Pick a Day

Music History Events: Births

July 21, 1929 Jazz singer Helen Merrill is born Jelena Ana Milčetić in New York City.

July 18, 1929 Shock rocker Screamin' Jay Hawkins is born Jalacy Hawkins in Cleveland, Ohio.

July 9, 1929 Bluegrass mandolinist Jesse McReynolds (of Jim & Jesse) is born in Carfax, Virginia.

July 9, 1929 Singer-songwriter Lee Hazlewood, known for his collaborations with Duane Eddy and Nancy Sinatra, is born Barton Lee Hazlewood in Mannford, Oklahoma.

July 3, 1929 David Lynch (of The Platters) is born in St. Louis, Missouri.

June 23, 1929 June Carter Cash (of The Carter Family) is born Valerie June Carter in Maces Spring, Virginia, to Maybelle and Ezra Carter.

June 15, 1929 Nigel Pickering (rhythm guitarist for Spanky and Our Gang) is born in Pontiac, Michigan.

June 9, 1929 R&B singer Johnny Ace is born John Marshall Alexander Jr. in Memphis, Tennessee.

May 16, 1929 Jazz singer Betty Carter is born Lillie Mae Jones in Flint, Michigan.

May 2, 1929 Rock and roll guitarist Link Wray is born Fred Lincoln Wray Jr. in Dunn, North Carolina.

May 1, 1929 Country singer-songwriter Sonny James, known for the 1957 hit "Young Love," is born James Hugh Loden in Hackleburg, Alabama.

April 29, 1929 Latin jazz musician Ray Barretto is born in New York City.

April 16, 1929 R&B singer Roy Hamilton ("Unchained Melody," "You'll Never Walk Alone") is born in Leesburg, Georgia.

April 16, 1929 Singer-songwriter Ed Townsend, who co-wrote Marvin Gaye's "Let's Get It On," is born in Fayetteville, Tennessee.

April 6, 1929 Composer and pianist Andre Previn - known for Academy Award-winning scores to Gigi, Porgy & Bess, Irma la Douce, and My Fair Lady - is born Andreas Ludwig Priwin in Berlin, Germany.

April 5, 1929 English record producer Joe Meek, famous for writing and producing the Tornados' instrumental hit "Telstar," is born Robert George Meek in Newent, Gloucestershire, England.

March 16, 1929 Singer Betty Johnson is born in North Carolina. Her biggest hit is "I Dreamed," which hits #9 US in 1957.

February 10, 1929 Film score composer Jerry Goldsmith (Chinatown, Hoosiers) is born in Los Angeles, California.

January 28, 1929 Clarinettist/vocalist Acker Bilk is born Bernard Stanley Bilk in Pensford, Somerset, England.

January 25, 1929 Singer/actress Elizabeth Allen is born Elizabeth Ellen Gillease in Jersey City, New Jersey.

January 16, 1929 Jazz drummer G.T. Hogan is born in Galveston, Texas.

January 14, 1929 Country singer Billy Walker is born in Ralls, Texas. Known for the 1962 hit "Charlie's Shoes."

January 5, 1929 R&B singer Wilbert Harrison - who wrote the 1962 hit "Let's Stick Together," later known as "Let's Work Together" by Canned Heat - is born in Charlotte, North Carolina.

December 31, 1928 Classic pop singer Ross Barbour (of The Four Freshmen) is born in Columbus, Indiana.

December 15, 1928 Ernest Ashworth is born in Huntsville, Alabama. Known for the 1963 chart-topping country hit "Talk Back Trembling Lips."

November 15, 1928 Singer-songwriter C.W. McCall is born William Dale Fries Jr. in Audubon, Iowa.

November 10, 1928 Ennio Morricone, a composer, orchestrator and conductor whose scores for films like A Fistful Of Dollars and The Good, The Bad And The Ugly define the sound of spaghetti Westerns, is born in Rome. He grows up during wartime, often hungry, learning music while bombs fall.

September 15, 1928 Jazz alto saxophonist Julian "Cannonball" Adderley is born in Tampa, Florida. Known for the 1966 hit "Mercy Mercy Mercy."

August 21, 1928 Jazz trumpeter Art Farmer is born in Council Bluffs, Iowa.

August 10, 1928 Country singer/musician Jimmy Dean is born in Plainview, Texas.