This Day in Rock History: January 16

Breakthrough Hits and Milestones

• 1988: George Harrison's cover of James Ray's 1962 hit "I've Got My Mind Set on You" topped the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart for a single week. It was Harrison's third No. 1 single and the most recent Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 by a former Beatle.
• 1988: While George Harrison was dominating the singles chart, fellow Brit George Michael topped the Billboard 200 album chart with his debut solo record, Faith. It spent an impressive 12 weeks at the top, helped by huge hits such as the title track, "Father Figure," and "One More Try," and eventually sold over 25 million copies worldwide.
• 2005: The Killers got to the top of the U.K. albums chart with their debut, Hot Fuss. The record, which included hits such as "Somebody Told Me" and "Mr. Brightside," went on to sell over 7 million copies globally.

Notable Recordings and Performances

• 1971: ZZ Top released their first album via London Records, creatively naming it... ZZ Top's First Album. Although it was only a moderate success, the record put the band on the map and established their unique Texas blues style.
• 1988: Tina Turner played a show in front of an estimated 188,000 people at the Maracanã Stadium in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The performance, part of her Break Every Rule tour, was the most strongly attended concert by a solo artist at the time, earning Turner a place in the Guinness Book of World Records.
• 1992: Eric Clapton recorded his iconic MTV Unplugged show at Bray Studios in Windsor, England. It included acoustic versions of some of his biggest hits and sold over 26 million copies, becoming both the most successful live album ever and Clapton's best-selling album.