Why June 6th Matters In Rock History

It’s June 6th and here are some reasons why this day matters in rock history:

- In 2004, Metallica played a rare gig without drummer Lars Ulrich, who was sidelined with an undisclosed illness. The show, which took place at England’s Download Festival, saw Slayer’s Dave Lombardo, Slipknot’s Joey Jordison and a Metallica drum tech sit behind the kit in place of Ulrich.

- In 1970, Syd Barrett performed live for the first time since leaving Pink Floyd. He was backed by a group that included former bandmate David Gilmour but Barrett confused the audience and his backing musicians when, after four songs, he took off his guitar and walked off stage.

- In 1979, Def Leppard performed at a club in Sheffield, England. It got a good review in British music magazine Sounds and led to the band getting a record deal.

- In 1969, Rod Stewart signed as a solo artist to Mercury Records.

- In 1992, David Bowie married model Iman in Florence, Italy. The pair had a civil ceremony the month before but since it did not constitute a legal marriage, they repeated their wedding ceremony.

- In 1994, KISS singer Paul Stanley and his wife Pamela become the proud parents of their only child together, a son they named Evan Shane.

- And in 1982, Tom Petty, Bob Dylan, Stevie Nicks, Crosby, Stills & Nash, Joan Baez and more performed at the Peace Sunday, We Have A Dream anti-nuclear concert.

And that’s what happened today in rock history.

Original article by Dave Basner at iHeartRadio