BIRTHDAYS
1937     Roy C. Ames, label owner ("Home Cooking"), b. Beaumont, TX, USA.
1922     Christian Bellest, Trumpet, b. Paris, France
1929     Jacques Brel, vocals/actor, b. Belgium, (One of his recordings was "Pain in the A__")
1942     Roger Chapman, vocals, b. Leicester, Leicestershire, England, UK.
1909     George Dixon, Trumpet/sax/arranger, b. New Orleans, LA, USA. d. Aug. 1, 1994
1933     Fred Ebb, lyricist, b. New York, NY, USA. Teamed with Jahn Kander (Best known show: 'Cabaret')
1921     "Flying Black Eagle", (Please see Andrew Logan below.)
1961     Glenn Foster, bass, b. Virginia Beach, VA, USA. With the Bluzblasters, and the Flying Fish
1908     "Tito" Guizar, vocalist/actor, b. Guadalajara, Mexico, d. Dec. 25, 1999, San Antonio, TX, USA. (pneumonia). né: Federico Arturo Guzar Tolentino. As a child, Tito studied singing, even though his family disapproved. In 1929, he relocated to New York City where he was featured on his own radio show 'Tito Guzar y sus Guitar', while continuing to study opera. He also recorded the songs of Agustin Lara. In 1932 he married another Mexican singer, Carmen Noriega. In 1935, he had a concert at New York's famed Carnegie Hall, sanging both operatic and Mexican cowboy songs. Later in the same year, Tito returned to Mexico where his 1936 movie "All en el Rancho Grande" served as the prototype for 'singing cowboy' films in Mexican film studios. That experience brought him to the Hollywood studios where he went on to play with such diverse stars as Roy Rogers, Dorothy Lamour, and Mae West. He also produced (and wrote) one film 'Pecado de ser mujer, El (1955)', and contributed his own compositions to other films, including 'Big Broadcast of 1938'. Tito continued to be active, playing in Mexican television well into the 1990s. Tito died at age 91.
1898    E. Y. ("Yip") Harburg, lyricist/librettist, b. New York, NY, USA. d. March 5, 1981. né: Isidore Hochberg
1928     Derek Hogg, Drums, b. Oldham, Lancashire, England.
1921     Leroy Holmes, guitar, b. Woodbine, FL, USA.
1970     Craig Honeycutt, vocals/guitar. Member group: 'Everything'
1947     Steve Howe, guitar, b. London, England, UK. Member groups: 'Tomorrow', 'Yes', 'Asia', and solo artist.
1942     Leon Huff, piano/songwriter, b. Camden, NJ, USA. Leon is best known as part of the Afro-American R&B songwriting/record producing team of Gamble and Huff. (Kenneth Gamble, b. August 11, 1943, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA)
CAUTION: Do not confuse with singer/yodeler Leon Huff, a member of the pioneering Western Swing group, "The Light Crust Doughboys".
1913     "Fat Man" Humphries, trumpet, b. Gracey, KY, USA. With Louis Jordan Orch.
1941     J.J. Jackson, - (Soul) vocals, b. New York (Brooklyn), NY, USA. né: Jerome Louis Jackson.
1933     Paul Jeffrey, Tenor Sax,b. New York, NY, USA.
1971     Darren Jessee, drums. Member group: 'Ben Folds Five'
1944     Santiago Jimenez Jr, accordion, b. Sasn Antonia, TX, USA. This singer/accordionist takes a more traditional approach than that of his more celebrated brother, Flaco. He prefers the two-row button accordion, and many of his recordings offer the basic two voices, accordion and guitar presentation of Tex-Mex music.
1908     Moody Jones, guitar, b. Earle, AR, USA. Member: 'Snooky & Moody'
1962     Jeremy Kelly, guitar, b. Liverpool, England, UK. Member group: 'Lotus Eaters'
1929     Eiji Kitamura, Clarinet,b. Tokyo, Japan
1943     Phil Lee, Guitar/composer, b. London, England. Has played with Graham Collier, Henry Lowther, Tony Coe's Axel, Alan Gowen (in 'Gilgamesh', and 'National Health'), Phil Lee/Jeff Clyne Duo, and currently (2005) with 'Octopus'
1946     Tom Lellis, singer-songwriter/piano, b. Cleveland, OH, USA.
1963     Julian Lennon, vocals, b. Liverpool, England, UK. He is the son of John Lennon and his wife Cynthia, ("Valotte")
1941     Peggy Lennon, vocals, b. Los Angeles, CA, USA. (The Lennon Sisters)
1921     Andrew Logan, harmonica, b. Crawfordsville, MS, USA.
1964     Biz Markie, hip-hop performer, b. New York (Harlem), NY, USA. né: Marcel Hall.
1908     Tommy McClennan, guitar, b. Yazoo City, MS, USA.
1920     Carmen McRae, Vocals/piano, b. New York, NY, USA. d. Nov. 10, 1994, Los Angeles (Beverly Hills), CA, USA (stroke, due to complications from respiratory illness). Age 74. She was 'Downbeat' Magazine's "New Star of 1954", and went on from there. (some sources have 1922 as date of birth.)
1962     Adam Mole, guitar. b. Stourbridge, England, UK. Member group: 'Pop Will Eat Itself'
1923     Jimmy Osborne, Folk vocals, b. Winchester, KY, USA, d. Dec. 26, 1957 (suicide). Osborne, who billed himself as "The Kentucky Folksinger", was one of the more traditional Country singers who achieved popularity in the decade following WWII. He had a despondent side to his nature, and soon became widely known as a singer of sad songs. Perhaps, it was this sad side of his persona that contributed to his suicide late in 1957.
