Musicians Born in 1956

Birthdays 1 - 200 of 229

Jan 19 Parthenon Huxley [Richard Miller], American rock guitarist, singer- songwriter and producer (ELO II; The Orchestra; P. Hux), born in Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Jan 20 Adrian Vernon Fish, British classical composer, and Irish radio host (Fish on Fridays), born in Bristol, England
Jan 21 Bob Brill, American drummer (Berlin - "You Take My Breath Away"), born in New York City
Jan 22 Steve Riley, American rock drummer (L.A. Guns; W.A.S.P.), born in Revere, Massachusetts
Jan 23 Larysa Kuzmenko, Canadian concert pianist, and composer, of Ukrainian heritage (Memoriam for the Victims of Chornobyl; Golden Harvest), born in Toronto, Ontario
Jan 23 Lazar Ristovski, Serbian keyboardist (Smak and Bijelo Dugme), born in Novi Pazar, Yugoslavia (d. 2007)
Jan 24 Hanne Krogh, Norwegian singer (Bobbysocks), born in Oslo, Norway
Jan 24 Lounès Matoub, Kabylian singer-songwriter, guitar and mandole player, and Berber rights activist, born in of Taourirt Moussa, Algeria (d. 1998)
Jan 25 Andy Cox, British guitarist (Fine Young Cannibals - "She Drives Me Crazy"), born in Birmingham, England
Jan 26 Lisa Boray [Schulte Nordholt], Dutch jazz singer ("Lovers Until the End"), born in Breda, Netherlands
Jan 28 [Pierre] "Peter" Schilling, German synthpop musician ("Major Tom (Coming Home)"), born in Stuttgart, Germany

John Lydon (68 years old)

Jan 31 English singer-songwriter and musician (Sex Pistols - "God Save the Queen"), born in Holloway, United Kingdom

