Happy Birthday this week to:
August 25
1918 ● Leonard Bernstein → Talented composer, conductor, pianist, director of the New York Philharmonic, wrote the music to many Broadway shows, including West Side Story (1957), died from pneumonia on 10/14/1990, age 72
1933 ● Wayne Shorter → Twelve-time Grammy-winning jazz/fusion saxophonist and composer, played in influential Art Blakey‘s Jazz Messengers in the 50s and the Miles Davis Quintet in the 60s, co-founded jazz/rock fusion Weather Report (“Birdland,” 1977) and played in the group through 1985, participated in marquee collaborations with singer-songwriter Joni Mitchell, guitarist Carlos Santana and jazz-pop Steely Dan, including his tenor sax solo on “Aja” (1977), issued nearly 30 albums as bandleader or co-leader from 1959 through 2016 and appeared on several dozen more as a sideman or group member, awarded a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2014 and a Kennedy Center Honors Award in 2018, died from unspecified causes on 3/2/2023, age 89.
1941 ● Christopher Augustine → Drummer for one hit wonder pop-folk Every Mother’s Son, “Come On Down To My Boat” (#6, 1967)
1942 ● Walter Williams → Vocals for R&B/Philly soul giants The O’Jays, “Love Train” (#1, 1973)
1944 ● Alan Parker → Lead guitar and vocals for Brit Invasion pop-rock Dave Clark Five, “Catch Us If You Can” (#4, 1965) and 11 other Top 25 hits in the US
1947 ● Pete Arnesen → Piano for glam rock/rock ‘n roll revival The Rubettes, “Sugar Baby Love” (, US #37, 1974)
1947 ● Keith Tippett / (Keith Graham Tippett) → British modern jazz, jazz-rock and progressive rock pianist on over 50 albums as a solo artist or bandleader and on dozens of albums as a session musician for free improv group Company, prog rock King Crimson and many others, in duets with Stan Tracey and with his wife, Julie Driscoll, and as the keyboardist in progressive jazz quartet Mujician in the 90s and 00s, continued to record and release his own material, including a final album just months before his death from undisclosed causes on 6/14/2020, age 72.
1949 ● Gene “The Demon” Simmons / (Chaim Witz) → Bass, vocals and frontman for campy hard/glam-rock Kiss, “Detroit Rock City” (#7, 1976), released two solo albums, producer, talent scout, entrepreneur, author and film and TV actor
1949 ● Henry Paul → Founding member, lead singer and guitarist for Southern hard rock Outlaws (“Hurry Sundown,” #34, 1975), left in 1977 to form and front country-rock Henry Paul Band, in 1991 founded Nashville-based Blackhawk (“I’m Not Strong Enough To Say No,” #2, 1995), reformed Outlaws in 2005 and continues to record and tour
1950 ● Willy De Ville / (William Boray) → Guitar, vocals and frontman for blue-eyed soul/roots rock/punk rock Mink De Ville, “Storybook Love” (1987), solo and collaborations with notable blues and R&B stars, died of pancreatic cancer on 8/7/2009, age 58
1951 ● James Warren → Co-founder, bassist and vocalist for New Wave pop-rock The Korgis, “Everybody’s Got To Learn Sometime” (#18, 1980)
1951 ● Rob Halford → Vocals for influential “New Wave” heavy metal band Judas Priest, “Breaking The Law” (1980)
1952 ● Geoff Downes → Founding member and keyboards for New Wave synth-pop The Buggles, “Video Killed The Radio Star” (#40, 1979), joined prog rock Yes for one album (Drama, 1980), left to form prog/pop-rock Asia, “Heat Of The Moment” (#4, 1982), solo
1954 ● Elvis Costello / (Declan Patrick McManus) → Innovative, eclectic, multi-genre songwriter, singer and pub rock/punk/New Wave guitarist, frontman for The Attractions, “Veronica” (#19, 1989), 17 US Top 40 albums, has recorded classical-, jazz- and adult pop-based albums
1956 ● Matt Aitken → Member of the multi-hit UK songwriting/production trio Stock-Aitken-Waterman (SAW), “Respectable” (#1 for Rick Astley, 1987)
1961 ● Billy Ray Cyrus → Once touted as the “Next Elvis,” country-pop one hit wonder crossover singer, debut single “Achy Breaky Heart” (#4, 1992) spawned the worldwide “line dance” craze, debut album Some Gave All spent 17 weeks on the US album chart, father of actress Miley Cyrus
1962 ● Vivian Patrick Campbell → Guitarist with hard rock/metal Def Leppard, “Love Bites” (#1, 1988), Dio and Whitesnake
1963 ● Candida Doyle → Keyboard and backing vocals for alt rock/Britpop Pulp, “Common People” (UK #2, 1995)
1965 ● Erik Dahlgren → Drummer for Swedish alt rock The Wannadies, “You And Me Song” (UK #18, 1996)
1966 ● Terminator X / (Norman Rogers) → Rapper and DJ for influential early hip hop group Public Enemy, “Fight The Power” (Rap #1, 1989), solo, producer, retired to his South Carolina ostrich stud farm in 2003
1967 ● Jeff Tweedy → Co-founder, singer, songwriter and guitars for seminal roots rock trio Uncle Tupelo, after its breakup founded alt country-rock Wilco, “Outasite (Outta Mind)” (Mainstream Rock #22, 1997)
1969 ● Luke Scott → Guitarist in Brit lounge/melodramatic pop group Babybird, “You’re Gorgeous” (UK #3, 1996)
1970 ● Jo Dee Messina → Country-pop crossover singer with 12 Country Top 10 hits, six of them #1’s, including “That’s The Way” (#25, Country #1, 2000)
1985 ● Wynter Gordon / (Diana Gordon) → Dance-pop singer and songwriter, “Dirty Talk” (Dance #1, 2010), co-wrote “Sugar” for Flo Rida (#5, 2009)
1987 ● Amy MacDonald → Scottish soft folk-pop singer/songwriter and guitarist, “Don’t Tell Me That It’s Over” (UK #48, 2010)
1988 ● Alexandra Burke → Brit R&B/neo-soul and electro-pop singer, won the 2008 UK talent show The X Factor, debut single “Hallelujah” (UK #1, 2008) plus four other UK Top 10 hits in two years
1988 ● Ray Quinn → English TV soap opera actor, dancer and singer, runner-up in the 2006 UK talent show The X Factor, “Doing It My Way” (UK #1, 2007)
August 26
1903 ● Mr. Five by Five / (Jimmy Rushing) → Short and stout blues/jazz “shouter” and singer, lead vocals for the Count Basie band, died of leukemia on 6/8/1972, age 68
1936 ● René Ornelas → Mexican-American singer and, with René Herrera, one half of the Tejano-pop duo René y René with two minor 60s hits, “Angelito” (“Little Angel”) (#43, 1964) and “Lo Mucho Que Te Quiero (The More I Love You)” (AC #14, 1969), one of the first Chicano acts on American Bandstand in 1964, continues to perform into the 10s as René René
1938 ● Jet Black / (Brian John Duffy) → Liquor store and home brewing equipment supply company owner who switched to punk-rock as co-founder and long-time drummer in influential The Stranglers, the band issued 23 UK Top 40 singles and 19 UK Top 40 albums over 45 years from 1977, including “Golden Brown” (UK #2, 1982) from the album La Folie (UK #11, 1981), suffered ill health for years and retired from the band in 2018, died at home on 12/6/2022, age 84.
