BIRTHDAYS
1944     Gaye Adegbalola, guitar, b. Fredericksburg, VA, USA.
1900     Leonard Allen, label owner (United/States), b. Montgomery, AL, USA.
1967     Jonas "Joker" Berggren, Producer/Vocals/Vocals-Background. b. Gothenburg, Sweden. Member group: 'Ace Of Base'. Their 1994 single "The Sign" charted US No.1. His sister Jenny Berggren was b. May 19, 1972, and his other sister Linn Berggren was born Oct. 31, 1970. The last member of the group is Ulf Ekberg, -born Dec. 6, 1970.
1928     Harold Betters, Trombone, b. Connellsville, PA, USA.
1909     Joe Bostic, (gospel) promoter, b. Mount Holly, NJ, USA.
1940     Gary Ralph Buck, C&W Singer-Songwriter/Guitar/Bass Guitar/Industry Executive, b. Thessalon, Ontario, Canada. Member: "The Four Guys"
1916     Choker Campbell, tenor sax, b. Shelby, MS, USA.
1893     Bo Carter, guitar, b. Bolton, MS, USA. né: Armenter Chatmon
1942     Carol Lee Cooper, (Country) vocals, b. USA. Member: "Carol Lee Singers"
1968     Andrew Copeland, Guitar (Rhythm)/Vocals (Background). Member group: 'Sister Hazel'
1915     Hank D'Amico, Clarinet/saxophone, b. Rochester, NY, USA. d. 1965.
1952     Carlo Actis Dato, (Jazz) all-reeds, b. Italy.
1936     Brian Dee, pianist,organ, electric piano, arranger, b. London, England, UK.
1946     Ray Dorset, vocals, b. Great Britain. Ray was a founder member and lead singer with 1970s group 'Mungo Jerry' The group's first hit on the British Charts was 'In The Summertime', which was soon followed by tunes 'Baby Jump' and the wonderful 'Lady Rose'.
1941     Margaret Douroux. gospel songwriter/publisher, b. Los Angeles, CA, USA.
1942     Richard "Dimples" Fields, vocals, b. San Francisco, California, U.S.A, d. Jan. 12, 2000, Los Angeles, California, U.S.A. (Stroke)
1967     Keith Flint, Producer/vocals. Member group: 'Prodigy'
1888     Anatole Friedland, composer, b. St. Petersburg, Russia, d. July 24, 1938, Atlantic City, NJ.
1948     Gary Giddins, Writer, critic, b. New York, NY, USA.
1909     Miff Gorling, Trombone, composer, arranger, b. Stockholm, Sweden
1933     Roosevelt Griffin, drums, b. Lake Charles, LA, USA.
1945     Vernon Guy, vocals, b. St. Louis, MO, USA.
1977     Mark Hamilton, bass guitar, b, Downpatrick Northern Ireland. Member group: 'Ash'
1937     Stan Hitchcock, (C&W) vocals, b. Pleasant Hope, MO, USA. Stan later became program director for the Country Music Television (CMT) network.
1950     Roger Hodgson, vocals/guitar, b. Portsmouth, England. Member groups: 'Supertramp' and a solo artist.
1902     Eddie "Son" House, Folk and Blues vocals/guitar, b: Riverton, MS, USA. d. Oct. 19, 1988, Detroit, MI, USA. né: Eddie James House, Jr. This very early Blues artist was a major influence on guitarists as diverse as Muddy Waters and Bob Dylan. House himself was greatly influenced by another early Bluesman, "Tampa Red". House did most of his recordings during the 1930s -'40s. In '43, he relocated to Rochester, NY, USA, performing locally for the next 20 years. He toured the U.S. and Europe in the '60s, after a Folk and Rock revival brought him again to public attention.
1955     James House, (C&W) vocals, b. Sacramento, CA, USA.
1953     Robert Johnson, drums, b. Miami, FL, USA. Died of AIDS in the 1980s, Age: ca. 30. Member group: 'KC & the Sunshine Band', with such musicians as Johnson, songwriter Harry Wayne "K.C." Casey (b. Hialeah, FL, USA), Guitarist Jerome Smith and trumpeter Ronnie Smith (both b. Florida). Popular legend had it that Johnson's command of the drums came from making a pact with Satan.
CAUTION: Robert Johnson is an extremely common name in musical circles.
-Robert Johnson, Blues, b. May 8, 1911, Hazlehurst, MS, USA. One of the most celebrated figures in the history of the Blues.
-Robert Johnson, Memphis-based, and recording since the early 1970s. With such groups as the 'Hot Dogs', and 'Black Oak Arkansas'.
-Robert Johnson (ca. 1530) was a priest in Scotland who composed Latin sacred music.
-Robert Johnson, who in 1604, was appointed as a lutenist to King James I.
-Robert Johnson, Guitar, Vocals, heard on "Bedlam Born" ('Steeleye Span' band)
-Robert A. Johnson, R&B songwriter. worked with Sam Mosley.
