The week in music history brought to you by MusicGoldmine.com.
MAY 19: Happy 70th Birthday to Dusty Hill of ZZ Too, born today in 1949!🎂🎸 Hill along with his brother Rocky and future ZZ Top bandmate Frank Beard played in local bands in the late 1960s. In 1968, Dusty and Frank moved to Houston and joined Billy Gibbons in the newly formed ZZ Top. Fast forward 50 years and Hill is still rocking with the band!🎶🎸🔥
MAY 20: Today in 2012, Robin Gibb of the Bee Gees passed away from liver and kidney failure due to colorectal cancer at the age of 62. 😢 He was the fraternal twin of Maurice. Along with Maurice and older brother Barry, the boys began performing in bands around Manchester. They moved to Australia and changed their name to the now famous Bee Gees. In addition to playing with his brothers, Robin also had a successful solo career. As part of the Bee Gees, he sold 200 million records worldwide and remains one of the best-selling artists of all time.
MAY 20: Happy birthday to Cher, born today in 1946! 🎂🎤 How many entertainers have been able to just go buy one name?! Cher has not only had a successful singing career, but is an Academy Award winning actress. In fact, she is 3/4 of the way to an EGOT, having won all but a Tony Award. Currently, she is the only artist to have a number one single on a Billboard chart in six consecutive decades, 1960s to 2010s, quite a feat. One of her earliest gigs in the early 60s was singing backup for Phil Spector produced hits, such as the Ronette's "Be My Little Baby" and the Righteous Brothers' "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'". Truly, a performer who has done it all and there just isn't enough room to write all her accomplishments. Cher is currently performing in Las Vegas.
MAY 21: Happy birthday to Leo Sayer, born today in 1948!🎂🎤 He began his career in the U.K. In the early 1970s. Starting out first as a songwriter, Sayer co-wrote with David Courtney before turning to recording songs himself. His peak success in the US would be in 1977 with the hits “You Make Me Feel Like Dancing” and “When I Need You”. Sayer is still at it and just released a new album in March of this year!🎶
MAY 22: On this day in 1971, The Rolling Stones were at #1 on the album chart with Sticky Fingers. Famously, the cover featured a working zipper! The album would stay at the top for four weeks. 📀
MAY 23: On this day in 1991, the iconic cover of Nirvana’s Nevermind was shot. They used five different babies before deciding that five-month old Spencer Eldon would be featured on the cover. *Image used for illustration purposes only.
MAY 24: Happy birthday to Bob Dylan, born today in 1941!🎂🎸 During his six decade career, he has been an influential poet, songwriter, singer, and author. Dylan first began playing rock n roll before focusing on folk music in the 1960s. In New York City’s Greenwich Village, he began to hone his craft and legally changed his name to Bob Dylan. He has sold more than 100 million records worldwide, won 10 Grammys, and the Nobel Prize in Literature.
MAY 25: Happy birthday to Klaus Meine, born today in 1948!🎂🎤 The Scorpions lead singer joined the band in 1969 and he and band mate Rudolf Schenker are the only two members that have been on every Scorpions album. He has written most of the band’s songs as well as composed some songs alone. In 1981, Meine lost his voice completely and was told to seek a new profession, but the band stuck by him through therapies and surgery until he could sing again.
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