January 8 – Shindig! is broadcast for the last time on ABC, with musical guests the Kinks and the Who.
January 14 – Young singer David Jones changes his last name to Bowie to avoid being confused with Davy Jones of the Monkees.
January 17 – Simon & Garfunkel release the album Sounds of Silence.
February 2 – The first edition of Go-Set magazine is published in Melbourne, Australia. Founded by former Monash University students Phillip Frazer and Tony Schauble, the new weekly is the first independent periodical in Australia devoted entirely to popular music and youth culture. The inaugural 24-page issue has a cover feature on Tom Jones, stories on The Groop, singer Pat Carroll and DJ Ken Sparkes and a feature on mod fashion by designer Prue Acton.
February 6 – The Animals appear a fifth time on The Ed Sullivan Show to perform their iconic Vietnam-anthem hit "We Gotta Get Out of this Place".
February 17 – Brian Wilson starts recording "Good Vibrations" with The Wrecking Crew, continuing for several months and marking a beginning to the famed Smile sessions.
February 19 – Jefferson Airplane and Big Brother and the Holding Company with Janis Joplin perform at the Fillmore.
March 4 – The Beatles' John Lennon is quoted in the London newspaper, The Evening Standard as saying that the band was now more popular than Jesus. In August, following publication of this remark in Datebook, there are Beatles protests and record burnings in the Southern US's Bible Belt.
March 5 – The 11th Eurovision Song Contest is staged in the Villa Louvigny, Luxembourg. Udo Jürgens, having represented Austria in the last two contests (sixth in 1964; fourth in 1965), finally scores a first for the country, with "Merci Chérie", which he co-wrote.
March 6 – In the UK, 5,000 fans of the Beatles sign a petition urging British Prime minister Harold Wilson to reopen Liverpool's Cavern Club.
April – Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass set a world record by placing five albums simultaneously on Billboard's Pop Album Chart, with four of them the Top 10. Their music outsells The Beatles by a margin of two-to-one – over 13 million recordings. They win 4 Grammys this year.
April 11 – first public performance in the Metropolitan Opera House, of Giacomo Puccini's La fanciulla del West, though the official opening of the new opera house would not take place until September 16.
April 12 – In Los Angeles, California, Jan Berry, of Jan and Dean, crashes his Corvette into a truck that is parked on Whittier Boulevard. Berry slips into a two-month-long coma and suffers total physical paralysis for over a year as well as extensive brain damage.
April 23 - For the first time since its January 18, 1964, issue, the Billboard Hot 100 chart fails to have an artist from the UK with a Top 10 single, ending a streak of 117 consecutive weeks.
May 1 – The Beatles, The Rolling Stones and the Who perform at the NME's poll winners' show in London. The show is videotaped for later broadcast but The Beatles' and The Stones' segments are omitted because of union conflicts.
May 6 – The first issue of Džuboks, the first Yugoslav magazine dedicated to rock music and the first rock magazine in a socialist country, is released.
May 13 – The Rolling Stones release "Paint It, Black", which becomes the first number one hit single in the US and UK to feature a sitar (played by Brian Jones).
May 17 – Bob Dylan and the Hawks (later The Band) perform at the Free Trade Hall, Manchester, England. Dylan is booed by the audience because of his decision to tour with an electric band, the boos culminating in the famous "Judas" shout.
May 30 – Them, fronted by Van Morrison, begin a three-week stint as the headliner act at the Whisky a Go Go. On the last night June 18, they were joined on stage by that week's opening act The Doors. Van and Jim Morrison sang "Gloria" together.
June 6 – At Gallatin, Tennessee, 25-year-old Claudette Frady-Orbison, while motorcycycle riding with her husband Roy Orbison, is killed when her motorcycle was struck by a pickup truck.
July 2 – The Beatles become the first musical group to perform at the Nippon Budokan Hall in Tokyo. The performance ignites protests from local citizens who felt that it was inappropriate for a rock and roll band to play at Budokan.
July 29 – Bob Dylan is involved in a motorcycle accident.
August 1 – "Midsummer Serenades: A Mozart Festival" is held – the first Mostly Mozart Festival.
August 5 – The Beatles release their groundbreaking album Revolver
August 11 – John Lennon holds a press conference in Chicago, Illinois, to apologize for his remarks the previous March. "I suppose if I had said television was more popular than Jesus, I would have gotten away with it. I'm sorry I opened my mouth. I'm not anti-God, anti-Christ, or anti-religion. I was not knocking it. I was not saying we are greater or better."
August 17 – The Moscow Radio Symphony Orchestra becomes the first major overseas orchestra to perform at The Proms.
August 29 – The Beatles perform their last official concert at Candlestick Park in San Francisco, California.
September 12 – The first episode of The Monkees is broadcast on NBC Television.
September 16
The Metropolitan Opera House (Lincoln Center) opens in New York City with the première of Samuel Barber's opera Antony and Cleopatra. The opera is rejected by the critics.
Eric Burdon records a solo album after leaving The Animals and appears on the show "Ready, Steady, Go", singing "Help Me Girl", a UK #14 solo hit. Also on the show are Otis Redding and Chris Farlowe.
October 8 – WOR-FM in New York City becomes the first FM rock music station, under the leadership of DJ Murray The K.
November 9 – John Lennon meets Yoko Ono when he attends a preview of her art exhibition at the Indica Gallery in London.
November 15 – Japanese band The Tigers make their first television appearance, changing their name from "The Funnys" for the occasion.
December 6 – A Smile vocal overdub session by The Beach Boys for the song "Cabin Essence" becomes the scene of a climactic argument between member Mike Love and third-party lyricist Van Dyke Parks, causing him to gradually distance away from the project.
December 9 – The Who release their second album A Quick One with a nine-minute "mini-opera" A Quick One While He's Away.
December 16 – The Jimi Hendrix Experience releases their first single in the UK, "Hey Joe".
December 17 – David Oppenheim films Brian Wilson at his home performing his composition "Surf's Up". The footage will later be used for CBS's Inside Pop: The Rock Revolution to be aired the next April.
date unknown
Dalida receives, for a second time, the Music Hall Bravos.
Charley Pride is signed by RCA.
The Centre d'Etudes de Mathématique et Automatique Musicales (Centre for Automatic and Mathematical Music) is founded in Paris by Iannis Xenakis.
Modern Assyrian music takes off when Albert Rouel Tamras releases his first records in Baghdad in 1966 on the Bashirphone label.
Conductor Herbert Kegel marries soprano Celestina Casapietra.
Pungmul music is recognized as an Important Intangible Cultural Property of Korea, under the title nongak sipicha (농악십이차, "twelve movements of farmers' music").
See Category:Musical groups established in 1966
Bands disbanded
See Category:Musical groups disestablished in 1966
The following songs achieved the highest chart positions in the charts of 1966.
Winter
"Keep On Running" – Spencer Davis Group
"Michelle" – The Overlanders
"The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Anymore" – The Walker Brothers
Spring
"Somebody Help Me" – The Spencer Davis Group
"Pretty Flamingo" – Manfred Mann
Summer
"Sunny Afternoon" – The Kinks
"Get Away" – Georgie Fame and the Blue Flames
"With a Girl Like You" – The Troggs
"All or Nothing" – Small Faces
Autumn
"Distant Drums" – Jim Reeves
"Green, Green Grass of Home" – Tom Jones
(Not all of these were necessarily released as singles.)
