1978 in music

Specific locations

• 1978 in British music
• 1978 in Norwegian music

  Specific genres

• 1978 in country music
• 1978 in heavy metal music
• 1978 in jazz

  Events

January–April

• January 14 – The Sex Pistols play their final show at San Francisco's Winterland Ballroom.
• January 16 – Elton John appears on this week's People without his trademark glasses. John will still wear glasses occasionally for the next ten years until wearing them permanently again.
• January 21 – As Saturday Night Fever becomes a cultural phenomenon, the soundtrack hits #1 on the Billboard Charts, where it will stay until July.
• January 23 – Terry Kath, guitarist and founding member of rock band Chicago, dies from an accidental gunshot wound to the head from a gun he thought was unloaded, in Woodland Hills, Los Angeles; he is 32 years old.
• January 25
• *Electric Light Orchestra kick off their "Out of the Blue" world tour in Honolulu, Hawaii.
• *Bob Dylan makes his directorial debut in the surrealist film Renaldo and Clara, shot during his Rolling Thunder Revue tour.
• January 26 – Workers at EMI's record processing plant in England refuse to press copies of The Buzzcocks's second single "What Do I Get?" because of its flipside, "Oh Shit!". The single is eventually pressed and goes on to become the band's first hit.
• January 28 – By request, Ted Nugent autographs his name into a fan's arm with a bowie knife in Philadelphia.
• February 4 – Elton John appears as the guest star on The Muppet Show.
• February 10 – Van Halen debuts with a self-titled album; Eddie Van Halen introduces a powerful new sound and technique to world, while David Lee Roth is ushered in as the front man.
• March 18 – California Jam II is held at the Ontario Motor Speedway in California. Over 300,000 fans come to see Ted Nugent, Aerosmith, Santana, Dave Mason, Foreigner, Heart and more.
• April 7 - Prince debuts with album For You. It was released by Warner Bros. Records. All tracks were produced, arranged, composed, and performed by Prince.
• April 22
• *In the Eurovision Song Contest in Paris, France, victory goes to Israel's entry "A-Ba-Ni-Bi", performed by Izhar Cohen & The Alphabeta.
• *The "One Love Peace Concert" is held in Kingston, Jamaica, headlined by Bob Marley, making his first concert appearance since December 1976.
• *Steve Martin performs the original "King Tut" on Saturday Night Live; also this night, The Blues Brothers make their first appearance on the show.

  May–July

• May 6 – The Knack is formed.
• May 13 – Barry Gibb becomes the only songwriter in history to have written 4 consecutive #1 singles on Billboard's Hot 100 Chart.
• May 18 – The Buddy Holly Story, starring Gary Busey, is released. It would win the Academy Award for Best Music, Original Song Score and Its Adaptation or Best Adaptation Score, and earn a nomination for Best Actor in a Leading Role and Best Sound.
• May 25 – In a performance used for The Kids Are Alright, The Who play their last show with Keith Moon.
• June 7 - Prince´s debut single Soft and Wet is released by Warner Bros. Records.
• June 10 – The Rolling Stones begin their 25-date US summer tour in Lakeland, Florida.
• June 13 – The Cramps play a free concert for patients at the Napa State Mental Hospital.
• June 16 – The film adaptation of the musical Grease, opens in theaters and is a box office hit.
• June 20 – Grace Slick splits with Jefferson Starship the day after a disastrous concert in Hamburg, Germany, in which a heavily intoxicated Slick verbally abused the crowd and groped various fans and bandmates.
• June 29 – Peter Frampton is nearly killed in a car accident in The Bahamas, suffering multiple broken bones, a concussion, and muscle damage.
• July 1 – The first Texxas Jam is held over the July 4 long weekend at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas. The first day features Ted Nugent, Aerosmith, Frank Marino and Mahogany Rush, Heart, Journey, Head East, Atlanta Rhythm Section, Eddie Money, Van Halen and Walter Egan. Sunday consists of Willie Nelson headlining his sixth annual Fourth of July picnic.
• July 19 – Dead Kennedys play their first concert, at the Mabuhay Gardens in San Francisco, California.
• July 21 – Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, a much-hyped musical film starring Peter Frampton and the Bee Gees performing the music of The Beatles, opens in theaters. The film is savaged by critics and proves a box office disappointment.
• July 29 – Glenn Goins, one of the lead vocalists for the band Parliament-Funkadelic dies of Hodgkin's lymphoma at age of 24.
• July 30 – Thin Lizzy officially announces that Gary Moore has replaced Brian Robertson on guitar.

