Pick a Day

Music History Events: Memorable Concerts

September 9, 1973 Following up on his plan to use the concert audience for the background vocals on the left stereo channel for his song "Sons Of 1984," Todd Rundgren records the crowd at a show in San Francisco's Golden Gate Park, which is disrupted because of a pot bust. The right channel vocals came from a show in New York.

August 26, 1973 At the Hilton in Las Vegas, Bobby Darin plays his final concert. The singer dies on December 20.

August 18, 1973 Jazz drumming legend Gene Krupa plays what is to be his last live show, a gig with the Benny Goodman Quartet in New York City.

June 21, 1973 The band Bread, already having decided to break up, play their last live gig ever in Salt Lake City after one of its tour trucks flips over and destroys most of its gear.

June 2, 1973 Electric Light Orchestra begin their first US tour, a 40-date trek kicking off in San Diego.

May 26, 1973 Carole King returns to her hometown of New York City to play a free concert in Central Park. The crowd, estimated at 70,000, includes Joni Mitchell, who sang on her Tapestry album. After enjoying the show, the crowd cleans up after themselves using garbage bags distributed by Parks Department.

February 24, 1973 The Byrds play their final concert, in Passaic, New Jersey.

February 10, 1973 9-year-old Lars Ulrich goes to his first concert, seeing Deep Purple in Copenhagen. It makes quite an impact: He switches focus from tennis to music and forms Metallica when he moves to America. When Deep Purple enter the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame in 2016, Ulrich gives the induction speech.

December 11, 1972 Genesis play their first-ever US show at Massachusetts' Brandeis University.

December 1, 1972 Martha and the Vandellas give their farewell performance in Detroit, Michigan.

November 29, 1972 In Philadelphia, David Bowie joins Mott The Hoople on stage to sing on "All The Young Dudes," a song he wrote and produced for the band.

September 28, 1972 David Bowie has generated so much publicity with his Ziggy Stardust concerts that he sells out a show in Carnegie Hall.

September 16, 1972 Former Herd and Humble Pie guitarist Peter Frampton plays his first solo gig, opening for The J. Geils Band in New York.

August 30, 1972 John Lennon and Yoko Ono play two benefit concerts (an afternoon and evening show) at Madison Square Garden in New York City. They're Lennon's only full concerts in his post-Beatles career.

August 5, 1972 '50s nostalgia picks up steam at the London Rock & Roll Show. Held at Wembley Stadium, Chuck Berry, Little Richard, Bill Haley, Bo Diddley, and Jerry Lee Lewis all perform.

June 23, 1972 Smokey Robinson appears onstage for the last time with his group The Miracles in Washington, DC.

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.

June 2, 1972 Former teen idol Dion performs in a reunion concert with The Belmonts at Madison Square Garden in New York City.

May 8, 1972 Billy Preston becomes the first rock star to headline at New York's Radio City Music Hall.

May 5, 1972 Paul Simon, Chicago and Carole King all perform at a benefit concert for US presidential candidate George McGovern.

February 16, 1972 Rick Nelson begins his first British tour.

February 10, 1972 T. Rex depart for their first American tour as headliners, riding the success of their hit single "Bang A Gong (Get It On)."

January 13, 1972 Aretha Franklin performs the first of two concerts at the New Temple Missionary Baptist Church in Los Angeles that are recorded for her live album Amazing Grace, which sells over 2 million copies when it is released in June. Film footage is also shot, but the documentary doesn't appear until 2019, after Franklin's death.

December 31, 1971 The Band plays at the New York Academy of Music with a full horn section. The following year, the show is issued as the double album Rock of Ages.

December 28, 1971 Sha Na Na makes the big time tonight, headlining Carnegie Hall with host Keith Moon of The Who (a huge fan of the group, as it turns out).

December 10, 1971 During a concert in London, Frank Zappa is thrown into the orchestra pit by a fan's jealous boyfriend, breaking his leg and ankle and fracturing his skull. Zappa takes months to recover.

December 2, 1971 Taj Mahal performs for the men on death row at Wilmington State Penitentiary.

November 19, 1971 B.B. King marks his 25th anniversary in music by opening a European tour in London.

August 2, 1971 Now down to a trio and driven by infighting, Creedence Clearwater Revival embark on their last US tour with a gig at Tulsa, Oklahoma's Assembly Center.

July 9, 1971 Grand Funk Railroad play to a sold-out crowd of 55,000 at Shea Stadium in New York City. They have no hit singles, but are well known in the area thanks to a block-long billboard that ran in Times Square for much of the previous year.