1939 ● Fred Milano → Founding member and tenor vocals for R&B doo wop Dion & The Belmonts, “A Teenager In Love” (#5, 1959), continued after frontman Dion DiMucci left in 1960 as The Belmonts, “Tell Me Why” (#18, 1961), performed with the group until just before his death from lung cancer on 1/1/2012, age 72.
1940 ● Nik Turner / (Nicholas Robert Turner) → Saxophone-playing roadie for start-up band Group X, which within a few weeks re-formed and became the first line-up of legendary space rock pioneers Hawkwind, hired as founding member, multi-instrumentalist and occasional composer, played reed instruments with the band in two stints, first from 1969 to 1976, their most commercially successful and critically acclaimed period (“Silver Machine,” UK #3, 1972), left due to artistic differences but returned in 1982 for recording sessions for the LP Choose Your Masques (1982) on which he was credited as a “guest musician,” from 1977 on fronted his own bands Sphynx (one single featuring lead vocals by Sting of The Police), Inner City Unit, then Nik Turner’s Fantastic All Stars in the late 80s, then Hawkwind offshoot Space Ritual and Nik Turner’s Hawkwind in the 2000s, performed with multiple bands and gigs with other musicians through the 10s until just before his death from natural causes on 11/10/2022, age 82.
1941 ● Chris Curtis → Drummer and vocals for Merseybeat band The Searchers, “Needles And Pins” (#13, 1963), died following a long illness on 2/28/2005, age 63
1942 ● Vic Dana → Tap dancer turned vocalist in pop/blue-eyed soul/doo wop trio The Fleetwoods, “Come To Me Softly” (#1, 1959), then solo, “Red Roses for a Blue Lady” (#10, 1965)
1942 ● Keith Allison / (Sydney Keith Allison) → Singer, actor, songwriter and bass guitarist for pop/garage rock Paul Revere & The Raiders from 1968 to 1975 and the last big hit for the group, “Indian Reservation” (#1, CAN #1, 1971), previously managed pop singer Ray Peterson‘s backing band and did session work for The Monkees, Sonny & Cher and others, returned to session work in 1976 and recorded with Ringo Starr and Harry Nilsson, among others, over the years co-wrote several songs used in films and acted in small roles on TV and in films, died of natural causes on 11/17/2021, age 79.
1944 ● Moe Tucker / (Maureen Ann Tucker) → Drummer for proto-punk The Velvet Underground, “White Light, White Heat” (1968)
1948 ● Valerie Simpson → With husband Nickolas Ashford, songwriting and R&B/pop duo Ashford & Simpson, “Solid” (#12, 1984), penned hits for Ray Charles, “Let’s Go Get Stoned” (R&B #1, 1966), Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell, “You’re All I Need To Get By” (#7, 1968), Diana Ross, “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough” (#1, 1970) and others
1949 ● Bob Cowsill / (Robert Cowsill) → Vocals for family pop band The Cowsills, “The Rain, The Park And Other Things” (#2, 1967) and theme song from Broadway musical Hair, (#2, 1969), inspiration for the TV show The Partridge Family, his twin brother Richard “Dick” Cowsill was the road manager for the group
1949 ● Dick Cowsill / (Richard Cowsill) → Road manager for family pop band The Cowsills, “The Rain, The Park And Other Things” (#2, 1967) and theme song from Broadway musical Hair, (#2, 1969), inspiration for the TV show The Partridge Family, twin brother of bandmember Bob Cowsill.
1949 ● Leon Redbone / (Dickran Gobalian) → Cyprus-born, baritone jazz/blues/ragtime singer and interpreter of early 20th century popular songs and Tin Pan Alley songwriters, “discovered” by Bob Dylan in a Toronto-area folk festival in 1972, his wry, savvy and skillful updates of ragtime to blues to jazz standards garnered critical acclaim and a cult following over a four-decade career, released thirteen studio albums, including Double Time (#38, 1977) plus “Seduced” (#72, 1981) and multiple other singles, sang the theme song to the TV sitcom Mr. Belvedere (1985-1990), retired from performing due to ill health and died from complications of dementia on 5/30/2019, age 69.
