Happy Birthday this week to:
August 03
1917 ● Les Elgart → Swing, dance and jazz-pop bandleader, with his brother, Larry, recorded the original version of “Bandstand Boogie,” the theme song long-running teen dance show American Bandstand, withdrew from performing in the late 60s, died from heart failure on 7/29/1995, age 78
1921 ● Richard Adler → Lyricist, composer and producer of acclaimed 50s Broadway shows, with songwriting partner Jerry Ross created several hit songs, among them “Rags To Riches” (Tony Bennett, #1, 1953) and “Whatever Lola Wants” (Sarah Vaughan, #6, 1955), following Ross‘s death in 1955 continued to write and co-write but had little commercial success, died from natural causes on 6/21/2012, age 90
1924 ● Gordon Stoker → Vocals and piano for premier Southern gospel backing group The Jordanaires, worked behind Elvis Presley for 25 years, backed Patsy Cline and other Nashville country stars, died after a long illness on 3/27/2013, age 88
1926 ● Tony Bennett / (Anthony Dominic Benedetto) → Beloved fourteen-time Grammy-winning pop and easy listening crooner with the enduring, signature song “I Left My Heart In San Francisco” (#19, 1962) and eight other Top 40 singles plus four other Adult Contemporary Top 10 hits, his long career started in the Paramount Theater in New York City in the early 1950s and ran for over 70 years, including hundreds of recordings of songs from the Great American Songbook and a final public appearance with pop singer Lady Gaga at Radio City Music Hall in a show titled One Last Time in 2021, suffered from Alzheimer’s disease in his last years and died from undisclosed causes on 7/21/2023, age 96.
1929 ● Arthur Wood → Original keyboardist with Brit blues-rock Climax Blues Band, “Couldn’t Get It Right” (#3, 1977)
1936 ● Kenny Hodges → Bass and backing vocals for folk-sunshine-pop Spanky & Our Gang, “Someday Will Never Be The Same” (#9, 1967), died from viral pneumonia on 1/29/2013, age 76
1938 ● Terry Wogan / (Sir Michael Terrence Wogan) → Irish-born BBC radio and TV personality, Radio 2 host of various programs over nearly 40 years, including Wake Up To Wogan and Eurovision Song Contest
1939 ● Jimmy Nicol → Drummer and temporary member of The Beatles for nine Australian gigs in June 1964 at the height of Beatlemania, sitting in after Ringo Starr collapsed and was hospitalized on 6/3/64 with tonsillitis, returned to obscurity when Ringo rejoined the band on 6/14/1964.
1939 ● Roy C / (Roy Charles Hammond) → Southern soul singer starting as tenor vocal for 50s R&B vocal group The Genies (“Who’s That Knocking’,” #72, 1958), went into military service but reappeared in 1965 with the risqué, sexually-charged novelty hit “Shotgun Wedding” (R&B #14, UK #6, 1965), his outspoken social and political views created recording career hurdles in the late 60s but hooked with unknown teenage boyband The Honey Drippers and recorded the anti-Nixon funky protest song “Impeach The President” (1973), an oft-sampled gem now recognized as an integral track in early hip hop music of the 80s, died from liver cancer on 9/16/2020, age 81.
1941 ● Beverly Lee → Vocals for first 60s girl-group to achieve national prominence, The Shirelles, “Will You Love Me Tomorrow” (#1, 1961)
1946 ● John Foley York → Bassist for The Byrds replacing departed Chris Hillman in 1968, “Lay Lady Lay” (#132, 1969), solo and various collaborations and Byrds spin-offs
1949 ● B .B. Dickerson / (Morris De Wayne Dickerson) → Bassist and vocalist for laid-back R&B/soul-funk War, sang lead on “The World Is A Ghetto” (#7, R&B #3, 1972) and co-wrote “The Cisco Kid” (#2, R&B #5, 1972) and three other Top 10 singles for the band, left in 1979 after 12 albums and later co-founded spin-off Lowrider Band, touring and performing through to a long, undisclosed illness which led to his death on 4/2/2021, age 71.
1951 ● John Graham → Guitarist for R&B/soul-dance-pop Earth, Wind & Fire, “Shining Star” (#1, 1975)
1953 ● Randy Scruggs → Grammy-winning country singer/songwriter, producer and session player, solo artist, “It’s Only Love” (Country #67, 1998), son of legendary country/bluegrass great Earl Scruggs
1953 ● Ian Bairnson / (John Bairnson) → Scottish multi-instrumentalist session musician, joined pop-rock Pilot in 1973 and played guitar on “Magic” (#5, UK #11, 1974) and other hits, left in 1978 with other bandmates to form The Alan Parsons Project (“Eye In The Sky,” #3, CAN #1, 1982), appeared on all 11 of the group’s albums, on the side played on art-pop-rock Kate Bush’s first four albums, played with MOR pop Bucks Fizz and co-wrote “If You Can’t Stand the Heat” (UK#10, 1983) and “Run for Your Life” (UK #14, 1983) for the band, did session work on over 100 albums by Joe Cocker, Mick Fleetwood, Neil Diamond and many others, appeared live with Eric Clapton and others, stopped performing in 2018 and died from dementia on 4/7/2023, age 69.
