August 20, 1972 Stax Records commemorates the seventh anniversary of the 1965 Watts riots with a star-studded benefit concert at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. More than 100,000 fans show up to hear Isaac Hayes, The Bar-Kays, The Staple Singers, and Kim Weston, among others, perform at what becomes known as Wattstax.More
August 10, 1972 Paul and Linda McCartney are arrested backstage in Gothenburg, Sweden, for possession of six ounces of marijuana, which was mailed to them by someone in McCartney's office who thought they would like some weed on the road. The couple are released after paying a combined fine of $1,200.
July 18, 1972 All six members of Sly & the Family Stone are arrested in Hollywood after police search their tour bus and find two pounds of marijuana and two vials of cocaine.
July 6, 1972 David Bowie performs "Starman" on Top Of The Pops, causing an uproar among the conservative British audience by singing with his arm coquettishly draped around the shoulder of guitarist Mick Ronson – a move that makes him as a household name overnight.More
June 19, 1972 The United States Supreme Court rules in favor of MC5 manager John Sinclair and his White Panther associates in a landmark case that makes it illegal for the government to use wiretapping without a warrant. The White Panthers were accused of bombing the CIA agency in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
June 17, 1972 Grateful Dead keyboard player and founding member Ron "Pigpen" McKernan plays his last show with the band at a Hollywood Bowl concert. Health problems force him to stop touring, and he dies in March 1973 at age 27.
June 16, 1972 David Bowie unveils his landmark album, The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders From Mars. His breakthrough LP, it sells over 7 million copies and is hailed as one of the greatest albums of all time.More
June 14, 1972 Actor Warren Beatty organizes his fifth benefit concert for doomed US Presidential candidate George McGovern at Madison Square Garden, featuring, among others, Simon & Garfunkel and Peter, Paul and Mary.
June 3, 1972 With Martha Reeves and Stevie Wonder opening, The Rolling Stones kick off their Exile On Main Street tour in Vancouver, BC. The 32-date tour grosses $4 million, making it the richest rock tour in history at the time.
May 12, 1972 The Rolling Stones release Exile On Main Street, a landmark double album recorded primarily at a villa in France, where the group is living to avoid British taxes (they are "tax exiles," thus the album name).
April 4, 1972 Jill Scott is born in Philadelphia, where she makes the scene in the late '90s collaborating with The Roots. In 2000 she releases her debut solo album, Who Is Jill Scott?, with the single "A Long Walk." She later moves into acting, with roles on the TV series Girlfriends and the movie Why Did I Get Married?
March 24, 1972 The Godfather opens in theaters. Musically significant because the character Johnny Fontane is supposedly based on Frank Sinatra, and because "Godfather of..." becomes a common musical honorific.More
March 18, 1972 Neil Young's "Heart Of Gold," with backing vocals by James Taylor and Linda Ronstadt, goes to #1 in the US.More
February 19, 1972 The BBC bans Paul McCartney's "Give Ireland Back To The Irish." The song was inspired by an incident that occurred on Jan. 30, 1972, when British soldiers open fire on 26 unarmed civilians during a peaceful protest march in Derry, Northern Ireland, resulting in 14 deaths.
February 14, 1972 Rob Thomas of Matchbox Twenty is born to American parents in West Germany.More
December 24, 1971 Ricky Martin is born Enrique Martin Morales in San Juan, Puerto Rico.More
December 21, 1971 Martha and the Vandellas officially disband.
December 10, 1971 At the "Free John Sinclair Rally" in Ann Arbor, Michigan, John Lennon debuts his new song, fittingly called "John Sinclair." Stevie Wonder, Bob Seger and Phil Ochs also appear at the rally, which is an effort to get Sinclair, who was sentenced to 10 years in prison for possession of two marijuana joints, out of jail. Sinclair was released two days later.
December 10, 1971 Davy Jones of the Monkees guest stars on The Brady Bunch episode "Getting Davy Jones," where Marcia tries to get the dreamy singer to perform at her prom.More
December 4, 1971 During a Frank Zappa concert, the Montreux Casino in Switzerland catches fire when someone fires a flare gun, inspiring Deep Purple's "Smoke On The Water." Deep Purple are there to record their album Machine Head the following day, but end up using the Grand Hotel and including the song as a last-minute addition.More
November 17, 1971 Laura Nyro releases Gonna Take A Miracle, a tribute to '50s and '60s soul music, with Labelle as her backup singers. The R&B trio, formerly known as Patti LaBelle and the Blue Belles, will release their defining hit a few years later: "Lady Marmalade."
November 9, 1971 Carly Simon attends James Taylor's concert at Carnegie Hall and meets him backstage. They get together that night, become inseparable, and marry a year later (their divorce is finalized in 1983).
October 15, 1971 Rick Nelson (formerly Ricky) plays the "Rock & Roll Spectacular" concert at Madison Square Garden. When he plays some newer songs, the hit-hungry audience boos. Nelson writes the song "Garden Party" about the experience, and it becomes a hit, reviving his career.More
September 13, 1971 Paul McCartney and wife Linda welcome a daughter: Stella Nina McCartney. Stella, who will grow up to be a fashion designer, joins older sister Mary and half-sister Heather (Linda's daughter from a previous marriage).
August 1, 1971 George Harrison hosts the Concert For Bangladesh, the first major charity concert and the precursor to Live Aid. Guests include Bob Dylan, Eric Clapton, Billy Preston and Ringo Starr.More
July 3, 1971 Jim Morrison of The Doors is found dead in a bathtub in a Paris apartment at age 27. No autopsy is performed, and while drugs are suspected, the official cause is listed as "heart attack induced by respiratory problems."More
June 19, 1971 Carole King's album Tapestry hits #1 in the US, where it stays for 15 weeks.More
June 5, 1971 Mark "Marky Mark" Wahlberg is born in Dorchester, Massachusetts, where he's the youngest of nine children, including older brother Donnie (future member of New Kids on the Block).
May 22, 1971 The Rolling Stones' Sticky Fingers album, with a working zipper on the cover, hits #1 in the US.More
May 3, 1971 Led Zeppelin play their song "Four Sticks" for the first and only time in concert during a show in Denmark.
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