1952 ● Billy Rush → Songwriter and producer for New Jersey rock ‘n roll bar band Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes, “Talk To Me” (1978)
1954 ● Michael Chetwood → Keyboards for New Wave pop-rock T’Pau, “Heart And Soul” (#4, 1987)
1954 ● Steve Wright / (Stephen Richard Wright MBE) → Phenomenally popular English radio personality, author and occasional TV program host, aired Steve Wright in the Afternoon weekdays on BBC Radio 1 from 1981 through 1993, a similar morning program from 1994 to mid-1995, and the BBC Radio 2 afternoon show from 1999 through 2022, each program featuring a revolving “zoo” format of multiple characters, guests, discussion topics, news and music, in between authoring five books of trivia, presenting the BBC-TV program Top of the Pops from 1980 to 1989, and issuing six novelty-song charting singles under various spoof band names, including “I’ll Be Back” (UK #10, 1991), hosted Steve Wright’s Sunday Love Songs from 2022 until poor cardiac health and grieving over his ex-wife’s 2020 demise from COVID caused his death from a “broken heart” on 2/12/2024, age 69.
1957 ● John O’Neill → Guitarist for Irish punk/New Wave pop-rock The Undertones, “My Perfect Cousin” (UK #9, 1980), co-founded hard/alt rock That Petrol Emotion, “Groove Check” (Dance/Club #12, 1989)
1960 ● Jim Beard / (James Arthur Beard) → Grammy-winning jazz and rock keyboardist, composer, and producer, released six solo CDs, wrote over 100 published songs, did session and production work with jazz and rock luminaries, including John MacLaughlin, Wayne Shorter and Chick Corea, appeared with major symphony groups, taught at renowned schools of music, arranged film soundtracks, and, since 2008, played as a full member of jazz-rock Steely Dan, performed a last show with the group in January 2024 and died from complications of a sudden illness on 3/02/2024, age 63.
1960 ● Branford Marsalis → Jazz saxophonist, composer, bandleader and oldest of the four musical Marsalis brothers, played with Art Blakely, Herbie Hancock, his brother Wynton, and Sting, led Jay Leno’s Tonight Show band, formed his own record label in 2002 for his own albums and those of others
1965 ● Annie Holland → Bassist for mixed-gender, post-punk alt rock Elastica, “Connection” (Modern Rock #2, 1994)
1966 ● Dan Vickrey → Guitarist for alt-rock Counting Crows, “Mr. Jones” (Modern Rock #2, 1994)
1969 ● Adrian Young → Drummer for “Third Wave” ska-rock No Doubt, “Don’t Speak” (Adult Top 40 #1, 1997)
August 27
1927 ● Moishe (or Mo) Levy / (Morris Levy) → Jazz club owner, music publisher and record label owner/executive best known as the founder and CEO of jazz, rock and pop label Roulette Records, the Birdland jazz night club in New York City and the Northeast US retail music chain Strawberries, his career included multiple allegations of embezzlement and shady business deals, convicted of Federal extortion charges in 1988, contracted cancer, lost an appeal in January 1990 to have his sentence forgiven for health reasons, died four weeks before reporting for a 10-year prison sentence on 5/21/1990, age 62
1932 ● Hal Lucas / (Harold Lucas) → Founding member and baritone vocals in pioneering, genre-defining R&B/doo wop The Clovers, “Ting-A-Ling” (R&B #1, 1952) and 18 other R&B Top 10 hits in the early 50s plus the crossover “Love Potion No. 9” (#23, R&B #23, 1959), stayed with the group and various splinters until his death from lung cancer on 1/6/1994, age 61
1937 ● Phil Shulman / (Philip Arthur Shulman) → Multi-instrumentalist (sax, flute, clarinet, piano and percussion) for pop/rock Simon Dupree & The Big Sound, “Kites” (UK #9, 1967), then founding member of innovative prog rock Gentle Giant
1937 ● Tommy Sands / (Thomas Adrian Sands) → Late 50s teen idol singer with one big hit among a half dozen charting singles, “Teen Age Crush” (#2, 1956), appeared on multiple TV shows and in several top films before his career waned in the late-60s, performed on the oldies circuit into the 90s
1942 ● Daryl “Captain” Dragon / (Daryl Frank Dragon) → Touring and recording keyboardist, and occasional song co-writer, with The Beach Boys in the early 70s, later joined with future wife Toni Tennille in MOR/light pop-rock duo Captain & Tennille (“Love Will Keep Us Together,” #1, 1975 and six other Top 10 hits), their popularity leading to a TV variety program in 1976-77, continued to tour and record until developing a neurological condition in 2009, died from kidney failure on 1/2/2019, age 76.
1944 ● Tim Bogert / (John Voorhis Bogert III) → Bassist and vocals for psychedelic rock/proto-metal Vanilla Fudge and their heavy arrangements of pop hits, including “You Keep Me Hangin’ On” (#6, UK #18, 1968), later formed boogie-rock Cactus with Fudge bandmate and drummer Carmen Appice, both then recruited by Jeff Beck in 1972 to supergroup and power trio Beck, Bogert & Appice (“I’m So Proud,” 1973), over the next three-and-a-half decades participated in various sessions and tours, issued several solo albums, taught at the Musicians’ Institute in Hollywood and rejoined Vanilla Fudge for reunion tours, retired from performing in 2010 following a motorcycle accident and died from cancer on 1/13/2021, age 76.
1945 ● Malcolm Allured → Drummer for Brit rock ‘n’ roll revival Showaddywaddy, “Under The Moon Of Love” (UK #1, 1976) and over 20 other UK Top 40 singles
1949 ● Jeff Cook / (Jefftrey Alan Cook) → Lead guitar, fiddle and vocals in country-rock Wildcountry, by 1978 the high school group morphed into country-rock superstars Alabama and 32 Country #1 hits over two decades at the top of the charts – seven of them also Hot 100s – including “Love In The First Degree” (#15, Country #1, 1981), after the band stopped performing fronted his own groups and issued nine solo albums between 2005 and 2018; the last, “Why Not Me” (2018), an improbable but good-humored collaboration with William Shatner of “Star Trek” fame, owned a recording studio, radio station and restaurant, toured occasionally with Alabama, the final time just before his death from complications of Parkinson’s disease on 11/7/2002, age 73.