1956 ● Kirk Brandon → Co-founder, guitar and vocals for Brit post-punk/goth/indie rock Spear Of Destiny, “Strangers In Our Town” (Dance/Club #40, 1987)
1959 ● Martin Atkins → Session drummer and member of post-punk Public Image Ltd., “This Is Not A Love Song” (UK #5, 1983), fronted industrial music collective Pigface, worked in industrial metal band Ministry, “I Wanted To Tell Her” (Dance/Club #13, 1983), Nine Inch Nails, “The Day The World Went Away” (#17, 1999) and post-punk/gloom-industrial metal Killing Joke, “Follow The Leaders” (#25, 1981), Invisible Records founder and chief executive
1963 ● Ed Roland → Founder, primary songwriter, guitarist and engineer/producer for post-grunge alt rock Collective Soul, “Shine” (#11, Mainstream Rock #1, 1994)
1963 ● James Hetfield → Co-founder, rhythm guitar, chief songwriter and lead vocals for Grammy-winning heavy metal Metallica, “Enter Sandman” (#16, 1991), ranked #24 in Hit Parader magazine’s 100 Greatest Metal Vocalists of All Time
1966 ● Dean Sams → Keyboards and backing vocals for cross-over country-rockers Lonestar, “Amazed” (#1, 1999)
1966 ● Shirley Manson → Scottish lead vocalist for Scottish-American alt rock Garbage, “Stupid Girl” (Dance/Club #5, 1996)
1967 ● Skin / (Deborah Anne Dyer) → Vocals for Brit alt rock/metal Skunk Anansie, “All I Want” (UK #14, 1996)
1971 ● DJ Spinderella / (Deidra Muriel Roper) → Vocals for female hip hop trio Salt-N-Pepa, “Let’s Talk About Sex” (#13, 1991)
1973 ● Stephen Carpenter → Guitar for Grammy-winning alt heavy metal Deftones, “Change (In The House Of Flies)” (Mainstream Rock #9, 2000)
1985 ● Brent Kutzle → Bass guitar and cello for self-proclaimed “genreless” pop-rock OneRepublic, “Apologize” (#1, 2006), most popular digital download/highest airplay song ever to-date
1985 ● Holly Blake-Arnstein → Lead vocals for R&B/dance-pop all-girl quartet Dream, “He Loves U Not” (#2, 2000)
August 04
1901 ● Louis “Satchmo” Armstrong / (Louis Daniel Armstrong) → Immensely influential jazz trumpeter and early soloist, enduring and Grammy-winning pop/easy listening singer and bandleader, “Hello, Dolly!” (#1, 1964) and “What a Wonderful World” (#116, UK #1, 1968) plus “When The Saints Go Marching In” and “Ain’t Misbehavin’”, died in his sleep from a heart attack on 7/6/1971, age 69.
1936 ● Elsbeary Hobbs → Bass vocals for Harlem-based R&B/doo wop The Five Crowns, the core of which became post-1958 R&B The Drifters, “Up On The Roof” (1963), died 5/31/1996, age 59
1938 ● Kenny Malone / (Kenneth Morton Malone) → Premier Nashville session drummer and percussionist known for his versatility and innovative styles, recorded with scores of top country, folk and light rock artists, including Dolly Parton (“Jolene,” Country #1, 1973), Dobie Gray (“Drift Away,” #5, 1973), Crystal Gayle (“Don’t It Make My Brown Eyes Blue,” #2, Country #1, AC #4, 1977), Kenny Rogers and Bela Fleck, in the mid-80s founded modern jazz Tone Patrol and recorded two albums in decidedly un-jazzy Nashville, in later years recorded with notable Contemporary Christian Music artists, died from complications of the COVID-19 virus on 8/26/2021, age 83.
1939 ● Frankie Ford / (Francis Guzzo) → One hit wonder blue-eyed New Orleans soul singer, “Sea Cruise” (#14, 1959), continued to record and perform on the oldies circuit into the 00s, died from natural causes on 9/28/2015, age 76
1940 ● Larry Knechtel → Keyboard player and bass guitarist, performed and recorded with numerous bands, including early rocker Duane Eddy‘s Rebels and soft MOR pop-rock Bread, “Make It With You” (#1, 1970), stood in as bass player for several Doors albums, as a session musician was a member of the L.A.-based session group The Wrecking Crew, worked with Phil Spector as a pianist in the “Wall of Sound,” won a Grammy Award for his piano on Simon & Garfunkel‘s “Bridge Over Troubled Water” and played harmonica and electric guitar on The Byrds‘ “Mr. Tambourine Man,” toured with Neil Diamond, Dixie Chicks and other artists and contributed to many albums through the 00s, died from a heart attack on 8/20/2009, age 69.
1941 ● Timi Yuro / (Rosemary Timotea Aurro) → Blue-eyed R&B/pop-soul one hit wonder singer, “Hurt” (#2, 1961), toured with Frank Sinatra and appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show, American Bandstand and other music variety programs in the 60s, died of cancer on 5/30/2004, age 62
1943 ● David Carr → Keyboards and vocals for Brit pop/rock harmony vocals The Fortunes, “You’ve Got Your Troubles” (#7, 1965)
1945 ● Steve Martin → Emmy, Grammy and American Comedy award actor, comedian, producer and one hit wonder novelty song singer, “King Tut” (#17, 1975)
1947 ● Dave Manders → Guitar and lead vocals for pop/rock one hit wonder Paper Lace, “The Night Chicago Died” (#1, UK #3, 1974), a second single “Billy, Don’t Be A Hero” (#96, UK #1, 1974) qualifies them as a two hit wonder in the UK
1947 ● Klaus Schulze → Highly-respected German electronic music composer and multi-instrumentalist with three early and influential “Krautrock” electro-synth groups, Tangerine Dream, Ash Ra Tempel and Cosmic Jokers, in the late 70s started a five-decade, 60-album solo career of evolving and innovative music supported by an aggressive annual touring schedule, retired from performing in 2010 but continued to compose music and release recordings, including a final album for July 2022 release, died after a long illness on 4/26/2022, age 74.B saxophonist best known for two stints with soul-dance-pop Earth, Wind & Fire in their 70s and 80s heydays (“Shining Star,” #1, 1975), afterwards collaborated with artists such as Deniece Williams, Stanley Turrentine, Phil Collins, Twennynine, Level 42 and EWF bandmate Philip Bailey, retired from music in the 00s, suffered a stroke and died several years later on 4/24/2022, age 71.
