Pick a Day

Music History Events: Releases

June 11, 1981 13-year-old Celine Dion releases her first single, "Ce n'était qu'un reve," in her native Canada. It earns her a local following and leads the way for her debut album, La voix du bon Dieu, in November. For the rest of the decade, she records in her native French and becomes quite popular in Canada and across Europe. She starts recording in English at the start of the '90s.

February 24, 1981 Rick Springfield releases his breakthrough album Working Class Dog, with the #1 hit "Jessie's Girl." The pooch on the cover is his bull terrier Ronnie.

November 17, 1980 John Lennon releases Double Fantasy. A few weeks later, he is shot and killed, and the album quickly goes to #1 in many countries.

October 17, 1980 Bruce Springsteen releases The River.

October 17, 1980 Dire Straits release their third album, Making Movies. Three of the songs - "Romeo And Juliet," "Tunnel Of Love" and "Skateaway" - are accompanied by short films sold on a home video also called Making Movies.

October 7, 1980 Monty Python's Contractual Obligation Album is released in the US. It includes a bit called "Rock Notes," which begins: "Rex Stardust, lead electric triangle with Toad the Wet Sprocket, has had to have an elbow removed." Seven years later, a real band forms with that name in California. They have hits in the '90s with "Walk on the Ocean" and "All I Want."

June 23, 1980 The Rolling Stones release Emotional Rescue.

May 16, 1980 Alabama release their first RCA Nashville single, "Tennessee River," which becomes their first #1 hit on the Country chart.

October 19, 1979 Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers' third album, Damn The Torpedoes, is released. It includes the band's first two Top 20 hits, "Don't Do Me Like That" and "Refugee," and well as the popular songs "Here Comes My Girl" and "Even The Losers." The album reaches #2 in the US, and becomes Petty & the Heartbreakers' most-successful non-compilation record there, selling over 3 million copies.

September 24, 1979 The Eagles release their sixth album, The Long Run. The lead single is "Heartache Tonight," a song co-written by Bob Seger.

August 20, 1979 Bob Dylan, a recent convert to Christianity, releases the faith-driven album Slow Train Coming. It includes "Gotta Serve Somebody," which peaks at #24, becoming Dylan's last single to crack the top 40 in the US.More

July 21, 1979 Robert Palmer releases "Bad Case of Loving You."

June 15, 1979 Unknown Pleasures, the debut long-player from British post-punk band Joy Division, is released. Although it does not chart, it becomes hugely influential and is widely critically acclaimed as one of the defining albums of the post-punk era.More

March 23, 1979 Van Halen release their second album, Van Halen II, setting a furious pace that finds them issuing an album a year from 1978-1982. The album includes the concert favorites "Dance the Night Away" and "Somebody Get Me a Doctor."

March 16, 1979 Supertramp release their breakout album, Breakfast In America. The title track mirrors their story, telling the tale of young British kids who come to America and make it big.

February 20, 1979 George Harrison issues his eighth, self-titled album.

December 23, 1978 Rod Stewart releases "Da Ya Think I'm Sexy" in the US.

December 9, 1978 The Blues Brothers release their first single, a cover of "Soul Man." The original is by Sam & Dave, whom the Blues Brothers (John Belushi and Dan Aykroyd) emulated to create their act.

September 8, 1978 David Bowie releases his second live album, Stage. The album was recorded at concerts in Philadelphia, Providence and Boston.

July 29, 1978 Kenny Loggins and Stevie Nicks release "Whenever I Call You 'Friend'."

June 20, 1978 Foreigner release their second album, Double Vision. Hits from the set include the title track and "Hot Blooded."

June 9, 1978 Dire Straits release their self-titled debut album in the UK. The single "Sultans Of Swing" takes off, and the album ends up going Platinum in several territories, including America.

June 2, 1978 Bruce Springsteen releases Darkness On The Edge Of Town. It's his first album in almost three years due to a legal dispute with his ex-manager Mike Appel.

May 2, 1978 Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers release their second album, You're Gonna Get It!, featuring the enduring songs "I Need To Know" and "Listen To Her Heart."

April 1, 1978 Gerry Rafferty releases the saxy classic "Baker Street," named for a street in London where he often stayed while waiting out legal issues with his previous band, Stealers Wheel.

March 10, 1978 The Buzzcocks release their debut full-length album, Another Music in a Different Kitchen. Filled with cerebral songs about freedom, relationships, and making sense of the world, it takes UK punk in a more melodic and thoughtful direction.

January 30, 1978 Journey release Infinity, their fourth album but first with lead singer Steve Perry. With the singles "Wheel In The Sky" and "Lights," it takes the band away from their progressive rock sound and squarely into pop, where they thrive for the next 10 years.

January 18, 1978 Warren Zevon releases his most popular album, Excitable Boy, filled with outlandish story songs like "Roland The Headless Thompson Gunner" and "Werewolves Of London." It's co-produced by Jackson Browne.

November 11, 1977 Wings release "Mull Of Kintyre."

October 15, 1977 Paul Simon releases "Slip Slidin' Away."