Time to take a look back into this day in rock history: February 22
1974
Pioneers of deep southern rock, Lynyrd Skynyrd is scheduled to deliver a jaw dropping set at Case Western Reserve University.
Poster courtesy of Raw Sugar Studio
New York disc jockey “Murray the K” Kaufman dies of cancer at age 60. One of the most influential jocks in the country, the Beatles got close to Kaufman during their 1964 visit to New York in 1964….but not as close as Kaufman thinks. He calls himself “The Fifth Beatle”, but at the 1988 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction George Harrison lays that rumor to rest once and for all claiming there were two people who could ear that title, PR manager Derek Taylor and their road manager Neil Aspinall. A few years later, Paul McCartney adds, “If anyone was the fifth Beatle, it was Brian Epstein.”
Afraid that he would never leave the hospital, Andy Warhol is proven right when he dies after gall bladder surgery. Warhol was a major influence on Lou Reed, the Velvet Underground, and David Bowie. He also designed the famed Sticky Fingers album cover for the Rolling Stones.
They knew this was ridiculous right from the start. Jethro Tull wins the first Grammy for Heavy Metal and the audience doesn’t like it.
That wasn’t the only Grammy win that raised eyebrows. Milli Vanilli wins the Best New Artist Grammy in 1990, but the following November producer Frank Farian confesses the duo of Fab Morvan and Rob Pilatus never actually sang on their recordings. The award is withdrawn. Headlines read, “Milli Vanilli Phony Baloney”.
Britain’s English heritage office lists London’s Abbey road studios protecting it from plans to alter it in any major way. Citing the Beatles history at that address, Culture Minister Margaret Hodge notes the studios “produced some of the very best music in the world.”
2017
Al DiMeola plays “Mediterranean Sundance” at his Kent Stage show.
Poster courtesy of Raw Sugar Studio
Elton john’s private jet has a hydraulic failure while in mid-air and is forced to make an emergency landing in Hampshire, England. High winds make the landing especially tricky. Even so, Elton jumps on another flight to New York to get to his Madison Square Garden gig the next night.
