BIRTHDAYS
1932     Frank Joseph Assunto, Trumpet, b. New Orleans, LA, USA. d. Feb. 25, 1974. One of the Assunto brothers who formed The Dukes Of Dixieland Band. (They were later joined by their father.)
1932     Derek Bailey, Jazz Guitar, b. Sheffield, England, d. Dec 25, 2005, London, England. Age: 75. Best recalled for his work in the field of 'free Jazz'. Derek was a child of a musical family in which both his father and grandfather were professional musicians. From 1941-52, Bailey formally studied the guitar. During 1952-65, he was working professionally as a sessions man in recording studios, and as a member of pit orchestras. One engagement involved accompanying singer Gracie Fields. In 1970, he co-founded the 'Incus' label Over his career, Derek recorded over 70 albums, and authored a book, "Improvisation: Its Nature And Practice In Music", which was used as the basis for the 1992 British television series "On The Edge". Bailey also
1967     Phil Bancroft, Sax, Clarinet, percussion, tenor,alto, & soprano sax, clarinet, backing vocals, b. Lambeth, London, England, UK. Twin Brother of Tom Bancroft, and brother of vocalist Sophie Bancroft.
1967     Tom Bancroft, Drums, percussion, bodhran, vocals, b. Lambeth, London, England, UK. Twin Brother of Phil Bancroft, and brother of vocalist Sophie Bancroft.
1968     Richard Battersby, rock guitar, b. U.K.. Member group: 'The Wildhearts'
1953     Peter Baumann, label owner (Private Music)/Keyboards, and others, b. Berlin, Germany
1961     Dave Baynton-Power, drums, b. Manchester, England. Member group: 'James', formed in Manchester in 1982, when Paul Gilbertson (guitar), Jim Glennie (bass), and Gavan Whelan (drums) met Tim Booth (vocals) at Manchester University. In 1990, drummer Whelan was replaced by David Baynton-Power. Additionally, James became a septet with the addition of keyboardist Mark Hunter, violinist Saul Davies, and trumpeter Andy Diagram.
1947     David Byron, vocals, b. Essex, England, d. Feb. 28, 1985, Reading, England. né: David Garrick. Member: 'Uriah Heep', a group formed by vocalist David Byron and guitarist Mick Box in the late '60s, the band band one of the most popular hard rock groups of the early 1970s.. In February . he was found dead at his home having finally lost his battle with alcohol.
1967     Marc Cary, Jazz piano, b. New York, NY, USA. Marc is the product of a musical family. His great-grandmother, Mae York Smith, played piano in the silent movie theaters. She knew and often played duets with Eubie Blake. Marc's father is a percussionist, while his mother a cellist/painter. His mother's father (a first cousin to "Cootie" Williams) is a trumpet player
1926     Franco Cerri, Guitar/Bass, b. Milan, Italy
1937     Jeffery Clyne, Bass, b. London, England
1933     Sacha Distel, Guitar, vocals, b. Paris, France, d. July 22, 2004, (near) St Tropez, France. Distel was the son of an Engineer father and a mother who had studied music at the Paris Conservatory. While best known for his songs, Distel was also an outstanding jazz guitarist, who in 1958, had won the 'Best Guitarist" award from Jazz Hot Magazine. That same year, Distel had his first hit release "Scoubidou", which wwould be followed by perhaps 200 more songs. It's little recalled now, but Distel was the nephew of famed French bandleader Ray Ventura. His 1960s affair with actress Brigitte Bardot helped make him internationally known. In the 1970s, he had another big hit release with "Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head", while his TV show in the UK was such a hit that he performed for Queen Elizabeth on three occasions. Sacha occasionally composed his own songs, one of which ,"The Good Life" (topped the UK charts for 34 weeks), was also recorded by Tony Bennett and Frank Sinatra. In the 1970s, Distel suffered from Thyroid Cancer, and in the 1980s, doctors found some skin cancer. Sacha's wife (for more than 40 years) was the former French ski champion Francine Breaud. They had two sons. In 1997, Distel was awarded France's highest civilian award, the 'Legion of Honor'. Distel enjoyed a career stretching over almost half a century during which time he worked with such stars as Liza Minelli, Dizzy Gillespie, Quincy Jones and Dionne Warwick, and many others.
