BIRTHDAYS
1971     Richard Ashcroft, vocals/guitar, b. Wigan (suburb of Billinge), England. Member group: The Verve, whose 1997 single "The Drugs Don't Work" charted UK No.1 .
1918     Estelle Stewart Axton, Record label owner (STAX), b. Middleton, TN, USA. d. Feb. 24, 2004, age: 85. In 1957, Estelle, and her younger brother, Jimmy Stewart (b. July 29, 1930) co-founded the label, - originally under the name of 'Satellite Records'. They were forced to change the name due to a conflict with a California company that was already using the name. The siblings combined their last names -- the "St" from Stewart and the "Ax" from Axton -- to come up with 'Stax', which, in the late 1960s and early 1970s, went on to rival Detroit's giant 'Motown' sound. During 1960 -1975, the Stax roster included such groups as 'Booker T. and the MGs', 'Rufus Thomas', 'Albert King', 'Johnnie Taylor', 'The Mar-Keys' and 'The Bar-Kays'. Axton and other family members went on to establish the Fretone label which produced Rick Dees' 1977 hit "Disco Duck." Composers David Porter and Isaac Hayes co-wrote numerous Stax hits, including Sam and Dave's "Soul Man" and "Hold On, I'm Coming." Interviewed by reporters after Axton's demise, Hayes said Axton was responsible for the racial harmony at Stax. "You didn't feel any backoff from her, no differentiation that you were Black and she was White," Hayes said. "Being in a town where that attitude was plentiful, she just made you feel secure. ... She was like a mother to us all."
1925     Alan Bergman, lyricist, , b. New York (Brooklyn), NY, USA
1963     Dave Bidini, Rhythm Guitar, b. Toronto, ONT, Canada. Member: 'The Rheostatics'
1902     "Barbecue Bob" (né Robert Hicks), 12-string bottleneck-guitar/singer-songwriter, b. Walnut Grove, GA, USA, d. Oct. 21, 1931, Lithonia, GA, USA (pneumonia), Age: 29. Brother of Blues vocalist/guitarist Charley Lincoln (né: Hicks, b. March 11, 1900, Lithonia, GA, USA, d. Sept. 28, 1963, Cairo, GA, USA.) From 1927-1930, "Barbecue Bob" recorded with his brother Charley, for Columbia, and afterwards continued to play with him on and off.
1940     Robert 'Wolfman' Belfour, Vocals/Guitar, b. Holly Springs, MO, USA
1977     Jonny Buckland, guitar, b. London, England. Member group: Coldplay, 2000 album "Parachutes" charted UK No.1. Jonny began playing guitar after hearing the Stone Roses. Prior to joining "Coldplay" he had studied Astronomy and Mathematics and worked as a school janitor.
1955     Hiram Bullock, Guitar, b. Osaka, Japan
1967     Harry Connick, Jr., Piano/Vocal, b. New Orleans, LA, USA
1929     Bert Courtley, trumpet, b. Manchester, UK, d. Sept. 13, 1969
1902     Jimmie Davis, C&W vocals/songwriter/Governor of Louisiana, USA, b. Beech Springs (near Quitman), LA, USA. né: James Houston Davis. Best recalled song: "You Are My Sunshine".
1893     Sidney Desvigne, Trumpet, b. New Orleans, LA, USA, d. Dec. 2, 1959, Pacoima, CA, USA. Another of the "Musical Families" of old New Orleans. Sidney at one time led his own band, the "Southern Syncopators", and his brother George Desvignes led a band (in 1926, mostly on Riverboats and at St. Bernard's Country Club). As a teenager, Sidney Desvignes played in such historic old New Orleans groups as Leonard Bechet's "Silver Bell Band", the "Maple Leaf Orchestra", the "Excelsior Brass Band" and Ed Allen's "Whispering Gold Band". Throughout the 1920s, he often played with Fate Marable's orchestra on riverboats. In the 1950s, Sidney left New Orleans and settled in Los Angeles, CA, where he opened his own nightclub featuring traditional Jazz Regretfully, he didn't live long enough to enjoy the 1960s Dixieland revival.
