NOV 5-11: Historic events this week from Brian Wilson, Tom Petty, Queen, Led Zeppelin, Elton John, Billy Idol and Bob Dylan
NOVEMBER 5, 1982: BEACH BOYS FIRE BRIAN WILSON
Brian’s weight and addictions were out of hand by November 1982, leading the Beach Boys to fire their onetime leader and withhold tour disbursement money until he sought help.
The harrowing details of the treatment he received under Dr. Eugene Landy are laid out in Brian’s 2016 autobiography I Am Brian Wilson and the 2014 biopic Love & Mercy.
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NOVEMBER 5, 1996: TOM PETTY and THE HEARTBREAKERS BACK JOHNNY CASH
Johnny Cash’s Unchained, the second album in his acclaimed American Recordings series, featured Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers as his backing band.
The album included a number of covers of songs by Beck, Soundgarden, and even Tom Petty’s “Southern Accents.”
Unchained took home the Grammy for Best Country Album.
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NOVEMBER 6, 1995: QUEEN RELEASE MADE IN HEAVEN
Queen’s 15th & final studio album arrived 4 years after Freddie Mercury’s death.
Through his illness, Mercury laid down as many vocal tracks as possible, in hopes Queen would one day finish the songs.
Queen returned to the recordings in ’93 and completed the album in February ’95.
Brian May called Made In Heaven “possibly the best Queen album we ever made.” (MOJO, December 2013).
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NOVEMBER 8, 1971: LED ZEPPELIN’S FOURTH ALBUM
Despite being their biggest album, Led Zeppelin’s untitled fourth album is only one of two albums that didn’t go to #1 for the band.
Commonly referred to as “Led Zeppelin IV” (and sometimes Zoso), the album peaked at #2.
The classic album has sold over 37 million copies worldwide and contains the classic rock radio staples “Black Dog”, “Misty Mountain Hop”, “Rock and Roll”, “Going to California” and “Stairway to Heaven.”
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NOVEMBER 8, 1975: ELTON’S THIRD #1 ALBUM OF THE YEAR
Rock of the Westies was Elton John’s second album of the year, and third #1 album of 1975.
Elton John’s Greatest Hits spent 10 consecutive weeks at #1, which included the first 5 weeks of 1975.
Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy, released in May, would spend a total of 7 weeks at the top spot.
A month after its release, Rock of the Westies, featuring the #1 single “Island Girl”, would climb to #1 where it would remain for 3 weeks.
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NOVEMBER 11, 1970: TARANTULA: DYLAN’S FIRST BOOK
Depending on whom you ask, Dylan’s Tarantula is either a nonsensical novel, or a collection of experimental prose.
In 2003, SPIN magazine did a list of Top Five Unintelligible Sentences from Books Written by Rock Stars. Dylan topped the list with Tarantula’s line…
“Now’s not the time to get silly, so wear your big boots and jump on the garbage clowns.”
