Events in 1989
- George Clinton released the album “The Cinderella Theory.”
- The Rolling Stones filmed the music video for “Mixed Emotions” at Wykeham Rise Girls School in Connecticut.
- Gloria Estefan began a six-week run at No. 1 on the UK albums chart with her debut solo album, “Cuts Both Ways.” The album also reached No. 1 in Australia, the Netherlands and New Zealand.
- Jive Bunny & The Mastermixers reached No. 1 on the UK singles chart with “Swing the Mood,” their first of three UK No. 1 hits.
- Prince scored his fourth U.S. No. 1 hit with “Batdance.” The song appeared in the film “Batman” and also reached No. 1 in Canada, New Zealand and Switzerland.
- Richard Marx reached No. 1 on the Adult Contemporary chart with “Right Here Waiting”, where the song remained at the top for six weeks.
- Adam Clayton of U2 was arrested in a pub car park in Dublin for possession of marijuana with intent to distribute it. His conviction was overturned after he paid £25,000 to Dublin Woman's Aid Centre.
- Detroit police stopped N.W.A's performance before the group could play “F--k tha Police” and escorted the members back to their hotel. No charges were filed against them.
- Danny Elfman released "Batman: Motion Picture Score", containing his music for the film "Batman".
- Bruce Springsteen joined Ringo Starr onstage during a concert in New Jersey. Together they performed “Get Back,” “Long Tall Sally,” “Photograph” and “With A Little Help From My Friends.”
- Three members of LL Cool J's backing group were arrested and charged with the rape of a 15-year-old girl. The incident allegedly occurred after a concert after the girl obtained backstage access through a radio contest.
- The two-day festival began at Lenin Stadium in Moscow, featuring Mötley Crüe, Ozzy Osbourne, Bon Jovi, Skid Row and The Scorpions. According to the source, it was the first Soviet stadium rock concert where spectators were allowed to stand and dance.
- “Right Here Waiting” reached No. 1 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100, becoming Richard Marx's third consecutive U.S. No. 1 hit.
- The Rolling Stones played a surprise concert at Toad's Place in New Haven for approximately 700 people, 19 days before the official start of the Steel Wheels Tour.
- Scorpions performed at the Moscow Music Peace Festival after previously traveling down the Moskva River past Gorky Park. The experience later inspired their hit “Wind of Change”.
- Eagles drummer Don Henley expressed his dissatisfaction with Joe Walsh playing the song “Life in the Fast Lane” during his tour with Ringo Starr. Henley stated that Walsh had written only a short guitar riff at the beginning of the song.
- American rapper and actor Percy Romeo Miller Jr., also known as Lil' Romeo, was born in New Orleans, Louisiana. He is the son of rapper and record label founder Master P. He later appeared in his own Nickelodeon show “Romeo”.
- Lou Reed broke his ankle after a soundcheck in Cleveland and had to cancel the rest of his tour.
- Lianne La Havas, British singer and songwriter, was born in London. Her 2012 debut studio album “Is Your Love Big Enough?” received a nomination in the BBC Sound of 2012 poll and won the iTunes Album of the Year 2012 award.
- Ric Ocasek of The Cars married model Paulina Porizkova. They met after Porizkova appeared in the video for The Cars' hit “Drive”.
- The Who presented the rock opera “Tommy” at the Universal Amphitheatre in Universal City, California. Guests included Elton John, Phil Collins, Steve Winwood, Billy Idol and Patti LaBelle.
- The Who played a special charity concert marking the 20th anniversary of the rock opera „Tommy“ at the Universal Amphitheatre in Los Angeles. Elton John performed as Pinball Wizard, Patti LaBelle as Acid Queen, Steve Winwood as Hawker, Phil Collins as Uncle Ernie and Billy Idol as Cousin Kevin.
- John Mellencamp became a grandfather at the age of 37 when his daughter Michelle gave birth to Elexis Suzanne Peach. The event attracted national media attention also because Mellencamp's second wife Victoria Granucci filed for divorce four days later.
- Chicago Mayor Richard Michael Daley proclaimed this day “Pops Staples Day” in honor of the musician and leader of The Staple Singers.