1952     Thomas Erdelyi, rock drums, b. Budapest, Hungary. aka: Tommy Ramone. Member group: 'The Ramones'.
1964     Roddy Frame, guitarist/singer-songwriter b. East Kilbride, Scotland, UK. Member group: 'Aztec Camera'
1920     Paul Gayten, R&B pianist/bandleader/producer/singer-songwriter/label owner (Pzazz), b. New Orleans, LA, USA, d. March 29, 1991, Los Angeles, CA, USA. This New Orleans Rhythm & Blues musician led a varied career in the music business. In the late 1930s, Gayten began his professional career when he formed his own R&B group, that soon became one of the top bands in New Orleans. Although very active in local New Orleans venues, he didn't record until 1947 when the New Jersey-based Deluxe label released some sides, and Gayten had a US R&B Charts hit with "(You Don't Love Me) True". During 1947-1950, Gayten recorded some Top Ten hits for the Regal and DeLuxe labels. Among those which charted in the Top 10 included "Since I Fell For You" (1947, featuring vocalist Annie Laurie). Another of his releases featured the Coleman Brothers ensemble on vocals. Laurie soon became the band's main vocalist, and was heard on many of their recordings including such hits as 1949's "Cuttin' Out" (charted No.6) and "I'll Never Be Free" which charted No. 4 in 1950. That same year, Gayten's release of "Goodnight Irene" reached No.6 on the R&B Charts. In 1949, Gayten switched to the Regal label, and expanded his combo to nine-pieces. Also in 1949, he wrote Larry Darnell's big hit "For You My Love", and he backed and produced Larry Darnell on a spate of other hits. In 1951, he moved to OKeh Records. In 1954, he became a member of the Chess Records New Orleans office, doing A&R work, and producing records. Among the artists that he helped were Clarence "Frogman" Henry, "Sugar Boy" Crawford, "TV Slim" and Bobby Charles, -and himself. In 1956, Gayten released his own revival of "The Music Goes Round And Round", and in 1957, he released the instrumental "Nervous Boogie" In 1960 he moved to Los Angeles to open a Chess office there. Gayten left Chess in 1968 and formed his own Pzazz label before retiring from the music business in 1978. Gayten was a nephew of blues-piano legend "Little Brother" Montgomery.
1899     Robert Hall, Clarinet/Sax, b. Reserve, LA, USA. d. March 8, 2003; New Orleans, LA, USA. Age: 104. Robert was a member of the legendary Hall family from Reserve, LA (his father Edward Hall and brothers Edmond, Herb and Clarence were all Jazz musicians). In the early 1920's he worked with Hippolyte Charles, and later with Papa Celestin's Original Tuxedo Jazz Orchestra (with whom he recorded with in 1927).
1961     Pauline Henry, singer-songwriter, b. Edinburgh, Scotland, UK. Member group: 'The Chimes', Pauline started her career as the lead-singer of this Scottish R&B trio, which was initially formed by Mike Pedan (keyboards/bass) and the much-travelled James Locke (keyboards/drums).
1961     Ed Jackson, alto sax. Member group: '29th Street Saxophone Quartet', a group formed in the 1980s by Bobby Watson (alto-sax/composer), Ed Jackson (alto sax), Rich Rothenberg (tenor sax), and Jim Hartog (baritone sax).
1944     Selena Jones, vocals, b. Newport News, Virginia, USA. née: Joan Elizabeth Shaw.
CAUTION: There is much confusion, - especially with folks who do not pay attention to 'given' names. Do Not Confuse with:
--- British vocalist S"a"lena Jones. BOTH SAlena and SElena are Black, both are singers, Salena was b. UK, Selena was b. USA.
