By most accounts, Ric Ocasek and Ben Orr's first band was a total failure. In 1976, the duo -- which actually went by the name Ocasek & Orr at first -- picked up a few members, became Cap'n Swing and gigged around Boston. But they didn't really catch on. By the end of the year they had a new name, and on New Year's Eve, they made their public debut. It was only a matter of time before the Cars would drive straight onto radio playlists.
The Winterland Ballroom, where scores of memorable live albums and movies were recorded, went out in style on Dec. 31, 1978. The Grateful Dead headlined a farewell concert that stretched out for more than eight hours -- with Jerry Garcia and band playing a stunning six of them.
Bruce Springsteen’s 1978 tour in support of ‘Darkness on the Edge of Town’ took him from clubs and theaters to arenas over the course of its seven months. But it came close to ending in disaster. On Dec. 31, 1978 — the second-to-last-night of the tour — Springsteen got hit in the face with a lit firecracker.
In one of the scariest and ultimately inspiring stories in recent rock history, Def Leppard drummer Rick Allen nearly lost his life and did lose his left arm in a car accident on Dec. 31, 1984.
As 1973 drew to a close, Pink Floyd abandoned their plans for a highly experimental follow-up to 'The Dark Side of the Moon,' their smash hit album from earlier in that year. The new project was to be called 'Household Objects,' and true to that title, the group's plans were to record it without any musical instruments.
One of the reasons the Beatles defined the 1960s is because they broke up shortly after that decade had ended. On Dec. 31, 1970, Paul McCartney took the first step in dissolving the group by filing a lawsuit against his three bandmates and their parent company, Apple Corps.
“They used us as an excuse to go mad, the world did," George Harrison said in the Beatles' 1995 'Anthology' documentary. "And then blamed it on us.” But even he could never suspect that, four years later, those words would ring true again when, on Dec. 30, 1999, a mad man attacked Harrison in his own house, nearly killing him.
On Dec. 29, 1982, Kiss played their first concert with guitarist Vinnie Vincent, who took over for founding member Ace Frehley during the recording of the band's 'Creatures of the Night' album.
Although Tim Hardin’s recorded output did not fare well commercially, his songs were loved and covered by some of the most recognizable names in the music business. He died of a heroin overdose on Dec. 29, 1980 at the young age of 39.
What was Neil Young smoking in the ‘80s? He jumped from one lazy genre exercise to the next, trying on everything from rockabilly (‘Everybody’s Rockin’’) to old-school country (‘Old Ways’) to big-band swing (‘This Note’s for You’). He started and ended the decade strong, with 1980’s ‘Hawks and Doves’ and 1989’s ‘Freedom,’ respectively. But everything in between (except for 1981’s ‘Re-Ac-Tor’) was puzzling at best.
The Beatles’ decision to give up touring in August 1966 gave them unlimited and unprecedented time to spend in the studio experimenting and inventing new recording techniques. One of the first songs to come out of that period, Paul McCartney’s ‘Penny Lane,’ was first committed to tape on Dec. 29, 1966.
The Faces ended their short life in December of 1975. Sprouted from the ashes of the Small Faces after Steve Marriott left the group to form Humble Pie, Ronnie Lane, Ian McLagan and Kenney Jones recruited Ron Wood and Rod Stewart (both recently exited from the Jeff Beck Group) to comprise a true powerho
