Pick a Day

Music History Events: Deaths

January 29, 2014 Johnny Allen, a pianist and arranger for Motown and Stax Records, dies of complications from pneumonia at age 96. In 1971 he, along with Isaac Hayes, won a Grammy Award for his arrangement of the "Theme From Shaft."

January 27, 2014 Pete Seeger dies at age 94.

January 8, 2014 Reather Dixon Turner of The Bobbettes dies at age 69.

January 3, 2014 Phil Everly of The Everly Brothers dies of complications from lung disease at age 74.

January 2, 2014 Jay Traynor of Jay & the Americans dies at age 70.

December 16, 2013 Country singer Ray Price dies of pancreatic cancer at age 87.

December 11, 2013 Tommy Ruger (drummer for The Nightcrawlers) dies of multiple health issues, including diabetes, in Port Orange, Florida, at age 67.

December 8, 2013 Muscle Shoals alum John Wyker dies of congestive heart failure age 68. His band Sailcat had a huge hit in 1972 with "Motorcycle Mama."

December 2, 2013 Reggae star Junior Murvin dies at age 67.

November 29, 2013 Dick Dodd (of The Standells) dies of cancer in Fountain Valley, California, at age 68.

November 25, 2013 Gary dos Santos, known as the "Mayor of Strawberry Fields," dies at age 49 after a battle with leukemia. Dos Santos ruled over the Strawberry Fields section of Central Park, dedicated to the memory of John Lennon. He helped keep order and decorum in the area, arranged flowers at the memorial, and greeted tourists who came by.

October 31, 2013 Blues guitarist Bobby Parker dies of a heart attack at age 76.

October 30, 2013 Peter Haycock (frontman for Climax Blues Band) dies of a heart attack in Frankfurt, Germany, at age 62.

October 26, 2013 Al Johnson (co-founder of The Unifics) dies at age 65.

October 19, 2013 Noel Harrison, whose "Windmills Of Your Mind" won an Academy Award for Best Original Song for the 1968 heist film The Thomas Crown Affair, dies of a heart attack at age 79.

October 18, 2013 Rockabilly guitarist Roland Janes dies at age 80 after suffering a heart attack. As a Sun Records session guitarist, he played on tracks from Jerry Lee Lewis, Charlie Rich, and Sonny Burgess, among others.

October 8, 2013 Novelty song singer Larry Verne dies of heart failure in Sylmar, California, at age 77.

September 29, 2013 Keith "Sabu" Crier (bass player for GQ) dies at age 58. Known for the 1979 hit "Disco Nights (Rock-Freak)."

September 21, 2013 Douglas Grassel (rhythm guitarist for Ohio Express) dies from fibrosis of the lungs at age 64.

September 17, 2013 Country/rockabilly singer Marvin Rainwater dies of heart failure in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Known for late-'50s hits "Gonna Find Me a Bluebird" and "Whole Lotta Woman."

September 15, 2013 Doo-wopper Bobby Mansfield (lead singer of The Wrens) dies in The Bronx, New York, at age 76. Known for the 1955 hit "Come Back My Love."

September 15, 2013 Jackie Lomax (hand-picked by The Beatles to be Apple Records' first big vocal star, but that never happened) dies of cancer while visiting near Liverpool, England, at age 69. Known for the 1968 single "Sour Milk Sea."

September 12, 2013 Ray Dolby (sound engineer who invented the noise-reduction system which bears his name) dies of leukemia in San Francisco, California, at age 80.

September 6, 2013 Soul musician/arranger Bobby Martin dies after a sudden illness in San Diego, California, at age 83. Worked with Philadelphia soul songwriters/producers Kenneth Gamble and Leon Huff.

September 1, 2013 Singer/bassist Joe Kelley (of Shadows of Knight) dies of lung cancer in Winfield, Illinois, at age 67. Known for the 1966 hit cover of Them's "Gloria."

August 21, 2013 Sid Bernstein (music promoter for The Beatles and manager for The (Young) Rascals and Tony Bennett) dies in Manhattan, New York, at age 95.

August 14, 2013 Allen Lanier (keyboardist/rhythm guitarist for Blue Öyster Cult) dies of complications from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (C.O.P.D) in Manhattan, New York, at age 67.

August 10, 2013 Jody Payne (guitarist for Willie Nelson's band, The Family) dies of cardiac problems at age 77 in Stapleton, Alabama.

August 8, 2013 "Cowboy" Jack Clement (writer and producer for Johnny Cash) dies of liver cancer at age 82 in Nashville, Tennessee.

August 5, 2013 Singer/keyboardist George Duke (Frank Zappa collaborator and half of The Clarke/Duke Project with Stanley Clarke) dies from chronic lymphocytic leukemia at age 67 in Los Angeles, California.