  August–December

• August 26 – 80,000 concertgoers attend Mosport Speedway in Ontario for the "Canada Jam Festival", featuring sets by the Doobie Brothers, Commodores, Kansas, Village People, Dave Mason, the Atlanta Rhythm Section and Triumph.
• August 28 – 67,000 Funk fans assembled at Soldier Field in Chicago, Illinois to attend the first annual Funk Festival, billed as "One Nation Under A Groove", featuring A Taste of Honey, Parlet, Con Funk Shun, the Bar-Kays, and Parliament-Funkadelic.
• September 7 – The Who drummer Keith Moon dies in a central London flat after a prescription drug overdose at the age of 32.
• September 14–16 – The Grateful Dead perform three shows in Giza, Egypt, very close to the Sphinx and Great Pyramid.
• October 12 – Nancy Spungen, the American girlfriend of Sex Pistols bassist Sid Vicious, is found dead in a New York hotel room of a stab wound. Sid is arrested and charged with her murder.
• October 24 – Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richards pleads guilty to a reduced charge of possessing heroin in Toronto in 1977. The more serious charge of drug trafficking is dropped and Richards is given a one-year suspended sentence as well as ordered to play a charity concert for the blind.
• October 29 – Michael Schenker plays his final show with UFO in Stanford, California before leaving the group to rejoin Scorpions.
• November 21 – French pop star Dalida performed a concert at New York's Carnegie Hall.
• November 25
• *A now sober Alice Cooper releases the album From the Inside, which tells of his stay in rehab for alcoholism.
• *Aerosmith cuts a concert short after Steven Tyler suffers cuts to his face from a bottle that shatters upon hitting a stage monitor.
• *Donna Summer becomes the first female artist of the modern rock era to have the number one single and album on Billboard charts simultaneously.
• November 27 – Def Leppard's permanent drummer Rick Allen joins the band at the age of 15.
• December 2 The seventh edition of the OTI Festival, the Latin American spin-off of the Eurovision Song Contest takes place in Santiago, Chile. The winning country is Brazil, represented by Denisse de Kalafe with her song "El amor...Cosa tan rara"
• December 31
• *Matthias Jabs joins Scorpions, replacing Uli Jon Roth.
• *The seventh annual New Year's Rockin' Eve special airs on ABC, with performances by Barry Manilow, Village People, Chuck Mangione, Tanya Tucker and Rick James.
• *CBS airs New Year's Eve with Guy Lombardo for the final time, nearly two years after the band leader's death and ending a 22-year run that began in 1956.
• *The Winterland Ballroom venue in San Francisco closes with a New Year's Eve performance by the Grateful Dead, New Riders of the Purple Sage and the Blues Brothers.
• *Iron Maiden records a demo, consisting of four songs, at Spaceward Studios in Cambridge which would eventually become The Soundhouse Tapes.

  Also in 1978

• Kenny Rogers continues his highly successful solo career with the single "The Gambler" and will go on to star in no less than five movies based around the song.
• In the UK, singles sales are at their all-time high this year, boosted by the simultaneous peak of the disco and punk phenomena and the success of singles from the movie Grease.
• Mozambique holds its first National Dance Festival, involving half a million people.
• November – Iron Maiden hires lead singer Paul Di'Anno.
• New Edition formed in 1978 in Massachusetts, USA.

  Bands disbanded

• See :Category:Musical groups disestablished in 1978

  Albums released

January

February

March

April

May

June

July

August

September

October

November

December

Release Date Unknown

• 2 Hot – Peaches & Herb
• 3 Phasis – Cecil Taylor
• After the Heat – Eno Moebius Roedelius
• Africa Must Be Free by 1983 – Hugh Mundell
• Against the Grain – Phoebe Snow
• Alive on Arrival – Steve Forbert
• ' – Brian Eno
• Awaiting Your Reply – Resurrection Band
• Animal House – Various Artists – Soundtrack
• At the Third Stroke – Russ Ballard
• At Yankee Stadium – NRBQ
• Best Dressed Chicken in Town – Dr. Alimantado
• The Best of Bette – Bette Midler
• Blam! – The Brothers Johnson
• Bloodbrothers – The Dictators
• Bobby Caldwell – Bobby Caldwell
• Book Early – City Boy
• Bruised Orange – John Prine
• Burchfield Nines – Michael Franks
• Bush Doctor – Peter Tosh
• Caravan to Midnight – Robin Trower
• Carlene Carter – Carlene Carter
• Cecil Taylor Unit – Cecil Taylor
• Central Heating – Heatwave
• Cha Cha – Herman Brood – Live
• Cheryl Ladd – Cheryl Ladd
• Chuck Berry Live in Concert – Chuck Berry – Live
• Cidade do Salvador – Gilberto Gil
• Count Basie Meets Oscar Peterson – The Timekeepers – Count Basie and Oscar Peterson
• The Cream – John Lee Hooker
• Departure from the Northern Wasteland – Michael Hoenig
• DMZ – DMZ
• Dream – Captain & Tennille
• Dream Dancing – Ella Fitzgerald
• Dream of a Child – Burton Cummings
• Durch die Wüste – Hans-Joachim Roedelius
• Everybody's Dancin – Kool & the Gang
• Every Time Two Fools Collide – Kenny Rogers & Dottie West
• Final Exam – Loudon Wainwright III
• ' – Yo-Yo Ma
• Fool Around – Rachel Sweet
• From Rats to Riches – Good Rats
• Funk or Walk – The Brides of Funkenstein
• Funky Situation – Wilson Pickett
• Further Adventures Of – Bruce Cockburn
• Génération 78 – Dalida
• Get It Out'cha System – Millie Jackson
• Get Off – Foxy
• Girl Most Likely – Claudja Barry
• Golden Country Origins – Bill Haley
• Grab It for a Second – Golden Earring
• Greatest Hits – Captain & Tennille
• Guaranteed – Ronnie Drew
• Handsworth Revolution – Steel Pulse
• Heat in the Street – Pat Travers
• Honky Tonk Masquerade – Joe Ely
• How Long Has This Been Going On? – Sarah Vaughan
• I Love My Music – Wild Cherry
• If You Knew Suzi... – Suzi Quatro
• The Incredible Shrinking Dickies – The Dickies
• Instant Replay – Dan Hartman
• Janis Ian – Janis Ian
• Killin' Time – Gasolin'
• Lanquidity – Sun Ra
• Life Beyond L.A. – Ambrosia
• Life in a Scotch Sitting Room, Vol. 2 – Ivor Cutler
• Lights from the Valley – Chilliwack
• Live at Last – Steeleye Span
• Live Floating Anarchy 1977 – Gong
• Live in London – Helen Reddy
• Live in the Black Forest – Cecil Taylor
• Live Tonite – Prism – live album
• The London Concert – Oscar Peterson
• Mama Let Him Play – Jerry Doucette
• Marcus' Children – Burning Spear
• Meanwhile Back in Paris – Streetheart
• Midstream – Debby Boone
• Midnight Believer – B. B. King
• Modra Rijeka – Indexi
• Music for 18 Musicians – Steve Reich
• Natural Force – Bonnie Tyler
• Night Rider – Count Basie and Oscar Peterson
• No New York – Various Artists
• No Smoke Without Fire – Wishbone Ash
• Of Queues and Cures – National Health
• The Paris Concert – Oscar Peterson
• Pat Metheny Group – Pat Metheny Group
• Pleasure Principle – Parlet
• Portrait of the Artist as a Young Ram – Ram Jam
• Power in the Darkness – Tom Robinson Band
• Pronto Monto – Kate and Anna McGarrigle
• Raydio – Raydio
• Return of the Wanderer – Dion DiMucci
• Return to Magenta – Mink DeVille
• Salterbarty Tales – Earthstar
• See Forever Eyes – Prism
• Sherbet – Sherbet
• Shpritsz – Herman Brood
• Sleeper Catcher – Little River Band
• So Full of Love – The O'Jays
• Solar Music – Live – Grobschnitt
• Sounds...and Stuff Like That!! – Quincy Jones
• Spyro Gyra – Spyro Gyra
• Step II – Sylvester
• Strangers in the Wind – Bay City Rollers
• Super Blue – Freddie Hubbard
• Survivor – Randy Bachman
• A Taste of Honey – A Taste of Honey
• Thank God It's Friday – Various Artists – Soundtrack
• That's Life – Sham 69
• Third – Big Star
• ' – Mel Tormé, Buddy Rich
• Togetherness – L.T.D.
• To the Limit – Joan Armatrading
• Totally Hot – Olivia Newton-John
• A Touch on the Rainy Side – Jesse Winchester
• Truth n' Time – Al Green
• Viva – La Düsseldorf
• Von Gestern bis Heute – Die Flippers
• Way of the Sun – Jade Warrior
• Weekend in L.A. – George Benson
• Whatever Happened to Benny Santini? – Chris Rea
• When I Dream – Crystal Gayle
• Who's Happy Now? – Connie Francis
• The Wonderful Grand Band – The Wonderful Grand Band
• Worlds Away – Pablo Cruise
• Yessir, That's My Baby – Count Basie and Oscar Peterson
• You Light Up My Life'' – Johnny Mathis

