Today in Boston ROCK: October 8

Welcome to another edition of Today in Boston ROCK, where I, Adam 12, spotlight Very Important Days In Rock History. October 8 is one.

• 1948

  October 8, 1948: John William Cummings is born in Queens, New York. You know him as Johnny Ramone, founding guitarist in arguably (but to argue against it would be foolish) the most important punk band in rock history: the Ramones. Johnny. Dude basically invented the sixteenth-note-downstroke-style of guitar playing, so show some damn respect.

• 1965

  October 8, 1965: Christopher Joseph Ward is born in Queens, New York. Because it’s not enough to have Ramone born on the 8th of October, you gotta have two. Of course, C.J. Ramone wouldn’t join the band until 1989–replacing founding bassist Dee Dee Ramone–but his impact and energy helped propel the band into the ’90s. I caught their last-ever Boston show at Avalon on Valentines Day 1996, and C.J.’s performance was a highlight.

• 1978

  October 8, 1978: Cheap Trick releases Live at Budokan. I wrote a bit about the album’s 40th anniversary a couple of years ago, and speaking of Avalon gigs from back in the day, I wrote about seeing them live there in 1999. Budokan is one of the greatest live rock albums of all-time, and Cheap Trick are, pardon my French, unfuckwithable.

  

• 1980

  October 8, 1980: Talking Heads release Remain in Light. This one hit the 40-year-mark two years ago, so I marked the occasion with this piece. It’s worth revisiting not just because it’s such an important album (it’s the one with “Once in a Lifetime”), but because I posted the Muppets version of that video in the piece. So check it out.

  

• 1991

  October 8, 1991: Soundgarden releases Badmotorfinger. Remember last month when I said Soundgarden released Badmotorfinger on that legendary release date of September 24? Well, I was wrong. The album was supposed to release that day, but production delays pushed the release date to October 8. I have no problem with celebrating one of the greatest rock albums of 1991 again.

  

• 2011

  October 8, 2011: Weezer bassist Mikey Welsh passes away. I celebrated Mikey’s roots in the Boston rock scene with this piece, which I shared on his birthday. You might be surprised with how many bands from the ’90s Boston rock scene you remember that Mikey played with. He is missed.