May 26

Rock's most mystical voice Stevie Nicks celebrates her 78th birthday today, the Fleetwood Mac singer-songwriter whose "Rhiannon" and shawl-twirling witchiness made her rock's greatest female frontwoman while her cocaine-fueled romance with Lindsey Buckingham created the band's most legendary dysfunction…

 

We remember jazz's greatest innovator Miles Davis on his birthday today in 1926, the trumpeter whose journey from bebop through cool jazz, modal explorations, and electric fusion revolutionized the genre five times over while his uncompromising artistry influenced every musician across all genres before his death in 1991…

 

Peace took to bed today in 1969 when John Lennon and Yoko Ono began their eight-day Montreal "Bed-In" at the Fairmont Queen Elizabeth hotel, the couple recording "Give Peace a Chance" with a room full of celebrities while proving that publicity stunts could advance anti-war causes…

 

We honor the Band's greatest voice Levon Helm on his birthday today in 1943, the Arkansas drummer-vocalist whose lived-in singing on "The Weight" made him Americana's most authentic storyteller while his Midnight Ramble concerts kept the music alive before his throat cancer death in 2012…

 

Rock guitar lost a versatile workhorse on this day in 2025 when Rick Derringer died at 77, ending the career of the McCoys' "Hang on Sloopy" singer whose "Rock and Roll, Hoochie Koo" and production work for Weird Al Yankovic proved that garage rock credibility could sustain six decades…

 

Retro-rock's smoothest architect Lenny Kravitz was born on this day in 1964, the singer-guitarist whose devotion to 1960s and '70s sounds made him simultaneously authentic and derivative while his model looks and endless scarves made him MTV's most fashionable throwback…

 

Soul lost its most troubled voice today in 1968 when Little Willie John died at 30 in Washington State Prison while serving time for manslaughter, ending the career of the "Fever" singer whose influence on James Brown couldn't save him from violence and incarceration…

 

Pop royalty met the King of Pop today in 1994 when Lisa Marie Presley married Michael Jackson in a secret Dominican Republic ceremony, the 20-month marriage between Elvis's daughter and the Thriller star raising questions about publicity versus genuine romance before their 1996 divorce.