Today in rock history: on this date in 1993, British rocker and former lead singer of The Faces, Rod Stewart released a live recording from his MTV Unplugged appearance entitled Unplugged…and Seated. The record was a major success for Stewart and produced several hit singles. The most significant of those singles was Rod’s emotional take on Van Morrison’s 1989 love song, “Have I Told You Lately” which cracked the Top 5 on American singles charts. The entire performance was recorded in February of 1993 and was aired in the early part of May 1993 to rousing success. Fans and viewers were elated to see Rod reunite with his former bandmate, Faces lead guitarist Ron Wood who’d been part of the Rolling Stones lineup since 1975. Stewart and Wood collaborated on several songs dating back to their days with The Faces and this reunion marked the first time the two had played together in many years. The title of the album came from a joke Rod made during the performance where he referenced that the raucous Faces rocker “Stay With Me” was difficult to perform while sitting down. Unplugged…and Seated was a fantastic seller all around the world; sales in America alone topped 3 million copies. The album climbed as high as No. 2 on Billboard’s pop albums chart making it one of the best-selling releases from MTV’s Unplugged series.
Today in rock history: on this date in 1980, fans who’d queued up to buy tickets for an upcoming Genesis show at The Roxy in Los Angeles got a huge surprise. Instead of the normally designated box office employees sitting in the ticket booth, fans were delighted to find members of the band handling ticket sales themselves. Drummer and vocalist Phil Collins, keyboardist Tony Banks and guitarist Mike Rutherford were positioned inside the booth and sold tickets to their own future concert at the venue in one of the most clever and memorable publicity stunts in rock history.
#tbt 1980 when Genesis worked #theroxy box office, selling tickets to their own gig 🤘🏽 pic.twitter.com/7m0hj1KUgy
— The Roxy Theatre (@theroxy) September 15, 2016
Today in rock history: on this date in 1991, founding member of pioneering country rock band The Byrds, Gene Clark passed away at the age of 46. Clark served as a primary songwriter for the band and is responsible for some of the band’s most memorable songs like “Eight Miles High,” “I’ll Feel A Whole Lot Better” and “Set You Free This Time” among many others. Clark left the band in the late 1960s and embarked on a solo career that, sadly, never translated to significant record sales. His records and his bold penchant for experimenting with a variety of genres like country, pop, folk, psychedelia and bluegrass have, however, stood the test of time and have influenced countless artists who still hold the late musician in high esteem. Clark’s dependency on alcohol led to a series of health issues including bleeding ulcers which ultimately led to his untimely death.
Today in rock history: on this date in 1988, after a series of highly acclaimed independent albums that got a warm reception on college radio, California band Camper Van Beethoven released its debut album for a major record label, Our Beloved Revolutionary Sweetheart. The band was always lauded for its unique sound and an ability to blend several different genres, and this release's smoother sound was generally viewed as slightly altering Camper Van Beethoven's aesthetic when held against the rawer, more garage-like sound of its earlier releases. Our Beloved Revolutionary Sweetheart was the first of two records the band would record for the Virgin Records label, and it featured the college rock hit “Eye of Fatima (Parts 1 and 2).” The band would reach a wider audience with its follow up album, 1989’s Key Lime Pie which featured a cover of “Pictures of Matchstick Men” which was a hit for British rock band Status Quo in the late 1960s. Camper Van Beethoven would break up in 1990 and lead singer, guitarist and songwriter David Lowery would form another band, Cracker, whose popularity would eclipse Camper Van Beethoven’s.
