Monday, August 22: Rock Birthdays

Happy Birthday today (Aug. 22) to Living Colour guitarist Vernon Reid. He's 58. Also celebrating is former Ratt bassist Juan Croucier (57) and we remember Layne Staley of Alice in Chains who would have been 49 today.

Vernon Reid was named #66 on Rolling Stone magazine’s list of the 500 Greatest Guitarist’s of All Time in 2004. Living Colour found immediate success and rose to fame with their debut album Vivid in 1988. The album went platinum in 1989 and the song “Cult of Personality” won a Grammy Award for Best Hard Rock Performance and the band won the Best New Artist Award at the MTV Video Music Awards. The band released two more albums (Time's Up and Stain) before splitting up in 1995. The band reunited in late 2000.

Rolling Stone magazine called Living Colour "funk metal pioneers". For more info on Vernon Reid and Living Colour, check out the official band website here.