March 3, 1986 – Metallica release Master of Puppets, their third album. It is the band’s final album with bassist Cliff Burton, who dies in a bus crash six months later.
March 3, 1978 – Whitesnake (originally billed as David Coverdale’s Whitesnake) plays its first show in England. The band is comprised of David Coverdale, guitarist Mick Moody, fellow guitarist Bernie Marsden, bassist Neil Murray, keyboardis Pete Solley and drummer David “Duck” Dowle.
March 3, 1994 – Kurt Cobain of Nirvana is rushed to a hospital in Rome after his wife Courtney Love finds him unresponsive in their hotel room. Cobain had overdosed on the drug Rohypnol. After having his stomach pumped, he awakes from his coma. This possible suicide attempt is a precursor to his death by his own hand about a month later.
March 3, 1978 – Van Halen start their first U.S. tour in Chicago at the Aragon Ballroom. They are the opening act for Montrose and headliner Journey.
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March 3, 2006 – Gary Glitter (born Paul Gadd) is sentenced to three years in a Vietnamese prison after being found guilty of molesting two young girls ages 10 and 11.
March 3, 1967 – The Jeff Beck Group perform live with Rod Stewart for the first time, in London.
March 3, 1983 – A Hell’s Angels biker identified only as “Butch” confirms, in front of a U.S. Senate hearing, that the motorcycle gang had indeed taken out a contract to kill Mick Jagger. The Rolling Stones leader was seen as having blamed the gang for the death of concertgoer Meredith Hunter at Altamont.
Classic Rock Birthdays
March 3, 1953 – Dave Amato, guitar (REO Speedwagon)
March 3, 1950 – Re Styles (born Shirley Marie MacLeod), guitar, vocals (The Tubes) (d. 2022)
March 3, 1953 – Robyn Hitchcock, guitar vocals (Robyn Hitchcock and the Egyptians)
March 3, 1948 – Terence “Snowy” White, guitar, vocals (Thin Lizzy, Pink Floyd, Roger Waters)
March 3, 1954 – Chris “Merrick” Hughes, drums, guitar, keyboards (Adam and the Ants)
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Rock Remembrances
March 3, 2012 – Ronnie Montrose dies from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. He was 64. The guitarist, who led the bands Montrose and Gamma, had been suffering from prostate cancer and clinical depression. Prior to his own band, Montrose played with Boz Scaggs and the Edgar Winter Group.
