Pick a Day

Music History Events: Births

July 14, 1926 Lowman "Pete" Pauling (songwriter, guitarist for The 5 Royales) is born in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.

June 21, 1926 '50s pop singer Nick Noble, known for "The Tip Of My Fingers" and "Moonlight Swim," is born Nicholas Valkan in Chicago, Illinois.

May 26, 1926 Miles Davis is born in Alton, Illinois.

May 3, 1926 Jazz trombonist Jimmy Cleveland, who would accompany Lionel Hampton, Miles Davis, and James Brown, is born in Wartrace, Tennessee.

April 5, 1926 Jazz drummer Stan Levey is born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

March 19, 1926 Jazz singer Bill Henderson is born in Chicago, Illinois.

March 14, 1926 Phil Phillips is born Philip Baptiste in Lake Charles, Louisiana.

January 20, 1926 Pianist/composer David Tudor is born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

January 12, 1926 Country singer Ray Price is born in Texas.

December 8, 1925 Sammy Davis, Jr. is born in New York City. By the age of 3, he is a vaudeville performer alongside his father in the Will Mastin Trio. An all-around entertainer, he excels as a singer, actor and comedian, often performing with Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin as part of The Rat Pack. His most famous song is "The Candy Man," a #1 hit in 1972.

December 8, 1925 Jazz organist Jimmy Smith is born in Norristown, Pennsylvania. He helps popularize the Hammond B-3 electric organ in the '60s.

December 3, 1925 Country singer Ferlin Husky is born in Cantwell, Missouri.

November 27, 1925 Folk musician Derroll Adams is born in Portland, Oregon. He meets fellow folkie Ramblin' Jack Elliott while busking in Los Angeles, and the two begin playing together. They release their debut album, The Rambling Boys, in 1957.

November 24, 1925 Al Cohn, jazz saxophonist, composer, and arranger, is born in Brooklyn, New York. Known for his work with clarinetist Woody Herman and fellow sax player Zoot Sims.

November 20, 1925 Jazz singer June Christy is born Shirley Luster in Springfield, Illinois. She would start her career as vocalist for Stan Kenton's Orchestra, garnering hits like "Shoo Fly Pie and Apple Pan Dowdy," "Tampico," and "How High the Moon" before going solo.

October 29, 1925 Jazz saxophonist Zoot Sims, who came up under Woody Herman's big band, is born in Inglewood, California.

October 15, 1925 Guitarist Mickey Baker (of Mickey & Sylvia) is born MacHouston Baker in Louisville, Kentucky.

September 26, 1925 Country singer Marty Robbins is born Martin David Robinson in Glendale, Arizona.

September 16, 1925 Guitarist Charlie Byrd is born in Suffolk, Virginia. He helps bring bossa nova to America with his 1962 album, Jazz Samba, a collaboration with Stan Getz.

September 13, 1925 Jazz singer Mel Tormé, aka The Velvet Fog, is born in Chicago, Illinois. He would begin his professonal music career at age 4, singing "You're Driving Me Crazy" with the Coon-Sanders Original Nighthawk Orchestra.

September 3, 1925 Country singer/songwriter Hank Thompson is born in Waco, Texas. Inspired the Thomas Cobb novel Crazy Heart and the 2009 film of the same name, starring Jeff Bridges.

September 2, 1925 Hugo Montenegro, orchestra leader and film composer, is born in New York City.

September 2, 1925 Pianist Russ Conway is born Trevor Herbert Stanford in Bristol, England. Known for hit instrumental singles like "Side Saddle" and "Roulette," both released in 1959.

August 28, 1925 Song-and-dance man Donald O'Connor is born in Chicago, Illinois. Known for starring in Singin' in the Rain with Gene Kelly.

August 28, 1925 Country singer Billy Grammer is born in Benton, Illinois. Known for his chart-crossing 1959 hit, "Gotta Travel On."

August 18, 1925 Sonny Til (lead singer for The Orioles) is born in Baltimore, Maryland.

August 15, 1925 Jazz pianist/composer Oscar Peterson is born in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.

August 15, 1925 Bill Pinkney (of The Drifters) is born in Dalzell, South Carolina.

August 11, 1925 Singer/talk show host Mike Douglas is born in Chicago, Illinois.

August 7, 1925 Songwriter Felice Bryant is born Matilda Genevieve Scaduto in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Co-wrote hit songs with husband Boudleaux Bryant, including the widely covered hit "Love Hurts."