100 Rock facts that you might not know
- The Rock Arena
- Feb 28
- 6 min read
Updated: May 1
Everyone has a favorite Rockstar or rock band ,but here are some facts that you may not have known about your favorite artists.
AC/DC founding member, Malcolm Young, worked in a bra factory as a sewing-machine mechanic.
Paul McCartney made a mistake during the recording of Hey Jude, at 2:58, you can hear him say "Oh, fucking hell", it was kept on the recording
The night he died, John Bonham downed 40 shots of Vodka.
'Born in the USA' by Bruce Springsteen was the first CD to be pressed in America
Jimi Hendrix was the highest paid performer at Woodstock, having earned $18,000 for his performance
Prince’s song “Purple Rain” is a tribute to Jimi Hendrix’s “Purple Haze”.
The Doors were the first band to ever promote a new album through a billboard ad.
Queen holds the Guinness World Record for longest-running fan club.
In the 40's, the term used for UFO's by the US Air Force was Foo Fighters
Nine Inch Nails recorded their second studio album, The Downward Spiral, in the same house that the Manson Family killed actress Sharon Tate in.
Chuck Berry started performing music so he could afford photography equipment.
A talent manager named Jim Denny told Elvis to “stick to driving a truck because you’ll never make it as a singer”
Led Zeppelin came up with the title “Black Dog” after a black Labrador walked into their recording studio.
Stevie Ray Vaughan was the guitarist on David Bowie‘s Let’s Dance album.
The Who drummer, Keith Moon, claimed to have given Led Zeppelin their name
The Beatles’ last recorded song as a group was “The End,” despite Let It Be being released later.
Mick Jagger and Keith Richards met at a train station holding the same Chuck Berry record.
George Harrison funded Monty Python’s Life of Brian after the studio backed out — just because he wanted to see it.
Pink Floyd's The Wall was inspired by Roger Waters’ frustration with the audience’s lack of connection during shows.
David Gilmour originally joined Pink Floyd as a backup guitarist and vocalist — before replacing Syd Barrett.
Eric Clapton played the guitar solo on The Beatles’ “While My Guitar Gently Weeps.”
Fleetwood Mac had a version of the band that existed entirely without Mick Fleetwood or Stevie Nicks.
The Rolling Stones were banned from performing “Let’s Spend the Night Together” on U.S. TV unless they changed the lyrics.
The Beach Boys’ Brian Wilson composed much of Pet Sounds without the rest of the band — they were on tour.
Simon & Garfunkel originally performed under the name Tom & Jerry.
Creedence Clearwater Revival never had a #1 hit, despite having multiple Top 10 singles.
Neil Young wrote “Ohio” in response to the Kent State shootings — just days after they happened.
Santana’s performance at Woodstock launched them to international fame — their debut album wasn’t even out yet.
Don McLean's “American Pie” refers to the plane crash that killed Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and The Big Bopper.
ZZ Top’s guitarist, Billy Gibbons, has a beard, but the drummer’s name is… Frank Beard (and he doesn’t have one).
Metallica sued Napster in 2000, becoming one of the first major acts to challenge music piracy.
Iron Maiden created their own video game, Ed Hunter, in 1999.
Black Sabbath was originally a blues band named Earth.
Pantera was glam metal before becoming a pioneer of groove metal.
Anthrax was one of the first metal bands to collaborate with a rap group — Public Enemy in “Bring the Noise.”
Megadeth's Dave Mustaine was kicked out of Metallica before they recorded their first album.
Slipknot’s nine members each have a unique mask that evolves with each album.
System of a Down’s members are all of Armenian descent and often address genocide and politics in their lyrics.
Tool’s Maynard James Keenan also makes wine under the label Caduceus Cellars.
Ghost’s lead singer goes by the persona “Papa Emeritus,” which changes with each album cycle.
Rage Against the Machine reunited in 2019 after nearly a decade of silence.
Evanescence was rejected by several labels before “Bring Me to Life” became a global hit.
Rob Zombie is also a filmmaker and directed The Devil's Rejects and House of 1000 Corpses.
Dimebag Darrell of Pantera was tragically shot onstage during a performance in 2004.
Korn helped pioneer the nu-metal genre with their self-titled debut in 1994.
Nirvana originally had Chad Channing as their drummer before Dave Grohl joined.
Pearl Jam named their debut album Ten after NBA player Mookie Blaylock’s jersey number.
