On this day in 1980: Mark David Chapman bought a five-shot .38 special for $169. A little over six weeks later, he would use the gun to kill John Lennon outside of his New York City apartment.
On this day in 1988: U2’s film ‘Rattle And Hum’, received its world wide premiere in the group’s hometown of Dublin. Although ‘Rattle and Hum’ was intended to represent the band paying tribute to rock legends, some critics accused U2 of trying to place themselves amongst the ranks of these artists. Critical reception to both the album and the film was mixed; one ‘Rolling Stone’ editor spoke of the album’s “excitement”, another described it as “misguided and bombastic”. The film grossed just $8.6 million, but the album was a commercial success, reaching #1 in several countries and selling 14 million copies. The lead single “Desire” became the band’s first UK #1 song while reaching #3 in the U.S. Facing creative stagnation and a critical backlash to Rattle and Hum, U2 reinvented themselves in the 1990s through a new musical direction and public image.
Here’s what was happening on the U.S. singles chart on this day back in 1988:
1 3 GROOVY KIND OF LOVE –•– Phil Collins – 8 (1)
2 1 RED RED WINE –•– UB40 – 26 (1)
3 5 WHAT’S ON YOUR MIND (PURE ENERGY) –•– Information Society – 15 (3)
4 2 LOVE BITES –•– Def Leppard – 11 (1)
5 9 WILD, WILD WEST –•– The Escape Club – 10 (5)
6 16 KOKOMO –•– The Beach Boys – 8 (6)
7 7 DON’T YOU KNOW WHAT THE NIGHT CAN DO? Steve Winwood – 10 (7)
8 8 DON’T BE CRUEL –•– Bobby Brown – 14 (8)
9 4 DON’T BE CRUEL –•– Cheap Trick – 13 (4)
10 17 THE LOCO-MOTION –•– Kylie Minoque – 9 (10)
11 14 NEVER TEAR US APART –•– INXS – 11 (11)
12 18 ONE MOMENT IN TIME –•– Whitney Houston – 7 (12)
13 12 FOREVER YOUNG –•– Rod Stewart – 12 (12)
14 13 TRUE LOVE –•– Glenn Frey – 10 (13)
15 22 BAD MEDICINE –•– Bon Jovi – 5 (15)
16 20 CHAINS OF LOVE –•– Erasure – 13 (16)
17 6 DON’T WORRY BE HAPPY –•– Bobby McFerrin – 13 (1)
18 25 DESIRE –•– U2 – 4 (18)
19 15 I’LL ALWAYS LOVE YOU –•– Taylor Dayne – 20 (3)
20 26 ANOTHER LOVER –•– Giant Steps – 10 (20)
