Pick a Day

Music History Events: Births

October 21, 1953 Charlotte Caffey (guitarist for the Go-Go's) is born in Santa Monica, California.

September 22, 1953 Richard Fairbrass, singer for Right Said Fred, is born in Kingston upon Thames, Surrey, England.

September 2, 1953 American composer John Zorn is born in New York City. As a child, he shows an eccentric fascination with sound and avant-garde music that prompts his parents to get him psychologically evaluated.

July 14, 1953 Bebe Buell is born in Portsmouth, Virginia. Though she later rejects the description, she becomes one of the most famous "groupies" of all time, hooking up with a host of stars including Todd Rundgren, to whom she is married from 1972 to 1979. Rundgren brings up her daughter Liv - later revealed to be the biological child of Aerosmith's Steven Tyler.

June 29, 1953 Dokken frontman and namesake Don Dokken (his real name) is born in Los Angeles.

May 9, 1953 Jenny Haan (later Janita Haan Morris) is born Janita Haan at Edgware, England.

April 16, 1953 Peter Garrett, frontman of the Aussie rock band Midnight Oil, is born in Wahroonga, Sydney. He pursues a law career before joining the band.

April 9, 1953 Hal Ketchum, whose country hits include "Small Town Saturday Night" and "Past The Point Of Rescue," is born in Greenwich, New York.

February 25, 1953 John Doe of the punk band X is born John Duchac in Decatur, Illinois.

August 13, 1952 Guitarist/vocalist Hughie Thomasson (of Outlaws and Lynyrd Skynyrd) is born in Tampa, Florida.

July 3, 1952 Pop singer Laura Branigan ("Gloria," "Self Control") is born. She is raised in Armonk, New York.

April 11, 1952 Rock drummer Terry Ollis (of Hawkwind) is born in Hammersmith, London, England.

April 6, 1952 Original Accept singer (and later frontman of UDO), Udo Dirkschneider, is born in Wuppertal, Germany.

January 22, 1952 Teddy Gentry (bassist for Alabama) is born in Fort Payne, Alabama.

December 3, 1951 Mike Stock of the British songwriting/production team Stock, Aitken & Waterman is born.

August 7, 1951 Pete Way of UFO is born in Enfield, North London.

July 1, 1951 Victor Willis, original lead singer for The Village People, is born in Dallas, Texas. He leaves the group in the mid-'80s but returns in 2017 when he gains control of the name, replacing the existing members with a new lineup. Willis, who plays the policeman, is the only group member with co-writing credits on their songs, including "Y.M.C.A." and "Macho Man."

August 2, 1950 Ted Turner (guitarist for Wishbone Ash) is born in Sheldon, Birmingham, England.

June 20, 1950 Guitarist Alan Shacklock is born in London.

April 9, 1950 Keyboardist Peter Wood (Roger Waters' backing group, The Bleeding Heart Band) is born in Middlesex, England.

March 23, 1950 Phil Lanzon (keyboardist for Uriah Heep) is born in England.

February 24, 1950 Blues rocker George Thorogood is born in Wilmington, Delaware.

February 20, 1950 Walter Becker, co-founder of Steely Dan, is born in Queens, New York City. He meets bandmate and songwriting partner Donald Fagen while attending Bard College.

February 17, 1950 Rickey Medlocke, Lynyrd Skynyrd member and frontman of the band Blackfoot, is born in Jacksonville, Florida. He is inducted into the Native American Music Hall of Fame in 2008.

October 9, 1949 Rod Temperton is born in Lincolnshire, England. He writes a number of hit songs, including Michael Jackson's "Off The Wall" and "Thriller."

September 14, 1949 MC5 guitarist Fred "Sonic" Smith is born in West Virgina, raised in Detroit. In 1980, he marries fellow punk pioneer Patti Smith.

July 14, 1949 Music executive Tommy Mottola is born in The Bronx, New York City. Before landing a 15-year gig as head of Sony Music, Mottola starts out as a talent manager helping acts like Hall & Oates and Carly Simon secure record deals. He's also known for marrying - and divorcing - Mariah Carey.

July 1, 1949 John Farnham is born in Dagenham, England, but moves to Australia with his family when he is 10. He becomes one of the most popular singers in that country, thanks to his rousing hit "You're The Voice."

May 17, 1949 Andrew Latimer (frontman for the prog rock band Camel) is born in Guildford, Surrey, England.

December 25, 1948 Merry Clayton (named for Christmas) is born in New Orleans. A backup singer by trade, she is most famous for her incendiary vocal alongside Mick Jagger on "Gimme Shelter." She would later appear on the Coldplay song "Up & Up."