1947 ● Paul Layton → Guitar and vocals for folk-sunshine pop The New Seekers, “I’d Like To Teach The World To Sing” (#7, 1972)
1951 ● Roy Flowers → Jamaica-born vocalist and drummer for Philly-style, British R&B/soul Sweet Sensation, “Sad Sweet Dreamer” (#14, UK #1, 1975).
1952 ● Moya Brennan / (Maire Ni Bhraonian) → The “First Lady Of Celtic Music,” Emmy-winning singer, songwriter, harpist and frontwoman in Celtic folk-pop sibling group Clannad, “Harry’s Game” (UK #5, 1982), the only British hit single ever to be sung in Irish
1953 ● Vini Reilly / (Vincent Gerard Reilly) → Frontman for Manchester post-punk The Dunutti Column, the first act signed to Factory Records in the late 70s, also collaborated or did session work with Morrissey, Happy Mondays and other local bands, charted several solo albums in the U.K. Top 10 in the 80s, continues to record and perform in the 10s
1958 ● Ian Broudie → Vocals, guitar and frontman for alt rock/Britpop studio project The Lightning Seeds, “Pure” (#31, UK #16, 1989) and later as a full alt rock band, “Three Lions” (UK #1, 1996)
1959 ● Robbin Crosby → Guitarist for hard rock/glam and hair metal Ratt, “Round And Round” (#12, 1984), died from AIDS on 6/6/2002, age 42
1960 ● Graham Massey → Keyboards for electronic/acid-house band 808 State, “Pacific State” (, 1989)
1962 ● Joey Huffman → Keyboard and organ player, member of southern rock the Georgia Satellites (“Keep Your Hands To Yourself,” #2, 1986), did session work and toured with numerous bands, including Matchbox Twenty, Soul Asylum andLynyrd Skynyrd, currently in Hank Williams, Jr.‘s touring band
1962 ● Paul Reynolds → Guitarist for bizarrely-teased hair New Wave pop-rock A Flock of Seagulls, “I Ran (So Far Away)” (#9, 1982)
1963 ● Sam Yaffa / (Sami Takamäki) → Bassist for Finnish glam-punk-metal Hanoi Rocks, covered Creedence Clearwater Revival‘s “Up Around The Bend” (UK #61, 1984)
1966 ● Andy Henderson → Drummer for Britpop Echobelly, “Great Things” (UK #13, 1995)
1968 ● Rob Cieka → Drummer for 90s Brit guitar-pop The Boo Radleys, “Barney (…And Me)” (Alt Rock #30, 1994)
1969 ● Max Cavalera → Guitar and vocals for Brazilian heavy metal/thrash metal Sepultura, “Roots Bloody Roots” (UK #19, 1996)
1971 ● Yo-Yo / (Yolanda Whitaker) → Grammy-nominated rapper, “You Can’t Play With My Yo Yo” (#36, Rap #1, 1991), protégé of gangsta rapper Ice Cube, actress in several films, including Sister Act 2: Back In The Habit (1993)
1981 ● Batman Houston / (Marques Houston) → Vocals for L.A. pre-teen R&B/pop-rap Immature, “Never Lie” (#5, 1994), then name change to Imx, “Stay The Night” (#23, 1999), TV actor, producer for B2K and Destiny’s Child, among others
August 05
1930 ● Damita Jo Deblanc → Comedian, actress and R&B/lounge singer with two “answer songs,” “I’ll Save The Last Dance For You” (#22, 1960) and “I’ll Be There” (#12, 1961), toured with Redd Foxx, died from respiratory failure on 12/25/1998, age 68
1933 ● Billy Lee Riley → Early Sun Records studio musician, rockabilly singer and songwriter, with his band The Little Green Men recorded several songs at Sun, among them “Flyin’ Saucers Rock & Roll” and “Red Hot,” but largely played behind other stars like Jerry Lee Lewis, Elvis Presley and Carl Perkins, continued to tour and perform until his death from colon cancer on 8/2/2009, age 76.
1941 ● Airto Moreira → Brazilian drummer for jazz-rock fusion group Weather Report, “Birdland” (1976), bandleader and solo
1942 ● Rick Huxley → Bassist 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, died after a long bout with emphysema on 2/11/2013, age 70
1943 ● Sammi Smith / (Jewel Raye Smith) → Country-pop crossover singer with one big hit, her cover of Kris Kristofferson‘s “Help Me Make It Though The Night” (#8, Country #1, 1971) among seven total Country Top 20 singles, one of the rare females in the “outlaw country” movement of the 70s, largely disappeared from the music business in the 80s, died from emphysema on 2/15/2005, age 61
1943 ● Sandy Pearlman / (Samuel Clarke Pearlman) → Music critic for rock-culture Crawdaddy magazine, record producer, band manager, executive and college professor best known for managing, producing and writing for hard rock/pop-metal Blue Öyster Cult (“(Don’t Fear) The Reaper,” #12, 1976) and producing albums by The Dictators (The Dictators Go Girl Crazy, 1975) and The Clash (Give ‘Em Enough Rope, 1978), suffered a cerebral hemorrhage and died from pneumonia seven months later on 7/26/2016, age 72
1947 ● Greg Leskiw → Guitarist for Canadian rockers The Guess Who, “American Woman” (#1, 1970)
1947 ● Rick Derringer / (Richard Dean Zehringer) → Rock guitar virtuoso and record producer with a long and varied career, co-founded 60s pop-rock The McCoys (garage-rock classic “Hang On Sloopy,” #1, 1965), then joined hard rock Edgar Winter Group, playing guitar on and producing “Free Ride” (#14, 1973) and the instrumental “Frankenstein” (#1, 1973), issued over twenty albums as a solo artist (“Rock And Roll, Hoochie Koo,” #23, 1974) and as a frontman for his own groups, became an in-demand session guitarist and appeared on albums by Steely Dan, Alice Cooper,Led Zeppelin and many others, produced albums for artists as diverse as Peter Frampton, Barbra Streisand and Cyndi Lauper, wrote “Real American,” the theme song for wrestler Hulk Hogan, which ended up in the campaign soundtracks for Presidents Obama and Trump, underwent triple bypass surgery in March 2025 but was hospitalized two months later with complications and was removed from life support on 5/26/2025, age 77.