  Biggest hit singles

#	Artist	Title	Year	Country	Chart entries
1	Bee Gees	Stayin' Alive	1977	/	US BB 1 – Dec 1977, Canada 1 – Jan 1978, Netherlands 1 – Feb 1978, France 1 – Feb 1978, Italy 1 of 1978, Australia 1 for 7 weeks Jan 1979, US CashBox 2 of 1978, Austria 2 – Apr 1978, Switzerland 2 – Mar 1978, Germany 2 – Mar 1978, Scrobulate 2 of disco, Sweden 3 – Mar 1978, UK 4 – Feb 1978, Norway 4 – Mar 1978, Australia 4 of 1978, South Africa 4 of 1978, US BB 8 of 1978, POP 8 of 1978, AFI 9, OzNet 9, Party 13 of 2007, RYM 34 of 1977, Europe 36 of the 1970s, 80 in 2FM list, RIAA 94, Acclaimed 98, Germany 100 of the 1970s, Rolling Stone 189
2	John Travolta & Olivia Newton-John	You're the One That I Want	1978	/	UK 1 – May 1978, US BB 1 – Apr 1978, Canada 1 – Apr 1978, Netherlands 1 – May 1978, Sweden 1 – Jul 1978, Switzerland 1 – Jul 1978, Norway 1 – Jul 1978, Australia 1 of 1978, Germany 1 – Jun 1978, Republic of Ireland 1 – Jun 1978, Australia 1 for 2 weeks Apr 1979, Austria 2 – Jul 1978, France 5 – May 1978, US CashBox 9 of 1978, Italy 12 of 1978, POP 15 of 1978, US BB 17 of 1978, Germany 17 of the 1970s, South Africa 17 of 1978, TOTP 20, Poland 26 – Jul 1998, Global 33 – 1978, Europe 72 of the 1970s, RYM 153 of 1978
3	Village People	Y.M.C.A.	1978		UK 1 – Nov 1978, Netherlands 1 – Dec 1978, Sweden 1 – Dec 1978, Austria 1 – Jan 1979, Switzerland 1 – Dec 1978, Germany 1 – Jan 1979, Republic of Ireland 1 – Jan 1979, Australia 1 for 5 weeks Oct 1979, POP 1 of 1979, US BB 2 – Nov 1978, Canada 2 – Dec 1978, Norway 2 – Jan 1979, US BB 3 of 1979, France 3 – Dec 1978, Party 03 of 1999, US CashBox 4 of 1979, Global 7 – 1978, Australia 15 of 1979, Germany 23 of the 1970s, Scrobulate 38 of disco, Europe 86 of the 1970s, RIAA 86, RYM 95 of 1978, Acclaimed 1662
4	Boney M	Rivers of Babylon	1978		UK 1 – Apr 1978, Netherlands 1 – Apr 1978, Sweden 1 – May 1978, France 1 – May 1978, Austria 1 – May 1978, Switzerland 1 – Apr 1978, Norway 1 – May 1978, Germany 1 – Apr 1978, Republic of Ireland 1 – May 1978, Australia 1 for 6 weeks Apr 1979, South Africa 1 of 1978, Australia 3 of 1978, Germany 3 of the 1970s, TOTP 8, US BB 30 – Jul 1978, Italy 36 of 1978, RYM 77 of 1978, Global 100 – 1978, OzNet 867
5	Bee Gees	Night Fever	1978	/	UK 1 – Apr 1978, US BB 1 – Feb 1978, US CashBox 1 of 1978, Canada 1 – Feb 1978, France 1 – Apr 1978, Republic of Ireland 1 – Apr 1978, Norway 2 – May 1978, Germany 2 – May 1978, Netherlands 3 – Apr 1978, Switzerland 3 – May 1978, Austria 4 – Jun 1978, Sweden 5 – May 1978, US BB 10 of 1978, POP 11 of 1978, South Africa 12 of 1978, Italy 29 of 1978, Scrobulate 39 of 70s, RYM 59 of 1978, Party 77 of 1999, Germany 94 of the 1970s, Europe 96 of the 1970s, OzNet 894, Acclaimed 2046

Chronological table of US and UK number one hit singles

• How Deep Is Your Love – Bee Gees
• "Baby Come Back" – Player
• Stayin' Alive – Bee Gees
• " Thicker Than Water" – Andy Gibb
• "Night Fever" – Bee Gees, best selling single of the year
• "If I Can't Have You" – Yvonne Elliman
• "With a Little Luck" – Paul McCartney & Wings
• "Too Much, Too Little, Too Late" – Johnny Mathis & Deniece Williams
• You're The One That I Want – John Travolta & Olivia Newton-John
• "Shadow Dancing" – Andy Gibb
• Miss You – The Rolling Stones
• "Three Times a Lady" – Commodores
• Grease – Frankie Valli
• "Boogie Oogie Oogie" – A Taste of Honey
• "Kiss You All Over" – Exile
• "Hot Child in the City" – Nick Gilder
• "You Needed Me" – Anne Murray
• "MacArthur Park" – Donna Summer
• "You Don't Bring Me Flowers" – Barbra Streisand & Neil Diamond
• "Le Freak" – Chic

• "Mull of Kintyre" / "Girls' School" – Paul McCartney & Wings
• "Uptown Top Ranking" – Althea & Donna
• "Figaro" – Brotherhood of Man
• "Take a Chance On Me" – ABBA
• "Wuthering Heights" – Kate Bush
• "Matchstalk Men and Matchstalk Cats and Dogs" – Brian and Michael
• "Night Fever" – Bee Gees
• "Rivers of Babylon" – Boney M best selling single of the year
• "You're the One That I Want" – John Travolta & Olivia Newton-John
• "Three Times a Lady" – Commodores
• "Dreadlock Holiday" – 10cc
• "Summer Nights" – John Travolta & Olivia Newton-John
• "Rat Trap" – The Boomtown Rats
• "Do Ya Think I'm Sexy?" – Rod Stewart
• "Mary's Boy Child"/"Oh My Lord" – Boney M