"7 and 7 Is" – Love
"19th Nervous Breakdown" – The Rolling Stones
"634-5789 (Soulsville, U.S.A.)" – Wilson Pickett
"The 7 O'clock News/Silent Night" – Simon & Garfunkel
"98.6" - Keith
"A Hard Day's Night" – The Ramsey Lewis Trio
"Hazy Shade of Winter" – Simon & Garfunkel
"A Legal Matter" – The Who
"A Little Bit of Soap" – The Exciters
"A Quick One, While He's Away" – The Who
"A Sign of the Times" – Petula Clark
"A Well Respected Man" – The Kinks
"Ain't Too Proud to Beg" – The Temptations
"Alfie" – Cilla Black
"All I See is You" – Dusty Springfield
"All Tomorrows Parties" – The Velvet Underground and Nico
"Alley Oop" – Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band
"And Your Bird Can Sing" – The Beatles
"Anyway That You Want Me" – The Troggs
"April Come She Will" – Simon & Garfunkel
"At the Scene" – The Dave Clark Five
"B-A-B-Y" – Carla Thomas
"Baby Don't You Do It" – The Poets
"Baby Scratch My Back" – Slim Harpo
"Bang! Bang!" – Joe Cuba Sextet
"Bang Bang (My Baby Shot Me Down)" – Cher
"Batman Theme" – The Marketts
"Biff Bang Pow" – The Creation
"Blues from an Airplane" – Jefferson Airplane
"Blue Turns to Grey" – Cliff Richard and The Shadows
"Boa Constrictor" – Johnny Cash
"Boris the Spider" – The Who
"Born Free" – Matt Monro
"Born Free" – Roger Williams
"The Bubble Broke"- Lesley Gore
"Burned" – Buffalo Springfield
"But It's Alright" – J.J. Jackson
"Bye Bye Blues" - Andy Williams
"Call Me" – Chris Montez
"Can't Help Thinking About Me" – David Bowie and The Lower Third
"Caroline No" – Brian Wilson
"Chico's Girl"- The Girls
"Children of the Sun" – The Misunderstood
"Circles" – Les Fleur de Lys
"C'mon Let's Go" – The McCoys
"Codine" – The Charlatans
"(Come 'Round Here) I'm the One You Need" – The Miracles
"Come Up the Years" – Jefferson Airplane
"Coming on Strong" – Brenda Lee
"Coming Home Soldier" – Bobby Vinton
"Cops of the World" – Phil Ochs
"The Dangling Conversation" – Simon & Garfunkel
"Diddy Wah Diddy" – Captain Beefheart
"Dirty Water" – The Standells
"Do Anything You Say" – David Bowie and The Buzz
"Do I Have To Come Right Out And Say It? – The Buffalo Springfield
"Doctor Robert" – The Beatles
"Don't Answer Me" – Cilla Black
"Don't Drop Out"- Dolly Parton
"Don't Ease Me In" – Grateful Dead
"Don't Look Back" – The Remains
"Double Shot (Of My Baby's Love)" – The Swingin' Medallions
"Dum-De-Da" – Bobby Vinton
"The Dreams I Dream" – The Shadows
"East West" – Herman's Hermits
"Eight Miles High" – The Byrds
"Eleanor Rigby" – The Beatles (B-side to Yellow Submarine)
"Eve" – The Balloon Farm
"Fa-Fa-Fa-Fa-Fa (Sad Song)" – Otis Redding
"Femme Fatale" – The Velvet Underground and Nico
"Flight 505" – The Rolling Stones
"Flying on the Ground is Wrong" – The Buffalo Springfield
"Free Advice" – The Great Society
"Friday on My Mind" – The Easybeats
"Frying Pan" – Captain Beefheart
"Fuel To The Flame"- Dolly Parton
"Georgy Girl" – The Seekers
"Get Me To The World On Time" – The Electric Prunes
"Get Ready" – The Temptations
"Go and Say Goodbye" – The Buffalo Springfield
"Go Away Little Girl" – The Happenings
"God Only Knows" – The Beach Boys (B-side to Wouldn't It Be Nice)
"Good Day Sunshine" – The Beatles
"Got to Get You Into My Life" – The Beatles
"Gracias a la Vida" – Violeta Parra
"The Great Airplane Strike" – Paul Revere & the Raiders
"The Hair of My Chinny Chin Chin" – Sam the Sham and the Pharaohs
"Happy Jack" – The Who
"Have You Seen Your Mother, Baby, Standing in the Shadow?" – The Rolling Stones
"He" – The Righteous Brothers
"Help I'm a Rock" – The Mothers of Invention
"Here, There and Everywhere" – The Beatles
"Hey Joe" – The Jimi Hendrix Experience
"Hey Joe" – The Leaves
"Hey, Leroy, Your Mama's Callin' You" – Jimmy Castor
"How Can I Tell Her It's Over" - Andy Williams
"Hungry Freaks, Daddy" – The Mothers of Invention
"I Am a Rock" – Simon & Garfunkel
"I Can Take You to the Sun" – The Misunderstood
