Born on this date in 1948 in Redditch, Worcestershire, England — the late John Bonham, the thunderous drummer from Led Zeppelin. Bonham joined the band at the suggestion of Robert Plant, who was the new singer Jimmy Page had brought on board to front his new band. Bonham, who had been inspired by jazz drummers early in life, brought a whole new dimension to rock drumming. Loud, fast, powerful and precise, Bonham added so much punch and groove to all of Led Zep's records and live performances that hearing them with a different drummer now seems unimaginable. Bonham had a penchant for living as fast and loose as he did behind his drum kit, and passed away at the early age of 32. Cheers to one of the greatest rock drummers of all time.
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Today in rock history, on this date in 1966. The brand new made-for-TV rock band The Monkees began filming its upcoming NBC television series, The Monkees. The show would make its premiere in September of that year and would become a massive hit despite lasting only two seasons. The band's first single release "Last Train To Clarksville" would also be released that year, just before the launch of the series, to coincide with the mania that would soon ensue.
Today in rock history, on this date in 1961. Rocker Chuck Berry opened his very own amusement park, Berry Park, near his hometown of St. Louis, Missouri. The park featured a zoo, rides, a golf course and a massive guitar-shaped pool. Berry opened the park in response to the whites-only country clubs he was banned from visiting early in his career.
\\<\/iframe\>Today in rock history, on this date in 1976. The Guinness Book of World Records declared who the loudest rock and roll band was: The Who. The band headlined an all-day festival at the Charlton Athletic Football Field in London that also featured the Sensational Alex Harvey Band, Little Feat and (Tampa's own) Outlaws. The Who was measured as cranking out 126 decibels from a distance of 100 feet from the stage. The record would later be broken in the mid-1980's by New York heavy metal band Manowar.
Today in rock history, on this date in 1982. Up-and-coming Athens, Georgia quartet R.E.M. signed a five-album recording contract with indie label, I.R.S. Records. R.E.M. had only released one 7" single on the small Atlanta-based label Hib-Tone Records at this time but the five records it would release through I.R.S. would all soon garner high critical praise and would be heavily featured on college radio playlists. The label already had The Go-Go's on its roster but R.E.M. would soon become one of its best-selling acts.