1950 ● John Turnbull → Brit pop-rock guitarist and singer, started with the psych-pop band Skip Bifferty in the mid-60s, since played with Nick Lowe, Dave Stewart, Eurythmics, Ian Dury And The Blockheads and others, also contributed to film soundtracks including Get Carter (1971)
1951 ● Kevin Kavanaugh → Keyboards for New Jersey rock ‘n roll bar band Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes, “Talk To Me” (1978)
1953 ● Alex Lifeson / (Alexander Zivojinovich) → Guitarist, backing vocals and founding member of Canadian arena rock/power trio Rush, “New World Man” (Mainstream Rock #1, 1982) and 24 other Mainstream Rock Top 20 singles
1956 ● Glen Matlock → Bassist and songwriter for the original lineup of punk rock Sex Pistols, “Anarchy In The U.K.” (1976), left in 1977 and replaced by Sid Vicious, formed New Wave power pop The Rich Kids and other bands with limited success, joined the reformed Sex Pistols in 1996
1961 ● Yolanda Adams → Four-time Grammy-winning R&B/gospel singer, “Open My Heart” (#57, Gospel #1, 1999), Billboard magazine’s #1 gospel artist of the 00s, radio host
1970 ● Tony Kanal → Bassist for “Third Wave” ska-rock No Doubt, “Don’t Speak” (Adult Top 40 #1, 1997)
1972 ● Jimmy Pop / (James Moyer Franks) → Lead vocalist, rhythm guitarist and chief songwriter for alt rock/comedy/satire Bloodhound Gang, “The Bad Touch” (Modern Rock #6, 1999)
1975 ● Mase / (Mason Durell Betha) → Hip hop entertainer, songwriter and rapper, duet with Kelly Price, “Feel So Good” (#5, Rap #1, 1997), also worked with Puff Daddy, Blackstreet and others, leads an international ministry
1979 ● Jonathan Siebels → Co-founder and guitarist for teen punk-pop trio Eve 6, “Inside Out” (#28, Mainstream Rock #5, 1998)
1979 ● Sarah Neufeld → Violinist for Grammy-winning Canadian alt/indie rock Arcade Fire, “Keep The Car Running” (Alt #32, 2007), side project is six-piece instrumental rock group Bell Orchestre
1986 ● Mario / (Dewar Bennett) → R&B/pop singer and songwriter, “Let Me Love You” (#1, 2004), film actor, fashion model and philanthropist
August 28
1904 ● Ernie Fields / (Ernest Lawrencce Fields) → Jazz and Swing-era musician, arranger and bandleader, first with the Royal Entertainers, then scored a lone hit with his Ernie Fields Orchestra, a cover of Glenn Miller‘s “In The Mood” (#4, UK #13, 1959), as a session musician at Rendezvous Records in the 50 and 60s played on numerous singles, including surf-rock “Out Of Limits” (The Marketts, #3, 1964), died from natural causes on 5/11/1997, age 92
1925 ● Billy Grammer → Country guitarist with multiple, minor hits on the country charts and one crossover hit, “Gotta Travel On” (#4, Country #5, 1959), retired from recording in the late 60s but performed at the Grand Ole Opry for years thereafter, died after a long illness on 8/10/2011, age 85
1931 ● John Perkins → Lead singer for Canadian pop cover vocal quartet The Crew Cuts, “Sh-Boom” (#1, 1954)
1937 ● Clem Cattini / (Clemente Cattini) → Drummer for Brit rock ‘n’ roll Johnny Kidd & The Pirates, “Shakin’ All Over” (UK #1, 1960) and The Tornados, “Telstar” (#1, 1962), then top session drummer who’s played on over 40 UK #1 hits by artists such as Bay City Rollers, Hot Chocolate, Tom Jones, The Seekers and T. Rex, reformed The Tornados in the 90s
1937 ● Joe Osborn → Bass guitarist best known as a member of Ricky Nelson‘s early band (“Travelin’ Man,” #1, 1961) and of the acclaimed Wrecking Crew group of L.A. studio musicians, with whom he backed dozens of top artists on multiple hit songs and numerous film scores and TV commercials, moved to Nashville in 1974 and as an in-demand session musician played bass on over 50 Country #1 hit songs
1940 ● Walter Ward → Founding member and lead singer for 50s/60s doo wop The Olympics (“Western Movies,” #8, R&B #7, 1958), continued to perform on the oldies circuit up to his death on 12/11/2006, age 66
1940 ● Joseph Shabalala / (Bhekizizwe Joseph Siphatimandla Mxoveni Mshengu Bigboy Shabalala) → South African musician, composer and founder/frontman of Ladysmith Black Mambo, a popular local a capella vocal group that Paul Simon tapped to back the Grammy-winning Graceland (#3, 1986) album, thereby introducing Zulu choral music (isicathimiya music) to an international audience, co-wrote “Homeless” and “Diamonds On The Soles of Her Shoes” with Simon, won a Grammy for his group’s follow-on album Shaka Zulu, continued to record and perform with the group on the world stage into the 2000s, turned leadership of the project over to his son, Thamsanqa in 2008, retired in 2014 and died from an undisclosed medical condition on 2/11/2020, age 78.
1940 ● Ivy Jo Hunter / (George Ivy Hunter) → Detroit native who signed to Motown Records as a sax and trumpet sessionman, then moved up to songwriting and penned and/or produced many dozens of songs for the label, often in collaboration with Motown A&R executive William “Mickey” Stevenson, including Martha & The Vandellas‘ “Dancing In The Street” (#2, R&B #8, 1964) and The Four Tops’ “Ask The Lonely” (#24, R&B #9, 1965), stayed in Detroit when Motown moved to Lo Angeles in 1970 and wrote songs and produced recordings for Funkadelic and others, died from undisclosed causes on 10/6/2022, age 82.
