This Day in Rock History: January 23
The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame had its first inductees on Jan. 23, 1986. Names on the inductee list included well-known artists like Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis, James Brown, and Buddy Holly. The event was held at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York City, with more than 1,000 attendees.
This isn’t the only influential event in rock history that happened on Jan. 23. Check out these breakthrough hits, rock music milestones, cultural happenings, recordings, performances, and industry changes from this day in rock history.
Breakthrough Hits and Milestones
Rock and Roll had these breakthrough hits and milestones you might not know happened on Jan. 23:
- 1988: Becoming the youngest female artist to have a No.1 album at 16, Tiffany made waves in teen pop music with her self-titled album.
- 2000: Kicking off a three-week run at No. 1 on the U.S. Top Albums chart, Santana’s Supernatural album won eight Grammys and spent nine weeks overall in the No. 1 spot.
Cultural Milestones
Cultural milestones in rock music are events that send ripples throughout the industry. Here are some you should know from Jan. 23:
- 1956: Sparked by artists like Elvis Presley, the city of Cleveland, Ohio, banned rock and roll dancing for anyone under 18 because older generations thought it incited sexual urges.
Notable Recordings and Performances
Here are some notable recordings and performances in rock music history that took place on Jan. 23:
- 1976: Transitioning from his “Plastic Soul” period to his “Berlin era,” David Bowie released his Station to Station album, blending funk, soul, and avant-garde rock to create something unique.
- 1977: Pink Floyd released their Animals album and also started their In the Flesh Tour. This is the last time the band would perform the entire Animals set live.
Industry Changes and Challenges
With any music genre, changes and challenges can affect the entire industry, and these are some that happened for rock music on Jan. 23:
- 1977: Carole King made history with her album Tapestry when it stayed on the Billboard 200 for 318 weeks, or nearly six years. This album helped solidify the singer-songwriter’s career, and critics consider the album to be one of the greatest of all time.
- 1991: From a radio station in Albuquerque, New Mexico, listeners would hear Led Zeppelin’s “Stairway to Heaven” for 24 straight hours. The station played the song continuously to inaugurate a format change to classic rock. This resulted in police being called twice to ensure the host didn’t have a heart attack and the studio wasn’t taken over by terrorists.