1940     Bernie Dwyer, rock drums, Member group: Freddie & The Dreamers, Their 1965 single "I'm Telling You Now" charted US No.1. The band included Freddie Garrity (vocals b. Nov. 14th 1940, Manchester, England); Roy Crewsdon (guitar b. May 29th 1941, Manchester) Derek Quinn (guitar (born May 24th 1942, Manchester); Pete Birrell (bass guitar (born May 9th 1941, Manchester) and Bernie Dwyer (drums b. Sept. 11, 1940, Manchester, d. Dec. 4, 2002)
1920     Bob Enevoldsen, trombone, b. Billings, Montana, USA, d. November 19, 2005, Woodland Hills, Los Angeles, California, USA. Age: 85. (circulation problems). Note: some sources claim b. 1915). He came from a musical family his grandfather taught violin in Denmark. Both parents were involved in music. He received his B.M. at the University of Montana. Early on, Enevoldsen had played tenor sax and bass, and also the clarinet in the Utah symphony. In 1951, he relocated to to Los Angeles, CA, and became part of the then new West Coast Jazz movement. He subsequently performed in Las Vegas show bands, and playing bass with Bobby Troup (Route 66 fame). During the 1950s, he worked with such stars as Gerry Mulligan, Bill Holman, Art Pepper, Shorty Rogers,Jack Sheldon, Bud Shank, and Jimmy Giuffre, among othrs. He also recorded with Marty Paich, Nancy Wilson and Ella Fitzgerald, and also led his own sessions on the Liberty, Nocturne and Tampa labels. Little recalled now,but he arranged for both the Billy Eckstine and Lionel Hampton orchestras, and also wrote radio and television jingles.
1942/3     Lola Falana, vocals. worked in Las Vegas, NV for many years.
1928     Bobby Fields, tenor sax, b. Chicago, IL, USA. Worked with Buddy Guy, B. B. King, among others
1928     Lorraine Winifred Walsh Geller, piano, b. Portland, OR, USA, d. Oct. 10, 1958, Los Angeles, CA, USA. From 1949-'51, Lorraine played with the all-female big band 'The Sweethearts of Rhythm". In 1951, after marrying altoist Herb Geller, she moved to Los Angeles. During the next seven years, she played with such West Coast jazz and bop stars as Shorty Rogers, Zoot Sims, Stan Getz, Red Mitchell and even Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie. Geller also worked as Kay Starr's accompanist in 1957 and appeared at the first Monterey Jazz Festival. Her career was cut short by, and her ultimate demise was due to heart problems.
1904     William "Jazz" Gillum, harmonica, b. Indianola, MS, USA.
1932     Ian Hamer Trumpet/Flugelhorn/Composer/Arranger, b. Merseyside, England, UK, d. Sept 2, 2006, Brighton, Sussex, England, UK. ( Coronary Arrest. 9 days short of his 74th birthday). Ian is the brother of Trumpeter Stuart Hamer, and Reeds player George Hamer. Their father, Wilf Hamer, was a bandleader
1878     Charles Harrison, vocals, b. Jersey City, NJ, USA, d. Feb. 2, 1965, New Providence, NJ, USA. Harrison began his recording career with Columbia in 1911, and soon became one of the busiest recording artists of the acoustic era, recording for many record labels including Victor, Columbia, Edison, Domino, Regal, and Melotone, among others. He was a member of many recording groups including the Columbia Stellar Quartet, Columbia Mixed Quartet, new Peerless Quartet, Revelers (Shannon Quartet), Eveready Mixed Quartet, and American Singers Quartet. During his career, Harrison used several pseudonyms including Hugh Donovan, Billy Burton, Charles Hilton and Norman Terrell.
1944     Mickey Hart, Drums/songwriter. Member group: 'Grateful Dead'
1934     Oliver Jones, Piano, b. Montreal, Que., Canada
1966     Gregory Kane, keyboards, b. Coatbridge, Scotland, UK. Member group: Hue and Cry. Do you know these two brothers Pat (vocals) and Greg Kane? For over 15 years, the brothers Kane have worked, (performed or recorded with) Madonna, U2, Simply Red, James Brown, The Brecker Brothers, The Average White Band, Ray Charles, and Tito Puente.
1945     Leo Kottke, folk guitar/singer/songwriter, b. Athens, GA, USA.
1928     Richard M. "Dick" Kress, Sax/Woodwinds, b. Chicago, IL, USA, d. July 25, 2002, Quincy, IL, USA. Led his own Dick Kress Big Band, and also worked with Tommy Dorsey. He later played in studio orchestras for TV's Bozo's Circus and Artists Showcase.
