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.”
- 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.