1952 ● Louis Walsh → Irish manager for pre-fab teen-pop boy bands Boyzone and Westlife, all-girl Euro-pop vocal group Girls Aloud, Samantha Mumba, G4 and others, judge on reality TV Popstars : The Rivals and with Simon Cowell and Sharon Osbourne on talent show The X Factor
1953 ● Samantha Sang / (Cheryl Lau Sang) → One hit wonder Aussie pop vocalist, “Emotion” (#3, 1978), backing vocals for Eric Carmen and The Bee Gees
1955 ● Eddie “Fingers” Ojeda → Guitarist for heavy metal Twisted Sister, “We’re Not Gonna Take It” (#21, 1983)
1959 ● Pat Smear / (Georg Albert Ruthenburg) → Guitarist and founding member of L.A. punk rock The Germs, “Lexicon Devil” (1979), bit-part TV actor and solo artist during the 80s, in 90s toured with grunge rock Nirvana and was briefly with post-grunge Foo Fighters
1959 ● Pete Burns / (Peter Jozzeppi Burns) → Lead vocals, chief songwriter and androgynous frontman for Brit dance-pop Hi-NRG group Dead Or Alive, “You Spin Me ‘Round (Like A Record)” (#11, UK #1, 1985), later became a flamboyant reality TV personality and occasional host, died from a heart attack on 10/30/206, age 57
1960 ● Stuart Croxford Neale → Synthesizer and vocals for one hit wonder New Wave light synth-bubblegum-pop Kajagoogoo, “Too Shy” (#5, 1983)
1963 ● Mike Nocito → Bass guitar for underappreciated, one hit wonder New Wave sophisti-pop Johnny Hates Jazz, “Shattered Dreams” (#2, 1988)
1964 ● MCA / (Adam Nathaniel Yauch) → Founding member and bassist for hardcore punk then hip hop masters Beastie Boys, “Fight For Your Right” (#7, 1987), videographer and film producer, died from cancer on 5/4/2012, age 47
1965 ● Jeff Coffin → Saxophonist for Grammy-winning progressive folk-bluegrass Béla Fleck And The Flecktones, “The Sinister Minister” (Best Pop Instrumental, 1997) and pop-funk-rock jam band Dave Matthews Band, “Don’t Drink The Water” (#4, 1998)
1966 ● Jennifer Finch → Bassist for all-girl post-punk/grunge band L7, “Pretend We’re Dead” (Alt Rock #8, 1992)
1974 ● Simon Dawbarn → Vocals and co-founding member of Brit teen-dance-pop boy band 911, covered The Bee Gee’s‘s “More Than A Woman” (UK #2, 1998) and Bobby Gosh‘s “A Little Bit More” (UK #1, 1999), a US #11 hit for Dr. Hook & The Medicine Show in 1976
1975 ● Dan Hipgrave → Guitarist and vocals for alt pub rock/white soul Toploader, covered “Dancing In The Moonlight” (UK Top 10, 2000)
1983 ● Dawn Angelique Richard → Singer for MTV Making the Band program winner and pre-fab, all-girl dance-pop quintet Danity Kane, “Show Stopper” (#8, 2006)
August 06
1928 ● Andy Warhol / (Andy Warhol (Warhola)) → The Velvet Underground manager, pop art painter and founder of the Pop Art movement, album cover designer (The Rolling Stones‘ Sticky Fingers album cover and others), avant-garde filmmaker, died following gall bladder surgery on 2/22/1987, age 58
1929 ● Mike Elliott → Jamaican born jazz-pop saxophonist in several ska bands and Brit R&B/soul-pop The Foundations, “Baby Now That I’ve Found You” (#11, 1967)
1940 ● Mike Sarne / (Michael Scheuer) → Multilingual small-part movie actor, pop singer, “Come Outside” (UK #1, 1962), translated several 60s Brit singles for the German market, film director, including Joanna (1968) and Myra Breckinridge (1970).
1946 ● Judy Craig → Vocals for top-tier 60s New York girl group The Chiffons, “He’s So Fine” (#1, 1963)
1946 ● Allan Holdsworth → Highly-regarded journeyman jazz-rock fusion guitarist, during the 70s played with prog rock Tempest, Canterbury-scene fusion band Soft Machine, The New Tony Williams Lifetime, Gong, Jean-Luc Ponty, Bill Bruford and U.K., founded and fronted jazz-rock I.O.U. in the 80s, then solo with over a dozen acclaimed jazz fusion albums in the 90s and 00s, died from a heart attack on 4/15/2017, age 70
1952 ● Pat MacDonald → With wife Barbara K. MacDonald, one half of one hit wonder alt country-folk-pop duo Timbuk 3, “The Future’s So Bright, I Gotta Wear Shades” (#19, 1986), solo
1952 ● Vinnie Vincent / (Vincent John Cusano) → Hard rock guitarist, songwriter and “Ankh warrior” character in campy, painted-face glam-rock/hard-rock Kiss (“Detroit Rock City,” #7, 1976), left in 1985 to form metal-rock Vinnie Vincent Invasion with limited commercial success, disappeared from the music scene in the 90s
1958 ● Randy DeBarge → With his sister and three brothers, vocals in R&B/urban contemporary dance-pop sibling quintet Debarge, “All This Love” (#17, 1983)
1959 ● Joyce Sims / (Joyce Elizabeth Sims-Sandiford) → Late 80s R&B singer and songwriter with ten charting singles in the US and UK, including the club favorite “Come Into My Life” (R&B #10, UK #7, 1987), her blend of R&B with electro-dance rhythms placed her on the edge of stardom when her independent label Sleeping Bag Records dissolved, left the industry for nearly two decades but returned in the 00s with a final charting single, “What The World Needs Now” (Dance #14, 2006), released a final album, Love Song in 2014, which includes a duet with reggae vocalist Maxi Priest, died from undisclosed causes on 10/13/2022, age 63.
