Some posts appeared recently on YouTube and other social media platforms of a live concert as part of JazzFest in New Orleans. They showed a famous rock star bounding on to the stage, nimble as a gazelle, and proceeding to dance energetically, non-stop, prancing and gesticulating, as his band ripped through their hits for more than an hour.
The rock star in question is 80 years old, 14 years beyond the official retirement age in his home country of the United Kingdom. He is of course Mick Jagger, and he definitely still has those moves. Meanwhile, incidentally, his longtime bandmate, Keith Richards, five months Jagger’s senior, wasn’t jumping all over the stage but was playing with as much power and cool finesse as he’s ever had.
One of Jagger’s and Richards’s prominent contemporaries, Roger Daltrey of The Who, once famously sang “I hope I die before I get old” in the band’s 1965 classic “My Generation.” He didn’t get that wish. He’s also 80, and still touring and recording.
Of course, these are exceptions. Daltrey’s compatriot, Who drummer Keith Moon, died at 32, for instance. And many famous rockers didn’t see 30, thanks to accidents, drug overdoses, and other causes. Richie Valens was killed at 17, Buddy Holly at 22; Duane Allman only made it to 24; and 27 was as far as Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, Jim Morrison, Kurt Cobain, and Amy Winehouse got. (Musical and otherwise, here’s a list of celebrities who died far too young.)
The number of rock and rock-adjacent stars who are still on the planet, many of them still actively performing and releasing new music, is amazing, though. “Rock and roll,” as Neil Young once wrote, “can never die.” Rock-and-rollers, of course, must fade away sooner or later — but it’s taking a long longer, in many cases, than anyone would have predicted back in the days when these veterans first made their mark.
To compile a list of 50 rock stars over 75, 24/7 Tempo reviewed official and unofficial web pages dedicated to musical artists, as well as several celebrity birthday sites.
Though the line is sometimes difficult to draw, we have tried to include only those whose music can be — or could have been at some point — considered rock. Thus, we have not included pop singers like 82-year-old Barbra Streisand, country legends like Willie Nelson (who turned 91 in April), or pioneering jazz singer Sheila Jordan, now 95. Even with rockers, this list does not pretend to be comprehensive, but includes most of the major figures who would qualify. Ages of those who are included are current as of May 22, 2024.
Because most of these performers have had numerous hits over the years, we haven’t listed individual songs or albums, but have noted what groups they are or were associated with, where applicable. In some cases, the people on this list are known almost entirely as members of an ensemble; others were in bands early on (like Boz Scaggs and Linda Ronstadt) but later built strong careers on their own; and some have been solo artists the entire time.
Scroll down for a list of 50 rock stars over 75:
James Taylor: 76
- Birthday: Mar. 12, 1948
- Group: n/a
Linda Ronstadt: 77
- Birthday: July 15, 1946
- Group: The Stone Poneys
Al Green: 78
- Birthday: Apr. 13, 1946
- Group: n/a
Neil Young: 78
- Birthday: Nov. 12, 1945
- Groups: Buffalo Springfield; Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young; Neil Young and Crazy Horse
Bryan Ferry: 78
- Birthday: Sept. 26, 1945
- Group: Roxy Music
Van Morrison: 78
- Birthday: Aug. 31, 1945
- Group: Them
Debbie Harry: 78
- Birthday: July 1, 1945
- Group: Blondie
John Fogerty: 78
- Birthday: May 28, 1945
- Group: Creedence Clearwater Revival
Pete Townshend: 79
- Birthday: May 19, 1945
- Group: The Who
Bob Seger: 79
- Birthday: May 6, 1945
- Group: Bob Seger and the Silver Bullet Band
