Historic events this week from Eric Clapton & Duane Allman, CCR, Neil Young and more
AUGUST 16, 1994: SLEEPS WITH ANGELS BY NEIL YOUNG
Neil Young‘s 20th album, and 7th with Crazy Horse, is a dark affair.
The dark, grunge inflected rock of Sleeps With Angels stands in sharp contrast to the country/folk rock of his previous album, Harvest Moon.
Having Kurt Cobain quote his “It’s better to burn out than to fade away” in his suicide letter, inspired Young to write the album’s title track.
AUGUST 17, 1991: NIRVANA’S ICONIC “SMELLS LIKE TEEN SPIRIT” VIDEO
Nirvana handed out casting call fliers for the “Smells Like Teen Spirit” video, which is designed to look like a pep rally.
Filled with teen angst and anarchy, the video proved to be a smash and helped propel the single to the top of the charts.
The iconic video has been viewed over 2 billion times on YouTube.
AUGUST 20, 1970: COSMO’S FACTORY IS #1
CCR‘s second #1 album, Cosmo’s Factory, remains their biggest seller.
The album contains such classics as “Travelin’ Band”, “Lookin’ Out My Back Door”, “Run Through the Jungle”, “Who’ll Stop the Rain” and “I Heard It Through the Grapevine.”
Cosmo’s Factory spent nine straight weeks at #1 on the Billboard 200 charts.
AUGUST 21, 1997: OASIS RELEASE THE HIGHLY-ANTICIPATED BE HERE NOW
Oasis‘s Be Here Now arrived with unprecedented hype, becoming the fastest-selling album in UK chart history and reaching #1 in fifteen countries. Despite its initial massive commercial success, including a #2 peak on the Billboard 200, the album was later criticized for its bloated sound and excessive length, with Noel Gallagher himself expressing dissatisfaction. Notably, it features a guest appearance from Johnny Depp on the track “Fade In-Out,” and includes ambitious nine-minute epics like “All Around The World.”
AUGUST 22, 1970: THE LAYLA SESSIONS BEGIN
The Derek and the Dominos collaboration between Eric Clapton, Bobby Whitlock and Duane Allman stands as one of the greatest one-off supergroups of all time.
Duane Allman would contribute lead guitar to 11 of the album’s 14 tracks.
Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2000, and the reissue won the Grammy for Best Surround Sound Album in 2012.