Feb 1 (Christine) "Exene" Cervenka, American punk rock singer and poet (X), born in Chicago, Illinois
Feb 3 Lee Ranaldo, American rock guitarist, and singer-songwriter (Sonic Youth - "100%"), born in Glen Cove, Long Island, New York
Feb 5 Vincent "Vinnie" Colaiuta, American touring and session rock and jazz drummer (Frank Zappa, 1979-83; Joni Mitchell, 1982-91; Sting, 1993-2003), born in Brownsville, Pennsylvania
Feb 7 Mark St. John [Norton], American rock guitarist (KISS, April- November, 1984), born in Hollywood, California (d. 2007)
Feb 8 Dave Meros, American progressive rock bassist (Spock's Beard), born in Salinas, California
Feb 11 David Uosikkinen, American drummer (The Hooters - "All You Zombies"; "And We Danced"), born in Cheltenham, Pennsylvania
Feb 11 Didier Lockwood, French violinist, born in Calais, France (d. 2018)
Feb 11 H.R. [Paul D. Hudson], British-American singer (Bad Brains), born in London, England
Feb 11 Raoul Björkenheim, American avant-garde jazz guitarist, born in Los Angeles, California
Feb 12 Brian Robertson, Scottish rock guitarist (Thin Lizzy), born in Clarkston, Scotland
Feb 13 Peter Hook, English rock bassist (New Order - "Round & Round"; "Run"), born in Salford, United Kingdom
Feb 17 Jeffrey Foskett, American session and touring singer and guitarist (The Beach Boys; Brian Wilson; Wondermints), born in San Jose, California (d. 2023)
Feb 18 Ted Gärdestad, Swedish singer, born in Sollentuna Municipality, Sweden (d. 1997)
Feb 19 Dave Wakeling, British Rock singer-songwriter and guitarist (The English Beat; General Public), born in Birmingham, England
Feb 19 Peter Holsapple, American rock-pop singer-songwriter (The dB's; Continental Drifters), born in Greenwich, Connecticut
Feb 26 Keisuke Kuwata, Japanese pop singer,songwriter and film score composer, born in Chigasaki, Japan
Mar 1 Jan Van der Roost, Belgian composer (Chemical Suite for Trombone Quartet), born in Duffel, Belgium
Mar 2 John Cowsill, American rock drummer (The Cowsills - "We Can Fly"; Beach Boys, 2000-present), born in Newport, Rhode Island
Mar 2 Mark Evans, Australian rock bassist (AC/DC), born in Melbourne, Victoria
Mar 3 Stephanie McCallum, Australian concert pianist and educator, born in Sydney, Australia
Mar 4 Kermit Driscoll, American jazz bassist (Bill Frissell), born in Kearney, Nebraska
Mar 5 Teena Marie [Mary Christine Brockert], American R&B and soul singer-songwriter ("Square Biz"; "Lovergirl"), born in Santa Monica, California (d. 2010)
Mar 12 Steve Harris, English hard rock bassist (Iron Maiden - "Gypsy's Kiss"), born in London, England
Mar 13 Motoharu Sano, Japanese rock singer-songwriter ("Someday"), born in Taitō, Japan
Mar 14 Patrick Leonard, American songwriter, film composer and music producer (Madonna), born in Crystal Falls, Michigan
Mar 16 Vladimír Godár, Slovak contemporary classical music and film music composer, born in Bratislava, Czechoslovakia
Mar 17 Luca Francesconi, Italian classical and electronic music composer (Wanderer; Unexpected End of Formula), born in Milan, Italy
Mar 17 Will Rigby, American rock drummer and percussionist (The dB's; Matthew Sweet), born in Winston-Salem, North Carolina
Mar 20 Alphonso Martin, British reggae percussionist and vocalist (Steel Pulse, 1977-91 - "Prodigal Son"), born in Birmingham, England
Mar 21 László Tihanyi, Hungarian composer (Silence of the Winds; Two Imaginary Dialogues), and conductor (Ensemble Intermodulation), born in Budapest, Hungary
Mar 26 Charly McClain, American country singer (Radio Heart), born in Jackson, Tennessee
Mar 27 (Paul) "Wix" Wickens, British session and touring keyboard player (Paul McCartney; Nik Kershaw; Kevin Coyne), born in Brentwood, Essex, England
Mar 29 Patty Donahue, American new wave rock singer (The Waitresses - "I Know What Boys Like"; "Christmas Wrapping), born in Akron, Ohio (d. 1996)
Apr 3 Miguel Bose, Panamanian-born Spanish singer and actor (El Avaro, Queen Margot), born in Panama City
Apr 4 Allan Harris, American jazz singer and guitarist (Cross That River; Kate's Soulfood), born in Harlem, New York City
Apr 4 Evelyn Hart, Canadian prima ballerina (Royal Winnipeg Ballet), born in Toronto, Ontario
Apr 6 Hal Willner, American music producer (Lost In The Stars: The Music of Kurt Weill; Stay Awake: Various Interpretations of Music from Vintage Disney Films; The Carl Stalling Project), born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (d. 2020)
Apr 8 Justin Sullivan, British rock singer-songwriter (New Model Army), born in Jordans, Buckinghamshire, England
Apr 12 Herbert Grönemeyer, German singer (Mensch; Spruenge), born in Göttingen, Germany
Apr 13 Matthew Peaceman, American oboist, conductor, composer (Abyss/Scorched Earth), and teacher, born in New York City (d. 2008)
Apr 19 Gary Langan, British sound engineer, record producer, and musician (The Art of Noise, 1983-86), born in Surrey, England