--- Also another singer known professionally as just "Selena", née: Selena Quintanilla, (tag: 'Queen of Tejano.'- a South Texas music genre), who was born April 16, 1971, Lake Jackson, Texas, USA and died on March 31, 1995 (shot to death by the president of her fan club when she was accused of embezelment)
1932     Beverly Kenney, vocals, b. Harrison, NJ, USA. d. 1960. In early 1955, her professional career began when she sang in Miami's (FL) 'Black Magic Room'. Later that year, she recorded her first album (Roost label, backed by the Johnny Smith Quartet), and also landed a gig for one season as the vocalist with the Dorsey Brothers' band. In 1957, she was recorded on an album "Beverly Kenney Sings With Jimmy Jones and the Basie-ites". The group consisted of ex Count Basie players pianist Jimmy Jones, Joe Newman, Frank Wess, Eddie Jones, Freddie Green, and Jo Jones. In 1960, she recorded her final album for Decca Records.
1941     Robert L. "Bobby" King, guitar, b. Jefferson City, AR, USA
1948     Bill Kirchen, Rock Guitar, b: Ann Arbor, MI, USA Played with Commander Cody
1981     Jonny Lang, singer-songwriter/guitar/sax, b. Fargo, ND, USA. né: Jon Gordon Langseth, Jr.
1939     Jeanne Lee, Vocals, b. New York, NY, USA. d. Oct 25, 2000
1912     Ulysses Livingston, Guitar, b. Bristol, TN, USA. d. Oct 7, 1988
1942     Claudine Longet, vocals, b. Paris, France. While still the wife of vocalist Andy Williams, she was convicted of murdering her lover, thus ending her career. Primarily noted as a TV and Film actress.
1957     Irlene Mandrell, vocalist (mainly 'Country/Western'), née: Ellen Irlene Mandrell, Barbara Mandrell's younger sister.
1954     'Handsome' Dick Manitoba, b. New York (Bronx), NY, USA. né: Richard Blum. Member group: 'The Dictators'. 'Manitoba's', a New York city club, is a haven for rock music lovers.
1924     Lois Marshall, Operatic singer, b: Toronto, Ontario, Canada, d: I997
1953     Louie Perez, drums. Member group: 'Los Lobos'
1917     Lloyd Perryman, Tenor Vocals/Guitar, b. Ruth, AR, USA, d. May 31, 1977, né: Lloyd Wilson Perryman. member: 'The Sons of The Pioneers'
1917     John Raitt, Vocalist/Actor, b. Santa Ana, California, USA, d. Feb. 20, 2005, Pacific Palisades, California, USA. (pneumonia). One of the top Broadway baritones of the post WWII period, Raitt's career spanned over 60 years, concertizing well into his 80s. His daughter is the popular singer Bonnie Raitt.
1915     Frederic Ramsey, Writer/Producer, b. Pittsburgh, PA, USA. d. March 18, 1995, Paterson, NJ, USA. Age: 80. né: Charles Frederic Ramsey, Jr. He was the son of painter Charles Frederic Ramsey (b. Pont-Aven, Brittany, France) Jazz scholar and author Frederic Ramsey Jr. worked with musicians in the American Southland, and the New York-New Jersey area, -most notably with "Leadbelly". In the 1950s and 1960s, he also produced recordings for the Folkways label. Ramsey's personal papers are in the collections of the Jazz Institute at Rutgers University.
