January 8, 1946 The Doors guitarist Robby Krieger is born in Los Angeles. His skills on slide guitar and flamenco guitar are a major part of the band's unique, eclectic sound, while he also co-writes some of the group's biggest hits, including "Light My Fire."
December 25, 1945 Noel Redding (bassist for The Jimi Hendrix Experience) is born David Noel Redding in Folkestone, Kent, England.
October 19, 1945 Harris Glenn Milstead, who performs as the drag queen Divine, is born in a suburb of Baltimore. Most famous as an actor (Pink Flamingos, Hairspray), he also records dance music, including the UK hit "You Think You're a Man."
September 5, 1945 Boudleaux Bryant and Felice Scaduto get married. The couple become one of the most successful songwriting teams in pop music, with over 700 songs published, including "Wake Up Little Susie" and "Bye Bye Love."
May 28, 1945 John Fogerty is born, but not on the bayou; the Creedence Clearwater Revival leader claims Berkeley, California as his birthplace.More
December 11, 1944 Brenda Lee is born Brenda Mae Tarpley in Atlanta, Georgia. Her small stature and big voice inspire the nickname "Little Miss Dynamite," which she lives up to by blowing up the charts with rockabilly bops ("Sweet Nothin's"), pop ballads ("I'm Sorry"), and Christmas tunes ("Rockin' Around The Christmas Tree") throughout the '60s.
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October 29, 1944 Denny Laine is born Brian Hines on a boat off the Jersey coast. He becomes a founding member of both The Moody Blues and Wings.
September 12, 1944 R&B singer Barry White is born Barry Eugene Carter in Galveston, Texas. He is raised in South Central Los Angeles.More
June 17, 1944 Chris Spedding is born Peter Robinson in Staveley, Derbyshire, England. A renowned session guitarist, he's recorded with the likes of Elton John, Paul McCartney, Brian Eno, and Art Garfunkel.
April 16, 1944 On shore leave from the Merchant Marines, Woody Guthrie arrives at Folkway Records' studios in New York City, where he starts recording with the label's founder, Moses Asch, in what becomes known as the "Asch recordings." Among the songs recorded during these sessions is "This Land Is Your Land," which becomes an iconic populist protest anthem, covered by countless artists including Pete Seeger and Bruce Springsteen.More
April 15, 1944 Dave Edmunds is born in Cardiff, Wales. He forms the band Rockpile with Nick Lowe and has a number of hits as a solo artist, including a #1 UK cover of "I Hear You Knocking."
December 18, 1943 Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richards is born in Dartford, Kent, England.More
December 12, 1943 Dickey Betts, a founding member of The Allman Brothers Band, is born Forrest Richard Betts in West Palm Beach, Florida. The lead guitarist in the band for most of their run, he's also a key songwriter, writing and singing lead on their biggest hit, "Ramblin' Man."
August 11, 1943 Songwriter Kenny Gamble is born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Co-wrote a string of popular Soul hits with Leon Huff, including "If You Don't Know Me By Now," "Back Stabbers" and "Me and Mrs. Jones."
June 17, 1943 Barry Manilow is born Barry Alan Pincus in Brooklyn, New York. Despite never wanting to be an entertainer, he becomes one of the best-selling artists in the world as a famous soft-rock balladeer.More
May 21, 1943 Vincent Crane is born in Reading, England. As a member of The Crazy World of Arthur Brown, he co-writes "Fire," and later joins Atomic Rooster.
April 18, 1943 Drummer Clyde Stubblefield, who plays on many of James Brown's recordings, is born in Chattanooga, Tennessee. When hip-hop emerges in the '80s and '90s, many of the tracks sample his drums, such as "Say It Loud - I'm Black and I'm Proud" and "Cold Sweat."
October 15, 1942 Pop singer Chris Andrews is born in Romford, Essex, England. Aside from his own 1965 hit, "Yesterday Man," he penned a string of hits for Adam Faith ("The First Time," "We Are In Love") and Sandie Shaw (including "Girl Don't Come").
August 23, 1942 Songwriter/producer Roger Greenaway is born in Fishponds, Bristol, Gloucestershire. Known for collaborations with Roger Cook, including "I'd Like to Teach the World to Sing (In Perfect Harmony)," which started out as a Coca-Cola jingle.
July 30, 1942 Frank Sinatra ends his association with the Tommy Dorsey orchestra, recording the last two of over 90 songs before moving on to great acclaim as a solo star at Columbia.
May 14, 1942 Film composer Frank Churchill - who wrote several classic Disney numbers including "Heigh-Ho" from Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs - dies of a self-inflicted gunshot wound at age 40.
April 24, 1942 Barbra Streisand is born in Brooklyn, New York City.More
February 9, 1942 Carole King is born Carol Joan Klein in Manhattan, New York City. She meets husband and songwriting partner Gerry Goffin while attending Queens College.More
February 2, 1942 Graham Nash is born in Blackpool, Lancashire, England. After founding The Hollies in 1962, he leaves in 1968 to make more newsworthy music, which he does with Crosby, Stills and Nash and Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young.
January 11, 1942 Clarence Clemons, the saxophone player in Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band, is born in Virginia.More
November 27, 1941 Country singer Eddie Rabbitt is born in Brooklyn, New York. Before embarking on a recording career, he pens the hits "Kentucky Rain" for Elvis Presley and "Pure Love" for Ronnie Milsap.
November 21, 1941 Sax player Andrew Love (of The Memphis Horns) is born in Memphis, Tennessee. Contributed to the legendary horn sound on recordings by Stax Records performers like Otis Redding.
July 19, 1941 R&B guitarist/bassist Phil Upchurch is born in Chicago, Illinois. In addition to recording with Curtis Mayfield, Dee Clark, B.B. King, Michael Jackson, and others, he's known for the 1961 instrumental hit "You Can't Sit Down."
March 17, 1941 Paul Kantner, a founding member of Jefferson Airplane, is born in San Francisco.
February 20, 1941 Singer-songwriter Buffy Sainte-Marie is born. According to her birth certificate, she's born Beverly Jean Santamaria in Stoneham, Massachusetts, but she claims to be Native-Canadian, born Beverly Sainte-Marie in Qu'Appelle Valley, Saskatchewan and adopted by a couple in Stoneham.More
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