Events in 1953
- Donnie Munro, lead singer of the Scottish band Runrig, was born on August 2, 1953.
- Skeeter Davis, then a member of the Davis Sisters, was seriously injured in a car accident near Cincinnati on August 2, 1953. Her singing partner, Betty Jack Davis, was killed in the crash.
- 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.
- Elvis Presley returned to the Tennessee Employment Security Office as a job seeker. He expressed an interest in work involving cleaning and was referred for several job interviews.
- Vini Reilly, English multi-instrumentalist and founder of The Durutti Column, was born in Manchester.
- Mantovani and His Orchestra were at No. 1 on the UK singles chart with “Song From The Moulin Rouge” from the film of the same name. It was the first instrumental recording to reach No. 1 on the UK chart.
- 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.
- Frankie Laine reached No. 1 on the UK singles chart with his version of the song “I Believe”.
- 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”.
- Buddy Holly and Bob Montgomery auditioned for the radio program Sunday Party on KDAV in Lubbock, Texas, hosted by disc jockey and talent scout Dave “Hipockets” Duncan. They were given a regular 30-minute Sunday afternoon broadcast slot known as The Bob and Buddy Show.
- American multi-instrumentalist, composer, arranger, producer and conductor John Zorn was born in New York.