  Other significant singles

Published popular music

• "Another Suitcase in Another Hall" w. Tim Rice m. Andrew Lloyd Webber from the musical Evita
• "Dallas theme song" m. Jerrold Immel
• "Don't Cry for Me Argentina" w. Tim Rice m. Andrew Lloyd Webber from the musical Evita
• "Grease" w.m. Barry Gibb from the film Grease
• "Honesty" w.m. Billy Joel
• "Hopelessly Devoted to You" w.m. John Farrar introduced by Olivia Newton-John in the film Grease
• "My Life" w.m. Billy Joel
• "Only the Good Die Young" w.m. Billy Joel
• "Sultans of Swing" w.m. Mark Knopfler
• "Thank You for Being a Friend" w.m. Andrew Gold
• "Three Times a Lady" w.m. Lionel Richie
• "You Don't Bring Me Flowers" w. Alan Bergman, Marilyn Bergman & Neil Diamond m. Neil Diamond
• "You're the One That I Want" w.m. John Farrar introduced by Olivia Newton-John and John Travolta in the film Grease

  Classical music

• John Adams – Shaker Loops, for string septet
• Malcolm Arnold – Symphony No. 8
• Peter Maxwell Davies – Salome, ballet in two acts
• Jacob Druckman – Viola Concerto
• Henri Dutilleux – Timbres, espace, mouvement
• Arvo Pärt – Spiegel im Spiegel
• Alexandre Rabinovitch-Barakovsky – Requiem pour une marée noire
• Steve Reich – Music for a Large Ensemble
• Iannis Xenakis – Mycènes Alpha

  Opera

• Robert Ashley – Perfect Lives
• Lorenzo Ferrero – Rimbaud, ou le fils du soleil
• Vivian Fine – The Women in the Garden
• György Ligeti – Le Grand Macabre
• Krzysztof Penderecki – Paradise Lost
• Aulis Sallinen – The Red Line

  Ballet

• Lorenzo Ferrero – Invito a nozze

  Jazz

Musical theater

• Ain't Misbehavin' Broadway revue opened at the Longacre Theatre on May 9 and ran for 1604 performances
• The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas opened at the Entermedia Theatre on April 17 and ran for 85 performances. The show moved to Broadway in June 1978, and ran for 1584 performances.
• Eubie Broadway revue opened at the Ambassador Theatre on September 20 and ran for 439 performances
• Evita – London production opened at the Prince Edward Theatre on June 21
• Hello, Dolly! – Broadway revival opened at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre on March 5 and ran for 152 performances
• I'm Getting My Act Together and Taking It on the Road Off-Broadway production opened at the Anspacher Theater on June 14 and ran for 1165 performances
• Timbuktu Broadway production opened at the Mark Hellinger Theatre on March 1 and ran for 243 performances
• On The Twentieth Century Broadway production opened at the St. James Theatre on February 19 and ran for 460 performances

  Musical films

• American Hot Wax
• The Buddy Holly Story
• Don
• FM
• Grease
• Heeralaal Pannalaal
• Rockers
• Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
• Thank God It's Friday
• The Wiz

