The past week two iconic figures of the early years of R&B and R&R died; a pioneer of the classic beat and the last of the classic Divas;
Etta James w/BB King, Paul Butterfield and Dr. John ~ "Something's got a hold on me" (1970's TV appearance) ;
Etta James was the last of the great Divas of the latter part of the post-war era that included Billie Holiday, Nina Simone, Dinah Washington, Sarah Vaughn, Koko Taylor, Big Mama Thorton and Ella Fitzgerald. Big, strong women with big strong vices who sang the blues, gospel and jazz with majestic sorrow and pride that would lead later singers like Aretha Franklin, Gladys Knight and Janis Joplin to take it to the mainstream in the 1960's. Etta was among the bluesiest of the bunch but also versatile enough to cover sweet ballads with string sections and belting blues with equal aplomb.
Born in Los Angeles in 1938, Etta's mother was 14 and her father unknown, although she always suspected it was the famous pool player Minnesota Fats. She began singing in her teens and formed a Doo-Wop group which was discovered by Johnny Otis who renamed them The Peaches which also became her nickname. She recorded her first hit "Dance with me Henry" when she was 15 for Modern Records in 1955 only to see a cover version by white singer Georgia Gibbs become a bigger hit on the white pop charts. In 1960 she moved to Chess Records where she would have her biggest hits including "At last", "Tell Mama" and "I'd rather go blind".
Etta James ~ "I'd rather go blind" (2001);
She had a slew of other hits into the 1970's and was also a major touring artist who won six Grammys until her career was sidetracked for a decade do to drug problems, especially heroin. She would spend much of the late 1970's and 1980's in and out of rehab and sometimes even getting arrested for various drug related offenses. She also had serious health issues as well with diabetes, weight problems and eventually leukemia and Alzheimer's. She would still find the time to occasionally perform including a dramatic version of "At last" on "Dancing with the stars" in 2009. She was portrayed by Beyonce in the 2008 movie "Capitol Records" and was not happy with the portrayal, although it helped to introducer to a new generation. Beyonce would also sing "At last" at the Obama inauguration when Etta was too ill to appear. It was the leukemia that would eventually kill her just mere days before her 74th birthday.
Etta James ~ "At last" performed on "Dancing with the stars" in 2009, her last major appearance;
Johnny Otis ~ (real name Ioannis Alexandres Veliote) 1950's R&B singer/band leader who played piano and drums. As his real name shows he was Greek but with his dark complexion he passed for mulatto and most of his legion of mostly black fans assumed he was. After playing in the 1940's with swing bands led by Harlan Leonard, Wynonie Harris and Charles Brown he formed his own band and wrote the classic hit "Willie and the hand jive" in 1958 which inspired Bo Diddly with it's distinctive beat and was hugely influential. Also had hits with "Harlem Nocturne'" in 1946, and produced and/or co-wrote such records as Big Mama Thorton's original version of "Hound Dog", "Roll With Me, Henry" for Etta James and "Every Beat of My Heart", first recorded by The Royals in the 1952 but later a hit for Gladys Knight. As a band leader and A&R man for King Records Otis discovered singers like Jackie Wilson, Hank Ballard, Little Willie John, Mel Walker,Little Ester Phillips and the Robins (later the Coasters) sax man Big Jay McNeely. As a session man he backed Johnny Guitar Watson. Otis hosted his own TV show in Los Angeles in the 1950's. His son, Shuggie Otis also had a career as an R&B band leader in the 1960's & 70's. In the 1960's he later also entered politics and ran for California State Assembly as a Democrat and lost then becoming chief of staff to another assemblyman. He was also a church pastor. He died just three weeks after his 90th birthday.
Johnny Otis ~ "Willie and the hand jive";
A episode of "The Johnny Otis Show' from the 1950's w/ Lionel Hampton;
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Little Eddie King ~ 1960's Chicago blues singer/guitarist worked with Willie Dixon, Sonny Boy Williamson, Little Mack Simmons, Luther Allison, Magic Sam, Junior Wells, Detroit Junior and Freddie King as well as solo ~ 73
Billy Strange ~ 1960's composer. Wrote "Limbo Rock" later done by The Champs, Routers, Ventures and Chubby Checker, Arthur Lyman, The Knickerbockers and Chet Atkins and Hank Snow. Also teamed up with Mac Davis and wrote several hit songs for Elvis Presley, including "A Little Less Conversation". He acted as writer,arranger, producer and guitarist for Nancy Sinatra for hits including "Something stupid". Also played as session guitarist for the Beach Boys on the hit "Sloop John B" as well as for Jan & Dean, The Ventures, Willie Nelson, The Everly Brothers, Wanda Jackson, Randy Newman, and Nat King Cole ~ 81
The Beach Boys ~ "Sloop John B");
The Champs ~ "Limbo Rock";
Louisiana Red ~ Blues singer/guitarist from the 1949 when he recorded for Chess Records right up to last year. Also played with John Lee Hooker. Moved to Germany in 1981.
Louisiana Red ~ "Alabama train";
Red Holloway ~ Jazz sax player w/Etta James,Dexter Gordon Willie Dixon, Junior Parker, Lloyd Price, and John Mayall.
In the 1950s he played in the Chicago area with Billie Holiday, Muddy Waters, Chuck Berry, Ben Webster, Jimmy Rushing, Arthur Prysock, Eddie Vinson, Sonny Rollins, Red Rodney, Lester Young, Joe Williams, Redd Foxx, B.B. King, Bobby Bland and Aretha Franklin. During this period, he also toured with Sonny Stitt, Memphis Slim and Lionel Hampton and later the young George Benson. He became a member of the house bands for Chance and Vee Jay Records ~ 84
Al Urban ~ 1950's rockabilly singer ("Lookin for money"), later a country songwriter w/ hits for Charlie Rich ~ 76
Al Urban ~ "Lookin' for money";
Larry Butler Nashville pianist and producer died at 69; he (played on "Hello Darlin"), as well as Johnny Cash, Roger Miller, Dolly Parton, Tammy Wynette, Loretta Lynn and others. Became a producer for Kenny Rogers, Charlie Rich, Mac Davis, Debbie Boone and John Denver ~ 69
Conway Twitty ~ "Hello Darlin'";
Jimmy Little ~ Australian Aboriginal country/gospel singer from the 1950's on. Also an evangelist and actor ~ 75
Jimmy Little ~ "Telephone to glory";
And finally one politician who actually made a difference to Canadian music and radio; Pierre Juneau, 89, Canadian broadcasting executive and head of The CRTC and the National Film Board who brought in the famous CanCon rules forcing Canadian Radio Stations to actually play some Canadian artists. Before Juneau they didn't have to, and usually played as little Canadian music as possible. After Juneau that changed. This also forced record labels to open branches in Canada and sign Canadian artists instead of their having to go south of the border. It also meant that labels in Canada could have a shot at the airways as well. Right wingers were upset at this "government interference" then and they still are. They complained that Canadians were too mediocre and their records not good enough to play or sell. They hysterically predicted that audiences would tune out if they actually had to listen to Canadian music. That radio stations and record labels would go out of business. The results were immediate and speak for themselves. When Much Music went on the air twenty years later the CanCon regs would also applied to them, but by then it didn't matter. There was clearly enough good Canadian talent to go around. In his one attempt to run for office (as a Liberal) he was defeated. No matter, he did good.
