Events in Music
- Aug 4 "Billy Barnes Revue" opens at John Golden Theater NYC for 87 performances
Birthdays in Music
- Aug 1 Joe Elliott, English heavy metal vocalist (Def Leppard - "Hysteria"; "Rock of Ages"), born in Sheffield, South Yorkshire
- Aug 1 Otomo Yoshihide, Japanese musician (Ground Zero), born in Yokohama, Japan
- Aug 3 Martin Atkins, British rock drummer (Nine Inch Nails), born in Coventry, England
- Aug 5 Pete Burns, English singer (Dead or Alive - "Spin Me Round"), born in Bebington (d. 2016)
- Aug 6 Joyce Sims, American R&B singer-songwriter ("All and All"; "Come into My Life"), born in Rochester, New York (d. 2022)
- Aug 9 Diane Williams, American country singer (Girls Next Door - "Slow Boat to China"), born at Hahn Air Force Base, near Kirchberg Germany
- Aug 9 Kurtis Blow [Walker], American rapper (Krushgroove - "The Breaks"), born in NYC, New York
- Aug 10 Florent Vollant, Innu-Canadian musician (Kashtin), born in Labrador, Newfoundland
- Aug 11 Gustavo Cerati, Argentinian musician (Soda Stereo)
- Aug 11 Martin Smolka, Czech contemporary classical composer (Observing the Heavens; Annunciation), born in Prague, Czechoslovakia
- Aug 13 (Dante) "Danny" Bonaduce, American actor, fictional bassist (Partridge Family - "Danny"), and radio personality, born in Broomall, Pennsylvania
- Aug 13 Mark Nevin, British folk-rock guitarist (Fairground Attraction - "Find My Love"; "Perfect"), born in Ebbw Vale, Wales
- Aug 13 Mickey Bradley, Irish punk rock bassist (The Undertones - "My Perfect Cousin"), and radio host, born in Derry, Northern Ireland
- Aug 19 Ivan Neville, American funk-rock and R&B keyboardist, singer, and songwriter (Dumpstaphunk), born in New Orleans, Louisiana
- Aug 19 Steve Grimmett, British heavy metal singer (Grim Reaper), born in Swindon, England
- Aug 22 Juan Croucier, Cuban-American heavy metal bassist and songwriter (Ratt - "Round & Round"), born in Santiago de Cuba, Cuba
- Aug 29 (Sadenia) "Eddi" Reader, Scottish singer-songwriter (Fairground Attraction - "Find My Love"), born in Glasgow, Scotland
- Aug 29 Ernesto Rodrigues, Portuguese violinist and composer, born in Lisbon, Portugal
- Aug 31 Tony DeFranco, Canadian pop singer (The DeFranco Family - "Heartbeat - It's a Lovebeat"), born in Port Colborne, Ontario
Weddings in Music
Carole King
Aug 30 American songwriter Carole King (17) weds American lyricist Gerry Goffin (20); divorce in 1969
Deaths in Music
- Aug 2 Prospero Bisquertt, Chilean composer, dies at 78
- Aug 7 Armas Launis, Finnish composer, dies at 75
- Aug 9 Emil František Burian, Czech author and composer, dies at 55
- Aug 13 Henri Garat [Garascu], French actor (Congress Dances), and singer ("Les dieux s'amusent"), dies at 57
- Aug 15 "Blind" Willie McTell [McTier], American blues and ragtime singer and guitarist, dies at 61
- Aug 16 Pedro Humberto Allende Saron, Chilean composer (Tonados), dies at 74
- Aug 16 Wanda Landowska, Polish-French harpsichordist (Musique Ancienne), dies at 80
- Aug 28 Bohuslav Martinů, Czech composer (Hry o Marti), dies at 68
Composers
Drummers
Guitarists
Pianists
Singers
Songwriters