  Births

• January 3 – Kimberley Locke, American singer
• January 4 – Mai Meneses, Spanish singer-songwriter and guitarist
• January 5 – Karnail Pitts, American rapper
• January 9 – A. J. McLean, American singer
• January 12
• *Kris Roe, American rock guitarist and singer
• *Jeremy Camp, American Christian guitarist and singer
• January 17 – Ricky Williams, English singer
• January 20 – Sid Wilson, American rock turntablist
• January 21
• *Nokio the N-Tity, American singer-songwriter and producer
• *Phil Stacey, American singer
• January 23 – E. Kidd Bogart, American music executive, television producer, music publisher and songwriter
• January 31 – Ibolya Oláh, Hungarian singer
• February 1 – Jeff Conrad
• February 12 – Brian Chase
• February 14 – Ryan Griffiths, guitarist
• February 19 – Immortal Technique Underground rapper
• February 22 – Jenny Frost, British singer
• February 24 – John Nolan, American rock lead singer
• February 28 – Jeanne Cherhal, French singer-songwriter
• March 10 – Benjamin Burnley, American musician
• March 12 – Claudio Sanchez, American singer/songwriter
• March 19 – Lenka, Australian singer and actress
• March 21 – Kevin Federline, American
• March 30 – Simon Webbe, English singer
• March 31 – Tony Yayo, American rapper
• April 6 – Myleene Klass, English singer, pianist, media personality and model
• April 7 – Duncan James, English singer
• April 9 – Rachel Stevens, English singer, songwriter, actress, television presenter, model and businesswoman
• April 11 – Thomas Thacker, Canadian singer
• April 12 – Guy Berryman, Scottish rock bass player
• April 15 – Chris Stapleton, American country musician
• April 16 – Jody Marie Gnant, American singer-songwriter and pianist
• April 21
• *Jukka Nevalainen, Finnish drummer
• *Branden Steineckert
• April 22 – Jason Stollsteimer, American lead singer and guitarist
• May 3 – Paul Banks, American rock vocalist
• May 12 – Wilfred Le Bouthillier, Canadian singer
• May 21 – Adam Gontier, Canadian-born rock musician
• May 22 – Katie Price, English media personality, model, singer, author, and businesswoman.
• May 23 – Scott Raynor, American rock musician
• May 25 – Adam Gontier, Canadian singer, songwriter and musician
• May 29 – Adam Rickitt, British actor, singer and model
• May 30 – Kianna Alarid, American indie rock singer and bass guitarist
• June 6
• *Carl Barât, English rock singer and guitarist
• *Joy Enriquez, American singer and actress
• June 7 – Tony Ahn, South Korean singer
• June 9 – Matthew Bellamy, English musician, singer and songwriter
• June 10 – Shane West, American actor, punk rock musician and songwriter
• June 13 – Jason Michael Carroll, American country musician
• June 19 – Mía Maestro, Argentine actress and singer-songwriter
• June 24
• *Ariel Pink, American singer-songwriter, musician, producer
• *Emppu Vuorinen, Finnish guitarist and songwriter
• June 27 – Lolly, English singer
• June 29
• * Sam Farrar
• * Nicole Scherzinger, American recording artist, television personality and performer
• July 10
• * Jesse Lacey, singer/musician, member of Brand New and Taking Back Sunday
• * Ray Kay, Norwegian director, music video director and photographer
• July 16 – T. J. Jackson, American singer and member 3T
• July 17
• *Panda Bear, American singer-songwriter and keyboard player
• *Trevor McNevan, Canadian singer-songwriter
• *Émilie Simon, French singer-songwriter
• July 18 – Annie Mac, Irish-born DJ and broadcast presenter
• August 1 – Dhani Harrison, English musician and son of George Harrison of The Beatles
• August 7
• * Jamey Jasta, American rock singer
• * Justin Young, American Hawaiian singer-songwriter, musician and significant other of Colbie Caillat
• August 15 – Tim Foreman, American rock bassist
• August 18 – Andy Samberg, American actor, comedian, filmmaker and musician, member of The Lonely Island and spouse of Joanna Newsome
• August 22 – James Corden, English actor, writer, producer, comedian, television host and singer
• August 23 – Julian Casablancas, American indie rock singer-songwriter and record producer
• August 28
• *Max Collins
• *Jess Margera, American drummer
• August 30 – Maino, rapper
• September 6 – Cisco Adler, American musician
• * Foxy Brown American-Trinidadian rapper
• September 9 – Johnny Shentall, English singer
• September 11 – Ben Lee, Australian singer
• September 20
• *Patrizio Buanne, Italian singer
• *Sarit Hadad, Israeli pop singer
• * DJ White Shadow, American music producer and DJ
• September 30 – Steve Klein
• October 2 – Ayumi Hamasaki, Japanese singer
• October 3 – Jake Shears, American singer
• October 7 – Alison Balsom, English classical trumpeter
• October 9 – Nicky Byrne, Irish singer
• October 14 – Usher, American singer, dancer and actor
• October 20 – Kira, German singer
• October 27 – Vanessa-Mae, British violinist
• November 6 – Taryn Manning, American actress, singer-songwriter and fashion designer
• November 9 – Sisqó, American singer
• November 10 – Eve, American rapper
• November 11 – Aaron Bruno, American singer, songwriter, musician and multi-instrumentalist
• November 13 – Nikolai Fraiture, American rock bassist
• November 16 – Carolina Parra
• November 18 – Andris Nelsons, Latvian conductor
• November 22 – Karen O, South Korean-born American singer, songwriter, musician and record producer
• November 23 – Alison Mosshart, American singer, songwriter and artist, lead vocalist of The Kills and The Dead Weather
• November 25 – Shiina Ringo, Japanese singer and musician
• November 30
• *Clay Aiken, American singer
• * Gael García Bernal, Mexican film actor, director, singer, musician, model and producer
• December 1 – Brad Delson, American alternative rock guitarist
• December 2
• *Nelly Furtado, Canadian/Portuguese singer, songwriter, record producer, instrumentalist
• *Chris Wolstenholme, English alternative rock bass guitarist )
• December 9, – Jesse Metcalfe, American singer and actor
• December 13 – laza Morgan, Jamaican-American singer and rapper
• December 15
• * Ned Brower, American rock drummer
• * Mark Jansen, Dutch guitarist, vocalist and songwriter
• December 21
• *Maya Jupiter, Mexican/Turkish Australian rapper, songwriter, MC and radio personality
• *Shaun Morgan, South African singer, songwriter, musician, guitarist
• December 23 – Esthero, Canadian singer-songwriter
• December 24 – Tonedeff, American rapper
• December 28
• * John Legend, American singer-songwriter, actor, musician and actor
• * Phonte, American rapper
• December 29
• *Steve Kemp, British musician
• *LaToya London, American R&B and soul singer

