May 14

Art-rock's most neurotic genius David Byrne celebrates his 74th birthday today, the Talking Heads frontman whose twitchy stage presence and African rhythms proved that intellectualism and danceable grooves could coexist while his restless creativity kept him relevant across five decades beyond the band…

 

Blues lost its undisputed king on this day in 2015 when B.B. King died at 89, ending the career of the Mississippi guitarist whose Lucille and vibrato-heavy playing influenced every rock guitarist while his tireless touring made him blues' greatest ambassador across seven decades…

 

The Voice fell silent today in 1998 when Frank Sinatra died at 82 at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, ending the most influential singing career of the 20th century as the Chairman of the Board's phrasing and swagger defined American popular music for generations…

 

We remember Cream's melodic bassist Jack Bruce on his birthday today in 1943, the Scottish musician whose classical training and powerful vocals made him equal to Eric Clapton and Ginger Baker in rock's greatest power trio before his death in 2014 ended six decades of jazz-rock fusion…

 

British blues suffered a shocking loss on this day in 1976 when Yardbirds vocalist Keith Relf died at 33 from electrocution in his home basement while playing guitar, ending the career of the singer whose band had launched Clapton, Beck, and Page before this tragic accident…

 

Country romance reached peak glamour today in 2011 when Blake Shelton married Miranda Lambert, beginning the four-year marriage between two of Nashville's biggest stars before their 2015 divorce proved that even matching cowboy hats couldn't guarantee happiness…

 

Jazz lost and gained a legend on this day—Sidney Bechet was born in 1897 and died in 1959, the soprano saxophonist's life bookended by May 14th while his New Orleans style and Paris expatriation influenced generations before lung cancer claimed him at 62…

 

Neil Young found his electric sound today in 1969 with the release of 'Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere,' the album featuring Crazy Horse and "Cinnamon Girl" that proved the folk singer could rock as hard as anyone while establishing his guitar-shredding credentials..