May 1: The Clash Kick Off White Riot Tour In London

On May 1, 1977, some of the biggest names in Punk Rock kicked off one of the most famous tours of all time, The White Riot Tour. The lineup consisted of The Clash, The Jam, and the Buzzcocks, the three biggest names in punk at the time.

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The tour, which was named after The Clash's hit song "White Riot", had one goal. That goal was to bring different people together through different genres of music. The tour also set out to give people a safe space to stand together against racism and unfairness.

The First show happened at the Roxy in London. And of course, the headliners were local heroes The Clash, after all, they did write the song that named the tour. But They got the headlining role for more than just being local.

See, this festival was trying to make a change in the world. Ane who better to front that change than a group who wrote songs about standing up for what's right in a time of turmoil? It proved to be the right choice, as soon as the band took the stage everyone started rocking out.

Some people who attended the show still talk about how amazing it was to see people getting along. These people had nothing in common, and at the time shouldn't have gotten along. Yet here they were, all finding common ground in the music.

But what really set this show apart was that it wasn't only about music. In fact the organizers had workshops set up in the venue to teach people about racism and how it affects people.

The White Riot Festival was a global success. And more than giving us awesome musical performances, it taught people to be kind to everyone. It reminds us that when we all work together amazing things will happen

Other Notable Rock Events From May 1

1962 - The Beatles started a month-long residency in Germany. 

1964 - The Beatles Received $140,000 for the rights to their photo so it could appear on packages of gum. 

1967 - The FBI arrested The Beach Boys’ Carl Wilson for avoiding the military draft. He was later released and joined the group on tour. 

1969 - Bob Dylan Performed on The Johnny Cash Show. After a couple of songs, Cash joined him on stage to perform “Girl From The North Country” 

1975 - On their way to a press conference about their upcoming tour, The Rolling Stones came down the street performing live from the back of a flatbed truck.  

1976 - Led Zeppelin started a 2-week run at number 1 on the US Albums Chart for Presence, It was their 5th number one album.

1980 - Pink Floyd’s hit song “Another Brick In The Wall (Part Two)” was banned in South Africa after children used the song to protest against inferior education.

1984 - Fleetwood Mac drummer Mick Fleetwood filed for bankruptcy after failing to listen to financial advisors.

1997 - The house located where Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain committed suicide went up for sale. The asking price was 3 million dollars.

1975 - On their way to a press conference about their upcoming tour, The Rolling Stones came down the street performing live from the back of a flatbed truck.         

Rock Birthdays

1966 - Johnny Colt of The Black Crowes  (Bass)

1968 - D’arcy Wretsky-Brown of The Smashing Pumpkins (Bass)

1970 - Bernard Butler of Suede (Guitar)

On This Day In History - May 1

May 1st marked a pretty significant day in rock history. It was the day we started seeing Bands use their voices to spark change in the world. A tradition that we are so happy carried on through the years.