- May 1 Judy Collins, American Grammy Award-winning eclectic singer ("Send in the Clowns"; "Both Sides Now"), writer, and activist, born in Seattle, Washington
- May 2 Tony Asher, English-American lyricist ("God Only Knows"; "Wouldn't It Be Nice"; "That's Life"), born in London, England
- May 3 Jonathan Harvey, English composer (Bhakti, Music of Stockhausen), born in Sutton Coldfield, Birmingham (d. 2012)
- May 6 Herbie Cox, American pop vocalist (Cleftones - "Heart And Soul"), born in Cincinnati, Ohio
- May 7 Johnny Maestro, American rock vocalist (Crests - "16 Candles"; Brooklyn Bridge), born in Manhattan, New York (d. 2010)
- May 7 José Antonio Abreu, Venezuelan conductor, pianist and teacher (El Sistema), born in Valera, Venezuela (d. 2018)
- May 9 Bruce Mather, Canadian pianist and composer, born in Toronto, Ontario
- May 14 Troy Shondell, American singer ("This Time (We’re Really Breaking Up)"), born in Fort Wayne, Indiana (d. 2016)
- May 18 Gary S. Paxton [Larry Wayne Stevens], American musician and songwriter ("Monster Mash"; "Alley Oop)', born in Coffeyville, Kansas (d. 2016)
- May 19 (Cornelius) "Sonny" Fortune, American jazz saxophonist, born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (d. 2018)
- May 19 Richard Lowe Teitelbaum, American composer, born in New York City
- May 19 Tomasz Sikorski, Polish minimalist composer (Solitude of Sounds), born in Warsaw, Poland (d. 1988)
- May 20 María Luisa Ozaita, Spanish pianist, harpsichordist, musicologist, conductor, and composer (Pelleas y Melisanda), born in Baracaldo, Spain (d. 2017)
- May 21 Heinz Holliger, Swiss composer, oboist and conductor, born in Langenthal, Switzerland
- May 22 Árni Egilsson, Icelandic classical and jazz bassist and composer, born in Reykjavík, Iceland
- May 22 Ian Underwood, American musician (Frank Zappa), born in New York City
- May 23 Marvin Stamm, American jazz and session trumpeter, and flugelhorn player (Stan Kenton; Woody Herman; Thad Jones/Mel Lewis; Paul McCartney - "Uncle Albert"), born in Memphis, Tennessee
- May 23 Michel Colombier, French composer of film and concert music (Against All Odds), born in Lyon, France (d. 2004)
- May 24 Clint Miller, American rockabilly singer ("Bertha Lou"), and politician (Virginia House of Representatives, 1972-96), born in Ferguson, North Carolina
- May 27 Donald "Don" Williams, American country singer ("I Believe in You"), born in Floydada Texas (d. 2017)
- May 27 Leo LeBlanc, American country musician and pianist who was legally blind, born in Worcester, Massachusetts (d. 1995)
- May 31 Charles Drain, American soul singer, born in Eupora, Mississippi (d. 1995)
About May 1939
How Old? 84 or 85 years old
Generation: Silent Generation
Leap Year: No
Country Singers
Jazz Musicians
Opera Singers
Pop Stars
Rappers
Rockers