"I Dig Everything" – David Bowie and The Buzz
"I Don't Need No Doctor" – Ray Charles
"I Got The Feelin' (Oh No No)" – Neil Diamond
"I Love Onions" – Susan Christie
"I Met a Girl" – The Shadows
"If Every Day Was Like Christmas" – Elvis Presley
"I'll Be Your Mirror" – The Velvet Underground and Nico
"I'm a Believer" – The Monkees
"I'm a Boy" – The Who
"(I'm a) Road Runner" – Junior Walker & the Allstars
"(I'm Not Your) Steppin' Stone" – The Monkees
"I'm Only Sleeping" – The Beatles
"I'm Ready For Love" – Martha and the Vandellas
"I'm Sick Y'all" – Otis Redding
"I'm So Glad" – Cream
"Inside Looking Out" – The Animals
"In the Arms of Love" - Andy Williams
"I Want You/Just Like Tom Thumb's Blues – Bob Dylan
"Pledging My Time – Bob Dylan (B-side to Rainy Day Women #12 & 35)
"I Can't Control Myself" – The Troggs
"(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction" – Otis Redding
"I Can't Let Go" – The Hollies
"I Feel Free" – Cream
"I Had Too Much To Dream Last Night" – The Electric Prunes
"I Know There's An Answer" – The Beach Boys
"I Just Wasn't Meant for These Times" – The Beach Boys
"I Put A Spell On You" – The Animals
"I Want To Be With You" – Dee Dee Warwick
"I Want to Go with You" – Eddy Arnold
"Just Like a Woman"/"Obviously 5 Believers" – Bob Dylan
"In the Country" – Cliff Richard and The Shadows
"It Takes Two" – Marvin Gaye with Kim Weston
"It Tears Me Up" – Percy Sledge
"It's a-Happening" – The Magic Mushrooms
"It's No Secret" – Jefferson Airplane
"It's Not Easy" – The Rolling Stones
"Jug Band Music" – The Lovin' Spoonful
"Just Like Me" – Paul Revere & the Raiders
"The Kids Are Alright" – The Who
"Kill For Peace" – The Fugs
"Lady Jane" – The Rolling Stones
"Leaves That Are Green" – Simon & Garfunkel
"Leopard-Skin Pill-Box Hat" – Bob Dylan
"Let's Go Get Stoned" – Ray Charles
"Let's Start All Over Again" – Ronnie Dove
"Lies" – The Knickerbockers
"Like A Baby" – Len Barry
"Little By Little" – Dusty Springfield
"Little Latin Lupe Lu" – Mitch Ryder and the Detroit Wheels
"Little Man" – Sonny & Cher
"The London Boys" – David Bowie
"Love Is A Hurting Thing" – Lou Rawls
"Love Is Like an Itching in My Heart" – The Supremes
"Love Letters" – Elvis Presley
"Love Makes The World Go Round" – Deon Jackson
"Love Me, I'm a Liberal" – Phil Ochs
"Love Me With All of Your Heart" – The Bachelors
"Love's Gone Bad"- Chris Clark
"Love's Just a Broken Heart" – Cilla Black
"Loving You Is Sweeter Than Ever" – Four Tops
"Mame" – Bobby Darin
"Mame" – Louis Armstrong
"Maudie" – The Animals
"Maintaining My Cool" – The Sonics
"Makin' Time" – The Creation
"Mama Told Me Not To Come" – Eric Burdon
"(The Marines Have Just Landed on the Shores of) Santo Domingo" – Phil Ochs
"May Each Day" - Andy Williams
"Mission:Impossible" – Jack Jones
"My Brother Makes the Noises for the Talkies" – Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band
"My Heart's Symphony" - Gary Lewis & the Playboys
"Moonchild" – Captain Beefheart
"The More I See You" – Chris Montez
"Mother's Little Helper" – The Rolling Stones
"Moulty" – The Barbarians
"Mr. Dieingly Sad" – The Critters
"Mr. Spaceman" – The Byrds
"My Little Red Book" – Love
"My Lover's Prayer" – Otis Redding
"Nashville Cats" – The Lovin' Spoonful
"Needle in a Haystack" – The Twilights
"Night Time" – The Strangeloves
"No Milk Today" – Herman's Hermits
"Nothing's Too Good For My Baby" – Stevie Wonder
"Nowadays Clancy Can't Even Sing" – The Buffalo Springfield
"Oh How Happy" – The Shades of Blue
"The One on the Right Is on the Left" – Johnny Cash
"One Monkey Don't Stop No Show" – The Animals
"One More Heartache" – Marvin Gaye
"One of Us Must Know (Sooner or Later)/Queen Jane Approximately – Bob Dylan
"Open the Door To Your Heart" – Darrell Banks
"Open Up Your Door" – Richard and the Young Lions
"Opus 17" – The Four Seasons
"Orange Skies" – Love
"Outcast" – The Animals
"Out of My Mind" – The Buffalo Springfield