Apr 22 Kenny Lyon, American rock guitarist, bassist, music producer, born in Coral Gables, Florida
Apr 27 Bryan Harvey, American musician (House of Freaks), born in Richmond, Virginia (d. 2006)
Apr 28 Jimmy Barnes [Swan], Scottish-Australian rock and blues singer-songwriter ("For the Working Class Man"), born in Glasgow, Scotland
Apr 29 Ketil Stokkan, Norwegian singer (Zoo), born in Harstad, Norway
Apr 29 Ron Verlin, American power-pop bassist (Shooting Star), born in Kansas City, Missouri
Apr 30 Jorge Chaminé, Portuguese operatic baritone, born in Porto, Portugal
May 2 David Rhodes, English guitarist (Random Hold), born in London
May 4 Barrie Masters, British pub-rock singer (Eddie & the Hot Rods), born in Rochford, Essex, England (d. 2019)
May 4 Sharon Jones, American soul singer (Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings), born in Augusta, Georgia (d. 2016)
May 5 Dick Kemper, Dutch rock vocalist and bassist (Vandenberg), born in Eindhoven, Netherlands
May 6 Brad Felt, American jazz tuba and euphonium player, composer, and bandleader, born in Royal Oak, Michigan (d. 2011)
May 7 Anne Dudley, British classical and film composer (The Full Monty), born in Beckenham, Kent
May 10 Bakithi Kumalo, South African session and touring bassist, and composer (Paul Simon - "Graceland"; "Call Me Al"; Mickey Hart's Planet Drum; Harry Belafonte), born in Alexandra, Johannesburg, South Africa
May 12 Greg Phillinganes, American session and touring keyboardist, and musical director (Stevie Wonder, Toto, Michael Jackson, David Gilmour), born in Detroit, Michigan
May 13 David Hollestelle, Dutch rock guitarist (Herman Brood & His Wild Romance), born in Hilversum, Netherlands
May 18 James Moginie, Australian rock musician, and songwriter (Midnight Oil - "Beds Are Burning"; "Blue Sky Mine"), born in Kalamunda, Western Australia, Australia
May 19 Martyn Ware, English rock keyboardist and songwriter (Human League, 1977-80: Heaven 17 - "Temptation"), and record producer, born in Sheffield, England
May 22 Natasha Shneider, Russian musician (Eleven), born in Riga, Latvia (d. 2008)
May 25 (Lincoln) "Sugar" Minott, Jamaican reggae singer (The African Brothers), born in Kingston, Jamaica (d. 2010)
May 25 David P. Sartor, American music composer, born in Nashville, Tennessee
May 25 Helen Terry, British pop-rock singer ("Love Lies Lost"; "Now You're Mine"), born in England
May 29 Larry Blackmon, American singer (Cameo - Alligator Woman), born in New York City
May 29 LaToya Jackson, American singer ("If You Feel the Funk"), and model, born in Gary, Indiana
May 31 Bart van Poppel, Dutch bassist, guitarist, and singer (Duplex Johnson, 1980-85; Tambourine, 1987-92; The Analogues, 2014-), born in The Netherlands
May 31 Fritz Hilpert, German electro-pop musician and sound engineer (Kraftwerk, 1987-2023), born in Amberg, West Germany
Jun 1 Lisa Hartman Black, American actress (Tabitha; Knots Landing), and singer, born in Houston, Texas
Jun 3 Danny Wilde [Thomas], American rock singer-songwriter (The Rembrandts - "I’ll Be There For You"), born in Houlton, Maine
Jun 4 Reeves Gabrels, American rock guitarist, songwriter and producer (Tin Machine/David Bowie, 1987-99; The Cure, 2012-), born in Staten Island, New York
Jun 5 Kenny G [Gorelick], American smooth jazz saxophonist (Duotones; Breathless), born in Seattle, Washington
Jun 5 Mindy Jostyn, American session and touring vocalist, violinist, guitarist, accordionist, and harmonica player (New York Rock and Soul Revue; Billy Joel; Andreas Vollenweider; Carly Simon; Cyndi Lauper), and singer-songwriter ("Five Miles From Hope"; "Coming Home"), born in Long Island City, New York (d. 2005)
Jun 5 Richard Butler, English rock singer (Psychedelic Furs - "Pretty In Pink"), born in Kingston-upon-Thames, England
Jun 8 Uri Caine, American classical and jazz pianist and composer, born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Jun 10 Mickey Curry, American session and touring drummer (Bryan Adams; Hall & Oates; Sam Phillips), born in New Haven, Connecticut
Jun 10 Stefania de Kenessey, Hungarian-American composer (Autumn Elegy), born in Budapest, Hungary
Jun 11 Jamaaladeen Tacuma [Rudy McDaniel], American jazz bassist (Ornette Coleman), born in Hempstead, New York
Jun 14 King Diamond [Kim Petersen], Danish heavy metal musician (Merciful Fate; King Diamond), born in Copenhagen, Denmark
Jun 18 John Scott, English organist and choirmaster, born in Wakefield, England (d. 2015)
Jun 19 Doug Stone, American country music singer ("I'd Be Better Off (In a Pine Box)"), born in Marietta, Georgia
Jun 22 Derek Forbes, rocker (Simple Minds-Water Front)
Jun 22 Green [Gartside], rock vocalist (Scritti Politti-Flesh & Blood)
Jun 23 Randy Jackson, American session and touring bassist, singer, and record producer (Jean-Luc Ponty; Journey; Mariah Carey) and TV personality (American Idol judge, 2002-14), born in Baton Rouge, Louisiana

