1977 in heavy metal music
| By location |
|---|
| By genre |
| By topic |
| List of years in heavy metal music |
|---|
| (table) |
This is a timeline documenting the events of heavy metal in the year 1977.
Bands formed
- 707
- 44 Magnum
- Bad Brains
- Barnabas
- Black Death
- Death SS
- Dedringer
- Def Leppard (as Atomic Mass)
- Discharge
- Divlje Jagode
- Dokken
- Gordi
- Gravestone
- Great White
- Holocaust
- The Hunt
- Kix
- Manilla Road
- Misfits
- Oz
- Perfect
- Quartz
- Ram Jam
- Rapid Tears
- Rock Goddess
- Saga
- Samson
- Sarcofagus
- Stress
- TKO
- Törr
- Trance
- Trust
- Vatreni Poljubac
- Zarpa
Bands disbanded
Events
- October 20 – Six people were killed in a tragic plane crash, including Lynyrd Skynyrd lead vocalist Ronnie Van Zant, guitarist Steve Gaines, and vocalist Cassie Gaines.
- Vocalist Ozzy Osbourne abruptly quit Black Sabbath due to his dissatisfaction with the band's recent albums. He was replaced by Dave Walker.
- Drummer Herman Rarebell joined Scorpions, replacing Rudy Lenners.
Deaths
- April 1 – Joachim "Achim" Kirchhoff, original bassist of Scorpions, died from alcoholism-related complications at the age of 28.
- September 16 – Marc Bolan, founder, vocalist, and multi-instrumentalist of T. Rex, died from injuries sustained in a car accident at the age of 29.
- October 20 – Ronald Wayne "Ronnie" Van Zant, founding member, lyricist and lead vocalist of Lynyrd Skynyrd, died in a plane crash at the age of 29.
- October 20 – Steven Earl "Steve" Gaines, guitarist of Lynyrd Skynyrd, died in a plane crash at the age of 28.
- October 20 – Cassie LaRue Gaines, Steve Gaines' sister and vocalist of Lynyrd Skynyrd, died in a plane crash at the age of 29.
Albums
January
| Day | Artist | Album |
|---|---|---|
| 7 | The Runaways | Queens of Noise |
| 10 | Ramones | Leave Home |
| Sammy Hagar | Sammy Hagar |
February
| Day | Artist | Album |
|---|---|---|
| 11 | Jethro Tull | Songs from the Wood |
| Angel | On Earth as It Is in Heaven |
March
| Day | Artist | Album |
|---|---|---|
| 8 | Foreigner | Foreigner |
| 21 | AC/DC | Let There Be Rock (Australia/New Zealand version) |
April
| Day | Artist | Album |
|---|---|---|
| 8 | Judas Priest | Sin After Sin |
| The Clash | The Clash | |
| 29 | Alice Cooper | Lace and Whiskey |
| Krokus | To You All | |
| Sweet | Off the Record |
May
| Day | Artist | Album |
|---|---|---|
| 13 | Ted Nugent | Cat Scratch Fever |
| Heart | Little Queen | |
| Quartz | Quartz | |
| UFO | Lights Out |
June
| Day | Artist | Album |
|---|---|---|
| 20 | Ram Jam | Ram Jam |
| 30 | Kiss | Love Gun |
| Buffalo | Average Rock 'n' Roller |
July
| Day | Artist | Album |
|---|---|---|
| 7 | Rainbow | On Stage (live)[1] |
| Styx | The Grand Illusion | |
| 25 | Bow Wow | Signal Fire |
August
| Day | Artist | Album |
|---|---|---|
| 12 | Motörhead | Motörhead[2] |
| 29 | Rush | A Farewell to Kings |
| Taste | Knights of Love |
September
| Day | Artist | Album |
|---|---|---|
| 2 | Thin Lizzy | Bad Reputation |
October
| Day | Artist | Album |
|---|---|---|
| 7 | The Runaways | Waitin' for the Night |
| 10 | Sammy Hagar | Musical Chairs |
| 14 | Kiss | Alive II |
| 17 | Lynyrd Skynyrd | Street Survivors |
| 21 | Meat Loaf | Bat Out of Hell |
| 28 | Queen | News of the World |
November
| Day | Artist | Album |
|---|---|---|
| 3 | Triumph | Rock & Roll Machine |
| 4 | Ramones | Rocket to Russia |
| 10 | Riot | Rock City |
| Blue Öyster Cult | Spectres | |
| Nazareth | Expect No Mercy | |
| Uriah Heep | Innocent Victim |
December
| Day | Artist | Album |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bow Wow | Charge |
| 9 | Aerosmith | Draw the Line[3] |
| Scorpions | Taken by Force |
Unknown release date
| Artist | Album |
|---|---|
| Goddo | Goddo |
| Mass | Back To The Music |
| Moxy | Ridin' High |
| Thor | Keep the Dogs Away |
References
- ^ "News in brief" (PDF). Record Mirror. 18 June 1977. p. 5. Retrieved 24 August 2022.
- ^ "Motörhead certification".
- ^ LTD, BubbleUp (2021-12-09). "AeroHistory: Draw the Line". www.aerosmith.com. Retrieved 2022-11-19.