"Out of Time" – The Rolling Stones
"Over, Under, Sideways, Down" – The Yardbirds
"Painter Man" – The Creation
"Pandora's Golden Heepie Jeebies" – The Association
"Patsy Girl" – Ross MacManus
"A Place in the Sun" -The Shadows
"Psycho" – The Sonics
"Pushin' Too Hard" – The Seeds
"Rain" – The Beatles (B-side to Paperback Writer)
"Respectable" – The Outsiders
"Reverberation (Doubt)" – 13th Floor Elevators
"Rhapsody in the Rain" – Lou Christie
"Richard Cory" – Simon & Garfunkel
"Ringing of Revolution" – Phil Ochs
"Riot on Sunset Strip" – The Standells
"Rubber Band" – David Bowie
"Sad Eyed Lady of the Lowlands" – Bob Dylan
"Scarborough Fair" – Simon & Garfunkel
"Season of the Witch" – Donovan
"Second Hand Rose" – Barbra Streisand
"Shapes of Things" – The Yardbirds
"She Comes in Colors" – Love
"She Said She Said" – The Beatles
"Sit Down, I Think I Love You" – Buffalo Springfield
"Sitting in the Park" - Georgie Fame
"Society's Child (Baby I've Been Thinking)" – Janis Ian
"Somebody to Love" – The Great Society
"Solitary Man" – Neil Diamond
"Somewhere" – Len Barry
"Spanish Eyes" – Al Martino
"Spoonful" – Cream
"Standing in the Shadows of Love" – Four Tops
"Stealin'" – Grateful Dead
"Stone Free" – The Jimi Hendrix Experience
"Stop!" – The Moody Blues
"Stop! Stop! Stop!" – The Hollies
"Stuck Inside of Mobile with the Memphis Blues Again" – Bob Dylan
"Stupid Girl" – The Rolling Stones
"Substitute" – The Who
"Suicida" – Os Mutantes
"Sunday Morning" – The Velvet Underground and Nico
"Sweet Dreams" – Tommy McLain
"Ballad of the Green Berets" – Sgt. Barry Sadler (the Top Song of 1966, according to Billboard)
"Talk Talk" – The Music Machine
"Tar and Cement" – Verdelle Smith
"Taxman" – The Beatles
"Tell It To The Rain" – The Four Seasons
"That's Not Me" – The Beach Boys
"There But For Fortune" – Phil Ochs
"There Will Never Be Another You" – Chris Montez
"Think" – The Rolling Stones
"This Door Swings Both Ways" – Herman's Hermits
"This Old Heart of Mine (Is Weak For You)" – The Isley Brothers
"Time Drags By" – Cliff Richard and The Shadows
"Tomorrow Never Knows" – The Beatles
"Try a Little Tenderness" – Otis Redding
"Try Too Hard" – The Dave Clark Five
"Turn-Down Day" – The Cyrkle
"Twinkle Toes" – Roy Orbison
"Under My Thumb" – The Rolling Stones
"Up and Down" – The McCoys
"Visions of Johanna" – Bob Dylan
"Visions" – Cliff Richard
"Wade in the Water" – The Ramsey Lewis Trio
"Walking My Cat Named Dog" – Norma Tanega
"War or Hands of Time" – The Masters Apprentices
"Warm and Tender Love" – Percy Sledge
"What Goes On" – The Beatles (B-side to Nowhere Man)
"The Wheel of Hurt" – Margaret Whiting
"Where Were You When I Needed You?" – The Grass Roots
"Who Am I?" – Petula Clark
"Who Do You Think You're Fooling?" – Captain Beefheart
"Who's Flying Your Plane?" – The Rolling Stones
"Whispers (Getting Louder)" – Jackie Wilson
"Why Do I Cry?" – The Remains
"Wouldn't It Be Nice - The Beach Boys
"Words of Love" – The Mamas & the Papas
"You Baby" – The Turtles
"You Better Run" – The Young Rascals
"(You Don't Have To) Paint Me a Picture" – Gary Lewis & the Playboys
"You Don't Have To Say You Love Me" – Dusty Springfield
"You Don't Know Like I Know" – Sam & Dave
"You Got Soul" – The Twilights
"You Got Your Head on Backwards" – The Sonics
"You Still Believe In Me" – The Beach Boys
"You Were On My Mind" – Crispian St. Peters
"You Won't Be Leaving" - Herman's Hermits
"Younger Girl" – The Critters
"You're Gonna Hear from Me" - Andy Williams
"(You're Gonna) Hurt Yourself" – Frankie Valli
"You're Gonna Miss Me" – The 13th Floor Elevators
"You're On My Mind" – The Animals
"Alfie" w. Hal David m. Burt Bacharach from the film Alfie
"Big Spender" w. Dorothy Fields m. Cy Coleman from the musical Sweet Charity
"If I Were a Carpenter" w.m. Tim Hardin
"Sunny" W.M. Bobby Hebb
"We Can Work It Out" w.m. John Lennon & Paul McCartney
"Wedding Bell Blues" w.m. Laura Nyro
"Ces Gens-Là" by Jacques Brel
"La maison où j'ai grandi" ("Il ragazzo della via Gluck") by Adriano Celentano, French lyrics by Eddy Marnay
"Nessuno Mi Può Giudicare/Lei Mi Aspetta" by Gene Pitney
"La Poupée qui fait non" by Franck Gérald
"Parce Que Tu Crois" by Charles Aznavour
"Les sucettes" by Serge Gainsbourg
Malcolm Arnold – Fantasy for solo flute
Jean Barraqué – Chant aprés chant
George Crumb – Eleven Echoes of Autumn (Echoes I) for violin, alto flute, clarinet, and piano
Mario Davidovsky
Junctures for flute, clarinet, and violin
Synchronisms No. 4 for chorus and tape
Erhard Karkoschka – Quattrologe, for string quartet
John Serry, Sr. – Concerto For Free Bass Accordion
Roger Sessions – Symphony No. 6
Dmitri Shostakovich – String Quartet No.11 in F minor, Op. 122
Karlheinz Stockhausen –
Adieu (für Wolfgang Sebastian Meyer), for wind quintet, Nr. 21
Solo, for a melody instrument with feedback, Nr. 19
Telemusik, electronic and concrete music, Nr. 20
Robert Ward – Fiesta Processional
Samuel Barber – Antony and Cleopatra
Vittorio Giannini – Servant of Two Masters
Mark Kopytman - Casa Mare
Peter Westergaard – Mr and Mrs Discobbolos
Grace Williams – The Parlour
The Apple Tree – Broadway production
Breakfast at Tiffany's – Broadway-bound production (closed in previews)
Cabaret (John Kander & Fred Ebb) – Broadway production (1,165-performances)
Funny Girl (Jule Styne and Bob Merrill) – London production
I Do! I Do! – Broadway production
It's a Bird...It's a Plane...It's Superman – Broadway production
The Mad Show – Off-Broadway production
Mame – Broadway production
The Penny Friend – Off-Broadway production
Sweet Charity (Music: Cy Coleman Lyrics: Dorothy Fields Book: Neil Simon) – Broadway production
Wait a Minim! – Off-Broadway production
A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum
Dus Lakh
The Glass Bottom Boat starring Doris Day
Hold On! starring Herman's Hermits
Mera Saaya
Paradise, Hawaiian Style starring Elvis Presley
Stop the World - I Want to Get Off
Brigadoon starring Robert Goulet and Sally Ann Howes
January 1 – Crazy Legs, Puerto Rican breakdancer (Rock Steady Crew)
January 3 – Martin Galway, Northern Irish composer
January 4 – Deana Carter, singer
January 5 – Kate Schellenbach (Luscious Jackson)
January 6 – A. R. Rahman, film score composer
January 7 – Ehab Tawfik, Egyptian singer
January 8 – Andrew Wood, singer (Mother Love Bone) (d. 1990)
January 14 – Marco Hietala, Finnish rock bassist (Nightwish)
January 16 – Maxine Jones (En Vogue)
January 17 – Shabba Ranks, dancehall artist
January 20
Tracii Guns, American guitarist
Wes King, guitarist, singer
January 21 – Wendy James, British rock singer (Transvision Vamp)
January 25 – Samvel Yervinyan, Armenian violinist and composer
January 30 – Hans Tutschku, German composer
February 2 – Robert DeLeo (Stone Temple Pilots and Army of Anyone
February 6 – Rick Astley, singer also in band FBI
February 9 – Rachel Bolan (Skid Row)
February 11 – Tenor Saw, dancehall artist (d. 1988)
February 12 – Paul Crook, American guitarist (Anthrax)
February 26 – Najwa Karam, Lebanese singer
March 2 – Howard Bernstein, producer
March 3 – Tone-Loc, rapper
March 4 – Grand Puba, American rapper (Brand Nubian)
March 7 – Atsushi Sakurai, Japanese singer (Buck-Tick)
March 10 – Edie Brickell, singer-songwriter
March 12 – David Daniels, countertenor
March 18 – Jerry Cantrell, Alice in Chains
March 19 – Anja Rupel, singer
March 21 – DJ Premier, record producer
March 25 – Jeff Healey, Canadian guitarist (died 2008)
April 2 – Garnett Silk, reggae singer (died 1994)
April 11 – Lisa Stansfield, singer
April 13 – Marc Ford (The Black Crowes)
April 15 – Samantha Fox, British model and singer
April 18 – Ana Voog, singer-songwriter
April 21 – Michael Franti, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (The Beatnigs and The Disposable Heroes of Hiphoprisy)
