Events in 1997
- At NASA’s request, Diamond Rio hosted a celebration marking the 30th anniversary of the Kennedy Space Center.
- Yungblud, born Dominic Harrison, was born in Doncaster, South Yorkshire, England.
- U2 performed in Oslo, where the giant lemon they were supposed to emerge from onstage failed to open.
- Garth Brooks performed a free concert in New York City's Central Park. Attendance estimates in the supplied records range from more than 100,000 to one million people. Another 14.6 million viewers watched the concert live on HBO.
- The Verve played their first concert in Sheffield, England, following the band’s breakup two years earlier.
- Puff Daddy & The Family reached No. 1 on the US Billboard 200 with their debut album “No Way Out”. The album also reached No. 1 in Austria, Canada and Switzerland, and No. 8 in the UK.
- Backstreet Boys released their second album Backstreet's Back in international markets. The album reached No. 1 in several countries, including Canada, Spain and Germany. In the US, some of its songs appeared on their next album, Millennium, in 1999.
- Sonny West, Red West, Lamar Fike and Marty Lacker, four prominent members of Elvis's “Memphis Mafia,” recalled Elvis in a one-time online chat.
- Blues guitarist Luther Allison died of cancer in Madison, Wisconsin, at the age of 57.
- Record company Tony Nicole Tony Records filed a lawsuit against Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley, alleging intentional interference with drummer Peter Criss's contract with the company.
- More than 30,000 fans came to Memphis on the 20th anniversary of Elvis Presley's death and gathered at his grave for a ten-minute memorial ceremony.
- A memorial concert was held in Memphis to mark the 20th anniversary of Elvis Presley's death. Lisa Marie Presley unveiled the music video "Don't Cry Daddy", a virtual duet combining her father's original vocals with her own singing.
- The seventh Lollapalooza tour concluded at the Shoreline Amphitheatre in Mountain View, California, with Korn, Snoop Dogg and Tool among the main acts. It was the final Lollapalooza tour until 2003.
- The two-day UK V97 festival took place in Chelmsford and Leeds, featuring among others Blur, The Prodigy, Beck, Kula Shaker, Dodgy, Foo Fighters, Placebo, James, Ash and Gene.
- Will Smith reached No. 1 on the UK singles chart with "Men in Black," the title song from the blockbuster film of the same name, beginning a four-week run at the top. The hit, which launched his solo music career, also won him a Grammy Award for Best Rap Solo Performance.
- On the 20th anniversary of Elvis Presley's death, fans gathered in Memphis for a ten-minute vigil at his gravesite.
- A pair of Elvis Presley's black underwear was stolen from the Ripley's Believe It or Not museum in Los Angeles. The thief reportedly reached the exhibit through the plexiglass barrier or with the aid of a tool during opening hours.
- The Hank Snow Country Music Centre, dedicated to local country music legend Hank Snow, opened in Liverpool, Nova Scotia.
- The Rolling Stones made a spectacular announcement of their forthcoming Bridges to Babylon tour. The band arrived at the Brooklyn Bridge in New York in a 1955 red Cadillac driven by Mick Jagger, with Keith Richards beside him and Charlie Watts and Ronnie Wood in the back.
- Boyz II Men released the single “4 Seasons of Loneliness” to radio stations for airplay. The single was made available to the public on September 9.
- They released the reunion live album The Dance on Reprise Records, capturing their successful return in the classic lineup and their appearance on MTV Unplugged. The album debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 and sold one million copies in just eight weeks. Although it was primarily a live retrospective of well-known concert songs and fan favorites, it also contained new material by the group’s principal songwriters, including two songs by Lindsey Buckingham.
- Governor of Alabama Fob James, together with the mayors of Montgomery and Georgiana, ceremonially dedicated a 50-mile section of Interstate 65 to the memory of Hank Williams. The section was renamed the “Hank Williams Memorial Lost Highway”, beginning near his childhood home in Georgiana and ending in Montgomery, where Hank Williams is buried. The ceremony took place in Montgomery, and Hank Williams Jr. spoke at the event.
- BBC broadcast the documentary Oasis Right Here Right Now, in which the group discussed their troubled previous year and also introduced three new songs.
- Former drummer of The Stone Roses Alan Wren was sentenced to seven days in prison after behaving disrespectfully toward a prominent Manchester judge. He appeared in court over driving without insurance and lost his temper after being questioned about his income.
- Oasis released their long-awaited third studio album “Be Here Now” through Creation Records. It became an immediate commercial success, selling more than 350,000 copies on its first day and becoming one of the fastest-selling albums ever. The album reached No. 1 in sixteen countries around the world, although it later received mixed reactions and was criticized as overly long and derivative. Britpop was beginning to lose popularity. The album cover was photographed at Stocks House in Hertfordshire, the former home of Victor Lownes, head of Playboy Clubs in the UK.