Eric Clapton: 79
- Birthday: Mar. 30, 1945
- Groups: The Yardbirds, Cream, Blind Faith, Derek and the Dominos
Rod Stewart: 79
- Birthday: Jan. 10, 1945
- Group: Faces
Stephen Stills: 79
- Birthday: Jan. 3, 1945
- Groups: Buffalo Springfield; Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young
Chris Hillman: 79
- Birthday: Dec. 4, 1944
- Groups: The Byrds, The Flying Burrito Brothers
Ray Davies: 79
- Birthday: June 21, 1944
- Group: The Kinks
Boz Scaggs: 79
- Birthday: June 8, 1944
- Group: Steve Miller Band
Gladys Knight: 79
- Birthday: May 28, 1944
- Group: Gladys Knight & the Pips
Diana Ross: 80
- Birthday: Mar. 26, 1944
- Group: The Supremes
Roger Daltrey: 80
- Birthday: Mar. 1, 1944
- Group: The Who
Jimmy Page: 80
- Birthday: Jan. 9, 1944
- Groups: The Yardbirds, Led Zepplin
Keith Richards: 80
- Birthday: Dec. 18, 1943
- Group: The Rolling Stones
Randy Newman: 80
- Birthday: Nov. 28, 1943
- Group: n/a
Joni Mitchell: 80
- Birthday: Nov. 7, 1943
- Group: n/a
Steve Miller: 80
- Birthday: Oct. 5, 1943
- Group: Steve Miller Band
Roger Waters: 80
- Birthday: Sept. 6, 1943
- Group: Pink Floyd
Mick Jagger: 80
- Birthday: July 26, 1943
- Group: The Rolling Stones
Carly Simon: 80
- Birthday: June 25, 1943
- Group: The Simon Sisters
Sly Stone: 81
- Birthday: Mar. 15, 1943
- Group: Sly and the Family Stone
Andy Summers: 81
- Birthday: Dec. 31, 1942
- Groups: Soft Machine, Eric Burdon and the Animals, The Police
Brian Wilson: 81
- Birthday: June 20, 1942
- Group: The Beach Boys
Paul McCartney: 81
- Birthday: June 18, 1942
- Groups: The Beatles, Wings
John Cale: 82
NEW YORK, NY - OCTOBER 09: John Cale and James Murphy attend The Velvet Underground Experience Private Opening Night Party on October 9, 2018 in New York City. (Photo by Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images for The Velvet Underground Experience)
- Birthday: Mar. 9, 1942
- Group: The Velvet Underground
Graham Nash: 82
- Birthday: Feb. 2, 1942
- Groups: The Hollies; Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young
Carole King: 82
- Birthday: Feb. 9, 1942
- Group: n/a
Paul Simon: 82
- Birthday: Oct. 3, 1941
- Group: Simon & Garfunkel
Chubby Checker: 82
- Birthday: Oct. 3, 1941
- Group: n/a
George Clinton: 82
- Birthday: July 22, 1941
- Groups: Parliament, Funkadelic
Bob Dylan: 82
- Birthday: May 24, 1941
- Group: n/a
Ronald Isley: 83
- Birthday: May 21, 1941
- Group: The Isley Brothers
Eric Burdon: 83
- Birthday: May 11, 1941
- Groups: Eric Burdon and the Animals, War
Mike Love: 83
- Birthday: Mar. 15, 1941
- Group: The Beach Boys
Ringo Starr: 83
- Birthday: July 7, 1940
- Group: The Beatles
Phil Lesh: 84
- Birthday: Mar. 15, 1940
- Groups: Grateful Dead, The Dead
Smokey Robinson: 84
- Birthday: Feb. 19, 1940
- Group: Smokey Robinson and the Miracles
Dave Clark: 84
- Birthday: Dec. 15, 1939
- Group: The Dave Clark Five
Grace Slick: 84
- Birthday: Oct. 30, 1939
- Groups: Jefferson Airplane, Jefferson Starship
Dion DiMucci: 84
- Birthday: July 18, 1939
- Groups: Dion and the Belmonts, The Del-Satins
Ian Hunter: 84
HOLLYWOOD, CALIFORNIA - FEBRUARY 24: (EDITORS NOTE: Retransmission with alternate crop.) (L-R) Ian Hunter, Paul Lambert, Tristan Myles, and J. D. Schwalm onstage during the 91st Annual Academy Awards at Dolby Theatre on February 24, 2019 in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images)
- Birthday: June 3, 1939
- Group: Mott the Hoople
Frankie Valli: 90
- Birthday: May 3, 1934
- Group: The Four Seasons
John Mayall: 90
PASADENA, CA - JUNE 24: Musician John Mayall performs on the Sycamore stage during Arroyo Seco Weekend at the Brookside Golf Course at on June 24, 2017 in Pasadena, California. (Photo by Rich Fury/Getty Images for Arroyo Seco Weekend)
- Birthday: Nov. 29, 1933
- Group: John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers