''See also:''
- January 23 - The first induction into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame ( Chuck Berry , James Brown , Ray Charles , Fats Domino , Everly Brothers , Buddy Holly , Jerry Lee Lewis and Elvis Presley )
- February 4 - '' Control '', the Debut Album of Janet Jackson , who would become one of the best-selling artists of all time, was released.
- February 11 - Culture Club lead singer Boy George appears on an episode of '' The A-Team ''
- February 14 - Frank Zappa appears on an episode of the popular television series '' Miami Vice ''. Zappa portrays a crime boss named "Mr. Frankie".
- February 21 - The Dead Kennedys play their last concert at UC Davis in Davis, California.
- February 22 - In honor of the 20th anniversary of '' The Monkees '' premiering on television, MTV broadcasts "Pleasant Valley Sunday," a 22-hour marathon of Monkees episodes.
- March 27 - Sammy Hagar performs his first concert as the lead singer of Van Halen
- April 12 - The Go-Go's Belinda Carlisle marries actor Morgan Mason
- May 2 - Country music superstar Dolly Parton opens her Dollywood Theme Park in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee .
- May 5 - In New York , Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame Chairman Ahmet Ertegün announces that Cleveland, Ohio has been chosen as the city where the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame will be built
- Alice Cooper returns to the mainstream after a two year hiatus. The Nightmare Returns Tour goes on to become one of the best selling tours of 1986.
- May 10 - Tommy Lee of Mötley Crüe marries actress Heather Locklear .
- May 19 - Peter Gabriel releases '' So '', his first album in over 4 years. The album reached number 2 on the charts and sold more than 3 million copies in the U.S. ''So'' contains the chart-topping songs ''Sledgehammer'' (#1), ''Big Time'' (top 10), and ''In Your Eyes'' (top 40). The Music Video for ''Sledgehammer'' won 9 MTV Video Music Awards , more than any video in history, and was ranked the #1 video of all time by Rolling Stone magazine. This album also marks Peter Gabriel's introduction into the mainstream of World Music artists such as Youssou N'dour (who lent his vocals on ''In Your Eyes''). It is interesting to note that Genesis released their hit album '' Invisible Touch '' in 1986 , with Phil Collins on vocals.
- May 21 - Harrison Birtwistle 's Opera '' The Mask Of Orpheus '' is premiered in London
- May 30 - The Monkees begin a highly successful tour of American stadiums on their ''20th Anniversary Reunion Tour''
- June 2 - June 13 - U2 , Sting , Joan Baez , Jackson Browne , Lou Reed , Peter Gabriel , the Neville Brothers , and Bryan Adams stage the A Conspiracy Of Hope Tour in the US on behalf of Amnesty International , playing five cities on the tour. The final show at New Jersey 's Giants Stadium is televised live, and the above-mentioned performers are joined by Joni Mitchell , Howard Jones , Yoko Ono , Third World , and Carlos Santana , as well as the other members of The Police .
- June 27 - Black Flag play their last concert, in Detroit, Michigan .
- August 28 - Tina Turner receives a star on the Hollywood Walk Of Fame .
- October - The Smiths , unbeknownst to everyone at the time, play their final gig as a five-piece.
- October 20 - Duran Duran begin their career as a three piece with the release of the " Notorious " single
- September 27 - a tour bus carrying the heavy metal band Metallica crashes in Sweden, killing their most influential bassist, Cliff Burton.
- Jello Biafra / Dead Kennedys taken to court by the PMRC for content in their album Frankenchrist ; Biafra wins
- Cacophony forms
- The Escape Club signs a contract to EMI Records
- Public Enemy signs a contract to Def Jam Records
- Black Flag breaks up
- Madness breaks up
- Wham! featuring George Michael breaks up
- White Zombie begin performing
- Poison begins their recording career
- Dick Dale mounts a comeback effort
- Goo Goo Dolls form
- Pixies forms.
- Sweet Children forms
- Bolt Thrower forms
- Skid Row forms
- The Vaselines forms
- Wet Wet Wet form
- Slayer releases '' Reign In Blood '', their breakthrough album, and the one that set the stage for many extreme metal bands to come.
- A (then) unknown Country singer, by the name of Garth Brooks marries his first wife, Sandy.
- Ernesto Bonino loses his voice after a surgical intervention
- Metallica releases their highly influential album, '' Master Of Puppets '', considered by many in the metal community to be the best metal album of all time
- Megadeth releases one of their most influential and popular albums, '' Peace Sells... But Who's Buying? ''.
- John Farnham releases Whispering Jack which contains the singles You're The Voice + Pressure Down
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