-Robert L. Johnson, b. 1912. producer. (Johnny Cash; 'Man in Black' 1963-1969' album)
-Robert M. Johnson, performed with the 'Gay Men's Chorus of Los Angeles' (a list that also includes Robert F. Johnson and Robert J. Johnson.)
-The Swedish Robert "Billy" Johnson who has led the 'Robert Johnson & Punchdrunks' combo since the early 1990s.
-Robert Johnson, Australian-born French horn player has been associated with the best classical ensembles from his native land, including the
       Sydney Symphony, where he eventually became the principal on his instrument.
-Robert Johnson (drums) and brother Alonzo Johnson (tenor sax) who teogether with guitarist Wes Montgomery, formed the
       Montgomery-Johnson Quintet.
-Robert Johnson, Choral vocalist, who performs with the 'Tallis Scholars', one of the leading ensembles of Renaissance-sacred choral music.
-Robert White Johnson, vocals/arranger.
-Robert "Bubber" Johnson, piano.
-Robert "Billy" Johnson, a Reggae picker NOT to be confused with the Swedish Robert "Billy" Johnson, or with the San Francisco area
       Robert "Billy" Johnson with 'Santana' and 'John Lee Hooker'.
And, just so we don't bore you, we will stop here, although there are still other Robert Johnsons.
1940     Herbert Joos, Flugelhorn, trumpet, cornet, alp-horn, percussion, b. Karlsruhe, Germany
1963     Shawn Lane, guitar, b. Memphis, Tennessee, USA , d. Sept. 26, 2003, Memphis, TN, USA. At age eight, he was already accompanying his sisters on the piano, and by age 10, he was playing the guitar At age 14, he auditioned for, and became,, lead guitar in "Black Oak Arkansas", a popular 'country-rock' band. For the next four years, Shawn toured with Black Oak Arkansas, slowly replacing original band members as they dropped out, with players from his high school days. At age 18, Shawn Lane married and ceased touring with 'Black Oak Arkansas'. Over the next eight years, he seriously studied music and began composing on the piano. He sent some of his demo tapes to "Warner Brothers Music Company", who offered Lane a recording contract. His debut album, and thw two that followed, did farily well (he composed all the songs on his debut album). Lane then met, and formed a musical relationship with bassist Jonas Hellborg (b. .June 7, 1958, Sweden). Both men not only enjoyed classical,and rock, but also Pakistani and Indian music. With drummer Jeff Sipe, Lane and Hellborg formed a "jam" band, subsequently referred to as "HLS" (Helborg, Lane, Sipe). After this, Lane and Hellborg formed an East-West fusion band with Indian musicians V. Selvaganesh (percussionist) and his brother V. Umamahesh. Lane's last concert performance was played at 'Smilefest' in North Carolina with Hellborg and Jim Britt. There is a sad note to his life. From the age of 13, and continuing throughout his whole life, Lane suffered from psoriasis and from psoriatic arthritis. While not impairing his playing, he was required to take steroids, which seriously affected his weight, and in the years before his demise, he weighed over 300 pounds.
1923     Mort Lindsey, bandleader. d. FL, USA. Merv Griffin sang with Mort's orchestra, and later, Merv hired his old boss to be the band on Mort's own TV show. Lindsey's son, Steve, has been musical director for such singers as Aaron Neville and Trisha Yearwood. Steve also worked as a producer for Merv Griffin. The elder Lindsey was Judy Garland's conductor for her famed 1961 Carnegie Hall concert.
1951     Conrad Lozano, bass/vocals, b. Los Angeles, CA, USA. Member group: 'Los Lobos'
1882     Bascom Lamar Lunsford, C&W vocals/multi-instrumentalist, b. Mars Hill, NC, USA.
1882     Fritzi Massary, singer/actress, b. Vienna, Austria, d. Jan. 30, 1969, Beverly Hills, California, USA. (natural causes). née: Friederike Massaryk. Massary was of the leading operetta singers in Berlin and Vienna. A good friend of composers F. Lehár, L. Fall. and O. Straus, for whom she created roles in six of his operettas (most notably 1920s "Der Letzte Walzer"). Massary and her husband, Austrian actor Max Pallenberg, were both Jewish, and, in 1933, fled Germany when the Nazis came to power. They first went to Switzerland, and then to London, England, where she was befriended by Sir Noel Coward and starred in his 1938 musical "Operette". She then moved to California, where she lived in the circle of the Feuchtwanger's, Mann's, Werfel's and Lubitsch's for decades. Massaryk was married twice. Her second marriage was to the Austrian actor Max Pallenberg.( b.December 18, 1877, d. June 26, 1934 -air crash).
