a Phil Brodie Band Info Page
"Births & Deaths"
These birthdates and death dates are unique to this site,
I have been working on them for over 7 years now.
PLEASE give credit or link if copied
PAGES UPDATED DAILY
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DEC: Old Charts ~ DEC: On This Day ~ DEC: Music Quiz
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
DECEMBER
SADLY DEPARTED
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
RESPECT - OBITUARIES
2011 .. 2010 .. 2009 .. 2008 .. 2007 .. 2006 .. 2005 .. 2004 .. REQUESTS
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
MORE BIRTHDATES & PASSINGS & TRIBUTES
January . February . March . April . May . June . July
August . September . October . November . December
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
DECEMBER
BIRTHDAYS

Born ~ December 1st.
1985: Janelle Monae Robinson (US singer)
1978: Mat Kearney (US singer, songwriter).
1977: Big Bad Brad/Bradford Phillip Delson (US lead guitar, Linkin Park).
1975: Isaiah "Ikey" Owens (US keyboardist; The Mars Volta)
1973: Jon Theodore (US drummer; The Mars Volta/freelance).
1973: Steve Gibb (UK-born US guitarist; Black Label Society/Underbellys/Crowbar/solo/sessions).
1971: Mika Pohjola (Finnish jazz pianist and composer).
1970: Jonathan Coulton (US singer-songwriter).
1963: Sam Reid (Canadian keyboardist; Tokyo/Glass Tiger).
1959: Steve Jansen/Stephen Batt (UK vocalist, drums, percussion; Japan/Dolphin Bros/Nine Horses).
1959: Billy Childish (English singer, guitarist, poet, painter, writer, film maker).
1958: Lisa Fischer (American R&B singer).
1957: Chris Poland (US guitarist; Megadeth).
1957: Vesta Williams (US R&B singer)*22.Sept.2011..
1956: Kim Richey (US singer-songwriter).
1956: Julee Cruise (US singer, actress).
1955: Mark Thompson (American disc jockey and actor).
1951: Jaco Pastorius/John Francis Pastorius III (US bass player; Weather Report)*21.Sept.1987..
1950: Keith Thibodeaux (US actor, drummer; David & the Giants).
1950: Armen Donelian (Armenian-American pianist; jazz fusion group Cosmology/solo)?
1947: Alain Bashung (French singer)*14.March.1991..
1947: Leo Cuypers (Dutch pianist)
1946: Gilbert O'Sullivan/Raymond O'Sullivan (Irish singer, songwriter, pianist).
1945: Bette Midler (US vocalist, actress).
1944: Eric Bloom (US singer, songwriter, guitarist, keyboardist; Blue Oyster Cult and others)
1944: Charlie Grima (Maltese-UK drummer; Wizzard/freelance)
1944: John Densmore (US drums, author; Doors/Bess Snyder and Co).
1942: Casey Van Beek (US multi-instrumentalist; The Tractors)
1939: Dianne Lennon (US singer; The Lennon Sisters)
1938: Carlos Garnett (Panamanian tenor saxophonist; Art Blakey/Miles Davis/solo)
1938: Sandy Nelson/Sander L Nelson (US drummer: session musician/solo)
1937: Muriel Costa-Greenspon (US mezzo-soprano)*26.Dec.2005..
1935: Woody Allen/Allen Stewart Konigsberg (US film director, clarinetist, actor, comedian).
1934: Billy Paul/Paul Williams (US R&B, soul singer)
1933: Lou Rawls/Louis Allen Rawls (US jazz-soul-R&B singer/songwriter)*06.Jan.2006..
1932: Dame Heather Begg (New Zealand operatic soprano)*12.May.2009..
1931: Jimmy Lyons (American alto saxophonist;Cecil Taylor Unit)*19.May.1986..
1931: Johnny Raducanu (Romanian jazz pianist)*19.Sept.2011..
1931: Jim Nesbitt (US comic country music singer)*29.Nov.2007..
1930: Matt Monro/Terrence Parsons (UK ballad singer)*07.Feb.1985..
1928: Lurlean Hunter (American jazz singer)
1927: Ted Brown (US tenor saxophonist; jazz artist)
1925: Dick Johnson (US big band clarinetist;The Artie Shaw Orchestra)
1923: Wessel Ilcken (Dutch jazz drummer)*13.July.1957..
1921: John Bunch (US Hoosier jazz pianist)
1919: Ike Isaacs (Burmese jazz guitarist; Stephane Grapelli/others)*11.Jan.1996..
1917: Thomas Hayward/Thomas Albert Tibbett (US operatic tenor)*02.Feb.1995..
1913: Mary Martin (American actress, singer; stage musicals)*03.Nov.1990..
1908: Georgios Kasassoglou (Greek musician, music education pioneer)*02.June.1984..
1904: Jimmy Lytell (US clarinetist;The Original Memphis Five/band leader)*28.Nov.1972..
1901: Ilona Feher (Hungarian-Jewish violinist)*Jan.1988.

December 2nd.
1987: Teairra Mari/Teairra Maria Thomas (American R&B singer).
1982: Pizon/Michael Scala (Italian-American rapper, producer).
1981: Britney Spears (US singer).
1979: Yvonne Catterfeld (German singer, actress).
1978: Nelly Furtado (Canadian singer, songwriter).
1978: Christopher Wolstenholme (UK bassist; Muse).
1976: Masafumi Goto (Japanese singer, rhythm; Asian Kung-Fu Generation).
1971: Donna Matthews (Welsh guitarist; Elastica).
1970: Yang Hyun Suk (South Korean record producer).
1970: Treach/Anthony Criss (US rap artist; Naughty By Nature).
1968: Nathan "Nate" Mendel (US bassist; Foo Fighters/Sunny Day Real Estate/guest).
1960: Razzle/Nicholas Dingley (UK drummer; Hanoi Rocks)*08.Dec.1984.
1960: Rick 'Sav' Savage (UK bass player, Def Leppard).
1960: Sydney Youngblood/Sydney Ford (German born US singer).
1947: Isaac Bitton (French rock drummer; Les Variations).
1944: Dionysis Savvopoulos (Greek music composer, lyricist, singer).
1943: David Charles Munden (UK drums; The Tremeloes).
1942: Ted Bluechel (US drummer, guitar, vocals; Cherry Hill Singers/Association).
1941: Tom McGuinness (UK guitar, vocals; Manfred Mann/McGuinness Flint/Manfreds/Paul Jones Blues).
1941: Ernest Mothle (South African jazz double bassist, bassist, vocalists, composer)*02.May.2011.
1935: Ronnie Mathews (American jazz pianist)*28.June.2008.
1931: Wynton Kelly (US jazz pianist; Miles Davis's Quintet/many greats/solo)*12.April.1971.
1928: Italo Pizzolante (Venezuelan poet, composer, musician, professor)*12.March.2011.
1924: Cyril Ornadel (British conductor, composer; TV / films)*22.June.2011.
1923: Maria Callas (US born Greek soprano singer)*16.Sept.1977.
1917: Sylvia Syms/Sylvia Blagman (American jazz singer)*10.May.1992.
1916: Charlie Ventura (US tenor saxophonist, bandleader)*17.Jan.1992.
1914: Adolph Green (US composer; collaborator Betty Comden)*23.Oct.2002.
1906: Peter Carl Goldmark (Hungarian engineer, president; Columbia Records/invented the LP)*07.Dec.1977.
1895: Harriet Cohen CBE (British classical pianist)*13.Nov.1967.
1893: Leo Ornstein (Russian-born US experimental composer, pianist)*24.Feb.2002.
1866: Henry "Harry" Burleigh (African American composer, arranger, baritone singer)*12.Dec.1949.

December 3rd.
1983: Sherri DuPree (US vocalist, guitarist, lyricist; Eisley).
1982: Jaycee Chan (Hong Kong actor, singer, composer, lyricist, guitarist).
1979: Daniel Bedingfield (New Zealand born British singer).
1979: Kanako Hoshino (Japanese singer).
1978: Trina/Katrina Le’verne Taylor (US rapper).
1977: Ksenija Pajcin (Serbian singer, dancer)*16.March.2010.
1976: Todd Smith (US vocalist, songwriter, guitarist; Dog Fashion Disco/El-Creepo/others
1975: Mickey Avalon (American rapper).
1975: Csaba Czébely (Hungarian drummer; Pokolgép).
1974: Jason Morris (Canadian pop singer).
1973: Sammy Leung (Hong Kong disc jockey).
1973: MC Frontalot/Damian Hess (US rapper).
1969: Bill Steer (UK guitarist, bassist; Napalm Death/Carcass).
1968: Montell Jordan (American R&B singer-songwriter, record producer).
1963: Joe Lally (American bass guitarist; Fugazi)
1952: Duane Roland (US guitarist; Molly Hatchet/Southern Rock Allstars/Gator Country)*19.June.2006.
1951: Mike Stock (Stock, Aitken, Waterman production team).
1951: Nicky Stevens (UK singer; Brotherhood Of Man).
1949: Mickey Thomas (US singer; Elvin Bishop Group/Jefferson Starship).
1948: Ozzy Osbourne/John Michael Osbourne (UK singer; Black Sabbath/own band).
1946: Vic Malcolm (UK lead guitarist; Geordie).
1944: Ralph McTell (UK folk singer, guitarist, songwriter, children's TV presenter).
1942: Ken Lewis (UK singer, songwriter; Ivy League/Carter-Lewis And The Southerners)?
1932: Jody Reynolds/Ralph Joseph Reynolds (American singer and guitarist)*07.Nov.2008.
1932: Corry Brokken (Dutch singer)
1931: Jaye P. Morgan/Mary Margaret Morgan (US singer).
1927: Andy Williams (US singer).
1925: Terry Preston/Simon Crum/Ferlin Husky (US country pop singer)*17.March.2011.
1923: Frank Guarrera (American baritone with the Metropolitan Opera)*23.Nov.2007.
1921: Phyllis Curtin née Smith (American classical soprano).
1913: Emil Brenkus (American jazz bassist)*10.Dec.2007.
1911: Nino Rota/Nino Rinaldi (Italian composer)*10.April.1979.
1910: Machito/Francisco Grillo (Cuban latin-jazz musician; Afro-Cubans)*15.April.1984.

December 4th.
1981: Lila McCann (US country music singer).
1979: Ysabella Brave (US singer)
1978: Jaclyn Victor (Malaysian singer).
1977: Big Pokey/Milton Powell (US rapper; Screwed Up Click).
1977: Morten Veland (Norwegian guitarist, lyricist, songwriter; Sirenia)
1976: Amie Comeaux (US country singer)*21.Dec.1997.
1976: Ysabella Brave/MaryAnne Ysabella (US soul-blues-jazz singer).
1973: Kate Rusby (UK folk music singer; Pookies/solo).
1973: Frank Boeijen (Dutch keyboardist; The Gathering).
1973: Atsushi Tamura (Japanese comedian, singer; Jealkb)
1973: Ferry Corsten (Dutch producer, remixer, DJ)
1972: Justin Welch (UK drums; Elastica).
1970: Fat Pat/Patrick Lamont Hawkins (US rapper; Screwed Up Click)*03.Feb.1998.
1969: Jay-Z/Jigga/Jay Hova/Young Hov/God MC/Shawn Corey Carter (US rapper, record president).
1967: Adamski/Adam Tinley (UK keyboards, vocals, dance music producer).
1967: Eric Roche (American/Irish arranger, guitarist)*06.Sept.2005.
1966: Masta Ace/Duval Clear (American rapper).
1964: Andrew Banfield (UK vocals; Pasadena's).
1964: Sertab Erener (Turkish popular singer).
1962: Vinnie Dombroski (US lead vocals; Sponge).
1959: Bob Griffin (US bassist; The BoDeans).
1955: Cassandra Wilson (US Grammy Award-winning jazz singer).
1951: Gary Rossington (US guitar; Lynyrd Skynyrd).
1948: Southside Johnny/John Lyon (US vocals, harmonica; The Asbury Jukes).
1947: Andy LaVerne (American jazz pianist, composer, arranger).
1947: Terry Woods (Irish folk musician, mandolin, cittern; Pogues).
1944: Dick Miller (Australian composer, reedist).
1944: Dennis Carl Wilson (US vocalist, drums; Beach Boys)*28.Dec.1983.
1944: Chris Hillman (US bassist, vocals; Byrds/Flying Burrito Brothers/Desert Rose Band/guest/solo).
1944: Anna McGarrigle (Canadian folk singer-songwriter).
1942: Bob Mosley (US bassist; The Frantics/Moby Grape).
1940: Rune Carlsson (Swedish drummer, vocalist).
1939: Freddy Cannon/Frederick Anthony Picariello (US rock 'n' roll singer).
1938: Yvonne Minton CBE (Australian soprano).
1937: Ernie Carson (US Dixieland cornetist, singer; Capital City Jazz Band/Castle Jazz Band)*09.Jan.2012.
1933: Denis Charles (Saint Croixan jazz drummer)*26.March.1998.
1930: Jim Hall (American jazz guitarist, composer, arranger).
1928: Frank Tiberi (US tenor saxophonist, leader; Woody Herman Orchestra).
1921: Deanna Durbin/Edna Mae Durbin (Canadian actress, singer).
1917: Dick "Pixie" Roberts (Australian alto saxophonist).
1917: Russell Jacquet (American big band trumpeter)*28.Feb.1990.
1916: Frank Joseph Flynn (American vibraphonist).
1915: Eddie Heywood (American jazz pianist)*03.Jan.1989.
1910: Alex North/Isadore Soifer (US film music composer)*08.Sept.1991.
1861: Lillian Russell/Helen Louise Leonard (US singer, actress)*06.June.1922.

December 5th.
1989: Kwon Yuri (South Korean singer)
1985: Dulce María/Dulce María Espinoza Saviñón (Mexican latin pop singer, actress; RBD).
1982: Keri Hilson (US singer)
1980: Zainam Higgins (US vocals; Cleopatra).
1980: Ibrahim Maalouf (Lebanese-born French trumpeter).
1979: Evonne Hsu (US born, Taiwanese singer).
1973: Mikelangelo Loconte (Italian singer, performer, composer).
1971: Craig Gill (UK drummer; Inspiral Carpets).
1968: Glen Graham (US drummer, percussion; Blind Melon).
1967: Gary Allan/Gary Allan Herzberg (US country music singer).
1966: Lee Seung-Chul (South Korean singer)
1966: Patricia Kaas (French singer).
1965: Wayne Smith (Jamaican reggae musician).
1965: Johnny Rzeznik (US guitar, vocalist, songwriter; Goo Goo Dolls).
1962: José Cura (Argentine tenor opera singer).
1960: Les Nemes (UK bassist; Haircut 100).
1960: Jack Russell (US lead singer; Great White).
1960: Brian Bromberg (US jazz bassist, record producer).
1959: Robbie France (UK drummer, producer, journalist; Skunk Anansie, Diamond Head, UFO)*14.Jan.2012.
1956: Krystian Zimerman (Polish classical pianist).
1952: Andy Kim/Andrew Youakim (Canadian pop singer).
1950: Osvaldo Golijov (Argentine-born composer).
1950: Camarón de la Isla/José Monje Cruz (Spanish flamenco singer; Paco de Lucia)*02.July.1992.
1949: John Altman (British film composer)
1947: Jim Messina (US guitar, bass, recording engineer; Buffalo Springfield/Poco/Loggins&Messina).
1947: Miroslav Bukovsky (Czech born, Australian based jazz trumpet player).
1947: Egberto Gismonti (Brazilian multi-instrumentalist, composer; Nana Vasconcelos/sessionist/solo).
1946: José Carreras (Catalan Spanish operatic tenor).
1945: Eduardo "Eddie" Serrato (Texan drummer; ? & The Mysterians)*24.Feb.2011.
1944: Loukas Sideras (Greek drummer; Aphrodite's Child).
1938: JJ Cale/John W. Cale (US guitarist, singer songwriter).
1934: Art Davis (American jazz double-bassist)*29.July.2007.
1932: Little Richard/Richard Wayne Penniman (US rock 'n' roll pianist, singer)
1931: James Cleveland (US gospel singer, arranger, composer; King of Gospel Music)*09.Feb.1991.
1928: Gene Allen/Eugene Sufana (US jazz baritone saxophonist).
1911: Wladyslaw Szpilman (Polish pianist, author, radio personality)*06.July.2000.
1903: Johannes Heesters (Dutch singer and actor..still working at 105!!).
1899: Sonny Boy Williamson II/Rice Miller/Aleck Ford (US harmonica, singer-songwriter)*25.May.1965
Sonny Boy claimed to have been born on Dec 5th 1899, but researcher, David Evans, claims to have found
census record evidence that he was born around 1912. His gravestone has his birthdate as March 11th 1908.
1898: Grace Moore (US soprano)*26.Jan.1947.
1870: Vítezslav Novák (Czechoslovacian composer)*18.July1949.

December 6th.
1995: Joy Gruttmann (German singer; child star).
1988: Sandra Nurmsalu (Estonian singer, violinist)
1985: Dulce María (Mexican singer and actress).
1975: Musa Juma (Kenyan musician, singer; Orchestra Limpopo International)*15.March.2011.
1970: Ulf Ekberg (Swedish vocalist, producer; Ace Of Base).
1969: Mark Gardener (UK singer, guitar; Ride).
1967: Hacken Lee (Hong Kong Cantopop singer).
1962: Ben Watt (UK DJ, musician, record producer; Everything But The Girl).
1961: Jonathan Melvoin (US keyboardist, drums; Smashing Pumpkins/others/sessionist)*12.July.1996.
1961: David Lovering (US drummer; The Pixies).
1957: Adrian Borland (English musician; The Sound)*26.April.1999.
1956: Peter Buck (US mandolin, guitar; R.E.M.).
1956: Randall "Randy" Rhoads (US guitarist; Quiet Riot/Ozzy Osbourne Band)*March.19.1982.
1955: Rick Buckler (UK drummer; Jam/Time UK's/The Gift)
1955: Edward Tudor-Pole (UK vocals, guitar, actor; Tenpole Tudor/presenter on The Crystal Maze)
1950: Joe Hisaishi (Japanese composer, director)
1949: Linda Creed/married name Linda Epstein (Award-winning US songwriter)*10.April.1986.
1948: Marius Müller-Westernhagen (German actor, musician).
1947: Kim Simmonds (Welsh blues guitar virtuoso, multi-musician; Savoy Brown/solo).
1947: Miroslav Vitous (Czechoslovakian jazz bassist, multi musician; Weather Report/freelance)
1946: Frankie Beverly/Howard Beverly (US singer, producer, songwriter; soul & Funk unit Maze).
1946: Keith West/Keith Hopkins (UK singer, producer; Tomorrow/Teenage Opera)
1944: Willie Hutch/Willie Hutchinson (US vocalist, guitar, songwriter; Motown/others)*19.Sept.2005.
1944: Jonathan King/Kenneth George King (UK music producer, pop mogul, singer)
1944: Fritz Fryer/David Carney Fryer (UK guitarist, producer; Four Pennies/Fritz,Mike&Mo)*O2.Sept.2007.
1940: Jay Leonhart (American jazz bass player).
1943: Mike Smith (UK singer, keyboard, songwriter; Dave Clark Five/solo)*28.Feb.2008.
1935: Jean Lapointe OC OQ (Canadian/Quebecois actor, comedian, singer, senator).
1935: George "The Fox" Williams (US lead singer; The Tymes)*28.July.2004.
1933: Henryk Górecki (Polish composer)*12.Nov.2010.
1931: Zeki Müren (Turkish actor, singer, and composer)*24.Sept.1996.
1929: Mark Kopytman (Israeli composer, musicologist)*16.Dec.2011.
1928: Roberto Pregadio (Italian musician, orchestra director, TV personality)*15.Nov.2010.
1928: Bobby Van/Robert Jack Stein (US singer, dancer, trumpet, actor)*31.July.1980.
1927: Akira Miyazawa (Japanese tenor saxophonist).
1925: Bob Cooper (American tenor saxophonist, oboe; sessionist)*05.Aug.1993.
1924: Suzanne DeLee Flanders Larson/ Susanna Foster (American film actress and singer)*17.Jan.2009.
1921: Piero Piccioni (Italian musician and composer)*23.July.2004.
1920: Dave Brubeck (US jazz pianist, composer; Dave Brubeck Quartet)
1916: Hugo Peretti (US songwriting and production duo of Hugo & Luigi)*01.May.1986
1896: Ira Gershwin (American lyricist)*17.Aug.1983.
1887: Joseph Lamb (US ragtime composer)*03.Sept.1960.
1887: Vicente Emilio Sojo (Venezuelan musicologist, composer, composer)*11.Aug.1974.

December 7th.
1987: Thomas Fiss (US singer; Varsity Fanclub/solo).
1987: Aaron Carter (US singer).
1986: Jonathan Gill (UK singer; JLS)
1982: Chrispa/Chrisanthi Pagona (Greek singer).
1979: Sara Bareilles (American singer, songwriter, pianist).
1978: Frankie J/Francisco Javier Bautista Jr (Mexican-born American singer).
1977: Dominic Howard (UK drummer; Muse).
1974: Nicole Appleton (Canadian-born singer; All Saints)
1973: Damien Rice (Irish singer/songwriter; Juniper/solo)
1968: Noel Akchote (French guitarist)
1965: Brian Futter (UK guitarist; Catherine Wheel)
1965: Wolfgang Haffner (German drummer; freelance)
1963: Barbara Weathers (US lead singer; Atlantic Starr)
1963: Claudia Brücken (German vocalist; Propaganda/Act)
1963: Huw Chadbourne (UK keyboards; Babybird)
1961: Rob Downes (UK guitarist; Then Jerico)
1960: Craig Scanlon (UK guitarist; The Fall).
1960: Matthew Shipp (US free jazz pianist; David S. Ware's Quartet)
1958: Tim Butler (UK bass player; Love Spit Love/Psychedelic Furs).
1955: Chuck Loeb (US guitarist; jazz & most genres)
1954: Mike Nolan (Irish singer; Bucks Fizz).
1952: Bill Pitcock IV (US guitarist, singer-songwriter; Dwight Twilley Band/others/solo)*08.April.2011.
1949: Tom Waits (US vocals, harmonium, piano, guitar, organ , actor).
1948: Gary Morris (US singer and actor).
1948: Mads Vinding (Danish bassist; International freelance player).
1945: Marion Rung (Finnish singer).
1944: Mino Reitano (Italian singer)*27.Jan.2009.
1944: Daniel Chorzempa (US classical organist, composer).
1942: Harry Chapin (US singer, guitar songwriter)*16.July.1981.
1921: Clement Barone (US piccoloist, flute; Detroit SymphonyOrchestra/Motown)*28.Aug.2004.
1916: Jean Carignan (French Canadian fiddler)*16.Feb.1988.
1912: Daniel Jones (British composer)*23.April.1993.
1910: Louis Prima (US jazz singer, trumpet player, composer)*24.Aug.1978.
1910: Gerard Hengeveld (Dutch classical pianist, music composer, educationalist)*28.Oct.2001.
1910: Edmundo Ros (Trinidadian musician, vocalist and band leader)*21.Oct.2011.
1909: Teddy Hill (US tenor saxophonist, bandleader)*19.May.1978.
1908: Thomas Hoyt "Slim" Bryant (US country music singer/songwriter, guitarist)*28.May.2010.
1904: Konstantin Sokolsky (Russian singer)*12.May.1991.
1902: Cecil Irwin (US tenor saxophonist, big band arranger; Earl Hines bands)*03.May.1935.
1879: Rudolf Friml (Czech composer, pianist)*12.Nov.1972.
1863: Pietro Mascagni (Italian composer)*02.Aug.1945.

December 8th.
1993: AnnaSophia Robb (US actress, singer)
1986: Kate Voegele (US singer, song-writer, guitar, piano)
1984: Nicki Minaj/Onika Tonya Maraj (US rapper)
1979: Raymond Lam (Hong Kong actor, singer)
1979: Ingrid Michaelson (US indie-pop singer-songwriter, singer, guitar)
1976: Naimee Coleman (Irish singer and songwriter)
1974: Nick Zinner (US guitarist: Yeah Yeah Yeahs)
1974: Cristian Castro (Mexican singer)
1973: Judith Pronk (Dutch singer, DJ, make-up artist; Alice DeeJay)
1973: Corey Taylor (US singer; Slipknot/Stone Sour)
1972: Ryan Newell (US guitarist; Sister Hazel)
1966: Sinéad O'Connor (Irish singer)
1966: Bushwick Bill/Richard Shaw (US rap artist;The Geto Boys)
1964: Sandy Burnett (Brit record producer)
1964: James Blundell (Australian country singer)
1963: Greg Howe (US guitarist; solo/guest/sessionist).
1963: Frosty Freeze/Wayne Frost (US B-boy, breakdancer; Rock Steady Crew)*03.April.2008.
1962: Marty Friedman (US lead guitarist; Megadeth/Cacophony/solo/TV presenter).
1960: Anders Frandsen (Danish pop singer, TV presenter)*01.Jan.2012.
1959: Paul Rutherford (UK backing vocalist, dancer; Frankie Goes To Hollywood).
1958: Bird McIntyre (Thai pop singer)
1957: Phil Collen (UK guitar, Def Leppard)
1956: Warren Cuccurullo (US guitarist; Frank Zappa/Missing Persons/Duran Duran/freelance)
1953: Colin Gibb/Colin Routh (UK singer, guitarist; Black Lace/solo).
1952: Mathias Ruegg (Swiss pianist and composer)
1951: Jan Eggum (Norwegian singer-songwriter)
1950: Dan Hartman (US singer, keyboards, guitar, songwriter; Edgar Winter group/solo)*22.March.1994
1949: Ray Shulman (UK bassist,violin, recorder, guitar; Gentle Giant/Sugarcubes/The Sundays)
1947: Geoff Daking (US drummer; Blue Magoos, many others)
1947: Gregg Allman (US lead singer, keyboards, guitar, organ; Allman Brothers)
1947: Gérard Blanc (French singer, guitarist)*24.Jan.2009.
1946: John Rubinstein (US actor, composer, director)
1946: Graham Knight (Scottish bassist; Marmalade)
1944: Mike Botts (US drummer; Bread)*09.Dec.2005.
1943: Jim Morrison (US singer, songwriter, poet; Doors)*03.July.1971.
1943: José Carbajal (Uruguayan singer, guitarist, composer)*21.Oct.2010.
1942: Bobby Elliot (UK drummer, The Hollies)
1939: Jerry Butler (soul singer, Impressions/solo)
1939: Sir James Galway (Irish flutist)
1939: Soko Richardson (US rhythm and blues drummer)*29.Jan.2004.
1934: Dick Lory/Richard "Dick" Glasser (singer, songwriter, and record producer)*10.July.2000.
1925: Jimmy Smith (US jazz Hammond organist; freelance/sessionist)*08.Feb.2005
1925: Sammy Davis, Jr. (US singer, dancer, actor)*16.May.1990.
1922: Jean Ritchie (US folk singer)
1922: Sol Yaged (US jazz clarinetist)
1919: Kalmen Opperman (US clarinetist, conductor, composer, mouthpiece/barrel maker)*18.June.2010.
1918: Gérard Souzay (French baritone)*17.Aug.2004.
1909: Cleo Brown (US jazz singer)*15.April.1995.
1895: Conchita Supervía (Spanish mezzo-soprano singer)*30.March.1936..some give her birth as Dec 9th 1895
1890: Bohuslav Martinu (Czech composer of modern classical music)*28.Aug.1959.

December 9th.
1990: LaFee/Christina Klein (German singer)
1981: Camoflauge/Jason Johnson (American rapper)*19.May.2003.
1979: 'Olivia' Lufkin (Japanese rock, multi-genre singer).
1977: Imogen Heap (UK singer, multi-musician, songwriter; Frou Frou/solo).
1976: Eric Zamora (US saxophonist; Save Ferris).
1976: Imogen Heap (UK singer, songwriter, piano, keyboards; Frou Frou/solo)
1974: Canibus/Germaine Williams (US rap artist).
1974: Rahat Fateh Ali Khan (Pakistani singer)
1972: Tre Cool/Frank Wright (German drummer; Green Day)
1971: Geoff Barrow (UK keyboardist, multi-instrumentalist; Portishead)
1970: Kara DioGuardi (US songwriter, record producer, singer)
1970: Zachary Sebastian Rex James "Zac" Foley (UK bassist, EMF)*02.Jan.2002.
1970: David Kersh (US country music singer).
1969: Jakob Dylan (US guitar, vocals, The Wallflowers)
1968: Brian Bell (US guitar, multi-musician, vocals; Weezer/Space Twins/The Relationship)
1967: Joshua Bell (American classical violinist)
1967: Thomas Flowers (US vocalist; Oleander).
1966: Michael Foster (US drummer; FireHouse)
1964: Paul Landers (German rhythm guitarist; Rammstein).
1958: Nick Seymour (bass player, painter, record producer; Crowded House)
1958: Rikk Agnew (US guitarist; The Adolescents)
1957: Peter O’Mara (Australian jazz guitarist, composer)
1957: Donny Osmond (US singer; the Osmonds/solo)
1955: Jerry Hughes (US keyboardist; Yankee Grey)
1955: Randy Murray (guitar; Bachman-Turner Overdrive ~ BTO)
1950: Joan Armatrading (West Indian-UK singer, songwriter)
1944: Neil Innes (UK vocals, keyboards, piano, guitar; The Bonzo Dog Band/The Rutles)
1943: Jimmy Owens (US hard bop trumpeter).
1942: Leonard Dillon aka Jack Sparrow (Jamaican singer, The Ethiopians/solo)*28.Sept.2011.
1941: Sam Strain (US vocals; O'Jays/Little Anthony & The Imperials).
1941: Dan Hicks (US folk singer, guitar; The Hot Licks/solo).
1940: Clancy Eccles (Jamaican Reggae singer-songwriter)*30.June.2005.
1935: Charles David Houston (US country music singer)*30.Nov.1993.
1934: Junior Wells/Amos Blackmore (US blues singer, harmonica player)*15.Jan.1998
1932: Donaldson Toussaint L'Ouverture Byrd II (US jazz, rhythm and blues trumpeter).
1932: Elsie Smith (US tenor saxophonist, clarinetist).
1932: Edd Wheeler (US singer-songwriter)
1930: Vern Williams (US bluegrass mandolin player and singer)*06.June.2006.
1927: Pierre Henry (French composer)
1927: Benny Green (UK sax player, radio presenter, DJ)*22.June.1998.
1924: Stan Kann (American organist and Tonight Show regular)*Sept.29.2008.
1915: Dame Elisabeth Schwarzkopf DBE (Austrian-British opera singer, recitalist)*03.Aug.2006.
1916: Bob Scobey (American dixieland trumpeter, bandleader)*12.June.1963.
1906: Freddy Martin (American bandleader, saxophonist)*01.Oct.1983.
1882: Joaquín Turina (Spanish composer)*14.Jan.1949.

