Today in rock history September 12th

1952 – Rush drummer Neal Peart is born 1967 – Whilst on their magical mystery jaunt around Britain, the Beatles’ psychedelic bus ends up causing a traffic jam. John Lennon tries to rectify the situation by tearing the signs off the side of the vehicle. 1970 – At the Hollywood Bowl, Bob Dylan, Joan Baez, and others pay tribute to the late Woody Guthrie with a memorial concert. 1970 – In New Orleans, thieves steal $40,000 worth of Pink Floyd’s touring equipment. 1974 – Bob Dylan begins sessions for his album Blood on the Tracks. 1975 – Pink Floyd release Wish You Were Here. 1990 – Could this be the end of Fleetwood Mac? Stevie Nicks and Christine McVie both think so, as they announce they will no longer sing with the soft rockers. 1995 – Luciano Pavarotti is joined by U2 members Bono and the Edge, as well as singer/producer Brian Eno, in a benefit concert in Modena, Italy for the children of war-ravaged Bosnia. 1999 – A sold-out crowd of 23,000 people listen to Willie Nelson, John Mellencamp, Dave Matthews Band, Deana Carter, and Neil Young perform at Farm Aid ’99. 2000 – The soundtrack to Cameron Crowe’s “Almost Famous” hits stores with something on it that no other soundtrack has ever had before: the authorized use of a vintage Led Zeppelin song. 2003 – Country music icon Johnny Cash dies at 1 a.m. ET of heart failure at Nashville’s Baptist Hospital, stemming from complications from diabetes. 2003 – The Beatles sue Apple computers, alleging their iTunes store infringes copyrights on the logo of their Apple Corps record label. 2004 – Red Hot Chili Peppers, Eddie Vedder, Henry Rollins and L.A. punk legends X play at a benefit tribute to the Ramones in Hollywood’s Avalon club. 2007 – The surviving members of Led Zeppelin announced they would reform for a star-studded tribute concert in London. Robert Plant, Jimmy Page and John Paul Jones would play at a show to remember the late Atlantic Records founder Ahmet Ertegun.