Throwback: Happy 63rd Birthday, Melle Mel!

May is a busy month in music history:

• The 91st anniversary of the birth of the legendary godfather of soul James Brown was on May 3
• The legendary jazz bassist Ron Carter celebrated his 87th birthday on May 4
• The 68th anniversary of the birth of the great soul artist Sharon Jones was on May 4
• The 82nd anniversary of the birth of one of the most beloved singer/songwriters in country, Tammy Wynette was on May 5
• Echo & The Bunnymen‘s Ian McCullouch celebrated his 65th birthday on May 5
• Van Halen co-founder, drummer — and most important Eddie’s brother, Alex Van Halen celebrated his 71st birthday on May 8
• Depeche Mode frontman Dave Gahan celebrated his 62nd birthday on May 9
• U2‘s Bono celebrated his 64th birthday on May 10
• The Afghan Whigs, The Gutter Twins‘ and The Twilight Singers‘ Greg Dulli celebrated his 59th birthday on May 11
• The great Burt Bacharach was born 96 years ago on May 12
• The legendary Stevie Wonder celebrates his 74th birthday on May 13
• EPMD’s PMD celebrated his 55th birthday on May 13
• Cream‘s Jack Bruce was born 81 years ago on May 14
• The legendary Talking Heads frontman David Byrne celebrated his 72nd birthday on May 14

Hip hop pioneer Melle Mel celebrates his 63rd birthday today. I must pay tribute to the legendary pioneers like Melle Mel because without their work and efforts, hip-hop wouldn’t be the dominating force, and the lengua franca of just about anyone under 70.

Happy birthday, legend! May there be many, many more!