December 10th.
1993: Rachel Trachtenburg (US drummer, singer;Trachtenburg Family Slideshow Players)
1989: Zhiyang/Ng Chee Yang (Singaporean singer).
1985: Raven-Symoné/Raven-Symoné Pearman (US actress, singer, songwriter, dancer, TV producer).
1983: Katrin Siska (Estonian singer; girl band Vanilla Nija).
1982: Timothy Justin "Tim" Deegan (Canadian video jockey on TV station MuchMusic).
1981: Taufik Batisah (Singaporean singer)
1981: Massari/Sari Abboud (Lebanese award winning R&B, pop and hip-hop singer).
1980: Sarah Chang (Korean-US violinist).
1974: Meg White (US drummer, vocals; The White Stripes).
1972: Brian Molko (Belgium singer, guitarist; Placebo).
1971: Scot Alexander (US bassist; Dishwalla)
1970: Rei Harakami (Japanese electronic musician)*27.July.2011.
1966: Timothy Christian Riley (US R&B singer; Tony! Toni! Tone!)
1965: Joseph Mascis (US singer, guitar with Dinosaur Jr./drummer for the band Witch).
1962: Cássia Eller (Brazilian singer)*29.Dec.2001.
1961: Virenia Peeples (US singer, actress; TV series Fame).
1951: Ellen Nikolaysen (Norwegian singer)
1957: Paul Hardcastle (UK singer, keyboards, producer)
1954: Jack Hues/Jeremy Allan Ryder (UK guitarist, keyboards, vocals; Wang Chung/Strictly Inc).
1954: Geoff Deane (UK lead singer; Modern Romance)
1948: Jessica Cleaves (US lead singer; Friends Of Distinction)
1946: Walter Orange (US drums, vocals, The Commodores).
1946: Ace Kefford (UK bass guitar, vocals; The Move).
1945: Ralph Viera Tavares (US vocals; Tavares).
1941: Kyu Sakamoto/Hisashi Oshima (Japanese singer and actor)*12.Aug.1985.
1941: Chad Stuart (UK folk singer: Chad and Jeremy).
1938: Yuri Temirkanov (Russian orchestral conductor)
1926: Guitar Slim/Eddie Jones (US blues guitarist)*07.Feb.1959.
1919: Alexander Courage (US award winning composer)*15.May.2008.
1918: Professor Longhair/Henry Roeland Byrd (US blues pianist; many alias's)*30.Jan.1980.
1913: Morton Gould (US composer)*21.Feb.1996.
1908: Olivier Messiaen (French composer)*27.April.1992.

December 11th.
1993: Gina Miele (US singer, actress; Girl Authority).
1987: Natalia Gordienko (Moldovan singer, dancer)
1981: Zacky Vengeance /Zachary James Baker (US rhythm guitarist; Avenged Sevenfold).
1973: Mos Def/Dante Terrell Smith (US rap artist, actor).
1972: Easther Bennett (singer; Eternal)
1967: DJ Yella/Antoine Carraby (rapper, DJ, film Director; World Class Wreckin Cru/NWA)
1966: Leon Lai (Cantonese cantopop singer, actor).
1964: Justin Currie (Scottish singer, songwriter, bass; Del Amitri)
1964: David Schools (US bassist; Widespread Panic)
1964: Cosy Sheridan (US singer)
1963: Jon Brion (US multi-instrumentalist, singer, songwriter, composer, record producer).
1962: Curtis "Fitz" Williams (US keyboards, synthesizers; Kool & The Gang)
1962: Paul Haslinger (Austrian-born composer)
1962: Nele Karajlic (Bosnian singer, composer, actor, television director).
1958: Nikki Sixx/Franklin Carlton Serafino Feranna (bass, vocals; Mötley Crüe)
1957: Mike Mesaros (bass, vocals; The Smithereens)
1954: Jermaine Jackson (US singer; Jackson 5/solo)
1953: Andy Partridge (singer, guitarist, songwriter; XTC)
1948: Chester Cortez Thompson (American session drummer/Zappa/Weather Report/many more)
1948: Stamatis Spanoudakis (Greek guitarist, composer of pop and Byzantine music).
1944: Jon Garrison (US tenor operatic singer).
1944: Brenda Lee/Little Miss Dynamite/Brenda Mae Tarpley (US singer; pop and country)
1941: J. Frank Wilson (US singer; J. Frank Wilson and the Cavaliers)*04.Oct.1991.
1940: David Gates (guitar, songwriter, keyboardist, vocalist, producer; Bread)
1938: McCoy Tyner (US jazz pianist).
1938: Enrico Macias (Algerian-born French singer, guitarist, author).
1935: Tom Brumley (US steel guitarist; Buck Owens-Buckaroos/Rick Nelson)*03.Feb.2009.
1931: Rita Moreno/Rosita Dolores Alverío (singer, actress; musicals).
1931: Benny Spellman (American R&B singer)*03.June.2011.
1926: Willie Mae "Big Mama" Thornton (US blues singer)*25.July.1984.
1922: Grigoris Bithikotsis (Greek singer)*07.April.2005.
1916: Dámaso Pérez Prado (Cuban/Mexican bandleader, singer, composer)*14.Sept.1989.
1910: Noel Rosa (Brazilian composer, songwriter, guitarist, banjo player)*04.May.1937.
1890 or 1887: Carlos Gardel (tango singer, composer, actor)*24.June.1935.

December 12th.
1990: Seungri (Korean singer)
1988: Ham Eun-jeong (Korean singer, actress)
1983: Katrina Elam (US singer)
1979: Sharin Foo (Danish singer, bassist)
1978: Louis/Im Sang Hun (Korean singer).
1977: Dino Meneghin (US guitarist; The Calling/freelance).
1976: Dan Hawkins (UK guitar; Darkness)
1972: Hank Williams III (US singer, guitarist; grandson of Hank Williams/son of Hank Jr)
1972: Kevin Parent (French Canadian singer, songwriter)
1968: Danny Boy/Daniel O’Connor (Irish rapper; House Of Pain/La Coka Nostra)
1967: Nick Dimichino (US bassist; Nine Days)
1967: Deke Sharon (US singer, arranger, composer, producer, teacher of a cappella music)
1967: Takenobu Mitsuyoshi (Japanese composer)
1967: Yuzo Koshiro (Japanese composer)
1964: Jeff Aaron Brown (UK vocals; The Pasadenas).
1963: Eric Schenkman (US guitar, Spin Doctors)
1961: Daniel O'Donnell MBE (Irish singer).
1959: Belouis Some/Neville Keighley (UK singer)
1959: Angelos Skordilis (Greek rock guitarist, Knockout/ Chania)*02.Nov.2011.
1958: Dag Ingebrigtsen (Norwegian singer, rhythm guitarist; TNT/The Kids)
1957: Sheila E./Sheila Escovedo (singer, drums, actress; freelance)
1957: Cy Curnin (UK vocalist, keyboards; Fixx)
1953: Bruce Kulick (US guitarist; Kiss, Grand Funk Railroad)
1952: Brenton Broadstock (Australian composer)
1948: Ray Jackson (UK mandolin; Lindisfarne).
1947: Ralph Scala (US singer, organ; Blue Magoos)
1945: Tony Williams (US influential jazz drummer)*23.Feb.1997.
1945: Alan Ward (UK rhythm guitar; Honeycombs).
1944: Rob Tyner (US vocals, musician; Rob Tyner Band/MC5)*18.Sept.1991.
1943: Peter Sarstedt (Anglo-Indian singer-songwriter, guitarist)
1943: Dickey Betts (US slide guitar, vocals, guitar; Allman Brothers Band).
1943: Grover Washington Jr (US saxophone virtuoso)*17.Dec.1999.
1942: Declan Clusky (Irish singer; Bachelors).
1941: Terry Kirkman (US drummer, vocals; Association)
1941: Tim Hauser (US singer; Manhattan Transfer)
1940: Dionne Warwick/Marie Dionne Warrick (US singer)
1936: Reggie Young (US guitarist; session/freelance)
1935: Joan Weber (US singer)*13.May.1981.
1938: Connie Francis (US singer)
1929: Toshiko Akiyoshi (Japanese jazz pianist)
1923: Bob Dorough (US jazz pianist, vocalist)
1920: Dick James/Reginald Leon Isaac Vapnick (UK music publisher; founder-DJM records)*01.Feb.1986.
1918: Joe Williams (US jazz vocalist)*29.March.1999
1915: Frank Sinatra (US singer, actor)*14.May.1998.
1903: Dagmar Nordstrom (US composer, pianist and singer; The Nordstrom Sisters)*09.April.1976.
1887: Kurt Atterberg (Swedish composer)*15.Feb.1974.
1872: Don Lorenzo Perosi (Italian composer)*12.Oct.1956.

December 13th.
1989: Taylor Swift (US country singer)
1983: Matt Deis (US bassist; CKY/All That Remains).
1982: Anthony Callea (Australian singer/songwriter)
1981: Amy Lee (US singer; Evanescence)
1980: Bosco Wong (Hong Kong singer, actor)
1978: Ryo Kawakita (Japanese guitarist; Maximum the Hormone)
1975: Tom DeLonge (US guitar, singer; Blink-182/Angels and Airwaves)
1974: Nick McCarthy (UK guitar, keyboards; Franz Ferdinand).
1972: Niki Evans (UK singer)
1972: Mark Morton (US guitarist; Lamb of God).
1969: Murat Nasyrov (Russian pop singer and compose)*19.Jan.2007.
1967: Jamie Foxx (US actor, singer)
1964: hide/ Hideto Matsumoto (Japanese guitarist, singer; X-Japan/Zilch/solo)*02.May.1998
1963: Steve Alexander Smith (UK author, music historian).
1961: Harry Gregson-Williams (UK composer)
1957: Morris Day (US singer; The Time)
1956: Majida El Roumi (Lebanese singer)
1954: Steve Forbert (US singer, harmonica, songwriter)
1954: John Anderson (US country singer guitarist)
1952: Berton Averre (US lead guitar; The Knack)
1950: David O'List (UK guitar; Nice/Roxy Music/freelance)
1949: Mark Elf (American jazz guitarist)
1949: Randy Owen (US lead vocal, rhythm guitar; Alabama)
1949: Tom Verlaine/Thomas Miller (US guitar, vocals, songwriter; Television)
1948: Ted Nugent (US guitarist; Damnocracy/The Amboy Dukes/Damn Yankees/solo)
1948: Andy Peebles (UK radio & club DJ)
1948: Ron Getman (US folk music guitarist; The Tractors)
1948: Jeff 'Skunk' Baxter (US steel & slide guitar, guitar; Steely Dan/Doobie Brothers/freelance).
1948: Lester Bangs (American rock critic)*30.April.1982.
1947: Chuck Findley (US trumpeter; The Imperials)
1945: Robert Martinez (US drummer; ? & The Mysterians)
1940: Reggie Johnson (US jazz bassist)
1939: Eric Flynn (Chinese-born British actor and singer)*04.March.2002
1938: Tony Gomez (Sri Lankan keyboardist, organist; The Foundations/others)
NOTE: some sources give Tony Gormez's year of birth as 1940 & 1948
1938: Heino/Heinz Georg Kramm (German singer)
1938: Alvin Curran (US composer, keyboardist; Musica Elettronica Viva).
1933: Wayne Bennett (US blues guitarist)*28.Nov.1992
1930: Buck White (US country music singer; The Whites)
1929: Vestal Goodman (US gospel singer; The Happy Goodman Family/solo)*27.Dec.2003.
1929: Toshiko Akiyoshi (Japanese American jazz pianist, composer/arranger and bandleader).
1920: Jackie Davis (American soul-jazz organist)
1909: Lou Mucci (American Jazz trumpeter)
1903: Carlos Montoya (Spanish flamenco guitarist)*03.March.1993
1895: Sonny Greer (US jazz drummer; Duke Ellington)*23.March.1982

December 14th.
1992: Tori Kelly (American singer; 2004 America's Most Talented Kids winner).
1988: Vanessa Anne Hudgens (US singer, actress)
1987: Alexander Gaskarth (US singer; All Time Low)
1985: Ren Yagami (Japanese actor, singer).
1982: Anthony Way (UK vocalist)
1980: Tata Young/Amita Marie Young (Thai singer, model, actress).
1979: Sophie Monk (Australian actress, singer, model).
1978: Radu Sârbu (Moldovan singer; O-Zone)
1975: Brian Dalyrimple (US singer; Soul For Real).
1975: Justin Furstenfeld (American rock singer)
1972: Eric Anderson (US musical theatre actor)
1971: Tia Texada (US actress, singer)
1970: Anna Maria Jopek (Polish singer)
1970: Beth Orton (UK singer-songwriter)
1966: Tim Skold (Swedish bassist, multi-musician; Marilyn Manson/sessionist)
1963: Vytautas Juozapaitis (Lithuanian baritone, TV host)
1956: Stefan Bauer (German vibraphonist)
1955: Dan Barrett (US jazz arranger, cornettist, trombonist)
1953: René Eespere (Soviet-born Estonian composer)
1952: John Lurie (American saxophonist; The Lounge Lizards)
1958: Mike Scott (Scottish songwriter for The Waterboys)
1958: Peter 'Spider' Stacy (Irish tin whistle, The Pogues).
1953: René Eespere (Soviet-born Estonian composer)
1949: Cliff Williams (UK bassist; AC/DC)
1947: Christopher Parkening (American classical guitarist)
1946: Aura Rully (Romanian vocalist)
1946: Jerome Cooper (US drummer, percussionist; freelance)
1946: John Du Prez/Trevor Jones (UK trumpet, composer; Modern Romance)
1946: Jane Birkin (UK born, French actress, singer)
1946: Joyce Wilson (US singer; Dawn/Debonaires)
1946: Jackie McAuley (guitarist; Them/the Belfast Gypsies/solo)
1945: Stanley Crouch (US drummer, music critic)
1944: Linda Lane/Linda Jones (American soul singer)*14.March.1972.
1944: Nikolay Levinovsky (Russian pianist)
1943: Frank Allen (UK bassist; Searchers)
1941: Karan Armstrong (American soprano)
1940: Gustavo Bergalli (Argentinian trumpeter)
1938: Gary Usher (US songwriter, producer, singer; Beach Boys/Byrds/solo)*25.May.1990.
1934: Johnny Moore (American R&B lead singer; The Drifters)*30.Dec.1998.
1933: Leo Wright (US alto saxophonist, clarinetist, flutists; jazz artist)*04.Jan.1991.
1932: Charlie Rich/The Silver Fox (US country singer, pianist)*25.July.1995.
1932: Abbe Lane/Abigail Francine Lassman (US singer, actress).
1931: Phineas Newborn, Jr. (American pianist)*26.May.1989
1927: Richard Cassilly (American tenor)*30.Jan.1998.
1924: Wally Eckhardt (American double bassist; Jazz artist)
1922: Cecil Payne (US jazz saxophonist; Dizzy Gillespie/Randy Weston/solo bandleader)*27.Nov.2007.
1920: Clark Terry (US jazz trumpeter, flügelhornist, vocals; many of the greats).
1915: Rashid Behbudov (Azerbaijani singer and actor)*09.June.1989.
1915: Jerry Daniels (US tenor singer, guitarist, ukulele; Ink Spots)*07.Nov.1995.
1914: Rosalyn Tureck (US pianist, harpsichordist)*17.July.2003.
1913: Ted Buckner (US saxophonist; sessionist/Motown/McKinney's Cotton Pickers)*12.April.1976.
1911: Charles "Chuck" Gentry (US sax, clarenet; Glenn Miller, Dean Martin, Frank Sinatra, many others)
1911: Spike Jones (US bandleader, drums; Spike Jones & his City Slickers )*01.May.1965
1910: Budd Johnson (American tenor saxophonist)*20.Oct.1984
1906: Aleksandr Tsfasman (Ukrainian bandleader, pianist)*20.Feb.1971.
1905: Ovie Alston (US trumpeter, singer, bandleader)*1989
1902: Viola Wells (US jazz singer; Charlie Parker/Dizzy Gillespie/Clyde Bernhardt)*1984

December 15th.
1987: Mandy Jiroux (US dancer, singer)
1986: Xiah/Kim Junsu (South Korean singer; TVXQ)
1981: Najoua Belyzel (French pop rock and electronic music vocalist)
1980: Sergio Pizzorno (UK guitarist; Kasabian)
1979: Edele Lynch (Irish singer; B*Witched)
1978: Kaine/Eric Ron Jackson (US crunk hip-hop artist; Ying Yang Twins).
1978: Mark Jansen (Dutch guitarist; Epica)
1976: Dave Mackintosh (Scottish drummer; Dragonforce)
1973: Kito Trawick (US hype man for Ghost Town DJs)
1971: Clint Lowery (US guitarist; Sevendust)
1962: Carla Zilbersmith (Canadian actress, singer, comedian)*17.May.2010.
1961: Nick Beggs (UK bass; Kajagoogoo/Iona/freelance)
1960: Walter Werzowa (Austrian composer)
1955: Paul Simonon (UK bassist; The Clash)
1952: Bruce Gertz (US bassist; freelance/session/guest)
1952: Rudi Protrudi (US lead singer, songwriter, record producer; The Fuzztones)
1949: Don Johnson (US actor, singer)
1948: Toshinori Kondo (Japanese avant-garde jazz-style trumpeter)
1946: Harry Ray (US lead singer; The Moments/Ray,Goodman & Brown)*01.Oct.1992.
1946: Carmine Appice (US drummer; Vanilla Fudge/King Kobra/Blue Murder/freelance)
1942: Dave Clark (UK drummer, singer, composer, songwriter; Dave Clark Five)
1940: Doug Phelps (US lead vocalist; The Kentucky Headhunters)
1939: Cindy Birdsong (US singer; The Supremes)
1936: Krzysztof Sadowski (Polish pianist and organist)
1936: Eddie Palmieri (US arranger, pianist, bandleader)
1935: Dannie Richmond (US drummer; Charles Mingus/own band)*15.March.1988.
1934: Curtis DuBois Fuller (US jazz trombonist)
1932: Jesse Belvin (US R&B singer, pianist, songwriter )*06.Feb.1960.
1928: Barry Harris (American Bebop pianist)
1928: Jerry Wallace (US country singer)*05.May.2008.
1928: Ernest Ashworth (US country music singer)*02.March.2009.
1927: Gene Quill (US alto sax player; jazz artist)
1925: Jimmy Nottingham (US big band trumpeter, flugelhorn)*14.Nov.1978.
1925: Billy Butler (US soul-jazz and blues guitarist;sessionist/freelance)*20.March.1991.
1921: Alan Freed/Moondog (American DJ, R&B promoter)*20.Jan.1965
1919: Max Yasgur (US owner of a dairy farm in Bethel; Woodstock Festival 1969)*08.Feb.1973.
1919: Curtis Lowe (US reedist)
1916: Buddy Cole (US jazz pianist and bandleader)*05.Nov.1964
1911: Stan Kenton (US bandleader and pianist)*25.Aug.1979.
1910: John Hammond ll (US producer, talent scout, jazz critic)*10.July.1987.
1897: Ed Allen (US jazz cornetist; Earl Hines/big bands/freelance)*28.Jan.1974
1891: A.P. Carter/Alvin Pleasant Delaney Carter (US country singer. guitar)*07.Nov.1960

December 16th.
1985: Keita Tachibana (Japanese singer; w-inds).
1981: Anna Sedokova (Ukrainian singer).
1979: Flo Rida/Tramar Dillard (US rapper).
1979: Mihai Traistariu (Romanian singer; Eurovision Song Contest 2006).
1978: Kaine/Eric Jackson (US rapper; Ying Yang Twins).
1975: Nawo Kawakita (Japanese drummer; Maximum the Hormone)
1975: Benjamin Kowalewicz (Canadian singer; Billy Talent).
1973: Scott Storch (Canadian keyboardist, hip-hop music producer; Tuff Jew Productions/Storch Music Co.).
1971: Michael McCary (US R&B bass singer; Boyz II Men).
1971: Paul van Dyk/Matthias Paul (German DJ)
1968: Christopher Thorn (US guitarist, mandolin, harmonica; Blind Melon)
1968: Lalah Hathaway/Eulaulah Donyll Hathaway (US singer, daughter of Donny)
1963: Jeff Carson (American singer)
1962: Laurence Cottle (Welsh bassist; Black Sabbath/guest/sessionist).
1961: Mike Fahn (American jazz trombonist)
1961: Andre Andersen (Danish, Russia-born multi-instrumentalist, composer)
1959: Steven Irvine (Scottish drummer; Commotions).
1957: Antonio Vega Tallés (Spanish pop singer-songwriter; Nacha Pop/solo)*12.May.2009.
1951: Mark Heard (US record producer, folk-rock singer, songwriter)*16.Aug.1992.
1951: Robben Ford (US multi-genre guitarist; Discovering the Blues/Charles Ford Band/ L.A.Express/solo).
1949: Billy Gibbons (US guitarist, singer, composer; ZZ Top).
1946: Benny Anderson (Swedish keyboardist, vocals; Abba)
1946: Trevor Pinnock (UK conductor, harpsichordist)
1945: Tony Hicks (UK guitar; The Hollies)
1939: Philip Gordon Langridge CBE (English tenor, opera and oratorio)*05.March.2010.
1937: Joe Farrell/Joseph Carl Firrantello (US jazz saxophonist and flutist)*06.Jan.1986.
1933: Ron Anthony (American guitarist for Frank Sinatra and George Shearing).
1933: Johnny "Hammond" Smith (American organist)*04.June.1997.
1932: Rodion Shchedrin (Soviet/Russian composer).
1931: Karl Denver (Scottish yodelling pop singer)*21.Dec.1998.
1926: James McCracken (US tenor vocalist; opera/classical)*29.April.1988.
1925: Sam Brown (Jamaican roots reggae singer, poet)*27.Aug.1998.
1923: Menahem Pressler (German-Israeli pianist).
1921: Steve Allen (US composer and pianist)*30.Oct.2000.
1922: Seymor "Cy" Leslie (US music and video executive)*06.Jan.2008.
1918: Pierre Delanoë (French songwriter, lyricist)*27.Dec.2006.
1915: Melvin “Turk” Murphy (US jazz trombonist)*30.May.1987.
1915: Clois "Cub" Teagarden (American jazz drummer)*29.June.1969.
1905: Andy Razaf (African-American composer, poet, and lyricist)*03.Feb.1973.
1907: Bernard Flood (American jazz trumpeter)*09.June.2000.
1899: Noel Coward (UK actor, playwright, composer of popular musicr)*26.March.1973.
1882: Zoltán Kodály (Hungarian composer)*06.March.1967.
1834: François-Adrien Boïeldieu (French composer)*08.Oct.1834.
1770: Ludwig van Beethoven (German composer/pianist)*26.March.1827.

December 17th.
1994: Nat Wolff (US singer; The Naked Brothers Band).
1985: Ryuichi Ogata (Japanese singer; w-inds).
1983: Kosuke Saito (Japanese DJ).
1980: Stella Ng (Singaporean singer, actress)
1979: Ryan Key (US lead vocals, second guitar; Yellowcard).
1978: Neil Sanderson (Canadian drummer; Three Days Grace).
1975: Bree Sharp (US singer/songwriter).
1971: Alan Khan (South African radio disc jockey).
1970: Craig Bullock/DJ Homicide (US turntables; Sugar Ray).
1969: Mick Quinn (UK bassist; Supergrass).
1967: Gigi D'Agostino (Italian DJ and musician).
1966: Tracy Byrd (US country singer, rhythm guitar).
1964: Ginger/David Walls (UK lead singer, guitar; Wildhearts).
1961: Sarah Dallin (UK singer; Bananarama).
1960: Yoshihiko Katori (Japanese vibraphonist).
1959: Bob Stinson (US lead guitarist; The Replacements/Static Taxi)*15.Feb.1995.
1958: Mike Mills (US bassist; R.E.M).
1957: Tracy Pew (Australian bassist, Birthday Party, Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds)*07.Nov.1986.
1957: Earl Hudson (US drummer; Bad Brains).
1951: Wanda Hutchinson (US singer; The Emotions).
1950: Carlton Barrett (Jamaican bassist; Bob Marley/The Wailers/Upsetters)*17.April.1987.
1949: Paul Rodgers (UK singer, songwriter, guitar; Free/Bad Company/solo/freelance).
1947: Jim Hodder (US drummer; Steely Dan/sessionist)*05.June.1990.
1948: Jim Bonfanti (US drummer; Raspberries/Boxer).
1944: Carlos Barbosa-Lima (Brazilian guitarist).
1944: Vyacheslav Ganelin (Lithuanian jazz pioneer in the Soviet Union, multi-instrumentalist)
1943: Ron Geesin (Scottish musician, composer).
1943: David Harman aka Dave Dee (UK lead singer; Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick & Tich)*09.Jan.2009.
1942: Paul Butterfield (US blues singer, harmonica player; own band/solo)*04.May.1987.
1939: Eddie Kendricks (US lead singer; The Temptations)*05.Oct.1992.
1938: Carl O'Neil Little (UK drummer; Rolling Stones/Screaming Lord Sutch/others)*06.Aug.2005.
1937: Art Neville (US: vocals, piano; Neville Brothers/The Meters/freelance).
1937: James Booker (US jazz pianist, sax player, singer; solo/Jerry Garcia Band/others)*08.Nov.1983.
1936: Tommy Steele/Thomas Willam Hicks OBE (UK: singer, actor).
1935: Ronnie Boykins (US bass player; Sun Ra Arkestra)*20.April.1980.
1933: Walter Booker (American jazz bass, double bassist)*24.Nov.2006.
1932: Sonny Red Kyner (American alto saxophonist)*20.March.1981.
1915: André Claveau (French singer)*04.July.2003.
1910: Melvin "Sy" Oliver (American arranger, bandleader, trombonist)*28.May.1988.
1906: Fernando Lopes-Graça (Portuguese composer, musicologist)*27.Nov.1994.
1903: Ray Noble (UK bandleader, composer)*03.April.1978.
1894: Arthur Fiedler (US conductor; Boston Pops Orchestra)*10.July.1979.
1885: Louis Mitchell (American bandleader and drummer)*02.Sept.1957.

December 18th.
1992: Bridgit Mendler (US actress, singer).
1987: Ayaka Iida (Japanese singer)
1983: Steph Jones (US R&B singer)
1982: Dave Luetkenhoelter (US bassist; Kutless)
1980: Christina María Aguilera (US singer).
1980 or 1977: Lindsay Armaou (Greek singer; B*Witched)
1975: Sia Furler (Australian singer)
1974: Euroboy/Knut Schreiner (Norwegian quitarist; Turbonegro)
1972: Raymond Herrera (US drummer; Fear Factory)
1971: Noriko Matsueda (Japanese composer)
1970: DMX/ Earl Simmons (African-US rap artist)
1970: Cowboy Troy/Troy Lee Coleman III (American country-rapper)
1969: DJ Lethal/Leor "Lee" Dimant (DJ, turntablist; House Of Pain/Limp Bizkit)
1968: Andy Miller (Scottish producer, guitarist; Dodgy/Hey Gravity)
1968: Alejandro Sanz (Spanish singer)
1966: Steve Dullaghan (UK bassist; Primitives/Nocturnal Babies)*04.Feb.2009.
1966: Mille Petrozza (German singer; Kreator)
1965: Mick Collins (US guitar, vocals; The Gories/The Dirtbombs)
1964: Robson Green (UK actor, singer-songwriter)
1963: Greg D'Angelo (US drummer; White Lion)
1963: Pauline Ester (French singer)
1963: Norman Brown (US smooth jazz guitarist, vocalist)
1962: Renaldo Lapuz (Filipino-born American singer)
1959: Daddy G/Grant Marshall (member of Massive Attack).
1958: Geordie Walker (UK guitar; Killing Joke).
1953: Khas-Magomed Hadjimuradov (Chechen singer-songwriter)
1953: Elliot Easton/Elliot Steinberg (US guitarist, vocals; The Cars/solo/The New Cars).
1956: Elios Ferre (French guitarist)
1955: Jacek Kochan (Polish drummer)
1950: Randy Castillo (US drummer; Ozzie Osborne/freelance)*26.March.2002.
1950: Martha Johnson (Canadian vocalist, keyboards; Martha And The Muffins).
1949: Alyrio Lima Cova (Brazilian percussionist)
1948: Bill Nelson (UK guitarist; Be Bop Deluxe/solo)
1948: Laurent Voulzy/Lucien Voulzy (French singer, composer)
1946: Buddy Gask (UK singer, founding member of the Showaddywaddy)*07.June.2011.
1943: Bobby Keys (US international saxophonist; sessionist/freelance/Rolling Stones).
1943: Keith Richards (UK guitarist; Rolling Stones).
1941: Wadada Leo Smith/Ishmael Wadada Leo Smith (US avant-garde jazz trumpeter)
1941: Sam Andrews (US guitarist; Big Brother & the Holding Company)
1940: Bramwell "Bram" Morrison (Canadian children's musical trio Sharon, Lois & Bram)
1938: Joel Hirschhorn (US songwriter, composer)*..2005
1938: Chas Chandler/Bryan James Chandler (UK bassist, manager; Animals/Jimi Hendrix)*17.July.1996.
1937: Joel Hirschhorn (US award-winning songwriter, composer)*18.Sept.2005.
1933: Lonnie Brooks/Lee Baker Jr (US blues guitarist, singer)
1932: Don Heckman (US jazz clarinetist, music critic)
1931: Allen Klein (US record industry executive)*04.July.2009.
1931: Al Molina (US jazz trumpeter)
1930: Al Jones (American Traditional bluegrass drummer)*1976
1929: Nick Stabulas (US drummer; jazz man)*06.Feb.1973.
1928: Ira Gitler (US music critic)
1923: Bill Reichenbach Sr. (American trombonist, composer)
1922: Clarence Horatio "Big" Miller (69) (US jazz trombonist, big voiced singer)*09.June.1992
1919: Barry Galbraith (US jazz guitarist)*13.Jan.1983.
1917: Eddie "Cleanhead" Vinson (US alto saxophonist, jazz & blues shouter)*02.July.1988.
1916: Efrain Loyola (Cuban flautist)*02.April.2011.
1914: Connie Curtis "Pee Wee" Crayton (US blues guitarist, vocalist)*25.June.1985.
1908: Raul Sanchez Reinoso (Argentinian guitar, banjo, bandleader)*07.Sept.1957.
1907: Lawrence Lucie (US session guitarist)*14.Aug.2009.
1897: Fletcher Henderson Jr (US jazz pianist, bandleader, composer)*28.Dec.1952.
1895: Sam Morgan (US trumpeter; Sam Morgan Jazz Band)*25.Feb.1936.
1885: Louis A. Mitchell (US jazz drummer, bandleader)*02.Sept.1957.

