On this day in 1965, Mick Foley was born in Bloomington, Indiana. The professional wrestler is best remembered for his characters of Mankind, Dude Love and Cactus Jack and for his amazing ability to sustain punishment. However, I feel his greatest contribution to the sport will be his 1999 book, Have a Nice Day: A Tale of Blood and Sweatsocks, arguably one of the best autobiographies ever written.
On this day in 1956, Elvis Presley performed “Hound Dog” for a nationwide audience for the first time on The Milton Berle Show. Take a look.
Courtesy: www.guitaronthedge.co.uk
On this day in 1964, Tom Morello was born in 1964. The guitarist for Rage Against the Machine, Audioslave, and The Nightwatchman (his solo side project), emerged as a guitar virtuoso with Rage’s self-titled debut album and is as well-known for his controversial political views as he is for his playing. When I saw Rage at Nashville’s Municipal Auditorium in 1999, I had to walk through a Fraternal Order of Police protest formed because of the band’s advocacy for the release of Leonard Peltier, an activist with the American Indian Movement who was convicted of killing two FBI agents during a shoot-out at the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. Below is the video to “Freedom”, which explains the band’s views on that particular case.
Courtesy: JimVallance.com
On this day in 1999, Bruce Fairbairn died in his sleep of undetermined causes in Vancouver, Canada. He was 49. The record producer helmed some of the most successful hard-rock albums of the 80s and 90s, including Bon Jovi’s “Slippery When Wet” and AC/DC’s “The Razor’s Edge.” However, it is safe to say that his most significant work was producing the three albums - ”Permanent Vacation”, “Pump” and ”Get a Grip” - that resurrected the career of a newly-sober Aerosmith.
For a complete listing of the albums Fairbairn produced, click here.