- Don Henley's solo song “The End of the Innocence” reached No. 8 on the Billboard Hot 100. Henley wrote and produced it with Bruce Hornsby, who also played piano on the recording. The song received Grammy nominations for Record of the Year and Song of the Year, and in 1990 earned Henley a Grammy for Best Male Rock Vocal Performance.
- Ringo Starr obtained an extension of a preliminary court injunction intended to prevent producer Chips Moman and CRS Records from releasing material that Starr considered to be of poor quality because of his deteriorated condition at the time it was recorded. In January 1990, the court ordered Starr to pay Moman $74,000 in costs; in exchange, Moman handed all the master tapes over to the former Beatle.
- Ringo Starr officially became the first grandfather among The Beatles after his daughter Lee gave birth to a son, Zak.
- The Cure released the single “Lovesong”.
- The three-day BCM Summer Dance Festival began at the Tempodrom in Berlin. The festival featured a number of American artists, including emerging hip-hop groups Stetsasonic, EPMD and UTFO, the Village People, and R&B singer Bobby Womack.
- Izzy Stradlin of Guns N' Roses was arrested at Phoenix airport after urinating on the floor of an airplane, reportedly angered by having to wait to use the toilet. His publicist said it was his “way of expressing himself”.
- Elton John released the album "Sleeping With the Past", one of the albums commemorated as part of the musical anniversaries for August 29.
- The Rolling Stones released the album "Steel Wheels" in the US, almost two weeks before its UK release. The album reached No. 3 on the US Billboard Top Pop Albums chart and No. 2 on the UK album chart.
- American singer and songwriter Bleta Rexha was born. She first established herself as a songwriter, including as a co-writer of Eminem’s single “The Monster”, which later won a Grammy for Best Rap/Sung Performance, as well as songs for Shinee, Selena Gomez and Nick Jonas. Her 2017 single “Meant to Be” with Florida Georgia Line was highly successful as a country crossover, reaching No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 and spending a record 50 weeks at the top of the US country chart.
- Billy Joel fired his manager and former brother-in-law Frank Weber after an audit uncovered serious financial irregularities, substantial depletion of his accounts and a $5 million debt to the US Internal Revenue Service. The following September, he sued Weber for $90 million, accusing him of fraud, breach of fiduciary duty and extortion under federal law. A few days after the lawsuit was filed, Weber declared Chapter 11 bankruptcy to protect his remaining assets. The legal dispute eventually ended in an out-of-court settlement, and Joel recovered only part of the lost funds, approximately $8 million. Frank Weber was never criminally prosecuted or imprisoned.
- Izzy Stradlin of Guns N' Roses was arrested for disorderly conduct during a flight in the United States. He urinated on the floor, verbally abused a flight attendant and smoked in the non-smoking section of the plane.
- The Rolling Stones began their Steel Wheels tour with a concert at Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia. The album "Steel Wheels", released a few days earlier, brought to an end, at least temporarily, years of public disputes between Mick Jagger and Keith Richards. Before the official start of the tour, they had made a surprise appearance on August 12 at Toad's Place in New Haven.
- A judge in Dublin ruled that Adam Clayton of U2 would not be sentenced for possession of marijuana, despite his admission to the offense. Clayton agreed to make a financial contribution to a women's center in Dublin.
- Composer and arranger Billy Goldenberg died at the age of 54.
- They released their fifth album, “Dr. Feelgood,” which became their best-selling album and reached No. 1 on the chart. The group drew on their experiences in making the album; the title track deals with their drug dealers, while “Kickstart My Heart” tells the story of Nikki Sixx's near-fatal overdose.
- “Express Yourself” by N.W\.A. debuted at number 45 on the Billboard R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart and became their second single to enter the chart.
- Ozzy Osbourne was charged with threatening to kill his wife Sharon after attempting to strangle her at their home in Buckinghamshire. He later said he had no memory of the attack. He was released on condition that he immediately enter detoxification, and the case was later dropped after the couple reconciled.
- Paula Abdul reached her third US number-one single of the year with “Cold Hearted”. She had previously reached the top with “Straight Up” and “Forever Your Girl”. The song also reached number one in the US and peaked at number 46 in the UK.
- Ric Ocasek of The Cars and Paulina Porizkova were married.
- With the album “Repeat Offender”, Richard Marx achieved his first and only number-one album on the US Billboard 200.
