'80s Metal History (March 1st)

March 1, 2005: Rob Halford was back with Judas Priest and the new album "Angel Of Retribution" available in Europe and North America. It was well-received too, winning the '05 Metal Hammer award for Best Album. Release date source: [US] Blabbermouth.net - January 15, 2005.

March 1, 1993: Iron Maiden released "Fear Of The Dark [Live]" as a single in the UK, which was nominated for a US Grammy Award a year later in the "Best Metal Performance" category, but lost to Ozzy Osbourne's "I Don't Want To Change The World". Release information source: Debuted UK Official Chart - March 13, 1993.

March 1, 1994: Ozzy Osbourne won his first Grammy Award in the "Best Metal Performance" category for the song "I Don’t Want To Change The World", beating out Iron Maiden's "Fear Of The Dark [Live]", Megadeth's "Angry Again", Suicidal Tendencies' "Institutionalized" and White Zombie's "Thunder Kiss '65".

March 1, 1984: Black Sabbath played the second to last date of the "Born Again" Tour in Albany, New York. This was the only Sabbath tour to feature former Deep Purple frontman Ian Gillan and the last for bassist Geezer Butler until 1992.

March 1, 1985: Supporting Triumph on the "Thunder Seven" Tour, Dokken performed at the Aladdin Theater in Las Vegas, promoting their latest album "Tooth And Nail".

Happy Birthday to original Skid Row drummer [1987-96] Rob Affuso (March 1, 1963).

Happy Birthday to Sacred Reich guitarist Wiley Arnett (March 1, 1968).

March 1, 1985: Released the previous year in the UK, Tokyo Blade's second studio album "Night Of The Blade" was now available in North America. New singer Vic Wright replaced Alan Marsh when the LP was complete and re-recorded the lead vocals. Release information source: [US] FMQB radio trade publication - February 22, 1985; [UK] Kerrang! ad - October 4, 1984.

Sound Barrier released their second studio album "Speed Of Light" on Metal Blade that included a Thin Lizzy cover in 1986. All four original members were African American, which gained the band significant publicity, but commercial success eluded them.

German heavy metal band Axxis released their debut album "Kingdom Of The Night" in 1989. They formed in the early '80s with the name Anvil and released several demos before discovering the Canadian Anvil... Oops! Both names are cool.

March 1, 1987: Beastie Boys released single "No Sleep Till Brooklyn" that features a guitar solo from Slayer's Kerry King, who also appeared in the music video. Rick Rubin, who produced Slayer's "Reign In Blood" also produced Beastie Boys "Licensed To Ill".

Following "High Voltage" and "It's A Long Way To The Top (If You Wanna Rock 'n' Roll)", AC/DC released the title track as the last single from their second album "T.N.T." and the international version of "High Voltage" in 1976.

Three years after their previous effort "Architect Of Fear", Raven released their ninth full-length album "Glow" in 1994. There were delays when John Gallagher's house caught fire and thieves stole guitars from the remains.

Quiet Riot released their eighth album "Down To The Bone" in 1995. The cover art is pretty cool and much of the limited budget was spent on it. Unfortunately, the record only sold around 20,000 copies. The '90s were a tough time for Quiet Riot.

March 1, 2013: Saxon released their 20th studio album "Sacrifice" in Europe (March 4th in the UK; March 26th in North America), "more metal than 2011's 'Call To Arms'" according to one review. It was produced by current Judas Priest touring guitarist Andy Sneap. Release date source: Blabbermouth.net - February 25, 2013.

March 1, 2019: Queensrÿche released their 15th studio album "The Verdict", their third with vocalist Todd La Torre, who also played drums due to the absence of original drummer Scott Rockenfield. Release date source: Blabbermouth.net - April 20, 2019.

March 1, 2024: Iron Maiden's Bruce Dickinson released his seventh solo album "The Mandrake Project", his first in 19 years ("Tyranny Of Souls"), which features an accompanying 12-issue comic book series. Pre-release singles included "Afterglow Of Ragnarok" and "Rain On The Graves". Release date source: Blabbermouth.net - March 8, 2024.

March 1, 1983: Ozzy Osbourne brought the "Speak Of The Devil" Tour to Little Rock, Arkansas. Tickets only $8.50 and $9.50 🤑

Welcome to March! Time to flip your calendar and note that one person in this photo has a birthday coming up 🥳