- Oct 3 Eddie Cochran, American rock vocalist and guitarist ("Summertime Blues"; "C'Mon Everybody"), born in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma (d. 1960)
- Oct 3 Tereza Kesovija, Croatian popular music singer, born in Dubrovnik, Kingdom of Yugoslavia (now Croatia)
- Oct 5 Carlo Mastrangelo, Italian-American rock vocalist (Dion & The Belmonts; Pulse), born in The Bronx, New York (d. 2016)
- Oct 10 Gloria Coates, American post-minimalist composer ("Music on Open Strings"), born in Wausau, Wisconsin (d. 2023)
- Oct 13 Enzo Dara, Italian operatic basso buffo (The Barber of Seville - "Don Bartolo"), and author, born in Mantua, Kingdom of Italy (d. 2017)
- Oct 15 Betty Farmer, American jazz and cabaret singer, born in New Orleans, Louisiana (d. 2001)
Fela Kuti (1938-1997)
Oct 15 Nigerian Afrobeat musician and composer, born in Abeokuta, Ogun State, Nigeria
- Oct 15 Marv Johnson, American R&B pianist, songwriter, and singer ("You Got What It Takes"; "(You've Got To) Move Two Mountains"), born in Detroit, Michigan (d. 1993)
- Oct 15 Rafael Aponte-Ledeé, Puerto Rican composer, born in Guayama, Puerto Rico
- Oct 16 Nico [Christa Päffgen], German singer-songwriter (Velvet Underground), fashion model, and actress, born in Cologne, Germany (d. 1988)
- Oct 18 Ronnie Bright, American doo-wop bass vocalist (Johnny Cymbal's "Mr. Bass Man"; The Coasters, 1968-2009), born in New York City (d. 2015)
- Oct 24 Fred E. Finn, American pianist (Mickie Finn's), born in San Francisco, California
- Oct 27 Elliot del Borgo, American music educator (SUNY/Crane School of Music, 1966-95) and composer (1980 Winter Olympics), born in Port Chester, New York (d. 2013)
- Oct 29 Peter Stampfel, American musician and songwriter (The Holy Modal Rounders), born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin
About October 1938
How Old? 85 years old
Generation: Silent Generation
Leap Year: No
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