Today in rock history: on this date in 1968, Led Zeppelin made its U.S. live debut. The band’s first shows in America were in support of American hard-rock bands Vanilla Fudge and Spirit. Led Zep’s very first show on American soil took place at the Auditorium Arena in Denver, Colorado but, on many advertisements for the show, the band was incorrectly referred to as “Len Zefflin”. It wouldn’t be very long before the legendary band would become headliners in America (and all over the globe) in their own right.

Today in rock history: on this date in 1967, the Beatles film Magical Mystery Tour was aired on British television to coincide with the Boxing Day holiday. The theme of the film was to take the band and a host of riders on a bus ride and feature some of the band’s new music. Unfortunately, the film was received poorly, and many viewers were unimpressed with the somewhat confounding and unexciting film. Reactions to the film were so bad that the previously scheduled American airing of the film was cancelled.

BY GEORGE!
Today in rock history; George Harrison’s solo masterpiece and more

Today in rock history: on this date in 1970, George Harrison became the first Beatles member to top Billboard’s Hot 100 singles chart with a solo hit. “My Sweet Lord,” Harrison’s massively popular hit from his triple-LP set, All Things Must Pass held down the No. 1 spot for four straight weeks in America and reached the top spot in just about every country in the world as well.

Today in rock history: on this date in 1999, renowned American singer, composer, songwriter and producer Curtis Mayfield passed away due to complications from diabetes at age 57. As a founding member of the outstanding group The Impressions, and through his vast and superb solo work, Mayfield was one of the most important and influential artists to incorporate social awareness into his music and lyrics. He tackled topics like inner city living and civil rights through songs like “People Get Ready,” “Keep On Pushing” and “Move On Up.” Mayfield is probably best remembered for the soundtrack he created for the 1972 film Super Fly, which went to No. 1 on both pop and R&B sales charts in America. The platinum-selling soundtrack album contained the classics “Freddie’s Dead,” “Pusherman” and the timeless title track. Mayfield’s catalog still serves as a great source of inspiration for many musicians with artists like Paul Weller and Bruce Springsteen both often citing him as one of their greatest musical influences.