Are you ready for your daily dose of rock history? Well, you’re in the right place because this is where you’ll find hit songs, memorable performances, cultural events, and more from May 7 that shook the rock industry. Here are May 7 facts and trivia about rock music you adore.
Breakthrough Hits and Milestones
You never know which hits and milestones will live on in rock legends, but these from May 7 are definitely in the books:
- 1977: “Hotel California” by the Eagles worked its way into the No. 1 spot on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, their third song to do so. It’s the title track from the group’s fifth album of all original material.
- 2022: With their fourth studio album, Ribbon Around the Bomb, Blossoms scored their third consecutive No. 1 album in the United Kingdom. Blossoms have continued to see success, with their fifth album also making it to the top of the chart.
Cultural Milestones
These are a few cultural milestones from May 7 that had a lasting effect on rock ‘n’ roll:
- 1946: American drummer and founding member of the Grateful Dead, Bill Kreutzmann Jr., was born in Palo Alto, California. He played with the band for his entire 30-year music career and is one of four members to have performed at every Grateful Dead show.
- 1998: When the Santa Monica Museum of Art reopened, event attendees were treated to a performance by Beck. The institution was featuring an exhibit of Beck’s collaborative works with his grandfather, and he titled his museum performance New Age Evisceration.
Notable Recordings and Performances
The 1960s gave the rock genre these memorable recordings and performances on May 7:
- 1967: Jimi Hendrix played a concert at the Saville Theatre in London. Opening acts for the show were Denny Laine with Strings Attached, The 1-2-3, and Garnet Mimms.
- 1968: Aretha Franklin recorded a live album called Aretha in Paris at the Olympia Theatre in Paris. The album reached No. 13 on the Billboard 200 chart and included the songs “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction” and “Respect.”
Industry Changes and Challenges
Some of the most difficult changes and challenges have the best outcomes in the long run, such as these that happened in the rock industry on May 7:
- 1974: To celebrate the launch of its new record label, Swan Song Records, Led Zeppelin held a lunch at the Four Seasons Hotel in New York City. The label faded when the band broke up a few years later.
- 1992: John Frusciante quit the Red Hot Chili Peppers for the first time, refusing to take the stage at a concert in Tokyo, Japan. He struggled with the group’s rapid rise to fame after the release and success of their Blood Sugar Sex Magik album.
Rock ‘n’ roll has been making history for decades, and it’s sure to do so for the foreseeable future. Now you know what happened on this day in rock history, you can go out and impress your friends.
