Music History

Hughie Thomasson was born in Tampa, Florida. He later became a guitarist, singer, and founding member of the Outlaws and also performed with Lynyrd Skynyrd.

Patrick Swayze, actor and singer, was born.

American singer, songwriter and guitarist Douglas “Doug” Fieger was born in Oak Park, Michigan. He became known as a member of the rock band The Knack. Their first single, “My Sharona”, became an international No. 1 hit in 1979; Fieger wrote the song for Sharona Alperin, who later became his girlfriend. He died of cancer on February 14, 2010, aged 57.

American singer, songwriter, guitarist, pianist and multi-genre musician John Hiatt was born in Indianapolis, Indiana. His songs were recorded by artists including Bob Dylan, The Searchers, Ry Cooder, Linda Ronstadt, Bonnie Raitt, Eric Clapton, B.B. King, Willie Nelson, Three Dog Night, Joan Baez and Iggy Pop.

Country singer and guitarist Rudy Gatlin of The Gatlin Brothers was born in Olney, Texas.

English musician and co-founder of the punk rock band The Clash John Mellor, known by his stage name Joe Strummer, was born in Ankara, Turkey. He was born John Graham Mellor.

English keyboardist, songwriter and producer Geoffrey Downes was born in Stockport, Cheshire, England. He became known for his work with The Buggles, Yes and Asia.

American musician, songwriter, arranger, producer and guitarist Billy Rush was born in Deal, New Jersey. He became known for his work with Southside Johnny & the Asbury Jukes, who released the album “Hearts of Stone” in 1978 and subsequently more than ten other albums.

American guitarist Jack Holder of Black Oak Arkansas was born. The group achieved its greatest fame in the 1970s and had a hit with “Jim Dandy (To The Rescue)”.

Dave Malone, singer, songwriter, and guitarist of The Radiators, was born.

Kenny Andrews of the British doo-wop revival group Darts was born. In 1978, the group had the UK No. 2 single “Boy From New York City”.

American entertainer and occasional singer Jimmy Connors was born.

Leroy Smith, keyboard player and member of the British soul group Sweet Sensation, was born in Kingston, Jamaica.

American guitarist Earl Slick was born. He became known for his work with David Bowie, John Lennon, and Robert Smith.

English guitarist and singer-songwriter John Otway was born. In 1977, he had the British single “Really Free” with Wild Willy Barrett at No. 27, and in 2002 “Bunsen Burner” reached No. 7.

American drummer and producer Jody Stephens, a member of Big Star with Alex Chilton, was born in Memphis, Tennessee. He also worked as a producer and is the last surviving original member of Big Star. Three of the band's studio albums appeared on Rolling Stone's lists of the 500 greatest albums of all time.

German composer, producer, and multi-instrumentalist Harold Faltermeyer was born in Munich. He became best known for the film themes “Axel F” from Beverly Hills Cop and “Top Gun Anthem” from the film Top Gun.

American bassist Ricky Phillips was born in Mount Pleasant, Iowa. He performed with Styx, The Babys, and Bad English and also worked with Coverdale-Page and Ted Nugent.

Cliff Adams, trombonist with Kool & the Gang, was born in Trenton, New Jersey.

Dennis Stratton, singer and guitarist with Iron Maiden, was born.

British-American television personality, music manager and author Sharon Osbourne was born. She is the wife of Ozzy Osbourne and became known through MTV's "The Osbournes" before serving as a judge on "The X Factor" and "America's Got Talent."

American country singer and songwriter Paulette Carlson was born. In the 1980s, she became known as the founder and lead singer of the country group Highway 101. The group scored four No. 1 hits and seven Top 10 singles and received two Country Music Association Awards. As a solo artist, she placed five times on the Hot Country Songs chart.

Donnie Munro, lead singer of the Scottish band Runrig, was born on August 2, 1953.

Ian Bairnson, Scottish multi-instrumentalist and member of Pilot and The Alan Parsons Project, was born in Lerwick in the Shetland Islands.

Randy Scruggs, American producer, songwriter, and guitarist and a four-time Grammy Award winner, was born in Nashville.

Vini Reilly, English multi-instrumentalist and founder of The Durutti Column, was born in Manchester.

Jerry Speiser, a founding member and drummer of Men at Work, was born.

James "J.T." Taylor, singer and later lead vocalist of Kool & the Gang, was born in Laurens, South Carolina.

British singer, musician, co-founder and frontman of Dexys Midnight Runners Kevin Rowland was born in Wednesfield, England.

