Welcome to another edition of Today in Boston ROCK, where I, Adam 12, spotlight Very Important Days In Rock History. October 2nd is one.
1951
October 2, 1951: Gordon Matthew Thomas Sumner is born in Wallsend, Northumberland, England. With a mouthful of a name like that, it's no surprise he decided to go by Sting when he founded the Police in 1977. Do the math: Sting is now 70. Let's go back to when he was a 52-year-old youngster, playing live in Boston.
1967
October 2, 1967: Floyd I. Gaugh IV is born. That's Bud Gaugh to you, bud. He plays drums for Sublime, so he's always in the pocket. Here he is not missing a beat during "Garden Grove" in Vegas back in May of '96.
1989
October 2, 1989: Neil Young releases Freedom. You know the story: Neil languished through the '80s, dropped this at the end of the decade, put himself back in the spotlight, and within a few years they were calling him the "Godfather of Grunge" and he was cutting records with Pearl Jam. Keep on rockin' Mr. Young.
1995
October 2, 1995: Oasis releases (What's the Story) Morning Glory? Is it the pinnacle of Britpop? That depends on what kind of Britpop fan you are, I guess. But you can't argue with half a dozen singles--three of which were "Don't Look Back In Anger," "Wonderwall," and "Champagne Supernova"--and 4x platinum in the U.S. (and close to 5 million sold in the U.K.)
2017
October 2, 2017: Tom Petty dies at the age of 66. Four years on, and it's still a heartbreaker. OK, sorry; that was in poor taste. I use humor to combat sorrow. Let's reminisce with a handful of Tom's finest videos. My favorite is below.