April 28 – Too Short, rapper
May 1 – Anne Fletcher, American film director and choreographer
May 8
Blag Dahlia, American musician, producer, and author
Marta Sánchez, vocalist and entertainer
May 10 – Wade Domínguez, American actor, model, singer and dancer (d. 1998)
May 11 – Christoph Schneider, German rock musician (Rammstein)
May 12 – Bebel Gilberto, Brazilian popular singer
May 13
Alison Goldfrapp, singer (Goldfrapp)
Darius Rucker (Hootie & the Blowfish)
Jeffrey Scott Holland, American artist and musician
May 14 – Raphael Saadiq, singer-songwriter and record producer
May 16 – Janet Jackson, singer-songwriter and dancer
May 19 – Neil Campbell, British musician
May 22 – Johnny Gill (New Edition)
May 24 – Ella Guru, American painter and musician
May 26 – Tommy Stewart (Godsmack)
May 27 – Titi DJ, Indonesian pop singer
May 28 – Theo Bleckmann, German vocalist and composer
May 30 – Stephen Malkmus, American rock singer (Pavement)
June 4 – Cecilia Bartoli, operatic mezzo-soprano
June 6
Aadesh Shrivastava, composer and singer
Sean Yseult, American bass player (White Zombie and The Cramps)
June 8
Jens Kidman, Swedish musician
Doris Pearson, R&B singer (Five Star)
June 14 – Matt Freeman, bassist (Rancid)
June 15 – Roberto Carnevale, Italian musician
June 22 – Schooly D, American rapper
June 24 – Hope Sandoval, American singer-songwriter (Mazzy Star and Hope Sandoval & the Warm Inventions)
June 26 – Jürgen Reil, German drummer (Kreator)
June 28 – Bobby Bare, Jr., American musician
July 7 – Gundula Krause, German violinist
July 9 - Gayle and Gillian Blakeney, Australian actresses and singers
July 11 – Melanie Appleby, Mel and Kim (d. 1990)
July 12
Taiji, Japanese bass player and songwriter (Loudness and X Japan) (d. 2011)
Misato Watanabe, Japanese singer
July 13 – Gerald Levert, American singer (d. 2006)
July 14 – Tanya Donelly, American musician
July 15 – Jason Bonham, drummer
July 17
Lou Barlow, American guitarist and songwriter (Deep Wound, Dinosaur Jr., Sebadoh, and The Folk Implosion)
Keith Elam, rapper & producer
July 20 – Stone Gossard, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (Pearl Jam, Mother Love Bone, Brad, Temple of the Dog, and Green River)
July 29 – Martina McBride, American country singer
August 11 – Juan Maria Solare, composer
August 19
Lilian Garcia, American singer and wrestling ring announcer
Lee Ann Womack, singer
August 20 – Dimebag Darrell, American rock guitarist (Pantera) (d. 2004)
August 22 – GZA/Genius, rapper
August 25
Derek Sherinian, American keyboardist
Terminator X, DJ
August 26 – Shirley Manson, Scottish rock musician (Garbage)
September 2 - Yu Hayami, Japanese pop idol singer
September 4 – Yanka Dyagileva, Russian singer
September 5 – Terry Ellis (En Vogue)
September 8 – Carola Häggkvist, Swedish pop singer
September 10 – Robin Goodridge (Bush)
September 12 – Ben Folds, singer-songwriter
September 17 – Doug E. Fresh, American rapper, record producer, and beatboxer
September 20 – Nuno Bettencourt (Extreme)
September 22 – Moustafa Amar, Egyptian pop star
October 2 – Mousse T., DJ
October 8 – Teddy Riley, R&B musician
October 12 – Brian Kennedy, Irish musician and author
October 15 – Eric Benét, gospel singer
October 18 – Tim Cross, Sponge
October 19 – Sinitta, singer and actress
October 23 – Skúli Sverrisson, Icelandic composer and bassist
October 31
Annabella Lwin, vocalist (Bow Wow Wow)
Ad-Rock, Beastie Boys
November 6 – Paul Gilbert, American musician
November 11 – Peaches, Canadian musician
November 16 – Christian Lorenz, keyboard player
November 17
Jeff Buckley, singer-songwriter (died 1997)
Soup the Chemist, born Christopher Jose Cooper, pioneering American Christian hip hop rapper
November 20 – Kevin Gilbert (musician), American singer, composer, and instrumentalist
November 23 – Charlie Grover (Sponge)
November 24 – Joseph "DJ Run" Simmons, Run D.M.C.
