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Today in Rock (Jan 19)

• 1943 - Janis Joplin was born.
• 1945 - Rod Evans (Deep Purple - vocals) was born.
• 1949 - Robert Palmer was born.
• 1957 - Mickey Virtue (UB40) was born.
• 1963 - The Beatles appear on Thank Your Lucky Stars where they perform “Please Please Me.” It’s their first national U.K. TV appearance.
• 1976 - The Beatles are offered $30 million for one show by U.S. promoter Bill Sargent. Solo sets are OK but the group has to play together for a minimum of 20 minutes. The Beatles decline.
• 1986 - Bruce Springsteen makes a surprise appearance at a benefit for laid off 3M workers in Asbury Park, NJ. He sings a handful of songs including “My Hometown.”
• 1993 - The 52nd Presidential Gala, honoring president-elect Bill Clinton, features a reunited Fleetwood Mac (their “Don’t Stop” was Clinton’s campaign song). Little Richard and Chuck Berry also perform.
• 1994 - John Lennon, the Animals, The Band, the Grateful Dead, Rod Stewart and Elton John are inducted into the Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Fame. Paul McCartney inducts his former Beatle bandmate. “I’m the number one John Lennon fan,” says Big Mac. The Band perform “The Weight.” It’s the first time guitarist/vocalist Robbie Robertson has played with the group in 15 years.
• 2003 - Original members Ray Manzarek and Robby Krieger revive the Doors with former Police drummer Stewart Copeland and Cult vocalist Ian Astbury - filling in for Jim Morrison. The new line-up debuts in Las Vegas. Due to a dispute with original drummer John Densmore and the Jim Morrison estate over the use of the Doors’ name, the group later bills itself as The Doors of the 21st Century before settling on Riders On The Storm.
• 2006 - Bryan Adams plays a benefit show in Karachi to aid relief efforts following the earthquake that ravaged Pakistan the previous October. Adams is the first Western Rock star in Pakistan since the commencement of the “war on terror.”
• 2008 - A historical marker honoring Janis Joplin is unveiled outside the late singer’s childhood home in Port Arthur, TX. Joplin, who died of a drug overdose at age 27 in October ‘70, would have turned 65 on this day (see above).