December 19th.
1991: Declan Galbraith (US singer).
1988: Paulina Gretzky (US singer, model).
1985: Lady Sovereign/Louise Amanda Harman (UK rapper / grime artist).
1980: Trevor Rager (US drummer; Fairview)
1980: Chris Haslam (Canadian Skateboarder, Bass Player; Kobra Triangle).
1979: Kevin Devine (US singer-songwriter, acoustic guitarist).
1974: Mikko Paananen (Finnish bassist; HIM)
1970: Sebastian/Knud Torben Christensen (Danish guitarist)
1969: Aziza Mustafa Zadeh (Azerbaijan pianist, vocalist, composer)
1968: Kevin Shepard (US drummer; Zoo Story/Tonic)
1967: Criss Angel/Christopher Nicholas Sarantakos (US illusionist, actor, musician)
1966: Chuckii Booker (US singer-song-writer, multi-musician and producer)
1961: John Eacott (UK trumpeter; Roman Holliday)
1958: Steven Isserlis (English cellist)
1958: Limahl/ Christopher Hamill (singer; Kajagoogoo/solo)
1957: Eric Marienthal (US alto saxophonist; Chick Corea Elektric Band)
1957: Doug Johnson (Canadian keyboardist, composer; Loverboy).
1955: Ron Kuivila (US avant-garde electronics musician, experimental music)
1952: Sooz/Susan Goodman Jackson (US award-winning singer-songwriter)
1952: Jeff Davis (US session musician; Lee Konitz/Machito/others)
1952: Walter Murphy Jr (American composer, pianist, arranger)
1949: Lenny White III (US drummer; international freelancer)
1949: Sebastian/Knud Christensen (Danish singer, guitarist, composer)
1947: Don Weller (UK tenor saxophonist).
1947: Janie Fricke (US country pop vocalist)
1947: Jimmy Bain (Scottish bassist; Rainbow/Ronnie James Dio/Phil Lynott/The Babys/others)
1945: John McEuen (US banjo, fiddle, guitar, mandolin, accordion; Nitty Gritty Dirt Band)
1944: Zal Yanovky (Canadian singer, guitarist; Mugwumps/Loving Spoonful)*13.Dec.2002.
1944: Alvin Lee (UK guitar, vocals; Ten Years After)
1944: William Christie (US-born French conductor, harpsichordist; Les Arts Florissants)
1942: Cornell Dupree (US jazz/R&B guitarist; Stuff/many sessions)*08.May.2011.
1941: Maurice White (US drummer, vocals; sessionist/Earth Wind & Fire)
1940: Phil Ochs (US folk singer, guitar, songwriter)*09.April.1976.
1938: Roger Blank (US session drummer; Sun Ra)
1938: Karel Svoboda (Czech composer of popular music)*28.Jan.2007.
1938: Pete Strange (UK trombonist; Humphrey Lyttelton/own band/others)*14.Aug.2004.
1937: Milcho Leviev (Bulgarian keyboardist)
1934: Rudi Carrell/Rudolf Wijbrand Kesselaar (Dutch singer, entertainer)*07.July.2006.
1935: Robert "Bobby" Timmons (US pianist;Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers)*01.March.1974.
1929: Bob Brookmeyer (US jazz valve trombonist, pianist, arranger)*15.Dec.2011.
1928: Santos Miranda (US percussionist)
1927: Harry Harman (Australian tuba player)
1925: Robert B. Sherman (US songwriter with Sherman Brothers)
1920: Little Jimmy Dickens (American countrysinger, guitarist)
1918: Professor Longhair/Henry Roeland Byrd (US funk/blues piano player)*30.Jan.1980.
1915: Charlie Ryan (US rockabilly guitarist)
1915: Édith Piaf/Edith Giovanni Gassion (French singer, actress)*11.Oct.1963.
1911: Lucius "Lu" Watters (US jazz bandleader, trumpeter)*05.Nov.1989.
1888: Frederick “Fritz” Reiner (Hugarian-US conductor of opera and symphonic music)*15.Nov.1963.
1885: Joe "King" Oliver (Pioneering American jazz musician, cornet)*08.April.1938.

December 20th.
1990: JoJo/Joanna Noëlle Levesque (US pop singer)
1986: Anoop Desai (US singer; 8th season American Idol contestant)
1984: David Tavaré (Spanish singer, house music DJ)
1983: Adrián Varela Avilés (Mexican singer)
1982: David Cook (US singer; winner of 7th season American Idol).
1982: Keny Arkana (French rapper, singer)
1977: Saukrates/Big Sox/Amani Wailoo (Canadian rapper, singer, songwriter)
1977: Simo Santapukki (Finnish guitarist, drummer; Apulanta)
1975: Graham Hopkins (Irish drummer; Therapy?/Boss Volenti)
1974: Die/?? (Japanese guitarist, composer: La Sadie's/Dir en grey)
1972: Anders Odden (Norwegian guitarist, multi-musician; Cadaver/Apoptygma Berzerk/sessionist/guest/solo)
1971: Roger J. Beaujard (US multi-musician, recording executive; Primitive Recordings)
1966: Myrra Malmberg (Swedish singer)
1966: Chris Robinson (US singer, producer, art direction; The Black Crowes)
1962: Ray Coburn (Canadian keyboardist; Honeymoon Suite)
1961: Mike Keneally (US guitarist, keyboardist, vocalist, composer)
1961: Mohammad Fouad (Arab singer, actor)
1960: Efrem Towns (US trumpeter, Dirty Dozen Brass Band)
1957: Billy Bragg (UK singer, guitarist, songwriter)
1957: Anna Vissi (Greek Cypriot singer)
1957: Mike Watt (US bassist; Minutemen/dos/fIREHOSE)
1956: Guy Babylon (US keyboardist, composer; The Elton John Band)*02.Sept.2009.
1956: Anita Ward (US singer)
1955: Ed Kuepper (German-born Australian guitar; The Saints/Laughing Clowns)
1951: Gilbert Montagné (French blind pianist, organist, singer)
1950: Arturo Marquez (Mexican composer)
1948: Alan Parsons (UK keyboardist, audio engineer, producer, The Alan Parsons Project)
1948: Stevie Wright (Austraian singer, songwriter; Easybeats/musicals)
1947: Lloyd Courteney (American drummer)
1947: Gigliola Cinquetti (Italian singer)
1945: Peter 'Catman' Criss/George Peter Criscuola (US drummer; Kiss)
1944: Bobby Colomby (drums, Blood, Sweat & Tears)
1942: Pete Levin (US avant-garde jazz keyboards, synthesizer)
1941: Michael Hurley (folk singer, guitar, banjo, songwriter)
1941: Tommy Cole (US makeup artist, actor, singer)
1940: Larry Willis (US jazz pianist, composer)
1939: Bill Keith (American steel guitarist)
1938: John Harbison (US composer of opera music)
1937: Courtney Johnson (US country banjo, guitar; New Grass Revival)
1936: Donald "Chubby" Anthony (American fiddler)*05.Feb.1980.
1935: Frank Necessary (US author, bluegrass music banjoist)
1933: Sam Falzone (US tenor saxophonist)
1930: Pat Hare (US memphis blues guitarist)*26.Sept.1980.
1924: Dompan/Arne Domnerus (Swedish alto saxophonist; guest/sessionist/radio)*02.Sept.2008.
1922: Walter Eichenberg (German trumpet player)
1921: Jesse 'Tiny' Kennedy Jr (American jump blues vocalist)
1919: John Hardee (US jazz blues tenor saxophonist)*18.May.1984.
1909: Vagn Holmboe (Danish composer, teacher)*01.Sept.1996.
1907: Paul Francis Webster (American Academy Award-winning lyricist)*18.March.1984.
1907: "Cousin Joe" Pleasant (US blues vocalist and guitarist)*02.Oct.1989
1907: Al Rinker (US pianist, vocalist, and composer; The Rhythm Boys)*11.June.1982.
1900: Ted Fiorito/Teodorico Salvatore Fiorito (US bandleader, keyboardist)*22.July.1971
1898: Irene Dunne (US actress, traditional pop music vocalist)*04.Sept.1990.

December 21st.
1982: Luke Stricklin (US country music singer, songwriter)
1981: Dima Bilan (Russian singer)
1981: Lynda Thomas (Mexican singer)
1979: Tuva Novotny (Swedish actress, singer).
1977: Toby William Lloyd Rand (Australian singer; Juke Kartel)
1976: Lukas Rossi (Canadian guitarist, singer; Rock Star Supernova).
1973: Karmen Stavec (German-born Slovenian singer)
1972: Erwin Schrott (Uruguayan opera singer)
1971: Matthieu Chedid (French musician, singer and songwriter)
1971: Brett Scallions (US lead singer; Fuel/The X's)
1968: Brad Warren (US country singer songwriter; The Warren Brothers)
1965: Stuart Mitchell (Scottish composer)
1965: Gabrielle "Gabby" Glaser (US vocalist; Luscious Jackson)
1964: Emmett "Murf" Murphy 111 (US drummer; Dinosaur Jr/Lemonheads)
1963: Russell Moore (US bluegrass guitarist; IIIrd Tyme Out/Doyle Lawson/Quicksilver)
1961: Ryuji Sasai (Japanese composer)
1961: Louis Moutin (French drummmer, Moutin Reunion Quartet)
1961: François Moutin (French bassist, Moutin Reunion Quartet)
1960: Louis Demetrius Alvanis (UK-Greece classical pianist)
1956: Lee Roy Parnell (US country singer)
1955: Kazuyuki Sekiguchi (Japanese bassist, ukulele;Southern All Stars/solo)
1953: Betty Wright (US singer)
1951: Alex Blake (Panamanian jazz bassist; sessionist/freelance)
1951: James Emery (American guitarist; String Trio of New York/solo)
1951: Nick Gilder (UK frontman for the Canadian glam rock band Sweeney Todd)
1950: Lillebjørn Nilsen (Norwegian singer-songwriter)
1948: Willi Resetarits/Dr. Kurt Ostbahn (Austrian singer, cabaret artist)
1947: Paco de Lucía/Francisco Sanchez Gomez (Spanish flamenco guitar virtuoso).
1946: Christopher Keene (US conductor)*08.Oct.1995.
1946: Carl Wilson (US singer, lead guitar; Beach Boys)*06.Feb.1998
1944: Michael Tilson Thomas/ MTT (US conductor; wide variety of music)
1943: Albert Lee (UK rockabilly guitarist; Ten Years After/internatioal sessionist)
1943: Sal Marquez (American jazz trumpeter; freelance)
1942: Reinhard Mey (German singer, guitarist, songwriter)
1942: Carla Thomas (US Memphis soul singer)
1941: John Josephus Hicks Jr (US international jazz pianist, composer)*10.May.2006.
1940: Frank Zappa (US guitar, multi muso, composer; Mothers Of Invention/solo)*04.Dec.1993
1940: Ray "Paul" Hilderbrand (singer; Paul & Paula)
1939: Wes Farrell (US musician, songwriter, record producer)*29.Feb.1996.
1936: Wilmer Wise (US Trumpet virtuoso; many jazz bands/symphony orchestras/musicals).
1934: Richárd Weninger (Hungarian composer, harpist)*02.Nov.2011.
1934: Bennie Ross "Hank" Crawford Jr (US alto saxophonist; Ray Charles Band/own band)*29.Jan.2009.
1931: David N. Baker Jr (symphonic jazz composer)
1926: Freddie Hart/Freddie Segrest (American country musician, songwriter)
1921: Louis Freichel (German pianist)
1920: Jack Dieval (French jazz pianist)
1920: Marshall Brown (American jazz trombonist; Pee Wee Russell/others)*13.Dec.1983.
1919: George Treadwell (US jazz trumpeter; freelance/leader/sessionist)*14.May.1967.
1918: David "Panama" Francis (US drummer, jazz, rock'n'roll; leader/freelance/sessions)*13.Nov.2001
1915: Werner von Trapp (Austrian-born musician, singer;Trapp Family Singers)*11.Oct.2007.
1910: Jerome Darr (American guitarist; many bands/sessionist)*29.Oct.1986.
1902: Peetie Wheatstraw/William Bunch (American blues pianist, guitar, singer)*21.Dec.1941.
1896: Leroy Robertson (US composer)*25.July.1971.
1872: Don Lorenzo Perosi (Italian composer)*12.Oct.1956.

December 22nd.
1993: Ali Lohan (US singer, TV personality, model, and actress).
1989: Jordin Sparks (US singer).
1984: Basshunter/Jonas Erik Altberg (Swedish singer).
1972: Vanessa Chantal Paradis (French singer, actress).
1967: Richey Edwards (UK guitarist, lyricist;Manic Street Preachers)*01.Feb.1995, declared dead 23.Nov.2008
1966: Marcel Schirmer (German bassist, vocals; German thrash metal trio Destruction).
1966: Derek Jamerson Sr (US drums, keyboard; Detroit Techno Scene, son of James Jamerson)*07.April.2006.
1966: Danny Saber (US guitar, bass, organ, keyboards, DJ; Black Grape/busy sessionist)?
1960: Wakin Chau (Chinese singer).
1960: Luke Skyywalker/Luther Campbell (US rap performer; 2 Live Crew/owner of Luke Records Loud).
1959: John Patitucci (US bassist; Elektric Band/freelance)
1958: Frank Gambale (Australian jazz fusion guitarist).
1957: Ricky Ross (Scottish vocals, guitar, piano; Deacon Blue)
1949: Maurice Gibb (UK singer, songwriter, producer; Bee Gees)*12.Jan.2003
1949: Robin Gibb (UK singer, songwriter, producer; Bee Gees)
1948: Alan Williams (US lead singer; Rubettes).
1946: Rick Nielson (US vocals, guitar; Cheap Trick)
1944: Guido De Angelis (Italian singer. musician; The De Angelis Brothers).
1944: Barry Jenkins (US drummer; The Nashville Teens/The Animals).
1944: Mal Jennings (Australian singer, trumpeter, cornet player)
1942: Dick Parry (UK saxophonist; Pink Floyd/David Gilmour)
1939: Nick Ceroli (American session musician drummer)*11.Aug.1985.
1939: James Gurley (US guitarist; Big Brother and the Holding Company)*20.Dec.2009.
1935: Joe Lee Wilson (US gospel-influenced jazz singer)*17.July.2011.
1927: Ronnie Ball (UK cool jazz pianist)*31.Dec.1984.
1929: Mohammad Nouri (Iranian folk-pop singer)*31.July.2010
1924: Dan Terry (US big bandleader, arranger, trumpet, flugelhorn)*27.Dec.2011.
1921: Dimitri Fampas (Greek classical guitarist)*03.May.1996.
1921: Hawkshaw Hawkins/Harold Franklin Hawkins (US country singer)*05.March.1963.
1919: Lillian "Lil" Green (American blues vocalist)*14.April.1954.
1910: Reunald Jones (US swing-style trumpeter; The Jones Boys/freelance)*26.Feb.1989
1905: Art Christmas (Canadian alto sax/multi-instrumentalist)*24.Sept.1961.
1901: Danny Polo (American clarinetist)*11.July.1949.
1901: André Kostelanetz (Russian born, US popular music orchestra leader, arranger)*13.Jan.1980.
1874: Franz Schmidt (Austrian composer, cellist, pianist)*11.Feb.1934.
1858: Giacomo Puccini (Italian opera composer)*29.Nov.1924.
1853: Teresa Carreño (Venezuelan conductor and pianist)*12.June.1917.
1819: Franz Wilhelm Abt (German composer, choral conductor)*31.March.1885.

December 23rd.
1990: Anna Maria Perez de Tagle (US actress, model, singer)
1988: Eri Kamei (Japanese singer).
1985: Harry Mark Christopher Judd (UK drummer; McFly).
1981: Beth/Elisabeth Rodergas (Spanish singer).
1978: Esthero/Jen-Bea Englishman (Canadian singer-songwriter).
1977: Jari Mäenpää (Finnish guitarist, singer)
1975: Jamie Murphy (UK guitarist vocals; Space).
1974: Mieszko Talarczyk (Polish lead singer, guitarist; Swedish band Nasum/others)*26.Dec.2004
1974: Montsho Eshe (hip-hop artist; Arrested Development).
1971: Masayoshi Yamazaki (Japanese singer-songwriter).
1968: Quincy Delight Jones III/QD3/Snoopy (Swedish-US composer, music producer, film producer)
1967: Carla Bruni Tedeschi (Italian-French singer, songwriter, model).
1964: John Gordon (American alto saxophonist).
1964: Eddie Vedder/Edward Louis Severson III (US singer, guitar; Pearl Jam/Temple of the Dog).
1960: Will Sin/Will Sinnott (Scottish bass player, keyboardist, songwriter; The Shamen)*23.May.1991.
1958: Laurence Hobgood (American Grammy Award-nominated pianist).
1958: Victoria Williams (US singer/songwriter).
1957: Dan Bigras (Canadian singer)
1956: Dave "Moonface" Murray (UK guitar; Iron Maiden/Urchin).
1951: Anthony Edwin "Ant" Phillips (UK vocals, guitar; Genesis/Mike Rutherford/Camel/solo).
1949: Syrinx/Simion Stanciu (Romanian pan flautist)*06.July.2010.
1949: Adrian Belew/Robert Steven Belew (US guitarist, vocalist;King Crimson/solo/sessionist).
1947: Graham Bonnet (UK singer; Rainbow/Michael Schenker Group/Impellitteri/Alcatrazz/solo).
1946: Ariel Bender/Luther Grosvenor (guitarist, Mott The Hoople/Spooky Tooth/The VIPs/solo).
1946: Robbie Dupree/Robert Dupuis (US singer, songwriter).
1946: Edita Gruberova (Slovak operatic soprano)
1945: Ron Bushy (US drummer; Iron Butterfly).
1943: Harry Shearer (US bass guitarist, actor, voice actor on The Simpsons).
1941: Tim Hardin (US blues and folk singer, piano, guitar, songwriter, composer)*29.Dec.1980.
1940: Jorma Kaukonen (American blues, folk, rock guitarist; Jefferson Airplane/Hot Tuna/solo).
1940: Eugene Record (US lead vocalist of the Chi-Lites)*22.July.2005.
**1939: Johnny Kidd/Frederick Heath (UK singer, songwriter; Johnny Kidd & the Pirates)*07.Oct.1966.
Most sites have Johnny Kidd's DOB as Dec 23rd 1939, the "1939" was for public popularity.
His birthdate according to his authorized site is November 23rd 1935.
1936: Muhammad Ali/Raymond Patterson (free jazz drummer).
1935: Esther Phillips/Esther Mae Jones (US soul singer)*07.Aug.1984.
1933: Frank Morgan (American jazz saxophonist)*14.Dec.2007.
1931: Henry Cuesta (American jazz clarinetist; The Lawrence Welk Show)*17.Dec.2003.
1929: Chesney Henry "Chet" Baker Jr (US jazz trumpeter, vocalist)*13.May.1988.
1928: Chronis Aidonidis (Greek singer)
1928: Buddy Harmon (US top Nashville session drummer)*21.Aug.2008.
1927: Joe Harris (American drummer; Benny Goodman/sessionist).
1926: Ron Gowans (US reeds musician, flute)?
1923: Günther Schifter (Austrian music journalist)
1923: Claudio Scimone (Italian conductor)
1888: Mike Jackson (American acid jazz/jazz-funk composer, pianist)*21.June.1945

December 24th.
2000: Ethan Bortnick (US child prodigy, composer, songwriter, actor, keyboardist)
1982: Aiba Masaki (Japanese singer, actor)
1982: Robert Carmine/Robert Coppola Schwartzman (US singer)
1981: Dima Bilan (Karachay-Russian pop singer)
1980: Tomas Kalnoky (US singer, guitarist; Streetlight Manifesto)
1978: Tonedeff/Tony Rojas (US rapper)
1976: Yuri/Cha Hyun-ok (Korean singer)
1975: Joe Washbourne (vocalist, keyboardist; Toploader).
1974: Paal Nilssen-Love (Norwegian jazz drummer; freelance/guest).
1971: Ricky Martin/Enrique José Martín Morales (Puerto Rican singer).
1971: Giorgos Alkaios (Greek singer
1970: Will Oldham (US singer, songwriter)
1968: Doyle Bramhall II (US guitarist, vocalist; Smokestack/Eric Clapton Band).
1965: Millard Powers (US multi-musician, songwriter; Counting Crows/Semantics/Majosha/Ben Folds).
1963: Mary Ramsey (US singer, violin, viola; John and Mary/The Valkyries/10,000 Maniacs/X Maniacs).
1962: Michael Ray (jazz trumpeter; Sun Ra Arkestra/Michael Ray-Cosmic Krewe/Kool & the Gang/sessionist)?
1958: Munetaka Higuchi (Japanese drummer)*30.Nov.2008.
1957: Diane Tell/Diane Fortin (Quebec singer)
1957: Ian Burden (UK keyboards; Human League).
1947: Barry Llewellyn (Jamaican singer, songwriter; The Heptones)*23.Nov.2011.
1946: Jan Akkerman (Dutch guitar; Focus/guest/solo).
1945: Lemmy/Ian Fraser Kilmister (UK singer, bass guitarist; Hawkwind/Motorhead/guest).
1944: Woody Herman Shaw II (US jazz trumpet)*10.May.1989.
1944: Michael Curb (American musician, record company executive, politician).
1943: Volker Kriegel (German jazz guitarist)*14.June.2003.
1937: Bernt Rosengren (Swedish tenor Sax player).
1936: Chris McGregor (Sth. African bandleader, pianist; Blue Notes/Brotherhood of Breath)*26.May.1990.
1935: Shusha "Shamsi" Guppy (Persian writer, editor, singer of Persian / Western folk-songs)*21.March.2008
1934: John "Critch" Critchinson (English jazz pianist).
1931: Ray Bryant/Raphael Homer Bryant (American jazz pianist, composer)*02.June.2011.
1931: Tatsuya Takahashi (Japanese tenor sax; The Tokyo Union/freelance).
1931: Mauricio Kagel (German-Argentine composer)*18.Sept.2008.
1928: Jimmy Campbell (American session drummer)*27.March.1998.
1927: Jake Hess (US gospel singer; solo/founder of The Imperials)*04.Jan.2004.
1927: Teresa Stich-Randall (European-based US soprano opera singer)*17.July.2006.
1925: Yafa Yarkoni /Yafa Abramov (Israeli singer; “songstress of the wars”)*01.Jan.2012.
1924: Lee Dorsey (US pop - R&B singer)*01.Dec.1986.
1920: Dave Bartholomew (American arranger, trumpeter and vocalist).
1919: Henry Coker (American jazz trombonist)*23.Nov.1979
1919: Moe Schneider (US trombonist).
1914: Ralph Marterie (Italian trumpet player, big-band leader)*10.Oct.1978.
1910: Fumio Nanri (Japanese acclaimed jazz trumpeter)*04.Aug.1975.
1908: Cladys "Jabbo" Smith (US trumpet/vocal)*16.Jan.1991.
1906: Franz Waxman/Franz Wachsmann (German film composer)*24.Feb.1967.
1898: Baby Dodds/Warren Dodds (American jazz drummer)*14.Feb.1959.
1893: Harry Warren (US composer, lyricist)*22.Sept.1981.
1874: Adamo Didur (Polish operatic bass vocalist)*07.Jan.1946.

December 25th.
1985: Leon Pisani (Welsh singer; boy band V).
1984: Jessica Origliasso (Australian vocalist, guitarist; The Veronicas)
1984: Lisa Origliasso (Australian vocalist, synths; The Veronicas)
1982: Shystie/Chanelle Calica (UK rapper, song-writer, actress).
1976: Tuomas Holopainen (Finnish keyboardist, songwriter; Nightwish)
1976: Armin van Buuren (Dutch DJ, Producer)
1972: Mac Powell (US singer, songwriter; Third Day).
1972: Josh Freese (US drummer; Vandals/Devo/Viva Death/A Perfect Circle/Nine Inch Nails/sessionist).
1972: Johnny Mac Powell (US guitarist singer-songwriter; Third Day).
1971: Dido/Dido Florian Cloud de Bounevialle O'Malley Armstrong (UK singer, songwriter)
1971: Noel Hogan (Irish guitarist, co-songwriter; The Cranberries)
1967: Jason Thirsk (US bass player)*29.July.1996.
1964: Tim Royes (US music video director-editor)*13.Aug.2007.
1964: Bob Stanley (UK musician, filmmaker, journalist; Saint Etienne)
1962: Darren Wharton (UK keyboardist, TV pesenter; Thin Lizzy/Dare).
1960: Dale Barlow (Australian jazz saxophonist, flute; Cedar Walton Quartet/Art Blakey/solo)
1959: Zim Ngqawana (South African jazz flautist and saxophonist)*10.May.2011.
1958: Dimi Mint Abba/Loula Bint Siddaty Ould Abba (Mauritanian singer)*04.June.2011.
1958: Alannah Myles (Canadian rock singer, song-writer).
1957: Shane McGowan (UK guitarist, vocals; The Pogues)
1954: Annie Lennox (Scottish singer; Eurythmics)
1954: Robin Campbell (UK lead guitar, vocals; UB40)
1954: Steve Wariner (US country singer, guitarist, bassist)
1952: Desireless/Claudie Fritsch-Mentrop (French R&B, jazz singer).
1950: Yehuda Poliker (Israeli singer-songwriter)
1949: Simone Bittencourt de Oliveira (Brazilian singer and icon of the Brazilian music).
1949: Joe Louis Walker (American blues guitarist, singer).
1948: Barbara Mandrell (US Country singer)
1948: Merry Clayton (US gospel singer, back up singer; Rolling Stones, many more)
1946: Jimmy Buffet (American singer, guitarist, songwriter)
1945: Noel Redding (UK bassist; Jimi Hendrix Experience/Flat Mattress)*11.May.2003.
1944: Kenny Everett/Maurice Cole (UK radio DJ, TV presenter)*04.April.1995.
1944: Henry"The Sunflower"Vestine (US guitar; Mothers of Invention/Canned Heat)*20.Oct.1997.
1943: Trevor Lucas (Australian guitarist, singer; Fairport Convention/Fotheringay/freelance)*04.Feb.1989.
1942: Enrique Morente Cotelo (Spanish flamenco singer)*13.Dec.2010.
1942: Barry Goldberg (US blues-rock keyboardist, songwriter, record producer).
1940: Pete Ronald Brown (UK lyricist, poet, singer; Cream/Battered Ornaments/Pete Brown & Piblokto!)
1939: Bob James (Grammy Award-winner, smooth jazz keyboardist, arranger and producer).
1937: O'Kelly Isley (singer, songwriter, arranger, producer; Isley Brothers)*31.March.1986
1929: Chris Kenner (US singer, songwriter, producer)*25.Jan.1976.
1926: Enrique Jorrín (Cuban composer, musician)*12.Dec.1987.
1919: Naushad Ali (Indian music director)*05.May.2006.
1915: Pete Rugolo (Italian-born composer)
1913: Tony Martin/Alvin Morris (US singer, actor)
1913: Chilton Price/Chilton Searcy (US violinist, songwriter)*14.Jan.2010.
1907: Cab Calloway (US jazz singer, bandleader)*18.Nov.1994.
1886: Edward "Kid" Ory (US jazz trombonist, bandleader)*23.Jan.1973.
1874: Lina Cavalieri (Italian soprano)*07.Feb.1944.
1711: Jean Joseph de Mondonville (French composer, violinist)*08.Oct.1772.

December 26th.
1987: Adam Walker (British classical flautist).
1985: Yuu Shirota (Japanese singer, actor).
1979: Chris Daughtry (US singer, guitar; Daughtry, Absent Element).
1979: Mzbel/Nana Akua Amoah (Ghanaian singer)
1974: Josie Ho Chiu-Yi (Hong Kong singer, actor)
1971: Jared Leto (US actor, singer; 30 Seconds to Mars).
1970: Krissada Terrence (Thai-US singer, actor, dancer; Pru).
1970: James Mercer (US guitarist, singer; The Shins)
1969: Peter Klett (lead guitar; Candlebox)
1967: J. /Jay Noel Yuenger (lead guitar; White Zombie)
1963: Dana Baldinger (bass; Popinjays)
1963: Lars Ulrich (Danish born drummer; Metallica)
1955: Andy Kimbel (US folk/blues singer, guitarist, songwriter)?
1953: Henning Schmitz (German keyboards, bass, synthesiser Kraftwerk).
1953: Steve Witherington (Irish drums; Ace)
1951: Paul Quinn (UK guitar; Saxon)
1951: John Scofield (US jazz guitarist, composer).
1946: Bob Carpenter (keyboard, accordion, bass; Nitty Gritty Dirt Band)
1941: Rattlesnake Annie/Annie McGowan (US country blues singer)
1939: Phil Spector (US songwriter, record producer)
1938: Stan Martin/Stanley Martin Feuerman (US radio host, DJ)*28.Jan.2003.
1935: Abdul "Duke" Fakir (first tenor singer; The Four Tops).
1930: Jean Ferrat (French author, poet, singer)*13.March.2010.
1929: Régine/Régine Zylberberg (French singer, nightclub owner).
1925: Jimmy Roselli (US singer)*30.June.2011.
1925: Dame Thea King DBE (British classical clarinetist)*26.June.2007.
1922: Harry Choates (US fiddle, accordion, guitar steel and acoustic; Cajun artist)*17.July.1951.
1918: Dame Olga Lopes-Seale (Guyanese-born Barbados social worker, singer, broadcaster)*04.Feb.2011.
1911: Bashful Brother Oswald/Beecher Ray Kirby (US vocals,banjo;Smoky Mountain Boys)*17.Oct.2002.
1906: Imperio Argentina/Magdalena Nile del Río (Argentine actress, singer)*22.Aug.2003.
1890: Uncle Charlie Osborne (American left-handed fiddler player)*27.May.1992.

December 30th.
1988: Leon Jackson (Scottish singer; winner of UK X Factor 2007).
1986: Ellie Goulding (UK singer)
1980: Kenny Kwan (Hong Kong singer, actor; tduo Boy-z).
1978: Tyrese Darnell Gibson (US R&B artist, actor and model)
1978: Inferno/Zbigniew Robert Prominski (Polish drummer; Azarath/Witchmaster/Damnation).
1972: Steven Wiig (American multi-musician, actor; Papa Wheelie, Metallica).
1969: Jay Kay/Jason Cheetham (UK lead singer, comoser; Jamiroquai).
1965: Darrin C. Huss (Canadian singer; Psyche).
1964: Duglas T. Stewart (Scottish composer, musician; BMX Bandits).
1961: Scott Taylor (UK guitarist; Then Jerico).
1959: Paul Jackson Jr (US guitarist; Los Angeles sessionist/solo).
1959: Tracey Ullman (UK singer, comedienne, actress)
1957: Buddy Blue/Bernard Seigal (US guitarist, music critic; The Beat Farmers/others)*02.April.2006.
1956: Suzy Bogguss (American country singer, guitarist).
1955: Dindo Yogo/Théodore Dindo Mabeli (Congolese singer; Papa Wemba's Viva La Musica)*23.Aug.2000.
1953: Dana Key (US Christian rock guitarist, singer, producer; DeGarmo & Key/solo)*06.June.2010.
1952: June Anderson (American soprano).
1950: David Lloyd Stewart (UK keyboards; Hatfield & the North/National Health/solo)
1949: Bruce Earl Fairbairn (Canadian top record producer)*17.May.1999.
1947: Jeff Lynne (UK vocals, keyboards, guitar, synthesizer;The Move/ELO/Traveling Wilburys/freelance)
1946: Patti Smith (US musician, singer, poet)
1946: Clive Bunker (UK drummer; Jethro Tull)
1945: Davy Jones (UK singer, actor, jockey; The Monkees/solo)
1943: Gösta Winbergh (Swedish tenor)*18.March.2002.
1942: Robert Quine (US guitarist; top sessionist/freelance)*31.May.2004.
1942: Michael Nesmith (US vocals, guitar, songwriter, businessman; The Monkees/solo)
1940: Perry Ford (UK singer; Ivy League)
1940: Kenny Penifallo (US drummer; Asbury Jukes)
1939: Felix Pappalardi (US songwriter, vocalist, bassist, recording producer; Mountain)*17.April.1983.
1939: Viola Wills/Viola Mae Wilkerson (American pop singer)*06.May.2009.
1937: John Hartford (US folk singer, guitar, fiddle, banjo, songwriter, Emmy A.W.)*04.June.2001.
1937: Paul Stookey/Noel Paul Stookey (US singer, songwriter, guitar; Peter, Paul and Mary/solo)
1934: Del Shannon/Charles Weedon Westover (US singer, guitar)*08.Feb.1990.
1934: Russ Tamblyn (US actor, dancer, singer)
1933: Melvin Goins (US bluegrass guitarist; Lonesome Pine Fiddlers/Goins Brothers/others)
1932: Herb Cohen (US record company executive, manager, music publisher)*16.March.2010.
1931: Skeeter Davis/Mary Frances Penick (US country singer/songwriter)*19.Sept.2004.
1928: Bo Diddley/Ellas Otha Bates (US singer, guitar, violin, trombone, songwriter)*02.June.2008.
1913: Lucio Agostini (Italian-born Canadian conductor and composer)*15.Feb.1996.
1910: Paul Bowles (American composer, author)*18.Nov.1999.
1904: Dmitri Kabalevsky (Russian composer)*18.Feb.1987.

