Historic events this week from Foo Fighters, Fleetwood Mac, Tom Petty, David Bowie, Temple of the Dog and Pixies
APRIL 12, 2011: WASTING LIGHT BY FOO FIGHTERS
Foo Fighters ditched modern digital studios to record Wasting Light entirely on analog tape in Dave Grohl’s personal garage. The album features a legendary collaboration with Bob Mould, who provided powerhouse vocals and guitar on the track “Dear Rosemary,” alongside a poignant studio reunion with former Nirvana bassist Krist Novoselic on “I Should Have Known.”
APRIL 13, 1987: FLEETWOOD MAC’S TANGO IN THE NIGHT
Fleetwood Mac’s Tango in the Night was originally conceived as Lindsey Buckingham’s third solo album. The 3x Platinum album featured the #1 singles “Little Lies” and “Everywhere”; the latter going double Platinum on its own.
It’s the band’s last to feature the classic lineup of John McVie, Mick Fleetwood, Christine McVie, Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks.
APRIL 13, 1999: TOM PETTY & THE HEARTBREAKERS’ ECHO
Produced during a period of personal turmoil, Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers leaned into a melancholic, guitar-driven sound for the deeply introspective album Echo. The record saw the band reuniting in the studio with legendary producer Rick Rubin and features the standout track “Room at the Top,” which captures the raw emotional vulnerability Petty was feeling at the time.
APRIL 14, 1983: DAVID BOWIE RELEASES LET’S DANCE
David Bowie‘s 15th LP, Let’s Dance, remains his biggest selling album worldwide. Featuring Stevie Ray Vaughan on lead guitar, the album contains “China Girl”, “Modern Love” and the #1 single “Let’s Dance.” The album has sold nearly 11 million copies worldwide.
APRIL 16, 1991: TEMPLE OF THE DOG RELEASE THEIR ONLY ALBUM
After the death of Mother Love Bone singer, Andrew Wood, Soundgarden’s Chris Cornell wrote songs in response to his friend’s passing. The resulting album, Temple of the Dog, featured Eddie Vedder and members of Mother Love Bone, who would form Pearl Jam shortly after.
Temple of the Dog’s only album went Platinum, peaking at #5. Lead single “Hunger Strike” went to #4 and still receives considerable radio airplay.
APRIL 17, 1989: SOPHOMORE ALBUM FROM PIXIES
Pixies achieved a perfect balance of grit and pop sensibility on Doolittle, an album that defined the “loud-quiet-loud” dynamic for an entire generation of alternative rockers. The record features the surprisingly melodic surf-pop of “Here Comes Your Man” alongside the surrealist anthem “Monkey Gone to Heaven,” which notably utilized a string quartet to enhance its apocalyptic themes.
