John Bonham, Led Zeppelin’s drummer, died on September 25, 1980, at Jimmy Page’s home in Windsor, England, at age 32. He had spent the previous day drinking heavily during rehearsals for the band’s planned North American tour, choked in his sleep, and never woke up. Led Zeppelin disbanded less than three months later, unwilling to…
KISS unmasked for the first time on September 18, 1983, during an MTV press conference timed to the release of their album Lick It Up. Gene Simmons, Paul Stanley, Eric Carr, and Vinnie Vincent appeared without their trademark black-and-white makeup after original members Ace Frehley and Peter Criss had already left the band. The gamble…
By the spring of 1987, Def Leppard had spent more than three years, somewhere north of four and a half million dollars, and the better part of their twenties trying to finish a single record. The band had survived a drummer losing his left arm, a producer abandoning the project mid-sessions, a near-fatal car crash…
Grunge vs punk wasn’t a sound clash — it was a family feud over selling out, fashion, and who really owned rock’s angry soul.
For one impossible summer in 1984, Prince owned the No. 1 movie, album, and single in America at the same time. Forty years later, Purple Rain still hasn’t loosened its grip on pop culture.
On March 14, 1982, four teenagers took the stage at Radio City in Anaheim, California for Metallica’s very first live show. With broken guitar strings, a setlist packed with NWOBHM covers, and about 200 friends in the audience, nobody knew they were witnessing the birth of the biggest metal band in history.
From Mötley Crüe to Bon Jovi, 80s hair metal dominated rock music with big hair, power ballads, and legendary Sunset Strip shows. Relive the glam metal era that defined a generation.
That faded Metallica shirt your dad wore to their 1988 Damaged Justice tour? It might be worth more than his car payment. Vintage band tees have exploded from thrift store afterthoughts into a legitimate collector market where rare shirts command thousands of dollars. A single original 1967 Grateful Dead promo tee crossed the auction block…