1942     Amina Claudine Myers, Piano/Organ/vocal, b. Blackwell, AR, USA.
1950     "Tiger" Okoshi, Trumpet, b. Ashita, Japan
1902     Santo Pecora, trombone, (some sources say b. March 31) d. May 29, 1984
1957     John Reddington, guitar, b. UK. Member group: 'King Kurt'
1939     Neil V. Rosenberg, folklorist, b. Seattle, WA, USA.
1942     Lou Silvestri, piano, b. Somerville, MA, USA. In 1964, he graduated from Boston University with a degree in Behavioral Science. Then, after deciding to make music his career, he studied jazz piano (with pianist, Ray Santisi) at Berklee College of Music. . The early 1960s found him playing at 'Paul's Mall', -Fred Taylor's legendary music complex. In the late '60s, he played with saxophonists Joe Henderson and Junior Cook, trombonist, Slide Hampton, and bassist, John Neves. In the 1980s, his trio were the opening act for the jazz vocalist Joe Williams, then appearing in Lynn, MA, at the 'North Shore Center for the Performing Arts'. Besides playing every major club in Boston, he has worked with such stars as comedians Flip Wilson, Professor Irwin Corey, and Mort Sahl, and in the Della Reese/George Kirby Show. On radio, be has performed with Ron Della Chiesa's 'Music America' radio program on WGBH-FM, Tony Cennamo's jazz radio show on WBUR-FM, and on Boston's WBZ-TV 'Children's Hospital Telethon'.: 'Top of the Hub',
1929     Otis "Big Smokey" Smothers, guitar/vocals, b. Lexington, Mississippi, USA, d. July 23, 1993 in Chicago, IL, USA.
1945     Edward Soph, Drums, b. Coronado, CA, USA.
1930     Otis Spann, Blues vocals/piano, b. USA.
1945     Rosie Stone, keyboards/vocals, b. Dallas, TX, USA. Member group: 'Sly & The Family Stone'.
1946     Yoshio "Chin" Suzuki, Bass, b. Nagano, Japan
1951     Russell Thompkins Jr., vocals, b. Philadelphia, PA, USA. Member group: 'The Stylistics'.
1895     Leonid Utyosov, Vocal/Leader, b. Odessa, Ukraine, d. 1982.
1936     Mike Westbrook, Piano/Composer/tuba, b. High Wycombe, England
1869     Florenz Ziegfeld, Jr., Producer, b. Chicago, IL, USA. d. July 22, 1932, Hollywood, CA, USA. Produced the Ziegfeld Follies. One of the great Broadway producers during the first third of the 20th century. Remembered today for his annual 'Ziegfeld Follies'shows which were staged from 1907 to the mid-thirties, and celebrated 'The American Woman' (mostly Un-Clad - but with stunning 1 meter Headdresses). Some of his other successful stage productions, including 'Rio Rita' and 'Sally' (starring Marylin Miller), were made into Movie musicals in the early talkies-era. He was married to actress Anna Held (1897 - 1913) and to Billie Burke (1913 - 1932) till his death.
Notable Events occuring this date include:
1939.    Kate Smith recorded "God Bless America", composed by Irving Berlin in 1918. Called second national anthem of the USA.
1954.    Roy Blackwood, founder of Country music group 'The Blackwood Brothers' died. Age: 70
1963.    Arthur Q. Smith (aka: James Arthur Prichett), C&W songwriter, died. Age: 53
1968.    Cora Redd, vocals, died in New York, NY, USA. Age: 70
1975.    Ted Griffiths, label owner (Kokomo/Highway 51), died in London, UK
1978.    Louis Cottrell Jr., clarinet, died in New Orleans, LA, USA. Age: 67
1981.    Oliver Alcorn, sax/clarinet, died in New Orleans, LA, USA. Age: 71
1981.    "King Pleasure" ( né: Clarence Beeks), vocals, died in Los Angeles, CA, USA. Age: 59
1991.    Clarence "Leo" Fender, designer of the solid body electric guitar, died in Fullerton, CA, USA. Age: 82. (complications from Parkinson's Disease)
1992.    "Weasel" Parker, tenor sax, died in Cleveland, OH, USA. Age: 70
Songs Recorded/Released this date include:
     1941 "New San Antonio Rose", Bing Crosby
     1946 "Prisoner Of Love", Perry Como
     1946 "One-zy Two-zy", Freddy Martin Orch
     1947 "How Are Things In Glocca Morra", Dick Haymes
     1947 "Linda", Ray Noble Orch.
     1960 "Greenfields", Brothers Four
     1960 "White Silver Sands", Bill Black Combo
     1960 "I Love The Way You Love", Marv Johnson
     1964 "Twist And Shout", Beatles
     1964 "Shoop Shoop Song (It's In His Kiss), The", Betty Everett
     1964 "Suspicion", Stafford, Terry
     1964 "Don't Let The Rain Come Down (Crooked Li", Serendipity Singers
     1970 "Let It Be", Beatles
     1970 "Love Me Or Let Me Be Lonely", Friends Of Distinction
     1970 "ABC", Jacksons
     1981 "Sweetheart", Franke & The Knockouts
     1981 "Being With You", Smokey Robinson
     1987 "I Just Died In Your Arms", Cutting Crew
     1987 "Looking For A New Love", Jody Watley
     1992 "Ain't 2 Proud 2 Beg", TLC