December 31st.
1985: Jan Smit (Dutch singer).
1982: Bryce Avary (US multi-musician; solo/The Rocket Summer).
1979: Bob Bryar (US drummer; My Chemical Romance/Gerardolopoly).
1978: Papoose/Shamele Mackie (US rap artist).
1973: Malcolm Middleton (Scottish singer, guitarist(Arab Strap)
1972: Joe McIntyre (US singer; New Kids On The Block)
1971: Brian Keenan (US pianist/composer)
1963: Scott "Not" Ian/Scott Ian Rosenfeld (US rhythm guitarist, guitarist; Anthrax/Stormtroopers of Death)
1961: Scott Taylor (UK guitarist; Then Jericho)
1959: Paul Westerberg (US vocals, piano, guitar; Replacements/solo)
1953: Michael Hedges (US guitarist; solo)*02.Dec.1997
1951: Thomas William Hamilton (US bassist; Aerosmith)
1951: Fermin Goytisolo (Cuban percussionist; KC and the Sunshine Band).
1948: Donna Summer/LaDonna Adrian Gaines (US singer, songwriter).
1947: Rita Lee.. now Jones Carvalho (Brazilian Rock Star, composer).
1947: Burton Cummings (Canadian lead singer; Guess Who/The Carpet Frogs/solo).
1943: Pete Quaife (UK original bass guitarist for The Kinks)*23.June.2010.
1943: John Denver (US singer/songwriter/guitar)*10.Dec.1997
1942: Andy Summers (UK guitarist, composer; Police/solo/guest).
1942: Terry Furlong (US guitarist; Grass Roots)
1940: Mani Neumeier (German frontman, singer-drummer; Guru Guru/solo).
1933: Fred Carter Jr. (US top session guitaristist, singer, producer, composer)*17.July.2010.
1931: Gil Melle (US film & TV composer, jazz saxophonist and artist)*28.Oct.2004.
1930: Odetta Holmes (Afro-American singer, guitarist, songwriter, human rights activist)*02.Dec.2008.
1920: Rex Allen (American actor, singer, songwriter)*17.Dec.1999
1909: Jonah Jones (American award winning jazz trumpeter)*29.April.2000.
1905: Jule Styne/Julius Kerwin Stein (British-born American songwriter, composer)*20.Sept.1994.
1904: Umm Kulthum (Egyptian singer, actress)*03.Feb.1975.
1903: Nathan Milstein (Ukrainian violinist)*21.Dec.1992.
1902: Lionel Daunais/Noël Ferdinand Lionel Daunais (Quebec singer, composer)*18.July.1982.
1899: Silvestre Revueltas Sánchez (Mexican composer)*05.Oct.1940.

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DEATHS
REMEMBER .THIS .MONTH

December 1st.
1954: Fred Rose (56) American songwriter and music publishing executive born in Evansville, Indiana; he started playing piano and singing as a small boy. In his teens, he moved to Chicago, Illinois where he worked in bars busking for tips, and finally vaudeville. Eventually, he became successful as a songwriter, penning his first hit for entertainer Sophie Tucker. In 1942 in Nashville, he teamed up with Grand Ole Opry star Roy Acuff to create the first Nashville-based music publishing company. Their Acuff-Rose Music was almost immediately successful, particularly with the enormous hits of Hank Williams. While running the business, Fred continued to write numerous country songs and eventually became one of the industry's most important personalities. Fred also wrote songs under the name of Floyd Jenkins. Along with Hank Williams and Jimmie Rodgers, Fred was one of the three charter members of the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1961. He was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1970 and into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1985 (?) b. August 24th 1897.
1959: Avery Parrish (41) American jazz pianist; he started in the Bama State Collegians, at the Alabama State Teachers College an ensemble led by Erskine Hawkins. He stayed with Erskine until 1941 and recorded with him extensively. He wrote the music to "After Hours", which became a jazz standard. He moved to California, but was involved in a bar fight in 1942 which left him paralyzed at age 24, and unable to play music for the rest of his life. In 1979 he was inducted into the Alabama Jazz Hall of Fame (unknown causes). b. January 24th 1917.
1968: Nicolae Bretan (81) Romanian baritone opera singer and composer born in Transylvania He studied in Cluj, Vienna and Budapest before becoming one of the pioneers of Romanian opera - his opera Luceafarul in 1921 is cited as the first opera in Romanian. Bretan also composed many lieder. In 1944 Bretan wife's family, who were Jewish, were transported to the Nazi extermination camp at Auschwitz and murdered. Refusing to become a member of the Romanian Communist Party in 1948, he was not favoured by the Romanian communist regime, who treated the composer as a "non person". His major operas include Luceafarul-1921, Golem-1924, Eroii de la Rovine-1935, Horia-1937, and Arald-1939 (?) b. March 25th 1887.
1968: Dario Moreno (47) Turkish-Jewish singer as well as an accomplished composer, lyricist and guitarist, who was born in Izmir; he attained fame and made a remarkable career centered in France which also included films, during the fifties and the sixties. Dario appeared in 13 films and released 12 albums and was awarded the 1958 Grand Prix Du Disque in France (died of a heart attack in a taxi going to Istanbul airport) b. April 3rd 1921.
1969: Samuel "Magic Sam" Gene Maghett (32) American blues guitarist, singer-songwriter, born in Grenada, Mississippi. He learned to play the blues from listening to records by Muddy Waters and Little Walter. After moving to Chicago at the age of 19, he was signed by Cobra Records and became well known as a bluesman after his first record, "All Your Love" in 1957. He was known for his distinctive tremolo guitar playing, vocals and song writing ability which have inspired and influenced many blues musicians ever since. In The Blues Brothers, Jake Blues dedicates the band's performance of "Sweet Home Chicago" to the "late, great Magic Sam". In 1982, Sam was posthumously inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame. (died suddenly of a heart attack) b. February 14th 1937
1986: Lee Dorsey (61) American pop/R&B singer during the 1960s. From 1965 to 1969 he had seven songs in the Hot 100, the most successful of which was "Working In The Coal Mine" in 1966. In 1970 he and Allen Toussaint collaborated on an album entitled "Yes We Can". He appeared on an album with Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes, which led to more recordings on his own with ABC Records in the late 1970s. In 1980, he opened for English punk band The Clash on their U.S. tour (sadly taken by emphysema) b. December 24th 1924.
1986: Horace Heidt (85) American pianist, big band leader, and radio and television personality born in Alameda, California. His band, Horace Heidt and His Musical Knights, toured vaudeville and performed on radio and television through the 1930s and 1940s.The Heidt band's recordings were highly-successful with "Gone with the Wind" going to No. 1 in 1937 and "Ti-Pi-Tin" to No. 1 in 1938. In 1939, "The Man with the Mandolin" ranked No. 2 on the charts. His 1941 song, "The Hut-Sut Song", is heard in the movie A Christmas Story For his contribution to radio, Heidt has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 1631 Vine Street; and a second star for his contribution to television at 6628 Hollywood Boulevard (?) b. May 21st 1901.
1989: Billy Lyall (35) Scottish keyboard player and vocalist with pop-rock band, Pilot, and an early member of the tartan teen sensations the Bay City Rollers. Born in Edinburgh, he also contributed to The Alan Parsons Project with fellow Pilot members. In addition, he released a solo album, titled Solo Casting in 1976.(died of an AIDS-related illness) b. March 26th 1953
1993: Ray Gillen (34) American singer, best known for his work with Badlands, in addition to his work with Black Sabbath in the mid-1980s. Born in New York, he started singing while in High School and played the New Jersey club circuit with various bands, most notably Vendetta and Harlette. In 1985 he joined Bobby Rondinelli's band, before his stint with Black Sabbath. He next played and recorded with Phenomena, "II Dream Runner" in 1987 and with Blue Murder on their demo "It's Too Late" in 1988, after which he joined John Sykes', Badlands, recording 3 albums. Just before his death Ray went to New York City and formed the band Sun Red Sun with old friends, releasing a self-titled album. He also worked with George Lynch on his 1993 "Flesh and Blood" album (sadly died from an AIDS related disease in a New York Hospital) b. May 12th 1959.
1997: Stéphane Grappelli (89) French self taught jazz violinist; he and Django Reinhardt founded the Quintet of the Hot Club of France during 1933-39 producing a sensational series of recordings & performances. He has appeared on 100's of recordings including sessions with Duke Ellington, Oscar Peterson, Claude Bolling, Jean-Luc Ponty, Stuff Smith, L. Subramaniam, Gary Burton, Paul Simon, David Grisman, Yehudi Menuhin, André Previn, Bucky Pizzarelli, Joe Pass, Yo Yo Ma, Toots Thielmans and Mark O'Connor. He also collaborated extensively with the British guitarist Diz Disley, recording 13 albums with him and his trio, and with now renowned British guitarist Martin Taylor. In the 80s he gave several concerts with the young British cellist Julian Lloyd Webber. His music is played very quietly, on Pink Floyd's album "Wish You Were Here", he was not credited, according to Roger Waters, in order to avoid "a bit of an insult". He is an inductee of the Down Beat Jazz Hall of Fame and received the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 1997 (died after undergoing a hernia operation) b. January 26th 1908.
1999: (or Nov 30) Don "Sugarcane" Harris (61) American Blues, jazz, rock violinist and guitarist born and raised in Pasadena, California; he was given the nickname "Sugarcane" by LA bandleader Johnny Otis. He started an act called Don and Dewey in the mid 1950s. In the 1960s he played exclusively the electric violin, as a sideman with John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers and Frank Zappa, most recognized for his appearances on the Mothers of Invention albums Hot Rats, Burnt Weeny Sandwich, and Weasels Ripped My Flesh. His lead vocal and blues violin solo on a cover of Little Richard's "Directly From My Heart to You" on Weasels, and his extended solo on the lengthy "Little House I Used To Live In" on Weeny are considered highlights of those albums. The 70's sees him fronting the Pure Food and Drug Act (pulmonary disease) b. June 18th 1938.
2007: Zayda Peña Arjona (28) Mexican lead singer; she headed a band known as Zayda y los Culpables – “Zayda and the Guilty Ones”. One of her songs was “Tiro de Gracia,” a reference to an execution-style gunshot. (she was shot in the back by a gunman at Mónaco Motel in Matamoros, Tamaulipas. This was not fatal, but the following day several assailants entered the hospital and shot her death. She was not involved with drugs on any level) b. 1981
2008: Mikel Laboa (74) Spanish Basque singer and songwriter. His music could be defined as a happy combination of tradition, poetry and experimentalism. He was a founder of the legendary ‘Ez Dok Amairu’ cultural group. After over 40 years devoted to music, he has influenced many of the younger generations and recorded 15 albums between 1964 to 2005 (?) b. June 15th 1934
2009: Ramses Shaffy (76) Dutch popular singer, chansonnier (songs from the late Middle Ages and Renaissance) and actor; born in Paris, after dropping out of high school in 1952 he attended the Amsterdam school of theatre arts. In 1955, he made his stage debut with the Nederlandse Comedie and in 1964, he founded the theatre group Shaffy Chantant. Ramses became popular as a singer in the 1960s, his noted songs include Zing, vecht, huil, bid, lach, werk en bewonder/Sing, fight, cry, pray, laugh, work and admire; We zullen doorgaan/We will go on; Pastorale/Sammy; and Laat me/Leave me be. He also frequently collaborated with Dutch singer Liesbeth List. By the early 80's he had returned to the stage, he played Don Quixote in the musical De man van La Mancha (The man from La Mancha) in 1993. Pieter Fleury made a documentary about him in 2002, titled Ramses, which won a Golden Calf, the award of the Netherlands Film Festival (sadly lost his fight with esophageal cancer) b. August 29th 1933.
2009: Donald Washington Sr (79) American jazz tenor saxophonist, born in West Philadelphia and raised in Southwest Philadelphia and graduated from Murrell Dobbins Career and Technical Education High School in 1948. He starting to play the saxophone as an elder statesman on Philadelphia's jazz scene in the late 1960s to the mid 1980s. As a leader, Donald founded the Marlboro Men, a group that toured Haiti, Jamaica and the Virgin Islands. He also performed with Donald Byrd, Jerry Butler, Nat King Cole, Sammy Davis, Jr., B.B. King, Diana Ross, Neil Sedaka and Horace Silver. When not on the road, he would jam regularly in Saturday Nights at Natalie's Lounge in West Philadelphia (lung cancer) b. ??.??.1930.
2009: Gustavo Adolfo Palma (89) Guatemalan singer who became known as "the Tenor of Central America". He made debut as a singer in 1936, performing on weekly programs on radio TGX. In 1944 entered a contest “Trip to Mexico”, promoted by the XEW of Mexico, “the Voice of Latin America" in which he won. In 1955 he appeared in the film “El Cristo Negro” (the Black Christ) with the actors “Raul Martinez and Rosa Carmina, filmed in Guatemala. In 1964 Gustavo performed in the Central American Festival of the Song, in El Salvador, obtaining a prize with the song “Tonight my Love”. In 1970 he was the guest of honor in the First Festival of the Central American and the Caribbean Song in Panama (?) b. August 31st 1920.
2010: Alojz Srebotnjak (79) Slovenian composer and educator born in Postojna; he was one of the most renowned composers of contemporary Slovenian classical music and is the author of a comprehensive, diverse body of work music. Also between 1970 and 2001 he was professor of composition at the Academy of Music, since then the title of Professor Emeritus. Alojz was honored with many awards for his works, including the Preseren Award for Lifetime Achievement in 1999 (?) b. June 27th 1931.
2010: Helen Boatwright (94) American soprano with a career that spanned more than five decades, Helen specialized in the performance of American song. She worked with many important figures in the world of music, including conductors Leopold Stokowski, Seiji Ozawa, Erich Leinsdorf, and Zubin Mehta. She also performed with Leonard Bernstein at Tanglewood in the 1940s, sang opposite tenor Mario Lanza in his operatic stage debut, and performed for President John F. Kennedy in the East Room of the White House in 1963. In 1954, she became the first person to record a full-length album of Charles Ives' songs, "24 Songs" with pianist John Kirkpatrick (sadly Helen died of complications from a fall) b. November 17th 1916.
2010: Hillard Elkins (81) American talent manager and film producer born in Brooklyn in New York City; he started out in the mailroom at William Morris in New York and quickly rose to become a top agent, heading the company’s theatrical division. After forming his own company, whose clients included Steve McQueen, James Coburn, Robert Culp and Mel Brooks, he set up as a producer and developed a string of notable plays and films, including the musical “Golden Boy,” the film “Alice’s Restaurant” and the Broadway premieres of two plays by Athold Fugard. With Al Goldin, he made his Broadway debut in 1962 with “Come On Strong,” a Garson Kanin comedy starring Carroll Baker and Van Johnson. In the 1960s counterculture he produced “Oh! Calcutta!,” Kenneth Tynan’s musical sex revue, and, with Mr. Penn as director, also produced the film version of Arlo Guthrie’s shaggy-dog song “Alice’s Restaurant” in 1969 (sadly died from a heart attack) b. October 18th 1929.

December 2nd.
1950: Dinu Lipatti (33) Romanian pianist, born in Bucharest his playing was hailed as having reached the highest degree of integrity and pianistic technique, which he employed in the quest for musical perfection. Dinu is particularly noted for his interpretations of Chopin, Mozart and Bach, but he also made recordings of Ravel's Alborada del Gracioso, Liszt, Enescu, the Schumann Piano Concerto, and the Grieg Piano Concerto. His recording of Chopin's Waltzes has remained in print since its release and has long been a favorite of many classical music-lovers. (sadly his career was cut short by his death from Hodgkin's disease) b. April 1st 1917
1971: Ernest 'Punch' Miller (77) American dixieland trumpeter, born in Raceland, Louisiana. Punch was well known and based in New Orleans from 1919 to 1927 before he moved Chicago. In Chicago he worked with various bands including those of Jelly Roll Morton and Tiny Parham, and appeared on a number of recordings. His lifestyle and the decline New Orleans jazz led to his return to mostly doing festivals. This changed with the rising importance of the Preservation Hall Jazz Band and he returned to national attention. He returned to New Orleans, playing at Preservation Hall and leading a band under his own name, in addition to playing with other groups. He toured Japan in 1963 Japan with George Lewis. He was the subject of the 1971 television documentary "Til the Butcher Cuts him down". (?) b. June 10th 1894.
1982: David Blue (41) US folk singer; an integral part of the Greenwich Village folk music scene in New York, perhaps best known for writing the song "Outlaw Man" for the Eagles, on their 1973 Desperado album. Blue's original version of "Outlaw Man" was the lead track of his own "Nice Baby And The Angel" album. In 1975 he joined Dylan's Rolling Thunder Revue and he appeared in Renaldo and Clara, the 1978 movie that was filmed during that tour. He acted in other films including, The American Friend, The Ordeal Of Patty Hearst and Human Highway by Neil Young. (heart attack) b. February 18th 1941.
1985: Philip Arthur Larkin, CH, CBE, FRSL (63) English poet, music column writer and music critic, born in Coventry, Warwickshire, ; he is widely regarded as one of the great English poets of the latter half of the twentieth century. He also contributed to The Daily Telegraph as its jazz critic from 1961 to 1971, articles gathered together in "All What Jazz: A Record Diary 1961–71", and he edited the Oxford Book of Twentieth-Century English Verse-1973. He was offered, but declined, the position of poet laureate in 1984, following the death of John Betjeman.(sadly cancer of oesophagus) b. August 9th 1922.
1986: Desi Arnaz/Ricky Ricardo (69) Cuban singer, guitarist, percussionist, actor, comedian and TV producer; he led own Latin American band and known to many as Ricky Ricardo with Lucille Ball in "I Love Lucy". In 1939, he starred on Broadway in the successful musical Too Many Girls. He then went to Hollywood to appear in the 1940 movie version at RKO, which starred actress, comedian, and his future wife Lucille Ball. At the time, he also played guitar for Xavier Cugat (lung cancer) b. March 2nd 1917.
1988: Tata Giacobetti (66) Italian singer and lyricist born in Rome, he sang at the students' parties at the time when he attended scenography classes at the Fine Arts Academy in Rome. In 1940 he founded a vocal quartet called Quartetto Egie, that changed line-up and name twice, becoming Quartetto Ritmo first and then Quartetto Cetra. Besides singing, he was the group's lyricist, while Virgilio Savona, also a member of the quartet, composed the music. They worked together for four decades and produced hundreds of songs which made up Quartetto Cetra's vast repertoire. Their many albums included, In un palco della Scala, Un disco dei Platters, Il Visconte di Castelfombrone, Nella vecchia fattoria, Vecchia America, Che centrattacco, Un bacio a mezzanotte, I ricordi della sera. Quartetto Cetra officially finished their performing career on 1 July 1988 in Bologna, with their last public concert. Tata also wrote lyrics for famous Italian composers of that era, such as Giovanni D'Anzi, Gorni Kramer, and Armando Trovajoli (?) b. 24 June 24th 1922.
1990: Aaron Copland (90) American composer; he studied composition in Paris with Nadia Boulanger. In his early works he experimented with jazz rhythms and then with an abstract style influenced by Neoclassicism. He came to be unofficially regarded as the U.S.'s national composer. He is best known for his three ballets based on American folk material: Billy the Kid in 1938), Rodeo in 1942, and Appalachian Spring in 1944, for which he recieved the Pulitzer Prize. He also wrote film scores, orchestral works, and operas. He won an Oscar for his 1949 music to The Heiress and was nominated for Of Mice and Men in 1939, Our Town in 1940 and 1943's The North Star. In his later years Aaron refined his treatment of Americana, making his references less overt, and he produced a number of works using the experimental technique of serialism. He continued to lecture and to conduct through the mid-1980s (Alzheimer's disease and respiratory failure) b. November 14th 1900.
1997: Michael Hedges (43) US solo guitarist; covering a wide range of musical styles he was one of the most innovative and acclaimed solo guitarists of his era, self-described "violent acoustic" he rose to success on the strength of a unique performing style that utilized harmonics and picking to create the impression of multiple guitars playing simultaneously. He was discovered in the early eighties by William Ackerman who heard him performing in a Palo Alto cafe and signed him to a recording contract. His record Oracle posthumously won the 1998 Grammy Award for Best New Age Album (a car accident along State Route 128 near Boonville about 100 miles northwest of San Francisco) b. December 31st 1953.
1998: Robert Sherwood "Bob" Haggart (84) American Dixieland jazz double bass player, composer and arranger. He becamer a founder-member of the Bob Crosby Band in 1935, arranging and part-composing several of the band's big successes including "What's New?", "South Rampart Street Parade", "My Inspiration", and "Big Noise From Winnetka" As a studio musician and arranger he worked with the likes of Billie Holiday, Louis Armstrong's and Ella Fitzgerald. He also worked and co-led with Yank Lawson The world's greatest Jazz Band as well as leading his own band (?) b. March 13th 1914
1999: Charlie Byrd (74) American jazz guitarist born in Suffolk, Virginia. His strongest influence was Django Reinhardt, in 1957 he met double bassist Keter Betts, the two began doing gigs together, and by October they were frequently performing at The Showboat, Washinton DC. In 1959 the pair joined Woody Herman's band and toured Europe for 3 weeks as part of a US State Department sponsored "goodwill" tour. In 1962, he collaborated with Stan Getz on the famous album, Jazz Samba, a recording which pushed bossa nova into the mainstream of North American music. Charlie became one of the top American guitarist who best played and understood Brazilian music, especially the Bossa Nova genre. Charlie Byrd, Joe Byrd and Chuck Redd were also a part of the famous act called "The Great Guitars" with electric guitarists Herb Ellis and Barnie Kessel. This group toured and recorded albums in the 1980s. Charlie performed the background music for "The Great Chefs Of..." television programs on PBS during the 1980s and '90s (Sadly lost his fight with lung cancer) b. September 16th 1925
2001: Valerie Jones (45) US singer, part of The Jones Girls, a female R&B trio of sisters from Detroit, Michigan.Their biggest hit was "You Gonna Make Me Love Somebody Else". They were also backup singers for Lou Rawls, Teddy Pendergrass and Aretha Franklin and sang with Diana Ross and Le Pamplemousse during the late-1970s. (?) b. ?
2006: Dave Mount (59) English drummer and founder member of the 1970's glam-rock group Mud. They first appeared on the Basil Brush show on BBC TV and were signed to Mickie Most's RAK label. They had an immediate Top 20 hit with "Crazy". At the peak of their career they enjoyed three British number one singles with "Tiger Feet", which sold over 500,000 copies in the UK alone, a million sales globally; "Lonely This Christmas", an affectionate Elvis Presley spoof which has now become an annual fixture on British radio and television at Christmas time and "Oh Boy". Mud disbanded at the end of the Seventies, after which he worked with Gray in an oldies act, Les Gray's Mud. He also appeared on an episode of Never Mind The Buzzcocks on BBC Two in November 2005, and featured in the "spot the pop star of the past" identity parade segment. The last performance by the four original members was on 3 March 1990, when they met and played Dave's wedding (sadly he took his own life) b. March 3rd 1947.
2006: Mariska Veres (59) Dutch singer, best known as the lead singer of the rock group Shocking Blue. Born in The Hague, she began her career as a singer in 1963 with the guitar band Les Mysteres. In 1965 she joined the Bumble Bees, the Blue Fighters, Danny and his Favourites, then General Four in 1966, and the Motowns later in 1966. In 1968 Mariska was invited to join Shocking Blue, gaining worldwide fame with their hit single "Venus". Shocking blue split in 1974, until they re-united in 1984, during which time Mariska went solo. In 1993 she started the jazz group The Shocking Jazz Quintet recording an album 'Shocking You'. From 1993 to 2006 Mariska performed in yet another reincarnation of Shocking Blue (cancer) b. October 1st 1947.
2008: Odetta Holmes (77) African-American singer, guitarist, songwriter, and human rights activist, often referred to as "The Voice of the Civil Rights Movement". She performed American folk music, blues, jazz, and spirituals. An important figure in the American folk music revival of the 1950s and 1960s, she was influential musically and ideologically to many of the key figures of the folk-revival of that time, including Bob Dylan, Joan Baez, and Janis Joplin. In 1961, Martin Luther King Jr. anointed her "The Queen of American folk music". In 1976, she performed in the U.S. Bicentennial opera "Be Glad Then America" by John LaMontaigne, as the Muse for America. Many time Grammy Award nominee, on Sept 29, 1999, President Bill Clinton presented her with the National Endowment for the Arts' National Medal of Arts. In 2004, she was honored at the Kennedy Center with the "Visionary Award", and in 2005, the Library of Congress honored her with its "Living Legend Award". (heart disease) b. December 31st 1930.
2009: Aaron Schroeder (83) American songwriter, born in Brooklyn; his first success, At a Sidewalk Penny Arcade one of the songs to introduce Rosemary Clooney as a solo artist, was followed by an incredible 1500 songs. He wrote seventeen songs for Elvis Presley including five that reached number one.. A Big Hunk o' Love, Good Luck Charm, I Got Stung, Stuck on You, It's Now or Never. Other song recordings to his credit, including major records by dozens of artists such as Roy Orbison, Duane Eddy, Sammy Davis Jr., Nat King Cole, Perry Como and Pat Boone. Aaron made a cameo appearance in the 1957 Warner Bros rock and roll movie Jamboree as a songwriter. He was also the founder and president of Musicor Records (1960-1965), and discovered, managed, produced and directed the career of Gene Pitney. He also worked on productions with with Blood, Sweat and Tears, and Hal David and Burt Bacharach among others (Alzheimer's disease) b. September 7th 1926.
2009: Eric Woolfson (64) Scottish singer, songwriter and lyricist, born in Glasgow he started composing music in his early teens. He moved to London in 1963, stopping off in Manchester to do a short stint as pianist with Hermans Hermits. Finally reachiing London he found work as a session pianist, before record producer Andrew Oldham, signed him up as a songwriter. Eric wrote songs for artists such as Marianne Faithfull, Frank Ifield, Joe Dassin, The Tremeloes, Marmalade, Dave Berry, and Peter Noone. His songs were recorded by over 100 artists both in Europe and USA. During the '60s he worked with two then-unknown writers, Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice. In the early '70s, Eric went into management, his first two signings were Carl Douglas and engineer/record producer Alan Parsons and in 1975 Eric and Alan joined forces to found the studio progressive rock group, The Alan Parson Project. From 1976 with their debut album Tales of Mystery and Imagination to 1987, they collaborated on the conception and lyrics for all ten albums by The Alan Parsons Project, which have achieved world-wide sales in excess of 40 million. Eric had been swaying more and more towards stage musicals, his first musical premiered in Vienna in 1990: Freudiana, about Sigmund Freud. The success led to his second musical in 1995, "Gaudi" about Spanish architect Antonio Gaudi, which ran for over five years. Other musicals include "Gambler" and "Edgar Allan Poe". His last musical "Dancing with Shadows" based on the anti-war play Forest Fire by the Korean playwright Cham Bum-Suk and with a book by Ariel Dorfman premiered in July 2007 in Korea (sadly died after his battle with cancer) b. March 18th 1945.
2011: Branimir Koštan (32) Croatian disc jockey (sadly died while fighting cancer) b. 1979.
2011: Al Vega/Aram Vagramian (90) American jazz pianist born in Worcester, Mass, where he was the house pianist at the Hi-Hat jazz club, and spent the late 1930s, 40s and 50s playing with some of the jazz greats, including Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, Miles Davis, Count Basie and Duke Ellington and played many of the city's legendary jazz clubs. He later led his own trio playimg both the piano and the vibraphone, and had hundreds of recordings as a pianist and a backup artist (?) b. June 22nd 1921.
2011: Bill Tapia (103) American jazz guitarist and ukulele player, also known as known as "Uncle Bill" and "Tappy"; born in Honolulu he got his first instrument at the age of 7 from Manuel Nunes, one of the first and most respected ukulele makers in Hawai’i. By the age of 10, he was already playing professionally playing “Stars and Stripes Forever” for World War I troops in Hawaii. In his early career he was travelling back and forth from Hawai’i to the West Coast playing on steamships, then in vaudeville and quickly expanding as a jazz guitarist, banjo and ukulele player performing with names such as Bing Crosby, Louis Armstrong, Elvis Presley and Hawaiian musicians such as King Bennie Nawahi, Sol Ho‘opi’i, and Andy Iona. >>> READ MORE <<< (Bill passed away peacefully in his sleep at his home in Westminster, California) b. January 1st 1908.
2011: Howard Tate (72) American soul singer

