June 27, 1994 – Aerosmith become the first major band to release a song, “Head First” (an unused cut from the Get A Grip Sessions), as a free download on the internet.  Download speeds at the time were so slow it took between 60 and 90 minutes to download the track, but ten thousand CompuServe subscribers still … Continue reading CDJ Today: June 27 in Classic Rock →

June 6, 1992 – Guns N’ Roses release what is at the time the most expensive video ever made, “November Rain”.  Roughly half of the $1.5 million dollar budget is spent constructing a church in the New Mexico desert for Slash to use as a background for his guitar solo.  Currently, the video has almost 2 … Continue reading CDJ Today: June 6 in Classic Rock →

May 25, 1978 – Keith Moon of the Who, performs for the last time with the band at a secret concert for fan club members at London’s Shepperton Film Studios.  The show was a mini-concert for their career-spanning documentary The Kids Are Alright.  The band had been off the road for nearly two years, and gave a solid but stilted performance.  Keith … Continue reading CDJ Today: May 25 in Classic Rock →

May 23, 1969 – The Who release their fourth album Tommy, which is a double album and is the first album to be billed as a rock opera. It goes on to sell over two million copies in the U.S. May 23, 2010 – Bret Michaels of Poison is announced the winner of The Celebrity Apprentice, season 9.  He wins $250,000 for his charity, the American Diabetes Association. … Continue reading CDJ Today: May 23 in Classic Rock →

May 19, 2000 – Dickey Betts of The Allman Brothers Band is essentially kicked out of the band for “creative differences,” which are allegedly related to drugs and/or alcohol use. May 19, 1979 – Eric Clapton and Patti Boyd throw a reception party two months after their wedding featuring a jam session with Paul McCartney, George Harrison, Ringo Starr, Ginger Baker, Mick Jagger … Continue reading CDJ Today: May 19 in Classic Rock →

March 18, 1978 – An estimated 350,000 rock fans attend the largest festival of the 70’s, California Jam II in Ontario, California. Performers include Aerosmith, Ted Nugent, Foreigner, Santana, Heart, Frank Marino & Mahogany Rush and Rubicon, featuring a young Jack Blades. March 18, 1975 – The Who’s Tommy premieres in New York. March 18, 2002 – The Ramones and Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers are among those inducted into the … Continue reading CDJ Today: March 18 in Classic Rock →

March 9, 1970 – Having recently changed their name from Earth to Black Sabbath, Ozzy Osbourne, Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler and Bill Ward make their concert debut at The Roundhouse in London. March 9, 1981 – Robert Plant performs his first solo concert since the breakup of Led Zeppelin in Stourbridge, U.K. March 9, 1976 … Continue reading CDJ Today: March 9 in Classic Rock →

March 1, 1969 – Jim Morrison of The Doors receives a felony charge of lewd and lascivious behavior and five misdemeanors; two counts of indecent exposure, two of public profanity and one of public drunkenness after allegedly showing his penis to a Miami audience.  Although it has never been confirmed that he actually exposed himself, he did say, “You want to … Continue reading CDJ Today: March 1 in Classic Rock →

September 17, 1991 – Guns N’ Roses release both Use Your Illusion I and Use Your Illusion II on the same day because they think one double album of 30 tracks would be too expensive for fans.  Record stores open at midnight to frenzied purchasing and when the dust settles, each album sells more than 7 million … Continue reading CDJ Today: September 17 in Classic Rock →

September 14, 1984 – MTV debuts its first ever video awards show, hosted by Dan Aykroyd and Bette Midler in New York at Radio City Music Hall. The Cars win Video of the Year for “You Might Think”. Among the Video of the Year nominees were Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” and The Police “Every Breath You Take”. David Bowie wins … Continue reading CDJ Today: September 14 in Classic Rock →

September 13, 1991 – Geffen, Nirvana’s record label, throws them a party to celebrate the release of their forthcoming album, Nevermind, and the single “Smells Like Teen Spirit” at Re-bar in Seattle.  The band proceeds to tear down all of the Nevermind posters and then starts a food fight.  A bouncer ends up kicking the band out of their own party, but they hop in … Continue reading CDJ Today: September 13 in Classic Rock →

May 31, 1977 – Beatlemania opens on Broadway.  It runs for a total of 1,006 performances. May 31, 1976 – The Who enter the Guinness Book of World Records for performing the loudest concert in history (at the time) for their show at England’s Charlton Athletic Grounds with 76,000 watts at 120 decibels. Motörhead and Manowar go on to break the record decades later.  The … Continue reading CDJ Today: May 31 in Classic Rock →