1981

Dale Watson and Ray Benson release a new LP, Dale And Ray.

Flash by Queen peaks at No10 in the UK pop singles chart.

April Wine play at St. George's Hall, Sheffield, England, UK, Europe.

Furniture play at Snoopies, Richmond, England, UK, Europe.

Bruce Springsteen plays at The Civic Centre, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.

The Police play the first of two nights at the Festival Hall, Osaka, Japan, Asia.

Fast bowler Dennis Lillee becomes Australian Cricket's top wicket-taker, having notched up a total of 249 wickets. He will inspire Men At Work to sing "Hear the cricket calling, switch on the TV, sit and stare for hours, and cheer Dennis Lillee", in their 1983 hit No Restrictions. He will also be mentioned in the Iain Campbell Smith song Blue Guitar, in which the narrator, describing unlikely, fantastic events, sings "I hit a six off Dennis Lillee and I clean bowled Gavaskar".

Deborah Harry of Blondie confirms that she is to make a solo album, with Bernard Edwards and Nile Rodgers of Chic as producers.

The Sir Douglas Quintet plays at Cain's Ballroom, Tulsa, Oklahoma, USA.

Queen play in Velez Sarfield, Buenos Aires, Argentina, South America.

Bruce Springsteen plays at Hampton Roads Coliseum, Hampton,Virginia, USA.

Eric Clapton plays at The Coliseum, Spokane, Washington, USA, during a North American tour to promote the album Another Ticket.

The Rod Stewart album Foolish Behaviour is certified as a Platinum disc by the R.I.A.A. in the USA.

The Stray Cats play at Tiffany's, Glasgow, Scotland, UK, Europe.

Prince plays two shows at The Royal Oak Music Theater, outside Detroit, Illinois, USA.

The Stray Cats play at The Polytechnic, Leicester, England, UK, Europe.

When Queen play the first of two nights at Morumbi Stadium, Sao Paolo, Brazil, they set a new world-record, 131,000 paying customers, for attendance at a live gig.

Sound engineer Michel Geiss records the sounds of trains in Marly Le Roi station in Paris, France, Europe, which will be used on the Jean Michel Jarre LP Magnetic Fields. (Geiss had collaborated with Jarre since the Oxygene lp, and had instructed Jarre on how to use synthesisers)

The Stray Cats play at The Lyceum, London, England, UK, Europe.

Sting, vocalist with The Police , begins four days of acting work on location in Denmark, Europe.

Canned Heat vocalist Bob Hite, known as The Bear, dies of a heart attack in Mar Vista, California, USA. He had suffered the heroin-related heart attack while performing at The Palomino, Los Angeles, and was taken home to die.

Krzysztof Klenczon, singer, songwriter and bass player for Czerwone Gitary (The Red Guitars), widely regarded as The Polish Beatles, dies in Chicago, Illinois, USA. He had been seriously injured just weeks earlier when he was hit by a drunk driver.

Duran Duran release their second single, Careless Memories, on EMI/Capitol records.

During sessions for the album Shot Of Love, Bob Dylan is in Clover Studios, Los Angeles, working on mixes of songs including Every Grain OF Sand, Heart Of Mine, Property of Jesus, Lenny Bruce and Angelina.

During sessions for the album Shot Of Love, Bob Dylan is in Clover Studios, Los Angeles, working on mixes of songs including Caribbean Wind, Heart Of Mine, Watered Down Love and Shot Of Love.

Bob Marley, who has spent five months at the Issels Clinic in the Bavarian Alps, undergoing treatment for cancer, is flown to Miami, Florida, to be with his family.

The Pointer Sisters sing Happy Birthday To You at a party for desgner, architect and club owner Francois de Menil in New York City, USA. Guests include Debbie Harry, Andy Warhol, John Belushi and Ahmet Ertegun.

R'n'b singer, songwriter and musician Roy Brown dies aged 55 of a heart attack, at Pacoima Lutheran Memorial Hospital in San Fernando, California, USA.

Singer-songwriter Joe Jackson releases a new album, Joe Jackson's Jumpin' Jive, which introduces his complete new swing-jazz-influenced look, sound and show.

Steely Dan splits up when Donald Fagen and Walter Becker announce that they are going their separate ways.

Neil Young records the song T-Bone, for his album Re-ac-tor at Modern Recorders, Redwood City, California.

The Police finish recording their fourth album, Ghost In The Machine, at George Martin's Air Studios on the Caribbean island of Montserrat.

On their Fair Warning Tour [aka the W.D.F.A. (We Don't Fuck Around) Tour] Van Halen play the second of three nights at The Capitol Centre, Largo, Maryland, USA.

The Michael Schenker Group begins a UK tour at the Civic Hall, Wolverhampton.

Carl Wilson of The Beach Boys plays at the Fountain Casino, Aberdeen, New Jersey, USA.

The Higsons play at The 101 Club, London, UK.

Queen begin rehearsals in New Orleans, Louisiana, for their upcoming tour of South America.

Prince and his band play a 'secret' gig at Sam's, Minneapolis, Minnesota, under the name Controversy.

Showaddywaddy play the first of three nights at Goldiggers, Chippenham, Wiltshire, England, UK, Europe.

Olivia Newton-John reaches No1 in the Billboard Top 40 Singles Chart in the USA with Physical, for the first of ten weeks.

The new No1 in the Billboard R'n'B singles chart in the USA is Take My Heart by Kool and the Gang.

Rush play at the Hitsville North Nightclub, Passaic, New Jersey, USA.

On his 55-date Controversy Tour Prince plays at Macon Coliseum, Macon, Georgia, USA.

Uncle Sam's, a failing disco music venue in Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA, changes its name to First Avenue. Local artist Prince will help to put it at the forefront of Minneapolis music venues by using it as the location for many scenes in his movie, Purple Rain.