- Twelve-year-old Georgia Lee Moses was found dead in South Petaluma, California. Tom Waits learned of her story and was inspired by it to write the song “Georgia Lee”, the thirteenth track on the album “Mule Variations”.
- Mark Wills made his debut at the Grand Ole Opry and performed his song “Jacob's Ladder”.
- Tim Weisberg sued his former collaborator Dan Fogelberg over alleged breach of contract and fraud related to the recording of the album “No Resemblance Whatsoever”.
- U2 played the first of two sold-out concerts at Wembley Stadium in London. During the encore, they performed a medley of several songs and six songs in full.
- Puff Daddy and the Family returned to number one on the US album chart after a one-week break with the album “No Way Out”. The album also reached number one that year in Austria, Canada, Switzerland and the UK.
- Scottish rock group Texas returned to number one on the UK album chart with their fourth studio album “White on Blonde” after a six-month break at the top.
- DJ and producer Alan Walker was born.
- Tony Nicole of TNT Records filed a lawsuit against Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley of KISS over alleged intentional interference with drummer Peter Criss's contract with the record company. The lawsuit claimed that Simmons and Stanley persuaded Criss to breach his contract and rejoin the original lineup. The case was settled out of court shortly after it was filed under undisclosed terms.
- A man who escaped from a psychiatric facility near Helsinki, Finland, was arrested after planning to set fire to the stage where Michael Jackson was due to perform. He had already placed petrol on the stage but was arrested before he could ignite it.
- Oasis released the single “Stand by Me”.
- Boyzone began their Southeast Asian tour in Bangalore, India. It was the first time an international act had launched a tour in this region.
- Coolio released the song “My Soul”.
- Creed released their debut album “My Own Prison”.
- Chad Smith of the Red Hot Chili Peppers was hospitalized after crashing his motorcycle while riding along Sunset Boulevard.
- Steven Seagal began a North American music tour in support of his new film “Fire Down Below”.
- Genesis’s first album in six years was presented live in a special edition of the radio program Album Network and simultaneously broadcast via webcasting on www.atlantic-records.com.
- During U2’s PopMart Tour in Leeds, Bono responded to George Harrison’s comment that Bono and his band were “so egotistical” by raising his middle finger and saying, “This is for you, George!”
- Oasis’s third studio album “Be Here Now” began a four-week run at No. 1 on the UK albums chart.
- After 11 weeks at the top, “I'll Be Missing You”, dedicated to The Notorious B.I.G. and recorded by his producer and record label boss Puff Daddy, lost the No. 1 position on the US chart. “Mo Money Mo Problems” by The Notorious B.I.G. featuring Puff Daddy and Mase reached the top and began a two-week run at No. 1. The song was released posthumously following the murder of The Notorious B.I.G. earlier that year.
- The Verve released “The Drugs Don't Work”, which later became their only No. 1 single in the UK.
- Members of Wu-Tang Clan were arrested following an alleged assault on a record promotion manager after a concert in Chicago.
- Diana, Princess of Wales, died at the age of 36 in a car accident in Paris. Elton John released a reworked version of "Candle in the Wind" dedicated to her memory, and the recording became the best-selling single of all time.
- James Brown became the first American performer to appear in Lebanon after a recent lifting of the ban on American citizens traveling to the country.
- Oasis reached No. 1 on the British albums chart with their third album, "Be Here Now". More than one million copies were sold on the first day of release, making it the fastest-selling album in the United Kingdom at the time.
- The Microsoft Network broadcast a U2 concert in Dublin over the internet.
- He was born in Busan. He is a South Korean singer and songwriter and the youngest member of BTS.
- WAR released the album Coleccion Latina, their twentieth recording.
- Bruce Springsteen joined The Wallflowers on stage at the MTV Video Music Awards, and they performed “One Headlight” together.
- After performing at the MTV Video Music Awards, Pat Smear publicly announced that he would no longer be the guitarist for Foo Fighters.
- Elton John performed an updated version of “Candle in the Wind” at Princess Diana's funeral at Westminster Abbey in London. The new version, titled “Candle in the Wind '97,” later became one of the best-selling singles of all time.
- Elton John performed a dramatically rewritten version of "Candle in the Wind" at Princess Diana's funeral at Westminster Abbey, later released as "Candle in the Wind 1997". In the new version, he replaced the original lyric "Goodbye Norma Jean" with "Goodbye England's Rose". His performance was estimated to have been watched by 2.5 billion television viewers. The song was subsequently re-recorded and released as a charity single, topping charts around the world and selling more than 33 million copies, making it the best-selling single in the history of the UK and U.S. singles charts according to the source.
