Top 10 Music Moments That Became Iconic

Top 10 Music Moments That Became Iconic

Matrix link: insert here

Freelancer Notes (optional):

Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re counting down our picks for the most instantly legendary moments to ever happen in music history.

#10: Elton John’s Double Header at Dodger Stadium

Billy Joel wasn’t the first musician to make history on a baseball field. On October 25 and 26, 1975, Elton John played two sold out shows at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, being the first musical act to perform there since The Beatles nine years earlier. While those are some pretty big shoes to fill, it’s safe to say that John more than rose to the occasion. The combined concerts were attended by over 100,000 fans, and at the time were the two largest single-artist concerts ever held. It wasn’t widely known at the time, but John had attempted to take his own life just days before the concert. Thankfully he survived, and the Rocketman went on to give two of the greatest performances of his career.

#9: “We Are the World”

1985’s “We Are the World” wasn’t the first charity single (that would be George Harrison’s “Bangla Desh” from 1971), but it’s arguably the most well-known. “We Are the World” was simply a moment in time where the charity group and organization, U.S.A. For Africa, made the pop culture zeitgeist. Even the most casual of music fans stood up and took notice of the charity’s cause of famine relief. This was thanks largely to the composition of “We Are the World,” which was expertly helmed by songwriters Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie. Elsewhere, the level of talent involved with singing the actual song made “We Are the World” not only a charity mega-hit, but the standard by which all other charity singles are measured.

#8: The Who on “The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour”

By 1967, the “British Invasion” was in full swing throughout the US. Most Americans were accustomed to the cheeky antics of The Beatles and the smarmy swagger of The Rolling Stones, but nobody was quite sure what to make of The Who when they appeared on The Smothers Brothers TV show, playing their — literally — smash hit “My Generation.” The band’s performance ended with smoke rising from their amplifiers, smashed instruments, and a bass drum explosion that went off with 3 times the fire power than was originally intended. The TV spot went down in infamy, and some of the roots of punk rock can be traced back to this legendary performance.

#7: Nirvana on “MTV Unplugged”

The music industry owes a lot to MTV given the game changing impact of its arrival, but the channel should also be recognized for some incredible music moments. Perhaps the most powerful performance ever aired on the channel was Nirvana's 1993 appearance on “MTV Unplugged.” Recorded in November of that year and aired a month later, it was one of the last televised performances by Kurt Cobain, before his death in April of 1994. In the wake of his death, the performance inherited immense weight, where the funeral-like set dressings and melancholic song choices brought Cobain's declining mental state into focus.

#6: The Launch of MTV

It may be hard to imagine nowadays, as it’s mostly known for trashy reality TV and award shows, but MTV was once at the center of the American music consciousness. When MTV first launched in 1981, it completely changed the musical landscape, single-handedly pushing music videos to the forefront of the music industry. Dedicated entirely to playing and premiering videos, as well as delivering music-related news, MTV quickly became a staple of ‘80s and ‘90s youth culture. Both bands and record executives became aware of the potential for success that could be garnered from music videos, and to this day, it’s pretty much a given that if an artist is going to drop a hot single, they’ll also drop an accompanying music video.

#5: Bob Dylan Goes Electric at Newport

A fan favorite of the Newport Folk Festival thanks to his appearances in 1963 and 64, Bob Dylan rattled the cage a little too hard in 1965. By '65 Dylan had been labeled the “spokesman of a generation,” and had earned Newport’s headlining bill. Taking the stage with members from the Paul Butterfield Blues Band, and armed with a Fender Stratocaster electric guitar, Mr Zimmerman parted ways with his folk brethren. As boos and jeers erupted from the purists of the festival, including its organizers, Dylan let loose with electric guitars and the energy of rock and roll. It was a major turning point, signalling the decline of folk, and the rise of rock and roll.

#4: Elvis on “The Milton Berle Show”

By the time he performed on the Milton Berle show on June 5th, 1956, Elvis had already appeared on television plenty of times, including a previous appearance on Berle's show. This time around, however, things were different. Guitar-less and free to move around the stage Presley became a quivering mass of windmilling arms and gyrating hips while performing an overcharged version of 'Hound Dog'. He may have been chastised by the press and conservative America, but Elvis won over America’s youth who very promptly crowned him the King of Rock and Roll.

#3: The Beatles on “The Ed Sullivan Show”

“The Ed Sullivan Show” gave the world a collection of incredible and controversial music moments, like the censored hip swinging of Elvis Presley, but no moment compares to the debut performance of The Beatles. On February 9th, 1964, to an estimated U.S. television record of 73 million viewers, The Beatles took the stage and kicked off the British Invasion. On that night, John, Paul, George, and Ringo bridged the gap between British and American music, globalizing the industry with a forged bond that would forever link the two. The performance launched America into a craze unlike anything before it. Beatlemania had arrived (and would eventually figuratively end with the Beatles’ iconic rooftop concert in 1969), and music would never be the same again.

#2: Queen at Live Aid

On July 13th, 1985 the biggest bands in the world of rock and roll came together for Live Aid to support relief efforts for the Ethiopian Famine. On a day featuring a reunited Led Zeppelin, The Who, Black Sabbath, and Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young, and U2's epic 14 minute rendition of “Bad,” it was Queen that stole the show. In a mere 21 minute set, they crammed in “Bohemian Rhapsody,” “Radio Ga Ga, ”Hammer to Fall,” “Crazy Little Thing Called Love,” and a finale of “We Will Rock You” and “We are the Champions.” The performance was incredible, as Freddie Mercury commanded the stage and the 72,000 person crowd in what proved to be one of his last major performances.

#1: Michael Jackson’s Moonwalk

He didn’t create the move, but MJ sure as hell popularized it. The moonwalk has cropped up throughout pop culture since the 1930s, such as James Brown in The Blues Brothers for example, but there’s only one name synonymous with the move: Michael Jackson. He lit up the world when he first rocked the moonwalk at “Motown 25: Yesterday, Today, and Forever” in March 1983. Jackson added his signature flair and gravitas to the move by spinning and posing in his sequins, black jacket, and white glove, stopping the world for a moment, and then dropping the moonwalk bomb. In modern times it would have broken the internet but in the 1980s Jackson had to just settle for blowing minds.

Can you think of any more iconic music moments? Let us know in the comments!