Today in Rock History – 1st MARCH:

BIRTHDAYS
1942: Michael Giles (Giles, Giles & Fripp / King Crimson / McDonald & Giles / 21st Century Schizoid Band)
1944: Roger Daltrey (The Who)
1944: Mike D’Abo (Manfred Mann Band)
1946: Tony Ashton
1963: Rob Affuso (Skid Row)
1973: Ryan Peake (Nickelback)
1989: Julian Angel Vai (Son of Steve Vai)
1992: Fire Vai (Son of Steve Vai)

EVENTS
1974: Queen began their first U.K. tour, in Blackpool.
1973: Pink Floyd released their eighth album, ‘The Dark Side of the Moon’. The LP went on to sell more than 45 million units worldwide and spent 937 weeks on the Billboard charts.
1975: Bob Dylan started a two-week run at No.1 on the US album chart with ‘Blood on the Tracks’
1980: Wedding of Patti Smith and Fred “Sonic” Smith.
1994: Nirvana played their final concert, at The Terminal Einz in Munich, Germany.
1996: Jimmy Page & Robert Plant performed a concert at Flinders Park, Melbourne. I was there and met them before the show!
2021: Death of Australian music mogul, Michael Gudinski, co-founder of Mushroom Records.

28 years ago today, I met rock royalty! Cathy and I got to hang out with Robert Plant & Jimmy Page backstage, before their final gig of the ‘No Quarter’ tour. Melbourne, 1st March, 1996. It was an incredible concert of Led Zeppelin classics, with Melbourne & Egyptian orchestras backing the rock musicians on stage. “Kashmir” was out of this world!

If you are in the photo above, feel free to contact me. (I’m second from left, top row). Planty was paying particular attention to the young woman in the centre, so she got to sit between them for the shot, taken for Universal Music, Australia.