Historic events this week from Tom Petty, Bob Dylan, Meat Loaf, Led Zeppelin, AC/DC, Paul McCartney and John Mellencamp
OCTOBER 19, 1979: DAMN THE TORPEDOES BY TOM PETTY & THE HEARTBREAKERS
Damn the Torpedoes was the breakthrough album that catapulted Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers to superstardom. Fueled by Tom Petty‘s defiance during a legal battle with his record label and featuring hit singles like “Refugee” and “Don’t Do Me Like That,” the album is widely regarded as one of the band’s finest and most energetic works.
OCTOBER 20, 1979: BOB DYLAN’S ONLY SNL APPEARANCE
In Saturday Night Live‘s history, Bob Dylan has been a musical guest only once. He appeared on the program to promote his 19th studio album, Slow Train Coming. He performed “When You Gonna Wake Up”, “I Believe in You”, and the Grammy-winning “Gotta Serve Somebody.”
OCTOBER 21, 1977: MEAT LOAF’S BAT OUT OF HELL
Meat Loaf‘s Todd Rundgren-produced debut album has sold 43 million worldwide thanks to top 40 hits “Two Out of Three Ain’t Bad” and “Paradise by the Dashboard Light.”
After Pink Floyd‘s The Dark Side of the Moon and Fleetwood Mac‘s Rumours, Bat Out of Hell is the 3rd longest charting studio album in the UK, having spent 522 total weeks on the UK charts.
OCTOBER 22, 1969: LED ZEPPELIN II
Led Zeppelin released their first two albums in 1969. Their 12x Platinum sophomore album, Led Zeppelin II, contained the classics “Whole Lotta Love”, “Heartbreaker” and “What Is and What Should Never Be”.
OCTOBER 23, 1990: AC/DC’s BACK IN BLACK CERTIFIED DIAMOND
AC/DC‘s first album with Brian Johnson was released 5 months after Bon Scott died. Back in Black was certified Diamond (10 million sold) this week in 1990. It has since gone Double Diamond with 27 million sold in the US.
OCTOBER 24, 1979: PAUL McCARTNEY PRESENTED WITH RHODIUM ALBUM
Paul McCartney is the “Most Honored Composer and Performer in Music” according to Guinness World Records. With sales of over 100 million singles and 100 million albums, he was presented with a Rhodium album. The only one of its kind.
OCTOBER 25, 1985: JOHN MELLENCAMP’S UH-HUH
Uh-Huh, John Mellencamp‘s official follow up to his #1 album American Fool, was his second Top 10 album. His 3x Platinum seventh album contains the hit songs “Crumblin’ Down”, “Pink Houses” and “Authority Song.”
