Pick a Day

Music History Events: Died Young

May 8, 1982 Casablanca Records founder Neil Bogart dies of cancer and lymphoma at age 39.

April 30, 1982 Renowned music critic Lester Bangs, who wrote for Creem and Rolling Stone, dies at age 33 from an accidental drug overdose.

February 4, 1982 Alex Harvey (of The Sensational Alex Harvey Band) dies of a massive heart attack at age 46.

August 28, 1981 Guy Stevens (music producer/manager) dies of a prescription drug overdose in South London, England, at age 38. He produced The Clash's third album, London Calling.

July 1, 1981 Rushton Moreve (original bass guitarist for Steppenwolf) dies in an automobile accident at age 32.

June 3, 1981 Just before The Duprees are about to embark on a reunion tour, the doo wop group's Joe Santollo dies of internal bleeding after suffering a heart attack at age 37.

April 28, 1981 Original T. Rex bass player Steve Currie dies in a car accident at age 33, four years after the group's lead singer Marc Bolan met his demise in a similar fashion.

April 5, 1981 Blues-rock musician Bob "The Bear" Hite (lead singer of Canned Heat) dies at age 38 after snorting a vial of heroin - thinking it was cocaine - given to him by a fan.

February 15, 1981 Mike Bloomfield, a renowned guitarist with The Paul Butterfield Blues Band and The Electric Flag, is found dead in his car under mysterious circumstances. Al Kooper, who played with him on many Bob Dylan sessions, surmises that Bloomfield overdosed and his drug dealer drove him to a secluded spot to be found later.

December 29, 1980 Folk musician Tim Hardin, who wrote the hit "If I Were a Carpenter," dies of a heroin overdose at age 39.

December 7, 1980 Darby Crash (of the Germs) commits suicide at age 22 through an intentional heroin overdose.

November 16, 1980 '60s soul singer O.V. Wright ("That's How Strong My Love Is") dies of a heart attack at age 41 after consistent drug abuse weakens his health.

November 4, 1980 Ronnie Goodson (of Ronnie and the Hi-Lites), battling brain cancer, dies in his sleep at age 33.

October 27, 1980 Steve Took, original percussionist of T. Rex, dies in New Kensington, London, at age 31. Although he had taken drugs, his official cause of death was asphyxiation after inhaling a cocktail cherry.

July 23, 1980 Grateful Dead keyboardist Keith Godchaux, 32, dies of head injuries sustained in a car accident two days earlier. He had been on the way home from his birthday party at the time of the crash.

July 14, 1980 Malcolm Owen (original singer for Ruts) dies of a heroin overdose at age 26.

May 30, 1980 Rock bassist Carl Radle (of Derek & the Dominos) dies of a drug-and-alcohol-related kidney infection at age 37.

April 28, 1980 Tommy Caldwell (original frontman for The Marshall Tucker Band) dies at age 30 when his Jeep overturns during an accident.

March 26, 1980 John Poulos (drummer for The Buckinghams) dies of drug-related heart failure less than a week before this 33rd birthday.

March 23, 1980 Reggae musician Jacob Miller (of Inner Circle) dies in a car accident in Jamaica at age 27.

February 21, 1980 Janet Vogel of The Skyliners ("Since I Don't Have You") commits suicide at age 37.

January 7, 1980 R&B singer Larry Williams dies at age 44 of a gunshot wound to the head in what's eventually deemed a suicide, though some speculate he was murdered. Known for a string of enduring rock 'n roll hits from the mid-'50s, including "Bony Moronie" and "Short Fat Fannie."

January 6, 1980 Georgeanna Tillman (of The Marvelettes) dies of lupus and sickle cell anemia a month shy of her 36th birthday.

November 17, 1979 John Glascock (bass guitarist for Jethro Tull) dies at age 28 of a congenital heart valve defect paired with an infection from an abscessed tooth.

September 27, 1979 Jimmy McCulloch (lead guitarist for Paul McCartney & Wings) dies of heroin-induced heart failure in Maida Vale, North West London, at age 26.

September 18, 1979 Greg Arama (bass player for The Amboy Dukes) dies in a motorcycle accident at age 29.

July 15, 1979 Punk rocker Rick Garberson (drummer for Bizarros) dies of a presumed suicide via carbon-monoxide poisoning.

July 12, 1979 Soul singer Minnie Riperton, known for her hit "Lovin' You," dies of breast cancer at age 31. Her daughter, Maya Rudolph, is 6 years old.

July 6, 1979 Van McCoy, known for the 1975 disco hit "The Hustle," dies of a heart attack at age 39.

June 29, 1979 While on tour in Arlington, Virginia, Lowell George dies of a heart attack caused by a cocaine overdose at age 34. His band, Little Feat, broke up just months earlier.