Are you ready to learn some stuff? It’s April 8th and here’s what happened Today in Rock History!
Continuing on from yesterday’s headline, it was on this day, in 1994, that Kurt Cobain was found dead in his home by electrician Gary Smith, who was there to install a new security system. Cobain had taken his own life a few days prior. A shotgun was found next to the singer’s body, and a suicide note was found saying, “I haven’t felt the excitement of listening to as well as creating music, along with really writing . . . for too many years now.”
We lost New York Dolls and Sex Pistols manager Malcolm McLaren in 2010 at the age of 64 from cancer
Moving onto something less dreadful, birthdays! We have Ezra Koenig of Vampire Weekend, the late #2 Paul “The Pig” Gray of Slipknot, Steve Howe of YES, and Izzy Stradlin of GNR and Velvet Revolver
Lots of great releases today including Aerosmith’s Toys in the Attic in 1975
We also got Thinkfreakness by The Black Keys in 2003, Third Eye Blind’s self-titled debut in 1997 and The Clash’s self titled debut record in 1977!
Did I mention we also got Godsmack’s Faceless in 2003 and Smash by The Offspring in 1994!
In 2016, the 31st Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony took place. Inductees include Cheap Trick, Steve Miller, and Deep Purple. Miller, who tended to be averse to award shows, would go on a rant after being inducted, saying that the Hall was like, “a private boys club,” and lets loose on the organizers. “It’s a bunch of jackasses and jerks and f–king gangsters and crooks.”
Also in 2016, Gavin Rossdale of Bush and Gwen Stefani of No Doubt get divorced after a 14 year marriage.
Dammit, we got sad again! Let’s fix that!
In 1994, Pink Floyd’s The Dark Side Of The Moon became the fourth best selling album in American history, announced the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). The album had passed 13 million sold. And in 2024, many Floyd fans used the album as their soundtrack for the total solar eclipse in America
Sticking with Floyd, it was on this day in 2022, that members David Gilmour and Nick Mason reunited to record their first new song in 28 years. Titled Hey Hey, Rise Up!, the song is a protest anthem in response to the Ukraine-Russia War and is built around a refrain from Boombox singer Andriy Khlyvnyuk in a video released on Instagram showing the singer fully armed to fight the Russian invasion.
In 2012, reports were released that the organizers of the 2012 London Olympics had contacted Bill Curbishley, the manager of The Who, and asked if drummer Keith Moon, who died in 1978, would be able to perform at the upcoming Games. Curbishley told The Times his response: “I emailed back saying ‘Keith now resides in Golders Green crematorium, having lived up to The Who’s anthemic line ‘I hope I die before I get old,'” he said. “If they have a round table, some glasses and candles, we might contact him.”
In 2016, Guns N Roses began their Not In This Lifetime reunion tour in Las Vegas. Just a few days before the tour, Axl Rose fractured his foot during a warm-up show. Rose would perform from the throne used during a Foo Fighters tour when Dave Grohl broke his leg. Besides that, the tour goes off without a hitch, becoming the first tour since 1993 to fully complete with both Axl and Slash.
And finally, ending on a much sillier note than when we began, in 2000, Christopher Walken asked for more cowbell on what would become one the most iconic skits in Saturday Night Live’s history
This has been Today in Rock History! Keep on Rocking, keep on Rolling! Check back tomorrow for your next rock history lesson!