Bassist Marvin Isley was born in Cincinnati, Ohio. He became famous as a member of the musical family group The Isley Brothers.

American singer Evelyn Thomas, known primarily for the 1980s hi-NRG dance hits “High Energy”, “Masquerade”, “Standing at the Crossroads”, “Reflections” and “Weak Spot”. Thomas died on July 21, 2024, at the age of 70.

American singer, songwriter and bassist John Cowan was born in Minerva, Ohio. He became known as the singer and bassist of New Grass Revival and also performed with The Doobie Brothers and other projects.

Alex Lifeson, born Aleksandar Zivojinovic (Zhivojinovic), was born in Fernie, British Columbia, Canada, to parents of Serbian origin. He grew up in Toronto, Ontario. He became known as the co-founding guitarist of the progressive rock band Rush, which had, among others, the British hit “Spirit of Radio” and the US hit “New World Man”. In 1996, he was appointed an Officer of the Order of Canada.

Rick Downey, drummer of the American hard rock band Blue Öyster Cult, was born. In 1976, the group had the US single "(Don't Fear) The Reaper" at No. 12, and in 1978 it had a UK single at No. 16. Blue Öyster Cult have sold more than 24 million records worldwide.

Bassist Horace Panter, also known as Sir Horace Gentleman, was born in Croydon, England. He became known as a member of 2 Tone and ska band The Specials. In 1981, the group had the UK No. 1 single “Ghost Town”.

American multi-instrumentalist, composer, arranger, producer and conductor John Zorn was born in New York.

American musician and singer Benjamin “Benmont” Tench, keyboardist and founding member of Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers, was born in Gainesville, Florida. In 1995, he played organ on six tracks from Alanis Morissette's album Jagged Little Pill, including “You Oughta Know”, for which he was rewarded with dinner. Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers had, among others, the 1977 single “American Girl”, the 1989 UK hit “I Won't Back Down” and the 1991 album Into The Great Wide Open. Tench also worked with Bob Dylan, U2, Roy Orbison and Stevie Nicks.

American musician Hector “Tico” Torres was born in New York City. He became famous as the drummer and songwriter of Bon Jovi.

Scottish singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and producer Midge Ure was born in Cambuslang, Scotland. He performed with Slik, Rich Kids, Thin Lizzy, Visage and Ultravox. He co-wrote the 1985 charity single “Do They Know It's Christmas?” His solo album The Gift included the UK hit “If I Was.”

Australian singer Renée Geyer was born. She released 15 studio albums; Moving Along (1977) and Tenderland (2003) both reached No. 11 on the Australian chart. She was also an internationally respected backing vocalist and contributed to recordings by Sting, Chaka Khan, Toni Childs, Joe Cocker, Neil Diamond and Men at Work. She died on January 17, 2023, at the age of 69.

English drummer Pete Thomas was born in Hillsborough, Sheffield. He became known for his work with Elvis Costello and The Attractions, with whom he had, among other hits, the UK hit “Oliver's Army”. He also worked as a session drummer with Suzanne Vega, Neil Finn and other artists.

Guitarist and singer Bryan Bassett of Wild Cherry was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The group was known for the hit “Play That Funky Music,” which reached No. 1 in the US and No. 7 in the UK in 1976.

British singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Joe Jackson, born David Ian Jackson, was born in Burton upon Trent, Staffordshire, England. He became known for experiments with new wave, jazz and pop. In 1980 he had the UK No. 5 hit “It's Different For Girls” and in 1982 the US No. 6 hit “Steppin' Out.”

Jazz guitarist and composer Pat Metheny was born.

Drummer Steve Smith of Focus and Journey was born in Whitman, Massachusetts.

Mark Avsec, keyboardist and songwriter of Wild Cherry, was born. Wild Cherry had the 1976 US number-one hit and UK number-seven hit “Play That Funky Music”.

English rock drummer Stephen „Steve“ Holley was born in London. He became known as a member of Wings from 1978 to 1981.

English singer, songwriter and producer Declan Patrick MacManus, known as Elvis Costello, was born in Paddington, London. His stage surname came from his father, who performed as Day Costello. In 1979 he had the UK hit “Oliver's Army” with The Attractions, and the album “Armed Forces” spent 28 weeks on the chart.

Michael Chetwood, keyboardist with T'Pau, was born. T'Pau had the UK No. 1 single “China In Your Hand” in 1987 and the song “Heart And Soul”, which reached No. 4 in both the US and UK.