December 3rd.
1955: Charles Edward "Cow Cow" Davenport (61) American boogie woogie piano player, also played the organ and sang. His career began in the 1920s when he joined Banhoof's Traveling Carnival, a medicine show. His first fame came as accompanist to blues musicians Dora Carr and Ivy Smith. He also performed with Tampa Red. He recorded for many record labels, and was a talent scout and artist for Vocalion Records. He suffered a stroke in the early 1930s and lost movement in his hands. He was washing dishes when he was found by the jazz pianist Art Hodes in 1938. Hodes assisted in his rehabilitation and helped him find new recording contracts. He is a member of the Alabama Music Hall of Fame, where Cripple Clarence Lofton called him a major influence (sadly died from the effects of hardening of the arteries) b. April 23rd 1894.
1972: Bill Johnson (100) US jazz musician considered the father of the "slap" style of string bass playing. He started "slapping" the strings of his bass, (a more vigorous technique than the classical pizzicato), after he accidentally broke his bow on the road with his band in northern Louisiana in the early 1910s. Other New Orleans string bass players picked up this style, and spread it across the country with the spread of New Orleans Jazz. He was founder and manager of the first jazz band to leave New Orleans and tour widely in the 1910s, The Original Creole Orchestra. He also played with King Oliver's Creole Jazz Band, Bill Johnson's Louisiana Jug Band, and made many fine recordings in Chicago (died in New Braunfels, Texas) b. August 10th 1872.
1973: Emile Christian (78) American jazz trombonist from New Orleans; he also played cornet and string bass, he played both cornet/trombone with the Papa Jack Laine bands. He went to Chicago, in late 1917 to play trombone with the Bert Kelly Jass Band. In 1918 he went to New York City to play with the Original Dixieland Jass Band; he toured England with the O.D.J.B., contributed his tune "Satanic Blues" to their repertory, and made his first recordings with this band. Other songs he wrote include "Meet Me At the Green Goose", and "Mardi Gras Parade". After a brief time in the Original Memphis Five, he returned to Europe where he played with various jazz bands in Berlin, Paris, and other European cities into the mid 1930s. He played in both Black and White bands in Europe and India before returning to the US after the outbreak of World War II. He moved back to New Orleans in the 1950s where he played with the bands of Leon Prima, Santo Pecora, and Sharkey Bonano and his own band. In 1957 he toured with the Louis Prima Band. He continued playing in New Orleans into 1969, in his later years mostly playing string bass (?) b. April 20th 1895.
1998: Pierre Hétu (62) Canadian conductor and pianist, born in Montreal, Quebec. He studied in Paris, piano with Marcel Ciampi and conducting with Edouard Lindenberg, then in 1961, he won the Concours International des Jeunes Chefs d'Orchestre in Besançon. He subsequently studied under Charles Münch, Jean Martinon, and Hans Swarowsky. Pierre made his Canadian debut in 1963, conducting the Montreal Symphony Orchestra, and was appointed the orchestra’s Assistant Conductor under Zubin Mehta from 1963-1968. He was Music Director of the Kalamazoo Symphony Orchestra in Michigan from 1968-1972, Associate Conductor of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra from 1970-1973, and both Artistic Director from 1973-1979 and Principal Guest Conductor 1979-1980 of the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra (?) b. April 22nd 1936.
1999: Scatman John/John Paul Larkin (57) American singer born in El Monte, California; stuttering jazz musician who created a unique fusion of scat singing and house music, best known for his debut 1994 single "Scatman (Ski Ba Bop Ba Dop Bop)", a song he intended to inspire children who stuttered to overcome adversity, it sold over 6 million copies, making him a world star at the age of 52. He followed this with 10 more singles and 4 albums. His second album Everybody Jam!, took off in Japan, he was so popular there that toy stores sold dolls of his likeness and he appeared on phone cards and Coca Cola cans. The Japanese version of Everybody Jam! included a total of five bonus tracks, including the hit singles there "Su Su Su Super Ki Re i" and "Pripri Scat", which were commissioned by Japanese companies for several commercials (lung cancer) b. March 13th 1942.
2000: Hoyt Curtin (78) American composer and music producer, the main musical director for the Hanna-Barbera animation studio from its beginnings with The Ruff & Reddy Show in 1957 until his retirement in 1986. He composed many of the Hanna-Barbera cartoon theme songs, including The Flintstones, Top Cat, The Jetsons, Jonny Quest, Superfriends, Josie and the Pussycats, and The New Scooby-Doo Movies. He also wrote the controversial score for the science-fiction film Mesa of Lost Women and composed the music for the Sandy Frank cartoon Battle of the Planets, his last project, released in 2000 (died in L.A) b. September 9th 1922.
2001: Grady Martin (72) American guitarist; a noted session musician who played guitar on several hit songs including "Honky Tonk Man" by Johnny Horton, Marty Robbins hit songs El Paso and Don't Worry, and Roy Orbison's Oh, Pretty Woman. He played guitar on the records of artists Loretta Lynn, Hank Williams, Bing Crosby, Buddy Holly, Elvis Presley, Joan Baez, Floyd Cramer, Patsy Cline, Brenda Lee, Ray Price, Kris Kristofferson, Merle Haggard and many others. He learnt the piano, guitar and fiddle, at 15 years old he joined the band of Nashville musician Big Jeff Bess and spent the next two years touring. In 1946 he worked with the Bailes Brothers performing on the Grand Ole Opry. As well as his extensive session career, in 1951 he formed a country-jazz band, Grady Martin and the Slew Foot Five, backing acts like Bing Crosby and Burl Ives after which he formed Grady Martin and his Winging Strings and from 1979 to 1994 he became lead guitarist for Willie Nelson's touring band. He was the 83rd inductee into the the Rockabilly Hall of Fame (sadly, heart failure) b. January 17th 1929.
2005: Lance Dossor (89) British-born concert pianist and teacher; in 1932 he obtained an open scholarship to the Royal College of Music and in 1936 he was awarded the Medal of the Worshipful Company of Musicians, given only every three years to the most outstanding student. He won the 1936 Franz Liszt Prize at the Vienna International Piano Competition, and in the following year the Sonata Prize and overall Fourth Prize in the 1937 International Frédéric Chopin Piano Competition. In 1938 he was awarded fourth prize in the Ysaye Competition in Belgium. After the war, he became a member of the Royal College of Music's teaching staff and resumed his performing career, solo recitals, concertos and chamber music, playing with the leading British Orchestras under the batons of Sir John Barbirolli, Sir Adrian Boult, Sir Malcolm Sargent, Rafael Kubelík, Nikolai Malko and many others. He was a soloist for the Royal Philharmonic Society, the Henry Wood Promenade Concerts and in 1950 was invited to Israel for ten performances of the Brahms Second Piano Concerto with the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra. In 1947 he replaced Dinu Lipatti, who had been taken ill prior to his first London concert. In 1953 he accepted a three year appointment as principal teacher of piano at the Elder Conservatorium of Music, University of Adelaide from 1953, a post in which he remained until his retirement in 1979. (?) b. May 14th 1916.
2006: Logan Whitehurst (29) American drummer, also keyboards, guitar, accordion, concertina, piano, and provided his own backup vocals through multitracking. He began his career as the drummer for the band Little Tin Frog from 1995 until 2000, although he is best known as a founding member of Californian indie rock band The Velvet Teen and as a solo artist performing under the name Logan Whitehurst and the Junior Science Club He was also an accomplished graphic designer, creating numerous album covers for bands such as his sister's Tsunami Bomb, in addition to Dynamite Boy, Little Tin Frog, The Velvet Teen, 20 Minute Loop, Go Time, Shut Up Donny, Santiago, and labels such as Fearless Records, Restitution Records, Silent Records and Entertainment, and Double Helix Records (cancerous brain tumor) b. November 15th 1977.
2009: Torrie Zito (76) American pianist, music arranger, composer and conductor. Torrie is widely known for his hugely popular work with John Lennon on the classic album Imagine, as string arranger. But Torrie has worked with many recording artists, including Billie Holiday, Stan Getz, Perry Como, Billy Eckstine, Herbie Mann, Steve Lawrence, Edie Gorme, Nana Mouskouri, Bobby Short, Marvin Hamlish, Roberto Carlos, Sinead O'Conner, Tony Bennett, Frank Sinatra, Barbra Streisand, Bobby Darin, Morgana King, Johnny Mathis, Clay Aiken, Liza Minnelli, Morgana King, Quincy Jones, and Carly Simon (sadly emphysema took his breath away) b. October 12th 1933.
2010: Hugues Cuénod (108) Swiss tenor born in Corseaux-sur-Vevey; he is known for his performances in opera, operetta, traditional and musical theatre, and on the concert stage, where he was particularly known for his romantic and expressive interpretation of mélodie. He had an extraordinarily long career and he gave his last performance at the age of 92, Some sources give the date of Hugues Cuénod's death as December 6th 2010. More written under December 6th (?) b. June 26th 1902.
2011: Philip "Fatis" Burrell (57) Jamaican record producer, born in Birmingham, England; he later moved to Jamaica where he operated one of the most progressive production outfits working in his Vena studios and his Xterminator label from the '90s up to the early years of the new millennium, working with artists such as Capleton, Beres Hammond, Al Campbell, Sugar Minott, Cocoa Tea, Pinchers, Mikey General, Prince Malachi, Jesse Jenderm, and Luciano. After a short break from production work, Fatis reactivated his Xterminator label in 2010 with digital single releases from Sizzla and up-and-coming artists such as Jesse Royal and Kyala Bliss. (sadly Fatis died after a second stroke) b. 1954

December 4th.
1935: Johan Halvorsen (71) Norwegian composer, conductor and violinist. He was an accomplished violinist from a very early age and became a prominent figure in Norwegian musical life. As well as much theatre work, he conducted performances of over 30 operas and wrote the incidental music for more than 30 plays. Following his retirement from the theatre he finally had time to concentrate on the composition of his three great symphonies and two well-known Norwegian rhapsodies (?) b. March 15th 1864
1976: Tommy Bolin (25) American-born guitarist; born in Sioux City, Iowa, he moved to Boulder, Colorado, in his late teens, where he played in a band called American Standard before joining Ethereal Zephyr, later called Ethereal Zephyr. In 1972 at the age of 20, Tommy formed the fusion jazz-rock-blues band Energy. At this time he also played on Billy Cobham's Spectrum album. 1973 found him in the James Gang recording two records with this band: Bang! in 1973 and Miami in 1974. He went on to do session work for numerous rock bands and also with a number of jazz artists. He featured on Alphonse Mouzon's (of Weather Report) album Mind Transplant and toured with Carmine Appice and The Good Rats. In 1975 he embarked on his solo career debuting with 'Teaser'. Also in 1975 he was contacted to replace Ritchie Blackmore in Deep Purple. The Deep Purple world tour that followed in 1975 and 1976 allowed Tommy to showcase one song per night from Teaser. In 1976 he began to record Private Eyes, his second solo record. This album was supposed to be a double album. Much more of his music was released after his death including 11 live albums. His final show, just hours before his death, he opened for Jeff Beck (alcohol and drugs overdose) b. August 1st 1951.
1976: Benjamin Britton (62) UK composer, conductor, violist and pianist; he showed musical gifts early in life, and began composing prolifically as a child. With his arrival on the international music scene, many felt that English music gained its greatest genius since Purcell. One of his best known works is The Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra, composed to accompany Instruments of the Orchestra, an educational film produced by the British government, narrated and conducted by Malcolm Sargent. (heart failure) b. 22 November 1913.
1993: Frank Zappa (52) American composer, electric guitarist, record producer and film director. In a career spanning more than 30 years, he wrote rock, jazz, electronic, orchestral, and musique concrète works. He also directed feature-length films and music videos, and designed album covers. Zappa produced almost all of the more than 60 albums he released with the band Mothers of Invention and as a solo artist. One of the most accomplished composers of the rock era, with terrific musical knowledge and an outrageous sense of humor (prostate cancer) b. December 21st 1940.
2002: Bernie Dwyer (62) UK drummer, founder member of Freddie & the Dreamers; although the band were grouped as a part of the Merseybeat sound phenomenon that The Beatles exploded around the world in the wake of Beatlemania, they came from Manchester, and were the first such non-Liverpool, non-Brian Epstein-managed band to break through in the UK. Their most famous hits were "If You Gotta Make a Fool of Somebody", "I'm Telling You Now", "You Were Made For Me", and "I Understand" (lung cancer) b. September 11th 1940.
2004: Teo Peter (50) Romanian rock musician born in Cluj-Napoca, Transylvania, and bass player for rock band Compact formed in 1977 (Sadly Teo died while traveling in a taxi which was hit by a drunk driver, U.S. Marine Staff Sergeant Christopher Van Goethem serving as a Marine Security Guard at the American embassy in Bucharest) b. April 11th 1954.
2004: Elena Souliotis (61) Greece operatic soprano initially hailed as "the next Callas", her best known role is Abigaille in Verdi's opera Nabucco. Although her opera recordings were best sellers and she quickly achieved a busy career, unwisely, she took on certain demanding roles too early, and damaged her voice by denying it the time it needed to develop and strengthen by natural stages. After an absence from the stage that lasted several years, she began a second career in comprimario roles beginning in 1979, mostly in Russian operas (died of heart failure in Florence, Italy) b. May 28th 1943
2005: Gloria Lasso/Rosa María Coscolin (83) Spanish-born singer, based in France. She found success in the 1950s and 1960s, with songs such as Amour, Castagnettes et Tango, Etranger au Paradis (a French version of Stranger in Paradise), Buenas Noches Mi Amor, and Bon Voyage (heart attack) b. November 25th 1922
2007: Pimp C/Chad Butler (33) American rap artist, co-founder of the "Dirty South" style rap group UGK, and also co-owner of Trill Entertainment along with bandmate "Bun B". Born in Port Arthur, TX, his father played trumpet professionally with Solomon Burke, Chad studied classical music while in high school, and received a Division I rating on a tenor solo at a University Interscholastic League choir competition. He developed an interest in hip-hop when a friend of his gave him a Run-DMC album, after which he and his best friend Bernard "Bun B" Freeman, formed the rap group Underground Kingz aka UGK. Their 3rd album, Ridin' Dirty, reached No.2 on the Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. January 2002 Chad was sentenced to eight years in prison after violating probation by ignoring the community service sentence he had received from an earlier aggravated gun assault charge. He was released in 2005 and his 1st solo album "Pimpalation" appeared in the summer of 2006. Bun B dedicated the final UGK album, UGK 4 Life, to Pimp C's memory. (Los Angeles County Coroner's office state he died from an accidental overdose of Promethazine /Codeine "syrup" mixed with a pre-existing medical condition, sleep apnea, which causes a person to stop breathing during sleep) b. December 29th 1973
2008: Richard Van Allan CBE (73) British operatic bass singer; he sang varied repertoire at Covent Garden, English National Opera, and numerous important houses worldwide. With his distinctive profile and memorable stage presence, he made a powerful impression in many roles, from Wagner, Verdi, Mozart, to Gilbert & Sullivan. He was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 2001, and his last performance was as Folz in Wagner's Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg at the 2006 Edinburgh Festival (lung cancer) b. May 28th 1935
2009: Mary Virginia Curtis Verna (88) American operatic soprano, born in Salem, US, Mary is particularly associated with the Italian repertory and famed in the 50s and ’60s for stepping into the roles of ailing, or otherwise indisposed divas, often on only a few hours’ notice. She made her stage debut at the Teatro Lirico in Milan, as Desdemona, in 1949. She sang widely in Italy, as Maria Curtis Verna, and made guest appearances at the Vienna State Opera and the Munich State Opera. She made her American debut in Philadelphia, in 1952, and the same year at the San Francisco Opera, as Aida. She made her debut at the New York City Opera, as Donna Anna, in 1954, and at the Metropolitan Opera, as Leonora in Il trovatore, in 1957. She can be heard in a few Cetra recordings; Don Giovanni, opposite Giuseppe Taddei, Italo Tajo, Cesare Valletti, Un ballo in maschera, opposite Ferruccio Tagliavini and Giuseppe Valdengo, Aida, opposite Franco Corelli, Miriam Pirazzini, Giangiacomo Guelfi () b. May 9th 1921.
2009: William 'Liam' Clancy (74) Irish singer, born in Carrick-on-Suir, Co. Tipperary. He began singing with his brothers at fund-raising events for the Cherry Lane Theatre and the Guthrie benefits. They relocated to New York in 1956, where a record breaking 16 minute long performance on The Ed Sullivan Show launched the group into stardom. The quartet recorded numerous albums for Columbia Records and enjoyed great success during the '60s folk revival. In these days, Liam was a close friend of Bob Dylan when they both were going out with two sisters in New York, also he performed live for President John F. Kennedy and played guitar in addition to singing and recorded several solo albums. In 1975 he was booked to play a festival in Cleveland, Ohio, where Tommy Makem was also playing. The two played a set together and formed Makem and Clancy, performing in numerous concerts and recording several albums as a duo, until 1988. Now back in Ireland, Liam re-joined the Clancy Brothers in 1996, which then included his brothers, Paddy, Bobby, and O'Connell, to record the album, "Older But No Wiser" and embark on a farewell tour. He continued to touring with his son, Donal, and O'Connell, as Clancy, O'Connell & Clancy. In 2006 Irish Television profiled Liam Clancy in a two hour documentary called "The Legend of Liam Clancy." In February 2007 the documentary won the award for best series at the Irish Film & Television Academy awards in Dublin (sadly died from complications of lung disease) b. September 2nd 1935.
2011: Hubert Sumlin (80) American Chicago blues and electric blues guitarist and singer, born in Greenwood, Mississippi. He was best known for his celebrated work, from 1955, as guitarist in Howlin' Wolf's band. His singular playing was characterized by "wrenched, shattering bursts of notes, sudden cliff-hanger silences and daring rhythmic suspensions". He was inducted into the Blues Foundation Hall of Fame in 2008; nominated for four Grammy Awards:- in 1999 for the album Tribute to Howlin' Wolf with Henry Gray, Calvin Jones, Sam Lay, and Colin Linden, in 2000 for Legends with Pinetop Perkins, in 2006 for his solo project About Them Shoes and he won multiple Blues Music Awards.(Hubert sadly died from a heart failure) b. November 16th 1931.
2011: RJ Rosales/Roseo José Rosales (37) Filipino-born Australian singer, actor, musical theatre performer and TV presenter. Born in Manila, his family migrated to Sydney, Australia when he was 13. RJ started his professional career as part of the ensemble of the original Australian production of Miss Saigon in 1996. In 1998 he moved to Singapore where his theatre credits include leading roles in Chang and Eng - the Musical, The Student Prince, Man of Letters, Cabaret, and Forbidden City. It was his regular stint in ASAP, the No.1 musical variety show in the Philippines that made him a household name in the country. As well as making numerous Singapore TV appearances, he also had a successful solo singing career and held live concerts in the USA, Australia, Singapore, Japan and Thailand. RJ returned to Australia in 2008 in the revived production of Sir Cameron Mackintosh's musical Miss Saigon, in which he portrays Thuy, for which he was nominated for the Helpmann Awards Best Supporting Actor in a Musical (correct details about his death have yet to be confirmed) b. March 24th 1974.

December 5th.
1791: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (35) Austrian composer; one of the heavyweights of classical music, generally placed in the top rank of composers along with Beethoven and Bach. Many consider Mozart to be the greatest composer of all time. His more than 600 compositions include works widely acknowledged as pinnacles of symphonic, concertante, chamber, piano, operatic, and choral music, he is among the most enduringly popular of classical composers (died of a mysterious fever) b. January 27th 1756.
1953: Jorge Alberto Negrete Moreno (42) Mexican singer, actor; considered one of the most popular Mexican singers and actors of all time. He started his career singing operatic parts on the radio in 1931 in Mexico City. In 1936 he signed with NBC for a TV program with Cuban and Mexican musicians. He returned to Mexico in 1937 to act in the film "La Madrina Del Diablo" ("The Devil's Godmother") after which in 1938 he starred in "La Valentina" with Elisa Christy and then in "Juntos Pero No Revueltos" ("Together But Not Mixed"). After working in Havana and Hollywood he was called to act in "¡Ay Jalisco, No Te Rajes!" ("Hey Jalisco, Don't Back Down!") which made him an international Latin star and helped formulate the charro film genre (hepatitis) b. November 30th 1911.
1963: Karl Amadeus Hartmann (58) German composer, some have lauded him as the greatest German symphonist of the 20th century, although he is now largely overlooked, particularly in English-speaking countries. He voluntarily withdrew completely from musical life in Germany during the Nazi era, and refused to allow his works to be played there. An early symphonic poem, Miserae first performed in Prague, 1935, was condemned by the Nazi regime; but his work continued to be performed, and his fame grew, abroad. Beginning in November 1945, the concerts reintroduced the German public to 20th-century repertoire which had been banned since 1933 under National Socialist aesthetic policy. Karl provided a platform for the music of the young composers who came to the fore in the late 1940s and early 1950s, helping to establish such figures as Hans Werner Henze, Luigi Nono, Luigi Dallapiccola, Carl Orff, Iannis Xenakis, Olivier Messiaen, Luciano Berio, Bernd Alois Zimmermann and many others. Hartmann also involved sculptors and artists such as Jean Cocteau, Le Corbusier, and Joan Miró in exhibitions at Musica Viva (sadly died after a battle with stomach cancer) b. August 2nd 1905.
1972: Kenny Dorham/McKinley Howard Dorham (48) American jazz trumpeter, singer, and composer born in Fairfield, Texas. He played in the big bands of Billy Eckstine, Dizzy Gillespie, Lionel Hampton and Mercer Ellington and Charlie Parker's quintet. He was a charter member of the original cooperative Jazz Messengers. He also recorded as a sideman with Sonny Rollins and Thelonious Monk, and replaced Clifford Brown in the Max Roach Quintet in 1956. In addition to sideman work, he led his own groups, releasing 18 albums as a leader, debuting with "Quiet Kenny" in 1953. His band the Jazz Prophets featured a young Bobby Timmons on piano, bassist Sam Jones and tenorman J. R. Monterose with guest Kenny Burrell on guitar, recorded a live album 'Round About Midnight at the Cafe Bohemia in 1956 for Blue Note. In 1963 Kenny added the 26-year-old tenor saxophonist Joe Henderson to his group. He also composed the jazz standard "Blue Bossa," which first appeared on Joe Henderson's album ''Page One''. Kenny was one of the most active and sort after bebop trumpeters, but sadly, sometimes forgotten by the media (died from kidney disease) b. August 30th 1924.
1977: Rahsaan Roland Kirk/Ronald Theodore Kirk (42) American jazz saxaphonist, composer and multi-instrumentalist who played tenor saxophone, flute and many other instruments, born in Columbus, Ohio, but felt compelled by a dream to transpose two letters in his first name to make Roland. He became blind at an early age as a result of poor medical treatment. In 1970, after hearing it in a dream, he added "Rahsaan" to his name. Preferring to lead his own bands, he rarely performed as a sideman, although he did record with arranger Quincy Jones and drummer Roy Haynes and had notable stints with bassist Charles Mingus. One of his best-known recorded performances is the lead flute and solo on Jones' "Soul Bossa Nova", a 1964 hit song repopularized in the Austin Powers films (died from a second stroke) b. December 5th 1977.
1987: Fat Larry James (38) American drummer and vocalist of Fat Larry's Band; the band's biggest hits were "Act Like You Know", which later appeared on the soundtrack for Grand Theft Auto: Vice City, and "Zoom", which hit number two in the UK singles chart. They had two other major hits in the UK: "Center City" with lead vocals by Grant and "Boogie Town". His opening drum break from "Down On The Avenue", has been sampled by many hip-hop artists, including NWA, Ice T, Jungle Brothers, and Run-DMC. (heart attack) b. August 2nd 1949
1987: Molly O'Day/LaVerne Williamson (64) American C&W, gospel singer, banjo; pioneering vocalist whose soulful, gut-wrenching performances helped redefine the role of the female country solo artist, whose C&W career was relatively brief, but her lasting influence has proven massive. Staring out in 1939 when she was hired to perform in a radio band: Ervin Staggs and His Radio Ramblers at WCHS, Charleston, West Virginia.She also joined the Radio Ramblers as a vocalist under the pseudonym Mountain Fern and worked with a banjoist called Murphy McClees and changed her name to Dixie Lee. She signed recording contract with Columbia Records and Molly O'Day and her band The Cumberland Mountain Folks made their first recordings on December 16th 1946 (sadly lost his battle with cancer) b. July 9th 1923.
1989: John Pritchard CBE (68) English conductor, known for his interpretations of Mozart operas and his support of contemporary music. He joined the music staff of Glyndebourne Festival Opera in '47 as chorus master in '49. He remained associated with Glyndebourne for most of his career, as conductor, music counsellor and musical director. As well as this he appeared worldwide from the Far East to both American contenants to Europe with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Royal Opera Covent Garden,Vienna Symphony Orchestra, Vienna State Opera, BBC Symphony Orchestra, Cologne Opera, the Théâtre de la Monnaie, and the San Francisco Opera to mention a few. John was appointed CBE in 1962 and knighted in 1983. The prestigious Shakespeare prize in Hamburg, was awarded him in 1975 (?) b. February 5th 1921.
1990: Bill Hardman Jr (57) American jazz-hard bop trumpeter and flugelhornist; while still in high school he appeared with Tadd Dameron, and after graduating he joined Tiny Bradshaw's band. He appeared and recorded with some of the foremost jazz musicians. His first recording was with Jackie McLean in 1955. He later played with Charles Mingus, Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers, Horace Silver, and Lou Donaldson, and led a group with Junior Cook. He also recorded as a leader. A most underrated musician, boasting three separate tours of duty in as many decades with Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers. Originally a crackling hard bop player with blazing technique, crisp articulations, and a no-frills sound, he soon began to play with some of the fuller, more extroverted romantic passion of a Clifford Brown, a direction he would take increasingly throughout the 1960s and 1970s. When put to the test, few could match and none exceed his pyrotechnical or imaginative gifts. Blakey would occasionally feature him playing several extended choruses unaccompanied (?) b. April 6th 1933.
1993: Doug Hopkins (32) American lead guitaristfrom Tempe, Arizona; he co-founded the Gin Blossoms, a popular modern rock band of the early 1990s. His writing credits included the hits "Hey Jealousy," "Found Out About You," "Hold Me Down," and "Lost Horizons." but he had to quit the band due to his depression and drinking. He started another band, The Chimeras, with brothers Lawrence and Mark Zubia. His role in the band came to an abrupt end during a show one night, when he just quit. It would be the last band he ever played with in public as a member, he was too tormented with bad depression. (tragically Doug committed suicide, he died from self-inflicted bullet wounds) b. April 11th 1961.
2007: Andrew Imbrie (86) American composer of contemporary classical music; in 1937, he studied briefly in Paris, before returning to America to attend Princeton University receiving his undergraduate degree in 1942. Next he went to the University of California, Berkeley, where he received an M.A. in Music in 1947. After which he taught at Berkeley from 1949 until his retirement in 1991. In addition to his principal teaching job at Berkeley, he served as a visiting professor at the University of Chicago, Brandeis University, Northwestern University, New York University, the University of Alabama, and Harvard University, and had a regular teaching post at the San Francisco Conservatory. His notable students included Larry Austin and Neil Rolnick. Andrew wrote both vocal and instrumental music; he wrote two operas, Three Against Christmas -1960, and Angle of Repose -1976, as well as numerous orchestral, chamber, choral, and solo vocal compositions. The Requiem was a memorial to his son John, who died young (?) b. April 6th 1921
2007: Karlheinz Stockhausen (79) German composer, widely acknowledged by critics as one of the most important composers of the 20th and early 21st centuries. Another critic calls him "one of the great visionaries of 20th-century music". He is known for his ground-breaking work in electronic music, aleatory in serial composition, and musical. Some of his notable compositions include the series of nineteen Klavierstücke (Piano Pieces), Kontra-Punkte for ten instruments, the electronic /musique-concrète Gesang der Jünglinge, Gruppen for three orchestras, the percussion solo Zyklus, Kontakte, the cantata Momente, the live-electronic Mikrophonie I, Hymnen, Stimmung for six vocalists, Aus den sieben Tagen, Mantra for two pianos and electronics, Tierkreis, Inori for soloists and orchestra, and the gigantic opera cycle Licht (heart failure) b. August 22th 1928.
2008: Anca Parghel (51) Romanian singer, composer, arranger, teacher, bandleader and conductor. She had a 4 octaves voice range and sang in different styles and genres of music including jazz, pop, classical, latin, French music, Italian music & Romanian folklore. She has recorded and performed with many greats including Billy Hart, Archie Shepp, Claudio Roditi, John Engels, Larry Corriel, Jean-Louis Rassinfosse, Philippe Catherine, Eric Legnini, Peter Herbolzheimer, Peter Hertmans, Aldo Romano, Gustavo Bergali, Claudio Roditi, Pierre van Dormael, John Ruocco, John Dankworth, played all the top jazz festivals and countless gigs in famous jazz clubs in Germany, USA, Holland, Belgium, Austria, Switzerland, France, Bulgaria, Romania (?) b. September 16th 1957
2008: Rúnar Júlíusson (63) Icelandic bassist with Thor's Hammer; formed in Keflavik in 1963, they soon became popular in Iceland and by the mid-1960s they were recording in London on Parlophone Records, including the legendary EP Umbarumbamba, now a valuable collector's item. From these sessions also came the singles "Once" and "If You Knew". They recorded their single entitled "Stay" in the United States on Columbia Records, which was produced by John Simon, (cardiac arrest) b. April 13th 1945
2008: Dominic Mallary (24) American vocalist for Massachusetts hardcore outfit Last Lights, the band had just signed a recording contract two days before the fatal night of Dominic's death (He felt ill 2 hours after finishing a show at Boston University’s BU Central late night campus venue, he died soon after of a brain anyeurism in Boston Medical Center) b.????
2009: Dr. Ragtime/Jack Rose (38) American guitarist, best known for his solo acoustic guitar work. He was also a founding member of the noise/drone band Pelt. It wasn't until the early 2000's he took up his solo career, releasing his debut album Red Horse, White Mule in 2002, this was followed by around a dozen more albums many of them in limited pressings. He was inspired and influenced by pre-1942 Cajun, country, blues, jazz music and composers like Terry Riley and La Monte Young. (Jack sadly died from a heart attack) b. February 16th 1971.
2011: Violetta Villas (73) Belgian-born Polish singer () b.

