Pick a Day

Music History Events: Memorable Concerts

September 19, 1981 Simon & Garfunkel reunite for a free concert in New York's Central Park.

March 10, 1981 Jimmy Page takes the stage for the first time since the breakup of Led Zeppelin when he joins Jeff Beck for some encores at a London show.

November 17, 1980 The annual "Royal Command Performance" in London features Aretha Franklin and Sammy Davis Jr. singing for England's Queen Elizabeth II.

October 4, 1980 On stage during a concert in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Carly Simon collapses from nervous exhaustion. She keeps going, but cancels the rest of her tour when she can't go on the next night. She doesn't perform again until 1987.

August 1, 1980 Def Leppard perform their first US live gig, opening for AC/DC in New York City.

July 4, 1980 500,000 attend a free Beach Boys concert in Washington DC.

June 17, 1980 Led Zeppelin begin what will be their last tour with a concert in Dortmund, Germany.

April 17, 1980 Bob Marley performs at the Independence Day celebration in Salisbury, Zimbabwe.

January 9, 1980 At The Fast Lane in Asbury Park, New Jersey, Bruce Springsteen takes the stage with the cover band Atlantic City Expressway to perform his song "The Promised Land." The group's lead singer is a 17-year-old high school kid named John Bongiovi, who later forms the band Bon Jovi.

December 22, 1979 The Concerts For The People Of Kampuchea benefit premieres at London's Hammersmith Odeon, featuring organizer Paul McCartney, The Who, Queen, and an all-star "Rockestra."

November 22, 1979 After taking three months off following the suicide death of his friend, the actor Freddie Prinze, Tony Orlando starts performing again when he plays a concert in San Carlos, California.

November 6, 1979 Paul Simon kicks off his latest British tour at London's Hammersmith Odeon by offering to buy everyone in the audience a drink. The tab comes to about $2,000.

September 13, 1979 ABBA starts their first and only tour of North America with a show at the Edmonton Sports Arena.

August 7, 1979 Led Zeppelin make their last live performance in the UK.

June 6, 1979 A gig at a British club gets a good review and leads to a record deal for Def Leppard.

June 4, 1979 US President Jimmy Carter hosts Chuck Berry, who plays a concert for The First Family at the White House.

June 1, 1979 The Police, supported by The Cramps, appear at the Odeon Theatre in Edinburgh, Scotland.

May 21, 1979 Elton John becomes the first western act to tour the U.S.S.R. when he plays the first of eight concerts at a show in Leningrad.

May 1, 1979 Elton John becomes the first Western rock star to play in Israel when he performs a concert in Jerusalem as part of a tour that also takes him to Russia, where he becomes one of the first Western rock stars to tour the Soviet Union.

April 27, 1979 Stevie Wonder makes a surprise appearance at a Duke Ellington tribute concert held at Royce Hall on the UCLA campus. Wonder performs his Ellington encomium "Sir Duke" along with Ellington's "C-Jam Blues."

April 22, 1979 Keith Richards serves his punishment for a Toronto arrest on heroin charges when The Rolling Stones play the first of two concerts in Ontario to raise money for the Canadian National Institute for the Blind, which is his court-ordered community service.

March 28, 1979 The day after they are married, Eric Clapton sings "Wonderful Tonight" to his new wife Pattie at his concert in Tucson, Arizona. He wrote the song about her while waiting for her to get ready to go out.

March 10, 1979 James Brown appears at the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville, Tennessee, where he performs "You're Cheatin' Heart," "Tennessee Waltz" and the very un-Country "Papa's Got A Brand New Bag."

February 23, 1979 Dire Straits begin their first North American tour with a show at the Paradise Theater in Boston.

February 7, 1979 The Clash, who have established themselves as leaders in the punk rock movement, play their first show in America when they perform at the Berkeley Community Theatre in California. Their opening act is blues legend Bo Diddley, who finds them quite loud.

February 3, 1979 20 years after the plane crash that killed Buddy Holly, Del Shannon and The Drifters perform a tribute show in Clear Lake, Iowa, where Holly's last concert took place.

January 9, 1979 The Bee Gees perform "Too Much Heaven," the #1 song in America, at the Music For UNICEF Concert at the United Nations General Assembly in New York City, and also donate royalties from the song to the charity. Other performers include Donna Summer, Rod Stewart and John Denver. It airs on NBC the next night, and later, a soundtrack album is released.

December 31, 1978 Bill Graham's Winterland Ballroom in San Francisco closes its doors for good after the Grateful Dead play their 48th concert there. Also on the bill: The Blues Brothers.

November 24, 1978 In a clear prelude to his coming "Christian" direction, the Jewish-born Bob Dylan plays tonight's gig in Fort Worth, Texas, wearing a large gold cross around his neck.

November 17, 1978 During Bob Dylan's show at the San Diego Sports Arena, an audience member throws a silver Christian cross onstage, which the singer picks up and pockets. Perhaps coincidentally, Dylan enters his "Christian period" the next year.