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Paavo Lötjönen (born 29 July 1968) is a #cello #player for Finnish #Symphonic #metal #band Apocalyptica. Paavo comes from a family where both of his parents were professional musicians. [2] At the age of 6,[3] he took a cello and decided that would be the instrument he would play all his life. Like fellow band members Perttu Kivilaakso and Eicca Toppinen he attended Sibelius Academy in Helsinki.

20 years later, Paavo got his “Solist Cellist” diploma at the Sibelius Academy and shortly after began to work as a cello teacher in music schools. He played in the “Finnish National Opera” as well. He plays a Gulbrandt Enger cello (1882) with a R. Wainio bow.

Apart from his work with Apocalyptica he is a cello teacher and a skiing instructor. He also enjoys parachute-diving, windsurfing and water skiing.[4]

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Neal Allan Doughty (born July 29, 1946) is an American #keyboardist, best known as a founding #member of the #rock #band REO Speedwagonand the only member to have played on every album. He formed the band in the fall of 1967, with original drummer Alan Gratzer.

Although he has never been one of REO Speedwagon’s primary songwriters, Doughty has written or co-written several of the band’s songs. Songs for which he is the sole composer include “Sky Blues” from 1974, “One Lonely Night” from 1984 and “Variety Tonight” from 1987. The latter two songs charted as Billboard singles, with “One Lonely Night” cracking the top 20.

His most notable playing includes the Hammond Organ solo on “Roll With The Changes” and the honky-tonk piano work on “157 Riverside Avenue”. He notes the piano track to “Can’t Fight This Feeling” was his most difficult studio performance, but is now his favorite part of live concerts.

He was an early adopter of the Moog Synthesizer, which can be heard on the opening swoop of “Ridin’ The Storm Out.”[1]Currently, he is using synths made by Korg and Yamaha and tours with a Hammond B3 Organ routed through Leslie speaker cabinets.

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Paavo Lötjönen (born 29 July 1968) is a #cello #player for Finnish #Symphonic #metal #band Apocalyptica. Paavo comes from a family where both of his parents were professional musicians. [2] At the age of 6,[3] he took a cello and decided that would be the instrument he would play all his life. Like fellow band members Perttu Kivilaakso and Eicca Toppinen he attended Sibelius Academy in Helsinki.

20 years later, Paavo got his “Solist Cellist” diploma at the Sibelius Academy and shortly after began to work as a cello teacher in music schools. He played in the “Finnish National Opera” as well. He plays a Gulbrandt Enger cello (1882) with a R. Wainio bow.

Apart from his work with Apocalyptica he is a cello teacher and a skiing instructor. He also enjoys parachute-diving, windsurfing and water skiing.[4]

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Official Live: 101 Proof is a #live #album released by #groove #trash #metal #band Pantera on July 29, 1997. The first fourteen tracks are live recordings of songs from previously released studio albums (starting with Cowboys from Hell); the last two songs (“Where You Come from” and “I Can’t Hide”) are new studio recordings.

Pan͟t͟era - Off͟i͟c͟ial Li͟ve: 10͟1 Pr͟o͟of (Full Live Album 1997)

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Geddy Lee Weinrib, OC (born Gary Lee Weinrib; July 29, 1953), known professionally as Geddy Lee, is a Canadian #musician, #singer, and #songwriter best known as the #lead #vocalist, #bassist, and #keyboardist for the Canadian rock group Rush. Lee joined what would become Rush in September 1968, at the request of his childhood friend Alex Lifeson, replacing original bassist and frontman Jeff Jones.[3] Lee’s first and so far only solo effort, My Favourite Headache, was released in 2000.

