Music History Events: Memorable Concerts
July 17, 1993 After two-and-a-half years, the Guns N' Roses Use Your Illusion tour comes to an end at a show in Buenos Aires. It is the last time Axl and Slash share a stage until the 2016 GnR reconciliation.
January 17, 1993 Aretha Franklin, Michael Bolton, Tony Bennett, Bob Dylan, and Diana Ross perform at President Bill Clinton's inauguration ceremonies.
November 15, 1992 At the Pacific Amphitheatre in Costa Mesa, California, Ozzy Osbourne plays the final date of his No More Tours tour, which he says will be his last. His former band, Black Sabbath, opens the show in tribute with Rob Halford on lead vocals, since Ronnie James Dio wants no part of it.More
September 26, 1992 Gloria Estefan stages a star-studded concert to provide relief to victims of Hurricane Andrew.More
May 7, 1992 John Frusciante quits the Red Hot Chili Peppers in the middle of their Japanese tour.More
April 20, 1992 The remaining members of Queen hold the "Concert For Life" at Wembley Stadium in London, raising money for AIDS awareness in honor of their fallen frontman Freddie Mercury. David Bowie, Elton John, Guns N' Roses and George Michael all perform.
August 3, 1991 Pearl Jam play the club RKCNDY in Seattle. The show is filmed and used to create their first video - for the song "Alive." The audio from the show is used in the video, as the band hates the idea of lip-syncing.More
July 21, 1990 With a bevy of special guests, Roger Waters performs The Wall at the former site of the Berlin Wall, which came down eight months earlier.More
June 22, 1990 Billy Joel becomes the first rock act to play at Yankee Stadium when he performs at the first of two sellout shows.
April 16, 1990 The Nelson Mandela: An International Tribute for a Free South Africa concert is held in Wembley Stadium, London, to celebrate the release of Mandela, who had been imprisoned since 1962. Neil Young, Peter Gabriel, Lou Reed, Tracy Chapman, Jackson Browne and Bonnie Raitt all perform.More
April 7, 1990 Farm Aid IV takes place at the Hoosier Dome in Indianapolis. Two very memorable events take place: 1) Guns N' Roses play their last show with drummer Steven Adler, whose drug addiction is taking a toll on his playing. He is booted from the band before their next performance. 2) Elton John arrives after holding vigil for Ryan White, an 18-year-old who is one of the first high-profile AIDS victims (he contracted the disease from a blood transfusion). Elton dedicates his performance of "Candle In The Wind" to White, who dies the next day.
August 27, 1989 The BCM Summer Dance Festival kicks off at the Tempodrom in Berlin. The 3-day festival brings together a number of American acts, including the up-and-coming hip-hop groups Stetsasonic, EPMD and UTFO, along with disco mainstays The Village People and R&B legend Bobby Womack.More
June 11, 1988 Dozens of big-name acts, including Peter Gabriel, Sting, Whitney Houston and Stevie Wonder, rock the stage at the Free Nelson Mandela Concert at Wembley Stadium in London.More
May 14, 1988 Atlantic Records' 40th Anniversary celebration takes place at New York's Madison Square Garden, featuring appearances from many famous artists on the label's roster: The Bee Gees, Wilson Pickett, The Rascals, The Coasters, Emerson, Lake And Palmer, Crosby, Stills & Nash, Foreigner, Yes, Genesis, and the event's main attraction, a rare reunion of Led Zeppelin, with John Bonham's son Jason taking over drums for his late father.
January 16, 1988 Tina Turner performs at Estadio do Maracana in Rio de Janeiro to a sell-out crowd of 180,000, setting a new record for attendance at a performance by a solo artist.
July 26, 1987 With the Cold War winding down, American export Billy Joel plays a concert in Leningrad - something that would be impossible a few years earlier. The show is released as the album KOHUEPT (Concert).
June 19, 1987 Mötley Crüe begin their Girls, Girls, Girls tour with a show in Tucson, Arizona. The stage show features an inflatable Harley, lots of pyro, and a contraption that spins Tommy Lee and his drum kit upside down while he plays. Whitesnake is the opening act; later on the tour an new band called Guns N' Roses takes that slot.
February 19, 1987 At the Palomino Club in Hollywood, John Fogerty, Bob Dylan and George Harrison are in the audience for a Taj Mahal concert. When Taj calls them onstage, Dylan goads Fogerty into playing "Proud Mary" by saying that if he doesn't, everyone will think it's a Tina Turner song.More
October 16, 1986 Chuck Berry's 60th birthday bash (held three days before his actual birthday) takes place in St. Louis with a tribute concert featuring Keith Richards, Bruce Springsteen, Eric Clapton, Etta James, Robert Cray and Linda Ronstadt. Footage is shot for the 1987 documentary Hail! Hail! Rock 'N' Roll.
August 16, 1986 At a soggy Monsters Of Rock festival at Castle Donington, England, Def Leppard drummer Rick Allen gets a huge ovation when he takes the stage with the band. Twenty months earlier, Allen's left arm was severed in a car accident, and after extensive rehab and some warm-up gigs, he makes a triumphant return at the festival, playing barefoot behind a drum kit modified with electronic pedals. Scorpions and Motörhead are also on the bill, which is headlined by Ozzy Osbourne.
August 9, 1986 At the Knebworth Park Festival in England, Queen play their last concert with Freddie Mercury, who dies five years later. An audience of 120,000 hears them close out with "We Will Rock You/We Are The Champions" and "God Save The Queen."
July 20, 1986 Santana celebrate their 20th anniversary with a massive group reunion, as all 17 current and former members play a concert in San Francisco.
June 4, 1986 The first of a six-date Conspiracy of Hope tour is held at the Cow Palace in San Francisco. The concerts benefit Amnesty International and celebrate the human rights organization's 25th anniversary. The shows are headlined by U2 and Sting, and also feature Bryan Adams, Peter Gabriel, Lou Reed, Joan Baez, and The Neville Brothers.
May 3, 1986 The Silver Dollar City Tennessee amusement park in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, is reopened as Dollywood after Dolly Parton takes an ownership stake. The park grows considerably and becomes very successful with Parton involved.
January 20, 1986 After years of campaigning to make Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday a federal holiday, Stevie Wonder commemorates the occasion with a star-studded concert celebration in Washington, D.C.More
December 27, 1985 The Krush Groove Christmas party becomes the first rap show held at Madison Square Garden. A tie-in with the movie Krush Groove, the concert features performances by LL Cool J, Run-DMC, Whodini and other acts who appeared in the film. The event makes headlines for the violence that follows, as 14 people are arrested for various crimes.
September 22, 1985 The first Farm Aid concert plays in Champaign, Illinois, to benefit American farmers trying to survive amidst a national agricultural crisis.More
April 10, 1985 Madonna begins her first tour, the Virgin Tour, in Seattle. Her opening act is a petulant, little-known white rap trio called the Beastie Boys, which gets booed throughout their set.
January 31, 1985 John Fogerty plays his first live show in years, performing with Albert Lee and Booker T. Jones at the A&M Soundstage in Hollywood. It harkens a return for Fogerty, who two weeks earlier released Centerfield, his first album in 10 years.
January 11, 1985 Queen, Iron Maiden and Whitesnake play on Day 1 of the first Rock In Rio festival.More
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