May 21
We remember jazz piano's greatest entertainer Fats Waller on his birthday today in 1904, the stride pianist whose "Ain't Misbehavin'" and comedic asides proved that technical virtuosity and humor could coexist while his prolific output before his death at 39 in 1943 influenced every jazz pianist who followed… David Bowie's Ziggy Stardust band lost its bassist today in 2013 when Trevor Bolder died at 62 from pancreatic cancer, ending the career of the musician whose thunderous playing on 'The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust' had been essential to glam rock's greatest album… Soft rock's most theatrical voice Leo Sayer was born today in 1948, the British singer whose clown makeup and "You Make Me Feel Like Dancing" proved that earnest balladry could achieve disco-era success while his curly hair became one of the 1970s' most distinctive images… Reggae's greatest prophet received a state funeral today in 1981 whe...