An award-winning musician, Lee’s style, technique, and skill on the bass guitar have inspired many rock musicians such as Cliff Burton of Metallica,[4] Steve Harris of Iron Maiden,[5] John Myung of Dream Theater,[6]Les Claypool of Primus,[7] and Tim Commerford of Rage Against the Machine and Audioslave.[8] Along with his Rush bandmates – guitarist Alex Lifeson and drummer Neil Peart – Lee was made an Officer of the Order of Canada on May 9, 1996. The trio was the first rock band to be so honoured, as a group.[9] In 2013, the group was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame after 14 years of eligibility; they were nominated overwhelmingly in the Hall’s first selection via fan ballot.[10] Lee is ranked 13th by Hit Parader on their list of the 100 Greatest Heavy Metal Vocalists of All Time.[11]

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Cass Elliot (September 19, 1941 – July 29, 1974), also known as Mama Cass, was an American #singer and #member of #folk #rock #group The Mamas & the Papas. After the #group broke up, she released five solo albums. In 1998, Elliot, John Phillips,Denny Doherty, and Michelle Phillips were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame for their work as The Mamas & the Papas.

With two female members, The New Journeymen needed a new name. According to Doherty, Elliot had the inspiration for the band’s new name; as written on his website:

“We’re all just lying around vegging out watching TV and discussing names for the group. The New Journeymen was not a handle that was going to hang on this outfit. John was pushing for The Magic Cyrcle. Eech, but none of us could come up with anything better, then we switch the channel and, hey, it’s the Hells Angelson the Carson show… And the first thing we hear is: “Now hold on there, Hoss. Some people call our women cheap, but we just call them our Mamas.” Cass jumped up: “Yeah! I want to be a Mama.” And Michelle is going: “We’re the Mamas! We’re the Mamas!” OK. I look at John. He’s looking at me going: “The Papas?” Problem solved. A toast! To The Mamas and the Papas. Well, after many, many toasts, Cass and John are passed out.”

Doherty also said that the occasion marked the beginning of his affair with Michelle Phillips. Elliot, who was in love with Doherty, was displeased when he told her of the affair. Doherty has said that Elliot once proposed to him, but that he was so stoned at the time, he could not even respond.

The Mamas & the Papas continued to record to meet the terms of their record contract. Their final album was released in 1971.

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"Futureal" is a single from the Iron Maiden album Virtual XI, released on July 28, 1998. It is the last single by the band to feature vocalist Blaze Bayley, as he parted ways with the band in February 1999.

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Simon Kirke (born 28 July 1949) is an English #rock #drummer best known as a member of  #rock #band Free and Bad Company.

Kirke and Paul Kossoff left the band and with Paul Rodgers and Andy Fraser formed Free. In the four years Free were together they had an enormous influence on many bands on both sides of the Atlantic. Their biggest hit, “All Right Now”, was a number one in more than 20 territories and was acknowledged by ASCAP(American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers) in 1990 as having received more than 1,000,000 radio plays in the US by late 1989. In 2000 an award was given to Paul Rodgers by the British Music Industry when “All Right Now” passed 2,000,000 radio plays in the UK.

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Steven J. “Steve” Morse (born 28 July 1954) is an #guitarist and #composer, best known as the founder of the Dixie Dregs; and since 1994, the #guitar #player of #rock #band Deep Purple. Morse’s career has encompassed rock, country, funk, jazz, classical, and fusion of these musical genres. In addition to his successful solo career, he was briefly a member of Kansas in the mid 1980s. In 1994, Morse joined the British hard rock group Deep Purple, replacing Ritchie Blackmore (though Joe Satriani replaced Blackmore for part of The Battle Rages On tour). Since then, Morse has played on five studio albums Purpendicular, Abandon, Bananas, Rapture of the Deep and Now What?!, as well as seven of their live albums.

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Joseph Michael "Dusty" Hill (May 19, 1949 – July 28, 2021) was an #bassist and co-#vocalist with the American #blues #rock #group ZZ Top.

Hill was born in Dallas, Texas and grew up in the Lakewood neighborhood of East Dallas. He attended Woodrow Wilson High School (Dallas) where he played the cello.

Along with his brother Rocky Hill and future fellow ZZ Top member Frank Beard, Dusty Hill played in local Dallas bands the Warlocks, the Cellar Dwellers, and American Blues. From 1966 to 1968, American Blues played the Dallas-Fort Worth-Houston circuit.

