Rock History: October 30
Notable rock and roll releases, performances, chart milestones, and events that happened on October 30 throughout history.
Elvis Presley recorded fourteen gospel songs at RCA’s Nashville studio for His Hand in Mine. The album reached No. 14 on Billboard’s pop LP chart and was certified Platinum in 1992.
Philles Records issued its first single, the Crystals’ “There’s No Other Love Like My Baby,” which reached No. 20 early the next year. The label name combined owners Phil Spector and Les Sill.
Roy Orbison received his first Gold record for “Oh, Pretty Woman,” a chart-topper in ten countries that sold more than seven million copies worldwide.
Patty Duke’s “Say Something Funny,” following her No. 8 hit “Don’t Just Stand There,” entered the Top 40 and eventually reached No. 22.
The Beatles’ “Yesterday” reclaimed No. 1 on Cashbox after the Toys’ “A Lover’s Concerto” interrupted its run for one week.
Brian Jones pleaded guilty to drug charges from his May arrest and received nine months in prison, spending a night at Wormwood Scrubs before bail. An appeals court later replaced the sentence with a £1,000 fine, three years’ probation, and psychiatric treatment.
The MC5 recorded live tracks for Kick Out the Jams at Detroit’s Grande Ballroom. Rob Tyner’s explicit title-song introduction caused controversy and was changed to “brothers and sisters” for the radio-friendly single.
Spanky and Our Gang guitarist Malcolm Hale died at 27. Initially attributed to pneumonia, his death was later ruled carbon-monoxide poisoning from faulty home heaters; the group had scored five Top 40 hits in 1967–68.
Jim Morrison received six months in jail and a $500 fine for alleged indecent exposure at a Miami Doors concert. The appeal remained unresolved at his death, and road manager Vince Treanor later insisted Morrison only teased the audience.
Elton John released Tumbleweed Connection. It reached No. 2 in Britain and No. 5 in America, later earning U.S. Gold and Platinum awards and British Silver certification.
John Lennon’s Imagine simultaneously topped the British and American album charts, remaining his most successful LP until Double Fantasy rose to No. 1 after his 1980 murder.
Pink Floyd released Meddle in America. It reached No. 3 in Britain but, hindered by weak Capitol promotion, only No. 70 in the United States.
Elton John performed at the Royal Variety Performance before Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother, the first rock act to appear for the Royal Family since the Dave Clark Five in 1965.
Kathy Silva Stewart filed for divorce from Sly Stone less than five months after their Madison Square Garden wedding before 23,000 fans, citing his increasingly volatile lifestyle.
A London court formally ended Mick and Bianca Jagger’s eight-year marriage, which had produced daughter Jade and deteriorated amid his relationship with Jerry Hall. Bianca later said the marriage had effectively ended on the wedding day.
Men at Work’s “Who Can It Be Now?” reached No. 1 in America. The Australian group followed it with Top 10 hits “Down Under,” “Overkill,” and “It’s a Mistake.”
Hall and Oates’ H2O entered Billboard at No. 42, then climbed to No. 3 and produced “Maneater,” “One on One,” and “Family Man.”
Barry Manilow opened a Radio City Music Hall run whose $1.9 million in sold-out business surpassed Diana Ross’s venue record by $100,000.
George Michael sought release from his Sony contract. A British judge sided with Sony in 1994, but he withheld new material until David Geffen eventually bought out the agreement.
The Rock Hall announced inductees David Bowie, Tom Donahue, Gladys Knight and the Pips, the Velvet Underground, Jefferson Airplane, Little Willie John, Pink Floyd, Pete Seeger, and the Shirelles for its January 1996 ceremony.
The Bee Gees walked off BBC’s Clive Anderson, All Talk after the host mocked them. Maurice Gibb later said the band could take personal criticism but regarded attacks on their songs like attacks on their children.
David Bowie selected twenty-year-old Alex Grant as winner of an online lyric contest for “What’s Really Happening.” Grant attended the recording session and sang backing vocals on the finished track.
Black Sabbath’s original lineup performed “Paranoid” on Late Show with David Letterman to promote Reunion, their first television appearance together in twenty years.
Santana’s Supernatural reached No. 1 on Billboard behind “Smooth,” giving the group its first chart-topping album in twenty-eight years and completing a major career comeback.
Barbra Streisand released Christmas Memories, her second holiday album. It spent nine weeks on Billboard, peaked at No. 15, and earned U.S. Platinum certification.
Former Ramones co-manager Linda Stein was found beaten to death in her Manhattan apartment at 62. Her former assistant Natavia Lowery was convicted and later sentenced to twenty-five years to life, plus consecutive time for stealing more than $30,000.
Singer and actor Robert Goulet died at 73 while awaiting a lung transplant for pulmonary fibrosis. His 1964 recording “My Love, Forgive Me” had reached the U.S. Top 20.
The Eagles released Long Road Out of Eden, their first album since Don Felder’s departure and final LP with Glenn Frey. It topped U.S. and UK charts, reached the Top 10 in seventeen other countries, and “How Long” won a country-performance Grammy.
Yoko Ono thanked Paul McCartney for telling Rolling Stone that he had moved beyond his resentment toward her, adding that she respected the work and enjoyment he shared with Lennon.
Climax Blues Band founder, guitarist, and singer Pete Haycock died from a heart attack at 62. The group reached No. 3 in 1977 with “Couldn’t Get It Right.”
Billy Joel sang the national anthem before World Series Game 3 at Citi Field, then joined the crowd from his suite when “Piano Man” played during the eighth inning.
The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inducted Carole King, Tina Turner, Todd Rundgren, the Go-Go’s, Foo Fighters, and hip-hop honorees in Cleveland. King and Turner became the second and third women inducted twice.
Steve Martin earned his seventh No. 1 on Billboard’s Bluegrass Albums chart with Safe, Sensible and Sane, made with banjoist Alison Brown. Earlier, four of his comedy albums had charted from 1977 to 1981, including No. 2 A Wild and Crazy Guy.
