October 6

 

Rock drumming lost its most explosive personality on this day in 2019 when Ginger Baker died at 80, ending the volatile life of the Cream timekeeper whose jazz-influenced power and African rhythms revolutionized rock percussion while his difficult temperament became legendary…

 

Guitar's most innovative voice was silenced on this day in 2020 when Eddie Van Halen died at 65 after a long battle with throat cancer, taking with him the finger-tapping virtuoso who had redefined what was possible on electric guitar and influenced every rock guitarist who followed…

 

Smooth optimism left the charts today in 2020 when Johnny Nash died at 80, ending the life of the pop-reggae pioneer whose "I Can See Clearly Now" became an enduring anthem of hope that topped charts on both sides of the Atlantic in 1972…

 

Pop royalty played wedding party today in 1991 when Michael Jackson gave away the bride at Elizabeth Taylor's seventh wedding, cementing the unusual friendship between the King of Pop and Hollywood's legendary actress in one of celebrity culture's most surreal moments…

 

Power pop's melodic craftsman Matthew Sweet celebrates his 60th birthday today, the guitarist-songwriter whose 1991 album 'Girlfriend' revived jangly guitar rock and proved that intelligent pop could still find an audience in the grunge era…

 

REO Speedwagon's arena-rock voice Kevin Cronin turns 74 today, the frontman whose soaring vocals and heartfelt ballads like "Keep On Loving You" helped the Midwest rockers transition from hard rock to soft-rock radio dominance…

 

American popular music lost its most elegant arranger on this day in 1985 when Nelson Riddle died at 64, silencing the orchestrator whose sophisticated charts for Frank Sinatra, Nat King Cole, and Ella Fitzgerald defined the golden age of vocal jazz…

 

Country music's power couple was born today in 1996 when Faith Hill married Tim McGraw, uniting two of Nashville's biggest stars in a union that has produced both hit duets and one of the genre's most enduring marriages.