- Elton John recorded a new version of "Candle in the Wind" after performing it live at Diana, Princess of Wales's funeral. The original song was written in tribute to Marilyn Monroe, but Elton John revised the lyrics as a tribute to the late princess. His performance was estimated to have been watched by 2.5 billion people worldwide. "Candle in the Wind 1997" reached No. 1 in the U.S., UK and many other countries and subsequently became the best-selling single of all time.
- Fleetwood Mac reached No. 1 on the U.S. album chart with their live album "The Dance". The album featured live versions of some of their biggest hits, including "The Chain", "Dreams" and "Rhiannon".
- Derek Taylor, press officer for The Beatles, died at the age of 65.
- Fleetwood Mac reached No. 1 on the US album chart with the live album The Dance, recorded following the group's reunion after a ten-year break. It sold more than 5 million copies in the US. The album featured the singles “Landslide”, “The Chain” and “Silver Springs” and received three Grammy nominations in 1998.
- English singer, songwriter, and musician Jade Bird was born.
- Fan Juanita L. Evans filed a lawsuit against Wu-Tang Clan members RZA and Method Man, rapper Redman, the University of Pennsylvania, and the student government after Method Man landed on her during a concert and knocked her unconscious. She claimed that Redman distracted her and that she did not see Method Man when he jumped from the stage. Concerns about similar lawsuits subsequently contributed to some bands limiting stage diving.
- Sugar Ray were forced to interrupt their European tour after their singer Mark McGrath injured his leg in Bologna, Italy, during the first concert of the European leg of the tour.
- The song “4 Seasons of Loneliness” reached number one on the US Billboard Hot 100.
- Farm Aid '97 returned to Illinois on October 4, 1997, where its first edition had been held in 1985. The sold-out concert took place at the New World Music Theater in Tinley Park and featured, among others, Dave Matthews Band, John Fogerty, Beck, and The Allman Brothers Band. According to the stated figures, the event raised more than $1 million to support American farmers.
- Mariah Carey reached number one on the US Billboard 200 with her sixth studio album, Butterfly. The album also topped the charts in Australia, Canada, the Netherlands, Greece, and Japan.
- Arthur Tracy, known as The Street Singer, died at the age of 98.
- Garth Brooks fans bought more than 139,000 tickets in less than four hours, selling out eight concerts at Rosemont Horizon in Chicago.
- Jonas “Jo” Bruce, keyboardist with Afro Celt Sound System, died suddenly at the age of 27 from an asthma attack. He was the son of Cream bassist Jack Bruce.
- American singer-songwriter Megan Moroney was born. She scored a 2022 Country Top 10 hit with "Tennessee Orange", and her second album, "Am I Okay?", debuted at No. 9 on the Billboard chart in 2024.
- Davy Jones sang “Daydream Believer” to Melissa Joan Hart in an episode of the series “Sabrina, the Teenage Witch” titled “Dante's Inferno.”
- Jimmy Osmond, the youngest member of the Osmond singing family, welcomed his second child, Zachary, who became the 50th grandchild of George and Olive Osmond, the parents of the nine Osmond siblings.
- Boyz II Men's fourth studio album, Evolution, reached No. 1 on the US Billboard 200 chart.
- Elton John's double-sided single "Candle in the Wind 1997" / "Something About the Way You Look Tonight" reached No. 1 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and began a 14-week run at the top. The reworked version of his 1974 song about Marilyn Monroe was adapted as a tribute to Princess Diana following her death and released to support charitable causes. The single topped charts in more than 20 countries, became the best-selling single in UK chart history and sold an estimated 33 million copies worldwide, making it one of the best-selling singles of all time.
- Gregg Allman, Bo Diddley, Keb' Mo', Buddy Guy and John Hiatt were among the musicians who performed at a concert honouring blues musician Muddy Waters at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C.
- City officials in Madrid cancel a free outdoor Backstreet Boys concert at Plaza de Mostenses because of dangerous overcrowding. More than 7,000 people arrive, although attendance of no more than 5,000 was expected. Fans faint in the heat, and around 300 girls require medical attention.
- American singer-songwriter and guitarist John Denver dies aged 53 in a crash involving an experimental aircraft he was piloting. The plane goes down in Monterey Bay off the California coast. Denver is known for songs including “Rocky Mountain High,” “Take Me Home, Country Roads,” and “Sunshine on My Shoulders.” He had 15 Top 40 hits on the Billboard Hot 100 and ten No. 1 songs on country or adult contemporary charts.
- Billy Joel presented his new classical compositions on National Public Radio's "Performance Today".
- Matchbox 20 began their first tour as a headlining act in Las Vegas. Lila Haydn & Her Band performed as the opening act. The group changed its name to Matchbox Twenty in early 2000.