Calendar Search Results: u i a song
May 21, 1983 "Little Red Corvette" goes to #6 in the US, giving Prince his first Top 10 hit on the Hot 100. The video is one of the first by a black artist to go in hot rotation on MTV.
May 16, 1983 Michael Jackson does the Moonwalk for the first time on TV when he breaks out the move on the Motown 25th anniversary TV special.More
May 6, 1983 The Smiths open for Sisters of Mercy at the University of London Union. In the audience is a producer from the influential radio program The John Peel Show, who gets the band on the show. Peel becomes a huge fan and plays the version of "This Charming Man" they recorded for the show, helping launch their career.
April 30, 1983 Blues musician Muddy Waters dies of heart failure at age 70 in his Westmont, Illinois, home.
April 30, 1983 Michael Jackson's fight is funky and strong, as "Beat It" hits #1 in America for the first of three weeks.More
April 24, 1983 With Los Angeles punk rock running afoul of authorities, the Minutemen play a guerilla concert in the Mojave desert, where fans are bussed in. It's the first of a series of "Desolation Center" concerts that are the precursor to Burning Man and other desert music festivals.More
April 23, 1983 "Come On Eileen" by Dexys Midnight Runners goes to #1 in the US. It's the only American hit for the English group, but they are far more successful in the UK, where among their hits is the #1 "Geno."
April 15, 1983 The Bad Brains' second full-length album, Rock for Light, is released. Produced by The Cars' Ric Ocasek, the album features both new compositions (such as the title track and "How Low Can a Punk Get?"), as well as re-recordings of tunes that originally appeared on the group's debut ("Sailin' On," "Banned in D.C."). Years later, Kurt Cobain would list Rock for Light as one of his all-time favorite records.
April 11, 1983 Dave Mustaine is kicked out of Metallica because of his drug and alcohol addictions. Soon after, he forms Megadeth, which becomes one of the most successful metal bands of the era.More
April 1, 1983 Exodus guitarist Kirk Hammett gets a phone call from manager Mark Whitaker, asking him to audition for Metallica. Hammett accepts, and several days later, is on a plane to New York for his tryout.
March 26, 1983 Thanks to heavy rotation on MTV, Duran Duran have their first American hit when "Hungry Like The Wolf" hits #3 on the Hot 100.More
March 25, 1983 The Motown 25: Yesterday, Today, Forever special is recorded at the Pasadena Civic Auditorium; it is broadcast on NBC in May. Highlights of the show include Michael Jackson's Moonwalk and a The Supremes reunion. A lowlight is no mention of the label's house band, The Funk Brothers. Bass player James Jamerson, who played on many of the hits performed this evening, has to buy his own ticket. He dies a few months later.
March 25, 1983 INXS play America for the first time, performing at The Spirit Club in San Diego to a crowd of 24 people. In May, they play to a more substantial crowd when they're on the bill at the US Festival.
March 23, 1983 ZZ Top release their album Eliminator, which features Billy Gibbons' custom hot rod on the cover. Thanks to videos for "Gimme All Your Lovin'," "Sharp Dressed Man" and "Legs" featuring the car and various babes, they become unlikely MTV stars, earning a new generation of fans.More
March 12, 1983 Run-DMC release their debut single, "It's Like That."
March 7, 1983 Bananarama release their debut album, Deep Sea Skiving, featuring a hit cover of Steam's "Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye" and the Top 10 UK entry "Shy Boy."
March 7, 1983 The English new wave duo Tears For Fears release their debut album, The Hurting, featuring the melancholic "Mad World." The album is inspired by the work of American psychologist Arthur Janov, founder of primal therapy.More
March 7, 1983 New Order release "Blue Monday," which becomes the biggest-selling 12-inch single of all time. The track is reissued twice by the band: in 1988 and 1995. Despite massive success in Europe and on the specialist dance chart, only the 1988 Quincy Jones remix makes it to the mainstream Billboard Hot 100, peaking at #68.
March 7, 1983 The Songwriter's Hall of Fame inducts Neil Sedaka and Stevie Wonder into their ranks during their annual New York ceremony.
March 2, 1983 The Judds audition at RCA, singing mountain tunes and Naomi's unfinished original, "Change Of Heart." They earn a recording contract and issue their debut EP, Wynonna & Naomi, in January 1984.
February 28, 1983 U2 release their third album, War, with "Sunday Bloody Sunday" and "New Year's Day." It's their first album to sell a million copies in America.
February 23, 1983 After 18 nominations, Lionel Richie finally wins a Grammy when his solo debut single "Truly" takes the award for Best Pop Vocal Performance, Male.
February 22, 1983 Styx release Kilroy Was Here, a concept album about a dystopian future where rock and roll is banned and technology has run amok.More
February 19, 1983 The Patti Austin and James Ingram duet "Baby, Come To Me" hits #1 in America. The song is written by Michael Jackson hitmaker Rod Temperton, composer of "Thriller" and "Off The Wall."
February 13, 1983 Marvin Gaye performs a very memorable national anthem at the NBA All-Star Game in Los Angeles, doing a sultry version with a beat.More
February 1, 1983 Journey release their eighth album, Frontiers. It sells 6 million copies and spawns the hit singles "Separate Ways (Worlds Apart)" and "Faithfully," but has the misfortune of being released while Michael Jackson's Thriller is red hot; it holds Frontiers at #2 for nine weeks.
January 22, 1983 Chrissie Hynde of the Pretenders and Ray Davies of The Kinks have a daughter, Natalie Rae Hynde. They following year, Hynde marries Jim Kerr of Simple Minds.
January 20, 1983 Kenny Loggins falls off the stage while making his entrance at a concert in Provo, Utah. The house lights are dimmed, so the crowd doesn't see it. The audience is stunned to learn that Loggins is being taken to the hospital, where he is treated for broken ribs. The show is rescheduled, and while recovering, Loggins writes the song "Footloose" with Dean Pitchford, providing the title track for the movie.
January 20, 1983 Def Leppard release their third album, Pyromania. Like their previous effort, High 'n' Dry, it's produced by Mutt Lange, who does the Gunter Glieben Glauten Globen on "Rock of Ages."More
December 31, 1982 E Street Band guitarist Miami Steve and/or Little Steven Van Zandt marries Maureen Santora at the Stone Pony in Asbury Park, New Jersey. Little Richard officiates, Bruce Springsteen is the best man, and Percy Sledge sings "When A Man Loves A Woman" during the reception.
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