1921     Arnold Ross, Piano, b. Boston, MA, USA. d. June 5, 2000, age 79
1937     Bobby Scott, piano, singer, composer, arranger, teacher and record producer, b. New York, NY, USA. d. Nov. 5, 1990, New York, NY, USA. (lung cancer). Known mainly for his piano and vocals work, but he also played the cello, bass, vibraphone, accordion and clarinet. He completed studies at the Dorothea Anderson Follette's School of Music, and then. in 1949. studied composition with Edward Moritz, a former pupil of Claude Debussy. Swing had been sweeping America (and the world), and though classically trained, Scott started playing in such Pop bands as Louis Prima, Tony Scott and Gene Krupa, with whom he cut some sides for Verve Records. From 1954 on, he was recording, under his own name, for the Bethlehem, Savoy, Atlantic and ABC labels, and in 1956 had a US Top 20 hit with "Chain Gang" (composed by Sol Quasha and Hank Yakus --not the Sam Cooke song). In 1960, Scott composed, "A Taste Of Honey", for Shelagh Delaney's play of the same name (it was a hit for pianist Martin Denny, and for singer Tony Bennett after Ric Marlow added a lyric). In 1962, the song won a Grammy, and three more in 1965 when Herb Alpert's version reached the USA 'Top 10' chart . In the early 1960s Scott worked with Quincy Jones, even playing piano on most of Jones' Mercury albums, and also worked as a pianist, arranger and record producer for Mercury Records. In 1986, Scott accompanied Tania Vega and John Lee Hooker in the film 'The Color Purple'. 6). As a producer, Scott supervised sessions for important artists such as Harry Belafonte Bobby Darin, Marvin Gaye, Aretha Franklin, and Sarah Vaughan. He discovered and recorded guitarist/vocalist Perry Miller, who later changed his name to Jesse Colin Young. Among Scott's own song compositions are "He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother" (a 1970 hit for Neil Diamond after Bob Russell added a lyric). "Where Are You Going?" (with Danny Meehan), sung by Joe Butler in the 1970 film 'Joe'; and "Slaves (Don't You Know My Name?)", performed by Dionne Warwick in the 1969 movie 'Slaves'. He also composed some Classical works including several pieces for harp and string trios, including "The Giacometti Variations" (for the Giacometti Exhibition held at New York's 'Museum of Modern Art'), For the guitar, he wrote "Solitude Book" and "The Book Of Hours", the latter recorded with Brazilian guitarist Carlos Barbosa-Lima.
1922     Jack Sels, tenor sax, b.Antwerp, Belgium, d. March 21, 1970
1929     Ed Shaughnessy, Drums, b. Jersey City, NJ, USA.
1930     Joan Shaw, Vocals, b. Newport News, VA, USA.
1927     Don Walbridge Shirley, Piano, b. Kingston, Jamaica. This child prodigy was already studying the piano at just age 2, and by age 9 was studying theory at Russia's Leningrad Conservatory of Music. In 1945, he made his concert debut with the Boston Pops Orchestra. In 1946, the London Philharmonic Orchestra performed one of his compositions. Since then, Shirley has composed several organ symphonies, a piano concerto, two string quartets, and numerous pieces for piano. and has performed both as a soloist, and as a member of several symphonies, including the Boston Pops, Detroit Symphony, Chicago Symphony, and the National Symphony Orchestra of Washington. Performing with his own 'Don Shirley Trio', he has recorded Standards, show tunes, ballads, spirituals, and Jazz. In between all this performing and recording, Shirley also found time to obtain a doctorate of Music, Psychology, and Liturgical Arts.
1944     Patsy Sledd, C&W vocals, b. Falcon, MO, USA.
1902     Albert Snaer, Trumpet, b. New Orleans, LA, USA, d. ca. 1962, New Orleans, LA, USA.
1959     Johnny Spampinato, guitar. Member group: 'NRBQ' Johnny is the younger brother of NRBQ's bassist Joey Spampinato.
1908     Al Stricklin, piano, b. Antioch, TX, USA. Best recalled for his work with Bob Wills' Texas Playboys,
1923     Eddie Taylor, Blues guitar, b. Benoit, MI, USA. d. Dec.25, 1985, Chicago, IL, USA.
1948     Felice Taylor, vocals, b. Richmond, CA, USA
1933     Ron Towson, vocals. Member group: 'The Fifth Dimension'
1962     Marcus Verne, Hip-Hop. Member group: 'Living In a Box'
1933     Frank Virtue, guitar/leader/vocals, b. Philadelphia, PA, USA. Member: 'The Virtues', a group consisting of leader Frank "Virtuoso" Virtue, Ralph Frederico (piano), Sonny Ferns (saxophone), Jimmy Bruno (rhythm guitar), and Barry Smith aka Joe Gillespie (drums). At the close of World War II, Virtue formed a "society" trio During 1958,'The Virtues' recorded their "Guitar Boogie Shuffle" in Virtue's Phiadelphia basement studio. In 1959, the tune rose to No. 5 in the US charts. Regretfully, Frank's reputation as a 'society' orchestra leader didn't enhance his image with the teenagers, and ' The Virtues' had no further hits. Interestingly, in 1962, Virtue established another recording studio, which, during the 1970s was the center Gamble And Huff's 'Philadelphia Sound'.
