Happy birthday to Artimus Pyle, who replaced Bob Burns in Lynyrd Skynyrd at the end 1974. Not only does he turn 62 today, but he has always had one of the coolest drummer names in the biz.

Hey, if you know a drummer who is about to have a birthday, leave a message about it right here, for posterity.

Happy birthday to everyone’s hero Stewart Copeland, who turns 58 today.

Those who survived the new wave era in the ‘80s will remember Nigel Twist of The Alarm, who turns 52 today.

Judging by the tone of his autobiography, it’s debatable whether Ginger Baker ever feels completely happy. But that shouldn’t prevent us from wishing him a happy birthday today, on his 71st, nevertheless.

Today is Jerry Augustyniak’s 52nd birthday. He played drums with 10,000 Maniacs. I still love the song “Hey Jack Keroac” from In My Tribe. Beautiful album. It provided a soundtrack to a brief relationship I was involved with in the mid-’80s.

Today is also Paul Deakin’s birthday. He plays drums with the Mavericks and just turned 51.