1929     Pat Longo, bandleader/alto sax/clarinet, b. Passaic, New Jersey, USA. Longo began his career in banking, but this gifted saxophonist/clarinetist soon decided to focus on music full~time. During the BigBands Era, he played with the renowned Harry ]ames Band. After three years with James, Longo formed his own orchestra (with Harry’s blessing). His very first recording "Chain Reaction” propelled his orchestra into major clubs, ballrooms and concert halls around the country. Subsequently, he and his band went on to back such stars as Kelsey Grammer, Rod Stewart, Rob Thomas (of Matchbox 29/Santana), Tony Bennett, Michael McDonald, John Travolta, Neil Diamond, Shirley Jones, Bob & Dolores Hope, Rosemary Clooney, and Sarah Vaughan. His band has played in Las Vegas at both Caesar's Palace and the Golden Nugget, while Pat has also appeared with famed conductor Zubin Mehta and the L.A Philharmonic Orchestra. He continues to provide the music for all the Boy Scouts Of America events, and his rendition of "Just The Way You Are" is prominently featured in the hit TV series "The Sopranos".
1977     'Ludacris' (né: Chris Bridges), actor/(rap) vocals, b. Atlanta, GA, USA. 2002 album "Word Of Mouf" charted US No.3. Ludacris has often been banned from various venues due to his sexually explicit, profanity-laden lyrics.
1959     Rory Lyons, drums, b. England. Member group: King Kurt, which was formed in 1981 (Jef Harvey on vocals) and was originally called 'Rocking Kurt and the Sour Krauts' (named because they would give away saurkraut to the audience). Later additions included Paul Laventhol (ex: Thwack) and John Reddington on guitars, Rory Lyons on drums, Bert Boustead on bass and school boy 'Maggot' on Sax.
1970     Jerry Martin, vocals, né: Jerry Alan Martin. member Vocal group: 'The Kingsmen'
1948     John Martyn, singer-songwriter/guitarist, b. Glasgow, Scotland, UK.
1944     Phil May, vocals. Member groups: The Pretty Things; Fallen Angels
1899     Georges Metaxa, vocalist/actor, b. Bucharest, Romania, d. Dec., 8, 1950, Monroe, LA, USA. (heart attack) As a civil servant, he worked his up to becoming the principle private secretary to the Rumanian Ministry of Agriculture. He would give up the financial security of such a government position, and, in 1926, emigrate to England, hoping to make a career in Musical Comedy. At just age 25, he made his first recording. It was the Romanian folk song "Mandrullita". he was accompanied by "Madame Adami". In 1927, "A Garden in the Rain" with composer Carroll Gibbons at the piano and the New Mayfair Orchestra was his next recording. In Nov. 1927, his next recorded was composer Victor Young's "Sweet Sue, Just You" (again with Gibbons and the orchestra). In Dec. 1927, Metaxa and Carroll Gibbons again released the beautiful song "I Kiss Your Hand, Madame". In May of 1929, Metaxa got his first good stage part, in John Hastings Turner's revue "Wake Up and Dream. In April, he recorded the title song "Wake Up and Dream" with Carroll Gibbons at the piano and leading the New Mayfair Orchestra. When the show toured to New York CIty, Georges remained in London having been signed to another very prestigious venture, Noel Cowards "Bitter Sweet" at His Majesty's Theatre in July 1929. Georges, with Peggy Wood recorded "Ill See You Again", backed this time by Ray Noble and his orchestra. In September of 1929, He and Ray Noble's orchestra recorded "Pagan Love Song". In Dec., '29, his "Who Cares?" was released and in Jan. 1930, his "An Old Italian Love Song" was released, both with Ray Noble's New Mayfair Orchestra. February 1929 saw his release of the Rodgers and Hart tune "With A Song in My Heart". In August 1930, again with Ray Noble, his "Blue Pacific Moonlight" was released, with Len Fillis on the Hawaiian guitar (and again with Ray Noble's band.). Before the year closed, Georges recorded the beautiful "Oh Donna Clara!". In a March '30 sesssion, he recorded two songs, with Mario di Pietro on the mandolin, and Noble's band, "Lady, Play Your Mandolin", and "On a Little Balcony in Spain". In March 1931, he made his very last recording in London, -"Goodnight Sweetheart" with Ray Noble and the New Mayfair Orchestra backing him. Noble also composed the tune, which became a worldwide hit. Apparently, demand for his portrayal of an exotic middle-European noblemen began to fade in London, and he went to New York City with the 'Bitter Sweet" tourning company. His luck was not much better in New York. He was cast in some roles that were really not suitable. Still, However, he did appear in the Broadway show "The Cat and The Fiddle", and in March 1932, recorded two tunes from the show, "Try To Forget", and New Love Is Old", both with the Leonard Joy orchestra. After this, he appeared in supporting roles in a few films , making his final screen appearance in 1945, five years before his early death.
