It’s Aries season, y’all! And the month or so of the astrological sign is busy and auspicious for music history:
- DJ Premier‘s birthday was on the 21st
- Edward James “Son” House‘s birthday was on the 21st
- Damon Albarn‘s birthday was on the 23rd
- Chaka Khan‘s birthday was on the 23rd
- Aretha Franklin‘s birthday was on the 25th
- Sir Elton John‘s birthday was on the 25th
- Diana Ross‘s birthday was on the 26th
- Teddy Pendergrass‘s birthday was on the 26th
- Mariah Carey‘s birthday was on the 27th
- My birthday was on the 28th
- Tracy Chapman‘s birthday was on the 30th
- AC/DC‘s Angus Young‘s birthday was on the 31st
- Gil Scott-Heron‘s birthday was on the 1st
- Marvin Gaye‘s birthday was on the 2nd
- Muddy Waters birthday was on the 4th
- Kraftwerk‘s co-founder Florian Schneider‘s birthday was on the 7th
- Biz Markie‘s birthday was on the 8th
- A Tribe Called Quest co-founder, Q-Tip‘s birthday was on the 10th
One of the greatest living jazz pianists, Herbie Hancock is also a fellow Aries, whose birthday is today. Hancock, who is still ridiculously active at 82, has bounced around several different styles of jazz, while also being an early adopter of synthesizers, programming, DJ scratching and a lot more. He’s also a living link to some of music’s greatest names including Miles Davis, Chick Corea, Jaco Pastorius, Joni Mitchell, and countless others.