December 6th.
1949: Lead Belly/Huddie William Ledbetter (64) US folk,sometimes blues musician, notable for his clear, forceful singing and his virtuosity on the twelve string guitar. Pre-dating blues, he was an early example of a folksinger whose background had brought him into direct contact with the oral tradition by which folk music was handed down. Around 1912, he met the young street musician Blind Lemon Jefferson, five years his junior, and the two teamed up to play around the Dallas area for several years. It was during this period, he switched from the six-string to the 12-string guitar. He was a profound influence on folk performers of the 1940s such as Woody Guthrie, Pete Seeger and later Odetta and Dylan. He recorded extensively & worked with Woody Guthrie in the group the Headline Singers. He left a huge legacy with his songs, including "Old Cotton Fields at Home" “Goodnight, Irene,” “The Midnight Special,” and “Rock Island Line” just to mention a few (Lou Gehrig's disease) b. January 20th 1888.
1958: Danny Alvin (55) American jazz drummer; in a lengthy career he's played drums and recorded with many traditional jazz groups, he played with Sophie Tucker at the New York club Reisenweber's in 1919, then moved to Chicago in the early 1920s. He played in both cities over the course of his career, playing with Sidney Bechet, George Brunis, Buck Clayton, Wild Bill Davison, Wingy Manone, Joe Marsala, Art Hodes, Mezz Mezzrow, and George Zack. As a leader he recorded sparsely;; his best-known issue was his 1958 album recorded for Stepheny Records. Also he is the father of guitarist Teddy Walters (?) b. November 29th 1902.
1983: Lucienne Boyer/Èmilienne-Henriette Boyer (80) French female singer, born in the Montparnasse Quarter of Paris. In 1927, she sang at a concert by the great star Félix Mayol where she was seen by the American impresario Lee Shubert who immediately offered her a contract to come to Broadway. She spent nine months in New York City, returning to perform there and to South America numerous times throughout the 1930s. By 1933 she had made a large number of recordings for Columbia Records of France including her signature song, " Parlez-moi d'amour", the song won the first-ever Grand Prix du Disque of the Charles Cros Academy. Following the Allied Forces liberation of France, her cabaret career flourished and for another thirty years, she maintained a loyal following. At the age of 73, she sang with her daughter at the famous Paris Olympia and appeared on several French television shows (?) b. August 18th 1903.
1987: Izler Solomon (77) American orchestra conductor, born in Saint Paul, Minnesota; From 1936 to 1941 he conducted the Illinois Symphony Orchestra, where he premiered more than 150 American works. He was then music director of the Columbus Philharmonic Orchestra 1941-1949, and of the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra 1956-1976. As a guest conductor he appeared with the Philadelphia Orchestra, Chicago Symphony, Israel Philharmonic, and Indiana University Philharmonic Orchestra. His career was cut short by a stroke in 1976. He made a number of fine recordings, including the world premiere recording of Max Bruch's Violin Concerto No.2, with the RCA Victor Symphony Orchestra, and Jascha Heifetz as soloist, in 1954 (?) b. January 11th 1910.
1988: Roy Orbison (52) Grammy Award-winning American singer-songwriter, guitarist and a pioneer of rock and roll whose recording career spanned more than four decades. His many hits included "Ooby Dooby", "Only the Lonely", "In Dreams", "Oh, Pretty Woman", "Crying", "Running Scared" and "You Got It". He was known for his smooth tenor voice, which could jump three octaves with little trouble. He was rarely seen on stage without his trademark black sunglasses. In 1987, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. In 1988, he, George Harrison, Jeff Lynne, Tom Petty and Bob Dylan formed the super group Traveling Wilburys who recorded two albums, but sadly Roy had died before the 2nd album and in 1989, he was posthumously inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame ... read more ... (so sadly died of a heart attack) b. April 23rd 1936.
1989: Sammy Fain (87) American music composer, he worked in collaboration with Irving Kahal, writing such as "Let a Smile Be Your Umbrella", and with Lew Brown -"That Old Feeling". His Broadway credits also include Everybody's Welcome, Right This Way, Hellzapoppin', I'll Be Seeing You, Flahooley, Ankles Aweigh, Christine and Something More. Sammy composed music for more than 30 films in the 1930s, 40s and 50s. He was nominated for the best Original Song Oscar nine times, winning twice, with "Secret Love" from Calamity Jane in 1954 and with "Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing" from the movie of the same title in 1955. He wrote the second theme to the TV series Wagon Train in 1958, called "(Roll Along) Wagon Train". He also contributed to the song scores for the Walt Disney animated films Alice in Wonderland, Peter Pan, and The Rescuers. In 1963, he collaborated with Harold Adamson in writing songs for the movie The Incredible Mr. Limpet, and such songs as "I Wish I Were a Fish", "Be Careful How You Wish" and "Deep Rapture" (?) b. June 17th 1902.
1990: Pavlos Sidiropoulos (42) Greek singer, songwriter, composer; born in Athens, he formed the band “Damon and Phidias” with his friend Pantelis Delleyannidis in 1970. Soon after the two musicians joined the influential Greek musician Dionysis Savvopoulos and his group “Bourboulia”, recording the album “Damis The Tough”. It was through this group that Sidiropoulos first experimented with combining Greek and Rock music. He next collaborated with the Greek composer Yannis Markopoulos: he sang in his compositions “Oropedio”, “Thessalikos Kiklos” and "Electric Theseus". Then in 1976, he founded the band “Spiridoula” recording the album "Flou", considered by many the most important album in Greek rock music. He had the leading role in the film “O Asymvivastos”, directed by Andreas Thomopoulos, he sang all of the songs of the soundtrack. At the same time, he starred in another movie by Thomopoulos, “Aldevaran”. Sidiropoulos also made one appearance on TV in a series called “Oikogeneia Zarnti”. In 1980, Pavlos joined the band “Oi Aprosarmostoi”, where he remained until his death. In the summer of 1990, his right hand started getting paralyzed, as a result of his long term drug use that he was trying to overcome for many years. He continued his live performances but the deterioration of his health had serious psychological implications. Despite his early death, he remains one of the most popular rock musicians in Greece (died from heart attack, caused by heroin overdose) b. August 27th 1948
1995: Robert Fizdale (75) American pianist; he met fellow pianist Arthur Gold during their student years at Juilliard. They formed a lifelong gay partnership based around their common interests of music and formed one of the most important Piano duos of the 20th century. It has been said that Gold and Fizdale revolutionized the art of performing as a two-piano duo, agree or not, they were commissioned and premièred many of the most important works for this ensemble in the second half of the 20th century, including works by John Cage, Paul Bowles, Virgil Thomson, Ned Rorem and many other important American Composers. The Duo released recordings featuring works by Les Six, Vittorio Rieti, and many other composers, as well as a series of Concerto recordings with Leonard Bernstein and The New York Philharmonic, including the Poulenc Concerto for Two Pianos, The Mozart Two Piano Concerto and Saint-Saëns's "Carnival of the Animals" (?) b. April 12th 1920.
2000: Aziz Mian/Abdul Aziz (58) Pakistani singer born in Delhi, one of Pakistan's leading traditional qawwals and also famous for singing ghazals in a unique style of qawwali. Aziz is still one of the most popular qawwals of south asia. He is responsible for the longest commercially released qawwali, ''Hashr Ke Roz Yeh Poochhunga'', which runs slightly over 115 minutes. (sadly died from complications of hepatitis) b. April 17th 1942.
2002: David "Billy" Knight (55) American percussionist, and brother of Gladys Knight (heart attack) b.??
2003: Hans Hotter (94) German operatic bass-baritone admired internationally after World War II for the power, beauty, and intelligence of his singing, especially in Wagner operas. He made his Covent Garden debut in 1947, after which, he sang in all the major opera houses of Europe. He made his Metropolitan Opera debut as the title role in The Flying Dutchman, in English, in 1950. In four seasons at the Met, he performed 35 times in 13 roles, almost all Wagnerian. He retired from the stage in 1972, but made occasional appearances in small roles thereafter. He was a notable narrator in Schoenberg's Gurrelieder, a role he continued to take well into his eighties (?) b. January 19th 1909.
2005: Danny Williams (63) South African singer, born in Port Elizabeth, Eastern Cape; he spent most of his life in the UK, where he made a few successful singles, mainly popular ballads, before having a No.1 hit with his cover version of "Moon River" in 1961. It led to his appearance in a film about a rock group, directed by Michael Winner, called Play it Cool which starred Billy Fury. "White On White" became popular abroad and was his only U.S. Top Ten hit, charting in 1964. He continued to record for HMV until 1967 while working the nightclub circuit. After a nervous breakdown he resumed his singing career in the early 1970s, achieving a Top 30 success with "Dancin' Easy" in 1977. In the early 1990s he recorded for Prestige Records and subsequently starred in a Nat "King" Cole tribute show which made several British tours. (died after a brave battle with cancer) b. January 7th 1942.
2006: Darren "Wiz" Brown (44) British lead-singer and guitarist of English indie punk band Mega City Four in the late 1980s and early 1990s, the group were noted for their hard-working ethics and extensive touring.Their hits included “Miles Apart”, “Running In Darkness”, and “Less Than Senseless”. From 1999 he worked with bands Serpico releasing the mini-album "Everyone Versus Everyone" and Ipanema who he stayed with until his death. Wiz was also known for his thought provoking lyrics (blood clot on the brain) b. January 19th 1962.
2010: Bob Fox (62) American concert promoter who helped launch Kiss in Detroit and assisted the rejuvenation of the downtown theatre district. A decorated Marine who had served in Vietnam, Bob founded Brass Ring Productions in 1974, quickly turning it into the region’s top independent concert promoter, handling many of Detroit’s top rock shows for the next three decades, including dates at Cobo Arena, Joe Louis Arena and the Pontiac Silverdome. His bookings included shows by Madonna, the Rolling Stones, Kiss, Frank Sinatra, Liza Minnelli and Sammy Davis Jr to mention a few. He and Brass Ring diversified over time, pioneering Meadow Brook Music Festival, as well as reinvigorating Royal Oak Music Theatre and running Harpos, the east-side hard rock club. A friend of boxing bigwig Don King, Bob became a leading producer of closed-circuit fight broadcasts in the 1980s (sadly died from a suspected heart attack) b.????
2010: Hugues Cuénod (108) Some sources give the date of Hugues Cuénod's death as December 3rd 2010. Swiss tenor born in Corseaux-sur-Vevey; he is known for his performances in opera, operetta, traditional and musical theatre, and on the concert stage, where he was particularly known for his romantic and expressive interpretation of mélodie. He had an extraordinarily long career and he gave his last performance at the age of 92, when he sang M. Triquet in Tchaikovsky's Eugene Onegin at the Théâtre du Jorat in Mézières in 1994. He started his career as a concert singer and in 1928, he made his stage debut in Ernst Krenek's Jonny spielt auf in Paris, and in 1929 he sang for the first time in the United States in Noël Coward's Bitter Sweet. From 1930 to 1933 he was active in Geneva, and then in Paris from 1934 to 1937. During the 1937-1939 seasons, he made an extensive concert tour of North America. From 1940 to 1946 he taught at the Geneva Conservatory. In 1943 he resumed his operatic career singing in Johann Strauss II's Die Fledermaus in Geneva. He subsequently sang at Milan's La Scala in 1951, the Glyndebourne Festival from 1954 on, and London's Royal Opera House, Covent Garden in 1954, 1956 and 1958. Hugues sang everything from Guillaume de Machaut to Igor Stravinsky. He was known for his roles as Basilio in Mozart's The Marriage of Figaro, the Astrologer in Rimsky-Korsakov's The Golden Cockerel, and Sellem in Stravinsky's The Rake's Progress. In pre-war Vienna and Paris, he frequented aristocratic salons and worked with Nadia Boulanger; after the war, the new early-music boom relied heavily on his light, unmannered, natural sound. He holds the record as the oldest person to make a debut at the Metropolitan Opera. He debuted as the Emperor Altoum in Puccini's Turandot on 12 March 1987 at the age of 84, and he repeated the role the following season for a total of 14 performances (?) b. June 26th 1902.
2011: Dobie Gray/ Lawrence Darrow Brown (71) African American singer and songwriter, Simonton, near Houston, Texas, whose musical career spanned soul, country, pop and musical theater. His hit records included "The 'In' Crowd" in 1965, and "Drift Away", which was one of the biggest hits of 1973, sold over one million copies, and remains a staple of radio airplay. He discovered gospel music through his grandfather, a Baptist minister. In the early 1960s he moved to Los Angeles, intending to pursue an acting career but also singing to make money. He recorded for several local labels under the names Leonard Ainsworth, Larry Curtis, and Larry Dennis, before Sonny Bono directed him towards the small independent Stripe Records. They suggested that he record under the name "Dobie Gray", an allusion to the then-popular sitcom The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis. Prior to "The 'In' Crowd", his first billboard success was his 7th single "Look At Me", which reached No.91. Dobie continued to record and tour around the world through the 70s, 80s, and 90s, with further hits such as "Out On The Floor", "If Love Must Go", "You Can Do It", "That's One to Grow On", "You Can Do It" and "Drift Away". As a succesful songwriter he wrote for a variety of artists including Ray Charles, George Jones, Johnny Mathis, Charley Pride and Don Williams (?) b. July 26th 1940.
2011: Barbara Orbison/Barbara Wellhoener Jakobs (60) American record producer and music publisher, widow of Roy Orbison. Born in Bielefeld, Germany, Barbara was Roy's manager and co-produced a four-CD box set of her husband's 107 recordings after his death. "Roy Orbison: The Soul of Rock and Roll" was released in 2008 and contains all of his hits and 12 previously unreleased tracks. Last year, 2010, Barbara accepted a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on her husband's behalf. (Barbara died 23 years to the day of her husband's death after bravely battleing pancreatic cancer) b. 1951.

December 7th.
1960: Clara Haskil (65) Jewish Swiss classical pianist, renowned as an interpreter of the classical and early romantic repertoire. her playing was marked by a purity of tone and phrasing that may have come from her skill as a violinist. Transparency and sensitive inspiration were other hallmarks of her style. She played as a soloist under the baton of such conductors as Stokowski, Karajan, Beecham, Solti, Barbirolli, Boult, Jochum, Sawallisch, Kempe, Szell, Celibidache, Klemperer, Rosbaud, Monteux, Cluytens, Paray, Markevitch, Giulini, Ansermet, Münch, Kubelík, Fricsay and Inghelbrecht, among many others (died from injuries received through a fall in a Brussels train station) b. January 7th 1895.
1962: Kirsten Flagstad (67) Norwegian opera singer, one of the greatest Wagnerian dramatic, sopranos of the 20th century. A restrained and expressive stage performer, she was admired internationally for her voice's sheer tonal beauty, power, stamina, and consistency of line and tone (bone marrow cancer) b. July 12th 1895.
1977: Peter Carl Goldmark (71) Hungarian-born, American engineer who, during his time with Columbia Records, was instrumental in developing the long-playing (LP) microgroove 33-1/3 rpm vinyl phonograph discs which defined home audio for two generations, Peter's vinyl long playing records remained the standard in the music industry until the CD replaced the LP in the late 1980s. In addition to his work on the LP record, and many other researches, Peter developed a technology for color television, using a rapidly rotating color wheel that alternated transmission in red, green and blue, transmitting on 343 lines. The color wheel system continued to be used for scientific research for several more decades, including the color lunar surface TV cameras during all the 1970s NASA Apollo moon landings.On November 22nd 1977, President Jimmy Carter presented Goldmark with the National Medal of Science "For contributions to the development of the communication sciences for education, entertainment, culture and human service" (car crash) b. December 2nd 1906.
1980: Darby Crash/Bobby Pyn/Jan Paul Beahm (22) American punk-rock singer, and co-founder of the exteme punk band The Germs, who for a while dominated the L.A. punk scene. They started out as "Sophistifuck and the Revlon Spam Queens" and they can be seen in the 1981 film The Decline of Western Civilization. He and The Germs are also the subject of the 2007 biopic film "What We Do Is Secret" which stars Shane West as Darby Crash. Shortly after the Germs split, Darby went on to form the short-lived Darby Crash Band. (Darby overdosed on heroin in a suicide pact with close friend Casey Cola, who ended up surviving) b. September 26th 1958.
1987: Richard "Ricky" Taylor (47) US baritone vocalist; founder member of The Manhattans back in 1962. Their first single was "For The First Time", released in 1964 by Carnival Records, In 1969the group received the award "Most Promising Group" by NATRA. After a few chart hits they enjoyed their first No.1 hit on both sides of the Atlantic in 1976 with "Kiss and Say Goodbye" (died after battling a long illness) b. 1940
1990: Dee Clark/Delectus Clark (57) American singer born in Blytheville, Arkansas, and moved to Chicago in 1941. He first recorded in 1952 as a member of the Hambone Kids, scoring an R&B hit with the song "Hambone." In '53, he joined the Goldentones, who later became the Kool Gents then The Delegates. In '57 he went solo, his biggest hit was "Raindrops," followed by "Don't Walk Away From Me", "I'm Going Back to School", "Crossfire Time" and "Just Keep It Up". In 1975 he had another hit "Ride a Wild Horse" which also made the UK Chart. After which Dee mostly performed on the oldies circuit. In 1987 he suffered a stroke which left him partially paralyzed and with a mild speech impediment, but he continued to perform until his death (heart attack) b. November 7th 1938.
1998: John Addison (78) British composer born in Chobham, Surrey, and trained at Wellington College, Berkshire and at the age of sixteen entered the Royal College of Music. He is best known for his film scores. He won an Academy Award for the music to the 1963 film, Tom Jones, BAFTA Award for A Bridge Too Far and Grammy Award in the Best Original Score from a Motion Picture or Television Show category for Tom Jones. He also composed the music for A Taste of Honey, Torn Curtain, Smashing Time, Sleuth, Swashbuckler and the television series Centennial. He also composed the theme music for the television series Murder, She Wrote, for which he won an Emmy. (?) b. March 16th 1920.
1999: Kenny Baker (78) British trumpet, cornet, and flugelhorn player, vocalist, bandleader, arranger, and composer, born in Withernsea, East Riding of Yorkshire; as a teenager before the war, he met and began performing with the already well-known jazz musician George Chisholm. He went on to play with the likes of Manley's Orchestra, Jack Parnell, Ted Heath Band, as well as leading his own band who often performed on the first regular jazz show on British radio, the BBC Light Programme series 'Let's Settle For Music'. He was one of a handful of British jazz stars of the traditional and swing era who seemed to offer genuinely international jazz credentials and was presented with the best trumpet player title for the third time at the BT British jazz awards in 1999. He was also awarded the MBE in the Queen's Birthday Honours in 1999 (sadly and unexpectedly died after suffering from a viral infection for more than three weeks) b. March 1st 1921
2004: Frederick Fennell (90) American conductor born in Cleveland, Ohio and owned his first drum set at age ten. In the John Adams High School Orchestra, he performed as the kettledrummer and served as the band's drum major. As a student, he organized the first University of Rochester marching band for the football team and held indoor concerts with the band after the football season for ten years. He went on to make frequent appearances guest conducting at such ensembles as the Boston Pops Orchestra 1949 to 1978, the United States Marine Band, London Symphony Orchestra, Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra, Cleveland Orchestra, Interlochen Arts Academy, and the Interlochen Arts Camp. In 1997, he became the first civilian to conduct an entire concert with the US Marine Band; and in July 1998 he repeated this at a concert in the Kennedy Centre celebrating the 200th anniversary of band. He wrote several books including Time and the Winds, a Short History of the Use of Wind Instruments in the Orchestra, Band and the Wind Ensemble, 1954; The Drummer’s Heritage, a Collection of Popular Airs and Official U.S. Army Music for Fifes and Drums, 1956; and The Wind Ensemble, 1988. (?) b. July 2nd 1914.
2004: Jerry Scoggins (93) American singer; he sang and played guitar on the Dallas radio in the early 30's, in 1936 he formed his own group, the Cass County Kids. Ten years later, country music and cowboy legend Gene Autry changed their name to the Cass County Boys when he hired them to work on his Melody Ranch radio program. In 1962 he sing the theme song for a new sitcom called The Beverly Hillbillies with Lester Flatt and Earl Scruggs playing guitar and banjo. He came out of retirement to sing the theme to the 1993 film version of the series. (natural causes) b. September 13th 1911.
2006: Jay McShann (90) American Grammy Award-nominated blues, mainstream jazz, and swing bandleader, pianist and singer born in Muskogee, Oklahoma; he set up his own big band, in Kansas City, Missouri in 1936, which featured Charlie Parker, Bernard Anderson, Ben Webster and Walter Brown, their most popular recording was "Confessin' the Blues." In 1945, Jimmy Witherspoon started recording with him and fronting McShann's band, they had a hit in 1949 with "Ain't Nobody's Business." He continued to perform well into his 80's. Crime-fiction writer Elmore Leonard featured Jay McShann as a character in his 2005 novel, "The Hot Kid" (sadly died at St. Luke's Hospital in Kansas City) b. January 12th 1916.
2008: Dennis Yost (65) American lead singer with of the 1960s group the Classics IV; The Classics IV moved to Atlanta, Georgia in 1967 and were discovered by Bill Lowery who produced their first national hit in 1968 with "Spooky", it made No.3 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in the U.S., and No.46 in the UK. They changed the band name to Classics IV Featuring Dennis Yost and enjoyed two Top 10 hits, "Stormy" and "Traces" and a Top Twenty hit, "Everyday With You Girl" in 1969. They changed their name again, to Dennis Yost and the Classics IV, and had one last hit, "What Am I Crying For?" in 1972 (respiratory failure, he had been in nursing homes since suffering a brain injury sustained in a 2005 fall) b.1943
2010: Kari Tapio/Kari Tapani Jalkanen (65) Finnish schlager singer born in Suonenjoki. In the 60s he performed in his home town Pieksämäki with the local bands ER-Quartet and Jami & The Noisemakers. After his first single "Tuuli kääntyköön"/"Niskavuoren nuorimmainen" in 1972 Kari performed in Ilkka "Danny" Lipsanen's show. In 1976 he finally broke through with his single "Laula kanssain"/"Sing With Me" which was followed by "Viisitoista kesää" (a Finnish cover of Living Next Door to Alice) and "Kaipuu"/"Desire". In later years "Olen suomalainen"/"I am Finnish", "Myrskyn jälkeen"/"After the Storm", "En pyydä paljon"/"I Don't Ask For Much" and the newest "Paalupaikka"/"Pole Position", among others, have been his most popular songs. In 2003 he waas awarded with the Iskelmä-Finlandia award (died of a heart attack) b. November 22nd 1945.
2011: Bob Burnett (71) American musician (The Highwaymen), (Sadly died of brain cancer) b.
2011: Charlie Russell (74) American country music DJ. () b.


December 8th.
1967: John Mills Sr. (78) American singer; member of the Mills Brothers, a jazz and pop vocal quartet of the 20th century producing more than 2,000 recordings that sold more than 50 million copies and garnered at least three dozen gold records, including songs like "Chinatown, My Chinatown", "Baby Won't You Please Come Home", "Miss Otis Regrets", "Your Nobody Till Somebody Loves You", "Sweet Georgia Brown", "My Gal Sal", "Tennessee Waltz" and so many more. They recorded with the likes of Ella Fitzgerald, Bing Crosby, Frank Munn, The Boswell Sisters, Louis Armstrong, Don Redman, Al Jolson, Connee Boswell, Fran Frey, Tommy Dorsey, Sy Oliver & His Orchestra, Sonny Burke & His Orchestra, Milton DeLugg & His Orchestra and Count Basie's Orchestra. It all began when John Mills Sr owned a barber shop and formed a barbershop quartet, called the "Four Kings of Harmony", his sons formed The Miller Brothers in 1928, John Sr. joined them in 1934. They were inducted into The Vocal Group Hall of Fame in 1998, also in 1998 the Recording Academy recognized the Mills family's contributions to popular music with a Grammy Award for Lifetime Achievement. (?) b. February 11th 1889
1975: Gary Thain (27) New Zealand rock bassist; as part of the rock trio The New Nadir, with drummer Peter Dawkins, he travelled from New Zealand to London. He then joined the Keef Hartley Band and in 1971 they toured with Uriah Heep, who asked him to join them, replacing Mark Clarke in February 1972. He played on four studio albums: Demons & Wizards, The Magician's Birthday , Sweet Freedom and Wonderworld as well as the live album Uriah Heep Live. He stayed in Uriah Heep until February 1975. (Gary died tragically of respiratory failure due to a heroin overdose) b. May 15th 1948.
1980: John Lennon (40) English rock legend, musician, singer, writer, songwriter, artist, actor and peace activist born in Liverpool, who gained worldwide fame as one of the founding members of The Beatles. John along with Paul McCartney also formed one of the most influential and successful songwriting partnerships and "wrote some of the most popular music in rock and roll history". In his solo career, he wrote and recorded many songs such as "Give Peace a Chance" and "Imagine". He also revealed his rebellious nature and wit on television, in films such as A Hard Day's Night, in books such as ''In His Own Write'', and in press conferences and interviews. (John brutally shot 5 times by 25 year old Mark Chapman outside the Dakota building, New York City, where John and his wife Yoko lived) b. October 9th 1940.
1982: Marty Robbins/Martin David Robinson (57) American singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist. One of the most popular and successful country and western singers of his era. For most of his nearly four decade career, he was rarely far from the music charts with hits such as "El Paso" and the Grammy Award winning "My Woman, My Woman, My Wife". He was named "Artist of the Decade" (1960-69) by the Academy of Country Music; was elected to the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1982; and was given a Grammy Hall of Fame Award in 1998 for his song "El Paso". He was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1975 and has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6666 Hollywood Blvd. He was also a NASCAR race car driver (Sadly Marty died due to surgical complications) b. September 26th 1925.
1984: Razzle/Nicholas Dingley (24) British drummer born in Royal Leamington Spa, England. He played in bands Marionette, The Fuck Pigs, Demon Preacher along side of Nik Fiend of later Alien Sex Fiend fame, and The Dark, before joining the Finnish rock band Hanoi Rocks in 1982. He stayed with the band until his death. Razzle was a huge influence upon Hanoi Rocks' music and even more so on their style. (Hanoi Rocks was on their first American tour. In a break in the tour, Razzle was out with Mötley Crüe's singer Vince Neil, when Razzle lost control of the car and collided with an on coming car. He was taken to South Bay ER but was tragically declared dead on arrival. Vince dedicated Theater of Pain, Mötley Crüe's third studio album, to Razzle) b. December 2nd 1960.
1991: Buck Clayton/Wilbur Dorsey Clayton (80) American jazz trumpet player, fondly remembered for being a leading member of Count Basie’s 'Old Testament' orchestra. In the mid 1930's he was a leader of the "Harlem Gentlemen" in Shanghai, where he worked closely with Li Jinhui, father of Chinese popular music. In the long run, his contribution changed the course of music history in China, Hong Kong and Taiwan. He has worked with many leading artists a including Billie Holiday, Lester Young, Sy Oliver, Benny Goodman and Harry James and became a member of Norman Granz’s 'Jazz at the Philharmonic' package, appearing in April in a concert with Young, Coleman Hawkins and Charlie Parker. In 1955 he appeared in the Benny Goodman Story, also working with Goodman in New York two years later. In 1958 he was at the World Fair in Brussels for concerts with Sidney Bechet, and toured Europe the following year and annually through the 1960s. (died quietly in his sleep) b. November 12th 1911.
1994: Tom Jobim/Antonio Carlos Brasileiro de Almeida Jobim (67) Brazilian composer singer, pianist, guitarist and arranger; a primary force behind the creation of the bossa nova style, he is acknowledged as one of the most influential popular composers of the 20th century. His songs have been performed by many singers and instrumentalists within Brazil and internationally. He acquired international fame with the release of the Grammy Award-winning album Getz/Gilberto, featuring his international hit "The Girl from Ipanema" sung by Astrud Gilberto. Notable performers of his songs include Ella Fitzgerald, Frank Sinatra, Toninho Horta, Andy Williams, Lambert, Hendricks, & Ross, Tony Bennett, Rosemary Clooney, Sting, Diana Krall, Claudine Longet, Carlos Santana and George Michael (heart failure) b. January 25th 1927.
2003: Ruben Gonzalez (84) Cuban pianist; in 1940, he moved to Havana, where he played in the charangas of Paulina Álvarez and Paulín, with Arsenio Rodríguez, Kubavana and Senén Suárez and in the big bands Siboney and Riverside. In 1943, he released his first recording, together with Arsenio Rodríguez. In the early 1960s he became the pianist for the Orquesta de Enrique Jorrín, and would continue to play for him for the next 25 years. He started a second career in 1996 under Ry Cooder's wing, releasing the solo album "Introducing ... Rubén González". The next year, Ry Cooder produced the Grammy winning "Buena Vista Social Club", featuring Ruben González. He recorded and released his last album "Chanchullo" in 2000.(?) b. May 26th 1919.
2004: Dimebag Darrell/ Darrell Abbott (25) American guitarist. Best known as a founding member of the heavy metal bands Pantera and Damageplan, he also performed in the country music band Rebel Meets Rebel. He frequently appeared in guitar magazines and in readers' polls, where he was often included in the top ten metal guitarist spots. In addition, he wrote a Guitar World magazine column, which has been compiled in the book Riffer Madness. (killed when a man stormed the stage during a gig at the Alrosa Villa Club in Columbus. Nathan Gale, aged 25, began firing at the band and crowd, killing 5 people) b. August 20th 1966.
2006: Martha Tilton (91) American singer best-known for her 1939 recording of "And the Angels Sing" with Benny Goodman. She was sometimes introduced as The Liltin' Miss Tilton. While attending Fairfax High School in L.A, she was singing on a small radio station when she was heard by an agent who signed her and began booking her with larger stations. She then dropped out of school to join Hal Grayson's band, before joining The Benny Goodman Band. She was one of the first artists to record for Capitol Records in 1942, among her biggest hits as a solo artist were "I'll Walk Alone"; "I Should Care" and "A Stranger in Town"; and three in 1947: "How Are Things in Glocca Morra"; "That's My Desire"; and "I Wonder, I Wonder, I Wonder". She also worked on radio and in films including Sunny, Swing Hostess, Crime, Inc., and The Benny Goodman Story. Her last film appearance was as the band vocalist in the TV movie Queen of the Stardust Ballroom in 1975 (natural causes) b. November 14th 1915.
2009: Su Cruickshank (63) Australian jazz singer, writer, comedian, actor and entertainer, known as the 'Diva on the Hill' and 'The Queen of Jazz'; back in the 60's Su spent some time in the UK, where she sang in the jazz joints of London, after which she returned home to Newcastle, NSW, Australia, where she started singing at The Orient Hotel, and joined the Hunter Valley Theatre Company. Since 1979 her performances were many and varied, spanning the gamut of the performing arts from variety shows, jazz concerts and comedy to film, theatre, radio and television. One of her early successes and best-known film roles was as the mother of Yahoo Serious in Young Einstein. She also starred on the ABC's drama GP, was a regular guest on The Bert Newton Show and Midday with Ray Martin; Su also hosted her own interview show in 1995 and '96. For many years she hosted the Midsummer Festival of Jazz at Sydney's Domain for the Festival of Sydney (heart and kidney failure) b.????
2009: Luis Días (57) Dominican singer-songwriter-composer, guitarist; he began as a guitarist and singer in the band Convite, a band on a mission to rescue a variety of rhythms found in the island from obscurity. They had notable performances at "El Festival Internacional de la Nueva Canción "Siete Días con el Pueblo"/International Festival of the New Song "Seven Days with the People") in Santo Domingo, 1974, in which Luis' composition "Obrero Acepta Mi Mano"/Laborer, Accept My Hand, was named as the official theme song, and was afterwards recorded by different protest song bands. After "Convite" broke up in 1978, he formed another band named "Madora", this new experiment sought a fusion between jazz and Antillean folklore. Between 1980 and 1982, Luis traveled to New York City, where he focused on teaching workshops about traditional Dominican music at the American Museum of Natural History. During this time he was deeply influenced by jazz and punk culture. In 1982 he founded his band Transporte Urbano they would pour a wide variety of their musical influences, from Bachata to heavy metal, fusions of rock, reggae, jazz and blues with more than 40 ethnic rhythms. Among the many awards he has received are Lyricist of the Year (Casandra Awards, 1989) and Composer of the Year (Casandra Awards, 1990). After several years of performances in the Caribbean region, the United States and Sth America, and after touring to Paris, Marseille, Moscow, Leningrad, Madrid, Tenerife, Barcelona, and Lisbon, in 1991 he returned to New York, where he would continue his intense work surrounding culture and ethnic studies (sadly died from a heart attack and kidney and liver complications) b. June 21st 1952.
2011: Alan Styles (75) British Pink Floyd roadie born in Cambridge; he was subject of Pink Floyd's song "Alan's Psychedelic Breakfast", which is a three-part instrumental track from the 1970 Pink Floyd album Atom Heart Mother. He also appears on the back cover of Floyd's 1969 album Ummagumma (?) b. 1936
2011: Minoru Miki (81) Japanese composer and artistic director born in Tokushima, particularly known for his promotional activities in favor of Japanese, Chinese and Korean traditional instruments and performers. In 1964 he founded the Nihon Ongaku Shudan aka Ensemble Nipponia, for which he has composed extensively. He composed his first opera, Shunkinsho, based on a Tanizaki novel, in 1975. Interest by members of the English Music Theatre Company in Japanese traditional music led to contacts with Minoru which resulted in the commission of Ada, An Actor's Revenge, to an English libretto by James Kirkup, which premiered in London in 1979. During this period Miki developed a relationship with theatre and opera director Colin Graham that was to last until the latter's death in 2007 (?) b. March 16th 1930.
2011: Dick Sims (60) American keyboardist Eric Clapton, Bob Seger (sadly died fighting cancer) b.
2011: Dan "Bee" Spears (62) American bassist; he grew up in Helotes, outside San Antonio, Texas and started playing with Willie Nelson when he was 19 years old and had been bass player with Willie Nelson and Family for over 40 years. (Dan reportedly fell outside his home and tragically died from exposure) b. August 11th 1949.

