Who Performed at the First ‘Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve’?

In 1972, Dick Clark had a pretty straightforward idea: New Year’s Eve television needed to catch up with the modern era. While Guy Lombardo‘s broadcasts had defined the holiday for years, Clark knew they no longer reflected the music younger audiences were listening to. So he helped create a new kind of New Year’s special, one built around current pop and rock instead of big band music. The first New Year’s Rockin’ Eve aired on NBC on December 31, 1972, and it was billed as Three Dog Night’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve. Rather than positioning himself as the host, Clark put the band front and center and handled the live Times Square reporting himself.