In 1968, the band decided to leave the Dallas–Fort Worth area and relocate to Houston. At this time, however, guitarist Rocky Hill wanted to focus on “straight blues,” while Dusty wanted the band to rock more. Rocky left the band and Dusty and Beard moved to Houston, joining guitarist/vocalist Billy Gibbons of Houston psychedelic-rockers Moving Sidewalks to form ZZ Top in 1969.

Dusty Hill’s on-screen appearances include Back to the Future Part III, Mother Goose Rock ‘n’ Rhyme, WWE Raw and Deadwood, and as himself in the 11th season episode of King of the Hill, “Hank Gets Dusted”, in which Hank Hill is said to be Dusty’s cousin. He also made an appearance on The Drew Carey Show as himself auditioning for a spot in Drew’s band, but is rejected because of his attachment to his trademark Texas beard.

On July 28, 2021, ZZ Top announced that Hill had died at his home in Houston at the age of 72.[14] Gibbons confirmed that the band would continue with Francis, per Hill’s wishes.[13] According to Gibbons, “Dusty emphatically grabbed my arm and said, ‘Give Elwood the bottom end, and take it to the Top.’ He meant it, amigo. He really did.”[13]

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Richard Wright (28 July 1943 – 15 September 2008) was a founding member, #keyboardist #vocalist of the #progressive #rock band Pink Floyd, performing on all of the group’s albums, except for The Final Cut, including The Piper at the Gates of Dawn, The Dark Side of the Moon, Wish You Were Here and The Division Bell, and playing on all of their tours.[3]

Wright grew up in Hatch End, London and met future Pink Floyd bandmates Roger Waters and Nick Mason while studying at the Regent Street Polytechnic. The group found commercial success in 1967 with frontman Syd Barrett before Barrett’s instability led to him being replaced by David Gilmour, with Wright taking over songwriting duties with Waters. Initially a straightforward singer / songwriter, Wright later acted as an arranger to Waters and Gilmour’s compositions. He began to contribute less towards the end of the 1970s and left the band after touring The Wall in 1981. He rejoined the band as a session player in 1987 for A Momentary Lapse of Reason, and became a full-time member again for The Division Bell in 1994. Sessions with Wright during this period were later released on the album The Endless River. Away from the Floyd, Wright recorded two solo albums, including a collaboration with Anthony Moore on Broken China, and briefly formed the duo Zee. After rejoining Waters, Mason and Gilmour as Pink Floyd for Live 8 in 2005, he became part of Gilmour’s regular solo touring band, singing occasional lead on songs such as “Arnold Layne”, before his death in September 2008.

Overshadowed by band mates Barrett, Waters and Gilmour and being the quietest and most reserved member of Pink Floyd, Wright’s contributions have been overlooked, but his death brought a reappraisal and recognition of his talents. His jazz and improvisation influences and keyboard performances were an important part of the Pink Floyd sound; being a prominent player of the Farfisa and Hammond organsand the Kurzweil synthesizer. Wright sang regularly in the band, and occasionally took the lead vocal on Pink Floyd songs such as “Time”, “Remember a Day” and “Wearing the Inside Out”.

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Rex Robert Brown (born July 27, 1964) is an American #musician and #songwriter, best known as the longtime #bassist for #heavy #metal #band Pantera (1982–2003). He is a former member of Down (2001–2011) and the former bassist for the band Kill Devil Hill. He released his debut solo album Smoke on This on July 28, 2017.[2] For the first time in Brown’s career, the work features him not only as a bassist but also as lead vocalist and guitarist.[3]

Pantera was formed in 1981. Brown joined Pantera on bass in 1982 replacing Tommy D. Bradford adopting the alias “Rex Rocker”. Brown was a classmate of, and played in the high school jazz band with, drummer Vinnie Paul, and guitarist Dimebag Darrell (then known as Diamond Darrell). Brown was credited as “Rex Rocker” on Pantera’s first 3 albums: Metal Magic (1983), Projects in the Jungle (1984), and I Am the Night (1985), he would be credited by his birth name starting with the band’s fourth album Power Metal and onwards.