December 9th.
1984: Razzle/Nicholas Dingley (24) British drummer with Finnish rock band Hanoi Rocks, of which he had a strong influence on their style. He recorded 2two albums with them "Back to Mystery City" in 1983 and "Two Steps from the Move" in 1984. Prior to Hanoi Rocks, he had played in UK-based bands Marionette, The Fuck Pigs, Demon Preacher and The Dark.(While on tour in US he died in a car crash when out with Vince Neil of Motley Crue, Vince lost control of the car and hit an opposing vehicle. Razzle was taken to South Bay ER but was declared DOA, 8 December at 19:12 local time. It was already 9 December in Europe, which is considered his official time of death) b. December 2nd 1960.
1995: DJ Doctor Nice/ Darren Robinson (28) US rapper and founder member of Fat Boys; he was a pioneer of beatboxing, a form of vocal percussion used in many rap groups throughout the '80s and '90s. He and his group were featured in the 1985 movie "Krush Groove", appearing under the name Disco Three at the start before acquiring the name The Fat Boys near the end. (weight eventually contributed to his death. He died of a heart attack, weighing 450 lb / 204 kg at the time) b. June 10th 1967.
1994: Garnett Silk/Garnett Damoin Smith (28) Jamaican reggae singer; born Manchester, Jamaica, he began his career at the age of twelve, when he performed under the name Little Bimbo. He later, under the name Garett Silk recorded his first track in 1985, but it would be two years later before his first single, "Problem Everywhere" was released. 1992 saw the release of his first album "It's Growing". He also worked as a deejay on sound systems such as Soul Remembrance, Pepper's Disco, Stereophonic, and Destiny Outernational. During the early 1990s he was hailed as a rising talent, but his career was ended by his early death. In 2000, Atlantic released The Definitive Collection, a two-CD set showcasing the ten tracks the singer had recorded during sessions for his unfinished second album. (Tragically died while attempting to save his mother from a house fire at his home in Mandeville, Jamaica) b. April 2nd 1966
1996: Patty Darling/Patricia J. "Patty" Donahue (40) lead singer of the 1980s New Wave rock group The Waitresses with the hits "I Know What Boys Like" and "Christmas Wrapping". she is credited on Alice Cooper's Zipper "Catches Skin" with "vocals and sarcasm." She later worked for MCA A&R, finding other talented musicians (lung cancer) b. March 29th 1956.
2002: Mary Hansen (36) Australian guitarist, singer as well as percussion, keyboards and occasionally sang lead vocals. She moved to London in the late 1980s and became a backing singer with the Essex-based indie band, The Wolfhounds. She met the founder of Stereolab Tim Gane when the Wolfhounds played with his band McCarthy, and joined Stereolab as second vocalist in 1992. As a side project in 2000 she helped form the band Schemawith members of the Seattle space rock group, Hovercraft (cycling accident) b. November 1st 1966.
2005: Mike Botts (61) US drummer with Bread; while still at college he played with a band called The Travellers Three and worked as a studio musician. He was working with Tony Medley when he met David Gates and became a member of Bread from 1970 to '74, after which he toured and recorded with Linda Ronstadt for 2 years. He reunited with Bread in '76 to '78 for one final album and world tour. His always continued his session and studio career - working, recording and touring with the likes of Karla Bonoff, Andrew Gold, Richard Carpenter and Dan Fogelberg. In 1996, the members of Bread once again reunited for a world tour that ran until the fall of 1997. He also contributed to several soundtracks for films and finally recorded his only solo album, Adults Only, released in 2000. (colon cancer) b. December 8th 1944.
2005: György Sándor (93) Hungarian pianist; He recorded the complete piano works of Kodály, Prokofiev, and Bartók; for the latter he won the Grand Prix du Disque of the Charles Cros Academyin 1965. He taught at the Southern Methodist University, then at the University of Michigan, and from 1982, at the Juilliard School. His pupils included Hélène Grimaud, Gyorgy Sebok, Christina Kiss, Barbara Nissman, Ian Pace, fortepiano performer Malcolm Bilson and composer Ezequiel Viñao. In 1996 New York University awarded Sandor an honorary doctorate. He continued to teach and perform into his nineties (heart failure) b. September 21st 1912
2006: Freddie Marsden (66) UK drummer with the Liverpool band Gerry & the Pacemakers. He and brother Gerry formed the band in the late 50's and it was the 2nd band to sign with Brian Epstein. Their first 3 records shot to No.1 "How Do You Do It?", "I Like It", "You'll Never Walk Alone" , all released in 1963. The latter has remained the anthem of the crowds at Liverpool Football Club, played before kick-off every Saturday. They had also became the first act to acheive three consecertive No.1's hits in the UK charts. In 1965 the group were featured on scooters for the film Ferry Cross The Mersey (cancer) b. October 21st 1940.
2006: Georgia Gibbs/Frieda Lipschitz (87) American singer, she began her professional career at the age of thirteen, and was singing in Boston's Raymor Ballroom the following year. She recorded her first record with the Hudson-DeLange Orchestra in 1936. Her voice is best showcased on romantic ballads and torch songs like Melancholy Baby, I'll Be Seeing You, Autumn Leaves and You Keep Coming Back Like A Song. Yet she could be equally thrilling belting out a red hot jazz numbers like Red Hot Mama and A-Razz-A-Ma-Tazz, or jiving with tunes like Ol Man Mose and Shoo Shoo Baby. In more recent years, again her reputation steadily grew partially due to the availability of her songs on CD. (died of leukemia) b. August 17th 1919.
2009: Faramarz Payvar (77) Iranian composer and santur player; Faramarz, was one of the country's prominent composers, he started learning music at the age of 17 under the tutorship of great Iranian master Abol-Hasan Saba. His achievements in traditional Persian music and playing the Santour brought him fame, leading to his co-operations with the Iranian Department of Art and Culture in 1954. He founded the 'Art and Culture Orchestra', which included greats such as Hossein Tehrani, Khatere Parvaneh, Houshang Zarif, Mohammad-Reza Shajarian, Rahmatollah Badiee and Abdol-Vahab Shahidi. He also played the Setar and published a book on Tar and Setar in 1996. After getting a scholarship from Iran's National Music Conservatory, Faramarz majored in English Language at UK's Cambridge University and was graduated in 1965. He also studyed Western music at the Royal Academy of Music in London. The veteran artist amazed music lovers by his performances in every corner of the world. His world tours took him to countries like the US, Germany, the UK, Sweden, France, Japan, Italy, Malaysia, and Russia. (died after struggling with brain damage for a long time) b. February 10th 1933.
2010: James Moody (85) American jazz saxophone and flute player, born in Savannah, Georgia, but grew up in New Jersey and best known for his hit "Moody's Mood for Love". He joined the US Army Air Corps in '43 and played in the "negro band", following his discharge in '46 he played with Dizzy Gillespie for 2 years. James later played with Gillespie in 1964, where his colleagues in the group, pianist Kenny Barron and guitarist Les Spann, would be musical collaborators in the coming decades. In 1948 he recorded his first session for Blue Note Records, the first in a long recording career. That same year he relocated to Europe, where he stayed for three years, saying he had been "scarred by racism" in the U.S. His European work, included his first recording of "Moody's Mood for Love", he established himself as recording artist in his own right, and was part of the growth of European jazz. Then in 1952 he returned to the U.S. to a recording career with Prestige Records and others, playing flute and saxophone in bands that included musicians such as Pee Wee Moore and others. In the 1960s he rejoined Dizzy Gillespie and later worked with Mike Longo. He was also an NEA Jazz Master and often to part in educational programming and outreach, including with the International Association for Jazz Education, or IAJE (sadly James died from pancreatic cancer) b. March 26th 1925.
2010: Tony Schilder (73) South African jazz pianist, bandleader and composer from Cape Town; he started playing the piano at a young age, went on to make a name for himself as one of the greatest jazz musicians in the city, who was regularly referred to as the gentleman of jazz. Tony never studied music formally, but was gifted with a magical ear, he learned by listening and imiation. In the '50s and '60s, Cape Town was the jazz capital of Africa, especially for straight-ahead swing and bebop. It produced many terrific players, several of whom went on to international fame. Tony gigged and jammed with them all, great and small, Harold Jephta, Maurice Gawronsky, Morris Goldberg, Abdullah Ibrahim (Dollar Brand), Johnny Gertze, Cups Nkanuka, Winston "Mankunku" Ngozi, Erza Ngcukana, Chris McGregor, and Hugh Masekela, to name just a few. In the '70s, when he fell in love with bossa nova and made three trips to Brazil, during the '80s, to study the music first-hand. He was also a band leader at Club Montreal in Manenberg and contributed to many jazz compilations (Tony sadly died after a long illness) b. November 5th 1937.
2010: Boris Tishchenko (71) Russian composer; born in Leningrad, he studied at the Leningrad Musical College from '54 to '57. Then from '57 to '63 he studied composition and piano with at the Leningrad Conservatory. He then took a postgraduate course with the composer Dmitri Shostakovich from 1962 to 1965. He taught at the Leningrad Conservatory from 1965, and became a professor there in 1986. Boris actively assisted in the secret delivery of the manuscript of Shostakovich's memoirs to the West. Later, however, he raised his voice in dispute against the authenticity of Testimony published by Solomon Volkov in 1979. His works includes more than seven symphonies, two violin concertos, two cello concertos, a piano concerto, five string quartets, two cello sonatas, ten piano sonatas, a requiem, chamber and vocal works, the opera The Stolen Sun, the operetta A Cockroach, three ballets Tvelve, Fly-bee and Yaroslavna/The Eclipse, and incidental music for theatre and film. In March 2006 he was announced as the first laureate of the 'Epokha Shostakovicha' prize instituted for the centennial of Shostakovich's birth. He died in Saint Petersburg (?) b. March 23rd 1939.
2011: Myra Taylor (94) American jazz singer born in Bonner Springs, Kansas, and moved to Kansas City as a child. In 1930, she toured the Midwest with Clarence Love's band. Myra moved to Chicago in 1937 and worked with Warren “Baby” Dodds, Lonnie Johnson, Roy Eldridge and Lil’ Hardin Armstrong. She returned to Kansas City in 1940 and Harlan Leonard hired her as the featured singer for his new band Harlan Leonard and His Rockets. Myra recorded an uptempo version of the song “I Don’t Want to Set the World on Fire”. Kansas City is also where she recorded her best-known song, “The Spider and the Fly”. She performed in USO shows during World War II, the Korean War and the Vietnam War, performing in 32 different countries. >>> READ MORE <<< (Myra's health declined in the last half of 2011 following a fall and sadly she was no longer able to live in her home, spending her final three months in hospice care at Kansas City's Swope Ridge Geriatric Center) b. February 24th 1917.

December 10th.
1967: Otis Redding (26) An influential Black-American soul singer. He became a local celebrity as a teenager after winning a local Saturday morning talent show at the Douglass Theatre 15 weeks in a row. In 1960 he made his first recordings, "She's All Right" and "Shout Bamalama" under the name "Otis and The Shooters". In 1962 he recorded "These Arms of Mine", a ballad that he had written. The song became a minor hit on Volt Records, a subsidiary of the renowned Southern soul label Stax. He continued to release for Stax/Volt, and built his fan base by extensively touring a live show with support from fellow Stax artists Sam & Dave. Further hits between 1964 and 1966 included "Mr. Pitiful", "I Can't Turn You Loose" (which was to become The Blues Brothers entrance theme music), "Try a Little Tenderness","(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction", and "Respect", later a smash hit for Aretha Franklin. He wrote most of his own material including "(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay" which he had recorded only a few days before his death. He considered it unfinished. In 1993, the U.S. Post Office issued an Otis Redding 29 cents commemorative postage stamp. He was inducted in the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1994, and in 1999 he posthumously received the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame listed three Redding recordings "Shake," "(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay," and "Try a Little Tenderness" among its list of "The 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll." and Rolling Stone ranked him No.21 on their list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time (The plane carrying Otis Redding and The Bar-kays crashed at 3.28.pm into Lake Monoma tragically killing Otis, four of the Bar-Kays and most of the passengers. Trumpet player Ben Cauley was the only band member to survive the crash & bassist James Alexander missed the flight) b. September 9th 1941.
1967: Jimmy King (18) American guitarist in The Bar-Kays; the Bar-Kays began in Memphis, Tennessee as a studio session musician group, backing major artists at Stax Records. They were chosen in 1967 by Otis Redding to play as his backing band. (sadly died so young in the tragic Otis Redding plane crash) b. 1949
1967: Ronnie Caldwell (18) American electric organist and keyboardist with The Bar-Kays Otis Redding's chosen backing band (sadly died so young in the tragic Otis Redding plane crash) b. December 27th 1948
1967: Phalon Jones (18) American saxophonist in The Bar-Kays, Otis Redding's chosen backing band (sadly died so young in the tragic Otis Redding plane crash) b.1949
1967: Carl Cunningham (18) American drummer in The Bar-Kays, Otis Redding's chosen backing band (sadly died so young in the tragic Otis Redding plane crash) b.1949
1986: Kate Wolf/Kathryn Louise Allen (44) American singer and songwriter; born in San Francisco, she started her music career in the band Wildwood Flower before recording ten records as a solo artist. Though her career was relatively short, she had a significant impact on the folk music scene, and many musicians continue to cover her songs. Her best-known compositions include "Here in California", "Across the Great Divide", "Unfinished Life", "Give Yourself to Love", and "Love Still Remains". Emmylou Harris's cover of "Love Still Remains" was nominated for a Grammy Award in 1999 (sadly Kate died, after a long battle with leukemia) b. January 27th 1942.
1987: Jascha Heifetz (86) Lithuanian-born American violin virtuoso. He is widely regarded as the greatest violinist of the 20th Century. He owned both the 1714 "Dolphin" Stradivarius and the 1740 "ex David" Guarneri del Gesù, the latter of which he preferred and kept until his death.(He died at the Cedar-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles after a brain surgery as a result of a fall and loss of consciousness at home) b.February 2nd 1901
1987: Slam Stewart/Leroy Elliot Stewart (73) American jazz bass player whose trademark style was his ability to bow the bass (arco) and simultaneously hum or sing an octave higher. He was a very busy sessionist and played with many of the jaz icons through the 40s to the 80's, Art Tatum's trio, Benny Goodman Sextet, Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, Lester Young as well as leading his own group (?) b. September 21st 1914.
1987: Jascha Heifetz (86) World renown Russian violin virtuoso born in Vilnius, Lithuania, then part of the Russian Empire. He took up the violin when he was only three years old, he was a child prodigy, making his public debut at seven, in Kovno playing the Violin Concerto in E minor by Felix Mendelssohn. In 1910 he entered the Saint Petersburg Conservatory to study under Leopold Auer himself. In April 1911, Jascha performed in an outdoor concert in St. Petersburg before 25,000 spectators; there was such a sensational reaction that police officers needed to protect the young violinist after the concert. In 1914, he performed with the Berlin Philharmonic conducted by Arthur Nikisch. The conductor was very impressed, saying he had never heard such an excellent violinist. On October 27th 1917, he made his American debut at Carnegie Hall in New York, and became an immediate sensation and remained in the country becoming an American citizen in 1925. He continued to play around the world with all the great orchestras until the mid 1970s, after an operation to his sholder, but he continued to play privately until the end. Jaschais regarded as one of the greatest violinists of all time and in 1989, received a posthumous Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award.(?) b. February 3nd 1901.
1991: Headman Shabalala (46) South African singer and member of the world famous Ladysmith Black Mambazo choral group which was founded and still led by his brother Joseph. He joined the first incarnation of his brother Joseph's group the Ladysmith Black Mambazo in 1960 alongside his brother Enoch and various cousins and relatives. He sang the bass voice, adding sounds to the songs that would become synonymous with the group's rhythm; the low gruffs and growls and the "clicking" noises (he was brutally shot and killed by a white, off-duty security guard in an apparent racial killing) b. October 10th 1945.
1995: Buffy/DJ Doctor Nice/Darren Robinson (28) American rapper and a member of the 1980s rap group The Fat Boys. He, along with Doug E. Fresh and others, were pioneers of beatboxing, a form of vocal percussion used in many rap groups throughout the '80s and '90s. Buffy and the group were featured in the 1985 movie Krush Groove (He died of a heart attack, weighing 450 lb (204 kg) at the time; while climbing on a studio chair he fell and lost his wind, paramedics were called but unable to revive him) b. June 12th 1967.
1996: John Duffey (62) American bluegrass singer, guitarist and music innovator born in Washington; he founded two of the most influential groups in bluegrass, The Country Gentlemen and The Seldom Scene. His tastes and sources were eclectic, often raiding folk song books and Protestant hymnals for material. He embraced the music of Bob Dylan and his style of playing was rock and jazz-inflected. The son of a singer at the Metropolitan Opera, John possessed a soaring range that shifted almost unnoticeably from tenor to falsetto. The contrast of his voice with the mellow baritone of Country Gentleman guitarist Charlie Waller created a rich blend without precedence in bluegrass. Some of his best pieces include "The Traveler," which was dedicated to his wife; the eerie "Victim to the Tomb"; and "Hills and Home". As a member of the Country Gentlemen, John was inducted into the International Bluegrass Music Hall of Honor in 1996 (?) b. March 4th 1934.
1996: Faron Young (64) American country music singer; originally known as "the Hillbilly Heartthrob" and "the Singing Sheriff". Faron had many hits including "Young Love", "If You Ain't Lovin' (You Ain't Livin')", "Live Fast, Love Hard, Die Young", "Sweet Dreams", "Hello Walls", "It's Four in the Morning". He co-founded, with Preston Temple, the Nashville trade newspaper, The Music City News. His band, the Country Deputies, was one of country music's top bands, and toured with him for many years and in 2000 he was posthumously inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame (Depressed by his poor and failing health, he shot himself) b. February 25th 1932.
1999: Rick Danko (56) Canadian bassist, also played accordion, violin, mandolin, guitar, fiddle; famous for co-founding The Band who originally started out as Bob Dylan's first all electric backing band, just known as the band, they kept that name. At 17, already a five-year music veteran, he booked himself as the opening act for Ronnie Hawkins, a rockabilly singer whose group, The Hawks, were considered to be one of the best in Canada and by September 1960, he was Hawkins's bassist. A few years later Rick and some of the band went out on there own and ended up as The Band. He also enjoyed a solo career, he recorded demos and made a number of appearances on albums by other artists throughout the 80s and 90s, including a tour in 1989 with Levon Helm and Garth Hudson as part of Ringo Starr's first All-Star Band (died in his sleep of heart failure) b. December 29th 1942.
2007: Emil Brenkus (94) American jazz bassist, he played the Pittsburgh jazz scene alongside greats such as Sam Nestico, Billie May, Benny Benack and Baron Elliot. A true veteran trooper, Emil played regularly until just weeks before his death (died of prostate cancer 8 days after his birthday) b. December 3rd 1913.
2007: Jerry Ricks (67) American blues guitarist, a much in demand freelance guitarist and solo world touring musician. He started playing guitar in local coffee shops in the late 1950s and worked as a booking manager for the Second Fret Coffee House in Philadelphia from 1960-1966, coming into contact with many key figures in the blues revival. He toured with the Buddy Guy Blues Band on a State Department-sponsored East African tour, after which he moved to Europe. He recorded 13 solo albums in Europe, but his first American releases did not arrive until 1998, with Deep in the Well. The album was nominated for three W.C. Handy Awards. (died in hospital in the Adriatic town of Rijeka; complications from a brain tumor) b. May 22nd 1940.
2008: Didith Reyes/Maria Helen Bella Avenila Santamaria (60) Filipino actress, singer best known for recording a string of hit love ballads in the 1970s, including "Bakit Ako Mahihiya", "Araw-Araw, Gabi-Gabi," "Nananabik", "Hatiin Natin ang Gabi," and "Hindi Kami Damong Ligaw". She started out singing with Circus band and Time Machine, after which she signed up with Vicor Music Corporation as a solo artist, her debut album "Didith", was a platinum bestseller in 1975. She won a Gold Prize and the Best performer at the 1977 Tokyo Music Festival. She was also notorious for accidentally exposing her breast, while singing "Bakit Ako Mahihiya?" during the 1977 FAMAS Awards Night (heart attack) b. September 17th 1948.
2009: Kenny Dino/Kenneth J. Diono (67) American pop singer; Kenny spent several months stationed in Iceland while serving in the Navy, he came runner-up in a talent show with his version of a song by Elvis Presley. Back in America he put together a band which toured in Texas and Louisiana. He frequently played with Doug Sahm at the San Antonio Blues Club at this time. Moving to New York he released his only hit record "Your Ma Said You Cried in Your Sleep Last Night", in 1961. Robert Plant later covered this song on his 1990 release, Manic Nirvana. Kenny was offered a chance to duet with Paul Simon but turned it down. (He was driving from Melbourne, Florida to his home in Cocoa after finishing a gig. He pulled over to the side of the road where he suffered a fatal heart attack) b. July 12th 1939.
2011: Karryl "Special One" Smith (?) American rapper one half of the female rap duo The Conscious Daughters from the Bay Area, California. Along with Carla "CMG" Green, they released their first album, Ear to the Street that same year. Their 1994 single and video release "Somethin' to Ride (Fonky Expedition)", helped TCD gain national recognition. They released their third and final album The Nutcracker Suite February 10th 2009 (sadly Karryl died of complications resulting from a blood clot) b.????

December 11th.
1964: Sam Cooke (33) US R & B, gospel and soul singer; he was a pioneer and one of the most important soul singers in history, some call him the inventor of soul music and he's souls most popular and beloved performer in both the black and white communities. In the early and mid 50's he sang with The Soul Stirrers where he wrote and recorded 14 tracks and wrote or arranged a further 10 for them. He brought out his first solo record "Lovable" in 1956 while still a member of The Soul Stirrers, but under the name of Dale Cooke. Leaving the group in 1957 he went on to have 29 Top 40 hits in the U.S. between 1957 and 1965, including hits like "You Send Me", "Summertime", "A Change Is Gonna Come", "Chain Gang", "Wonderful World" and "Bring It on Home to Me". He was also among the first modern black performers and composers to be active on the business side of the music. He founded his own record label SAR Records in 1961, followed by a publishing imprint and management firm, both as an extension of his career. In 1986, he was inducted as a charter member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, In 1999, he was honored with the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award, and in 2008 Rolling Stone magazine named him the 4th Greatest Singer of All Time (shot to death by Bertha Franklin, manager of the Hacienda Motel in South L. A., who claimed that he had threatened her, and she killed him in self-defense, the details of the case are still in dispute) b. January 22nd 1931.
1975: Lee Wiley (67) American jazz singer born in Fort Gibson, Oklahoma; while still in her early teens, Lee left home to begin a career singing with the Leo Reisman band. In 1939, she made a 78 album set of eight Gershwin songs with a small group for Liberty Music Shops. The set sold well and was followed by 78 album sets dedicated to Cole Porter in 1940 and Richard Rodgers & Lorenz Hart in 1940 (and 1954), Harold Arlen in 1943 and Vincent Youmans and Irving Berlin in 1951. In 1954, she opened the very first Newport Jazz Festival accompanied by Bobby Hackett. She later recorded two of her finest albums, West of the Moon in 1956 and A Touch of the Blues in 1957 before retiring (colon cancer) b. October 9th 1908.
1998: James Lynn Strait (30) US singer; best known as founder member, lead vocalist and lyricist of the metal/punk band Snot. The band recorded one album before his death "Get Some" in 1997. When the band performed on the 1998 Ozzfest tour, he was arrested in Mansfield, Massachusetts, for indecent exposure after emerging nude from the oversized toilet prop used by Limp Bizkit in their performances. Lynn also appeared as a guest on Tura Satana's song 'Down', a duet with friend Tairrie B on Manhole/Tura Satana's first album. In 2000, Snot released the album, Strait Up, as a tribute to Lynn, the album features appearances by the lead vocalists of a number of major rock groups (killed tragically when a truck struck his Ford Tempo on the 101 Freeway near Santa Barbara at approximately 1 p.m) b. August 7th 1968.
2004: M.S. Subbulakshmi/Madurai Shanmukhavadivu Subbulakshmi (88) Indian singer; well known for her Carnatic voice, and widely regarded as the premier female classical vocalist of her generation. Her first public performance during the Mahamaham festival at Kumbakonam at the age of eight, and released her first recording at the age of ten. By the age of 17, she was giving concerts on her own, including major performances at the Madras Music Academy. She traveled to London, New York, Canada, the Far East, and other places, performing concerts at Carnegie Hall, New York; the UN General Assembly; the Royal Albert Hall, London; and at the Festival of India in Moscow. She was the first musician ever to be awarded the Bharat Ratna, India's highest civilian honor (complications relating to pneumonia and cardiac irregularities) b. September 16th 1916.
2006: Walter Ward (66) American R&B singer, lead vocalist of The Olympics; in 1954 when he was attending Centinela High School in Inglewood, CA, he and his cousin Eddie Lewis formed a group The Challengers. After winning a number of talent shows, they were approached by another singing duo who asked to join forces. In 1955 the quartet became The Olympics. His last performance with The Olympics was on November 12th 2006, at a Doo-Wop Spectacular on Long Island, New York just a month before his sad death (?) b.August 28th 1940.
2007: Christie Hennessy/Edward Christopher Ross (62) Irish folk singer-songwriter born in Tralee, County Kerry, and left school at age 11; he wrote several songs that became hits for other singers including 'Don't Forget your Shovel', made famous by Christy Moore and 'All the Lies that You Told Me', recorded by Frances Black. He had recently gone into the studio to record an album with both Luka Bloom and Christy Moore sharing vocals on one of the tracks (died from mesothelioma, which has been attributed to his younger years working on building sites in London) b. November 19th 1945.
2007: Lee Vincent/Vincent Michael Cerreta (91) American bassist and radio personality for WILK radio in Pennsylvania. After fighting in WW II and playing at that time with band leader Glenn Miller, from 1943 to 1946, he formed his own bands. His Lee Vincent Orchestra, the Lee Vincent Band and the Lee Vincent Trio, played alongside Nat King Cole, Frank Sinatra, Jr., Aretha Franklin, Clay Aiken, and many others. He also worked as a disc jockey for WILK, and other stations promoting big band music (died of heart failure) b. April 15th 1916.
2011: Enric Barbat (68) Spanish Catalan language singer, member of Els Setze Jutges. () b.

December 12th.
1949: Henry "Harry" Thacker Burleigh (83) African American baritone singer, classical composer and arranger born in Erie, Pennsylvania; he was the first black composer to be instrumental in the development of a characteristically American music and he helped to make black music available to classically-trained artists both by introducing them to the music and by arranging the music in a more classical form. He made the first formal orchestral arrangements for more than 100 Negro spirituals, including 'Nobody Knows (the Trouble I've Seen)'. Harry's best-known compositions are his arrangements of these spirituals, as art songs. They were so popular during the late 1910s and 1920s, that almost no vocal recitalist gave a concert in a major city without occasionally singing them, including 'Little Mother of Mine', 'Dear Old Pal of Mine', 'Under a Blazing Star', and 'In the Great Somewhere'. He was also the 1917 winner of the NAACP's Spingarn Medal. The Spingarn Medal is awarded annually by the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) for outstanding achievement by an African American. (?) b. December 2nd 1866.
1951: Mildred Bailey/Mildred Rinker (44) American jazz singer known as "Mrs. Swing", she became an established blues and jazz singer and during the 1930s. Her number one hits were "Please Be Kind", "Darn That Dream", and "Says My Heart" other recordings include "Rockin' Chair", "The Lamp Is Low", "I Don't Stand a Ghost of a Chance with You", "It's The Natural Thing To Do", "Thanks for the Memory", "Bob White", "I'm Glad There is You", "Love's A Necessary Thing", and many others (sadly died of heart failure) b. February 27th 1907.
1957: Eric Coates (71) English composer of light music and a viola player. His music, with its simple and memorable melodies, proved particularly effective for theme music. As well as "Knightsbridge", the BBC also used Calling All Workers-1940 as the theme for the radio programme Music While You Work and By the Sleepy Lagoon-1930 is still used to introduce the long-running radio programme Desert Island Discs. His "Halcyon Days", the first movement of the suite The Three Elizabeths, was used as the theme to the 1967 BBC TV series The Forsyte Saga, although he received no credit. This piece was originally written in the early 1940s. It was later used as a celebration of the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II. He also wrote a number of pieces which were used as television start-up music: the BBC Television March (for BBC-TV), was used daily from 1946 to the end of 1958 and occasionally from then until 1960, the Rediffusion March, written as Music Everywhere; for Associated-Rediffusion, from 1956-57, Sound and Vision for ATV in London from 1955-68 and in the Midlands from 1956-71, and the South Wales and the West Television March for TWW from 1958-68. He is also well-known for his contribution to the film score for The Dam Busters-1954 (sadly died from a stroke) b. August 27th 1886.
1985: Ian Stewart (47) Scottish keyboardist and co-founder of The Rolling Stones; with his love of rhythm & blues, boogie-woogie, blues and big-band jazz, hewas first to respond to Brian Jones's advertisement in Jazz News of 2 May 1962 seeking musicians to form a rhythm & blues group. Mick Jagger and Keith Richards joined in June, and the group, with Dick Taylor on bass and Mick Avory on drums, played their first gig under the name The Rollin' Stones at the Marquee Club on 12 July 1962. Because the band's manager Andrew Oldham did not think Ian fitted the image he wanted to market and thought six was too many members, so he officially "left the group" in 1963, but continued until his death as their road manager and pianist playing on all their albums of the first decade among others. In 1975 Stewart joined the band on stage again, playing piano on numbers of his choosing throughout tours in 1975-76, 1978 and 1981-82. He favoured blues and country rockers, and remained dedicated to boogie-woogie and early rhythm & blues. As well as his life with the Rolling Stones he contributed to Led Zeppelin's "Rock and Roll" from Led Zeppelin IV and "Boogie With Stu" from Physical Graffiti. Another was Howlin' Wolf's 1971 London Sessions. He also played with the back-to-roots band Rocket 88. Ian was inducted posthumously in The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1989 with the band (Ian began having respiratory problems. On 12 December he went to a clinic to have the problem checked out; he tragically suffered a heart attack and died in the waiting room) b. July 18th 1938.
1987: Enrique Jorrín (60) Cuban composer, violinist and band director, famous as the inventor of the Cuban dance music called cha-cha-chá. Brought up in Havana, he started to learn the violin at aged 12, and later studied at the Municipal Conservatory of Havana. While a member of Orquesta América in the early 1950s, he created a new genre of dance music which became known as the cha-cha-chá. In 1964, he toured Africa and Europe with his orchestra, Orquesta de Enrique Jorrín, then in 1974, he organized a new charanga, which included singer Tito Gómez and pianist Rubén González. This orchestra is still active in Havana and includes many songs by Enrique in their active repertoire (?) b. December 25th 1926.
1988: Jim Bulliet (79) American founder of Bullet Records which he started in 1945 based in Nashville, USA; the label's first national hit was Francis Craig's pop recording of "Near You" made in early 1947, and in 1949 they released B. B. King's first commercial single, Miss Martha King. But the label was known for country music artists such as Boots Woodall's Radio Wranglers. Jim was also an early partner and was founded with the financial aid Sun Records (died in Nashville, TN) b. 1909
1991: Ronnie Ross (58) British Indian-born alto-tenor-baritone saxophonist, clarinet player, and arranger; he moved to England in 1946 and began playing tenor saxophone in the 1950s with Tony Kinsey, Ted Heath, and Don Rendell. During his tenure with Rendell he switched to baritone saxophone. He played at the Newport Jazz Festival in 1958 and formed a group called the Jazz Makers with drummer Allan Ganley that same year. He toured the United States in 1959 and Europe later that year with the Modern Jazz Quartet. From 1961 to 1965 he played with Bill LeSage, and later with Woody Herman, John Dankworth, Friedrich Gulda, and Clark Terry. Ronnie was a saxophone tutor for a young David Bowie, and years later was the soloist on the Lou Reed song "Walk on the Wild Side", which was co-produced by Bowie. He also had guest appearances as a soloist on several Matt Bianco albums (died in London, UK) b. October 2nd 1933.
1998: Gilbert Favre (62) Swiss-Bolivian flautist, he also played the quena as a founding member of the popular Bolivian folk group Los Jairas, and was commonly referred to as "El Gringo". While living in Chile, as an assistant to the Swiss anthropologist Jean Christian Spahni, he and Violeta Parra met and fell in love, provoking Parra's divorce. Gilbert eventually left for Bolivia and started playing and experimenting with Andean music with virtuoso guitar player Alfredo Dominguez and renowned Ernesto Cavour, but Violeta would follow and be part of the scene of La Paz for a while. Gilbert moved back to Geneva in the early 1960's together with Violeta. After a few years in Europe, they returned to South America. Soon after Gilbert left Violeta for good, sadly she committed suicide. Gilbeert returned to Europe to settle in the Dordogne area of France (?) b. November 19th 1936.
2006: Kenny Davern (71) American jazz clarinetist and occasional sax player; at the age of 16 he joined the musician's union, first as a baritone saxophone player. In 1954 he joined Jack Teagarden's Band, and after only a few days with the band he made his first jazz recordings. Later on, Kenny worked with bands led by Phil Napoleon and Pee Wee Erwin before joining the Dukes of Dixieland in 1962. The late 1960s found him free-lancing with, among others, Red Allen, Ralph Sutton, Yank Lawson and his life-long friend Dick Wellstood. In the 70s Kenny and Bob Wilber co-led Soprano Summit, enjoying a very successful string of record dates and concerts. Leading his own quartets since the 1990s, he has preferred the guitar to the piano in his rhythm section, employing guitarists Bucky Pizzarelli, Howard Alden and James Chirillo. In 1997, Kenny was inducted into the Jazz Hall of Fame at Rutgers University, and in 2001 he received an honorary doctorate of music at Hamilton College, New York (died from heart attack) b. January 7th 1935.
2007: Ike Wister Turner (76) American rock 'n' roll pioneer, singer, guitarist, bandleader, talent scout, and record producer; in 1951, among many othe acheivements, he penned what historians have debated as "the first rock and roll record" with "Rocket 88, and is famed for his 16 years as one half of Ike and Tina Turner and is a 2 time Grammy award winner >>> READ MORE <<< (died of a cocaine overdose) b. November 5th 1931.
2011: Malina Olinescu (37) Romanian singer who represented her country at the Eurovision Song Contest 1998 with the song "Eu cred"/"I Believe" and placed 22nd (Tragically commited suicide) b. January 29th 1974.
2011: John Atterberry (40) American music industry executive, he had been vice president of Death Row Records, a record label that was founded in 1991 by Dr Dre and Suge Knight, and was once home to some of rap's biggest names, including Tupac Shakur and Snoop Dogg. John had also worked with artists including Michael Jackson, the Spice Girls, Christina Aguilera and Jessica Simpson (Tragically John was shot at close range by a gunman, later named as Tyler Brehm, who opened fire on Sunset Boulevard, Hollywood. Brehm repeatedly shot at pedestrians and vehicles and was killed by an off-duty police officer) b. ????
2011: John Gardner (94) British classical music composer born in Manchester, England and brought up in Ilfracombe, North Devon. He composed prolifically throughout his life, among the major works are two symphonies, two operas – The Visitors in 1972 and Tobermory -1976, concertos for Trumpet, Flute, Oboe and Recorder and Bassoon, many cantatas, including The Ballad of the White Horse, Op. 40 -1959, Five Hymns in Popular Style, Op. 54 -1962, A Burns Sequence, Op. 213 -1993, as well as much choral, chamber, organ, brass and orchestral music. John's best known work is the Christmas carol "Tomorrow Shall Be My Dancing Day", which was written for St Paul's, as was another popular carol setting, "The Holly and the Ivy". He was made a Commander of the Order of the British Empire-CBE in 1976. (?) b. March 2nd 1917.

