Pete Ham

Pete Ham, Welsh singer-songwriter and guitarist (died 1975)

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Born: April 27, 1947
Died: April 24, 1975
Zodiac sign: Taurus
Birth year: 1947

About Pete Ham

Peter William Ham (27 April 1947 – 24 April 1975) was a Welsh musician and songwriter who was the lead vocalist and composer of the rock band Badfinger from 1961 until his death in 1975. He also co-wrote the ballad "Without You", a worldwide No. 1 hit for Harry Nilsson that has become a standard covered by hundreds of artists. Ham was granted two Ivor Novello Awards related to the song in 1973. Ham died by suicide in 1975 at the age of 27 after Badfinger was financially ruined by their fraudulent manager Stan Polley. One of Pete's first jobs was as an apprentice television and radio engineer.

Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.

The world when Pete Ham was born

Pete Ham was born in 1947. The year snapshot below places that birthday in its cultural and historical setting: the music and films people were following, the headlines shaping public life, and the everyday prices families encountered.

Culture in 1947

#1 song"Near You" – Francis Craig
Top movieMiracle on 34th Street
Top TV showHowdy Doody
Best-selling bookThe Diary of a Young Girl – Anne Frank

Headlines and milestones

Major sports momentJackie Robinson breaks baseball's color barrier
Top headlineJackie Robinson breaks Major League Baseball's color barrier
Technology milestoneTransistor invented at Bell Labs
Defining fadFlying saucer mania
Notable inventionPolaroid instant camera
World population2.47 billion

United States snapshot

U.S. leaderHarry S. Truman
Sports championNew York Yankees (World Series)
Also wonPhiladelphia Warriors (BAA)
U.S. population144.1M

1947 versus 2026

These figures put everyday life in Pete Ham's birth year beside the site's latest United States snapshot.

Measure	1947	2026
Gas	$0.23	$3.45/gal
Average home	$7,800	$435,000
Average income	$4,700	$67,500
Minimum wage	$0.40	$7.25/hr (federal)
Movie ticket	$0.40	$11.95
Postage stamp	$0.03	$0.73
Population	144.1M	341 million

Sources and editorial standards

This profile combines a biographical source with structured birthday and historical context. Sources recorded for this profile: Wikipedia, MusicBrainz, Wikidata. See our editorial policy for sourcing, corrections, and review standards.

Read the source biography on Wikipedia. Wikipedia text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.