1944     Johnny Wakley, C&W vocals/guitarist, b. Los Angeles (Hollywood), CA, USA.
1920     Earl Thomas Watkins Jr., Drums, b. San Franciso, CA, USA.
1912     Homer Watson, Leader of "The Modernaires, b. Toronto, Canada, d. Dec. 15, 1997, Toronto, Canada.
1940     Dave Young, Bass, b: Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada

         Notable Events occuring this date include:
1964.    Vera Hall, vocals, died in Tuscaloosa, AL, USA. Age: 58
1965.    Jack Hylton, piano, died
1996.    Ray Leatherwood, bass, died
1976.    Jesse "Lone Cat" Fuller, guitar/harmonica/"footdella" or "fotdella", died in Oakland, CA, USA. Age: 79 (Footdella: his own invention, -a homemade, foot-operated instrument)
1979.    Sonny Payne, drums, died in Los Angeles, CA, USA. Age: 52
1980.    E. R. Lewis, label co-founder (Decca), died in UK. Age: 79
1980.    Comedian/pianist Jimmy Durante died in Santa Monica, CA, USA Age 86.
1981.    Famed drummer Cozy Cole died in Columbus, OH, USA. Age 71.
1985.    Don Raye, singer-songwriter, died in Encino, CA, USA. Age: 75
1986.    Jimmy Don Smith, guitar, died in Fort Worth, TX, USA. Age: 30
1986.    Everett Barksdale, guitar, died in USA. Age: Inglewood, CA, USA. Age: 76
1987.    Johnny "Mississippi" Waters, guitar, died in Oakland, CA, USA. Age: 51
1988.    Beulah Bryant, vocals, died in New York (Roosevelt Island), NY, USA. Age: 69
1989.    Herman "Sonny" Chaney, vocals, died in Culver City, CA, USA. Age: 49. Member: 'The Jaguars'
1990.    Ted Bogan, guitar, died in Detroit, MI, USA. Age: 79. Member: 'Martin, Bogan & Armstrong' (Carl Martin, Ted Bogan & Howard Armstrong) CAUTION: Don't confuse with (1920s-'30s) female Blues singers Sara Martin (b. May 18, 1884, Louisville, KY, USA. d. May 24, 1955, Louisville, KY, USA), and Lucille Bogan (aka: Bessie Jackson, née: Lucille Anderson, April 1, 1897, Amory, MS, USA, d. Aug. 10, 1948, Los Angeles, CA, USA)
1992.    Willie Dixon, bass/songwriter/producer, died in Burbank, CA, USA. Age: 76

         Songs Recorded/Released this date include:
       1929    "Rent Party Blues", Released on Oriole Records as "The Ten Black Berries".
       1929    "Rent Party Blues", same but Released on Vocalion as The Duke Ellington Orch.
       1937    "Marie", Tommy Dorsey Orch.
       1955    Earth Angel, - Crew-Cuts
       1955    Ko Ko Mo (I Love You So), - The Crew-Cuts
       1955    Tweedle Dee, - Georgia Gibbs
       1966    Don't Mess With Bill, - The Marvelettes
       1966    My World Is Empty Without You, - The Supremes
       1972    Lion Sleeps Tonight, The, - Robert John
       1972    Down By The Lazy River, - The Osmonds
       1972    Bang A Gong (Get It On), - T. Rex
       1977    Don't Leave Me This Way, - Thelma Houston
       1977    Things We Do For Love, The, - Ten CC
       1983    Billie Jean, - Michael Jackson
       1983    We've Got Tonight, - Kenny Rogers
       1983    Back On The Chain Gang, - The Pretenders