1941 ● John Marshall / (John Stanley Marshall) → English drummer and sideman in blues-rock Alexis Korner’s Blues Incorporated in the early 60s, then sideman for several jazz-rock fusion bands before co-founding Nucleus in 1969, left in 1971 to join psych-rock Soft Machine (“Soft Space,” 1978) and work as a touring drummer and sessionman with dozens of leading rock and jazz artists, including Jack Bruce, Larry Coryell and Sarah Vaughan, joined Soft Machine bandmates in various projects in the 90s and 00s, toured with a reformed Soft Machine from 2015 until his death from undisclosed causes on 9/16/2023, age 82.
1942 ● Ken Andrew → Drummer for Scot bubblegum pop-rock Middle Of The Road, “Chirpy Chirpy Cheep Cheep” (UK #1, 1971)
1943 ● David Soul / (David Richard Solberg) → Folk singer turned 70s TV actor and one-half of the crime-fighting stud duo Starsky & Hutch, (1975-1979), returned to pop music with “Don’t Give Up On Us” (#1, UK #1, 1977) plus four other UK Top 20 hits and two UK Top 10 albums, moved to the UK in the 90s, became a citizen and continued his stage and TV acting career in the UK into the 10s, died from COPD on 1/4/2024, age 80.
1943 ● Honey Lantree / (Anne Margot Lantree) → London hair salon assistant turned rock ‘n’ roll drummer for one hit wonder English beat/pop-rock The Honeycombs (“Have I The Right?”, #5, UK #1, 1964), one of the very few women to play drums on a major hit in the 60s or any other era, recorded and toured with the band until their break-up in 1967, left the business to raise a family but returned for Honeycombs reunions in the 90s, died from breast cancer on 12/23/2018, age 75.
1948 ● Daniel Seraphine → Founding member and drummer for pop-rock/horn band Chicago, “Saturday In The Park” (#3, 1972), left in 1990 and became a theatrical producer, formed Chicago Transit Authority in 2010
1948 ● Fred Cole / (Frederick Lee Cole) → Unheralded guitarist, singer and songwriter with a 50-year career as frontman for various garage, punk and proto-grunge rock bands that built a deep cult following in the Pacific Northwest and Europe, he and his wife, Kathleen were two-thirds of the 20-year garage-punk trio Dead Moon, continued to record and perform in the Portland, OR music scene until his death from liver cancer on 11/9/2017, age 69
1949 ● Hugh Cornwell → Guitar and vocals punk-rock The Stranglers, “Strange Little Girl” (UK #7, 1982) plus over 20 other UK Top 40 hits, some time TV actor, author, solo career with seven albums, session work
1949 ● Martin Lamble → Founding member and original drummer for renowned Brit folk-rock Fairport Convention, “Si Tu Dos Partir” (UK #21, 1969), died when the band’s equipment truck crashed after a show in Birmingham, England on 5/14/1969, age 19
1951 ● Wayne Osmond → Vocals for family-oriented light pop-rock The Osmonds, ten US Top 40 singles including “One Bad Apple” (#1, 1971)
1952 ● Dave Hlubek → Co-founder and lead guitar for Southern rock power-guitar band Molly Hatchet, “Flirtin’ With Disaster” (#42, 1980), died from a heart attack on 9/2/2017, age 65.
1961 ● Kim Appleby → Singer and actress, with younger sister Melanie in R&B/dance-pop duo Mel & Kim, “Respectable” (Dance/Club #1, 1986)
1965 ● Shania Twain / (Eileen Regina Edwards) → Five-time Grammy-winning, Canadian-born country-pop megastar singer/songwriter, “You’re Still The One” (#2, 1998) from the album Come On Over, the best-selling album of all time by a female artist in any genre
1969 ● Jack Black / (Thomas Jacob Black) → Film actor (School Of Rock, 2003), comedian and musician, one half of the comedy/rock cult duo Tenacious D with Kyle Gass, “POD (The Pick Of Destiny)” (#57, UK #20, 2006)
1969 ● Mary Anna McCartney → Professional photographer and television documentary producer, daughter of Paul McCartney and Linda Eastman McCartney
1974 ● Peter Turner → Bassist in prog/alt rock Elbow, “Grounds For Divorce” (UK #19, 2008) from the Mercury Music Prize-winning album The Seldom Seen Kid
1978 ● Max Collins → Co-founder and bassist for teen punk-pop trio Eve 6, “Inside Out” (#28, Mainstream Rock #5, 1998)
1982 ● Margaret LeAnn Rimes → Teenage country-pop crossover star, “Blue” (#26, Country #10, 1996), has since won multiple Grammy Awards and issued 14 albums and six Top 40 singles
1986 ● Florence Welch → Pop, soul and baroque genre-bending singer/songwriter and frontwoman for Florence + The Machine, “Dog Days Are Over” (#21, 2010)
August 29
1920 ● Charlie “Bird” Parker / (Charles Parker, Jr.) → Virtuoso, pioneering and influential jazz/bebop saxophonist and composer with a brief but prolific career and several entries in the Grammy Hall of Fame, tributes include Weather Report‘s “Birdland” (1977), Steely Dan‘s “Parker’s Band” (1974), the chirping bird guitar sound created by Duane Allmann at the end of Derek & The Dominoes‘ “Layla” (1974) and Rolling Stones drummer Charlie Watts‘ children’s book Ode To A High Flying Bird (1964), died of a heart attack brought on by cirrhosis and pneumonia on 3/12/1955, age 34
1924 ● Dinah Washington / (Ruth Lee Jones) → Often called the “Queen of the Blues,” widely popular 40s-50s blues, jazz, and R&B singer, “What A Difference A Day Made” (#8, 1959), died from a barbiturate overdose on 12/14/1963, age 39.