1931    Secrets of a Secretary (as: Frank D'Agnoll)
1933    Kissing Time
1936    Swing Time (as: Ricardo Romero)
1940    Doctor Takes a Wife, The (as: Jean Rovere)
1941    Paris Calling (as: Waiter)
1943    Submarine Base (as: Nazi Agent Anton Kroll)
1943    Hi Diddle Diddle (as: Spinelli)
1943    West Side Kid (as: Dr. Kenton)
1944    Mask of Dimitrios, The (as: Hans Werner)
1945    Scotland Yard Investigator (as: Henri)
George Metaxa was just 51 years old when he died in Monro, Louisiana, USA.
1965     'Moby' (né: Richard Melville Hall), composer, b New York (Harlem), NY, USA. 2000 album "Play" charted UK No.1.
1929     Charles Moffett, Drums, b. Fort Worth, TX, USA. d. Feb. 14, 1997 (some sources say born Sept. 6).
1919     John A. "Peck" Morrison, bass. b. Lancaster, PA, USA. d. 1988
1957     Jon Moss, drums, b. London, England. né: Jonathan Aubrey Moss. Member group: Culture Club, 1983 single "Karma Chameleon" charted UK No.1 and 1984 US No.1 (They had 7 other UK top 10 singles). Moss is also an ex-partner of 'Boy George' (b. June 14, 1961, Jamaica, né:George Alan O'Dowd).
1894     Bee Palmer, vocals, Ziegfeld Follies dancer, songwriter, b. Chicago, IL, USA, d. December 22, 1967 in New York, NU, USA. (Cancer). née: Beatrice C. Palmer aka: "The Shimmy Queen". A fascinating history, but too large to place here. Bee appeared with many of the Roaring Twenties Jazz bands, including the 'New Orleans Rhythm Kings', and even in a recording a session with Frank Trumbauer. She introduced the song "Please Don't Talk about Me When I'm Gone" (composed by Sidney Clare, Sam H. Stept).
1938     Charles Patrick, vocals, b. Newark, NJ, USA. Member: 'The Monotones'.
1955     Stacy Rowles, trumpet, b. Los Angeles, CA, USA. (She is Jimmy Rowles' daughter.)
1925     Tommy Lee Russell, piano, b. Vienna, GA, USA.
1952     Tommy Shaw, Guitar. Member group: 'Styx'
1910     Jack Shook, C&W singer/session guitarist, b. Decatur, IL, USA.
1952     Thomas Stabenow, bass, composer, arranger, producer, b. Kirchberg, Germany, From 1975-1980, studied double-bass with Prof. Ulrich Lau in Stuttgart, and then mostly freelanced with musicians such as Johnny Griffin, Charlie Rouse, Clifford Jordan, Lee Konitz, Sal Nistico, Mel Lewis, Mark Murphy, Billy Cobham, Toots Thielemanns, Tom Harrell, Buddy deFranco, Don Menza, Bobby Shew, Jimmy Cobb, Mose Allison. During 1986 to 1998, he was a member of Peter Herbolzheimer's "Rhythm Combination and Brass" He has recorded and giveen concerts with the "Al Porcino Bigband", "Joe Haider Jazz Orchestra", "WDR Bigband" with Rob McConnell or Jerry van Rooyen, and the "SDR Bigband" with Bill Holman or Jens Winther. Besides his concerts and recordings with Stan Getz, Al Jarreau, Chaka Khan, Charlie Mariano, David Friedman, Dianne Reeves, he has recorded over 25 times with such artists as Roman Schwaller, Jürgen Seefelder, Klaus Weiss, Roberto Di Gioia, Mel Lewis, Claus Stötter, Michael Kersting, Joris Dudli, Wolfgang Engstfeld, Joe Gallardo, Paul Grabowsky, Lothar Schmitz, Benny Bailey, Jim Ridl, Rachel Gould, Larry Porter, Allan Praskin, Clarence Becton, Harvey Wainapel, Mike Clark, Joe Baudisch, Joerg Reiter, Franz Weyerer, Helmut Kagerer, Wolfgang Haffner, Kenny Wheeler, Keith Copeland, Frank Foster, Stephan Holstein, John Engels, Hermann Breuer, Johannes Enders, Guido May, Adrian Mears, Ack van Rooyen, Mario Gonzi, Johannes Faber, Jimmy Cobb, Oliver Kent, Lee Konitz, Falk Willis, Till Martin, Tizian Jost, Bastian Jütte, Tom van der Geld, Christian Salfellner, Wolfgang Schlüter, Heinz Frommeyer, Jason Seizer, Stephan Zimmermann, Markus Becker, Rick Hollander, Claus Reichstaller, Merit Ostermann, Johannes Herrlich, Peter O'Mara, Thomas Zoller, Evan Tate. In 1986, he was the winner of the "Jazz Prize Of Baden-Württemberg". In 1990, he was a member of the European Broadcasting Bigband (EBU) and is currently (2007) a Professor for double-bass at the Musikhochschule Mannheim (Germany).