Dance Macabre
Thursday 19 January 2012
Friday 13 January 2012
The people who died - 2012 edition
Willie Ackerman ~ American drummer (Willie Nelson, Loretta Lynn, Louis Armstrong) ~ 73
Marc Abrahamian ~ Guitarist w/ Starship ~ 46
Dave Alexander ~ AKA Omar Sharriff, Omar Hakim Khayam Blues singer/pianist from 1968 on ~ 73
Mike Anderson (AKA Motor X) drummer for one of Toronto's most notorious 1970's classic punk bands The Viletones and later the Secrets and Arson.
Inez Andrews ~ Singer with 1950's Gospel Group The Caravans ~ 83
Tom Ardolino ~ Drummer for NRBQ ~ 56
Russell Arms ~ Early 1950's pop singer, appeared as a regular on the TV show "Your Hit Parade" which featured weekly covers of top 40 hits ~ 92
Mike Auldridge ~ Dobro player with Bluegrass The Seldom Scene from the 1960's on. Previously played with Cliff Waldron's Band, later played with Emmy Lou Harris and Lyle Lovett ~ 73
Bob Babbitt, 74, American bass guitarist for Motown house band The Funk Brothers ~ 74
Don Bagley ~ American jazz bassist and composer ~ 84
Mickey Baker ~ American 1950's R&B and Rock & Roll guitarist. Recorded for Savoy, King and Atlantic Records both solo and as half of Mickey & Sylvia. Also played with; The Drifters, Ray Charles, Ivory Joe Hunter, Ruth Brown, Big Joe Turner, Louis Jordan, Coleman Hawkins and Sam The Man Taylor. Hugely influential with blues and rockabilly guitarists in Europe where he later moved. ~ 87
Ian Bargh ~ Scottish-born Canadian jazz pianist ~ 76
Selwyn Baptiste ~ Trinidadian steel drum pioneer ~ 75
Fontella Bass ~ Gospel, R&B and Jazz singer from the 1960's & 1970's with hits on Chess like "Rescue Me", "You'll Never Know", "I Can't Rest", later recorded with The Art Ensemble of Chicago" ~ 72
Johnnie Bassett, 76, American blues musician ~ 76
Lionel Batiste ~ American jazz musician (Treme Brass Band) ~ 81
Sean Bergin ~ South African jazz sax and flutist ~ 64
Jose Roberto Bertrami, 66, Brazilian pianist and keyboardist (Azymuth) ~ 66
Eddie Bertrand ~ Guitarist with 1960's Surf band The Bel Airs ("Mr. Moto")
Faruq Z. Bey ~ American jazz saxophonist ~ 70
Bob Birch ~ American bass and sax player with Elton John ~ 56
Zach Booher ~ American musician (While We're Up) ~ 22
Lloyd Brevett ~ Jamaican double bassist (The Skatalites) ~ 80
Chuck Brown ~ American R&B singer and musician ~ 75
Dave Brubeck ~ Jazz Pianist who introduced new poly-rhythms to jazz from the Mid-East and was one of the leaders of the West Coast Cool Jazz sound of the late 1950's and early 1960's with sax players Paul Desmond and Gerry Mulligan and trumpet player Chet Baker. ~ 91
Michael Burks ~ American R&B guitarist with Johnny Taylor ~ 54
Eddie "Guitar" Burns ~ Detroit blues musician from the 1950's on who recorded with Chess, Checker, Red Bird and Delmark Records ~ 84
Joel Burrows ~ Guitarist with Oregon Subpop Records Punk band The Thermals
Larry Butler ~ Nashville session pianist w/ Conway Twitty (played on "Hello Darlin"), as well as Johnny Cash, Roger Miller, Dolly Parton, Tammy Wynette, Loretta Lynn and others. Became a producer for Kenny Rogers, Charlie Rich, Mac Davis, Debbie Boone and John Denver ~ 69
Vincent Carrella ~ Singer with Doo Wop group Randy & The Radiants (Denise)
Ernie Carson ~ Dixieland cornet player and pianist ~ 74
Ed Cassidy ~ Drummer for late 1960's Psyche Band Spirit ~ 89
Jimmy Castor ~ R&B sax player and singer from the 1960's and 70's w/hits like "Troglodyte (caveman)", 'The Bertha Butt Boogie" and "Soul serenade". Also backed keyboardist Baby Cortez. He started out as a Doo-Wop singer and briefly replaced Frankie Lymon in the Teenagers. ~ 71
Dee Cernile ~ Guitarist for Toronto hair metal turned grunge band Sven Galli ~ 46
Teddy Charles ~ Jazz drummer and vibes player from the 1050's on. Played with Miles Davis. ~ 87
Jodie Christian ~ Chigago bebop jazz pianist played w/Stan Getz, Dexter Gordon, Gene Ammons. Co-Founder of of the Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians (AACM) ~ 80
Maria Cole ~ American jazz singer, widow of Nat King Cole ~ 89
Charlie Collins ~ American country musician; in Roy Acuff's Smokey Mountain Boys ~ 78
Ray Collins ~ Singer with 1960's Doo-Wop group The Tigers and later in Frank Zappa's Mothers of Invention ~ 73 Don Cornelius ~ Host of 1970;s & 1990's TV show "Soul Train" ~ 75
Gary Cornell ~ lead singer of Australian hard rock group Pyramid of the Coyote ~ 34
Gary Cox ~ American musician for 1980's Power Pop group Artful Dodger ~ 59
Lol Coxhill ~ English jazz saxophonist, after short illness ~ 79
James "Sugar Boy" Crawford" ~ American R & B singer and songwriter, wrote the original version of "Iko Iko" later covered by the Dixie Cups ~ 77
BB Cunningham ~ Singer/Keyboardist/drummer with 1960's Garage Band The Hombres ("Let it out (Let it all hang out)"), Ronnie & Daytonas ("GTO") and Jerry Lee Lewis ~ 70
Jose Curbelo ~ Cuban-born American Big Band Jazz musician and manager from 1939 to the 1970's, played with Xavier Cugat and Titi Puente ~ 95
Marcel Curuchet ~ Uruguayan keyboardist (No Te Va Gustar) ~ 40
Cynthia Dall ~ Zine writer and photographer Singer/guitarist with 1990's American Lo-Fi pop band Smog and later solo ~ 41
Hal David ~ American songwriter (Raindrops keep falling on my head) ~ 91
Carl Davis ~ American record producer ("Duke of Earl", "(Your Love Keeps Lifting Me) Higher and Higher") ~ 77
Maurice Davis ~ American trumpeter (The Funk Brothers) ~ 71
