Every day on Radio Nova, just before 11am, we play a couple of songs key to “today in music history” Have a listen! But for now – here’s some light reading and watching. February 25th in Music History looks like this.
1972, Led Zeppelin appeared in front of over 25,000 fans at the Western Springs Stadium, Auckland, New Zealand, the group’s first ever gig in New Zealand, (and the largest crowd ever to attend a concert on the island). A special train was chartered from Wellington to bring fans to the concert. News reviews the next day reported the band could be heard over five miles from the Stadium.
1977, The Jam signed to Polydor Records UK for £6,000!! They went on to have 18 consecutive Top 40 singles in the UK, from their debut in 1977 to their break-up in December 1982, including four No.1 hits. Not a bad investment by Polydor!
1984, ‘Jump’, by Van Halen started a five-week run at No.1 on the US singles chart, a No.7 hit on our side of the Atlantic. Singer David Lee Roth wrote the lyrics after seeing a television news report about a man who was threatening to commit suicide by jumping off a building.
2009, President Obama honoured Stevie Wonder his musical hero, with America’s highest award for pop music, the Library of Congress’ Gershwin prize at a ceremony at the White House. The president said the Motown legend had been the soundtrack to his youth and he doubted that his wife would have married him if he hadn’t been a fan. Imagine a performance like this around at your house!
This should have been included in Alanis Morrisette’s IRONIC, in 2015, On what would have been George Harrison’s 72nd birthday, a new tree was planted in his memory in Griffith Park Los Angeles to replace one that was earlier killed by a Beetle infestation.
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