1907     Wesley Prince, bass (with Nat "King" Cole trio), b. Pasadena, CA, USA
1948     Patty Pravo, vocals, b. Italy, né: Nicoletta Strambelli.
1898     Paul Robeson, vocals, b. Princeton, NJ, USA.
1944     Brenda Russell, vocals
1926     Moacir Santos, arranger/composer/multi-instrumentalist, b. Serra Talhada, Pernambuco Prov., Brazil, d. August 6, 2006, Pasadena, California, USA. (complications from a Stroke). né: Moacir José dos Santos. In various interviews, Santos said that he is not sure if he was born in the town of Serra Talhada, or in Bom Nome, in Brazil's Pernambuco province. (He later favored Serra Talhada). Likewise, he gave his year of birth variously as July 26, 1926 or April 8, 1924. Born into rural poverty, Santos was taken in by a family that afforded him music lessons. At age 14. fleeing abuse at their hands, he ran away. To support himself Santos played several reed instruments as well as the guitar and drums in marching bands and ballroom orchestras, before eventually settling in Rio de Janeiro. In 1948, at about age 22, he arrived in Rio and first found work as a saxophonist. He eventually became a conductor and worked for Brazil's Rádio Nacional. During these years, he was involved in Classical musical studies, and various other musical activities. Though relatively unknown in the U.S., Santos is a legend among Brazilian musicians, and one of the sources of modern day Brazilian music. While still living in Brazil, he taught such Brazilian stars as Oscar Castro-Neves, Baden Powell, Maurício Einhorn, Geraldo Vespar, Bola Sete, Sérgio Mendes, Dom Um Romão, João Donato Dori Caymmi, Airto Moreira, and Flora Purim, among others. Interestingly, during the Bossa Nova craze of the 1970s, he was in close touch with his good friend Antonio Carlos Jobim, but Santos admits that Jobim never studied with him. In 1967, he moved to the U.S. and found work writing for the film studios. Although most of his film work consisted of "ghost writing", he did get credit on the 1985 film "Final Justice". In addition to his composing and movie work, Santos also taught music while in California. In 1996, he was decorated by the President of the Republic of Brazil with the prestigious "Oficial da Ordem do Rio Branco" award. That same year, Santos suffered a Stroke. In mid-2004, he was living quietly with his wife, Cleonice. After his Stroke, he found speaking English to be a bit more difficult, and he prefered to speak in his native Portuguese. Curiously, many people were oblivious to the works of this wonderful arranger and songwriter, regarded by critics and researchers alike as one of the most innovative talents in the history of MPB (Musica Popular Brasiliana).
1890     Victor Schertzinger, composer/Leader, b. Mahanoy City, Pennsylvania, USA, d. Oct. 26, 1941, Hollywood, CA, USA.
1960     John Schneider, C&W vocals, b. Mount Kisco, NY, USA. (Perhaps best known for playing 'Bo Duke' on the TV series 'The Dukes of Hazzard')
1963     Donita Sparks, Guitar/Vocals, b. Chicago, IL, USA. Member group: 'L7'
1962     Izzy Stradlin, guitar, b. Lafayette, Indiana, USA. né: Jeffrey Isbell, Member group: 'Guns N' Roses', and solo artist.
1956     Justin Sullivan, vocals. Member group: 'New Model Army'. aka: "Slade the Leveller".
1928     Monty Sunshine, Clarinet/Leader, b. London, England. Best known Song: "Gotta Travel On" (with Chris Barber when "Petite Fleur" was UK and US # 5 in 1959)
1914     Irving Taylor, composer, songwriter, and screenwriter, b. New York (Brooklyn), NY, USA, d. Dec. 3, 1983, Los Angeles (Westlake Village), CA, USA. né: Irving Goldberg (legally changed to Taylor in 1936).
1955     Lil' Ed Williams, guitar, b. Chicago, IL
         Notable Events occuring this date include:
1938.    Joe "King" Oliver died in Savannah, GA, USA. Age: 52. (b. 1885?? Abend, LA, USA.) One of the great New Orleans legends, his band was the last significant group to emphasize collective improvisation over solos. Interestingly, his second cornetist (Louis Armstrong) would permanently change Jazz. Without a doubt, King Oliver's Creole Jazz Band was one of the best and most important bands in early jazz. Oliver was also the inventor of the Harmon mute and was famous for using mutes, derby hats, bottles and cups to alter his sound. The band's 1923 jam sessions are considered milestones in jazz history, introducing Armstrong's first recorded solo on Oliver's "Dippermouth Blues" and "West End Blues." (some sources claim he died April 10)
1977.    Willie Lacey, guitar, died in Chicago, IL, USA. Age: 62
1993.    Marian Anderson, (gospel and Classical) vocals, died in Portland, OR, USA. Age: 96
1993.    Billy Gayles, drums, died in St. Louis, MO, USA. Age: 61
          Songs Recorded/Released this date include:
      1943 "Velvet Moon", Harry James Orch
      1949 "Again", Mel Torme
      1967 "Don't You Care", Buckinghams
      1967 "I'm A Man", Spencer Davis
      1972 "Doctor My Eyes", Jackson Browne
      1972 "Look What You've Done For Me", Al Green
      1978 "You're The One That I Want", Olivia Newton-John
      1978 "With A Little Luck", Paul McCartney
      1981 "Living Inside Myself", Gino Vannelli
      1989 "Rock On", Michael Damian