Michael Davis ~ Bassist for the classic late 1960's Detroit proto punk band The MC5 ~ 68
Keith Deen ~ Singer with American Thrash Metal band Holy Terror ~ 56 Bill Dees ~ Guitarist and songwriter with Rot Orbison in their original band "The Five Bops", co-wrote "Pretty Woman" and "It's Over", worked on the Orbison movie "The Fastest Gun Alive". Also worked with Johnny Cash, Loretta Lynn, Skeeter Davis, Glen Campbell, Billy Joe Royal, Frank Ifield, Mark Dinning and Gene Pitney ~ 73
Doug Dillard ~ American bluegrass musician with The Dillards also played with Gene Clark and actor (The Andy Griffith Show) ~ 75
Lee Dorman ~ Iron Butterfly bassist ~ 70
Bill Doss ~ American rock singer and guitarist (The Olivia Tremor Control, The Apples in Stereo) ~ 43
Cleve Duncan ~ Singer with 1950's Doo-Wop group The Penguins ("In The Still Of The Night") ~ 72
Micheal Dunford ~ Guitarist w/1960's British groups The Yardbirds and Renaissance ~ 58
Donald "Duck" Dunn ~ American bass guitarist (The Blues Brothers, Booker T. & the M.G.'s) ~ 70
Frank Dycus ~ American songwriter w/George Jones, George Strait, ("Gonna Get a Life", "I Don't Need Your Rockin' Chair", "Unwound") ~ 72
Jimmy Ellis ~ Singer for 1970's disco group The Trammps ("Disco Inferno") ~ 74
Martin Fay ~ Fiddler and Bones player with Irish folk band The Chieftains ~ 76
Von Freeman ~ American hard bop jazz tenor saxophonist ~ 88
Dennis Flemion ~ American rock musician (The Frogs) ~ 57
Robbie France ~ British drummer in Skunk Anansie and UFO ~ 52
Bob French ~ Jazz drummer w/ The Tuxedo Jazz Band, also played with Earl King, Dave Bartholomew and Fats Domino ~ 74 Bridie Gallagher ~ Irish 1950's pop singer; known as "The Girl From Donegal" first international Irish pop star ~ 87
Robin Gibb ~ British singer and songwriter (Bee Gees) ~ 62
Rodgers Grant ~ Jazz sax pianist and composer from the 1950's on. Played with Mongo Santamaria on hits like "Yeh Yeh", later covered by Georgie Fame in Britain and much later Johnny Favorite in Canada. Also worked wit Esther Phillips. ~ 76
Andy Griffith ~ American actor (The Andy Griffith Show, Matlock) and folk and country musician ~ 86
Greg Ham ~ Sax and keyboard singer for Australian New Wave Pop group Men At Work ~ 58
Marvin Hamlisch ~ American composer (The Way We Were, A Chorus Line) and arranger (The Sting) ~ 68
Bugs Henderson ~ American blues and rock guitarist with 1960's garage band Mouse and the Traps ~ 68
Ossie Hibbert ~ Jamaican musician, heart attack ~ 62
Red Holloway ~ Jazz sax player w/Etta James,Dexter Gordon Willie Dixon, Junior Parker, Lloyd Price, and John Mayall. In the 1950s he played in the Chicago area with Billie Holiday, Muddy Waters, Chuck Berry, Ben Webster, Jimmy Rushing, Arthur Prysock, Eddie Vinson, Sonny Rollins, Red Rodney, Lester Young, Joe Williams, Redd Foxx, B.B. King, Bobby Bland and Aretha Franklin. During this period, he also toured with Sonny Stitt, Memphis Slim and Lionel Hampton and later the young George Benson. He became a member of the house bands for Chance and Vee Jay Records ~ 84
Larry Hoppen ~ American singer and musician (Orleans) ~ 61
Mary Jane Johnson ~ 1940's & 50's C&W singer
Davy Jones ~ Singer with The Monkees, star of popular 1960's sitcom and sang on several hits including "Day Dream Believer", "Look out here comes tomorrow" and "Daddy's song" ~ 66
Jimmy Jones ~ American pop singer ("Handy Man", "Good Timin") ~ 82
Peter Jones ~ British drummer (Crowded House) ~ 49
Homer Joy ~ American songwriter ("Streets of Bakersfield" for Buck Owens)~ 67
Pierre Juneau ~ Former head of the CRTC and National Film Board, creator of the Canadian Content rules (CanCon) ~ 83
Major Harris ~ Singer w/ Sould Group The Delfonics ("Didn't I Blow Your Mind This Time" & "La La La Means I Love You" ~ 65
Little Eddie King ~ 1960's Chicago blues singer/guitarist worked with Willie Dixon, Sonny Boy Williamson, Little Mack Simmons, Luther Allison, Magic Sam, Junior Wells, Detroit Junior and Freddie King as well as solo ~ 73
Dick Kniss ~ American bassist w/ Peter Paul & Mary, John Denver ~ 74
László Komár ~ Hungarian rock and roll singer from the 1960's & 70's ~ 67
Pete La Roca ~ American Jazz drummer w/ John Coltrane, Sonny Rollins, Marian McPartland, Art Farmer, Freddie Hubbard, Mose Allison and Chic Corea as well as with his own bands. Retired and became a lawyer, later suing after one of his solo albums was released under Corea's name instead of his own. ~ 74
Byard Lancaster ~ American jazz and blues multi-instrumentalist w/ McCoy Tyner, Sun Ra, Johnny Copeland, Memphis Slim ~ 70
Huw Lloyd-Langton ~ Guitarist for UK Psyche/Space Rock band Hawkwind ~ 61
John Levy ~ American jazz double-bassist w/ George Shearing, Ben Webster, Errol Garner, Milt Jackson, and Billie Holiday. Later manager for Shearing and others ~ 99
Tonmi Lillman ~ Drummer for Finnish metal band Lordi ~ 38
Everett Lilly ~ American bluegrass mandolinist with The Lilly Brothers ~ 87
Jimmy Little ~ Australian Aboriginal country/gospel singer from the 1950's on. Also an evangelist and actor ~ 75
Jon Lord ~ Keyboardist for 1970's hard rock group Deep Purple ~ 71
Andrew Love ~ American saxophonist with The Memphis Horns, house band for Stax Records on most of their recordings from the 1960's & 70's ~ 72
Vince Lovegrove ~ Co-lead singer (with Bon Scott) in 1960's Australian group The Valentines. The group broke up after a drugs bust and Lovegrove went on to be a producer and manager while Scott would later join AC/DC ~ 65