1927 ● Jimmy C. Newman → Country and Cajun music singer, songwriter and bandleader with 30 hits in the Country Top 40 in the 50s and 60s and a lone crossover hit, “A Fallen Star” (#23, Country #2, 1957), died from cancer on 6/21/2014, age 86
1937 ● Marshall Sewell → Bass vocals for doo-wop The Edsels, “Rama Lama Ding Dong” (#21, 1961), later joined the Cleveland, OH police force and retired as a sergeant in 2001, died from esophageal cancer on 6/5/2013, age 75
1940 ● Johnny Paris / (Johnny Pocisk) → Frontman and saxophonist for instrumental rock ‘n’ roll Johnny & The Hurricanes, “Red River Rock” (#5, UK #3, 1959) and three other charting hits in 1959 and 1960, formed a new Hurricanes following disbandment of the first in 1965 and toured until 2005, just before his death from post-surgery infections on 5/1/2006, age 65
1941 ● Ron Bushy → Drummer for hugely-important, proto-metal 60’s psych-rock Iron Butterfly and the only bandmember to play on all of the band’s six albums, forever immortalized for his long drum solo during the 17-minute, major rock classic “In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida” (#30, 1970), played with Iron Butterfly for over 40 years and issued several solo albums during his career, died after losing a battle with esophageal cancer on 08/29/2021, age 75.
1942 ● Holmes Sterling Morrison, Jr. → Founding member and guitarist for proto-punk The Velvet Underground, “White Light/White Heat” (1968), died of cancer on 8/30/1995, age 53
1943 ● Dick Halligan / (Richard Bernard Halligan) → Founding member, keyboardist, songwriter and backing vocalist in innovative jazz-pop-rock fusion band Blood, Sweat & Tears and their major hits in the late 60s and early 70s, including “Spinning Wheel” (#2, 1969) plus “And When I Die” (#2, 1969), co-wrote several of the bands lesser hits, including “Lisa Listen To Me” (#71, 1971), left in 1972 to pursue a long and varied career penning film scores, recording jazz-rock pieces and conducting orchestras at Carnegie Hall in New York City, died from natural causes on 1/18/2022, age 78.
1945 ● Chris Copping → Bassist and organist for English beat The Paramounts, “Poison Ivy” (#35, 1964), joined prog/psych rock Procol Harum in 1969, “Conquistador” (#16, 1972), later with Astrid Monday and art-rock Gnidrolog
1953 ● Rick Downey → Tour drummer for hard rock/pop metal Blue Öyster Cult, played on the tour that resulted in the Extraterrestrial Live album (#29, 1982) and the subsequent The Revölution By Night (#93, 1983)
1958 ● Elizabeth Fraser → Vocals for Scottish alt rock/dream-pop Cocteau Twins, “Heaven Or Las Vegas” (Modern Rock #9, 1990)
1958 ● Michael Jackson / (Michael Joseph Jackson) → The “King of Pop,” singer, songwriter, cultural icon and pre-teen front for R&B/pop-soul sibling band The Jackson Five, “I Want You Back” (#1, 1970), went solo in 1971 and recorded “Billie Jean” (#1, 1983) and 11 other US #1 hits and 9 US Top 10 albums, the most successful pop entertainer of all time, died from heart failure induced by a doctor-administered mix of anxiety-relieving drugs and sedatives on 6/25/2009, age 50
1959 ● Eddi Reader / (Sadenia Reader) → Singer and songwriter for Brit neo-skiffle pop Fairground Attraction, “Perfect” (#80, UK #1, 1988), solo
1963 ● Jerry Fehily → Drummer for Irish rockers Hothouse Flowers, “Don’t Go” (Modern Rock #7, 1988)
1967 ● Anton Newcombe → Multi-instrumentalist, singer, songwriter, founder and frontman for eclectic indie rock/neo-psychedelic The Brian Jonestown Massacre, with over a dozen albums to date, including Their Satanic Majesties’ Second Request (1996), an homage to The Rolling Stones psych-rock album (1967)
1969 ● Me’Shell NdegeOcello / (Mary Johnson) → Singer/songwriter, rapper, bassist and R&B/neo-soul and jazz-pop vocalist, duet with John (Cougar) Mellencamp, “Wild Night” (#3, 1994) plus solo, “Who Is He And What Is He To You? (Dance/Club #1, 1996)
1970 ● Groove Martin / (Carl Martin) → Vocals for R&B/urban contemporary soul quartet Shai, “If I Ever Fall In Love” (#2, 1992)
1971 ● Alex Griffin → Bassist for indie punk-rock Ned’s Atomic Dustbin, “Not Sleeping Around” (Modern Rock #1, 1992)
1975 ● Kyle Cook → Guitarist for post-grunge alt rock Matchbox Twenty, “Bent” (#1, 2000)
1980 ● David Desrosiers → Bassist and backing vocals for French-Canadian pop-punk Simple Plan, “Perfect” (#24, Canada #5, 2003)
1993 ● Liam Payne → Vocals in Brit-Irish boy band quintet One Direction, “What Makes You Beautiful” (#4, UK #1, 2011)
August 30
1919 ● Kitty Wells / (Ellen Muriel Deason) → Pioneering country music singer and the first female country star for her barrier-breaking hit “It Wasn’t God Who Made Honky Tonk Angels (#27, Country #1, 1952), recorded 27 other Country Top 10 hits and received a Grammy Lifetime Achievement award for her 30 year recording career, died from complications of a stroke on 7/16/2012, age 92
1928 ● Johnny Mann → Composer of film scores and advertising jingles in the 50s, voice of Theodore on the original TV series Alvin & The Chipmunks (1961), music director for the NBC Comedy Hour and The Joey Bishop Show, and frontman for Grammy-winning clean-cut 60s and 70s easy listening Johnny Mann Singers, died of heart failure on 6/18/2014, age 85
1930 ● Ernie Ball / (Ronald Sherwood Ball) → Musician and business entrepreneur in guitar-related products through his Ernie Ball and Music Man companies, developed and sold the “Slinky” set of guitar strings used by Eric Clapton, Pete Townshend and many current guitarists, continued to be involved with the business until his death after a long illness on 9/9/2004, age 74