Chris Isaak (67 years old)

Jun 26 American rock singer-songwriter ("Wicked Game"), born in Stockton, California

Jun 28 Paul Meyers, American jazz and Brazilian guitarist (Andy Bey, Jon Hendricks ), composer (Welcome Home; Blues for the Millennium), and educator, born in New York City
Jun 30 Ronald Winans, American gospel singer (Winans), born in Detroit, Michigan (d. 2005)
Jun 30 [Philip] Adrian Wright, British composer and keyboard player (Human League - "Don't You Want Me"; "Human"), born in Wakefield, England
Jul 1 Kenneth Fuchs, American Grammy Award-winning classical composer, and college professor
Jul 2 Jeffrey Cooper, American R&B guitarist (Midnight Star - "No Parking On The Dance Floor"; "Operator")
Jul 6 John Jorgenson, American singer (Desert Rose Band - "Love Reunited"), born in Madison, Wisconsin
Jul 8 Russell Christian, British rock keyboardist, and vocalist (The Christians - "Harvest For The World"), born in Liverpool, England
Jul 13 Mark "The Animal' Mendoza [Glickman], American bassist (Twisted Sister - "We're Not Gonna Take It"), born in Long Island, New York
Jul 14 Bob Birch, American musician (Elton John), born in Detroit, Michigan (d. 2012)
Jul 15 Ian Curtis, English rock vocalist (Joy Division - "Transmission") (d. 1980)
Jul 15 Joe Satriani, American rock guitarist, born in Westbury, New York
Jul 18 Audrey Landers [Hamburg], American actress and singer (Dallas; A Chorus Line), born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Jul 20 Michael Gordon, American contemporary classical composer (Natural History; Anonymous Man), and new music promoter (Bang on a Can Festival), born in Miami, Florida
Jul 20 Paul Cook, English rock drummer (Sex Pistols), born in London, England
Jul 22 Mick Pointer, British rock drummer (Marillion), born in Brill, Buckinghamshire, England
Jul 27 Duncan Cameron, American guitarist (Sawyer Brown) and commercial pilot, born in Utica, New York
Jul 28 Nnenna Freelon (née Pierce), American jazz singer, composer, and arranger, born in Cambridge, Massachusetts
Jul 29 Patti Scialfa, American singer-songwriter ("As Long As I Can Be (With You)"; E Street Band, 1984-present), wife of Bruce Springsteen, born in Deal, New Jersey
Jul 30 Phil Fearon, English rocker (Galaxy, Kandidate - "I Don't Want to Lose You"), born in London
Aug 2 Isabel Pantoja, Spanish copia and Canción melódica singer (Genio y Figura), born in Seville, Spain
Aug 3 Kirk Brandon, British punk rock and new wave singer-songwriter (Theatre of Hate; Spear of Destiny - Outland), born in Westminster, London
Aug 5 Ferdi Bolland, Dutch singer, guitarist (Bolland & Bolland - "Spaceman"), songwriter, and record producer, born in Port Elizabeth, South Africa
Aug 8 Chris Foreman, British pop-ska guitarist (Madness - "Our House"; "It Must Be Love"), born in London
Aug 8 David Grant, British pop-soul singer ("Stop & Go"; "Could It Be I'm Falling in Love"), and televeion personality (Pop Idol), born in Hackney, London, England
Aug 10 Charlie Peacock, American jazz and contemporary Christian music pianist, singer, songwriter, and record producer (The Civil Wars), born in Yuba City, California
Aug 10 On Ka'a Davis, American experimental jazz guitarist and composer (Sun Ra Arkestra), born in Cleveland, Ohio
Aug 14 Adele Sebastian, American jazz flute player and vocalist (The Pan Afrikan Peoples Arkestra), born in Riverside, California (d. 1983)
Aug 14 Sharon Bryant, American vocalist (Atlantic Starr), born in Westchester County, New York
Aug 15 Lorraine Desmarais, French Canadian jazz pianist and composer, born in Montreal, Quebec
Aug 15 Peter-John Vettese, Scottish keyboardist (Jethro Tull, 1982-89), songwriter, arranger, and producer, born in Scotland, United Kingdom
Aug 15 Vinny Denunzio, American drummer (The Feelies), born in New Jersey
Aug 18 John Debney, American Emmy Award-winning TV, film, and orchestral composer (The Passion of the Christ; Elf; Garry Marshall films; The Abrahamic Symphony), born in Glendale, California
Aug 18 Jon "Bermuda" Schwartz, American drummer, songwriter (Weird Al Yankovic), and web designer, born in Chicago, Illinois
Aug 20 Rick Olsen, American rock guitarist (Berlin - "Take My Breath Away")
Aug 24 Kile Smith, American contemporary orchestral and choral composer (The Arc in the Sky), and podcaster (Fleisher Discoveries), born in Camden, New Jersey [1]
Aug 25 Matt Aitken, English songwriter and rocker (Stock Aitken & Waterman-Road Block), born in Coventry, England
Aug 26 Sally Beamish, British violist and composer (Monster; River; The Singing; Spinal Chords), born in London, England