1963 ● Jamie Kensit → Founder, songwriter and guitarist for Brit pop-rock Eighth Wonder, “Cross My Heart” (Dance/Club #10, 1988)
1969 ● Elliott Smith / (Steven Paul Smith) → Folk-punk singer and songwriter with the Academy Award-nominated “Miss Misery” from the film Good Will Hunting (1997), died from self-inflicted stab wound to the chest on 10/21/2003, age 34
1972 ● Geri Halliwell / (Geraldine Estelle Halliwell) → Vocals and “Ginger Spice” in pop-rock girl-group Spice Girls, “Wannabe” (#1, 1997), left for solo career in 1998, “Look At Me” (Dance/Club #12, UK #2, 1999) and seven other UK Top 10 hits
1981 ● Schleprok McCoy / (Travis McCoy) → Co-founder, MC and vocals for alt hip hop/rap rock Gym Class Heroes, “Intramurals: Cupid’s Chokehold” (#4, 2007), solo
1984 ● Eric Roberts → Bass guitar and vocals for alt hip hop/rap rock Gym Class Heroes, “Intramurals: Cupid’s Chokehold” (#4, 2007), solo
August 07
1925 ● Felice Bryant / (Felice Scaduto Bryant) → Prolific country and pop songwriter, with her husband Boudleaux Bryant wrote “Rocky Top,” “Love Hurts,” “Bye Bye Love” (#2, 1957) and “All I Have To Do Is Dream” (#1, 1958) for The Everly Brothers, as well as “Raining In My Heart” for Buddy Holly, died on 4/22/2003, age 77
1926 ● Stan Freberg → Irreverent, visionary radio comic/satirist, combined music with spoken word to create novelty songs, including “The Banana Boat Song (Day-O)” (#25, 1957), animation voice actor, advertising creative director, author
1928 ● Herbert Reed → Founding member (1953) and bass vocals for hugely successful R&B/doo wop The Platters, “The Great Pretender” (#1, 1956) and 13 other Top 20 hits between 1955 and 1967, sang on every one of the group’s over 400 recorded songs, waged a successful court battle for rights to The Platters‘ name, died from heart disease on 6/4/2012, age 83
1931 ● Jack Good → Oxford-educated British actor turned 50s rock ‘n’ roll artist manager (Billy Fury, Cliff Richard and other U.K. hitmakers) and TV music program producer, first on the BBC musical variety show Six-Five Special, then as creator and producer of Oh Boy!, the U.K.’s first all rock ‘n’ roll teen music TV program, left the U.K. in 1962 for an unsuccessful attempt at Hollywood acting but resurfaced in 1964-1966 as creator and producer of Shindig! on ABC-TV in the U.S., in the 70s turned to theatrical musical productions and later moved to New Mexico to paint religious murals, died from complications of a fall at home in the U.K. on 9/24/2017, age 86
1936 ● Charles Pope → With brother Joseph and others, vocals for R&B/soul The Tams, “What Kind Of Fool (Do You Think I Am)” (#9, 1963) and “There Ain’t Nothing Like Shaggin'” (UK #21, 1987), continued to perform until a few years before his death from Alzheimer’s disease on 7/11/2013, age 76
1939 ● Ron Holden → One hit wonder R&B/pop singer (“Love You So,” #7, R&B #11, 1960), died of a heart attack on 1/22/1997, age 57
1941 ● Howard Johnson / (Howard Lewis Johnson) → Multi-instrumentalist jazz musician, primarily on tuba and baritone saxophone, who spent nearly 60 years elevating the role of the lowly tuba in jazz, rock and pop music, as a sideman with numerous jazz greats in the 60s, with Taj Mahal on The Real Thing (1971), with The Band on The Last Waltz (1978), as an original member of the Saturday Night Live house band, through various collaborations and TV performances, and as founder and frontman for tuba-based jazz fusion Gravity, which he formed in 1970 and led until just before dying at home following a long illness on 1/11/2021, age 79.
1942 ● B. J. Thomas / (Billy Joe Thomas) → Five-time Grammy-winning light pop-rock singer with the Grammy Hall of Fame “Raindrops Keep Fallin’ On My Head” (#1, 1970) plus “Hooked On A Feeling” (#5, 1968) and “(Hey Won’t You Play) Another Somebody Done Somebody Wrong Song” (#1, 1975), turned to gospel and country music later in his career and scored hits with “New Looks From An Old Lover” (Country #1, 1983) and others, performed on the oldies circuit and in nightclubs, sang commercial jingles and issued twelve studio albums after 2000, announced in March 2021 that he was suffering from lung cancer and died from the disease on 5/29/2021, age 78.