1885     Herbert Stothart, composer, b. Milwaukee, WI, USA. d. 1949, Los Angeles, CA, USA
1958     Mick Talbot, keyboards, b. London, England. Member groups: The Merton Parkas, and Style Council (1983 single "Long Hot Summer" charted UK No.3 (14 other UK top 40s). 'Style Council' included Talbot, Kevin Rowland (vocals/guitar) and Kevin "Al" Archer (vocals, guitar) The Merton Parkas were a "Mod" band formed in the mid-1970's, and included Danny Talbot (vocals), Mick Talbot (keyboards), Neil Wurrell (bass) and Simon Smith (drums). They emerged on the wave of Mods revival and signed with an independent label called Beggars Banquet In 1980, the group disbanded, and Mick Talbot went on to play with Dexy's Midnight Runners Dexy's Midnight Runners bio: a British 'New Wave and Northern Soul' band that achieved some success in the early-mid 1980s. In 1978. the band was founded in Birmingham, England, and named after Dexedrine, a recreational drug then popular amongst 'Northern Soul' music fans. The original lineup consisted of 'Big Jim' Paterson (trombone), Geoff "JB" Blythe (saxophone), Steve "Babyface" Spooner (alto saxophone), Pete Saunders (keyboard), Pete Williams (bass) and Bobby "Jnr" Ward (drums)
1895     Harry Tobias, Composer, b. , d. Dec. 15, 1994, St. Louis, MO, USA.
1946     Dennis Tufano, R&R guitar/vocals, b. Chicago, IL, USA. Member group: The Buckinghams, 1967 single "Kind Of A Drag" charted US No.1. The Buckinghams included Dennis Tufano,, Carl Giammarese, Nicholas Nick Fortune, Marty Grebb and Jon-Jon Poulos.
1924     Willie D. Warren, guitar/bass, b. Stamps, AR, USA.
1933     Roosevelt "Baby Face" Willette, organ, b. Little Rock, AR, USA. d. April 1, 1971, USA. Roosevelt's father was a pastor in a Little Rock church, and his mother played piano fo the church meetings. By age 10, "Baby Face" was already playing the organ, -no doubt taught by his mother. Later (in the 1920s), he did study with one of his uncles, Fred Freeman, then a working Little Rock musician (piano). No other record exists of his ever taking music lessons, and it is known that he could not read music. He played solely by "ear" - a trait shared by such other well known musicians as Errol Garner and Jimmy Smith. Mostly playing piano, he toured North America (including Cuba and Canada), but, in 1958, he would make the organ his primary instrument, and make Chicago, IL, his homebase. He recorded for the Bluenote, Cadet and Argo labels. Over his career, he worked with such men as King Kolax, Eddie "Guitar Slim" Jones, Johnny Otis, Joe 'The Honeydripper' Liggins, 'Big' Jay McNeely, Lou Donaldson, Roy Brown, Grant Green, Joe Houston, and Ben Dixon.

         Notable Events on this date include:
1847.    Stepen Foster's minstrel song, "Oh! Susanna" was heard for the first time, by an audience at the Eagle Saloon in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Stephen got a bottle of whiskey for his performance.
1850.    Jenny Lind appeared for the first time in America. She sang at the Castle Garden Theatre in New York City. Lind's voice was so sweet that the audience nicknamed her "The Swedish Nightingale". (Later, "hanging judge" Roy Bean -"the only Law west of the Pecos"- had a fixation on Jenny.)
1950.    Casey Smith, guitar, died in Tyler, TX, USA. Age: 50
1969.    Leon Payne, C&W guitar/songwriter, died in San Antonio, TX, USA. Age: 52
1971.    Curtis Jones, piano, died in Munich, Germany, Age: 65
1971.    Joe Jordan, piano/songwriter, died in Tacoma, WA, USA. Age: 89
1987.    Peter Tosh (né Winston Hubert McIntosh), singer-songwriter/guitar/melodica/piano/organ, died in Kingston, Jamiaca. (Assassinated by 3 men, only one of which was arrested, and hanged). Age: 42 Member: 'The Wailers'
2001.    David Skepner, manager for both Loretta Lynn and 'Riders In The Sky', died. Age: 63 (heart attack)