Eris Lowen ~ Part of singer/songwriter duo Lowen and Navarro who wrote a number of songs for various artists including "We belong" for Pat Benatar which they also recorded. ~ 60
Mitch Lucker ~ Singer with California Metal Band Suicide Silence ~ 28 Jerry "Boogie" McCain ~ Blues singer and harmonica player from the 1950's & 60's, recorded for Trumpet, OKeh, Rex, Columbia, Excello, and Jewel Records. A favourite of The Fabulous Thunderbirds who recorded with him and covered some of his songs ~ 81
Johnny McCauley ~ Irish 1960's folk singer whose songs were also covered by Christy Moore ~ 86
Mark McConnell ~ American drummer (Sebastian Bach, Blackfoot)
JIMMY McCRACKLIN; 1950's California R&B pianist/singer with hits like "The Walk" on Chess Records ~ 91
Kathi McDonald ~ American 1970's R&B singer w/The Rolling Stones & Long John Baldry ~ 64
John McIntire ~ Manager for The Grateful Dead ~ 70
Scott McKenzie ~ American singer ("San Francisco (Be Sure to Wear Flowers in Your Hair)") and songwriter ("Kokomo" covered by The Beach Boys) ~ 73 Hal McKusick ~ American jazz saxophonist, clarinetist and flautist w/Bill Evans ~ 87
Marion Marlowe ~ Pre-Rock era pop singer from the early fifties, later on broadway ~ 83
John Marshall ~ UK jazz, blues and folk guitarist, played with Ray Charles & Aretha Franklin ~ 71 Lou Martin ~ Northern Irish keyboardist with Rory Gallagher ~ 63
Mike Melovin ~ Jazz pianist from 1960's on, worked with Milt Jackson, Bill Henderson, Charlie Haden, Herb Ellis and Plas Johnson, Peggy Lee and later Tom Waits ~ 74
Fred Milano ~ American doo-wop singer w/The Belmonts, Dion and the Belmonts ~ 72
Ronnie Montrose ~ Guitarist for 1970's & 80's hard rock band Montrose w/singer Sammy Hagar before Sammy went solo and then on to Van Halen. Ronnie also had a solo career ~ 66
Frazier Mohawk ~ American record producer (Buffalo Springfield, The Byrds) ~ 71
Erik Moseholm ~ Danish Jazz Bassist w/Eric Dolphy, Don Byas ~ 82
John Napier ~ (AKA Wee Wee) Member of Industrial Bands Nitzer Ebb, Ethel Meatplow and E Coli ~
Jim Nevin ~ Keyboardist for early 1980's Australian New Wave band The Sports
Jason Noble ~ American rock guitarist (Rodan, Rachel's, Shipping News) ~ 40
Nick Noble (real name Nick Valkan); one of the pre-rock white pop singers who would be put out of work when rock hit. Noble actually manged to have a few more hits though as an easy listening and even country singer ~ 85
Hazy Osterwald ~ Swiss big band jazz leader ~ 90
Johnny Otis ~ (real name Ioannis Alexandres Veliote) 1950's R&B singer/band leader who played piano and drums. As his real name shows he was Greek but with his dark complexion he passed for mulatto and most of his legion of mostly black fans assumed he was. After playing in the 1940's with swing bands led by Harlan Leonard, Wynonie Harris and Charles Brown he formed his own band and wrote the classic hit "Willie and the hand jive" in 1958 which inspired Bo Diddly with it's distinctive beat and was hugely influential. Also had hits with "Harlem Nocturne'" in 1946, and produced and/or co-wrote such records as Big Mama Thorton's original version of "Hound Dog", "Roll With Me, Henry" for Etta James and "Every Beat of My Heart", first recorded by The Royals in the 1952 but later a hit for Gladys Knight. As a band leader and A&R man for King Records Otis discovered singers like Jackie Wilson, Hank Ballard, Little Willie John, Mel Walker,Little Ester Phillips and the Robins (later the Coasters) sax man Big Jay McNeely. As a session man he backed Johnny Guitar Watson. His son, Shuggie Otis also had a career as an R&B band leader in the 1960's & 70's. In the 1960's he later also entered politics and ran for California State Assembly as a Democrat and lost then becoming chief of staff to another assemblyman. He was also a church pastor. He died just three weeks after his 90th birthday.
Fritz Pauer ~ Austrian jazz pianist and composer ~ 68
David Peaston ~ American R&B singer, brother of Fontella Bass (who he recorded with), also worked with jazz man Lester Bowie ~ 54
Austin Peralta ~ Jazz Fusion Pianist ~ 22
Johnny Perez ~ Drummer for 1960's Texas garage band The Sir Douglas Quintet ("She's about a mover" ~ 69
Charles Pitts ~ American soul musician, guitarist for Isaac Hayes ~ 65
Dory Previn ~ Pop songwriter for Frank Sinatra, Tony Bennett, Doris Day, Nancy Wilson, Dionne Warwick and dozens more. Also married to composer Andre Previn ~ 86
Mark Reale ~ Guitarist with American metal band Riot ~ 56
Herb Reed ~ Singer with 1950's Doo Wop group The Platters ~ 83
Larry Reinhardt ~ American rock guitarist w/Iron Butterfly ~ 63
Christopher Reimer ~ Canadian rock guitarist (Women, The Dodos) ~ 26
Jenni Rivera ~ American-born Mexican banda and norteño singer ~ 43 Zoran Romich ~ Croatian/Australian guitarist for Aussie alt-pop bane The Chocolate Starfish ~ 47
Mike Scaccia; Guitarist for Ministry on their classic 1990's "Psalm 69" album and such songs as "Jesus Built my Hotrod" and "N.W.O.", collapsed and died on stage in Texas on December 22 aged 47. He started out in Thrash Metal band Rigor Mortis in 1983, then moved to Ministry in 1992. Ministry's "Psalm 69" and the accompanying videos and and Lollapalooza tour did much to take Industrial Music (or a club ready version of it) to the mainstream. He also played in Ministry side projects like The Revolting Cocks, Buck Satan and Lard.