1943 ● Lana Cantrell → Aussie-American pop and traditional standards singer turned entertainment lawyer, recorded seven albums along with a lone charting single (“Like A Sunday Morning,” #63, 1975) and appeared in Vegas and on TV musical variety shows before ditching her singing career for a law degree and practice in New York City in the 90s
1945 ● Kerry Chater → Bassist for 60s pop-rock Gary Puckett & The Union Gap, “Young Girl” (#2, 1968)
1949 ● Carlo Novi → Saxophones for New Jersey rock ‘n roll bar band Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes, “Talk To Me” (1978)
1950 ● Rodney Crowell → Neo-traditionalist country singer/songwriter and guitarist, “I Couldn’t Leave You If I Tried” (Country #1, 1988) and ten other Country Top 25 hits, worked in Emmylou Harris‘ backing band, artists who covered his songs include Bob Seger, “Shame On The Moon” (#2, 1982), Johnny Cash and Crystal Gayle
1951 ● Pete Way / (Peter Frederick Way) → British hard rock bass guitarist known for pushing the edge of rock excesses, especially for a bass player, co-founded proto-metal UFO in 1968 and registered eight US and five UK charting albums, including Mechanix (#80, UK #8), before departing in 1982, briefly played with hard rock Fastway and Ozzy Osbourne‘s touring band before founding hard rock Waysted later that year, rejoined UFO and stayed with the band until retiring in 2008 for health reasons, played in several hard rock projects in the 10s and wrote an autobiography in 2017, sustained life-threatening injuries in an accident of undisclosed causes and died two months later on 8/14/2020, age 69.
1952 ● Alexei David Sayle → Stand-up comedian and satire/novelty pop song artist, “Ullo John! Gotta New Motor” (UK #15, 1984), film actor (Gorky Park, 1983 and Indiana Jones And The Last Crusade, 1989), radio and TV personality, author
1958 ● Bruce Dickinson → Vocalist for Brit heavy metal Iron Maiden, “Flight Of Icarus” (Mainstream Rock #8, 1983), then solo, “Tears Of A Dragon” (Mainstream Rock #36, 1994), now flies as a B757 captain for UK charter airline Astraeus, BBC Radio host, author
1960 ● Jacqui O’Sullivan → Brit singer and songwriter, backing vocals for Status Quo, Visage and the Eurythmics, joined pop trio Bananarama in 1988, “I Want You Back” (UK #5, 1988), solo
1964 ● Ian Dench → Chief songwriter and guitarist for Brit dance-rock quintet EMF (“Epsom Mad Funkers”), “Unbelievable” (#1, 1990)
1965 ● Johnny Solinger / (John Preston Solinger) → Frontman for an 80s-90s eponymous Texas hard rock band, hired in 1999 as lead vocalist to replace founding member Sebastian Bach in New Jersey-based hair metal/pop-metal Skid Row (“I Remember You,” #6, 1989), recorded and performed as their longest-serving vocalist until fired in 2015, issued a solo country-metal album in 2008, died from liver failure on 6/26/2021, age 56.
1965 ● Raul Malo → Singer, songwriter, guitarist and frontman for Grammy-winning country-rock The Mavericks, “All You Ever Do Is Bring Me Down” (Country #13, 1996), solo
1966 ● Kristin Hersh → Singer/songwriter, lead vocals and guitar for alt rock Throwing Muses, “Dizzy” (Modern Rock #8, 1989) and alt punk rock power trio 50 Foot Wave, acoustic solo performances, author and co-founder of non-profit CASH Music recording software
1968 ● Lynn Strait / (James Lynn Strait) → Lead singer and songwriter for up-and-coming punk/nu-metal Snot, the band broke up shortly after his death in a California highway accident on 12/11/1998, age 30
2025 ● Art Laboe / (Arthur Egnoian) → Teenaged amateur radio station operator who went on to nearly eight decades in West Coast radio broadcasting – 70 years in the Southern California market – from the earliest days of rock ‘n’ roll, along the way pioneering call-in dedications, off-site broadcasts and station-sponsored live shows, coined the term “oldies but goodies” in the late 50s to promote his series of compilation albums of recent hits, worked for a number of stations in the L.A-area over the years and developed a devoted following of listeners, particluarly Chicanos, continued to broadcast from his home on Sunday evenings while in his 90s, died from pneumonia on 10/7/2022, age 97.
August 08
1907 ● King Carter / (Bennett Lester Carter) → Lifetime Grammy Award and National Endowment for the Arts Jazz Master alto saxophonist with a long and prolific career from the late 20s to the early-00s, his best known composition was the Grammy-winning “Prelude To A Kiss” (Best Jazz Instrumental, 1994), died from natural causes on 7/12/2003, age 95
1920 ● Jimmy Witherspoon → Late 40s jump blues “shouter” and rock ‘n’ roll roots singer, “Ain’t Nobody’s Business (Parts 1 & 2)” (R&B #1, 1949), his style went out in the late 50s and he switched to blues-rock, recorded occasionally through he 70s, toured and performed until just before he died of throat cancer on 9/18/1997, age 77
1921 ● Webb Pierce → One of the most popular 50s/60s honky tonk and rockabilly singer/songwriters with dozens of Country Top 20 hits and a handful of crossover hits, including “More And More” (#22, Country #1, 1954) and “I Ain’t’ Never” (#24, Country #2, 1959), lived a large and flamboyant lifestyle from the end of his recording days in the early 80s to his death from pancreatic cancer on 2/24/1991, age 69
1924 ● Ella Jenkins / (Ella Louise Jenkins) → The “First Lady of children’s music,” self-taught musician and songwriter with 39 albums and six Grammy Awards from a 60 year career in folk music for children, credited with establishing the genre of children’s music as an important part of popular, commercially viable music, her recordings on Folkways Records – with Multicultural Children’s Songs (1995) the most popular – featured nursery rhymes, African spirituals, Native American rhythms, bilingual lyrics, chants and call-and-response singing, most always with children’s voices in harmony or back-up, issued a final album in 2017 but continued to perform until the onset of the COVID pandemic in 2020, died from natural causes on 11/9/2024, age 100.