  Deaths

• January 3 – Jack Oakie, 74, actor in many musical films of the 1940s
• January 23
• *Terry Kath, 31, Chicago guitarist and vocalist
• *Vic Ames, 52, Ames Brothers
• January 31 – Gregory Herbert, Blood, Sweat & Tears saxophonist
• February 7 – Dimitrie Cuclin, 82, composer and musicologist
• March 4 – Joe Marsala, 71, clarinetist and songwriter
• March 11 – Claude François, 39, singer-songwriter
• March 17 – Malvina Reynolds, 77, US folk/blues singer-songwriter
• March 18 – Peggy Wood, 86, actress and singer
• March 21 – Louis Cottrell, Jr., 67, saxophonist and clarinet player
• April 3 – Ray Noble, 74, composer and bandleader
• April 21 – Sandy Denny, 31, folk singer
• May 1 – Aram Khachaturian, 74, composer
• May 5 – Ján Móry, 85, Slovak composer
• May 26 – Tamara Karsavina, 93, ballerina
• July 14 – Maria Grinberg, 69, pianist
• July 29 – Glenn Goins, 24, Parliament Funkadelic guitarist and singer
• August 1 – Rudolf Kolisch, 82, Viennese and American violinist and quartet leader
• August 14 – Joe Venuti, 74, US jazz violinist
• August 24 – Louis Prima, 67, jazz musician
• September 6 – Tom Wilson, 47, producer
• September 7 – Keith Moon, 32, drummer of The Who
• September 24 – Ruth Etting, 80, US "torch" singer
• October 6 – Johnny O'Keefe, 43, Australian Singer
• October 9 – Jacques Brel, 49, singer-songwriter
• October 12 – Nancy Spungen, 20, girlfriend of Sid Vicious
• October 23 – Maybelle Carter née Addington, 69, US country singer and musician, member of the Carter Family
• November 12 – Howard Swanson, 71, composer
• November 18 – Lennie Tristano, 59, jazz pianist
• December 3 – William Grant Still, 83, composer
• December 27 – Chris Bell, 27, singer-songwriter