Soundgarden’s name came from an actual art installation in Seattle.
Smashing Pumpkins' Billy Corgan wrote most of the band’s material solo, playing many parts himself.
Alice in Chains performed their MTV Unplugged set in 1996 — their first show in two years.
Hole's Courtney Love auditioned for the lead in Sid and Nancy but was turned down.
Radiohead was originally called On a Friday because that was their rehearsal day.
R.E.M. broke up amicably in 2011 after over 30 years together.
The Pixies influenced Nirvana heavily — Cobain cited “Gigantic” as a favorite.
Green Day's American Idiot was almost turned into a Broadway musical — and it eventually was.
Blink-182 added the “-182” to avoid a lawsuit from an Irish band named Blink.
Bad Religion formed in high school and went on to become one of the most influential punk bands ever.
My Chemical Romance was inspired to form after the 9/11 attacks.
The Offspring’s Dexter Holland has a Ph.D. in molecular biology.
Paramore was signed to a record label when Hayley Williams was just 14 years old.
Coldplay's Viva La Vida was the first British song to top the U.S. charts since 1996.
The Killers are from Las Vegas, but are often associated with British indie rock because of their sound.
The Strokes’ Julian Casablancas used to sing with his back to the crowd in early shows.
Muse's Matt Bellamy is known for smashing guitars — he once broke 140 in a single tour.
Kings of Leon found greater fame in the UK before breaking through in the U.S.
Florence Welch studied art before becoming a full-time musician.
Arctic Monkeys were the first band to win the Mercury Prize after gaining traction via MySpace.
The 1975 often hide secret tracks and messages within their albums and cover art.
Tame Impala's Kevin Parker writes, records, and produces all of the band’s music solo.
Imagine Dragons’ breakout hit “It’s Time” was recorded in a tiny Las Vegas apartment.
Cage the Elephant’s first live gig ended with them being booed — they’ve since sold out arenas.
Vampire Weekend’s name came from a student film made by lead singer Ezra Koenig.
Alt-J’s name is a keyboard shortcut that forms the Greek letter Δ (delta) on Macs.
Royal Blood used a bass guitar modified with effects pedals to create a full rock sound without a guitarist.
Maneskin's name means “moonlight” in Danish — chosen because the bassist is half-Danish.
Elvis Presley had a black belt in karate and would sometimes show off moves on stage.
The Beatles used the word “love” 613 times in their songs.
Frank Zappa released over 60 albums during his lifetime.
Meat Loaf once collapsed onstage in 2003 and finished the set after regaining consciousness.
The Monkees outsold both The Beatles and The Rolling Stones combined in 1967.
Lynyrd Skynyrd lost several members in a 1977 plane crash, including lead singer Ronnie Van Zant.
Janis Joplin bought a headstone for blues singer Bessie Smith, who had been buried in an unmarked grave.
Rush's drummer Neil Peart wrote nearly all the band’s lyrics.
Dire Straits’ “Money for Nothing” features backing vocals by Sting.
ELO’s Jeff Lynne co-founded the supergroup Traveling Wilburys with George Harrison, Bob Dylan, Roy Orbison, and Tom Petty.
KISS members wore makeup to create larger-than-life personas inspired by comic books.
The Byrds were the first to combine folk and rock, inspiring the entire folk-rock movement.
The Yardbirds launched the careers of Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck, and Jimmy Page.
Boston’s Tom Scholz was an MIT-trained engineer who recorded much of their first album in his basement.
REO Speedwagon got their name from a flatbed fire truck built in the 1910s.
The Guess Who were the first Canadian band to have a U.S. #1 hit (“American Woman”).
Styx was the first band to release four consecutive multi-platinum albums.
Supertramp's name came from a book titled The Autobiography of a Super-Tramp.
The Doobie Brothers’ band name was suggested as a joke — but it stuck.
The Kinks were banned from touring the U.S. for four years in the 1960s due to a union dispute.
The Turtles once sued their label and ended up bankrupt — despite major hits like “Happy Together.”
Asia was formed as a “supergroup” with members from Yes, King Crimson, and Emerson, Lake & Palmer.
Foreigner got their name because some members were British and others were American.
The B-52’s got their name from the beehive hairstyles worn by the band’s female singers.
Genesis featured both Peter Gabriel and Phil Collins — each leading the band in different eras of sound.