Enrique Sierra ~ Spanish musician, member of 1980's Spanish rock band Radio Futura ~ 54
Ravi Shankar ~ Indian sitar master who made the crossover to Western Rock audiences in the 1960's ~
Mickey Shine ~ American drummer w/1970's Country Rock band Clover, Elvis Costello's first band ("Watching The Detectives" & "Alison"), w/1980's band Burning Rome ("Once Over")
Steve Shortell ~ 50's ~ Sax player for Toronto punk bands The Sinisters and Busted Flush
Tony Sly ~ American punk rock singer and guitarist (No Use for a Name) ~ 41
Carrie Smith ~ American blues, jazz and gospel singer ~ 70
Joe South ~ American songwriter, wrote "Gone Gone Gone" for Gene Vincent, "Down in the Boondocks" for Billy Joe Royal and "I never promised you a Rose Garden for Lynn Anderson, and songs for Brook Benton, Elvis Presley, Paul Revere & The Raiders, Kitty Wells, Dottie Wells & others. Also played session guitar for Simon & Garfunkel and Bob Dylan ~ 72
Billy Strange ~ 1960's composer. Wrote "Limbo Rock" later done by The Champs, Routers, Ventures and Chubby Checker, Arthur Lyman, The Knickerbockers and Chet Atkins and Hank Snow. Also teamed up with Mac Davis and wrote several hit songs for Elvis Presley, including "A Little Less Conversation". He acted as writer,arranger, producer and guitarist for Nancy Sinatra for hits including "Something stupid". Also played as session guitarist for the Beach Boys on the hit "Sloop John B" as well as for Jan & Dean, The Ventures, Willie Nelson, The Everly Brothers, Wanda Jackson, Randy Newman, and Nat King Cole ~ 81
Big Jim Sullivan ~ British session guitarist from the 1960's on. Played with; Dave Berry's 1964 hit "The Crying Game", Alexis Korner's and Blues Incorporated's, P.J. Proby's 1964 hit "Hold Me", Billy Fury, Frank Ifield, Adam Faith, Frankie Vaughan, Helen Shapiro, Freddie and the Dreamers, Cilla Black, Tom Jones, Shirley Bassey, Dusty Springfield, Georgie Fame, Bobby Darin, Little Richard, Dell Shannon, The Walker Brothers, Donovan, David Bowie, Engelbert Humperdinck, Benny Hill, The New Seekers, Thunderclap Newman, Long John Baldry, Marmalade, Small Faces, The Tremeloes. He was also the resident guitarist at TV shows "Top of the Pops" and "Ready Steady Go!" ~ 71 Rollin Sullivan ~ 1940's & 50's Country music (Lonzo and Oscar) ~ 93
Donna Summer ~ American disco singer ("Bad Girls", "Hot Stuff", "Last Dance", "I Feel Love"), ~ 63
Stuart Swanlund ~ American guitarist (The Marshall Tucker Band), natural causes ~ 54
Richie Teeter ~ Drummer with late 1970's New York punk band The Dictators, later with 1980's hair band shockers Twisted Sister ~ 61
Frode Thingnæs ~ Norwegian Jazz Trombonist, composer and Jazz Pioneer who recorded the first jazz album in Norway ~ 72
Bill Tillman ~ American saxophonist (Blood, Sweat & Tears) ~ 65
Al Urban ~ 1950's rockabilly singer, later a country songwriter w/ hits for Charlie Rich ~ 76
Stig Vig ~ Singer w/Swedish punk/reggae band Dag Vag ~ 64
David Ware ~ Free Jazz sax player w/Cecil Taylor and later with his own Quartet ~ 62 Doc Watson ~ 89 ~ American folk and bluegrass singer guitarist ~ 89
Bob Welch ~ Guitarist in Fleetwood Mac in the early seventies during the transitional period between the blues group led by Peret Green and Jeremy Spencer and the late seventies hit machine led by Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham ~ 66
Kitty Wells ~ Country singer from the 1940's to the 1960's It ("Wasn't God Who Made Honky Tonk Angels") ~ 92
Bob Weston ~ Guitarist/harmonica/banjo w/Fleetwood Mac on two albums in 1972/73 later with Steve Marriot and Murray Head and solo ~ 64
Marva Whitney; Singer with James Brown's band, as well as solo, known as "Soul Sister" ~ 68
Andy Williams ~ 1960's & 70's pop singer ("Moon River") ~ 84
Belita Woods ~ American funk singer (Brainstorm, Parliament-Funkadelic) ~ 63
Adam Yauch, 47, American musician (Beastie Boys)
Marc Abrahamian ~ Guitarist w/ Starship ~ 46
Dave Alexander ~ AKA Omar Sharriff, Omar Hakim Khayam Blues singer/pianist from 1968 on ~ 73
Mike Anderson (AKA Motor X) drummer for one of Toronto's most notorious 1970's classic punk bands The Viletones and later the Secrets and Arson.
Inez Andrews ~ Singer with 1950's Gospel Group The Caravans ~ 83
Tom Ardolino ~ Drummer for NRBQ ~ 56
Russell Arms ~ Early 1950's pop singer, appeared as a regular on the TV show "Your Hit Parade" which featured weekly covers of top 40 hits ~ 92
Mike Auldridge ~ Dobro player with Bluegrass The Seldom Scene from the 1960's on. Previously played with Cliff Waldron's Band, later played with Emmy Lou Harris and Lyle Lovett ~ 73
Bob Babbitt, 74, American bass guitarist for Motown house band The Funk Brothers ~ 74
Don Bagley ~ American jazz bassist and composer ~ 84
Mickey Baker ~ American 1950's R&B and Rock & Roll guitarist. Recorded for Savoy, King and Atlantic Records both solo and as half of Mickey & Sylvia. Also played with; The Drifters, Ray Charles, Ivory Joe Hunter, Ruth Brown, Big Joe Turner, Louis Jordan, Coleman Hawkins and Sam The Man Taylor. Hugely influential with blues and rockabilly guitarists in Europe where he later moved. ~ 87
Ian Bargh ~ Scottish-born Canadian jazz pianist ~ 76
Selwyn Baptiste ~ Trinidadian steel drum pioneer ~ 75
Fontella Bass ~ Gospel, R&B and Jazz singer from the 1960's & 1970's with hits on Chess like "Rescue Me", "You'll Never Know", "I Can't Rest", later recorded with The Art Ensemble of Chicago" ~ 72
Johnnie Bassett, 76, American blues musician ~ 76
Lionel Batiste ~ American jazz musician (Treme Brass Band) ~ 81
Sean Bergin ~ South African jazz sax and flutist ~ 64
Jose Roberto Bertrami, 66, Brazilian pianist and keyboardist (Azymuth) ~ 66
Eddie Bertrand ~ Guitarist with 1960's Surf band The Bel Airs ("Mr. Moto")
Faruq Z. Bey ~ American jazz saxophonist ~ 70
Bob Birch ~ American bass and sax player with Elton John ~ 56
Zach Booher ~ American musician (While We're Up) ~ 22
Lloyd Brevett ~ Jamaican double bassist (The Skatalites) ~ 80
Chuck Brown ~ American R&B singer and musician ~ 75
