Born Leslie Weinstein on October 22, 1945, in Queens, New York, Leslie West got his start fronting the blue-eyed soul outfit the Vagrants before teaming up with producer Felix Pappalardi in 1969 to form Mountain. Playing Woodstock just weeks after forming, the band built a reputation as a louder, heavier answer to Cream, and their riff-driven anthem "Mississippi Queen" became a hard rock radio staple and an early blueprint for heavy metal. West was known for a massive, sustaining guitar tone built around Gibson Les Paul Juniors and Sunn amplifiers, a sound that later influenced Eddie Van Halen, Randy Rhoads, and Johnny Ramone. He also recorded with the power trio West, Bruce and Laing alongside Cream's Jack Bruce, and kept touring and recording solo well into his seventies. West died in 2020 at 75, following complications from cardiac arrest.

Born October 22, 1958, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Bobby Blotzer crossed paths with future bandmate Juan Croucier while playing in Don Dokken's early lineup before the two left to chase their own project. Blotzer joined Ratt in 1982, locking in the swinging, hard hitting groove behind hits like "Round and Round" and "Wanted Man" as the band racked up five straight platinum albums during the glam metal explosion of the 1980s. After Ratt split in 1992 and reunited a few years later, Blotzer spent the 2000s and 2010s fighting in court with guitarist Warren DeMartini over who controlled the Ratt name, eventually touring his own version of the band after a judge overturned an injunction against him. He also wrote a 2010 memoir, Tales of a Ratt, chronicling the band's rise through the Sunset Strip scene.

Born October 22, 1960, and raised in Phoenix, Arizona, Cris Kirkwood switched from banjo to bass as a teenager and formed Meat Puppets in 1980 with his brother Curt and drummer Derrick Bostrom, fusing hardcore punk with sun scorched country twang into something entirely their own. Kirkwood co-wrote much of the band's self-titled debut and later albums, but the group's biggest spotlight came in late 1993, when Kurt Cobain invited both Kirkwood brothers onto Nirvana's MTV Unplugged in New York to play acoustic versions of "Plateau," "Oh Me," and "Lake of Fire." Heroin addiction nearly ended Kirkwood's career and his life, culminating in a 2003 shooting outside a Phoenix post office and a prison sentence that he later credited with getting him clean. He rejoined Meat Puppets in 2006 and has recorded and toured with the band ever since.