Pantera recruited vocalist Phil Anselmo to replace Terry Glaze in 1987. With Anselmo taking over as the new frontman, the band’s fourth album, Power Metal , was released in 1988. By 1990, the band had been signed with Atco Records, and released their fifth album, Cowboys from Hell, which proved to be the band’s turning point to commercial success. Over the course of the band’s walkthrough in the 1990s decade, Pantera released four more studio albums, Vulgar Display of Power (1992), Far Beyond Driven (1994), The Great Southern Trendkill (1996), and Reinventing the Steel (2000). After releases of a 1997 live album and a greatest hits compilation, Pantera was nominated for four best metal performance Grammys, for “I’m Broken,” “Suicide Note Pt. I,” “Cemetery Gates”, and “Revolution Is My Name.”

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A Saucerful of Secrets is the second #studio #album by the #rock #band Pink Floyd, released on 29 June 1968 by EMI Columbia in the United Kingdom and released on 27 July 1968 in the United States by Tower Records. The album was recorded before and after Syd Barrett’s departure from the group. Owing to Barrett’s behaviour becoming increasingly unpredictable, Barrett was forced to leave the band and David Gilmour was recruited in January 1968.[1][2]

As a result, A Saucerful of Secrets became the only non-compilation Pink Floyd album on which all five band members appeared, the first for Gilmour, with him appearing on five songs (“Let There Be More Light”, “Set the Controls for the Heart of the Sun”, “Corporal Clegg”, “A Saucerful of Secrets” and “See-Saw”), and the last for Barrett, with him on three (“Remember a Day”, “Jugband Blues” and “Set the Controls for the Heart of the Sun”).[3] “Set the Controls for the Heart of the Sun” was the only song all five members appeared on together. The band’s drummer Nick Mason has declared A Saucerful of Secrets to be his favourite Pink Floyd album.

https://open.spotify.com/album/2vnJKtGjZXRUg0mYPZ3HGH?si=ADTizkw8SyKQtLGy1VPr4Q

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Leon Russell Wilkeson (April 2, 1952 – July 27, 2001) was the #bassist of #rock #band Lynyrd Skynyrd from 1972 until his death in 2001.

Skynyrd signed with Al Kooper’s production company, Sounds of the South, a joint venture with MCA Records, in 1973, an event that should have signaled smooth sailing for the group. However, this didn’t prove to be the case, as Wilkeson began to get cold feet just prior to sessions for their debut album, recorded in Atlanta. Wilkeson returned to Jacksonville and his regular job stocking ice cream at Farmbest Dairy Products. Former Strawberry Alarm Clock member Ed King subbed for Wilkeson during the recording of Skynyrd’s debut, Pronounced Leh-Nerd Skin-Nerd, but just as sessions wrapped up, Wilkeson began having second thoughts about leaving the group. After discussing the matter with Van Zant, Wilkeson was welcomed back into Lynyrd Skynyrd.

With its outlaw/party-hearty image, tough Southern rock and solid touring, Skynyrd quickly became one of the top bands of the 1970s, scoring such hit albums as 1974’s Second Helping, 1975’s Nuthin’ Fancy, 1976’s Gimme Back My Bullets and One More from the Road, plus 1977’s Street Survivors and such hit singles as “Free Bird” and “Sweet Home Alabama.” It was also during this classic era that Wilkeson picked up the gimmick of wearing colorful hats onstage, garnering the nickname “Mad Hatter.”

Wilkeson acquired a “Fenderbird” bass from John Entwistle. The Fenderbird bass mated a custom made Gibson Thunderbird body to a Fender Precision Bass neck. Wilkeson can be seen playing this bass in a 1975 Lynyrd Skynyrd performance on the British TV series The Old Grey Whistle Test.