1935 ● John Phillips → Known as “Papa John,” singer, songwriter, guitarist, founder and frontman for folk-pop The Mamas & The Papas, “Monday Monday” (#1,1966), died of heart failure on 3/18/2001, age 65
1939 ● John Peel / (John Robert Parker Ravenscroft) → Offshore pirate station Radio London DJ, then from 1967 to 2004 the longest serving BBC Radio 1 and most influential British DJ ever, died in Peru of a heart attack on 10/25/2004, age 65
1941 ● John McNally → Founder, guitarist and singer for Merseybeat band The Searchers, “Needles And Pins” (#13, 1963)
1943 ● Robert Crumb → Artist, comic book and album cover illustrator, founder of the satirical and subversive underground comix movement, developed the “Keep on truckin'” and “Fritz the Cat” characters
1944 ● Chuck Colbert / (Charles Colbert) → Bassist for pop-rock one hit wonder American Breed, “Bend Me Shape Me” (Top 10, 1968)
1945 ● Fred Tackett → Songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, first as a session player for and since 1988 as a full-time member of Southern-fried blues-boogie rock Little Feat, “Dixie Chicken” (1973) and “Hate To Lose Your Lovin'” (Mainstream Rock #1, 1988)
1950 ● Micky Moody → Guitarist in Brit blues-rock Juicy Lucy, covered Bo Diddley‘s classic “Who Do You Love” (UK #14, 1970), left in 1973 for session work, in 1978 joined Whitesnake, “Here I Go Again” (#1, 1987) but left for solo career and sessions
1951 ● Dana / (Rosemary Brown Scallon) → Irish folk-pop singer, won the 1970 Eurovision Song Contest with the worldwide hit “All Kinds Of Everything” (UK #1, 1970), in the 90s shifted to Christian pop music, “As We Lay” (#59, 1997)
1952 ● Kenny Andrews → Singer in Brit doo wop/rock ‘n’ roll revival vocal group Darts, “Don’t Let It Fade Away” (UK #18, 1978)
1953 ● Horace Panter / (Stephen Graham Panter) → Bassist for ska revival/punk rock The Specials, “Ghost Town” (UK #1, 1981), then pop-soul General Public, “I’ll Take You There” (Dance/Club #1, 1994) and The Specials reunion concert, author and special needs teacher
1954 ● Ron Beitle → Drummer with one hit wonder funk-pop Wild Cherry, “Play That Funky Music” (#1, 1976)
1958 ● Martin Jackson → Drummer with post-punk Magazine, “Shot By Both Sides” (UK #41, 1978) and for Brit sophisti-pop Swing Out Sister, “Breakout” (#6, 1987) plus other Manchester New Wave bands
1961 ● Keith McKenzie → Founding member and drummer for Scottish electronic psych/dance rock crossover band The Shamen, “Ebenezer Goode” (UK #1, 1992)
1963 ● Paul Oakenfold → Dance-pop “house” music pioneer and DJ, toured with U2, Perfecto Records founder, producer and remixer for Happy Mondays, Simply Red, M People, New Order, Stone Roses and U2
1964 ● Robert Clivillés → Songwriter, vocals, producer and one half of the R&B/electro-dance-pop team C+C Music Factory, “Gonna Make You Sweat (Everybody Dance Now)” (#1, 1990)
1966 ● Peter Cunnah → Lead singer for 90s techno-dance-pop D:Ream, “U R The Best Thing” (Dance #1, 1993), solo
1971 ● Lars Frederiksen → Danish-American guitarist and vocalist in punk rock revival Rancid, “Time Bomb” (Modern Rock #8, 1995), producer
1974 ● Rich Cronin → Lead singer and chief songwriter for pop/rap trio LFO (Lyte Funkie Ones or Low Frequency Oscillator), “Summer Girls” (#3, 1999), left the band and attempted a solo career until dying from complications of leukemia on 9/8/2007, age 35
1986 ● George Ross / (George Ryan Ross III) → Lead guitarist and singer for alt rock/pop punk quartet Panic! At The Disco, “I Write Sins Not Tragedies” (#7, 2006)
August 31
1918 ● Alan Jay Lerner → Grammy-winning stage, screen and pop music lyricist and librettist, songwriting partner of Frederick Loewe, co-wrote dozens of Broadway shows and movies including Brigadoon (1947), My Fair Lady (1956) and Camelot (1960), died from lung cancer on 6/14/1986, age 67
1937 ● Bobby Parker / (Robert Lee Parker) → Electric blues and blues-rock guitarist and songwriter, his lone charting single, “Watch Your Step” (#51, 1961) was covered by The Beatles, Spencer Davis Group, Carlos Santana and others, continued to record and perform regionally until his death from a heart attack on 10/31/2013, age 76
1938 ● “Spider” John Koerner / (John Koerner) → Hugely influential 60s folk revival guitarist, singer and songwriter, as part of the blues-folk trio Koerner, Ray & Glover and six albums, including the highly-regarded Blues, Rags and Hollers (1963), as a solo artist with seven albums from 1965 to 2013, and as a collaborator with other prominent folk and blues artists in varying projects over the years, known for his friendship with Bob Dylan, whom he mentored at the University of Minnesota and performed with in the early 60s Minneapolis folk scene, died from bile duct cancer on 5/18/2924, age 85.
1939 ● Jerry Allison / (Jerry Ivan Allison) → Drummer in early and influential rock ‘n’ roll The Crickets alongside frontman Buddy Holly, with whom he co-wrote the classic hits “That’ll Be The Day” (#1, 1957) and “Peggy Sue” (#3, 1957), became de factor leader of The Crickets after Holly left in 1958, but their success was limited over the ensuing years, continued to record and front The Crickets in various incarnations for six decades, including a stint as the Liberty Records house band and for years on the oldies tour, died from cancer on his Tennessee farm nine days before his 83rd birthday on 8/22/2022, age 82.