Dave Brubeck ~ Jazz Pianist who introduced new poly-rhythms to jazz from the Mid-East and was one of the leaders of the West Coast Cool Jazz sound of the late 1950's and early 1960's with sax players Paul Desmond and Gerry Mulligan and trumpet player Chet Baker. ~ 91
Michael Burks ~ American R&B guitarist with Johnny Taylor ~ 54
Eddie "Guitar" Burns ~ Detroit blues musician from the 1950's on who recorded with Chess, Checker, Red Bird and Delmark Records ~ 84
Joel Burrows ~ Guitarist with Oregon Subpop Records Punk band The Thermals
Larry Butler ~ Nashville session pianist w/ Conway Twitty (played on "Hello Darlin"), as well as Johnny Cash, Roger Miller, Dolly Parton, Tammy Wynette, Loretta Lynn and others. Became a producer for Kenny Rogers, Charlie Rich, Mac Davis, Debbie Boone and John Denver ~ 69
Vincent Carrella ~ Singer with Doo Wop group Randy & The Radiants (Denise)
Ernie Carson ~ Dixieland cornet player and pianist ~ 74
Ed Cassidy ~ Drummer for late 1960's Psyche Band Spirit ~ 89
Jimmy Castor ~ R&B sax player and singer from the 1960's and 70's w/hits like "Troglodyte (caveman)", 'The Bertha Butt Boogie" and "Soul serenade". Also backed keyboardist Baby Cortez. He started out as a Doo-Wop singer and briefly replaced Frankie Lymon in the Teenagers. ~ 71
Dee Cernile ~ Guitarist for Toronto hair metal turned grunge band Sven Galli ~ 46
Teddy Charles ~ Jazz drummer and vibes player from the 1050's on. Played with Miles Davis. ~ 87
Jodie Christian ~ Chigago bebop jazz pianist played w/Stan Getz, Dexter Gordon, Gene Ammons. Co-Founder of of the Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians (AACM) ~ 80
Maria Cole ~ American jazz singer, widow of Nat King Cole ~ 89
Charlie Collins ~ American country musician; in Roy Acuff's Smokey Mountain Boys ~ 78
Ray Collins ~ Singer with 1960's Doo-Wop group The Tigers and later in Frank Zappa's Mothers of Invention ~ 73 Don Cornelius ~ Host of 1970;s & 1990's TV show "Soul Train" ~ 75
Gary Cornell ~ lead singer of Australian hard rock group Pyramid of the Coyote ~ 34
Gary Cox ~ American musician for 1980's Power Pop group Artful Dodger ~ 59
Lol Coxhill ~ English jazz saxophonist, after short illness ~ 79
James "Sugar Boy" Crawford" ~ American R & B singer and songwriter, wrote the original version of "Iko Iko" later covered by the Dixie Cups ~ 77
BB Cunningham ~ Singer/Keyboardist/drummer with 1960's Garage Band The Hombres ("Let it out (Let it all hang out)"), Ronnie & Daytonas ("GTO") and Jerry Lee Lewis ~ 70
Jose Curbelo ~ Cuban-born American Big Band Jazz musician and manager from 1939 to the 1970's, played with Xavier Cugat and Titi Puente ~ 95
Marcel Curuchet ~ Uruguayan keyboardist (No Te Va Gustar) ~ 40
Cynthia Dall ~ Zine writer and photographer Singer/guitarist with 1990's American Lo-Fi pop band Smog and later solo ~ 41
Hal David ~ American songwriter (Raindrops keep falling on my head) ~ 91
Carl Davis ~ American record producer ("Duke of Earl", "(Your Love Keeps Lifting Me) Higher and Higher") ~ 77
Maurice Davis ~ American trumpeter (The Funk Brothers) ~ 71
Michael Davis ~ Bassist for the classic late 1960's Detroit proto punk band The MC5 ~ 68
Keith Deen ~ Singer with American Thrash Metal band Holy Terror ~ 56 Bill Dees ~ Guitarist and songwriter with Rot Orbison in their original band "The Five Bops", co-wrote "Pretty Woman" and "It's Over", worked on the Orbison movie "The Fastest Gun Alive". Also worked with Johnny Cash, Loretta Lynn, Skeeter Davis, Glen Campbell, Billy Joe Royal, Frank Ifield, Mark Dinning and Gene Pitney ~ 73
Doug Dillard ~ American bluegrass musician with The Dillards also played with Gene Clark and actor (The Andy Griffith Show) ~ 75
Lee Dorman ~ Iron Butterfly bassist ~ 70
Bill Doss ~ American rock singer and guitarist (The Olivia Tremor Control, The Apples in Stereo) ~ 43
Cleve Duncan ~ Singer with 1950's Doo-Wop group The Penguins ("In The Still Of The Night") ~ 72
Micheal Dunford ~ Guitarist w/1960's British groups The Yardbirds and Renaissance ~ 58
Donald "Duck" Dunn ~ American bass guitarist (The Blues Brothers, Booker T. & the M.G.'s) ~ 70
Frank Dycus ~ American songwriter w/George Jones, George Strait, ("Gonna Get a Life", "I Don't Need Your Rockin' Chair", "Unwound") ~ 72
Jimmy Ellis ~ Singer for 1970's disco group The Trammps ("Disco Inferno") ~ 74
Martin Fay ~ Fiddler and Bones player with Irish folk band The Chieftains ~ 76
Von Freeman ~ American hard bop jazz tenor saxophonist ~ 88
Dennis Flemion ~ American rock musician (The Frogs) ~ 57
Robbie France ~ British drummer in Skunk Anansie and UFO ~ 52
Bob French ~ Jazz drummer w/ The Tuxedo Jazz Band, also played with Earl King, Dave Bartholomew and Fats Domino ~ 74 Bridie Gallagher ~ Irish 1950's pop singer; known as "The Girl From Donegal" first international Irish pop star ~ 87
Robin Gibb ~ British singer and songwriter (Bee Gees) ~ 62
Rodgers Grant ~ Jazz sax pianist and composer from the 1950's on. Played with Mongo Santamaria on hits like "Yeh Yeh", later covered by Georgie Fame in Britain and much later Johnny Favorite in Canada. Also worked wit Esther Phillips. ~ 76
Andy Griffith ~ American actor (The Andy Griffith Show, Matlock) and folk and country musician ~ 86
Greg Ham ~ Sax and keyboard singer for Australian New Wave Pop group Men At Work ~ 58
Marvin Hamlisch ~ American composer (The Way We Were, A Chorus Line) and arranger (The Sting) ~ 68
Bugs Henderson ~ American blues and rock guitarist with 1960's garage band Mouse and the Traps ~ 68
Ossie Hibbert ~ Jamaican musician, heart attack ~ 62
Red Holloway ~ Jazz sax player w/Etta James,Dexter Gordon Willie Dixon, Junior Parker, Lloyd Price, and John Mayall. In the 1950s he played in the Chicago area with Billie Holiday, Muddy Waters, Chuck Berry, Ben Webster, Jimmy Rushing, Arthur Prysock, Eddie Vinson, Sonny Rollins, Red Rodney, Lester Young, Joe Williams, Redd Foxx, B.B. King, Bobby Bland and Aretha Franklin. During this period, he also toured with Sonny Stitt, Memphis Slim and Lionel Hampton and later the young George Benson. He became a member of the house bands for Chance and Vee Jay Records ~ 84
Larry Hoppen ~ American singer and musician (Orleans) ~ 61
Mary Jane Johnson ~ 1940's & 50's C&W singer