Aug 27 Constantine Orbelian, American pianist and conductor (Moscow Chamber Orchestra, 1991-2010; Kaunas City Symphony, 2014-present; New York City Opera, 2021-present), born in San Francisco, California
Aug 27 Glen Matlock, British punk rock bassist (The Sex Pistols; The Philistines), born in Paddington, London
Aug 29 (Jesus Christ) "G.G." Allin, American punk rock singer, born in Lancaster, New Hampshire (d. 1993)
Sep 4 Blackie Lawless [Steven Duren], American heavy metal singer and guitarist (W.A.S.P.), born in Staten Island, New York
Sep 5 Roine Stolt, Swedish guitarist (The Flower Kings), born in Uppsala, Sweden
Sep 7 Diane Warren, American songwriter ("Music of My Heart"; "If I Could Turn Back Time"), born in Van Nuys, California
Sep 7 Michael Feinstein, American jazz pianist, singer and Gershwin-ophile ("Isn't It Romantic"), born in Columbus, Ohio
Sep 8 "Wild" Mick Brown, American rock drummer (Dokken; Ted Nugent), born in San Mateo, California
Sep 8 Frank Tovey, British musician (Fad Gadget), born in London (d. 2002)
Sep 10 Johnny Fingers [John Moylett], Irish rocker (Boomtown Rats - "I Don't Like Mondays"), born in Dublin, Ireland
Sep 10 Johnny Hickman, American rock guitarist (Cracker), born in Redlands, California
Sep 12 Barry Andrews, British rock musician (XTC; League of Gentlemen; Shreikback), born in West Norwood, London
Sep 12 Leslie Cheung, Hong Kong actor, singer and composer (Farewell My Concubine), born in Hong Kong (d. 2003)
Sep 13 (Joan) "Joni" Sledge, American vocalist (Sister Sledge "We Are Family"), born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (d. 2017)
Sep 13 David Mansfield, American session and touring fiddler, guitarist, mandolin player (Bob Dylan; The Alpha Band; Buce Hornsby and The Range), and film score composer, born in Leonia, New Jersey
Sep 15 Jaki Graham, British R&B singer-songwriter ("Could It Be I'm Falling In Love"), born in Birmingham, England
Sep 15 Maggie Reilly, Scottish folk singer, born in Moodiesburn, Scotland
Sep 15 Ned Rothenberg, composer and multi-instrumentalist, born in Boston, Massachusetts
Sep 16 Charles Fearing, American touring and session guitarist, songwriter (Raydio), and producer, born in the USA
Sep 16 Dave Blood [Schulthise], American rock bassist (The Dead Milkmen - "Punk Rock Girl"), born in Ridley Park, Pennsylvania (d. 2004)
Sep 16 Peter Zaremba, American rocker (Fleshtones), born in Queens, New York
Sep 19 Lenny Castro, American session and touring percussionist (Melissa Manchester; Toto; Eric Clapton; The Crusaders), born in New York City
Sep 22 David Krakauer, American Grammy Award-winning klezmer, jazz and classical clarinetist (Klezmer Madness!), born in New York City
Sep 22 Debby Boone, American singer (You Light Up My Life), born in Hackensack, New Jersey
Sep 22 Masayuki Suzuki, Japanese singer (Rats & Star)
Sep 23 June Forester, American country singer (Forester Sister - "Mama's Never Seen Those Eyes"; "Men"), born in Lookout Mountain, Georgia
Sep 29 Suzzy Roche, American singer (The Roches), writer and actress, born in Park Ridge, New Jersey
Oct 2 Freddie Jackson, American R&B singer and songwriter ("Rock Me Tonight"), born in Harlem, New York
Oct 3 Sumi Tonooka, American jazz pianist and composer. (Out from the Silence), born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Oct 6 Mike Shipley, Australian audio engineer, and record producer of rock and country music (Paper Airplane), born in Sydney, Australia (d. 2013)
Oct 8 Danny Jacob, American session and touring guitarist (Bette Midler), and cartoon music composer (Phineas and Ferb), born in Los Angeles, California
Oct 8 Larry Crane, American rock guitarist (John Mellencamp band), born in Seymour, Indiana
Oct 12 David Vanian, British singer (The Damned - "Eloise"), born in Hemel Hempstead, England
Oct 15 Chris Lacklison, British pop keyboardist (Kenny - "Fancy Pants"; "Julie Anne"), born in London, England
Oct 16 Marin Alsop, American conductor and 1st woman to head a major American orchestra (Baltimore Symphony, 2007-2021; Vienna RSO, 2019-present), born in New York City
Oct 19 George Holzka, American fashion, portrait, commercial, and Grammy Award-winning album cover photographer, born in Oak Ridge, Tennessee
Oct 23 Dwight Yoakam, American country singer-songwriter ("Honky Tonk Man"), born in Pikeville, Kentucky
Oct 25 Matthias Jabs, German rock guitarist (Scorpions - "Wind of Change"), born in Hannover, Germany
Oct 26 Mike LeDonne, American jazz Hammond organist, pianist, and composer (Benny Golson; The Groover Quartet), born in Bridgeport, Connecticut

