Pick a Day

Music History Events: Births

February 19, 1948 Mark Andes, a bass player who does stints in Spirit, Firefall, Canned Heat and Heart, is born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

February 19, 1948 Guitarist Tony Iommi is born in Birmingham, England. He works in a factory before forming the heavy metal heavyweights Black Sabbath in 1968.

February 18, 1948 Keith Knudsen (drummer for The Doobie Brothers) is born in Le Mars, Iowa.

February 8, 1948 Dan Seals (of England Dan & John Ford Coley) is born in McCamey, Texas. He is the younger brother of Jim Seals (Seals & Crofts).

February 8, 1948 Ron Tyson (of The Temptations) is born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

February 7, 1948 Jimmy Greenspoon (keyboardist for Three Dog Night) is born in Los Angeles, California. His mother is silent movie actress Mary O'Brian.

February 4, 1948 Vincent Furnier, who will become better known as Alice Cooper, is born in Detroit.

February 2, 1948 Al McKay (of Earth, Wind & Fire) is born in New Orleans, Louisiana.

February 1, 1948 Rick James is born James Ambrose Johnson Jr. in Buffalo, New York. After stints in a few different bands and a few different jails, he signs with Motown Records in 1977 and develops a funk sound that powers hits like "Super Freak" and "Give It To Me Baby."

January 27, 1948 Kim Gardner (of Ashton, Gardner & Dyke) is born in Dulwich, London, England.

January 26, 1948 Laurence "Corky" Laing (drummer for Mountain) is born in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.

January 23, 1948 Anita Pointer (of The Pointer Sisters) is born in Oakland, California.

January 20, 1948 Mel Pritchard (drummer for Barclay James Harvest) is born in Oldham, Lancashire, England.

January 19, 1948 Harvey Hinsley (guitarist for Hot Chocolate) is born in Northampton, England.

January 16, 1948 John Carpenter, horror film director and composer, is born in Carthage, New York. Known for Halloween, The Thing, and Christine.

January 15, 1948 Ronnie Van Zant (Lynyrd Skynyrd vocalist, guitarist, and driving force) is born in Jacksonville, Florida.

January 14, 1948 T-Bone Burnett is born Joseph Henry Burnett III in St. Louis, Missouri. A guitarist, songwriter and producer, he wins an Academy Award for Best Original Song for "The Weary Kind " from the 2009 movie Crazy Heart.

January 14, 1948 Tim Harris (original drummer for The Foundations) is born in England.

January 10, 1948 Donald Fagen, co-founder, lead singer and keyboardist of Steely Dan, is born in Passaic, New Jersey. Along with main collaborator Walter Becker, Fagen helps create sophisticated rock music that features tasteful jazz and R&B influences, and sharp, witty, literate lyrics.

January 9, 1948 Paul King of Mungo Jerry is born in Dagenham, Essex, England.

December 31, 1947 Burton Cummings (lead singer, keyboardist for The Guess Who) is born in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada.

December 30, 1947 Electric Light Orchestra leader Jeff Lynne is born in Shard End, Birmingham, England. He becomes a top rock producer, helming acclaimed albums by Roy Orbison, Tom Petty and George Harrison. In 1988 he forms The Traveling Wilburys with those three guys and Bob Dylan.

December 29, 1947 Drummer Cozy Powell is born in Gloucestershire, England. He does stints in Black Sabbath and Rainbow, and also plays on albums for Whitesnake, Robert Plant, Brian May and many others. (Powell sometimes listed his date of birth as December 29, 1948, but the death register gives it as December 29, 1947.)

December 28, 1947 Dick Diamonde (bass guitarist for The Easybeats) is born Dingeman Adriaan Henry van der Sluijs in Hilversum, the Netherlands.

December 20, 1947 Little Stevie Wright (lead singer for The Easybeats) is born in Leeds, England, but would be raised in Australia (Melbourne and Sydney).

December 12, 1947 Ralph Scala (keyboardist, vocalist for Blues Magoos) is born in The Bronx, New York.

December 8, 1947 Gregg Allman (of The Allman Brothers Band) is born in Nashville, Tennessee.

December 8, 1947 Geoff Daking (drummer for Blues Magoos) is born.

December 6, 1947 Kim Simmonds (Savoy Brown frontman) is born in Newbridge, Caerphilly, Wales.

December 6, 1947 Jazz bassist Miroslav Vitous (of Weather Report) is born in Prague, Czechoslovakia.