Davy Jones ~ Singer with The Monkees, star of popular 1960's sitcom and sang on several hits including "Day Dream Believer", "Look out here comes tomorrow" and "Daddy's song" ~ 66
Jimmy Jones ~ American pop singer ("Handy Man", "Good Timin") ~ 82
Peter Jones ~ British drummer (Crowded House) ~ 49
Homer Joy ~ American songwriter ("Streets of Bakersfield" for Buck Owens)~ 67
Pierre Juneau ~ Former head of the CRTC and National Film Board, creator of the Canadian Content rules (CanCon) ~ 83
Major Harris ~ Singer w/ Sould Group The Delfonics ("Didn't I Blow Your Mind This Time" & "La La La Means I Love You" ~ 65
Little Eddie King ~ 1960's Chicago blues singer/guitarist worked with Willie Dixon, Sonny Boy Williamson, Little Mack Simmons, Luther Allison, Magic Sam, Junior Wells, Detroit Junior and Freddie King as well as solo ~ 73
Dick Kniss ~ American bassist w/ Peter Paul & Mary, John Denver ~ 74
László Komár ~ Hungarian rock and roll singer from the 1960's & 70's ~ 67
Pete La Roca ~ American Jazz drummer w/ John Coltrane, Sonny Rollins, Marian McPartland, Art Farmer, Freddie Hubbard, Mose Allison and Chic Corea as well as with his own bands. Retired and became a lawyer, later suing after one of his solo albums was released under Corea's name instead of his own. ~ 74
Byard Lancaster ~ American jazz and blues multi-instrumentalist w/ McCoy Tyner, Sun Ra, Johnny Copeland, Memphis Slim ~ 70
Huw Lloyd-Langton ~ Guitarist for UK Psyche/Space Rock band Hawkwind ~ 61
John Levy ~ American jazz double-bassist w/ George Shearing, Ben Webster, Errol Garner, Milt Jackson, and Billie Holiday. Later manager for Shearing and others ~ 99
Tonmi Lillman ~ Drummer for Finnish metal band Lordi ~ 38
Everett Lilly ~ American bluegrass mandolinist with The Lilly Brothers ~ 87
Jimmy Little ~ Australian Aboriginal country/gospel singer from the 1950's on. Also an evangelist and actor ~ 75
Jon Lord ~ Keyboardist for 1970's hard rock group Deep Purple ~ 71
Andrew Love ~ American saxophonist with The Memphis Horns, house band for Stax Records on most of their recordings from the 1960's & 70's ~ 72
Vince Lovegrove ~ Co-lead singer (with Bon Scott) in 1960's Australian group The Valentines. The group broke up after a drugs bust and Lovegrove went on to be a producer and manager while Scott would later join AC/DC ~ 65
Eris Lowen ~ Part of singer/songwriter duo Lowen and Navarro who wrote a number of songs for various artists including "We belong" for Pat Benatar which they also recorded. ~ 60
Mitch Lucker ~ Singer with California Metal Band Suicide Silence ~ 28 Jerry "Boogie" McCain ~ Blues singer and harmonica player from the 1950's & 60's, recorded for Trumpet, OKeh, Rex, Columbia, Excello, and Jewel Records. A favourite of The Fabulous Thunderbirds who recorded with him and covered some of his songs ~ 81
Johnny McCauley ~ Irish 1960's folk singer whose songs were also covered by Christy Moore ~ 86
Mark McConnell ~ American drummer (Sebastian Bach, Blackfoot)
JIMMY McCRACKLIN; 1950's California R&B pianist/singer with hits like "The Walk" on Chess Records ~ 91
Kathi McDonald ~ American 1970's R&B singer w/The Rolling Stones & Long John Baldry ~ 64
John McIntire ~ Manager for The Grateful Dead ~ 70
Scott McKenzie ~ American singer ("San Francisco (Be Sure to Wear Flowers in Your Hair)") and songwriter ("Kokomo" covered by The Beach Boys) ~ 73 Hal McKusick ~ American jazz saxophonist, clarinetist and flautist w/Bill Evans ~ 87
Marion Marlowe ~ Pre-Rock era pop singer from the early fifties, later on broadway ~ 83
John Marshall ~ UK jazz, blues and folk guitarist, played with Ray Charles & Aretha Franklin ~ 71 Lou Martin ~ Northern Irish keyboardist with Rory Gallagher ~ 63
Mike Melovin ~ Jazz pianist from 1960's on, worked with Milt Jackson, Bill Henderson, Charlie Haden, Herb Ellis and Plas Johnson, Peggy Lee and later Tom Waits ~ 74
Fred Milano ~ American doo-wop singer w/The Belmonts, Dion and the Belmonts ~ 72
Ronnie Montrose ~ Guitarist for 1970's & 80's hard rock band Montrose w/singer Sammy Hagar before Sammy went solo and then on to Van Halen. Ronnie also had a solo career ~ 66
Frazier Mohawk ~ American record producer (Buffalo Springfield, The Byrds) ~ 71
Erik Moseholm ~ Danish Jazz Bassist w/Eric Dolphy, Don Byas ~ 82
John Napier ~ (AKA Wee Wee) Member of Industrial Bands Nitzer Ebb, Ethel Meatplow and E Coli ~
Jim Nevin ~ Keyboardist for early 1980's Australian New Wave band The Sports
Jason Noble ~ American rock guitarist (Rodan, Rachel's, Shipping News) ~ 40
Nick Noble (real name Nick Valkan); one of the pre-rock white pop singers who would be put out of work when rock hit. Noble actually manged to have a few more hits though as an easy listening and even country singer ~ 85
Hazy Osterwald ~ Swiss big band jazz leader ~ 90
Johnny Otis ~ (real name Ioannis Alexandres Veliote) 1950's R&B singer/band leader who played piano and drums. As his real name shows he was Greek but with his dark complexion he passed for mulatto and most of his legion of mostly black fans assumed he was. After playing in the 1940's with swing bands led by Harlan Leonard, Wynonie Harris and Charles Brown he formed his own band and wrote the classic hit "Willie and the hand jive" in 1958 which inspired Bo Diddly with it's distinctive beat and was hugely influential. Also had hits with "Harlem Nocturne'" in 1946, and produced and/or co-wrote such records as Big Mama Thorton's original version of "Hound Dog", "Roll With Me, Henry" for Etta James and "Every Beat of My Heart", first recorded by The Royals in the 1952 but later a hit for Gladys Knight. As a band leader and A&R man for King Records Otis discovered singers like Jackie Wilson, Hank Ballard, Little Willie John, Mel Walker,Little Ester Phillips and the Robins (later the Coasters) sax man Big Jay McNeely. As a session man he backed Johnny Guitar Watson. His son, Shuggie Otis also had a career as an R&B band leader in the 1960's & 70's. In the 1960's he later also entered politics and ran for California State Assembly as a Democrat and lost then becoming chief of staff to another assemblyman. He was also a church pastor. He died just three weeks after his 90th birthday.