December 13.
1960: John Charles Thomas (59) American baritone known for his exuberant singing style and powerful voice. After leaving the Peabody Institution in 1912, he traveled briefly with a touring musical company, then settled in New York where he performed with a Gilbert & Sullivan company before signing to the Shubert Brothers in The Peasant Girl which opened in 1913. For the next nine years, he starred in a series of hit Broadway musicals including Her Soldier Boy, Maytime, Naughty Marietta, and Apple Blossoms (with Fred and Adele Astaire). His opera debut was as Amonasro in Aida presented by the semi-professional Washington National Opera in March, 1925. From 1925 -1932, he spent his time in Europe, singing under contract at La Monnaie opera house in Brussels for the seasons of 1925-1927. He returned to La Monnaie for 25 performances in 1928, 8 in 1930, and 4 in 1931. He appeared with Chaliapin in performances of Faust at Covent Garden, London in July 1928. In 1938 he helped Edwin Lester launch the Los Angeles Civic Light Opera, appearing in the company's very first production as Franz Schubert in Blossom Time, a Viennese operetta Das Dreimäderlhaus. He toured Australia in the 40s as Sir John Charles Thomas. John was engaged to star on the Westinghouse Radio Program from 1943-1946 with the Victor Young Orchestra. He gradually retired from the concert stage after 1950, and settled in Apple Valley, California (?) b. September 6th 1891.
1962: Harry Barris (57) American popular singer-songwriter and pianist born in New York City, he was a member of the Rhythm Boys, a late 1920s singing trio which included Al Rinker and Bing Crosby, and was Crosby's entry into show business. The group sang several songs in the Paul Whiteman Orchestra film King of Jazz in 1930 and recorded both with Whiteman and on their own with Harry on piano. Going solo Harry appeared in 57 films between 1931 and 1950, usually as a band member, pianist and/or singer. He successfully composed songs including "Mississippi Mud", "I Surrender, Dear", "It Must Be True" and "Wrap Your Troubles in Dreams". (sadly due to an unfortunate life-long drinking problem, he died prematurely) b. November 24th 1905.
1983: Marshall Brown (62) American jazz trombonist and sometimes bass trumpet or euphonium. He was one of the few left-handed players of the trombone. He earned a music degree from New York University.Over his career he performed and recorded with Pee Wee Russell, Ruby Braff, Beaver Harris and Lee Konitz, but he devoted much of his career to education (?) b. ??.??.1920
2001: Charles Michael "Chuck" Schuldiner (33) American musician and genre innovator. He is best known for being the founder, singer, lead guitar player and main songwriter of Death, which he founded in 1983 as Mantas, and was one of the first bands of the death metal genre. He played an important role in the development of death metal with his band Death, which later evolved into more of a progressive metal sound. Originally inspired by the likes of inspired by Iron Maiden, Kiss and Billy Idol, and was particularly interested in the metal movement known as NWOBHM, Kerrang! magazine stated that "Chuck Schuldiner was one of the most significant figures in the history of metal" (cancer) b. May 13th 1967.
2002: Zal Yanovsky (57) Canadian guitarist; an early rock n roll performer to wear a cowboy hat, and fringed "Davy Crockett" style clothing, he helped set the trend followed by such 1960s performers as Sonny Bono, Johnny Rivers and David Crosby. He joined Cass Elliot in the Mugwumps, a group made famous by her later group the Mamas & the Papas, in the song "Creeque Alley"; after which he and John Sebastian formed the Lovin' Spoonful. The band became an immediate smash with their first single, "Do You Believe in Magic?" a Top Ten hit in 1965, which led off a remarkable string of hits that established the Spoonful as one of the few American bands that could challenge the chart dominance of the Beatles and their British Invasion contemporaries. He recorded a solo album, Alive and Well in Argentina in 1971, did a stint playing guitar with Kris Kristofferson and co-produced Tim Buckley's 1969 album Happy Sad in collaboration with Jerry Yester, before returning to Canada to become a restaurateur. He and Spoonful have reunited on a couple of occasions, filming an appearance in Paul Simon's 1980 film One Trick Pony and performing some of their hits on stage on the occasion of the band's 2000 induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. (heart attack) b. December 19th 1944.
2005: Timothy Anderson Jordan II (24) American keyboardist, guitarist, and songwriter. He was primarily known as a touring member of the platinum-selling band, The All-American Rejects. Tim played with Green Olive Tree, and in 2003 he enlisted in Snapdragon Records' punk band Welton before providing backing vocals, keyboards, and percussion to Number One Fan's live performances, including the 2005 Warped Tour, a Late Show with David Letterman appearance, and performances on Jimmy Kimmel Live. In 2005 Tim left The All-American Rejects to join Tooth & Nail rock band Jonezetta (Sadly he took his own life) b. March 8th 1981.
2007: Philippe Clay/Philippe Mathevet (80) French singer, mime artist and actor, known for for his interpretations of songs by Charles Aznavour, Claude Nougaro, Jean-Roger Caussimon and others. He was seen frequently on TV in series directed by Josée Dayan in the 1980s and 1990s. He recorded over 150 songs in his long career. (heart failure) b. March 7th 1927.
2009: Yvonne King Burch (89) American singer born in Salt Lake City, Utah; Yvonne sang with here sisters Donna, Louise and Alyce under the name The King Sisters. Formed in the '30s they traveled to San Francisco to audition for radio station KGO, to replace the Boswell Sisters. In 1935, they worked with bandleader Horace Heidt until 1938. In the following years, they separately and together sang with the bands of Artie Shaw and Charlie Barnet. They also turned down a request to be the vocal group for the Glenn Miller orchestra. They recorded for the same label as Miller, Bluebird, and had their first hit with a vocal version of Miller's hit, "In The Mood". Luise married guitarist Alvino Rey, and they appeared with him in a series of hit songs. They also appeared in a number of Hollywood features in the 1940s. During World War II, they appeared regularly on Kay Kyser's radio series. In 1965, they began hosting their own ABC television network show, The King Family Show, which featured many family members as well as other talent, the show ran until '69. (Yvonne had a fall while at her nephew Cam's cabin, she was rushed to the hospital, but sadly died several days later) b. January 15th 1920.
2010: Enrique Morente Cotelo (67) Spanish flamenco singer born in Albaicín, Granada; while in his teens, he went to live in Madrid to start a professional career as a singer. Hemade his first recording, Cante Flamenco in 1967 with guitarist Félix de Utrera. The recording received a special mention award from the Cátedra de Flamencología, and was followed by Cantes Antiguos del Flamenco in 1969, with guitarist Niño Ricardo. After his orthodox beginnings, he went into experimentalism, writing new melodies for cante/flamenco singing and jamming with musicians of all styles, without renouncing his roots in traditional flamenco singing, which he kept on cultivating. In spite of severe criticism from the most "purist" amongst the critics and public, he is probably the most influential contemporary flamenco singer, who not only innovates, but could also be said to create tradition: some of his cantes have been performed by other singers such as Camarón de la Isla, Mayte Martín, Carmen Linares, Miguel Poveda, Segundo Falcón and Arcángel (In December 2010 it was reported that Enrique had fallen into a coma after an ulcer operation, and tragically diagnosed as brain dead) b. December 25th 1942.
2010: Remmy Ongala (63) Tanzanian singer, born in Kivu, Democratic Republic of the Congo, known as "the Doctor" because he was seen as a defender of the people. There is a suburb of Dar es Salaam called Sinza Kwa Remmy, named after the musician when he moved to the area in the 1980s. Since the late 1980s, Remmy was part of the soukous scene, a Congolese kind of Rumba, which in conjunction with his Orchestra Super Matimila he helped to transmute to the Tanzanian music often called Ubongo, the Swahili word for brain, in Tanzania, which in turn led to Tanzanian hip-hop particularly in the city of Dar es Salaam during the 1990s. Despite his ill-health he had toured in Tanzania until recently, mainly performing gospel music (?) b. 1947.
2010: Woolly Wolstenholme/Stuart John Wolstenholme (63) English keyboardist, born in Chadderton, Lancs; he met John Lees at Oldham School of Art, when he played tambourine and sang with John in The Sorcerers, then in The Keepers, where Woolly played whatever instrument was required, from harmonica to 12-string guitar. The pair then founded Barclay James Harvest, together with Les Holroyd and Mel Pritchard, in 1967. Woolly taught himself keyboards, first the Mellotron and then adapting to organ, piano and synthesisers. His musical influences range from Love and Vanilla Fudge through Mahler to UK and Radiohead. He remained with the band until 1979. He recorded a solo album, Mæstoso, in 1980, and toured as support to Judie Tzuke and Saga, as well as writing film and TV music. In 1998 after meeting John Lees again, resulted in the Eagle Records album Nexus credited to Barclay James Harvest Through The Eyes Of John Lees. The album was followed by live shows in Austria, Greece, Germany, Switzerland and the UK, the first English concerts by any members of Barclay James Harvest for nine years (sadly Woolly committed suicide, after struggling hard with mental illness) b. April 15th 1947.

December 14.
1963: Dinah Washington (39) US singer; because of her strong voice and emotional singing, she is known as the "Queen of the Blues". She became one of the most influential vocalists of the twentieth century, credited among others as a major influence on Aretha Franklin. At 16 as Ruth Jones, she toured the US black gospel circuit with Roberta Martin accompanying her at the piano. There was a period when she performed in clubs as Dinah Washington while singing and playing piano in Sallie Martin's gospel choir as Ruth Jones. In 1943, she began recording for Keynote Records and released the 12-bar blues "Evil Gal Blues", her first hit. She then switched to Chicago-based Mercury Records and from 1948 to 1955, she had numerous hits on the R&B charts, including "Am I Asking Too Much", "Baby, Get Lost," "Trouble in Mind", ""I Won't Cry Anymore", "TV is The Thing This Year", "Teach Me Tonight" and a cover of Hank Williams's "Cold, Cold Heart". In 1959, she won a Grammy Award for Best Rhythm and Blues Performance. With "What a Diff'rence a Day Makes" and in 1986 inducted into the Alabama Jazz Hall of Fame. (sadly died from an accidental overdose of prescription diet pills mixed with alcohol, she had fought weight problems for most of her life, she was dieting to lose weight for the festive season) b. August 29th 1924.
1997: Kurt Winter (51) Canadian guitarist with the highly successful rock band The Guess Who; he started his career with the Winnipeg bands the Fifth, Brother, Gettysbyrg Address, and before joining Guess Who in 1970. He played stunning machine gun style solos on such hits as "Raindance" and "Albert Flasher". After leaving the band he went into the world of business as well as regrouping with various incarnations of "Guess Who" under the leadership of bassist Jim Kale (kidney failure) b. April 2nd 1946.
2001: Secondo "Conte" Candoli (74) American jazz trumpeter based on the West Coast of the US. He played in the big bands of Woody Herman, Stan Kenton, Benny Goodman, and Dizzy Gillespie, and in Doc Severinsen's NBC Orchestra on The Tonight Show. He played with Gerry Mulligan, and on Frank Sinatra's TV specials. He also recorded with a band called Supersax, a Charlie Parker tribute band that consisted of a saxophone quintet, the rhythm section, and either a trumpet or trombone. He was inducted into The International Jazz Hall of Fame in 1997 (died after a long battle with prostate cancer) b. July 12th 1927.
2002: Ruth Kobart/Ruth Maxine Finkelstein (78) American performer, whose six-decade career encompassed opera, Broadway musical theatre, regional theatre, films, and television. Born in in Des Moines, Iowa, she made her professional debut as the Witch a production of Engelbert Humperdinck's Hänsel und Gretel. With the NBCOT she notably created the role of Agata in the world premiere of Gian Carlo Menotti's Maria Golovin in Brussels in 1958. For the NBC she also created the role of Arina in the premiere of Bohuslav Martinu's The Marriage. In 1953, she made her Broadway debut in the chorus of Rodgers and Hammerstein's Pipe Dream. She also understudied leading lady Helen Traubel and played her role twenty times times during the show's run. Additional Broadway credits included How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, A Flea in Her Ear, and Three Sisters. She was nominated for the 1963 Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical for Forum. As well as many other stage rolls Ruth's television credits included a regular role on Bob and guest appearances on CHiPs, Archie Bunker's Place, St. Elsewhere, Matt Houston, Remington Steele, Midnight Caller, and Murphy Brown (sadly died of pancreatic cancer) b. April 24th 1924.
2006: Ahmet Ertegün (83) Turkish-American co-founder and executive of Atlantic Records and chairman of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and museum, described as "one of the most significant figures in the modern recording industry". He also co-founded the New York Cosmos soccer team of the North American Soccer League. In his early days he wrote a number of classic blues songs, including "Chains of Love" and "Sweet Sixteen", under the pseudonym "A. Nugetre" (Ertegün backwards). "Nugetre" also wrote the Ray Charles hit "Mess Around", with lyrics that drew heavily on Pinetop Smith. He also was part of the shouting choral group on Turner's "Shake, Rattle and Roll". In 1987, he was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, of which he himself was a founder.(On Oct 29, 2006 he slipped and hit his head while backstage at a Rolling Stones performance in New York for the 60th birthday of former US President Bill Clinton. Although he was initially in stable condition, Ahmet soon took a turn for the worse, he fell into a coma from which he did not recover) b. July 31st 1923.
2007: Frank Morgan (73) American jazz saxophonist with a career spanning more than 50 years. He mainly played alto saxophone but also played soprano saxophone. During the 1950s he was known as a Charlie Parker protege and recorded several bebop albums. He started taking heroin at the age of 17, became addicted and ended up spending time on and off in a few Californian prisons. In the 60's while at San Quentin prison, he formed a small ensemble with another addict and sax player, Art Pepper. The Frank Morgan Quartet featured Dolo Coker on piano, Flip Greene on bass and Larance Marable on drums and in 1985 he started recording again, releasing Easy Living in June 1985. He suffered a stroke in 1998, but subsequently recovered and recorded additional albums. From '85 till his death in 2007 he relaesed 16 albums. (heart related) b. December 23rd 1933.
2009: Chris Feinstein (42) American bassist; he joined Ryan Adams & the Cardinals in 2006 as a touring member and played bass on their 2007 releases 'Easy Tiger' and the 'Follow the Lights' EP, as well as 2008's 'Cardinology.' He was also a major contributor to the 2002 'I Am Sam' soundtrack, serving as a producer and playing bass, guitar and percussion. Prior to this Chris played bass with a variety of different musicians, including Fat Joe on his 2002 album 'Loyalty', Albert Hammond Jr.'s 2006 album 'Yours to Keep' and on Minnie Driver's 2008 album 'Seastories'. Chris and longtime Adams’ drummer Brad Pemberton had played in bands together since attending high school in Nashville. (died at his home in Manhattan. The cause of death is still unknown). b. May 26th 1967.
2011: Billie Jo Spears (74) American country music singer; born Billie Jean Spears in Beaumont, Texas, she made her professional debut at age 13 at a country music concert in Houston, and after graduating from high school, she sang in nightclubs. Billie cut her first single "Too Old For Toys, Too Young For Boys" in Jack Rhodes' makeshift recording studio,while still a teenager, before moving to Nashville, Tennessee in 1964. Billie did not follow the new type of Country called countrypolitan, like many artists of that time and proved to Nashville that country music could still have a more earthy sound. Her first hit came in 1969, when her "Mr. Walker It's All Over" reached No.4 on the Country >>> READ MORE <<< (Sadly died battling cancer) b. January 14th 1937.
2011: Ed Roman (61) American guitar maker guitar-maker for the stars, he found a platform for fierce opinions about his commercially manufactured competition, exhorting musicians to drop what he called "misdirected ignorant brand loyalty". Ed worked on motorcycles before turning to guitar building in 1976, and his guitars found their way into the hands of everyone from Ted Nugent to British rockers Eric Burdon of The Animals and John Entwistle of The Who. Ed, sometimes likened to a Viking for his red hair, was unafraid to unleash self-described politically incorrect opinions about foreign-made products, chain stores and corporate guitar manufacturers. Also a singer and a bassist, he was in the process of recording albums of his own before his unexpected death (sadly died after a short illness) b. February 24th 1950.

December 15th.
1943: Fats Waller/Thomas Wright Waller (39) African-American jazz pianist, organist, composer and comedic entertainer.A skilled pianist, widely recognized as a master of stride piano, he was one of the most popular performers of his era, finding critical and commercial success in America and in Europe. He wrote or co-wrote classics such as "Honeysuckle Rose", "Ain't Misbehavin'" and "Squeeze Me". A prolific composer of novelty swing tunes in the 1920s and 30s, he sold many of his compositions for relatively small sums, and as they became hits, other songwriters had already claimed them as their own. He was once kidnapped by four men, a terrified Waller found he was the 'surprise guest' at Al Capone's birthday party. He had a successful tour of the UK and Ireland in the late 1930s, and appeared in one of the earliest BBC Television broadcasts. He appeared in several feature films and short subject films, most notably "Stormy Weather" in 1943, which was released only months before his death. His inductions include - Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1970; Big Band and Jazz Hall of Fame in 1989; Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 1993; 2005 Jazz at Lincoln Center: Nesuhi Ertegun Jazz Hall of Fame and in 2008 he was inducted into the Gennett Records Walk of Fame (died of pneumonia aboard an eastbound train in the vicinity of Kansas City, Missouri, following a west coast engagement) b. May 21st 1904.
1944: Glenn Miller (40) American jazz musician, arranger, composer and band leader in the swing era. He was one of the best-selling recording artists from 1939 to 1942, leading one of the best known "Big Bands". His signature recordings include, "In the Mood", "Tuxedo Junction", "Chattanooga Choo Choo", "Moonlight Serenade", "Little Brown Jug", and "Pennsylvania 6-5000". In 1926, he toured and played with Ben Pollack's group in Los Angeles, during which he wrote several musical arrangements of his own. He earnt a living as a freelance trombonist in several bands. In November of 1929, an original vocalist named Red McKenzie hired Glenn to play on two records that are now considered to be jazz classics: "Hello, Lola" and "If I Could Be With You One Hour Tonight". Not only were these 2 numbers considered major musical items, but they also represented one of the major breakthroughs in blacks and whites playing together. He was a member of Red Nichols’s orchestra in 1930, his bandmates included Benny Goodman and Gene Krupa. In the mid-1930s, Miller also worked as a trombonist and arranger in The Dorsey Brothers ill-fated co-led orchestra, where he composed the song "Annie's Cousin Fanny" and "Dese Dem Dose" for the Dorsey Brothers Band. In 1935, he assembled an American orchestra for British bandleader Ray Noble, developing the arrangement of lead clarinet over four saxophones that eventually became the sonic keynote of his own big ban. (While travelling to entertain U.S. troops in France during WW II, his plane disappeared in bad weather over the English Channel. His body was never found) b. March 1st 1904.
1954: Oscar "Papa" Celestin (70) New Orleans jazz bandleader, reed player, singer, born in Napoleonville, Louisiana, he played guitar and trombone before deciding on cornet as his main instrument. He took music lessons from Claiborne Williams, and played with the Algiers Brass Band by the early 1900s, also with various small town bands before moving to New Orleans in 1904, at age 20. In New Orleans he played with the Imperial, Indiana, Henry Allen senior's Olympia Brass Bands, and Jack Carey's dance band; early in his career he was sometimes known as "Sonny" Celestin. Around 1910 he got the job as leader of the house band at the Tuxedo Dance Hall on North Franklin St, Storyville. He kept the name "Tuxedo" for the name of his band after the Dance Hall closed. For some years Oscar co-led the Tuxedo Band with trombonist William Ridgely. They made their first recordings with the band during the Okeh Records field trip to New Orleans in 1925. His band became a regular feature at the Paddock Lounge on Bourbon Street in the French Quarter, and made regular radio broadcasts, television appearance, and more recordings. In 1953 Oscar gave a command performance for President Eisenhower at the White House. His last recording singing, was "Marie LaVeau" in 1954. In view of the tremendous contribution Oscar made in jazz throughout his lifetime, the Jazz Foundation of New Orleans had a bust made and donated to the Delgado Museum in New Orleans. Near the end of his life, he was honored as one of the greats of New Orleans music. Over 4000 people marched in his funeral parade (?) b. January 1st 1884
1979: Jackie Brenston (49) American R&B singer and saxophonist born in Clarksdale, Mississippi. After leaving the army 1947, he learned to play the tenor saxophone, linking up with Ike Turner in 1950 as sax player and occasional singer in his band. The local success of Ike’s Kings of Rhythm prompted B. B. King to recommend them to studio owner Sam Phillips in Memphis, Tennessee, where the band made several recordings in early March 1951, including "Rocket 88", on which Brenston sang lead and which he was credited with writing. Phillips passed the recordings on to Chess Records in Chicago, but they released "Rocket 88" as by "Jackie Brenston and his Delta Cats". The record soon reached No.1 on the U.S. Billboard R&B chart and stayed at that position for over a month. It is a very contrivertial believe this to be the first rock and roll record, whatever, Sam Phillips used the success of the record to start Sun Records the following year. After a few more sessions with Ike, Jackie left to play saxophone with Lowell Fulson's band in 1953-1955. After which he rejoined Ike Turner, until the early 1960s. Though he recorded with Turner's Kings of Rhythm throughout those years, Jackie's voice, was heard on only two of the many singles that the band had out during that time. He was forbidden to ever sing Rocket 88 and had been reduced to being Ike Turner's baritone sax-player. After a final recording session with Earl Hooker in 1963, so sadly Jackie's drinking habit had became much worse and he played only occasionally in local bars when he could. (died of a fatal heart attack) b. August 15th 1930.
1979: Richard Charles Rodgers (77) American composer of music for more than 900 songs and for 43 Broadway musicals. He also composed music for films and television. He is best known for his songwriting partnerships with the lyricists Lorenz Hart and Oscar Hammerstein II. His compositions have had a significant impact on popular music down to the present day, and have an enduring broad appeal. He was the first person to win the top show business awards in television, recording, movies and Broadway—an Emmy, a Grammy, an Oscar, and a Tony—now known collectively as an EGOT. An Academy Award in 1945: Best Song "It Might As Well Be Spring" from State Fair; an Emmy Award in 1962: Outstanding Achievement in Original Music Composed Winston Churchill-The Valiant Years; Grammy Awards:1960 for Best Show Album (Original Cast) for The Sound of Music and 1962 for Best Original Cast Show Album for No Strings; Tony Awards in three in 1950: Best Musical, Best Producers, Musical and Best Score all for South Pacific; 1952: Best Musical for The King and I; 1960: Best Musical in The Sound of Music; 1962: Best Composer for No Strings and he recieved three Special Tony Awards in 1962, 72, and 79. He has also won a Pulitzer Prize Special Award and Citation in Letters for Oklahoma! in 1944 and a Pulitzer Prize for Drama for South Pacific in 1950 making him one of two people, Marvin Hamlisch is the other, to receive all five awards (died after surviving cancer of the jaw, a heart attack, and a laryngectomy) b. June 28th 1902.
1981: Samuel Jones (57) American jazz double bassist, cellist and composer born in Jacksonville, Florida. Over his career he played with Bobby Timmons, Tiny Bradshaw, John Lee Hooker, Les Jazz Modes, Kenny Dorham, Illinois Jacquet, Freddie Hubbard, Dizzy Gillespie and Thelonious Monk among others. He is known for his work with Cannonball Adderley from 1959 to 1965, but also spent several years working with Oscar Peterson and Cedar Walton and recorded with Bill Evans in the 1950s. His career primarily revolved around the New York City jazz scene. Samuel wrote the jazz standard "Del Sasser", among other tunes (?) b. November 12th 1924.
1984: Jan Peerce (80) American operatic tenor and father of film director Larry Peerce. In 1932 he was hired as a tenor soloist with the Radio City Music Hall company, he soon had a nationwide following. This led to concert engagements and he made his operatic debut in May of 1938 in Philadelphia as the Duke of Mantua in Rigoletto, followed by his first solo recital in New York in November 1939. He went on to work with the legendary maestro Arturo Toscanini and made his debut with the Metropolitan Opera on November 29, 1941, singing Alfredo in Verdi's La traviata, parts of Cavaradossi in Tosca, Rodolfo in La bohème, and in Gounod's Faust. He was hailed by the critics as the "All-American successor to the 'greats' of opera's almost extinct 'Golden Age'." In 1956 he made a sensation in Moscow as a musical "cultural exchange" ambassador, being the first American to sing with the famed Bolshoi Opera (?) b. June 3rd 1904.
2001: Rufus Thomas (84) American R&B, funky soul singer, songwriter; born in Memphis he was often referred to as "The World's Oldest Teenager", he always answered he was "The World's Finest Teenager". He started his career as a professional entertainer, in 1936 with the Rabbit Foot Minstrels, an all-black revue that toured the South. He then worked for twenty-two years at a textile plant. In 1951 he started at WDIA where he hosted an afternoon show called Hoot and Holler. WDIA, featuring an African-American format, was known as "the mother station of the Negroes" and became an important source of blues and R&B music for a generation, its audience consisting of white as well as black listeners. In the the 60's and 70's his hits included "Walking The Dog", "Do the Funky Chicken", "(Do the) Push and Pull", "The Breakdown" and "Do the Penguin". He performed at Wattstax in 1972, leading a crowd of 40,000 in the "Funky Chicken." (heart attack) b. March 26th 1917.
2008: Davy Graham/Davey Graham (68) UK guitarist, singer and arranger; an influential figure in the 1960s folk music revolution in England, inventing the concept of the folk guitar instrumental. He is best-known for his acoustic instrumental, "Anji" and for his use of Dadgad tuning. He inspired many of the practitioners of the fingerstyle acoustic guitar, such as Bert Jansch, John Renbourn, Martin Carthy, Paul Simon, Eltjo Haselhoff and even Jimmy Page, who heavily based his solo "White Summer" on Graham's "She moved thru' the Bizarre/Blue Raga". He was one of UK's greatest guitarists, revered by many generations of guitarists over his 50 year career, but sadly, ofen over looked by the media (lung cancer) b. November 22nd 1940.
2011: Bob Brookmeyer (81) American jazz valve trombonist, pianist, arranger, and composer, born in Kansas City. He became noticed as a member of Gerry Mulligan's quartet from 1954 to 1957. He later worked with Jimmy Giuffre, before rejoining Mulligan's Concert Jazz Band. In the late 1950s he moved to New York City to work as a freelance arranger. In the 1960s he also worked as a studio musician, co-led a quintet with Clark Terry and worked in and wrote for the Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Orchestra. In 1980 this band recorded an album of his compositions/arrangements. After a period in Europe, he returned to the US, where he continued to write and record and also taught jazz composition at the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston. In June 2005, Bob joined ArtistShare and announced a project to fund an upcoming third album featuring his New Art Orchestra. In September 2011, possibly his last recording Standards was released, it features the New Art Orchestra with vocalist Fay Claassen (?) b. December 19th 1929.

December 16.
1921: Camille Saint-Saëns (86) French keyboardist and composer; he wrote in virtually all genres, including opera, symphonies, concertos, songs, sacred and secular choral music, solo piano, chamber music and revived forgotten dances. His creepy Danse Macabre appears in the 1997 TV series Jonathan Creek. Other popular ones from many include Introduction and Rondo capriccioso, The Carnival of the Animals, Symphony No. 3 (Organ Symphony), Samson and Delilah, and Havanaise (died of pneumonia, at the Hôtel de l'Oasis in Algiers. His body was brought back to Paris for a state funeral at La Madeleine and was buried in the Cimetière du Montparnasse in Paris) b. October 9th 1835
1988: Sylvester James (44) American disco & soul musician, and gay drag performer, known for singing in falsetto, despite a rich baritone voice. He started his career when he moved to San Francisco in 1967, performing in a musical production called Women of the Blues, after which he joined a group of transvestite performance artists called The Cockettes in the early 1970s, with his repertoire of Bessie Smith. He formed a band Sylvester & the Hot Band before starting his solo career. On September 20, 2004 Sylvester's anthem record, "You Make Me Feel (Mighty Real)", was inducted into the Dance Music Hall of Fame. A year later, on September 19, 2005, Sylvester himself was inducted into the Dance Music Hall of Fame for his achievement as an artist (complications from Aids) b. September 6th 1947
1996: Eadie Del Rubio/Edith Bolling Boyd (75) American singer-guitarist; eldest triplet Eadie