On This Day:
In 1964 A riot broke out during a Rolling Stones gig at The Empress Ballroom in Blackpool, Lancashire, after Keith Richards kicked a man in the head who was spitting at the group. Two policemen and over 30 fans were injured. Fans caused thousands of dollars in damage after smashing two chandeliers, tearing up seats and breaking a Steinway grand piano. The Rolling Stones were then banned from playing in Blackpool for forty-four years, until the ban was lifted in 2008.
In 1967 The Beatles and their manager Brian Epstein, along with a number of other rock stars, signed a petition in “The Times” supporting the legalization of marijuana.
In 1972 Edgar Winter’s White Trash drummer Bobby Ramirez was killed after a bar room brawl in Chicago.
In 2002 A damage claim was filed against a garden center over claims it killed a collection of the late singer Freddie Mercury’s prized koi fish. It is claimed 84 koi fish died when the electricity powering a temporary pond was accidentally turned off by a worker from a west London nursery.
In 2003 Bob Dylan’s movie “Masked & Anonymous” opened in New York.
In 2004 Dave Navarro made a guest appearance on “America’s Most Wanted” to offer thanks to viewers. He said the long-running true crime series played a key role in the capture of the man who murdered both Navarro’s mother and her friend in 1983, when the former Jane’s Addiction guitarist was 15-years-old.
In 2007 Rod Stewart postponed his concert in Gdansk to honor Poland’s national three-day mourning period for the 26 people killed in a bus crash while on a Catholic pilgrimage. The Polish faithful were traveling through a mountain community in France when their bus went off the road, landed in a ravine, and burst into flames. Stewart played his show two days later.
In 2010 Surviving Heaven And Hell band members Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler, and Vinny Appice led a tribute concert in honor of the band’s late frontman, Ronnie James Dio. It was also the band’s last concert under that name. Glenn Hughes was among the other rockers who took part in the event, which was held during the High Voltage Festival in London.
In 2011 America’s Dan Peek died in his sleep at his home in Farmington, Missouri. He was 60.
In 2013 Bob Jones, guitarist for the 60s one-hit wonder band We Five, died at the age of 66 from pancreatic cancer. The band’s lone hit was “You Were On My Mind,” which hit number three in 1965.
In 2017 Linkin Park released their first official statement after the death of frontman Chester Bennington the previous week.
In 2022 Joni Mitchell played her first concert in 20 years at the Newport Folk Festival in Rhode Island. It was her first performance since she suffered an aneurysm in 2015.
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