Fritz Pauer ~ Austrian jazz pianist and composer ~ 68
David Peaston ~ American R&B singer, brother of Fontella Bass (who he recorded with), also worked with jazz man Lester Bowie ~ 54
Austin Peralta ~ Jazz Fusion Pianist ~ 22
Johnny Perez ~ Drummer for 1960's Texas garage band The Sir Douglas Quintet ("She's about a mover" ~ 69
Charles Pitts ~ American soul musician, guitarist for Isaac Hayes ~ 65
Dory Previn ~ Pop songwriter for Frank Sinatra, Tony Bennett, Doris Day, Nancy Wilson, Dionne Warwick and dozens more. Also married to composer Andre Previn ~ 86
Mark Reale ~ Guitarist with American metal band Riot ~ 56
Herb Reed ~ Singer with 1950's Doo Wop group The Platters ~ 83
Larry Reinhardt ~ American rock guitarist w/Iron Butterfly ~ 63
Christopher Reimer ~ Canadian rock guitarist (Women, The Dodos) ~ 26
Jenni Rivera ~ American-born Mexican banda and norteño singer ~ 43 Zoran Romich ~ Croatian/Australian guitarist for Aussie alt-pop bane The Chocolate Starfish ~ 47
Mike Scaccia; Guitarist for Ministry on their classic 1990's "Psalm 69" album and such songs as "Jesus Built my Hotrod" and "N.W.O.", collapsed and died on stage in Texas on December 22 aged 47. He started out in Thrash Metal band Rigor Mortis in 1983, then moved to Ministry in 1992. Ministry's "Psalm 69" and the accompanying videos and and Lollapalooza tour did much to take Industrial Music (or a club ready version of it) to the mainstream. He also played in Ministry side projects like The Revolting Cocks, Buck Satan and Lard.
Enrique Sierra ~ Spanish musician, member of 1980's Spanish rock band Radio Futura ~ 54
Ravi Shankar ~ Indian sitar master who made the crossover to Western Rock audiences in the 1960's ~
Mickey Shine ~ American drummer w/1970's Country Rock band Clover, Elvis Costello's first band ("Watching The Detectives" & "Alison"), w/1980's band Burning Rome ("Once Over")
Steve Shortell ~ 50's ~ Sax player for Toronto punk bands The Sinisters and Busted Flush
Tony Sly ~ American punk rock singer and guitarist (No Use for a Name) ~ 41
Carrie Smith ~ American blues, jazz and gospel singer ~ 70
Joe South ~ American songwriter, wrote "Gone Gone Gone" for Gene Vincent, "Down in the Boondocks" for Billy Joe Royal and "I never promised you a Rose Garden for Lynn Anderson, and songs for Brook Benton, Elvis Presley, Paul Revere & The Raiders, Kitty Wells, Dottie Wells & others. Also played session guitar for Simon & Garfunkel and Bob Dylan ~ 72
Billy Strange ~ 1960's composer. Wrote "Limbo Rock" later done by The Champs, Routers, Ventures and Chubby Checker, Arthur Lyman, The Knickerbockers and Chet Atkins and Hank Snow. Also teamed up with Mac Davis and wrote several hit songs for Elvis Presley, including "A Little Less Conversation". He acted as writer,arranger, producer and guitarist for Nancy Sinatra for hits including "Something stupid". Also played as session guitarist for the Beach Boys on the hit "Sloop John B" as well as for Jan & Dean, The Ventures, Willie Nelson, The Everly Brothers, Wanda Jackson, Randy Newman, and Nat King Cole ~ 81
Big Jim Sullivan ~ British session guitarist from the 1960's on. Played with; Dave Berry's 1964 hit "The Crying Game", Alexis Korner's and Blues Incorporated's, P.J. Proby's 1964 hit "Hold Me", Billy Fury, Frank Ifield, Adam Faith, Frankie Vaughan, Helen Shapiro, Freddie and the Dreamers, Cilla Black, Tom Jones, Shirley Bassey, Dusty Springfield, Georgie Fame, Bobby Darin, Little Richard, Dell Shannon, The Walker Brothers, Donovan, David Bowie, Engelbert Humperdinck, Benny Hill, The New Seekers, Thunderclap Newman, Long John Baldry, Marmalade, Small Faces, The Tremeloes. He was also the resident guitarist at TV shows "Top of the Pops" and "Ready Steady Go!" ~ 71 Rollin Sullivan ~ 1940's & 50's Country music (Lonzo and Oscar) ~ 93
Donna Summer ~ American disco singer ("Bad Girls", "Hot Stuff", "Last Dance", "I Feel Love"), ~ 63
Stuart Swanlund ~ American guitarist (The Marshall Tucker Band), natural causes ~ 54
Richie Teeter ~ Drummer with late 1970's New York punk band The Dictators, later with 1980's hair band shockers Twisted Sister ~ 61
Frode Thingnæs ~ Norwegian Jazz Trombonist, composer and Jazz Pioneer who recorded the first jazz album in Norway ~ 72
Bill Tillman ~ American saxophonist (Blood, Sweat & Tears) ~ 65
Al Urban ~ 1950's rockabilly singer, later a country songwriter w/ hits for Charlie Rich ~ 76
Stig Vig ~ Singer w/Swedish punk/reggae band Dag Vag ~ 64
David Ware ~ Free Jazz sax player w/Cecil Taylor and later with his own Quartet ~ 62 Doc Watson ~ 89 ~ American folk and bluegrass singer guitarist ~ 89
Bob Welch ~ Guitarist in Fleetwood Mac in the early seventies during the transitional period between the blues group led by Peret Green and Jeremy Spencer and the late seventies hit machine led by Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham ~ 66
Kitty Wells ~ Country singer from the 1940's to the 1960's It ("Wasn't God Who Made Honky Tonk Angels") ~ 92
Bob Weston ~ Guitarist/harmonica/banjo w/Fleetwood Mac on two albums in 1972/73 later with Steve Marriot and Murray Head and solo ~ 64
Marva Whitney; Singer with James Brown's band, as well as solo, known as "Soul Sister" ~ 68
Andy Williams ~ 1960's & 70's pop singer ("Moon River") ~ 84
Belita Woods ~ American funk singer (Brainstorm, Parliament-Funkadelic) ~ 63
Adam Yauch, 47, American musician (Beastie Boys)
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