1932 ● Mel Tillis / (Lonnie Melvin Tillis) → Prolific country music singer (despite a pronounced stutter) and songwriter with 34 songs in the Country Top 10 and the crossover hit “Ruby Don’t Take Your Love To Town” (#6, Country #39, 1970) for Kenny Rogers & The New Edition, others of his songs have been covered by Linda Ronstadt, Ricky Van Shelton, Waylon Jennings and others, later invested in radio stations, music publishing and a theater in Branson, Missouri, died from respiratory failure on 11/19/2017, age 85
1933 ● Joe Tex / (Joseph Arlington) → R&B/Southern soul singer, “Hold On To What You’ve Got” (#5, 1965) and eight other Top 40 hits, died of a heart attack on 8/13/1982, age 49
1938 ● Connie Stevens / (Concetta Rosalie Ann Ingoglia) → Pop music singer with six charting singles in 1959-65, including “Sixteen Reasons” (#3, 1960), then starred in the TV series Hawaiian Eye and in numerous films in the 60s, turned to various business and humanitarian projects in the 80s and 90s, and added film direction and screenwriting to her resume in the 90s and 00s
1938 ● Don Jacobucci → Baritone vocals for two hit wonder doo wop quartet The Regents, original “Barbara Ann” (#13, 1961) and “Run Around” (#28, 1961)
1939 ● Phil Balsley → Baritone vocals in country-gospel-pop crossover harmonic quartet The Statler Brothers (“Flowers On The Wall,” #4, Country #2, 1965), known as the “Quiet One” for his on stage presence and humble appearance
1939 ● Jerry Slick / (Gerald Slick) → Aspiring filmmaker, rock drummer, first husband of singer Grace Slick and co-founding member of San Francisco 60s acid rock The Great Society, the group recorded dozens of songs but released only one single, “Someone To Love” (1965) during their brief existence which ended in 1966 when Grace left to join Jefferson Airplane (and release the re-titled “Somebody To Love” (#5, 1967)), joined psych-rock The Final Solution for a brief stint before re-focusing on filmmaking, divorced Grace and won a Clio award in 1971 for an advertisement recruiting San Francisco police officers, died from undisclosed causes on 3/19/2020, age 80.
1942 ● Jay David / (John David) → Drummer for AM pop-rock Dr. Hook & The Medicine Show, “Sylvia’s Mother” (#5, 1972) plus nine other Top 40 hits
1944 ● Michael Johnson → Adult contemporary pop and country singer, songwriter and guitarist, “Bluer Than Blue” (#12, 1978) and two other Top 40 hits plus seven Country Top 40 singles
1944 ● John Renbourn → English singer, songwriter and guitarist with a nearly 5 decade solo career and over 30 albums, but best known for his collaboration with guitarist Bert Jansch and co-founding folk-rock group Pentangle (“Light Flight,” UK #43, 1970), continued to record tour until his death from a heart attack on 3/26/2015, age 70
1949 ● Airrion Love → Vocals for R&B/Philly soul The Stylistics, “You Make Me Feel Brand New” (#2, 1974) plus 15 R&B Top 40 singles
1949 ● Keith Carradine → Four-decade Broadway stage and Hollywood film actor with a short pop music career based on the Oscar-winning, self-penned “I’m Easy” (#17, AC #1, 1976) from the movie Nashville (1975)
1956 ● Ali Score / (Alister Score) → Drummer for bizarrely-teased hair New Wave pop-rock A Flock of Seagulls, “I Ran (So Far Away)” (#9, 1982)
1956 ● Chris Foreman → Guitar for punk/ska revival Madness, “Our House” (#7, 1982) and over 20 other UK Top 40 singles
1956 ● David Grant → Pop singer and member of Brit soul/funk Linx, “You’re Lying” (R&B #27, 1981) and “Intuition” (UK #7, 1981), then solo, “Watching You Watching Me” (UK #10, 1983), celebrity vocal coach and husband of Carrie Grant
1957 ● Dennis Drew → Keyboardist, co-founder and one of two constant members of folk-pop 10,000 Maniacs, “These Are Days” (Alt-Rock #1, 1992)
1961 ● Paul Jackson → Bassist for New Wave pop-rock T’Pau, “Heart And Soul” (#4, 1987)
1961 ● Rikki Rockett / (Richard Allen Ream) → Drummer for hair metal/power ballad Poison, “Every Rose Has It’s Thorn” (#1, 1988), solo and owner of a custom drum kit manufacturing company
1961 ● The Edge / (David Howell Evans) → Guitarist, occasional vocalist and sometime songwriter for Irish mega-star rockers U2, “With Or Without You” (#1, 1987)
1962 ● Kool Moe Dee / (Mohandas Dewese) → Member of early hip hop/old-school rap Treacherous Three, left for Grammy-winning solo career in 1986, “Rise ‘N’ Shine” (Rap #1, 1991)
1973 ● Scott Stapp / (Anthony Scott Flippen) → Founding member, lead vocalist and lyricist for Grammy-winning post-grunge Creed, “With Arms Wide Open” (#1, 2000), solo
1973 ● Toby Allen → With brothers Andrew and Mike Tierney and another schoolmate, co-founder and vocals in Motown-inspired Aussie teen-pop boyband Human Nature (“Everytime You Cry,” AUS #3, 1997), currently in residence on the Las Vegas Strip performing in a Motown-themed show
1974 ● Brian Harvey → Vocalist and rapper for Brit teen dance-pop/hip hop boy band East 17, “Stay Another Day” (UK #1, 1994), plus over 15 other UK Top 40 hits
1976 ● Drew Lachey → With brother Nick and two others, vocalist in adult contemporary pop-rock boy band 98 Degrees, “Give Me Just One Night (Una Noche)” (#2, 2000), TV and Broadway actor, celebrity dancer on Dancing With The Stars in 2006
