Pick a Day

Music History Events: Deaths

February 29, 2012 Monkees singer Davy Jones dies of a heart attack at age 66.More

February 11, 2012 Whitney Houston is found dead in the bathtub of her suite at the Beverly Hilton hotel in Los Angeles, where she was slated to perform at Clive Davis' annual Pre-Grammy party later that night.More

September 29, 2011 Sylvia Robinson, a singer and rap impresario who brought us "Rapper's Delight," dies at age 75.

July 23, 2011 Amy Winehouse dies in London of alcohol poisoning at the age of 27.More

June 18, 2011 Clarence Clemons, saxophone player in Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band, dies at age 69 after suffering a stroke. He is replaced in the band by his nephew, Jake Clemons.

January 4, 2011 Gerry Rafferty, who had a huge solo hit with "Baker Street" and was also a member of Stealers Wheel, dies at age 63.

March 17, 2010 Big Star lead singer Alex Chilton dies of a heart attack at age 59. Three days later, the group's scheduled performance at SXSW is turned into a tribute to Chilton.

June 25, 2009 Fifty-year-old Michael Jackson is found dead in the Los Angeles mansion he is renting. The shocking news spreads quickly through social media outlets, and Jackson is the subject of numerous tributes over the next few weeks.More

December 16, 2007 Dan Fogelberg dies of prostate cancer at age 56. Emerging out of the '70s soft rock scene, the singer-songwriter made his mark with sensitive records like "Leader Of The Band" and "Same Old Lang Syne."

December 12, 2007 Ike Turner dies of a cocaine overdose in San Marcos, California, at age 76. He was also struggling with emphysema and cardiovascular disease.

August 29, 2005 Hurricane Katrina pounds New Orleans. One of the victims is Barry Cowsill of The Cowsills, who dies by drowning at age 50. Fats Domino, 77, survives after he is rescued from his home in the Ninth Ward.

June 10, 2004 Ray Charles dies at age 73 of liver disease.More

September 12, 2003 Johnny Cash dies of complications from diabetes in Nashville, Tennessee, at age 71. One of the biggest stars of the '60s and '70s, he made some of his most memorable music near the end of his life with a set of back-to-basics albums produced by Rick Rubin, including American IV: The Man Comes Around, which wins the CMA for Album Of The Year posthumously.

September 7, 2003 Warren Zevon dies of cancer (peritoneal mesothelioma) in Los Angeles, California, at age 56.

July 30, 2003 Sam Phillips, the record producer who launched Elvis Presley's career at Sun Records, dies of respiratory failure at age 80.

February 20, 2003 A fire breaks out at a Great White concert in Rhode Island, killing 100 people, including the band's guitarist, Ty Longley.More

January 12, 2003 While awaiting emergency surgery for a strangulated intestine, Maurice Gibb of the Bee Gees dies unexpectedly of a heart attack at age 53.More

December 22, 2002 Joe Strummer of The Clash dies of a heart attack at age 50. The Clash are inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame a few months later.

June 27, 2002 John Entwistle (age 57), bassist for The Who, dies in a hotel room in Las Vegas, Nevada, from a heart attack triggered by cocaine use.

April 25, 2002 30-year-old Lisa "Left Eye" Lopes (of TLC) dies in a car accident in La Ceiba, Honduras, after swerving to avoid an oncoming vehicle and losing control. The only passenger fatally injured, she's thrown from the car and dies instantly.

April 19, 2002 Alice In Chains lead singer Layne Staley is discovered dead in his Seattle apartment after police break down his door to investigate reports that he is missing. Staley, whose addictions led him to cut off contact with friends and family, had died on April 5 of a drug overdose. He was 34.

November 29, 2001 George Harrison succumbs to lung cancer at age 58. His final hours are spent with his wife, son, and musician Ravi Shankar at his side.More

October 16, 2001 Etta Jones dies of cancer at age 72 in Mount Vernon, New York, the same day HighNote releases her album Etta Jones Sings Lady Day.

August 25, 2001 After shooting the music video for "Rock The Boat" in The Bahamas, 22-year-old Aaliyah dies in a plane crash along with eight others when the overloaded aircraft goes down shortly after takeoff.More

April 15, 2001 Joey Ramone of the Ramones dies of lymphoma at age 49.More

October 3, 2000 Benjamin Orr (bassist/singer for The Cars) dies of pancreatic cancer in Atlanta, Georgia, at age 53.

December 26, 1999 Curtis Mayfield, debilitated from a 1990 stage accident that left him paralyzed, dies of complications from diabetes at 57. Mayfield was a writer and producer as well as a singer. With his group The Impressions he crafted songs like "Gypsy Woman" and "People Get Ready." As a solo artist, he's best known for the 1972 Super Fly soundtrack with the ultra-funky title tune.

May 10, 1999 Shel Silverstein, the prolific author of beloved children's books who was also a top songwriter, dies of a massive heart attack at age 68. He wrote "A Boy Named Sue" for Johnny Cash.More

March 2, 1999 Dusty Springfield dies of breast cancer at age 59.

May 14, 1998 Frank Sinatra dies of a heart attack in West Hollywood, California, at age 82.