Calendar Search Results: on the mar
July 14, 1980 The combustible couple Glen Campbell and Tanya Tucker open the Republican National Convention in Detroit with a duet of the National Anthem. Campbell later admits they were "higher than the notes we were singing." Other performers at the convention include Vicki Lawrence, Donny & Marie Osmond, and Pat Boone.
April 28, 1980 Tommy Caldwell (original frontman for The Marshall Tucker Band) dies at age 30 when his Jeep overturns during an accident.
February 19, 1980 AC/DC lead singer Bon Scott dies after a night of heavy drinking. The coroner's report lists "acute alcohol poisoning" as the cause of death, classified under "death by misadventure."More
February 7, 1980 At the Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena, Pink Floyd stage the first production of The Wall, an immersive concert performance in which a giant wall is erected on stage as the band plays, representing the alienation between audience and performer.More
January 25, 1980 Paul McCartney is released and deported from Japan after spending 10 days in a Tokyo jail. He was arrested at the airport when customs officials found 219 grams of marijuana in his luggage.
January 6, 1980 Georgeanna Tillman (of The Marvelettes) dies of lupus and sickle cell anemia a month shy of her 36th birthday.
December 4, 1979 Fleetwood Mac fans at The Forum in Inglewood get a brassy surprise when the USC Trojan Marching Band is brought out to perform "Tusk." The USC band, which appears on the recording, makes four more appearances at Forum concerts with Fleetwood Mac over the next seven days.
November 23, 1979 Marianne Faithfull is arrested at the Oslo, Norway, airport for possession of marijuana.
November 19, 1979 Frank Zappa's one and only rock opera, Joe's Garage, is released. The opera mixes styles of blues, jazz, doo-wop, lounge, orchestral, rock, pop and reggae. It draws controversy for profane lyrics but is hailed as a cultural milestone and landmark album. The work also looks forward to Zappa's later crusade against the PMRC with its themes of government censorship, and introduces a few memes into the Zappa lexicon, including "The Central Scrutinizer," "a little green rosetta," and of course, the term "roto-plooker."
October 4, 1979 Jimmy Buffett appears on the cover of Rolling Stone ahead of his forthcoming Volcano album. The article details his experience recording the Caribbean-flavored tracks near a dormant volcano at George Martin's AIR Studios in Montserrat.More
September 19, 1979 James Taylor, Jackson Browne, The Doobie Brothers, Graham Nash and Bonnie Raitt perform at Madison Square Garden for the first of five "no nukes" concerts.More
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 14, 1979 Donna Summer's "Bad Girls," a song about prostitutes, hits #1 in America.More
July 1, 1979 The Sony Walkman debuts in Japan, making music portable.More
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
June 4, 1979 Fleetwood Mac record the USC Trojan Marching Band at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles for use in their song "Tusk," the title track to their first album since Rumours. A film crew captures the action (including Stevie Nicks deftly twirling a baton) which is made into the video for the song.More
May 19, 1979 Two months after they are married, Eric Clapton and Pattie Boyd finally get a wedding reception, as Clapton gets a break in touring. Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr and George Harrison are guests, and jam together for the first time in almost 10 years.
May 10, 1979 A judge rules in favor of Peter Frampton in the lawsuit brought against him by Penny McCall, his live-in girlfriend from 1973-1978 and the inspiration behind songs like "Show Me The Way" and "Baby, I Love Your Way." She wanted half of his earnings from their time together, but they were never married and never had a formal agreement. The case sets a legal precedent for cohabitating couples.
March 27, 1979 Eric Clapton marries George Harrison's ex-wife Pattie, the subject of the song "Layla." Harrison attends the wedding and remains friends with Clapton.More
February 9, 1979 UB40 play their first live show, sharing the bill with another local group called the Au Pairs at The Hare & Hounds Pub in Birmingham. In 2011, a plaque went up outside the pub to mark the performance.
January 23, 1979 Brian Wilson of The Beach Boys divorces his wife Marilyn (one-time member of the Honeys and mother of Wendy and Carnie Wilson of Wilson Phillips).
January 5, 1979 The double-album soundtrack to the film Saturday Night Fever reaches sales of 25 million worldwide, making it the best-selling LP in history.More
December 21, 1978 The Cure release their debut single, "Killing An Arab," an existential song about a man who contemplates the meaning of life after murdering an Arab on a beach. Based on the controversial title, the band faces accusations of provoking anti-Arab sentiment.More
November 2, 1978 Alice Cooper appears on The Muppet Show, where he performs "Welcome to My Nightmare" and "School's Out." He also offers to give the Muppets fame and riches if they'll sign their souls over to him. Kermit is horrified. Gonzo spends the entire episode looking for a pen.
October 24, 1978 The movie version of The Wiz, which debuted as a Broadway stage production in 1975, hits theaters. The all-black cast includes Diana Ross as Dorothy and Michael Jackson as the Scarecrow. The film marks Jackson's acting debut.
October 7, 1978 Merle Haggard marries his third wife: Leona Williams, a bass player and singer with Loretta Lynn. The marriage lasts six years.
October 6, 1978 ABBA members Benny and Anni-Frid split after three years of marriage. The group's other male-female pair had been married in 1971.
August 23, 1978 The Strokes frontman Julian Casablancas is born in New York City. His parents are business mogul John Casablancas, founder of Elite Model Management, and Jeanette Christiansen, a Danish model who was crowned Miss Denmark of 1965. In 2001, Julian's band reinvents guitar rock with their debut album, Is This It.
July 24, 1978 The film Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band opens in America, and it tanks hard. Savaged by critics, it becomes a legendary Hollywood flop despite appearances by Peter Frampton, Billy Preston, Aerosmith and The Bee Gees.More
July 1, 1978 The Texxas Jam takes place at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas, Texas, with Aerosmith, Van Halen, Journey and Ted Nugent performing. 80,000 fans brave the 100 degree heat, cooled down by fire hoses brought in by the organizers. For Aerosmith, it marks a low point in their career as drug use and infighting are about to break up the band, and their performance suffers.
©2026 Songfacts®, LLC