Throwback: Happy 73rd Birthday, Bootsy Collins!

October is a busy month in music history. 

• The Police’s legendary frontman Sting celebrated his 73rd birthday on October 2 
• Stevie Ray Vaughan was born 70 years ago on October 3
• The Roots‘ Black Thought, arguably one of the greatest living emcees celebrates his 51st birthday on October 3
• Chubby Checker, one of the pioneers of rock ‘n’ roll and R&B celebrated his 83rd birthday today on October 3
• AC/DC‘s Brian Johnson celebrates his 77th birthday on October 5
• Steve Miller Band‘s Steve Miller celebrated his 81st on October 5
• John Mellencamp celebrated his 73rd on October 7
• Thom Yorke celebrated his 56th birthday on October 7
• Pete Rock and CL Smooth‘s CL Smooth celebrated his 56th birthday on October 8 
• The legendary John Lennon was born 84 years ago on October 9
• PJ Harvey celebrated her 55th birthday on October 9
• Thelonious Monk was born 107 years ago today
• David Lee Roth, one of the greatest rock/metal frontman to ever live, and a member of the most beloved Van Halen lineup, ever, celebrated his 70th — yes, 70th! — birthday on October 10
• The legendary Art Blakey, was born on this day 105 years ago
• Daryl Hall, best known for his work with the blue-eyed soul duo Hall & Oates one of the most commercially successful duos ever, celebrated his 78th birthday on October 11
• MC Lyte celebrated her 54th birthday on October 11
• Sam Moore, best known for being one-half of the legendary soul and R&B duo Sam and Dave, celebrates his 89th birthday
• The Smithereens‘ frontman Pat DiNiziovwas born 69 years ago today. 
• Sammy Hagar, one of rock’s great frontmen celebrated his 77th birthday on October 13
• Art Tatum, one of the greatest — and somewhat unheralded — jazz pianists to ever live was born 115 years ago on October 13
• Thomas Dolby, who had a smash-hit with 1982’s “She Blinded Me With Science” celebrated his 66th birthday on October 14
• Fela Kuti was born 86 years ago on October 15
• Red Hot Chili Peppers‘ Flea, one of the greatest bassists in rock celebrated his 62nd birthday on October 16
• Jazz great Roy Hargrove was born 55 years ago on October 16
• Eminem celebrated his 52nd birthday on October 17 
• Chuck Berry was born 98 years ago on October 18
• Tom Petty, arguably one of the greatest singer/songwriters in rock history was born 74 years ago on October 20
• Snoop Dogg, one of the most original emcees ever — and arguably one of the greatest emcees to ever spit and record bars on wax, celebrated his 53rd birthday on October 20
• The legendary and pioneering jazz man John Birks “Dizzy” Gillespie was born 107 years ago on October 21
• Former Rolling Stones bassist Bill Wyman celebrated his 88th birthday on October 23
• Legendary former YES frontman and prog rock pioneer Jon Anderson celebrated his 80th birthday on October 25
• Red Hot Chili Peppers‘ Chad Smith celebrated his 61st birthday on October 25

Bootsy Collins is arguably one of the most important and preeminent bassists of the last 50 years. Collins first came to prominence for being a member of The Pacemakers, James Brown’s backing band after The J.B.’s. Although he only played with Brown for about 11 months, Collins recorded some of Brown’s funkiest and meanest work of catalog. In 1972, he joined Parliament Funkadelic — and the rest, as we all know is history.

Bootsy turns 73 today. So happy birthday, Mr. Collins! May there be 170 more.