November 26, 2016
Joe Corré, the son of The Sex Pistols’ manager Malcolm McLaren, sets fire to punk memorabilia from a boat on the River Thames to protest the mainstream appropriation of the genre.
November 27, 1969
The Rolling Stones record Get Yer Ya-Ya’s Out! at New York City’s Madison Square Garden. In the audience is Jimi Hendrix, celebrating his 27th (and last) birthday.
November 28, 1974
John Lennon makes his last concert appearance when he joins Elton John on stage at Madison Square Garden, reciprocating for Elton’s appearance on “Whatever Gets You Thru The Night” and making good on a bet he lost: Elton wagered that “Whatever Gets You Thru The Night” would hit #1 in the US, and when it did, Lennon owed the appearance. The pair perform that song and also do The Beatles’ “I Saw Her Standing There” and “Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds.”
November 29, 2001
George Harrison succumbs to lung cancer at age 58. His final hours are spent with his wife, son, and musician Ravi Shankar at his side.
November 30, 1979
Pink Floyd’s album The Wall is released, seeing out the ’70s in spectacular fashion as it sells over 13 million copies. The powerful concept album’s themes of isolation and despair resonate with legions of fans, and it even spawns a #1 single – “Another Brick In The Wall (part II).
December 1, 1991
Thinking there are 31 days in November, Alice in Chains guitarist Jerry Cantrell continues his hunting trip, causing the band to miss their next show opening for Van Halen in Memphis.
December 2, 1957
Al Priddy, a disc jockey at the Portland, Oregon, radio station KEX, is fired for playing the Elvis Presley version of “White Christmas,” which the station has banned, their program manager saying it “desecrates the Spirit of Christmas and transgresses the composer’s intent.” The story makes national news, but it turns out to be a brilliant publicity stunt – Priddy is back on the air two weeks later, with the station claiming letters were pouring in to support the DJ. As part of the stunt, Priddy recorded the GM calling in to “fire” him for playing the song and played the conversation on his show before he left.
December 3, 1994
Adam Sandler performs “The Chanukah Song” on the Weekend Update segment of Saturday Night Live, enlightening us to the fact that Harrison Ford, Paul Newman and David Lee Roth (among many others) are, in fact, Jewish. Released as a single the following year, the song reaches #10 US and becomes a seasonal favorite.