1976 ● JC Chasez / (Joshua Scott Chasez) → Lead vocals for teen dance-pop harmony boy band ‘N Sync, “It’s Gonna Be Me” (#1, 2000), solo
1981 ● Bradley McIntosh → Vocals for pre-fab teen pop S Club 7, “Never Had A Dream Come True” (#10, 2001)
1983 ● Vanessa Joy Amorosi → Australian pop singer/songwriter and guitarist, “Absolutely Everybody” (UK #7, Australia #6, 1999) and “This Is Who I Am” (Australia #1, 2009)
August 09
1913 ● Harry Mills / (Harry Flood Mills) → Baritone vocals in six-decade jazz and pop quartet The Mills Brothers (“Cab Driver,” #23, Adult #3, 1968), best known for approximating instrument sounds with vocals, first as a novelty act in the vaudeville era of the 20s and later as the music behind their singing, continued to perform with his brothers until his death on 6/28/1982, age 68
1926 ● Gene “Daddy G” Barge / (James Gene Barge Jr.) → Rock and soul saxophonist and session musician, founding member of 60s R&B band The Church Street Five and co-writer of the exuberant “A Night With Daddy G” (1960), which provided inspiration for three early 60s hits, Gary U.S. Bonds‘ “Quarter To Three” (#1, R&B #3, 1961), The Dovells’ “Bristol Stomp” (#2, R&B #7, 1961) and Dion’s “Runaround Sue” (#1, R&B #4, 1961), later worked with Chess Records and in the 70s recorded with and produced music by Natalie Cole, Ray Charles, LaVern Baker, among other top R&B acts, and acted in several feature films, including Under Siege (1992) and The Fugitive (1993), died a home died in his sleep from natural causes on 2/2/2025, age 98.
1934 ● Merle Kilgore → Country-pop singer, songwriter and business manager best known for co-writing “Ring Of Fire” (Johnny Cash #17, Country #1, 1963) with June Carter Cash and “Wolverton Mountain (“#6, Country #1, 1962) for Claude King, for being Johnny Cash‘s best man at his wedding in 1968, for managing Hank Williams Jr., and for his involvement with the Country Music Association, died from heart failure on 2/6/2005, age 70
1939 ● Billy Henderson → Founding member and vocals for Grammy-winning Motown and later Atlantic R&B/soul quintet The Spinners, “Then Came You” (#1, 1974) plus eleven other Top 20 hits in the 70s, died from diabetes on 2/7/2007, age 67
1943 ● Wanda Young / (Wanda LaFaye Young Rogers) → Teenage vocalist recruited in 1961 by high school chum Gladys Horton to share lead vocals in fledlging Motown girl group The Marvelettes just before recording of their debut smash hit, “Please Mr. Postman” (#1, R&B #1, 1961), sang lead on later hits “Don’t Mess With Bill” (#7, R&B #3, 1966) and “The Hunter Gets Captured By The Game” (#13, R&B #2, 1967), after disbandment in 1970 recorded an unsuccessful solo project marketed as a Marvelettes album, rejoined Horton for a 1990 collaborative album of Marvelettes re-recordings but largely lived off royalities for decades, died from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) on 12/15/2021, age 78.
1944 ● Viv Prince / (Vivian St. John Prince) → Drummer for raunchy R&B/blues-rock British Invasion band The Pretty Things, “Don’t Bring Me Down” (UK #10, 1964)
1946 ● Marinus Gerritsen → Bassist for Dutch hard rock Golden Earring, “Radar Love” (#13, 1974), over 40 hits and 30 gold and platinum albums in the Netherlands
1947 ● Amanda McBroom → Singer, songwriter, cabaret performer and TV and voice actress best known for writing “The Rose” (Bette Midler, #3, AC #1, 1979) from the soundtrack to the 1979 film of the same name, and for roles on Broadway shows and TV series including Hawaii Five-O and Charlie’s Angels
1947 ● Barbara Mason → R&B/soul-pop one hit wonder singer, “Yes, I’m Ready” (#5, 1965)
1948 ● Bill Collings / (William Ralph Collings) → Pre-med college drop out whose curiousity for guitars led him to become a luthier and founder of Collings Guitars, a leading mass-producer of stringed instruments, his guitars were used by Lyle Lovett, Pete Townshend, Emmylou Harris, Joni Mitchell, Paul Simon and many others, died from bile duct cancer on 7/14/2017, age 68
1955 ● Charlie Morgan → Session drummer and percussionist, played with Kate Bush, Elton John, Paul McCartney, Orleans, Tom Robinson Band, Tina Turner and others
1959 ● Kurtis Blow / (Kurtis Walker Combs) → First commercially-successful rapper, first hip hop artist to sign with a major record label and first to have a gold rap song, “The Breaks” (R&B #4, Dance/Club #9, 1980), producer and songwriter
1963 ● Whitney Houston → Immensely popular, Grammy and Emmy award winning R&B/pop singer with the biggest hit single in rock/pop history, “I Will Always Love You” (#1, 1993) plus nine other US #1s, cousin of soul-pop songstress Dionne Warwick and goddaughter of R&B/soul diva Aretha Franklin, drowned in a hotel bathtub on 2/12/2012, age 48
1970 ● Arion Salazar → Original bassist for post-grunge indie pop Third Eye Blind, “Semi-Charmed Life” (#4, 1997)
1978 ● Luke Concannon → Guitar and vocals for Brit folk-rock-hip hop one hit wonder duo Nizlopi, “JCB Song” (UK #1, 2005)