1940 ● Wilton Felder → Founding member and saxophonist with hard bop The Jazz Crusaders (jazz-funk The Crusaders after 1971), “Street Life” (#36, 1979), plus side work as a solo artist and session musician on electric bass for Billy Joel, Steely Dan, Randy Newman and others, died from myeloma on 9/27/2015, age 75
1944 ● Roger Dean → English artist and album cover designer for Asia, Atomic Rooster, Greenslade, Steve Howe, Uriah Heep, Yes and others
1945 ● Van Morrison / (George Ivan Morrison) → Northern Irish singer, songwriter, musician and poet, started as lead singer for Irish garage rock Them, “Here Comes The Night” (#24, UK #2, 1965), then a long and prolific blue eyed soul/rock solo career, “Brown Eyed Girl” (#10, UK #8, 1967) and over 40 albums plus six Grammy Awards
1945 ● Bob Welch → Pop/rock guitarist for pre-superstardom Fleetwood Mac, “Hypnotized” (1973), left in 1974 for largely unsuccessful solo career, “Sentimental Lady” (#8, 1978), committed suicide with a shotgun on 6/7/2012, age 66
1947 ● Peter Gage → Guitarist, pianist, composer and producer, founding member of blue-eyed soul Geno Washington & The Ram Jam Band, “Michael (The Lover)” (UK #39, 1966), later co-founded jazz-rock fusion Dada and R&B/horn band Vinegar Joe with Robert Palmer and Elkie Brooks (his future wife), produced songs for Brooks and albums for Joan Armatrading and The Meteors, among others
1948 ● Andy Stein → Classically trained violinist, saxophonist, arranger and composer, started with country-rock/boogie/swing bar band Commander Cody And His Lost Planet Airmen, “Hot Rod Lincoln” (#9, 1972), thereafter in sessions or show bands and recordings with classical greats Itzhak Perlman and Placido Domingo, with pop artists Emmylou Harris, Bob Dylan, Billy Joel and many others, with jazz artists Wynton Marsalis, Manhattan Transfer and multiple others, played with the Prairie Home Companion (PBS-TV) house band for 22 years.
1948 ● Rudolf Schenker → Founder (at age 16), rhythm guitarist and main songwriter for German hard rock/metal Scorpions, “Rock You Like A Hurricane” (#25, 1984)
1948 ● Ricky Gardiner → Scottish guitarist and songwriter best known for recording with David Bowie on his Low album (1997), for co-writing two tracks on Iggy Pop‘s classic album Lust For Life (1977), including the memorable opening riff on “The Passenger” (1977, UK #22 on its re-release in 1998), recorded multiple albums with various rock and ambient groups over the years, released a number of solo albums featuring mostly guitar and electronic instrumentals, battled a rare neurological condition for his last 12 years and succumbed to the disease on 5/13/2022, age 73.
1954 ● John Davis → Pop singer best known for actually singing the vocals for Milli Vanilli, the scandalous, lip-synching dance-pop vocal duo whose frontmen Rob Pilatus and Fab Morvan were stripped of their 1989 Grammy award when in 1990 it was revealed that they never actually sang on their albums or in concert, formed The Real Milli Vanilli in 1991 with other former Milli Vanilli singers to issue the duo’s second album, which had been recorded in 1990 but not released after the scandal hit, performed occasionally with Fab Morvan in Europe over the ensuing years and died from complications of the COVID-19 virus on 5/24/2021, age 66.
1955 ● Anthony Thistlethwaite → Multi-instrumentalist for Celtic folk-rock The Waterboys, “Fisherman’s Blues” (Modern Rock #3, 1988), sessions, solo
1957 ● Gina Schock → Drummer for New Wave pop-punk girl group The Go-Go’s, “We Got The Beat”, (#2, 1982), the most successful all-female pop and rock band of all time and the only one to play their own instruments and write their own songs
1957 ● Glenn Tilbrook → Songwriter, guitar and vocals for New Wave pop-rock Squeeze, “Tempted” (#49, 1981)
1959 ● Tony DeFranco → Lead singer for teen bubblegum-pop sibling quintet The DeFranco Family, “Heartbeat-It’s A Lovebeat” (#3, 1973)
1960 ● Chris Whitley / (Christopher Becker Whitley) → Roots and blues-rock guitarist and songwriter with two charting singles in the 90s, “Big Sky Country” (Mainstream Rock #36, 1991) and “Living With The Law” (Mainstream Rock #28, 1991), died from lung cancer on 11/20/2005, age 45
1961 ● Bruce Guthro → Lead vocals and guitar for Scottish Celtic folk-rock Runrig, “An Ubhal As Airde (The Highest Apple)” (UK #18, 1995)
1963 ● Larry Waddell → Keyboards for new jack swing R&B/soul-pop sextet Mint Condition, “What Kind Of Man Would I Be?” (#17, 1996)
1963 ● Reb Beach / (Richard Earl Beach, Jr.) → Berklee College of Music graduate, session guitarist for Chaka Khan, Roger Daltrey and The Bee Gees in the mid-80s, co-founded glam/prog metal Winger (“Headed For A Heartbreak,” #19, Mainstream #8, 1989) in the late 80s, played with several prominent hard rock and metal bands in the 90s, including Alice Cooper, Dokken and Sega, joined reformed Whitesnake in 2002 and currently tours and records with Winger and Whitesnake
1967 ● Gerard Love → Bassist for Scot pre-grunge, then power pop Teenage Fanclub, “Star Sign” (Mainstream Rock #4, 1991)
1969 ● Jeff Russo → Guitarist for Grammy-nominated alt/roots rock Tonic, “If You Could Only See” (Mainstream Rock #1, 1997)
1970 ● Debbie Gibson / (Deborah Ann Gibson) → Teen pop singer-songwriter, “Foolish Beat” (#1, 1988) and seven other Top 25 hits in the late 80s, actress
1977 ● Craig Nicholls → Singer, songwriter, guitarist and frontman for Aussie garage rock revival The Vines, “Get Free” (Mainstream Rock #27, 2002)
1977 ● Del Marquis / (Derek Gruen) → Guitarist for dance-glam-rock Scissor Sisters, “Filthy Gorgeous” (Dance/Club #1, 2005)
