The Clash, Ozzy, Paul McCartney, INXS, Tom Petty and more
SEPTEMBER 20, 1973: GRAM PARSONS’ BODY STOLEN
At a friend’s funeral, the former Byrd/Flying Burrito Brother told his road manager that he one day wanted his ashes scattered in The Joshua Tree desert.
Upon Gram Parsons‘ death, Phil Kaufman impersonated an undertaker, hijacked his friend’s remains, and burned the body in Joshua Tree.
Gram Parsons died of an overdose at age 26. Two months shy of the dreaded 27 Club.
A loose account of the body-theft was made into the movie, Grand Theft Parsons, starring Johnny Knoxville as Phil Kaufman.
SEPTEMBER 20, 1979: BASS PLAYER IN THE CLASH SMASHES GUITAR
Clash bassist, Paul Simonon grew angry at NYC’s Palladium upon realizing bouncers weren’t allowing the audience to stand up during their performance.
Photographer Pennie Smith captured the moment he smashed his bass guitar out of frustration.
The shot would end up becoming an iconic image, gracing the cover of The Clash‘s classic London Calling album.
SEPTEMBER 20, 2022: OZZY’S PATIENT NUMBER 9
With the release of his 13th solo album, Patient Number 9, Ozzy Osbourne scored his highest charting album in the UK when it peaked at #2 on the Billboard 200 and #1 on the UK Official Vinyl Albums Chart.
Patient Number 9 reached a peak position of #3 on the US Billboard 200, tying with Black Rain (2007) and Ordinary Man (2020) for Ozzy’s highest-charting album in the United States.
SEPTEMBER 22, 2018: EGYPT STATION IS #1
To celebrate the release of his 17th solo album, Paul McCartney played a private show at Grand Central Station.
Egypt Station became McCartney’s first album to debut at #1 on the Billboard 200.
It was his first #1 album since Tug of War in 1982.
SEPTEMBER 25, 1980: JOHN BONHAM DIES
He had 4 quadruple screwdrivers (16 shots) with breakfast on September 24, and continued to drink heavily through band rehearsals.
Inquest showed he’d had about 40 shots in 24 hours, and choked to death in his sleep.
SEPTEMBER 25, 1990: INXS RELEASES X
INXS’s album X continued the band’s successful formula with hit singles, like “Suicide Blonde” and “Disappear,” garnering X multi-platinum status and cementing INXS their place as global superstars.
SEPTEMBER 25, 2017: TOM PETTY’S FINAL SHOW
A week before his death, Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers played their final show at the Hollywood Bowl.
He played all the songs you’d hope to hear including “Free Fallin’”, “Refugee” and “Learning to Fly”.
The last song Tom Petty performed live was “American Girl.”
