1945 Van Morrison (George Ivan) was born on this day in Belfast, Ireland to a shipyard electrician who was a fanatical record collector and a singer/dancer mother.  Formative years hearing Blues and, later, R&B legends instilled a great love of music in him at an early age.  The gift of a guitar from his father sealed the deal.  The future Van Morrison formed his first band at the age of 12.  He would go on to learn to play saxophone, harmonica, bass and drums in a series of bands before forming Them in 1964.  Their version of Gloria, the B side to Baby, Please Don't Go, got Van Morrison on the radar of fans and critics. Two years later, he launched one of the most prolific solo careers in Rock history, one that has produced more than 50 albums to date.

 

Other Noteworthy classic rock events on the last day in August in years past include...

 

1945 Fleetwood Mac's Bob Welch born.

1948 Scorpions Rudy Schenker born.

1957 Squeeze's Glen Tilbrook born.

1968 The first Isle of Wight festival features performances by the Jefferson AIrplane, T-Rex, the Move, the Pretty Things and the Crazy World of Arthur Brown.

1968 Danny Kirwan added to the Fleetwood Mac lineup.

1971 Rolling Stones sue manager Allen Klein for $29 million. 

1971 A Security guard is stabbed to death during Who concert at Flushing Meadows, NY.   

1973 Rolling Stones release Goat's Head Soup.   

1974 Traffic does its last concert set at the Redding Festival.

1974 John Lennon testifies in federal court that Richard Nixon targeted him for deportation due to his opposition the the Vietnam war,

1976 George Harrison loses plagiarism suit over He's So Fine riffs in his song My Sweet Lord.   

1988 Bob Seger and wife Annette Sinclair divorce. 

1989 Rolling Stones open Steel Wheels tour at Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia.

1990 Stevie Ray Vaughan memorial draws 25,000 and includes performances by Jackson Browne, Bonnie Raitt and Stevie Wonder.    

1995 Doors open on the Rock Hall Of Fame in Cleveland.

2005 E Street Band's Little Steven stages concert and rally to save New York punk club CBGB.