November 25 – Stacy Lattisaw, singer
December 4 – Masta Ace, rapper
December 8 – Sinéad O'Connor, singer
December 9 – Michael Foster, drummer for rock band FireHouse
December 12 – Greg Long, contemporary Christian musician
December 20 – Chris Robinson, vocalist (The Black Crowes)
December 29 – Dexter Holland of The Offspring
January 29 – Pierre Mercure, Canadian bassoon player and composer, 39
February 9 – Sophie Tucker, blues singer, 82
February 10 – Billy Rose, impresario, 66
February 13 - Marguerite Long, pianist, 87
February 23 – Billy Kyle, jazz pianist, 51
March - Mohamed El Qasabgi, composer
March 29 – Jazz Gillum, harmonica player, 61 (shot)
March 30 - Jelly d'Arányi, violinist, 72
April 3 – Russel Crouse, librettist, 73
April 19 – Javier Solis, Mexican ranchera & bolero singer, 34 (complications following gall bladder surgery)
April 30 – Richard Fariña, folk singer, 29 (motorcycle accident)
May 13 – Henrik Adam Due, violinist, music teacher, 75
June 1 – Papa Jack Laine, bandleader, 92
June 12 – Hermann Scherchen, conductor, 74
June 17 – Johnny St. Cyr, jazz musician, 76
July 3 – Deems Taylor, composer and music critic, 80
July 18 – Bobby Fuller, singer and guitarist, 23 (possible suicide or murder)
July 31 – Bud Powell, jazz pianist, 41
August 2 – Boyd Raeburn, jazz musician, 52 (heart attack)
August 4 – Helen Tamiris, dancer and choreographer, 61
August 15 – Jan Kiepura, Polish tenor and actor, 64
September 17 – Fritz Wunderlich, tenor, 35 (fell downstairs)
September 26 – Helen Kane, singer, 62
September 28 – Lucius "Lucky" Millinder, US bandleader, 56 (liver disease)
October 3 – Dave Lambert, jazz musician, 49 (road accident)
October 7
Johnny Kidd, British singer, 30 (car accident)
Smiley Lewis, R&B musician, 53 (stomach cancer)
October 12 – Arthur Lourié, composer, 74
October 26 – Alma Cogan, English singer, 34 (stomach cancer)
October 17 – Karel Hruška, operatic tenor, 75
October 29 – Wellman Braud, jazz musician, 75
November 1
Alexis Roland-Manuel, composer, 75
Dick Roberts, guitar and banjo player, 69
November 2 – Mississippi John Hurt, blues musician, 73 or 74
November 6 – Washboard Sam, blues musician, 56 (heart disease)
November 12 – Quincy Porter, composer, 69
November 28 – Vittorio Giannini, opera composer, 63
December 1 – Carter Stanley, bluegrass musician, half of The Stanley Brothers, 41 (alcohol-related)
December 3 – Kui Lee, singer-songwriter, 34 (gland cancer)
December 9 – Yuri Shaporin, composer, 79
December 12 – Nellie Briercliffe, singer and actress with the D'Oyly Carte company, 77
December 14 – Shailendra, lyricist, 43
December 24 – Gaspar Cassadó, cellist and composer, 69
Grammy Awards of 1966
Eurovision Song Contest 1966
Rafael Orozco
Radu Lupu
