May is a very busy month in music history:
- The 67th anniversary of Sharon Jones was on May 4
- U2′s Bono celebrated his 63rd birthday on May 10
- The Afghan Whigs‘, The Gutter Twins‘ and The Twilight Singers‘ Greg Dullicelebrated his 58th birthday on May 11
- The 95th anniversary of Burt Bacharach‘s birth was on May 12
- Stevie Wonder celebrated his 73rd birthday on May 13
- Talking Heads frontman David Byrne celebrated his 71st birthday on May14
- Nine Inch Nails creative mastermind Trent Reznor celebrates his 58th birthday on May 17
- The legendary bluesman Taj Mahal celebrated his 81st birthday on May 17
- The Who‘s Pete Townshend celebrated his 78th birthday on May 19
- The Ramones‘ Joey Ramone was born 72 years ago on May 19
- Grace Jones celebrated her 75th birthday on May 19
- Biggie was born 51 years ago on May 21
- The Isley Brothers‘ Ronald Isley celebrated his 82nd birthday on May 21
Sun Ra, one of the most forward-thinking, innovative and oddest characters in jazz — hell of any genre, really — was born 109 years ago yesterday. He’s largely considered one of the pioneers of Afro-futurism, a creative school that tends to focus on Blackness, the African Diaspora and space among other things.
Happy birthday to you, sir! Happy birthday wherever you are! As the legend goes, you’re back in Saturn.
