seven million copies of two consecutive albums – Pyromania (10 million copies sold) and Hysteria (25 million copies sold). [WATCH VIDEO BELOW] October 14, 1977 – KISS release their 2nd live album, Alive II.  It goes on to sell over 2 million copies. October 14, 1972 – Adelaide, […]

October 13, 1998 – Eric Clapton opens the Crossroads Centre in Antigua for the treatment of drug and alcohol addiction. Crossroads Centre Antigua is still a nonprofit organization that offers medically managed detox, residential 12-step treatment programs and family therapy. October 13, 2016 – Bob Dylan is awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature, “For having created […]

October 12, 1987 – Dee Snider announces he is leaving Twisted Sister, two days after the Love Is for Suckers tour concludes. Snider  reunites with the band ten years later. October 12, 1991 – The Day on the Green festival in Oakland, CA features headliners Metallica, Queensrÿche, Faith No More and Soundgarden. It is the final festival presented by Bill Graham prior to his death. October 12, 2005 […]