Rita Wilson (67 years old)

Oct 26 American actress, singer, and film producer, born in Los Angeles, California

Oct 27 Ben Besiakov, Danish jazz pianist and jazz-fusion keyboard player, born in Copenhagen, Denmark
Oct 28 Dave Wyndorf, American rock singer (Monster Magnet), born in Red Bank, New Jersey
Nov 4 James Honeyman-Scott, British rock guitarist (The Pretenders - "Brass in Pocket"), born in Hereford, Herefordshire, England (d. 1982)
Nov 4 Jordan Rudess, American progressive rock keyboardist (Dream Theater), born in New York
Nov 5 Helen O'Hara [Bevington], British rock violinist (Dexys Midnight Runners - "Come On Eileen"), born in Bristol, England
Nov 5 Jeff Watson, American rock guitarist (Night Ranger, 1982–89 & 1996–2007 - "Sister Christain"), born in Sacramento, California
Nov 5 Rob Fisher, British rock keyboardist (Naked Eyes - "Always Something There to Remind Me"), born in Bath, England (d. 1999)
Nov 7 Denise Jannah [Zeefuik], Suriname-Dutch jazz singer (Farmer's Market), born in Paramaribo, Suriname
Nov 7 Judy Tenuta, American stand-up comedienne and accordion player, born in Oak Park, Illinois (d. 2022)
Nov 9 Eve de Castro-Robinson, New Zealand classical composer (Other Echoes; A Chaos Of Delight), music director (Karlheinz Company), and educator (University of Auckland), born in London, England
Nov 9 Kevin Savigar, British session and touring keyboard player, songwriter, and record producer (Rod Stewart), born in London, England
Nov 10 Scott Columbus, American heavy metal drummer (Manowar, 1983–91 & 1994–2008), born in USA (d. 2011)