On this day in 1980: David Bowie was at #1 on the U.K. singles chart with ‘Ashes To Ashes’ his second U.K. #1. Taken from the Scary Monsters (and Super Creeps) album, the song continued the story of Major Tom from Bowie’s ‘Space Oddity’. The video for ‘Ashes to Ashes’ was one of the most iconic of the 1980s and costing £250,000, it was at the time the most expensive music video ever made. Although the song did not chart in America on the Billboard Hot 100, the song was a staple on MTV in the early days of the channel and a staple on new wave radio.
Also on this day in 1980: The Heatwave Festival in Toronto, Canada took place with Talking Heads, Elvis Costello, The B-52’s, The Pretenders, Rockpile and The Rumour. Tickets cost $30, with only 50,000 people attending the festival lost over $1 million.