Music History

American musician and Steppenwolf bassist George Biondo was born in Brooklyn, New York. He was a member of Steppenwolf from 1970 to 1976.

John York Foley, bassist and guitarist known for his work with The Byrds, was born in White Plains, New York.

American bassist Walter Powers III, who later played with The Velvet Underground, was born.

Greg Leskiw, guitarist for The Guess Who, was born in Manitoba, Canada.

British jazz and rock guitarist and composer Allan Holdsworth was born in Bradford, England. His work influenced, among others, Eddie Van Halen, Frank Zappa, Tom Morello and Joe Satriani.

John Parry, trombonist with The Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band, was born.

Mick Clarke, bassist and singer of The Rubettes, was born in Grimsby, Lincolnshire, England.

Michal Prokop was born. He became a singer and member of the band Framus Five.

The bassist from Sly and the Family Stone was born in Beaumont, Texas.

American composer, singer and lyricist Jimmy Webb was born.

Gordon Fleet, drummer for The Easybeats, was born in Merseyside, England.

American musician Drake Levin, best known as the guitarist of Paul Revere & the Raiders, was born.

Ralf Hütter, German musician, multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, singer and co-founder of the electronic group Kraftwerk, was born in Krefeld, Germany. Kraftwerk are regarded as pioneers of electronic music, with major albums including “Autobahn”, “Trans-Europe Express”, “The Man-Machine” and “Computer World”. Their music combined electronic sounds with pop melodies, sparse arrangements and repetitive rhythms.

Rock singer Jim Sohns of The Shadows Of Knight was born in Chicago, Illinois. The group was known for their popular 1966 cover version of “Gloria” by Them.

English drummer Keith Moon was born in Wembley, London. After playing with the local group Beachcombers, he joined The Who in 1964 before their first single. With the group, he had the hit “My Generation” and more than 20 other Top 40 hits, as well as the US hit “I Can See For Miles” and the rock operas “Tommy” and “Quadrophenia”. He became famous for his wild lifestyle and died on September 7, 1978 after overdosing on Heminevrin, a drug intended to alleviate alcohol dependence.

American singer and songwriter Valerie Simpson, one half of the songwriting and singing duo Ashford & Simpson, was born in New York. Together with Nick Ashford, she wrote songs including “Ain't No Mountain High Enough”, “You're All I Need To Get By”, “Ain't Nothing Like the Real Thing” and “Reach Out and Touch (Somebody's Hand)”.

John Victory, a studio guitarist, was born.

He was born in Douglas on the Isle of Man. He became known as a singer, songwriter and producer with the Bee Gees, which he founded with his brothers Robin and Maurice Gibb.

Billy Preston was born in Houston, Texas. He became known as a keyboardist, singer and session musician who worked with, among others, The Beatles and The Rolling Stones, as well as for his successful solo career.

Radio announcer Marty Brennaman was born.

Americký kytarista, zpěvák a skladatel Gary Duncan se narodil v San Diegu v Kalifornii. Proslavil se svou prací ve skupinách The Brogues a Quicksilver Messenger Service; skupina Quicksilver Messenger Service vznikla v roce 1965 v San Francisku.

Ronald LePread, baskytarista americké funkové a soulové skupiny The Commodores, se narodil. Skupina měla v roce 1978 britský a americký singl č. 1 „Three Times A Lady“ a další hity „Easy“ a „Nightshift“.

German electronic musician Klaus Schulze, formerly the drummer of Tangerine Dream, was born in Berlin.

Paul Layton, singer and bassist with The New Seekers, was born in Beaconsfield, Buckinghamshire, England.

Larry Morris, vocalist with the New Zealand garage rock group Larry's Rebels, was born in New Zealand.

Guitarist, singer, songwriter and founding member of The McCoys Rick Derringer, born Richard Zehringer, was born in Fort Recovery, Ohio.

American bassist and session musician Willie Weeks was born in Salemburg, North Carolina.

Hudební historička a příležitostná skladatelka Julie Nathanson se narodila na Manhattanu v New Yorku.

American soul and R&B singer Barbara Mason was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She became known, among other things, for the hit “Yes, I'm Ready.”

American singer, songwriter and actress Amanda McBroom was born in Woodland Hills, California.

British musician, singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Ian Anderson, best known as the frontman of Jethro Tull, was born in Dunfermline, Fife, Scotland.

American guitarist, singer and songwriter Gary Talley was born in Memphis, Tennessee. He became known as a founding member and lead guitarist of The Box Tops and also performed with Big Star.

George Newsome, the original drummer of The Climax Blues Band, was born in Stafford, Staffordshire, England.

David Lasley, an American session singer, songwriter and musician, was known for his work as a backing vocalist and songwriter for artists including Bonnie Raitt, James Taylor, Luther Vandross, Chic, Aretha Franklin, Dionne Warwick, Dusty Springfield and Boz Scaggs. He died on December 9, 2021, aged 74.

Trombonist, songwriter and co-founder of the rock band Chicago James Pankow was born in St. Louis, Missouri. Chicago was formed in Chicago in 1967 as The Chicago Transit Authority and shortened its name in 1970. In 1976, the band had the UK and U.S. No. 1 hit “If You Leave Me Now”.

Carl Giammarese, lead singer and guitarist of The Buckinghams, was born in Chicago, Illinois.

American singer and songwriter Donna Jean Godchaux, née Donna Jean Thatcher, was born in Florence, Alabama. She became best known as a member of Grateful Dead from 1972–1979, where she was the only woman in the lineup. Before that, she worked as a session singer in Muscle Shoals, Alabama, and later sang with the group Southern Comfort. Her backing vocals appeared on at least two songs that reached No. 1 on the U.S. chart: Percy Sledge’s “When a Man Loves a Woman” in 1966 and Elvis Presley’s “Suspicious Minds” in 1969. She also sang on recordings by Boz Scaggs, Duane Allman, Cher, Joe Tex, Neil Diamond, and others. In 1970, she married keyboardist Keith Godchaux, who later also joined Grateful Dead. She died on November 2, 2025, at a hospice in Nashville from cancer at the age of 78.

Folk-rock singer Linda Thompson was born in London. She became best known for her work with her then-husband, British folk-rock guitarist Richard Thompson, and later worked as a solo artist.

Margaret Truman, daughter of US President Harry S. Truman, made her first public appearance as a singer. The performance took place at the Hollywood Bowl before an audience of 15,000.

Percussionist David Leon “Billy” Knight, brother of Gladys Knight, was born. He played, among other recordings, on “Midnight Train To Georgia” and on more than twenty other UK Top 40 hits. He died on December 6, 2002.

British racing driver James Hunt was born. He also took part in musical collaborations.

English drummer and percussionist Richard Coughlan was born. In 1968, he was one of the founding members of Caravan and remained a member until his death.

Eric Bell, founding member and original guitarist of Thin Lizzy, was born in East Belfast, Northern Ireland.

Andy Fairweather Low, the Welsh singer, songwriter, and guitarist, founding member and frontman of Amen Corner, known also for his work with Eric Clapton and other prominent musicians, was born on August 2, 1948, in Ystrad Mynach, Wales.