On this day in music, May 4, 1973, Led Zeppelin kicked off their 34-date North American tour in Atlanta. Billed as the “biggest and most profitable rock n’ roll tour in the history of the United States,” the English band grossed over $4 million. Their May 5th date at Tampa Stadium was attended by 56,800 fans, breaking The Beatles’ previous record of 55,600 fans for their 1965 Shea Stadium date. The tour included the usage of dry ice, laser effects, Catherine wheel pyrotechnics, and more, while the band flew between gigs in The Starship, a former United States Airlines Boeing 720B jet.
In 2012, 47-year-old rapper and Beastie Boys’ co-founder, Adam “MCA” Yauch, died of parotid cancer. With the Beastie Boys, MCA released seven platinum-selling albums between 1986 and 2004, while the trio became the third rap group to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Yauch directed many of the Beastie Boys’ music videos, using the pseudonym Nathaniel Hörnblowér for his work. In 2008, he co-founded Oscilloscope Laboratories, an independent film company and distributor, alongside David Fenkel.
In 1974, ABBA’s “Waterloo” topped the UK pop chart, marking their first of nine No.1 hits in the country. The single, which was initially named “Honey Pie,” made the band the first Swedish winner of the Eurovision Song Contest and was later chosen as the best song in Eurovision’s history during its 50th-anniversary celebration.
In 1996, Alanis Morissette began a six-week run at the top of the UK chart with her third album, Jagged Little Pill. In the US, the singer-songwriter’s breakthrough LP spent 12 weeks at No.1 and earned five Grammys, including Album of the Year, making the 21-year-old artist the youngest recipient of the award. One of the best-selling albums of all time, Jagged Little Pill made Morissette the first Canadian act to achieve double diamond sales.
In 1989, Stevie Ray Vaughan set out on what would be his final tour. The influential blues musician completed 107 dates of the 110-show-run when tragedy struck. On August 27, 1990, the 35-year-old artist was killed in a helicopter accident. Regarded as one of the greatest guitarists of all time, Vaughn was posthumously inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
In 1991, a cover of “The Shoop Shoop Song,” recorded by Cher for the film Mermaids, gave the singer her first solo No.1 in the UK. The song, which Betty Everett made a hit in 1964, marked Cher’s first British chart-topper since her 1965 duet with Sonny Bono, “I Got You Babe.”
BORN ON MAY 4
1937: Dick Dale
1942: Nicholas Ashford (Ashford & Simpson)
1951: Mick Mars (Mötley Crüe)
1951: Jackie Jackson (Jackson Five)
1959: Randy Travis
1970: Gregg Alexander (New Radicals)
1972: Mike Dirnt (Green Day)
1979: Lance Bass (*NSYNC)
The city-wide clean-up day in Litchfield is coming up on May 16th from 8-to-10:30 a.m. It’s for Litchfield residents only and it will be held this year in the parking lot by the football field at East 6th Street and North Gilman Avenue.
Keith Johnson says people will want to line up with their loads facing east on 6th Street. He says it’s only $25 per load with $5 fees for any additional TVs or mattresses and it’s a good way to get your property cleaned up.
Johnson says they will not accept items like paint, glass, shingles, cars, boats or any hazardous items. He says each load is inspected and you will need to have a driver’s license or utility bill to prove that you are a Litchfield resident.
Johnson says there is an option for people over age 75 or disabled to get items picked up at their curb, but you need to sign up for that at City Hall by 4:30 p.m. on May 11th. He says the Litchfield Lions Club is coordinating this event with the City of Litchfield and they get lots of volunteers to help including members of Jeff Wollin’s baseball team.
The 4 Pioneerland Libraries in Meeker County have several activities planned for the month of May. Seed libraries are available all month in the local libraries, and they will be closed on Monday, May 25th, for Memorial Day.
Events in each library are as follows:
Litchfield
No storytimes after May 1
Bookmark contest voting through May 9
Sat 5/9, 1:30-3:30 pm: Teen Program: Mother’s Day Dungeons & Dragons. Ages 11-18
Tues 5/12, 12 pm: Adult Book Club: The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store
Tues 5/12, 6:30-7:30 pm: LEGO Night. Age 14 and younger plus families
Thurs 5/14, 10:30 am-12:30 pm: Summer-themed Diamond Art. Registration required. Adults and teens.
Tues 5/19, 6:30-7:30 pm: Board Game Night. All ages.
Wed 5/20, 7 pm: Mystery Book Club: The Grey Wolf
Sat 5/30, 1:30-3:30 pm: Teen Program: Egg Drop Catastrophe
Dassel
Thurs, 5/7, 4-5:30 pm: Crafternoon. Bring-your-own craft program. Adults and teens 16+.
Fri, 5/8, 10 am: ECFE Storytime
Fri 5/15, 10 am: Story Hour
Fri 5/22, 10 am: Story Hour (no story hour 5/29)
Tues 5/26, 1 pm: Adult Book Club: The Sisters of Sea View
Grove City
Thursdays, 3-5 pm: Crafternoon. Bring-your-own craft program for adults
Tues 5/12, 2 pm: Story Time
Thurs 5/14, 3-5 pm: Summer-themed Diamond Art. Registration required. Adults and teens.
Tues 5/19, 7 pm: ATGC Book Club at Atwater Library: Hamnet
Wed 5/20, 4-5 pm: Board Games. All ages.
Cosmos
Thursdays, 4-5:30 pm: Pokémon Trading Card Game. Ages 7-18.
Sat 5/23, 10:30 am-12:30 pm: Craft Circle. Bring-your-own craft program for adults and teens 16+.
For more information on any activities in the Pioneerland Libraries in Meeker County, call 320-693-2483.
No one was injured after a small plane made an emergency landing in a field near Fairfax Saturday afternoon. The Renville County Sheriff’s Department says at 4:18 p.m. Saturday they got a 911 call saying an aircraft had just made an emergency landing after sustaining engine failure, near the intersection of 610th Avenue and 460th Street, about 4 miles south of Fairfax.
The aircraft was a Cessna 182C and was piloted by 25-year-old Cole Kramer of Seneca, Kansas. Kramer was flying from Brainerd to Kansas when the engine lost power, and he was able to safely land the aircraft in the field without sustaining damage. There were three other occupants in the airplane – 21-year-old Will Heinen of Seneca, Kansas, a 17-year-old juvenile male, and a 16-year-old juvenile male. No one was injured.
The Renville County Sheriff’s Office was assisted at the scene by the Fairfax Police Department. The incident is being investigated by the Renville County Sheriff’s Office and the National Transportation Safety Board.