- Soundgarden released their second studio album, Louder Than Love, on A&M Records. It was their major-label debut, reached number 108 on the US Billboard 200 and included the singles “Loud Love” and “Hands All Over.” The source describes it as the first grunge album released by major label A&M.
- Lenny Kravitz made his debut with the album "Let Love Rule", released through Virgin Records. He created almost the entire album himself – writing and producing all the songs and playing most of the instruments. At a time when mainstream pop was beginning to embrace grunge with its dark guitar sound and bleak view of society, Kravitz offered a simple message rooted in funk: "Let Love Rule".
- One week after beginning their stint as the opening act on The Rolling Stones' Steel Wheels tour, Living Colour won awards at the MTV Video Music Awards for Best Group Video, Best Stage Performance and Best New Artist. Mick Jagger presented them with the trophies backstage after their concert in Pittsburgh.
- At the 1989 MTV Video Music Awards, a number of artists received awards. Neil Young won Video of the Year for "This Note's for You", whose video had previously been briefly banned by MTV. Other winners included Elvis Costello, U2, Living Colour and Guns N' Roses. Performers included Bon Jovi, The Rolling Stones, Def Leppard and Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers with guest Axl Rose.
- Neil Young won Video of the Year at the sixth MTV Video Music Awards for "This Note's For You". It marked a significant turnaround for the song criticizing commercialization, whose video had previously been briefly banned by MTV because of legal concerns over its direct references to corporate sponsors and its parody of Michael Jackson's Pepsi commercial accident.
- The Pittsburgh Steelers could not fully use their home stadium, Three Rivers Stadium, because The Rolling Stones were rehearsing and preparing their Steel Wheels tour concert there.
- Backstage at the MTV Video Music Awards, Vince Neil of Mötley Crüe punched Izzy Stradlin in the face. According to contemporary reports, it was retaliation for an incident several weeks earlier in which Stradlin had punched Neil's then-wife at a Los Angeles club.
- Iron Maiden released the album “No Prayer for the Dying”, which foreshadowed guitarist Adrian Smith’s departure from the band.
- Neil Young released the album “Freedom,” his 17th studio album, which according to the source marked a return to form after years of poorly received work. After leaving Geffen Records because of longstanding problems, he recorded for his original label, Reprise. The album opened and closed with different versions of “Rockin' in the Free World,” which reflected the social and political atmosphere of the late 1980s and became his highest-charting hit at the time on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks chart. It also included “Don't Cry,” “Eldorado,” and “On Broadway,” which had first been released on the EP “Eldorado.”
- Motley Crue played a warm-up concert before the Dr. Feelgood tour at the Whisky a Go Go in West Hollywood under the pseudonym The Foreskins. The concert was also used for filming the music video for “Kickstart My Heart.”
- Janet Jackson's “Miss You Much” began a four-week run at No. 1 on the US Billboard Hot 100. It was her second single to reach the top of the chart.
- Jefferson Airplane performed a concert for which admission was one can of food donated to the San Francisco Food Bank.
- Paula Abdul reached No. 1 on the US Billboard 200 albums chart with her debut album Forever Your Girl. The album debuted on the chart on July 23, 1988, and reached the top in its 64th week, which at the time was a record-long journey to No. 1. The album later spent a total of 10 weeks at the top and was certified 7× platinum in the US.
- Tears for Fears reached No. 1 on the UK Albums Chart with their third studio album The Seeds of Love.
- The Rolling Stones' “Mixed Emotions” reached the Top 10; it was their 23rd and final Top 10 song from 56 releases.
- Pete Townshend responded to claims by The Rolling Stones guitarist Ron Wood that The Who were touring for their 25th anniversary solely for the money. He pointed to Mick Jagger's financial needs and the failure of his latest album Dirty Work.
- The Grateful Dead performed at Hampton Coliseum in Hampton Roads, Virginia.
- Michael Jackson attended the opening ceremony for an auditorium named after him at his former school, Gardner Street Elementary School, in Hollywood, California. In November 2003, school officials covered his name with plywood after parents protested following his arrest on suspicion of child sexual abuse. After Jackson's death in 2009, fans launched a petition campaign, and the school district eventually uncovered his name again.
- Former Kiss guitarist Ace Frehley released his solo album "Trouble Walkin'".