Calendar Search Results: on about
October 3, 1987 Smokey Robinson holds the #10 spot on the Hot 100 with "One Heartbeat," while a song about him, "When Smokey Sings" by ABC, is at #8.
September 28, 1987 The British newspaper The Sun reports that Elton John has had the larynxes removed from his guard dogs so they can't bark, which is untrue. Elton sues the paper and reaches a settlement for about a million pounds and a front page apology.
September 7, 1987 In the UK, Pink Floyd release A Momentary Lapse of Reason, their first album without founding member Roger Waters.More
July 21, 1987 Guns N' Roses release their first album, Appetite For Destruction. It's a landmark debut, featuring the hits "Welcome To The Jungle" and "Sweet Child O' Mine."More
June 29, 1987 The Living Daylights, the first James Bond film to star Timothy Dalton as 007, premieres in London. The theme song was written and performed by a-ha, who are unable to attend. The film's composer, John Barry, is asked about the Norwegian band and calls them "Hitler Youth."More
June 27, 1987 Whitney Houston charts her fourth #1 on the Hot 100 with "I Wanna Dance With Somebody (Who Loves Me)," the debut single from her second album.More
June 23, 1987 15-year-old Tiffany starts her Mall Tour at the Bergen Mall in Paramus, New Jersey, performing what in November will be her #1 hit, "I Think We're Alone Now."More
May 30, 1987 The Los Angeles Times reports that Michael Jackson has offered $50,000 for the bones of "The Elephant Man," John Merrick, who died in 1890. Said Jackson's manager: "Jackson has a high degree of respect for the memory of Merrick. He has read and studied all material about the Elephant Man, and has visited the hospital in London twice to view Merrick's remains."
May 25, 1987 The Cure find mainstream success in America with the versatile double album Kiss Me, Kiss Me, Kiss Me, featuring the hit singles "Why Can't I Be You?" and "Just Like Heaven."More
March 26, 1987 Nike begins airing a commercial using the Beatles song "Revolution," marking the first time an original version of a Beatles song is used in an ad.More
March 22, 1987 Anthrax release their third album, Among the Living. The cover shows an image of Henry Kane, a character in the film Poltergeist II: The Other Side, which the band finds terrifying.More
March 9, 1987 U2 release their fifth studio album, The Joshua Tree. The first two singles, "With Or Without You" and "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For," climb to #1 in America. The album becomes their first #1 in that country, and takes the Grammy Award for Album of the Year.More
December 13, 1986 "The Way It Is," the title track to the debut album by Bruce Hornsby and the Range, goes to #1 in the US. The song is about the civil rights movement in the US; in 1998 it's reworked by the rapper 2Pac into "Changes," a song with similar subject matter.
August 22, 1986 The movie Stand By Me is released in theaters. It's based on a novella by Stephen King called The Body, but director Rob Reiner decides to name it after the famous song to play up the friendship storyline and keep it from sounding like a slasher film.More
July 19, 1986 Genesis have their first (and only) #1 Hot 100 hit as "Invisible Touch" tops the chart.More
May 31, 1986 Jeff Krulik and John Heyn film the parking-lot antics of fans tailgating at a Judas Priest concert in Landover, Maryland. The result is Heavy Metal Parking Lot, a 16-minute film that captures the energy and absurdity of heavy metal culture in the '80s.More
May 25, 1986 It's Hands Across America, as millions of Americans form a human chain from New York to Santa Monica to raise money for hunger relief. The project is organized by the same guy who put together "We Are The World," but the theme song is far less ambitious.More
May 19, 1986 Former Genesis frontman Peter Gabriel transitions from cult performer to pop star with the release of his fifth solo album, So, which includes the hit single "Sledgehammer."More
May 10, 1986 "West End Girls" by Pet Shop Boys, a synthy song about clubbing in London, hits #1 on the Hot 100 five months after going to #1 in their native UK. It's the first of many hits for the duo.
May 3, 1986 Propelled by a memorable video where lookalike models vamp the song, Robert Palmer's "Addicted To Love" hits #1 on the Hot 100.More
April 19, 1986 You don't have to watch Dynasty to have an attitude: Prince hits #1 in the US with "Kiss." The #2 song is "Manic Monday" by the Bangles, which he wrote.More
March 9, 1986 Steven Tyler and Joe Perry of Aerosmith go to Magic Ventures Studios in New York, where they record parts of their song "Walk This Way" so Run-D.M.C. can transform it into a hip-hop jam. Neither act is thrilled about the collaboration (Run-D.M.C.'s producer Rick Rubin spearheaded the effort), but the resulting track is a huge hit, revitalizing Aerosmith's career and delivering a new (mostly white) audience to the rappers.
January 23, 1986 The first inductees into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame include Elvis Presley, Chuck Berry and Fats Domino.More
November 9, 1985 The Miami Vice Theme hits #1 on the Hot 100, the last instrumental song to top the tally.More
November 2, 1985 "Part-Time Lover" hits #1 on the Hot 100, 22 years after Stevie Wonder first topped the chart in 1963.More
September 19, 1985 Frank Zappa, John Denver and Dee Snider of Twisted Sister testify at a Senate hearing where the Parents Music Resource Center (PMRC) argue for a ratings system on music. The musicians explain that this is censorship, but the PMRC wins a victory and warning labels are ordered on albums containing explicit lyrics.More
September 16, 1985 Kate Bush's album Hounds Of Love surpasses Madonna's Like A Virgin for the #1 spot on the UK chart. Featuring the hit single "Running Up That Hill," it's the second chart-topper for the British singer-songwriter.More
September 7, 1985 "St. Elmo's Fire (Man In Motion)" hits #1 in the US. David Foster and John Parr wrote the song for the film St. Elmo's Fire, but they wrote it about Rick Hansen, who went around the world in his wheelchair raising money for spinal cord research on his "Man In Motion" tour.
August 14, 1985 Three years after their duet "The Girl Is Mine," Paul McCartney advises Michael Jackson to invest in publishing. Jackson makes a winning bid of $47.5 million for the rights to over 250 Lennon-McCartney Beatles songs owned by ATV publishing, which turns out to be a great investment, but kills their friendship.More
July 19, 1985 The Legend of Billie Jean, starring Helen Slater and Christian Slater as teens who become accidental outlaws, debuts in theaters, boasting the hit theme song "Invincible" by Pat Benatar. The teen flick receives mixed reviews but goes on to become a cult classic, despite Benatar calling it "one of the worst movies ever made."More
©2026 Songfacts®, LLC